Saturday, June 19, 2010

5:30 Wake up Call

I woke up at 5:18.
This is not normal.

I wouldn't consider myself a morning person. When I hear Holden moan for a drink anytime after 6 am, I stumble into the kitchen to pour him some milk and then crawl into bed with him (a twin mattress on the floor in the nursery) praying he'll sleep for another hour or two.

I have a hard time facing the world if I get less than than 7 hours of sleep. (I really prefer 9). :)

So why was I up at 5 am; before the sunrise... when the sky was a eerie steel blue and the birds were a cacophony of splendor outside the windows?

I was up to run.

I couldn't stop thinking about it.

I couldn't sleep.

My training schedule called for a five-miler this morning; and nine miles next Saturday -- but I'm playing volleyball in the (Utah) Summer Games next weekend so I swapped training weeks.

So today was the "niner."

I had mapped out the run. A half mile down the hill to Wasatch Boulevard, curving around and winding up to East Mill Creek Canyon. Just over four miles up the canyon - past Camp Tracy, Milcreek Inn and then a about a half mile past the overly pretentious Log Haven. (I remember being served Quail Eggs once on a press junket ditty years ago - ugh.) Round trip - 10 miles. But who wants to end a run on an uphill? Double Ugh!

My plan was a 7 am start time. But like I said, I couldn't sleep.

So I creeped out of the house at 5:30 and got to work.

I've mentioned I'm slow. And I am.

I think I used to be decent at one time. After college, coming off the high of collegiate athletics (volleyball) and suffering from a minor (or not so minor) case of exercise addiction. I'd run five miles holding 8:30s (unfathomable at this point in my life)... But I was plagued with injuries and my head had the sanity quotient of a lead character in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. (I wasn't practicing yoga at this time... or on Paxil.) ;)

But somehow through a lot of soul searching, therapy, western medicine, Eastern philosophy, prayer and getting by with a little help from my friends (and family); I can now run slow. Isn;t that ironic?

Letting go to just try and enjoy every time I'm out there.

And today, for the majority of 10 miles...I did just that.

Sure the first 2 miles or so, I started thinking about the crazies out there who were sitting in the trees just waiting to ambush me...do something horrid and leave me for dead.

I wasn't running with a cell phone (stupid), or ID... (stupider)...and I was running alone (stupidest).

Danny wasn't expecting me to leave for 90 minutes.. he was fast asleep and so there was no chance he could hear my telepathic message and come and save me like Edward in his Volvo (though come to think of it, Danny doesn't own a Volvo so there's more than one issue with that.)

But some how, I settled in, got to work, prayed a bit and eventually stopped thinking about it and was taken by the smell of pancakes and bacon from a nearby Scout Camp. A couple of bikers whooshed past me (yes, on the uphill) and that gave me comfort.

A saw a couple of ducks, and the other varieties of birds were quite animated.

By the time I reached the turn around (after nearly bursting into tears from excitement at seeing Log Haven "Holy Balls! Did I really just do that?!?!?") the downhill had me greeted by two long boarders flying well over the 30 mph speed limit, hoards more of bikers mostly coming up, though some coming down at this point, and even a few runners...

Turns out I was out here with the crazies after all. And I was happy to be part of the pack.

8 comments:

Alicia said...

I'm so proud of you!! Way to go! Have you heard of Road I.D.? Mike got one that he wears all the time now so that when he's biking, he always has ID with him. I think if you Google it, you will find it.

mrs. farlanderz said...

love that you think about the crazies while you run. I actually have a bit of compulsion about that, I like to know who is around me, so I take quick looks back sometimes when someone is on tail.
I don't know if that made sense...


very cool you running though - we should run together someday.

naptime nostalgia said...

This post reminds me of my marathon training days. We would run up millcreek to the gate (about a mile past log haven) every tuesday morning at 5:45 a.m. Even though it's early, some of my very favorite moments of running happened up that canyon pre-dawn. It's so peaceful, and calm, and a perfect time to think, or have a deep conversation with a good friend.

Way to go on nine Suite!

Cicely said...

sweet.

Lisanne said...

Way to go! To bad we don't live closer, we could be crazy that early together! My fear, honestly, isn't creep jobs in the bushes. I run with the constant fear of snakes! I think our Thursday dinner group needs to sign up for some races together!!

WIKKY said...

So great Sabrena! Way to go. I love that you love it that much!

Camille Lund said...

So proud of you!!! what a great accomplishment!! You motivate me!

Meesh said...

I have run at 5:00 before too and it does seem early and eerie. Not a lot of life out at that time of day. So fun. We need to hook up for a run soon. See you at the next Thursday night peeps.