Everything's Bigger in Texas

It's been a busy few weeks since returning from Texas. As I mentioned, I finished the Thanksgiving Point Half Marathon and then left for Texas. I had grand visions of finding some sweet trails or running spots while there for a week. My expectations and reality were two different things.

Running with Aliens
We stopped in Roswell overnight on our trip and I took advantage of the hotel fitness center. Stepping onto the treadmill, I tried out some of that cool "imagery"stuff that I hear that top athletes use. I took some deep calming breaths and envisioned myself being the sole witness to the latest Roswell Incident and it was up to me to contact someone. I must have envisioned too well because as I was running I envisioned a massive cramp in my quad that almost caused me to fall. I immediately stopped the whole envisioning thing before it caused me even more injury. That's some dangerous stuff....

Running in San Antonio
Nope..didn't happen there either. I did walk into the Alamo, walked along the riverwalk and saw some really great places where I could run. I also heard from a good friend that there are people that run in San Antonio, but I didn't actually see anyone. He could just being saying that so I wouldn't feel bad for him calling me a freak when I first mentioned a few years ago that I had taken up running.

Running in Dallas
After my experience in Roswell, I opted to just stick with running on the treadmill and not worry about the "imagery" stuff. It was our second day in Dallas when I went to the fitness center. I've had good and bad experiences with the hotel "fitness centers." It seems that every hotel has a different view on this word. The Hampton Inn Desoto has got their act together. They an ample spaced room with a treadmill, bike and various weights–all in good condition. The one thing they didn't provide was the proxy runner who would run in my place and we would reap the benefits. They were only a 3 star place so I can't expect too much. Maybe when I can afford those 5 star places, I'll receive a complimentary running double.

I trudged out a couple short runs while I was staying at the hotel, but I was nagged by the remnants of that imagery quad pain. It wasn't stellar, but it was good to get a little running in while I was there.

Running in Albuquerque
We struck out on the hotel in Albuquerque. Priceline let us down with the hotel there and there was no running in Albuquerque.