The conditions were miserable this evening. Other than wind, you name it, the weather had it. It rained most of the day and was getting heavy as I began the 8 PM run. It was also cold again, only in the mid to upper 30s, although the temperature was supposed to be rising throughout the night.
I would've liked to have got some miles in during daylight, but again I was busy at work. Night running was the only option. I headed out to the Nor-Bath Trail. I was planning on 10 miles. I started from the neighborhood section near Northampton.
Dressing was a tricky proposition on this evening. It was cold, but not that cold. With all the rain, I knew I would be soaked a feel much worse at the beginning when compared to the end of the run. I wore my jacket with a short sleeve tech shirt under it. I had on tights and wore a regular hat on my head to go along with my headlamp. It was warm enough to not wear gloves initially, but my wet hands got cold quite quickly, so I threw them on as well.
Instead of heading the usual direction. I decided to go toward Northampton. This is a very short out and back from this starting point. It is a downhill start which is nice. Of course, that means it is uphill coming back. The rain was very visible in my headlamp. It seemed better when I turned it off later on.
I cruised along. There was no going fast on this day. The stone part of the trail was very sloppy. Occasionally, I got water in my shoes. It was cold water, which was quite uncomfortable.
Some kids were out playing basketball when I started. That reminded me of how I used to play basketball in all conditions. It brought a smile to my face. Of course they were done 12 minutes later when I arrived back at my car.
I was almost 1.5 miles into the run when I got there. I was already figuring this likely wouldn't be a double digit mileage run. I headed out the other direction. This has some uphill too, until the other side of Savage Road. I crossed the road without too much difficulty.
The section past Savage Road was complete slop. It was also kind of hard to see in the darkness. I actually ran on the grass for a good portion of the beginning of this section. When I got to about 2.1 miles, I decided that it was too crazy to run on this surface.
The stone was icy. Almost every time I took a step, my foot slide slightly. For someone who has trouble with their legs being sore, I figured this could really throw everything off for me. I decided to head back and run through the neighborhoods. At least the pavement and sidewalks were better. I guess I should've taken the icicles on the stop signs as a signal that I shouldn't have been out there running on this evening.
I got to the neighborhood at 2.8 miles. By now, I just planned on a 5 mile run. Not great, but at least I got out the door and accomplished something. The thing I wasn't crazy about with the neighborhood section is that it is hilly.
I ran a short loop in the neighborhood and then headed south for a longer out and back type segment. I didn't know where I was actually going, but I found a lot of different roads. When I was around mile 4, I took a turn and decided to go out farther. I figured that I'd probably end up with 6 miles. There are already some Christmas light up, so that was nice to see.
Around 4.5 miles, my nipple started to bother me. It was chafing thanks to my wet clothes. I opened my jacket up and that really helped. When I got into the car later, I realized that it had bled down my shirt. I thought if that ever happened that it would hurt much worse than it actually did.
On my way back, I was disappointed when I came out from one road. I was much closer to my car than I expected. I wasn't even at mile 5 yet. I ran the other way. As I was going down one hill, a small dog in a yard started barking and scared the crap out of me. I crossed the road and ran on the other side.
I turned around shortly after that. I then headed back toward my car. This had some uphill, but wasn't too bad. I slipped on a couple icy sections of sidewalk. The sidewalk and pavement were generally okay. There was just a lot of water.
I got back to my car with about a third of a mile to go. I ran a short out and back and finished up. I was very wet and cold by the end. I didn't get as much done as I would've liked, but I was glad I got out there and accomplished something.
Tomorrow looks to be another crappy day. I'm also busy at work again. I'm hoping to run, but not sure where and when. This just might have to be a lighter mileage week than I anticipated. Only time will tell. Thanksgiving will be super busy, but I'll have some down time and might be able to run.
6 miles -53:00 (8:50 pace)
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