Interlaken Bliss

And I'm still moving along, like a leaf drifting lazily through the sun-streaked autumn air.

This has been an absolutely glorious fall in Seattle, possibly one of the best I've experienced (weather-wise) during my eight-year stay in the pacific northwest. And it has inspired an unprecedented motivation to get outside for equally glorious running.

i rediscovered the gift of the lunchtime run a week ago. Wednesday was, as always, scheduled to be a running day, a little 4-miler to recover a bit from Sunday's 8. My normal hours and schedule dictate that I run after work, however, Wednesday found me with plans. My good friend Daryl was kind enough to buy tickets to a musical (In the Heights , which was fabulous, in case you were interested), and I bought dinner for us as a thank you. In other words, there would be no post-work running this day. But, as I've mentioned, it has been an amazing un-Seattle fall, and the sun convinced me that I really didn't need that sandwich and that I would be far more satisfied with a lunchtime jaunt through Capitol Hill, downtown, and the Seattle Center. This happens to be the same route that I ran with Sam a few Fridays ago, but I really took a shining to it - some good hill training mixed with sight-seeing...why not? And it certainly beats a there-and-back a third of the way around Lake Union for the billionth time.

I know that you'll eventually tire of my gushing over the lovely sun in Seattle this autumn, but you have to understand that we're normally going into hibernation/hermit/hiding from the rain mode at this time of year. A typical Seattle October is gray, chilly, wet, and dark, all of which seem like great reasons to forsake a training run for a good cuddle in one's down comforter with a hot toddy in arm's reach.

That said, Friday was absolutely beautiful! It was that thin sunlight characteristic of fall, the kind that slices through the crisp, cool air and makes everything look a little bit surreal. At this point in the season, it seemed only appropriate to seek a tree-heavy route, which clearly brought me to Interlaken. For any of you who don't know, this particular street snakes along the north side of Capitol Hill, covers you in a canopy of tall, tall trees that wore the most colorful leaves. It also seemed like I'd only avoid the tempting draw of happy hour by employing my friend Zach and his awesome puppy Zedd to hold me to my training schedule. The three of us set out and finished a good Friday Five-Miler. I'm still finding more and more that I prefer running with others these days, which is a strange but really lovely change from my formerly solitary habits. I'm especially enjoying the chance to form a better friendship with Zach - he's a great running buddy and a great conversationalist. He makes the runs fly by, and he's helping me feel more and more confident in my ability to make it through the big 13.1.

I fell so much in love with running on Interlaken that I had to do it again. It worked out perfectly - I had a 9 mile run scheduled for Sunday, which did not happen on Sunday for a multitude of reasons (the best of which is spending a day reconnecting with a wonderful friend and hanging out with her amazing family - I couldn't bring myself to leave). So, it obviously needed to happen on Monday. This worked to my advantage because I could easily start in a good spot that didn't put me in the way of too many hills (unless I wanted them), and offers amazing views of the city, regardless of where the route takes me. AS stated, I could not imagine my 9 miler without running interlaken, and it was amazing. I tried this 9 miler with a playlist that differed significantly from the norm. rather than filling my ears with the typical classic rock awesomeness that floats me through most runs, i was enveloped in my classical and jazz piano playlist. i didn't expect how perfectly it would suit my mood and my run. While striding underneath Interlaken's gorgeous canopy, I was taken completely out of myself and out of my mind by Debussy's Arabesque No. 1. I saw the sun set over downtown from the north end of Lake Union while listening to Vince Guaraldi's Christmastime is Here. I think that the lack of lyrics and the moving melody lines put me at ease and helped me relax, which makes a huge difference while running. I cannot attest to this being a recipe for sucess, as my current hypothesis is based on an N=1 (but a 9 miler!). It is quite likely that my success during my run could be attributed to a good mood, but I'm interested to continue testing this new concept.

Anyway, it was a good run. I'm publishing the map on this blog for reference - it was a great route, and I'd recommend it to anyone.


40 days left, and 4 miles to add to my top distance. I think I'm doing okay.