Chasing My Joy

My journey to becoming an Ultra Runner and Ironman

Colorado Marathon Race Report – 2017

Back in May, Cory, Cannon and I packed up and headed North to Fort Collins. I signed up for the Colorado Marathon as a catered training day in preparation for Leadville Silver Rush. I have completed this marathon twice before in 2011 (my first marathon!) and 2013 and love it. It was a little sad heading out to the buses without Cory as we ran this race together in 2011 and 2013. But I was excited to get to see him and Cannon around mile 20.

For the Colorado Marathon you are required to pick up your race packet on Friday or Saturday before the race on Sunday. Fort Collins is about an hour north of where we live so it wouldn’t be too terrible to dive up and back twice but my brother lives in Fort Collins so it was fun to just crash with him overnight. Packet pick up was smooth and easy this year. There is a very small expo where you could pick up anything you might need for race day. Easy in and out without much excitement.

Marathon, Colorado, Colorado Marathon

The Colorado Marathon in a point to point race so they load all the runners up on nice tour buses and drive you up the Poudre Canyon. I was lucky enough to sit by a really fun family of a father and his daughters who were running the race together. It was nice to chat with them and tell them a bit about the race. This year the weather was much warmer than it has been in past years so I was way overdressed for the morning wait for the race start. The race organizers provide a bag drop so you can send all your morning things down to the finish. I got to the start area about an hour before the start time so I took my time milling around and waiting in line for the bathrooms.

Colorado Marathon Start

Sunrise in the canyon

Soon enough we lined up for the start, ready to get the party started.

The first 10 miles are my favorite part of the race, you run down the canyon, right next to the river through the pine trees, it feels amazing.

In years past the early miles have just clicked by without any effort. This year after just a couple miles I already felt a little tired. I could really feel the lack of taper but I was having fun regardless, I just kept reminding myself that it was a training run and just to take it easy. Since I wasn’t racing I decided to wear my hydration pack as that is what I will be using for my summer races.

We passed the half-way mark and made our way out of the canyon and started making our way towards town.  My brother and parents were waiting for me at about mile 18, it was such a great lift to see them. Cory and Cannon were waiting for me a little further along, it was the best thing to see my little guy.

The last few miles meander into town on a bike path, it’s still nice but as usual the last 6 miles of a marathon feel long. The last mile seemed to go on FOREVER, and according to my watch the course was half a mile long, guess I need to work on running the tangents LOL.

I was happy to cross the finish line and make some deposits in the training bank for the Leadville Silver Rush 50. After finishing we all headed to The Rio for Mexican food and margaritas. Last year we all came out to cheer my mom on when she ran the Colorado Marathon, it’s become a tradition that we head to The Rio, I was almost 9 months pregnant last year so there was no margarita for me. This year I so enjoyed having my margarita and celebrating with my family. Cannon was a champ, but really tied after his morning of cheering, he cuddled with his Grandpa during lunch.

Cannon LOVES his Grandpa!!!

And with that, marathon #6 in the books, I love this race, I hope to run it many more times in the future. Maybe even with my kids one day just like the Dad I met on the bus on the way to the start….life goals.

Three years of the Colorado Marathon

2017 Races

One of my favorite things to do is to plan races for the year. I love to think about the fun adventures to be had, especially when we are in the grips of winter. It took me a long time to settle on races for the year and I am still not 100% sure on some of them. Life is a little more unpredictable now with a little one so I don’t want to commit to too much. I am also leery of getting injured this year, coming back from no running for a year to a 50 mile ultra marathon is a lot to ask of my body. So I want to be gentle and forgiving of my body while pushing to see what it can do. Here is the tentative plan for 2017:

Run Through Time Half Marathon – March 18

This race is a big maybe for me, I would really like to run it and it would be nice to run a half before my marathon in April. The question is the condition of the trails, the trails in Salida in March can be beautiful, ankle deep mud or covered in snow. I don’t want to travel to this race (especially if Cannon is coming along) on treacherous roads. So I will make the call when we get closer to race day.

Desert RATS Trail Marathon – April 15th

This is the race I am using as base training for the rest of the year. I am excited to head out to Fruita for a spring trail marathon. It will be challenging to train on trails during the winter so I am sure all the climbing in this race will be hard. I am doing my best to get out when the trails are dry and climbing as much as possible.

Collegiate Peaks 25 Mile Trail Race – May 6th

I have wanted to do this race for a long time, it looks so beautiful!

North Fork 50K – June 3rd

Another race close to home that looks BEAUTIFUL, this would be the first ultra for the year.

Mueller Trail Marathon – June 24th

Cory and I are planning on running this race together. June 24th is our anniversary (11 years!) and we love to do races together to celebrate.

I will likely add some races over the summer, but I am not ready to commit just yet….

Run Rabbit Run 50 Miler – September 9th

This is the big goal for the year! RRR is a beautiful and challenging run up in Steamboat Springs.

Weekly Rundown – Marathon Training Week 6

I can’t believe it’s already been 6 weeks of marathon training already. Things have been going pretty well so far, I am steadily working on building up my weekly milage and weekend long runs.

I am linking up with Jessie at The Right Fits and Jess Runs ATL to recap last weeks training.

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Monday: Complete rest day, I had a lot of work to do and my legs felt thrashed from the weekend anyway.

Tuesday: Quick 2.15 mile run with Cannon, it’s been pretty warm lately so it’s nice to get outside to run with my little sidekick.

Wednesday: Early morning 5.6 mile run, my legs still felt heavy but it was nice to get a slightly longer mid-week run in. In the evening I got in 30 minutes of strength training.

Sunrise, Run, Morning Run

Thursday: 30 minutes climbing workout. Thursday was a busy day at work so all I could fit in was a quick treadmill workout. After a quick warmup I set the treadmill at 15% incline and marched away, this is good training for the hilly marathon I have in April.

Friday: Cory had the day off so I was able to get out for a 7 mile run in the afternoon, without having to push a stroller. I love having Cannon with me for runs, but I live in a hilly neighborhood so it can make running with a jogging stroller challenging. In the evening I also did 40 minutes of strength and core work.

Saturday: Cory, Cannon and I got out for an early run before a busy Saturday. I love when we all get to run together.

Sunday: Sunday (long)run day! It’s been warm and dry here so the Boulder trails opened back up. I headed to the trails early so there would be plenty of time to get to our afternoon swim lessons and kick my feet up to watch the Super Bowl.

Totals:

Running: 33.3 miles

Strength: 2 sessions

Overall it was a good week, just 10 weeks to go!

Ironman or Ultra?

I am trying to be patient, I really am, but it’s not something I am good at. This trait has gotten me in trouble in the past. I want to do all the race and I want to do them RIGHT NOW. The trouble is when I try to do too many things too quickly I tend to do everything not that well or worse not at all.

So I am trying to be patient with planning races, on getting back into shape and with my body. It is very tempting to try to race long this year, but I know that would do me no good. If I try to race too soon it would e nothing but sad and slow and I would likely get injured.

That being said I have always been one to do better when I have a goals race to train for. So I have started to plot what races I would like to do in 2017 and the big question is Ironman or Ultra. I really want to do both but I know I need to choose. There are good reasons to choose either one:

Ironman

  • A length that I know I can do and love!
  • Doing all three sports will help me get in shape quicker without getting injured
  • I enjoy training with local triathlon clubs
  • Swim bike run is so much fun and I always miss it when I take a break
  • There is an awesome race in my backyard that I have never done

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Ultra

  • I have done Ironmans but I have never done a 50 or 100 mile trail race
  • I LOVE trail running
  • It seems so much less overwhelming to focus on one sport
  • I have wanted to race in the Leadville series for years now
  • Leadville isn’t exactly in my backyard but it’s close enough to get out on the course to train on weekends

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I will keep soul searching until one becomes the clear winner (I am slightly leaning one way already) but either way my focus for now is strength training and building back base fitness.

What would you do, Ironman or Ultra?

Happy Mother’s Day!!!

Happy Mother’s day to all the mamas out there! I had a great day with my mom. This is the first year in many that we have been able celebrate with mom on mother’s day, it’s so nice having my mom and dad in the same state.

When I suggested a mother’s day race my mom was all in. After going over a few choices we decided on the Title 9K in Boulder. I have to say it was an AWESOME choice, this was a great race. We had a great time.

We arrived early so packet pickup was easy, I just wish they had some coffee.

The race started at Boulder Reservoir, this morning the reservoir was calm and beautiful. The race even personalized our bibs.

We were pretty excited about the race, it’s been too long since we have ran together.

My brother, dad and husband came to cheer us on.

The race was set up nicely with time corrals, unfortunately a lot of people lined up incorrectly and we were stuck behind a slow crowd for the first half mile. Luckily this was just a fun run and we got to see the boys all over the course.

Caught mom zooming past some other racers!

The course was beautiful, mom and I had the best time running and chatting

We averaged a 10 minute mile and mom’s longest run since she was injured last year. I am so happy for her and her progress knowing how much she loves running. Also she took third in her age group out of 25, my mom kicks ass!

After the race we headed back to mom and dad’s house for brunch including waffles and mimosas. It was a great day and I am so happy I got to spend it with my mom.



How was your mother’s day? I hope you all had a chance to celebrate or be celebrated!

RAGE and Terror

I did it to myself…….normally I am good about doing race research before deciding on a big race (to me this is anything half marathon or Olympic triathlon and longer) but for some reason I decided on the RAGE 70.3 as my spring long course without doing ANY research. I decided I liked the date and going to Vegas in the spring sounded fun so I forked over my money and didn’t think too much about it.

BIG MISTAKE! I had no idea how challenging this course is, there is more than 6,000 ft of climbing on the bike!
I don’t even know how to train for that! And then after thrashing your legs on the bike you get to climb over 2,000 feet in the first six miles of the half marathon.
I honestly feel a little sick about it. I keep trying to tell myself that it is good training for my full ironman. If I can finish this really difficult half that should give me more confidence for Coeur d’Alene, right? Well the lesson is learned here, take it from me kids ALWAYS research a race before signing up. I see some major hill training in my future *barf*
Have you ever signed up for a race before knowing anything about it? Did you survive?

Ironman Challenge

As the Holiday Booty Buster Challenge winds down I find that I will miss it. I like having challenges, a little extra motivation never hurts! So I was excited when I saw that my gym (24 hour fitness) is hosting an Ironman competition. According to the instructions we have from January 1st until February 15th to complete the full ironman distances. What could be more perfect for me while I am training for Coeur d’Alene?!?

Also you can enter as many times as you like as long as you swim 2.4 miles (or 84.5 laps), ride 112 miles on the bike (each 60 minute spin class counts as 12 miles) and 26.2 miles by foot (running, walking, elliptical). I hope to complete at least 3 “Ironmans”. I have already almost completed the swim and run portion but I think the bike will take me two weeks to complete.

Do you like competitions like these? Would you participate in an “Ironman Competition” at your gym?

Also I have added two races to my 2012 calendar. The first is Aimee’s fault, she posted about doing the Greenland Trail 25k on May 5th and it sounds like too much fun!

So I hope to see you there Aimee!!!

The second race is the Wild West Relay

The WWR is a 200 mile relay on August 3rd and 4th. Cory and I were invited to join a team today and we are SO in!!! That will be my second relay in less than a month since I am going to run the EPIC relay with a team from work in July. Now I just need someone to invite me to run Hood to Coast (please)!

Colorado Marathon Race recap

Running my first marathon with my husband was an amazing experience, it was harder than I imagined but also one of the most perfect days of my life. I spent the first two thirds of the race feeling so grateful to be running a marathon. I was supposed to run a marathon on my 30th birthday back in September but was sidelined by an injury and was devastated so just getting to the start line was a victory for me this time around. To be honest I am disappointed in my time but I am trying to look on the bright side that it is a starting point that I can try to improve on in the future.

The day before was a little frantic and left us running around like chickens with our heads cut off, lesson learned there is that we need to plan the day before big races. I did find time for some proper fueling:

Thanks Cory for taking such a flattering picture of me, maybe you shouldn’t take pictures while driving.

The race is held in Fort Collins about an hour north of Denver and since we had to pick up our race packets the day before we spent the night at my brother’s house. The expo was pretty small but I was excited to get my number and shirt.

After laying out all my gear, I went to bed early in anticipation of our 3:30 am wake up call. It was cold and dark but at least we had luxury tour buses.

Two years ago my brother ran this race and he had to ride up the canyon in a school bus. It was colder than I thought it would be but we were happy that there wouldn’t be a large temperature swing between the start and finish.

We arrived at the start when it was still dark and cold, there were plenty of bathrooms but it would have been a good idea for us to have something to sit on. It was too cold to sit on the ground so we stood around getting stiff.

Quickly we were on our way running out of the canyon following the Poudre River.

For over the first half of the run I was so happy and grateful to be running and wasn’t wishing the miles away.

About mile twenty my IT bands started to really hurt and I knew I just needed to put my head down and tough out the last six miles.

I was so happy to turn onto the road that took us into downtown and to the finish

Official time was 4:59:13, lots of room for improvement but I did it and I am so grateful that my legs took me the full distance.

I am also very grateful to Cory who was there with me every step of the way. He could have an this race much faster but stuck with me and was my personal photographer. Thanks babe!

Boulder Spring Half Marathon Race Report

I had a great race, third half marathon in 2:10:30, over 13 minutes faster than the one I ran last year for a PR. I am surprised that I feel as good as I do because I didn’t execute the race well at all. I will take it as lessons learned and hope to do better at my full marathon in May. As always I laid out my gear the night before, the forecast called for high 3os to low 40s with a chance of rain or snow. I decided to wear my Mizuno tights (LOVE these), REI long sleeved tech shirt, Adidas running jacket and RMTC visor.I packed gloved and a headband but chose not to wear them. I also packed two packets of sharkies and one GU, this was a mistake but more on that later. This morning we woke up at 4:30, I was so tired and didn’t want to get out of bed. The only thing motivating me to move was the promise of lots of hot coffee. I stumbled around, drank two buckets of coffee then Bailey and Winston helped my get ready.I ate a cliff bar and a banana before leaving the house, we got to Boulder Reservoir by 7am for a 8am start time. We took our time visiting the bathrooms, warming up and finally lined up at 7:55 and waited…..20 minutes. This is my only complaint about this race, I have no idea why we started 15 minutes late. This was the best supported race I have ever ran there were aid stations everywhere, on both sides of the street. Each station had water, gatorade, GU gels, bananas and tons of friendly volunteers. There were also lots of volunteers with radios to help any athletes that needed it. Most of the race was on dirt country roads, with a few miles on paved roads. The start was pretty congested and didn’t open up until about three quarters of a mile in. Here are our splits:

Mile 1: 10:07 Caught behind a bunch of people

Mile 2: 9:40 Skipped water station, bad idea…

Mile 3: 10:06

Mile 4: 10:11 started to feel hungry because I didn’t take a gel before starting, what was I thinking? but I decided to wait to take my gel, again, what was I thinking, the aid stations had GUs I could have gotten more.

Mile 5: 10:27 feeling tired, low blood sugar

Mile 6: 10:11

Mile 7: 10:42 finally took my gel and drank more water

Mile 8: 9:25 feeling much better

Mile 9: 9:17

Mile 10: 9:45 starting to feel tired and hungry again, did I take a gel? No…brilliant.

Mile 11: 9:42

Mile 12 and .1: 10:00ish Cory forgot to hit his watch right when we crossed the line Official time 2:09:30 with 9:53 minute miles. I am happy with this overall time but wonder what time I could have ran if I had not lost my mind during the race. I know better than to make all these mistakes. I blame it on getting 2 hours of sleep on Friday night and just being too tired to think straight. I am getting closer to my sub two hour goal, maybe this summer or fall?? =)Happy to be done, we both really like the medals.We hung around for a while after the race and even got massages. Before leaving I made friends with Kona, a really sweet Sheep Dog. Headed home for ice baths, showers, recovery beer and relaxing. It’s been a good day.