Monday, November 24, 2014

Running Hot & Cold

Posted by CheapRunnerMike

Welcome to Monday folks.

As a runner I think I care about the weather more than I ever did…it is a huge influence on my day-to-day.  Here in Southwestern Ontario you never know what to expect.  Here's what we had just a couple of days ago…

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…and then it warmed right up, the rain came in, and we now have no snow at all.  Craziness.

The cold and snow didn't stop me from getting my runs in, including a great 8 mile tempo.  I managed to run 20 seconds per mile faster than marathon pace despite the snow and ice covering the path…always feels good to get in solid workout runs!

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The next day was Friday and the schedule called for 7 miles easy.  I had to modify though as we were heading away for the weekend to go visit my sister and her family and I wouldn't have a chance to get my long run in.  So Friday after work I took off from the house and got in 17 miles at marathon pace.  It was cold though…my face was frozen and the unexpected results of cold weather long runs include frozen fuel…my chews were rock hard!  The snow had started to melt a bit on the paths, but a lot of the melt had just turned to black ice as shadows began to fall across the pathway.  Being a Canadian driver, I recognize black ice fairly easily, so I just took care and watched my step.  I still almost wiped out a couple of times though, one time even getting sideways with both feet slipping, but I managed to stay upright.  17 miles in the books in just under 2 hours…I made it back home just before it started to get dark out.

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As I mentioned, we went to visit my sister and her family up in Kingston…it's such a beautiful spot that they are in.  This picture is literally 100 feet from their door.  The lake was rough and the wind was howling when we got there on Saturday afternoon.  We had a great time with them all though and the weather was much nicer on Sunday.  That allowed Michelle and I to get out for a nice 5K run together and then I finished up with another 5K on my own.  Kingston is an awesome city to run in!  Can't wait to get back during the nicer months to enjoy their paths along the shores of Lake Ontario.

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Anyone else getting crazy weather right now?


Who else is travelling this week?

4 comments:

  1. I'll be staycation-ing it having dinner with the fam here in Dallas. Should be a fun Thanksgiving! I would say happy T-giving to you all but I caught myself ;-) Have a great week!

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  2. Most of NS got snow last week, but we ended up with nothing (thumbs up!) Great job on the run, you are seriously very speedy!!

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  3. Sounds great Chelsea! Hope you have a great Thanksgiving

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  4. Oh lucky...keep that snow at bay!
    And thanks, this new speed has been a lot of fun :)

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