Land Mines

You probably already guessed that I don’t give up on things too easily.  If I fail at something, at least something that I want to achieve, I’ll give it another shot until I get it.  Hopefully, applying any learnings that have been gleaned from the previous attempts.

After my tumble heard round the world, I still never made it through that route I had planned — that back-country-type mountain pass area that leads to Atlit.  I still wanted to see what was over there and also to complete that run!  So, I had planned to give it another shot this morning — assuming I woke up early enough, which I did.

I was out the door and running by 4:15am, sound familiar?  Everything was going fine.  It was super-dark, though, and foggy which made it a little precarious.  I stumbled early over a 3-inch-or-so protrusion caused by a large tree root, but I caught myself.  Woohoo, no falling today!

This time I knew where to go — no guess-work, just get it done.  So, I get on that fateful road where I took my massive spill last time, and told myself, “ok buddy, keep an eye on the ground” — no repeat of two weeks ago.  And then just like Britney Spears said, oops, I did it again.  I tripped on something and faceplanted, again.  Stupid road!

It happened quick, kind of like when Forrest Gump gets shot and says “something jumped up and bit me”.  I didn’t see anything on the ground, everything was clear.  I landed on my palms again, and fortunately, this time it wasn’t as bad.  They weren’t completely healed from the last time, though, and the damaged area on one of my palms re-opened and started bleeding a little, nothing major.

So I found my favorite bathroom in Israel in the middle of nowhere and took a break and cleaned my hands up (again).  The toilet paper in that bathroom was high quality, I was surprised.  At least two-ply, very sturdy.  I’ve never seen such high quality toilet paper in a public bathroom before.  It was so nice that I took a couple sheets with me in my pocket just in case.

This time I forged ahead and continued with the run.  I was annoyed, but not ready to give up.  But before proceeding too far, I inspected the road and I found the likely culprit.  The last time I fell, I was in no mood for any forensic investigation, but this time I was ticked.  How could this happen twice?

So, I looked closely at the ground to see what it could be and I spotted these protrusions coming out of the road.  They were raised pavement markers — you know, those things that reflect light in the night when you’re driving.  Except they weren’t yellow, like the pictures below.  They were gray, the same color as the pavement!!  Why Israel?  So, anytime I hit one of these land mines, boom, I exploded.

They were offset to the right of the yellow lane, which is where I normally run to stay off of the road and, you know, be safe.  So, they were always right in my path waiting to get me.  So in order to combat this, I started running on the inside of the yellow lane to protect myself from these terrible devices.  Pick your poison.

I made my way down the mountain and this part of the run was spectacular.  All the curves down the mountain and the views just as the day was starting to begin, it was really pretty.  Once I reached the main road, I knew I had about another 1.5 hours left of the run and I pretty much knew right away that I wouldn’t be able to complete it.

It was only about 7am, but it was getting hot and it was too muggy.  And even in the shade, the conditions just sap your energy.  I made it to the 3-hour mark before I called it quits and started walking.  My options — a) find a bus, b) get a taxi, c) keep walking.  Option A would have been ideal, except it was a Saturday and Israel mostly closes on Saturdays.  I also didn’t know which bus stops would have the right buses for me.  Option B would be the quickest and easiest, but most expensive.  Option C was do-able but it would have been pretty miserable in the heat and was the least desirable.

So, I decided to find a cab.  I tried to stop a few unsuccessfully, but then I got lucky.  I frantically waved at this one guy and he had stopped.  I thought my luck had turned ,but he was actually only stopping at the red light.  Mind you, I was soaked in sweat and waving like a madman to get his attention, so I wouldn’t have stopped for me either.

I went to his open window and asked if he’d take me.  I made sure he saw the 50 shequel ($14.25 USD) bill in my hand so he knew I could pay.  He eventually let me in and it was so nice.  I can’t remember being so happy to be in a taxi.  It’s like pushing a “Take me home” button and getting whisked away to wherever you want.

I get back to my apartment and ask the guy how much for the ride.  And do you want to fathom a guess as to the cost?  Yep, 50 shequels, exactly.  Ain’t that funny.  So, I repeated it back to him, with a smile and a hint of incredulity, and he gave a little smile and repeated the price.  I think he had an inkling that I knew he was doing some funny business.  But honestly, I was planning to give him the 50 NIS from the start, just for stopping for me, so I didn’t make a fuss.