Green Ribbon Trail

The weather was pretty crappy most of the week.  It was cloudy and chilly every day since Monday.  Since I needed more rest to try to heal, I opted not to run at all.  Today, the sun finally came out and it was warm.  Around here, it was windy.  I decided to travel for the run.

A few friends ran the Green Ribbon Trail last year.  It is outside of Philly and pretty easy.  It is about 12 miles long and mostly runs along the Wissahickon Creek.  I decided to take the hour drive there.

The weather was nice when I arrived.  I went with just short sleeves and shorts.  It was nice to be able to do that.  It worked out well too.

I had to use the bathroom, so I started out at Ft. Washington State Park.  It connects to the Green Ribbon Trail.  I followed a cross country ski trail down to it.  I began on a flat, grassy section along a powerline.  I guess this was the Green Ribbon Trail, but I wasn't sure, since it wasn't marked, like other areas were.

I ran along feeling good.  Since it was flat and smooth, I was running fast.  I ran by some people.  One dog even lunged at me as I passed.  I struggled a bit with my breathing, as I'm not used to the warmer weather yet.

I got out about .85 miles and was near a golf course.  This trail was easy, but getting so boring.  I decided that the other direction would be a better option.  I turned around and headed that way.

Mile 1 was pretty fast and I ended up staring at my watch a lot.  I ran along, eager to check out more of the trail.  The top of my foot began to bother me slightly.  I had on my Lone Peaks, but was wearing them with the laces a bit looser.  I guess it still wasn't helping.

After a bit, I finally got on to the fun singletrack part of the trail.  It runs along the creek and through the woods.  At times, my foot bothered me.  Other times, it felt great on the soft dirt.  I ran along.  I came to a busy road crossing (Route 73).  It took me some time to get over it.  That was a much needed break though.

I was done with 2 miles in no time.  I went under the Turnpike and this was quite rocky.  I cruised along, with my foot feeling good at times and bothering me other times.  It really was a problem on a short section of pavement.  Then, I crossed another road.

This part of the trail had great signage.  I followed a turn and came to a water crossing.  It was quite unusual, as they put large stone pavers across the creek and even a ladder to climb up.  I was thankful to not get my feet wet, but this was a bit over the top.  I guess that is what happens in Suburban trail running.

I got over 3 miles, but my foot wasn't getting better.  I wanted to get to 3.1 miles, but I couldn't even do that.  I stopped right before it and turned around to hike back.  It was very frustrating to have my foot bothering me again.

The one positive is that the hike back was good.  Hiking didn't bother my feet.  Still, I wish I could run.  I barely ran at all this week and things clearly aren't getting better.  There is no question that I can't run in these shoes at Hyner.  The question is whether I'll be able to run at all with this issue.

I definitely have to start the race, but this could be a DNF.  I won't run at all this week, so I'll have no idea if I recover, until the race begins.  I'll start out slower and maybe run with a friend.  Even though they don't have good rock protection, I'll need to run with my old shoes at Hyner.  That is my old chance to survive.  I'm sure the bottom of my feet will be destroyed.  Hopefully not the top too.

I'll do all that I can to ice and get my foot ready.  There will be a lot of hiking at Hyner regardless.  Perhaps that will help.  This is so frustrating, going into a goal race.  I'll give it what I have and see what happens.  The tricky thing is that even if I survive, I have to think about the Bear Mountain 50 miler 2 weeks later.

3.07 miles - 29:36 (9:38 pace) 53 feet of elevation gain