Summer Running Thread

[rocknrollgirl]

I just have to power through. Get up early, get out and get it done. And dream of winter running!!!!

The bugs have been bad here too. Strawberry flies. They take a chunk. Some people call them deer flies. Not to be confused with a green head, which I grew up calling a horse fly.

[Crankin]

We called them horse flies, too.
Yes, riding is easier in the heat, but not by much. During my short forays into running, it definitely was a late fall through June activity for me. Trail running is a bit easier in the heat, but then, I'd be freaking out about Lyme Disease and getting annoyed by gnats.

[OakLeaf]

I got out of my car about half an hour ago and within seconds I had a deerfly bite on my arm. Running they're not so bad, but there is about a quarter mile near a pond and cattle pasture, where they will chase me down. For gardening, Bite Blocker keeps them off, plus I have a mesh hoodie, but I'm not going to put on repellent to go places in the car, dangit! They're just awful here. Our neighbor has horses ... There are a few horseflies around, but they're not terribly aggressive, and unlike the deerflies, you can see, hear and feel them coming before they bite.

[emily_in_nc]

There is some kind of blackfly here in Weston Bend State Park (near Weston, MO) that I've never seen before. They are driving us crazy. They are aggressive and bite with zero provocation. We used to have deer flies in NC, and they were nasty too, but this is a different beast. There are horseflies around too, but not too aggressive. We haven't seen any mosquitoes, but the flies are enough to keep us inside most of the time. They didn't bother us on our ride today, but hang around when we're sitting if we try to eat outside, or when I'm walking Paisley. Ugh.

[rocknrollgirl]

Black flies. There is no other creature like them on Earth. I grew up with them in upstate NY and thought I had experience until I went to Canada just about this time of year in 2012. Now I understand why the caribou jump off the cliffs. I was so chewed to pieces I looked like I had a disease. I swear it gave me fever. Deet was an aphrodisiac to them, it made them attack more. Only the bug nets slowed them down. Awful. I am shuddering just thinking about it.

Yikes....

[Skierchickie2]

Husband just returned from his run complaining about deer flies. Said he "may have gotten a little annoyed with them". We tend to have blackflies when it is cooler, deer flies when it's warmer. And mosquitoes all the time.

[emily_in_nc]

Husband just returned from his run complaining about deer flies. Said he "may have gotten a little annoyed with them". We tend to have blackflies when it is cooler, deer flies when it's warmer. And mosquitoes all the time.

Interesting! It was 99 or so degrees here today, but the black flies didn't seem to mind!

RnR, I read up on them a bit after I posted this, and yes indeed, that is what they are. We've only gotten a few bites, but I did read that if you get enough, they really can cause all kinds of symptoms, including "black fly fever" (fever, joint aches, all kinds of maddening stuff). They aren't that bad here, but bad enough. We have to be vigilant, and we've managed to kill a lot of them before they bit us. I have never seen one in NC, though I had heard of them. I guess traveling around the country, we get to experience insects from all over!