Aurora and 20 Mile Run

The last few nights have been the most amazing for the aurora. Until recently, the best I had seen was a shy green band across the sky. There was only one and it just sat there, sometimes with curtaining (wavy bands from the single band), but almost always green. Last night, a few friends and I went to the Goldstream Valley, my usual spot, and WOW. There was so much to look at--overhead, behind. It was hard to decide which way to point the camera. Combine that with a 35 degree night and you have my very favorite aurora experience ever. Here are a few shots:





I also had my first of two 20 mile runs. We had it scheduled for Wednesday or Saturday, so it was a last minute decision to do it today to avoid less-than-idea weather. Sunny is always preferred to overcast and gloomy no matter the temperature. :) It went really well. Matt has a hydration backpack with a water reservoir and tube. It's pretty comfortable to run with the backpack. We were armed with gels--I was experimenting with flavors. The chocolate one was good, but it was really thick and it was like sucking the center of a truffle out. A little hard to breathe when your throat is coated with chocolate GU. Oh well. It was very near our goal pace, and if all goes well race day, we will have no problem making a PR over last year's disaster of a race. Always good. :) Here's our route : (kinda makes me tired looking at it)