North Assateague Blues

What is it they call this kind of run these days? An epic fail? 8 1/2 minutes of freezing on the north end of Assateague Island (near Ocean City, MD). Downside - I couldn't feel my feet. Upside - I had the beach to myself!

8:16
.7 mile

Vibrams

Did the Holly Grove circuit today wearing Vibrams. ITB did not act up. I'm beginning to think the shoes may be the problem.

4.3 miles
43:45 min

The Third Mile

Ran a modified Holly Grove route today. At the cutoff in the field I went straight, turned up by some trees just before hitting Wellington Neck Rd. Skirted the trees, did a short stretch on Wellington Neck, then down past the vineyard and the horses, back into the Nottingham's field. Back down Holly Groce Rd, right turn by the cemeteries and back to Franktown.

Discovered this week that I have a thing called an IT band and it's acting up in my left leg. Had to stop a few times when it got tight.

I have also discovered that the first 2 miles are always the hardest. It's like taking a trip with a recalcitrant child.
Me: Come on, let's go!

My body: I don't wanna. It's a long way.

Me: It''s 5 miles. 6 at the most. You've done that before.

Body: It's cold.

Me: You won't feel it in 3 minutes. Besides it's 45 degrees. Not cold cold.

Body: (grumbles silently for a mile)

Body: there's a shortcut home coming up.

Me: We don't need to take it.

Body: you're running further than the plan says to.

Me: we're trying out a new route. And it's only an extra mile.

Body: I have to go to the bathroom.

Me: you just went to the bathroom.

Body: it's number 2 this time.

Me: O. My. Gosh. You are such a pain. There's some woods over there if you really need to go.

Body: I don't really need to go.

Me: good

Body: Yes, I do. Stop now.

Me: if you still need to go when we get to the woods we'll stop there.

We didn't need to stop and by mile 3 I was incarnate again - no longer a slave to an artificial mind/body split. Given all that, I'm going to start with the third mile from now on.

5.5 miles
1 hour 1 min.

Return to Holly Grove

4.4 miles around the neighborhood on the Holly Grove loop. Added a run through the Franktown cemetery.

4.4 miles
48:22 minutes

The Hills of Orange

Spending a few days with my parents in Orange. Today was the day for my long run. They have these things here called hills. Killer. The first one almost ate my lunch. But I persevered and did a loop that took me through old haunts and new developments.

Best song of the day - Norah Jones singing "Broken" which includes the line - "He may move slow, but that don't mean he's going nowhere."
So true. So true.

6.77 miles
1 hr 19 min.

Assateague Run

No encounters with Arctic visitors today. A cold wind and some spitting rain. The few people I met looked at my bare feet and said, "Aren't you cold?" I wasn't. But I couldn't feel my feet anyway. Maybe by November I'll be able to run the marathon barefoot like some Kenyan champion.

The verdict:
5.5 miles
58 minutes
Pace is getting better

Cedar Island Biathlon

This is the beginning point of the Cedar Island Biathlon. It's not an official event - just my concoction combining kayaking (which I feel relatively comfortable with) and running (which I do not). And since this is the Eastern Shore, there are some unique possibilities for such a combination.

So here's the trip: Roughly 3 miles from Burton Shore across the bay to the northern end of Cedar Island, one of our coastal barrier islands. Run south down the deserted beach and back 8 miles. Then kayak back across Burton Bay another 3 miles. You do it and there's no reward - just the satisfaction of knowing your training program is taking full advantage of the unique geography of Virginia's Eastern Shore.

It was chilly and a little bit windy as I set out, but the bay itself was almost "slick cam" as they say over here. Easy paddling at high tide. I got to the island in under an hour. Changed into running gear and started off down the beach.

I knew there was a beached boat near the south end so I pushed further than I would have given my goal time (1 hr. 10 min.). Eventually I saw the boat (the Laura J.) in the distance. As I approached I saw a strange lumpy thing up on the edge of the small dunes. I wasn't wearing my glasses and thought it was a sack of potatoes washed up on shore. But when I got about 4 feet away, it moved. I had disturbed a harp seal, normally at home in the Arctic, but ranging down this way more and more.



I don't know who was more scared - the seal or me. It lumbered out to the waves (about 100 yards) while I took this video. It stopped a couple of times to catch its breath, then disappeared smoothly into the ocean.

Final tally:
miles running- 7.9
time (with a stop for seal and photos) - 1:26

Some other pictures from the day:

Holly Grove 4-miler

Since I went east on Friday, for today's easy run I went west. Down to the AME church in Middletown. To the big curve on Wardtown Rd, then straight down the dirt road to Holly Grove. Around the field where they were fertilizing. Up through the trees to the horses. By the vineyard. Down to Wellington Neck Road and back home.

Time 45:50
Distance 4.23 miles

Assateague Beach Run

The beach at Assateague is one of my favorite places to run. The sand is generally hard-packed and the further south you go, the wider the beach gets. Once I ran around the southern tip just as the sun was sinking over the water of Chincoteague Inlet and then ran back to see a brilliant full moon rise over the Atlantic.

Not quite so transcendent today, but still fun. The map shows my route.
5 miles
54 minutes
Pace run

Bay to Sea and Back

Two runs on a treadmill this week. Time to get back out with the return of springlike weather. So it was off on a 8.5 mile run.

One of the things about living on a thin peninsula between the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean is that you can run across it and back in that distance. So that's what I did. I left my house in Franktown right at the head of Meetinghouse Creek (a tidal arm of the Bay) and ran through Nasswadox to Brownsville, headquarters of the Nature Conservancy on the Eastern Shore, with a path to Hog Island Bay , a back bay off the ocean. Then I ran back.

Crossing the peninsular divide Rt. 13 was not much fun, but the path through Brownsville is a great place to run. Tall trees of a mature seaside hardwood forest on either side of the shell road. The road breaks out on a marsh where an eagle pair nests. A group of dead, salt-blasted pines has turned stark white like some alabaster pillars. At the end of the trail there is a small observation deck. Ran up the stairs. Nodded at the view across the bay. Then turned and ran back.

8.6 miles
1 hr 30 min

We're on the way.