Hitting the Trail

On the Trails Above Missoula, Montana

For the past several years I have been lacing up the shoes and plodding my way across thousands of miles of pavement, building up a training base and getting into shape for a few marathons here and there. At best those runs went fine and I felt strong and fast. I occasionally got into a nice zone where the miles clicked by effortlessly. Often, the only joy I got from those miles was getting home and seeing the pace, the splits, and the mileage totals as my running improved.

But I wasn’t having much fun. I enjoyed running, but when asked how a run went, I had a pretty small range of responses that went from “Fine” to “Good.” Rarely, if ever, did I come home and report that I had a great time.

And the few times I did? I had been running trails. On a trip to visit family in Montana, I stumbled upon miles and miles of single-track trails winding through the mountains around Missoula. My planned four mile run turned into fifteen and I was several hours late for lunch. I had a blast and it made the discomfort of missing family lunch worth it (I also fell asleep at the dinner table later, but that’s another story).

The Last Time Those Shoes were White. Malibu, California

Recently in Southern California, I asked a friend for a running route for a quick afternoon run. He pointed my up into the mountains in Topanga Canyon. I managed  to get lost several times, trip and fall, and run out of water, all the while worried about the mountain cats I know live in those canyons. But I was rewarded with a view of Los Angeles that I definitely will never forget. Barely a half-marathon away from one of the most congested cities on the continent, and I was alone and running like a wild man.

Lately, I’ve been logging most of my miles on dirt trails, and the joy of running is back. I still do a fair bit of pavement pounding, but running through the woods is quickly becoming the running I look forward to most.

Why hadn’t I been running trails here at home? The I-5 corridor between Bellingham and Portland is packed with mountain trails, old rail beds, logging roads, and parks. A quick drive east and the Cascade Mountains await, with an endless network of trails that can be explored.

Even near the city there are trail running options. If you can drive to meet your friends at the mermaid-logo coffee store and head off to run the sidewalks of your neighborhood, you can drive to a park that has miles of trails to be explored.

Splashing through mud puddles and crashing through underbrush doesn’t sound appealing to you? Ok, I can see that. But trail running has a lot more to recommend it than that. Namely, trail running is better for you than running on pavement.

The surfaces are softer, so the impact on joints and bones is reduced. The running motion is more varied and dynamic, so you are using more of your muscle groups as you run. And usually the terrain is steeper and more technical, so you are climbing and descending a lot more than on the streets, building up those muscles and stamina as well. After a few weeks on the trails, your street running will seem positively easy in comparison.

But making the move from asphalt, concrete, stoplights, and car horns to dirt, mud, tree branches, and solitude isn’t easy. As always, I’m here to help. Here is the barest of bare-bones guides to getting started off road.

Trail shoes will become important. But you don’t need to drop $150 bucks on a new pair just yet. Dig out some shoes with some tread left on them and that you don’t mind getting dirty. They’ll do for now. Eventually you will want to upgrade to something designed for the dirt.

There aren’t a lot of drinking fountains in the woods. And you don’t want to drink from that stream. Handheld bottles are the way to go. Hydration packs work, too, but save them for really long runs when you need the extra fluids. Avoid water belts as they tend to get snagged on vines and branches.

Leave the music at home. You want to hear the mountain bikers bearing down on you.

Running alone in the woods? Maybe consider a map? Maybe you want to carry your cell phone? Better yet, run with friends. It’s always better with friends, and you don’t have to carry them in your pocket.

This column appears in the March 2011 edition of Northwest Runner Magazine