Running Journal, Saturday, 2010-07-03: First Pre-Daybreak Run

Wildflowers, American River Parkway south of Nimbus Lake, near mile marker 26.5.

Running Journal, Saturday, 2010-07-03
Resting heart rate: n/a bpm (60 second test)
Body Mass Index (BMI): 23.49 (kilograms/(meters^2))
Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR): 1877 calories
Weather: Pre-dawn to dawn; sunny; moderately humid; perfect for running
Temp: 16-20 C (60.8-68 F)
Time: 3:49 (3:54-7:43 a.m.); split at 5:48; (229 minutes / 14) = 16.4 minute/mile
Terrain: Mostly flat; about 200 feet elevation gain/loss
Comments: First day running in pre-dawn summer temperatures. Awoke at 3:00 a.m. with a little help from our cat. Arrived at Fair Oaks village around 3:40 a.m. Walked without using the Petzl headlamp from Fair Oaks village, down Bridge Street to the pedestrian bridge, and across the American River. The waning half-moon directly overhead provided mostly adequate illumination in the open spaces, with street lamps and home illumination making up the difference. The Parkway was mostly silent, the only sounds were crickets chirping and my own footsteps on the slats of the bridge. The American River reflected the moonlight. I turned on my Petzl headlamp once I reached the south embankment. The weather felt perfect. Instead of the predicted 12-13 C (54-55 F), the temperature instead dropped only to 16-17 C (61-63 F), with humidity around 65-75%. A Fair Oaks rooster crowed once from the north side of the river just as I started at 3:54 a.m. I stopped almost immediately as my shorts threatened to fall down from the weight in my pockets; I spent about 5 minutes cinching up the drawstring cord to a point where my shorts would stay put. I saw no other people on the Parkway until around 2.0 miles in, at 4:28 a.m., when a lone cyclist passed by, heading west. I did, however, encounter pre-dawn animal sightings. A jackrabbit loped across the bike path, just at the range of the headlamp's economy mode setting. It stopped at the right side of the road; as I shone my light on it, it ran back to the left side of the road. We repeated this zig-zag game one or two more times, then I intentionally kept the light away from it. It ended up bounding away into the brush (this same encounter would play out with another jackrabbit, at mile 23.5). At mile 22.0, I noticed two bright reflective eyes peering at me from the brush to my left; every so often, they would blink. Cat? Jackrabbit? My breath in the pre-dawn, cool humidity was visible in my lamp's illumination, if I forced my breath out in a certain way. At several points between mile markers 20.0 and 22.0, the sound of rushing water from the American River was heard to my left: the salmon channel and the picnic areas near mile 22.0. Running in the dark with a headlamp felt both exhilarating and senseless; the thrill of being the only person on the bike path accompanied with the senselessness of only having limited visual range and a relatively quiet environment. I stumbled a bit only once, as I tramped over a large piece of flat bark. For the most part, the bike path is flat and easy to navigate with minimal lighting. At mile 22.0, I found a trail closure sign (Measure A) indicating the dates had been shifted to Jul 6-Aug 1. I reached the CSUS Aquatic Center around 4:48 a.m. The pre-dawn brightening was now noticeably visible to the east. An orange light near the beach at Nimbus Flat blinked repetitively; I am not sure what it signified. At mile 23.5 I encountered the first Folsom Firecracker 10K race aid station: a rectangular pop-up table, several multi-gallon jugs, and folding chairs. I would see two more deserted aid stations, including one first aid station at mile 25.5. Chalk markings and signs were common between miles 23.5 and 27.0 for the Folsom Firecracker race. At first I felt upset because the 700 expected runners would interrupt my run; then I realized it started at 8:00 a.m. and it was currently ~5:00 a.m. So, as luck would have it, getting started early saved my run. By the time I reached the pedestrian bridge at mile marker 24.0, the pre-dawn sky was noticeably brighter. Noticed the digital billboard at the now defunct Folsom Auto Mall displayed the contact group: Skyhawk Outdoor. At mile marker 24.5, I turned off the Petzl headlamp and stowed it in my back pocket. I felt good; the brightening of the sky had a concomitant effect on my mood. The music in my head at this point was Matthew Wilder's "Break My Stride" (audio). Every minute or two I stopped to capture photos of the Parkway during sunrise. A Hammer Nutrition chocolate gel packet boosted energy levels higher. I pushed past the Willow Creek boat launch facility, cruised past the office park edging mile 26, and followed the electrical towers along the bike path until I reached mile 27.0, my half-way point. It was around mile 26.0, or about 5:30 a.m., before I encountered the first runner on the bike path. Just prior to mile 27.0, I discovered a relatively elaborate rope swing on a moderate bluff overlooking the south shore. Nailed blocks of wood on a pine tree formed a ladder to retrieve/hang a long swinging rope. I felt less impressed with the pile of empty, alcoholic cans littering the ground. The blackberry bushes at the mile 27.0 marker were just on the cusp of ripening. I ate a few ripe ones in response to hearing my stomach gurgling, but remembered how I ate too many on one unfortunate run in 2006-07 and felt uncomfortably stuffed. Ate my last Hammer Nutrition Apple-Cinnamon gel packet, felt the energy rush, and began flying through the miles back. I remember thinking, "I feel great. This is the way runs should be." The sun broke over the horizon, bathing everything in a warm light. The soreness in my left hip, which I had felt a few miles in, disappeared. The wildlife activity in the early morning hours explodes. I encountered, up-close, California quail (one sounding an alarm at my approach while the other foraged), a red-tailed hawk with a fresh-caught mouse in its cluth, another red-tailed hawk calling from a tree-top, wild turkeys scratching the ground, and Mallard ducks, all feeding in the cool, post-dawn light. One nice thing about running out (in an out-and-back run) in the darkness, I realized, is everything on the way back seems fresh and new. At mile 25.0, the effects of the Hammer Nutrition gel began wearing off. The soreness in my left leg re-appeared and my right calf began feeling sore. At mile 23.0, two women runners wearing Fleet Feet shirts stopped me and asked about the southern trail around Nimbus Lake. My answers satisfied them, and they were off; they had always taken the bike path around the north side of Nimbus Lake, but thought (incorrectly, as it turned out) the Hazel Avenue pedestrian crossing to the north side of Nimbus Lake was closed. The number of people on the bike path by 7:15 a.m. was exponentially growing. People were filing into the CSUS Aquatic Center parking lot, stretching, laughing. A father taught his son how to ride a bicycle. A man tossed objects into the water for his dog to retrieve, in the shallows just below the Nimbus Dam. I said hello to just about everyone who seemed to want encouragement. My legs were feeling sore, though, especially my right calf. At mile 20.5, after re-starting my run after taking photos, my right-calf began feeling a touch of pain, and I decided to play it safe and walk the remaining one-half mile. Sometimes running it out works, and sometimes it only makes it worse; this seemed like an example of the latter. Walking helped a lot. By the time I reached my car in Fair Oaks, I felt looser. Overall, an overall positive first experience with pre-dawn runs, with a lesson learned in fueling properly. The Hammer Nutrition gels, which did not seem to make much of an impact the first time, definitely did make a difference today. I think the heat may have been the deciding factor, last time.
Goal Time: To finish
Distance (running): 14.0 mi, http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=3852881
Weight: 80.4 kg (177.25 lbs), ?% body fat
Any irregular feelings, aches, pains, heart rate, and so forth?: Left hip felt sore, right lower calf muscle seized up during last one-half mile. Feeling a bit exhausted later in the day, after the run.
Foods eaten today: