Training Log Archive: Bash

Photos from the past, many of them surprising or interesting or both.
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BugsinTeeth and Jocelyn were planning a double Hockley Loop and asked me how easy it would be to follow the route. I offered to act as their local guide for the first loop.



It was a beautiful day - absolutely perfect conditions when we started early in the morning but a little hot and humid by midday. I've never seen so many hikers and dogs out on the trails; I can sometimes go around the entire loop without seeing anyone! Nice to see kids playing in creeks, dogs romping in the forest and hikers enjoying the lush greenery.



I'd been a little worried about keeping up but BiT and Jocelyn were happy with a gentle pace and lots of hill walking since they had such a big day planned. Yay.



These two sure know how to provide their own support for a long run! There were "aid stations" at the car and in a cooler at the halfway point - a variety of fresh fruit, heaps of ice cubes, cold drinks in several flavours and more. I've been doing it wrong. :)

Great to have visitors in our back yard and nice to catch up with BiT in person instead of over the Internet for once. Jocelyn and I have been Facebook friends for awhile but we'd never had the chance for a real conversation before so that was nice too.

I wanted to do more than one loop but less than two. I started the 2nd loop and came back via the middle side trail in Hockley Provincial Park, then popped back onto the main trail to get more elevation on the last section. Great day. I felt pretty good except that my heels, which were feeling a little sore and creaky after yesterday's run, feel even more sore and creaky now. Must. Stretch.

[Once again, had to adjust the GPS data after I messed up the concept of off and on.]

Salomon Toronto Solstice Run! Perfect day for it - brilliant sunshine and a good crowd of runners.



I joined the run for Laps #3 and 4 but because TheMinister, FT Tass and I were acting as sweeps for our first lap, we ended up on a different route and met the oncoming Lap 4 runners almost 1 km from the store. We just turned around and went back out! Nice to catch up with TheMinister and spend some time on the trail with Kelly Anne Wald and others. Great to see all our Salomon friends and team members. (I'm still connected with the store although no longer on the national Flight Crew.)



Btw TheMinister has been training! He waited patiently for far too long as I shopped for "oh wait, just one more thing!" in the store. Then we had a terrific lunch at Aroma and checked my phone to see where Sarah was riding. She crossed from Montana to Idaho within the past couple of hours! Pretty amazing when you consider that she entered Montana on Day 2 of the race, and it is now Day 9. She's aiming to camp in Yellowstone Park tonight. This race is a great way to learn U.S. geography in a meaningful way.

We also checked my phone to see where Team STORM Beowulf was training. It was cool to see their SPOT track as they trekked and biked up north in beautiful Bugfest Central.

Unfortunately, Mr. Gally and STORM borrowed my husband this morning and returned him broken. He has possible broken ribs after his muddy back tire slid out on rock. So much for his long run with me tomorrow! Coach Spaff will be tsk tsk tsking; *I* sure am.

GPS track adjusted for big missing section when I failed to turn it on after a traffic light. It was such a stop 'n' go run with so many different runners that it would have been better to use Autopause, I guess, but I'm not keen on it.

Farewell Hockley Loop with Myka before she moves out west. We are going to miss her so much! :(

Trivia question: Does anyone know how Myka and I met?



We had perfect weather and trail conditions for the big event. Myka saw what she's going to be missing when she leaves Ontario. Who needs mountains when you've got small hills? Our hills are alive...





We saw a big mushroom but elected to wait and have lunch at the Black Birch instead.



Great run, excellent company, lots of fun. My legs felt good but my gimpy heel felt (and feels) a little sore. Not too bad but I'll need to do my physio tomorrow for sure.

[Small adjustment for 1-minute section where I forgot to turn GPS on]

I ran in the rain around Palgrave West. I was hoping the fresh air might get rid of a headache but I only had moderate success with that. At least I came home feeling better than when I left, and the running felt pretty good.

Other UTMB prep today:

- Upgraded to an iPhone 5s with more storage and battery power than my current phone. It's mandatory to carry a phone and keep it turned on for 2 days. This one should last longer if I get the settings right.

- My visit to the Apple Store required about 75 minutes in the car so I worked with my French language CDs.

Between the tornado warning and Mocha's midweek visit home, a basement workout seemed appropriate. Last week I tried a stairmill; this week I power hiked on the treadmill at a 15% grade and steadily increased my speed to 6 kph. I think the stairmill feels like a more relevant workout but it requires a 15 minute drive each way and a $10 fee so I wish I had preferred the treadmill!

Upper body and core while watching the storm from the basement gym. It was crazy out there for a little while.

There are 10 types of people in the world: those who understand binary and those who don't.

At Dr. Bell's office with 'Bent. Home by midnight on a school night! At least we had the Hitchon TA1 podcast to entertain us on the long drive. Well done.

So proud of our neighbour Sarah Caylor, who used to log as "Crash" on Attackpoint. After 3 days of the Tour Divide, an unsupported mountain bike race from Banff to the Mexican border, she remains the top Solo Female and is 16th of about 120 riders overall. Weather has been nasty so she stopped early tonight to warm up and dry her clothes in Columbia Falls, Montana. There is excellent online tracking; she'll be out there for another 2-3 weeks. http://trackleaders.com/tourdivide14

Yikes, this is intense - two runners in Alberta encountered a black bear last week.