Whine of the Day: Skiers, Fat Bikers, and Short-Haired Dogs

Workout: 4 miles, 11:21 pace

I had this cute little reminder waiting for me when I woke up this morning. And yes, 10:59 is a respectable time to wake up. Anything earlier than 11:00 qualifies as responsible adult behavior.

Silly Google, didn't you hear? Marathon training started ages ago! But hey, at least it didn't cuss at me like my alarm clock does.

Today I ran four miles. They were slow, as planned, and they were replete with interruptions that were most definitely not planned. Sigh.

Same old scenery. Kind of a joykill to follow up yesterday's post with this. Hey, dog friend, I see you there.

Interruption number one: Shoes. I figured all the new snow would be packed down by now and so boldly set out without Yaktrax. I was a-slippin' and a-slidin' all over the place and while part of me wanted to suck it up, the other part of me was pissed at how much energy I was using to maintain a 12:00 pace. After about three quarters of a mile, I turned around and went back to attach those bad boys to my shoes.

Interruption number two: Skiers. Ugh. The rivalry continues, and it seems the skiers have recruited those suddenly ubiquitous fat bikers to their cause (fat tires, not bodies). It is so unbelievably annoying that I'm apparently expected to move to the side of the trail each time one of these people shows up, and yet ninety percent of the time they don't even acknowledge that I've gone out of my way to step in the deep snow, stop, and patiently wait for them to amble by. I mean, I'm not giving up my firstborn or anything, but would it kill these folks to treat me like a human being every once in a while?

Interruption number three: Bailey. I know, I know, I said I was done with all that, but it's hard (whine, whine, whine). Setbacks are to be expected. Once my runs hit 5 miles again, I'm done, for real this time (don't hold me to that). Anyway, she was annoying, just like she always is. There was a lot of stopping to tend to her needy needs.

Interruption number four: Moose. We ran into three and had to do some off-roading ("trail running"?).

But hey, at least I did the damn thing. The legs felt fine and when I wasn't being inconvenienced in some way, I was having fun.

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Let's do our marathon week two round-up:

12 miles jogged, 3 hours hiked.

Well that looks pretty pathetic, huh? Good news is, I feel great and everything's working the way it should. I always assumed it was the number of days run per week that determine wear-and-tear on this decrepit body (the reason I've limited my running to four days a week), but I guess total mileage is more important. Keep in mind that this is just a working theory and hasn't been even remotely tested since I only ran four days this week. But whatever, I'm saying it's true until proven otherwise.

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Can we talk about how some seriously lame-looking dogs are on Runner's World's  list of best dogs to run long with? Can we also, some other time, talk about why it's Runner's and not Runners' World? But how is it that a jack russell terrier and a goldendoodle can run 10+ miles but my stupid golden retriever can't? And why are these all short-haired dogs?

I don't really like short-haired dogs. I mean, I love all dogs, but I love them least. I'll still love your short-haired dog if you really need me to, but I'll probably say mean things about it behind its back because I'm an asshole.  My ideal dog would be an aussie who runs for miles and miles with me. Aussies didn't even make the list!! Come on, now. Tell me aussies can run long so I can go out and buy one and force it to run with me. Because now that I've seen this list, if I go out and do that I'll feel like I'm abusing my dog because Runner's World is obviously never wrong.

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Turns out tomorrow's a holiday? I got ridiculously excited until I found out I still have class and since I'm paid by the hour, still have to work. Lame. But hey, kudos to current and former presidents. Some of you have been better than others, but thanks for doing a job I wouldn't touch with a ten-foot pole (not that you can touch a job - I think?).

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Questions

• Did your dog make the Runner's World list? Is it short-haired? I promise I like it just as much as its long-haired brethren.
• What's your biggest annoyance while running? I'm talking disruptions, poor etiquette, etc.
• Are you training for anything right now? Tell me about it!