Winter Challenge - 2013

 
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Quite late to the game but happy to report my first barefoot trail run on snow this winter.
38 F, 5 inches of heavy wet snow on the trail, melting and turning into slush. Started in my Five Fingers to warm up feet (half a mile) then finished the run (next 3 miles) barefoot.


 
Well, last week I did ok on compacted snow at 13F, but for just 1.7 miles before I tapped out. A day or two later, running a mile home, at 24F with just an inch or less of fresh snow on top of the compacted snow, my toes got mild frost nip again, which involved about an hour of real pain once my feet warmed up, a little crispiness and sensitivity the next day, and then back to normal on the following day. My soles were just fine though. So it must be the snow getting in between the toes that's the problem.

So kudos to all of you who can run in fresh snow!

We're getting snow today, and it's supposed to be over freezing this afternoon, so I might give it a try on my run-commute home. I'm starting to get better at gauging when I need to put the shoes on in moist conditions (I'm pretty good at it already in dry conditions), as well as with dealing with mild frost nip, so it'll be worth the risk I think.

I've found gauging risk in dry and wet conditions to be totally different animals. It comes on so quick in fresh snow. Even when my toes are still nice and red, I think I've discovered that it's best to put on the shoes the moment you start to get those electric shocks, right? On the other hand, in dry conditions, the numbing down is so gradual that there's almost no risk of overdoing it. I usually put on the shoes when my mets start to stiffen up. It's more of an internal gauge, compared to the surface reactions when running in wet/snowy conditions.

It's extremely invigorating at the very least to run in barely bareable conditions! This morning I saw on my phone that it was 22F and the forecast snow hadn't yet begun to fall, so I headed out on my morning run-commute unshod. But I didn't make it to my office. I had to put on my back-up Sockwa G4s after one kilometer, because the windchill was close to 0 F. My phone doesn't show windchill on the main screen. No damage done, but man, it's a metabolic jolt to run that fast first thing in the morning!

Tomorrow through Thursday we're supposed to see highs in the upper 30s, so hopefully I'll be able to get in a few quality barefoot runs. I'm tired of sneaking in my bare miles up in the fairgrounds, either on my back-n-forth street or on the short loop by the bus stop. But those have been the only places with reasonably dry surfaces. Once temps get above freezing, like tomorrow, I'm hoping to return to my out-n-back routes. I especially miss the river. Even with patches of snow and slush, I should be OK I think, if I'm remembering correctly how it went last winter with above-freezing temps at the end of winter. If not, I'll have my back-up Sockwas with me.

The best news is that March is looking totally bareable. Highs in the 30s and 40s!
 
I was out west last week and managed to log a few winter challenge miles, about 2.5 miles a day for 2 days. It felt fantastic just to feel the ground on barefeet again. I also took my first rock of the year on my arch and was actually happy about it. It has been a very verryy long, cold, and snowy winter out this way and not to much relief in sight for the next couple of weeks either.
 
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I was out west last week and managed to log a few winter challenge miles, about 2.5 miles a day for 2 days. It felt fantastic just to feel the ground on barefeet again. I also took my first rock of the year on my arch and was actually happy about it. It has been a very verryy long, cold, and snowy winter out this way and not to much relief in sight for the next couple of weeks either.
This winter has given us a taste of what you Winterpagans go through every year. I feel for you man! It's been our coldest winter since the early 80s, but for you guys, it'd be normal.

I like how the rock felt good to you. I feel the same way with my struggles on compacted snow. Hurts so good. Even though I really like the Sockwa G4s and their fantastic groundfeel, there's simply no substitute for full-on plantar stimulation--ouchies, numbing, and all.

Anyway, good to hear from you Dutchie! Hopefully you'll start reporting more in the mileage forum when conditions improve. Lately I've been running pretty much gadget-free like you, except on my back-n-forths and short loops in the fairgrounds (cuz it's hard to calculate the distance using Google maps with those). I love gadget-free running! Pace schmace, I run how I feel.
 
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It's the walking that impresses me. Well done!
Yah, walking in the cold is a lot harder than running in it.

And in barely bareable conditions, running at aerobic pace is a lot harder than running at tempo pace!

Cold is the opposite of hot; the former makes you speed up, and the latter makes you slow down.

Unless it's really cold and I'm shod and bundled up, then I run pretty slowly so my body has plenty of energy left over just to stay warm. Things also get really slippery when it's extremely cold out. Gotta up the cadence and take small steps.

A half-dozen to a dozen of my runs this winter have been one-mile tempo runs on the verge of frostnip.

And with next week's forecast, if I manage to run bare at all, it will be that kind of running.

Then the following week we're supposed to begin having seasonal averages on a more consistent basis.

I will be nice to begin to run bare again without thinking about it or having to seek out favorable spots.

To just set out mindlessly on a nice out-n-back.
 
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Congrats to Bare Lee for passing 500k. Looks like you will easily pass my total from last season.

Most are complaining about too cold of temperatures. I'm the opposite. It's been spring in my area since January, a very rare event. I can barely get a few k's in after taking the kids to school before it warms out of range. I hope to reach a total of 400k, but it's going to be tough. For me, it's not worth getting out early in the dark just for the winter challenge, sorry.
 
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Congrats to Bare Lee for passing 500k. Looks like you will easily pass my total from last season.

Most are complaining about too cold of temperatures. I'm the opposite. It's been spring in my area since January, a very rare event. I can barely get a few k's in after taking the kids to school before it warms out of range. I hope to reach a total of 400k, but it's going to be tough. For me, it's not worth getting out early in the dark just for the winter challenge, sorry.
Thanks Rick. I wish I had your problem!

The funny part is almost 300k of my total was run in October and November, if I recall correctly. Most days since then it's been too cold or snowy or both to run bare, even on my one-mile run-commutes. And now that I've discovered the Sockwa G4s, I don't really mind running shod, so I've been doing more early morning running in the dark cold winter wonderland, and getting into it. Feels like I'm on the verge of becoming a full-time early morning runner. I love the peace and quiet, and the nocturnal landscapes, and it's such a great way to start off the day--"Hey, I've already accomplished something!" as I read someone express the sentiment.

Today unfortunately my wife was awake when I left so she prohibited me from running and I took the car. It's -11F/-24C, -30F/-34C windchill. She's probably right, if I were to slip on the ice and fall, I could get into trouble, especially since my dumbphone has been malfunctioning lately (I'm holding out for Sprint's 4G Lite network to cover my area, before I upgrade, so that in the meantime I can keep tethering my 4G phone for fast internet access.) Almost all the compacted snow on the sidewalks has an icy surface now, although a fair amount of the streets are becoming clear and dry, and there's no cars around in my neighborhood at this time of day, so I tend to run out in the middle of the street. Even she admitted that if she were asleep, it would've been ok for me to run, but knowing that I was out running would've kept her awake. It's a pity, I wanted to get in a nice five-miler this morning.

In any case, I've put in just enough bare mileage in Dec, Jan, & Feb to maintain some semblance of callus, so I'll keep looking for opportunities to run bare in the fairgrounds. No sense in letting them go soft now that we're so close to spring. Hopefully, within a few weeks it'll be possible to run bare in the morning too, but it all depends on what kind of moisture we get. March is typically our snowiest month, and I'm pretty worthless in fresh snow. I've developed a little bit better tolerance for compacted snow, but not for any length of time. I've gotten extremely mild frostnip 3-4 times this winter on my one-mile run-commutes. This translates into 15-60 minutes of pain after my feet warm up, and no lasting consequences, and I'm getting better and better at knowing when to pull up, just before I go over the threshold, and slip on my G4s.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure next winter I won't go out of my way to run bare. Last winter I didn't mind running back and forth in the fairgrounds, or around my little loop by the U of M bus stop, because I was discovering my tolerances, but the last few weeks it's been pretty boring. Plus, I'm getting tired of thinking about bareable conditions all the time. I would rather just go out and run an out-n-back shod in my G4s.