On the Road Again

"On the road again
Goin' places that I've never been
Seein' things that I may never see again,
And I can't wait to get on the road again."
--Willie Nelson

Oh, bliss! After a week of marathon recovery, I am indeed on the road again. On Friday I did, as Steve put it, "a gentleman's three." That is, I ran three miles on a flat course at a very relaxed pace of 10:00 miles. It felt fantastic - the weather was perfect, it was great to be out running again, and I had absolutely no pains or twinges bothering me.

Therefore, on Sunday, I was able to officially roll out Cross Country Season. I ran two miles from Stately Wasser Manor, crossed a beautiful little bridge, and hit the trails on Sylvan Island. Sylvan Island is quiet little island in the Mississippi, with both easy to run trails and some that are a lot more rustic. I saw some people fishing, and one guy out walking his dog, and that was it... probably because about 10 minutes after I left the house, it started raining.

The rain just made the scenery all the more idyllic. When I was running under the canopy of trees, the rain barely touched me. But then, I'd burst out of the woods, be on the bank of the river, and the rain would be pouring. Awesome.

The other fun thing about cross country season is that I can be a bit more laid-back about my training. I don't feel like I have to hit certain distances. Yesterday, I was aiming to run around 8 miles and would up with 7.76. During marathon or trisko season, I'd have run up and down the street to make it to 8 miles, but yesterday, I just happily headed inside, satisfied I'd had a good time.

Ooh, and also?

I just splurged on thse:

Can't wait until they come in the mail!