Snow!

It doesn't snow much in this city. In fact, in almost nine years of living here it has snowed maybe three or four times but without any accumulation worth mentioning. Well, that changed yesterday. Thick snow flakes started coming down right during rush hour. I decided to skip my run and instead go play in the snow. Here are some photos.

snow is so rare in Atlanta that we pull out our cameras immediately if we see any at all

Memorial Park was empty - the perfect playground

Snow Angel - I hear these are popular up north

It's the morning after now. Of course, most of the white goodness is gone. Even our hopes of a delayed opening of our office went down the drain as warmer air (mid 30s) and rain came this way late last night.

It was fun while it lasted!

Drought

So, I’m sure all of you have heard about the ongoing drought in Georgia. I recently ran along the trails of Lake Allatoona at Red Top Mountain State Park. Allatoona is the second largest lake near Atlanta and one of the most important water sources for the city. Below are some pictures I took of the effect the drought has had on the lake. Recent rain falls have increased the water levels by two feet. Note that these pictures were taken after these rainfalls.

A Different Look Back at 2007 (or I've been tagged)

Some of you may have seen these posts around the blogosphere already. Paul Charteris started the "Trail Running Blog Tag" almost a month ago. The always farther-faster Jean Pommier tagged me, so here goes.

1. Most memorable moment on the trails in 2007.

This is the first question, but I'm actually answering it last. It may have been finding a turtle in the middle of the forest (and discovering later that it was native). Or my run in the Washington desert or some of the Tuesday night runs with my co-workers. I can't decide. I just know that I was happy every time I was out there. That's more than anybody could ask for.

2. Best new trail discovered in 2007.

Most runners in Atlanta know the Cochran Shoals Fitness Trail, by many referred to simply as "By The River". Well, there are some wonderful trails in the hills behind this super-highway of trails near Gumbly Creek and Sibley Pond. You can find some gnarly single track back there with inclines that will make your heart rate skyrocket. All this less than two miles from my office. Bliss!

(The East Palisades trails are a close second, by the way)

3. My best performance of 2007.

This one is hard. In terms of races, I would say the Great Race of Agoura 1/2 marathon. My time was 1:40 and change (good for 60/1000+ and 5th in AG) . What made the race challenging for me was a darned softball game I'd played three days prior. I hadn't used fast-twitch muscle is who knows how long and I was as sore as I've ever been. (I know It sounds ludicrous, but it's true.) Throw in a cross-country flight (from Atlanta to L.A.) the night before, the resulting three hours of sleep and the 800+ feet elevation gain and you have a pretty decent performance.

Oh, and this rather unflattering photo was taken at that race as well. It now adorns my fridge. My girlfriend thinks it's funny.

sexy!

My best run overall was in training though. My ultra through Atlanta. Gorgeous day, great run.

Actually, on second thought, running 292 days in a row was my best performance. No doubt.

4. I don't know how I previously survived without...

My ultimate direction hand-held water bottle. It's gold, Jerry!

5. The person I would most like to meet on the trails in 2008

Anybody who is out there enjoying the trails is somebody I'd like to meet. Also, meeting some of the other bloggers I enjoy reading or the one or two people who read this blog would be neat.

6. The race I am most excited about for 2008.

It may sound trite, but I'm excited for them all. Having to miss so many last year has really made me appreciate putting a race number on and giving it my best. I'm particularly excited for Red Top Rumble and Oak Mountain.

I hereby tag Robin, Running Twig, and Addy.

And Again...

...it happened. This time I sprained my other ankle. But it's not too bad. Certainly won't make me go to the doctor or pull out my crutches. It happened while on a beautiful run yesterday, around 12 miles into it. I had been feeling great and was going to push for 20. Instead I hobbled back to my car, which was around 1 mile+ away.

Since I would classify this as a mild sprain with some swelling, I am choosing an "active" recovery strategy with some light running in, hopefully, a few days. I've got races coming up that I need get ready for! Kevin Sayer's site has been a great resource for tips and other runners' experiences. (If you don't know about this site, you should check it out!)

Also, I will be wearing ankle braces on trail runs from here on out.

My Toys

It’s been a little quiet in the running world lately. It seems like everyone (myself included) is working hard on getting ready for the first few spring races. So, I thought, I’d share with you today all the different toys I utilize in my running exploits. (Please note that I’m not sponsored or get free schwag from anybody, so this is completely unbiased.)

Shoes
I have separate pairs for road and trail running, even though I sometimes prefer to run in road shoes on non-technical trails. For the road, I have found that Mizuno Wave Riders fit my feet the best. (If you haven’t already, go to your local running store and have them fit you for the right shoe. They know what they’re talking about. The people at Nike Town, Foot Locker, et. al. usually don’t. Plus, everybody should support their local running specialty stores. They are important to each running community in more ways than a lot of people think.)

For the trails, I prefer Salomon XA Comp 3. These are still my first pair of trail shoes, so I’m not sure yet whether they are the perfect pair for me.

Tunes

Unless I’m running with somebody, I’ve got tunes going. I find it difficult to even run a mile without some sort of audio distraction. On longer runs, I listen to Phedippidations podcast by Steve Runner (click here for an interview with Steve).

Other than that, I listen to a lot of Dave Matthews Band, Pearl Jam, Phish, Ben Harper, Queen and whatever else I feel like that day. I often use music to pace myself (slow stuff on easy days, more rockin’ tunes on hard days).

Clothes
Like any runner, I prefer technical clothing. I’m not really particular about the brand and find that race expos have great deals. (You can never have enough shirts!) For cold weather, however, Under Armor has GREAT base layers. Their Cold Gear is outstanding.

Water Bottle
Ultimate Direction water bottles are as common among trail runners as those shoes with wheels in them that every seven-year old seems to have nowadays.

Underrated!

Food
Shot blocks (try margarita flavor!), GU, PowerGels…I like all that stuff! For long runs (or even medium long runs in the heat) I use Succeed! S caps to keep up my sodium levels.

Forerunner
I just got the Forerunner 305. It’s scary fun and I haven’t even installed the software. Once I do that I shall be in nerd heaven!

Where I get my stuff: I get most of my stuff at REI (that place is like Disneyland to me), RunningWarehouse.com (great deals on shoes) and Zombierunner (for the ultra stuff).

Here we go, 2008!

I’m not generally a man of New Year’s resolutions, however, I do have some running goals for this year.

Have Fun Running

Often I find that focusing too hard on one goal or preparing just for one race can be stressful and may detract from my original reason of why I run: to have fun. My spring schedule is set up in a way to maximize the fun aspect of running. I really don’t care about PRs or anything like that this year. 2007 really helped me rediscover the joy of running. The trails were a big part of that.

Beat My 2007 Total Mileage

This should be very doable barring any injuries. Can you hear me knocking on wood? No? Well, you’re not listening hard enough then!

Explore New Trails

That shouldn’t be too hard either. There are a bunch that I haven’t run in the Atlanta area. And who knows how many trails there are waiting for me in North Georgia and on my travels this year.

Keep Up This Blog

I’m really enjoying the process more and more every single day. It’s become another hobby. Btw, does anyone have any suggestions on who should be interviewed next? E-mail me or leave a comment. (Preferably with contact information for that person.)

Good luck in 2008, everybody! I hope to see you out there on the trails!

1412.67

That's the number that will forever be connected to 2007 for me. It's my total mileage for the year, you know. One of my goals for next year is to beat that number, which should be possible barring any injuries.

Just for fun, 1,412.67 miles is roughly the distance between Atlanta, GA and Albuquerque, NM, if you're the sort of person that travels like Forrest Gump.

Thanks, Google Maps for the technology and Mike Schubert for the inspiration.

If things don't get too crazy at work the next week or so, I'll play around with the numbers some more.