Wednesday, June 6, 2007

and…we’re back in the game. I’m in Salt Lake City for a couple of days and was determined to get a run in the foothills of the spectacular Wasatchs. The company apartment where I’m staying is near the University of Utah, nestled into the eastern front that hugs Salt Lake City. I wasn’t able to get really clear directions on where exactly go for some off-road running, but when I looked on google maps it looked like there were some trailed worn into the hills just above the university. So I pretty much walked out the front door and just headed east, uphill. I was trying to take it really easy because of my injured heel, especially since I was doing hills which are hard on achilles tendons to start with. Between the hill and the difference in elevation between Chicago and SLC, I was working pretty hard even though I felt like I was moving at a snail’s pace. Anyway, it took me 20 minutes to get up behind the University and wander up through Fort Douglas, but I finally did find my way to a little dirt path cut into the foothills, switching back from side to side up the canyon. I probably should have turned around about the time that I got to the trailhead, considering that I was already 20 minutes out (and have only run 3 miles in the past 12 days), but I had finally found what I had been looking for, and I wasn’t about to turn around now! So I jogged, sometimes mostly hiked/climbed, up this dirt path that wound into the foothills till I had a spectacular view of the whole valley, and then followed the trail along a green fold moving deeper into the hills. Eventually I dropped down the hillside from the path and went back along a dirt access road that followed a little creek. It was SO GREAT to be out running on trails in the hot, dry, western desert air. Reminded me of running in the Eagle foothills when I was in high school. It was pretty warm out but with no humidity it was quite manageable. At one point as I was skidding, slightly out of control, down a steep descent, Callie’s last post came to mind. It occurred to me that no one really knew where I was, so I really ought to be careful. I mean, I really wasn't that far away from civilization or anything, but if I twisted an ankle or got dehydrated, there was no one who would notice I hadn’t returned from my run for at least a half day or so, and no one at all who knew where exactly I’d decided to go.

Anyway, the change of scenery was invigorating, and with proper stretching and attention to ice, my achilles tendon didn’t feel as bad as I thought it might after a five-miler in the hills. On the plane on the way back to Chicago today I read this month’s Runner’s World cover to cover, and between that and my return to running I’m feeling motivated, invigorated, excited again. They say that mental breaks are as important as physical rest on long training periods. This seems to be the case. Take away running from me for two weeks and I’m clamoring for it. Of course, tell me I can’t do/have just about anything and I’ll be wanting it, but that’s just my nature. I’m psyched about the possibility of spending 7 or 10 days in Idaho this summer. I mean to adjust my training schedule around that trip so that I can get as much quality running in during that week as possible – runs in the desert along the Snake River, in the Boise Foothills, and on logging and hiking trails around McCall. Best of all, I’m looking forward to having someone to do at least a few of those runs with!