Cold

Happy New Years everyone! 

Cold.  Referring to the noun and not the adjective, as in I have a cold right now.  I've been having some weird symptoms for a week now, sore throat, light ear ache, some congestion and drainage and I thought that I had gotten over it but after yesterday's run it seemed to hit with a vengeance.  I am disapointed as I was going to start piecing together some higher mileage weeks starting this week.   That will have to wait.  Some allergy attacks, colds, and URI's  I can generally push through if I am careful but I am not going to take any chances with this one so for the next few days I will definitely be doing little to nothing and just taking it easy.

But running has been going well.  I haven't been trying to hit any training goals but I do attempt to get close to and hour and half in each day on interesting terrain or trails and while I am not being 100% strict about it, there is still a token focus on MAF and just taking it easy.  Yesterday was the warmest day we have had in Aspen for a bit, I think it got up to 31 degrees Fahrenheit and the first day I was able to run without a jacket or two on as outer layers.  I wore three long sleeved shirts layered and that was plenty enough for yesterday.

For most of the stuff I have been running, Micro Spikes are mandatory.  I don't notice them so much now but at the beginning I could really feel the weight of them on my feet.  I usually leave the house with them in a small pouch which I carry in my hand until I hit the trail and just slip them on real quick.  Pitkin County, or the city of Aspen, I am not sure who exactly does it but they do clear half of one side of the Rio Grand trail which stretches from Aspen all the way to Basalt.  They leave the other half snow covered for cross country skiers or folks snow shoeing.  But the trails here and around Aspen are just as awesome for running in the winter as they are the summer, even if you have to have the extra traction.

2013 reflections.... Probably my best year ever I have to say.  2001 miles of running, 2024 miles of biking.  That comes out to 384 hours of running and 218 hours of cycling and this is with at least one day a week off each week. I finished Leadman, big buckled in the LT100 Run. I pulled off a 50 mile PR in November though it wasn't as strong as I would have liked it was still a PR and I have managed to pretty much stay uninjured and healthy throughout the year. Those are the highlights, I could throw in more, but for now that is enough.  I am leaving 2013 on a good note and without any remorse or "coulda, shoulda, woulda's" lingering back there in the debris of the year.

2014 is completely up in the air.  Part of me has the faint desire to do Leadman again and though it is not part of the plan it is on the board as a last resort if I do not get into the LT100 MTB Lottery. (However a 2015 run at it is quite possible.) I have to also pull of a qualifying 100 in 2014 to stay in the Hardrock Lottery and deciding which one to do has caused me a bit of angst but I am pretty confident to say that I have settled on the Run Rabbit Run race in Steamboat, September 13th. 

I chose that race for a few reasons.  It was either it or the Bighorn 100 in June.  Run Rabbit Run won out because to be honest, I don't want to go into 2014 knowing everything else that will be happening in my life, (the layoff, selling the house, moving, etc.) while also training for and staring down a 100 miler in June.  Also, from Aspen, Steamboat is about 3 hours while the drive to Bighorn is around nine.  I am not a fan of post August big races and that is and was still a factor but the driving aspect swayed me in the end.   Also, the terrain here in Aspen really lends itself to the race in Steamboat in regards to the nature of climbs etc.  Anyway, I plan to register on Jan 4th when it opens up.

So for now, the schedule looks like this.

March 15 America's Uphill

April 19 Desert Rats Marathon

May 2 18 Hours of Fruita MTB 

July 12 Silver Rush 50 MTB - If I get into the 100 MTB

August 9 Leadville Trail 100 MTB - If I get in. 

September 12th Run Rabbit Run 100

There might be some others thrown into the mix like another couple of MTB races in May and the Golden Leaf Half Marathon in late September, but for now those are the ones that I am looking at. 

Melissa and I are going to the Wheeler Opera House tonight for a New Years celebration.  Between now and then I just plan to rest and medicate myself as much as possible. I'll be primed for the party after all of the Nyquil I consume today.   I am looking forward to the fireworks over Aspen Mountain tonight.

Happy New Years Everyone!