Wednesday, June 04, 2008

Two Runs

Four years to the day that my dad died. I take part of this day off every year. This year was a perfectly sunny day, a day for the trails, for solitude. After lunch at the Indian place, it was seven miles on the Rock Island, where we used to ride bikes, from Alta to Dunlap and back. This linear railbed trail changes every time I go out there, subdivisions pop and mutate, fields give way to progress. Still, it is peaceful when you hit the Kickapoo Creek bridge.

It is raining. Been raining all night. Torrential spring rains followed by lulls. A good day for a trail run at Farmdale. When I get to the parking lot it is a downpour. Fifteen minutes later it is less of a downpour. Good time to start. It is muddy, but not overly so, just in the low spots.

At the end of alt. Creekside it opens up, and I mean but good. Full on thunderstorm. Rain, lightning, wind, the whole nine. The trail is a creek, literally, running through 6 inches of running water, lightning flashing overhead. I wish I could say this was some sort of enlightening moment, but it wasn't. Just an ill-advised run in a storm by a junkie looking for his trail fix at any cost.