Righteous?

“Are you feeling righteous?” she asked with a smirk.
Having just looked to Garminia for my total moving time for today’s run, I had smiled and made a thumbs up gesture. “As a matter of fact,” I replied, “yes!”

I knew that I was having an awesome run today. In fact, I stopped to change the tunes playing on myPod from fast running music to my slow relaxing music for the downhill portion. I was afraid of coming down the hill too fast. The change in music didn’t do much towards slowing me down however; I was really moving.

But, that was the end of my run. Let’s back up a bit.

Mistakes are great – that is, when you learn from them. I made the mistake of wearing shorts during my chilly run yesterday. This day was equally as sunny, but even colder. I selected a long-sleeved shirt, my running tights, gloves and a hat to wear.

I was planning to run on the local streets, but was thrilled when Tom suggested that I run at RSA (my favorite open space preserve). I figured that if I was going to take the time to drive to the RSA, I might as well make it worth the trip. I figured that I could shoot for a 13 mile trail run to be sure that I could cover the half-marathon distance, since I *am* registered for the Kaiser Permanente Half-Marathon in a couple weeks. I dug in the closet for my fuel-belt, grabbed a GU packet, and was on my way.

As I drove towards the park, I began to wonder how long I would have to search for a parking spot – since it was so late in the morning. I was pleasantly surprised that I had a ton parking spots to choose from. I think that the freezing cold temperature had kept the people away.

Today myPod was energized, unlike yesterday where she rode piggyback not even making a peep the whole time. I was looking forward to an entertaining run. I selected the songs for today’s run that would compliment the beautiful trails that I would travel. The songs were basically musical pieces without any vocals. I could hear the birds chirping, airplanes flying overhead, people talking, and my breathing.

It was really COLD today. I was immediately pleased with my decision to wear my running gloves. Being anxious for a little warmth, I started out at a faster pace than usual. It felt that way anyway. I actually have trying to run without looking at my pace, or even the elapsed time, until the end of my runs. I’ve just been pacing myself by how I have been feeling.

I greeted people as I passed, but the people didn’t return the gesture. I guess they were just too cold. The puddles were frozen. I could see the trailed off pieces of ice where someone had decided to run through the puddle instead of around it. I moved on with only the purpose of getting to the sunny, less sheltered, part of the run. It was a tough hill, but I figured the hard climb might help me get warm.

I hit the hill with full effort being careful to run on the even areas of the trail when I saw them. My feet were doing fine, but there was no sense in pushing my luck. I was at the top of this section in no time at all. I stopped to reward my body with some GU and water. I stretched my calves a minute or two and began running again.

By this point, my hands were finally warm. I took off my gloves for about a mile, and then put them back on as I reached the shaded areas again. Running on the single-track trail, I meandered up, down and around. I love this part of the trail. When I reached my turn around spot, I felt like I could have kept on going, but I didn’t. I turned back and began my descent.

I was coming down the hill quickly. I just let myself relax and reminded myself that gravity would take over. For a little safer run, I removed one of the earphones from my ear. I was aware that I was really moving, but I didn’t know just how fast. I didn’t dare look. I wanted to be sure that I didn’t miss a step and fall.

I reached the steepest descent. Here the trail is rough in many areas. Because of this, I stopped and changed the music in the effort to slow myself down a little. I pulled up my “relax and romace” playlist and let myPod lull me into a more relaxed run down the hill. It didn’t feel any slower however, but I was nice and relaxed. I was even singing at times.

Before long, I was past the iced over puddles, past the farm, and finishing my run in the parking lot.

I glanced at Garminia for her report:
Distance = 10.40 miles.
*That’s* a lie. Yes, Garminia has been know to lie about how far I have run. She really likes to do it when I run here at RSA. That’s okay, I already knew the distance that I covered was 13 miles. It’s on the park map and the signs.

Time = 1:40:45
What? I looked again.
1:40:45 !
Garminia never lies about the total running time. I gave the confirmatory thumbs-up motion (with both gloved hands) and exclaimed YES!

There was a woman approaching. “Are you feeling righteous?” she asked with a smirk.
“As a matter of fact,” I replied, “yes!”
I *am* feeling RIGHTEOUS!