First run, in a long, long, long time. After moving to Vegas, I've tried several times to get out and get my run on; but, for whatever reason, haven't really settled into a pattern that could produce any kind of real benefit. The few times I have run, I felt heavy, tired, and winded. Those feelings were largely due to me trying to maintain a pace closer to what I had been running before the break. A mistake for sure.

Today I approached the running process differently. The goal was to move forward at a slow and steady pace, and go as long as I felt comfortable. Because I was able to run 5 miles after not running for at about 4 months, I count this as a winning decision.

This was also my first time running with my Nathan HPL 080. The vest style hydration system holds up to 3 liters, and I needed every drop. I worried about running out about 2/3 of the way through the run, and looked for places to refill. I found two parks, but neither had their fountains turned on. In KC they left the fountains off in the winter because the water lines would freeze. I assumed that is the same reason the water did not run here, but with 70 degree weather, that same rationale is a difficult fit.

I appreciate that Vegas streets travel on a grid system, but the way the housing communities are sectioned off from the main roads makes running with any kind of distance strategy a challenge. You can easily think you are going to be able to take a turn and connect straight through to the next intersection street, wind around throughout a nice housing area and only be able to come back through where you started.

Beautiful run though. Repeating today's strategy should bode well for the Vegas marathon I'm planning to run later this year.