Bradbury Fun

Ryan was up and out early this morning to get in a run and mark the Breaker for tomorrow. Sam and I had a mellow morning at home and headed out ourselves around 9:30 to go to the park. We saw Mindy, Val and George in the parking lot, refueling as they got ready to tackle the 2nd loop of the Breaker in the midst of their Ultra Extreme Bad Bass run of all three courses in order. Ryan had sent me a text saying it was going to take longer than anticipated to mark the course, so I told those guys I would just have to catch up with them later, and Sam and I went over to the playground to swing and play. Around 10:45, Ryan came rushing up, saying "Sean's going to run with you. Sorry I'm late!" I wasn't prepared for having to do such a quick turn-around from playing on the playground to running, but as company on long runs is always a good thing, I was more than happy to rush out and get in a few miles with Sean before he had to head home. I had no real plan for a route in mind, so decided to go out on the Bruiser course. We wandered this way and that, skirting the slick mud puddles and chatting away for about 3 1/2 miles before Sean took off back to the park. I stopped to pee and have a snack, and then figured instead of heading on alone, I would retrace my steps in the hopes of meeting up with Mindy, Val and George. I found them not long after, and fell in step behind Mindy as we continued along the course. George, still recovering from VT 100, was behind us, moving well but at his own pace.

It was fun to catch up as we ran along. Thanks for the company, Mindy and Val! As they were about 16+ miles in a 28 mile day, the pace was mellow with some stretches walked plus a few pit stops and stops to search out frogs in puddles along the way. I was happy to tag along. Compared to the weather the past few weeks, it felt a bit hot and heavy out there, although not nearly as bad as many of the July days we had. Still, I was drinking a lot of water, although was decidedly not eating nearly enough (OK, Ryan, I admit it ;-) ) The miles ticked by and I was enjoying the company but time seemed to be moving more quickly than the miles and I realized I was going to be out there for longer than I had planned, or hoped.

I have a rule that I'll only run the O Trail once a year :-), so when we got to the turn-off, I let the girls go on ahead, and I continued back to the parking lot. I had drained my water around mile 11 or so, and stopped at the car to drink some Gatorade and call Ryan to let him know how it was going. Looking at my watch, I knew I didn't have it in me to get in another 6 miles. I was ready to call it a day at 12, but Ryan convinced me to go out for another 12 minutes so I'd at least have been out on my feet for 3 hours. I wasn't super excited about the idea but figured I could handle 12 minutes and would still be OK on time.

I left my pack in the car and headed back across the street, feeling light on my feet without the weight on my back. I headed out onto the Scuffle course, and then turned off the Snowmobile Trail onto the Link. As I was doing the math in my head, I realized if I got in 14.5 miles I could at least still hit the totally arbitrary number of 40 for the week, which for some reason seemed like a good goal. As if 40 is really better than 39.5 or as if my Garmin numbers are truly accurate... But I digress. That seemed like a good goal, so to achieve it, I ran out on Lanzo for a 1/2 mile before turning around. I got back to my car right as the Garmin hit 14.5 miles. Mileage not what I was shooting for, but time on my feet was probably about right. Considering I'm running the Breaker tomorrow, I think I can still consider this weekend a solid one in terms of training, and all the miles will be at the Brad!

After a quick lunch and shower, we headed over to Nate and Shannon's to meet the newest member of their family, little baby Annelise. We were a little late, but they didn't mind - time doesn't mean much when you have a newborn :-) Sam was very excited to meet Annelise and was so cute holding her. She was loving it!

So cute :-)

 We had a nice visit, and then hit Little Toyko for a yummy dinner on the way home, not to mention the mandatory stop for gelato next door. Veggie dumplings, veggie sushi rolls and gelato are the perfect post-3 hour run and pre-race meal, right?! :-)

Chopsticks! CHOMP!