Tales from the Trails

I thought last weekend would be hard. Traveling to a race that I was supposed to run, but not running it. But it wasn't. It was one of the best weekends ever! Before toeing the start line. She was ready! I teared up as Jeanette started the race, feeling emotionally overwhelmed at the work she had done, and the work we did together, to prepare for her first 100 miler. She didn't let anything get in her way, but she also didn't let the training consume her life. She did lots of preparation for the mental aspect of training for a 100 miler. Her dedication to training and keeping it in the right priority for her was impressive. I definitely learned from her. She wrote about the training experience on her blog. Crewing is an experience of it's own. There's lots of preparation and planning that goes into it, just like an ultra. It helped that Jeanette had prepared a spreadsheet of her expected pacing between aid stations. And this race had only two aid stations...

My youngest daughter is 5, and got this book for Christmas. It's about what happens to Humpty Dumpty after he falls. My daughter wants me to read this book to her every night. And every time she hands it to me, she says that I am like Humpty with my broken rib. Humpty is scared to climb the wall again because of his fall, and parts of him are broken that are not fixable with tape or glue. He tries some other stuff, but ultimately, he misses his wall and decides he needs to climb it again. And then he hatches into a bird and flies! Time has passed quickly, and winter is now almost over. It's been almost 10 weeks since the bike accident and broken rib. My winter was filled with a different kind of training than I planned, and I found time for a different kind of reflection in between weeks when I couldn't get out onto the trails. I learned things about myself. But I am always learning. I'm back up and going again now. Slowly increasing mileage and getting myself out...