Route: Work 4 Miler
Distance: 4 Miles
Pace: 10:41/mile
Distance: 4 Miles
Pace: 10:41/mile
Temp: 90 Degrees!
Due to some scheduling changes, I was able to do a run right after work a few days back. I knew it was going to be interesting because I work in Troy. MI amongst a bunch of low rise office buildings. It also turned out interesting because for some reason mother nature had it out for me on this run.
First lets take into account that it was hot out. I had no idea how hot it was until after my run, when I as driving home. As you can see below, it was pretty steamy outside:
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| Hot! |
So there was that. I was running mostly through a subdivision that was a little lacking in shade, and it quickly got VERY warm. I don't know about you, but I run much better when it is cooler. I think this mostly has to do with being a big guy, I just don't cool off quickly while exercising.
Nature also decided to assault me with maple helicopters. There was a point in my run where I ran by this nature preserve that was all maple trees by the road. I had those helicopter things hitting my in the eye, all over my face, and really everywhere. This was a good quarter mile of running with my hands over my face.
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| Yeah, these things....thousands of them...in my eyes |
Besides being boiled alive by the heat, needing some body armor to protect me from the helicopters (this is starting to sound a lot like the Hunger Games, not a afternoon run), I had to deal with one final obstacle from nature. Some of the things that affect me the most while running are smells. sometimes running by the Thai place smells really good, and other times it just makes you want to puke.
Well for this run I all of sudden ran by a house whose owner must have had an obsession with lilacs. While normally I like the smell of a lilac, with its deep rich tones; while running it is a totally different story. Those deep rich smells infiltrated my lungs, and all I wanted was clean fresh air, which was already in short supply due to the stiffing heat. There also seemed to be an endless supply of these lilac trees. I....just....wanted....fresh...air.
Finally I emerged from the tunnel of lilacs, and shortly thereafter, my run finished. I was actually not to disappointed in the time, with the heat and unfamiliar running territory. Hopefully I will get a chance to do some more of these runs in the future.
What about you, what are the worst conditions that mother nature has thrown at you during a run?
I kind of love your comments about odors when running. I schedule going to the gym almost entirely around missing lunchtime, not because it's so packed with people on their breaks (which it is) but because right alongside the jogging track they have a soup and salad lunch cart. And there is nothing worse than running into the smell of broccoli-cheddar soup every 1/12 mile. *shudder*
ReplyDeleteThe smell of food doesn't seem to be a huge issue for other people, though, so I was starting to think I was just overly sensitive. Although, since I have seen people eating snacks while on the track(?!), it's entirely possible that I am. Or that I work out at a gym full of people doing it wrong.