On the trail again!

Besides the book Born To Run that brought me back to running, it was also the idea of trail running. I'm not much of a hiker, just ask my wife, but the thought of busting down a trail is a totally different mental concept to me. It's more than just a faster version of hiking. It's becoming one with the trail, taking what it gives you, and blending in a way that is incredibly spiritual.

Today I had a chance encounter with a trucker passing through my home town. I was coming out of Walmart and saw him stretching after a run next to his rig. I walked over just to comment to him on how I didn't think I'd ever seen a trucker running anywhere in all my travels around the country. He admitted he was one of a very small minority but it helped to break up the tedium of his day and he needed the exercise after hours behind the wheel. He said he ran mostly along highways and back roads since he couldn't take too much time to look for a perfect place to run.

It got me to thinking about exactly how lucky I am to have a wealth of trails to run on near my home. I have definitely taken for granted the fact that I live adjacent to a national park, a national recreation area, and countless state parks all of which have a plenitude of trails for my happy little feet to run on. I can run on flat trails, steep hilly trails, technical trails, rails-to-trails, I mean you name it I have it nearby.

One of my favorite local trails.

 All of this got me to thinking...would I be running again if I didn't have so much trail access? As you know from the title of the blog and my previous posts, running with my dog Skye is a big part of my running experience. I have to believe that if I was running in an urban environment I probably wouldn't run with Skye nearly as often as I do. There is also that sense of discovery that comes with trail running. I'm an avid birdwatcher and I keep track of the birds I hear as I run. The other wildlife I catch a glimpse of as I cruise through the woods brings an even bigger smile to my face than I already have. I run along rivers I've been rafting and kayaking for years. Their rapids are like old friends I greet as I run past. Having lived in this area for more that 30 years the area itself has become a part of me. The mountains of the Appalachians speak to me like a neighbor I pass on the streets of Fayetteville.

I like to think I probably would still be a runner without trails at my very doorstep but it's the trails that keep me lacing up my shoes every day to get out the door and try to keep up with the dog.

What's your favorite trail you've ever experienced?

Have you ever seen a trucker running?