Thu 10/17 - AM 75 minutes easy

Area 51. Woke up with no headache, thus hopefully no concussion after yesterday's faceplant and so out the door I went (eventually) after a leisurely breakfast and lolligagging around. Never let a health crisis go to waste as they say. The leisurely vibe continued into the run which was a mellow putter around the refuge which is now re-opened despite the best efforts of teabagger morons to steer the ship of state into the rocks. Right leg felt pinched and I found afterward that there were some knots up by the iliac crest. Unusually warm day, a bit breezy but very nice. With the AM start and skipping work (and practice) I was able to take a glorious extended nap in the afternoon as well.

Wed 10/16 - off

Spent the late afternoon/early evening in the ER after falling over the handlebars of my bike at kiddie practice and landing face first (literally) on a rock. Amazingly I didn't crush my cheekbone given how heavy the fall was and how dumb I was in holding on to the handlebars too long. The whole incident a testament to stupidity. Left with a lovely scraped up swollen face and a headache, but no concussion (hopefully). Also landed on the left thigh which resulted in a charley horse.

Tue 10/15 - PM 45 minutes

Area 51. Started from the Old Marlboro Road entrance, shutdown be damned. Getting close to 6 and wanted to get on the trail with as much daylight as possible remaining. Going the rest of the way home with inevitable futzing around would have used up whatever cushion was left, plus I wanted to avoid taking a nap. Some stiffness certainly left over from Sunday's hike but eventually got moving well enough. Kept the length of the run shorter to try and give myself a chance at a decent bedtime. Hammie better than last week but I've resigned myself to skipping anything on the track during this week.

Mon 10/14 - PM 85 minutes

Lincoln woods. Feeling a little bit better than Saturday's nadir. An afternoon nap helped some with that. More range of motion in the right leg but still stuck more than I'd like. Plugging on with the stretching and core work post run which I'm hoping will at least hold it at bay. Air temps too cool to attempt a dip in the pond but after a warm day I was tempted.

Sun 10/13 - 5 hours easy hike

Mt. Ascutney via Brownsville trail. A necessary break from the overbaked death spiral I find myself in. Although in all honesty I had originally planned on doing some kind of light run that went out the window when I realized how long the hike was going to take, thanks mostly to the steep nature of much of the trail. Enjoyable nonetheless, although some stretches of switchbacking through the evergreens on exceedingly rocky rooty footing got old. Worth it for the spots where it opened up and of course the view from the summit tower. Excellent conditions as well with sunny skies and cool to moderately warm temps.

 falls below the quarry

 rail tracks at the quarry, going nowhere

 quarry view

trail below the quarry smooth and gradual, awfully nice

Sat 10/12 - AM 45 minutes

Longfellow loop, sort of. Should have known better than to even attempt anything of quality but felt the compulsion to do finally at long last run a 3 lapper, or at least 2. Instead I lasted 10 minutes at just over 6 minute pace feeling like utter crap throughout. Difficult to say what felt worse, the right hammie which is stuck in a vise or the punishing fatigue. Only solace is that this too shall pass, eventually.

Fri 10/11 - PM 75 minutes easy

Area 51. Not the most inspired of efforts. Plagued by stiffness in right hammie and glute throughout, apparently a few pickups at the end of yesterday's run were too much for it. Calf tight as well. Disturbing the degree to which the leg has gone downhill in the past ten days. I have to think (hope) that it's a lack of attention to stretching and is thus at least somewhat reversible. Of course, finding time to stretch has become a herculean task with the current millstone of a schedule I've chosen.