Today was a pretty crappy day. I wanted to do a track workout in the morning and go on a trail run in New Jersey in the evening. However, I got little sleep and then it rained all day. I opted to stay local and run in the evening.
I thought about running at 4 PM, but it said the humidity was 80%. However, a bit later, I checked outside and it felt cool. I decided to head to Riverview after supper. It was cool enough that I went with a shirt to start. That still only last a mile.
Normally, I just run all around Riverview in both directions. Today, I decided to run a different route. Several years ago, Dave Decker introduced us to a hilly route. It was his first "Loopy Run." I decided to do that route and add on the distance, since it was only a bit over 4 miles. I wanted to run 8 miles total.
I ran out toward the Boat Launch. I didn't feel great. I was slow and sluggish and the legs weren't sharp. I was thinking that maybe the unhealthy meals I had today weren't helping much. Mile 1 was an okay 8:34.
Within this first mile, I came across a deer. Nothing unusual until it remained in the grass next to the pavement. It turned and faced me and stared at me. It didn't run away. I was hoping that it wasn't planning on charging. I went into the grass on my side of the trail and gave it plenty of room. This is the second time that I've come that close to a deer on the trail. I'm not sure I passed it more than 6 feet away. I almost considered turning back.
I continued to cruise along. I saw a pair of walkers. There wasn't much else though. Once I took my shirt off, I felt much cooler. Before I knew it, I was getting near the Boat Launch.
I saw something up ahead. A guy had a dog earlier on, so I thought maybe it was that. It turned out it was a baby deer and this one was blocking the trail to the right that I wanted to take. The mother was there too. I yelled a little and managed to scare the baby into the woods. The mother didn't budge and she just watched me go by. I was fairly close again. I saw another baby deer too in that area on the other part of the trail. It may have been with those two.
I started the gradual climb now. It wasn't too long before I was to the other path. This is a much steeper climb. After an 8:13 second mile, I began this steeper climb at 2.12 miles. I was hoping I would be out a little farther at this point.
The climb was steep, but short. I wouldn't say this section was too difficult, but I sure wouldn't call it easy. A lot of it was like a paved ridge run. However, it did go up and down. It was a dedicated bike lane, next to a one way road. Mile 3 was an 8:14.
This part goes by some houses, that are pretty nice. There are a few weird ones too. There was one short steep section again before the top. Then, it was off to the descending part.
This descent is paved trail only. It is fun and I was cruising. It isn't long and then it tunnels under the main bike path, which used to be a railroad. You come out to the Chain Dam and that is cool too. Mile 4 was run at 7:51.
After some bumpy pavement, I was back at Riverview at 4.4 miles. I wanted to drop my shirt off at my car, but some teens were playing in the parking lot. I didn't want them to know which car was mine, in case they might do something. Therefore, I continued to hold it.
I was amazed at how much I still felt like crap. I continued on, this time toward Easton. I didn't really want to go on the canal towpath though. Instead, I elected to loop around Hugh Moore Park. Mile 5 was a 7:59.
A train went by on the other side of the canal. I decided to do the out and back segment off of the loop. I turned around near mile 6. That mile was then run at 8:15.
I headed back to Riverview, just slugging along and feeling like crap. I couldn't wait for this run to be done and I was glad I wasn't planning on more than 8 miles. Mile 7 was an 8:06.
I got back to Riverview at 7.4 miles. I'd now do a very short out and back. I basically got to the Chain Dam. I saw some people up ahead, so I was glad I didn't make it to them. I was at 7.75. I turned around and finished with a 7:57 mile.
It was a terrible run, but I'm glad it's done. I'll put it behind me and hope tomorrow gets better. I work in the morning and evening tomorrow, so I'm hoping I can run in between. I'd love to get in 10 miles, but we'll see. That definitely won't happen if I feel like this. Tomorrow, it is supposed to storm a lot in the morning, but I think clear out by the afternoon. I sure am hopeful for that.
8 miles - 1:05:09 (8:09 pace)
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