11/5/2014
Every day nature gets you out of bed one way or another. On day 66, the sound of thousands of raindrops pelting the trailer was natures preferred method. Without a snooze button to mute the droplets, the volume increased; despite my efforts to hide in my fortress of blankets. There was plenty of hesitation and I found many ways to delay stepping out of the trailer. But, the invariable outcome was that I would open my eyes and begin my routine.
Running in the rain has often brought me inner peace. The calm comes from the necessity of focus. As a runner, if you are taking on the challenge of the rain, it is necessary to put your safety first. That means being very aware of your surroundings and staying in the present. The rain gave me a tunnel vision that kept me running at a strong steady pace. I ran facing the oncoming traffic and when big rigs approached my heart would often skip ever so slightly. I only allowed myself to exhale after they had completely passed.
The day consisted of three stops. I found Crystal driving up to me after every five miles. The sight of your support vehicle is a double edged sword. It is good because you can run with peace of mind; there is less pressure to reach certain points. Pressure can be a good motivator though. I could have run in my wet gear for the entire stretch of day 66. In fact I might have run more miles if I hadn’t taken breaks to change into dry clothes. Every time I became comfortable I grew less inclined to get back out into the cold. Also I didn’t want to dampen all my gear.
You could say, the fact of the matter was, that it was dangerous for me to run on this stretch of road. The darkened clouds strengthened the argument. With my poncho torn and the storm growing stronger we parked on the side of the road again and set up camp. A border patrol officer told us we were free to park where we were.
I fell asleep after some hot beverages and some light reading. Next thing I knew I was waking up to more rain. When would this storm lighten up? I had a quick breakfast and hit the road. It took me just over an hour to run a ten mile stretch. The hills were plentiful and mostly upward. When Crystal passed me at the ten mile mark we took a break. I swapped my wet shoes for a pair of dry ones. The wet days prompted me to pull out some of the used shoes so I could try and get more miles out of my new ones. The tactic seemed to work well. I was running fast and strong. I had plenty of old pair I could rotate through. Of course with the increased efficiency of running and time I had a decrease in photographic output. There is always a tradeoff. I figured there was plenty of openness in these parts so perhaps the section should be treated as a speed drill. This way I wouldn’t feel guilty about just running though without photographing some of the beauty.
When I pulled up to Langtry, population < 20 Crystal greeted me with a surprise room donation. I wouldn’t have imagined a place of lodging existed in Langtry. I must be grateful for the blessings. I had planned to keep running since the day was still young and the legs were still strong. But, I was wet from the rain and I hadn’t bathed for a couple of days so we stopped. There was even an internet signal for me to use. It was a nice few quiet days but it was time to step away from the primitive pen and paper.
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