Trailing in My Training

Since I’m signed up for a trail 10k next week, I thought I should probably run on at least one trail prior to the race. That led me to Los Penasquitos Canyon Preserve for this weekend’s long run.

The prior week’s wet spell had left the trails officially closed, but that didn’t stop me and dozens of others (eventually) from using them. I was a little nervous when I arrived around 7. The place doesn’t officially open until 8, and the parking lot at the trailhead was empty. But soon as I saw a runner coming into a clearing and a pair of women with a dog heading in, I made a run for it. I checked the outdoor temperature: 40 degrees. Perfect for staying cool and reducing the risk of rattlesnake encounters, which are common here.

There are parallel dirt/sand paths on each side of a creek leading to the midpoint of the 6-mile long trail system: a boulder-strewn “waterfall.” One route leads you through riparian pathways whose shade surely meant mud, and lots of it. I stayed in the open preserve along a much wider, drier dirt bed used primarily by cyclists, hikers and horses. I saw absolutely no one on the way up to the falls, which are really more like water rushing down a stony creek.

The falls served as my turnaround point, and on my way back I saw a few other runners and several dog owners and that gave me the confidence to check out several single tracks that crossed the creek and offered a nice variety of views. Of course, my shoes were coated in mud by the time I headed home and I forgot to remove my shoes before entering the house. Thus, our home’s now officially been christened with caked dirt for the year.

That run turned out to be the highlight of my weekend. I became ill that evening and could barely get out of bed on Sunday. I’m hoping this round of the flu runs through me quickly so that I may run through Lake Hodges quickly come next Sunday. Right now, I feel like complete crap.