Why are we doing this again?

Why are we doing this again? That question was posed by another runner as we were getting ready to start the Wildwood Trail Trial run. Good question indeed, and one that I am not entirely sure how to answer. The question seems irrelevant after the race though. Everyone knows the answer then, even if it is hard to put it into prose.

I finished the 10K in 7:58 pace, which for me seemed an unreachable goal a few months ago. It was a trail run, and I have not trained on a trail yet… so that was interesting. It was certainly beautiful scenery though. The run was on the Wildwood trail in Forest Part, which is one of the largest (if not the) part within a city limits in the US. About 7 years ago I used to ride my Mountain bike through the park, but many of the trails, including Wildwood are off limits to bikers.

There was another interesting quip from another runner in the race. I used to live near the park, and knew the last ½ mile was horrendous. It is something I could barely run up years ago when I wasn’t running much at all… and that was on about a 1.5 mile run tops. As we approached the start of it, I said something like ‘this is not going to be fun’. I realize I probably broke a few running rules right there. It is a negative thought and one I should have kept to myself. Another runner shot back, ‘yeah… tomorrow we get to go to work’. I wasn’t sure what to make of it, but I think it was a nice way to make me realize that this WAS the fun… that tomorrow was the work.

Looking back, it was certainly fun. I ran better than I could have hoped. If it wasn’t for the ½ up hill at the end I would have shattered my pace even for a 4 mile run. But regardless of the numbers, it really was enjoyable. I am starting to like this running thing.