30 January 2008
Mother Nature Won.
Posted by Matt Stargardt under: Matt Stargardt .
I have a hard time admitting defeat. I pride myself on not quiting things. I’ve quit three things in my life: 7th Grade basketball, a calculus based statistics class in college, and a job washing dishes for a dinnerboat. I only felt good about quitting the dish-washing job. When you apply this attitude towards a run, I have found its hard to come up with a definite criteria for determining when its not safe to run. How hard should it be raining before you stop running? When exactly should you curl up in a ball with lightning? When its a mile away? When it lights things on fire in front of you? What about ice storms? Thanks to Yaktracks I could walk up a frozen lamp post….but what about those branches cracking and falling from trees? Ozone action day? 80 percent Humidity? Maybe 90? Snow to your ankles or your knees? Heat index or windchill? Pea sized or peanut sized hail? Tornado watch or tornado warning?
This morning was a no brainer. It would be like me challenging a NFL lineman to a wrestling match, or me running in front of a charging bull wearing all red. No good could possibly come from it. When the temperature read 4 degrees I grabbed my baklava. When I realized I could not see my chocolate lab in the back yard as he disappeared into the white mist, I took the baklava off, and headed back to bed.
This morning would have been the perfect training run if I planned to tackle Everest. I’m not. I doubt that the frostbite I would have earned this morning would have done little to help me get through the hills coming into the zoo. This was the definitive treadmill morning.
2 Comments so far...
Deb Says:
31 January 2008 at 3:05 pm.
Hey Matt, I too decided against venturing out. I was supposed to teach a pilates class at the Y at 5:30 am, but found my car doors totally frozen shut. My husband got out of bed to try to get them open, but no luck. I considered running to the Y. . . we are only 2 miles away, but that wind convinced me to stay home. I ran on the track last night!
Shirl Kohl-Martin Says:
1 February 2008 at 8:19 am.
Matt, Great descriptions and posting! I completely agree with you. Sometimes, you have to do the treadmill!
Have a great day!
Shirl