The Cubs, Cheryl and Chris' wedding and, of course, a race

Our close friends Cheryl and Chris got married this weekend in Chicago, and I was honored to serve as a bridesmaid, so we spent the long weekend in Chicago. Ted LOVES this picture of us at the Cubs game Friday. I basically spent the weekend eating, drinking and enjoying the company of friends. The bride, groom and I did take time to participate in the Soldier Field 10 mile, which runs along the lake and then finishes in Soldier Field. I felt morbidly obese and sluggish -- and it was hot. Nonetheless, I managed to finish in 1:21:20, which placed me around 80 out of 1000 women in my age group. Cheryl registered me for the race and put me down as older so I was actually placed in the wrong age group where I placed a little higher. My stomach was wrecked from all the celebrating which made it even more interesting. However, it was a great way to start what was ultimately a great day -- the wedding day!!! I am so happy for Cheryl and Chris :-)

Just another fantastic weekend. . .

My friend Quinn and I ran 14 miles in Glacier National Park on Saturday. We ran long Lake McDonald, which was a really nice flattish trail. Although the forecast screamed rain and nasty coldness, it was warm and sunny and awesome.

It appeared that there had been a bear on the trail as well. That's a lot of poop. Maybe the bear had been drinking beer the night before or something.

Big bear prints in the mud. We never saw the bear(s) thankfully.


Speaking of bears, here's an article from today's Daily Interlake about the Swan Crest 100 and the challenge by a local environmental activist. Although I am vexed by the situation, I have to admit that I'm glad someone is fighting hard for the bears, even if in this case it renders us "collateral damage" in this guy's war against the USFS. However, I don't believe for a second that our run is going to displace bears. This guy is worried (I think) about other permits being issued for different types of events. I don't really think he really believes our event is going to displace bears. I just can't believe anyone would really believe that.


In other news, today I ran with Deb, Tom and Jenny up Columbia Mountain. Since I was out dancing at the Blue Moon until bar-time last night (I was so tired!) I overslept and arrived late to the trailhead. Sonja and I booked it up the mountain until we caught our friends. It was a nice run/hike of about 8 miles. Unfortunately I was camera-less. I did remember bear spray though at least.

Ted and I have been really busy. This past weekend was the "Herron Hustle," a 5.5 mile trail run I organize for Foys to Blacktail Trails. It went well and we had great turnout. Sunday we helped out at a fundraiser/run for the dog park in Whitefish. That seemed to go really well too. Between those two things, our weekend was shot. It was a beautiful weekend! It has warmed up and you can see the snowline creep up the mountains daily. I have some fun stuff planned for the summer -- all short adventures -- and can hardly wait.

5k Race Report

On Saturday I ran the Great Northern 5k, and forgot to wear a watch. I'm pretty sure this is the first race I've run without a watch. I actually started out as first woman, for probably a good few minutes, but had no Garmin to verify that I was running too fast. I was passed by 4 other women by the time I reached the finish line, but was pleased to have run 22:12, which is a Montana PR and only 44 seconds slower than my all-time 5k PR, which was run at sea level. I previously thought this made my race time close to my PR time but that's not true. According to Jack Daniel's running formula, this is the equivalent of 21:54 at sea level. Anyhow, I'm not sure whether it was the new shoes (Nike LunarRacers), the lack of a watch or what but I'm pleased. I felt good and my legs never felt tired. Much like the Shamrock Shuffle, I actually triggered an asthma attack and was limited by breathing rather than leg speed. I don't know what's up with that but apparently I now have some manner of exercise induced asthma (it has always been allergy induced). Next 5k I'll puff my inhaler first and see if I can PR. Someday I'd like to run sub-20 minutes. That would be pretty cool.

Finally, the group ran a great 13ish mile loop today around/near Herron Park. Mostly single-track with a little double-track thrown in there. It was fantastic. I wish I had brought my camera, but I was planning on running 5 miles.

Checking up on melt progress

Ted and I went for a hike Sunday in the Jewel Basin area. We stayed pretty low but discovered that the mountains have recieved a fresh blanket of snow. Better late than never, right?The snow wasn't really deep but it was still pretty difficult to hike in. It was still nice to get outside, hike off the Derby Day mint juleps and let the dogs get some exercise.

This weekend is the Great Northern 5k, which my friend Leanne puts on every year. I think that this year I'm going to run it and see where I'm at with my 5k. Probably not very fast, but I'd like to set a Montana PR. If I could even run as fast as the last 3 miles of the Shamrock Shuffle I will have a Montana PR!

FIRST VISIT OF 2010 TO GLACIER NATIONAL PARK

On Saturday a friend and I did a 14 mile trail run in the park. The trails were relatively flat and very soft -- a perfect running surface. The trail meanders through lush green forest until Avalanche Campground, where we headed to Avalanche Lake. This is, evidently, a Glacier Lily. I thought it was a pretty yellow flower, whatever it was.
Avalanche Lake is a great early-season destination. It is always a great view though I haven't actually seen any avalanches there yet.
Today I flaked out on a planned trail run with the running group. I feel really guilty about it since I wanted to see my friends but I really felt like I needed to sleep. I slept until 11 -- I honestly can't remember the last time I slept that ridiculously late. I also feel guilty because I feel like I lost a substantial part of my weekend by sleeping so late. Ted and I did hike 6 miles in Herron Park with the dogs, which was a really nice way to spend the afternoon. It was sunny, warm and snowing, all at the same time. It was like June snow in April! :-)

RUNNING FASHION

I am a big fan of running skirts. However, I can't say I personally would want an "elkommando" skirt. My personal favorites are from http://www.runningskirts.com/. Anyhow, I recieved my Mountain Gear catalog yesterday and "read" it before bed. I was delighted to see that there are similar offerings for men. Behold the "Mountain Hardwear Elkommando Kilt."

The description states that this kilt "frees you from the restraints of shorts and pants so you can enjoy your outdoor adventure to its fullest." (Source: REI.com). I'm curious to know whether men's adventures are restrained by shorts or pants. Chris O'Connor, who paced me at Hundred in the Hood, has worn a kilt running, but I think it was meant to be funny. I'm curious to know what men think about running in a kilt and whether they would try it -- not to be funny but to avoid the restraints of pants and shorts. Me, personally, when it's hot out a skirt is much more comfortable than shorts for a variety of reasons. I wonder if this will catch on for men though?

SPOKANE RIVER RUN - 50K

Yesterday I ran the Spokane River Run 50k. I set an aggressive goal of sub-6 hours, which was silly considering I haven’t been running much all winter, but thought it would be fun to see what I could do on no training. I finished in 6:15, which included a bonus .5 mile for getting off course after some signs were moved (or something). I finished 54/70 total.

The race was really well organized and the trails were quite pretty. I had no idea that the area around Spokane was so nice. Not that I’m prejudiced against Spokane like some people are, but I never thought of it as a great trail running place. There is a large system of trails along and near the Spokane River and some interesting terrain. The course was primarily runnable though there were some climbs and some really rocky portions that were difficult to run. On the whole it is a fairly fast course for trails.

The 50k course consists of two separate 25k loops, and the loops are marked every mile. I have never done an ultra where every single mile is marked. I actually like it and it seemed to make the race go faster, even though I was also wearing my Garmin and knew my distance. There was some sort of military practice thing going on in the woods and the soliders readily allowed me to take their pictures. I thought this was weird.

It was sunny and hot, maybe in the 70s, which made me feel especially drained. Our dinner Saturday night left much to be desired, as did my choice of breakfast. I decided against using the Caffe Latte Perpetuem for the race and decided to bring my camera rather than gels. I would consume whatever was available at aid stations, which ended up being primarily fig newtons and potatos. Normally I can do fine on anything for this distance but all of these things combined left me with a really upset and sporadically painful stomach. I finished the first loop in 2:45 feeling pretty tired but still optimistic that I could finish under 6 hours.

Early into the second loop there was a fork in the trail that was marked “10k” one direction and just arrows the other. I, along with these other guys, decided we should go the “other” way (since we were not running the 10k), and quickly realized we were going the wrong way. This course is so well marked that there are arrows every few feet it seems like – it became apparent once we reached another fork, that was unmarked, that we had gone the wrong direction. I was upset at first but thought of all the people I know who have gotten lost and run many bonus miles – and realized an extra half mile was nothing. So, no big deal. But, it was a half mile extra and would make it that much more difficult to run under 6 hours.
The second loop had many pretty sections and the miles ticked down. Eventually I made it to the finish in 6:15 and was sad to learn that all the people I went to Spokane with (and my new friend I was hoping would be the women’s winner like last year) had horrible races. The heat combined with the fact that it is APRIL, which means Montanans haven’t had a lot of opportunity to do long trail runs, made it difficult for the high-achievers to achieve characteristically high. They all still had to wait 2 or more hours for me though :p

I am pleased that I have some sort of endurance-memory that allows me to run 50k on little running. I’m increasingly appreciating the fact that keeping generally active can be enough to allow me to participate in stuff like this, though it would be more fun and I would do better if I were specifically trained. On the whole I enjoyed myself thoroughly and would definitely do this race again.

First Ultra of 2010 Tomorrow!

I have impulsively decided to run the Spokane River Run 50k tomorrow since I know some others who are driving over to do this race and I can tag along. Every year I want to do this race and then I forget or am too lazy to make the trip.

This will be an interesting experiment since I haven't been running a whole lot. I am unsure how this will go. I think it's two 25k loops, so if it's a disaster and I know it soon enough I can bail half way. But I'm optimistic that I will have some sort of endurance-memory. I don't really know what a reasonable goal is for this race since I haven't been running, so I'm going to set a somewhat agressive goal and try to run sub-6 hours. Plus, I will be the last one finishing among the guys I'm riding over with so hopefully the motivation of not having people wait around for me all day will help me run faster.

Another interesting experiment is that I plan to use a totally new fueling approach and use coffee flavored beverage during the race. Since I don't really run much any more I haven't had the need/opportunity to test it out. I'm sure it will be fine -- I think race day is a FUN time to try new things.

The final interesting experiment will be to see if I can even remember what I need to pack for an ultra.

Ying/Yang Weekend

Saturday was warm and gorgeous so Sonja and I did a 9 mile trail run on some lower-elevation trails that were mostly clear of snow. It was so wonderful to be outside.
I don't have pictures yet, but Sunday I skinned up Big Mountain with friends and it was cold, blizzardy and icy. It was hard to ski down the chopped up ice. Realizing how unfun it was, although I could manage it (slowly), I took my skis off and walked down the last third. There was glare ice mixed with chunks of ice mixed with other manner of ice. Blech. Not awesome at all.

Where are the plows?

It's that time of year folks -- the workers are plowing Going to the Sun Road in Glacier National Park. You can track their progress here. Their progress is frequently hindered by snow storms and avalanches, but the worker bees dutifully keep plowing best they are able.

There's a period of time where the road is closed to cars but is open to cyclists and foot traffic. Biking in the park in the springtime is really great, especially on a sunny day. Below is a picture from a few years ago when my friend Cat (who moved to Hawaii, boo hoo) and I biked to Avalanche Campground (which it appears will be cleared very soon!) and hiked to Avalanche Lake. I am anxious to get back there.

I have spring fever!

CLOSING WEEKEND

so sad

Today was closing day on Big Mountain. It snowed and then the sun came out. It was pretty great and the skiing was actually pretty good. I'm a little sad that this fun winter is drawing to a close, and am especially not thrilled about the "shoulder"season of melt. Not enough snow to ski but not enough melt to get into the high country for hiking.
Above, left to right, are Corey, Shawn and me. They were my ski buddies all winter, although they actually snowboard. Shawn basically taught me to ski. He is a ski instructer technically though he mostly teaches snowboarding.

Sonja will be really sad to see the snow melt. She loves snow. Yesterday we went on a trail run in Herron Park and she was pleased to find some remaining snow.

This was a really fun winter. I truly think that having a winter sport is critical living in a winter wonderland like northwestern Montana. It makes living here that much more incredibly fun. There's really just so much to do. Even if you're not into exercise, snowmobiling is probably fun (though it's stinky and loud). But what seems important is being able to get out there and enjoy this incredibly beautiful place and take full advantage of each season. Yay!

SPRING IS SPRINGING (early)

My friend Angie, pictured above, and I hiked to Bond Lake on Sunday. The trail, Bond Creek, is 12 miles round trip and meets up with the Alpine #7 trail 2 miles from Bond Lake where we turned around.
There was plenty of snow still but things seemed to be turning green and the world beneath the snow is slowly emerging. It makes me so excited about trail running! I'm glad I've essentially taken the winter off from running because I'm genuinely excited to get back out there.

Also, this was a new trail for me and I'm pretty sure I will want to get back out there. Perhaps on a hot day I will take a little swim. . .

CHICAGO!

I spent the past week and a half in Chicago, where I previously lived (for 5+ years). And Montana is doing a huge ad campaign in Chicago -- many of the busses scream MONTANA! When I think of Chicago, I normally feel unsettled and not altogether positive about my former home. I now realize, however, that the stress of work and such influenced my feelings about the city a lot. Even though my time in Chicago this past week was incredibly busy and, at times, stressful, I enjoyed being back and think it's a great city afterall. I suppose it was a little like seeing an old friend you've totally lost touch with. I felt nostalgic, and at times a little sad. I left behind such great friends, and it was nice to spend a wee bit of time with them. Cheryl and Chris were nice enough to let me stay with them, and I got to see Joe and Kate, in addition to my friends Julie, Jen and Kimber. There were a lot of people I would have liked to see, but was unable to see. I attended a trials skills workshop and it was pretty time consuming and intense. But very helpful.

About that workshop. I've been reflecting on the experience on my way home, and what struck me is how I came across as totally lacking confidence. I learned ways to speak that remedy this impression, which was very helpful. The truth is, I don't lack confidence. I'm not over-confident, but I think I have the right amount of confidence. What I realized is I'm too embarassed to *act* confident and assertive, and I've developed a shtick that I thought would be usefully disarming and endearing. It just comes across as being unconfident which is poor advocacy. I'm glad I realize that now and will practice all the skills I've learned. I think I will be a better lawyer.


Finally, back to running, I ran the Shamrock Shuffle 8k and finished in 38:34, which is around a 7:4x pace, and was 2775 out of 25,561. Considering we jumped in the corral as the gun went off, and were just planning to jog and have fun, I was pretty impressed. Cheryl and I ran together and it was sort of fun spending the whole time weaving through the masses and pretending to be fast. It seems fast when you're passing people, even if you're not really running fast. It was a great way to end the week -- finishing the goofy race hand-in-hand with my buddy Cheryl.

FANTASTICAL WEEKEND!

Shawn took Corey and me up to Hellroaring Peak, which involved a lovely hike. I wore my skins and they carried their boards.
The sun was shining and the sky was blue. Does life get better than this? I am embarassed to admit though that at one point on the way down I took my skis off and carried them. I'm really not good in the trees. . . but it was really fun to get into the "slackcountry." Yesterday was similarly gorgeous. I got up early, hiked up the mountain, took a few turns and enjoyed some beer. Have I mentioned that life is good?

This week I head to Chicago for "trial school" and will be there for about a week and a half. I miss my friends and am looking forward to seeing them, but I can't say I think we made a bad choice with the relocation thing.

I think ski season is winding down with all this sun and warm weather we've been getting. I'm looking forward to trail running! Wheeeeeeee!!!

I ran a half marathon

Saturday I ran the Snow Joke half marathon in Seeley Lake for, I believe, the fourth time. I finished, according to my watch, in 1:53:29. Last year I finished in 1:52:59 (I think). So, pretty close. The differences were that 1) I haven't been running this year hardly, 2) I ran without Sonja this year and 3) I kept an even pace for almost the whole race. I made it my goal to maintain an 8:30 pace start to finish, and I stayed on pace until around mile 10 or 11 when I slowed a bit. The race is hilly and at 4,000 feet so I actually feel pretty good about my run. Especially given the fact that I've been running about 10-15 miles per week on average. So, I'm not sure what the take away is, but maybe it won't be so much work to re-qualify for Boston, especially now that I only need a 3:45 (I turn 35 this summer and will be bumped into the next age group). Or, maybe, running more miles doesn't help me especially. Who knows.

Yesterday I skiied and it was another great day. I made it down the moguled black run and fell only once. The snow was really soft which helped on the moguls but made it really hard to ski the normal slopes. It was like wet cement. Ouch.

MORE SUNSHINE

Yesterday I spent the day on the ski hill with friends and the sunny awesome weather made me really brave. I skiied the above and the below. I fell down a lot. But it was so much fun.
It was even more beautiful than Saturday. It's amazing what some blue sky and sunshine can do for the soul. Evidently, this is why so many people live in places like California.

But when the sun does come out here it's a step above the unbelievable it is anyhow.

CONFESSIONS OF THE SUN-STARVED

I knew it was supposed to be a sunny day, so I planned to get up early and skin up Big Mountain before running errands for Leanne's baby shower, and going to said baby shower. The first clue that I needed some sun was that I stuck with my plan and got up BEFORE the alarm, despite having thrown back a few beers last night. I couldn't wait.
As I drove up to Big Mountain I was almost frenzied. I said out loud "please sun hold tight I'm ALMOST THERE! DON'T GO ANYWHERE!" I was so scared the sun would decide it had enough already and leave me. I drove a little faster than I should have (or needed to) up the road and almost got goosebumps as I ascended in elevation and saw nothing but sparkly snow and bluebird sky.

Elated, I marched up the mountain. I chit chatted with the sun the whole way. I wonder if it visits rarely because I talk to it like a dog. "You're such a good sunshine..." Yes I'm sure it has to do with me. The entire hike up was pure bliss and I really didn't want it to end. This is unusual because skinning up the mountain is pretty laborious. I wore my heart rate monitor for the first time doing this and my average was about 30 bpm higher than when I run normally. It took me 80 minutes to get to the top, including stops for view-drinking and picture-taking. Others hiked past me like I was standing still. I guess I'm not really good/fast despite my heart rate. It's not a race of course. Anyhow, it was just so blissfully wonderful I had an ear-to-ear grin the entire time. And then whoooosh I skiied down and tried to hold on to the high as I headed to consumption junction for shower prep. The moral of the story is that I really needed some sun. I needed bluebird sky. I felt like junkie getting a much-needed fix. I think tomorrow's going to be this way too. I love you sun.

THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE AND SPRING FEVER

Photo lifted from blog of Jeffery Rogers from Oakland, CA, whose photos I've been drooling over all week. . . thanks JR from O and sorry I shamelessly stole this pic :-)

While the south has been pummeled (sp?) with unusual quantities of snow, we here in the great white north have received little snow and have instead enjoyed unseasonably warm temperatures. This is frustrating for someone with her first ski pass and love of snow. The snow is almost melted in town. I guess I'm still a runner deep down in my heart because I'm developing spring-fever and a longing for dry runnable trails. I've been sitting at work fantasizing about the Alpine 7 and Glacier NP. So, what's a girl to do but register for a race so that the longing can be channeled into some planning and preparation? I registered for the Devil's Backbone 50 near Bozeman. My goal is to finally, for the first time in awhile, be semi-serious about training properly. I know this isn't really the type of race where finish time will make logical sense or be comparable to anything else, but I want to be in shape for this and not dragging along at the back-of-the-pack like I normally do. I'm actually excited about the process of training again. I lost that but I think it's back. At least for now ;)

P.S. A sweet blog you should check out is Steve and Kathleen's. I've been "tagged" by them in some honorable bloggy way that I don't understand but am delighted by.

SKI TOURING IN BANFF

For the long weekend (yeah, for some reason we got President's Day off) I went to Banff to visit friends Keith and Leslie and get in some ski touring. I've been working hard this winter learning to ski for the very purpose of being able to ski tour.
On Saturday we did a 4 hour or so tour out of bounds at Sunshine. I quickly became frustrated by 1) how different powder skiing is and how I still had to make pizza turns and 2) how turning on ascents was still difficult for me. As Keith pointed out, I haven't ski toured since last year when I went with them, and this was my second time ever. . . but it seems like it will take a lifetime for me to aquire all the skills I need. I guess that's why they make life relatively long. So you can learn your skills.
The views were, of course, beautiful and it was a wonderful day. Keith and Leslie are patient and good teachers. I required extra patience due to how quickly I would get upset with myself for not magically being better.
On Sunday Leslie and Keith (along with a group of their friends) took me to Ptarmigan Valley near Lake Louise for a long long ski tour (6 hours?). This was fantastic though I had some blisters and was, again, frustrated early on. Once it became evident that the discomfort wouldn't increase, I was able to enjoy the experience for what it was -- fantastic filled with awesomeness. See all my pictures here.