Once again I am taken back by how amazing a good, long run makes you feel. I took off tonight after work as the sun, and the temperature began to fall. I ran along the highway, and let the flashing light on my headlamp alert the oncoming traffic of a ‘late night’ runner. Turning onto the country roads, the night sky became even darker, as the only lights I saw were the stars above. Cows, horses and the occasional barking dog were the only sounds in my ears, as my reflecting breath clouded my vision when I stared straight ahead. Fall has hit and winter is creeping around the corner as we had our first official snow fall of the season in western Pennsylvania – a run through the low 30s is such a relief than the heat. I reflected on swimming in these temperatures last season out at Keystone, and had to laugh at myself because even right now that almost seemed too much for me.
I have always found in life that the simplest things make me happy – a pair of running shoes, shorts and a t-shirt (and a headlamp) is about all I need to experience a euphoric feeling of enlightenment. Call it what you will, but something about being all alone out in the wild at night just makes for an incredible life experience.
I find that people who think I am ‘crazy’ will never really have the chance to find out for themselves the awesome power of the human potential. Do yourself a favor, and take the opportunity to experience the raw energy and power of nature by throwing yourself into an unknown environment. We will only find out what we are made of when we learn to thrive in uncomfortable surroundings – a lesson in so many different facets of life.
Take off on a midnight run, mountain bike through the woods or kayak down a secluded river. Do something wild that you would never expect of yourself! Once you begin to experience the side of life you didn’t know existed, it in unimaginable what happens next…