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| Today's conditions (artist's rendering) |
As I ran along my neighborhood roads this morning I thought about the heat and the fact that summer is still a few weeks away. I'm not sure what the temperature was at 8:00 AM, but with the sun, it felt as hot as a July afternoon. Actually, with the humidity, it was more like late August. I did my best to put one foot in front of the other and questioned how I was able to manage much faster paces a few years ago.
I made my way through my first mile, running the best pace I could maintain, but far slower than the 8-something miles I used to do at lunch in Central Park. I had a couple more miles to cover before I was done, and I worried that the heat and sun would sap all my energy. I thought about the New Hyde Park 8K race on Sunday and the fact that I will miss it for the first time in three years. But the idea of running hard in this type of heat for 40+ minutes reinforced my decision not to participate this year.
I didn't exactly struggle through the rest of my run, but under those conditions I couldn't generate too much speed. I crossed paths with some neighborhood women who were out for a stroll, walking on the street with their backs to traffic. I quickly said, "You really shouldn't run with your back to traffic." I didn't hear a response, but I encountered them later in my run and they were walking on the left (correct) side. It made me happy that someone actually listened when I expressed concern for their safety.
It wasn't an easy three miles, but I was glad to have faced the steamy weather and met my targeted distance. If I can get my act together and go out early tomorrow morning, I may be able to avoid a repeat of today's heat and humidity.
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I was up in Ct yesterday for a half marathon....it was HORRIBLE...we were well over 90 degrees and there were ambulances everywhere for the many runners that were down on the side with IV's....so scarey. They were even telling people to stop running and just walk and if they didn't like the look of you they were forcing them to stop all together....I did finish barely. I never want to experience that ever again....this after the LIMA 5k at the airport on Saturday!!!
ReplyDeleteWow, two races in the same weekend and a half marathon in the mix! That's a lot to take on under the best of conditions.
ReplyDeleteIt reminds me of Cow Harbor two years ago when I watched ambulances fly by as I made my way up Waterside Ave in Northport. Seven people were sent to the hospital that day. Interestingly, they didn't stop the race or encourage runners to walk.