Go Figure

People.  Sometimes they'll surprise you.  I went to Bradbury with Linda today, figuring I'd run short in order to start picking up the storm debris so that the 40 for 40 wouldn't be such an ankle breaker.  Well, somebody or bodies beat me to it!  Three of the downed trees are still in the way, but that's just 3 points in the course, not constant annoyances.  The fourth tree had been moved so that a person could fit through.  I broke more branches so that now runnable.  At first I figured they went the same direction that I did since it was great till about the cross over to Ginn East, then it was a little sloppier.  I figured they were getting tired by then.  But, it could be that it was picked up by different people.  Who knows?  At least it's all very runnable.  So good weather and good feelings about mankind : )

40 Plus Island

Tuesday was the first run at Bradbury since Irene blew through.  I expected lots of muddy puddles, but didn't care that we didn't have power yet, cause Bethany had assured Linda and I that we could shower at her house (Yay!!!).  Well, there were puddles, but nothing like I expected.  We have definitely had much wetter Bruisers.  What there was, though, were lots and lots of twigs and leaves all over the trails.  Ragan had blow downs near its beginning and end.  The only other down trees that crossed Mindy's 40 for 40 route were on the snowmobile trail.

I did Mindy's route plus the Island, while Beth and Linda mostly stuck with the 40 but cutting a short piece of Fox East off.  Worked out pretty good, they finished just ahead me.  Linda gave me the good news that our power had come back!   Maybe I should be a little ashamed of how much I missed it, but, nope. 

Here are some shots of the run:

2nd tree across snowmobile trail

Not from the run, but I love this spider : )

More "coral" lots of places

1st blow down on Ragan

At the end of Ragan

some decent stretches

1st blow down on snowmobile trail

Back Blog

Since we were without power for over 39 hours, I didn't get to post about my soggy run on Sunday.  I just hit the fields around here.  It's been a long time since I've run them.  When I started out, I was sad I didn't bring the camera; the rain was really just a mist and there were cool photo ops.  Guess I'll just have to rely on my ability to paint a picture.

It was definitely humid.  Can you say, "tropical storm"?  I was wetter with sweat than with rain in the first couple of miles.  The hay is getting tall again, making the running a little harder.  Crossing the previously dried up stream was fun.  It was now wide and thigh high with a decent current.  Mid-way through I nearly slipped on what was probably algae-covered rocks.  I got a little chuckle from that till I saw what came just after...The river of sh*t was running again and heading down to that stream.  Fortunately for me, I don't think any of "it" made it down to the stream.  The ground is a really good filtration system.

The point that I really wanted my camera was when I crossed the snowmobile bridge; a Kingfisher flew really low (maybe 6" above it) right along a long stretch of the river.  At least I got to see it!  Then, running along the river, I scared up what I thought was about 5 ducks.  Turns out they were duck-sized, teenaged turkeys.  They took to the trees right along the river.  I apologized for startling them, but they scared me, too! 

At the end of that field, I retrace my path.  The silly turkeys startled from the trees and flew across the river.  At least I saw the mom was with them.  I hate to think I scattered the family.  About then the wind started to pick up and the rain started coming down harder too.

I finished up my run with just over 6 miles, very wet, but very happy for going out in the weather.

The Doctor Is In (Out?)

Rick and I planned on running the Bruiser minus the O.  I wasn't quite sure who'd be there.  I thought Ian, Chuck, Nate, and maybe some others were doing the Maine Huts and Trails 50K.  When we pulled in, Jeremy, Blaine, Andy, and someone I didn't really recognize, Scott, were already there.  Andy had just finished his run and was socializing a little before leaving.  Rick and I decided to wait to see if Mindy showed (she was a maybe) and encouraged the guys to head out without us; they would lose up pretty fast anyway.  Right before they started, Yana showed up.  Yay!  I did see her a few weeks ago, but hadn't run with her in quite some time.

We said bye to fast group, waited a couple more minutes, then Rick, Yana, and I started on the Bruiser.  I think her runs would be precious to her no matter what, but, since she doesn't have much time for them with her residency, I think every one is more appreciated.  It's very cool to share that, to see what running does for someone.  I once told her she reminded me of a puppy running; she has the same bounce and enthusiasm.  Right when I was saying perhaps I should say a deer or something that doesn't sound like I'm calling her a dog... BAM!  Down she went.  It was a pretty good one, too.  As soon as she'd figured out her wrist wasn't hurt (a legitimate concern for a surgeon), she was almost reveling in it being her first fall in a long time.  OK, nothing as graceful as a deer.

The camera didn't really capture Yana's red bad of courage too well

Rick had already taken a tumble earlier, but had done more of a shoulder roll so was just dirty and not banged up.  He was, however, feeling the humidity.  By the time we got off Fox East onto the Snowmobile Trail, we decided to call it a run.  We didn't totally quit and go down the Link, but took Knight's Woods back for 7.5 miles.

At least Rick managed to roll

Besides lots of interesting talk about medical stuff, statistics, dying, squirrels, book deals, and running, we enjoyed the interesting mushrooms that had cropped up everywhere.  Unfortunately, I left my camera in the car.  We saw bluish mushrooms, butt mushrooms, um...boob mushrooms, and bellybutton mushrooms (the doc seemed to see body parts). 

We all finished off the run the way all good Bradbury runs should finish...at Edna and Lucy's.  Yana was smart; she'd picked up a bag of ice at the gas station/convenience store right next door.  So we ate our goodies at the picnic tables while she iced.  Just before we were ready to leave, Chandra came over.  So of course we hung out a little longer.

icing

Sad news for post-Bruiser : (  at least they're waiting till after 40 for 40!

  Oh, we also saw other TMs through the woods on other portions of the Bruiser who must have started earlier or later than us.  I'm pretty sure I saw Erin and Christine and heard a shout out from someone else.

Fresh Meat

Er...new trails.  I wanted to get in a run before I went down to WPI (Sam wanted to come home to get forgotten stuff and decompress a bit after being subjected to so many people non-stop...It does sound like he'll like it there, though : )  Mindy was gonna meet me at the Brad for some miles, when I realized I was heading south; it would make sense to combine the WPI trip with finally checking out her Kennebunk trails.

It seemed somehow right that, right where I was starting to have to look at my google maps directions, Mindy appeared in my rear-view mirror.  So we got to the trail head together.  I instantly knew I was going to like the trails.  I also instantly felt unexpected heat and humidity (really happy I brought some Gatorade at the last minute).

The trails reminded me of a cross between the O Trail and the Connector...Lots of undulations and soft, cushy trail without being quite as twisty as the O or quite as steep as the Connector.   I'm glad I brought my camera.  I told Mindy I sort of laughed when I realized (when I saw other parents taking pics of their kid's first day at college) that I forgot my camera and joked to Rick, "Yeah, we don't document our kids' milestones in with pictures, but I try to get shots of all my runs : ( "

Beautiful.  I knew right from the start I'd like these trails : )

If you weren't looking down, you'd miss the trail

the last of the crop (see the blueberries)

As usual, we had wonderful conversation, covering everything from the judicial system and societal hierarchies to running nutritional/hydration issues.  Maybe the engrossing talk contributed, maybe it was paying close attention to the very slippery trail, maybe it was the semi-confusing map, or maybe it just takes some time on new trails...We got a little...turned around.  I don't think it added all that much mileage, but stopping and starting a lot does add to the time.  Oh, well...time well spent.

After a little over 8.6 miles we returned to the trail head.  Good run.  Next was a very good lunch.  Mindy and I each order fish tacos and sweet potato fries.  I couldn't even eat it all; that doesn't happen often.

What a Difference a Run Makes...

Especially a run at Bradbury.  Oh, especially a run at Bradbury where you see beautiful horses on the summit.  Oh! And especially a run at Bradbury where you see beautiful horses on the summit then explore new trail.  Oh!!!  More especially a run at Bradbury where you see beautiful horses at the summit, explore new trail, then meet up with Mindy to run more miles!!!  Oh, oh, oh!  Definitely especially when you do all those things AND get a call from the kid that's just gone away to college (and you're running with Mindy who makes you feel like you have all the time in the world for that conversation while she stretches her calf).

 Do I even need to say that after such a mood changing run we also went to E & L's where I made lunch out of the most wonderful panna cotta ever.  Didn't even need a nap today after maybe two hours of sleep last night!

Bruiser Work

Bethany, Linda, and I went to Bradbury yesterday to work on the Bruiser course.  Beth and Linda didn't want to run the entire course this time, so we stuck to Mindy's 40 loop, despite a rumor that we'd be doing O Trail repeats ; )  It was pretty much perfect running weather, relatively low humidity and temperature.  There were even plenty of muddy puddles along the route.  Here's a look:

Bethany and Linda retracing their steps

I had run ahead and was waiting to take their picture coming through the long puddle neat the start of Lanzo, but they didn't show up.  I had to run back to the Link; they'd run right passed the turn!

The camera was on the wrong setting for the puddle shot, but I think it kinda looks cool.  Besides, it shows them running right down the middle of the puddle : )

Linda and Beth on a bridge on Ginn East

Me

Linda on Fox West

Almost done

A note on the Blog header...I had a hard time switching out the picture on top of the mountain, but decided to go with a picture of me on the trails I run most of my runs.

Change

Lots of things changed from Sunday to Monday, certainly the air.  Sunday was oppressive heat and humidity.  Monday, the air was almost crisp.  I decided my run could wait till the afternoon when I'd be heading to Hannaford.  That gave me the morning to work on job stuff and cleaning out stuff.

I have to admit, I'm pretty sad.  Even the time when Sam would be upstairs sleeping, I'm feeling the absence.  I knew the run would be good for me, but didn't want to use it up too early.  I wish I could run longer every day.  Maybe 6 hours a day ; )

Thorncrag was perfect.  Though the temperature was at the high of the day and it did feel pretty hot in the parking lot, the trails were cool and breezy, well-shaded from the sun.  It's hard work there no matter where you run.  The effort was what I needed.  I let my mind run over things, but also thought about the TM event I plan to put on there.  I need a loop that takes in the best of Thorncrag without being too long; I want to keep the format of last year's Till We Meet in Hell run.  I think I'm getting that dialed in.

Six miles is plenty there.  I think eight is the most I've run.  By then you've hit all the climbs a couple of times.  Just wait Till We Meet in Hell and see for yourself. 

Bruiser Bunch

Lots of TMs met up Saturday at Bradbury, most to work on the Bruiser.  Since Rick was looking for 7 or 8 miles, we decided to do a loop of Mindy's 40. Ian, Jamie, Blaine, Jeremy, and Nate A. were heading out to run the Bruiser.  We waited to see if any of the others were interested in our plan.  Erin, Christine, Kate, Paul, and maybe a couple of others were hashing out what they planned to run.  Rick and I decided to just run our own run, since most of them sounded like were going to at least start our following the Bruiser.

The air was amazingly humid, with patches of even more humid air thrown in.  The trail had dried up a lot from Friday, surprising since I thought we had more rain and the air definitely conducive to drying.  We ran along at a moderate pace, wondering when the first group would overtake us.  It wasn't till somewhere on Ginn East that they ran by.  Of course we traded comments (encouragement or kidding, I don't remember).  When the group was just about around the bend, Nate joined up with them.  He was ready to drop off the back so it was good timing.  We had his company for the rest of the run.  I think Rick's Garmin read 7.9 when he uploaded it.  I can't compare cause I inadvertently hit the stop again during my run (swatting flies and/or scratching my shoulders seems to do it).

We hung out at the picnic tables waiting to stop sweating.  In a bit Blaine and Jamie ran in, they'd picked up the pace on the O (training or just getting it over with?).  It wasn't long before Jeremy and Ian came in.  I think we all bitched a bit about the humidity.  As soon as someone mentioned E&L's, I was instantly starving.  Kate and ? came in wondering where they'd short cutted the course.  Oh well, then Kate decided she wanted to do the Summit Trail since it seemed to conquer her in the Breaker.

Rick and I headed to E&L's.  The rest showed up in stages.  I love hanging there talking running while stuffing yummy food into my face : )

Friday's Pictures

Beautiful Bradbury puddles all over the trail

More mountain bike tracks than trail shoe prints

cool flora

more

more

Fern-lined section of Mindy's loop

The root that got me on the Xtreme Badass run

Scattered

I wanted to be running by 8:30 am at the latest, preferably by 7:30.  Not today.  I just couldn't seem to get out the door.  Once I did, I didn't fair much better.  I went by my coffee stop.  Definitely needed the coffee, so headed back.  Passed several gas stations, but I figured I'd wait for the one that's usually the cheapest.  Well, when I got there, they were out of everything except the highest grade and diesel.  So, I turned back again.

I finally made it to Bradbury by 9, where I discovered I'd left my Garmin home.  Well, at least I'm familiar enough with all the routes I'd take that I could figure a mileage for whatever I ran.  Still, my wrist felt a little naked and I can't tell you how many times I looked at it.

I missed the Scuffle, ran the Breaker as a recovery run (of sorts), but really want to race the Bruiser.  Not in that I am looking to win my age group or beat any one person, but...I was less than a minute from breaking two hours last year.  I think I can do that, especially given how I felt at the Beast Run.  So, I was going to do 8ish miles of the Bruiser with an uptempo pace.  However, given my morning and lack of Garmin, I switched my game plan.  I just ran.  And took pictures.  And had one of those runs where your mind runs, too.  I definitely had a running dialogue with myself.  It was good.  I'll add some pictures tomorrow (well, today; it's after 3 am...sleep, I miss you).

The Beauty and The Beast

Monday, I met up with Dora, Mindy, and Danielle for a nice recovery run through the Fore River Sanctuary Trails.  Dora and I had run there before, but it was all new terrain for Mindy and Danielle.  It'd been a while since we all ran together; it was fun catching up.  We kept the pace relaxed.  I ran in the lead and, as usual on these trails, took a path I hadn't before.  We ended popping out on a road a bit away from where we meant.  Now, if we hadn't all been looking to keep the mileage low (not only was it a recovery run, we were going out to lunch), we could have popped back onto the trail to return, but we ran the roads back to the start.  It was almost exactly 4 miles.  If the Green Elephant had been open, there would have been no discussion on where to go, but, since it wasn't, it took us a lot of time to finally pick a Vietnamese restaurant that Mindy knew.  It was an excellent choice.   This was new terrain for all, but Mindy.  Fortunately the waitress let Dora know that her choice for four stars would probably be too spicy.  Two stars was more than fine for both Dora and Danielle!  My pho didn't have a star rating for spiciness since I could adjust that myself with the amount of chili paste I added.  It was a treat there.  I wish we could make that type of run a weekly event.

Tuesday was a totally different type of group run.  Jim and Shauna hosted The Beast Run.  They had a good turnout.  Running were: Jim, Brock, Zak, Jeff, Ian, Ryan, Christine, Kate, Linda, Randy, Nate A., Blaine, Erin M., Erin, Four, Sara, Mary, Erik, Brenda, and a couple of others I can't remember now.  Assisting were: Shauna, Mindy, Jamie (Mindy and Jamie had done 10 miles earlier at their newly discovered Kennebunk trails) and maybe more.  The idea is to run this mile lap of fairly flat single track with a few gnarly roots and slippery planks/bridges to nagotiate, at whatever pace for however many times.  Between laps, there is beer available for hydration.  Since the running didn't start till 6:20 pm, it got progressively darker with each lap (clouds made it dark anyway).  The first lap was pretty pedestrian.  From there, it felt like I was runnning with the big boys every lap!  I haven't just let it rip in a long time.  I had a blast.  It felt good to have Jeff, Ian, and Zak comment on my speed : )  The funny part is that I figured I'd be able to do that a lap or two, but, except for slowing slightly towards the end of the final (8th) lap, I pretty much kept the pace up (even more surprising since I didn't have any day off since the weekend's long miles).  Of course, went I looked at the Garmin data, the pace wasn't as fast as it felt, but...I'll take it. I think a few people did more laps, but I was good with 8.

Besides, there was way yummy food waiting!  Shauna had seen to a wonderful feast for the runners to refuel.  The food was plentiful and delicious (I need to get the brocolli salad recipe; the not so secret ingredient was bacon!).  The kidding around and visiting was great TM fun at its best.  Thanks Jim and Shauna!!!

Bradbury Mountain Breaker - A Race (of sorts) Report

I woke up Sunday after a very fitful night's sleep.  I guess that could describe a lot of my nights, but it's usually worse after a long or hard run.  I still thought I wasn't going to run the Breaker, but, as I got moving was pleased to find no muscle soreness.  Rick was on weekend duty so long gone.  I called to tell him I still hadn't made up my mind.

I dressed for the race, sort of.  I wore my running skort (the chafing from my shorts made it the only thing I could tolerate).  I also just wore a cotton t-shirt thinking, since it wasn't very hot and I wasn't going to run hard (if I ran), that I wouldn't require a tech shirt. 

At 7:25 am, I went over to see if Bethany and Linda were ready; they were riding over with me.  I love the energy that goes with pre-race runners.  We stopped at Dunkin Donuts for coffee and breakfast wraps.  We talked race conditions of the different years on the way over, agreeing this was way better than the last two years, where the temps got into the 90s. 

Mindy and Chandra were manning the registration (really number and t-shirt pick up, since the race cap had been reached).  I eventually picked up my number, but still wasn't sure I'd run.  I volunteered to help, but Ian said they were set.  OK, I was running.  I made sure to slather on the Vaseline and I was ready.

I enjoyed the usual pre-race socializing, but soon Ian was giving his pre-race speech and then the start.  I made sure to position myself toward the back.  I had no delusions that I'd be racing.  I ran at a comfortable-run pace.  It felt good to loosen up.  I was surprised that my feet and toes were fine.  I do admit that sometime during the first loop I was thinking I'd made the wrong decision, but I started to feel stronger as the race went on.

Before setting out on the 2nd loop, I changed out of my cotton tee and into a tech shirt (I still had lots of clothes packed from the day before) and applied more Vaseline.  I was really psyched to see Bethany and Linda Raymond starting the 2nd loop.  I knew that would mean they were both on their way to great race times!  I joined them for the start of the next loop, enjoying some excellent company.  Unfortunately, on the Boundary, near the electric fence, a bee (wasp, hornet, or some time of stinging insect) angrily buzzed my head.  I waved my hat and, almost immediately, heard Linda yell that a bee had stung her on her lip.  It was pretty painful for a while.  Bethany suggested trying mud.  I knew there was some coming up, but, by the time we got to it, Linda's pain had subsided enough for her to not want to spread Bradbury mud on her face. 

I continued to enjoy their company till the mean little climb towards the mid-lap aid station (just before the Summit Trail).  After the summit, I decided I felt good enough to push the pace a bit.  I continue to feel better and better as the race went on.  I finished a full 20 minutes slower than last year, but had a much better time.  I was very happy to be able to run strong after yesterday's long run, especially given the hard last few miles.

So many people, including Bethany and Linda, had great races.  Ian and Ryan with all the volunteers put on a wonderful event, as usual. 

I Can Run for Miles and Miles and Miles and...

Actually that's a take off of the one Who song I really hate.  Since I had a blast with all the miles (or very nearly all of them), maybe I could have found a better fit.  Any hoo...Saturday, Mindy and I set out to run the UltraXtreeme Badass, which consists of the three Bradbury Dirt Series run back to back.  I guess the weather could have been better, but not by much for mid-August.  I don't think it was even 60 degrees when we started out.

Dora and her friend, Sue, joined us for the start.  The race description of the Scuffle says it's, "A mix of single and double-track trails with a few rolling hills, a great introduction to Maine trail running".  Well, it was the perfect introduction to our long event.  With easy chatter, the six miles of the Scuffle just flew by.  A quick stop at the cars, and we were all off on the Breaker.  Sue was pretty sure she wasn't up for a full lap, but figured she'd hold up for the Boundary Trail.

I'd say the pace was very relaxed, but that's what we wanted.  We walked the steep part of the Boundary (right after the opening leading to the Connector), but as a game plan, not out of necessity.  Some where soon after that, Jim and Ryan, out marking the Breaker course, "hid" behind the trees to "scare" us as we went by.  A little banter, but we kept moving.  At South Ridge, Dora and Sue peeled off to head to the summit and then down the Summit Trail.  It was funny to run into them when Mindy and I headed up the Summit (again a strategic, maybe necessary, walk).

Ah, the Tote Road always is such a relief after the climb.  We ran into more TMs, Ian, Jeff, and Joe, marking the area where some Boy Scouts were replacing the bridge on the course.  Fortunately, there was very runnable, hard-packed mud along side of the demolished bridge.  They cheered us on and we marveled at Joe and Ian out after their recent epic adventure (read the 100 MW accounts).

The first lap finished down the Switch Back.  We enjoyed the fast running and complimented ourselves on the job we'd done with Ian cleaning up the trail.  Back in the parking lot, I ate a HS Waffle.  Yum.  I think I had some Coke and replaced my empty fuel belt bottles with full ones.  Jim and Ryan, finished with their course marking duties, decided to join us on our next loop.  Again, having fresh blood revitalized our run (not that we needed it, but it did give a boost and help speed away the minutes).  Jim left us just before the Summit Trail, while Ryan finished the Breaker with us.

Coming down the Terrace Trail, I realized that my shorts were starting to chafe.  Not long after, I announced I was changing my shorts as soon as we got back to the lot.  And I did, also slathering on lots of Vaseline.  Ryan gave Mindy not so gentle hints to eat and drink more.  He was very cute.  I ate some of my PBJ that I cleverly (I think) thought to salt.  It was pretty good.  I put a GU and a HS Waffle in my belt along with three, full 8-oz bottles of diluted Gatorade (thanks for opening the bottle and helping pour, Ryan : ). 

I was surprised how fresh I felt as we headed out onto the Bruiser, 15+ miles done.  I was in the lead and asked Mindy to make sure I didn't, out of habit, skip the Island Loop.  No worries, we both saw it.  I remember thinking, "this isn't so miserable to warrant skipping all the time."  Now I was able to use all my mile landmarks that I know from the Bruiser (yes, I know I have a Garmin, but it's easy to forget to look at it and I can only read it if the lighting is right where as the big rock is very noticeable and means 3 miles in).

Sometime around 22 miles in, I noticed our normal conversation had dropped off.  We were both just running.  I'm pretty sure we started focusing on the trail and our effort.  Somewhere around Porcupine Poop Rock, I stubbed my toes really hard into a large root.  Mindy complimented me on staying upright.  Poor toes : (  I did it again, not more than a mile later.  Ugh!  Concentrate.

Even though the weather was pretty perfect, the heat and humidity of the day was at its highest.  I was nearly out of drinks.  Mindy kindly shared what she had with me.  Fortunately, Rick had come to the park to watch us finish.  I was able to call and ask him to bring Coke and water to the head of the O Trail.

We both did a little cheer when we turned to head up the Snowmobile Trail; it's one of the "we're getting there" places.  Same at the top when you reach the rocky ledge to turn off onto Ginn West.  Yay!!!  Then a little cheer turning onto Fox West : D  But it was somewhere here that my next root encounter turned more painful.  This time I went down hard and my calves and hip flexors decided to cramp big time.  Ugh!  Mindy was very patient; the time taken getting me moving again added to her time on her feet.  She also wondered how we didn't trip on that exact spot almost every time - it just looked like a place to fall!  Thank you, Mindy ; )

I managed another fall in the same way.  At least that one wasn't painful in itself, just the ensuing muscle spasms.  I almost think out of sympathy, Mindy took a little digger soon after.  We were both now pretty dirty.  It's amazing how the trail sticks to sweaty, sweaty bodies.

As we approached the O Trail, we heard Rick cheering for us!  I cheered his care package.  I immediately went for the Coke.  Mindy emptied one of the waters into her hydration pak.  Rick could only find the carbonated flavored Poland Spring Water at E &L's.  I put the water into my fuel belt bottles.  Rick gave us some very sad news; E & L's was closing early.  It didn't look like we'd make it before it closed.  Oh well, we were gonna make the Xtreme Badass and that's what mattered.

I'd like to say that the O Trail was nothing.  It was actually less horrible than I expected, but my calves decided that any steps up were cause to cramp.  When I could run, we went pretty fast.  Mindy was doing great.  She is so gonna be all over her 40!  Linda had called during the run and planned to run the O backward to meet up with us.  We had just about 1.5 miles left of our adventure when she ran into us.  It was pretty slow going due to my calf spasms, but then the landmarks that meant we were nearing the end of the O started appearing.  We could hear Rick cheering us again!  From there we ran it in pretty good since there were no more ups for my calves to protest.  Done!!!

I think Linda took off pretty quickly, but Rick, Mindy and I hung out at a picnic table in the park.  E & L's would have been the best recovery, but we did OK.  That was Mindy's longest run ever, just slightly.  I mean she was 3rd woman at the Stone Cat Marathon one year, so it's not like it was that much longer, but with difficulty points (thanks to the Breaker), this was quite a feat, which she handled with relative ease.

I think somewhere along the course I decided I'd just be volunteering at the Breaker on Sunday.  Sometime during the night I was sure of it.  When I woke up Sunday, I was only pretty sure I'd be not running.  Still, I packed like I was running....

The Story

Ran a little over 11 miles with Mindy today.  Most all of the run was the tale of the 100MW adventure that she and Pete were a part of.  I loved her retelling of it and was more than a little jealous of their experience.  Awesome. Awesome. Yup, I am in awe.  We know amazing people.

The run itself went well, although there still were a lot of deer flies; the steady mist was not enough to keep them grounded.   At E & L's we had a yummy lunch while flipping through haircut magazines.

Blueberry, Bus Stop, Bradbury

Ate blueberry pie

Took the kids to the bus stop

Ran at Bradbury

When I was thinking of the pie being pre-run fuel, I tried to think of some post title tying blue and brad berry/bury somehow.  That lead to the haiku, inspired by Mindy's previous one.  Maybe not all that profound, but...

We'd had Rick's dad up from NJ and Ryan and his girlfriend up from Providence for Sam's graduation/leaving for college party this weekend.  Rick's dad left this morning.  Ryan and Nori were catching the 2:30 bus out of Portland.  Rick decided to ride down with me so we could run Bradbury on the way home.  Rick also heads back to work tomorrow.

We'd had a big breakfast to send Rick's dad off, so decided blueberry pie would be a good pre-run lunch.  Nori had made two big pies the night before using the blueberries from our bushes.  Yummmm!  Glad she left me the recipe.

We just did my five mile loop.  I only had one annoying bug and that was just cause it flew in my ear.  There were lots of little frogs in the puddles in the path.  I think I nearly stepped on three.  If I was quicker with my camera, I could have had three heads looking at me out of one puddle.  After the run, relaxing at the picnic tables, I actually shivered.  Nice.

Connecting with Julia

Julia and I put on the TM forum that we'd be running the Bradbury/Pineland Connector starting at 7:30 am.  Not surprisingly there were no takers; lots of TMs had other things going, the biggest, badassedest being the 100 Mile Wilderness adventure. 

I think it was the first time I ran with just Julia.  I really enjoyed the run, the conversation, and the lack of bugs.  That's a pretty good combination.  We ran along the power lines till we hit Elmwood Rd, then retraced out tracks.  We'd made sure to pick out a few landmarks to remember where the trail heads back into the woods; I'd told her how Mindy and I wandered around looking for it for quite some time.

Back in the parking lot, Yana was coming in from a Breaker loop!  It was good to catch up with her a bit.  The funny part was that I had just mentioned to Julia how Yana had helped me during the Bruiser last year by running the O with me.  I think I would have backed off at that point if she hadn't joined me.  So my PR is partly because of her.

A great day at the Brad : D 

Rick and Brad

Yup.  Love Rick.  Love the Brad.  Had a great run with my loves.  Covered my newly devised five mile loop.  Were treated to a pair of deer bounding through the woods.  My only complaint, the deer flies had me slapping myself a little silly. 

Look!  No other cars

None

: )

Beautiful conditions

love the moss on the rock wall

this was supposed to be a pic of the deer - hey!  I got a shot of lightning!!!

Thursday Thorncrag

Linda road over to Thorncrag with me yesterday afternoon.  We were going to run for an hour then meet back at the car.  It's always quite a workout there, but I actually found a route that allowed for a little warm up before going into oxygen debt.  If I host a TM event there, it won't start that way  : )

I was happy with my mileage in the hour and felt pretty strong on the long ups.  We were surprised by the humidity though.  And even  more surprised to find how hard it rained back home; we got nothing running just a couple miles away.

Bradscary

Bethany, Linda, and I headed over to Bradbury on Tuesday to get some miles on the Breaker course.  I went at my own pace and Linda and Beth ran together.  I was pleased to see some cloud cover stop the mottling the sun does on the trail.  It's so much easier to see roots and rocks when the sun isn't interfering.  I think about where South Ridge branches off from the Boundary, I started to hear distant rumbling.  Hmm....

By the time I got to the summit, the sky looked very threatening and the thunder was a good deal louder.  Not far on the Tote, I overtook Linda and Beth; they went directly from the Boundary to the summit, skipping South Ridge.  We discussed the weather.  We decided to keep going (not much other choice from the Tote), but we could always opt to head back down when we got to the Northern Loop.  I definitely picked up the pace.  The thunder was getting more intense, but, when I got to the Norther Loop, figured Linda and Beth would take as much time to get back to the car if they headed down right from that point as I would if I finished the loop, so I decided to do just that.

Yikes!  When I passed the Norther Bluff, the lightning was pretty close by.  I tried to pick up the pace even more.  I headed down the Terrace where it was easy to go faster.  Just before the end of the Terrace, the rain started.  It didn't take long before it was pouring.  I was having a hard time to see; still I seemed to run faster.  More thunder claps.  I thought about how I'd been saying I wanted to die running and hoped the running gods realized I meant when I was very old.  I worried about Beth and Linda who I figured were still pretty high on the mountain.  Even though I was scared, I was having a blast.

Back at the car, I tried to dry off in the car.  I kept my eyes peeled for Beth and Linda.  It seemed like an eternity, but there came Linda running through the torrent.  Where was Beth?  I think those were my first words to her when she opened the car door.  She'd gotten a cell phone call???  Really?!  A minute or two later Beth showed.  It wasn't a call.  She had to fix her contact.  I don't think Linda could hear her through the raging storm.

We waited it out, hoping to get in more miles.  When it seemed like it had passed (at least all the lightning was on the east side), we started back up the mountain.  We weren't going to do a full 2nd loop and again split up.  I took the Boundary to the summit.  They took and inner route.  Funny thing, we reached the summit at the same time.  We were treated to a pretty good view of the storm that had passed over.  A couple was already there watching the action.  I got a picture of a lightning strike so thought it would be easy to get more.  Nope.  And there was ample opportunity.  We became aware that another storm cell was bearing down on us so headed back down the Switchback.  Sadly, it was Tuesday (read E&L was closed).

Amazing

Seemed like the clouds were coming up from the ground

Today Rick, on vacation, and I went back to the Brad.  This time we ran the east side.  Mindy's 40 Loop was the perfect distance for what we had in mind.  After yesterday's downpours, it was the Brad of old...lots of muddy puddles : )  We didn't see a single biker, runner, or hiker while on the trails.  I think two little frogs were the only wildlife we saw.  So we were pretty surprised when  we got back to find the parking lot about full.  The mountain side must have been bustling.

Happily, it is Wednesday (read we went to E&L's)!  Sebrina greeted us with a brand new do.  She now has a perky short cut.  Perhaps that's what inspired her to have the TBLT for the special.  Rick and I both enjoyed one.