Going Long (again) in 2024

6 easy miles in the snow.  Not a lot - about an inch or so - but enough to make a mess of the roads.  Turns out I slept in until almost 6:30 this morning, and instead of rushing everything, I decided to go slow and then run this afternoon instead.  I'm glad I did.  It was nice to run in daylight, even though it was only -8C/18F.  Still, with very little wind and a gently falling snow, it made for a nice enough run.  I averaged a pace of 8:21.

8 easy miles; 8:25 pace.  COLD!  -17C/1F with a North wind giving a wind chill factor of -27C/-16F.  I dressed for it, but the run felt clunky because of the layers.  My feet and face were not well insulated - should have worn a face mask.  My beard was coated with ice by the time I was finished.  Time for hot shower!

We got hit with a mega storm yesterday - about 30 cm/12 inches of snow.  Today things are still dicey out there, so I took to the treadmill.  An easy 7 miles with a run time of just over an hour.

Tried out the Saucony Triumphs - I like them.

Funny kind of day - had planned on running earlier as a warm up to tonight's "Resolution Run", but that didn't happen for all kinds of 'not so good' reasons.

So, the Resolution Run at 5pm at the local Running Room Store.  About 65 people, give or take.  It's dark out at 5pm these days.  The course was pretty basic - not officially measured, and my GPS had it running at 3.18 miles.

No timing chips, and no real start or finish line.  They did have a digital clock and ripped off your name section on the bib at the finish line.  Pretty basic stuff.  It was an out and back.  We were instructed to run on the sidewalk (where possible) and traffic was not controlled.  Since the sidewalk was impassible in sections, it meant running on the road despite the traffic.

My sister was running it too, and I kind of thought I might run with her, but when we started, I thought the heck with it - I'll run my own race.  Since we were on the sidewalk, it was like running in mashed potatoes after the blizzard from 2 days ago and the more mild temperatures today (it was -5C/55F), and it was pretty tricky to keep your footing on the hills.  A fair bit of hills, by the way, but I guess they cancelled out, since it was an out and back (with 2 turn arounds at pylons - which I detest).

Anyway, I started off with about 15 people in front of me, but quickly decided to pass most of them right away (on the road), since passing on the sidewalk would be difficult.  That put me in 7th position after the 1st 200 or 300 meters.  After I took stock of my pace and how I felt, I passed the next 2 runners, and then one more at the 1km mark.  That put me in 4th position, which is where I ended up finishing the race.

Anyway, it wasn't anything for the record books - more for fun - but I enjoyed it.  There was no finisher's medal, but everyone got a really cool running vest and matching toque.  I wore them for the race - just like a newbie would!  :)  What the heck - I don't have decent winter running gear, and this helps!

I took the times I posted here from my GPS.  The official results will be online tomorrow morning, and I'll adjust this report accordingly.  Okay, official time is exactly what my watch said:  23:30.  And I officially came in 4th overall.

6 easy miles outside.  Temperature of -6C/22F with just enough wind to make it interesting.  Average pace of 8:39, but that was slowed quite a bit by my 9:30 pace for mile 5, which was slowed dramatically by running a quarter mile down an unplowed trail.  So THAT'S what it's like running through a foot of snow!

10 easy miles at an average 8:48 pace.  Well, the pace was easy at least.  The run a bit more challenging than expected.  It was relatively mild at -4C/25F, but there was a stiff wind from the West and a very fine freezing drizzle most of the time.

The 1st half was fine, as I run this section on the road and had the wind at my back.  At mile 5, however, I have to take to the sidewalks and had the wind in my face.  Although technically "plowed", they sure are not bare.  So, it was like running in mashed potatoes again (just like the race on Thursday night).  My legs were still a bit rubbery from that extra effort, and the next 5 miles kind of did them in.  Sore knee, hamstrings, etc.  Just using different body parts to power through the snow.

So, as long as I keep running outside, I think I'll do an out and back instead of a loop, so that I can stay on the roads.  So nice to have this mild weather.