Sunday, July 03, 2005

Started in the fog; finished in the fog

Plan for today - a 2hr 30min long run with Roy

It was cold and foggy this morning (1*C) when I ran from home down to Lake Ginninderra to meet up with Roy, who was going to keep me company on his bike. However, when I got there (35mins later) there was no bike and Roy didn't look like he was going anywhere. Seems like he had problems with the bike tubes and so wouldn't be able to accompany me this morning - would be shopping for new tubes instead. Oh well, nothing like a 2hour run by myself, without an ipod (I had briefly flirted with the idea of running home again to get the ipod) but decided I would enjoy the scenery instead, even though the scenery was shrouded in fog! Decided to follow the path around the lake until after the peninsular and then follow the cycle path into Mackellar (I think), following the creek.

To start with everything seemed to ache (I never notice these things when I run with company) but I soon hit my stride. Passed several runners coming the other way, some cyclists that appeared from out of the fog, people out walking their dogs, saw lots of different birdlife - black cockatoos, magpies, galahs, willy wagtails, teensy wrens, water fowl. It was an undulating course and I tried to remain light and relaxed running up the hills - worked for the most part; probably not as well in the latter stages of the run. Reached the turnaround and headed back, after calling Mr CJ to tell him of the change in plans - he was going to pick me up from the lake, after a coffee with Roy, but instead I would now just run home. The return trip was just as uneventful - I really enjoyed running the peninsular, in among the trees and next to the lake, which was still shrouded in mist.

Almost home, had run for 2hr 30min when I met up with JD who was out for a run as well. Stopped for a chat then headed home as I was feeling cold (it was 10am and 3*C). Took me ages to warm up - a long hot shower, a coffee, a crumpet topped with fig jam (I had been looking forward to this for about the last hour of the run), and a little bit later, when I was feeling really hungry, some spicy lentil and vegie soup.

Had 2 energy gels and one bottle of sports drink on the run. Felt strong and comfortable for most of the way; a little tired near the end. No tightness, sore muscles, niggles, etc. Tired later in the day.

Total for the week:
Swim - 2km
Cycle - natch, nada, nothing
Run - about 6hrs (very rough calculation)
Gym - thought about it
Yoga - Saturday

1 comment:

Lulu said...

2 hrs 30 is a looooong run! Sounds like it was quite picturesque though.. I like the sound of the wildlife but I don't like the sound of the cold though brrr, reminds of too much of English weather.