Dog with a seizure and an amazing LSD trail run.

I had to cut my Sunday long run from 28.5km to 22.5km this weekend. Our one dog had some type of seizure in the early morning hours and this was actually quite scary. Needless to say my nine year old son got the fright of his life and didn’t sleep again after this. We were worried about poison as there have been reports of dogs being poisoned by would-be burglars in the local news papers.

Glad to say the little guy is fine again, although I have no idea what caused the seizure.

I had a 28.5km LSD trail run planned, but in the end I shortened this to 22.5km as it was getting very late. On the up side, I had a wonderful run! I ran at my favorite local nature reserve and got a good workout from the trails. My run included some tough climbs and very technical trails. My legs felt a bit tired as this was the 6th day of my 6 day running week. The splendid views and wildlife made me forget the tired legs very quickly.

Some tough technical climbs.

Winter is our dry season so fires are about as common as waking up every morning. Some parts of the trails were burnt, so I was really happy when I came across some Zebra about 9km into my run!

I also saw two Springbok here, but they ran off before I could take a photo…next time. From the zebras I ran for about 4km when I came across some Black Wildebeest and Blesbok. The picture below shows the Blesbok at the front with the Wildebeest further back. There was also some Springbok right at the back. You'll have to click the photo to enlarge it for a slightly better view...my running camera is not made for wildlife photography!

This lifted my spirits high and I enjoyed my run even more. I was heading towards some serious climbs and on my way there I saw some mongoose and Dassies (Hyrax). They were too fast for me and my camera. I also saw and heard numerous birds.

The next climb was tough but there were some beautiful aloes that kept me positive.

I was heading towards the top of a beautiful ridge. I realized I wasn’t drinking enough and decided to take a break once I reached the trees below the ridge. I had some water and a gel here. It was very peaceful and the sun was just perfect. I wanted to stay there a while longer but had to push on.

I was heading to the top of this ridge.

Trees where I had a lovely water and gel break.

After the final climb the views from the top made the hard work so worth it. Looking North I was reminded I was still in Johannesburg. The views to the South was stunning as well.

Johannesburg visible to the North.

Looking South.

Then it was time to head down again and the descent was hard on my legs. Going up is certainly tough, but going down certainly hurts more.

The descent was sore at times.

Once I joined the main trail below it was about 1km to my car. I felt great and would easily have done the extra 6km I planned, but it was late and I decided to go home to check on the dog. I’ll be back in two weeks for the 28.5km run.

I seriously have to invest in some brown/beige running socks!