June 20th - August 3rd

Not to worry, I'm not going to log every mile! Seriously inadequate blogging however... no excuses. During this "phase" of the summer, there HAS been some running, some road tripping, and at least one trail race of the Minnesota variety. A weekly mileage breakdown, and then some highlights.

June 16-22: 54mi

June 23-29: 21mi
My pre-afton taper began, plus the drive to minnesota, plus a mid-vacation surprise flight back to portland for family emergency...

June 30-July 6: 46mi
An excellent run or two around Lake Harriet in Minneapolis, and a 5th place finish at the Afton Alps 50k: 4:19.19. The race felt good, and I swear that I was holding back for the entire first lap. Nonetheless, I still came through in about 1:56 -- faster than I should have -- and the heat plus the lack of adequate 3+ hour runs definitely caught up to me on lap two. Felt like I held things together alright, but I didn't do a very good job of "racing" with the few people that did catch and pass me on the second lap. A fun course with lots of great support. Well organized to boot!

July 7-13: 16mi
Some definite post-race let down. Easy does it!

July 14-20: 38mi
Feeling better this week. 4 days of running, AND I got into the woods again for 4:32 minutes (about 20mi) on a trail near Leavenworth, WA. I ran to the lakes pictured below...


While this is NOT my photo (nor is that me in the photo) this IS Lake Viviane, the pinnacle of my run, and the first of the Enchantment Lakes in the Icicle Creek Wilderness area. The run itself, the entire day in fact, was about as perfect as could be. I did a booksigning at A Book for All Seasons in Leavenworth from 1-3pm, hit the trails by 4, and then squeezed in a 9:30pm showing of the new Batman movie just after showering and throwing down some food :) I was so jazzed up that I had a hard time falling asleep when the movie was over... at 12:30 in the morning.

July 21-27: 28mi
A shorter, 11mi trail run over Cutthroat Pass was the highlight of the week. Also several dips in the river, but its really been too cold for that of late. Hotter next week. Good for river dipping. Bagged on the White River 50mi this year. Maybe next.

July 28-August 3: 37mi.
Back in a respectable mileage zone again. I'll try to keep it between here and 50+ for the next 6 weeks. I might do the Cle Elum Ridge Run on Sept. 13th, but I'd also just be happy with a 4-6 hour run on some trails every other week. Nothing too long in this set, but I did run 5 days, with 3 runs in the 9-10mi range.