therapy

This morning I went on possibly my last long run before we skip town. I met up with Rob and several other folks from the Carolina Godiva Track Club (the same running club that coordinates the Tuesday night run on East Campus). I've run through Umstead before but never with the Godiva crew. The car thermometer said 27 when I left this morning, but it heated up to 30 by the time we started running at 8:30. We traveled through the woods via single-track and bridle trails, and much of the route was new to me. It turned out to be a beautiful day, and by the time we finished, two and half hours later, it was a balmy 43 degrees. During most of the run I talked with Rob about this or that. I gave him a hard time, as I always do, for his gadget purchasing problem; he's a sucker for any running, biking, or swimming product that is either on sale or promises better results (except for EPO and The Clear, of course). We also talked about the therapeutic effects of a long run, like today's, and agreed that all the stresses of life get washed away, at least momentarily. People often ask what's appealing about running around for hours on end; it's hard to put into words, but if they had mornings like this one, they'd understand.

Rob and me after today's run