Running Blind

Saturday came and it was time for another run with the LA Running Club.

I arrived early and it was already bright, sunny, and most importantly warm. In fact, it was as warm as it has been all summer. So, it was pointing to a challenging run. The view of the waves and the Pacific Ocean did help though; it certainly is an advantage running in Santa Monica.

As we prepared and stretched, I activated my Garmin ... or tried to. No response.

No response!

This is not good.

I asked my senior pace leader from LA Roadrunners and he suggested squeezing three buttons simultaneously. I tried and tried and tried without luck. At this point I was told to call Garmin.

That was definitely not good.

Facing a long run and no Garmin electronic conscience, I was a bit discouraged. Still, I started and headed south for the Santa Monica Pier. My load was a bit heavier since I had two bottles of water.

I just ran by feel since I had no Garmin and no real pace group. In some ways it was nice as I did not feel pressure to make a clock time.

I made the pier and the turn and headed further south, stopping for water at the hotels. I continued running into the wilds of Venice and then into Marina del Rey and down to the nice condos along the shore. It is a nice area with shade trees helping the feel.

Then I saw the marina and the yachts all filling the view. Eventually, after the winding paths and turns, I reached Mother's Beach, took in some water, and turned around to head back to Santa Monica.

I felt pretty good which surprised me and judging by my wristwatch my time was actually decent.

I headed along the route back and noted things I had always just passed like plants and some natural features of the waterways. I saw a squirrel do an amazing leap into a tree. It was kind of nice not being tethered to a clock; but, it was also a bit unnerving. It felt so old-fashioned. I was trying to calculate distances and speed mentally using landmarks and my wristwatch.

I felt good still, though warm, and began the ascent up the pier and Ocean Avenue. I reached the start and felt relieved to finish feeling pretty good despite no Garmin and despite the heat.

14+ miles of running