Train-ing

I haven't got much to say about today's long run. It was a little chilly this morning, so it felt strange to be in tights and long sleeves after running in shorts and singlet just two days ago. But it was a pretty morning and even though I didn't see any friends or regulars on my route, it was a happy sort of run. I felt pretty strong throughout, even at the end. I guess taking my Hammer Gel at the halfway point helped. Sometimes I forget and take it too late to do much good.

I added a little out-and-back from Memorial Park to the 610 loop today. I wanted to see if there were any wildflowers yet and it was a nice way to add a little mileage. I saw a few red clovers starting to bloom, but no sign of bluebonnets yet, thank goodness. I read in the local paper this week that some places that participate in the annual Azalea Trail festivities in March are putting ice on their azaleas to delay blooming.

Yes, our winter has been that warm that we need to ice our flowers so they don't bloom too early.

On the way back from 610 to the park I stopped to watch a train go by. I waved at the engineer. One of my many cousins is a train engineer and I thought about him. Then since the train was on a bridge, I walked underneath to the other side so I could continue my run. I had never been underneath a moving train before. It was kind of cool to stand underneath the tracks, listening to the rumbling up above.

Back on the trail I stopped and turned around to watch the rest of the train go by and got kind of mesmerized. I got to thinking about the train tracks that cut through my family's property in New Mexico, and how me and my cousins used to sneak out at night to go watch the trains pass. My cousins were more experienced in this than I was and weren't at all bothered by the way the boxcars would sway and the iron rails would bounce under the wheels. As a child I found it unnerving. But time changes everything and today it only made me smile at the memories.

Today's Workout
15 mile run