Since the beginning of the year, the weather has been up and
down. For the first week the
temperatures were in the teens (to be expected), but then this last week it
warmed up into the 30s, almost hitting 40 on Thursday. It was nice to be out running in the abnormal
warmth for this time of year, not having to wear nearly as many layers of
clothing. However, the warm temps didn’t
seem to melt as much snow as I thought it would. Most of the warm days were cloudy, not giving
the sun a chance to really do its thing.
There also just isn’t enough daylight this time of year. We even got rain yesterday too, and while it
may have melted some snow, it actually made more of a mess. The rain came in front of a cold front – a cold
front that brought temperatures back into the teens. Rain plus cold temperatures of course equal
ice. To put this into perspective for my
running, anywhere that was a nice clear street, sidewalk, or paved trail now
has sporadic areas of ice. Some spots
had really solid ice too, maybe an inch thick.
Nothing is going to melt much in the next couple of days with the temps
staying in the teens, but hopefully as we warm back up midweek the big ice
spots will at least disappear. That
doesn’t give me any comfort for what tomorrow’s 4 miler will be like though.
To be realistic, I don’t expect winter running to be perfect
running. Running right now is what it is. I don’t anticipate much more than to just be
putting in the miles and building a good base for the rest of the year. There won’t be much speed or many fast
times. Even when the streets and
sidewalks are completely devoid of snow and ice, I still have the cold. I can’t get around having to wear many extra
layers of clothing that add weight, but also hamper my flexibility. Thinking back I should have mentioned this in
“My Winter Running Essentials: Clothing” post.
It’s not as bad as younger brother Randy in A Christmas Story but
the layers just do add some resistance.
Hmm… maybe one should just think of it as running resistance
training. I’m slow now but I’ll be stronger
and faster once the temps warm up and the layers come off. Well that’s some positive thinking anyway…
At least I can put my arms down…
Changing the subject, I’m kind of wishing I was back in
Madison this weekend. For the last two
years, Madison has been lucky enough to have hosted USA Cycling’s Cyclo-cross
Nationals. Yes folks, this is an off-road
bike race in the middle of January. Last
year’s event was actually during a warm spell so there wasn’t any snow or
ice. There was some ground thawing going
on though so there was some mud, but there should always be mud for a proper
cyclo-cross race.
Hard to believe this was January 2012.
Though I can't bet there in person, I’m going to set aside some time tomorrow to watch the live feed for the Elite Men’s’ and Women’s races. If I were you, I’d watch it too. I don’t think it will disappoint.
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