Shoot for the Stars

Home:) in Paradise, CA!!! 5:30 a.m. Dad and I ran together and it wasn't rainning so that was great! We ran from our home, through the cementary, to PHS, and up the bike trail. It was very dark so dad wore a head lamp and I carried a bright small flashlight. I got scared after reaching the bike path from PHS because I saw a skunk and I didn't want to get sprayed so we stayed to the side and just ran fast past it. We were fine thank goodness! We ran all the way up to where the bike path reaches Skyway and a little past. We basically went just a little last Fast Trip gas station then turned around when my GPS reached 4 miles. We talked a lot of the way so that was nice and made the run go by faster. We did about 2.5 miles on the track but dad had to end up walking some because he just did a 5K race yesturday and his R foot was bothering him some so he listened to his body. I did fine except for alittle L ankle pain that I've been getting. There were some other runners on the bike trail and then some walkers on track. Dad and I ran back together from the track to home.

TT: 1:33:35   Avg: 9:09   Max: ?

Splits: 9:39, 10:02, 9:17, 9:27, 8:48, 8:15,  8:06, 9:41, 8:59, 9:16, 9:17 ( It was up hill on the bike trail and then heading back our time got faster as we went downhill) 

ARSHS. 5:30 a.m. Mishel and I carpooled to the HS to meet up with Niki. We worked on speed today. This was Mishel's first time to have to hop the fence so she had a little trouble. I ran in Lane 3 all the way except one area where there was a bench. I was very tired this morning due to eating late and driving back late from Paradise night before. We ran 1 mile to warm up, sprinted 1/4 mile, walked, then repeated the spring walk thing. When all done we ran 1 mile to cool down. Great work out!

Mishel's home. 5:30 a.m. Niki met up with us but she felt really tired this am and her knee was bothering her. I had a little bit of pain on my L knee and ankle but it went away pretty fast. We ran the usual route but we reversed the part on the gravel and did that first to try to avoid some of the big hill but we still had a small steep hill to run up.

Greenwater, WA. 6:30 a.m. I carpool with Mishel and her husband Jeff to Safeway in Enumclaw to pick up Anna there. We all took a field trip up to Greenwater which is a little past Crystal Mtn. I am not sure what time we got there but we prob. didn't start running until 7 or so. It was lightly rainning but not bad. It was up in the boonies and high elevation so my gps had trouble calculating so I only have a few splits. We ran about 14 miles total though. It was some nice trail running but it was a little muddy from the rain. It was a goregous run through the woods and leaf parachutes and plants. There was a stream, waterfall, and some beautiful lakes a long the way! I loved the light green and yellow leaves! A lot of the way to Lost Lake was uphill, winding, and lots of roots.When we got to the lake we walked around and took pictures at the lake and also saw a toliet someone made for people that knew about it. Most of the way in I ran up with Anna in the front and Mishel was having some issues-not feeling that great and her legs wouldn't move! Her and Jeff ran near the back. On the way back I talked with Jeff and took the 2nd to back. I started to feel light headed a little and hypoglycemic. They said I looked kinda pale. I was able to use a Tri berry gu which helped a lot. I had one gu coming in with mocha flavor caffeine. I felt better when I got a couple miles into the way back. Mishel had to stop once to wrap her foot so it was nice to rest for a bit. Great run! We really flew down on the way back since it was mainly down hill. I tripped over a root but luckily caught myself.

Mishel's home. 5:30 a.m. Cheri, Mishel, and me. It was decently warm this morning due to the cloud coverage. Cheri and I left our jackets right before we turned to get onto the country Rd out of Lemon Tree Rd. We ran our usual route. I felt good this morning like I finally got enough sleep. Mishel was sluggish. Cheri was very tired too because she just got back from VA on Mon. night and she had jet lag plus she hasn't ran the last 9 days while on vacation.

Cheri's home. 5:15 a.m. It was very chilly this morning a lot of fog so made cold moisture in the air. I wore a jacket for atleast the first 2 miles. My hands were cold and my arms but the rest of me was fine. Cheri, Niki, Mishel, and I ran this run. I wanted to push a little more on this one since it is my last run before the race. Cheri was up in front with me most of the way but then fell back with Niki as Niki has been having some knee pain still. Mishel's inner foot/leg has been bothering her but she ran up in the front with me and we pushed it the last couple of miles together on our time. There were a lot of trucks and cars in a row that passed us by.

Gig Harbour. 8:00 a.m. Race for a Soldier. Got a good nights sleep, ate a light breakfast, and prepared well for this race. I rode with Mishel this morning. Sheri, Gordan, and 2 high school girls came as well to run. We all went together about 6:30 a.m. to Gig Harbour. It was very very cold this morning! I had shorts on and a tank but ended up keeping my long sleeved shirt that was given in the race packet. It was an awesome shirt! Very light weight but nice looking black long sleeved sports tee. I had to have something to wear after the race so I wouldn't get too cold. I don't like having long sleeved though cause you have to tie it around your waist. Used the restroom before the race then Sheri, Mishel, Gordan, and I lined up in the 9 min pace corral. I started out not as fast as I usually do trying to be smarted about my start time. Then when I saw myself getting ahead I slowed down and went the speed of Mishel and Sheri. They kept a good pace most of the way and were just right behind me or with me most of the way. When we got the hill though I actually ran on ahead of them. We passed Niki and Janet before the hill on mile 4. The hill was tough but I was amazed at how good I felt on the hill. The only hill that bothered me the most was when we got to the gated community past mile 8 and there was a tough hill right after the golf course on the L. My legs were burning there and I almost wanted to walk but didn't. I took one blackberry gu shot on mile 7 and drank water at every water stop. The course was on black top so it wasn't too hard on the knees. I didn't have any pain the whole way!! I did get just a little chaffing under my arms but that was it! No pain on the calus of my L foot!!!! I love my new asics!!! I can honestly say I felt strong the whole race! I had a lof of endurance and speed. I was able to pass a lot of people a long the way. I loved how the last 2 miles or so was on gravel/dirt near a water tank. It really switched things up a lot! I enjoyed running through the richy neighborhood as well!! Some of those houses were amazing!!!!!! The landscaping and golf courses were goregous!! How fun!! I would have to say I really enjoyed the course! It was nice that it was just cloudy and there was no rain!! I had enough energy right near the end to sprint as well!!! I did mentally get super tired the last mile though but I knew I was almost done. I sprinted full on when I saw the finish line. I got a neat dog tag for the finishing medal! Ate a bannana and nutrition bar after. So happy to have completed this run!

Lakeland hills. 5:30 a.m. I met up with Janet today to run some hills. I felt really good this morning being the first day back into the running after 1/2 marathon. When we both ran up the hills they didn't seem to bother me at all. We were even talking most all the way. We did our usual route.

Mishel's home. 5:30 a.m. It felt a little chilly this morning due to the breeze. It was just Mishel, Angela, and I who ran today. Nikki's bday today and Cheri had a headache. We ran the usual route through Lemon tree, country Rd, and then up the steep hilll and around the backside. Angela was so sweet and gave me some running gloves from costco however they look a little too small for me:( Darn! I felt tired for this run for some reason. Going up the hill was very though! Gonna take tomorrow off from running! Angela did very well this morning and kept the lead actually. Mishel and I were sore. I like how we got a lot faster at the end!

Wikeson. 8:00 a.m. picked up Anna in Enumclaw to run with Mishel, Jeff, and I. We went up to Wikeson town past Sunset Lake. We drove off on a trail that went a ways passed Enumclaw...maybe 30 min. It was a state park that part of the land was on Mt. Rainier property. We were able to park our vehicle though without paying since none of us had cash. We ran up a paved trail but then quickly turned into dirt, gravel, and mud. It was a tough trail because there was definetly a gradual incline the whole way (4.9 miles) and also the elevation diff compared to what I am used to. The weather was nice though, slightly foggy, but no rain. We even swa some sun and clear blue skies along the way. Anna took some pictures as well! Great run! There we a couple of spots we had to jump over a little water and step in some mud. We stopped and drank water and had some energy food when we got the camp ground at the end and start of another trail head up to some glaciers. We enjoyed the raging river on the trail. We really picked up the speed on the way back but I didn't feel as good. I wasn't weak this time but I prob ate too much of my snickers bar/marathon energy bar and felt slightly stiff and tired on the way back. I took more of the rear. I ran with Jeff most of the way back. Anna and Mishel were booking it with a nice pace of 7:30 on the way back. Shocking for Mishel to keep up with Anna! Go girls!!!

Sheri's place. 5:30 a.m. Very cold and foggy. Mishel said it was 32 degrees but Sheri was convinced that it was low 40s. It felt very cold this morning but still not sure it was freezing. However, I never fully warmed up this morning so I wore a jacket and long capris the whole time. We ran the route to the R of her St and then looped around and back again. Lots of hills that were extremely difficult this morning. Sheri charged up them but Mishel and I were having trouble. We saw a couple of people walking past us as we ran down the hill.

Lakeland Hills. 5:15 a.m. Mishel gave me a ride because she decided to run today. I ran today but it was hard because I had an eye infection yesturday and I might have still had it on my run. Bright lights would hurt my eyes and it was hard to open. It felt sandy however they seemed to feel fine when I was running. They still felt a little different when I woke up. It was Mishel, Niki, Janet, and I who ran. Good run other than the eye issues. Niki and I were talking about contacts and what can sometimes happen.

Cedar River Trail. 7:30 a.m. I met up with the Cedar River runners at Lake Wilderness Lodge. I met up with Anna because she said she wanted to run there with Mishel and I. However, it didn't work out for Mishel due to close to church time getting back. The weather was absoluetly GOREGOUS today!!! It was in the high 40s but clear skies and the sun came out for a lot of the time! We had a nice size group. Some included Cliff, Trev, Tony, Mary, etc...There were also 2 other lady runners. There was Gage, Anna's dog and then Mary brought her dog, Emily I believe was her name. We had some other guys as well. I think there were maybe 8-10 of us. We also happen to be running the same time there was a race going on for Halloween 1/2 marathon. We saw 3 ladies with cute halloween socks as well. I ran with Anna most of the time and some new guy who seemed pretty into running bc he has done 3 iron man runs. He was trying to keep his pace low though. We ran with Mary near the end of the run after we stopped for 5-10 min for bathroom breaks at end of run before we had to turn around. The pace that we kept was very fast pace! Anna definetly kept me going a lot faster than I would normally run. That is why we mainly stayed in the 8 min mile range until the end I was so tired! I didn't eat any gu but I had some of propel water and also had a small breakfast before the run. When we got to the end we got to have cinnamon rolls that Cliff brought (I kept them in my car while we ran for him) and hot chocolate that Mary had brought! Fun Fun! I had to take off to make it in time for church!