HeadOn, apply directly where it sweats

As has been, and will be, a theme in my summer writing, it's hot, humid and uncomfortable for running. The favors the DC area did us in early June are now long expired, and the reality of a hot miserable few months is not going away. Cowering won't do me a bit of good, so I've been meeting this hot air head on.

I've survived to Friday, so I get a week in Portland, Oregon, and there's no better reward than that. Highs are at least 20 degrees cooler, and it's a change of scenery. Talking to Steve about the trip he said I'll just start hammering those mountain trails there because you can get into such a groove- I can't wait to get that groove.

I still can't believe how much I enjoyed last year's trip to Reno, all of those pre-dawn runs in such a strange place- half of that city looked like it was hiding from someone. Or in bankruptcy. This will be better in that it won't be completely arid and dusty, and Oregon is by far a much more running-friendly place.

Last week-

Tuesday evening I did an easy 3.5 miles on the treadmill.

Wedesday did a morning Fisherman's 3.25, then in the afternoon did the GRC track workout- 5x1200m. 3:44, 3:43, 3:42, 3:41, then my sweating caught up to me after a 71 second lap on my last one- my legs stopped responding with the turnover I needed. I took a lap off then ran another 71 with everyone else.

Thursday, another morning Fisherman's 3.25, then a 26th street in the evening.

Friday morning, an Idylwood extension for five miles, then a 6.5 mile truncated Westmoreland in the afternoon.

Saturday morning I went to the store, but nobody else showed up, so without anyone to complain, I ran up Wisconsin, around Chevy Chase, then back down. In the evening I did yet another Fisherman's loop to close out the week at 95 miles.

Sunday morning started early with a message from Tex that we did not have a ride to Riley's Lock for the long run. I slept in a bit then ran a loop in Annandale that I had done before, but shortly before I crossed Annandale Road, I missed a turn and wound up winging it for a while. I had some gradually-melting ice in my water bottle, so I was able to take sips when I needed. Trying to do a long run was a losing proposition, though, with the heat being what it was, so I decided to run 13 and if I was up for it, do another 7 closer to home. When I got back to my apartment to get more water, I decided I had run enough and relaxed. I went out later to run seven, doing so down to Arlington Boulevard and running a mile in 4:58, despite the 90 degree heat, then squishing my way home.

Monday I did another Fisherman's loop, which is pretty much my go-to morning run. In the evening, after a protracted haircut, I went out for another 10, out to Vienna and back on the W&OD trail, a route cooled significantly by winds from a thunderstorm to the east, which also treated me to some cool lightning in the distance as I was running back. It seemed a little counter intuitive, running toward the storm, but it was far enough away that it didn't matter.

Tuesday morning I slept in and didn't run in the morning, then headed out to Rosemary Street to do 6x 2/3 mile. I wanted to start them slow, and I thought I was relaxed, but i ran the first two in 3:22 and 3:23, 5:00 pace being 3:21. It was 95 degrees and when I started my third, I just gradually slowed after a minute and stopped two minutes in, then ran a longish cooldown. I should have stuck to a loop with intermediate splits, like the Greenwich mile, because I had no idea where I was on Rosemary if I wasn't at the start or finish.

Wednesday I got up and ran an Oak loop at 7:00 pace, stopping three times to completely wring out my shirt. I lost nine pounds over those 10 miles. That afternoon I did an easy three miles on the treadmill, liking none of it.

Photo by Skip Williams

Thursday was my day off, and I slept in a bit and was delighted to see temperatures in the low 70s with low humidity. Outside it was a friggin' blessing after the previous, well, almost a month. My right hip had been a little sore, perhaps I had been running on the side of the road too much, so I figured soft trails were the best remedy. I went to the Pimmit Run Trail and made it out to Langley High School, then came back. On my way out, I slipped on some mud easing down to cross a creek and tore my left index finger open on some thorns, so I had to spend the next 70 minutes squeezing that finger, and generally the entire hand, into a fist to stop the bleeding. It was so nice that I could have kept going, aside from some vicious thirst, because I didn't stop at the Potomac School's water fountain. About 13.5 miles in 100 minutes- I like that there are enough obstacles that the trail keeps me from hammering, because I needed an easy day to just run. I did a Fisherman's in the afternoon, and am ready to enjoy a slightly chilly week in Oregon.