First Day of Spring

I was on call last night and I was so excited to get home today and go for a nice outdoor run. I checked the weather yesterday, and the prediction was 55 and sunny. Perfect! I came home, took a nap, and looked outside at 3 - perfect skies. The thermometer read 56 degrees. I threw on my running tights and a t shirt and stepped outside into an absolute arctic blast. I had neglected to notice that the wind had kicked way up. Determined to complete a good run, I changed into a long sleeve t shirt and took off.
Now, the trail I usually take runs along the Schuykill River, which I live only a few blocks from. It's always a nice challenge because it's generally asthetically pleasing and it's uphill on the way out, giving me a nice break for the second half of a run. By the time I reached the river trail, the wind was gusting at around 40 miles an hour, with a steady 20 mph headwind. Did I mention it was uphill? By the time I reached the hill at the art museum (about 1.5 miles in), I was completely spent. When I ran under JFK Blvd bridge, a gust of wind actually knocked my left leg out from under me, almost causing me to fall flat on my face. I just kept telling myself to keep going; I knew that the return trip was downhill and with a tailwind. I eventually reached the Girard Ave bridge in about 25 minutes (2.8 miles away) putting me just under 9 minute miles (which is awful). I ran back in 22 minutes with a nice tailwind, a downhill course, and the ipod played much better songs. The total trip was 5.4 miles in about 48 minutes, around 8:50 pace. Not great (or good) time, but I was glad I didn't quit when I was completely worn out a few minutes in.

Schuykill Trail on a much calmer day, facing downstream.