Good Day Sunshine!!!

Unfortunately, for at least the next month, I live in the Valley of the Sun (Phoenix, AZ). The sun is a big player here in the southwest. The furnace type conditions we will be facing as the days go forward towards summer have already had an effect on this runner.

I've never been a real early riser, 0600 bright and early was typically my earliest rising time during the past 45 years of my life. That all changed when I moved to Arizona. The sun here is to be respected. Like extreme cold, I can't stand extreme heat, blame growing up in the pretty much consistent temperatures state of California. I learned early on here in Arizona, come June, if your ass ain't out the door by 0500 you are going to eventually sizzle on any run over 6 miles. Numerous times I have had the unfortunate experience of heading up the hill towards an 8 to 10 miler and looking to my right into the Valley of the Sun to see an early morning sun, shining bright and soon to be scorching down on my noggin. Right now the sun rises around 0515 and I have now learned to set my alarm clock for any time between 0400 and 0430. And unfortunately my crash time gets earlier also, just like around the old folks home, lights out around 9pm for this runner, geeze.

Lessons learned here living in this Sand Trap come summer time...

Thou shalt be out the door by 0500
Thou shalt bring hydration
Thou shalt wear a white hat or thou's noggin will get burned
The thinner the running shirt the better
As your run progresses, it doesn't get any better, it just gets hotter and more miserable
Stay on the running path, the plants here are tough, they cut and they do it quite well

Next time around, what I did last summer for fun as a runner in the Valley of the Sun