Cofrin Memorial Arboretum

My breathing was calm.  I was dressed in those cotton waffle long johns, a baggy sweatshirt and snow pants.  My scarf was striped and purple, I crocheted it myself for this very purpose.  I wore a black Carhart stocking cap that I bought in the hunting department.  Jammed into my Saucony Progrid Glide sneakers were two layers of cotton socks and knee high wool ones.  To say I looked ridiculous is an understatement.  I moved tentatively along the Cofrin Memorial Arboretum trail.  In the winter, this trail wasn’t plowed, but enough of us students used the it to create a slick footpath down the center.  This was my favorite place on campus.

For our long run this week, I decided to show Matt the campus trails of UW-Green Bay.  This is where I spent my freshman year of college, nearly ten years ago.  This is also where I became a runner.  We jogged around the six mile loop two and a half times to get ourselves fifteen miles.  After just half a mile, I remembered why I decided to become a distance runner instead of focusing on fast and short: This place was so beautiful, why would I want to do anything but slowly take it all in and see as much area as possible?

We passed through along the trail and I made discoveries that I had either never seen before or had forgotten about.  When we turned onto a hillier section of the trail, I mentioned to Matt, “This doesn’t look familiar at all.  You know why?  Cuz I was a hill pussy and always sought out the easiest trail so I had the energy to go longer.”  It was embarrassing to admit that to him, although he already knew that about my past.  But I feel like we all start out as wimps at some point, right?

Each town I have lived includes one place that stands out most in my memory.  The arboretum is my favorite place in Green Bay and virtually the only trail running in the entire town and during most of my runs here, I had the place all to myself.  I spent many hours here with my thoughts.  I trained for my first race here.  It will always hold a special place in my heart.

It felt a little odd to be sharing with him the only part of my adult life where he wasn’t included.  I remembered many twists and turns in the trail, many vivid memories from my solo runs.  They all came flooding back. 

Matt’s overnight flight had landed just a few hours before our run and after three weeks apart it felt great running with a buddy again.  The pace was reasonably quick for a trail run of that length.  This was my favorite run in a long, long time.   

 

And yes, that is a dead bug stuck to my forehead.  It rained a little bit, so all the mosquitoes died and stuck there.  Yummy.

 

And those hills that I used to avoid?  Hardly quickened my heart at all.