Run 514
Average pace: 5:44/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 1:53 pm
Distance: 10.02 km
Time: 57:34
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 24-25ºC
Humidity: 37%
Wind: light to moderate
BPM: 153
Weight: 159.8 pounds
Total distance to date: 3990 km
Devices: Apple Watch, iPhone

I indulged in a bit of a lazy morning and started today’s run early in the afternoon as a consequence. In terms of temperature it wasn’t too bad, only a few degrees hotter than the morning and at 24-25ºC still below the “this is kind of too hot” point. On the northern side of the lake I sweated a bit but didn’t sweat much at all on the southern side. A good breeze helped, too.

For whatever reason, though, I was tired for the whole run. Even the walk to the lake was a bit slower than recent days. Because it was afternoon I choose to go with a steady but slower pace, anyway, but my legs especially just seemed to lack the fuel to carry me much beyond a plodding pace that averaged out to 5:44/km. This isn’t terrible–in fact, it’s about what I would have expected for my first 10K last weekend (where much cooler weather helped), but it was still enough that by the 6K mark I seriously considered calling it. I also mulled pausing the run or walking for a bit.

In the end I turned my mind to other things to distract myself and got through the full 10 km. There was no photo finish. 😛

The trail itself is seeing construction/resurfacing along several areas. The rocky section by the 5K marker I complained about previously did indeed turn out to be a base layer that has since been covered over with crushed gravel. It looks like most of that stretch that floods is going to be built up with new material, leaving only a few other small areas that are still affected by heavy rains.

The work on South Shore trail and Avalon trail doesn’t appear to have progressed much, though I’m curious to see how they resurface Avalon. It’s a shared use trail that horses are allowed on and is the only place on the Burnaby Lake Loop with a rock dust surface, which is very fine and maybe better for horses? Most trails feature either crushed gravel or compact dirt. I’m assuming they’ll keep it the same for the horses. Won’t someone think of the horses?

There was a notice posted at several entry points to let people know the Cottonwood trail would be closed for a few weeks to have its footbridge replaced, starting July 31. Indeed, I could see piles of gravel and three steel girders near the bridge as I ran by. Since there’s no detour route on the Cottonwood trail, this means the loop will not be doable for at least two weeks.

Those two weeks exactly coincide with my vacation, when I played on…running the loop. I’ll have to run clockwise to Still Creek and double-back, which will get me 10K. Not as satisfying as a full loop around the lake, but better than a kick in the pants. I’m hoping that, as with the boardwalk replacement in 2012, the time estimate is overly generous and it only takes them a week or so to complete. It’s not a big bridge. I clear it in about four steps.

I wonder if they might target the bridge at Deer Lake Brook. It’s bigger (and has stairs at both ends) and when I ran on it today it felt especially bouncy on the eastern end. It hasn’t felt bouncy before. Bouncy is not a good quality for a bridge to have.

One bonus of heading out later was fewer people out in general (and no cyclists, yay). Still, I’m glad I finished the run, both for the achievement and because finishing meant it was over. This is one of those rare times when my two-day break before the next run will feel truly welcome.

Run 508
Average pace: 5:36/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 12:57 p.m.
Distance: 7.03 km
Time: 39:30
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 25ºC
Humidity: 37%
Wind: light to strong
BPM: 164
Weight: 161.3 pounds
Total distance to date: 3940 km
Devices: Apple Watch, iPhone

Good news: I earned the National Park Challenge badge that Apple had set for today. You had to complete a workout that covered at least 5.6 km, the distance between Old Faithful and Mallard Lake in Yellowstone National Park. Completing this meant I had to do more than a 5K run, regardless of how I felt, and I love me some achievements, so…

I got off to a much later start than intended because I slept in till 10 am. To put that in perspective, on a normal Saturday run I would be more than mid-way through the run at 10, not laying in bed. I finally got started on the actual run itself just before 1 p.m. I chose to set a deliberate pace and just get through it nice and steady, as it was warmer (up to 25ºC) and more importantly, it felt a lot warmer than that. Despite a breeze that was at times strong it never felt cool or refreshing, just windy.

Getting to 5K felt a bit like a slog but I pushed past it and entertained thoughts of stopping at 6K, as I’d still meet the challenge. I passed the 6K marker, though, and somehow had enough reserves to complete a full 7K, which made me feel a bit better about feeling a bit worse.

My pace of 5:36/km is seven seconds off my best 7K this year but it actually edges my Burnaby Lake-only runs, so it didn’t turn out as bad as I thought it might. I also kept a fairly decent pace on the walk back over the 7+ km.

Then I had a bath and a nice nap.

The trail was surprisingly sparely-populated despite being a gorgeous Saturday afternoon, but there were people out and aboot, several of whom were rather annoying, each in a different way.

In order:

• a pair of male cyclists tearing down the trail toward me. I had just come down the bend heading toward the bridge at Still Creek. I called out to the second that bikes were not allowed on the trail. Still Creek, less than 100 meters away, has prominent No Cycling signs so they knew what they were doing. I hope some parks workers caught and fined them (and they were starting work on re-surfacing parts of the South Shore Trail so they were out, too).
• a wedding party taking pictures on the aforementioned bridge at Still Creek. This is not a big bridge and they were standing in a row across it, completely blocking the way. I stopped and the photographer may some motions to them and I and another person went through, though I’m still not sure if the photographer was just re-arranging people or being nice and letting us pass without having to wait through a full photo shoot. Tip: If you’re taking wedding pictures in a public place, don’t block the only access to get through!
• as I was nearing the 7K mark and running out of fuel–I did not have a spectacular finish today–a woman ahead of me suddenly started jogging. It turned out she was doing the world’s weirdest set of intervals. She would run maybe a hundred meters–which even at a slow pace is maybe 20 seconds of jogging–then walk for awhile and repeat, over and over. But for the first bit, where I was trying to finish my run, she kept a pace that put her just barely ahead of me and I had no reserves to power past her. It was even more annoying because she would drift from the left to the middle to the right and back as she ran.

I finally did find a reserve and managed to squeeze by her. Despite walking the rest of the way, I almost kept up with her until near the very end, some three km later. She also started out wearing a light jacket. Now, it’s common for joggers to overdress and I’ve done it more than I’d care to admit (though I just admitted it, oops) but picture the conditions today. It was early afternoon in mid-July, it was 25ºC, it was clear with absolutely no chance of precipitation. Running in such conditions makes you sweat quickly. Why would you wear a jacket? Did she really think she would feel cold? Blargh.

I actually met another cycling couple as I was heading out of the park but they seemed nice so I warned them bikes were not allowed and workers were in the park who might potentially fine them. They were apparently confused by a sign at the end of Cariboo Place (the short road that goes from the RV park to Cariboo Road) that seemed to indicate the Central Valley Greenway continues in Burnaby Lake Regional Park, when in fact, it actually continues by turning north and then west down Government Street. Checking the signage on Google Map’s Street View does indeed make it look a bit ambiguous. The sign is at an angle that could be pointing north or across the street, to Burnaby Lake. Once you cross, though, the signs at the lake entrance are unambiguous. There are no less than three saying bikes are not allowed and one provides directions to the actual Greenway route.

The couple seemed appreciative of the help but were still chatting when I left so I have no idea if they ignored everything I said. Hopefully not as they really may have been fined if caught.

Finally, as mentioned, there are signs warning of re-surfacing along the horse trails and South Shore Trail that started on July 10. The trails will stay open but while South Shore needs work–and it would finish what they started a year and a half ago–in my opinion the Cottonwood Trail is in more urgent need of resurfacing. There are long stretches that have a lot of exposed tree roots and every time I jog through there I need to do a little dance to avoid them all. I suppose they’ll get to it eventually.

Overall, a respectable run but nothing fancy. The achievement was decent consolation to the average pace.