February 13th: You Gotta Be a Little Crazy to Run a Marathon...

With this snowstorm, Governor Christie said not to drive unless it's absolutely necessary. He did not say anything about leashing up your dog and going for a crazy blizzard run, however.

I actually overslept a little bit this morning. And then I was looking at having to clean the car off and drive 15 miles per hour to get to PF, just for the privilege of jumping on the treadmill. I was getting my gym clothes on when I decided, "You know what? You have to be a little crazy to run a marathon. How about an outdoor run in the blizzard, instead?" So I put on my cold-weather gear instead.

That's when the dog heard me and jumped out of Carol's bed. At first I was thinking that it would already be enough of a challenge. But then I figured, "Why not?" She hasn't been running for a few weeks, and she's definitely had cabin fever. So she got to come along, too.

Here are some things we learned about blizzard runs:

• GPS/MapMyRun doesn't work very well in the snow. It called out the first mile at about .4 miles. 4:09 mile! Look out Boston, here I come! I looked at the map afterward, and it's all kinds of zig-zagged. The GPS was clearly bouncing off the snowflakes.
• Running in the snow really isn't that bad -- when the wind is at your back.
• A snowflake right in the eye hurts like hell.
• Just let the snowplow truck go by. He gets to do his job, and you get a reasonably clean track to run on.
• Going downhill with a dog who's trying to sprint is a recipe for disaster. Not sure how I managed to stay on my feet there.
• Even other dogs think you're crazy. A big German Shepherd came bounding out of nowhere, and I was sure it was going to be a brawl. Lily gave the dog one look, like, "Excuse me, I'm busy running," and the thing went back home.
• Don't drive through big puddles, like the guy we saw at the flood road near the beach. Fortunately, he got all the way through back to dry land before his car conked out.
• Running in the snow really works your legs hard.

I had to re-map my run when I got home, since MMR thought I went 5 miles in 33:00. Turns out, I went 3.58 in 33:46. That's a respectable 9:25 pace. 

I'd hoped to do intervals today, but the workout I got in the snow makes up for it. So I'm on track for the week. I'll look to do a long on Saturday (likely on the belt, ugh), and then cross on Sunday. Tomorrow is a rest day.

Total miles since starting the blog: 319.6