A Little Preview of Tomorrow's Misery...

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In the hopes of preparing ourselves mentally and physically for the Blue Ridge Relay, Barefoot Josh and I are doing a trial run tomorrow. We will do three runs throughout the day and see if our legs are able to withstand the lactic acid rush. Our schedule is as follows: 

  • 7 AM: The Hill, out-n-back x 2= 5.4 miles, elevation change: 1100 ft up and down (9 min pace)
  • Noon: Farris Park x 5 = 5 miles, elevation change: 615 ft up and down (8:30 min pace)
  • 6 PM: Local lap(s)= 5.5 miles 675 ft up and down (8:45 min pace)

 For a grand total of 16 miles, 2390 feet of elevation change!

I plan on doing a running blog post throughout the day, posting how I'm feeling before and after each run. I'm also going to run to the store and load up on bananas, bagels, peanut butter, and protein bars to simulate what I'll be eating on race day. 

Even though I think (know) tomorrow will be a brutal, painful, "why-am-I-doing-this-please-make-it-stop" kind of day, I'm secretly looking forward to it. I love a challenge.

Yesterday's Wall Street Journal had an article on Making Marathons Even Tougher and highlighted the Pikes Peak Marathon, one of the more brutal trail marathons around. Blair saw me reading the article and was like, "No. No. Hand it over. That's it. You are officially banned from reading anything in the media." 

He knows me well. I'm not even close to being in the competitive shape needed to tackle something like the Pikes Peak marathon. But that didn't stop me from spending 40 minutes on the site, reading the course description and thinking, "Hmm... maybe... someday..."

Cheers!

Remember to Walk

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A friend reminded me the other day of the value of walks. A composer, he'd been blocked on a new work until he took a walk, giving his mind time to puzzle over the answer. He returned home inspired and got to work on the piece.

I don't walk anywhere near as often as I used to. After sweating it out on a run, the last thing I feel like doing is re-entering the humid swamp that is the South. I've put in my time and I lock myself in my air-conditioned castle for the rest of the day, thank you very much. 

But I think I'm doing myself a disservice. Walking allows time for mulling things over... making connections... daydreaming. Running is work. Fun work that I enjoy, but work. I'm thinking about pace and form and--oh yeah--remembering to breathe. Do marketing strategies and my next book project ever cross my mind? Not so much. 

So I'm going to start walking more, hot weather be damned. A little sweat seems a small price to pay for artistic inspiration. In fact, Blair and I just returned from a walk and I came in, sat down, and wrote this blog post.

See? It's working already. 

The Blue Ridge Relay

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As most of you know, I am committed to taking a break from marathons for the remainder of the year. However, demonstrating such restraint is apparently not enough to stomp the "stupid" gene out of me. It's the only explanation I have for agreeing to be part of a 12-member team that will tackle the Blue Ridge Relay on September 17th and 18th. 

Did you note there were two dates? That's because this is a 24-hour, 208 mile, 27,000 foot elevation gain race. From the website:

The 208 Mile Blue Ridge Relay (BRR208), which is one of the longest running relay races in the United States, takes place in the picturesque Blue Ridge and Black Mountains of Virginia and North Carolina. The BRR208 consists of maximum 12 person (4 person minimum) teams that rotate through 36 transition areas as they cover the 208-mile distance of the race. Each relay team member runs 3 legs of varying lengths and difficulty and will cover an average total distance of ~16.6 miles. The runners rotate in a set order once the race begins and will be obligated to follow this rotation until the final runner finishes in Asheville, North Carolina!

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Newest Obsession: Running Dress

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Adventures of Running Mom blogger models her Nuu Muu dressPeople--and women in particular--either love or hate the idea of running in a skirt. There is no middle ground on this prickly issue.

I fall into the "love them" camp. I own several running skorts and have run all but one of my marathons in a them. They're comfortable, non-chafing, and damn cute.  Plus, unlike wearing shorts in 90% humidity, you don't look like you've just wet your pants after finishing a long run. 

Skorts slowly seem to be gaining acceptance in the running community so obviously it's time to introduce something new: the running dress. 

How cute is this dress, I ask you?Check out these dresses from Nuu-Muu. Super cute. The photos are from the Adventures of Running Mom site. This is a real runner (read: not model) in one of the dresses. I love how it can transition from running dress to outfit with the simple addition of some yoga pants. 

My friend Iris sent me this link to her new Bolle running dress. Also adorable. The look is perfect for transitioning from a run to heading into a coffeeshop for a post-run coffee and bagel. Bolle's Running Dress

Still, I'm not sure I have enough moxy to carry off wearing one of these. But I felt the same way the first time I showed up in a skort, and I don't even blink now about pulling those on. So yes, I think a running dress is in my near future, along with some Girl Shortie pants to wear beneath it.