The Road Less Traveled

The early enjoyment curve in outdoor activities can be steep, fly fishing for example is at the bottom and walking in a city park is somewhere near the top. Outside of a stroll through the park, you have to pay to play. For years I’ve casually run a few times a month when I was injured and had to stay off the bike or when I was pressed for time. The anxiety before during and after each slog would stick with me as a stomach ache for a couple days. Last summer I took running up a notch by assigning the word training to it, running four days a week and signing up for an off road 20k. I didn’t enjoy training throughout the Tallahassee summer but oddly I didn’t hate it either.

This week in Arizona running was transformed from a means to burn calories to an activity I can get excited about. There was a desert wash behind the house I was staying in that was about 150 yards wide, covered in every imaginable spiky plant and seemed to stretch endlessly in either direction. I spent about half an hour birding in the wash and after adding 4 species to my life list (a very big deal) I was still not content, I needed to know where the wash would take me. So I through on a pair of running shoes and ran down the wash. The high desert vegetation and rocky terrain masked any hunger or exhaustion that I may have had, something was changing inside me. I wondered if this was a feeling I could duplicate and was excited to find out.

The next day my transformation in the wash was still at the front of my mind during a stunning hike up Sabino Canyon. During my hike I was constantly distracted by how much fun it would be to ditch my cameras, bird books, food and water and just run. The next morning I rushed back to the canyon to run, it turned out to be one of my best outdoor experiences. The base of the canyon which was dusty and dry the day before was submerged and lined with waterfalls gurgling its latest soundtrack. Now I'm a believer; there is a path up the enjoyment curve for runners. 


Running as a fun activity to look forward to, who knew?