running – Keep Calm and Pedal On

Did you say RUN 100 miles or RIDE a hundred miles?

I said RUN a hundred miles!

i-hRGVbcV-X3

Back in early November 2018, at the Lindsey Hein Run Rise Retreat Meet Up in Portsmouth, NH when Lindsey asked about what might be my next big goal after coming off a self supported cross country bike trip with Tom, I shared I might consider running a 100 mile event some day. Even though I was taking some time off running to nurse a leg ouchie, I put it out there.

In front of everyone.

Using a mic.

And yea, when I wasn’t even running. At all.

Portsmouth

So in January the work began, but slowly. First I tested the water at the Polar Bear Winter Classic Run (5k/8K), then at the Sam Costa Half Marathon (13.1 miles) and finally after a BQ finish at the Chicagoland Spring Marathon, and with the encouragement of Tom, we signed me up for the Hennepin 100 that would take place the first weekend in October 2019.

We put a training plan in place that would take into consideration time off from running to squeeze in a 444 mile bike trip up the Natchez Trace, a bikepacking trip on the Appalachian Gravel Growler, and a week in Hawaii to celebrate our daughter’s destination wedding on Kauai.

Come to think of it, this year also included a winter adventure to Whitefish, MT, another son’s wedding, welcoming another grandson, a couple of gravel bike races, a weekend at Sundance Mountain Bike Camp and celebrating 60th birthdays for both of us. It’s been a BIG year. Sometimes I don’t think I look back enough because I’m always looking forward.

Is that a good thing?

I think enough’s been said and shared about the Hennepin Hundred already but a friend of ours created a short vid about the event while he interviewed me on the run. Literally. We were both running when we chatted.

And we started running uphill. Notice me sucking wind at the beginning of the video.

Honestly the best thing about the video is not what I had to say about running 100 miles, but the way he shot the video using a 360 camera, and interviewed me while running.

Take a look. Chris is a talented, enthusiastic and speedy video storyteller and a speedy runner in his own right. And in just a week he’s running his first trail ultra at the Tecumseh Trail Challenge. Good luck, Chris!

Northern Tier Ride Prep: What To Do With a Weekend Off of Cycling

Why not run in the 20th annual Flying Pig Marathon! Tom and I decided it would be fun to scoot over to Porkopolis for a quick run, check in with some college buds and visit family. Check, check and check!

Finished! with a bag full of SWAG and snacks.

Hot and hilly but only one minute slower than my marathon time 20 years ago when I ran the Pig. I’ll take it! Tom on the other hand is running half marathons and getting faster and faster after taking six months off from running.

Xavier University friendships, almost 40 years running. #LetsGoX

And finally it looks like the North Cascades Highway, the road we take through the Cascade Mountains, will be cleared of snow by this Friday giving way for scenic and challenging cycling in just about four weeks. #thumbsup

Cascade Highway — East and west side crews are just six miles apart clearing SR 20 for traffic. #byebyesnow #seeyanextwinter

Northern Tier Ride Prep: Not much ridin’, just runnin’

Here we are just 60 days away from starting our bike ride across the country and we still haven’t been able to squeeze in much outdoor riding. #indyweatherblues

We did however participate in the Carmel Marathon races yesterday with our Back on My Feet team, Tom running the half and I, the full.

Tom took six months off running and thought running a half marathon was out of the question. Ever. But dang if he didn’t crank out a speedy half marathon and finished without any knee pain. As for me, it was a flat, fast course and despite the wind, I ran my third fastest marathon. Ever. Something about eliminating gas station roller meat from my diet and including more greens and plant based proteins may have helped.

A lot of people think running is a solo sport. Not necessarily so! Running groups, especially our friends at Back on My Feet are like second families and that’s the way the Carmel Marathon event played out this weekend. People came out to run, volunteer and cheer for our BoMF team members. Whether it’s your first time running with BoMF in the Carmel races as seen in the video below, or running in the most recent Carmel races as team members, it’s always a reunion of friends.

Soon celebrating seven years in Indy, Back on My Feet is still empowering its members using running as a way to build confidence, accountability, relationships and connect team members to jobs and sustainable housing and for this reason we’re riding this summer to support that purpose. Happy Anniversary to Back on My Feet and congrats to the Carmel Marathon, for currently being ranked 3rd on the “Most Likely to Qualify for Boston” list.

And guaranteed… if you wear your BoMF shirt in a race, even if you’re in a different city, you’re gonna get some hollars. You’ll get noticed. You’ll get support.

Best thing about this weekend though is Tombo is back to running. And we can run together. So there’s that.

But. We have this epic bike adventure coming up in just 60 days. As for the cycling together, I know y’all may not have issues with riding in the snow, but dang with more of it coming tonight, we may wait even a little longer to get out for some long rides together. #onecanonlyhope