It's Halloween today. Originally, I was going to head up to the Delaware Water Gap to get in a nice run amongst the leaves and colors of fall. Then, Aaron setup a night run at Bear Creek at the last minute. I'm always up for a night run, so I did that instead. It worked out well since today was a gloomy day anyway. I'll head up north next week.
There were 6 of us running the loop (Aaron, Dorf, Wayne, Ron and his wife Jo and myself). I haven't been to Bear Creek in so long. I do like it there, but it's quite a drive for me. I think the last time I was there was last summer. It's not an easy place to run as you climb up the trail along the mountain to the top of the ski slope.
It was drizzling at the start. I wasn't sure if it would rain, so I went with a long sleeve shirt. Short sleeves probably would've been better as it was pretty hot and humid. I was soaked by the end of the run, but from sweat, not rain.
Aaron usually flies ahead of everyone on these runs. He is so awesome on trails. I stayed behind him and Wayne. I always have trouble getting through the flat beginning part because it goes through the disc golf course. I was glad that Aaron was leading the way or I might've been lost.
The run was certainly challenging. This trail is very rocky and full of leaves and tonight they were both wet. Add to that the darkness of night and the fact that my headlamp isn't that strong and things were interesting. Thankfully, I didn't fall.
Some of the beginning of the run is nice because it doesn't climb too much. You get a little bit of a warmup before the hard stuff. Aaron, Wayne and I stayed together for some time and chatted. Once we started some of the good climbing, Wayne told me to go ahead. He just completed a big triathlon recently and wasn't looking to do much. Dorf, Ron and Jo were back farther.
I got some new trail shoes and was breaking them in during this run. They did well, although these weren't the best conditions to run in. My foot was a little sore on the uphills. Overall, I did quite well with the climbs today. Only in one really steep section did I walk at all and that was very brief.
Aaron got far ahead of me during the climbs. Every now and then, he would stop and wait. I've been lost there during the day, so I was glad I didn't get too lost at night. Once, I jumped over a log and realized that that was where the trail turned. Another time, I missed a turn and was near a picnic table. I wasn't off the trail too far before I found my way back.
After the steepest section. It gets easy for some time before the final steep climb. I saw a headlamp one time and thought it was Aaron's. I was running in the opposite direction and started to worry. Then, I figured that it was just someone behind me. The tricky thing about following the trail is that it isn't marked much and with all the leaves, the path can be hard to follow.
I was happy to finally make it to the top. I wish I knew how long it took me to get there, but I didn't start my watch until sometime after the first half mile or so. Aaron and Wayne were waiting at the top. Wayne took a short cut.
From the top, the remainder of the run is almost all downhill. It has a few switchbacks and for the most part is flat and fast. It isn't as technical as the other side. Aaron told me that he does his trail speedwork runs here. That is something I need to do in the future. I usually just run easy on trails.
The downhills were somewhat fun. Aaron just took off on me. I went at a decent clip though. After it was smooth for some time, all of a sudden I came to a very rocky section. I was lucky not to trip there since I couldn't slow down. I made it through.
Shortly after the fast section, I saw Aaron up ahead waiting. We ran together most of the way through the end, although he pulled away late. That was good because I often get lost in the last section too. Actually, I have more trouble trying to run this section in the other direction and find the main trail.
We finished up and Wayne was already there. He took a short cut again. Dorf, Ron and Jo arrived a few minutes later. We all hung out and chatted for some time. We talked about ultra running mostly. They all are doing the run in Jim Thorpe this weekend too. I was actually the first one to leave after an hour of hanging out.
It was a good night and a fun group run. I definitely need to get to Bear Creek some more. I need to go to some of the weekly runs that Aaron puts together there in the summer. I've still never made it to one.
Tomorrow will probably be a bike ride day. My running has been kind of short this week. I needed a cutback week anyway. The run at Jim Thorpe on Saturday will be pretty long. I can't wait for it.
4.18 miles - 51:47 (12:24 pace)
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