Trail Running

"When 'trail run' becomes 'trail walk'."

On my vacation I got in two great hour-long trail runs, and last night got another one in with Luna Chix (more about them in another post).

Trail running is a fairly new thing to me. Okay, it's completely new: the concept of RUNNING on trails where I used to think myself athletic for hiking them is still kind of insane to me, at least when I come at it intellectually. However, when I find myself on the trail, feet padding quietly on leaf duff beneath me, sunlight coming through trees, hopping carefully over tree roots and boulders, it feels like bliss and I wonder why it took me so long to do it! "Pretty dang excited about my new shoes...trail running shoes."

On my trail runs so far (okay, all 4 of them) I seem to be able to run endlessly and end still feeling refreshed. Not sure whether the scenery occupies my mind and senses, the trail is easier on the body, or the amount of oxygen is higher running amongst trees! But I'm trying to capture a little of that feeling of expansiveness that I feel on trail runs over to regular flat runs.
"Yup, I ran from down there to up here."

There are in fact triathlons that are completely off-road. They are called 'XTerra' triathlons and involve trail running and mountain biking rather than road running and bicycling. Intrigued? Me too. But a little intimidated by the mountain-biking part of it. I've never done anything like that...but then again, before this summer I had never done anything like a triathlon!