Halloween 50

I had big plans for running this weekend. I got 6 days off work and I planned to do a long run. I was thinking 60 miles or so. I wanted to have time to recover so I planned to do it Halloween. I wasn't sure of running on Halloween night, having to share the streets with all the trick-or-treaters, and who knows what other kinds of weirdos, other than me.

It's been less than 2 weeks since I ran the 70 miles at Boulder. I didn't take it too easy after that either, I got some decent running in last week and I've been staying busy on my days off. I went down to Denver when my dad was there on business and met him one day.

This fall it's been perfect weather, warm days and cool nights, plenty of days to go outside and enjoy the leaves. Fort Collins had some excitement last week when Barack Obama came to town. For a town with a population of about 130,000, they said there were 45,000 to 50,000 people at the rally at CSU. The entire area around campus was jammed with people. Four more days to the election.

Wednesday was my last day at work for the week and we had a busy week. I ran my butt off Wednesday and hardly got a chance to eat, drink, or pee all day. As a result I was exhausted on Thursday. I hate to use up one of my precious days off to recover from work, not to mention that I'm not getting paid to recover! It was a good week though, some good things have been happening at work and in some ways I think it was worth the tired feet, hypoglycemia and dehydration...

This morning I slept in, started out with the Buffaloes and took them for their run first, then dropped them off at home and went out on my own. I settled into my pattern I want to stick to at Across the Years, 20 minutes of running, 10 minutes of walking. As the day went on it felt like summer. I had to remember to drink extra fluids and put enough salt stick in my bottles. It was so warm, it reminded me of Halloween in Arizona. I wore shorts the whole way.

The thing about running all day is that I'm always looking forward to night running. I have to get through the long daytime hours until I can get into the part I like best, running under the stars. I was tired. It took me 30 miles before I felt good, and the sun was going down by then. But tonight I was sharing my dark streets with goblins, witches, princesses,and other creatures.

My familiar neighborhood loop was full of kids holding big bags of candy, totally oblivious to traffic and the sidewalks. It's amazing more kids don't get run over by cars on Halloween night. Every time I ran past the house, I felt guilty about the Buffaloes, who were home alone, barking at the sounds of kids roaming the neighborhood. Dennis worked late and didn't get home until 7:30, and I was out on the streets dressed as a runner, dodging the Cat in the Hat and Merlin.

I didn't ever feel like I had a lot of energy all day. I kept a moderate pace and did a lot of walking by the end, and decided I wasn't going to push myself too hard. I adjusted my goal to 50 miles, which would get me home and in bed at a reasonable hour, before I'd turn into a pumpkin.

I got done with 50 miles a little after 9 pm. The Buffaloes were so happy I was home. I ate everything in sight, took a shower, and now I'm going to bed. It's so nice to sleep in your own bed after a long run...