Week in Review (June 17 - June 23)

Tuesday (11,848 steps) - Up early for cross training. Did a 30 minutes of upper body/back strength training and 30 minutes on the bike before taking Olive for a walk. Yet another day of going to jury duty. Took a walk around the court house at lunch.

Took Olive for a walk when I got home. TV of some kind... maybe this was the night we watched The Accountant 2?

Wednesday (22,210 steps) - Still have jury duty and I had a decent workout on schedule. Since I am a slow runner, my coach normally gives me everything in time, but he had EIGHT miles on schedule. I figured I would just go for "a" run. I was not in the mood for it at all and was really taking it easy when I headed out. I ran into Tanessa and her daughter near the park and we ended up running together for about 20 minutes, which was really nice and made my run a lot better. The way back (alone) was faster because I was worried about having enough time to walk Olive and get ready. Another walk around the court house during lunch and took Olive for a longer walk when I got home.

Thursday (18,984 steps) - YAY for a federal holiday that gave me the day off from BOTH work and jury duty. I didn't set an alarm to get up early, but Olive and I had plans to go in the mountains and check out Square Top. I sent Ariel a text when I left the house to see if she wanted to meet at Dutch for a coffee, which she did. We ended up not taking the trek up until maybe 10 am - which was a HUGE mistake. I had completely forgotten about all the road construction on I-70. The traffic was horrible and it took probably twice as long to get to Idaho Springs. Once we got to town it was a normal drive up. We arrive around noon, which is pretty late and I was shocked to see so many people on the trail (and across the way at Bierstadt). 

The lower "pond" that's about a mile up was the lowest I have ever seen and it was barely a puddle for Olive to get in and get some water. 

There was a decent snow field in the typically muddy area and then at the junction for the lakes - which of course Olive loved playing in. 

The drive back down wasn't AS bad as the way up, but it still wasn't great. I had been messaging with Mo to see if she wanted to meet up for a beer or snack, but the brewery we normally meet at near Evergreen has seemingly gone out of business. (Side note - is anyone else noticing that a large number of established businesses have been suddenly shuttering as of late?) By the time we reconnected after getting phone service out of the mountains it was pretty much too late to do anything. I decided to stop at Over Yonder since they allow dogs inside and then planned to meet both Mo and Ben at Roost in Lakewood for a run club. 

I had wanted to go to run club since I knew that Topo was going to be there. They were doing demo shoes of the version 4 of the Ultraventure, which I wanted to try - and I am so glad I did! I found the sizing of the 3's to be off, and had to size down, while I found the 4's to be more true to size. We did not run, but we walked with Mo and Colfax, Erica and Dani - it was nice to catch up! Topo did a giveaway and Ben won! He doesn't wear Topo so he gave the free shoes to me. YAY!!

They did a fun taco relay, which I didn't participate in OR take any pictures, but Ben did and that was pretty fun.

Friday (11,147 steps) - I did NOT have jury duty, but had to go in to work instead. I took Olive for a long walk - and finally saw some owls!

Took Olive to work with me and it was a very busy day trying to get caught up after unexpectedly missing so much work. We headed straight to 4 Noses to meet up with Ben for a beer and some sushi tacos. Yum!

Saturday (20,250 steps) - Took Olive for a walk and then had to meet Ariel at Big O because now one of her rear tires seemed to be flat and she had to work all day. I had planned on it being a longer morning, so I wore my running shoes so that I could get my run out of the way before it got too hot. I didn't have too much of a route planned, but I knew I was going to be out for around 90 minutes. I headed down the road towards the path I have run many times - that was a bit sketchy for sure. 

I definitely needed to use the bathroom at one point and was really grateful that I remembered there were facilities at a rec center. At some point I had decided that I'd rather try to create a loop to head back rather than go back the way I came, and I ended up in a cute neighborhood that had some goats. Wish we could have goats...

I ended up on a major road and decided to stop and buy some water. For whatever reason, the drinking fountains in the park around the rec center were all shut off. Glad I had my wallet on me!

I somehow managed to time my route pretty good and basically got back in exactly the time I planned. I only had to wait maybe another 20 minutes for Ariel's car - we found out it was a sensor for the tire pressure and not a tire at all. Still costly, though. I was starving by this point since I hadn't had breakfast, so I went across the street for a burger. Yum.

Olive had her grooming appointment, so we headed up to 4 Noses. 

This may be one of my favorite new bandanas!

Sunday (39,359 steps) - Up around 4 am since I had to drive up to Boulder for the Sunset Trail festival race I was running with Terri and Larry. First, though, I had to get ready and take Olive for a walk. I was out the door shortly after 5 and got to the Justice Center in plenty of time. I'll recap this separately.

Finally got service when we were almost back to Boulder and Ben said that he would meet us at 4 Noses. Not sure what else we did after.

Monday (15,050 steps) - Another day that I didn't have jury duty since the judge had other cases he needed to tend to. I did, however, still need to work. It was nice not getting up early. Ariel had mentioned she was going to be coming by, so I hurried out the door to get my run in. It was a relatively blah run, but it was nice and cool out and not as awful as it could have been. She got to the house shortly after I did and while she was doing some other things I took Olive for a walk. We went to Dutch and picked up Torchy's for lunch. Finished out the day working and finishing an episode of You. Watching "The Waterfront."

Stats:

• 138,848 steps
• 37.65 miles run
• 11.53 miles walked
• 30 minutes of cardio
• 30 minutes of strength

Bear Chase Trail Race 50K (Race Recap)

Saturday, September 30
Lakewood, CO
Ultra Marathon #26
Weather - Pretty perfect!

I had picked up our packets on Friday after work to avoid the race day pick up, although it wouldn't have been a big deal.

I had slept like crap. Seriously, took forever to fall asleep and then I tossed and turned all night. Got up cranky and tired. A was going to be volunteering with Pete at Cattail while I ran. We left the house a few minutes later than we planned because we were looking for beanies. It rained all week and it was COLD.

Even though the volunteers were supposed to arrive by 5, I hadn't signed her up as an official volunteer because she would be basically pulling a double shift and I wanted to be able to pick her up when I wanted.

When we arrived at Cattail we found that she was only the second volunteer to arrive and Pete was very happy to see her! Chatted for a few minutes before I headed into the park.

I was still there with about 45 minutes until the start so I used the bathroom and then sat in the car until about 15 minutes before the start. I immediately found Francesca, Jandy and Lisa. We discussed our race plans and all started together.

My not-so-secret goal was to run a course PR (around 7:05). I hadn't run the true 50K course since 2012, so NONE of the first loop seemed familiar to me. We ran up the road and then turned onto the trail, where we almost immediately had our first water crossing. More like a baby creek crossing (at least compared to the ones we would encounter later). I was also very surprised to be headed right towards Mt. Carbon. I know A had said that she ran up it last year, but I really did not remember it from the year I ran it.

We were ON Mt. Carbon when my watch beeped the first mile. That type of climbing on tired legs is tough! We all stayed together through the initial decent down Mt. Carbon. Jandy managed to break away and was out of sight pretty quickly.

The course split at the location where the Homestead aid station used to be. I was already getting hot and took of my jacket. I held onto it for a while thinking that I would give it to A. Only after about 15 minutes I remembered that we wouldn't see her on our first small loop. D'oh. Jen was near the road cheering and taking pictures. We crossed the road and ran the same section of "new" trails that we had done at the 7 mile Lakewood trail series event. Just like when I had run it before, took lots of walk breaks along the road as it was uphill-ish feeling.

Hi Jen!

Looped around to the boat ramp aid station where we got to see Sheila. Then it was a few nice miles of shaded trail until we got back to the start/finish and headed out for our first big loop.

Francesca stayed with us for about half of the big loop, although she was getting over a plague of some sort and wasn't even sure if she was going to be finishing the race. We had a great time running/walking and chatting. It was getting warmer this loop and when we got to the river crossings I was pretty happy for the cool down. The third crossing was INSANE this year. I actually had to hold up my skirt to keep it from getting saturated - water was mid thigh on me!!

Like I have done in past years, I took off my shoes on the pavement on the way to Fox Hollow, which is how I discovered I had a hole in my nifty 40th anniversary Runners Roost socks. WOMP WOMP.

All I was taking at the aid stations was soda. I was probably not fueling as well as I should have, but for some reason I was just not hungry. I wasn't nauseous or sick or anything, just not hungry. The stretch from Fox Hollow to Cattail is only 2.4 miles, yet they ALWAYS feel like the longest two miles ever. We have a big climb right out of the gate and then we run along Morrison road for a while until we duck into a small gully where we actually do run next to cattails. We FINALLY arrive at Cattail and I leave jacket on top of A's bag, give Pete a hug and then we head out. A was at the one turn where people have been known to cut the course so we stopped briefly to give her a hug for heading up the last nasty hill of the loop.

It was pretty hot by this point and I was starting to get annoyed and agitated by it. I was watching my watch more than I normally do. At this point it seemed totally reasonable to assume that I would be able to run a course PR as long as I didn't totally fall apart. We ran a lot of the section to the boat ramp, where we saw Sheila again. I had my only fall of the race between the Boat Ramp and start/finish - a pretty decent fly through the air and do a roll type fall. The bigger loop runs on a few other trails and it was longer to get back to the start/finish. Lisa's husband (who I had not met before) was dressed as a character from Pokemon, so that was fun.

Headed out for the last loop, and by calculations, as long as we did the loop in around 3ish hours I would PR. (Spoiler, that didn't happen). On our way up Mt. Carbon we got passed by Michael, who was running the 100K (and going for an actual course PR) . He was on his 4th loop (of 5) and said it was "getting hard." Hahahaha. Lots more walking this loop. The river crossings seemed harder too. The current seemed to be flowing faster and the rocks seemed more slippery.

Didn't bother to take off my shoes this time, and I was imagining the hole in my socks getting bigger by the second. Fox Hollow to Cattail was the longest stretch ever in the whole world. We were really lucky to finally have some clouds roll in and it was no longer a billion degrees. Got to Cattail aid station and A said that she had run with Jandy a bit and that she would be giving her a ride to the finish when she was done.

On our way out of the aid station there was a guy warning everyone about a rattlesnake. WHICH WE FINALLY SAW LIKE AN INCH OF THE TRAIL. I took a picture from a safe distance and we quickly headed out.

CAN YOU SEE HIM???

I knew by then that my PR wasn't going to happen, but we still had a goal for Lisa (which a PR was for her was pretty much inevitable) and we set a goal to finish under 7:20.

A lot more walking than I had hoped. It really seemed like we were never going to make it back. We got close and I told Lisa that I wasn't sure I was going to be able to run into the finish because my legs were soooo tired. Obviously I was being dramatic and I ran through just fine. LONG day, and it was super awesome to have Lisa join me again. She is a good running buddy for these ultras!

Official time - 7:16:18
Overall place - 107/133
Gender place - 37/52
Division place - 15/22
Garmin time - 7:16:35
Garmin distance - 31.1 miles
Elevation gain - 2,310'
Miles 1-5 - 13:35, 11:41, 13:56, 11:20, 12:19
Miles 6-10 - 11:43, 13:11, 12:32, 14:30, 12:17
Miles 11-15 - 15:47, 14:36, 13:23, 14:24, 12:47
Miles 16-20 - 14:02, 14:29, 12:42, 14:49, 14:34
Miles 21-25 - 15:31, 13:10, 15:02, 19:14, 14:42
Miles 26-30 - 16:39, 14:54, 14:26, 14:59, 13:48
Miles 31-31.1 - 14:13, 13:03

Nothing like a celebratory beer!!

Lisa, Ben and me

Me and Jandy

I was incredibly happy to sit down and have a beer. I saw Jandy right away and A was not with her... sure enough A called a few minutes later to ask where I was. On my way...

Thoughts:

• This was my seventh year running this race (all but the inaugural year, otherwise I'd be a legacy runner). I have run the 50 miler twice, this was my third year running the 50K (although one year the course was modified to about 1/3 pavement because of flooding) and the half marathon twice. This is one of the most well organized races I have ever run, which is a lot of the reason I keep coming back.
• The course is very runnable and extremely well marked. Even with multiple distances running, it is very easy to figure out where you are supposed to be. I have never had an issue with knowing where I am going.
• The aid stations are fantastic and are well-stocked with all of the typical "ultra foods." PB&J, chips, pretzels, candy, pickles, soda, etc. I haven't been taking that much food from aid stations, but you totally could use that for all of your needs. They are also very well spaced, I don't think there is ever more than about 4 miles between them, with a few being less than 3 miles apart.
• The course is fantastic for a first ultra. It is a loop course, but the loop is large enough to keep it interesting - plus you have easy access to all of your things every 12.5 miles.
• The medals have a cool new feature this year - they are magnetic and over the next few years you can actually link them all together (sizes vary between the ultra events, the half marathon and the "baby bear," which is the 10K).
• Cool new shirt design this year - red with a Colorado flag logo. If you didn't know, Coloradans like their flag about as much as Texas does, so this is really nifty.
• Will I run this again? You bet! Now that I found out that the 100K offers an early start maybe I'll go for that distance, you never know!

Polar Prowl Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Saturday, January 10
Lakewood, CO
Half Marathon #124
Colorado Half #57
Weather - Perfect

Last year, I missed the Polar Prowl because I was running Tinker Bell with Heather. So of course, it was on the schedule as one of the only January distance races in Colorado. We had some dicey weather the beginning of the month, but the initial forecasts were for highs in the low 50's!! Unfortunately, we had two snowstorms during the week and it never really got warm enough to melt all the way. We were expecting ICY conditions.

Up just before 7, out the door before 7:30 to drop off the kids with my parents. Arrived at Bear Creek park right before 8. Picked up our packets and ran into Heather and Dan on our way to the bathroom. It was still overcast, but L was trying to convince me that I would be a sissy if I wore arm sleeves. (She ended up being right, but she is so mean!)

Dropped off our bags at the car, got our bibs on, and headed to the start, stopping at the bathroom along the way. It was a beautiful morning, I was just hoping the clouds would burn away to warm up a bit.

We walked up to the start with about two minutes before the gun. Just enough time to hear about the super icy conditions on most of the course (as you can see in the photo above). I have run the course before and I knew it would be very hilly and challenging (not even counting the ice).

I wanted to run easy and hope for the best (especially after how bad the last race went). For the first half mile or so I did fine. Until the woman in front of me dropped her handheld right as I was stepping down and I landed on it, slightly rolling my ankle. It didn't hurt that bad, but it figures... not slipping on the ice, but on a woman's water bottle. Most of the first 2-3 miles were a sheet of ice. I was running cautiously, but it was nice to keep the pace down. I knew the hills were going to shred my calves.

I only walked up the very last section of Mt. Carbon - definitely an improvement over last time. The backside of the Mt. Carbon heading into Fox Hollow was not quite as icy, but I was afraid to bomb it on the downhill. I spotted Ross around mile 2 and it took me almost TWO MILES to catch him. For a 76 year old guy, he is pretty spry (did you catch my rhyme there?)

I spent about half of the race trapped between two super annoying people. The woman in front of me was wearing Yak Trax, but it wasn't icy or snowy enough for them so with every footfall she sounded like she was carrying a ton of change. The guy behind me was a mouth breather. Every minute or so he would snort on his breath in. I was really wishing I had worn two ear buds. Made me insane.

Turn around point was around mile 6. We had to head back up that giant hill just before the mile 8 marker. It lasts almost a full mile before we get to the top and run down the backside of Mt. Carbon, getting on the road halfway to go around the lake before ending on the last section of road by the boat ramp.

I felt pretty good until just before the last aid station around mile 11.8. It's flattish at this section with a gradual uphill, but it just seems to last forever. I had passed maybe a dozen people in the last few miles and I managed a decent last half mile or so (even with the hill at the end). I saw L, Heather and Dan at the finish line. We got some pictures while we waited for the raffle:

Heather got 2nd in her AG in the 10K

We looked AWESOME (and were pretty much only people with bare arms and legs

And Ross wanted me to get a picture of him to email him. Of course, with a 2:35, he was first in his age group. He is such a badass.

Official Time - 2:25:12

Overall Place - 128/186

Overall Gender - 59/103

Division Place - 25/43

Garmin Time - 2:25:12

Garmin Distance - 13.1 miles

Garmin Pace - 11:05

Mile 1 - 10:43

Mile 2 - 11:10

Mile 3 - 12:18

Mile 4 - 9:53

Mile 5 - 10:53

Mile 6 - 10:45

Mile 7 - 11:05

Mile 8 - 11:02

Mile 9 - 12:53

Mile 10 - 9:44

Mile 11 - 11:07

Mile 12 - 11:24

Mile 13 - 11:18

Mile 13.1 - 9:03

Long sleeve, not tech, too small (for some reason I got an XS)

Thoughts:

• Lots of aid stations. I think at least 2 or 3 of them had Clif gel. At least one also had shot blocks.
• The shirt is ok, I should stop ordering XS, they are just too small and the sleeves are too tight. Don't like white shirts.
• Medal is cute, and I like that they do medals for all three distances.
• The course is tough, but it is a pretty course and it is well marked, like all her races.
• They have really good burritos at the finish and she does great raffles.
• I will run her races again, if it is convenient and I don't have something else that weekend.
• Overall, a good event.