Stinky

Dan and I have been running together in the evenings again. It’s nice, and the temps are usually cooler after dark. But tonight we stepped outside and the heat and humidity hit us like a wave.

“It’ll be better at the park,” I told him. “More trees. Less concrete.”

And it was a little better. But not by much.

I started at a conservative pace, but after my first stop for water, I found myself behind a particularly odiferous person, and by now a stiff breeze had picked up, wafting everything back to me.

Lucky me.

I picked up the pace and passed him. It was faster than I wanted to go for only my second mile of what would be a little over 4 miles, but with Stinky on my heels, I had no choice but to keep my pace. No way was I letting him get upwind of me again!

So I tried to be philosophical about it. When I first started distance running, I regularly had to contend with stinky people. In some ways they inspired me. Or they at least forced me to keep going when I was tempted to slow down. I became a better runner because of the motivation they gave me.

Tonight Stinky and I parted ways at about the 2.5 mile point, when I stopped for water and he went on. I was a little overheated by this point and dripping wet. 80% humidity will do that to you. So I finished my run at a more reasonable pace, fighting down a rare bit of exercise-induced nausea. I wasn’t exactly smelling like roses myself, at this point.

I can only hope I motivated someone.

Today’s Workout
4.25 mile run