Ok, so the day after my First Friday Four-miler in Bozeman, I got to do a 60 mile bicycle ride through West Yellowstone to Old Faithful and back. It's a tradition that my mom, my sister, and I have as a way to celebrate my early October birthday. We could not have asked for better weather - sunny, 70F, bison...ya, really.
It's a flat ride, and the hills that do exist really don't hold a candle to what Seattle puts me through on a daily basis. The ease with which I rode the route this year feels like measurable progress, and that sense of accomplishment could not have come at a better time. I'm looking into the possibility of renting a fixed gear bicycle for the ride next year. Ya...really.
Sadly, I could only ride that high for so long. We were completely stretched for time on Sunday, and I didn't have a chance to finish my 6 miles that day (I did see an amazing sunset in Yellowstone, though. If you're interested in those pictures and in the ones I took from the ride, you can check out my set on flickr: Yellowstone). So, threw off my schedule. I decided to just use Sunday as my rest day instead of Tuesday, running 6 miles on Monday and my recovery 3 on Tuesday, then jump back into the regular schedule on Wednesday.
...And every single one of those runs were torture. Even the three milers on Tuesday, Wednesday, and again on Friday. I was sluggish, bored, and my stride and rhythm were completely off. I want to blame it on the route I chose for my 6 miles (yeah...mapmyrun.com failed to save that one, I guess - no map, sorry), which started me west on 85th. If you're ever curious as to why they call that neighborhood crown hill, go running there. Picture Max's crown from Where the Wild Things Are. Now picture running up and down each spike. THAT is Crown Hill, and is the primary reason I hate running up here so much. Anyway, the route brought me down the stairs at 85th and 32nd, along the marina (always lovely), then uphill for 3 F***ING MILES. And it's not an easy uphill haul. Even worse - it was quite possibly the most humidity I've experienced since playing Ultimate in Hawaii. I was totally soaked by the time the run was done. And maybe it can be entirely attributed to the difficulty of that run, the failures, the mental and emotional breakdown as I started freaking out about my ability to finish the Seattle 1/2, but the next three runs just plain sucked. 3 miles, each! I kept them flat, I had the best possible music on my iPod, but it just wasn't right. Still, I completed them, and I'm proud of myself for sticking it out.
...because, let's face it, Sunday's run affirmed my love for this sport. I took a slower pace than my 24-year-old self would have. It took me about 54 minutes to finish this route, but I felt like I could have run another 2 before completely tuckering out. I think a few outside influences helped, too. I was in a particularly delightful mood and I tend to do my best runs when I'm happy at the start. I also, by happenstance, discovered that if a song brings with it wonderful memories, it doesn't have to be a high-adrenaline pump-up song, or one with a beat that matches my stride, so long as it's something that helps me escape to whatever happy mental place I need to reach in order to pull out those last few miles. Finally -- this was my first night training run. I know I should be running in the morning, but I've always felt best at night, and this one was especially nice. Just under 60F, still air, abandoned streets, and that area along the north part of Green Lake where you can see the Queen Anne radio towers and the Space Needle (SO Seattle, and I SO love this city). COnsidering that I've passed the halfway point, I'm feeling better about my ability to finish the 13.1 in late November, and may even consider myself excited.
TOnight's run....yeah. Just reaffirmed that I need to stop running in Greenwood. It just pisses me off too much.
4 tomorrow, and I'll probably be tardy in writing about it, as tomorrow's my birthday! Until next time, happy trails!
3 comments:
I'm really quite jealous you got to bike past some bison. My coolest ride by animal are the ponies on assateague island in MD. Cute, but definitely not as cool as bison!
Greenlake, down Ravenna, up through the campus and out to the stadium, and water activites (canoe rental)area is an old favorite route of mine while at the UW. Magnolia Bluff/Discover Park area as well.
Keep Kickin'!
thanks for leaving the comment on my blog. i miss running in seattle. yes, the city is built on hills, many are pretty challenging for runners and cyclist. yet, i always found some great routes to run there. i miss it! good luck, excited to see how you do.
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