Running In An Icebox.

I woke up this morning with Al at Oh-dark-thirty. (The first digit on the alarm was a 5 on a non-work day - ugh). I reminded myself that I was doing this be be selfless and swung my legs from the bed onto the floor. Doggie snores shifted their notes as they turned over to face away from the lights they knew were coming. I walked through to the front of the house. Ah yes, more snow. I dressed and went out to clean the car and to warm it up for my deserving spouse while she got ready for work.

After Al left, I showered & I dressed in three layers of running gear. A base compression layer, a warmer mid and then a windproof upper. I added a fleece top. On went the amazing Gel-Trabuco 12's (with Gore-Tex) and then got Sam up for school. The highway reminded me of Minnesota in the winter. The snow was blowing off of the shoulders and the snow-dust was scudding at a 45 degree angle to the median. Brrrrr, frigid! 7 News website said ti was 7mph from the East at 6 degrees F and with a windchill of -5F! Like I said Minnesota.

After dropping Sam and heading home I went into the house to get my Garmin and to stretch in the relative (wind free) comfort of the house. With the MP3 playing and, ski gloves and a stocking cap on my head, I set off for the open-space and a course I know to be about 3 miles long. My feet were wonderfully comfortable. Warm and happy. The Trabuco's are well 'run in'. I got them from Zappos earlier in the year and I have run on the trails of the valley in them as well as using them on the mountain bike. They are super comfortable. Despite the miles on them (in them?) most have been done on trails so the cleats are still very deep. My face on the other hand was almost instantly frozen. Each breath was harsh. Man, I felt so alive. By the time I had reached the circuit road from the open space I was fizzing and probably beginning to be borderline hypothermic! A deep freeze runners-high.

Turning South was a relief (the wind seemed to be from the North and not the East as Channel 7 said) as finally I was running with the wind. I followed the circuit road on sidewalks that had been cleared probably yesterday. It was like running on a groomed ski slop. The deep frozen, small flake snow scrunched at every step. The trees had a coating of the stuff and around me the snow continued to fall. The air was sharp and crisp but with a muffled quality that falling snow gives the world. The music kept me paced and, although I was not going to break records on such a cold day, I was fairly warm and happy. My feet were particularly happy and if my feet are happy, the rest of me is happy too.

I reached the second stop sign and crossed the road into the South Valley. As I climbed, the wind rose as I cleared the shelter of the houses tot he North. Suddenly my wind proof layer was not as 'proof' as it had been. The wind blew the fabric onto the next layer and my convection heat loss was added to by conduction. About 150 yards into the trail. I turned about and headed North into the teeth of the wind. I crossed the road and was sheltered by the houses. Still cold but better, definitely better.

I meandered through the houses making my way back to the open space to reach home. As I ran up the drive I was relatively warm and very, very happy.