Desert RATS Stage Race, Day 2 (Race Recap)

Tuesday, Day 2

 

Having never really been asleep, I was out of my sleeping bag EARLY. Thankfully, there was instant coffee and hoped I would be able to get more alert before heading out for the second longest day. We found out at our meeting the night before that due to flooding (in the desert, who knew?) that we would not be running the "normal" course and what was supposed to be 39 miles was "only" going to be about 34. We were also told that day 2 is sort of the "make it or break it" stage and that if you could complete THIS day, chances were pretty darn good that you would be able to complete the entire distance.

 

Can you see how hot it is going to be? Millions of degrees, at least

I had NO idea what to expect. I didn't know if my legs were going to rebel completely and if I was even going to be able to run. The "fast" people started out... fast. I figured I would start with a run/walk (no set interval times) to conserve energy. I knew it was (obviously) going to be hot and I had tons of time on the course so I figured I would just take it easy and hopefully not bonk. The first section of the course was relatively flat on dirt roads.



 

There were some amazing views early on and we had a short jaunt through a small canyon where I made sure to take a selfie.



 

I got passed by a huge group of kids on their bikes (we think it was a Boy Scout troop) and one of them yelled "we think you are awesome!" In fact, I think I am awesome too! There was a decent amount of climbing on this day as well, but nothing that took my breath away like that steep climb on the first day. Unfortunately, as time has passed I already cannot remember a lot of what happened on that second day.

 



 



 

 

 

The first aid station cut off of the day was at mile 17.5. I was never so happy to arrive at an aid station. I was SO DAMN HOT. I filled my buff with ice and draped it around my neck. It cooled me down substantially. We had four miles to the water drop at mile 21. Then we had a LONG stretch until the next aid station around mile 28. I was behind Tara (who power hiked with poles) and I was DYING of heat. It was for real so hot. We were on a boring stretch of road that paralleled the railroad tracks. And it just went on and on and on and on. While the aid station cut off for Westwater at 17.5 had been generous (1:45 pm, allowing almost 7 hours to arrive), the one at Cottonwood at mile 28 was 3:30 pm. I did NOT want to miss that cutoff. I passed Tara with a few miles to go and did a lot of walking to get to that aid station. I made the cutoff by about 15 minutes (although we found out later the cutoff was a misprint in our journal and really had until 5 pm to get there). Leaving the aid station and the bottoms of my feet felt like they were ON FIRE. I walked almost the entire last 6 miles to the finish. On the longest road EVER.

 

Coming into the finish line for this one was AMAZING to me. I was so happy that with completing this day that I had an excellent chance of finishing the whole thing. It really put me at ease for the rest of the week.

Day 2 was unfortunately NOT the day for everyone. There were quite a few drops, including Traci (a super talented runner from Florida that was having difficulty with the altitude and the dry climate), Anita (who got lost very early on) and Jane.

Garmin Time - 9:47:01
Garmin Distance - 34.43 miles
Elevation Gain - 2,172 feet
Mile 1 - 12:58
Mile 2 - 12:54
Mile 3 - 14:23
Mile 4 - 14:22
Mile 5 - 16:50
Mile 6 - 17:39
Mile 7 - 14:34
Mile 8 - 15:08
Mile 9 - 14:04
Mile 10 - 16:48
Mile 11 - 16:32
Mile 12 - 17:12
Mile 13 - 24:28 (climb to the top of the mesa)
Mile 14 - 14:53
Mile 15 - 17:06
Mile 16 - 15:07
Mile 17 - 15:12
Mile 18 - 14:52
Mile 19 - 26:09
Mile 20 - 15:13
Mile 21 - 16:09
Mile 22 - 16:02
Mile 23 - 18:00
Mile 24 - 17:57
Mile 25 - 17:29
Mile 26 - 16:23
Mile 27 - 16:52
Mile 28 - 16:43
Mile 29 - 22:29
Mile 30 - 19:03
Mile 31 - 18:45
Mile 32 - 19:14
Mile 33 - 19:11
Mile 34 - 19:18
Mile 34.43 - 16:14

The end of the day did NOT go well for me. My feet hurt SO bad when I got back to camp. After taking off my shoes I discovered I had the biggest blisters, on both feet, in matching places - on the ball of my foot. It felt REALLY good to sit in the shade. While I hadn't been exceptionally bothered by the heat on the first day, THIS day seemed insanely hot. I was drinking and drinking and drinking and my body was just soaking it up. It was also a bit disconcerting that I was not that hungry. Maybe that can be the new diet plan? Exert myself on the surface of the sun to reduce my appetite?

The other issue I was having was with my contacts. My right eye felt like I was going blind. Over the course of the day my vision got cloudier and more blurry. By the time I took out my contacts my right eye couldn't see color or focus on anything. While my contacts had also bothered me the day before, it was not this bad. I was seriously concerned. Even closing my eyes hurt. I made the decision that I would have to run the next day in my glasses - which was not going to be fun, especially with how bright and sunny it was. Boo.

At the nightly meeting we were told that our short "9" mile day was going to be closer to 12 to make up for some of the distance we were missing from current day due to the course changing. I was really dreading trying to run on my torn up feet.

Sheri's awesome husband, Pete, loaned me a sleeping pad. I still did not sleep great but at least every rock in the desert wasn't jabbing me in the back.

Desert RATS Stage Race, Day 1 (Race Recap)

Sunday

 

I had to be in Moab by 6:00 pm to pick up my packet. My dad was planning on volunteering at the race for the first three days, so we were taking separate cars. I had a few hours with A before dropping her off with my mom around 10:45 am. I met up with my dad in Dillon for lunch at the Smiling Moose. Drive was mostly uneventful with very little traffic and some rain near Vail.

 

I arrived at the Gonzo Inn for packet pick up around 5. Showed the staff all my required emergency equipment, spoke briefly with the doctors and picked up my bib and "journal." My dad showed up right as I was finishing up and we went to the Moab Brewery for burgers and a beer. My dad was attending the volunteer meeting at 6:30 and my pre-race meeting was at 7:30.We had a LOT of information to absorb - mostly from the medical staff. Bed around 9:30.

 

Monday, Day 1

 

We were staying at the Super 8 down the street and had a quick breakfast before meeting up at the Gonzo Inn at 7:30 am to load up the trucks. Shuttles to the start line near Loma, Colorado left the hotel around 8:00. It was a nervous ride out that took close to 2 hours. I sat next to a woman, Becky, who WON the Trans Rockies stage race, and she brushed it off like it was no big deal. Um, yes it is!!!

 

We arrived at the start line just before 10:00 am. It was already pretty warm. We took a few pictures and then after a few words from the race director, we were off. I spent the first six or so miles running with Cindy. The first miles were roughly on the course that we ran in April at the Trail Running Festival (only in reverse). We were told to use our daily course maps and journals to avoid making any wrong turns. We nearly made a wrong turn fairly early on, but luckily I double checked my map and crisis was averted.



Me and Cindy



After the first aid station around mile 6 Cindy started to hang back a bit and I figured I should run as long as I was feeling ok so I pulled ahead a bit. We almost missed another turn and were saved by Gene who was using the GPS Gaia app. (Looking back, this may have been worth the $20 investment).

 

I was doing mostly ok - running the flats and downhills and hiking the climbs. The heat was actually not bothering me too much. If I had to guess, we maybe hit high temperatures in the upper 80's or low 90's.

 

The views were amazing. There were some switchbacks around mile 11 that took us all the way down to a bridge... and then we had to climb back up. By this time it was FREAKING HOT and I was struggling to get air on the climb. I felt like I was working crazy hard, it was hot and I was tired. After many false summits, I arrived at the top with Sheri in front of me and Cindy and Trish somewhere behind me. I was super happy to see the second aid station around mile 13. We moved off trails and onto a gravel road. There was a lot of downhill and flats and I didn't find this section too awful.

 

And then I made a STUPID rookie mistake. I was assuming that we were running about 20 miles. Somewhere around mile 18 I could see the flag for camp. I turned to the left as it looked like that was where the trail marking was pointing. After about a half mile I was starting to wonder if I had gone the right way. I could see the flag to my right and the road I was on was kind of winding away from it. when I realized the road was NOT going to connect on that end I realized that I should not have turned off the main road. D'oh! I called the race director to confirm that I was NOT on the correct path and then headed back. I still made it into camp with almost an hour to spare before the cut off but I was pretty annoyed that I had made the wrong turn about a quarter of a mile from the finish and logged over 2 extra miles.

Garmin Time - 6:02:21

Garmin Distance - 21.20 miles

Elevation Gain - 2,175 feet

Mile 1 - 14:46

Mile 2 - 15:28

Mile 3 - 12:48

Mile 4 - 16:38

Mile 5 - 14:46

Mile 6 - 20:59

Mile 7 - 16:00

Mile 8 - 19:21

Mile 9 - 17:15

Mile 10 - 15:43

Mile 11 - 17:26

Mile 12 - 19:03

Mile 13 - 25:30 (the hill that almost killed me)

Mile 14 - 19:47

Mile 15 - 16:46

Mile 16 - 17:33

Mile 17 - 15:42

Mile 18 - 15:37

Mile 19 - 15:13

Mile 20 - 17:30

Mile 21 - 14:57

Mile 22 - 17:28

 

Turns out, I wasn't the only one who got lost. I think close to half the people were "lost" at some point during the day. Lucky for me, it didn't cause me to miss a cutoff. For our two international racers though, it did. Leira (from Spain) and Jim from Canada made a wrong turn very early on and ended up doing MILES AND MILES extra. They both missed the cutoff for the day and would not be official finishers for the event even if they were to complete the entire distance.

 

The confusing nature of the trail markings and people getting lost and making wrong turns sort of set the race off on a sour note. We were told during our nightly meeting that we were all responsible for paying attention and following the markings and that no exceptions would be made for missing cut off times. Ok then.

 

The volunteers set up the tents for us and we got all our things ready for the next day. I did not have a sleeping pad as I didn't have room in my bag and did NOT have a good nights sleep. I had ended up in the middle of the tent and being a light sleeper I woke up every time someone got up to use the bathroom. Every rock in the desert was jabbing into my back. And THEN there was a freak storm. Around 4 in the morning there was a thunder/lightning storm and RAIN (which caused the tent to leak as we had not put up the rain flaps). Going into day 2 I was NOT going to be well rested.

Skirt Sports 5k (Race Recap)

Sunday, June 14

Louisville, CO

Weather - sunny

 

A and I registered for the Skirt Sports 5k when we got an awesome deal. It was only $50 for both of us AND I got a gift certificate to use on Skirt Sports apparel (I was able to get TWO skirts so I'm not sure how this race is even profitable for them...)

 

The 5k started about 30 minutes after the half marathon, but we still had to be up early to drive to Louisville and pick up our bibs. Pick up was fast and easy and the bathroom lines were short. Spent some time before the race chatting with Maureen, a fellow Runners Roost teammate.

 

The race started a few minutes late to allow for people in the bathroom line to start on time. I had every intention of running "easy" since this was just a shake out run before heading to Utah. A and I lined up towards the back and we ran the first mile together. I was not feeling it. My legs were tired and I was trying to take it easy. After the first water station (at mile one), A took off up the hill (and it is a decent size hill, a few hundred feet of gain). She made it look SO.EASY.

 

Happy and fast!

GORGEOUS view of the foothills

I could not even pretend to catch up to her. I was even sort of struggling on the downhills. A friend of mine was running up the hill on my way down and she yelled "she's killing you!" It's true. She was. I took another long walk break when I got back to the aid station. I had her in my sights and she kept stopping and turning around to look for me, wondering why I was so far behind her. (Because I'm old and slow, that's why!)

 

She ran it in to the finish, passing a few people on the way. I came in about 30 seconds behind her.

 



My stats

Garmin time - 33:57 (A ran a PR of 33:29)

Garmin distance - 3.10 miles

Garmin pace - 10:58

Mile 1 - 11:07

Mile 2 - 11:18

Mile 3 - 10:39

Mile 3.1 - 9:10

 

They had CAKE at the finish line. A said her stomach was kind of hurting so she didn't have any, but I had a delicious slice of red velvet cake. We stuck around for awards just in case she placed... and she did! She ended up with first place in her age group (and there were at least two other kids in the under 10 division). So proud of her and she was SO happy with this certificate.

 



Thoughts

• I didn't especially like the half marathon course when I ran it a few years ago. The 5k was pretty fun, and since it was so inexpensive I would possibly run it again. (They also have a 10k).
• The post-race food was pretty great. They had Evol burritos, cake and the best chocolate milk ever (well, according to A, I am not much of a milk drinker).
• The gift certificate incentive was pretty great - made the deal even sweeter.

Week in Review (June 2 - June 8)

Tuesday (26,478 steps) - With A being out of town with my parents in Yellowstone, I had time after work to get some "real" running in. FINALLY, we were experiencing warmer temperatures. I was hoping to gauge how I would feel in the heat. This weather did not disappoint. It was about 90 degrees when I started my run at Green Mountain. For the first time ever (well at least since I've been running) Green Mountain was GREEN. It was really pretty. I stopped a lot, took a lot of pictures. Had a great time.

Wednesday (18,323 steps) - I went for a run in the morning because I wasn't optimistic about the weather in the evening. 4 miles. 4 not so great miles. Not the most fun ever. Went to run club with Heather - where we didn't run because she is injured. Still had a great time.

Thursday (16,744 steps) - Met up with Lisa after work for Happy Hour! We went to a new location in LoDo - Tap Fourteen. The Mexican Chocolate beer I really like was on tap. We had a great time catching up.

It was thundering and lightning like crazy on my way home. Within minutes it was POURING. Again.

Friday (12,520) - Ate pizza. Nothing else.

Saturday (34,439 steps) - Up early for the Run the Rockies half marathon.



So it has been raining like crazy pretty much non-stop for over a month. When we got home it was actually NOT raining, so I quickly mowed the lawn and then headed inside for a shower. When I was getting dressed I noticed the carpet in my room (in the basement) was wet. Thanks to all the rain our basement was flooding... AGAIN. So I spent much of the afternoon cleaning up water. Spent the evening over at Jessa's house.

Sunday (34,299 steps) - Denver Trail half marathon in the morning. 

Immediately after getting home I took a super fast shower and took A to a pool party for one of her friends from school. After THAT, we went with Jessa and Jackson to see San Andreas (which I liked even though it was completely unrealistic), and celebrating at Fuzzy's Tacos for dinner. More cleaning up of the flooded basement.

Monday (16,629 steps) - It ended up being a VERY chaotic day. Without going into any drama or details, I am selling my house. We had the realtor over until it was decently late and A and I had to do some grocery shopping. We ran a mile together and A was super happy to have her first run to write about in her running journal.

Stats

• 159, 462 steps
• 40.3 miles run
• No cross training
• No strength

Everything Else

• So now that the cat is out of the bag... selling my house and in the process of selling a bunch of crap and packing. Moving is the worst.
• My stage race is coming up FAST. Packing and gathering of items has started, as well as the panic of it becoming a reality. I will not have any access to the outside world for at least a few days of the journey - which is probably a good thing. Lots of stress in my life right now and I can use the break.
• Nothing else.

Denver Trail Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Sunday, June 7

Denver, CO

Half Marathon #134

Colorado Half #67

Weather - SUNNY

 

The Denver half marathon was a free race for me. I earned an entry after volunteering at the Westminster trail half marathon on Easter. I picked this one because I figured it would fit into my schedule better than the other events.

 

We drove down to Lone Tree and arrived with about an hour until the start. Picking up our bibs took an extraordinarily long time. Not sure what the hold up was. The race director still uses shoe tags so I know matching the tag with the bib takes a bit of extra time.

 

On the way back to the car I stopped and chatted with a couple that was wearing INKnBURN - for a bit longer than I planned. By the time our conversation was done we had only a few minutes at the car to get our stuff ready and then the bathroom lines (twice) before the start. We started a few minutes late. There was also a 10k and they were scheduled to start only 15 minutes later - a concern for me when running super slow on single track.

 

The first... 5 minutes went well. Then the fire calves started. Honestly some of the worst pain I have felt in a while. I very honestly walked at least half of the first two-three miles. Not fun. For a while I think I was in very last place. Did I mention it was a billion degrees and sunny?

 

 

I've run this trail a few times before - the race I've done twice in November is partially on this course, and the Chase the Moon 12 hour run I did last year was as well. So I knew going into it that there is no shade. I also knew it was hilly but not super technical.

 

Finally after the first aid station (which thankfully, the course split for the 10k and half marathon and I didn't have to worry about jumping off the trail for the faster runners), I felt a bit better. I was still taking it VERY easy.

 

 

This is another trail that has NEVER been green when I have run on it. As much as I will say I am sick of the rain, it makes everything look really cool. I had not looked at the course profile before running so when I saw the leader heading towards me after only about 42 minutes I was thinking wow... I'm even slower than a thought. (I didn't realize that at the fork in the road we would just be on the 10k course).

 

 

Anyway, after a while I was just cruising along, taking pictures, and by about mile 5 I actually started passing people. I took this picture at the turnaround of the half marathon section. Those itty bitty clouds did not move in our direction.

 

 

I was REALLY hot. REALLY thirsty. And pretty tired. This did not leave me thinking positive thoughts for the stage race in the desert. I tried to jog as much as I could and still passed a half dozen people. Went to the turnaround for the 10k, got to the turnaround and... they were out of cups. They were rinsing out cups from the trash and offering them to people for electrolytes. No thanks. I took a gel and headed back the three miles or so towards the finish.

 

L has learned that I get really sad when all the beer is gone by the time I finish. She grabbed me one and had it ready for me when I crossed.

Official Time - 2:45:52
Garmin Time - 2:45:55
Mile 1 - 13:57
Mile 2 - 14:05
Mile 3- 14:16
Mile 4 - 12:25
Mile 5 - 12:17
Mile 6 - 11:54
Mile 7 - 12:34
Mile 8 - 12:35
Mile 9 - 12:10
Mile 10 - 13:07
Mile 11 - 12:46
Mile 12 - 12:07
Mile 13 - 10:52
Mile 13.1 - 8:13

 

Thoughts:

• ERS races are very affordable - had I paid for this I think it was either $55 or $60. Well worth it.
• Plenty of aid stations, although running out of cups on a hot day kinda sucks. If I had been using a handheld it would not have been a big deal but since I was using my old hydration vest (to make sure I have it adjusted right for next week), I didn't have anything else to put fluids in.
• They had food at the finish (I think burgers), but I did not take anything.
• Jeff (the race director) had boldly stated in his pre-race email that he GUARANTEED enough beer at this race. And he had it! The beer was from Avery Brewing, which is delicious. When I talked to him after the race he asked me if I had gotten my beer. I said I thought his comment was directed at me and he said, "well, I was thinking about you." Ha. Oh.
• I think the race shirts were probably fine, but again, I'm no longer taking them so I can't say for sure.
• Course was well-marked and there were markers at every mile. The course measured dead on for me.
• This is a good course, not too challenging, for anyone in the area looking to take a stab at running on local trails.
• This is a super busy race weekend so I probably will not be running this again in the near future, but I would recommend it.



Run the Rockies (Race Recap)

Saturday, June 6

Frisco, CO

Half Marathon #133

Colorado Half #66 (on 6/6? that's creepy)

Weather - pretty perfect

 

The Run the Rockies half marathon was planned as one of our only double weekends because it is one of the busiest race weekends in Colorado.

 

The race started at 8 am near Copper Mountain ski resort at 8 am, about 75 minutes away. We had to get there early enough to pick up our bibs and take a shuttle to the start since it was "sort of" an out and back.

 

We arrived at about 6:45 at the town hall in Frisco and easily found parking and where to get our stuff. Now that I no longer take race shirts it's nice to only have a bib to worry about. The indoor bathrooms were closed so we used one of the three port-o-potties outside. Sat in the car until about 7:20, used the bathrooms and then took the bus to the start. It was all very efficient and organized.

 

We were dropped at the Conoco station off the frontage road and it had indoor bathrooms for us to use before the start.

 

There were tiny corrals at the start line. (Which, by the way, I'm not entirely sure where it was, I just started my watch when everyone started running).

 

 

The course was going to be mostly downhill for the first 5.5 miles until we got back to the town of Frisco. The course was only on the frontage road for maybe a half mile until we got onto the bike path. WHAT A PRETTY AREA. Due to all the rain there were some areas that were partially flooded off the path, but there was no mud on the course.

 

I was really hoping that just by taking it easy I would have a good race. Turns out the fire calves would start screaming about a mile in. Grrr. I took a couple fairly lengthy walk breaks in the first 1-2 miles.

 

 

Somewhere around mile 2 I started to feel better and ran. I didn't even stop at the first aid station since I had my handheld. I had took my gel around mile 4. I was passed by the first 10k runner about a half mile later (for reference, the 10k started 30 minutes after we did).

 

 

Luckily I only got passed by about a half dozen of the speedy 10k runners. We turned right and headed out towards the high school, which was apparently the turn around at about mile 6. We did not hit the second aid station until about mile 6.5. I was glad I had my handheld as that was pretty long to go without water.

 

 

The course was JUST GORGEOUS. Just outside of town the people who live there actually drive on the bike path, so that was weird to be watching for cars there. From talking with people on the shuttle to the start I knew there would be some rollers on the second part of the course, with a biggish hill around mile 10. By miles 7-8 I was already pretty tired.

 



 

 

 

And then I figured out where the hill was going to be. I saw L heading the other direction around mile 8 or so. And then I saw people walking. If there are people HER pace walking, it's relatively tough. It was a nice downhill until the turnaround at the high school around maybe mile 9.5. The way back was substantially more difficult. Lots of walk breaks.

 

I manage to run the entire distance from mile 11 to mile 12. A few more breaks during the last mile. Just. Tired.

 

Ran it in for the finish and was rewarded with L handing me a beer right when I crossed the finish line. I think I like the beer mug more than a medal anyway.

 

Official Time - 2:27:16

Garmin Time - 2:26:55

Mile 1 - 10:27

Mile 2 - 11:40

Mile 3 - 10:09

Mile 4 - 10:16

Mile 5 - 10:37

Mile 6 - 10:46

Mile 7 - 12:02

Mile 8 - 12:12

Mile 9 - 10:48

Mile 10 - 12:22

Mile 11 - 12:13

Mile 12 - 10:27

Mile 13 - 11:59

Mile 13.1 - 9:10

 

More comments on our outfits than ever before

 

Thoughts:

• This was the 39th year for the race, and I can see why. It isn't very expensive and it was very well organized. The website could be a little more informative in terms of aid station locations and a map that is easier to read, but I had overall no complaints.
• I didn't take a shirt, but from a distance they seemed nice.
• Really like the glass mug that we got as a finisher piece.
• The aid stations were well stocked with water and I think lemonade - or at least that's what the kids were calling it. They also had "ultra" snacks like candy (although I did not take any of that either).
• There were plenty of shuttle buses and no line.
• Plenty of bathroom opportunities - there were some along the course as well.
• Course was very well marked with a marker at every mile.
• GOOD beer at the finish from Backcountry Brewery. There was also pizza!
• I have no complaints about this race. It was a good time.

Week in Review (May 26 - June 1)

Tuesday (20,348 steps) - I took the morning off from work. A was given the Principal's Award for her math skills (which she did NOT get from me).



It was also the make-up day for field day. Since it had been raining pretty much non-stop all month, I was not optimistic that the new date would be any better. We lucked out with only semi-marshy field conditions and blue skies. (It did end up raining again in the afternoon).

 

45 minutes on the elliptical after work.

Wednesday (25,756 steps) - 3.1 mile run before work. I've been testing out the morning runs to see if I can get a quality workout in before work in lieu of going to the gym. If I get up early enough I can usually do 3-6 miles (usually around 4). On this morning, my blowdryer sparked and nearly caught on fire, which delayed getting ready a bit. Sigh. 45 minutes on the elliptical after work.

Thursday (15,610 steps) - A's last day of third grade! Like last year, she wore the same outfit on the first day of school and the last so that we could do comparison shots. I dunno, she looks a LOT older to me at the end of the year. Where did the year go??

A went to a birthday party at dinner time which gave me the chance to run outside. I barely missed yet another evening rain/thunderstorm and got in just over 3 miles on the Clear Creek trail.

Friday (17,010 steps) - 4 miles before work. Legs were very tired. This was not an easy run. A had gone to Boulder with my parents for my nephew's "graduation" to middle school. She ended up staying there all day and asked if she could spend the night with her cousins. I watched a scary movie and was in bed by 10. What a crazy life I lead.

Saturday (26,919 steps) - With A not at home I got up early to do a "long run" before I needed to pick her up. I picked Clear Creek trail again. Due to all the rain I have been starting a mile further down the trail to avoid the tunnel flooding and I got to run a section I have only run one other time. It was so pretty! I took this run VERY easy - basically just to get time on my feet, and I had a great time. Just over 10 miles.

 

I drove up to Boulder to pick up A and then we had to rush home and shower so that we could go to her Girl Scout bridging. Basically what that means is she is done being a Brownie (seriously, where has the time gone) and now she is a Junior. Weather was nice, we had a BBQ and they made tee shirts to wear for next year.



After THAT - we headed directly to my nephew's birthday party. Home for about an hour and then we went to see McFarland. Again.

Sunday (27,406 steps) - Up early again. I was hoping the trails would finally be dried out enough for me to really test out the Altra Olympus trail shoes I had bought last month. I went to North Table, thinking with the lack of trees it might be more dried out than other places. There were a few muddy spots but I didn't think it was that bad. I had planned on doing the "big loop" - only to discover the north side of the trail was closed from flooding/mudslide damage. That meant that I had to go back UP the glorious downhill on that loop - a half mile long hill at 15.8% grade. I hate that hill. Just over 9 miles done. Quick review on the Altras. I HATE HATE HATE HATE HATED THEM. They felt like clown shoes. All around they felt sloppy and being so high up I felt like my ankle was rolling with every step. AWFUL AND UNCOMFORTABLE.



After lunch A and I went over to Jessa's house to help her plant flowers. Well, A helped. I sat and watched. I have a brown thumb and don't like gardening. A had a blast.



Birthday dinner with the family for my nephew's birthday. Shortest/busiest non-racing weekend EVER.

Monday (18,029 steps) - With A heading to Yellowstone with my parents for vacation, that meant I could try to sleep in and do my running AFTER work. I was hoping the weather would be warmer so that I could actually get some "heat training" in. I headed over to City Park with an open-ended plan to run for up to an hour. There is a 5k loop that I did once and stopped. It was not nearly as warm as I hoped and it rained for about 10 minutes. My ankles feel wonky after the stupid trail run in the Altra's.

I drove home, took a super quick shower and then went to Arvada Tavern to meet up with Jessa for dinner, a few beers and adult conversation.

Stats

• 151,078 steps
• 34 miles run
• 90 minutes of cross training
• No strength... oops

Everything Else

• Finally have the last of the items for my stage race ready and/or on order. I can't believe it is coming up so soon. It seemed like I was really going to have more time to prepare and now I feel like I am not. At all. I have been looking at the extended EXTENDED forecast and I for real might die. Western Colorado is looking like mid to upper 90's, while Utah is low 100's. OMG!!!
• Still waiting on the bills from A's broken arm. I have only received the one from the orthopaedist, nothing STILL from the actually facility that diagnosed her. Funny that it can take them this long to send you a bill and they will want payment immeidately. And by funny, I mean NOT.

Week in Review (May 19 - May 25)

Tuesday (18,534 steps) - I was a bit hungover from the birthday extravaganza, so I slept in. 45 minutes on the elliptical after work.

Wednesday (24,147) - It has been COLD. So that meant layering so I could run outside. In the middle of May. 4 chilly miles in. (Really, I usually don't even wear this much clothes in actual winter.)

A got her first cast taken off, and the second one put on. This will stay with her until June 10. She has decided that no one will be permitted to sign the second one. 45 minutes on the CrossRamp. 

Thursday (19,524 steps) - Up early and did some slooooow miles in the basement inferno. After work A and I went to a high school graduation. I have been friends with this gal since *I* was in high school and her son was graduating. That made me feel old...

We didn't even get home until after 9. So late.

Friday (11,533 steps) - Got up early, put on an awesome outfit. Went for a run and came back less 15 minutes later. It is STILL cold, STILL rainy. I just couldn't.

After work we met up with my mom at Chili's for her birthday dinner.

Saturday (22,809 steps) - Up early for a "long run" at Big Dry Creek. Turns out the light jacket was too much and I took that off after about 10 minutes. Everything is REALLY green right now. Remember when 7ish miles wasn't that big of a deal? I don't. 

We headed up into the mountains for the huge party my friend was having for her son's graduation. A wonderful time with good friends and lots of food. Oh, and an AWESOME fire pit.

 

Sunday (7,581 steps) - No recollection of the morning other than I stayed in bed until after 10 am and felt like I had wasted my whole day. Spent the afternoon hanging out with Jessa and Lisa. A decided to spend the night over there so I went home and watched cat videos on YouTube.

Monday (34,805 steps) - Up crazy early so we could drive to Vail for our Memorial Day half marathon. We did not hit traffic either way so we were home by lunch. Unheard of for a mountain race.

 

Got home, mowed the lawn and then L and I did a Fitness Blender upper body video. Family dinner at my parent's house.

Stats

• 138,933 steps
• 31.4 miles run
• 90 minutes of cross training
• 31 minutes of strength

Everything Else

• Normally I have ZERO social life. So for me to go out during the week, go to a party AND hang out with friends in ONE week means I was pretty active. It was exhausting.
• More "solid" miles put in, although not nearly enough for what I have coming up. Oh wells.
• Literally a "nothing of interest" week at all. Can't even find anything to say about it.