One Thousand Twenty-Four

October 29, 2019
7.24 Miles in 1:22:56
Mood: Slippin' and Slidin' away!
Soundtrack: Blitzen Trapper "Furr"

This run was ridiculous. Probably shouldn't have done it. It was snowing the whole time, and for a good portion of the time, it was snowing HARD. There were guys with shovels, probably about 12 of them, trying to clear the snow from around Southglenn, but they were just going in circles as by the time they had reached the other end of Southglenn, their shoveling had mostly been rendered useless by fresh snow. On top of that, they were not putting down any ice melt, so all the removal of the snow did was expose the very slippery ice underneath. I slipped at several different times while doing these seven miles, and I had to be careful which meant that I was running at a ridiculously slow speed to keep from falling.

Still, once it was all over, I felt a sense of accomplishment. Partly for running the seven miles, partly for surviving running the seven miles. I'm thankful that tomorrow is a rest day. I've had quite enough snow for the month of October...it's starting to get out of hand.

One Thousand Twenty-Three

October 27, 2019
3.15 Miles in 29:47
Mood: Pride in the lad.
Soundtrack: Chatting with my son

Luke had never run a 5K before, and while he is in pretty good physical shape, I wasn't sure how he'd do. He wanted to sign up for this one a little over a month ago, so we did. Day of the race it was snowy and cold...not exactly ideal weather for a run. Still, we bundled up and went out to Ketring Park where the race was scheduled to take place. The first 45 minutes as we walked around the registration and other various booths was a little cold, but then the race started and we warmed up quickly.

I was hoping Luke would be able to walk most of the way, but he did even better than I anticipated. We did have to stop one time for about 15 seconds for him to rest, but apart from that, he ran almost the entire way. We chatted throughout the course, and I kept encouraging him that he could do it, and when it was over I was so proud of my guy! Plus we managed to run at a pace of under 9:30 per mile, which was outstanding! My first ever run with my son was great, hope there are many more to come!

One Thousand Twenty-Two

October 25, 2019
7.27 Miles in 1:21:41
Mood: Exercising and pondering death by tree while seeing dead people exercise.
Soundtrack: Barenaked Ladies "Maroon" and "Everything to Everyone"

My run actually tracked this morning! Yay! The first half of this run I visited the Highline Canal Trail which was the site of many trees falling to the ground due to the weight of very heavy snow the day before. There were a few huge trees that fell right on the trail, and it made me think that how if anyone would have been standing there, that would have been the end of them. I don't often think about being smashed to death by trees, but it was hard not to give it a slight bit of thought this morning. These trees are huge, and I imagine when they fall, they fall hard.

The second half of this run was through a bunch of neighborhoods, and I found two skeletons engaged in exercise. (Or at least posed as if they were exercising.) My favorite is the one in the photo above of the skeleton who appears to have run himself to death on the treadmill. I also found a skeleton riding a bike. Halloween is weird, man.

One Thousand Twenty-One

October 24, 2019
6.48 Miles in 1:06:25
Mood: Annoyed at technology failures.
Soundtrack: Robert DeLong "Just Movement"

I was actually mad at the Nike Run Club app just now. It just lost my run that I did Thursday morning. It was really cold and snowy, and all I did was run laps around Southglenn, but it totally didn't keep a record of the run. I remembered my pace and total mileage, though, so I was able to recreate it in the log, although the map is lost forever. This one was chilly and a bit rough, so I wanted credit for it. At least I now have a map that is blank and is covered with a circle made out of lines, so not all is lost.

It must have been a morning for technical difficulties, because about 30 minutes into this run, my brand new wireless earbuds just shut off, so I finished the second half of the run without music. I blame the snow, which fell the night before and as everyone knows, snow makes things worse.

It may have been a technological struggle, but at least my camera worked getting a picture of the snow which while it is not my favorite thing, I cannot deny that this picture is pretty.

One Thousand Twenty

October 22, 2019
7.24 Miles in 1:12:18
Mood: Training for that 5K!
Soundtrack: The Avett Brothers "Closer Than Together"

This photo does no justice to just how bright and brilliant the morning sky was along the Highline Canal as I paused to take a picture after not stopping for the first three and a half miles of this run. I didn't do quite as well as run 1,012, but I still made this run with minimal stops. I have a 5K to run with my son this coming Sunday, and I want to be ready! (I feel pretty ready.)

One Thousand Nineteen

October 20, 2019
8.04 Miles in 1:18:32
Mood: Passing on football, not something I do often.
Soundtrack: Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness "Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness" and "Zombies on Broadway"

After driving across the state in a snowstorm on I-70, I was really wanting to get a run in. I missed my usual Sunday morning run due to being on vacation, and even though NFL football was on, I decided I'd rather run, so I got changed and hit the road. (I wasn't that invested in Bears-Saints, and thankfully the Broncos were not in action thanks to getting smoked by the Chiefs on Thursday night football.) Plus, if I didn't run at that moment, I wouldn't be able to go again until Tuesday, and five days is too long to go between runs.

It turned out to be a beautiful (albeit windy) afternoon, and I decided to take a picture at my favorite photo spot in Ketring Park just to prove that it's impossible to take a bad picture there. I don't get too many chances to post afternoon photos from there, so I just had to post this one. (The light was PERFECT.)

One Thousand Eighteen

October 17, 2019
8.34 Miles in 1:25:29
Mood: Poor shrubs.
Soundtrack: Dawes "Nothing is Wrong"

This run was taken just ahead of leaving on a roadtrip to southwestern Colorado. I needed to reload on Pokemon supplies, and I didn't feel like running too far from home, so I just circled Southglenn almost the entire morning before doing a little jaunt through the park to finish up. Today's photo comes from some landscaping gone wrong. These brown bushes looked nice prior to the very early snow that smooshed em. Even a week later, they have not recovered from the smooshing. Those are some smooshed shrubs. Very unlike Southglenn to let themselves look this bad for this long. They are usually on top of the gardening.

One Thousand Seventeen

October 15, 2019
8.11 Miles in 1:21:50
Mood: Let's see what happens if I turn right instead of left here!
Soundtrack: The Killers "Wonderful Wonderful"

I managed to take a turn I had never taken before and alter my path just enough to make this run feel like a totally new experience. Plus I discovered a new school that I never knew existed. (Eugene Field Elementary) Taking that different turn ended up putting about an extra mile on what I was anticipating running, but it felt nice and it is always good to switch up your usual with something more unique.

Also, that skeleton that is half buried in the Littleton soil looks like it is being robbed.

One Thousand Sixteen

October 13, 2019
7.43 Miles in 1:12:48
Mood: Pleased there are no neighborhood bouncers.
Soundtrack: First Aid Kit "Ruins"

Once again I did the Wash Park to Cheesman Park back to Wash Park relay this Sunday morning. I did this a few weeks ago and saw a very friendly dog. This time I saw an enormous fake cat. Turns out a run through this extremely expensive real estate is pretty pleasant, it is the Denver Country Club neighborhood, and you definitely feel like you're running down streets of multi-million dollar homes. I'm honestly surprised that there aren't bouncers preventing me from moving down the street. It's a pretty area and a nice place to run, and after Thursday's frigid snowy run, the sunny 38 degree weather felt pretty good.

One Thousand Fifteen

October 10, 2019
7.85 Miles in 1:18:55
Mood: Brrrrr
Soundtrack: Lupe Fiasco "Food & Liquor" and "DROGAS WAVE"

When I left for this run, it was fall. By the time I was halfway through, it was winter. Man, this was a rude awakening to cold temps. It was in the low 20s and snowing most of this run, and it was a pretty impressive snow for early October. By the time I got home, I was chilly and ready for the nice fall weather to come back.

One Thousand Fourteen

October 8, 2019
7.89 Miles in 1:19:36
Mood: Sunrises are pretty, so are changing leaves if they ever actually change.
Soundtrack: The Avett Brothers "Closer Than Together"

Sunrises are pretty great. The days may be getting shorter, which does stink. The mornings are also getting colder, which really stinks. However, I get to see more sunrises, which most definitely does not stink. I'm also amazed at how green all the trees are still. I would think by this time they would be getting pretty yellow and/or red. But they have barely changed at all. I mean, it's October! I'm ready for pretty fall colors, man!

One Thousand Thirteen

October 6, 2019
8.16 Miles in 1:18:54
Mood: Goats?
Soundtrack: The Avett Brothers "Closer Than Together"

I didn't get a chance to run this particular Sunday morning because of a breakfast with friends, so after the Broncos managed to put the finishing touches on finally winning their first game of the season, I decided to make the most of the few hours of daylight remaining and get a run in.

I travel the Highline Canal trail a lot, but rarely late on a Sunday afternoon. I didn't think I was missing much until today. As I ran along the trail, suddenly I saw a guy walking his dog (normal) and his three goats (less normal). I immediately knew what my photo for this run would be, and I pulled out my camera and started taking pictures without even really asking if it was okay. I struck up an awkward conversation about the goats with the goat herder. I was surprised how well the followed him, and he said one of my new favorite sentences. "Yeah, they're pretty good goats."

They are pretty good goats. I give this run five stars for goats!

One Thousand Twelve

October 4, 2019
8.11 Miles in 1:19:10
Mood: Strong like bull! Let's never stop.
Soundtrack: Barenaked Ladies "The Barenaked Ladies are Me"

I have to be honest, I took this picture the day before. This run, however, was one for the record books. I did all 8.11 miles without stopping. I never do that. My longest previous uninterrupted run was when I ran the Bolder Boulder with my brother in 2013, and that was only 6.1 miles. I just felt good, and decided I would keep on moving, and I never got so tired that I felt I needed to take a break. By the time I made it over halfway, I pretty much decided I was going to push myself all the way home. I am very proud of this run, even if not stopping meant I never took a picture, which means I had to use a picture from the day before. To be fair, I did run past this scene on today's run.

One Thousand Eleven

October 3, 2019
6.80 Miles in 1:10:17
Mood: This lion rules.
Soundtrack: The Lumineers "III"

I like that this lion has a crown. It just kinda works.

This run was a mess. I was all over the place and had to rest a ton, and it took way longer than I meant for it to take, so I got home late and I got a low blood sugar, so I had to cut it short. Not my favorite run, but at least I saw a cool new lawn lion, so not all was lost.

One Thousand Ten

October 1, 2019
7.54 Miles in 1:15:58
Mood: Happy soggy birthday to me!
Soundtrack: Frightened Rabbit "The Midnight Organ Flight"

I've had birthdays with better weather. October 1st is one of those days where it can still be summerlike, but then it also might snow. Thankfully, I wasn't cursed with snow on my birthday, but as I set out today the world was very damp. Not all that chilly, as I was wearing shorts, but felt comfortable, but there was a weird mix of mist and rain and fog and the world just was generally wet, which I felt acutely on my glasses, as the majority of this run was done while looking through droplets of moisture. Not awful, but like any gray and rainy day, it'd be better if the sun shined.

Still, I felt good, got my new white shoes even less white, and felt good on my first run at age 43. It's not easy getting older, but it also beats the alternative!