I'm Trippin'
I've finally felt some redemption during my morning run. I skipped Wednesdays speed work. I just couldn't bear to push my sore legs that hard. Urs and I spent the day moving large rocks around the campground, and after placing a rock, I would race her back to the field where we were picking up the rocks. I won every race, but keep in mind, she was driving the tractor which has the gearing of a tortoise. As I ran back each time, I couldn't help but feel how heavy and slow my legs felt. I'm thinking that maybe I need an extra day of recovery after my Sunday long runs?
Thursday morning I chose to run my scheduled 3 miler verses making up the speed work out. My goal is usually just to maintain a steady, easy pace, but having missed the speedwork, I decided to try to pick it up a little bit. I was hoping to run 9 minute miles and was somewhat disappointed to see that I averaged 9:28. I felt better when I remembered that running on a trail with it's ups and downs is always going to be slower than on asphalt. I also felt good to see that on my previous runs on this trail I usually average a 10:30 pace, so I guess that's a decent improvement.
Tomorrow morning, I plan on doing my 8 mile long run before we leave on vacation. I'll get that run in the bank, and I should be fine doing shorter runs until I get back home.
Thursday morning I chose to run my scheduled 3 miler verses making up the speed work out. My goal is usually just to maintain a steady, easy pace, but having missed the speedwork, I decided to try to pick it up a little bit. I was hoping to run 9 minute miles and was somewhat disappointed to see that I averaged 9:28. I felt better when I remembered that running on a trail with it's ups and downs is always going to be slower than on asphalt. I also felt good to see that on my previous runs on this trail I usually average a 10:30 pace, so I guess that's a decent improvement.
Tomorrow morning, I plan on doing my 8 mile long run before we leave on vacation. I'll get that run in the bank, and I should be fine doing shorter runs until I get back home.
Barb's Travel Blog
I thought I'd leave you all with a few pictures of where we are going on our trip. These photos are from our trip last year. We always go to the same places every year in September because we love them so much!
This first photo is of Mount Rainier. It is a Big, Beautiful mountain, and can be seen for hundreds of miles. Mount Rainier has twenty-five glaciers and is a prerequisite climb for Americans preparing for Mount Everest.
Ignore the ugly mug and check out what is in the background. Is that Freakin' Amazing or What??? You are looking at Mount St. Helens, our resident active volcano. It erupted back in 1980 which blew off the top third of the mountain. There was so much volcanic ash, the resulting ash cloud more than circled the earth before dissipating. This photo was taken at the visitors center just a few miles from the volcano's rim. Even with the passage of 26 years, the devastation in the area surrounding the mountain is just amazing!
These next three photos (taken by someone else) are of our destination. Olympic National Park is an incredibly diverse place, and has a little something for everyone. The park divides neatly into three major areas... the glaciered mountains and high country of the interior; the lush rain forest of the west-facing valleys; and the rugged wilderness coastline. The first photo is taken from the Hurricane Ridge Visitor's Center.
The Western side of the park catches up to 150 inches of rain annually (that's over 12 feet of wet!) which has created a very rare and the largest temperate rain forest in the world. It is a wet and wild forest with huge 500-year-old trees! Olympic National Park is recognized internationally as a Biosphere Reserve and World Heritage Site because of the rain forest.
My favorite place in the park is the 57 mile long expanse of coastline. The Olympic Coastal Strip holds some of the most rugged and picturesque coastline anywhere. It's also the longest wilderness coastline in the United States, accessed by roads at only a few points. We will be spending the majority of our trip at a campground that sits right on a bluff overlooking the blue Pacific. If we are lucky and quick,we will be rewarded with a campsite right on the edge of the bluff, affording us a 180 degree ocean view.
Another great advantage to this part of the state is the numerous rivers which are just starting to fill up with Salmon and Steelhead going upstream to spawn. I fish... this year I hope to catch! These fish range from 10# on the small size up to probably 25# on the big size. They can be very elusive and difficult to catch, but I just keep trying!
I thought I'd leave you all with a few pictures of where we are going on our trip. These photos are from our trip last year. We always go to the same places every year in September because we love them so much!
This first photo is of Mount Rainier. It is a Big, Beautiful mountain, and can be seen for hundreds of miles. Mount Rainier has twenty-five glaciers and is a prerequisite climb for Americans preparing for Mount Everest.
Ignore the ugly mug and check out what is in the background. Is that Freakin' Amazing or What??? You are looking at Mount St. Helens, our resident active volcano. It erupted back in 1980 which blew off the top third of the mountain. There was so much volcanic ash, the resulting ash cloud more than circled the earth before dissipating. This photo was taken at the visitors center just a few miles from the volcano's rim. Even with the passage of 26 years, the devastation in the area surrounding the mountain is just amazing!
These next three photos (taken by someone else) are of our destination. Olympic National Park is an incredibly diverse place, and has a little something for everyone. The park divides neatly into three major areas... the glaciered mountains and high country of the interior; the lush rain forest of the west-facing valleys; and the rugged wilderness coastline. The first photo is taken from the Hurricane Ridge Visitor's Center.
The Western side of the park catches up to 150 inches of rain annually (that's over 12 feet of wet!) which has created a very rare and the largest temperate rain forest in the world. It is a wet and wild forest with huge 500-year-old trees! Olympic National Park is recognized internationally as a Biosphere Reserve and World Heritage Site because of the rain forest.
My favorite place in the park is the 57 mile long expanse of coastline. The Olympic Coastal Strip holds some of the most rugged and picturesque coastline anywhere. It's also the longest wilderness coastline in the United States, accessed by roads at only a few points. We will be spending the majority of our trip at a campground that sits right on a bluff overlooking the blue Pacific. If we are lucky and quick,we will be rewarded with a campsite right on the edge of the bluff, affording us a 180 degree ocean view.
Another great advantage to this part of the state is the numerous rivers which are just starting to fill up with Salmon and Steelhead going upstream to spawn. I fish... this year I hope to catch! These fish range from 10# on the small size up to probably 25# on the big size. They can be very elusive and difficult to catch, but I just keep trying!
So that's it, folks! I'm sure I'll have lots of photo's to post when I get back, and probably a "fish that got away" story to share. Hope everyone has a great couple of weeks!
posted by Barb at 8:39 AM
4 Comments:
Those pictures are amazing.
I always need extra recovery days after my long runs too. They really sap me!
Man, you gals go to some great places. Will you hire me to be your valet?
Stay tuned...
Hey Barb,
I hope you're having fun on your vacation.
Way to go on the running times-- a minute improvement in pace is huge!!
Take care,
Cara
MESSAGE
Post a Comment
<< Home