Spring is here

Something woke me up today a little early and I thought it was a warm spring breeze. No wait, it was only a dream. It was actually my dog breathing in my face. I think he actually sensed the spring like weather and wanted to go outside. I got up and noticed the sun shining brightly upon us. I quickly checked my running schedule, and was excited to see it was a Chestnut Ridge Metro Park run.
I quickly threw my running gear on and headed out the door as I knew I didn't have much time until I had to get back for my on call rotation.

I snapped pictures while I was running, but you can get somewhat of a sense what the terrain is like out there in this park.

This is actually really good Ultra training grounds as the trail varies a lot in elevation gain and loss. I don't know the exact numbers yet. Plus, it is only a few miles from my house. The hills are relentless. Nothing like Mohican, but good enough. There is one hill I call the Heart Stomp Hill. It is a little over 3/4 of a mile long, and when you thought you were at the top, it keeps climbing. This is a great place to do both up hill and down hill training. I can imagine after 15-20 miles of running this, your quads would be trashed.
I ended up doing 3 loops which gave me 6 miles.

By the time I was on my 3rd loop, I was walking most of Heart Stomp Hill.
The end of the loop there is a really long downhill that will prepare your quads, and allow for a little bit of speed work.


Totals: 6.25 miles.......Time:1:08:14......10:55 pace (Very Hilly)

Start of the trail:

Here is Heart Stomp Hill looming in the background. It winds all the way to the peak you see in the middle of the picture.

End to a relentless downhill: