5 Miles

I ran 5 miles on the treadmill today.  I kept my mind busy watching the news and Jeopardy.  I can't believe winter has arrived already making running outdoors pretty much impossible around here.  It is now below 20 degrees.  I have to plug in the car and it's September!  What a drag that is.

Less than a week and I'll be off to Jersey for the marathon.  I signed up for the Haiti Marathon then got some scary information from Facebook friends who ran it last year. But life is always an adventure so I'll probably go in spite of what they said.

Considering one of my favorite quotes, I feel compelled to go anyway!

"In order to live free and happily you must sacrifice boredom. It is not always an easy sacrifice." - Richard Bach

3 Miles

Just another short 3 mile run on the treadmill today.  I really miss the outdoors but it is not runable out there. Too snowy, rocky, windy, and too many trucks not to mention the fact that there are still bears running around out there.  This is not normal September weather up here in Deadhorse.  I can usually run outdoors most of the month.  But it's not quite possible with snow on the ground because it gets too dangerous on the loose snow-covered rocks.  Maybe my next real long run will have to be the Jersey Marathon a couple of days after I get off work.

Snowing Outside

I woke up and looked out the window at the blowing snow and knew right away, it would be a day for the treadmill.  I woke up too late to have time for a very long run, but did squeeze in a 3 mile treadmill run.  I felt pretty sluggish at first but the last mile felt great.  If it had not been so late, I would have run longer.  It's hard to balance between getting enough sleep, having time to eat, and being able to get to work on time every night.  I rarely can get in a good long training run during my months up here at work. I always worry about it but it is really out of my control. I guess I will make up for it with 9 marathons next month.

3 Miles - View Out My Window!

Indoors Today

I woke up quite late so just did a 3 mile run on the treadmill.  There is so much standing water outside right now that it would be quite difficult to get a reasonable workout, dodging puddles, rocks, mud, and trucks. At least on the treadmill I do get some exercise.  I' really missing the great outdoors though.  I now when I come back here in December it will be completely impossible to run outdoors. So I will try to get some more outdoor time before I fly out of here.

4 Treadmill Miles

Today was about the same as yesterday so the weather forced me to run indoors.  It was snowing and blowing again.  I ran 4 miles and this time I only had one small problem with the new shoes.  I loosened the ties on the left foot and that issue went away.  It feels like the side of that shoe is a little stiff and it seems to dig into my ankle.  But just making it a little looser took care of it.  I really want to use these shoes next month for the many marathons I have planned.  So I need to break them in whether it is outdoors or on the treadmill.

I felt really good today while running, so I guess I'm adjusting to the treadmill again.  I do hope the weather of the last few days doesn't mean that winter is here to stay.  Usually I can run must days in September, but this week it has been impossible.

Treadmill

I won't be doing any outdoor running or walking or anything today.  It is snowing and blowing over 40 mph.  So I dragged myself downstairs to the treadmill.  This was my first time on the treadmill with my newest shoes and it seemed to be pretty painful.  Strange little pains in my feet and ankles.  I didn't have any problems with them when running outside so I'm not sure where that was coming from.  I just ran 3 miles.  If this weather continues I guess I will be doing a lot of my runs indoors on the treadmill.

5 Muddy Miles & Bear Detour

It was quite cool today, about 35 but no wind at all.  The fog was gone so I took to the outdoors.  They had graded the parking area so I had to trudge through standing water and lots of mud to eventually get to the road.  It was tough going even on the road around the lake because the shoulder was also very muddy. It was challenging at times, getting over to the extreme edge of the road in the mud when big trucks and heavy equipment came by. 

I was about 2 miles into my run when a truck stopped and a man told me that there was a grizzly bear on the road along the north side of the lake, where I was headed.  So when I got to the junction of the road around the lake and the road heading to the east gate, I went to the right past Peak Services, then turned back and retraced my steps along the east side of the lake and back to the hotel.  It was a slow and muddy run but at least I didn't have to meet face to face with the bear!



Colleen Lake

Treadmill Run

The windsock was sticking straight out, with a 35 knot wind. The fog wasn't very inviting either.  So after much procrastination I went down to the treadmill and at least got in a 3 mile run.  They have a big fan in the exercise room now, which was really nice.  At least I didn't feel like I was running in a sauna like it has always been in the past.  I didn't feel overwhelmed with ambition, but at least I did something.  I'm still adjusting to being back here at work.  I hope I can get more outdoors runs this month. I love running around the lake up here.

Around the Lake

It was a pretty nice day, not even the usual howling wind, and 50 degrees.  Quite muddy in some areas but otherwise the road around Colleen Lake was quite pleasant.  I got up too early and could tell I didn't get enough sleep, but still had a relatively good 5 mile run.  I'm still feeling a bit sluggish while adjusting to night shift.  But a not so great run is definitely better than no run at all.  I'm glad I got out there today.

Colleen Lake

Back in Deadhorse

I'm now back up in Deadhorse for the month of September.  I was lucky enough to be able to run outdoors today.  At first I thought it would not be possible because it is a muddy mess out there, especially around the hotel.  But I drove down the road about 20 miles and in spite of dealing with road construction, pilot cars and flaggers, I was able to go park by Caren Pond and Franklin Bluffs.  I didn't have a lot of time so just kept my run to 3 miles.  I'm still adjusting to night shift so was not feeling too ambitious either.  But I did get in a good 3 mile run.

The weather down there was a lot nicer than in Deadhorse itself too.  I found some sunshine.