As of today, I'm 0 for 2 on Crockett's canals loop. My first attempt was about two years ago--you can read about it here. Anyways, I decided yesterday to celebrate grades from last semester with a long run. Jun had mentioned that he was looking to go long, so I asked him if he was interested in joining me. He was, so we made plans to meet at the start near Camp Williams at 6:30. Since weather was a concern, we decided we would each look out the window at our houses before we left. If either of us saw something troubling, we agreed to call the other person and abort the mission. So of course, when Jun told me it was windy and rainy at his house this morning, we abandoned the plan and decided to meet at the start anyway. When we got there, the wind was blowing in our favor, and the only precipitation was a light drizzle, so we decided to have a go at it. Someone built a fence across the canal road right at the beginning, so we had to crawl under it, but other than that there were no obstructions along the route. And I should mention that this really is a unique route--essentially, it's a dirt road through farmland that happens to be right in the middle of a city. Along the way, we saw horses, geese, donkeys, and even a herd of bison (including a very large albino). If I hadn't been expecting rain, I would have brought a camera. Anyways, we set into a mellow pace and arrived at the turnaround with no problem (other than my taking about 6 pee breaks in the first hour). After a quick stop at Maverick we headed south, and the weather quickly joined us. The wind and the rain picked up dramatically, and soon we were soaked to the core. I actually felt much better than I usually do under similar circumstances, and I think I would have been fine all the way back to the car. But just because I could didn't mean I wanted to, so when I started to notice that Jun was looking like he was in bad shape I let him know that I wouldn't be offended if we bailed early, and then I reminded him continually. Eventually he succumbed to the power of suggestion, and we retreated to the shelter of a Napa Auto Parts on 12300 south and called for a ride. It's a great route--one of these days I'll make it through the whole thing.
| 