I’m not going to ask how anyone is doing. I think I have a pretty good idea since life changed drastically about three weeks ago. I will say I hope everyone is well and healthy. This whole outbreak has been troubling on different levels. 1) The amount of people who have become sick and those that have succumbed to this virus; 2) Panic buying. It is disconcerting to go into a store and see nothing on the shelves; and 3) people not taking the virus seriously. Like many of you I am quarantined in my house. I go out for the grocery run and to take a walk/run on a trail by my house all the while practicing social distancing. I am also teleworking and trying to maintain a healthy/sane schedule during my day. Trying to have some normalcy. I am grateful that I have a job that has allowed me to telework. I know many people are having a hard time. Hearing the news that we now may have to stay home until the end of April. Well, that’s just devastating to some people. I hope they will be able to find some relief and our economy will jump back quickly.
The Rock and Roll Marathon DC was cancelled and they have allowed me to transfer my race to other areas for later in the year. I have chosen to run my race in September 2020 in Montreal, Canada. Never been, so I figured why not?! Hopefully the pandemic will have subsided and life will return to normal by that time.
As you can surmise mileage isn’t banging this month, although I have doubled what I have done last month. I was training for the half and then I wasn’t really. Can’t wait to be able to hit those long rides.
Some pics from the trail by my house:
Snake in a tree trunk.
Path by my house.
I was able to get 42.64 miles in for the week. Pretty good considering the circumstances. I hope this finds you well and at peace. We will all get through this together. I have 3679.50 miles gratefully remaining. Happy Miles to You!!
Hello everyone and Happy Tuesday! I believe Spring is finally here in DC, although it is possible that we could get another push of winter. It has been a fair winter at best. I’m ready for the warmer temps.
I’m still prepping for the Rock and Roll half marathon at the end of the month. I’m gliding into this easy as to avoid injury and pain. So far so good. A few pains here and there, but for the most part I’m on track and feeling good.
I bought some new running shoes, not sure I mentioned that in a previous post, but I was able to take them out for a spin.
Nikes
I’ve mentioned before that I haven’t had a lot of luck with Nikes in the past, the toe box seems to be a little tight for my feet. These seem to do the trick though, being light weight and enough space for my toes. This doesn’t mean I won’t be losing any toe nails, that always seems to happen.
This week’s training consisted of walks and small runs with the training run on Saturday coming out to 6.01.
Not bad for “getting” back into it. The morning was a bit overcast and around 49. I always hate the inital part of getting out of the car and starting. I get cold easy, but when running starts I get hot fast. Layering is always a pain. Slow but steady. Finishing is the goal.
This was a full moon weekend, and I snapped this photo of the moon last night. Not good mind you, the moon is hard to capture, but it was a beautiful moon hidden behind the clouds. I love running at night and this just made it better. The moon is magical just wish the picture came out the way I wanted.
This weeks tally came to 9.91 with 3722.14 miles gratefully remaining in my quest. I hope this post finds you still and with peace of mind. Happy Miles to You!!
I don’t think we’re going to have a cold winter any more. I keep holding out for the possibility of snow, but I think that ship has sailed for the DC area. I’m not complaining, but it’s been difficult as far as miles go. Wanting to get on the bike, but then no…. then deciding if I’m going to run or not….rainy vs. just kinda cold and yucky. In my previous post I spoke about helping a sista out with a 5k. I told her to pick one out and I would follow suit. She decided to run a 5k in the Rock ‘n’ Roll series. With enough prodding, I finally slugged on over to the site and signed up. But behold! There are half marathons and marathons to be had……
So just like that…my little fingers selected 5555kkkk…..no……haaaallllffff marathon….oh yes…can you feel it? Yeah, my knees felt it last night on that training run. Doesn’t everyone just want to slap down $115 to run 13 miles. Hey, hey the t-shirt and the I love me medal too! It’s all good. Did I mention this is happening on 28 March? I figure it will be good to just run now while the weather is still a little dicey for the bike.
Training is going as expected….the brain is in but the body is taking a bit of time to catch up. Been doing some small training runs during the week and will lay down a long one this weekend. Not really following a plan for this one I’ll admit.
Happy Sunday everyone! Hey, hey two weeks in a row blogging! Awww yeah, I’m on a roll. One of the things I missed about living in Phoenix is the weather never was to cold to train outdoors. At least it wasn’t unbearable. So, training happened year round outside. Unfortunately, NoVA doesn’t have that same weather pattern. This weekend was a different story. The temps were in the 60s and 70s, so I wiped off the bike and pumped up the tires and took badd kitty out for a spin.
It was a normal overcast day but the wind was off the charts. The gusts were so strong I teetered every now and again. The Potomac was choppy reminding me of the ocean. That didn’t stop people from being out on the trail. I road all the way out to National Harbor.
My average speed was 12.1 and I had some good sprints and peaks at about 18.2. Which is good ~ lol. It was a good ride and my bike performed as it should. I do apologize to the guy I almost hit head on. I was passing someone on a hill. After I passed her I started to fiddle with my phone that was attached to my arm. I wasn’t looking and the next thing I hear is this guy screaming. Look up and I barely missed him. Yeah. :-O Look I kept going and said I was sorry. Truth be told, he would have gone into the woods off a very narrow trail. Yeah…that would have cost me a few Hail Mary’s fo sho…but it didn’t happen. I know I should pay attention to the road and not the phone. But damn, I didn’t like the song that was on…. I’ll stop while I’m ahead.
Any hoo…. went out for a walk today which was hotter and more better! Got on the trail early for a little walk. I noticed right away the trail was wet and slippery. There are a lot of trees so leaves on the ground add a greater risk. There are a few turns that are pretty tight. They scare me a bit when the trail is normal.
Right before a heavy curve.
I’m walking along, listening to music, heading uphill past the curve. I’m not really sure what made me turn around because I didn’t hear anything! I look and there is this poor guy and he totally wiped out on the curve. I rush over and I can just see the the embarrassment in his face. I reach down and unclip his foot out of the pedal, pick up the bike and start digging the mud out of his handle bars. “Are you okay?”, I ask. I look at his knees, no blood, just a bit of a bruise. Sheepishly he said, yeah, I hope my bike is okay. Oh damn. I busted out laughing at this point and said, yeah you’re a true cyclist. Little did he know he was speaking to the Queen of Crash. He thanked me for stopping and soon he was back on his way. I was glad I was able to assist a fellow cyclist.
It got me thinking about how we place material objects above our own body safety at times. I will admit, every time I have fallen I have checked the damage on my bike FIRST, then checked the knees etc. I imagine if it was a bad fall, that wouldn’t be the case. The reaction could be a couple of things: 1) cost of the bike (nothing worse than seeing a scratch), 2) love for the bike, or 3) hey, I’m still breathing ~ “tis merely a flesh wound”!
Either way, I will be the adult in the room and say it should be the other way around. Okay, enough adulting!
Stopped to take a morning photo on my walk:
Always so beautiful.
I had 1 run, 2 walks and 1 ride.
My mileage came to 34.14 with 3774.91 miles gratefully remaining. Happy Miles to You!! #thatPower I’m alive…
Getting sh*t done! Happy New Year my friends! Glad to be back blogging. The holidays seem to sneak up on me faster than ever 🙂 I’m always a step behind it appears, but you know it’s all good. No reason to stress out about these things, because that’s not what the holidays are about. It’s about friends, famdamily and throw in a little reflection for good measure.
I always use this time to reflect over my running stats Excel spreadsheet. Yes, I am that “girl”. I keep track on my Garmin and also a spreadsheet. I am going into my 7th year of this journey. How’s that for some dedication. I do wish at times it would go a bit faster, but let’s face it, life happens…and that’s a good thing.
I don’t make resolutions. I stopped doing that a long time ago. Not because I didn’t keep them, it just didn’t make sense to me to wait for a date to start a task or goal. There is no better time to start then right now. So why wait until the 1st of January? I guess it’s symbolic of renewal and new beginnings. I get it.
I’m satisfied with my miles for 2019. There is a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. If I were to use the present metrics of years past it looks like two more years. I’m hoping for 1.5.
2019 had ups and downs. I was diagnosed with Spondylolisthesis. It’s not lost on me that suck and spondylolisthesis both start with the letter S. That being said, it doesn’t and won’t stop me from moving forward. Getting older is awesome, but there are some drawbacks….LOL! How’s that for a cup half full. I went through the painful shots that helped some and finally opted to work on strength exercises and less intrusive ways to deal with the pain.
Goals for 2020
~ I really want to look out of the DC area for rides and runs this year. Maybe throw in some hikes. Looking to get out of my comfort zone and try something different. I’m loving the Centuries ~ even though my MO is getting lost and falling.
~ Working on strength to keep the lower back in check.
~ Cycling out of the country…hmmm any suggestions?
~ Keeping up with my blog. Still not digging my layout.
November and December were pretty average months. I did complete the Cider Ride (55 miles) in November with the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA). Nice supported ride through the DC area and out. Served warm cider at various stops. Would have been better if it was hard cider, but then that might have been a mess. A happy mess, but a mess regardless.
Total miles for 2019 ~ 1417.77
Total miles completed so far ~ 7505.95 out of 11315.
I have 3809.05 miles gratefully remaining in my journey. I hope this post finds you slaying your goals. Life is good. Life is a gift…don’t waste it. Happy Miles to You!!
Happy Sunday everyone! This year is quickly coming to a close and I am closing in on all this mileage recap. This post will cover the month of October. I’m one of those people who find beauty in every month. October is one of my favorite months because it is the beginning of change in the weather, harvest and festivities! I love how the seasons change. I love the crispness of the air, changing leaves and Fall smells.
I finished October with 44.67 miles. It was a combination of walking, running and riding. We have had a bit of raining weather, so riding has been at the minimum. Looking forward to getting in some good miles. I have 3921.07 miles gratefully remaining in my journey. I hope this post finds you well! Happy Miles to You!!
Posting my recap from September. Not a bad month. Did a lot of walking and had one long ride (24.66). I’m still running, walking and cycling. Just need to keep catching up with the count. The best part of this post is I have broken the 4k mark! Those Mommy miles (as my friend Kevin affectionately calls them) are piling up! I like that phrase Mommy miles. I laugh every time I say it!
Feeling good and looking forward to finding another event to participate in for 2020. Any ideas or thoughts? Please pass them my way. I went out for a small run (I know) this Saturday and the weather was just perfect. Should have taken the bike out, but just felt the need to hit the pavement instead.
Hmmm….proof of life? This recap saw 38.45 miles. I have 3965.74 miles gratefully remaining!!! I feel so good with this and I’m not done with this year’s tally. I hope this post finds you loving my shitty selfie! Happy Miles to You!!
Happy Sunday my friends! See, I’m being a good blogger. Probably because I see the light at the end of the tunnel and I’m excited about finishing these miles. I feel like 2020 will be a good year, one of pushing to get this done. I’ve been doing this a long time and I’m happy to be on the down tick. I’m still catching up on calculating my miles, so bare with me just a bit.
Finally, getting around to the Reston Century recap. This was my second attempt at completing a century ride. Some people were racing, I was riding 🙂 My first Century was in Tuscon, Arizona about two years ago. I love the challenge of the century ride. It’s challenging for mind, body and spirit from the time you start training to ride completion. I try to train as I would ride during the event. Meaning when you feel like crap or are having a bad day…you still push through to the best of your ability.
The Ride:
Beginning:
The Century was hosted by the Reston Bike Club. Good club in NOVA with plenty of different ride events throughout the year at different levels. The ride started at the square in downtown Reston and it was a rolling start. Parked about 6 am and went to pick up my cue sheet and moved out smartly with my riding buddy at 6:30 am. Roads were marked well and I was ready to go at 6:30 am.
Because this is so important ~ more for my memory if anything else.
About 15 miles in was the first rest point. Unfortunately for me, I thought the two portos on the side of the street was the stop….so I stopped. Yeah, that happened. Got on my bike to find the REAL stop about a mile down the road. If you’re thinking hmmm…yeah this sets the stage for later in the ride.
Happy start!
Middle:
For the most part the route was pretty level and easy to follow. Got up to Purcellville, VA for another stop. This is where the peel off was if you didn’t feel the full century ride. Fueled up on some water and food and said goodbye to my riding buddy. He decided that he only wanted to do 84 and not the full 103. Off I went alone.
Three quarters of the ride at miles 65 – 80 were the hills. They were the steepest I have ever climbed and took a lot out of me. I had to walk one hill towards the end and in true Laurel fashion I fell on one. It wouldn’t be a ride if I didn’t fall at least once. I wish I could say I was cruising along and skidded out and fell. It just sounds so much sexier, but no…no. Also, what I’m known for is just toppling over. That’s what happened here. I lost steam and just tipped over.
Because…there is no reason to post this photo. LOL!
The ride that never ended….
Got past the hills and also, true to form, found myself alone. How does this happen? There are hundreds of people on the ride, but yet I’m by myself. Was following the arrows, until I got to some town and saw a women scrubbing them up. I yelled at her…okay I spoke loudly…and asked why she was scrubbing up the arrows. She mentioned the city didn’t want them on the street passed 5pm. She pointed me in the right direction and I kept going. Now what happened after this is hard to say. I know what you’re thinking ~ you got lost. Annnnndddd, yes I did.
I ended up in another city. I’ll be honest, I don’t even remember the name of the city now. I was riding along and saw two women and I stopped to ask which way was the Reston Town Center. They both looked at me like a deer in the headlights and just said I was 20 miles from Reston. Uh….How.Did.This.Happen? Yep, I was 20 miles off course. Needless to say I was a bit devastated. I was following the yellow arrows and for some reason I got turned around. Both the women told me to call an Uber, but I just couldn’t do it. I needed to finish. Then I saw this other cyclist (not in the ride) and he started me down the right path.
Not too happy.
I ended up doing about 122 miles instead of the 103 and I still wasn’t finished. The pic above is a far cry from the starting photo, but then again it was a Century plus! Once I was on the right path I had three interesting events happen. I stopped at this BBQ place on the trail and saw this:
Met one of the previous deputy’s of NASA Dr. Michael D. Griffin. He rode with me for a few miles before telling me his bike isn’t made to go that slow. Yes, he said that….
Then a skunk ran across my path and I nearly hit an women cycling towards me. Sigh.
The good news: I finished 103 miles under the 10 hr mark. My last Century was 10:02 so this was good for me.
The bad news: I didn’t finish at the proper place, I called in and had a friend pick me up at the Green Lizard, a bike shop on the route. Well, it’s all good and I continue on and can’t wait to do better at the next one.
My mileage for this two weeks only came to 4.65. There was some serious downtime happening! I have 4,004.19 miles gratefully remaining in my journey. I hope this post finds you thankful! Life is truly good. Happy Miles to You!!
Tomorrow will be my second Century ride and needless to say it doesn’t really matter if I’m ready or not…it’s happening. I’m a bit exhausted, but I feel ready. I went to pick up my packet at The Bike Lane on Thursday and it had all of the standards ~ complimentary garments (socks) a wristband instead of a number (interesting) and samples of Hammer™ electrolyte tabs (we’ll see).
You’ll notice that there are gloves and a helmet included. That didn’t come with the packet, that was a needed impulse buy. Now I’m off to prep my bike and pick up some last minute items. Happy Miles to You!!
11315 Miles 