Training Log Archive: Bash

AdventureDog and I went for a midweek long-ish trail run at Glen Haffy. It's snowier there even though it's only 5 minutes away. Big fluffy flakes were coming down for awhile.

I figured the conditions would be similar to Saturday's Oracle Race - fresh snow on top of glare ice or frozen ground - and I wanted to check that Kahtoola MicroSpikes felt OK. There was 10-12 cm of fresh powder so I probably would have been fine with Snowcross but I know there's some skating rink ice under the snow, and it was nice not to have to think about it. The main risks were tree roots and rocks, which were invisible under the light layer of snow but just as risky as usual.

We decided to explore a couple of the nature trails but the coloured arrows petered out and we had to bushwhack for a bit.

I ran the first 6K, then decided to walk part of a steep uphill. AdventureDog came back and barked at me until I started running. Jerk!

Nice day in the woods.

It's a winter wonderland! We got about 7 cm of snow overnight in open areas and it remains stuck to every tree branch, fence post and rock. It looks like a Currier & Ives Christmas card.

Unfortunately, the ski conditions only rated a 2 out of 10 - although at least I was skiing, which made it good regardless. In the woods, we only got a few cms of snow on bare ground in some places. With all the TRCA's work to take down ash trees, there is a lot of woody debris so I had to bushwhack, ski over branches and steer around random logs. But it was beautiful and quiet, and I got to ski in coyote tracks for a long distance. Nice.

Physio and running-specific injury prevention exercises. AdventureDog was a great help whenever I had to lie down on the mat.

Browner and I kicked STORM and 'Bent out into the snow south of Nottawasaga Bluffs Conservation Area, then continued up to Pretty River Provincial Park. The guys did a 24 km point-to-point run to meet us while we used our Snowshoe Raid maps to take a fun tour in Pretty River. First we took the Bruce Trail to its highest point - about 335 m of climb from our starting point since there is a descent after the first hill.

As a couple of number nerds getting ready for a mountain race, we now want to do that climb 3 times to climb 1,000 m in a training session. Today it took us 45 minutes to get up with Kahtoolas and poles so it should be possible to do 3 repeats on bare trails in less than 4 hours. There is a more direct way to get up the hill so we can try that too.

Once we got up onto the escarpment, we ran a relatively flat loop on Bruce and Bruce Side trails with one drop off the escarpment at the east end, just for the heck of it. The guys texted us when we were there so we headed back down after a scenic run along the escarpment edge. It was sad to see all the green and brown fields from the lookout.

Great workout with excellent company - thanks! It's become our tradition to replace (or exceed) any calories expended as quickly as possible, this time at the Affairs Cafe in Creemore. Best latte in a long time!

Nice family run in Glen Haffy with 'Bent and AdventureDog. Too bad BazingaDog can't be trusted off leash.

The trail was bare in a few short sections but mostly it was coated with a thin layer of snow, often with glare ice beneath. Kahtoola Microspikes saved me although they're not as grippy when there is wet snow on top of ice. Slowrunner had two big wipeouts at Hockley today when her Kahtoolas got balls of snow stuck to the bottom. So... something to watch out for.

This might be a good route to repeat regularly as a shorter weekday run. It's close to home, constantly rolling up and down, and most of the hills are runnable. The hill at the north end was one I'd explored in orienteering races but I'd never included it in a run. It would be great for runnable hill repeats - about 44 m climb in 325 m, mostly on double track.

Exercises from Coach Jeff and Dr. Bell, plus a few extras. Main focus was feet and extensor chain.

My left big toe has been stiff and painful in the past two months. I worry about arthritis like Carbon's Offset has in his toes (although he still kicks butt on the trails). Recently, the pain went away completely for 24 hours after intensive foothab so I'm hoping it's soft tissue that might heal. It hurts to push off when running and it hurts to do lunges and similar yoga poses where the toe is bent back. It's not just the pain that bugs me; my left big toe should be strong and play a major role in running. We'll see how it feels after this session.

Edited: Here's the link to a discussion where Leanimal and Carbon's Offset talk about problems of the big toe, including arthritis and sesamoiditis.
http://www.attackpoint.org/discussionthread.jsp/me...

Message to our Murkin friends:

Another day of making lemonade out of winter lemons! With the ground almost entirely snow-free, I suggested that Dee and Mrs. Gally come out for a sunny (albeit chilly) ride on the Caledon Trailway. The trail was mostly bare but because the snow had been packed down by pedestrians, we encountered lots of ice patches. Sometimes we could ride past them along the side of the trail, sometimes we threw caution to the wind and rode on the ice, and sometimes we got off and walked - although bike shoes aren't as good on ice as bike tires are, so that wasn't too helpful.

We turned off the trail and did a little road riding for a break, then rejoined the trail partway back.

Lots of fun and we caught up at a delicious lunch at the Terra Cotta Inn afterward. I noticed that the Credit River looked great for paddling. Crazy, crazy weather.

Hard Core Live with a focus on obliques

Caron's class: Tonight's theme was two different versions of every pose.