Weekend double

It has been quite a long time since I've run what I refer to as a "weekend double" - i.e., two fairly long runs on subsequent days (Saturday and Sunday to be an actual "weekend double"). The last double was the weekend prior to my birthday when I'd gotten it into my head that I should run my age in the seven days leading up to my birthday day, which resulted in a weekend double of 11.5 and 13 miles.  That was pretty much it for 2015 until this weekend when I was feeling like it had been way too long between doubles.

Continental Divide from the Singletree Trail

Yesterday: 11 miles running from home out to the Singletree and Meadowlark trails, meeting up with running buddies Joe and Connie on Meadowlark.

Wildlife along Bear Creek trail

Today: 16 miles from home to Longmont on a variety of trails, meeting up with Connie about five miles into the run.

Wild farm life in Boulder countryside

Both days: fabulous running, great company, and no better way to get the weekend rollin'!

The naming game

When I'm not running, I'm usually walking, sometimes taking the bus, and then there's the occasional ride in the car.  (One does not always have 57 days to cover the 1400 miles from Boulder to Petoskey donchaknow...)  A while ago Kendall started thinking we might be needing a new car as our old one was showing signs of age that seemed to indicate less than reliable transport for long road trips (as well as likely expensive repairs). So car shopping he went and we are now the happy owners of a Toyota Sienna - our first non-Dodge van in a string of vans. And my oh my did it ride nice on our trip to/from Michigan last week. 

Those of you who know our family know my brother is a major proponent of American car manufacturers and refers to all other vehicles as "foreign made tin cans." Needless to say, he is very displeased with our recent purchase. Those of you who know us very very well might also know that we tend to only name our cars when they go into semi-retirement after we get a new car and keep the old one around just for in-town driving. For example, two Dodge Caravans ago became "Old Reliable" when it went into semi-retirement after the purchase of our most recent Caravan.  Now that our current Dodge is being semi-retired, we've finally given it a name: "Old Blue."  However, in a major break from tradition, we've given our brand new van a name. In honor of my brother, our most excellent new Toyota Sienna has been christened "TinCan." ...makes me smile.

[picture above: TinCan in front, Old Blue behind]

The Pisces In Me

One of my running buddies mentioned, upon my return from my recent road trip to Petoskey, that all of my runs during the trip involved water. Huh! So true! I do seem to gravitate toward those running venues that include river trails, beach, lakesides, loops around ponds; if it's wet, I'm there!

And now I'm back in landlocked Colorado.  Fortunately, it too offers stellar running venues. Witness this view from yesterday's run through the high plains along the foothills of the Rockies.  Not too shabby, eh?!

Road Trip Running

I love road trips - seeing the countryside, finding hidden gems, and running in new surroundings. Our trip to Michigan from which we just returned offered plenty of opportunity for road trip running what with 6 days on the road for 3 full days in Michigan.  So here ya' go - a road trip travelogue.

June 3, pouring rain at the beginning of the day,
so stopped at a river trail along the Cedar River
in Waterloo, Iowa for a midday run and lunch break.





 

June 4, a sweet little run on trails 

around ponds  in an office park 

near our hotel in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin 

(home to Beans N' Cream, our favorite Wisc. coffee shop)

June 5, back to Lake Michigan and a run east along the waterfront 

in Petoskey from the Bear River trail

June 6, a much sunnier day in Petoskey and a westward-bound run along Little Traverse Bay

June 7, a run along a favorite trails, the Little Traverse Wheelway along Little Traverse Bay

June 8, a quick early morning run before leaving town.  

Creations enveloped in fog...

(spider web, rock sculpture, Lake Michigan)

June 9, a two-run day. The first one, at sunrise in Dubuque, Iowa was just too short so I followed that up with a sultry hot (98-degree hot by the time I finished) but thoroughly enjoyable run along the Missouri River in Sioux City, Iowa










 June 10, Kendall's birthday - and a Wednesday,
which means hill day.
In Lexington, Nebraska that means repeats
on the pedestrian overpass
up and over a whole lotta busy railroad tracks.

So, yes, a lot of fun running. But the best part of the trip - seeing a happy healthy mom!

 

Me, Connie & Anita - post Bolder Boulder and 

all smiles

Summer is nigh and another Bolder Boulder is in the books. As mentioned in my last post, my stretch goal was to match my 1985 Bolder Boulder time when I pushed then 4-month-old Devon in a baby jogger and covered the course in 55:49. A stretch goal, indeed. I did not meet it in this year's Bolder Boulder, missing it by a minute-ten.  Disappointed? Yes, a bit. However! I did beat last year's time by 1:47, running this 2015 edition in 56:49. The best part? A spring of training with fantastic running buddies and a stadium full of smiles afterward.

The other best part? Now I get to run for fun - my most favorite kind of running!

Trotting through the quiet of country roads, exploring trails, dancing amongst the wildflowers, wandering hither & thither around town, delighting at critters, winding through neighborhoods, following bird songs, 

just .....running.

This past Saturday the gang and I ran on an east-Boulder trail with

spectacular views of the Continental Divide. 

This upcoming weekend, I'll be running on one of my most favorite trails along the shore of Lake Michigan's Little Traverse Bay. 

We runners...we are lucky people...

Springing toward summer

All through April I kept thinking I'd write about the signs of spring:
 

tulips

frozen tulips

prairie lilies along the trail

calves and moms along the trail

gardening

and, in Boulder  -

runners of every size, shape and age 

out training for the Bolder Boulder, 

...and I am one of them.

Running buddies, Connie and Anita, and I have been training our buns off since mid-March.  This is not an entirely new thing as we three train every year for the Bolder Boulder.  But this year my cousin made a comment when she saw a picture of me pushing a 4-month-old Devon in a baby jogger in the 1985 Bolder Boulder - that comment being along the lines of "how about running it as fast this year as you did 30 years ago while pushing Devon." Thus the challenge was born.

me, sleeping Devon, and bro-in-law Andy 1985 Bolder Boulder

And just how fast would that be? 55:49 - 9 minute pace on the nose. It's been a few years since I've run a race that fast. But, what the heck, having a stretch goal is a Good Thing, yes?  So...lots of intervals, tempo runs, long runs and, disconcertingly, the feeling I often get when marathon training is drawing to a close: if the training doesn't kill me, I may actually be fit enough to have a good race.  One week from tomorrow, we'll find out!

The First Day of Spring and 63!

Oh how I love having a birthday on the first day of Spring! 

And dreaming up that short-term goal last week of running 63 miles in the week culminating in the first day of Spring made this year's Vernal Equinox even more entertaining!

As the day approached, the miles mounted. Putting in our first speed work of our 2015 Bolder Boulder training cycle yesterday certainly helped: 11 miles starting with a Taz run followed by a warmup run before a three-mile time trial and ending with a warm down. Quite the run. Quite the eye opener to how much work is ahead of me if I want to run a decent Bolder Boulder!




Today's run was all fun. Taz and I took off in 29 degree weather, heading east around his ya-ya loop then through neighborhoods to easterly trails and back, finishing in 40+ degree weather and bright sunshine. A glorious first day of spring in Boulder, Colorado and a glorious culmination of my 63-mile (+1 for good measure) 7 day stretch of running.







Let the season begin!

Approaching 63 miles and spring

I am making steady progress toward my 63-miles-in-a-week-by-the-first-day-of-spring goal - however my schedule was thrown off a bit today by this 'n' that so I thought I'd do a short morning run, followed by a run to work/campus and back in the afternoon. But as I got going on my morning run, the day was so lovely I just kept on going and going. When I walked back in the house a little over 90 minutes later, Kendall (who had thought I was doing a short run) exclaimed "You made it!" My reply probably would have made our family's Quote-of-the-Week board back when the boys were still at home and we were doing Quotes of the Week: "It was too nice for a short run."

The current totals: 46.5 miles so far, 16.5 miles to cover in the next two days.

Feeling a bit tired.  So's Taz (who, no, has not been running every step of the way with me but has been covering a bit more mileage than usual...).

early to bed this night...

Daydreaming

That was me today - daydreamer - at least for a while on my way back home from my volunteer job, a run I've done almost every Monday since the fall of 2007. There I was, cruising along when it dawned on me that I was approaching a golf course. Say wha'?! Shouldn't have been there!  I corrected course and began meandering back toward home, a tad more alert. 

A good thing too! First I spotted a hawk, then I heard the hawk and turned to get another look at it when I discovered it was two hawks swooping through the sky - toward a tree where, amidst a flurry of feathers appeared a third hawk. What a sight!

Then, within a half mile or so I spotted a deer with a beautiful set of antlers nibbling away at its breakfast on a neighborhood lawn. So glad the daydreamer's fog had moved on.  And as a bonus, when I turned away from the deer, I noticed - for the first time after 100s of times down this road - a little sculpture tucked in the bushes.  Yep! A good time to be awake!

Those daydreamy, eventually wakeful miles have now brought me to 34 miles on my way to my 63-miles-by-the-first-day-of-spring goal. Four days to go!

Signs of spring

 

Signs of spring are popping up all over

• birds are chirping
• critters are randy
• a hint of rain wafts through the air
• bulbs are peeking up - including our first daffodils of the year!
• I've set a running goal for the first day of spring

But the most definitive sign of spring: Taz gets a bath!  Oh the lucky water-hating fella; an entire cup of salmon treats was gobbled up whilst coaxing him through the process. He is now one fine fluffy looking pup!

Treat bribery to get him in the tub

Soaping him down - such patience

What?! You didn't want me to roll in the grass to dry off?!

Taz, the beautiful, freshly washed cattle dog . Aren't I dry enough to come in now, say hey?!

And speaking of springtime running goals and the quest for 63 miles between yesterday and the first day of spring: 24.5 miles down; 38.5 miles to go in the next five days.