Goals for Fall and Winter

After a long summer of racing and blisters, I'm relieved to have some time off from the joy of racing and the ensuing stress. It's not that I don't enjoy racing and setting high goals, it's that I enjoy competing when I have some time off from it to rest and rejuvenate. So, while I will certainly be running daily for my sanity (as well as the dogs',) I need to start laying some base for longer races next year; high altitude long runs before the snow buries the trails above 10,000 feet.

Goals for Fall 2007:

1. Average 50 miles of trails a week


2. One long run per week longer than 1o miles


3. Start speed work - intervals on track


4. Hill repeat workout - Hog's Back


5. Grand Canyon Rim to Rim Run

2008 Races:

1. Mt. Evans Hill Climb


2. Mt. Washington Road Race


3. Barr Trail Mountain Race


4. Kendall Mountain Race


5. Kennebec Mountain Race


6. Pike's Peak Marathon


7. Imogene Pass Race


8. Gore-Tex Trans-Rockies Race

So, it seems as though I have some rather grandiose goals for next year... maybe I have set the bar a little high. But, I love the clarity and the experience of living in the moment created by the intense suffering that is such an essential part of these races and the training leading into them. Running on the roads or the track pales in comparison to climbing over breath-taking, gorgeous passes over 13,000 feet in the subliminal Rocky Mountains before screaming down a steep, rocky descent barely in control. These experiences crescendo at Pike's Peak, an incredible race that will probably be the central focus of my summer racing season in 2008. A marathon climbing almost 8,000 vertical feet from Manitou Springs to the summit of Pike's Peak, an elevation over 14,000 feet. After running the Ascent this last summer, 13.1 miles to the summit, I plan to return for the full marathon next year, adding on the 13.1 mile descent down the same course for almost 16,000 vertical feet of climbing and descending. Sounds like fun...