7.03.2006

How loud is too loud?

In a previous post, one of the comments was that I was at least partially at fault, since I was wearing headphones at the time. Now, on my mp3 player, the volume goes from 1 to (I think) 40 - with the latter being earsplitting levels of sound, and the former being incredibly quiet. When I run outside, it might get as high as 6, but the average level is 2 or 3, tops. At that level, I can hear my footstrikes, I can hear my breathing, and I can easily hear the water sloshing around in the containers in my fuel belt.

I figure, even without headphones, there was no way that I could have done anything - 60 mph is about 88 feet per second - so the car goes from "Hrm, car is coming" to "Holy $%(*$&, car is here!" in about a second and a half. Enough time, maybe, to turn around and gaze in stupified awe at the idiot, passing in a no-passing zone, and doing more than twice the posted limit, before they are on top of you.

Anyway, tonight's run was entirely without incident - I went after mowing the lawn (which took only about an hour, more if I count the time it took to change the blade and filter), which, considering that my gas-powered mower is not self-propelled, is pretty good. I tried a new detour, and, despite the humidity, covered about 4.8 miles in 41ish minutes. It shouldn't be this hard though - I must have lost more than I thought, when I skipped runs to keep moving rock. That, or the fact that the dew point is close to the current mid-70's temp might be more of a factor than I think.

I'll claim the latter, since I am quite fine in really cold weather. It's this nasty period between, say, late April and late September that really bothers me. I can't wait for it to get cool again, when the air has a nice sharp edge to it, and the days are cool and perfect for running. This high-temp, high-humidity thing is for other people, not me.

1 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Just so you know that wasn't some random sneak attack against you. I am from the old school of thought that any distraction, i.e. clothing that irritates, stones in shoes, water bottles that bounce and or headphones can make us less aware of whats going on. I agree that the speed of the truck did not lend itself to you having more than a split second extra time to react, but that split second could make all the difference. Just think of me as the boy at the dike with his finger in the hole, "trying to change the world, one at a time", hehe! Run Good!

10:08 AM  

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