Patriotic Dog

I forgot to take pics during this weekend's training. I especially wish I had a pic of Sunday's ride through Camp Pendleton--it was absolutely gorgeous out! Oh well.

My dad, however, took a picture of Sydney during their run at Santiago Truck Trail Sunday afternoon.

I have a very patriotic dog apparently:

Twisted Ankle ... and a 1/2 Marathon on Sunday?

Set off for a trial run Wednesday morning with my mom and dog, Sydney, at Santiago Truck Trail. I love the network of running/riding trails by my house; Truck Trail happens to start at the top of my favorite 15-20% grade hill that I climb about 2x a week on my bike (Modjeska Grade Road), and if you look to the west there's Whiting Ranch, another great running trail (minus past mountain lion incidents)...

So, you can imagine my devastation when this whole area was on fire back in October 2007 (that image below brings back sad memories). Took more than a year for everything to reopen. I have such a greater appreciation for it all now, and one day, I plan on making the trek from Santiago Truck Trial all the way up to the top of Saddleback Mountain (summit of about 5,500 ft; Santiago starts at 1,600 ft). But I digress...

I hadn't done any trail running since the Xterra 15k race cause I've been focusing on interval training and running flater, longer distances at a faster pace, as I have the P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Half-Marathon in Arizona next Sunday, well, at this point, I think I have a race.

We started out on Santiago Truck Trail, which is essentially all uphill going out. I was huffin right away. You get pretty secluded in the mountains, too, peaceful but kinda freaky (we carried pepper spray). At 5 miles deep, we made our turnaround to head back for a total of 10 miles; I was looking forward to the descent. By mile 6, I was going at a sub-6:30 pace (that's hauling for me). I approached a sharp turn that was all rocky and full of ruts... Didn't slow down... Being a little too careless... Paid the price...

I rolled my ankle. Uh oh.

The ligaments in my foot were traumatized and throbbing; it wasn't as much my ankle that hurt. But something wasn't right. Sydney was with me, my mom several minutes behind. So I limped around a bit waiting for her and dreading what this could mean for me. Plus, there were still 4 miles back to the truck.

After a while, the pain subsided a bit, and we set off at a walk/slow jog. Somehow I got ahead of my mom (adrenaline high I guess) and eventually was waiting with Syd at the truck. Foot throbbing, but not too bad. Theeeen... She finally comes along ... and she's all bloody! Turns out, she tripped over some rocks and fell, scraping her leg, hand, etc., hurting her foot, too, and jerking her neck. She was OK, a little disoriented and in pain, but OK thankfully. Too add to the adventure, we later discovered Sydney got two ticks on the run. Geez, all three of us!

I iced my foot on and off the rest of the day, by Thursday there was minor swelling but it felt pretty good. Good enough to go with my friend on a 32-mile bike ride on PCH from Huntington to Laguna Beach and back.

However, this morning I attempted to swim, bad idea. Not having my foot securely in place (i.e. in a bike shoe clipped in) aggravated the ligaments/problem area, and pain and swelling ensued. Made it through 1,000 yds and realized one swim wasn't worth damaging my foot further.

So now I sit here with a swollen foot (maybe the bike was too much) not sure if I'll be able to run in a 1/2 marathon next Sunday. And even if I feel fine by then, I don't know if I should run at that level/intensity so soon! Oh man.........not cool.