Blog

05MAR

Dear Dayna Pidhoresky -- Bib:F2.

I saw this lovely message this morning which immediately elicited the fluttering of butterflies in my stomach.  How did this race get here so soon?  I am not ready for this!  But are we ever really ready to face the pain?  I have been saying to Josh lately how I just want to start racing but that was more because I knew once the season started I wouldn’t have to do as many long, hard workouts throughout the week.  I like the prospect of racing but I am not looking forward to the nauseating nervousness that usually strikes as I get ready to toe the line.

 

It has been a while since I have experienced that feeling.  I plan on getting a few of my pre-race jitters out at the Corktown 5K in Detroit this Sunday.  It will be a sort of mental dress rehearsal before the big Around the Bay 30K (though what can really prepare you for those hills that hit you right when your legs begin to fail around 20K?)

 

To tell you the truth I should be feeling quite prepared right now.  Since my last post I have been able to get in many weeks of quality work, I accomplished workouts that I never thought I could accomplish at this point in my training, and my longest long runs have been solid.  If I am in doubt all I have to do is look back on my training log over the last few months and be confident knowing that I have put in the work.  That work over the winter was essential as I have an aggressive racing schedule over the next few months (check it out here).  

 

I should also mention a few other things that have happened since my last post.  I made my first trip to Arizona for Josh to run the Rock and Roll Marathon there in Phoenix.  That was a welcomed break from the cold and snowy weather and allowed me to get in a good track session and long run.  It was also the most scenic trip of my life!  I have never seen so many cacti!  The day after the race we drove from Phoenix to Flagstaff to Sedona and “wow” was that a beautiful drive.  It’s amazing how drastically the landscape changes as you go up the mountains.  We took a short hike through a snowy Buffalo Park in Flagstaff then warmed up with Starbucks before making the journey down to Sedona.  Thankfully this road was clear and dry because the sharp turns it took down the mountain were enough to cause some white knuckle gripping of the “holy crap” bar (this is the usually useless bar above the passenger window).  Once in Sedona Josh rented a bike and we headed out to a “beginner” (read: very challenging) bike trail so I could get my long run started.  I did 27K on fairly technical trails near Bell Rock, not to mention this was at about 4500 ft.  Very difficult long run terrain but I got it done and the views were breathtaking.  It made me want to keep running -- except that I couldn’t lift my legs anymore.  Josh was having a bit of a struggle towards the end too!  I guess it could have been that marathon he ran the day before . . . what a trooper!  So that was the highlight of my Arizona experience and I would definitely go back for an extended “training specific” trip in the future.

 

So that’s all for now.  I will be back to update after Corktown 5K and let you all know how my prep is going in the few weeks before the big race back.  Have a great week and here are some pics we snapped during our journeys in and around Red Rock Country -- enjoy!