So I ran 12 miles today, bringing my total mileage to date: 227.1
There are exactly 111 days remaining until the Eugene Marathon, about 17 weeks and I’m starting to get pretty excited about this whole thing.
Up until today, I have been getting my long runs in at the local high school track, but after last week’s 40 laps around the track for 10 miles, the thought of doing 48 there again today made me feel slightly homicidal.
So my entourage (Geoff, Bella & I) ventured out to Eugene today to try one of the many trails in town. We settled on The Adidas Oregon Trail.
Geoff and Bella left me at the start of the trail to go hang out at the nearby dog park, no doubt to impress everyone there with her amazing Frisbee skills. Meanwhile, I set out for a quiet first 5 miles at a steady pace. I’ve been following the Jeff Galloway method, essentially where I run for a certain time period and then walk for a minute. The idea being that by pacing yourself, and interrupting your running with walk breaks so as to alternate muscle groups, you can extend your body’s limit to how much distance you can cover. After the first five miles or so, I decided to break up the routine by switching on my I-Pod for some distraction. While I was running, and listening to the tunes, I let my mind wander. The sun was beginning to poke out from beneath the ever-present gray cloud that constantly blankets Eugene during the winter months, and immediately my spirit lifted. I thought about how lucky I was to live here. (Note: this is a thought I frequently have.) Many people who know me well, either pre-move or post-move to Oregon know just how much I’ve wanted to live here. As I rounded lap 7, and breezed past a gorgeous Borzoi strolling along with it’s owner, I thought about what a great fit this town really is for me. I let the reasons why run through my mind while I ran through the dense forest portion of the trail: First of all, Eugene is vegetarian central. Big selling point for me, HUGE. Not only are there numerous restaurants dedicated to being completely vegetarian, but there are many others that offer various meat-free options on their menus. I never have to eat another grilled cheese sandwich from the kids menu or house salad again! Oh yeah, and if I order a Whopper without the meat, I don’t hear giggling over the drive-through intercom. In place of a mildly puzzled teenager greeting me at the window, I am asked if I would like extra cheese instead.
A small group of runners sailed past me heading in the opposite direction, and I thought about how there couldn’t possibly be a better place for a runner to live than Eugene. There’s history here. Nike started here. Steve Prefontaine ran here. The 2008 Track & Field trials were hosted here. Because of this history, there’s so many opportunities: numerous trails to choose from, local running shops staffed with true experts…
Then there’s the fact that nearly all of my interests are supported here. Since becoming an Oregonian transplant, I have been invited and joined a book club that meets my tastes, have become a member of a local community band, joined an ultimate frisbee team, and have frequented more dog parks located within the city limits than I care to count. My other passion, or maybe more aptly named addiction, coffee? Well, it’s simply a part of the lifestyle here. I made room for a mother running behind a three-wheeled stroller on my left and thought to myself, this city is like a smorgasbord catering to each of my interests.
Last, but not least the beauty of the pacific northwest has to be added to my list. How fortunate am I to get to live somewhere where it is lush and green 12 months a year, and that there is a nearby ocean & beaches? Add to that the fact that there is no sales tax and you never have to get out and pump your own gasoline and you start to think that you are living in some sort of utopia. And maybe I am, I thought with a smile, as my I-Pod Shuffle, shuffled to the next tune.
So those were my thoughts today. But another important thing happened to me today: somewhere between mile 9 & 10…As I was letting my thoughts float from one thought to another, I realized something: I have become a true runner. I mean, I have always gone running, but for some reason today, I felt like a runner. Maybe it was the new territory of running such a long distance, something of which I have never done before. Maybe it was being surrounded by the many other people out on the trail today. But whatever the reason, I feel different.

I am enjoying this journey.

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