I’ve been living in Oilville for about 7 months and
I’m still adjusting to training here. There are a lot of differences: environment,
active community, and wildlife to name a few.
In Sacramento I would encounter deer, bold squirrels, maybe
even the territorial turkey or two on a run.
Here I’ve got these:
Aaaawwwww, the Kit Fox, aren’t they cute??
I thought so too. But
on my early (4am!!!) run a few days ago I had an encounter with one leaving me –
WTH?
It was a quick run,
only 20 minutes on the schedule given that I’m tapering for Vineman 70.3 (2
DAYS!!) so I took the dog out and we ran down and around the local high school
since most of the way there are street lights (hard to come by in this little
town) and grass along the sidewalk for my trusty running partner to enjoy. On the way back to the house I detoured to
the track to tick off a few strides before calling it “Done” and all was going
along just as it should. Pick up the
pace, recover, pick up the pace, recover, lather, rinse, repeat. On my final lap around I heard this weird
almost bark; almost howl coming from up the path I needed to go up to get home. Grrreeeeeaaaat… some stray dog has decided to
claim the high school as home and is pissed we’ve encroached. No problem.
I called my dog (who was until that same moment just as ignorantly
racing me around the track right along with me), and we headed up the path home
with the bark/howl getting closer and more insistent. In the dark there wasn’t much to see off the
track, tracking my eyes up the path I could faintly see the outline of the
little furry head with big giant ears tilting her (I’m guessing here) head back
with every bark.
I’d seen one before in our front yard months before when I
couldn’t sleep. So cute, small. No.
Big. Deal. I’ll bet as she sees us coming her direction
and she’ll just run off and we’ll go home.
Only problem was she was standing her ground. “Go on, get!” Stomped my foot. As the dog and I approached she seemed to
reluctantly duck into the neighboring baseball field leaving both the dog and I
worried she’d attempt a sneak attack from behind the whole way home.
My feel-good taper run ended with my 50lb pit-mix dog and I
keeping one eye over our shoulders for the stubborn 3-6lb Kit Fox.
And I’m the badass half Ironman. ;)
Wildlife: 1 Ashley:
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1 comment:
bhahahahahahaha!!
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