48.0°,
Light Drizzle Fog/Mist Coping with the cold in East Meadow
The frigid temperatures and bitter cold in recent weeks have been a major inconvenience in the lives of people all throughout the Northeast, and East Meadow and Salisbury are no exception. While the cumulative snowfall for the Island this winter is far from historic— as of last week, the total snowfall was about 33 inches, compared to 68 the year before — it’s been the wind chill and icy roads and walkways that have brought about the most frustration.
The icy conditions are especially troubling for outdoor runners, who have become more acquainted recently with their treadmill. Although, some local runners have had varying opinions on the chill. Jeff Rosenking, a Salisbury resident and a trustee on the East Meadow School District’s Board of Education, said he prefers running in the cold, but that he makes sure he exercises more caution while afoot. “Running in the winter requires you to be more conscious of what’s on the ground,” he said, “so you don’t slip on ice or snow.”
Rosenking and his daughter, Jacqueline, are members of Nassau County Run Smart, a training program conducted by the county’s parks and recreation department that encourages safe exercise, which hosts weekly runs at different county parks. The first one was on Jan. 24, in 15-degree weather, and Rosenking said they did it without a problem. But he said he and Jacqueline decided to pass on a Feb. 15 run, which had a predicted forecast of 5 degrees. Instead, the pair ran a day earlier, when the temperature was a more balmy 30. “So we very comfortably ran from our house along the new path on Salisbury Park Drive and back for about 2.5 miles,” he said. “It was a good day.”
But Jim McGlynn, East Meadow High School’s track and field coach for the last 10 years, hasn’t been as thrilled with the weather, which has caused him to modify his athletes’ training.
