Well many weeks have gone by without posting, but it's not because I have been idle. A lot has been going on since my Easter run in the mountains. We moved to Libby, Montana for 6 weeks and are now on our way to Ketchikan. I put a hold on my marathon training since I was no longer going to be anywhere near a marathon come June or July. But I have kept on running and biking, and I even tried fishing the mighty Kootenai River once...no fish. I had the chance to get out and kayak twice and have generally mixed things up quite a bit since April.
The running has always been a consistent thing for me. Being back in Missoula has just reinforced how much I love to run, particularly trail running. Zoo-town has miles upon miles of trails for hiking, biking and running and I was privileged to be able to get out there several times in the couple of weeks that I was there.
So off we went to Alaska, via Washington State and British Columbia. We like to take new routes to keep things interesting, so we headed along highway 20 to Winthrop, WA. Winthrop is a cute little tourist town made up like the old west, complete with big western store fronts and wooden boardwalks. It is also the home of my good friend, and awesome ultramarathoner, Alison. It wouldn't be right to go through Winthrop without taking in a BIG trail run. So Alison, her friends James, William and I decided to head out on a run. Thank GOD the three of them were "tapering" for a 50miler the next weekend, otherwise I may have died up on a mountain somewhere outside of Winthrop. You see, ultrarunners are a breed unlike any other. They aren't particularly fast,but they can run forever. This is very much different from the running I have done lately, which has been shorter and much faster. So I knew I would be in for some suffering if we were to go for a "longer" run, but we only ran about 11 miles...straight up and then back down, a mountain! James estimated that we climbed about 4000 vertical feet in 5.5 miles...Ouch! The best thing about the run was that Alison and I ran together and had a lot of time to play catch up. She is currently training for the 50 miler and then the Wasatch 100 miler in the fall. Alison has really started coming into her own these past two years, winning and placing high in a number of ultra events. I can really see her becoming one of the best ultra women in the USA. Nice work Alison!
So I have really embraced trail running again, and with the move to Alaska, will likely be running a whole lot more. Sure there will be some biking, and a LOT of fishing thrown in there, but trail running is just a fun way to get some exercise!
See you on the trails.
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