Every year I think to myself, "This is the year I'm going to embrace winter running. I'm going to get out there and actually enjoy the elements." Stealing a quote from another running blog I read, each and every year I aspire to "make winter my bitch."This year was no exception. Over the years I have gradually accumulated adequate gear to achieve this goal. I have a pair of running pants that are so dang comfy, warm, and cozy that I'd like to spend the entire winter in them. I have this shirt that rocks. I don't know what it is, but it keeps me toasty. I've got a hat that's the dorkiest thing you've ever seen, but it keeps the ears happy. I've got splendid wool socks and a jacket that goes over the rockin' toasty shirt (which is a really good thing, because the rockin' toasty shirt is a little, umm, shall we say, SNUG).
And, this fall, on one of my many ventures to Costco, I purchased these:
These are comparable to YakTrax or Icetrekkers, but significantly cheaper. I got not one, but TWO pairs for something like $15. Of course, I only needed one pair, but did I mention that I got them at Costco?! Despite my annual good intentions, something always seems to prevent me from getting out there for more than two or three times a season. In previous years, the kids provided a good excuse to just go to the Y and use the treadmill. After all, I couldn't just leave them home alone to go out for a jog, and if they're at the Y, they're getting some good energy scrubbing fun as well. Yes, I could have gone before the hubs left for work or after he would get home from work. But, I live in the land of vitamin D deficiency and very little daylight. As a general rule, if he's home, it's dark out. This may be a cop-out, but I don't much care for running in the dark (Ragnar being the exception), and the thought of running in the dark in the winter scares me. I feel I'm injury prone enough without hitting the snow covered, slippery trails in times of limited visibility.
However, this year... THIS was going to be the year. My youngest cub started half day kindergarten, thus providing me with a kid free window of time from 1:15-4:15 every afternoon. No excuses now. Look out winter!
Enter the ITB issues. Once winter hit, I was dealing with a bum knee. I was getting super discouraged, it was taking forever to heal. Well, I saw a chiropractor at Uptown Natural Care Center who performs A.R.T. That should be a whole other post. For now, let's just say I'm a believer in the technique. And... I'm running again. WHOO HOO! I'd covered a good number of miles on the treadmill, and yesterday was my time to hit the trails. I put the youngest cub on the bus to school and headed to my favorite nearby trail, with all my gear in tow.
It was a beautiful day. Not too terribly cold, light snow falling, and at first glance I thought the trail looked relatively clear. So, I took off without the traction help. I soon regretted this. There was lots of slippery snow on the trail. So, as I completed the first loop and ran by the car, I grabbed those bad boys and strapped them on. They were, in a couple of words, COMPLETE CRAP. I may be able to rig them up to work, but they kept falling off and majorly pissing me off.
So, winter 2010-2011 running is not off to the best start. I will not give up yet, but I've got some kinks to work out. I'm not sure what to do next. I can't say that I'm dying to drop cash on the real yak trax. I could perhaps find some clearer trails, or maybe the streets would be better. All I know right now is that I feel like yesterday's run was worthless.
