A Weekend in the Mountains, Part 2: Granite Peak

A ribbon of highway weaves its way through the Trinity Alps. Rachel navigates the curves while I stare at the peaks overhead. Due to a very low snow year marred with sporadic warm weather systems, snow is difficult to find. Soon Granite Peak comes into view. We debate scrapping our longer, more runnable trip up the Stuart Fork for another shot at the summit. In early January, the trail was too icy and difficult to find to make it above treeline, but staring up at the mountain now I could see that all that snow was gone. Could we make it? I wonder out loud. Before I know it, we're climbing the steep fire road to the Granite Peak trailhead.

Granite Peak is on the left.

We begin the arduous climb up the mountain. In the five miles to the top, the trail gains an impressive 4,500 ft. without a single reprieve. I find myself leading the way up the trail with a giant grin on my face.

The "Too much coffee" selfie.

Modest views of Trinity Lake and the surrounding mountains peek through the trees. The sun shines brightly on our backs and we're soon stripped down to a summertime outfit. What a gorgeous day to be in the mountains!

Snack time, complete with photobomb.

How to pose like a real blogger. Apparently, I've been doing it wrong.

Before I know it, we pop out from the remaining bit of forest onto a rocky outcropping. Mountains for miles. The view is incredible, yet we scoff at the lake below. "Meh, that's pretty ugly." For the rest of the day, that's the theme of our conversation. "What are we even doing here? This is disgusting." and "All that climbing for this ugly view?" Sarcasm pours down the mountainside in a great flowing stream.

Trinity Lake

 Without a whisper of wind, I find myself lingering more and more as we approach the summit. I spot bits of snow, a little more at a time as we move skyward. Just three hundred feet from the summit, we stop. The dirt trail, carved into a forty-five degree slope, turns to snow.

Grr.

I knew I should have brought the traction. We give the snow a try, taking tentative steps as we dig our heels into the mountainside. Since our original plan was to be well below snow levels, I didn't bring anything from home and now the grade required an ice ax and kahtoolas. Without it, one slip could result in a 2,000 foot tumble down the mountainside. Darn it, You got me again Granite Peak.

Rachel's improvised walking stick.

This time, we at least took in some ugly views of Mt. Shasta, Trinity Lake, and all those other ugly  nearby mountains. At 7,800 ft., just three hundred feet shy of the top, we retreat.

The return trip was filled with chatter about work, our friends, blogging, and running. Even though we didn't meet through our blogs, it is one interest we share. You should check out Rachel's. I think her blog highlights her true hilarious personality.

We return to town to get lunch and eat at a local park. Even though I'm filled with food, I feel my energy levels drooping from the sunshine overdose I'm clearly not used to getting. I look over at Rachel and can tell she's feeling the same way. Three o'clock and we're ready for bed. Instead of calling it a night without dinner and returning to the campground, we decide to indulge in a hotel. Beds, showers, and most importantly, a place for a nap. Once my body wants a nap, it is very difficult to convince it otherwise. I love that Rachel is serious about her downtime too. We take a few hours to relax, indulge in some Thai for the second night in a row (at the same table, freaing out the busboy, haha), and watch some trashy reality TV before heading to bed.

All photos without my blog watermark are: Rachel C. photo credit. 

A Weekend in the Mountains, part 1.

I've never been very good at making friends. Too quick to retreat into my comfortable shell, I sometimes wonder if I miss out on things in life due to my intense shyness. One thing thing I am good at, however, is knowing pretty much right away whether I can be comfortable enough to let a stranger in. Through one of Matt's friends, I met Rachel. From our very first run together talking nonsense about a killer deal I scored on a camel through some "buy two humps, get one free" sale on Black Friday, I knew that my dry humor and silliness was not only accepted, it was encouraged.  Even though she ended up stealing the running club's circuit win from me at the last race (grrr!!), we took it upon ourselves to assume an automatic invitation whenever the boys ran together.

Shasta Springs Trail

Spring marathon training came along and suddenly Matt's and my running duo became a trio. We watched as Rachel effortlessly ran new distance PRs: sixteen, eighteen, twenty, and twenty-one miles. Miles passed quickly as we teased, shared stories, and counted kitties. Just the other day, Matt mentioned that it's easy to find running buddies for short runs, but it takes a special person to endure several hours of running with us so we consider ourselves lucky when we find someone who wants to take on that sort of road mileage.

Through a series of changed plans, Rachel and I found ourselves headed inland on a Friday afternoon. We stepped out of the car and into the dry mountain air. My heart sighed with contentment, this is my happy place.

Leopard Lily already in bloom at 3,500 ft.

We dashed off onto a trail tracing the mountainside, the last bit of evening light fading from the sky. Surrounded by peaks in every direction, I'm always surprised by how this place, so wide open and airy, can feel so cozy. The easy 5.25 mile run proved to be the perfect warmup for our Saturday adventure in the Trinity Alps.

A Run with Karen

Recovery runs are meant to be slow. They are meant to be relaxed. They are meant to be a fun mental recharge in between hard training days. I don't time them, sometimes not even planning a route beforehand. When one of this week's recovery runs left me running solo, I decided it would be fun to take the camera along so I could share it with you.

It didn't feel lonely at all with my iPod, some kitty snuggles, and thinking about what cool things I'd be able to share here.

Springtime flowers are everywhere!

I had a goal distance, but today's run didn't have a specific route. If I came to a crosswalk and the way I had been traveling had the red "Don't Walk" hand up, I turned. It was liberating being able to change direction on a whim.

Fire hydrants make nice tripods.

It was getting a little warm in the full sunshine, so I dashed into the park. Most of our city parks around here look like this and some people have redwoods in their yard (there's one in my backyard).

Isn't that amazing? Every time I visit this park, I wonder why I don't do it more often. When I started to get chilly, I climbed out of the steep ravine and back into the sunshine of town. 

Shooting timer selfies is a bit tricky in the forest.

It feels super awkward to take these, but a person in the shot best conveys how huge the trees feel.

The next mile was spent following a shimmering trail of fake coins down the sidewalk. There were also broken tubes of art paint, so I think someone's school backpack has a hole in it. Either that, or it's my lucky day and I should rush out and grab a lottery ticket.

I counted twenty two kitties throughout my run. They seemed to enjoy the warm sun as much as I did.

Wait! That's not a kitty! Go back to sleep, buddy.

Since I didn't have an agenda or buddies to keep me moving, I stopped to pet a couple of kitties. I have a huge weakness for giant, fluffy kitties, so I gave this guy a little extra love.

With all the photos and stops, the eleven miles netted me almost two hours of sunshine. I returned home with a blissful content smile on my face. I find myself looking forward to the off season after Boston so I can have more runs just like this one.

Last Week: March 15-21

Wow, look at me. Actually posting a weekly recap with one week instead of several. I'm trying to make a point to share and blog more instead of retreating into my own cocoon. The longer days have definitely helped with the motivation.

Last week was unusual. I didn't take a single step from my own doorstep. Two trips were squeezed together to make one really satisfying week. It was plenty of miles, hard work, gorgeous scenery, and good company.

Sunday: Run 12 trail miles, not timed.

Headwaters hill party with Nikki. She was sore from weight training, I was sore from the previous day's 20 miler. We went slow to enjoy the scenery and company. Beautiful way to spend my Sunday morning.

Monday: Rest! 
I love rest days. Just when I feel like I'm on the edge of exhaustion, I take a full day off and I perk right back up.

Tuesday: Run 5.5 miles, 43:28, 7:54/mi. in Rogue River, OR.
1.25 mi warmup and cool down, 3 miles @ 7:07/mi. (goal: 7:09-7:26)

We ran up and down the same bike path that the half marathon in February covered. The whole time I was running the tempo portion, my thoughts were “WHY DOES THIS HURT SO MUCH!?!?” Oh, well. 7:07 average for three miles explains it. Nice work legs, you’re getting strong.

Wednesday: Run 8 mi, 1:09:53, 9:44/mi. one kitty.

Gorgeous run on the same trail as the day before, only outside of Ashland, OR. They’re debuting a marathon on this path on my 31st birthday, I might just have to skip the half this year and upgrade to the marathon. That afternoon, I passed THE Hal Koerner on the sidewalk and he smiled at me like we were pals, so it's official, I'm moving to Oregon.

Thursday: Run 7 mi, 6 @ MRP, goal: 7:49/mi.

This run, I tried to focus on hitting the pace. With rolling hills, it was a little difficult to pace. I forced myself to slow down several times per mile. The next two MRP runs, I will try to focus on nailing that 7:49 pace.

Hike 2 miles. A short walk to break up the drive home. Jedediah Smith Redwoods S.P.

Friday: Run 5.25 trail miles in Weaverville. 9:48/mi.
Relatively flat sunset run with Rachel. The dry, fresh air felt wonderful.

Saturday: Hike 9 mi, 4,400 ft. gain. in the Trinity Alps.
On the way out to another adventure, we noticed that there wasn't much snow on Granite Peak. Scrapping our long run idea for a grueling climb up the mountain, we made it about 400 ft shy of the top.

Since we hadn't planned on this route, we didn't have the right traction to make it up a forty-five degree angle to the true summit. No matter, it still was GORGEOUS. It was a bit sad that there's so little snow up here. Fire season is going to be a meanie this year.

TOTALS:
Running Miles: 37.25
Hiking Miles: 11
Kitties: 1

Notes: Strong week, strong views, good vibes. I'm not even sad about the kitty count, because if I had encountered more of them they would have been mountain lions and I'll be happy if I never see one of those guys again.

Reducing My Allergy Symptoms

There was a time when this blog was monopolized by a detailed account of my struggles with environmental allergies. I rewrote training plans, made a complete tour of the antihistamine section at the pharmacy, tried every reader suggestion, avoided running on trigger days and nothing seemed to help. I even went so far as to try allergy shots. Allergies triggered asthma and certain times of the year, I was left feeling rundown, overwhelmed, and frustrated.

The only thing that has ever truly helped was a daily nap. Since I can't nap every day, this bit of information wasn't all that useful in treating them, but it got me thinking about what exactly it was that provided relief. Then, like a light bulb illuminating a dark room, it hit me: Stress.

What did I have to be stressed out about? I found myself asking that same question. Even though my daily life doesn't include children, work, or social stresses, nearly all my stress comes from a place I cannot control. Due to a the thirteen intensive rounds of chemotherapy, my immune system is easily stressed without the usual culprits. Add in daily pollens, dust, and marathon training and my stress levels rise much more quickly than the average person. At the height of my struggles, minor depressive episodes and anxiety also present. From there, things snowball and I enter a perpetual cycle of mounting stress.

I took time to think about why the nap was so refreshing. Deep breathing. Stillness. Relaxation. I needed to find a way to incorporate those aspects into my daily life without having to devote an hour to QT with my couch. I decided to try meditation.

The first time was uncomfortable. Just a few minutes into it, I fidgeted, my thoughts drifted to the things I needed to do next. My body ached in its inactivity and I literally could not sit still.  I tried again the next day, this time setting a timer to keep myself from glancing at the clock. I had several moments free of thoughts, just me and the sound of my breath, in between those moments of noisy thoughts.

I repeated this cycle for a couple of weeks and was finally to find that calm place within myself that could let some of the tension go. Just ten minutes a day, or twice a day if I need it, seems to help. As granola hippie as it sounds, forcing myself to relax has reduced the stress enough that the overwhelmed, frustrated, and exhausted feelings have become manageable. I’m still on a cocktail of expensive medications and use my Neti Pot. But the regular napis not quite the necessity that it has been the last few years.
What do you do to reduce stress? Do you love naps as much as I do?

Last Two Weeks: March 1-14

Week 1: March 1-7

Sunday: Run 10 mi, 1:46, 10:30/mi.
Just one day after my first 20 miler, I ran 10 miles with a few of the club ladies. Their everyday pace is my perfect recovery pace and I love that they force me to slow down and chat. Before I knew it, we were back at our cars.

Monday: Rest, woohoo!

Tuesday: Run 8 mi, 1:07:05, 8:23/mi. Strength work: Core, Legs, Shoulders. 4 kitties!
Another run at the McKay (pictured above), Matt and I joined Rachel and Brandon for a double date. The boys went off to run a fartlek day whereas us ladies wanted to run easier and visit.

Wednesday: Run 8 mi, 1:03:50, 7:59/mi.
1.5 mi each warm and cool, 5 mi @ 7:37/mi.

This run was a reminder that it's spring allergy season. Time to resume the Mucinex! Despite being overrun with gunk, this run felt strong and comfortable.

Thursday: Run 5 mi,  43:45, 8:45/mi. 5 kitties!
Huh... log says I ran this, but I don't really have any memories of it.

Friday: Run 5 mi, 45:17, 9:04/mi. 16 kitties!
Last run before Sunday's 10 mile race. Normally, I don't time my easy runs, but now that Matt's watch syncs up with Strava and he's grouped with our club buddies, he's been timing them all. It's nice to know that I'm doing my easy runs in the right pace zone.

Saturday: Rest, volunteer, and foam rolling.

TOTALS:
Kitties: 25
Miles: 36

Notes: This week was mostly a taper to Foggy Bottom. My allergies flared up a little bit as the week went on so I got some more quality time with my couch and NetiPot, trying to keep my body's stress level down.

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Week 2: March 8-14

Sunday: Run 12 mi, including Foggy Bottom Milk Run 10 Miler.
After last year's asthma attack at this race, I made sure to use a fresh inhaler, get enough of a warmup and ran a new PR of 1:15:35.

Monday: Run 7 mi, 1:05:00, 9:18/mi. 13 kitties!
Sore, sore legs. The uneven road on race day brought on sore spots in places I've never had them before. The worst were my inner thigh muscles. What was that about?

Tuesday: Rest!
Well earned and complete with sports massage. Heather finds all the other sore spots and beats them to death. Sometimes I wonder why I pay someone to hurt me this much.

Wednesday: Run 10 mi, 1:30:15, 9:02/mi. 2 kitties!

I didn't realize how many runs I've had with the McKay Tract lately until I began writing this summary. Each group run was with a different set of people. This one was with our favorite home schooled boys. Normally, they try to pull us along, working faster and faster, but today it was us doing the pulling. I think they were tired. Both raced the 10 miler AND 2 miler on Sunday. Ouch, it makes me sore just thinking about that.

Here they are at a recent race. They almost always wear matching outfits. It's the best. Y.Kim, SRRC photo credit.

Thursday: Run 7.5 mi. 56:37, 7:33/mi. including 4x1 mi @ 6:49-7:00.

This run required way more mental cheerleading than it should have. It’s not like I’ve never run these paces before. My worries were that I haven’t done much speed work in the last couple weeks, all of my fast stuff has been in races. The last lap of each mile had to be broken in half in my mind for me to push. But instead of giving up, I tricked myself into continuing on and my body did just as it has been trained. It’s a valuable tool to have, so I’m not complaining.

Friday: Run 8.5 mi. 1:13:22, 8:35/mi. 6 kitties!
Good day for me, bad one for Matt. He was pretty dehydrated and sluggish and I was fresh off of a nap. Woohoo!

Saturday: Run 20 mi, 2:52:00, 8:36/mi. 31 kitties!

The weather for this run was ideal for me. Most people love sunny days, but I prefer a light wind and overcast with a little drizzle (it reminded me of the weather at Santa Rosa). My body loved it and felt strong the whole way. Both Matt and Rachel are fluent in bullshit and sarcasm, and we have yet to find an endpoint to our silly stories, so the miles passed quickly.

This week’s long run had four miles of dirt trail in the middle (miles 8.5-12.5) and it was a nice to run on the softer surface. It is also the first time I’ve ever used auto-lap on my watch and I felt so tech-savvy even though it took me longer to set it up than I care to admit. It’s interesting to see how my pace fluctuated with the terrain. We picked up the pace the last few miles and finished strong. I wish all my long runs felt this good. There's been talk of adding pacers to the local August marathon, and I think I'd be really good at it. Even pace for always.

TOTALS:
Miles: 65
Kitties: 52

Notes: I finally feel like I'm training for a marathon. Since I keep a mileage base of about 40 weekly miles all year long, it doesn't feel like a significant increase until I hit the mid-60s. This is also where I see a drastic increase in appetite. Last week was really great in a lot of ordinary ways and it has me looking forward to the next few weeks.

Zoey: The New Normal

Zoey doesn't squirm. Wrapped tightly in a towel, she looks like a terrycloth burrito with a striped head poking out. The tiny scratches on my hands and forearms are beginning to heal. I've finally figured out a way to not only administer the pill solo but to restrain those very sharp claws. I tilt the burrito back until her head rests between my knees.

I stroke her head, speaking in my softest calm voice. On days that I'm nervous, I notice that she echoes my emotional distress and squirms more, so I try my very best to relax.

I draw a deep relaxing breath myself and begin. I coax her mouth open and stuff the pill popper tool inside. Before she can resist or gag, the pill has already made it down her throat. I hold her mouth closed for a moment until I see her swallow and then tilt her upright again. I am so thankful that she's grown to trust me, even if she will never understand why I do this to her.

I set the pill tool on the floor and turn her around in my lap. My Zoey burrito rolls on the floor until I'm able to unwrap her. Once she's free from the towel, she parks herself next to her food dish just a couple feet away. Even though she doesn't like pill time, she no longer hides from me afterward. Just two weeks into treatment, she has learned that every pill garners her something delicious and she patiently awaits the reward. Today it's chicken. She gobbles it down, then looks up, expecting more.

Throughout the first few months of treatment, a trip back to the vet for lab work is required. Zoey and I sit patiently on the bench, waiting our turn. Zoey doesn't appear nervous, but she recoils in her carrier when noisy dogs pass. They take her into the back room and a few minutes later return. She's already working on beautifying her fur surrounding the needle site by the time I take care of the bill. The technician compliments Zoey's cooperative demeanor and I nod, thankful that this process isn't any more difficult. She goes on to explain that some cats require sedation or a whole team of staff to restrain, but Zoey just lies there. We'll find out the results early next week and determine how to proceed with treatment from there.

I don't know how this position is comfortable.

I hate that the remainder of her days will include frequent visits to the vet and daily pills, but she doesn't seem bothered by it. Once she's free of our poking and prodding, she's fine. I know that it won't always be this easy, but for right now, I'm happy that we've established a routine that doesn't stress either of us too much.

Foggy Bottom Milk Run 10 Mile Race Report

Every so often, a book I read becomes a movie. I'm always surprised by the differences between the voices and characters I have built in my head and those on the screen. Watching a video of a blogger, whose voice I've come to know only within my head, feels something like that. I'm so captivated by their voice and facial expressions that I can't look away. So instead of sharing my race report in the same format that I usually do, I'd like to share it via video, just to see how that voice in your head compares to what my actual voice sounds like. (Beware: I ramble a little bit....)

Details not covered in the video:

My Splits

First two laps are the first mile. I ALWAYS see the 1 mile cone for the kids' race and think it's mine.

My Finishing Stats

The third time coming in 7th place, never the same six ahead of me.

Photos

Behind me is the start arch, not the finish. Even though I know that's not the end, it's always such a tease. Y. Kim, SRRC photo credit.

Crossing the final timing mat. This is my PR face. FBMR Facebook photo credit.

Combined 10 mile and 4 mile start. Y. Kim, SRRC photo credit.

Then we handed out 2-mile race medals with Rachel, our long run buddy.

Matt's Race
For the last few months, Matt has been rehabbing an Achilles' Tendon issue and consequently hasn't been doing a lot of speed work. He's slowly easing back into it, but said he didn't feel as prepared for this race as he would have liked. Then he dropped a minute from his PR. Sandbagger.

Y. Kim, SRRC photo credit.

FBMR Facebook photo credit.