Andrew Schrauben

Worn out yet content, Haven is happy the run is over!

Today was one of the hottest days of the year, topping out at 94 degrees with a dewpoint of 75! So I decided to postpone my afternoon run to the late evening, when it had "cooled" to 90 degrees. Sheesh.

I decided to bring along my four-legged running partner, my dog Haven, although I had to be careful that she didn't overheat. Dogs don't cool off as well as humans, so even though Haven is design to run far and fast, she's not as well designed to keep cool.

Our route would take us 5.4 miles, which normally just requires me to bring one water bottle. This evening I carried two - one for me and one for Haven, plus a packable cloth water bowl. We maintained an easy pace (~9:30 miles) along the hilly dirt road that weaved its way northeast of our home.

The air didn't feel as bad as I thought. It was definitely super muggy, but the sun was below the trees and the dirt roads are well shaded to begin with. The wind was dead calm but the slight "breeze" created by my forward motion felt good. However, I quickly felt the heat when I stopped, which I did three times to give Haven a drink from her water bowl.

Less than 52 minutes after we started, we trotted back up our driveway. While we were gone Amanda played fetch with Beacon while Darva apparently tried to herd Beacon after each catch. Importantly for Haven, Amanda had the kiddie pool filled up with cold water, which Haven happily used to cool off! She laid in that pool for about ten minutes! Likewise, I took a cold shower. Ahhhhh!


Haven cooling off in the kiddie pool - notice the neat ripples caused by her panting

Right now Haven is curled up at my feet in the family room as I compose this post. She just LOVES to go running, and I must admit I love to have her running at my side, even if I have to carry twice the water.