Planned Workout: 4.0-5.0 miles down to Pepin at a comfortable effort.

Variables: The legs were a bit trashed after yesterday’s run down-back in ice grippers, so I didn’t want to do anything too hard. 

• Weather: Cloudy, 23°F, Feels like 16°F, Humidity 66%, Wind 5mph from SE
• Day: Sunday – February 7th
• Time: 10:25 AM
• Course: Firestation-Pepin-Tall Pine
• Distance: 6.02
• Duration: 54:51
• Pace: 9:07
• Running Streak Day #: 3

Comments: 

Mile 1 (8:50) – Started slow and picked it up a little going down Philbrick Hill. The Beacon 2’s felt good underfoot, and I could have picked up the pace pretty quickly, but I wanted to keep the effort level comfortable. The best part was that the roads were clear even though it was chilly.

Mile 2 (8:53) – Going down Shepard, there was a little more traffic, and I had to run on the road shoulders a lot more. Luckily the spots where I had to go were mostly dirt, and I only had to run on the ice a couple of times. 

Mile 3 (8:52) – Some people do live down on Pepin (sarcasm). I saw a couple out walking and another walking her dog. The one with the dog was friendly and responded. The others just stuck their noses in the air and kept walking. Oh well, I guess it was because I put up my mask as I ran towards them. When I passed them on the way out, I said “Hi” again and got the “f*#$ you” look. So I smiled (they couldn’t see it, I had my mask up), waved nicely to them, and kept running. No, I didn’t raise my middle finger, although I thought about it. I had mittens on so they wouldn’t have known one way or the other. 😉

Mile 4 (9:57) – Yeah, climbing back up Philbrick Hill is always slow and steady. I did have to reset my thinking from no; I won’t make it up this hill, to let’s get it done and over with. Then focused on putting one foot in front of the other until I got to the top. It wasn’t that hard, sometimes I think hill running is as much mental as it is physical.

Mile 5 (9:17) – Of all the sections on the run, the one on Howard Circle was the nastiest. I had to run on the road shoulder that was snow-covered to have a chance of staying upright. Two parts were nothing but ice. I guess the snowplow operator forgot to turn on the sand/salt hopper when going through this section yesterday. It was pretty nasty. It definitely slowed me down a bit going through those sections.

Mile 6 (8:52) – I was planning to stop at 5.0, but I felt pretty good and hadn’t pushed the effort too much, so I decided to go ahead and do one more mile. It is mostly downhill, and it ensures that I do a proper cool-down walk coming back up.

However, I questioned my sanity when I first got on the dirt section. It was a bit dicey, or was that icey until I found the proper line on the side away from where the traffic traveled.

A snowmobile had gone through and busted up the crust/ice enough that it was not too bad running. When I got down to the lower gate, I had to go slower to the finish and pick my lines carefully. If I didn’t pay attention, it was very easy to get into slip and slide mode.

Shoes: New Balance Beacon 2 — Mileage (105.09) – The Beacon 2’s did everything I asked them to do-comfortably. No, I will not mistake them for trail shoes or even road shoes with excellent grip, but I stayed upright in some pretty nasty spots, which was important. I did change the lacing to the last hole in the upper and had zero issues with my heel slipping today. They accommodated my wearing Merino wool socks without any problems or complaints from battered toes and just did what I have come to expect from the Beacon line of shoes. Let me run comfortably and focus on the run.

It makes me wonder why I stop running in them and keep looking at other shoes when they work so well for me? Mostly because of the heel slippage issue in the Beacon 2’s, and while I can run 10-12 miles in them, my legs are pretty well beat up after doing it. If I stay in the 6-8 mile range with them, they do okay (Which if I am honest is all that I am currently doing). Then there is the outsole, while at times, the grip does surprise me. Other times, it is an issue, and I whine because I don’t feel secure while running in them when the weather gets nasty. However, I can see them staying around this time for a while, especially if the new shoes do not do as well as I expect them to. I should have them next Tuesday or Wednesday. 

Oh yeah, my feet never felt cold. A shoe’s ability to breathe well or be well ventilated is vastly overrated when it is cold outside, and there is a bit of a breeze.

Overall, a decent run and one where I purposely ran by effort and didn’t pay much attention to the mile splits until after I finished the run. I can also say that I am glad that I didn’t add the Beacon 2’s to the giveaway pile last fall when I thought seriously about doing so.