Retiring. Or, one last thing: the trials and joys of running in Florida

Hi there!

I disappeared off the reader for a few months, and I’m sorry about that. I just didn’t have a lot to write since the marathon in April, and even if I could have updated about my running, I sort of lost the motivation for this kind of blogging, what with virtual running teams and online running logs/social media sites abounding. There are so many other running blogs out there, far superior to mine, and I’ve decided it’s probably for the best that I retire the blog.

If there’s one of you who will actually miss my rather sweaty navel-gazing, I may post occasionally about running on my main channel.  Also, most likely in a few years when I start another running journey  (like training for an ultramarathon?), I’ll bring the blog out of retirement. Who knows?

At any rate, to take the bitter out of the sweet, I’ve collected a list of observations/tips about running in south Florida that you may appreciate. Some of these may be true for anywhere, but only all of them are true for Florida.

1. Running outside in the summer (i.e. April to October) is hard. It’s either too humid before the sun comes up or too hot and sunny when the sun comes out. Pick your poison.
2. Running outside in winter is awesome. However, on the two days it goes sub-40, one still shouldn’t forget the long pants, long sleeves and the gloves. It may not happen a lot, but the body still doesn’t like it.
3. One can never make a mistake putting on sunscreen during any hour in the day. Even if it’s overcast, it could be sunny a few miles down the road.
4. If it’s raining, it’s not always pouring. But if it’s pouring, it’s much harder to have a fun run.
5. In the summer, one can almost set the clock by the afternoon thunder storm.
6. The break in the humidity after said storms is over far too quickly.
7. One needs to lower one’s expectations for speed sessions and races in the summer. At the same time, even if it’s not so bad on a particular day, the possible humidity is always a great excuse.
8. Matching up race seasons to races in the rest of the nation is a curse for the cross country runner. It does make the out-of-state races that much more fun, though.
   I just realized 1-8 are all about the weather. Woops.
9. There are very few natural hills here. On the other hand, there are an abundance of golf course mounds, overpasses and bridges. No excuses for that hill training!
10. Run against traffic. Florida has one of the highest fatality rates for pedestrians in any state, with Miami-Dade and Broward having some of the highest in any county. One of the best ways to avoid being road-kill is to run against the traffic to move out of the way of oncoming traffic and stop in-time, if need be.
11. and as a final note that’s both weather and non-weather related: It’s imperative to have a good water belt or hydration pack and/or know where the public water fountains are. The humidity means one loses a lot of water, and on the main streets, it’s pretty difficult to find water fountains. And parks often don’t open before dawn. I’ve been tempted to knock on random people’s doors before because of this.
12. There is always the slight possibility that that log floating in the canal is not a log at all.
    

And that’s it! Did I miss anything? Am I wrong about this all only being true for Florida? The list ended up being much less entertaining than I intended, but I guess there’s a reason I’m putting this one out to pasture!

Still, may the roads rise up to meet you and the wind be ever at your back.
Run strong and stay healthy,
Dorothea