White Weekend

The first flakes began to fall as soon as I got to Georgetown. They were small flakes at first but they quickly began to stick to the ground. A hardy corps of runners including Jarrin, PMurphy, P Hiddy Huge, Dwight, Chuck and a man whose name I forget, negotiated the entire length of the Glover Archibald Trail until we reached Wisconsin Ave. From here we dipped south/east down Reno and then down Calvert Hill. We climbed the Dumbarton Oaks Hill to get back to Georgetown before zigzagging through chic brick neighborhoods that dated back to centuries past. We finished, where we started, back on the Glover Archibald Trail. Though, by now the forest floor was covered in a couple inches of powder. The last half mile was along M Street straight into the wind and falling snow. By the time we finished I had rosy red cheeks and winter white beard. I ran 1:17 but only called it 10. I almost crashed my car twice on the ride home. The first time was coming down the awkward cobble stone steps of 35th Street in Georgetown. Thankfully there were no other cars parked on the street since I fish tailed the entire length of the hill. My heart began to beat again when I finally came to a stop in front of a big truck. Later in the drive, I drove off the road turning into my apartment complex. Luckily I only hit a row of small bushes covered in snow.

On Sunday I met a half dozen runners at The Line. The roads were fairly good, but once we got down past Pierce Mill, we lost our "exclusive" right to the pavement and had to share it with bustling motorcars. The path was chopped up with footprints, bike treads and ski tracks, but we persevered and finally found better footing later up along Connecticut. I had intended to push part of the run, specifically from Ross Drive back to The Line, but Ross still wasn't plowed and was instead peppered with young tikes riding and dragging sleds. I popped a couple of beans and bid adieu to the group at Boulder Bridge. I had no idea how fast I was running but tried to keep my cadence smooth and the pace warm. I checked online later and determined I ran 5:30 pace for just under 4 miles. Once I got back to The Line, I jogged around for another 20 minutes and then called it a day. Though, looking back, I should have kept running and got in 2 hours. I need to force myself to get in the time even if my legs are tired.

I am going to start posting Training Reports every month or so that track my big picture progress; the good, the bad and the fugly. The first such report will be posted either tonight or tomorrow and will cover the period from USATFXC Champs though January.