The Annual Night Running Post

Now that it's dark early, it's time for my annual post on night running. As most of you are aware, except for my Saturday long runs, I run in the evening. Luckily, most of my runs are on trails (paved), so I don't have to deal with automobile traffic. But there is a heavy mix of runners, walkers, cyclists, and even equestrians on many of the trails that I run. I've already been a statistic (remember my cycling acident?), and since I have no desire to repeat that episode, I gear up to be seen. Just as important to me is seeing where I'm putting my feet. I don't want to step in a pothole or trip over a crack in the asphalt (a tribute to my lack of athletic ability). Also, remember that equestrians use the trails. And folks walking their dogs.

So, here is how I geek up for a run. First, I will always try to wear a light colored (white) shirt. When it gets colder, I will actually wear a flourescent yellow long sleeve number. Pretty sexy. Then, over whatever I wear comes my reflective vest. Any cyclist with a light should be able to see this. And B.o.B. - you think your shoes smell? You should catch a whiff of this bad boy after a couple or three days of running:

That's not the end of it though. My biggest fear is getting mowed over by a cyclist who is either (a) sans light (yes - I see it all the time), (b) not paying attention, or (c) both. So, I also have this cutesy red blinking light that I clip on:

That pretty much takes care of the "being seen" part. Now for the "seeing" part. I am atually pretty amazed by the number of runners I see with a weak azz led headlamp or no light at all. Seriously folks - how are those going to help you see? Me? I solved the problem with a trip to (yes Meg) REI, where I picked up this headlamp:

It has a couple of lighiting options - 4 LED bulbs that put out a diffuse light (good enough for running at dusk or by a full moon), or a 3 watt halogen bulb that puts out a 100 meter beam bright enough to wak up the roosters. I've had this guy for over a year now and still have not had to replace batteries (3 AA). It *is* a little bulky, but it fits nicely over my running cap (which I wear just to wick perspiration), and provides all the light I'll ever need. I just need to be careful that I don't blind oncoming cyclists.

Here it is in LED mode:

And then, when I need the light of day, I can put it in halogen mode (note the placement of the cutesy blinker):

So there you go. All geeked out for the Vampire Club and read to put in some miles.

Speaking of miles, last night was track night with Cal Coast. After cutting my workouts short the last two sessions, I was determined to finish. The workout on tap was 4 X 800. Much nicer than the 1200s that we had been running the past couple of weeks. I finished all four and actually aired out my first interval:

Interval 1: 3:30 (Yes - really. Pulled out the stops)

Interval 2: 4:15 (Paid for interval 1)

Interval 3: 4:11 (Still sucking wind from interval 1)

Interval 4: 4:20 (Who the hell cares at this point?!?!)

Bottom line is I was pretty satisfied with my workout last night. I ended up in VO2Max range (HR > 90% of max) for about 8 minutes. And, after adding warm ups and cool downs I put in a total of 5 miles.

Tonight I'll get geeked up for 5 miles somewhere. Sigh. Probably after dark....

First Night Run of the Season

Last night was my first after dark run of the year. I got started a little after 6 PM on the Upper Back Bay trail. Two mile out and back for a total of 4 miles. The real surprise was when I downloaded my Garmin this morning. The data showed a 9:36 pace with an average heart rate of 82% MHR! I've always thought that I would need to slow down to hit my heart rate targets. I guess that's not true! I just went out and ran at a pace that was comfortable. Since it was dark, I couldn't check my watch as often as I normally do, so most of my run was done by "feel".

I broke out the night running gear too. It wasn't quite dark when I started, but by the time I was done it was full night. If I'm running after dark, I try to stick to trails where I won't have to compete with cars. But, there are still a lot of bikes whizzing by on those trails after dark! I really don't want to be hit, so I deck myself out in a reflective vest and a red blinker to be seen (hopefully) from the rear. The one thing that I was missing last year was a good headlamp. I was using an old Black Diamond LED lamp that my son bought 6 years ago when he started in Boy Scouts. While the lamp was adequate for being seen, one of the downsides of older LED lamps was that the light was highly unfocused - which is a fancy way of saying that the light was not bright enough to see much in front of me. So, I went over to REI yesterday and bought a new headlamp. I settled on a Black Diamond Icon (pic on left). All I can say is WOW! This thing gives so much light I feel like I'm a police helicopter! It's a little bulky, but battery life is supposed to be 90 hours, and I can now see the horsesh** on the trail before I step in it! Highly recommended if you run or hike at night!

Days are Getting Shorter

Went out for an easy four mile run yesterday. I got started about 5:30. Did a two mile out and back along the San Diego Creek trail past UCI. My goal was to keep my heart rate around 140 bpm (80% MHR). I averaged 142 bpm (heart rate went up at the end into the 150's as I was climbing back to the car). Average pace was 10:30 - a little on the slow side, but that is what it took to keep my heart rate down.

I wrapped up around 6:15. The sun had already gone down. That means that it's time to get out the night running gear. During the days that I run after dark, I try to stick to trails that have no cars - trails like Upper Back Bay and San Diego Creek. Since last winter was the first that I had run, it was the first after dark experience that I had. I tried to be safe by choosing trails without cars, but I was not prepared for the cyclists! My job became figuring out what to wear to make sure I could be seen by people whizzing past me in the dark. I ended up getting a reflective vest, a clip on red LED flasher, and an LED headlamp. I'm after a new headlamp this winter - the old one has given up the ghost, plus it didn't really provide a focused enough beam to light much in front of me. I wear the flasher on the back of the headlamp strap - that puts it about eye level for most cyclists. I also made sure to wear a fluorescent yellow shirt. I think that did the trick, but I'm still a little leery when I hit the trails after dark.