Where do the mornings go?

When I was working, my mornings usually consisted of a pre-dawn run, dashing off to work (packing both my breakfast and lunch), responding to a myriad of emails and voice mails, going to meetings, problem-solving, adjusting project plans, testing, analyzing, yada yada yada.

In contrast, this morning (a fairly typical post-retirement morning) saw me: wake up around 5-ish (a hard habit to break), turn on the bedside lamp and grab my book as soon as my husband awakened, get up and get ready to run when I got to a good stopping place in my book, run for a couple of hours (hill repeats with AndyE today), get back home and stretch, do situps, pushups and a few other exercises, fix breakfast, do the morning sudoku, take a shower ....and, can you believe it, it's already noon!

Gifts from Japan

Firstly, I didn't post anything yesterday - but - I must make mention of Saturday morning's exquisite run. I ran from home to the Boulder Reservoir (the site of the Boulder Backroads Marathon's start and finish) to meet up with running buddies AndyE and Joe. We then headed north on the dirt roads from the rez for a few miles then came back via trails. Bright blue sky, sunshine, countryside peaceful quiet, hawks watching from trees, literally thousands of geese flying overhead filling the sky. A golden, golden run.

As yesterday's grand finale, my eldest (Devon) returned from Japan last night. He had a great trip and came home bearing fantastic tales - and gifts! He has a knack for selecting the perfect gift and it did it once again. He brought me two wrist sweat bands, black with Japanese characters in gold lettering (CU Buffalo colors!). One translates into "strong will" and the other is "sure victory." They may be a tad toasty to wear every day on the way to Michigan, but I certainly wore them on today's run and plan on wearing them on many runs to come. Arigatou Devonsan!

Mapping Nebraska

I've just spent the last two hours mapping the first 105 miles of the Nebraska portion of the run. Having learned my lesson during the Colorado mapping exercise, I tackled the exercise fully equipped with:

• a hardcopy Nebraska map from AAA,
  
• Google Earth - which has the best road detail I've found so far and provides GPS coordinates - but doesn't provide the ability to save a route (that I've been able to find)
• mapmyrun.com - which does allows one to save route - but you've got to do it in increments (the last time we decided to create routes in 105 mile increments)

So, I started plotting my way through Nebraska, saved at 45 miles, brought the map back up, asked to edit it, continued on through 105 miles, pressed 'update' and was told I didn't have permission and !poof! miles 45 through 105 of the Nebraska route were gone. Arggghhhhh.

Fortunately, I had written down every 15-mile section of the route including the roads followed and description and coordinates of each 15-mile end point so it's not been an entirely wasted effort.

I sure would like to find a more robust mapping tool, though - one that provides map and satellite image graphics, can handle a long route (ultimately 1500-1800 miles), shows mileage as the route is laid out, allows marking of 15-mile segments, offers road name details and GPS coordinates, and accommodates saving and editing. Not asking for too much am I? Does anyone know of such a tool?

Too much....running? rest?

This is the 'easy' week of my four-week training cycle. As such, I've been doing just one run per day - with a couple of six-ish mile runs and a couple of 10-mile runs so far. Today was a 10 mile run with the Boulder Road Runners so a tad faster than I would have run on my own. And when I got home I just plain ached all over. Is this because my body is generally fatigued from the prior three weeks of 82, 85.5, and 90 miles of running? Or is it because (based on past experience) my body simply does not like to rest? It rebels when doctors tell me to take it easy due to injury or sickness; it protests when I follow a traditional pre-marathon taper; it goes on strike when I take days off from running. "Rest" seems to signal to my body that it's time to shut down - in very cantankerous fashion.

In any case, shortly after my run (and stretching, showering, breakfasting), I headed over to my husband's school to help him out in the library. Today's job was picking up big boxes of books, emptying them to scan each book's bar code, repacking them, carrying the boxes over to the side of the room out of the way, then picking them back up, emptying them, stamping each book, then carrying them over to the side of the room again. (He has his methods and I'm just a volunteer so who am I ...systems analyst that I am... to argue finer points of efficiency with him ;-)) Towards the end of my shift at the library, Kendall's brother showed up to say 'hi' as he was on his way to deliver Christmas trees from his ski hut property to a tree lot in town. So I went with him to help unload trees from his trailer and truck. I'm feeling much better now!

A day at the desk

I got a late start on my run today - mostly because I was hoping it would get warm enough to run in shorts. It didn't quite make it there, but it was a grand run with blue sky and sunshine. Then the afternoon and early evening was spent at my desk doing paperwork. Ugh. But the grand finale was the completion of the letter and request form for my first major sponsorship request. I just need to get it photocopied then pop it in the mail. I should hear by the beginning of January. Crossing fingers & toes!

Flashback

This morning I ran to the CU track to meet up with a running buddy. It just so happens that the route to the track is the same as my walking route to my old office.

My running buddy and I ran along the Boulder Creek Path (beautifully cleared of snow). It just so happens that right on the other side of the creek path where we were running sits my old office.

After dashing back home after the run I had a bunch of paperwork to take care of before heading out again so I chowed down on a breakfast of yogurt and cereal while doing the paperwork. It just so happens that my standard start-of-the-work-day routine used to consist of running then dashing off to the office where I would sit at my desk and work while eating my breakfast of yogurt mixed with cereal.

I headed out to my next rendezvous by walking to a bus stop about a mile from my house - but I was a bit behind schedule so ran the last half-mile or so to catch the bus. It just so happens that when I would catch the bus to work (rather than walk or cycle), I would catch this same bus and invariably have to run the last half-mile or so because I was always cutting it too close.

My next rendezvous was a delightful lunch with a couple of former co-workers, one now retired and one still working. It just so happens that the conversation turned to the workplace where the same old politics and conundrums are carrying on full steam.

But! For the rest of the afternoon, my new glorious life of the retiree came to the forefront...wandering around the downtown (pedestrian) mall, Christmas shopping, peeking in new stores, browsing at the library...completely free to explore for however long and wherever I liked. Ahhhhh......

Easy week

This is the easy week of my 4-week training cycle. I can use it. Except the weather is gorgeous...blue sky, sunshine - all that slick white stuff on the ground is melting away. But I took an easy day today anyways. Ran to an errand and bussed/ran home (5 miles total). Then I cleaned house. I'm a dangerous cleaning woman when I've not had my multi-miles to wear me out. I done did broke my mop I did. Then I went on to cook dinner. Lots of it. I seem to be hungry these days. Looking forward to tomorrow when I'll do a bit more running!

90

At 6:36 this morning I finished my 90th mile of the week - the first 90-mile week of my life. One of my running buddies said today that if I could run 90 miles through this (referring to the snow, ice, wind, cold temperatures - 2 degrees this morning while I was running our snow/ice-packed streets) then I could run through anything. I don't know if that's quite true, but I do know that I feel a whole lot better than if I had given up and put the 90 miles off until more temperate climes prevailed.

Next up: a lighter mileage week and a lot of time at the computer figuring out if I can complete The Run in 9 weeks.

Challenges

As I've mentioned the last few days - the weather is making for some tough running: cold, snow, packed snow, ice, yada yada yada. Today was no exception. I started out for my longest run of the week shortly before 6 a.m. and found myself in the midst of a steady snowfall. I tiptoed over the ice for the mile or so to the main (plowed) road where I turned east and ran until I needed to turn around to head back into town to meet up with a couple running buddies for the last bit of the run. The good news was that the road and the shoulder of the east-bound road were in great condition for running. The bad news was that east (and north) were into the wind and snow. Turning around at ~7 miles or so got the wind to my back - a good thing. Unfortunately, the west-bound road's shoulder wasn't in such great shape, with clumps of snow and ice along the way. To add to the fun, by now the newly fallen snow had accumulated to a depth that came up over the tops of my shoes. Cold tootsies! Throughout the run I kept telling myself that if I bailed on this run - my first 90 mile week - I'd be bailing on the Run To Michigan. So...no bailing was had. All in all I got in close to 3 hours this morning - a very good thing.

To continue my pursuit of 90 miles this week, I went out again just a couple hours after getting home from the first run for a multi-part run:

1. ran around the neighborhood and the neighborhood to the south of us (~4 miles);
   
2. stopped by the house to tell my husband that I'd be running to the CU women's basketball game and to please bring a dry shirt - then ran to the basketball game (~2 miles);
   
3. watched the game then ran from there roundabout to the grocery store (~3 miles).
   

Current total for the week: 82 miles. 8 more...just 8 more...and I've got my first 90 mile week. I hope to get those 8 logged early tomorrow so that, by the time I report for Colder Boulder race duty at 7:15 a.m., I'll be done running for the week.

And now for the second challenge of the day: my husband just learned of the proposed 2007-08 calendar for the school district he works for. It has them starting school one week earlier than usual. This means I need to get the run to Michigan done in 9 weeks and 3 days. Gulp.

Plow! Plow! Who's got a plow?

...or, more accurately: who's got a plow and knows how to use it?
I spent 2.5 hours this morning running around town trying to find clear footing. The roads that were in the best shape had room enough for a car - but not for a car and a runner. Boulder's plow drivers need to spend some time apprenticing in northern Michigan... Beyond the roads, bike paths were ice-packed; trails were snow-covered and/or ice-packed and/or snow drifted. The big question then became: where should tomorrow's satboys long run be held? After my scouting expedition and a few phone calls and e-mails, the plan looks like I'll start out at daybreak and head east on a fairly major road that actually is well-plowed and tends to have very light traffic early weekend mornings. I'll run 6 miles east, then reverse direction, then reverse direction once again and this time, on the way back east, meet up with the gang and we'll all run the last 3 miles east then come back west to where they all parked. Rather goofy, but it should get the requisite miles in.

I mentioned yesterday that I was going to do three runs today. Since I ran so long this morning, I only needed one shorter run this afternoon. Unfortunately, I didn't get started on that one until 4 p.m. It sure does get dark fast this time of year...and the temperature fell equally quickly. It was an errand oriented run, and running home from the errand had me pretty darned nervous...running down the main street through our neighborhood, dark, icey roads, no room on the shoulders (due to plowed up snow), cars zooming by... a little too much excitement for my frosty feet!