We opened the front door at 7:30 on Saturday morning and a crack of thunder shook the porch. This didn’t seem like a good omen, since thunderstorms are even less common in Eugene than neckties. Nevertheless Betsy and I hopped in my truck and drove to meet the crew.

We ran from Oakway Mall down to the river, then followed the bike path for a mile between the highway and the brown, churning Willamette. We crossed it on one footbridge and looped back on another miles later. The rain fell in slanty streaks, and wind whipping off the water blew across our path. But it’s not so bad, running in the rain. Not nearly as bad as I expected. The warmth of running balances out the cold elements, and the rain washes the sweat from your forehead. I felt a little messy, but I didn’t feel freezing. I didn’t feel soaked. I didn’t feel defeated.

I ran the second half of the course with Jeb, a recent grad of my department who I recognized at the first organizational meeting. He keeps a faster pace than I would on my own, so I kept it too. I think this is really good. I think this is the sort of thing that helps me push outside my comfort level and eventually improves my stamina. Of course eventually hasn’t come around just yet, so on this particular morning the pace made my breathing hard and my stomach sloshy. I have discovered that I can control my breath if I focus hard enough – I can actually will my breathing under control, which I find amazing and Matrix-like; there is no panting – but there’s nothing I’ve been able to do about my stomach so far. It bothers me every time.

At the end of our run we had a shoe clinic at the Eugene Running Company. Shivaun, one of the owners, put me on a treadmill and filmed my running. We watched the tape and she explained the various inconsistencies of my foot physiology and how the right shoes would prevent these from causing me injury. Ever since my college co-rower Bridget told me freshman year that my shin splints were likely the result of my three-year-old sneaks – which proved absolutely correct, and to my great gladness cleared up the problem – I look upon good gear with grateful awe. So I left with a new pair of Asics that feel like slippers. They have silver and purple stripes, which I think will also help my speed.