A Recovering Runner...

I’m standing among a circled chaired group with sweaty palms and fear that my deodorant may have given out. “Hi my name is Jeanne and I’m a recovering runner.”  They reply with saying Hi Jeanne.

I continue on, “It’s been 6 days since my last run.” There are audible gasps among the members of the group. "I’m just not motivated to run. 6 days ago, I did a half marathon and I feel kind of burned out from running. I felt tired after the half marathon, of course."  I smile.  "I felt slightly stiff for a couple of days, but otherwise I felt pretty good.  But I'm concerned about this lack of motivation.  I’ve been walking as usual in a course of a regular day. I’ve biked a couple of times.  Infact, I tend to wonder if the Big Guy upstairs is trying to tell me something… The two times that I’ve gone biking I had flat tires...BOTH times! I think that He is telling me to get back on the path and running.” Meanwhile, I’m getting some “Amen, Sista!” from some of members of the group.

(** NOTE:  The above situation is a work of my imagination.)

So, I’m hoping to get myself motivated to run again by signing up for another half marathon. Is this a crazy way to get motivated, or what?  I am however signed up for a 10K run at the beginning of October that will also help get me going; I'm sure.  But I will admit that I’ve been missing my bike in amidst all of this running, and I still want to do a century ride this year.


Last night I did another bike ride, and I did notice that I’m going slower on the hills than what I usually do.  ( Amazingly, no flat tire occurred!)  But this leaves me with concerns about doing a century on my bike.  The longest ride that I’ve done this year was Little Red Riding Hood and that was only 75 miles. The last 6 miles of that ride I rode in a state of cramping heat stroke. On top of the whole matter I’m even more concerned because in the last two weeks I’ve only ridden 50 miles and those 50 miles has been in the last three days.  I NEED to get my behind in gear and find some kind of motivation.  HELP!?!

Park City Half Marathon a Success!

I finished it!  I surprised myself and managed to finish the Park City Half Marathon in 3 hours and 17 minutes.  I figured with my being sick this last week I would be lucky to have finished in under 3 hours and 30 minutes.  In fact, that was really my goal to kind of just take it easy and just try to finish.  I didn't want to set myself up to beat my SLC Half Marathon time(2hrs 50min) and be disappointed.  With that in mind I took it easy during the first half of it and stuck with my friend Diane. (Above photo: Myself and Diane at the start.)

(Above photo: Diane taking a quick stop as I snap-- look at the beautiful scenery!)

It was fun we chatted and "wogged" together for about the first 7 miles.  The time and seemed to pass very quickly.  The hi-lights during our first 7 miles?  Well, there was the girls at the beginning that were saying that they brought their credit cards in case there was any shopping along the way.  The route did go through the New Park area of Park City and we were running through where shopping could have been done.  Diane laughed," Women after my own heart!"  As Diane and I were 3.5 miles out the first half marathon runner was already on his way back.  Not an ounce of fat on this guy and he was a pup!  Boy, did I feel old and slow!At mile 4 there was a guy off to the side of the route that had his guitar and was playing it as runners went by.  I stopped, took a picture, and thanked him.  Then, there was a handsome well formed tanned Greek God running by on his way back about mile 5.  Oh my!  I was about drooling over this specimen!  The REAL sad part is that he wasn't even breaking a sweat!(Below photo: Guy playing guitar along the route.)

It was at mile 6 that we saw something on a moped going by.  Diane asked," What was that?"  I quickly answered," I think it was cousin It on a moped."  We both laughed but it look like a guy totally covered with  long strands of yarn.  Strange!

(Above photo: The Barn in Park City was on the route.  It's like a local landmark in the area.)

By mile 7, Diane and I had kind of ran out of chit chat stuff and we were both in need of some music to motivate us.  So, we both put our head phones and started off doing our own thing.  Well, I got catch into my music and my pace started to pick up.  Diane ended up behind me a little ways.  We saw Paul ( Diane's hubby) coming on his way back.  We were about 1/2 mile from the turn around.  We both said hi and then proceeded on.  By the turn around, I was maybe 1/4 mile ahead of Diane and waved as I went by.  I was off in my world of music and singing along as I went.  I would smile at other runners as I went along.  But I was basically off in my own little world. 

(Photo: Art along the route, this is just one example of many.)

At about mile 8 the first full marathon runner went by and by mile 9 there were more and more full marathon runners passing me like I was standing still.  The real neat thing was that quite a few of them would give me encouragement over their shoulders as they went past.

(Photo: A band that was playing along route at mile #12. )

It was at mile 12 that Diane caught up with me.  She croaked out "Jeanne" from behind me.  I looked over my shoulder to see a purple faced sweating Diane.  I slowed and we started chatting again.  She was complaining the EVERYTHING hurt!  It was just my feet that really hurt at this point and my energy could have used a boost but otherwise I didn't feel too bad.  We went by where I had throw a long sleeve tshirt earlier in the run and I picked it up; amazed that it was still there.  I decided to tie it around my neck like a cape.  I, then, got the strangest idea that I felt like a Super Dog.  Don't ask me why?!  It's strange how the mile works after running 12 miles!

I then proceeded to tell Diane that we were going to dog paddle into the finish line.  "Okay!  Let's dog paddle! Diane!"  My hands out in front of me going up and down like I was dog paddling in a pool.  Diane would play along and laugh at me.  She was wondering where this strange idea and my last surge of energy was coming from; I'm sure.  I would keep this up from time to time as I noticed that Diane would start to lag just a bit and we arrived at the last turn.  The finish line was in sight.  There was a group of people with signs I guess this was the 100th Marathon for some guy named Kevin.  100 full marathons?!!  Wow!  I couldn't imagine.

I did promise myself that I wouldn't get emotionally like I did at the SLC Marathon finish line; that one I was crying like a baby.  I tried to smile as they took a picture as Diane and I crossed the finish line.  It felt wonderful to cross that line with a friend.

Wish Me Luck...

Tomorrow at this time, I'm hoping that I'll be done with my half of the Park City Marathon that I'm running.  Or should I say... I might be "wogging" ( a cross between a walk and a jog)?   Why will I probably be "wogging" instead of running?

Well, this last week I've been down with the "Gamboo".  It was a combination of the summer cold/ stomach flu.  I was basically sick from when I woke up this last Saturday morning till Wednesday morning when I finally started to feel semi-human again.  So, I'm really not sure what to expect for my performance for the half marathon tomorrow.  About two weeks ago, I ran 14.25 miles up & down a local canyon.  So I felt I was pretty well prepared but given this last week.  I'm not sure what to expect.  Keep your fingers crossed!

Electronics & A Phoenix Vacation...

My alarm clock did not go off this morning as it should have; either that or I REALLY slept through it. So I missed my early morning run this morning which is probably a good thing since I’m still a little saddle sore from my Tuesday night Emigration Canyon ride.

My other electronic device that I’ve been having problems with is my phone. It’s been sometimes freezing up when I try to text. Could I have worn out the numbers on the phone? The phone is three years old and I’m overdue for getting a new one but I kind of like not being on a contract. Oh, there are my commitment issues coming up! Oh no! My other concern is that I may get hooked on a new fangled type of phone and end up paying more than what I should have. Though, I will admit that I would like to get one where I could check my email. (Other wise I just mainly have access to internet at the office during weekdays.) But I’ll probably give in and get a new phone the next time I’m at the Mall. (The last time was 4 months ago… The big shopper that I am!)

But on the good side, my NOOK has been working wonderfully!  I have now read 6 books on it and have downloaded another 35 on to it.  I will admit that it has been rather addicting.  I find quite often I will turn it on in any of my spare moments and be reading right along.  It was wonderful to have it on my recent short vacation, and I had no problems taking it through the airport security.

This last week I splurged and went on a short vacation to Phoenix. Yep! Phoenix during August--- a REAL HOT spot! Not the most ideal for a vacation.  But I met my friend Sal down there. He was attending a Plastic Models Convention. It was fun. We caught a couple of Diamondback games and just kind of hung out. I tell you I thought that cyclists were geeks but these people that do smaller scale models~ WOW! They are TOTAL geeks! Here are a few pictures from my Phoenix trip.

( A little siteseeing in downtown Phoenix-- notice no one else is out in the heat!)

(We- Myself & Sal, took a morning tour of Chase Field.   NOTE: Usually that roof is closed during games and it's air conditioned during the game. Below, I'm in the Dug Out!)

( Other Photos from the Tour of Chase Field- The front case where trophies are & yes, a tire in the wall- So those players can take out their frustration with their bat!)

(Above: For $3900 You TOO can watch the game from inside this pool!  Below: After the game on Friday night, there were fire works!  It only took 4 minutes to open the roof.)

(Above: Sal looking over some model tanks that are entered into a contest. Below: Some of the models that were also entered into the contest.)

Still Recovering & A Rest Stop...

It's almost been four days since I've run 14.25 miles, and I'm still trying to recover.  This last Saturday I speed walked to the top of City Creek Canyon and then ran back down.  I had originally planned to do just 12 miles BUT I was feeling SO good that when the turn around for 12 miles came... Silly me, I kept on going.  The Energizer Bunny had nothing on me at this point or so I felt like.  I was going to go on for ever and ever and ever. 

(Photo: Liesa and Mary Margaret on Pre-ULCER bike ride- you could hear the ice sizzling on their helmets! Yes, that is huge ice clumps on top of their helmets and YES it was THAT HOT out there!)

I pretty much kept going until the last mile back to my car.  By then my toes nails felt as though someone was trying to pull them out through my shoes and I could have been passed by a little old lady with a walker.  This was no longer in the ball park of a run or jog.  It was putting one foot in front of the other. A slow walk and a grimace on my face with each step I took.  I can never remember being ever so happy to see my car.  It was virtually an oasis in the desert!

The amazing part was that after all that and a long hot shower I was alert enough to go out to lunch with a friend!  Then, I managed to run some errands and do some grocery shopping.  Oh boy!  Got to love those endorphins.  I was high on them but when 5PM came around I was out for the count!

(Photo: Curt getting some goodies out of the back of my car.)

Sunday came and I did my fourth annual rest stop on the west side of Utah Lake for the BCC Pre-ULCER ride.  The ULCER ride has been put on by my bike club for over 25 years.  The ULCER stands for Utah Lake Century Epic Ride.  It traditionally is the first Saturday in August, and is a very hot hot ride.  The Pre-ULCER is the ride for BCC members to check out the ride prior to the ride or to get a chance to ride it because they'll be volunteering to help with the ride.

I started doing this rest stop the year after I ended up having an accident on the ride.  That year I hit a pot hole while reaching for my water bottle.  I ended up going over my handle bars and face planting it on the road.  All I remember is putting my hands out as the pavement came towards me.  I guess I was out for a couple of minutes and woke up with quite a few fellow cyclists standing over me.  I still remember feeling my lips swelling and the taste of blood in my throat. A short time later I took my first ever ambulance ride to a hospital.  I ended up with forty stitches inside my mouth and four stitches under my nose.  No broken bones but they ended up keeping me over for observation at the hospital because I passed out in the hall as I was trying to leave with a friend that had come to pick me up.

So, I no longer bike any of the ULCER ride.  I don't want to jinx myself or worry about replacing my bike.  Oh yeah, I totalled my Trek bike during the accident.  So instead each year I camp out along the long desolate sunny hot stretch of the west side of the Utah Lake where there's nothing but scrub brush with my snacks, coolers of ice, water, and cold beverages for my fellow club members.  I feel like it's the least I can do and they really could use the help over there in that area.

(Photo: L-R front- Carter and Doug enjoying some shade. Liesa and Jane[my fellow rest stop tendor] in the background.)

It was a good thing this year because I ended up driving two cyclists to the finish.  My friend Doug who couldn't keep down even water in his stomach and another rider, Bob, who ended up experiencing cramping in his legs.  I will say it was a tight fit for my station wagon.  Two guys, myself, two bikes, two lawn chairs, and three coolers.  But we managed, and everyone made it safely through the ride to make their ways home.

3 Canyons Attempt: 1- 3/4, A Moose & Playing Chicken With A Squirrel

Yesterday I took the day off from work to do a training ride for that I Think I Canyons ride that takes place at the end of July. I wanted to try and see how I did on a 3 canyons attempt. I figured that if I could manage the three canyons, albeit easier canyons, I could then reasonably put in some more training and be prepared for the four canyons ride in two weeks.

Well, the theory seemed to work on paper well or so I thought. If I could manage an almost 6500 feet and three canyon climbing ride, I was on the road towards the more difficult ride. Then, I could train/work some more to get me into the ballpark of the 12000 feet and four canyons.


And it could be that I thought I was better than what I thought I was. Oh, the power of the Ego! I must admit it was at work as I started off at 8AM in the morning, heading on my bike from home and towards the first canyon. The temps had already climbed to a balmy 80 degrees as I started climbing. There were predicting that it was going to climb to the upper 90’s.


City Creek Canyon, the first canyon, is a shorter narrower canyon with a stream that runs to the side of a road. It’s closed to most motorized traffic except for service vehicles. I was very much enjoying the tree coverage as I started to get to the steeper parts of the climb. I only saw one or two other cyclists in the canyon as I went along. It was nice and quiet.


I was very much enjoying the solitude and then I came around a corner to discover myself about 20 feet from a HUGE moose in standing in the middle of the road. About 30 feet past the moose I saw another cyclist that was pausing in the middle of the road waiting to come down. There’s only one way in and one way out. I stood still hoping to not draw the moose my way. I VERY slowly turned my bike towards going down the canyon as I keep my eyes peeled towards the moose. No sudden movements. Once the bike was headed in the right direction I took one final look at the moose that appeared to be looking cautiously between myself and the other cyclist. And me, thinking of saving my own hide I jumped on my bike and sprinted a ¼ mile down the road. The other cyclist was SOL!


I warned two other female cyclists coming up the canyon road. One of whom wanted to see the moose. I don’t think she believed me. I turned back and lead them to the edge of the curve to catch a glimpse of the moose. Let me tell you I don’t think quiet was in one of the gal’s vocabulary. She almost shouted,” Wow!” as we stopped on the road. It was enough to startle the moose to move off to the side of the road and I decided that I didn’t want to risk hanging out there any longer. I quickly turned and high tailed it out of there! I only managed to get 3/4 of the canyon climbed on my bike but I wasn't going to risk getting an closer to that moose.


On my way to the other canyon I took a route that I knew well but was an up & down type of route. My legs were starting to feel the climbing as I found myself at the bottom of the next canyon; Emigration. It already said 10am on my cell phone. Emigration Canyon is a canyon that I’m most familiar with. I climb this canyon almost every Tuesday night.


I decided to pace myself slower than the usual pace figuring I still had one more canyon to go. The temperature was getting quite a bit warmer and there’s less shading along the road here. I made sure I was drinking my water every mile or so. I finally reached the summit of Emigration (Little Mountain) about an hour and a half later; this being about 15 to 20 minutes slower than my average time climbing up this canyon. I stopped and sat on a road guard for a bit, and I felt my thighs start to solidify and burn as I sat there. That’s it for my climbing today. I knew from experience that I needed to call it a day. My legs were toast!


Down the canyon I coasted; enjoying the feeling of the wind cooling me off. It was as I was 1 mile from the bottom that I saw a squirrel in the middle of the bike lane. The squirrel appeared to be standing there eating something. I started towards the middle of the road figuring that the squirrel would go off to the side of the road. Nope, not this squirrel! The squirrel went that way too. The squirrel faked right and went left. I went right only to have the squirrel match me.


Then the squirrel went crazy! Quickly running left, and then right. It ran back and forth right in front of me several times. What was I to do? A car was now coming down the canyon next to me and quickly closing the distance between us. I get within 5 feet of the squirrel. The squirrel stands up and stares me down!

It was like it was challenging me! WTF? I’m going 30 miles per hour down this canyon and can’t stop on a dime and I have a squirrel that’s playing chicken with me. In my mind, I can see the squirrel getting caught in my spokes and being decapitated and then I would be face planting it on the asphalt. OMG!  Not a pretty site!

With mere seconds to go the squirrel whips down the white line between me and the car. My heart is beating terribly fast and I put a hand over it as I look at the driver who looks at me as she passes. She saw what had happened and gives me a look of concern. Meanwhile in my rearview mirror I see that darn squirrel again sitting in the middle of the bike lane. I can’t help but think this is some kind of sick game that this squirrel has played before. “A squirrel with sick sense of humor?” I think as I continue on my way home for the day.

I Think I CAN (BUT Maybe I Shouldn't?!)!

This last week as I’m checking out my local cycling club’s ride calendar and I see a ride that snared my attention. I’ve been in search of a riding challenge for myself during this cycling season. I think I may have found it?  But you tell me...

The name of this ride—I Think I CANyons Ride. There’s a choice of a 2 CANyons version or 4 CANyons version. All the proceeds of the ride benefit a local clinic that provides healthcare for the homeless. A wonderful cause and they are advertising water stops at the top of each canyon with a lunch after 2 CANyons or 4 CANyons—your choice. The event takes place on July 31st a mere 3 and a half weeks from today. So I need to decide which version I’m going to do.

The 2 CANyons version of the ride, I “could do in my sleep”; as Diane puts it and continues on, “Jeanne, it wouldn’t be enough of a challenge for you.” And yes, she probably is right; considering its 2 canyons with about a total of 3740 feet of climbing and 43 miles. Not to brag but this would require NO training what so ever for me.

So thus I’m playing with the idea of the 4 CANyons version. This version is climbing 4 CANyons along the Wasatch Front for a total of 12,000 climbing feet and 110 miles. Most people would consider this an INSANE challenge, and here I am playing with the idea of it. Can you say C-R-A-Z-Y?!?!



But in my defense I can say that I’ve climbed three of the four canyons. One of them of which I lead weekly bike rides up to the top of. The canyon I haven’t climbed is the steepest. In fact, it’s been compared to part of the Tour De France. It's Little Cottonwood Canyon.  It maybe be only 8.3 miles from the base but has a whopping average of 9.2% grade as you go up it. I’ve heard rumors that Dave Zabriskie, local cyclist turned world class, uses that canyon quite often for training. Quite often when I’ve driven it I’ve seen cyclists riding it; but then again all of these canyons along the Wasatch Front you'll see cyclists going up and down.

In the past, I’ve done rides where there was 9,700 feet of climbing but that was two years ago. And outside of climbing the one canyon I haven’t really been doing that much climbing this year. Three years ago I did another ride called the Mount Nebo Loop (Wasatch Mountain's highest peak at 11, 870 feet) where there are 37 miles of 6% or higher grade of climbing. I did the whole 70 mile ride in about 5 hours and 20 minutes which is respectable considering the amount of climbing involved. I sent an email to one of the guys that put this I Think I CANyons ride on the cycling ride calendar and asked if I was in the ball park for attempting this. He said that if I could manage ¾ of the distance that in his experience I could pull it off the full thing on the day of the ride.



So the main question is… Am I CRAZY enough to do the 4 CANyons version? I would need to add a MASSIVE amount of climbing to my cycling training schedule in the next 3 weeks to be ready for the event. That on top of the training I’m all ready doing for a half marathon that takes place in August 20th in Park City. Realistically is it possible for me to do ALL this?



Hmmmm… maybe I’ll sign up for the 4 CANyon version and see what happens? It’s only a $10 difference, and then if I find myself not ready I can always do the 2 CANyon. BUT is that giving myself to easy of a way out?  

(Editor's Note: All of the above photos are from a recent ride I took up Emigration Canyon-- which is the last canyon on the I Think I CANyon Ride. Beautiful, isn't it?)

Addicted to the NOOK-y!

The verses of Limp Bizkit song called "Nookie" streams through my head as I write this.  I've recently purchased a NOOK from Barnes & Noble.  I announced it on Face Book (or Crack Book- as one friend refers to it) and immediately had a friend (Yes- YOU! You know who you are!) refer to it as the Nooky.  Thus, I have this song going through my head.... " I can't lie. I did it for the Nookie, the nookie, the nookie..." 

I can't help but think of how ever the decision was made at Barnes & Noble to name this ebook reader the NOOK.  It strikes me as strange that the name is so close to a derogatory slang term.  Oh my!  I can just see the local ladies conservative book club up in arms over it being referred as such.  OH, M-YYY! I can see them banning the NOOK and setting up picket lines in front of the NOOK booth at your local Barnes & Noble.  Well, maybe not...

The NOOK is tooted as "the #1 pick for e-readers" by Money Magazine, 2010 'Top Pick'.  There's supposedly over 1 million ebook titles available and it will store up to 1500 ebooks. (Gee, maybe this would be TOO much for that local conservative ladies book club to handle anyway.)  Then there's thousands of free ebooks that you can down load in seconds.  It also has a nice feature of 6 font sizes that are available to read the ebooks in which plays well if you need a larger print.  (Not that I need that feature as of yet.)


The ebook reader was on sale recently on the Barnes & Noble site.  Then, I had a $25 giftcard and well I gave into my shameless want.  But I knew I would get use out of it.  I've always loved to read.  I remember as a child being under the covers with a flash light reading while everyone else was asleep. (Yes, Mom that wasn't a UFO outside my back window.  It was just me!) 

My new NOOK arrived yesterday just before noon while I was at my desk at work.  I immediately opened the box and plugged it in.  No shyness here!  I needed my NOOK-y fix! (OH MY!)  I quickly figured out during my lunch (with it still plugged in) how to operate it.  It is amazingly simple!  Book downloads within seconds and I really liked that I could get samples downloaded of new ebooks.  See if I liked the writer's style or not.  A VERY nice feature!  Another feature I think I'll get use out of is the "Wish List" where you can put new books that you are interested in getting.  I figure I could put them on my list and wait till the price goes down. NICE!

I even bought it with this nice green leather cover to help it feel more like a book.  It's got a quote on it, "A good book is the best of friends, the same today and forever."- Martin Tupper.

I was up till 2AM last night getting my "NOOK-y Fix". (OH MY!) I read 5 samples of new ebooks, put 2 of them on my wish list, and downloaded some classic books for free.  I'm presently working on Pride & Prejudice.  It's kind of hard to imagine I've never read it considering how often I've seen versions of the movie. 

Training Schedule Reflections...

Here I am on Friday afternoon while time is dragging at an ALL time s-l-o-w pace and I’m reading my desk calendar where I write down my entire workout activities. As I reflect on this last week, I can’t but think I need to “re-tweak” my training schedule.

One of the main reasons I’m thinking this is what happened this last Tuesday night. I found myself getting leg cramps about half way up on a canyon bike ride. OUCH! I quickly flicked my bike into the lowest gear and spun my legs working out the cramps. Afterwards, I of course pushed myself to continue all the way to the top of the canyon (me being my own worst enemy). But I had a fear that if I turned right around to coast down the canyon that the cramps in my calves would have stiffened to where my calves would have been essentially “locked” up.



I will admit that I was pushing it too hard on the way up the canyon in the first place. Yes, I was trying to be competitive with a couple of fellow cyclists; which would not have been so bad in of it self but I had gone for a walk/run of 4.5 miles early that morning. It was too much on my legs in one day.



Thus, here I am wondering about my training schedule, and I thought I would throw this out there and see if anyone might have a suggestion or a thought about what I’ve been doing. Now keep in mind that I’m training for a century bike ride and a half marathon. But here’s the general layout of my ideal week…



Sunday- Long bike ride—ideally 50+ miles (building up to 100 miles)



Monday- Early morning bike ride with club- 11 miles easy paced



Tuesday- Early morning walk/run of 3 to 4.5 miles; Canyon bike ride with bike club- 25 miles.



Wednesday- Early morning bike ride with club- 11 miles easy pace; sometimes I’ll throw in an extra 15-20 mile good paced bike ride on my own.



Thursday- Early morning walk/run of 3 to 4.5 miles; 15 or 20 mile club bike ride.



Friday- Early morning bike ride with club- 11 miles easy paced (Sometimes instead of biking I’ll go for a 1 mile swim.)



Saturday- Long walk/run of 6.5+ miles (building up to 13.1 miles)



And that’s my training schedule in a nut shell.  Any feed back would be appreciated! Thanks!