Stacy's Blog

So we hit a record low Friday night, -33. Needless to say the temp. warmed up to a balmy 15 below and -25-30 windchill. So it was the treadmill again. I need to just get over it and resign myself to the fact I will be in my basement on the treadmill ALOT this winter. Mother Nature is not going the cooperate any time soon. (sigh)

Treadmill 8.34 pace. Hamstring in giving me trouble. Seems to flare up every now and then since I hurt it 2 years ago. Guess I did more damage than I realized cuz I still feel it occasionally.

Temp. 10, no wind. Ron, Bayly and I had an awesome "in the dark" run. We kept up a good pace even though the road was slippery. It was so nice with the glow from the lights of Fargo and the scattered farm lights. The snow gave off enough of a reflection that we could see pretty well. Weather gets nasty again tomorrow. Below 0 and windy until the weekend.

Tempo run:

1 8.57 pace

2-3 8.00

4 7.47

5 8.57

Maybe the treadmill and I have finally made peace. I had an enjoyable run tonight and would have gone farther, but my mom called. The wind chills have been brutal the last 2 days. (-35-40). Next week looks much better with highs in the 20's. Woohoo! I was going to ride bike last night, but by the time Ron and I shoveled the driveway (the drift was thigh high all the way across) I decided I had enough of a workout, so I came in, curled up in a blanket, and watched a sappy chick flick. The temp was -15 and the windchill was -32 while we were out shoveling. I told Ron he should never doubt my love for him, I am not living up here for my health. :)

I got to run outside. Woohoo! Ran the first 6 with Ron and Bayly. The wind was a little brisk going north and west. But the sun was out and roads were not to slippery. It was a good day for a run!

Biked 10 miles.

Temp. 23 and windy. The wind was out of the south so I didn't think it would be that cold. Boy was I wrong! It was cold the first mile and I was using my face mask. I hate those things. It messes with my breathing. I think I start feeling clausterphobic (sp?). After I turned north, I was able to take it off and the rest of the run was good. There was not a cloud in the sky and the sunset was brilliant. Bayly had a nice set of whiskercicles when we were done. :)

Tempo Run. Weather was 40 and hardly any wind. It was a great day to be outside. (finally)

Thought my knee might hurt since I didn't run for 3 days but everything felt good.

Ron and Bayly and I went out for a nice Sunday run after the Vikings game. Ron had an extra skip in his step since his team won. It's been a long time since they have been this close to the SB. Next week is going to be tough.

Bayly and I ran outside in the fog. The hoar frost was all over every surface from every blade of grass to all the trees. The visibility was about a quarter of a mile. It was really pretty, but kind of wierd when I couldn't see the mile line. We were both white with frost when the run was over.

Weather is taking a turn for the worse again. So I was on the treadmill. Also did 4 miles on the bike and watched House Hunters.

Tempo run:

1 8.57

2 8.13

3&4 8.00

5 9.13

The weather has turned ugly again. We are back to typical January cold, ice and snow. I took Maggie and Bayly for a walk on Sunday, while there was a lull in the storm and my usual running route is covered with snow and then it rained on top of that and now it is froze. So running out there might not be an option for awhile. There is ice everywhere. Yesterday the wind blew 30-50 mph, blizzard conditions. Polished the ice up nicely. Fargo Marathon 115 days.

Tempo run:

1- 9:13

2,3,4-7:47

5-9:13

Windchills -20. Life on a treadmill (yawn). Pace 8.34. Biked 5.00 also. Craving color and warmth right now. 113 days until Fargo Marathon. :)

Six miles on the treadmill. I am beginning to feel like a hamster.

"The woods are lovely dark and deep, but I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep."

Tempo Run:

1-9:13

2-8.34

3-7.47

4-7.47

5-8.00

6-7.47

7-9.00

Got to run outside! Temp was 8 and there was some windchill. The road was like a skating rink with snow. The snow actually helped with traction. But I still ran gingerly. It was lightly snowing and the sun was trying to shine through the clouds. It was a very pretty day and if the roads had been better I would have run farther.

Six miles, not quite MGP. Ron and Bayly ran with me. It was another foggy late afternoon. Kind of cool. Everything was so quiet and kind of muffled. There is white as far as the eye can see, broken up occasionally by the gray trees. All the ditches are filled with snow and even with the road, so it is hard to tell where the side of the road is. Still really icy. We were very frosty when we got done.

The weather service is putting out rather dire warnings about another flood this year. The mayor of Fargo says it is to early to push the panic button. I'm going with his assessment. He has fought alot of floods. Not sure what the forcast is for the river by us. It was ugly last year. Took 40 miles to get to church, which is normally only 7 miles, because of all the washed out roads. Ahhh, life in a lake bottom.

Took Bayly to the vet for her wellness check. Vet said she has very good muscle tone and still has her girlish figure for an 8 year old. I told him she is my running buddy and he said, don't tell her she is a senior citizen. :)

I don't know what it is with weekends and storms, but every weekend I plan to do a long run the weather is bad or the roads are to treacherous to even attempt a long run. The temp. was great but we got freezing drizzle Friday night then snow. Ron had to go out of town and I promised him I would not try to run outside with him not here. So I ran on the treadmill. I decided to run by time rather than mileage. That did help. Took me about 2 hours at a slow, easy pace.

The days are getting longer, yea!

8:34 pace on treadmill. No school today, blowing and drifting. Same old story. My daughter lives in Fargo and she said there is nobody running outside right now. With the mountains of snow and ice and streets half the width and sidewalks covered with ice and snow it is not great running weather right now, even on nice days. Can't wait til spring. It will look like bears coming out of hibernation. :)

Tempo run:

1&2-8:34

3-8:00

4&5-7:41

6-8:57

Shoveled this morning for 2 hours. Temp. 9 with some windchill, but the sun is out! Amazingly I can already feel some of the warmth coming back to the northland. The weatherman said we have 46 inches on the ground right now. The moisture content is about an inch less than it was last year at this time. Some of our heaviest and wettest snows come in the next 6 weeks. Time will tell. A lot of flood talk right now. Heading to Bismarck for a couple of days to see our daughter. She hasn't been home since Christmas break. Life of a college student. Or maybe I should say *social* life of a college student. :)

Got home from Bismarck early Sat. morning. Got up early for a meeting. The track coach asked me to be Ass. Coach for Girls on the Run program she is starting. Our daughter is the other Ass. Coach. So after our meeting my daughter decided we needed to have lunch and run errands together. By the time I got home I was wiped out, but since I didn't run for 3 days I had to do something. Ugh! Ran on the treadmill and watched Apollo Ohno and the women's moguls. It was a grueling 4 miles. My legs felt like lead weights.

Took every ounce of energy to go down and run. I was supposed to run an 8 mile tempo run. I was lucky to tough out 6. Legs felt lousy again. Got done and went to bed. The weather is really starting to get to me. This time of year always gets to me. It's like winter is still got a strong grip but spring is not that far off. The days are longer and brighter and the sun is starting to feel warm again. But all you can see for miles and miles is white mountains of snow. The intersections are really challenging, can't see over the snow banks, so you have to inch out very carefully.

Mile 1- 9:13

2-8:49

3,4,5&6-8:34

5 miles in 41:45. Ok, that makes up for the pathetic "tempo run" last night. I feel better now.

Took the Maggie and Bayly for a walk. The wind has been blowing hard since yesterday morning. But the sun was out and it was a "spring sky" so we went for a mile. It was really cold. I kind of wanted to see what shape the roads were in. Not good. Even though they are gravel they are still really icy. Temps are not going to go up any time soon. I would like to do my long run outside this weekend. Have to see.

The mayor of Fargo wants a million sandbags filled by March 15. They estimated they used about 6 million to save the city last year. They are saying there is an 86% chance of major flooding on the Red River. Haven't heard anything about the Sheyenne or Wild Rice.

Bayly and I decided to risk the ice and snow. The sun was brilliant and temp. was 24. I ran on the very edge of the road where some dirt and grass was showing. However, due to the wind the last couple of days there were alot of drifts. They were so hard I ran right over the top of them.   92 days until the Fargo Marathon.

"I run because it's so symbolic of life. You have to drive yourself to overcome the obstacles. You might feel that you can't. But then you find your inner strength, and realize your're capable of so much more than you thought."  -Arthur Blank

Ran the Brain Freeze 5K today. It was a fun run fundraiser for one of our local heroes who suffered traumatic brain injury in Iraq. What a great great guy! He has come a long way and has a long way to go, but he was out today to start us off and then shook everybody's hand as we finished. When our son came home safe and healthy from Iraq I made a decision that I would do everything I could to support those who were not so fortunate. The temp was around 20 and there was a light snow falling it was a great day for a run!

Now I just have to figure out where I am going to run 15 miles tomorrow. Hopefully I can find some place where I don't need ice skates. :)

Three things, as a runner, I hate. Dogs, cars and ice. Fortunately Ron and I managed to find a route today that had a minimum of all three. The sun is warm enough now that the black top roads are pretty clear of ice and snow. I had planned on doing 15 miles, but not being able to run on pavement since last fall took it's toll. At mile 9 my legs and hips felt awful. The last three miles I was on auto pilot. Ron was not feeling much better. At least we got to run outside and the weather was great. The sun even graced us with it's presence for awhile.

Bayly was not happy when we got home. Twelve miles was way to far for her 8 year old body. However, she would disagree.

Flood preparations are kicking into high gear. Some people are not even finished repairing their homes after last year's flood. Still not sure what the rivers are going to do. It is mostly guess work right now. All depends on how fast everything melts and how much moisture we get in the next month.

Treadmill.  Back to winter and cold windchills. (deep sigh)

Bayly and I found a stretch of gravel where the ice is finally starting to break up. Still really slick, but the day was so awesome we had to go out. Temp was 4, windchill, a little nippy. The sun was brilliant and the sky was so blue with not a cloud. North Dakota has it's own kind of beauty on crisp winter days. Everything is so stark and clear against the white snow and blue sky. It was awesome! Suppose to warm up into the 20's on the weekend and 30's next week! Yippee!  :)

The mayor of Fargo issued a state of emergency yesterday and the earth moving equipment is moving clay for dikes. The Red hit 40 feet something last year. Ron predicts 37 feet this year. Still a major flood since flood stage is 18 feet. The stress is starting to set in. We need warm days and cold nights and no more moisture to avoid a repeat of last year. Prayers going up.

I feel like am back amongst the living again. Got sick 10 days ago. Ugh. I was feeling pretty confident. Thought I had escaped the nasty germs for the year. Ha! That's what I get for getting cocky. I haven't felt this crummy in years. Between the wicked winter and getting sick I feel like I am soooo behind on my training. Especially the mileage part. Oh well. Have to kick it into high gear and see what happens.  The weather has warmed up and the roads are finally clear. My usual route is muddy. Nice change from all the ice.

Temps are in the 30's during the day and 20's at night. Nice slow melt so far. The sandbagging is in full gear. Everyone is just holding their breath. I read that we are not the only area having to deal with alot of water. Hope all goes well and this ends up being a non-event for all of us.  :)

Ron and I ran the truck route around town and a little of the bike path. The temp was about 40 foggy and damp. The road was clear and the snow is melting! Woo Hoo! My legs were so tired and sore. It was great to be outside!

"The road is callin'. Today is the day" --- Don't look back --- Boston

Intended to run outside, but by the time I got home went to "Girls on the Run" (wow, I forgot how chatty 5th graders are) and got supper, it was time for "24". So I ran on the treadmill and my legs felt good. Pace was 8:30 for the first 4 and 8:13-8:00 for the last mile.

"The sun is shinin', the clouds are breakin'. 'Cause I can't lose now, there's no game to play"--- Don't Look Back --- Boston

Ran outside in shorts! Well, ok I had underarmor underneath. Down to 2 light layers. Temps in the 40's by the weekend. The bears are coming out of hibernation!  :)

Ran truck route and tried to run bike path but it was under water, so I had to take the road. Why is it when you are in the car doing 40 mph it seems so slow. But when cars are whizzing by you at 40 it seems like they are going way too fast? It has been rainy and foggy all week because of all the melting. Everyone is wishing for sunshine, however we all know this kind of weather is best for melting and reducing flooding. The water is really starting to move. Stress level seems to be moving up also. The rain isn't helping with the stress. Temps are supposed to be 40's next week. River levels will start raising. They put out a flood watch today. We will be under that for at least a month or more. Sigh

My running routes are limited to the truck route. The gravel roads (my usual routes) are a muddy mess, the bike path is under water and it is so foggy the hiways are dangerous. So I set out to run 6 miles on the truck route, as I rounded the corner heading into our "downtown district" which is a whopping 1 block long, I saw thick black smoke blocking my way up ahead. As I got to the business district ;) the fire trucks were everywhere and one of the buildings was engulfed in flames. The smoke was so thick and heavy it covered the entire south side of town, including the south truck route. I watched for a few minutes then turned around praying that everyone got out ok. The buildings are about 120 years old so I wasn't sure they would be able to save the block. Turns out the fire started in the cabinet shop. A spark flew into a room with varnish and stain and it went up quite fast. The apartments above the shop were also destroyed. But everyone was safe. Ron and I tried to run later, but the smoke was still pretty thick, so I talked him into taking me out to eat at my favorite mexican food place. :)

Five times around the truck route. My left thigh is really stiff and sore when I run. Otherwise everything else felt great. My training is not going as well as I had hoped. I feel like I am so behind and it is starting to mess with my head. I just have to tell my head to take it one day at a time. I hope it listens.  :)

Flood warning on the Red River. They still haven't said anything about the Sheyenne or Wild Rice. Saw on the website that our town is filling sandbags tomorrow.

4x1mile at 8:00 minute pace. Feel better now that my speed work is on schedule. Felt pretty good, for doing it at 9:30 at night.

I can see clearly now the fog is gone. There was a bright orange orb in the sky today. There was a rumor floating around that it might be the sun! Bayly and I enjoyed every minute of it, even though we could only find 1 mile stretch of road that was semi dry and not muddy. There was water on both sides in the ditches she thought was great and splashed and played most of the 4 miles. My legs felt tired, but the sun was glorious!

Fargo is in full flood fighting mode. Predicted crest 38 ft. this Saturday. Two feet below last year, but still a major flood. Supposed to be 50 tomorrow. That will get the culverts broke open and the water will really start flowing.

There were 2 robins splashing in the sump pump water today. What a nice site that was! Temp was 47 and windy. I felt really good, so turned it into a tempo run.

Bayly and I went out. Temp was close to 50 and no wind. There were a couple of geese keeping us company. Bayly thought about chasing them but, there was to much water between them and us. If all goes well I'll do 15 tomorrow. The temps are supposed to drop below freezing for several days which will be good to slow the run off and give the rivers a chance to catch up.

Woke up this morning to winter, again. North wind was howling and the temp was about 15. And my cold is back. Ugh! Ron and I intended to go 15, but after 11 I was so done. Everything felt achy and I was tired of fighting the wind. Things are just not going as well as I had hoped. Two months out and not feeling all that great. Oh well in the grand scheme of things, these are only minor setbacks on the marathon of life.......Oh my gosh that sounded soo corny.   :)

After spending 3 days with 11 energetic teens at the State SADD Conference even my treadmill looked good. :)

Temp was 50, snow is almost gone, rivers have crested and are heading back to normal, geese have arrived! It was a great day for a run.

Ran 5 miles at above race pace with 1/2 mile recovery in between. Felt good. The wind was really blowing, but the temp was warm. Supposed to be in the 60's next week. Yea! I love spring. Can't wait for the smell of dirt. :)

Legs were tired and Ron was not having a real good day either. So we made it an easy short run.

Weather was awesome. Temp in the 50's, no wind and lots of sun. Even got a start on my tan. :) I felt pretty good until mile 12, started hurting a little bit. Ron brought out some water and that hit the spot. I got my second wind and felt good when I finished. Woo Hoo!

Bayly and I ran. Temp was 68, no wind. Sunset was gorgeous. Wonderful evening run. The ducks and geese were everywhere. They think they are in heaven. Water everywhere and flooded corn stalks for cover. They sure make a mess of the road though. We had 28 inches of snow in March last year. This year we had a trace. Tulips are coming up!

Treadmill at 8:34-8:00 pace  :)

Spent Good Friday helping Tara job hunt for the summer. I started to feel really achy and tired by the afternoon. Can't seem to shake this virus. Just when I think I'm good, it rears its ugly head. Came home and went to bed. Still wasn't feeling great on Saturday, but decided to try to get through 6 miles. My legs felt tired and I was glad when it was over.

Ran 3 with Kaylie. Then went out later with Ron and did 6. We both felt good. I am loving this spring weather! No rain or snow and 50's and 60's for temps. Was supposed to run 17, but just did not have it in me.

Warm up, then 1 mile at 8:30 pace, recovery 400, mile 2 at 8:30 pace and so on and so on. Ron and I ran on the school track. It was flat and smooth and we could get an accurate feel for the miles. And it was getting dark. We felt pretty good.

Bayly and I on the road again. This spring has been so awesome after the brutal winter! The roads are even dusty! :) Bayly is a little stiff. We went to Bismarck yesterday and she was alone in the house all day. She was ready for a hard run today. She had quite the attitude and would not listen to me at all. Glad she didn't find any critters to chase. :)

Temp was 70. Ron was going 15 and I was going to go 17. We struggled from mile 8. Don't know if it was the heat or just a bad day. I was starting mile 15 and my hamstring really started giving me trouble. Past experience told me not to push it. Ugh! Training is getting discouraging.

Got home late and didn't want to miss Deadliest Catch. On the treadmill at 6.5-7.00 pace. And the wind was blowing like a hurricane and I didn't feel like dealing with it.

We had our first thunder storm of the year this morning. I love the first spring storm as long as it is not severe. What a difference a year makes. Last year at this time we had to postpone the prom because all the roads were washed out and the sheriff department was worried about kids traveling at night with water everywhere. Today it was 70 the rivers are back in their banks and the landscape is turning green. :)

There is nothing like a spring day in North Dakota, when the sun is bright, the dirt is black, the sky is blue, and the ditches and trees are green!

Ron and I ran on the track:

1/2 mile to the track:

1 mile @ 8:19 min. 400 recovery

2 mile @ 8:13 min. 400 recovery

3 mile @ 8:09 min. 400 recovery

4 mile @ 8:10 min. 400 recovery

5 mile @ 8:08 min. 400 recovery

6 mile @ 8:00 min.     Yea! I am pretty happy with this workout. :) :) :)

Ron, Kaylie and I took the dogs out for a slow, easy run. Kaylie is battling shin splints again so she wanted to take it easy. Maggie even got to go. Her little short legs kept up pretty well. Both dogs were muddy and happy when we got back. And picked up a few ticks. Yuck.

Woke up to blue sky and warm sunshine. After a week of gale force winds it was a nice change. Awesome day for a run! New shoes, new socks, and a new iPod shuffle made the run even better. I felt great and had a pretty good pace going until I hit mile 11. Then I hit the wall and the rest of the run was grueling. Everything hurt. Ron did 16 and he was not doing much better. We were still glad to be out on such a gorgeous spring day.

Both of us are really struggling with training this year. Marathon training is like having a second job. Right now we have 2 kids house hunting. Jared getting married in June, Kaylie graduating in May. Trying to get the house ready for all the festivities. Working full time, church stuff and the list goes on and on. I'm just not sure my heart is in it this year. I never want running to be something I have to do. I just enjoy running with my dog and husband, and soaking up God's creation. And going as far as I feel like. I need to do some reevaluating. This should not be a chore.

Ran with Girls on the Run. Two more weeks until their 5K.

Ran with Kaylie. Her shins are feeling a little better.

They say that North Dakota has the cleanest air. Not today. The farmers have been burning for a week. They are burning all the flood debris off their fields so we have a constant haze. All the haze makes for a pretty sunset. 

 After reevaluating our training and our schedule we have decided to run the 1/2 for Fargo. We registered for the Twin Cities Marathon on Oct. 3. I've heard the course is beautiful and we have never run it before. I am going to try to qualify there. Summer training is so much easier. The Twin Cities is run on Sunday, so it won't interfere with cross country. 

Ran the closest thing we have to a trail. The section line between 2 farm fields. First time I have been able to run it since last summer. It was finally dry enough and fairly free of tractor tire ruts. :) Temp was to warm for Bayly to come with. This spring has been so wonderful. We have not had a warm spring in 5 or 6 years. The smell of dirt and lawn clippings fill the air, and it is not even May yet!

Busy day. Outside clean up at church, home for awhile. Treadmill at 8:34-8:00 min. pace. Back to church for date night. Lots of fun, good pizza and Ron and I won the Not So Newlywed game. :)

Great day! It rained a little and settled the dust and everything is so green. No one can remember when the last time the trees were this leafy in April. We usually have to wait until at least the middle of May. Farmers are way ahead of schedule. I love the smell of dirt!

2 miles with GOTR. 3 miles with Ron. Taking a few days off.

Planned on taking Bayly. But a storm moved in and I wasn't sure there was lightening. So I did 3 on the treadmill. Started lifting weights again.

Our Girls On The Run had their 5K today. They all did a great job and had alot of fun. Tried to do 3 mile treadhills. About half way through I got this shooting pain in my ankle. It has been bothering me off and on. Dropped the incline and the pain went away. Weird.

Ron left for Atlanta this morning. Tara is on her way home for the summer. I decided to stay close to home and I want to do all of my long runs on pavement from now until Oct. So that leaves 2 options. The bike path or the truck route. I chose the bike path. What started out as a breezy, misty, chilly run, ended as a driving rain, windy, cold run. I think I'll warm up by July.... maybe.

Wow, what a night for running! The sun was brilliant as it set, the dirt is so black and the grass and trees are so green after the rain yesterday. AND there was not so much as a leaf moving. Quite a rare event for North Dakota. I think maybe we have 2 nights a year as perfect as this one. Awesome! Legs felt good. Bayly was in heaven. She hasn't been out for a run for a week. Thoughts and prayers to everyone in Mississippi, and Tennessee.

Tempo run. 

1 mile warm up, 4 miles at 8:35 pace, 1 mile cool down. Weather has turned really ugly again. What happened to April? :( 

Wind and rain, wind and rain. I am starting to see a trend. I don't mind wind most of the time, and rain is fine. Put the 2 together and it is ugly. 

So it was a mini speed workout on the dreaded treadmill.

Warm up

1 mile @ 8:20 pace, bumped it up to 8:00. Short recovery

2 mile @ 8:00, short recovery

3 mile started @ 8:00 bumped it up to 7:30 pace. 'bout died, but I did it! :) Not bad for an old person.

Slow and easy today. My legs were tired. Lots of fresh water in the ditches. Bayly was enjoying every minute. Depending on where she decides to soak herself, she either comes home as a "mud puppy" or "swamp thing".

Last long run. Less than 2 weeks. I felt good. Ron struggled a little. His schedule does not allow him to run as much as I do. Ron and the kids gave me a gift card to the local garden center! Woohoo! The growing season has begun. Can't wait to get my hands dirty. 

Ok so I am posting this on Wed. night. I planned on doing one more speed workout tonight, then kind of coast and go easy this week and next. But the way this week is going I'll be lucky to run at all. Daughter graduates from college on Saturday. We are having a small get-together here to celebrate and my flowers need to be planted, lawn mowed, weeds pulled, pots planted and it will not quit raining. I get way to OCD about this stuff. Plus I have to get 2 flower girl dresses made for Jared's wedding. Oh and squeeze work in also. :) Uhg!

Taper time is looking more like slacker time. Busy week. Way to busy.

Decided to see what race pace felt like since I haven't been running much. Great spring night and my legs felt great! Fargo marathon is Saturday. Weather guy is talking hot and windy. It is also regional track that day. We'll see. It is North Dakota. It could end up being cold and snowy. :)

Ok, so this is a week late. Right after the race, Ron and I came home took a shower, picked up Kaylie and we headed to Santa Fe for some R&R and to find some cool southwest stuff. We left our running shoes at home. Jared and Tara stayed behind cuz they needed to work. We picked up my mom in Colorado. It was a great trip and good to get away. 

 On to the race. My taper was not good. Things got so busy after our last long run, then a week before the race, our community suffered a huge loss in the death of a young man. His family have been long time members of the community and school and it hit the community so hard. Running just wasn't a priority. I only ran 9 miles the 2 weeks before the race. 

The day was rainy, but not cold. We started at 7:30am, the wind wasn't too bad. Things started going south at about mile 3. My back cramped up and that has never happened before. At the half way point I was really hurting and since I don't wear a watch I had no idea what my pace was. By mile 8 I felt like I was running on 2 boards. My legs and back were really hurting. I was glad I wasn't running a marathon. I don't think I would have made it. I couldn't believe my time when I ran into the dome! I expected to see about 2:15 or 2:30 on the clock. Considering how I felt I was pretty happy. My pace was 8:34 and there were 235 in my age group. I was only a minute off my PR. All things considered it wasn't to bad a day. :)

Came home last night from Santa Fe. Grass is long, mosquitos are wicked, lots of water in the ditches, lots do to before Jared's wedding. Took Bayly out, she had to stay behind and was ready for a run. Time to get back in the routine. :) Twin Cities marathon will be here before I know it.

I love summer! Got up this morning and cleaned the house, did laundry, went for a run and still had most of my day left! Helped Jared move into their new house. He closed at 9:00am and we were painting and moving by 10:30. Now if the weather would start acting like it was summer.  ;)

It was hot today. I'm not complaining, just not used to it. I think I will go out earlier tomorrow. Took Bayly and Maggie for a 2 mile walk this morning. I think Bayly's running days might be over for the summer if it stays hot. Fortunately she enjoys walks too. Chasing birds and gophers can be done at a either a brisk walk or a nice easy jog.  :)

Working back up to higher weekly miles. Less than 2 weeks until Jared and Jen's wedding. One flower girl dress done 1 to go. Next week is going to be crazy!

Raining all day. 8:34 pace.

Ran with Ron on the truck route. Where oh where is the sun?!

Wedding is over! It was a beautiful ceremony. A gorgeous day. Jen and Jared looked very happy. Now, hopefully life will settle down a bit. 

It was a hot, muggy run. We are getting way to much rain again. We are going into the 17th year of this wet cycle. Prayers for those north and east of us that are dealing with tornado loss and clean up.  

A slow, easy run with the dogs and Ron. Maggie ran with us so we went slow and easy so her short legs could keep up. It was warm, so we went slow and easy for Bayly. Ron has not run for quite some time so we went slow and easy for him, too. :)

An interesting thing occurs, every now and then, on a certain mile stretch of my usual route. I noticed it a couple years ago and I thought it was odd. There are no houses, just farm fields, the road and ditch. Somebody tosses 2 or 3 trashy romance novels out the car window as they drive along the road. It is always on the same mile and the books are in good shape when they are tossed. It's happened 3 or 4 times. Weird.

Temp in the 80's.  Hasn't rained for 2 days!

Woke up to a thunder storm. Hot, muggy run. At least the sun wasn't out and there was a breeze. Wedding and a big family reunion this weekend.

Cross Country summer running started. Yea! I love Cross Country. Now I get to spend the next 3 1/2 months trying to keep up with high school girls. :)

Went in and ran with the team again. I'll probably go in a couple times a week. Gas is not cheap. Season starts Aug. 9.

Truck route and bike path. Temp was in the upper 70's with a stiff south wind. I don't mind the wind in the summer. Cools me off and keeps the bugs away. Of course I'll be cursing it in a few months. Humidity is starting to rise again. June and May were crazy busy. Plan for July and August: Run, Rest and Garden!  :) :) :)

Hot and muggy. The haze and humidity is hanging in the air. Fortunately there was a nice breeze. Ran the last 11/2 at race pace. Nothing going on this weekend. Yea! HAPPY FOURTH of JULY! 

Ran with the team this morning. Biked 6.00 miles tonight.

Took my usual route. Thought about taking Bayly, but I'm glad I didn't. It was muggy, but overcast until about half way through the run, then the sun came out and it got hot. Bayly would not have faired very well. Everything is so green. The corn is getting tall and the wheat is starting to turn. I love summer! It is going way to fast. 

 I don't think the birds were thrilled to have me out there. There is one spot where this red-winged black bird just hovers over my head and chirps at me. This goes on for about 1/2 a mile. Usually it is just the one bird. Today he brought friends. Luckily he only chirps over my head and does not do anything else. :) 

We did a drop off run with the team. Four, five and six miles. Everyone did well. It was hot, but not humid and there was a nice breeze. Still not sure what our numbers will be. We average 10-15 runners each day but they are not the same runners. Thinking about 40 by the time practice starts. 

Awesome sunset. Kept up a pretty good pace. Vector Control came through and took care of the little bloodsuckers, so Ron and I sat out on the patio and watched the stars come out. Doesn't get any better than that! 

Biked 11.50 miles. It felt good to go fast! And the mosquitos couldn't catch me. :)

Wonderful evening. Low humidity, mid 70's and gorgeous sunshine. I thought after my bike ride yesterday my legs would be tired, but I felt great. Ran on the section line road. ( really not a road, more like tire tracks between 2 fields. The corn on one side and beans on the other. Kept a wary eye out for critters. Especially the black and white kind. Fortunately they kept to the fields. 

 Ron is really struggling with injuries. Kaylie has all but given up on running because of her constant problem with shin splints. I read Born to Run last winter and gave it to Kaylie to read. She is thinking she might want to try this barefoot running thing. I'm thinking Ron should maybe try it to. There seems to be some valid points to it. I'm not sure it is smart in the winter up here. But the other 3 seasons maybe it would work for them. Kaylie calls me a mutant as that is what the author refers to runners who stay pretty much injury free. (knock on wood). But for runners like Ron and Kaylie it might be just what they need. I don't know. It is very frustrating for them.

Went in and ran 4 with the team. Came home and took the dogs out for a quick mile before the heat set in. Maggie's short little legs did pretty well.

Woke up at 4:00 am to nasty weather, no electricity, dogs going crazy, howling wind. I hate severe t-storms in the dark. We grabbed flashlights, noticed that the wind seemed to be increasing, woke up Tara and told her to go to the basement with the dogs. Ron and I got the generator going as the sump pump was running and we didn't want to bail water. Jared called and said he and Jen were getting water in their basement and they were out of power too. Called Kaylie and Dustin. They were good. Their bedroom is on the lowest floor. Put batteries in my NOAA radio. (Probably should have done that at the beginning of storm season). That storm moved on. But the radio said another one was coming. Yeah! Power finally came on an hour later. Just in time to see the radar and have the weatherman tell us the next storm had rotation and was just west of us. Fortunately it had weakened a bit so we got more rain (like we needed any more) and some wind. Ron decided to just go to work, since there were quite a few out of power. All things considered we faired pretty well. Other towns got hit pretty hard. Jared was able to keep a handle on the water. They borrowed some fans and the dehumidifier.

Had a great run tonight. Blue sky, low humidity, nice breeze and awesome sunset. After the run Tara and I watched Twister. :) Her idea. :)

Ran with the team in Fargo. It is a nice change to run in town. There is so much going on. We ran through the street fair before it opened this morning. Afterwards Kaylie and I went through and did a little Christmas shopping before it really got busy and hot. Kaylie gave me some ideas what she wants for Christmas, so I think I'll go back tomorrow.

Temp is 89. Humidity is wickedly high and we are in a tornado watch, so I decided the treadmill was my best bet today. Tried to keep it at an 8:00 pace. But failed miserably. 

Fargo river run. Hot, muggy and fast. Keeping up with teenagers. Ugg. There easy runs turn into a speed workout for me.

Ran 2 miles with the girls. We had a coaches/captains meeting in preparation for the coming year. Exciting! Came home and ran another 5. Nice breeze, made the run good. The heat has not bothered me as much this year. I have kept a close eye on the humidity and temp and take it slow when both are creeping up.  

Think I'll run Casselton Summerfest 5K this Sat. I haven't run a road race all summer. 

Ran with a sandhill crane today. It was down in the ditch and every time I caught up with it, it would take flight and land ahead of me. This went on for 1/2 the run.

Weather was warm and it has been really muggy lately, so it feels worse than it is. I felt pretty good. My back has been stiff and sore when I get up in the morning and at night after I have been out gardening. But it feels great when I run. :) I would say I am getting old, but since age is a state of mind I'll just stick with too much gardening.  :)

Did not want to deal with heat and humidity and threat of rain. So I did treadhills and biked 3 miles in the basement. Boring, but cool and bug free.  :)

I PR'd!!!! I was the 5th woman over all. There were about 80 runners. I didn't feel real great. And about 1/2 way through I was asking myself why I keep doing this to myself. When I started I thought I would just run my pace and enjoy the day. Nope, that competitive feeling kicks in and it's all over. It paid off since I took over a minute off my time. :)

The CC teams had their summer "fun" run. The boys and girls ran together with the 2 head coaches as backup support. They were stationed every 2 miles with cold water and rides if some of the runners needed a break. We also had some of the kids bike and then switch off and run. It was 73, and humid when we started and 83 and really humid when we ended. Thank goodness for a good south breeze. The teams did great. I felt great. It was a fun day. :) We'll take next week off. Practice starts Aug. 9

Temp was 75 and the humidity was finally tolerable. We had more storms yesterday. It seems they fire up after midnight and don't let up until afternoon. Hail, tornadoes, downpours, wind. Makes for a long night. I hope it starts to settle down a little. Ron's mom always used to say when hurricane season starts our weather settles down. Hope so, I am tired of mowing the lawn every 3 days. I swear you can see it grow behind the mower. 

Team run today. Slow and easy as some of the girls have not done a lot of running this summer. Came home and mowed the lawn again. (sigh) There were toads and frogs everywhere. I have to mow slow to prevent the little jumpers from falling prey to the clutches of the mower. Scooted several to safer ground. Back to Fargo this evening to cheer one of our CC alumni on in a 5K. She is Tara's BF. She was a sprinter in track. Her senior year she decided to give up volleyball and join the team. She has been hooked on running ever since. Turned her from the dark side. :)

Ran the whole way on gravel. The day was beautiful and sunny. A little warm, but not to bad. My crane buddy showed up again. My legs felt tired the first part of the run. I really need to get started on speed workouts. Ugh.

Heat was high, humidity was higher. I intended to run 12. Ended up running 4 outside and decided I did not want to run any farther in the sauna, so figured I would finish up on the TM in the cool of the basement. Boring, boring, boring. After 2 miles I was done. What a slacker!

Humidity is still high, but the temp was in the low 70's. It was hot, but I felt good. Tried to keep my pace consistent and steady and concentrate on form. My legs were kind of tired the last 2 miles.

So I listened to the weatherman last night and he said cooler, drier air for today. I thought, this will be a good day for a tempo run. Hah! It was mid 80's, muggy and very little breeze when I started. Thankfully, by the time I finished the breeze was picking up or I might still be out somewhere on the section line. My legs felt stiff. It was not a good run. 

2 - slow and easy

2 @8:45

3 - slow and easy

Not a great tempo run. I was hoping to run more miles @ a faster pace. Just wasn't up for it.  

Ahhhhh, finally a nice day without humidity. Ran a little slower than race pace. 

Biked 11 1/2 miles. Awesome summer day. Blue sky and no humidity. This is what summer is all about!

Our anniversary today. Married 27 years to my BF. Doesn't get any better than that. :)

Not sure what the kids are cooking up. Kaylie, our little planner, is up to something. Jared and Tara just go along with what ever she is plotting. Tried to get something out of them, but nobody is talking. Kaylie just told us where we need to be and at what time. Hmmmm

Heat and humidity are back. Kaylie wanted to try her new Vibrams out on the track. So we ran 3/4 mile in the heat of the day. Not fun.

Ran about 8:30 pm. Beautiful night, just a little muggy. Ran a pretty good pace. 

First day of CC practice. We had 36 girls show up and 5 that are on vacation or didn't have their physicals yet. So we are looking at 41. Exciting! 

Of course it was unbelievably hot and humid today. The high hit 91. By the time we were done running it was in the 80's and so muggy. Only in North Dakota does the season start in the 90's and end in the 20's and 30's and maybe snowing. 

Ran 4 with the team. I was going to try to do a little speed work tonight, but after 1 1/2 miles on the treadmill my hamstring started giving me trouble. It was bothering me this morning on the run, too. Hopefully it will be better tomorrow. 

Team practice. Even without the sun it was a brutal run. The dew point around 65-70. Really uncomfortable. I felt lethargic today. I'm sure it's the weather. A cool, crisp autumn day would feel pretty good right now.

The girls did well, they are very enthusiastic. 

Team practice. Up tempo run. Pushed some of the girls out of their comfort zone. We are up to 43 runners! 

Backing off on the running a little this week. My hip and hamstring are not feeling great. 

Boys and girls team "ride and stride" today. Woke up at 4:00am to yet another severe storm and that set the pattern for the whole day. It rained, thundered, lightening all day. Oh ya, did I mention it rained, thundered, and lightening all day. Ugh. Needless to say there was no "ride and stride". We had the kids in the cardio lab. Not an ideal workout, but the best we could do considering the weather. The new boy's team assistant coach's mom made carmel rolls. OMGosh they were sooo good! Long run tomorrow, weather permitting.

Ran on the TM. Yawn. My hip and hamstring felt good. Seems like the uneven road surfaces cause the problems. I will have to watch my step.

Tara got a job early, so she is leaving us a week early. :( We have had such a good summer. She is excited to get back on campus. She informed us this will probably be her last summer home. She and her friends want to get an apartment at the end of this year. She loves Bismarck. I'm going to miss our movie nights. :) Jared is going to miss his golfing buddy.

The weather was good. The girls ran good. My hip and hamstring felt good. It was a good day! :) :)

PR!  Finally cooled off. Nice breeze. Temp, upper 60's. Good day for a race!  :)

"Ride and Stride" today. Biked 2.5 and ran 2.5, just under race pace. Gorgeous evening for a run. Bike path and truck route for 9.5. I wish my legs felt as good as the weather. 

 Tara left this morning and made it safely to Bismarck. Movie nights with Bayly and Maggie now. They are not as much fun, and they can't eat popcorn.  

Nice overcast evening. Good thing, as the humidity is on the rise. Ran first 1/2 slow and easy, picked up the pace on the last 1/2. Race pace for the last 1 1/2 miles. Oct. 3 is looming larger. 

First CC meet tomorrow. It's going to be hot.  

Ron went in for an annual check-up. (finally). Doc said he should probably give up running and start biking. Ron said he wasn't quite ready for that yet. So the doc set up an appointment to see if we can get this hamstring pain fixed. Hopefully it will work. He is getting frustrated running with pain all the time. 

Mileage is a rough estimate, since it was done all over the CC course. I'm also calling it a speed workout. Those girls run fast! :)

I was on my own for practice as the head coach had back to school night. The day started out hot and humid. Temp 87. Fortunately by the time we ran, rain and a cold front moved in. One of our new runners decided to step out of her comfort zone and run her first 5 mile run. So I ran with her. I was so proud of her. She did so good. I love to see the confidence they have after they have pushed themselves to places they didn't think they could go.  :)

Email has been down. The weather is feeling fall like. Makes for nice evening runs. The sun was setting in the west and the moon was rising in the east. Awesome!

2 mile pre meet with the team. Came home and took Bayly out for 3 on out favorite route. She was in heaven and the evening was sooo nice. I wish fall could last 'til Christmas. Supposed to get hot this weekend. Team is up to 45 girls. 

Recovery run with the team. Temp 92. Not a good run. Nothing was working right.

Went into Fargo. I needed a change of scenery. Ran from the Wild Rice river into south Fargo through Lindenwood along the river. Temp was 85. Fortunately the sun stayed behind clouds most of the time. Humidity was up, not much breeze. I wanted to go 15. Wimped out at 12. (sigh) 

Ron met me with water. He is doing PT for his hamstring. We are pretty sure it is messed up because of a water skiing mishap a few years ago. There seems to be scar tissue. He was hurt worse than we thought at the time. Hopefully therapy will get him back on track.

I have come to the realization that there will be no BQ this year. Training for a marathon is like having another job and I already have 2. I have run out of time. Still going to do Twin Cities. But I am just going to enjoy the fact that I can do a marathon 2 days before my 49 birthday. :) 

Tempo run with the team. Temp 90. Humidity 70%. Windy. Sunny. Not a good day for a run or anything else outside for that matter. 

What a difference a day makes! Temp 73, dry air, cool northwest breeze. aaahhhh. Ran the Island Park run today (my favorite). 

I hate mosquitos!

Speed workout for the team. I was in charge of timing 400 splits. Came home and took Bayly. We ran race pace. Couldn't stop or the mosquitos would carry us off. Other than the bugs the evening was perfect. The temps have turned very "fallish".

Nice run along the river. The temp felt good (low 60's). There was a mist in the air and the mosquitos were tolerable. A few injuries are popping up on the team. Mostly shin splints and some sore knees. 

Treadmill. Enough said.

Optional practice, so ran 4 with the team, then 13. Saw a guy waiting for the bus with a white face and wearing a big Dracula cape. hmmmm it is only September... right? :)

The temp was awesome in the 60's with a cool breeze out of the west. I am not missing the 85-90 degrees or the humidity (of course ask me in 4 months when my nostrils are freezing shut). My legs felt pretty good, kind of tired for the last 5, but all in all it was a good day to be running! :)

LSD with the team. Only on a running blog would I put that acronym.   :)

Tempo Run

Pre-meet run with the team. Then handed out new warm-ups. Think they are going to need them. The weather has taken a very sharp turn toward fall. We've lost 3 girls to injury. 

Speed workout all over the course. Was not a good day for our varsity team. I'll just call it "mid season slump". JV did great!

Intended to do 20 for my last long run. The day was perfect. Temp in the lower 60's, breezy, wispy clouds overhead. Unfortunately my run was anything but perfect. At mile 2 things just were not going right. It was a struggle the whole way. My legs ached and I just felt lousy. I had my flu shot on Friday. I don't know if that was a factor or what. Kind of a downer, not sure how this marathon is going to go.

Taper time, CC meets the next 2 Saturdays. Both meets are down by the Twin Cities. Lots of travel time.

I didn't work today so Bayly and I went out. Temp 52, really windy. It rained all day yesterday so there was lots of water in the ditches for the "water dog". She was in need of a run. She has been so hyper. The temps have finally cooled and she can't understand why we are not out running every day. 

 On my way to Apple Valley for tomorrow's meet. Afterwards we are taking the teams to the Mall of America. Then heading home tomorrow night.  

Great day! Nice temp, stiff breeze, blue sky. We have had a huge amount of rain and chill this month. Today was a perfect fall day. Legs felt pretty good. I left Bayly home for a rest and recovery day. She ran 4 with Ron yesterday. That's 8 miles in 2 days. That is enough. Although she didn't think so. Drove to Kaylie's and went for a nice 5 mile bike ride. Then she cooked me supper! Supposed to be a good weather week. 70's and sunny and no rain!

CC teams had a good meet yesterday. We had 2 girls in the top 30 and the boys had 3 in the top 30. We were only 2 ND teams running against these huge schools in the Cities. They have some awesome runners. It is exciting to watch! Amazing talent. Took the teams to MOA for a couple hours then headed home. It was a good trip. :)

 Twin Cities Marathon: 1 week! 

Really easy pace, just to remind my legs what they have to do on Sunday. 

Weather has been awesome! No rain, temps in the upper 60's and lots of sunshine. Sugar beet harvest started today. I know it's necessary, but I hate beet harvest. The roads are a mess, big trucks and really tired drivers hauling 24/7. If the weather holds (not to hot, not to cold, no rain etc.) they should be done in about 2 weeks.

 Three weeks and 3 more CC meets. The season has gone fast. Travel to Willmar this Saturday. It's a good one. Only 6 teams, but hilly. Good for us flatlanders. :)

I am finally getting to this on Monday night. The results site was not coming up this morning and then I got busy. 

First: The course was absolutely beautiful! The day was absolutely perfect (temp 50's, no wind, blue sky, and warm sunshine). Perfect! The crowd was amazing. There were people cheering the entire 26.2 miles. They were enthusiastic, loud and had some kind of music playing every mile. Lots of energy! 

After running the Marine Corps two years ago, even though my body did not cooperate and my time was dismal, I thought nothing would come close to the experience I had there. Yesterday was close. 

After realizing I was not going to BQ I was really hoping to PR. I was running about a nine minute pace the first half and feeling great. By mile 16 I was starting to feel it a little and the hills were getting to me, but I was still holding my own. By mile 19, things were hurting but I was still feeling pretty good, although my pace slowed. Then mile 21 hit and it was down hill from there. Something happened in my right foot, like a cramp or something and I was in trouble. I stopped and tried to stretch it but that left me with shooting pain up my leg. I tried to walk it off. That didn't help. So I started running and limping and tried to compensate, which caused my IT band to start protesting. I stopped a couple more times walked a few paces. Still hurt. So I decided if I was going to be in pain I might as well run. By the time I got to 24, the pain was at least tolerable, so I limped in to 26.2. No PR, no BQ, but I was not entirely disappointed with my time. My training was not what I had hoped. My long runs were not long enough. So all things considered it was a good day for a run! ;) 

By the time I found Kaylie and Ron my foot was feeling ok.

Looking forward to some down time after CC is over. Just going to run.

I love the T-shirts runners wear. Some are inspirational, some patriotic, some funny, some advertise, some are just T-shirts. This one was my favorite yesterday:

Front: Running a Marathon seemed like a good idea...

Back: 4 months ago 

Only complaint: At the mile 15 water station they had a bunch of kids working and one of them was swinging the rake around while he was raking up cups. Last thing I wanted to do was dodge a rake at mile 15. :) 

So I have been biking with the team for the last 2 days. I thought about running tomorrow, but I think I will wait one more day. One of our girls has a stress fracture so she has been biking for the last month. I told her I would be a "biker chic" with her one more day. :)

EDC is this weekend. The girls ran so well last Saturday at Willmar. They did the same thing last year. Ran really well the week before EDC, then not so well at EDC. We are hoping there is not a repeat of last year. After Saturday we will decide which 12 are going to State. 

This mileage is supposed to be on Thursday. My legs felt heavy and a little stiff. The weather is so awesome! We are having a great Indian Summer and we haven't had a hard freeze yet. Harvest is in full swing. Sugar beets are going slow as the temps are to warm to pile them. But the beans are coming off. Traffic is very heavy all day and night. 

The Extreme Home Makeover show is building a house in Moorhead. They have been there all week. It has been cool to see the progress each day. It is the leading story every night on the news. The family sound like a really great family. The "reveal" is on Sunday.

Ron and I have the day off. Yard work and a run are on the schedule.

EDC tomorrow!! 

I can not believe the incredible weather we are having. Highs in the upper 70's and 80's and no humidity. Awesome! Every nice day we have is one less day of winter. It has been great for the harvest. 

My legs felt really stiff and heavy for the first mile. By mile 2 things were starting to feel normal again and I had a good run. Just had to keep a wary eye out for semi's and tractors and combines. 

Not a great day at EDC yesterday. We had a couple of good performances but over all, times were slow and the girls were disappointed. Not what we hoped for. The temp was 83 when they ran. We have not raced in temps that high since August. Don't know if that was a factor or not. We will name our top 10 and 2 alternates for State at practice tomorrow. One more small, fun meet on Wednesday. After that, practice will be just the girls going to State, October 23. 

Last LSD with the whole team. Notecard run, pasta dinner at a fancy restaurant with the team tomorrow night. Rosecreek meet on Wednesday. We introduce all the seniors and they get a bag of candy. Collect the uniforms from those not going to state and call it a season. It will be strange to have practice with only 12.

It was a hot run today. Low 80's. Sounds like it will cool off tomorrow. Mosquitos have been like something out of a horror movie. "Night of the Bloodsuckers!" "Nightmare on Mosquito Street!" "Hallowmosquito!" Ok ok I'm done. The heat must have gotten to me today. :) :) :)

Treadmill tonight after the meet. It was a small local meet. We had 5 in the top 20. They combine the boys and girls scores. Winning team gets a cake. We came in second. 

Mile 1- 9:05 pace

Mile 2 & 3 - 8:27

Mile 4 first 800m @ 8:00, Second 800m @ 7:47

Recovery run with the state team. Of course for me it was a speed workout! I am going to have to work to keep up with this group. It was fun having a small team. We all run together and all finish together. 

Tara came home last night and left tonight. She is on fall break, but my step bro got her tickets to Sunday's Bronco game. So she and her boyfriend are leaving tomorrow morning from Bismarck. They should get into Denver tomorrow evening. My mom is coming over from the Western Slope. She hasn't met the boyfriend yet. :)

Well the team went 4, up tempo, but the head coach and I took a few short cuts so we could keep up. :)

A Saturday with no plans! Yea! Ron and I took Bayly out. She has gained some weight this summer and is a little out of shape. Ron is finally running again, too. He has really been stretching his hamstring and it seems to be helping. We went on a different road today without a ditch full of smelly water. Bayly loves the bad water, but come after her with clean water out of a hose and she acts like we are going to kill her.

Nice chilly fall day with a stiff northwest breeze. Got a lot of yard work done and took care of our new granddog for awhile. She is a 2 month old Siberian Husky and soo cute. I keep telling Ron that Bayly needs a puppy. :) He says we have enough dogs.

Another speed workout! The girls ran an easy run, the coach and I struggled to keep up. My legs are so tired today. The day was a perfect fall day. I hate how short they are getting. At least the temps have been nice. We haven't even had a hard freeze yet. Hunting season starts the first weekend in November. I need to find Bayly's orange and mine too.

Winding our way down to State. CC is finishing up just in time. The weather is supposed to take a rather chilly turn next week. They even had the "s" word in the forecast.  

3 miles fast with the team (me trying to keep up with the team) 

3 miles slow with Ron and Bayly on our new favorite route. Wide open spaces and a great view of the sunset! It will be a cold route this winter. Ugh! Don't even want to think about that.

Harvest is going so well this year. Beans and sugar beets are done. Corn is coming off now. Lots of dust in the air. And the trucks, with tired drivers, are everywhere.  Have to stay out of their way.

Pasta dinner with the team tomorrow night. Girls run on Sat. at 2:15. Ron and I are going to see Tara afterward since we are already 1/2 way to Bismarck. :) 

Temp was 60ish and misty. We are actually under a winter storm watch! The weather guys always get so excited when the first snow of the year is on the horizon.  Bayly and I enjoyed our run. It was up tempo and nice to go at our own pace. The corn is already off on our usual route so we don't have to worry about semi trucks and combines.

Saturday was a great day! The weather was perfect. The girls were relaxed and ran great! They placed 5th and our first runner was All State. It was her first year, she is very quiet and a hard worker. She knows how to run a smart race and doesn't get caught up in the race and pace. She just runs her race and has done an awesome job this year. It was a great end to the season. :) And ended just in time by the looks of the weather. 

Wind was blowing 40-50 miles an hour. Rain was horizontal. So I chose the treadmill. 5 miles at 8:40 pace. 

Wind is still howling. Rain is still horizontal.  At least it stayed warm enough we did not get snow. Tara said Bismarck is a winter wonderland. Oh joy. Sounds like this storm system was nasty all across the country. Our weather guys said if it had been over the ocean it would have been a category 3 hurricane. Ugh. 

Treadmill @ 8:40 pace. Picked it up on the last mile to 8:00 pace.  

Wonderful evening. Temp 45. No wind! Yes, thats right, no wind! Did I mention, no wind!? Nice easy run just so I could stay out and enjoy the evening. Lots of fresh water in the ditch so Bayly splashed and played the whole run. We got home, she ate supper, had a chewy for dessert and barked at the neighbors. Ahhh. It's a dogs life. :) 

Temp: upper 30's, stiff north breeze. Broke out the Loki. Felt good, ran about 9:00 min. pace. Have to enjoy the weather, in a few weeks I'll be wishing for a day like this.

So last Saturday I have a great run. Feel like I can run a marathon. Sunday I go to the CC Banquet with a slight tickle in my throat and by Sunday night I am sick. Ugh. Was pretty much sick all last week. The weather was perfect, thought Bayly and I could catch up on some running before hunting season started. But no, I just wanted to sleep.

Felt great today. Weather was amazing. I was confined to the truck route, since Ron took all the orange with him. My knees were a little sore, like they always are when I miss 3 or more days, but otherwise it felt really good to move again. :) 

TM 

3 miles@8:41

1 mile@8:00 

Bayly and I donned our orange and enjoyed our last 65 degree day (probably until April). It was a great evening for a run but my legs were really tired. 

THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR BRAVE HEROES,  PAST AND PRESENT.  LET US NEVER FORGET YOUR SACRIFICE AND SERVICE.  GOD BLESS YOU.

 Temp 40. Winds 30 mph and gusty. Since it is tough to get a marble to roll in the valley I look at windy days as a "hill workout". :) 

So Bayly and I started out to do 5. We got to the 1/2 mile point and saw hunters by the river. Turned around and tried another route. More hunters. Decided to go home. Total miles 2.5. 

Did 3 on the TM @ 9:00 to 8:00 pace.  Think I will do the 5 mile Turkey Trot this Saturday. 

Three times around the truck route. Temp 27, wind brisk. Snow flurries. I am just not up for this whole winter thing. Like I have a choice. :) Decided to make it a tempo run.

1.8 warm up

1.8 @ 5k pace 

1.8 cool down 

Got sick again. A raging head cold last weekend, by the time I felt like running the weather turned, then Thanksgiving and Tara home. So I decided to just wait 'til everything was done and start again today. 

Weather was not bad. Temp 24, wind from the south had a bite to it. After the first 1/2 mile everything numbs and the rest of the run is good. Had my 4-legged running buddy with me. She was also going a little stir crazy the last 10 days. Running the Jingle Bell Run next week.

Got the Christmas tree today, decorations are up and shopping is done. Yea! Now I can sit back and bask in Christmas spirit. :) 

Temp. 40. Had to run today. To nice not too. 

Wind was howling at 40mph. Windchill is somewhere below 0. Once it gets below 0 it doesn't really matter how far, cuz it is beyond cold. 3 inches of fresh snow and all of it is in our drive way! I am soo not into winter this year. From here on out the roads will be like a skating rink. And so begins my love/hate relationship with the treadmill. I am going to have to get some new music if I am going to spend as much time on it as I did last winter. I'll have to get outside as much as possible, just for my sanity. Ugh! 

3 1/2 miles @ 8:34

1 1/2 miles @ 8:00 

Ran treadhills @ 8:49, then biked 5 miles. My legs ache tonight.

So I decided I need new music for my winter treadmill runs. Was talking to my mom while I was perusing on Amazon and she said since she didn't know what to get me for Christmas she would get me music. Woohoo! I now have 3 CD's coming with 70's music. Ok, this really dates me, I know. Music was good back then, most of the stuff these days...ugh. Some is good and I have an ipod full of it, but you can't beat the 70's.  :)

Two weeks and 3 days and we are Colorado bound. Can't wait to get my "mountain fix". 

Ron, Bayly and I went out for an evening run. Temp was 5, but no wind. It was really dark. Fortunately the road was dark and the snow was white. The stars were amazing. Couldn't see Bayly at all as she is the same color as the landscape. We could hear her thunder paws run up occasionally to check in. We were frosty, and Bayly had her first set of whiskercicles.

Snow moving in tomorrow. Should be nice and slippery for the Jingle Bell Run on Saturday. 

Temp was 5, windchill, somewhere a little below 0. The first 1/4 mile was really slippery. Once we got on the bike path the race organizers really did a good job of cleaning it off so the course wasn't to bad. Considering we had 4 inches of snow yesterday. It was an out and back, so the last 1/4 mile was really slippery. :)

My time was ok considering the conditions. There were 310 runners/walkers. I was the 21st female. I love the Jingle Bell Run! The outfits some runners wear are quite creative.

Heading out to shovel. Oh JOY! 

Temp 8, very little windchill. It gets dark so early. But dusk made for a nice run. The sky was crystal clear except for one jet stream that was orange from the sunset. The dirt road was snow covered, but not slippery and someone has been clearing the bike path so it was almost free of snow. My eyelashes were frosty, but didn't really get cold.  I just have to remember how to layer. It always takes me a few runs before I figure out the right combo. I hate tight fitting layers, except for underarmur, then I had a techy shirt, my Loki over that and then a windbreaker. My Loki is big and the windbreaker is small, so it was too tight. Next time the windbreaker goes under the Loki. Then I think I will be good to go.

Less than 2 weeks and I will be home for Christmas (Colorado). I would break into song, but I will spare you all the misery. My singing is well.....lets just say I don't even sing in the shower! ;)

On the TM tonight. Planned on 5, but I started lifting weights and my legs felt tired.

Pace @ 8:34

Hoping to get outside tomorrow, but the wind is supposed to start blowing again. When it is 5 and the wind is blowing 5-10 mph, it is really cold. Or I am a wimp...no it is really cold! 

Treadhills in the basement. But my new music came so it wasn't so bad. 

So my washer is not working right. Not spinning all the water out of the clothes. Then I check the dryer last night and it isn't working! The dishwasher quit a couple months ago, which is no big deal with just Ron and I. However, the washer and dryer are going to need to be fixed or replaced soon. I guess it is time, they are 20 years old. What are the odds they would quit at the same time? 

Temp was a balmy 30, that is above 0. Tomorrow the bottom starts to drop out. Supposed to be barely above 0 on Saturday and well below 0 at night. So Bayly and I had to get out today! I was planning on just an easy 5, enjoy the day. But no. The wind was blowing about 15-20 when I started. By the time I finished it was around 30 and gusty. Snow was blowing across the road and I was running into it for the last 1/2 of the run. So much for nice and easy. 

For a 11/2 miles I was running with the wind blowing straight out of the west right into my left ear. Even though I had a headband over it, by the time I turned it was really starting to ache. My mother-in-law used to get ear aches from the cold. Oh no, I am turning into my mother-in-law! No worries, she was a great lady, God rest her soul, and she raised an amazing son. :) 

Taking tomorrow off. It's toffee making time!  

8:57 pace

Biked 4 

Gorgeous evening run. Temp 24, very little wind and snowing. I stayed on the truck route and bike path. It is so slippery, my outside runs will just be logging miles for the rest of the winter. I'll have to work on speed work on the TM, which works out quite well since the sooner I get off the treadmill the happier I am. :) 

Tara heads home tomorrow. Leave for Colorado on either Sat. or Sun. (yea!) Mom says the temps have been in the 40's and 50's. Woohoo! Break out the shorts and tank tops! Can't wait to run in some altitude and hills. It will kill me, but it will also be a nice change.

I was hoping to run more in Colorado, but there was so many other fun things to do I didn't get as many miles in as I had planned. We got home this morning. We barely got out of the storm pummeling Colorado and drove right into the one hitting ND right now. We are in a major blizzard until 3 am, then a slight lull, then another one is supposed to hit tomorrow afternoon. Ugh.

We did get to ski and Ron got me a Garmin! I got to use is once. Hopefully the weather will settle and I will get a chance to use it again before April. :)

 A BLESSED NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE! 

Raging blizzard outside. This seems to be the blizzard with no end. The drift across the driveway is about 5 feet high and it is still snowing and blowing. No way we are shoveling out of this one. Ron called the guy with the pay loader. He said he could possibly get to us Saturday night or sometime on Sunday. Since we were out of town, our grocery supply was a little low (milk, bread etc.) So we pulled the sled out of the rafters, and Ron, Tara and I headed to the grocery store. It was a cold walk (windchill -20), but we have food and snacks now, so all is well.

TM: 

Mile 1 @ 8:34

Mile 2&3 @8:00

Mile .65 @ 8:57

New year resolutions for 2011: Get back to pure running with some races thrown in now and then. Also work on my speed endurance and strength. I'll turn 50 this year so I figure if I stay with this running thing long enough, maybe some day I will be an age division winner. :). Also break 1300 miles.