Outdoor runs – creolened.com

Run 1,049: Consistency and fewer dogs, people, and geese

July 31, 2026

I wasn’t sure what to expect heading out later than usual today, except that it would be hotter and probably more challenging as a result.

I was half right, because it was indeed a full six degrees warmer, with humidity also way down, though curiously it still felt humid, so a dry mouth was not a problem.

But I was wrong about it being more challenging, because I posted an overall pace two seconds faster than Wednesday at 6:20/km and my BPM dropped from 149 to 147. Nice. The BPM likely benefitted from a brief pit stop at the Nature House to hydrate at the water fountain there, just past the 2K mark, but not too much, as I really did just sip and run.

I did begin to feel the heat, as they say, later in the run, but managed to keep a consistent pace from beginning to end, with a variance of only five seconds from slowest to fastest km. I think this worked to my benefit.

And despite the sunny conditions, there weren’t as many people, dogs, or geese around as on Wednesday. I have no explanation for this.

The Pavilion Trail has been resurfaced, and the water is being held at bay for now. Parts of the trail seem a bit unfinished, making me feel there is more work to do. When I got to the end, where it reaches the rowing pavilion parking lot, there was a Trail Closed sign. But there wasn’t one at the other end, so it is existing in both a closed and open state at once, a paradox unto itself. Or someone nicked the other sign.

In all, this was a nice way to end the week, doing back to back 5Ks, seeing improvement and having no issues.

View from the bridge at Deer Lake Brook, post-run. There is an actual lake here.

Stats:

Run 1,049
Average pace: 6:20/km
Training status: Productive
Performance Condition: 0
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 11:35 a.m.
Distance: 5.01 km
Time: 31:48
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 25–26°C
Humidity: 38–37%
Wind: light
BPM: 147
Weight: 169.4 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,050 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (30/76/106)

Music: Glass Houses, Billy Joel

Run 1,048: Smell the run(ner)

July 29, 2026

View from the Cariboo Dam, pre-run: Sort of cloudy, but calm.

I figured I was ready for another 5K, so I attempted one today and succeeded, woo. Also good: my training status is productive, which pleasantly surprised me, and my BPM was a nice 149.

I was slower, but deliberately so. The first two km especially were done at a very measured pace, coming in at 6:30/6:29/km. I did get faster each km and by the fifth I’d improved to 6:12, basically matching the pace of my previous shorter run.

The weather was fine. I got lucky in that there was just enough high cloud to blot out the sun for pretty much the entire run. Much of it burned off shortly after, so the walk back was under sunny conditions. It was 19-20°C and humidity was in the mid-60s, which helped prevent any dry mouth.

There was a fair number of people on the trail, but it’s midsummer and the weather is nice, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. Everyone was friendly and courteous. I even saw the spitfire, but for a change she was walking and I was running. It felt weird.

The trail was in decent shape after Sunday’s day-long showers, but I had to double back on my walk out because apparently they are finally addressing the floody parts of the trail to the north of the rowing club:

I started to get a bit tired the last few km walking back home and may regret it tomorrow, but I’m pleased at how today’s run went. Yes, my pace of 6:22/km was slower, but it was planned and all other signs are good.

Oh, and the title of the post? When I was walking the river trail to the lake, a guy jogged past me. Pretty nondescript–dressed in a dark t-shirt, black shorts, black running shoes, no cap. A few moments after he passed, I caught the distinct and piquant body odour emanating from him. I think the light breeze managed to waft it perfectly to my nose, as I can’t remember the last time I could smell a runner. But I did today.

Still Creek, post-run: Return of the sun.

Stats:

Run 1,048
Average pace: 6:22/km
Training status: Productive
Performance Condition: +1
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 10:01 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 32:02
Weather: High cloud, some sun
Temp: 19–20°C
Humidity: 67–63%
Wind: light
BPM: 149
Weight: 169.7 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,045 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (25/68/93)

Music: Shuffle play

Run 1,047: Happy clouds

July 27, 2026

View from Cariboo Dam, pre-run: Cloudy and cooler.

Today it was all about the differences in conditions:

It was cloudy (not sunny)
It was only 18°C (not 25°C)
It was humid as all get-out (85% to start)

The humidity prevented dry mouth but surprisingly wasn’t a big factor, either negatively or positively. I sweated, but not profusely.

The pace breakdown for each km was:

6:12
6:16
6:01

The last was only 500m, but it’s interesting that my pace improved so much because I didn’t feel like I was pushing. I did try extending my stride a bit instead and maybe that helped. Also the smaller gap between the first and second km is welcome after seeing the bottom fall out on previous runs.

I did a short loop going clockwise and originally planned to turn around after crossing the first boardwalk, but as I approached, a mower with giant mowing attachment was occupying the entire width of the footbridge before the boardwalk, so I opted to turn around at that point, which was fine.

I did experience that proto-cramp on the right side of my chest again, but it never really did much, so I don’t think it was a factor. I otherwise felt…not bad.

And woo, my training status after the run was Maintaining, a welcome sign of normalcy after several weeks of “you’re overdoing it!” I am going to try a 5K again on Friday and hope the weather is equally conducive to running (right now it’s showing a high of 26 and sunny). We’ll see!

Brunette River, post-run, doing its best Still Creek impression.

Stats:

Run 1,047
Average pace: 6:11/km
Training status: Maintaining
Performance Condition: 0
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW, short loop)
Start: 10:58 a.m.
Distance: 2.51 km
Time: 15:34
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 18°C
Humidity: 85–79%
Wind: light
BPM: 153
Weight: 170.5 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,040 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (20/60/80)

Music: Shuffle play

Run 1,046: Slow and steady goes the recovery

July 24, 2026

View from Cariboo Dam, pre-run: Warm and a tad humid.

Too slow, but I am impatient.

A combination of hot weather and other things meant that I haven’t run since last Wednesday–nine days ago. That’s enough to start undoing some of the slow progress I’d been making. But not enough to undo all of it. Read on!

I started out kind of creaky, as expected, but kept to a steady, if unspectacular pace. My PR¹ was +1, which was encouraging, even if my first km pace of 6:28/km made me sigh a little/ I flagged slightly in the second km, but made up because my overall pace ended at 6:29/km or what I call Surgery Slow™. And I guess it’s fine. I only experienced the mild threat of a cramp in my chest again, which seems kind of laughable considering the pace, but these things will improve in time. Also, while the training status of Unproductive seems bad, it’s actually an improvement from the previous Overreaching, which is Unproductive++. Progress!

It was not as hot as the last run, but humidity was much higher, so sweating was more conspicuous.

The decision to only do 2.5 km was a no-brainer, but I didn’t do a short loop, at least. I stopped at Piper Spit after to take a few photos of the only two people there, who were feeding the birds, of course.

In all, I was glad to get out and get through it. Next week is looking generally more reasonable, temperature-wise, so I’m hoping to hit all my regular runs.

Stats:

Run 1,046
Average pace: 6:29/km
Training status: Unproductive
Performance Condition: +1
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 11:13 a.m.
Distance: 2.51 km
Time: 16:17
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 23–24°C
Humidity: 59–55%
Wind: light
BPM: 149
Weight: 170.9 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,037.5 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (17.5/51/68.5)

Music: Shuffle play

Run 1,045: Improvement through adversity

July 15, 2026

View from Cariboo Dam, pre-run: Warm and dry. The air, that is.

Or something like that.

First, I’ve decided to add the Performance Condition stat to each run, because I love stats. Garmin explains it here:

For a real-time assessment of your current ability to perform, look at your performance condition. During the first 6 to 20 minutes of your run, this metric analyzes pace, heart rate and HRV. The resulting number is a real-time assessment of the deviation from your baseline VO2 max, with each point on the scale representing about 1% of your VO2 max. The higher the number, the higher you can expect to perform.

Today, mine was +1, which is a bit better than neutral, but considering conditions, pretty good!

Speaking of conditions, I got a late morning start, and it was already 25C at the start of the run and 26 by the end, with humidity down to around 40%, which is definitely dry mouth territory. I hydrated at the fountain before the run, but even for 2.5 km, it might have been nice to have a water bottle or something with me.

The heat also made me alter my planned short loop. Originally I was going to take the side loops, then come back on the main trail before diverting back onto the Spruce Loop to finish. Instead, I simply reversed course and went back on the side loops, because they are mostly under the shade of second growth forest, where the main trail is a lot more exposed. This was a good call.

I experienced one issue–some cramping in my chest (not the surgery side) around the 1 km mark. I believe this is because, strangely, I was actually pushing a bit. I eased up a little, and it was fine after that. While I did flag a bit in the second km, I made up for it and finished with an average pace eight seconds faster than Monday, despite the higher temperature, at 6:18/km. Still overreaching, but I think it’s going to keep saying that until I’m in better shape.

Overall, better than expected, given conditions. I am pleased. Friday is looking to be cooler, which will be nice.

Stats:

Run 1,045
Average pace: 6:18/km
Training status: Overreaching
Performance Condition: +1
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW, short loop)
Start: 11:20 a.m.
Distance: 2.51 km
Time: 15:48
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 25–26°C
Humidity: 40–39%
Wind: light
BPM: 152
Weight: 170.4 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,035 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (15/33/48)

Music: Shuffle play

Run 1,044: Scaled back to no effect

July 15, 2026July 13, 2026

Brunette River, pre-run: Calm, and not that humid.

Well. It’s not just a deep subject.

My plan today was to scale back my effort because my runs are consistently being declared as Overreaching, even though I’m just doing what my watch tell me to do (more or less).

I headed out relatively early, at 9:30 a.m., to beat the heat, and tracked my 1.5 km walk to the river trail. The watch declared this as Unproductive. It’s literally a 15-minute walk. I harumped to myself, then decided to forgo the planned 5K in lieu of a gentler 2.5K.

But the 2.5K was declared Overreaching like most of my post-surgery exercise. Well.

The other stats were also not great. Just before the 1K mark the performance rating popped up: -3. Not good! My BPM was higher despite today’s run being shorter, cooler and after two days of not-running: 152. I was also two seconds slower on average at 6:26/km, though that was in part due to me trying to “run gently”. I also had a few issues with phlegm, which I now associate in my mind with the river trail, though it wasn’t as bad as before. I took my li’l water bottle with me, though didn’t drink from it until post-run.

It occurs to me when I run at the lake, I get a drink from the fountain before heading off, which may help.

I didn’t experience any particular issues, other than the phlegm, the only real highlight. As I type this a little over 45 minutes after getting home, it feels like I’ve hardly exercised at all.

My next run will be 2.5K to keep my OCD in check, but I think after that I’m just going to do whatever feels right to my body, rather than strictly follow the dictates of the watch. I won’t be a slave to technology!

Now to jog around the condo for 20 minutes to feel like I’ve done a workout.

The river, post-run: Increasingly shallow as we head deeper into summer.

Stats:

Run 1,044
Average pace: 6:26/km
Training status: Overreaching
Location: Brunette River Trail
Start: 9:45 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 16:08
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 18–19°C
Humidity: 51–52%
Wind: light
BPM: 152
Weight: 171.6 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,032.5 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (12.5/25/37.5)

Music: Shuffle play

Run 1,043: Overreaching and an invasive turtle

July 10, 2026

View from Cariboo Dam, pre-run. Cloudy and humid again.

I headed out a bit later than usual, under cloudy skies and pretty much no wind at all (which would have actually been nice later in the run).

I was somewhat surprised when my 4 km walk to the lake was categorized by my Garmin Forerunner as “unproductive”, which a site describes thusly:

Load is elevated, but VO2 max is flat or declining. Consistent with accumulated fatigue or insufficient recovery between sessions.

It’s been three days since I ran, so I’m assuming I was sufficiently recovered, and I’m just generally flabby and soft. I know this will eventually improve.

I opted to go clockwise and wanted to do my first full 5K since the surgery in May. I started out at a moderate pace of 6:17/km, then got maybe a bit too casual after that, slipping to 6:31/km. Yoinks. I actually did not feel bad, though it was humid, and I was all sweaty ‘n such. I picked up the pace for the third and fourth km, and slipped only a tad for the final stretch, during which I had to leap over four (!) large puddles on the very floody part of the trail past the rowing pavilion.

Speaking of rowing, they were having some kind of event and there were tents and people and lots of skiffs or whatever they can their boats. I also, for the first time ever, jogged past a line of porta-potties.

My overall pace was 6:24/km, which is four seconds slower than Tuesday’s run, but it was also my first 5K, so the pace seems reasonable. If I hadn’t slacked so much during the second km, it’s possible my pace would have beaten Tuesday’s. Regardless, it’s fine. I am still out of shape and performance will improve.

The right shin was very slightly tender to start, but settled down fairly quickly and did not impact my pace. Once home, it seems like I might have a Baker’s cysts behind my right knee, which would be weird given how little I’ve run since the surgery. I’ll wait and see if it still seems to be there later. It did not have any impact on my run (the knee and leg both felt fine, apart from the initial tenderness in the shin).

I also saw a turtle. Neat! But it was an invasive Red-Eared Slider, which normally live in the U.S. southeast. They have taken residence at Burnaby Lake mostly through people abandoning them as pets here. Boo for the people doing that. They generally aren’t doing damage or anything, though apparently the young might gobble up some of the food local species might eat. The native Western Painted Turtles don’t mind, though, because they apparently hang out together.

A rare case where I paused the run to take a photo.

I also saw two topless joggers, one of which inevitably was wearing a heart rate monitor. The topless joggers love showing those off.

In all, I’m glad I got the 5K in and I am hoping the runs going forward are uneventful, apart from maybe seeing more topless runners. Or turtles. But not topless turtles.

Still Creek, post-run, looking especially still.

Stats:

Run 1,043
Average pace: 6:24/km
Training status: Overreaching
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 12:01 p.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 32:10
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 20–21°C
Humidity: 67–63%
Wind: light
BPM: 149
Weight: 169.8 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,030 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (10/20/30)

Music: Shuffle play

Run 1,042: Smoky ‘n gagging

July 7, 2026

Two words you don’t want associated with a run, yet here we are!

I opted to run the river trail today, after missing yesterday due to strata hijinks (and stupidly hot weather) in order to get a run in before it could get too hot (the high today is supposed to be 26C, and I am missing six weeks of acclimating to the temperatures getting warmer).

There was the smell of smoke near the start of the river trail, but I don’t think it was wildfire smoke, as it seemed to diminish as I got farther down the trail.

The run started decently, or so I thought, then about halfway through the first km, I cleared my throat a bit too aggressively, which managed to apparently move phlegm into my gag reflex zone. I coughed violently three times, thought about pausing, but kept on and made a note to not aggressively clear my throat for the remainder of the run. As I neared the 1K mark, I thought to check my current stats and noticed the watch face was showing the time with a green play button superimposed over it. This is not normal. I checked, and it seemed that I had queued up the run, but someone either didn’t start it, or started it and somehow immediately paused it.

What this meant is I’d run a km and the watch hadn’t tracked any of it. I pondered what to do and just started the “official” run there, adding another 2.5 km. The good news is I had no trouble doing 3.5 km, so I’m probably ready to tackle a 5K next, assuming it’s not Africa hot or something.

This is not to say I was fast or that the run was fun (in a bun, or otherwise). I was slow, and my BPM was all the way up to 158 because of the relative heat. But I got through and a slightly stronger breeze actually felt nice.

Stats:

Run 1,042
Average pace: 6:20/km
Training status: Overreaching
Location: Brunette River Trail
Start: 10:20 a.m.
Distance: 2.51 km
Time: 15:51
Weather: Mostly sunny
Temp: 20–21°C
Humidity: 52–48%
Wind: light to moderate
BPM: 158
Weight: 168.8 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,025 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (5/12/17)

Music: Shuffle play

Run 1,041: New shoes and overachieving (whoops)

July 3, 2026

View from Cariboo Dam, pre-run: Calm and surprisingly muggy.

How did I overachieve by only running 2.5 km, especially when my recommended workout from Garmin was a 27-minute run?

Because I had a doctor appointment at 9 a.m., walked home from that (3 km), then walked to the lake (4 km) and did a bunch of walking around between these two things, meaning by the time I started the run I had already covered something like 10 km on foot. I was tired before I started, I just didn’t know it.

I found out soon enough, though, because when the Performance blurb popped up on the watch just before the 1K mark, it reported a yucky -2. When I hit 1K, my pace was a slogtastic 6:24/km. By the second km it fell further to 6:31/km (!), and I decided this was not going to be my first post-surgery 5K run.

Adding to the above, it was warmer and quite muggy, which undoubtedly further slowed me.

Despite all this, I didn’t actually feel horrible or anything and the shoes did not cause any issues and remained tied throughout, woo.

I am wondering if I got the wrong size, though. Depending on the shoe, I can wear a size 8.5–9, which translates to a Euro 41–42. These shoes are 42s, and on the walk out from the lake I felt gravel hitting the backs of my legs several times. At one point I stopped and turned around, looking for an animal scampering off or maybe a crow, because crows can be jerks. But there was nothing and no one around, so it must have been the shoes kicking up the gravel (possible, since I was probably dragging my feet a bit). When I checked at home there were a few very minor tiny bits of gravel in the shoes, which means the fit of the shoe may not be as snug as desired. I’m still pondering taking them back and trying a size 41 if MEC has them, or just getting something else if not.

I also put in the Saucony insoles, but it seems they work better in the actual Saucony shoes (though they fit almost perfectly in the Scarpas), so I’ll switch back to the orthotics.

As I type this, I still need to make a trip to the store and have 29,724 steps. I did not intend this today! After the store, I will take it easy for the rest of the day.

On the plus side, I did three runs this week, so I’m back on track.

Stats:

Run 1,041
Average pace: 6:26/km
Training status: Overreaching
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 1:28 p.m.
Distance: 2.52 km
Time: 16:11
Weather: Partly cloudy
Temp: 19–20°C
Humidity: 69–66%
Wind: light
BPM: 150
Weight: 169.0 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,022.5 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (2.5/10.5/13.0)

Music: Tales of Mystery and Imagination, The Alan Parsons Project

Run 1,040: Patriotic recovery run

July 1, 2026

View from Cariboo Dam: Partly sunny with a decent breeze blowing.

It’s Canada Day and you know what that means! That’s right, people go out on the trails and wave tiny Canadian flags.

Well, maybe not the flags, but there were more than the usual number of people out for a Wednesday morning, but the weather was pleasant and the people were, too, so it was all good.

I changed my mind for my second post-surgery run and rather than re-run the same route as Monday, I opted to go clockwise and to not do a short loop. Instead, I ran the 2.5 km, then kept walking and did the full loop around the lake, in part because I wanted to see how the lake and trail looked after more than a month’s absence, but also because I wanted to take pretty photos of Still Cree. And it was very pretty today.

As for the run, I improved, going from an average pace of 6:18 to 6:11/km. Not bad. I was actually slower to start today, likely because it was warmer, but didn’t drop off dramatically as I had two days ago. My BPM was up to 147 and my max (recommended) heart rate also increased. Somewhat surprisingly, the run was rated Productive by my watch, perhaps because it looks so good in comparison to a month of not running.

The run went fine–I was creaky again to start, with the right shin taking a minute or to settle in, but no issues after that. I felt like I could have kept going, but my OCD needed another 2.5K so I could get back to a nice even-numbered total distance. The forecast called for mostly cloudy but after last Saturday’s Great Burning, I slapped on the sunblock and hey, it was indeed partly sunny for the run and when the sun was out, it definitely felt like it was in a burning mood.

Overall, a good follow-up. I look forward to getting run times under the six-minute mark again soon™.

Still Creek, less still and today, full of geese just…waiting.

Stats:

Run 1,040
Average pace: 6:11/km
Training status: Productive
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 11:40 a.m.
Distance: 2.5 km
Time: 15:30
Weather: Partly cloudy
Temp: 18-19°C
Humidity: 63-58%
Wind: light to moderate
BPM: 147
Weight: 168.5 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,020 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 15 (290/521/811)

Music: Shuffle play

Run 1,039: The first post-surgery run

June 29, 2026

View from Cariboo Dam, pre-run: Cloudy and calm.

I last ran 41 days ago. I was slightly heavier than today, which is a coincidence, though I did have a tumour the size of a “big marble” removed from my chest in the interim. After a heat wave and then showers, today was finally the day when both the weather and my will aligned and I set off to do a “baby” run of 2.5 km at Burnaby Lake.

Which I did!

My legs felt creaky at the start, but things smoothed out after a minute or so. My pace was slow–6:08 on the first km, drooping to 6:28 for the second and averaging out to 6:1`8/km overall. This will improve as I get back in shape. On the plus side, my BPM was a mere 138, so I wasn’t particularly straining despite the long layoff.

More importantly, I didn’t feel any of the surgery side effects had any impact on the run.

The weather was also good for runninng–17C and cloudy. Humidity was 70%, so no danger of DMS. It was also very calm, with virtually no wind.

Everyone seemed especially friendly on the walk to the lake, too. That was nice.

Overall, a solid return. The plan is to do another 2.5 km run on Wednesday then switch back to 5K after that.

This one run put me back into Maintaining, which is where I was at 41 days ago, so that was also a somewhat unexpected bonus.

Turtle nesting area, post-run. I was a turtle for my run.

Stats:

Run 1,039
Average pace: 6:18/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW, short loop)
Start: 10:52 a.m.
Distance: 2.5 km
Time: 15:49
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 17°C
Humidity: 70%
Wind: light
BPM: 138
Weight: 169.2 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,017.5 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 15 (287.5/521/808.5)

Music: Shuffle play

Run 1,038: Bad country song

May 18, 2026

View from Cariboo Dam, pre-run: Clouds and dander.

I missed Friday’s run for reasons, so I wanted to take it a bit easier today. It helped that my seasonal allergies have been relentlessly beating me up, so I’m not exactly brimming with pep.

I headed out late again and it was a bit warmer at 17-19C. As a result, my pace was nearly the same as Friday at 5:50/km but my BPM was higher at 150. I generally felt fine, though right at the end of the cottonwood Trail, just before the sharp turn to the left and downhill, I suddenly felt very warm, like I was glowing radioactively. It passed and I was back to normal for the remainder of the run. I suspect a combo of no wind/warmth contributed.

Today was also Victoria Day, but although there were more people, it was very manageable, despite a few cyclists (one was slow and looked rather sheepish) and a few off-leash dogs.

Four more cyclists were near the dam at the start. I walked back to the 0K marker to start my run and when I made my approach to the bridge at Silver Creek, which is not far from the dam, they were all walking their bikes back to the dam. I suspect someone told them NO RIDING HERE. They also looked a little sheepish.

And also, another new sign since my last run:

They’re back! Or at least the signs are.

The coyote signs are still up. If I see a coyote riding on a bear, I am giving up running.

Good news: My right shin did not bother me at all on the run. It felt very slightly tender after.

Weird news: The title of this post comes from an incident just over a km into the run when I swallowed something. It could have been a seed or a bug or a bug clutching a seed. All I know is I felt it go into my mouth and into my throat. I decided to try to ignore it, thinking anything I might do could only make it worse. Eventually, I spat to get some stuff out of my mouth and this indeed led to me coughing so hard I had tears in eyes, like a bad country song.

I was largely fine after that and didn’t ingest anything else on the run (to my knowledge), though cottonwood dander was piling up all over the place.

Still, an overall decent outing.

Stats:

Run 1,038
Average pace: 5:50/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 12:56 p.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 29:22
Weather: Partly sunny
Temp: 17-19°C
Humidity: 52%
Wind: light
BPM: 150
Weight: 169.4 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,015 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 15 (285/513/798)

Music: Shuffle play