Go, you chicken fat, go away!

Our team didn't run on Saturday.  Everyone was sick.  I decided to do a "longer" run today.  It felt like work, but I'm happy with my pace.
 

I woke up at 5am and got out the door at 7am.  It felt cold today, but it said it was 40º.  Sometimes you just got to trust that you'll warm up while you're running. 

My legs felt heavy today.  My pace was much slower than yesterday.  When I crossed University heading south, I spotted a coyote ahead of me on the Canal road.  I immediately grabbed my camera.  I zoomed it all the way out because I was afraid I would scare it away and wouldn't get a good picture.  I took a couple of pictures and it spotted me, but then it started coming towards me.  I thought, "How close is this guy gonna get?"  Then it finally went down in to the Floodway.  I got about 15 feet away from it and beckoned it to come to me so I could pet it.  There were two other runners coming towards me.  I recognized them as the two ladies I raced last week.  All of the sudden there went another coyote speeding down the middle of the Floodway.  As soon as it passed the first coyote, they both took off.  I yelled at the ladies, "You scared them away!"  They laughed and said they thought it was my dog until they saw me taking pictures of it.

It appears my Strava glitched slightly today, so, I'm entering in my distance from yesterday since I ran the same route.  It felt like work again today, but that's a good thing.  I was heading north along the Floodway path and I spotted a coyote in the bottom of the Floodway.  I stopped and took a picture and watched as it went to the other side of the Floodway where I would be shortly.  I ran to the other side and watched it some more and all of the sudden I saw another one running right by where I was just moments ago on the other side of the Floodway.  How did I miss it?  I  watched them both run south down the middle of the Floodway while I continued running myself.  Then I saw a third coyote.  I wasn't able to get a picture with all of them together.  I saw a guy walking his dog and asked him if he sawa the three coyotes.  He said he only saw two. 

Right before getting back to Adobe I noticed the Canal was filled with water.  I was so preoccupied with the coyotes that I failed to realize they were putting water back into the Canal after having it dry for about a month.  I continued south down the Canal road and I spotted my forth coyote sitting on top of the bank on the other side of the Floodway.  So that's the four I usually see.  I guess.  I wonder how far up and down the Canal they go.  Like, I wonder if that day that I saw 5 of them, if any of the 5 were the same ones I saw today.  Or is there just a bunch of coyotes haning around the Canal.

I should go check on my chickens now and make sure they're all right.

It was 49º this morning.  But it was also completely overcast and dark.  It made for a beautiful run even though I couldn't see anything.  My legs are sore still, so I took it nice and slow.  I have done the same route for the last three days; three loops on the RWCD/Floodway roads.  When I was heading north and crossed University, I saw that the vehicular gate was open.  I looked ahead and could see the tail lights of a truck.  As I kept running, the truck turned around.  Now its headlights were shining at me.  When I got real close it was hard to see due to the glare.  I came about 20 feet from running into this couple.  I had to swerve around them.  I got home and my wife had just finished her run, too.

Just two loops today.  I want to feel fresh for tomorrow.

Two more weeks until Ragnar.  It was me, Vickie, Maggie, Alyssa, and Mike this morning.  I hope Glen is all right.  This is two weeks in a row that he's missed.  He came and paid me for the race last week and told me he might have tweaked his knee.

It was cold again, but I was just wearing shorts and a T-shirt.  I was having to adjust my new reflective straps the entire run as they kept falling off my shoulders.  Luckily I only have one night run during Ragnar.  Or unluckily, depending on how you look at it.  But from a strap adjusting viewpoint, it's luckily. 

We all kind of left pretty close to the same time with Alyssa being the last to leave.  I'm always worried about her because she is diabetic.  But she's pushing through.  My legs have been sore all week.  I haven't given them a rest.  So my pace was a bit on the slow side, but not as bad as last week.  I warmed up and wasn't that cold until I turned around and discovered a nice breeze in my face.  But it warmed up again the further downhill I went.  Mike had gone 8 miles, which meant he had passed my going downhill right before I got to the top.  I tried to keep him in sight on the way down, but he's too fast, and he finished just over a half mile ahead of me.  No horses again today.  But I did hear coyotes yipping when we first got there.

Everyone pretty much went to the top and back.  Alyssa was the last to finish.  She wasn't too far behind Vickie and Maggie, which is good.  Then we all chatted for about 10 minutes before we decided we were too cold and went home.