Run 413
Average pace: 5:56/km
Location: Burnaby Lake CCW
Distance: 7.05 km
Time: 41:55
Weather: Overcast, showers
Temp: 7-8ºC
Wind: moderate to strong
BPM: 168
Stride: n/a
Weight: 168.8 pounds
Total distance to date: 3348
Device used: Apple Watch and iPhone 6
I headed out earlier today to beat the rain and beat some of it.
The rest fell on me.
The day was cool and a strong breeze made it cooler still. The sky looked semi-threatening and the forecast indicated I’d complete my run before any real rain would start. Just over 2.5 km in, having just exited the Piper Mill Trail, a light sprinkle began. It remained much the same for the rest of the run, picking up a little toward the end.
After the run it turned into a downpour, so the last four km or so I got thoroughly soaked. It was the kind of weather that would have made it very difficult to motivate myself to get out in, so the decision to start early was wise indeed.
I opted to run 7K and managed it without issue, coming in with a slightly slower pace that pretty much equals out to the 5K pace of a few weeks ago. That’s nice to see.
The left foot was a tiny bit sore during the run but perfectly tolerable. I experienced no other issues.
There were no cyclists on the trail today. Hooray! There were several unleashed dogs. Boo! The runners started outnumbering the walkers as the weather worsened but other than a few dedicated walking groups, traffic was pretty light.
The strange crashing happened somewhere after the 9K mark when I was walking out, a few hundred meters shy of the Avalon Trail. I heard a loud crash just behind me and to my right. I snapped my head back (after leaping into the air) and couldn’t see anything immediately obvious but the woods here are marshy and filled with deadfall. There was a very large branch weighing down on other fallen timber and I suspect that may have been what I just heard. Recent storms with high winds and heavy rain have created optimal conditions for trees and branches to come down and there were several chainsawed trees along the trail that hadn’t been there last week. The fact that it seemed to be happening while I was there made me eye every slightly leaning tree for the rest of the trip around the lake.
Nearly every tree leans slightly at Burnaby Lake.
I escaped unscathed, apart from getting completely drenched and overall the run was a success. I increased my distance, maintained my pace and felt fine after. Now that Daylight Saving Time has kicked in, I should be able to start doing 5Ks after work soon™.
Note: The Speedgoats are still bleeding blue into my soaks for the fifth run in a row. I may pick up a different pair of shoes this week or at least see if I can exchange these ones as they’re clearly defective or my feet have new mutant color-absorbing abilities that coincidentally only activate when I’m wearing the Speedgoats.
