I am running the Chicago Marathon in just one week! If all goes well, this will be my 19th marathon and my 14th state! Woohoo. I had signed up for this race hoping to make a big jump in my PR and finally snatch a BQ. But taking over four hour to finish the Mesa Falls Marathon was a big reality check for me. Sounds like a BQ might be a few races off…
But what are my race goals? And what have I done to try to hit them?
Excuse this brief, one-time detour into the political. But, as they say, it’s personal.
We don’t have bears in DC. We don’t have mountain lions. And we don’t have “curious coyotes.” But Colorado, my part-time home for the next few months, has all of the above. Oh, and rattlesnakes! Thus, I have sought running friends! Here’s where you can find some too if you live here or come to visit. (Please check these running groups’ FB pages and websites before showing up for a run; I will try to keep this current but make no guarantees about the continued accuracy of these schedules.)
As I reported earlier this week, I recently completed the Mesa Falls Marathon in Idaho (no, you da ho). But that was just the beginning of the fun. The race was conveniently located near Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park, so of course I had to check them out. Especially because the National Park Service had just celebrated its centennial! Woohoo!
I LOVED these parks and they each had unique vibes and attractions. Here are some of my top tips for when to visit, where to stay, what to eat, and what to do in Yellowstone and GTNP. Oh, and a few notes on things to do in Jackson Hole, Wyoming during the summer.
Sorry for the delay! I traveled around after the Mesa Falls Marathon (post on that travel to come!) and wasn’t able to do a write up right away. But here it is!
Race: 20th Annual Mesa Falls Marathon
Location: Finish/packet pickup was in Ashton, Idaho, in eastern Idaho about 2 -2.5 hrs from the Jackson Hole, WY airport. Note for sea-levelers: Ashton is 5,259 feet above sea level (and note, a week of easy running at a similar altitude is not sufficient acclimation).
Time of Year: End of August, on a Saturday.
Weather: Can vary, but for me it was wonderful — started in the high 40s at 6:30 am and ended in the low 70s, I think. Temperature felt good the whole time running but a little cold standing at the start.
Number of Runners: 146
Other Races: Half marathon, 10K, 5K, fun run.
Hi all,
I have been totally delinquent — too busy watching the Olympics (eventing!!!) to blog. Oh, and running and hiking (Billy Goat, Old Rag) and sleeping and OTF-ing and reading some awesome books (Into Thin Air (read it twice in row…), How Bad Do You Want It, A Walk in the Woods) and listening to the Ultrarunner Podcast and watching awesome documentaries (Meru and Sherpa) and modern dancing and trying my darnedest to eat reasonably healthy. Busy busy but mostly good stuff! Training is going well for Mesa Falls, and Chicago is just around the corner so I am working on my A-race mentality and getting all the pieces in place to give myself the best shot at a PR/BQ. Oh AND I entered the Big Sur lottery. Slim odds, but as they say, if you don’t play you can’t win. But the BIGGEST update…
Given a crazy summer schedule, I am not planning on doing weekly training recaps for my Mesa Falls Marathon training. HOWEVER, I had a shockingly spectacular — dare I say, breakthrough — training week last week, and so I wanted to share some of the changes I made to my training that worked for me.
I was going to write a blog post titled “Big Adventures Start Small” about how I’m trying to inject small adventures into my regular life, at least until I decide on and execute a “big” adventure. And I had a small adventure planned for this morning and was excited to recap here. Until I had a total #adventurefail…
Am I totally late to the party? Maybe. But I finally made it to my first November Project workout this morning, so here is my recap and review!
athlettuce 