Location: Burnaby Lake, CCW
Distance: 11.62 km
Weather: Sunny, hot and humid
Temp: 27ºC
Wind: light to moderate
Calories burned: 824
Total distance to date: 1568 km
It was hot again and there was a decent breeze at times but early morning showers meant it was also humid. Hot and humid is not a good combo for me.
I ran counter-clockwise which is the ‘hard’ way because it leaves the shadeless detour part of the run for the end when I am most tired. But as often happens I got my second wind around the 10K mark (at the start of the detour) and actually picked up the pace for the last 1.6 km. I managed to just squeak in under 5:00 minutes with a pace of 4:59/km but I consider that a win given how thick the air felt. I was sweating even before I began the run.
Looking at the splits my times lagged most during the 8 and 9 km sections, which makes sense given the conditions. I was five seconds off the starting km, too. I just got plain pooped, right from the beginning and then throughout. It was the level of poopedness that was the only variable. Not surprisingly, there weren’t many other runners out today.
Other than the heat and humidity, everything else seemed okay — no pain or discomfort, just dry lips and a grateful stop at the faucet by the dam at the end of the run.
Location: Burnaby Lake, CW
Distance: 11.73 km
Weather: Sunny, hot
Temp: 26-28ºC
Wind: light to moderate
Calories burned: 832
Total distance to date: 1557 km
Today’s run was similar to Monday’s though I skipped the Piper Mill Trail.
It was hot — moreso than on Monday — but there was again a decent breeze blowing that made things tolerable. I hydrated (fancy talk for ‘drank water’) before heading out and again when I arrived at the dam (not at the dam itself as that would require a fair bit of finesse without plunging into the river but at a nearby faucet). Then I had to use the port-o-potty but even in the heat the chemicals it uses have kept it smelling remarkably un-port-o-potty-like. Science is amazing. I ran clockwise to beat the heat of the detour and skipped all three optional trails.
The start was again fairly brisk but the increasing temperature as I progressed was noticeable. By the time I got to the Nature House (roughly 2 km from the dam) I elected to make a quick pitstop to refresh myself at the faucet there. It helped, especially as the wind had settled down by then and I had another good finish. My pace was one second slower than Wednesday at 4:55/km but given the hotter conditions that seems reasonable. I am pleased that I am regularly clocking in under 5 minutes with the temperatures as warm as they’ve been.
The legs and feet both felt fine throughout the run. The main barrier right now is definitely the weather. It’s challenging to maintain a good pace with the warm weather but I’m satisfied with my efforts so far.
And thanks to some detailed instructions from Nike I was able to get today’s run and the other missing ones properly synced to the Nike+ site. Yay, all my precious stats are updated. I love stats.
If you have a look at this post from July 13th of last year you will see me list off my 14 least-favorite running conditions. I figure it’s time to update the list, so here we go. Changes are noted accordingly.
As before, the list is presented from least worst to just plain bad. The four options outside the top 10 aren’t really bad at all.
14. Overcast and light breeze. This is actually ideal conditions. It is usually never too cold or warm when the weather is like this.
13. Moderate wind. Moderate wind is fine. I have a cap that stays in place now.
12. Warm sun. Warm is no big thing. I’m talking about 20ºC or thereabouts.
11. Light rain. The only issue with light rain is that sometimes my iPod gets wet straight through my shorts’ pocket. If rain looks likely I put it in a plastic baggie.
10. Snow. I’ve only run once in light snow and it was fun. I’m thinking a foot of snow would probably be less so.
9. Cold rain. Cold rain means cold hands and if you wear gloves they need to be waterproof. Cold rain is never fun.
8. Hard rain. Getting soaked to the skin is kind of refreshing. Unfortunately if it’s raining hard, it’s almost always cold, too. Not so refreshing.
7. Extreme cold. I’ve run in sub-freezing conditions and been fine. I’m thinking Arctic tundra-type cold here.
6. Heavy wind. The resistance means you work a lot harder to achieve the same result and my cap has to be on tight enough to cut off circulation so it doesn’t fly away.
5. Hot sun. My body feels like a furnace and I’m left parched as all get-out. Dry mouth and lips are yucky. I’ve improved my stamina to where it has to be close to 30ºC to really affect me, though.
4. Hard rain and heavy wind. Likeliest weather to make me wonder to myself, ‘What was I thinking?’ when on the run.
3. Hot sun and heavy wind. Heat dries you out, the wind makes it harder to run and dries you out even more. Bleah. This combination is, however, very rare.
2. Hail. Getting pelted by little ice rocks is unpleasant! I’ve been caught in hail twice now and did not like it either time. Hail has moved from #7 to #2 on the list as a result.
And the worst weather to run in is:
1. Dogs. See here. I’ve had a dog knock me down while running. The weather has never done this.
Location: Burnaby Lake, CW
Distance: 11.7 km
Weather: Sunny, hot
Temp: 27ºC
Wind: light to moderate
Calories burned: 826
Total distance to date: 1546 km
Another rather warm day today so I opted to take the detour route and get the fully-exposed-to-the-cruel-yet-welcome-sun part out of the way up front. This seemed to work reasonably well.
I started the run feeling itchy as all get-out after yesterday’s misadventure exploring trails that don’t actually exist. I estimate at least 20 bug bites to go along with a number of minor lacerations from unkind plants. I was hoping the run would be a suitable distraction from this and it was!
I am still unable to sync data through the Nike+ website but have dispatched an e-mail calling for help (update: all missing run data has now been synced. Thanks, Pete from Nike!).
A big help with today’s run was a moderate but merciful breeze. It’s amazing what a little wind can do to help out on a hot day. I did not feel creaky starting out and in fact clocked my first km at a zippy 4:32/km. The shin also felt fine during the run and after. With the wind at my back I managed to lop four seconds off my previous pace. My body may be starting to get slightly used to the warmer temperatures. Woot.
Location: Burnaby Lake, CCW
Distance: 11.03 km
Weather: Sunny, hazy sun, hot
Temp: 26-28ºC
Wind: light to none
Calories burned: 782
Total distance to date: 1534 km
Today it was summer for real, no foolin’. Temperatures started at 26ºC and peaked by the end of the run at 28ºC. There was little wind to offset the heat, though the sun was blunted slightly by a thin haze across the sky.
I decided to go counter-clockwise and just suffer through the exposed detour route at the end. I also skipped all three optional loops.
And it was very warm. I was sweating a little just on the walk to the lake. Once there it didn’t take long to feel like the energy was being sucked out of me, packaged up and shipped off elsewhere. I had to pause twice to catch a few seconds of rest, one time in particular because I felt like I was pushing too hard (somehow) and overheating. I did manage to finish with a pace of 4:58, though, so it seems that I have made enough of an adjustment to keep my times under 5 minutes even when it is Africa hot (for the Vancouver area).
I felt creaky at the start, with my right ankle feeling a little sore (I twisted it in a less-than-optimal way the other day) but after about the first km the kinks were worked out and both legs weren’t causing any notable problems — stamina was definitely the main barrier today.
The title of this post refers to the first time on a run this year that I’ve encountered multiple men with their shirts off and save for one they all looked like prime candidates for a nice burn given the very white skin they had exposed.
I also had two people ask me questions during the run. This has never happened before. The first question was from a possible fellow runner, though neither of us were running at the time (this was during my second brief pause). We were around the midway point of the detour and he wanted to know if the trail picked up again and I assured him it did. He seemed satisfied. But he kept walking. I resumed my run and a short time later a woman asked if I had seen a man with a beard wearing shorts. I said no and continued on, though I honestly didn’t know if I had seen such a person or not. I don’t pay close attention to the other people on the trail unless they a) get in my way b) do something unusual/stupid or c) are dressed so outrageously that they leave an image seared into your brain. If I did indeed pass by man in shirts with beard, he fit into none of these categories.
Note that some of the stats/splits are missing for this run because I am not attempting to upload any more runs until the one from Wednesday is restored. I did get through to Nike support and after a bit of back and forth have supplied all the info they need to manually add the run (or so I hope). I am a bit concerned because I was asked for my Nike+ user name as part of the info, did so and then was asked to supply it again in a later tweet. Which I did, again. It hadn’t changed in the meantime!
Since it looks to be warm for the next little while I may look into taking some water with me on the next bunch o’ runs. That should help a decent bit, I’d reckon.
Location: Burnaby Lake, CW
Distance: 11.66 km
Weather: Mainly sunny, some cloud
Temp: 22ºC
Wind: light to none
Calories burned: 826
Total distance to date: 1523 km
Cool and damp. Sunny and warm. Cool and damp. Sunny and warm. MAKE UP YOUR MIND, MOTHER NATURE.
Today it was sunny and warm, with the temperature up to a relatively balmy 22ºC. I opted to run clockwise to get through the shade-free detour part of the route first. Once again, with the constant flipping between cooler and warmer days, the warmer ones are still harder to adjust to, but I finished with a decent pace of 4:54 so that’s not bad. I skipped all the optional loops as the second half of the run I was feeling tired and just wanted to drink any sort of cold liquid as soon as possible.
The left leg generally behaved itself, with the foot being a minor issue and the shin not hurting but after the run the entire lower left leg was a bit achy, mainly just the calf itself. Maybe this is from shifting my weight around because of the foot, as I’ve speculated before. It feels okay now, a few hours later.
I can’t break down my performance any further than the basic stats above because the Nike+ site is refusing to sync the data. Grr. I will update this post later when the sync works.
As for this being the unofficial first day of summer, see my previous post re: the Hume Park pool. Also if those wacky meteorologists are to be believed we are set for our first real stretch of sunny, warm weather. We shall see.
It may also be a full moon (edit: checked, negative) because just as I was about to exit the Brunette River trail onto East Columbia Street a guy on a bike motioned to me. I pulled out my earbuds and he proceeded to tell me this story about his youth, intermingled with current events in a random, stream-of-conscious sort of way. To the side of the trail there is a large clear space, sometimes occupied by park service vehicles but recently filled with a collection of boulders that are being stored for purposes unknown. They apparently sparked a recollection in this man of how he and some friends had moved the stones (other ones, I assume) to the river (he gestured behind him to the Brunette burbling away in the background) to create a pond for swimming. He further went on about how they would steal kegs of beer from the Labatt’s brewery over yonder because they’d just leave the back door of the place wide open. With kegs in hand and their little pool all that was left to do was ‘drink and bang girls’. It was great, he told me. I smiled politely.
He switched several times to the present and explained how a kid at the river had been hurt falling off a log so he took his axe and chopped some branches off the log or maybe he chopped the whole thing up. Anyway, all kids in the future would be safe. At this point I noticed that he still had the axe with him, attached to a strut on the bike. The entire handle was covered in duct tape because ‘it had broken’. He said he was a professional hatchet thrower and came down here to practice. Hopefully on non-human targets. He didn’t specify. He pointed to a still-fresh gash on his right leg as proof that he needed the practice. (My partner later confirmed that there is indeed a practice target for hatchet-throwing somewhere in the area.) The sight of the axe made me a little nervous. Was he going to demonstrate his technique or would he go on about the stones some more? Maybe the beer stealing? He asked if I’d been down to the river. I said no. He said it was a great place for kids (if they stay off the logs) and asked if I had any. I said no. He asked if I had any nephews or nieces and I said yes, but on the island. How many more questions was he going to ask?
By now I was starting to mull over excuses for leaving in a hurry. I didn’t have my phone so I couldn’t fake a call. I had just finished an 11.66 km run but what’s a few more hundred meters to get out of axe-throwing range? But then this man with the strange grin realized he had to get moving. He mounted the bike and started riding slowly in the same direction I was heading. I began walking behind, slowly. He picked up the pace and headed down the sidewalk, coming up to the crosswalk that I would normally take. Instead I waited for a break in traffic and scooted across the street ahead of the crosswalk. I watched the man and he wheeled past the pedestrian walk signal and kept going down the road. I would be heading into the park and a steep hill with concrete barrier and woods would separate us. I headed down into the park, he rode up the street and was gone from sight.
When I climbed up the wooden stairs to the upper half of the park he was waiting with the axe in his hands. Okay, it was actually just a bunch of kids playing in the pool. But he could have been there! I’m afraid of what my subconscious will do with this when I fall asleep tonight.
Location: Burnaby Lake, CCW
Distance: 11.52 km
Weather: Mainly cloudy, some light rain
Temp: 16ºC
Wind: light to none
Calories burned: 817
Total distance to date: 1511 km
Ran: Spruce and Conifer loops.
I was waiting and hoping that the light rain that was falling this afternoon would stop — and it did! But only after I started my run. Fortunately it was light so I had pretty much dried by the time I finished the run. With temperatures significantly cooler than Friday and a weekend of rest I was more energetic and able to maintain a steady pace more reliably. The left foot and shin also behaved enough to not be factors. This allowed me to clock my second best pace to date at 4:47/km as well as my fastest 5K at 23:16. I also passed 1500 km tracked, woo.
Near the start of the counter-clockwise run I had a Fitness Dude with armband iPod run past me. It happens, I’m not the fastest guy out there. I took two of the three optional trails, spotting him some extra distance. When I hit the Cottonwood Trail (which is a very long straight stretch) I spotted him a fair distance ahead of me. He disappeared where the trail turns back toward the lake and I did not see him again. At this point I assumed he stopped at 5K or was chased off my a wily coyote.
For the final km I found a reserve of energy and picked up my pace significantly. This was nice. Then I saw Fitness Dude coming out of the parking lot (basically the 10K point of the run), heading past me. I am now assuming that he was some kind of running robot with fully charged battery. Or maybe a clone.
In all, I was quite pleased by today’s effort. The cooler temperatures are definitely better for runs but it would still be kind of nice if summer showed up at some point.
Location: Burnaby Lake, CW
Distance: 11.79 km
Weather: Sun and cloud
Temp: 20ºC
Wind: none
Calories burned: 836
Total distance to date: 1499 km
Today was planned as a maintenance run. With my left foot and shin bothering me to varying degrees on Wednesday’s run I wanted to run today at a slower but steady pace to help reduce the risk of injury and to see if the left foot and shin would react positively. I still wanted to finish under 5:00/km if possible because I am at least a little addicted to always getting a bit faster.
I managed to achieve all of my intended goals. I finished with a pace of 4:58/km and the left foot was not unduly bothersome. More importantly, perhaps, the left shin did not act up during or after the run. I am now hoping that my shifted gait on Wednesday was responsible for it feeling tweaked. Two full days of rest over the weekend should also help out.
It was cloudy to start (99% coverage according to the weather site) with a 30% chance of showers so I was prepared for rain. 30% often equals 100% around here. Surprisingly, the opposite happened and it partially cleared while I was out. Typically the sun would shine when I was on a part of the trail that offered no shade and would then duck behind a cloud when I was back to running under a heavy canopy. It was quite humid and the stretch along the athletic fields was especially stifling, with no real breeze to speak of.
I started out with a good pace but eased off and maintained a slower but steady pace as intended. I also skipped the optional loops to reduce the total distance, though with the detour that still came in at 11.79 km.
The run was unremarkable save for an annoying pair of cyclists who crossed my path three (!) times. The woman was especially wobbly at the wheel and I kept expecting her to tip over as I passed. They got a wide berth — and bonus mildly dirty look.
And the return of the chart, showing overall pace:
Location: Burnaby Lake, CCW
Distance: 13.06 km
Weather: Sun, hazy sun
Temp: 22ºC (feels like 25)
Wind: light to strong
Calories burned: 926
Total distance to date: 1488 km
Ran Piper Mill Trail, Conifer and Spruce Loops.
It was warm and humid today, with a mix of sun and hazy sun. On the plus side the humidity helps to keep you from feeling overly parched/thirsty while running. On the negative, it tends to wear you out.
It didn’t help that my left foot acted cranky fairly early on. Even my left shin felt not exactly sore but I could definitely feel it. This is worrying because it may mean it’s past the breaking point but it seems all right now, so I’m hoping that my likely shifted gait during the run was making it hurt (sort of) in a way it normally wouldn’t.
In better news, I once again opted for distance over speed and stretched out to beat last year’s previous best of 12.7 km. I did it, finishing at 13.06 km. Even better, my average pace was 4:58 vs. last year’s 5:21, a 23 second improvement. I approve!
I also experienced some other discomfort, notably some gas. I took a Tums before the run just for the heck of it and I think that may have actually caused the gas. Oops. Other that that the rest of the run went fine. I did a complete loop and came up just short of Spruce Loop before turning back to the dam to get past the 13K barrier. Fine, except for bugs. There seemed to be several new clumps hovering along a few spots on the trail, possibly hatched because it’s all cozy and muggy out. I’m pretty sure I ate a few.
I’m going to bring back the chart for the next run but will only record my average pace instead of the pace for each km. That will at least make it easier to see overall trends.
Location: Burnaby Lake, CW
Distance: 12.5 km
Weather: Sun, hazy sun
Temp: 22ºC
Wind: moderate
Calories burned: 890
Total distance to date: 1475 km
Ran Piper Mill Trail, Conifer and Spruce Loops.
The last run was soggy and cold so today’s was the opposite, warm and sunny. This is June.
Because it was warmer I opted to run clockwise, taking the detour first, my logic being that this section, which is entirely open and exposed, would be easier at the start of the run when I had lots of energy than at the end when I might be feeling a little pooped.
The logic was sound but halfway through the sun became hazy sun and the hazy sun was cloud by the time I finished.
My first km was strong then I dropped off quite a bit as the heat hit me. I maintained fairly well after that, though and finished with a respectable 4:53/km pace. I also squeezed out as much distance as I could and ended up with my second longest run to date, 12.56 km. Legs fine, left foot was tolerable.
Location: Burnaby Lake, CW
Distance: 11.93 km
Weather: Steady rain
Temp: 14ºC
Wind: none
Calories burned: 846
Total distance to date: 1462 km
Ran Piper Mill Trail, Conifer and Spruce Loops.
By coincidence I finished today’s run with the exact same distance as Wednesday — 11.93 km. It was not supposed to be as long but thanks to the iPod click wheel that’s how it ended up. I’ll get to why shortly.
The forecast for this afternoon was for a 30% chance of precipitation and less than 1 mm. A 30% chance pretty much means 100% so I went prepared, bringing along the plastic baggie that would keep my iPod dry and functional. The sky was overcast and while one part of it looked fairly non-threatening the other had the look of imminent rain. I walked through Hume Park and to the Brunette River trail and as I approached the overpass there the first few drops began. By the time I got to the lake it was pouring steadily and it kept raining for the entire run and the walk back. By the time I got home my hands were almost numb from the cold. Our brief summer tease of two days ago turned out to be just that, a tease.
I ran clockwise to get the detour part of the trail out of the way as soon as possible and it seems I misremembered how it sloped because there are three distinct hills going down this way, meaning it is a bit easier to run clockwise, rather than the other way around as I had noted previously. Because I was not burdened by warm temperatures and needed to keep moving just to keep from freezing I kept up a good pace throughout. I even picked it up a bit as I came out of the Spruce Loop and another runner whisked ahead of me. I had seen her prepping earlier near the halfway mark and had expected her to already be well past me as she would be only a few km in vs. my 9 km or so. I took up the challenge to keep up but she pulled ahead. I valiantly gave it my best and reached a point where she was ahead but no longer gaining ground, so I consider it a moral victory.
As I came in toward the dam for the finish I pulled out the plastic baggie and reached in to end the workout on the iPod. Although it was dry my hands were not and wiping them on my drenched shirt and shorts wasn’t helping. Even a tiny bit of moisture on my fingertip was enough to render the click wheel useless. I could bring up the workout options but not scroll down to the fourth one, End Workout. I kept running and trying, adding about 300 or 400 m to the run and was finally able to get it to shut down just as I reached the literal end of the trail (at Cariboo Road).
I then tried to see if I could get the music to at least resume for the soggy walk home but gave up after numerous attempts. I now officially hate the iPod and the click wheel. I’m seriously considering using the much heavier iPhone for my runs. Stupid click wheel.
On the plus side, I finished four seconds ahead of my previous best pace, finishing with a new record of 4:45/km. Woo! I also set records for the following:
1K: 4:28
5K: 23:31
10K: 47:23
I didn’t experience any notable pain or discomfort. Even the left foot behaved itself, more or less.
Location: Burnaby Lake, CCW
Distance: 11.93 km
Weather: Hazy sun, warm
Temp: 20ºC
Wind: light to none
Calories burned: 846
Total distance to date: 1450 km
I checked the Metro Vancouver Regional Parks web page before the run today and found an update regarding the blocked access on the Burnaby Lake trail. I quote:
Southshore Trail Closure
A portion of the Southshore Trail will be closed beginning June 18, 2012 for about two months to replace the boardwalk. During this time, the rest of the trail will remain open and visitors can complete the lake loop by using Freeway Trail. Access along Avalon Trail may occasionally be affected by construction equipment and vehicles. Visitors are reminded to follow posted detour and safety signs. For more information, call Metro Vancouver at 604-520-6442.
This is both good in that I know what is going on and bad because it means for two months I’m going to have to use the serviceable but generally unfun Freeway Trail detour until the new boardwalk is in place. I am curious to see what the new fancy boardwalk will look like, though. The old one didn’t seem to be in bad shape, thought it was a bit springy, which is probably not a good quality to have.
I knew today’s run was going to be more challenging with the warmer conditions. Since the weather keeps changing back and forth it’s difficult to adjust to the warmer days because there’s never enough of them to adjust to. Stupid June. Knowing I was unlikely to be setting a blistering pace, I set myself two goals: to run all three loops and try to come in under 5:00/km.
I finished with a pace of 4:59, completed all three loops and ended with a distance of 11:96 km. Since I never check distance before ending runs I didn’t realize I was so close to 12K. I would have pushed on for the smidgen extra had I known.
I ran counter-clockwise today so I didn’t get to the detour until I was past the 9K mark. I came in at 10K just as I passed the electrical tower. The Google maps image below shows the Freeway trail. I’ve highlighted where it connects to the parts of the run I normally take.
The hazy sun kept things tolerable but after a good start through the cooler woods of the northern trail I found my pace flagging some as I moved onto the more exposed southern side. Worse, the entire detour is completely exposed, though going CW the route is more downhill so it’s a little easier to manage.
My left foot started to complain around the 6K mark but eased up fairly quickly and was not a significant issue. I think it must change with the weather.
A solid, lengthy run overall. I think this will be the last time I use the same chart format.
