Seriously I am running...
by Tony Peters on January 21, 2013
OK maybe running isn't quite the best description especially since I am mostly running/jogging on trails but who would have thought that after 20 years of hating running (and that's an understatement) while in the Navy I am finding trailrunning soo much fun. This all started last fall when I decided that after 4 years the screws in my ankle were still annoying me. Removal isn't an option as recovery from that is a year of minimal exercise/stress which means I couldn't even swim or ride a bike. So the only other choice is to start exercising it. Cycling while great exercise does nothing for the bundle of mixxed up nerves in my lower leg and neither does swimming no impact so the joint doesn't get stressed. I bought a pair of running shoes on a whim and started walking, just me and the dog, not really recording the miles just spending an hour or soo wandering the town. Before Xmas I started to run on the road with the dog which she really liked but my hamstrings and calves were screaming. So on a whim I took the dog out to one of her favorite hikes from when I was learning to walk again 4 years ago and we went for a run there. Well other than the fact that what I thought of as good shape turns out to be mediocre, my legs are much happier, not to mention the dog is ecstatic every time we head out now. There is no question I am slow and trail running is slow going even for a fast person. I got a chance to run this morning with a 2 legged person, an old friend from highschool who runs religiously and was able to match her pace for 2.5 miles of very technical trails. That makes me feel good (though she went out for another lap when I was done), showing her a new place to run was also nice as she admitted that most of her spots are feeling stale. The nice thing about trailrunning is that while the miles are nice its really the time running and the scenery that make it so much fun.
Two Replies to Seriously I am running...
Tony Peters | January 22, 2013
yeah a lot of the places I am now running are places that I used to hike on the weekends so I know them almost as well as my local streets. Once it warms up I will likely see more wildlife, not much out there now. Of course watching my dog run thought the woods is also highly entertaining.
vagabond-punk
The musings of Tony Peters, a perpetual child, no matter where I am I will find a way to climb something or go skateboarding Read more »
vacation and such
well my father, brother and I set out last thursday for Ithaca NY, my father and I on our motorcycles and my brother in his LandCruiser pulling a trailer/tent. The goal was to get from Rhode Island to Ithaca for a family reunion and back by using only back roads. We succeeded and we plenty of adventures to boot...my Go »Life without a Cell Phone
OK now I have never thought I was overly attached to my Cell Phone but since I left mine in the middle of the Indian Ocean I've had to live without it for the last week. I am definatly in withdrawals...everyone in my family is on my cell, hell I don't even know most of the numbers that are progamed/saved on my cell. Go »Change 3
a 07:30 phone call saying ooppsss uimmmm well it turns out that you are gonna have to go after all and we are gonna have to send 2 teams is not that way I wanted to start the day. Neither is sweet talking the travel clerk who's day we ruined yesterday to redo all the work she did yesterday....however other than cancelling my New Years plans, a ride with my dad and a climb with my brother, this on again off again travel thing isn't too much of a burden. Go »retirement
I should spend more time working on things like this during my time off. I find I am playing more though. These were shot over memorial day weekend, Muji and I went to the beach Go »got a new drug
2 weeks ago I sold my BMX cruiser with the intention of shedding a toy to buy a bike better suited to commuting to work, at one time I rode a racebike and i really wanted to start riding one again except with the simplicity that I enjoyed on my cruiser....so I bought a fixxed gear, no not going through a mid life crisis I have ridden a fixxed gear before and I know what's involved, it arrived last friday and after a scramble to assemble it (and switch the brakes to motostyle) I rode it to work, I have ridden to work every day for the last week (because it only rains on my day off) and my legs are just starting to adjust I have aches in places I haven't felt in years but I feel better and judging by the way my pants feel I'm sure I'm starting to look healthier too. No riding a fixie is not for everybody, I have people who give me terrified looks when they realize what I'm riding but it works for me and thats what is important, besides when the weather is nice I can leave after work and ride down to the beach and back on a 20 mile loop and still get home in time to make dinner for my wife and I. Go »
Scott Hardie | January 22, 2013
It's good that you're getting out there and enjoying the trail. I have quite a few runner friends who routinely share photos of the wildlife they spot every weekend morning, so I understand what you mean about the value of the scenery.