Sometimes things just click...

I've been having the best couple months of my running life ever this summer. I don't want to jinx it but I don't want to pretend it's not happening either. Maybe it's the fact that I've been doing CrossFit and other cross training on a consistent basis now. Maybe it's the fact that I've met some other ultra runners in real life and they're encouragement is feeding my enthusiasm. Maybe it's the fact that it's been almost a year since our youngest was born (really?! How did THAT happen?!). Whatever it is, I am loving every minute of it.

Just 9 short days ago I was finishing my first 100k and first 100 mile attempt(read about it here: Secret Race Report ). I thought I would be wrecked for weeks. Probably barely able to get off the couch for ice cream and not able to put shoes on without help. Yet, only 2 days later I went for a 5 mile run. I was slow, I was sore, but I was victorious! It was amazing to me that I could do that and that I WANTED to do that still. If anything my thirst for running has only increased since the VTU. I jumped back into CrossFit a little too quickly. I went to the box 4 days after VTU and attempted a simply deadly ladder workout my trainer devised. My quads were a mess for two more days from that alone. I took those two days off and worried and fretted about the planned trail run I had with a fellow ultra runner over the weekend.



Saturday morning I got up at the crack of dawn and drove an hour and a half to meet my friend (and her hubby) that you may remember from the Hell Hath No Hurry 6 Hour Trail Race. She's seriously a rock star! See?!



We met up with two other runners and drove another hour and a half to the trail head of the Baker Trail in Cook's Forest where I'll be running my 50M next month. My friend's hubby is also running the full 50 and the rest of the group is running the relay. We had originally planned on doing a 12 mile out and back for a total of 24 miles. The guys decided that an 18-ish mile point-to-point was better so we parked one vehicle at a road crossing with the trail and the other a half mile from the trail head. If we had only know what would happen from there!

The guys went out faster than the ladies and it wasn't more than 100 yards onto the trail before they were gone for good! Our group of gals managed to get turned around twice, run out of water twice, spot a giant bird, climb a fire watch tower, and generally induce more mayhem than necessary into trail running! I loved every minute of it! When we finally found the end car, 22+ miles later, we were ever so grateful that the guys were faster. They had chairs and food and bevies (the new word for beverages apparently!) ready and waiting. It turned out to be an awesome way to spend a Sunday! Oh, and I found out that Newton was a Red Eft, or a juvenile salamander/newt. How cool is that?!



Fire Tower. Yeah, we climbed that!:


I probably should have been recovering Monday but I took advantage of my husband and I both being off and we headed for Kennywood, the local amusement park. It was really fun but my flip flops rubbed some gnarly blisters on the tops of my feet! I won't make that mistake again!

Today I checked my friend's Facebook page and saw that she was looking for someone to run with in the afternoon. I couldn't pass up another opportunity for hilarity and we met on a rails-to-trails trail for a quick run. It turns out that, while our trail pace is perfectly compatible, I have some work to do on the flat! She held me to just over a 9-minute mile for the first few and then let me slip a little on the way back. We ended up with 6 miles at just barely over a 10 minute-mile pace. For 1PM in almost 90* heat with high humidity I am super happy with that. If I keep running with her I should be setting PR's in no time! I'm going to try to drive up for one of her running group's runs in the near future. You can never have to many 'solemates' as I've come to call my trail BFF.



All in all, I don't know how long this good running can last. I don't know if going from 80 mile months to 100 mile months to 120 mile months is going to burn me out over such a short period of time. But I do know that I'm going to take in every minute it lasts and enjoy it thoroughly. All I can do is hope that running continues to be such a source of joy in my life for years to come and that I continue to meet such amazing people who push me to better myself in every way!

My Secret Race Report

I secretly have been working towards taking on the Viaduct Trail Ultramarathon 100 Mile race. This is the story and I'll warn you that it's very long because I don't want to forget a thing and I want new ultra runners to be able to learn from my mistakes!

Trip
I didn’t tell anyone I was doing this race except my husband. As far as my mom and in-laws knew we just wanted a weekend of camping and roughing it without kids. I really felt I needed to only listen to myself on this. There were too many voices giving their input on all of my training and races these past months and I was ready to trust myself and do what I thought was best. My husband and I left home around 2PM on Friday afternoon. We dropped the kids off with my mother and then headed out for the six or so hour drive. After stopping for dinner, bathroom breaks, and some last minute supplies we arrived at Luciana Park in Lanesboro, PA around 11PM. When we pulled into the park we found the two RD’s, Carl and David, camping under the Viaduct. They directed us where to park and we quickly took a spot in the line of cars already there. Thankfully we had already done a trial run with our tent so we were able to get it erected pretty quickly in the dark and roll out our sleeping bags. I didn’t sleep well at all. I was nervous, uncomfortable, too hot, too cold, too many bugs, crazy dreams, etc. At 4AM I finally gave up and decided my nervous energy would be better suited to pre-race preparations.
Pre-race
I went out to my Jeep to grab the rest of our bags and found the morning was already pleasantly warm. I dressed in shorts, a singlet, and gaiters over my Asics Trabuco trail shoes. I ate a Clif bar and drank an Ensure while I double checked my drop bags which were actually two totes. I’d labeled them start/finish and turn around and my name. Inside each was extra clothes, food, drink mixes (Nuun and amino), S!caps, arm warmers, a jacket, and a smaller box with medical and night supplies (extra batteries, head lamp, flashlights, moleskin, duct tape, etc). Being a self-supported race, I was probably over-prepared but I also wanted to be prepared to help other runners if necessary. I took my totes to the start/finish area as well as some Gatorade and other foodstuff I had brought to donate to the community pot. People that hadn’t spent the night in the park were starting to trickle in and I spent the rest of my free time chatting with David and some of the volunteers and pacers that were hanging around. I learned that there were 3 runners attempting 200 miles already out on the course with the leader at around 125 already. There were also 2 returning 100 milers that had taken the early 4AM start and were out on the course.
Course
The course was described as ‘stony, unimproved rail trail’ with a 900 foot gradual incline on the 12.5 mile out and then obviously 900 foot decline on the 12.5 mile return trip. One tenth of a mile from the start there was a wooden bridge with six inch gaps between the rotting railroad ties making up the span and no sides to prevent you from going into the shallow, rocky river if you tripped. This bridge was by far one of the scariest things I’ve ever encountered on a race course. About a mile later was another wooden bridge but there were no gaps aside from a few rotted out missing planks. At the 6 mile mark an ultra runner that couldn’t run this year decided to participate by setting up an aid station instead. It was the best aid station I’ve ever seen but I’ll get to that later. There were two ‘minor’ dips where railroad trestles had been removed. Only once I was out there did I learn that minor is a relative term. The first ‘dip’ was 7 miles in and about a half mile in length, so around a quarter mile going down and then a quarter mile back up the other side. It was rather grassy and soft so I didn’t mind it so much. The second ‘dip’ was much, much larger and came around 9.5 miles in. It was all loose stone and dirt and it wound first left and then right on the downhill leaving you scrambling for traction if you went faster than snail pace. At the bottom you crossed a dirt road and then a wooden bridge over a river. As you proceeded up the other side there are two stone pillars that used to support the trestle. The incline was steep and seemed to take forever to climb. There was no time to catch your breath on the other side because it instantly went into my least favorite part of the course. Apparently the trail council that owns the trail decided, since it is primarily used by ATV’s and snowmobiles, that heavy coarse rocks were the best substrate and laid a thick layer this spring. They didn’t think to leave an un-graveled area for walkers/runners so for 2.5 miles there was no way of avoiding tripping, stumbling, and twisting your ankles and knees. If I had known about this ‘un-improvement’ before I arrived I might have found another hundred for my first instead.
First Lap – Out
David gave all the runners, 13 total for the 6AM start, a quick pre-race talk about what turns to watch out for and potential issues, including bears that had been frequenting the area, and we started promptly at 6AM. My first lap out I wanted to take it pretty easy and just get the lay of the land. I tried to get to the back of the pack but everyone seemed to have the same idea so I just went out at a comfortable pace (I didn’t wear my Garmin for the first lap) and let people pass as they felt like it. I soon found myself at the back of the pack save for three people behind me. I was running comfortably with a man named Bob. We chatted and discussed which areas looked good to run and which were too rocky and were therefore better to walk. I saw a deer crossing the trail in the early morning light as I approached the middle aid station. It turned out that the aid station volunteer at mile 6 was Bob’s wife and she had the best spread ever set up. There were homemade cookies, melon, grapes, cherries, bread, potatoes, chips, pretzels, chocolate, etc. Somehow that aid station just kept growing throughout the race with more volunteers and more food meeting your every need. It was wonderful! I had reached this aid station precisely on track at 7:27AM. I grabbed pretzels and then Bob and I continued on until just after the first dip. At that point he seemed to be speeding up so I dropped back to the run with the couple just behind us. The woman’s name was Louise and her partner was a man that I didn’t catch his name. We saw the leader coming back from the turn around when we were at the second dip. He was really moving and my first reaction was “that’s way too fast for a hundred”. He advised me of an easy to miss turn and I thanked him and continued on. I reached the turnaround at 9:15AM and dropped my singlet in favor of running with just a sports bra. I also drank an Ensure and grabbed a baggie of pretzel sticks to eat on the way back. I tried to wait for Louise and her friend but they lingered and I didn’t want to waste time.
First Lap – Back
It didn’t take them long to catch me on the rocky section as I walked and munched my pretzels. I could see where my Trabuco’s were too poorly cushioned in the forefoot for running on fist-sized gravel. I made up my mind to only walk, carefully, on the heavily graveled areas. I started seeing bright red lizards on the trail warming themselves in the sun. I asked a passing runner what they were and he said newts. I started seeing more frogs and bugs too. I was very grateful for having applied insect repellant (and sunscreen)in the morning. Once I passed the deeper dip I picked up a little momentum to try to reach my goal of 6 – 6:30 for the first 25 mile lap. Just after the 6 mile aid station I found another newt so I put him in an empty baggie to take back and show my husband. Louise named him Newton. The remainder of this lap was uneventful except that Louise turned out to be absolutely petrified of the bridge with the gaps. She didn’t say anything until she was on the bridge and then I couldn’t pass her without getting dangerously close to the open edges. It took a long and tense 10 or 15 minutes to get across the bridge but we made it and I hustled into the start/finish at 12:40PM. My husband griped that I was late but quickly mixed me up a new batch of Nuun and shoved some S!caps my way while I downed another Ensure. He had me back out on the trail in around 2-3 minutes. I meant to have him take a picture of Newton the newt before he released him but I forgot and he didn’t think to do it.
Second Lap – Out
I went back out with Louise again and I tried to get in front of her before the bridge but it didn’t happen. Another long, tense battle with Louise’s terror ensued. It wasn’t long after that that I decided to strike out on my own. I put on my iPod and started moving faster hoping to make up some of the time I had lost on the first lap and at the bridge. I saw the leader again looking pretty rough about 3 miles out. It turned out that he had no idea of pacing and ended up dropping after finishing 50 miles in something like 8 hours. At the 6 mile aid station I had some melon, cookies, and more pretzels. I also dumped my last couple sips of nuun in favor of plain water in my UD handheld. I was taking 2 S!caps every hour now because it was getting very hot quickly. I knew the forecast was calling for high 80’s and little cloud cover. My small handheld had been more than enough to get me between aid stations up to this point but from the 6 mile aid station to the turn around it wasn’t enough in the heat and direct sun. It was empty while I was still almost 4 miles from the turn around. I started to feel horrible after about a mile with no liquid and get what I called the ‘jumpies’ where I would see movement out of the corner of my eye and whip my head around only to find nothing there. Things continued to deteriorate until I thought there were frogs all over the trail but it was just rocks and they weren’t really moving. I was in dire straits and I knew I probably would have to drop at the turn around if I didn’t figure something out and soon. That’s when my savior appeared. Bob was on his way back from the turn around and saw me looking like death warmed over. He was wearing a camelback and offered to half fill my bottle to get me the last 2 miles to the turn around. I will owe him forever! I took 2 S!caps with what he’d given me and then chugged the rest. The last little bit to the turn around was still rough but I was feeling improved and I knew a small rest would do me good. I sat down on the ground and changed my socks and switched to my Nathan HPL 020 hydration vest, ditching my handheld. I ate a brownie and grabbed a bag of dill pickle chips and some more pretzel sticks.
Second Lap – Back
As I walked the rocky section I ate my chips and I could feel everything returning to normal. I took 2 more S!caps and continued to keep things slow until after the deeper dip. On the other side of the dip I caught up to a 200 mile runner named Tom. He was having foot problems thanks to the rocks but he only had one more lap to go after this one before he was done so he was going very slowly in hopes he would feel good for the last lap. I saw 2 snakes warming themselves during this lap but they moved away quickly as we approached. We continued on together chatting and discussing strategies until the midway aid station. Once I reached the 6 mile aid station I grabbed some cookies, melon, and more water and then decided it was time to move. I started to feel really, REALLY good so I went with it. I watched my miles times drop into the 12’s, and then the 11’s, and finally the 10’s as I neared the start/finish. I saw Bob about 3 miles out and he asked how I was doing. I thanked him profusely for the race-saving water and he said he was glad to help and very happy to see me moving so well again. I continued on and crossed the bridge grateful to be able to tackle it alone this time without anyone else’s fear tainting the atmosphere. I cruised into the start/finish at a sub-9 pace around 8PM and skidded to a stop in front of a very startled Louise and friend shouting, “Hola amigos!” They had apparently just finished telling my husband of my imminent demise and how I had probably dropped at the turn around and if I hadn’t I probably would when I finally made it back. HAHA! My husband had beefaroni and goodies waiting for me. He had everything packed and ready for pacing me through the night and I couldn’t wait to get back out there. David wished us well and we walked off into the twilight.
Third Lap – Out
It got dark very quickly on the third lap out. It took both my husband and I by surprise just how dark it was out there considering how bright the moon was. At first we were jumpy and scared but it wasn’t long before we kind of got into the swing of it and began to enjoy ourselves. As my dinner digested and the blood returned to my legs our pace quickened and we discussed how fast we should complete this lap to get me back out on the fourth lap before the 4:30AM cut off. I wanted to go for 6.5 -7 hours so that we would be back before 3AM giving me time to get off my feet for a couple minutes and recharge for the final trek. Looking back now I was so confident and I was feeling really good. It’s still kind of surreal that things went from that point to DNF so quickly. By the 6 mile aid station my legs were finally starting to protest a little and I told my husband I wanted 5 minutes for this stop instead of 2-3. I sat for the first time since setting out and drank some chicken noodle soup. I took some Endurolytes and massaged my legs. I looked at my watch and realized we’d been there for 7 minutes. I boosted myself to my feet and we continued on. After the first dip I started to notice the balls of my feet were getting really tender. I became even more careful of avoiding the rocks where possible but I was tripping and stumbling a lot in the dark. By the time we reached the second dip I knew things weren’t good but I still figured I could piece myself together at the turn around. I was mentally and physically capable of continuing in all regards except for the balls of my feet. Right around this point David came by pacing the new leader, Eli. He could tell I wasn’t the same chipper girl who had blazed into the start/finish just a couple hours before. He asked me a few questions and I told him I would talk to him more on his way back after he got Eli to the turn around and after I had more time to evaluate my condition. My feet went from tender to feeling like someone was shoving red hot razor blades into the balls of my feet after the second dip. Our pace dropped to the point where time meant nothing anymore. I was quickly realizing today would not be my day. A runner and his pacer on their final lap caught us and offered me some Ibuprofen. I gratefully accepted but I knew in my heart it was futile. I still had a vague hope of being able to death march back to the start to at least get 75 miles for the day. My husband continued to support me as I hobbled and cursed and grew angrier and angrier at the rocks causing my pain. I have to say that my husband was the most amazing support ever. He even gave me his own jacket when I got chills despite my own jacket and arm warmers. He froze his rear off for 7 hours to get me to that turnaround. We tried to make the best of it, turning out our lights when I needed to pause so we could enjoy the display of stars, and listening intently as a pack of coyotes started howling and yipping somewhere near our left side. It seemed like a long time before David and Eli came back but in reality I know it wasn’t. I told him the Ibuprofen hadn’t touched the pain but that I still had hopes of righting myself at the turn around. He encouraged me to listen to my body and not injure myself unnecessarily. He had already warned the turn around volunteers that I would need assistance and that I would be needing a ride back to the start if I did decide to drop. He also told me that I was about a mile from the turn around. I thanked him and told him and Eli to keep up the good work before shuffling off into the dark again. When I finally reached the last road crossing before the turn around I only felt relief. My utter lack of hope and increasing pain was another signal that I was ready to be done. I hobbled into the aid station and they got me into a chair and packed a sleeping bag around me. Food and drink was shoved at me and my husband removed my right shoe to evaluate the damage. There was absolutely no visible signs of trouble with my feet, not a single blister, red spot, or discolored nail. This was the final nail in the coffin. I knew that whatever was wrong with my feet wouldn’t be fixed with duct tape and moleskin and I had trouble even getting my shoe back on as my foot puffed up quickly once freed. I still waited it out for about 20 minutes before I made the final DNF decision. It was already 3AM so I knew there was no chance of making the cutoff for the final lap start and I learned that most of the field of 15 had already dropped (only 6 people actually finished this year). One of the volunteers tried to encourage me to change shoes and socks and hobble back so I could at least get 75 miles but I reminded myself of David’s advice and decided to just hitch a ride. We thanked everyone and jumped into a car with one of the founding fathers of the race, Rylan. He got us back to the start quickly, almost hitting a very scared deer on the way. I wonder if it was those coyotes we heard earlier? As soon as he dropped us off at our tent I felt all the events of the day hit me like a ton of bricks.
After
I stumbled into our tent and changed into pajamas as quickly as my body would allow. I slipped into my sleeping bag and was snoring before my husband was even done stowing away our gear. I slept fitfully for the next 5 hours as I could hear the volunteers clapping and cheering for the finishers. I would half wake and think, “that should have been me”, and then drift back to sleep. I woke up feeling disappointed but no regret so I know I made the right decision. My husband and I packed up and thanked everyone. David asked if I would come back again next year and I tried to be nice about declining but I don’t see how I would ever want to subject myself to that again (the rocks, not the hundred). Driving home I slept more peacefully for a few hours before awaking to my hunger. My husband told me I couldn’t go into a restaurant wearing fuzzy slippers and smelling like I’d been running for the last 21 hours. I told him that I would gladly eat him instead. We compromised and he let me enter a restaurant but I had to abandon my fuzzy slippers in favor of flip flops. Now that we’re home and showered and unpacked I feel good about the experience. I’m much less nervous about my upcoming 50M and 100k because I know I can cover the distance and I know more about my body and what it needs. I also feel surprisingly good physically. I don’t have a single blister, chafe, or hot spot. A few sore and stiff muscles that are loosening up quickly are the worst of my problems. Even my feet feel pretty good even though the balls are still fairly swollen. I don’t think I’ll be cramming them into running shoes in the next couple days but other than that they’re okay. I’m already looking forward to finding another 100M to tackle. Next time I’ll do more investigating to make sure I’m not going to be running on rocks all day! Other than that I don’t think I would change a single thing about this experience (except for not taking any pictures).

Hell Hath No Hurry

I did this 6 hour trail race on a whim (no it's not my big secret!). I found out about it two days before and was still debating whether or not I would go the night before. I had run the Lisa Clay Styles Memorial 5k on Saturday pushing Ash in the stroller and I was a little sore in my back. I decided to set my alarm and if I got up then I would go.

My alarm went off at 3:30 AM and I shut it off but I couldn't go back to sleep. I almost felt guilty not getting up. So I nudged my husband and told him I still wanted to run. He said he didn't mind so off I went. I don't really remember getting dressed or eating but obviously I did.

I left around 4AM and drove the hour to the park where the race was being held. There were no exact directions to the start so I just drove around until a shaggy hippy looking guy drove by in the opposite direction and asked if I was looking for a race. Turns out it was Peter, the RD, so I followed him around as he put out the rest of the signs and then made his way to the start. Another vehicle joined our parade and we found our way down a dirt and cinder road to the dead end.

We helped Peter set up a table and canopy that would act as registration, aid, mileage tracking, etc. A few more people began arriving and we chatted and ate some donuts. I noticed there were few women and I wasn't sure if that was good or bad. We chatted and most of the runners had done many, many ultras. I got lots of good advice and insight on my upcoming fall ultras from people who have done them before.

Peter sent us on our way at 6AM almost on the dot. I got in the back of the line except for one guy who insisted on being behind me (turns out he had to pee and quickly passed me after a mile or two). I was directly behind another woman and we almost immediately started chatting. It was kind of hard on the muddy, rocky single track trail but we became quick friends and stuck together until she dropped out.

The first loop I was wondering if I would make 6 hours. I haven't done much of that kind of trail since I moved into our current house. I was constantly side stepping or leaping over mud puddles and trying to avoid roots, rocks and logs. There was a really steep muddy downhill that ended with two stream crossings. There was a short road portion and a few field crossings. The rest was forest and it left me with a good many scratches and whip marks from the foliage.

After the first 5.5 mile loop I grabbed some chips, gummy bears, and mountain dew (thought it was Gatorade!) and headed back out with my new friend. She told me she was going to stop after this loop and I was a little upset. I haen't enjoyed a conversation that much in a long time! I guess I was finally warmed up for the second loop because I didn't feel like I was working as hard and it seemed easier to avoid the puddles and obstacles.

At the end of the second loop my new friend decided she didn't want to ditch me yet so we headed out together for a third (and final for her) loop. We discussed everything from running to work to relationships and the loop flew by. It was on this loop that we were finally lapped by the leader. I really expected it to happen much sooner! The 5 mile (9AM start) racers started to catch us at this point too. One of the 5 mile racers is a local hasher and brought her dog along. She let him off leash and we spent half this loop with him at our heels. I was scared at first because he kept jumping on us from behind and then he calmed down and just hung out with us. I hope the owner got him because on the road portion I had to stop him from chasing a truck and getting smushed. After I took away his fun he would no longer stay with us and I didn't see him again. At the end of this loop I realized I had almost 2 hours to finish another big loop and then head for the smaller 1.6 mile loop to add as much mileage as I could.




I bid my farewells to my friend, refilled my bottle with Gatorade (the real stuff this time!) and headed back out. The fourth loop was really hard for me mentally. I felt great in the physical sense but I really missed the easy banter I'd been having with my friend and since I'd been following her the whole time I hadn't paid attention to the course. I had to pay close attention to the ribbons and be careful not to miss a turn. I almost got run over by a couple mountain bikers who didn't have the curtousy to yell before they were right behind me and I heard their bikes on my own. Luckily, I had foregone my iPod for this run.

I saw the leader again going the other way on the 1.6 mile loop and again when he decided he had time for a fifth big loop. I tried to stay with him but he was blazing and he was much braver in the slippery, sticky mud than I was. I lost him after about 3/4 of a mile. After that I was on my own until the last 1/2 mile or so. I enjoyed the scenery and the wildlife (2 deer, many chipmunks and squirrels, rabbits, crows, and something big crashing through the tall grass a few feet to my right). About a 1/2 mile from the end a man and a woman came tearing by me. I couldn't believe how fast they were going so I made up my mind to stick to them and see if I could finish this loop in time to do a 1.6 mile loop. On the last little bit, a BIG uphill along a powerline, to the finish they seemed to die. I was still feeling good so I asked to pass and ran the hill to the finish. I had 18 minutes left on the clock and I *might* have been able to get in a small loop in that time but I was happy enough with finshing 22 miles in 5:42.

Turns out the woman who passed me at the end was the one who took first place. She'd had the male pace her to get in one last big lap so she could overtake me. Guess that's why she was moving so fast! I was a little disappointed that I didn't get the award because it was a neat little handmade metal thing that had been welded together into the letters HHNH and Peter hand inscribed the 1st place male and females names and mileage on each. Very different!

The men's leader finished with 32.3 miles and the first woman with 27.5. The rest of the runners ranged from 11 miles up to 26.8. Overall I'm pretty pleased with my 22. I took second place and got a nice Mizuno shirt from the owner of the LRS. He told me pics would be up last night but they still aren't. I hope they go up soon because I look forward to seeing them for sure! We all chatted for a little while as we helped break down the tent and chairs. I scarfed down a PB&J before driving home and contemplating how much faster I would have to go to make 5 big loops next year!

Shameless Self Promotion

Sometimes it's healthy to toot your own horn so I thought I would give myself a pat on the back today instead of never feeling like my accomplishments are good enough. Today I set a new PR on the deadlift for 3 reps. Not only did I set the new PR but my trainers said my form is perfect! That excited me more than a new PR, which by the way is 65 pounds heavier than my old one. I also got my trainer to take a picture on what I thought would be the last set. Here's me deadlifting about my own body weight, 135 lbs.



But 135 wasn't my max! I went on to deadlift 145lbs 3 times, even after doing 8 sets of 3 before it. The coaches think my 1 rep max would be around 180-185 pounds right now. I can't wait to see if they're right and if I can break into the 200's before fall! Sweet!

So what was your accomplishment today?

Mission Impossible?

It's been awhile since I've posted (what else is new?) but that's because I'm working on something big, EPIC is probably even better (though overused). It's a top-secret mission only my husband and I know about but the clock is ticking down and planning is in the works for something incredible!

In the interim I've been working hard at CrossFit. I went from a 3 rep max of 75lbs on backsquat to a 3 rep max of 95lbs! I wanted to go for the triple digits but my trainer wouldn't let me. I guess a 20 pound PR will have to do for now! I'm also nailing kipping pull ups on almost every attempt so I've moved on to mastering double unders. Hopefully I'll achieve one soon! My WOD's would go so much faster if I could do this:


To top it off I'm aiming for my highest ever mileage this month. I'd really like to make it a 100 mile month. I know there's so many runners out there that are pushing 100 mile WEEKS but I have a life ya know! I've never broken 90 for a single month so that is my base goal! Only 29 miles to go and 10 days to do it.

So I'm off to do more online shopping and research and then maybe some running before bed! I've got goals to reach and missions to accomplish! Oh I can't wait to post about what I'm about to do but you'll just have to stay tuned in for that day!

I am a warrior!

I'm a little late getting this up but I was waiting for the amazing (and over priced!) photos to go up from the Warrior Dash in Logan, Ohio on June 4, 2011! My husband and I both took a stab at our first obstacle course race and both did pretty well (34:07 for him and 39:19 for me), coming out in the top 25% or so for our age groups. So on to the good stuff!

We made the four hour drive out to the race site in good time! Can I just say that I LOVE my new 2011 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara! It is a blast to drive and did pretty freakin' awesome on gas for a huge 6-cylinder sport wagon (averaged almost 22MPG)!

We ate Wendy's about an hour out from arrival but thankfully that not-so-bright idea didn't backfire on us! Thinking that signing up for the 2PM wave so we could drive there and home in the same day was another story!

Once in Logan we parked at some fairgrounds that looked like they were undergoing renovations. Thankfully they had buses running constantly to shuttle us from the parking to the race. The temperature was rising quickly and was close to 90*F by the time we checked our gear and did last minute potty stops. We found the starting line in time to watch the 1:30PM wave start with fanfare and flames!

We baked in the sun for another half hour and then it was our turn! Boy were those flames hot running underneath them! The first mile or so was all uphill. I wasn't brave enough to wear my Garmin so I don't know the exact distances or elevation gains but it was brutal trail. The 300 or so runners in my wave were all bottlenecked in and it was basically a nature hike. Not so warrior in my book! BOO!

Finally, we came to the first obstacle which was just tires swinging from ropes. According to the website the first obstacle was supposed to be Tornado Alley, a wind tunnel. Guess they wanted to surprise us? I dodged the tires pretty easily and managed to break away from some of the people slowing things down.

The next obstacle was an over-under. It was under barbed wire, over a wall, under more wire, over another wall, and under one more set of wire. I flew through that pretty easily as well. Thank you CrossFit! Next I believe was the lake! And that was HARD but mostly because I had 30 or 40 other people in front of me kicking me, splashing me, and dragging me down. Going over the four rolling logs in the lake was the easy part! For some reason the girl in front of me had on a rubber glove? Not sure if she had a broken hand or what but more power to her!

Next was the junk yard. Three sets of destroyed cars to climb over or through. I chose over to save time. Next was highstepping through tires which wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I passed quite a few people who seemed afraid of the cars and tires.

Soon after was a crawl through mud under a black tarp. I was amazed at the number of people that refused this obstacle saying they would have a panic attack or whatever because it was dark and confined. It was advertised as part of the course so what gives with that? And if any of those people are ahead of me in the rankings I hope they feel ashamed! ;)

Finally nearing the end was a cargo net climb. I believe it was about 25-30 feet and a lot of people froze on this. I really didn't think it was that bad overall but I guess I'm not as afraid of heights as I think I am? I managed to pass a few more people here. Almost immediately after we made a sweeping right-hand turn and had to traverse several thin, angled planks. I really thought I was going to fall off and bust an ankle at a few points. Guess I need to do more balance work!

A VERY steep downhill run/slide/jump brought us to the last few obstacles. A wall you had to use a rope to climb up and a knee-high (thigh-high on me) creek we had to run down. I hit shin first into a rock sliding down the hill into the creek but the cool water soothed the burn almost instantly.

A quick pull up some ropes to get out of the creek and I could see the finish! However, there were two fire pits and a barb-wire covered mud pit to traverse first. I leaped the fire fairly easily and was happy that my skirt didn't catch fire! *Hint: Don't wear a running skirt to an obstacle run!*

The mud pit was fine at first. I slid in and got on hands and knees. It was relatively soupy at the start but got thicker and thicker as we went along until it was hard to move at all. Finally I clambered out the other side and made a dash for the finish where I happily collected my medal.

At the end there were guys with fire hoses to clean us off. It was refreshingly, shockingly cold but got the job done. However, my shoes, along with many others', were toast. Shane and I dropped our shoes in the growing pile and headed for the car. We even wore our warrior helmets the whole way home!

All in all it was a neat experience. Not sure if we'll do it again but it was definitely worth doing once!

Woot Woot

I ran the Clairton Chamber of Commerce 5k with my husband on a whim this morning. We got there early enough to register and get packets but they were out of shirts. I was kind of bummed because I plan to make a quilt out of all the cotton race shirts I get from these little races eventually.

I spent some time talking to the runners about reGen and handing out samples. Then I did some strides and stretched out while listening to some pretty awesome classic rock from the DJ. I also ran into a couple people from my local CrossFit box so we chatted some before lining up.

As soon as the announcer shouted, "Go!" I knew things weren't going that well. The sun suddenly broke free of the clouds and the temperature seemed to rise about 5 degrees in a matter of minutes. The humidity was choking and sweat was pouring down my face. Then, before I even reached the turn out of the park, my right shoe came untied. I jumped to the sidewalk, cursing myself, and fixed it before continuing on.

I held on to a small group of people and did my best to stay with them. We were on the first bridge crossing headed to the 1 mile marker when I realized I was holding about a 7 minute mile pace. I'm crazy but not THAT crazy. I backed off and watched my rabbits disappear. After that I was pretty much on my own and just focused on staying sub-9 pace for as long as I could.

Heading uphill to the turn around point I started to really struggle. I saw the leader, a couple women, some more men, and then my husband! He was really close to the front! I yelled to him that there were 6 or 7 people ahead of him and he needed to go for it and we high fived. It was just the pick-me-up I needed. I made it around the turn around and picked the pace back up on the downhill.

As I came past the 2 mile marker my vision started to blur and the sweat started to pour harder. I wanted to take off my shirt but I didn't want to lose the time. I was starting to really worry that I would puke, pass out, or both. I told myself I was too close to the end to give up now so I just kept chugging along.

As I approached the second bridge crossing (same bridge but going uphill this time) I really started to lose motivation. I pushed up the hill but my pace kept slipping. I was at a demoralizing 11-12 minute mile pace but I knew I couldn't walk it any faster so I kept going. About 2/3 of the way up I got that woozy feeling again and decided that I would have to walk. I set my sights on a speed limit sign, walked to it, then picked up the pace again.

Suddenly I was at the top of the hill and it was almost totally downhill to the finish line. I looked at my watch and I was under 26 minutes still! I knew I could PR if I could just dig deep enough. I got the pace to 10 minute miles, then to 9, and on the last downhill I'm pretty sure I was sub-7 again.

I crossed the finish line and glanced at the clock to see 29:16! PR! Woot! The volunteers were trying to take my bib tag and move me out of the lane but I was trying not to throw up on them. It was really hard to shoo them away. I will always be eternally grateful that I didn't lose my breakfast on them!

I found Shane and we caught up with some of his coworkers, some friends, and the other runners from CrossFit. Everyone had done pretty well and seemed generally happy with their performance. The last few runners finished and as we cheered in the walkers the announcer put up the results. I was overjoyed to see that I got third in my age group! My husband ran a PR as well, 23:50, and got second in his age group!

Overall, I'm not thrilled with how everything went but since I can't control circumstances I am overjoyed with how I handled them. If I hadn't tied my shoe, hadn't walked that hill, hadn't almost tossed my cookies at the 2 mile marker, I almost certainly would have seen a 28 in front of my time for the first time ever! I can't wait to sign up for my next (hopefully flat) 5k!

But next up is Warrior Dash in Logan, OH next weekend! Bring on the obstacles!