101 degrees in the shade!

It has been very hot very early this summer. The trees are starting to feel the effects as their leaves are drooping. The bank sign read 101, so I thought I'd run in the shade of the Leon Creek bed. It was breezy when I started out at 5 P.M. on the road. Once I was down in the lower creek bed the shade was a relief but only for a short time. I realized the breeze was no more! My water was room temperature at the start and almost hot midway through my 7 miler. I hesitated to drink but knew I had to.
The past few months I've been running short races and going all out. Pushing the envelope. Now I have to learn to pace myself (something I struggle with) on long training runs in my preparation for the Cactus Rose 50 miler in October. In today's heat, I had no choice but to slow down.
Deer were roaming around this afternoon, a rarity. They are looking for water no doubt. I saw a fawn I'd seen about two weeks ago in what must have been it's first or second day on this earth when it could barely walk on it's new legs. Today it bolted through the brush, ran, and was long jumping like a pro. I figured it was the same one I'd seen two weeks ago, it was in the same area and it's spots looked the same. If Santa sees him jump and leap now he's got Rudolph's job. I'd bet he'd enjoy a north pole winter better than a south Texas summer.
Studies reveal that heat training improves performance and benefits are reaped during the cooler months. I look forward to those cooler months. In the meantime I'll tolerate the heat of summer here in South Texas.