Winter Wonderland

There is nothing I love more than running in the snow.  Okay, I would have loved today's run even more had Sydney and Jane been with me, but it doesn't get any closer to heaven.  Remind me of this day on those days when I think about leaving Colorado. 

It hasn't snowed or rained for the entire month of November.  We've had some cold snaps, a day or two, but it has been unseasonably warm.  I've appreciated those warm days but it didn't feel like Thanksgiving.  But with the dawn of Thanksgiving day came real cold.  It was a grey day - not my favorite, but it finally felt like Thanksgiving, like November, so I didn't care that it was grey.  

I started the day on the Manitou Incline - what better way to justify the Thanksgiving tradition. The incline itself was really hard for me, but I slogged on without stopping until I got to the top.  It was great to see so many people from my running group hanging around (how they didn't freeze waiting around for the slow folks like me I'll never understand).  I flew down Barr Trail - hadn't been up there since the Marathon and then I wasn't flying at all.  Instead, I was in a state of disbelief that I was so close to finishing 26.2 up and down Pikes Peak and I was fighting my cramping legs.  It was so good to be back on the mountain.  When I got home, I spent some time cooking and watching the Macy's Parade in preparation for the glory of spending the afternoon with good friends.  Kat and Zach and I made a good dent in that 12-14 pound turkey and we indulged in both apple and pumpkin pie.  So grateful for good friends and my family - though this year we were all in different places.

I drove home under the first of several snows this weekend.  Thanksgiving night didn't bring much snow, but it was a wonderful end to a wonderful day.  Friday night brought more flurries and so did Saturday night.  

Saturday nights' flurries actually accumulated more than a 1/4".  I awoke on Sunday to a couple of inches, with snow still falling.  I smiled to myself and though I didn't need to be up for another 45 minutes, I couldn't sleep.  I embarked on a new adventure today:  running with the Incline club.  I've avoided this group for fear that they were all hard-core athletes, much faster and infinitely stronger than me.  But I wanted to find a new trail and I wanted to try something new.  Turns out I know quite a few of the runners from my other running groups.  And some good girlfriends were there too.  We represented the range of talent, speed and ability and I was not the slowest.  No one cared how fast or how far I ran; they were just glad to be out and happy to see familiar faces.  

So it was a magical morning - heavenly really.  Wooded trail, several inches of fresh snow, the first spill of the season (and I'm now the proud owner of a pair of Yaxtrax, as a result).  As I ran along, early on with friends and then as we all fell into our own paces, mostly on my own, I marveled at where I was.  

Peaceful.  Stunningly beautiful.  Everything coated in snow - like icing on the trees.  The sun made a few appearances and then everything sparkled.  So clean and so fresh and so magical.

I wanted a camera to capture the glory of this run.  Instead I just kept reminding myself of how I didn't want to be any other place than this.  I thought about Syd, home resting her sore knee (and not really welcome on a run with so many people).  I will take her back to run and play in the snow.  This beautiful run will only become even more incredible with her by my side. 

Today, I feel strong.  Today my energy was good.  Today, I couldn't stop smiling as I ran - even as hard as it was.  Today I could see the possibility.  

A whirlwind Fall

I've been absent from these pages for a while.  But trying hard to be present in my life even amidst the long days and travel.

I promised myself time off running, or at least running with a purpose.  So I haven't done much running of note.  In September I did join a team of friends, old and new, for the Colorado Relay - some 170 miles beginning in Georgetown, Colorado and ending in Carbondale.  Each of us had 3 legs to run - varying lengths and varying difficulty - all on little to no sleep.  Talk about hilarity and smelly! I think I will be known from now on as she who summons snow for running races - as our first van started in the twilight of a Friday morning and were almost immediately snowed upon.  I had a beautiful run mid-day - brisk, but not snowy.  It was mostly single-track trail (after the ugly uphill on the jeep road) and I loved nearly every minute of it (photo)!  My middle of the night run was less fun, but we all had one.  And my last run was a short one, just after sunrise as we headed up into the Roaring Fork Valley.  Good fun, good friends, and a fun visit with Stefan who provided SAG for our team. 

After that there was little time for anything but work.  A week in the DC area did bring a visit with the Raab family - always a fun time.  The highlight this time was running with Katie-bug. We found a local 2k (I think that was the distance) and Stefan and I alternated between running with her and snapping photos.  She ran the WHOLE thing - and she had a great time. The first photo is pre-race and the second, all smiles post-race!

Besides DC, my travels took me to San Francisco and a day off to spend with mom and dad, and finally to Hawaii (sunset in Kona).  The latter trip, I think I really earned this year because I also spent nearly two weeks on a jury - the only two weeks I had at home and in the office. Needless to say I am finally surfacing from the fall.

And running again.  With a little purpose, but mostly just loving the feeling of pushing myself again (and nearly everything is a struggle given my much diminished fitness).  I ran 10 miles last weekend - up Gold Camp road - well, okay only half was up.  It was hard.  I hadn't planned on 10 miles, but I had good company the the need to motivate and be motivated.  Then it was up Cheyenne Canyon on a COLD morning, with snow, or maybe it was sleet spitting from the sky.  Syd and I nearly took out our friend - who offered her arm to stop the momentum, as we slipped and slid down the road.  But it was beautiful.  And it was hard.  And it was why I love running.  And I finally got to run with my Friday group again.  And then I got smart and only went to yoga on Saturday - I needed grounding and some good stretching.  Today's run was smart - just under 8 miles, but again with good company on a stunning day that hardly makes it seem like Thanksgiving is this week.

I'm glad to be home and finding time with Syd and friends and my running shoes again.