Week Ending September 26

Monday - Off

Tues - 6 miles (1,000') easy at Reservoir Ridge with FCTR.

Weds - 5 miles easy (800'). Falls loop.

Thurs - 7 miles (1,700'). Towers TT effort. 31:20. Went pretty hard, but felt totally labored and nowhere near recovered from Wasatch.

Fri - Off

Sat - 23 miles (4,500'). Comanche loop.

Sun - Off

Total: 41 miles (8,000').

Still feeling the effects of Wasatch and a long season this past week, but it's great to have the fitness and desire to get out and run 23 miles in the mountains when the mood dictates.

In the midst of heavy training blocks this spring and summer, off days were mentally tough. This past week I learned that the drive to get out every day has become somewhat hardwired, but not so hardwired that I can't back off and take 0 days. It feels good to get out and run when time and desire dictate, rather than have running dictate that time and desire. Four days was all that I wanted to run this week, so that's all I ran. The next few weeks will be no different, but I'm still planning on running a few races for fun.

This Saturday is the Bacon Strip 10 miler (so named because of the rolling nature of the country roads it takes place on), which is a great option for anyone not running the Bluesky Marathon on Sunday. I'll be manning the Towers aid station for that and then enjoying a few bevvies at the post-race shindig in a bid to train my now-poor drinking skills in time for the upcoming beer-mile season. The post-race for Bluesky is a little over a mile from my house, so the run home should offer some good training feedback.

Anyone looking for a fun trail race in two weeks should consider Silent Trails (10 miles) up in the Happy Jack area between Laramie and Cheyenne, or if you want something a little tamer and closer to home, then consider the Pineridge 4 mile trail run on Sunday. The Pineridge race kicks off the Fort Collins Running Club's handicapped Tortoise and Hare fall/winter series, which I'll be directing again.