Road to St Marks

I always feel like I should hit something of the confessional when I update this periodic blog. The gaps between posts have been large enough that I should provide a broader update---and in the context of a race report, perhaps that is appropriate. But not today. Looking at a short post, not a long confession.

Ran a simple six-mile out-and-back with my 15-year-younger nephew (a runner at DePauw) who barely broke a sweat while I pushed it in the heat. Getting a little wiser with age, I just ran my pace (avg 8:04/mile) without trying to prove anything. That said, I was probably feeling a bit more like a 8:15 pace so having a partner kept me close to the top of my game. My right hamstring has been bugging me for the past couple months and I had some of that on this run, no doubt exasperated by a 14-hour ride from Carbondale to Tallahassee the day before. It has been a long time since I ran with someone and I was surprised at how much more energy it takes to talk while running. Little things were also surprising, like the sound of the shorts swishing which I never hear because I am either listening to music or because little sounds.

This is the first time in a VERY long time that I have gone out for a run with someone. In my work life I spend a lot of time thinking about how to improve and foster collaborations---and pointing out that collaborative science produces BETTER science. I had a better workout and a more satisfying workout today running with someone---even doubling up on the amount that I got 'done'. Why am I such a soloist then on the trail? I think it is first a matter of laziness: I don't have a current running partner and I don't want to spend the time to recruit one. Oh, I have asked around a bit, but none of my immediate circle of friends is running seriously these days. Collaborative running would also require flexibility in my routine. With kids, my wife and I live on a pretty strict schedule that gets them fed and to bed but also gets us out to the gym. Having a 'collaborator' would require me to accommodate yet another person's schedule. And then there is the pace negotiation---because no two people actually run the same speed on the same day and it takes some skill to be able to admit your own pace needs and negotiate them with the other person. In the end, even though I know I am not getting as much out of my workouts as I could, the lazy factor takes over. The same is true in science. This requires some further thought, but I think it illuminates the difficulties of getting collaborative scientific teams off the ground.