The Twelve days of Christmas: 7,8,9

12/31/12, day 7
1 mile

A family funeral consumed most of our day, but I did manage to get out for a quick back-and-forth on our street.

1/1/13, day 8
8 miles

I drove out to Destruction Brook Woods Preserve early in the morning for a trail run. What a gem this place is; I can't believe this is my first time here. The sun rises between the King's pine that grows on much of the property. The trails wind through these tall sentinels and occasionally dips down to cross a brook or traverse an maple swamp. The snow is still clinging to everything. On one trail the trees give way to a small glade that is only beginning to be reclaimed by the surrounding wood. A closer look around reveals cement foundations and granite cellars. This site was occupied for generations but must have been abandoned fairly recently. There's a very lonely feel to the place. Later I traverse a wooden bridge over an old spillway out of a mill pond. What a great place to begin the new year.

1/2/13, day 9
11 miles

A jaunt on the pink and yellow trails at Turkey. Plenty of energy but my legs are starting to feel fatigued. West of the pipeline I was surprised to find myself running alongside two young bucks  fleeing another party of humans.

Twelve days of Christmas: 3,4,5,6

12/27/12, day three
3 miles

In Westport visiting the family. I peeled out for a quick run in the damp, foggy weather up Charlotte White road. Its good to be back, even under less than ideal circumstances (death in the family). Everything is wet. Moss covers the trees, the ground on the roadside is spongy, the brook I pass over is swollen above its banks and my jacket is soon covered with condensation.

12/28/12, day four
6 miles

“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view." Edward Abbey. I love the winding roads of this old town, and one of the most crooked of them is Drift road. You have to be on the alert running here, for there are no shoulders and quite a few blind turns. I run down to Hix Bridge and take in the sweeping views of the Westport River, watching the tide roll back to the sea.

12/29/12, day five

2 miles

Actually ran five on the trails at Weetamoo Woods, but I used up my five mile day already. I should rename this Yatzee running. Sleet forced me into a early retreat when I realized I had forgotten my hat at the house.

12/30/12, day six
7 miles

Snow! At least five inches, the heavy kind that clings to every branch. Ran past Hix Bridge to the the vineyards and back in my trusty Yak tracks. On my way back, a plow truck stopped alongside me, the window rolls down and a man with a long white beard and a giant pirate earring eyes me over. "There aint no school bus today, sunny, its Sunday" "Oh, I'm running" I say "What? G-d dammit, why? Who are you running from?"Awkward grin and forced chuckle from me. "Well, don't eat the yellow snow" he yells as he pulls away. Ah, thus speaks ancient Yankee wisdom.

The twelve days of Christmas: 1,2

12/25/12, day one
four miles

Ran out to the Brridge on Christmas morning. A cold biting wind from the North and heavy clouds threatened a storm that never came. No traffic on Riverside, one other runner. Solitude in the city.

12/26/12, day two
five miles

A big loop mostly via Turkey's yellow trail. The air was cold, but still. Everything is so bright on the mountain in winter. Patches of ice out in the Arkansas. A thin coating over the ponds.

 

I recently cracked open Brandy's Imperial Sundae from Oklahoma's Mustang Brewing. This imperial porter tastes like a root beer float with a kick, a 9.2 abv kind of kick. It's a fairly sweet beer, but not sickeningly so. Good as a dessert drink.

Cheers!

Running the 12 days of Christmas

While my knee healed faster than expected after Pumpkin Holler, motivation has dropped of the charts.  I hate to admit it but...to lace up and head out the door is a bit of a chore these days. I've become adept at generating compelling reasons to stay inside in the morning. Not doing much of the epic riding that I envisioned either. I get out to Turkey for a trail run now and then, and ride an occasional loop around the Arkansas on lunch breaks. Yup.

But that's about to change, because I have a plan. The idea is simple: twelve days, start on Christmas with one mile and add one for each following day. You know, like the song. That's 78 miles total. Since we're traveling, I tweaked the rules a bit (cause I'm the boss) and can do the daily mileage out of order. For example I can run twelve miles on day three and one mile on day four...you get the idea.

Ridiculous, I know, but maybe its exactly what I need to get out of this funk. And 78 miles should make up for all the extra liquid bread I'll be consuming over the Holidays.

Speaking of brews, Boulevard's Long Strange Tripel is a trip indeed! Sweet upfront, bitter and dry on the finish, with lots of complexity coming out as it warms.

Cheers!

My 12 favorite pics of 2012

Well its that time of year to look back and give thanks for an epic year, lest I forget. I limited myself to twelve pics (brb related) that seemed to best encapsulate the awesomeness that was 2012.

 

Castle Rock, Golden



Golden Gate Canyon Park, CO

 

Westport Harbor

 

Pumpkin Holler 50k, Tahlequah

 

Can't leave out the Brridge

 

Midsummer on Turkey; TATUR run



Sunset, downtown Tulsa.

 

Sunrise, Cocoa Beach

 

Running water on Turkey Mountain; a miracle!

 

Early Fall on Turkey Mountain

 

Oatmeal Stout in Nederland

 

My new running partner

 

 

Stuff I see on recovery runs (12/4/12)

Heroes on wheels

 

Not this guy.

 

 

We'll have to go back a bit; to direct drive, suit jackets and dirt roads.

 

Let's take a closer look at what these pioneers were doing on their Penny-farthings. 

 

 

 

 



From David Herlihy's Bicycle: The History, Yale University Press.