It's Always Something

This morning was my speed work day, so I was back on the track behind the Middle School.

This time of year is becoming my favorite because the temperature is just fantastic, about 46 degrees today, and the sun isn't up when I step outside around 5:40am, but rises quickly during my workout.  The awakening of the sky and world around me is a pretty special thing and another wonderful gift given to me by running.  Another is just the little things that happen during those peaceful, quiet times in the day that most people miss because they're simply still in bed.

Just about every week on the track I see this guy who comes there to walk his two dogs.  Normally, he moves off when I show up or encourages them to stay to the outside, but he only has to talk to one to keep him from running along with me.  That one's a big, yellow lab that just loves to run near me without chasing me.  He'll pull right up along side and a lane away and just run along looking up at me and panting like it's a great game.  The other dog always stays near the man and when I got the chance one day I asked him why the black, older dog stuck so close to him all the time.

"She's blind," he said.

"But she walks around away from you sometimes," I said, "and goes off in the infield some."

He told me that she likes the track because she can feel the edges really well and has learned that it's smooth and there's nothing in the way.  She always stays where she can hear him walk and he pointed out that she always stood still whenever I approached because my footsteps threw her off some.  She did come up and let me pet her while we talked, which was cool.  Such a sweet thing.

They were there again this morning arriving as I was finishing my first 800.  The big, yellow one barked hello, but sat when his dad told him to stay.  They strolled around the outside of the track as I continued my workout and was joined by a young guy I had never met before.

I lined up on the opposite corner of where I was starting and finishing, and watching him warm up I could see he was serious about his running.  Plus, he was blazing fast in his warm up striders.

On my third 800 I started my watch and lunged forward then midway through that first turn I noticed a baby bird hop right into the center of lane one.  I stepped inside to avoid it and looked across the track to see the new guy trucking along beginning whatever workout he was going to do.  I tried to telepathically tell him to watch for the bird, but figured it would be tough to miss it.  I looked over my shoulder when I thought he might be near the bird and he seemed to move on by without noticing it and I just kept pushing to try and hold my pace which I had done pretty well the first two reps.  2:53 both times.

I rounded the turn for lap two and the bird was still there, being harassed by a parent bird.  I guess it was trying to get it to move back out of the open, but because I showed up the thing went into camouflage mode: It scrunched down a little bit and held very still.  I moved inside again and ran by.  Huffing pretty good now and my thighs were beginning to feel hot.  I finished up at 2:54 and walked around the first turn to begin my rest lap.  And the baby bird looked up at me then abruptly looked away and scrunched down again.  But no movement.  By now both parent birds were flying back and forth out of the trees to squawk at the baby and swoop at me to keep me moving away.

Sort of motivational actually.

The new guy was apparently doing a pyramid because after his 400 he turned an 800 keeping pretty much on the same pace as me, but gaining a little ground.

I lined up again for rep number four of five and looked out at the turn to see the baby bird still parked there.  This time I moved around the outside because one of the parents was taking up the rest of lane 1.  I knew I only had two reps to go so it was time to pick it up some, and I finished that one in 2:51.  A couple of starts and stops trying to catch my breath and not heave and there was the bird again.  Just sitting there ignoring it's parents.

Typical.

I watched as new guy finished up a 1200 and he didn't look like he was trying at all.

One to go.  Fast, boy.  Fast.

I paced the first 400 right where I had hit the other first laps, about 1:25, then did my best to hold on until the final turn and 200 to go.  Usually in it's in here that I start to talk to myself about how this is what the end of the 1500 is going to feel like, and that I'll be pushing towards a PR so I better not quit on it.  I began to fall apart that last 100, but I just pushed hard and did everything I could to accelerate.  Pumping my hands, striding long and fast.  I finished up and looked at my watch.  2:47.  Nice!!

And then I just doubled over and gagged a couple of times.  Very nice.

I had to look at my spreadsheet before I realized that was my best 800 workout ever.  Such a cool thing to figure out after sitting around eating breakfast and wondering why I couldn't do it the pace the McMillan Calculator had set.  Ummmm...that turned out to be the pace I printed off after assuming I could run a 4:55 mile.  Apparently I'm not quite there yet.

Anyways, after recovering from the dry heaves I walked over to the baby bird, picked it up and moved quickly to the woods dodging one of its parents that was doing it's best to dive bomb me and get me to leave its baby alone.  I got to the spot where the bigger birds kept flying and figured it was near the nest.  I put the bird down and moved back over across the track.

Good deed for the day.

New guy flew by just then and gave me the runner head nod.

I started my cool down run home, but stopped to introduce myself and meet the new guy, who is now Scott.

We talked the workouts for a moment and then he said, "can I offer some advice?"

"Sure!"  I always want to learn.

"When you were finishing that last rep your speed was good, but you started to heel strike bad.  Over striding."

I nodded.  I knew I did that when I was tired and going slow, but didn't know I did that when running fast at the end.  Makes sense though.

He asked me, "Have you ever tried running barefoot?"

"Yes, and dude, I just gave that advice to a friend.  I guess I need to get back to it."

"It really helps straighten out over striding in your sprints."

I told him thanks and trotted off up the hill and back to my house planning to run barefoot for a mile, and some striders on Sunday.

It's always something...