Ann Arbor Triathlon Club

Asham, akkam,
It's time to dig the Yak Trax out of the closet, and probably the
windbreaker, too. Despite all of my whining about the cold, I love
running in the snow (except when it's April snow.)
Last fall, Jon and I were training for the Phoenix marathon in January.
Our long runs were always scheduled for Sundays. One Saturday, I was
checking the forecast for the next day, knowing that we had somewhere
around 18 miles on tap. There was already snow on the ground, and the
low was predicted to be in the mid-twenties - hardly favorable
conditions under most circumstances. However, a cold(er) front was
supposed to move in around 10 a.m., bringing in more snow and dropping
the temperature beneath the low. The conventional wisdom of waiting for
things to warm up around mid-day was quickly discarded. We resolved to
wake up at 6 a.m. the next morning and get our run out of the way
before the weather really took a turn for the arctic.
The next morning, we did in fact wake up early and pile on the layers
like we were going skiing. Two thoughts got me out the door, one being
that it was only going to get colder and more dreadful the longer I
procrastinated, the other being that every mile I skipped would make my
first marathon experience that much worse. We set out from home and
headed down Chalmers, a relatively quiet dirt road off Washtenaw. It
was dead silent and there were no cars. Jon and I peacefully jogged
down the middle of the snow-covered road, past the fancy subdivisions
full of Christmas lights. We then turned onto Huron River Drive, and
attempted to head down to Gallup. The fence kept us from getting in, so
we went back up the hill and across the bridge on Dixboro. Not
surprisingly, the foot path had not been cleared, and was actually
worse off than the road due to snow drifts. We high-stepped across the
bridge and down into the empty park. It was so beautiful that I was
able to displace all of my thoughts about normal people being in their
nice, warm beds instead of dragging their sorry ITBS-afflicted legs
through the snow on Yak Trax and a prayer. It was unforgettable. As was
the part, several hours later at the end of the run, when we passed by
Tappan Middle as we headed towards home. My Camel Back was completely
frozen, my Gu's were turning into solids, and the sign at Tappan read
"9:30 a.m., -13° F." I would have taken a picture, but my camera
phone had literally frozen and refused to take a picture. I couldn't
believe I was crazy enough to run in that weather, but that run is the
one with which I remember the most fondly. When I moved to Michigan, I
contended that I could not run when the temperature dropped below 50,
as it was too hard on my lungs. Turns out I just had to get out the
door, and I could blow 50 out of the water. Happy training!

Design the New Tri Club Kit - We have had much interest in
getting club kit last year, but my total lack of artistic abilities
didn't get us anywhere. Now I am asking for your help. Please, please,
please! submit a design for Louis Garneau Delfino Racer Top and Delfino
Bottom by 12/19. I only have one taker thus far; you don't want me left
to my own devices on this one.