Monday, September 24, 2007

Runnin Again

Sing to the tune of "Singing in the Rain:"

I'm RUNNING in the rain
Just RUNNING in the rain
What a glorious feelin'
To be RUNNING again...


That's what I was singing all day last Saturday. After nearly two weeks of no running due to being sick, I finally got out to this past week (Wednesday and Saturday, with a little weight workout on Thursday - I'm not overdoing it at all...), but my run on Saturday afternoon was in the rain. Partly.

It didn't rain the whole time, but the forest was wet and dripping the whole time. I love the smell of redwood forest during a rain storm. It has an earthy, fecund smell that is very pleasing and refreshing. Especially to run in. Even more so if you haven't run for two weeks. Just in case you weren't aware, being sick really sucks.

Fall Creek was the location, part of Henry Cowell Redwood State Park. As expected, the creek didn't even get a touch of color. The ground just sucked the rain up. I saw a few deer, just off the trail maybe 20 feet. With the ground being wet they couldn't hear me coming up until the last minute. Pretty cool. I stopped for a moment to watch them bound away downhill. They are beautiful animals.

I also got out for a run with my wife Lori and our dog Maggie Sunday evening. It was really nice to run with Lori, as we usually don't run together. We also brought our medically challenged dog out for a trot, and she did great. She has had some issues with her left back leg, having a few surgeries on it the past year. But she has been getting stronger and playing a lot and she had no problems on our run. And no soreness, as far as I can tell, today!

I did see the season's first banana slug on our run Sunday. I almost mistook it for a leaf and nearly stepped on it. Banana slugs are really cool creatures, and the mascot for my alma mater - UC Santa Cruz. I have been on runs where I have seen 10 or so in an hour. Of course, I didn't have a camera to record the moment. Maybe next time. Don't everyone get too excited. ;-)

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