Meetup

Thursday September 29 at 6:00 PM. I don't know the organizers.

Why the Ryder Street bollards look that way

It's because Arlington's field mower drives right over them. I was taking off my skates in the Rec Center parking lot this morning when mower came past me and crossed the trail, driving directly over the bollards on both sides of the path. Even with the mower blades up, it breaks the bollards about a foot off the ground.

Ryder Street, Arlington

Does this slang make me sound old?

Thursday morning I stumbled on the ramp from Hurd Field, couldn't make the turn, fell onto the trail, and picked up some Bermuda rash on shin and forearm. What surprised me was that some of my friends and co-workers had never heard the phrase "Bermuda rash" for the cuts and scrapes that come from hitting the pavement. I heard it from my parents in the '60s. Has it passed from use?

Never Before Seen

A man and a child came toward me on the trail this morning, the child on a bike and the man on something strange. A stand-up bike? A bike with running boards? Actually, an ElliptiGO outdoor elliptical bicycle. I'm sure it's exercise, no idea if it's any fun.

ElliptiGO on YouTube

I saw two dead chipmunks on the trail this morning. That's unusual because chipmunks taken by predators don't land on the trail and road-kill chipmunks are quickly scattered aside by the traffic. It's clear why they were there, though, as two other very lively chipmunks did their best to run under my skates.

Today: 13 miles. This year: 99.2 miles.

Some Slippery Spots

Moist, mashed, maple litter makes for some slippery spots, especially from Bedford Street to I-95. The adjoining forest in that stretch is a double threat, both providing the litter of flowers and seeds and keeping the sun from drying the shaded trail. I found the slipperiness most hazardous on the inbound (eastbound) side. That's not because there's more of it on one side or the other, but because inbound is uphill in that section and pushing harder means more exposure to slips.

Today: 13 miles. This year: 86.2 miles. It's been wet a lot, you know?

Epic Allergy Week Continues

If maple and oak aren't enough, now the cottonwood snow is falling.

Near Parker Meadow, Lexington

New wheels

Today: 13 miles. This year: 73.2 miles.

Epic Allergy Season

A runner coming towards me today had one hand on her jogging stroller, the other one holding a tissue to her nose. The next runner I passed going my way gave a little two-part throat-clearing cough with every breath. And these are the people who feel well enough to go out.