Well, one might think that looking at my pace Sunday morning. The course I scoped out for the TOTs was as good as could be expected--in fact, some of the snow packed roads had either been plowed or had done some major evaporating in the 36 hours since I was there.
We had a good crowd--maybe 25-30 runners, fast runners, and walkers. The start of the run seemed as though it was a road race, with almost a mile of asphalt.
But as soon as we turned onto a short section of single track, the work began. The 20+inches of snow had melted, packed, and refroze to a nice even foot. Navigating the trails invloved stomping, kicking, shuffling, cussing....but lost footing only resulted in a soft fall, and I'm not sure if anyone actually made snow angels. Trudging through the snowy trails gave a similar workout to what you might get using a stair climber with leg weights and your feet in a series of paper bags.
A wooden bridge was a nice reprive, but was short lived. Eventually we made it back to the paved road and continued our out-and-back, running by a frozen lake pictured in the previous post.
This lake, one that meanders through Mohawk Park and provides numerous water hazards for the gold course, was frozen as well, but ducks and geese found a few holes for drinking purposes.
Our 4.5 mile leg brought us back to Lake yahola, and about half of the gang ran around the perimeter. It's 5K on a dirt path--a track that I used to run a couple of times a week when I lived closer. I used to be able to get around the lake in 23 minutes, but those days are gone. With the snow that was a good six inches in places even out in the wind and sun, the going was slow.
Ahead, Mark and son (either Brandon or Cameron) strike a good pace. The boys, weighing about 60 lbs soaking wet, did not posthole with every footfall like yours truly did, and it was almost like a normal run for them.
Big props to Amelia, who brought homemade goodies. She had oatmeal cookies with walnuts and cranberries, and a graham cracker sandwich with a coconut filling that was heavenly. Thanks to Catherine for the food line pic.
Next week, we're back at Turkey Mountain. I may or may not be there, as I need to get 30+ miles in Saturday for my last long run before my next race. Joyous running paths.
We had a good crowd--maybe 25-30 runners, fast runners, and walkers. The start of the run seemed as though it was a road race, with almost a mile of asphalt.
But as soon as we turned onto a short section of single track, the work began. The 20+inches of snow had melted, packed, and refroze to a nice even foot. Navigating the trails invloved stomping, kicking, shuffling, cussing....but lost footing only resulted in a soft fall, and I'm not sure if anyone actually made snow angels. Trudging through the snowy trails gave a similar workout to what you might get using a stair climber with leg weights and your feet in a series of paper bags.
A wooden bridge was a nice reprive, but was short lived. Eventually we made it back to the paved road and continued our out-and-back, running by a frozen lake pictured in the previous post.
This lake, one that meanders through Mohawk Park and provides numerous water hazards for the gold course, was frozen as well, but ducks and geese found a few holes for drinking purposes.
Our 4.5 mile leg brought us back to Lake yahola, and about half of the gang ran around the perimeter. It's 5K on a dirt path--a track that I used to run a couple of times a week when I lived closer. I used to be able to get around the lake in 23 minutes, but those days are gone. With the snow that was a good six inches in places even out in the wind and sun, the going was slow.
Ahead, Mark and son (either Brandon or Cameron) strike a good pace. The boys, weighing about 60 lbs soaking wet, did not posthole with every footfall like yours truly did, and it was almost like a normal run for them.
Big props to Amelia, who brought homemade goodies. She had oatmeal cookies with walnuts and cranberries, and a graham cracker sandwich with a coconut filling that was heavenly. Thanks to Catherine for the food line pic.Next week, we're back at Turkey Mountain. I may or may not be there, as I need to get 30+ miles in Saturday for my last long run before my next race. Joyous running paths.
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