Old Routines

The long walking with Rex has been helping me quite a bit and I'm finding that I can get back out on the trails and do a little pacing along the old mauka trails.  I headed out with a bottle pack from the Nature Center and found myself doing an easy pace up the Hogsback hitting the top in just under 17.   Not bad.   I found the down along staircases to be an easy jog, and the ups at twisters and easy's good challenges, though I didn't push hard up easy's.  I turned the corner at Smokey's in under 24 and was to the three way before 30.  I could have done better but backed off on the pace.  I pulled a few of the last remaining ribbons from the race along the way.



It was a beautiful late afternoon.  The birds were becoming active, the sun was throwing golden rays of sunshine through the trees, and deep in the hills the clouds were boiling blue-black and threatening, without actually coming down into the bottom valleys. It was one of those special times in the valley when things seem right and and good, and running is just a past time.

I pushed up Mangos, and then on up Nahuina for a bit, but had to turn around as I had some things to get done at home and going to top would require coming down once again and I'd be looking at 7:30 before I got home and showered and ate.

I'm hopeful that my knees are coming back a bit and the long years of pain and waiting are beginning to end.   I don't expect to be out there like old times, but its nice to be out there and know that I can run when I want.  Its nice to be able to return to old routines that are good for my cardio and mental health, yet fast enough that I can get done in an  hour or so.

Sometimes you can go back,  though realistically, it is not very far.