Running Journal, Saturday, 2011-02-26: Thousands of Gulls Overhead

Running Journal, Saturday, 2011-02-26
Resting heart rate: n/a (forgot)
Body Mass Index (BMI): 22.2 (kilograms/(meters^2))
Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR): 2,722 calories
Weather: sunny; winds from the WNW at 18.5 km/h (11.5 m/h); 40% humidity; 101.07kPa (29.85 inches pressure)
Temp: 7-8 C (44.6-46.4 F)
Time: 12:30-17:48 (5:18:00, ~4 mph, 9:06/km, 14:39 min/mi; 2:46:00 @ mile 11/2:32:00 @ finish)
Terrain: flats, then hills, some 7% grade and higher; +/- 89 m (292 ft)
Comments: A magnificent run, today. Per guidance from Jeff Galloway's books, I wore leggings, racing shorts, my 2007 Big Sur Marathon long-sleeved technical shirt, and cotton gloves. While I felt a bit chilly at the beginning as I walked from the car the starting point, I felt just right when I began running. On Friday night, I had mapped my route, choosing to run east into hilly terrain and conquer the hill which exhausted me in May 2006, due to lack of preparation. Adding hills to my long run was a calculated risk; it reduces the margin of error for conserving resources but would prove I had it in me to make it to the top. I had hoped to make it all the way to Folsom Lake, but ended up one mile short of Beal's Point State Park, at the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation, Mid-Pacific Region's "The American River Water Education Center at Folsom Dam." Took along six Hammer Nutrition Gel Shots and started using them every 45 minutes, from the beginning. Left the camera at home due to weight and I think the jostling and heat may have swelled the battery cartridge. Was able to bend my sunglasses back into shape, so I took them along in my back pocket, but used them only for a short period of time. I prefer unaided vision, especially on some of the sun-dappled parts of the Parkway which pass in-and-out of sunlight frequently. At every opportunity, I used the restrooms; first at Nimbus Flat State Park, near the CSUS Aquatic Center; second, at Negro Bar State Park, heading east; third, and finally, at Negro Bark State Park, heading west. At the second stop, a cyclist stopped and chatted with me as I filled up my water bottle. The unexpected gush of water from the spigot had pushed the bottle out of my hand and onto the ground. I laughed and he must have heard me. He was, in his words, "puttering around the lake" with his family. He caught up to me a few minutes later, then took a right onto the historic truss bridge (Walker Bridge). I started my run from the Bridge Street pedestrian bridge, at mile marker 20. Knowing the hills awaited me and the knowledge glycogen-conservation would keep my legs fresh as much as possible, I went out super-slow. When I hit hills, I would slow down even more. I passed people fishing in the salmon spawning channel at mile 20.5. At mile marker 22.5, I stopped and refilled my water bottle, knowing this would be one of the last opportunities for the next 6.5 miles. Really liked the taste of the nuun U Natural Hydration Lemon Chai tablets. Different enough to make it interesting. I had placed two extra tablets in my pocket within a plastic bag, to protect them from getting wet. Heading east, I smelled the creosote of the Alder Creek Bridge beams near mile marker 24.0, then looked up at the tall pines heavy with cones. As I continued east toward the Willow Creek Launching Facility, I looked up and saw an amazing sight. Overhead, thousands of white gulls circled like a school of ocean fish, catching drafts of air and slowly drifting in a cloud across the sky. At one point, they soared so high, the aerosols in the air began to discolor them to a dirty gray, to the point where they became obscured. Listened to the rhythmic squeak of the  Willows Creek bridge as I ran across it. Running slowly is an exercise in patience and resolution. I carefully monitored my breathing for exertion and reduced pace when I started to breath quickly. At one point, several miles in, I felt some fatigue in my calves and this irrational thought immediately sprang into my mind: "You are starting to feel tired--run faster so you will finish faster!" Happily, I slowed down a bit, corrected my running form to shift exertion to my upper thighs, and successfully reduced the stress on my calves. I found one benefit of running slow--a heightened awareness of the area around me and increased mental cognitive ability. The brain runs on glycogen, so exerting oneself starves the brain. Running slowly allows the body to flush away all the results of exertion so muscles stay loose and the brain stays engaged. As I found out today, bathroom breaks help the body clear out waste, as does regular sips of water (preferably with electrolytes) and regularly-timed gel shots. Finally figured out the purpose of the floating dock in Lake Natoma--an outhouse! Running slow also gave me a chance to do double-duty and clean up various bits of trash along the Parkway. Collected too many empty gel shot shells--of all the people using the Parkway, I had hoped athletes would be the most conscientious of the idea of "pack it in, pack it out." Found some odd items--a plastic coffee mug and an exploded basketball. The more general things--various paper and plastic bits, bottles, and gloves. Heading west just past Negro Bar State Park, I passed a mini-fridge someone had apparently tossed from the tall bluffs overhead. This area, with just a thin ledge of trail between the glass-like Nimbus Lake and the 60+ m (200+ ft) bluffs overhead, is one of my favorite stretches--and apparently that of a cyclist, as well, who I overheard remarking to her partner as she entered the area. As I left this stretch, I passed two women, one who looked backwards to see two runners approaching. She remarked to her companion, in a negative tone, "Here come those two runners again." The run to the top of the Folsom Dam went fine--I took it really slow, stayed within the limits I had trained for, and made it without too much trouble. Said hello to a man digging post-holes on the embankment near the Mountain Oak Court overpass. My hopes of taking the Folsom Dam Road to the top of the dam to see Folsom Lake were dashed--think cyclone fencing topped with serious razor-wire. Did pass underneath the newly completed ( March, 2009) Folsom Lake Crossing bridge. At the 11-mile turn-arountd point, I noticed something pleasantly surprising--my legs, far from feeling tight and tired, felt loose, warmed-up, and responsive, after completing the most demanding part of the run, no less! Heading back west into the setting sun, I put on my sunglasses, but took them off after a mile or two, as the transitions into and out of shade just contributed to blackout as my eyes struggled to continually dilate. I remembered many of the stretches of trail from my previous runs--now I viewed them from a perspective of strength, rather than exhaustion, and found many more things to enjoy. A hummingbird, possibly attracted to my red technical long-sleeved shirt, hovered, then darted, hovered, then darted around me several times more. Earlier in the run, I had encountered a red-tailed hawk flying low just over my head, crying out as it swooped away into the trees after what seemed to be another bird. The cry may have solved another question I have had, regarding a bird cry I hear from time-to-time. Coming down off the hill, I made pretty good time. The views of the steep decline to the bottom of the dam are dramatic. Taking an alternate way back to the starting point--this makes a huge difference, mentally. Instead of once again passing the dry, unicolor, post-Gold Rush Era dredgings of stone, I found myself exploring new terrain. Even the Mississippi Bar area, where the trail departs from Lake Natoma, and which I have traveled through many times, seemed fresh and new from a perspective of strength. Slow going, to be sure, but I felt solid and confident of my ability to continue. Saw the silhouettes of two people atop this hill with a flat top. As the mile markers decreased in number, I began to feel bolder. I had planned to stop my run at mile marker 21.0, which would make 20.0 miles, roughly. However, I began to also feel some qualms about the setting sun. Park personnel may begin closing gates at sunset, something Dawn and I found out one rainy day in May, 2010. With only three miles to go, I began picking up the pace and found my muscles responding. Even after nearly 20 miles, I had energy to spare. I crossed the Hazel Avenue Bridge and retraced my route to the mile marker 21.0. The sun now almost set, I decided to keep going. I ran my fastest mile of the day that last mile and felt fine. I ended tired, but strong. As I walked back to the parking lot north of Jim's Bridge, I saw the game warden and partner had detained three people who presumably had been fishing off the bridge. I found the gate unlocked and drove home happily. 
Goal Time: n/a
Distance (running): ~34.9 km (~21.7 miles); http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=4316388 ; ~2,748 calories burned
Weight: 76.0 kg (167.6 lbs), ?% body fat
Any irregular feelings, aches, pains, heart rate, and so forth?: calves a bit sore
Foods eaten today: oatmeal + bananas + raisins, hard-boiled eggs x 2, banana x 2, Hammer Nutrition Gel Shots x 5, nuun U Natural Hydration tablets - Lemon Chai x 4,