Hate to jinx everyone's nice weather, but there is cold in the air. Already getting nights into the low 40's and we usually have our first frost on September 10, although it seems like we will make it another week.
I will work into the cold more gradually this year and try to stay bare as much as possible. I have a flexible work schedule, so when it gets really cold, I can run during the warmest part of the day. If I must, I will wear sandals, then sandals with socks. It's been such a good summer, I hate to see it end.
What's your plan?
This year, instead of "man-ing up" like last winter, I am going to "wuss down".
I rarely wore shoes last winter, but I also couldn't really feel my feet most of the time. This year I will be able to feel them, as my circulation in my feet is awesome and along with it, I seem to feel more pain and unpleasant sensations, which I guess makes sense, cause my nerves have probably branched out a little bit more, as well.
This summer has been long and unusually hot and the trail I mainly run on is now as hard as concrete. I finally had it last week and started wearing huaraches because of the pain of the sprinkling of small sharp gravel across the rock hard dirt trail. I tried a slightly different route on that trail a couple weeks ago only to discover that about 6 new large gravel patches have been laid down, both of area and individual piece size. These don't really hurt to run over, but they break my stride. They are spaced just far enough apart for me to get going really well and then they distract me. I am NOT amused.
This summer I found a new trail next to my house. Less gravel, but more roots. Less severe inclines/declines. I'm going to try it barefoot this winter and see how that goes.
But the roots might do me in with the slippery mud and all.
If none of that goes well, I will wear my Brancas, which have great traction underneath. I will have to modify the insides of them, however, to give myself traction on top of them. I am thinking of using those sticky things you put in the bottom of your bathtub.
I do know that I am going to wear thick woolish socks when I race this winter. I HATE the city roads, they are horrible. They are what I call "pot-holed chip and seal". I don't always warm up before I run, which is just torturous on that stuff.
Today, I also discovered that I can run on an old railroad thingy, which is medium sized loose gravel, with huaraches on, without any problem, and that's going to be one of my other options.