Family, friends, work colleagues, even some of my fellow runners, they’ve all said it over the last fortnight. If I had a pound for every time I’d heard that phrase or a variation of it, well, I might not be a rich man but I’d certainly not be short of a bob or two. For every one of those people however, I’ve had a simple response: “No distance runner has ever achieved anything by staying indoors in winter”.
Forced to run slowly you can afford to explore and take in more of the world around you. Farm tracks, old wagon ways, former railway lines, routes that can normally only be used in the light, become illuminated by the natural glare of the snow. The branches of trees and bushes, lined by snow, come to life and take on a completely different and almost eerie appearance against the glow of the wintery night sky. Equally so for frozen ponds and streams. You get to see the world around you in the most natural and beautiful of forms, all of it making for a completely unforgettable running experience.
During prolonged periods of snow there are bound to be times when you feel the need to run fast. Never forget the saying “where there’s a will there’s a way”. There will always be somewhere where the snow and ice has been cleared to allow you to run at speed. Industrial estates are normally good for this, car parks even better. I’ve even been known to use multi-storey car parks in the past when everywhere else seems impossible. Last week, after more than a week of running steady on snow covered trails, I started to feel the need to open up the legs and lungs. The best place I could find was the car park at work. I soon worked out that the road around the car park was almost exactly 400 metres in length. So there it was, my running track for the day and a session of 16 x approx. 400m done and dusted. I’m sure there’ll have been people looking out of the window thinking “What the hell is he doing?” but did I care what they thought? Not in the slightest. I improvised, I got a good solid session under my belt, and I could return to running slowly on the stunning winter trails for the next few days without worrying about losing any fitness.
The deep mid-winter, with a little bit of care and common sense, can be a unique and special time of the year if you let it. So next time we’re covered in snow get your cross country spikes on, head out for a nice gentle run and experience something that the vast majority of the population will never have the pleasure of. Until next time, happy running ………..