Average pace: 5:11/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Ran optional Piper Mill, Spruce Loop and Conifer trails
Distance: 11.06 km
Weather: Cloudy, some sun
Temp: 15-20ºC
Wind: light
Calories burned: 799
Total distance to date: 2190 km
In this case the goose-stepping was done by actual geese, as described below.
I was going to run on Thursday but logistically Friday was better so I moved the run back one day. Unfortunately I came home from work on Friday, laid down for a quick nap and conked out for several hours, using up all the daylight in the process. This is why you never lay down for a quick nap when you have other things planned.
I set out today during the lunch hour under a dull sky that didn’t really threaten rain. The temperature was a mild 15ºC and rose steadily to 20 over the course of the couple of hours I was out.
As I crossed Cariboo Road to the entrance to Burnaby Lake park I looked to my right and saw what will probably be the cutest thing I’ll see all month. Possibly all year. A family of geese — mom, dad and three goslings, were waddling quickly in single file across the road, with traffic stopped to allow safe passage. Once across they shifted over to the very path I was taking to the lake. I didn’t want to spook them (or worse, be attacked by a couple of hissing adult geese) so I walked slowly a reasonable distance behind them. In the parking lot of the complex to the right was another line of geese, dozens in all, with many a gosling, again marching in single file, all heading back to the lake after an adventure somewhere else.
Once the geese got to the dam I thought about running clockwise but nixed it and instead just gave them a wide berth as I started off.
After Tuesday’s dismal run I was concerned about today, doubly so considering my left foot was already acting up right from leaving the condo. I pressed on, though, feeling more energetic, whether due to the extra days off, more food in my system or just having seen a bunch of incredibly cute baby geese waddling along.
From the first few km I knew I was ahead of my pace and even better that held right to the 10K mark, which came much sooner than on the previous few runs. This was validated when I hit the 11K mark and had a reported time of 57:24 and an average pace of 5:11/km, easily besting my prior times of 5:25, 5:28 and 5:27. It was also a boost over the 5:17 and 5:18 times from a few weeks back.
Overall I felt much better. The knee was not an issue at all, the right tendon made its presence known a few times, but only for moments and not in any way that impacted my run. As for the left foot, it was sore but stretching it out on the run seemed to help. This was the first time in awhile where it didn’t feel like it was holding me back. Maybe it’s actually starting to get better!
