I love dirt!

Today I ran out on Antelope Island.  Katherine and I had planned to go, and were going to meet up with a girl named Lindsay that I've met several times out on the island.  Katherine's sitter didn't work out, which was a bummer, so I headed up this morning by myself.  

The causeway

I arrived at about 8am, half an hour before I was supposed to meet Lindsay, so I got in a couple miles.  This group of buffalo was right near the trail and I ended up turning around because the buffalo that appeared to be the leader kept eyeballing me and I wasn't really interested in being trampled.

Love that morning sunshine!

I met up with Lindsay and her husband Ryan, who ran with us for a bit.

Luckily nearly all the snow has melted since last week and the trails were nearly all dirt and very runnable!

We did the race course loop, which is nice coming up to race day to have that under my belt again.

See that white speck in the distance, just above the trail?  That's an antelope.

I had my first trail tumble.  I went down pretty hard and banged both my knees, one wrist, one elbow and one hip.  Luckily this was my only real injury.  I was able to hop up and run right away, and should be as good as new in a couple days.

The feeling of a good, hard run completed!  Ahhh!

It was wonderful to run with Lindsay who has run the Buffalo Run and many other ultras.  She gave me lots of advice and was a fun running buddy.  I'm so very excited that race day is less than two weeks away and feel more than ready to tackle this beast!

17.75 miles

4 hr 12 min

14:11 pace

I ran today without auto pause on my watch and this time included plenty of stops, falls and otherwise.  At this pace I should finish the race in about seven hours.  Even if I run at a slightly faster pace, or just run more of the hills, I won't finish much faster than seven hours.  Fine by me, more hours to enjoy the race!  

Screaming Beiber fan!

Tuesday, April 2nd Scott Jurek will be in town at the local running store, Wasatch Running Center. Anyone can join him for a short run, book signing and discussion. Ahhh! I am so excited! I'm going to run with Scott Jurek! Scott Jurek, people! Katherine and I already giggled on the phone as we made plans to buy his book and go. This is so exciting! 

Sun + Shorts + T-shirts OH MY!

Today I was just heading out the door when Jeff called me from the gym.  He was about to go on the treadmill for a walk, so I suggested that he come out and walk with me before I went on my run.  I ran across to the gym (.41 miles) and we walked 1.65 miles before I continued on my way.  It was mostly cloudy, but became more sunny as I ran along.  The best part of all was that it was about 45 degrees out, perfect for running in shorts and t-shirt!  I was SO happy!

1 hr 35 min

7.61 miles

12:29 pace (not bad considering the walk!)

nighttime is the right time

Yesterday I was home with a sick kid all day. After Jeff got home from work I decided I should run. I was  a bit indecisive about it, but lucky for me Jeff encourage me to go so I laced up and headed out at about 7:15 p.m. I took my pepper spray,  my dog, my headlamp and headed up Viscounti. It was quite warm, about 50°, and slightly breezy. Perfect running temperature. It was fun to run at a different time of day. I don't usually run at night, but I was very glad I went!

5 miles
55 min
11:00 pace

I must be Dreaming!

Today I realized there are only 18 days left until race day!  AHHHHHH!  I am so excited!  I had butterflies in my stomach for a couple hours this afternoon just thinking about it!  Let the race dreams begin.  I've had a few very bizarre dreams already.  In one dream I found myself at the starting line of the race talking to the race director, Wilhelmina Slater who took all my laundry (that was strangely at the starting line) and dumped it on top of a pile of liverwurst.  Then I realized that Lila and Clarissa were with me and had no one to supervise them while I ran the race.

In another dream I went from the start of the race to the finish with no recollection of actually running the race.  I desperately asked everyone around me if I finished and no one had the answer.  When I looked online to find my race results I realized that I didn't know my bib number and couldn't look myself up!

I'm sure I'll have plenty more crazy race dreams in the next eighteen days.  And I'm sure I'll have plenty more butterflies.  I wonder if I'll have the post marathon blues again.  For now I'll just enjoy this pre-race high and hope the taper doesn't kill me!

New Blue Shoes

Today seemed so fast after Sunday's long run.  I had Clarissa in the stroller and the dog, but it still seemed easier!  I met Katherine for a couple miles of her long run and then headed back home.  It was cold, but sunny and beautiful out.

Bundled up and ready to go!

"Mommy, make a funny face!"

My view today.

Today I realized that I was overdue for a new pair of shoes.  Check out this sad pair!

Wow.  I really was overdue!

Ahhh!  Nothing like a new pair of shoes!  I even got a free pair of socks, thank you Wasatch Running Center!  Oh, and I went up half a size to see if that helps with my lovely toenail issues.  DO NOT ask me what size they are.  They're HUGE.  That's all you need to know!

4.5 miles

54:58

12:12 pace

Training Week 15

I skipped another run this week.  What can I say?  I'm getting lax.  I'm feeling really good though, just ready for winter to be over.  My leg is feeling all better and I'm really feeling solid and ready to do this thing!

5.2
10
22.12
Weekly Total: 37.32

Previous Total: 341.86
Training Grand Total: 379.18