Resting heart rate: 90 bpm (60 second test about two hours after exercise)
Body Mass Index (BMI): 23.725
Weather: calm, ending with light rain
Temp: 13 C (55.4 F)
Time: 8:05-9:05 p.m.
Distance: four miles
Terrain: flat
Comments: The word of the evening is petrichor, the smell of nature following a rain shower. Breathing it all in at the American River Parkway was a glorious way to end the day. The air was cool and humid, the sun set, the clouds partly-sunny. Driving into the Bridge Street parking lot, we passed a few wild turkeys and a silflaying black-tailed deer. But for a pair of runners and a biker or two, we had the Parkway to ourselves. The ground was still wet and the water in the river is high. The channel built to give the returning salmon a nesting ground now has water flowing through it. It is a period of transition, expansion. The wildflowers are in full bloom: purple vetch, the last of the golden California poppy, Star thistle (purple, now), and something that looks like a yellow daisy. At mile 20.5, a flock of Canadian geese silflayed along the salmon channel. We ran together for one-half mile, then I continued alone. I forgot the mental challenges of the first 15 minutes of exertion, as the body exhausts its ready store of energy. It is after the first 15-20 minutes that fat-burning begins and things begin feeling good. The Parkway was quiet save the rushing water and birds roosting for the night. The sky got darker and darker as I headed east. At mile 21.0, an antlered black-tailed deer galloped across the bike path toward the river, maybe 100 feet ahead of me. At the Nimbus Fish Hatchery, I stopped to take a drink and noticed the parking lot gates were already shut. Run-roh. On the return trip I encountered a scampering skunk. Happily I saw it some distance off, approximately 30 feet or so. I stopped to see what it chose to do. After noticing me, it bounded back up the private Gold River walkway. At the 21 mile marker, my long-sleeve cotton shirt (which seemed like a good idea earlier, given the cool evening air) came off and I ran topless. By this time the illumination of the trail was more dark than light. I could barely distinguish the wildflowers I wanted to pick for Dawn. The clouds overhead, once illuminated by the sun, now took on an off-colored tint from the sodium lights coming on in the neighboring suburbs. Two events occurred in the stretch between the 21.5 and 21.0 mile markers: (1) I noticed someone with a bright halogen/xenon headlamp navigating a trail near the river; and (2) a jackrabbit nearly bowled me over as it dashed across the trail, nearly ten feet away. There are campsites between the bike path and the river along that stretch, so it may be the person was camping for the night. A few drops from the sky now turned into a light rain and continued for the remainder of the run. It was lovely, perfect. At mile 20.5, I stopped and walked back to the Bridge Street parking lot. The dark was nearly total. Dawn had turned on the interior car light and was listening to the radio. It was approximately 9:00 p.m. We got in the car, I handed Dawn wildflowers I had picked for her, and we headed to the entrance. Locked in! . The sign says 9:30 p.m., but at 9:05 p.m we found the gate locked. In fairness, it was well past sunset and quite dark. It would have been nice if the county employee had inquired with Dawn first, as they drove right past her as she sat in the car. After swallowing a moment of panic, we drove under Sunrise Avenue via connecting parking lots and exited via the Sunrise Bar parking lot, which was partially closed. They have one-way traffic control spikes to prevent ingress traffic. Whew. The rain had stopped and the ride home was cheerful. I ran on the balls of my feet tonight and really felt how out-of-shape I am. I stopped three or four times to take in water and relax. My right arm felt tight and my left leg felt a bit sore (perhaps from running on the uneven shoulder of the bike path). Dropping my arms and focusing on keeping them loose helped with the former issue significantly. This was a run I will never forget. It reminds me of when I first started, way back in spring of 2006, when the American River swelled past the banks and swallowed up whole sections of the bike path along mile 20-21.
Weight (after exercise): 81.2 kg (179.02 lb), 18% body fatAny irregular feelings, aches, pains, heart rate, and so forth?: None
Foods eaten today: oatmeal + raisins + banana, almonds, walnuts, multi-vitamin, hard-boiled egg (2), cup of green tea (2), low-sodium V-8, Costco chocolate weight-loss meal-replacement drink, spinach salad with non-fat feta cheese + pear vinaigrette dressing + shredded carrots + cherry tomatoes + cheesy-garlic croutons + sprouts, orange juice + vanilla whey protein powder, Greek Gods honey yogurt, mochi candy
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