Summer fun

I am honestly ashamed that I have been completely absent from this blog over the last couple months. I think it's because my personal race schedule has been pretty low-key (up until now). I'm certain my level of blogging correlates with the number of races on my calendar. No races, no blogs.

Just to bring you up to speed however, it hasn't been a boring summer at all. Please stand by while I bend the space-time continuum and take you back through some of the highlights from the previous months.

June

• Paced GG at San Diego 100. His first hundo ever and he did a stellar job finishing in 30 hours. Night miles are the toughest miles and we learned that GG gets very sleepy at night and needs stories to keep him awake. He also gets grumpy doing 1% incline switchbacks up a mountain in the 80 degree sun.
• Got to spend some quality time on the trails back home in South Dakota. This included running with old friends and setting a PR at the Fat Tire 10k.
• Got to pace JK at the Black Hills 100. His second hundo attempt and I'll be damned if anyone DNF's on my watch. I picked him up at mile 50, ran him through the night and helped him earn that buckle. It was a beautiful night to run and he reached pretty deep to come back from some GI issues.
• 170 miles for the month

The Black Hills of SD

July

Not much to see here except an epic family road trip across 7 states (yes, I ran in every one of them!). 150 miles for the month.

August

• Not a lot going on except the weekly San Tan Trail runners group (Tuesday and Thursday) and the Cadence Running trail run on Saturday. Turnout has been growing and new folks are continuing to show up each week. This makes me happy.
• Got a weekend pass to head up to Payson and hang with JD - race director for the Mogollon Monster 100. I do love that area and the trails are some of the most awesome (and brutal) in all of Arizona.
• A pretty good month considering the heat - 240 miles

Running through the ferns on the MOG rim

September

• Going to be working pretty hard this month to get ready for the Bear Chase 100k in CO on the 27th. I expect some pretty tough weeks and lots of miles.
• Also trying to keep the mileage up in preparation for Javelina Jundred in November.

Above all, I'm on day 171 of my running streak...which I'm pretty proud of. It's been tough through all the races, pacing and vacations. A mile here, a mile there. Through allergies, humidity, hangovers and just plain "I don't wanna"...I've managed to gitt'er done.

I'm looking forward to cooler temperatures of course but about the time it starts to get cool, I'll probably complain that it's too chilly :)

Happy running friends!

Staying busy, having fun

Now that we've established I won't be doing many races in 2014, both my body and my mind have been coming to grips with what that looks like. Even though my waistline is a little fuller now (I can't blame the holidays either), I am actually doing a pretty good job of eating well and managing my portions. It's a sure bet I'll partake in some cookies, pie and/or chocolate but the good news is that I'm not stuffing my face like I used to during race season.

Mentally, the transition from race training to running-for-fitness is taking a bit more time to adjust to. Having a race (actually, paying for a race) has always been my motivator but now with nothing on the horizon, motivation has to come from other sources.

Source #1 - Having fun with my kids

Hadley and Carvor coveting their new Aravaipa pints.

Thanks to Aravaipa Running, I was able to take the family up to the McDowell Mountains so they could participate in the Youth Run a couple weeks ago. I was able to volunteer at the Gate aid station for a short time before the youth run started. Holy hell was it cold out! It hadn't warmed up much for the youth run so we were all bundled up in pants and jackets for the start.

They had a great time on the 1.6 mile loop. It's the first time they've ever been in a race environment so it was a proud-poppa moment to be able to share the trails with them and have fun while doing it.

Source #2 - Group runs
I have an informal running group on Facebook for folks who live in the East Valley. It's been a pretty loose commitment on my side just because...well, because I've been lazy. I've kicked this up a notch lately because it give me a schedule and a little more public accountability knowing there are others who are going to join me. Basically no more excuses.

Even cooler, I just got asked to lead a new trail running series for Cadence Running Company on Saturdays starting December 21. I'm not only excited to work with Dan and Mary at Cadence but getting out to the park, meeting new people or introducing folks to trail running helps fulfill my passions on a number of levels. I hope you can join us.


Source #3 - Informal 'coaching'
I'm always humbled when people approach me asking for help reaching their running goals. I know I don't have all the answers but I think I know enough to help folks achieve their marathon or half-marathon goals. At this moment, I'm working with several friends who are running their first 1/2 marathons to ensure they're sticking to the training plan, that they have the right equipment and feel confident with their race strategies.

Bottom line is that their success is my success and I love seeing them reach milestones they never thought possible. Remember the first time you ran a 10k or a half-marathon? The elation, freedom and confidence takes over and begins to percolate to other parts of your life...I love watching others transform because of their success.

I'm not sure you'll see another post from me for a while so here's to a fantastic and memorable 2013.

Which blog is this?

It's the last couple days before the Hom 100 and I've done so many blog posts, write-ups, Facebook shares and comments that they're all starting to blur together.

It's been a amazing week seeing folks rally behind the event, Tony and the general idea of wiping out ALS forever. If you're not subscribed to the 9 million other blogs I have going, here's what you missed:

1. Fulton Homes came on board as a sponsor for the event
2. Cadence Running Company donated a massive amount of nutritional products for the event
3. The ALS Association and Fulton featured the event on their Facebook pages

Oh, and we're raising $37.17 per mile.

Now that the media push is calming down, I have to focus on actually gathering everything we'll need for the run. If I were running this myself, it would be one thing...but at any given time, I'm expecting 2-3 people to be running with me. I have no idea who will be with us at the start or finish either.

I'm really trying not to stress over the details - this is hard for me, the planner. In the end, this event is not for me. It's not for the sponsors.

It's for Tony.
My friend.

I am humbled by those who help and contribute for no other reason than to support Tony and my friendship with him and his family.