The Gully

First, for those that worry, a note about safety.  I always run with a friend and my dog, Ozzy, when I run trails in the dark.  I carry pepper spray, and so do my other runner girlfriends.  I also carry a whistle and a cell phone.  When I run trails during the day I bring Ozzy whenever possible.  Many trails here are watersheds and there are no dogs allowed.  I always tell Jeff where I am going and when I'll be back.  When I run with music I only ever put one ear bud in so I can hear what is going on around me and I don't wear them on trails at all.  Now, on to my story...

Today Katherine and I met at (the absurd time) 5:15am at Dimple Dell Gully.  It was 28° out and even though I had lots of layers on it's still darn cold at that time of day.  It was pitch black out and very slow going.  The ground in the gully is rough with lots of rocks and indentations from horse hooves with lots of ups and downs. Even in daylight I usually run at about a 12-13 minute pace on this trail.  Ozzy loves running with us there because at that time of day I let him run off leash.  He runs up ahead and waits to see our headlamps and flashlights before going on.  At the halfway point I decided to take a drink of water only to discover that the bite valve on my water pack was frozen solid.

Note to self: Sip from water on a regular basis when temps are below freezing.

No biggie really, since we only had 2.5 miles left to go.  Overall, the run was fun.  We even had to cross a stream twice and joked that it was the Rucky Chucky River crossing.  If you haven't read Ultramarathon Man by Dean Karnazes or are not familiar with the Western States Endurance Run, definitely look at that link.  Your mind will be blown!

5 miles
1hr 10 min
14 minute pace