Dreaming of Dirt

This is always the worst time of year for me. Goal races seem like forever away, days start to get longer, but its still cold and storming and trail conditions tend to be terrible! I miss my dirt! I'll agree to wear pants and long sleeves a bit longer if I can run a dry trail. I get so disheartened...the thought of another treadmill mile is horrifying, but the thought of 12 min miles slipping and sliding and getting pommeled by 30 mph headwinds at Flying J sounds just as miserable. 

Dan and I had been hopeful for good weather so we could get in a long run together before Salida. We got a babysitter, mapped our route and loaded our packs. We got in about a solid half a mile before we hit the ice at Pine Valley. I knew there would be snow and ice in patches, but I didn't expected the whole trail to be covered...it's a burn area after all! We finally hit the junction with Homestead planning to head right out to Gashouse and then back up Baldy. Without a single track down Homestead and knowing we'd be breaking trail the entire next 12 miles or so we opted for an alternative. We decided to go back the way we came up and then up Strawberry Jack and then tacked on a few more miles along the river. For 3 hours of running I would expect a bit more than 15 miles, but we worked for every step of those 15 miles. 

So frustrating to know Salida is right around the corner and not feel like I'm even ready for a marathon right now. Salida is meant to be an early season training race to see where you'e at for the season and force you to get in a long run and some quality miles. It's still hard not to be overly competitive and want to do really well. I've still got time to get in some quality miles and I need to stop being so pessimistic about this race and just run.

Aside from PVR I logged miles on the dreadmill and slid my way around FJ. I think I say this every February, but I promise never to take for granted a dry trail again. My legs are really getting antsy to turn over and really push it on the trails. Next week I'm on a mission to find some dry trails that are hopefully not to windy. 

After a month of fighting with specialty pharmacies and insurance companies I finally got James his next RSV shot. I seriously can't believe how hard it is to get done something that seems like it should be so simple. Definitely thankful for a helpful pediatrician who helped take over a lot of the paperwork and phone calls for me. James has solidified his use of "dada" and usually always yells "dada" when asked who his favorite is. At least he's making progress with communication. It's amazing how much progress I've seen in such a short period of time. He's getting so much closer to walking. A few times I've gotten him to forget what he's doing while cruising and let go of the table. He only stands for a few seconds before he realizes and sits down, but we're getting there. His OT commented that his nystagmus has been worse since he got hand, foot and mouth and may be causing issues with his depth perception which makes him leery of standing on his own. We see the ophthalmologist soon so we'll have it checked out. Gotta get this kid running so he can lead dada across the finish line in Leadville in a few months. 

Week February 17 - 23

Miles Running: 42.0

Hours Hiking and Running: 6.0