Week in Review (July 21 - July 27)

Tuesday (11,255 steps) - Super crazy day, all day. After work I drove down to Bailey to pick A up at camp and then met up with Lisa and Jessa at the Adrift Tiki bar for a last visit with Lisa before the move. A enjoyed her non-alcoholic foo foo drink and we had some street tacos. Very sad to see Lisa go :(

 

Wednesday (17,631 steps) - RUN CLUB! A had gone to her final appointment with the orthopaedist and was given the a-ok on her wrist. No signs of a fracture at all!

 

Thursday (22,780) - Roof replaced on the house and it was a giant hassle that they were not finished when they said they would be as I had to wait for them to leave to close up the house. A and I walked around the block in an effort to kill time before heading to the gym. I actually ran on the treadmill. On purpose. If you didn't remember, my mojo has been non-existent lately. I ran 3 miles, slowly, and it seemed fine. It felt good to "get back on the horse."

Friday (14,523 steps) - Issues with the house. The roofers had ripped off the gutters because I was supposed to have them replaced on Friday. Gutter people were a no show and they didn't call me. So, awesome. It was pouring rain when I got home and no gutters to catch the water.

Saturday (24,351 steps) - A and I were up early to go to the Happy Trails Run Club! This month's group run was at Bergen Peak in Evergreen. This is a super gorgeous trail and I hadn't been out there all summer. In my head I imagined the lower section in the meadow was longer, but it turns out it's only "flat" for the first half mile or so - that's when the climbing starts. A did a great job and we ended up doing close to 3.5 miles (with 500 feet of gain!)

 

 

Met up with Jessa and Jackson and we spent the day hanging out and doing some window shopping. Also, did you know that it's pumpkin-flavored-everything season already?

Sunday (21,271 steps) - Last day in the house. Up early with the first order of business being the last of the packing in preparation for the movers. I have a pillowtop waterbed (yes, I still own a waterbed) and I was attempting to drain it. Long story short, it took FIVE HOURS to get done, and even then, A and I both had to drag it not completely empty out to the curb. (I ended up slashing it up later because I am NOT dealing with this ever ever ever again). Finished the cleaning out and packing and then A and I went roller skating.

Monday (23,081 steps) - My dad had assisted with the movers since I was not able to get it scheduled for a weekend. The move took almost twice as long (and therefore cost twice as much) as I anticipated. Finally got the issues resolved with the roofer and the gutter people. Then, I get a call from my agent that my buyer is no longer qualified for his loan. WHAT. No other information, just that the closing is not happening and I can "stay in my house a little longer." UH, NO I CAN'T. I HAVE ALREADY MOVED. Grrrrrrrrrr. Another pretty ok run on the treadmill - longest run in ages, 4 miles.

Stats

• 134,892 steps
• 12.5 miles run (literally 10 times what I did the week prior)
• No cross training.
• No strength or stretching. To be honest, I actually purchased a program on Fitness Blender (two weeks ago?) and even the fact I spent money on it hasn't really motivated me. I would actually really like to get back into this but I am sorta displaced right now and I don't know where my weights are. (I know, excuses, excuses)

Everything Else

• As I said - my house sale fell apart on Monday. I'm writing this on Thursday, the day I was supposed to close, and we haven't closed. I still don't know any more than I did on Monday. Just in limbo waiting for things to happen.
• Have a full weekend ahead of me with my first half in almost 2 months and a few volunteer gigs.

Week in Review (July 14 - July 20)

Tuesday (18,390 steps) - Walk on the treadmill at the gym. Did not feel like running.

Wednesday (16,029) - Run club!! Heather was too crippled to run so we did a mile walk (and got caught in the rain). Not having a curfew meant I got to stay and listen to the interview with Anton Krupicka!

 

 

 

Thursday (17,545) - FUN day at work!! We played putt putt and cornhole. Complete with a catered afternoon of snacks and beers! Tried to jog on the treadmill, made it just over a mile, quit. Walked another 2.8. Womp.

Friday (13,628 steps) - Met up with Lisa and Jessa for a super fun evening of bad-for-you food and chatting. Bittersweet as it was one of the last times we would all be out together as Lisa is moving in less than a week.
Saturday (34,683 steps) - Up crazy early to go hiking with my dad and Izzy, my older sister's dog. This time we headed up to Nederland and hiked to Arapaho Pass. It was not nearly as challenging as hiking a 14er but we had a great time.

Received a call from my ex that afternoon that A's flight home had been cancelled and he had to re-book her on a flight the next morning. (Turns out the flight really was NOT cancelled, but that is a whole 'nother story). Uneventful evening as I was SO INCREDIBLY TIRED and had to be up early for a race in the morning.

Sunday (16,767 steps) - Up at 4 am to run Revel half marathon. If you are a runner and have not heard about the fiasco at this race, I'll sum it up. I arrived to park at 5:00ish am. Met up with my friend Jandy to ride together on the shuttle to the start. After 30 or so minutes of waiting in line and not moving, started to get concerned there might be a problem. Check their Facebook page. Lots of questions "WHERE ARE THE BUSES?" Well, at about 6 am, we found out that there were NO buses, and the half marathon was being cancelled. So that was fun.

People wandering around looking for buses

Ended up going to breakfast with some teammates. Briefly went to the finish line, just in time to see some of my faster teammates finish. (Yes, if you were able to get to the start without the bus, you could run, so 350ish finishers).

 

Then I had to drive out to the airport to pick up A. Most crowded trip to airport EVER. 40+ minutes to get the gate pass and then I sneaked into the first class security line, which probably saved at least another half hour as THAT line was wrapped around the building.

 

Drove home to quickly pack A for her Girl Scout camp, 1.5 hours south of our house. Dropped her off and of COURSE it was raining. (I get it Colorado, but I'm pretty tired of the rain. Enough.)

In bed early again - EXHAUSTED.
Monday (12,535 steps) - Well, I did NOT go to the gym. Again. I have just not had any motivation. I went over to Jessa's house and helped her move furniture around. So, there's that.

Stats

• 129,577 steps
• 1.2 miles run. Yes, you read that right. 1.2 miles.
• 14.2 miles walked. (7.1 of that was from the hike)
• No strength or stretching.

Everything Else

• Yep. The house. That's all for now.
• Work still good. I have taken on another attorney, so I am up to 5. (Well, really only 4 full-time, but I also support the summer associate). Really loving how busy work keeps me!
• And as you can see - MOTIVATION AT AN ALL-TIME LOW. It's not even that I am really hating running right now, I am just not interested. I think I was the only person that was actually ok with the race being canceled. I was not looking forward to it. I've been tired and blah and have not been exercising. I blame this on the stress of the move. Hopefully when this is all complete I can get back into a routine of normalcy.

Week in Review (July 7 - July 13)

Tuesday (16,032 steps) - Walked for an hour on the treadmill. That's it.

Wednesday (8,681 steps) - Met up with Jessa and Lisa for drinks. Clearly, I did no exercise whatsoever.

Thursday (12,673 steps) - I had planned on going to the gym. I packed clothes. I went to the gym. And then I realized I had NOT packed any shoes. So I sat in the sauna.

Friday (12,515) - Drove to Fairplay right after work. Pre-race meeting for Sheep Mountain and early to bed at my Airbnb host's house.

Saturday (88,878 steps) - Sheep Mountain 50 (errr, 34ish mile). Got home close to 10, an then showered and in bed.

Sunday (38,371) - Up before 4:00 am. Yes, you read that right. I had made plans to go hiking with Lisa. With this being my only weekend left without A and her last full weekend here, it was the only option. I was incredibly tired after Sheep Mountain. I picked her up at 4:30 am and we drove to Bakersville to hike up Grays and Torrey's Peaks. Both 14ers. About a half mile in I thought I might die because my legs were so mad. Both of us toughed out this day on an incredibly beautiful hike. Because I don't drive a "high clearance" vehicle we had to park at the lower trailhead which added 3 miles to our hike. It was very windy at the top, but we manage to get both 14ers done!

We actually scored a ride back from the upper trail head (thanks random old guy!) - which put us at just under 12 miles for the day. We got stuck in terrible traffic on I-70 (which sadly is normal for a Sunday) and ate lunch/early dinner at Tommyknocker's in Idaho Springs. By the time I dropped her off and went home to shower it was after 6. I had to move all the boxes in my garage from one side to the other so the mitigation system could be installed later in the week through the attic. While I was at it, I swept the garage out. Fun times.
Monday (20,046 steps) - Walked a couple miles on the treadmill.

Stats

• 197,196 steps
• 34.3 miles (yep, just the one race, nothing else)
• Hike TWO 14ers for cross-training (11.8 miles round trip)
• No strength or stretching

Everything Else

• Still with the house. Set back after set back after set back.
• Nothing else.

Sheep Mountain 50 Mile (Race Recap)

Fairplay, CO

Saturday, July 11

Ultra Marathon #14

Weather - Chilly at start, perfect

 

So the journey began immediately after I got off work on Friday. Since I have apparently lost the ability to read things when I signed up, I had missed that there was a mandatory meeting the night before, at 7:00 pm. So I had initially thought I would maybe just drive up in the morning for the race, but now I was scrambling to find somewhere to stay for the night since it's a two hour drive.

 

Elizabeth suggested I try Airbnb for an inexpensive place since I literally just needed a bed. I reserved a place that was only about 5 minutes from the start line, so it worked out nicely.

 

Anyway, traffic was wretched and it took over two hours to get there and I arrived late at the meeting. I picked up my packet, ate some pasta, and then headed to my Airbnb. I was in bed by 8:45, but I did not sleep well.

 

Race Day

 

Up VERY early. I was up before 5, long enough to get dressed and head to the start area. I had forgotten my wall charger for my phone so I wanted to sit in my car for a bit to get it as close to fully charged as possible. It was in the upper 30's, and I was wearing a long sleeve YMX top (like I did in Utah) under my Runner's Roost singlet and then had my long sleeve 1/4 zip on over that. I knew I would get warm quick, but considering that if everything went well I would be out in the dark I figured it was best if I had the long sleeve just in case.

 

Headed over to the start line at about 5:30. Checked in and then cycled through the bathroom line about 3 times. My stomach felt off. I talked to a few teammates and then at 6 we were off...

Race director is a sadist... check out the hill right at the start!

Since I was obviously undertrained not trained at all for this nonsense the plan was to just keep moving. I mean, it was "only" 50 miles.

 

Walked up the hill and then we were on dirt roads until the first aid station. It was a gradual uphill and I settled into where I would be the entire race - the very very back. I was tired, my stomach was angry and this felt exceptionally hard. There were a few downhill sections and for a while there were actually two people behind me. I had to stop around mile 6 off the side of the trail to "do my business" but then I felt a tad better.

 

 

At the first aid station I took a shot of whiskey. Which is crazy because the very thought of whiskey gives me instant gag reflex.

 

There was about another mile on the road, and then we crossed and finally were headed onto the trail. I was excited for this part!

 

 

 

 

This section was pretty runnable. I ran into Sherpa John (the race director) in this section and he asked me if I was having fun. I said yes!! He warned me the "rock garden" was ahead... what does that mean?

 



 

Oh. Rocks. Forever. So this part was NOT my favorite. This is also when the climbing started. There were sections that were REALLY pretty. That did not change the fact that I was quickly dying. The climb and the altitude were getting to me and I was taking frequent breaks. I got passed by the only two people behind me on the first climb.

 

Once I actually got to the barren top of Sheep Mountain I was really having a hard time. I would guess that I was by now about a quarter mile behind the people who had passed me only a half mile or so earlier. I took a quick selfie...

And then trudged on. Through more rocks. It seemed like it was NEVER going to end. Climb and false summit, and then climb again. I was checking my watch and it seemed like we had gained close to 3000 feet, most of that being after the first aid station.



 

Then FINALLY it seemed I had made it to the high point. There was some downhill but it was a bit technical and I certainly wasn't blazing down the hill. Got to the next aid station. Took another shot of whiskey. This time it was cinnamon flavored so it wasn't as terrible.



This section of the course was really pretty. And where the first of the water crossings were.



Thankfully, the course was very well marked as we were running through a field. The picture below shows a fairly well-defined trail, but not all sections were so clear. There were a TON of wildflowers, and I'm bummed that they don't really show up well in my photos.

 

 

 

Around mile 20 I ran into a guy who said he had gotten lost. I stupidly didn't look around and took his word for where NOT to go and ended up going about a half mile out of my way. The distance wasn't the worst part, it was the time trying to get enough phone service to get on the internet to look at the race manual. Womp. By this point I was already thinking it was going to be very tough to hit the time limit. We stuck together only for about 15 minutes. He hung back and I headed into where the next aid station should be and I never saw him again.



 

I was pretty tired and hungry when I got to this aid station, but there wasn't a great selection of food. I was pretty happy to hear that the next section was only about 4 miles and it was all downhill on paved road. I actually did pretty decent on this section and I thought I was doing well and making up some time. Thanks to 1). the course measuring long and 2). me getting off course a bit, my watch measured close to 27 miles by the time I got to the next aid station. Somehow I had it in my head that the course only had 7,000 feet of climbing, and by now I had done about 4500. So I was thinking... if this measures close to 52 miles (which is what the manual said the true distance was), I thought I *might* be able to get it done under the time limit if I had already done 2/3 of the climbing.



I grabbed an ice cream bar from the aid station, but my stomach did NOT like that so I ended up barely having any.

 

And by the way, I was completely WRONG about the climbing. The next section was called Breakneck Pass. PASS. So just by the name alone I should have realized that there was a lot of climbing. This section was even worst for me than the climb up Sheep Mountain. I had not seen anyone in hours on the course and I knew I was completely alone and that I was probably dead last. At the aid station they told me it was about 6 miles to the aid station, which the manual had at 32.75 miles.

 

I took about a thousand breaks (but no pictures) on this climbing section. At the pace I was moving and when I realized the course had 9,000 feet of climbing and that after I was done with THIS section that I would still have 3,000 (give or take) left to climb, I knew I was dropping. There was no way that I was going to be able to move fast enough.

 

I saw a volunteer on the side when my watch was about 33 miles and I almost lost my mind when he said it was still a mile to the aid station. AND THEN I found out that I "could" drop but the aid station was ATV access only so it would be a while, OR I could walk (downhill) to the next aid station 3+ miles away.

 

He said there would be beer (!!!) at the aid station and I could decide then. He told me I was, in fact, the last runner (others had already dropped), and he and another volunteer were walking with me and taking down the course markings.

 

Finally got to the aid station (34.3 on my watch) - and I did, indeed, get the promised beer. (And a damn good beer too!)

 

Minutes after arriving the wind picked up and it started pouring rain and hailing. So I clearly stopped at a good time. I was starting to get cold after I stopped moving and these amazing volunteers got me food and a poncho to stay warm. By the time the storm stopped, the ATV's had not yet left. I decided to walk down with another volunteer. Once I got to the next aid station, I was driven to the start/finish area and arrived sometime close to 7:30. HOURS after I had stopped.

I got a veggie burger and a beer and found out I had also won a $50 gift certificate to Runner's Roost! So, all was not lost.

I stayed around for a bit to eat and chat, and then started the drive back, not getting home until close to 10:00 pm.

Garmin Time - 10:57:13
Garmin Distance - 34.35 miles
Miles 1-5 - 13:24, 13:55, 12:47, 12:49, 14:54
Miles 6-10 - 17:00, 14:45, 16:57, 19:14, 26:02
Miles 11-15 - 34:45, 28:32, 18:06, 19:15, 15:38
Miles 16-20 - 17:07, 18:39, 15:00, 16:53, 18:13
Miles 21-25 - 21:54, 18:32, 17:32, 20:32, 15:02
Miles 26-30 - 13:26, 14:26, 19:51, 21:31, 34:42
Miles 31-34.35 - 24:07, 20:11, 22:45, 20:43, 23:22

Thoughts

• Holy moly, this was way harder than I expected. I was thinking, it's "only" 50 miles, and maybe that was part of my mistake. Clearly I need to work on hills as a 30+ minute mile is not great or competitive.
• The aid stations were pretty good, but at the later ones a bit more substantial "food" would have been nice. I normally don't have issues with sugar and candy, but I really wanted something... else I guess.
• The whiskey was a nice touch. But gross. I did appreciate the beer at the aid station I dropped at though!
• The race director advertises as a 50 mile, but then in the manual it says 52 miles. People that finished had it closer to 55 miles. That's a big difference. I don't think it would have affected how I approached the race, but still.
• An unbelievably beautiful course. And very well marked. Just too challenging for me in my current state.

Week in Review (June 30 - July 6)

Tuesday (13,877 steps) - A's last night before leaving for Texas to visit her dad. We watched Harry Potter. Again.

Wednesday (17,786 steps) - Up at a crazy hour to get A to the airport for her 7:30 am flight. Run club!!

Thursday (12,755 steps) - Didn't feel like going to the gym. Went to Jessa's house. Her and her boyfriend grilled veggie burgers and corn. Tasty!!

Friday (28,773 steps) - Up early to get to my parent's house by 5:30. My dad and I drove up Guanella Pass to the trail head for Mt. Bierstadt. At 7:00 am there were already a ton of cars and we had to park on the road. I had never actually CLIMBED a 14er (although the Mt. Evans Ascent in 2012 did put me over 14) and my dad had not climbed one in years. The weather was supposed to be decent so we picked an "easy" one. It took us just under three hours to get to the summit and there were probably close to 200 people up there. I have never seen a trail so busy in my life! We had a good time and neither one of us got injured.

We went to Tommyknocker's for lunch. I had a delicious oatmeal stout and a cajun burger. The inspection of my house was happening in the afternoon so I went to Target to pick up some essentials and then hit up Yogurtland. Finally after 5:00 I was able to go home.

Saturday July 4th (29,475) - I have been so stressed with the house sale that I have not been sleeping well. I opted to sleep in rather than get up early to run. I had vague plans of running the trails but then it was already so late that I just went to Clear Creek.

For a city path there is a decent amount of shade. It was still crazy hot and it was something like 88 degrees when I finished the 12ish miles. I got chafing from a Lulu skirt I've had for years. Guess that means I need to start watching the "diet" again? Womp. First party of the weekend was at Jessica's house up in Westminster. Same as last year, BBQ and fireworks, although I always head home early so I don't get stuck in traffic.

Sunday (16,953 steps) - So... same as the day before. I opted to NOT set an alarm and again stayed in bed too late to miss the heat. I didn't feel like doing much but went to Sloan's Lake. Ran one loop (2.7 miles) and walked a second one.

Second party of the weekend up at Heather's house in the mountains. It was nice to get away from the scalding heat of the city. More BBQ. Home relatively early - seemed like a REALLY long weekend.

Monday (10,274 steps) - Stressful day waiting for the results of the inspection. Got the report and it was a big bummer. Decided to skip the gym and went to get a beer with Lisa (who is moving to Florida in a few weeks).

Stats

• 129,893 steps
• 16.8 miles run
• Hiked a 14er for cross training (7.6 miles round trip)
• No strength or stretching

Everything Else

• The house. Moving. All of this.

Week in Review (June 23 - June 29)

Tuesday (17,704 steps) - Didn't feel like going to the gym so we didn't. Packed up the last remaining items in order for the house to be photographed for inside pictures for the brochure and website. For sale sign in the yard and listed in MLS!

Wednesday (18,845 steps) - It pretty much typhooned in the afternoon so no plans on run club. Went to the gym and walked a few miles on the treadmill, just to get moving.

Thursday (18,077 steps) - Same deal, a walk on the treadmill after work. Very last minute prep of the house - showings starting at 9 am Friday morning!

Friday (10,367 steps) - The house is officially OFFICIALLY for sale, meaning this was the first day of showings. I started receiving text messages the day before for me to "approve" - if I didn't respond soon enough they were on the phone calling me.

 

As best as I could tell, we had close to 30 showings and more scheduled the next day. Dinner/socializing with Jessa until we could go home.

Saturday (25,406 steps) - We had to be out of the house before 9. So we went to the gym first. I attempted my first run since getting back from Desert RATS and it was pretty terrible. Logged 4.1 miles, which at "best" was a run/walk. I had to shower at the gym since we couldn't go home. Quick trip to Dunkin and some furniture browsing and then on to the next adventure - Skate City! A convinced me to join her and we skated for a few hours.

Then we headed to the mall for lunch (Panda Express) to walk around to kill time. We were invited to our friend Jandy's house for a post-wedding celebration. She was married a few weeks in Mexico! We had a great time hanging out and it was fun to catch up.

Sunday (10,839 steps) - Yep, we had MORE showings, so we had to be out early again. We went on a slow walk around Lake Arbor where we looked at all the local wildlife. Then a trip to Target to wander around until our brunch date with Jessa, Jackson, Lisa and Ricky. After brunch we went to the park for more socializing until we eventually went to Jessa's house when the weather got iffy. Lisa and Ricky just found out they are moving to Florida and this was the last chance for ALL of us to get together before they left. Sad.

Monday (16,259 steps) - Got a lovely gift from one of the attorney's for my "assistance" with the trial that we were just in (and won). I didn't do much, but now I have some really pretty flowers to look at for the next few weeks.

After work I picked up A at a play date and then we went to the gym. I managed to gut out 2 (not so fun but not the worst ever) miles. THE HOUSE IS UNDER CONTRACT... now to sit back and hope that nothing goes wrong with the inspection and appraisal. It's only been about 6 years, but I had forgotten how stressful it is to sell a property.

Stats

• 117,497 steps
• 6.1 miles "run"
• No cross training (but 2 days of walking on the treadmill)
• No strength or stretching

Everything Else

• Obviously the big thing right now is the house sale. Now that it is under contract... there are still many other hurdles to get over. Like where am I going to live??? Originally I thought it would be easy to find somewhere. Turns out, it's not. It looks like I will end up couch-surfing (not really, we will likely be staying in Jessa's spare room) until I find something. I really hope this is just temporary (as in no more than a month), because this is the most unbelievably stressful situation I have been in for a LONG time.

Week(s) in Review (June 9 - June 22)

Tuesday, June 9 (19,412 steps) - I really cannot remember this far back and looking at Strava doesn't do much to refresh my memory. I wrote that I did a mile and a half, but I have no idea if that was on the treadmill at home or at the gym. I think I vaguely recall doing it at home.

Wednesday, June 10 (18,450 steps) - A finally FINALLY got her (second) cast off. However... she is now in a brace, at least through the end of July, which means one more doctor's visit and another set of x-rays. Run club!! Traffic was a wretched horrible mess so it took forever to get there. We ended up missing starting the run with the group but walked about a mile with Heather, who injured her collarbone and can't run anyway. I ran a mile loop when I got home.

 

Thursday, June 11 (16,562 steps) - Again, it says I ran about a mile on the treadmill. No recollection. Things kicked into high gear with the packing - fast tracking the sale of the house to two weeks earlier than planned - sign (hopefully) going in the yard on Tuesday, June 23.

Friday, June 12 (8,396 steps) - No exercise. More packing. Dinner and hanging out with Jessa.

Saturday, June 13 (13,659 steps) - Jessa was so kind as to spend most of the day with me and A packing and cleaning. Turns out there was a bit of water damage from when the basement flooded in the spare room so we had to rip out the carpet and padding. Bought fans to dry the flooring. Smells a bit musty but caught it all before there was any lasting damage. The most progress was in A's room. Wish she always kept it this clean and uncluttered!

Sunday, June 14 (17,592 steps) - Skirt Sports 5k with A and then driving to Moab.

Monday, June 15 (51,044 steps) - Desert RATS Stage 1.

Tuesday, June 16 (77,537 steps) - Desert RATS Stage 2.

Wednesday, June 17 (32,030 steps) - Desert RATS Stage 3.

Thursday, June 18 (99,377 steps) - Desert RATS Stage 4.

Friday, June 19 (15,236 steps) - Sleeping. Drinking beer. Tending to blisters.

Saturday, June 20 (63,235 steps) - Desert RATS Stage 5.

Sunday, June 21 (12,825 steps) - Long, long, LONG drive back to Denver. Lots of cleaning and continued packing.

Monday, June 22 (13,928 steps) - Back to work. More cleaning, more packing. House 85-90% packed. My realtor offered to have cleaners come in so that I didn't have to make time for that as well, thankfully. We weren't able to get the carpet shampooed (and honestly, anyone who purchases this home will want to replace all the carpet anyway), but the place looked good enough for interior pictures for the online listing.

 

Week Ending 6/15

• 145,115 steps
• 28 miles run
• No cross training
• No strength/stretching

Week Ending 6/22

• 314,168 steps
• 113.75 miles run
• No cross training (although, let's be real, I did a LOT of hiking/walking)
• No strength/stretching (I had two 30 minute massages though!)

Everything Else

• As of the last date in this blog the house was mostly in selling condition, just waiting for some cleaners to come in and do things that I did not have time for. That's the big thing going on in my life right now!