wind and knees

Finally, spring has arrived in Chicago, and we made our second trip to lake front for a long run. Ryder joined Saint Stephen and me on his bike and we arrived at Belmont Harbor before 8 on a blustery, clear blue, sunny Sunday morning. We were excited by the prospects of the run, but surprised by how cool the lake breeze made us feel. We headed north onto the path the east of the bird sanctuary and as we joined the path, we were knocked back by the strong north wind. And it was cold! Ryder was particularly unhappy with the conditions, so before we got to Waveland golf course we headed back in to run on the path, instead of along the water. The northward trek to Hollywood was a struggle and Ryder was very unhappy, yet we insisted that we make the trip all the way across the beach to Buck's Block, Ryder's Rock and Stephen's Stone. And so we did. The beach was sheltered and Ryder did not want to resume the journey, but much to his delight, he found the southward trek quite pleasant. It was like running on a different day, warm, sunny, the wind at our backs, we sailed south all the way to the North Avenue overpass, then headed back north on the zoo trail. As soon as we turned north we were back in the wind, and struggled for the last 5 miles. Ryder and Steve found a groove and motored on while it was my turn to struggle. My calves were so tight and my knees were screaming, it was all I could do to motor along at 11+ minute pace. I felt strong, but just very slow. After we were done my knees felt like giant water balloons. As the day progressed my knees ached and I got stiffer and stiffer. Combined with the previous day's yard work, pounding in 12 inch spikes with a 5 pound hammer, my back and arms were sore, and now my legs, a complete body abuse workout. This morning when I got up in the predawn gloom, I creaked and moaned my way down the stairs. I expected I would be sore. But then I mounted my trusty steed and peddled to work. All the pain and stiffness vanished. The miracle of the wheel. My regimen of using the AMT, doing Pilates, and riding my bike to work everyday seems to be helping my fitness and weight control, but it is not doing much for my running. I think if it weren't for Steve I wouldn't be running at all. Of course running once a week or every two weeks and going 10 or more miles makes it hard to get used to. I think you have to endure the pounding to be able to stand it. I love to run. When I ran track workouts, I would dig deep and kick, cranking out sub-80 quarters, flying, gaining speed as I rounded the turns, sprinting to the finish, often passing speedy smaller runners. The Bucky Burst. Ah, but now, my sprinting is limited to short jaunts across the park, chasing my dog. I just don't feel the juice in the legs now. I could tap into that below the belt energy and crank, now, I feel stiff and tied up. Plodding along mile after mile at a pleasant conversational pace is now what my running career brings me. The bike is where I get my jollies. I can ride my heart out, crank as hard and as fast and as long as I have the conditioning for, and not feel any pain. No that's not right, its pain, the burning lactic acid exploding quad blood in my mouth sweat stinging my eyes kind of pain, not that wounded crippling pain that all out running delivers.