Trail Run at Pinelands

Ran 10.1 miles @ 9:11/mile pace.
AHR/MHR - 140/162
Trails.
Extremely hilly.
Upper 50s.

Early morning runs are like chocolate cake. Though I wouldn't want it every day, I really look forward to doing them once a week or so. I met up with Stephen, Blaine and Brian to get in about 10 miles at Pineland Farms this morning at 6am to get my fix.

Weather was much nicer, as cooler, dryer air has moved in. Unfortunately, the heat wave looks like it was too much for the trout in a pond we park next to. We saw several at the surface gasping for air at pond's edge (water loses oxygen when it warms up and trout, especially brookies, are sensitive to that), undeterred by our presence just a few feet away. Several more were floating dead.

The deer flies were also out in large numbers, but hopefully this new batch of more seasonable weather will slow them down a bit. Blaine's patchouli oil bug spray seemed to do the trick, at least for the first half of the run. If nothing else, it left us all smelling like hippies.

On a more positive wildlife note, we did see two hawks (red-tailed?) several times on the edge of the woods, and they were talking up a good storm. We also saw a turkey on the trail and were serenaded by hermit thrushes throughout the run.

The run itself went well. First time I went double-digit miles since the big race two weeks ago. Felt good, though my legs still have a ways to go before I can say they feel fresh. Great company though, and we had our usual fun talking about running and everything else while we ran.

No running for the next few days, as I'm getting my wisdom teeth yanked tomorrow. It's something I've been delaying for several years, but I look forward to getting it over with. The freezer is already stocked with ice cream.