Runner Down!

I will apologize in advance for any grammar or punctuation errors.

I went to a trail run last Thursday without the wife with the Crooked River Runners. Managed to keep up with the speedy people with the help of runner friend Badger Bill. We were just past a mile into the run when we were turning a corner and I rolled my left ankle underneath me. Stopped to take a look at it, it just seemed to be warm, but to play it safe I listened to my "inner wife" voice that scolded me and told me not to try to run further on it. I managed to make it back to the cars at a slow waddle without much further incident.

Got hot home and I was pretty happy that I didn't try to run further on the ankle, it had really started to swell up on the drive home, I iced it down that night and went to work with a slight limp Friday morning.  At break I called my doctor's office and tried to make an appointment just to have him take a quick look at it. But no such luck, he was headed home for the day at noon so we settled on a Monday morning appointment.

The wife and I laid low Saturday, but went to volunteer at the Fools 25K and 50K trail race Sunday morning from 6:30AM till 4:30PM. The day cold but went well, I had a great time helping out at one of the aid stations. Got to hang out with a lot of runner friends and meet some great new people (including the flag carrier/runner that I was so impressed with at the Cleveland Marathon). I am posting some of the photos from the aid station).

Anyway, after the last of the runners were through the aid station we tore everything down and started carrying it all back out of the woods. Approximately 80 yards from the trail head I managed to roll the exact same ankle a second time. This time I managed to really hurt it, it took my breath away and it took me a bit of time to get myself back up off the ground and hop the rest of the way out of the woods leaning on my wife for support.  Drove myself home and iced down my ankle for the rest of the day, but I could tell that I really might of done some damage to my ankle this time, I really couldn't stand to put any weight on the ankle.

I went into the doctor's office Monday morning and he actually congratulated me on the job that I did spraining it. It seems that it was the most swollen ankle that he had seen it quite some time. He told me that I may have fractured a non-weight bearing bone, but I can't remember for the life of me what the name of the bone is. He wrote me a script for pain/anti-inflammatory medications, one for an air splint, and one for an x-ray if the swelling didn't come down in 3-4 days. He told me to head home and just keep it elevated and iced for the rest of the day.

That was Monday and now it is Thursday night and the ankle is still swollen with some colorful bruising going on both sides of my ankle near the heel. I am waiting to see how it looks in the next 24-48 hours. I am really trying to avoid the x-rays because our insurance coverage just doesn't seem to cover those well at all.

So hopefully I will be back to running again fairly soon but for the meantime I had to opt out of the Kent Black Squirrel 5K that I was registered for this weekend (I will volunteer at it instead). And my wife and I are also going to be out for the Pittsburgh Marathon coming up in a few weeks. Not so much because we won't be able to run it by then, but because we will be missing out on so many training runs.

I am definitely looking forward to the time when the wife and I can be back at running 100%  again. Until then I will be working on upper body and core exercises, what ever I can do while off of my feet.

First Kilted Marathon / Little Rock Marathon 2011

Little Rock Marathon report and review of my first marathon with my Sports Kilt.

Woke up early to see the walkers off for the marathon, it was fun to watch them from our hotel room.  Putting on my new kilt for the marathon was a great experience and something that will stay with me for quite awhile.

Side Note: My two words of advice for those of you looking to buy a kilt to run in, SIZE CHART.  I had to have mine altered, but the cost wasn't too bad, and I am happy with the results.

It was great to pose for some pre-race photos, even more fun was just waiting in the hotel lobby and getting all of the looks and smiles. I am a little doubtful that they get many kilted men out and about in Little Rock Arkansas in the Sunday wee morning hours. The breezes walking to the starting line did make me hold down the kilt rather than let out the secret that I was not running as a true Scotsman (I had on compression shorts underneath).

The race was great, I can't say enough about the crowd support through out the race. I will always remember my first true "I love your kilt!" shout out, a special thank you to the woman stopped in traffic hanging out of car window to give it to me.

Because the kilt was Velcro adjustable, it was really nice to move it slightly up and down for comforts sake throughout the race. And I must say though I really didn't need it I REALLY REALLY love my Nathan's backpack! So comfortable, a lot of utility, no chaffing, I don't plan on running any log runs without it.

Well here is to another marathon/state being done, a new PR and my first of many races run in my Sport Kilt.

Thank you Little Rock Marathon, it was great!