Gone Fishing

Budgets done, off for a weekend of fun!

Ragnar 2011 Northwest Passage - Part 1

July 21st-22nd, 2011 Ragnar Northwest Passage - 190 miles of running from Blaine to Langley.  12 person teams, 2 vans.  Orange Ogre team pace average: 9:30 (that is sooooo not my average pace) Estimated time to finish: 28 hours.
Read: running 3 legs of varying miles, hopping in and out of the van, navigating the back roads of nw washington, little to no sleep....oh wait...I slept for about 30 minutes in a field somewhere in the Skagit Valley then again for about an hour at Deception pass - at 2 a.m.

Best running experience yet.  I loved it.  I'm always up for a crazy adventure and this really tested me physically and mentally.
We started the day packing the van and heading up to Blaine for our start time at 9:15 a.m.

Oh crap, what have I gotten into?

After the fanfare of the start, we followed the route to cheer on our first runner.  Basically the entire time goes like this:  get to the next exchange, getting the next runner ready, standing around, cheering on other runners, getting back in the van, driving a few miles, cheering on your runner, drive to the next exchange.  All the while trying to eat, snooze, change clothes, make chatter with your van mates.

My first leg started about 11 a.m. somewhere in rural Blaine, WA.  I was so nervous I briefly thought if I trip and hit my head, I won't have to run this leg.  :-)  As Jan came into the exchange, I thought, oh my god, here we go.....6 miles ahead of me, go go go.

The first few miles of my leg were gorgeous farmland.....cows who looked at me like I was crazy as I ran by and moo'd at them, rolling hills and Mt. Baker in the distance, it was the perfect run.  Oh, and it was a gentle downhill for the first 3 miles, that was a bonus.  Around mile 4 I hit a major roadway/highway - that's where tedium set in and I was ready to be done with this leg.  It was getting warmer and I was getting a little nervous about the back pain that was setting in.  As I rounded the last 1/4 mile to the exchange, I picked up the pace came in with a smile....knowing I had about 8 hours to stretch and prepare for my next leg.

At Exchange 6 in Bellingham, we met up with Van Tutu - the rest of the Orange Ogre team. 

Stay tuned for part II - the night time legs.

Cle Elum Adventure Weekend - September 17

We were like a bunch of school girls giddy with excitement chatting it up in the car.  Was it excitement about the 25K (Sjohn and Jan)/50K (Lesley, Andria and Ty)/hike-run(me) we would be doing on the Cle Elum Ridge the next day?  Nope, we were excited about this.....

A yurt.  Not just any yurt - a super cool yurt up in the hills outside Cle Elum with amazing views.  By the time we got up there Friday night, it was getting too dark to take any inside photos...bummer.

Here's the outhouse....and its fantastic view.

We settled in, having a great dinner, chatting and getting all of our gear ready for a 5 a.m. wake up to hit the road to get to the race start.

Morning came very quickly but everyone was excited about the day - good weather, good trails - who doesn't love being in the mountains?

The gals got ready for their respective starts and I was taking in all of their excitement and enjoying the atmosphere. 

 Lesley, Ty and Andria doing the 50K

Sjohn and Jan smiley as always at the 25K start

After I saw them off, I planned my next few hours.  I had some good trails to choose from...and headed out onto the Gooseberry Trail.  The goal while the gals were out on the course was for me to get a few hours of hiking/running in and to bond with the trails.  I'm not a huge fan, but I know that with a little time, patience and perseverance....I'll adapt to trail running. I'm hopeful.

 Gooseberry Trail...up, up and away!  No really, it was up.  All up.

I did a lot of self talking on the trail.  Both to calm myself when I thought I heard a yeti, and to realize once I work on my balance, it's not going to be so bad. 

After I finished my hike I hung out and chatted with the race organizers and volunteers - this group is passionate about trail running and it was nice to meet some new people.

A great day with great peeps!

Back in action!

After a summer hiatus and a few life changes, I'm back to my blog.  June came and went more quickly than I ever thought.  The month was a series of ups and downs....but ended on a really high note....a new job!  After spending the last 6 years at Westlake, I was offered a new adventure.  Managing properties on the eastside which was going to be a drastic change to what my version of normal had become.

Learning to commute.
Becoming very relaxed.
Realizing how UN-relaxed I've been in the last year.
Oh yeah....the continuous training.

That's how July began.

The summer race schedule was pared down to a quick super sprint in June, Ragnar in July and Danskin in August.

Beaver Lake swim then 30 mile ride to Snoqualmie Falls - best bike day yet!!!!

Vancouver Half Marathon - May 1, 2011

RACE DAY!!!!!

I've walked many half marathons but this morning was different....I was running my first half marathon.  It was a GREAT day - I felt amazing, I gave a two bird salute to my nemesis...mile 9, I finished strong and with a smile.  I am very lucky to have a great running partner, an amazing and inspirational coach, and great friends who support me in this crazy journey to seize the half ironman.

Step 1.  Run half marathon

Stay tuned for more fun and games.

 Stacy, Me and Sheena ready to go, bright and early!

 Sheena, Coach Lesley, me and Stacy before the start of the race

 Our pre-race warm up gear

 I felt like a giant tootsie roll

 Game faces....aka...tearing up a little before the race began. 

I felt pretty emotional that morning, the culmination of a lot of perseverance and hard work.

 Feeling good in the early miles

 Still feeling good after a few more miles

 FINISH!!!!!

 Post race laying in the grass....getting up was a bit of a problem.

The BEST ice bath EVER!!!!

Prosser Wine Weekend

A quick weekend trip to Prosser with the wine gals....

 Our first stop

 Being one with the wine barrels

 Horse Heaven Hills

  Grapes at the only vineyard we visited

 Loved the clouds

 I'm bringing my bike next time - isn't this the greatest stretch of road to fly down on a bike!

 Obligatory wine dog....she was such a sweety!

Our final stop

This was my first trip to Prosser and I wasn't sure what to expect.  It turns out that there aren't really any wineries to visit, it's all tasting rooms in two different areas of town. 

Definitely interesting but I really like to walk among the vines. 

A trip to Philly

Highlights from our Philly trip!

 Bike shop on the way to the Italian Market

 Flowers in the Italian Market

 Colorful fruit at the market

Michael and I found a great street with these mosaics all over the buildings - it was amazing!

 Chilly in the City

 This must have been the artists home....it was wild!

 Elfreth's Alley - the oldest street in Philly...with the skinniest houses

 Notebook from Lewis and Clark

 Staircase at the Masonic Temple.....I learned some interesting things on this tour....

ie...I cannot be a Mason.

 Top of the City Hall tower....on a rainy day

 Cool views even though the clouds were really low

 Just like Mona Lisa....this was a lot smaller than I thought it was going to be

 Taylor/Upston/Arosteguy tour time

 Independence Hall

Ben Franklin's grave site

We had a fun filled trip to Philly in April.  Great sights, great company and festive times with the Upston/Taylor/Gonzales crew.

Some day soon.....

Hopefully this weekend, I'll actually have a spare moment to post all the fun things I've been doing and have coming up in the next few weeks - ooh, wait, no...I'll be in Chelan at a training camp (read: being tortured on my bike and swimming on the 40+ degree lake).  Prosser, Philly, Quincy, Vancouver, Half Marathon, training, running, more running, swimming, Chelan, camping, Medford.  Crazy busy!  Stay tuned - fun pics and stories to follow~

Running like a chicken with my head cut off

Nothing like coming back from vacation and being thrown into the fire - work is CRAZY (in a really exciting way) and the rest of life isn't slowing down either.

Here's a sneak peek of some snaps from the last two adventures.  I'll let you firgure out which is Prosser, WA and Philadelphia, PA. I'd hope it speaks for itself.