the Way of the Turtle

5 Mile Snowshoe Run at the Vischer Ferry Nature Preserve
Sunday, February 4, 2007

Originally I had thought I might stay at Saratoga Spa State Park and run on some of the other trails there, but the wind was simply too much. So I went to plan B and headed to the Vischer Ferry Nature Preserve on my way back to Albany.

The main lot by the Whipple Bridge was surprisingly full, so I headed east and ended up at the far end of the Preserve, near Clute's Dry Dock (the remains of an old Erie Canal dry dock.) As I changed into fresh running gear and pulled my snowshoes back on, I listened to two kids skating back and forth on a cleared section of ice in the dry dock.

It was tough running again, after racing at Saratoga and then driving for 20 minutes or so to the Preserve. I definitely wasn't going as fast! The initial trail along the old canal was pretty uneven, and much of the meager snow had been packed down by skiiers. I was curious to see a number of ski tracks on the old canal - I wouldn't have thought it would make for good skiing. (Of course, I'd also be more than a bit concerned about the thickness of the ice...) Saw a couple of skiiers in the 90 minutes I was out, but for the most part I had the trails to myself.

Running went a bit better after I warmed up, but I definitely didn't have much juice left in my legs. Fortunately the trails were fairly level. Other than being pretty darn cold, it was a beautiful sunny day - I wish I'd had some film left to take some pictures.

About half a mile from the end I noticed an odd sound from my snowshoes and discovered that on each one of the rubber joints connecting the front part of the cleat to the rest had snapped. I guess all the running on barely snow-covered trails finally took its toll - must be why Dion Snowshoes introduced a solid cleat for running on rough trails. Fortunately I don't have another race for two weeks, so there should be plenty of time to get new cleats and install them. I think I'll order both a solid set and a set of flex cleats - they're supposed to be fairly easy to swap in and out, and I'd like to have to flexibility to choose between which type to use (though this year is looking to be a solid-cleat winter!)

Ran the last stretch in my shoes, which felt nice after almost 90 minutes of snowshoe running. Changed into dry clothes for the 2nd time today and headed back home, one very tired turtle...

Tomorrow is a rest day... no running or riding. After a long run Friday and 8 miles of snowshoe running today (including 5k at race pace) I think I've more than earned it!

JMH