Run ya little piss ant!!

Life just keeps trudging along. My  father is nearing the end of his life. He has worked hard. All his life. He has earned some down time. He sleeps most of the day now. What an inspiration he is. I love that man!!!

I suppose that both he and my mother instilled in us our sense of drive. Mom was more concerned with accomplishment; Dad was more concerned with work. What a combination.

Last week I was settling in for a short taper in preparation for Cedro Peak 45 mile run. On Wednesday,

it was apparent that I was coming down with a cold. I slept most of Thursday and blew my nose most of Friday. Got up at 0'dark 30 and drove to the start. A buddy said, "Starting a 45 mile race with a cold is like running the second half of a 100 miler. You just do it." So I did.

Being selfish

I think most of us will admit that ultra-running is a selfish endeavor. We do it because we want to. Sure, we might run a race "in honor of..." or "in memory of..." but we are still doing it because we want to.

When I first moved to Albuquerque I didn't know anyone and I didn't know the trails. I ran a few times with folks from a meetup group (ABQ Girlfriends on the Run), but they mainly ran roads and I only run trails. After a few months, I decided ABQ needed a trail running group so I started the Sandia Trail Runners meetup. We now have 137 members. Admittedly, there are many who have never attended a run and there are several who have run once and never returned. But there are a bunch of people on the list.

I started the group for totally selfish reasons. The funny thing is, when I run with the group, I can't be selfish. I always stick with the slowest runner. I never leave someone on the trails alone. This means that I sacrifice (you like that word? Sounds like I am a martyr.) my  own training. I end up going much slower than I would like. I end up not running with those who run my pace. I generally enjoy the slower runners more than the faster runners, but still....

My question is, would I do this if I were a man? Would I stick with the slowest runners or would I be out there pushing myself to stay up with the leaders, or at least the faster folks?

I am planning a Double Crossing of the Sandias the first weekend in May. While I would love company, I fear that I would end up baby sitting someone. I would rather go on my own. Bummer!!!

My own private diary

Daylight savings time starts this weekend. The trees are leafing out. Spring has arrived. Yeah, yeah, there will be cold weather but it won't last. We are in full training mode. When I go to the trails, I see people who are training, not just walkers. Folks are running hard, looking good, preparing for another season. I love it.

Next week is the Run through time Marathon in Salida. Snow? Maybe. That'll be fine with me. 

Filling up the Dance Card

There is a lot of talk among the running groups about what races people are signing up for.

My first run will be in Salida, CO: the Run through Time Marathon. I have done this one several times, but only once on the new course. I LIKE the new course. The challenge for this one is the weather. There may be deep snow, it may be COLDER than crap. It may be totally awesome. This one is March 15th. http://www.salidarec.com/ccrc/Run-Through-Time-Marathon-2014.htm

But before that, I will be doing the Mt. Taylor Quadrathalon. A short little bike ride followed by  a short run, a shorter cross country ski and then a really short snowshoe. You top out at 11,300 feet. Oh, then you turn around and go back to the start. The downhill ski is the part that has me scared.

Then I'll do the Cedro Peak 45 miler, the Bighorn 100 and who knows what after that.

The crazy thing is I just turned 60. Are you kidding me? Sixty years old? Ancient. I feel ancient. I am working so hard to act enthused about this. I am acting like it is a great opportunity to place in races. But I am really freaked out. Really. Freaked out.

Even older

This Dusty Ole Gramma is getting even older. Yep, another birthday. Entering a new age group. Time to pick some races and take home some medals, right?

It is winter and this is the time of year when picking a race schedule is so much fun. You think you can do anything....when it is the off season. How about a couple of hundred milers? Sure, I can do that. Multi-day events? No problem. Multi-sport events? You betcha!

I finally made a decision: Big Horn 100 http://www.bighorntrailrun.com/. I've done the 50K twice. I've done the 50M twice. Time to step it up. My plan had been to run Leadville this year. They seem to have really screwed up though by letting too many people in the race. And Leadville is a huge production with numerous crew stops, no place to stay, etc.

Big Horn is smaller and simpler. And harder? Maybe. It seems that people are more independent. Sure, you can have pacers. You can have crew meet you a couple places along the course. But overall, 100 milers seem to just go out and do it.

Let the training begin!!!!

Going Feral

There's a herd of horses that roam just north of Albuquerque. They are quite beautiful. People call them the Wild Horses of Placitas. But they're not wild. They are just feral.

How long did it take these horses to go from livestock to feral (to wild)? How long would it take me? 

Yesterday I needed to grade papers, go to meetings, and prepare an exam for a class. I needed to get up, eat my breakfast, pack my lunch, take a shower, and change into presentable clothes (a shirt with a collar and pants with a crease). Instead, I put the dogs in the back of the truck and headed to a trail head I've only gone to a couple of times. Embudito Trail is well-traveled, but someone showed me a much less used trail that runs from the same trail head. I purposely left my water at home. No food, no water means a run of 90 minutes or less.

But the morning was fantastic. I was in shorts and a short sleeve shirt. I headed up. And Up and Up. I made it to where the ground was frozen. I thought that this trail would connect to the main trail so I kept going. The dogs were having a blast. I was having a blast. Someone has found rocks that are heart-shaped and placed them along the trail. One is placed in a tree, where a heart would be. Others are on boulders or just by the trail. I was following my heart!! 

I met a man who was hiking down. He looked at me like I had appeared out of thin air. He had on hat, gloves, a jacket, hiking boots and long pants. He was using hiking poles. He asked where I was headed. I told him that I thought the trail would connect up to Embudito. He politely told me that it wouldn't. Instead, if I continued on my way, I would end up at the crest, where "the trail is really icy....you don't want to go there without poles." That was almost enough to convince me to proceed. Almost.

Knowing that if I continued, I would end up running for a good four hours, I turned around. We blasted down the hills, Scout tripping Sadie more than once. I do love to watch them chase and dodge. My one hour run turned into almost 3. I was thirsty and hungry but, oh how I wanted to continue to the crest and head north. Maybe if I had, I would have met up with the wild horses of Placitas.

An email was waiting for me. An emergency meeting of the administrative team had been called to discuss the lack of funding and the increased teaching load.

I don't even need to say that I would rather be feral...... 

Change of Seasons

I absolutely love fall but I dread what is coming. Cold mornings, dark evenings, long weeks and short weekends.

Racing season (for me) is officially over. I had a good ride. Amazing recovery from foot surgery. I know it is time to sit back, recover, refuel, WORK, and kick back a little. It is hard to let go of the racing; hard to not have a goal.

Last time I wrote I was seriously considering running Leadville again. Now, not so sure. From what I've heard and what I've read, the race is too crowded and disorganized. One of the things that was so neat about  it was the homey feel. But it appears that is gone. Too many horror stories. Maybe I will look for a different 100 miler. Maybe I will stick with 50's. I have at least until January to ponder possibilities.

Meanwhile, I have two dogs who need to get out and explore the trails. Hopefully there will be snow. Hopefully there will be crisp days and blue skies.