A few weeks ago, I was invited to go debate another professor at his home institution in a city that's less than an hour and a half flight away. (All expenses were covered, and there was a small honorarium.) Because it was relatively close, I was able to arrange a flight schedule that departed my home city in the late morning, arrive in the mid-afternoon, take part in the debate and then the post-debate dinner, and fly home that night.
Oh, and the destination city is one that I have not yet gone running in....
Well, that is not an opportunity to pass up! Since I was scheduled to arrive more than 90 minutes before the debate, I asked the student organizer who was handling the arrangements if it would be possible for me to sneak in a quick run. He was quite helpful and even noted that the building had a shower that I could use to clean up.
And so I ended up carrying a bigger tote bag than I otherwise would have needed for a day trip, since I had to carry a suit, formal shoes, etc. instead of just wearing that stuff on the flight.
The destination city was less temperate than the Pacific Northwest; the polar vortex was still letting its presence be known, so the outside temperature was 29 F, and there were clumps of snow still on the sidewalks. A few patches covered the entire sidewalk and were icy/slippery, demanding extra attention to footwork; other spots were dry and snow-free. And then there was the puddles of ice-water, one of which my right foot plopped right into. Saucony Kinvaras are pretty awesome shoes, but they are also
very thin. Yeah, that's not good.
In the end, I managed to get in 3 miles at a good pace, showered and dressed up, debated, had a nice dinner, and made it back home at a decent hour.
