More "Thinking Thoughts"...and Ultrarunning

On Wed this week I posted this, in part:

The other day while I was driving and listening to National Public Radio. The host was interviewing a guest--I believe his name was Robert McFarlane, or something close to that, whose passion was walking--who offered the following gem of an observation:

There are some thoughts that can only be had while on foot.

Well, I have a corollary, occasioned by me running in the rain yesterday.  Oh, and it was deliberate; the bride was off to do some volunteer work at Mister Tristan's (the 5-year old human being, not the blog) school, so I had her drop me off for a one-way run home...in the rain.

Which leads to this:

There are some thoughts that can only be had while in the rain.

And I mean actually IN the rain: no ponchos, no umbrellas, just you in the rain.  And to be inclusive, I did not stipulate that one had to be running, just to be out in the rain.  Although in my case, the running is implied. 

See, when you run, you generate plenty of heat such that getting wet per se is usually no biggie.  Of course you must wear the proper clothing, to include synthetic "technical" shirts and shorts/tights (no cotton!) that keeps you warm even when it is wet. 

The payoff is this: we spend a lot of time trying to stay dry, such that few people actually have the experience of being wet, outside, on purpose.  It's kinda liberating, actually.

Mental health advocates tell us it's important as we age to exercise our brains.  This could include such techniques as putting on your pants or socks wrong-leg first, eating lefthanded if you are righthanded, doing puzzles and games, etc.  In short, doing things that may create or foster new neural pathways in your brain's wiring is thought to be beneficial in warding off decline of your mental faculties.

Thus running in the rain can have major mental health consequences...at least that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

My brainchild during yesterday's rainy run was to mentally work out the details of the treehouse I am planning for Mister Tristan.  Once I get the rest of my leaves gathered I expect to have a couple weeks of dead time outside during which I can get at least the framing done.

Dressing for the Rain...and Ultrarunning

Runs in the rain require a bit of thought.  For example, here in the mid-Atlantic we are loving two days of steady rains (we need it).  Yesterday I took a local run where the bride dropped me off on her way to work and I ran back home.  This road run was safe, flat (there were hills but no mountain crossings), and fairly short (90 minutes).  Basically I just had to dress for my immediate comfort, which on this day meant short sleeves and a hat.  I made no attempt to shield myself from the rain; rather I just embraced it and went with it.

Contrast that scenario with a backcountry run where I’d be out for hours, over varied terrain and elevation.  In that case I would instead opt for rain protection—in other words, try to stay at least somewhat dry.  That would mean a thin long sleeve synthetic shirt with a thin nylon vest over it.  Sure, over time I’d get wet anyway from rain penetration and sweat, but I’d be wearing a layer and a half of insulation that would help keep me warm during those walking breaks or if the wind kicked up.  I also always carry a space blanket and some fire-starting materials should I ever be incapacitated on the trail until help would arrive.

Help would arrive for you, wouldn’t it?  You DID remember to tell somebody—even if it was a voice mail—to some level of detail where you were gonna be, right?

 

Cold, Rainy Run

After a March that was 10+ degrees warmer than normal, April has been downright chilly.  In fact, on Monday morning after the bride dropped me off on her way to work so I could run back home, I encountered 38 F temps, a stiff headwind out of the west at 20 mph, and a stinging rain mixed with occasional wet snowflakes.

In short, it was a somewhat miserable run.  Although I was properly dressed for the occasion, still I was thoroughly chilled by the time I got home after 7 miles.  Thank goodness the wood stove was blazing and I quickly was warm and dry again.

Despite the poor conditions, while I was actually running, I quite enjoyed it.  After all, I could be in a situation where I could no longer be a runner, or even commenced the long dirt nap.  I always say that some of my best runs are when external conditions, frankly, suck.  I call it the smugness factor--you're out there and nobody else is because it's pretty miserable. 

Complaining about the weather is nonproductive.  Within reason, there is no such thing as bad weather, just weather for which you are not prepared.  And in any case I continue to thank my lucky stars for life and health and the ability to run.

Gary Didn’t Run

The fact that I have a blog devoted (at least in part) to Ultrarunning may seem to indicate that I am a pretty darn good ultrarunner. Or at least experienced, confident, seasoned, savvy, etc., etc.

Or if my personal reaction/experience is any guide--and believe me that when I make this observation, I do so in all modesty--some of you readers may even in some small way hold me up on a (tiny) pedestal.

I say that because I know that from being an UltraList member for 10+ years and getting to “know” frequent posters via what they write, I sometimes begin to think of some folks as being a bit larger than life. I’ve attributed some additional positive qualities to certain people, then when they post something “out of character” (at least according to my standards) I feel kinda disappointed. Like they let me down or something.

Then sometimes when I actually meet in person one of my UltraList “heroes” I am likely as not to be slightly disappointed--he or she doesn’t seem larger than life, after all. They just seem, well, like me.

So, without me sounding like a jerk, let me dash any expectations that may be out there. I’m just a regular middle-of-the-pack runner. I'm getting older and slower.  I race rather infrequently. I run only 100 miles a month. But I write about it here at the Mister Tristan blog, and that’s the only difference.

Take Tuesday this week for example. I telework on Tuesdays when I don’t have to be physically at the office for a meeting. I set my alarm an hour early so I could go for a run prior to firing up my laptop for the day. Before going to bed I knew it was going to rain but I planned to run anyway.

The alarm went off. I listened to the rain falling on the ferns outside my window. It was dark, the bed was warm, the bride was curled up beside me, and the rain was a soft patter.

I made the conscious decision to blow off the run and drift back to sleep, luxuriating in the sensuous moment. I can run tomorrow.

 

Things That Ultrarunners Know (Part 1)

So much of our effort in civilization involves staying dry….yet so much of our effort as ultrarunners involves being wet. Besides getting rained upon, we do some big time sweating, to say nothing about routinely wading across creeks with not much of a thought about getting our shoes wet.
This past weekend, for example, I ran a 10 miler on local roads, and as I went out in the late morning I could see that the skies were threatening. Since the air temp was about 70 F and cold was not a concern, my only concession to possible rain was to wear a baseball cap (which I often do anyway). That way if it did rain I could pull the brim low over my eyes and keep the rain off my glasses.

Well, some 5 miles into the run I encountered a hard downpour that lasted a couple miles, followed by a lighter rain the rest of the way home. I could see in the eyes of the drivers of the passing cars that they were thinking, “That poor guy, he’s all wet!” or “He’s nuts!”

While I certainly was drenched (I love that word), I was not nuts. In fact, despite having a down day physically (my legs just felt flat and lethargic), my mental attitude was one of loving the freedom and feeling of running in the rain, careless of puddles, enjoying the pelting warm rain. See, “civilized” people just don’t, by and large, spend time in the rain sans umbrella—It. Just. Isn’t. Done.

Imagine how many millions (billions?) of dollars are invested in the umbrella, poncho, slicker, hood, and hat industries to keep us dry. I tried to Google some data for the umbrella industry but came up empty, but the figure has to be high. I trash a couple umbrellas annually, to say nothing of purchasing outerwear for the times that I don’t want to get wet.

So add this to the list of things that Ultrarunners know and the rest of the word doesn’t—the sheer exuberance of running in the rain.


I wanted to embed the famous clip of Gene Kelly dancing the title tune from Singing in the Rain, but You Tube won’t permit embedding for this one. So you’ll have to click over here to see it. Believe me, it’s worth 4:05 of your time…just imagine a muddy trail instead of the street scene….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8zaxTZ4OFg&feature=related

(photo credit here)