Friday Night Vertical 2021

Friday Night Vertical 2021

Thursday, January 28, 2016

Catch Up

So I have quite a bit of catching up to do on my blog after all of that drama. It certainly hasn't ended, but I won't update anything on here about it today. I will provide an update at some point, but it needs to sit quietly for now. I don't consider myself a drama-queen or attention-seeker, and this BS makes me feel like both. I prefer to live a quieter, non drama-filled life. I don't particularly enjoy a lot of attention, nor do I need it to boost my self esteem. I just felt my last two posts were necessary and decided to bite the bullet and write them. So now, I'm ready to get back to writing my mundane blog that maybe only 10 or so NORMAL people read. :)

My last running-related post was in reference to my last two runs January 6 and 7, so I have 3 weeks of catching up, and that includes 4 races! Egads! Haha. I'll just start with Jan 8's run and then make my next post about the first race.

Friday, January 8, 2016- I had made a last minute decision to sign up for the White Mountain Winter Triathlon in Jackson on Saturday, so I knew I had to take Friday's run fairly easy. The race was going to be tough, so I didn't want to do anything crazy the day before.

Since it was such a beautiful day, I decided to take Spot on a run up and over Hurricane Mt Rd from gate-to-gate. Bartlett to Chatham and back. I hadn't done this one since the previous winter and had been dying to run it again. I won't touch that road when it's open to cars. Way too scary. It's narrow and winds all around. I prefer to share the road only with people on foot or snowmobiles.

The conditions were perfect with microspikes. Solid footing on the packed snow. Ideal. The road immediately climbs steeply with little break before reaching the top at the Black Cap Trailhead. It's a decent gain in just under 2 miles, and I struggled big time. I have lost all of that awesome speed and power I had gained over the last year with the mountain running and racing, so that was a bit defeating. I'll get it back eventually, but I'm not sure if that one will be back anytime soon. That could take over a year! But, nonetheless, I still felt good. I ran into a woman I know through my job who was up there walking and chatted with her for a few minutes. It also gave me a chance to catch my breath. Haha.

The run down to the other gate is just over 2 miles and is also steep. The long downhills are really trying on my lower back/sacrum, so I was a bit uncomfortable by the time I turned around. Even though the climb hurt, I welcomed it because it was a different pain. Haha. It was very slow-going back up to the top, and then I took it easy on the run back down to the car to ease the back pain. 8 miles total. 11:24/mi pace with 2184 ft of elevation gain. Not a terrible pace, but I typically ran it closer to a 10min pace last winter. It was still a good run. Spot's been accompanying me on my Tuesday and Friday runs when I take them off road. She loves that. She can't keep up on the downhills, but that's the beauty of living where she can be off-leash. She just runs her own pace or stops when she needs to and catches up with me after I hit an uphill or stop. Works out great for both of us.
Spot at the top of Hurricane Mt Rd

Spot and me

Thursday, January 21, 2016

"MICHAEL WEINBERG" Part II

Just thought I would update my followers on the latest "Michael Weinberg" of Worcester, Ma's comments since I posted yesterday's blog. I'm sure many of you are curious as to the backlash I might have received from Michael. 14 new comments! I feel all warm and fuzzy inside, especially the part where he told me he loved me and called himself my boyfriend! I'm going to change my relationship status on Facebook ASAP.

I did realize a mistake I made with yesterday's post. I forgot to tell Michael to stop harrassing me. So here it is: Stop commenting on my blog, Michael Weinberg. I feel your only purpose in your blog comments is to annoy and alarm me. And I am now notifying you that I do not desire further communication from you. If you have any questions regarding this, please refer to the New Hampshire Title LXII Ciminal Code Section 644:4.

Now, here are the latest public comments to my public blog by Michael:


Not 100% sure, but that last comment from today almost sounds like some sort of threat.

Honestly, I'd like to get back to my regular blog posts about running and life. I have two weeks to catch up on. I've allowed this harassment mess to supercede my usual postings, so it's time to get back to the good stuff.

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

MEET "MICHAEL WEINBERG"- THE BLOG STALKER

Since Christmas time, many of us bloggers on Central Mass Striders have been inundated with comments from one claiming to be Michael Nat Weinberg of Worcester, Ma on our blogs. He began as "Anonymous" until most of us changed our comment settings. He then registered an account to continue his harassment. Although we are not 100% sure he is the Michael Weinberg from Worcester, Ma, he claims to be, he has been tracked via a program to posting from Worcester. So we are assuming that he is in fact who he says he is. This Michael Weinberg ran with members of CMS years ago, and it was confirmed that he was in a treatment facility some years back for mental illness. A photo of him was found in this 2007 newspaper article about the Genesis Club, a psychiatric rehabilitation program.

The reason he is being exposed now is because he has continued to harass multiple people, moving on from the Central Mass Striders to other bloggers. Before yesterday, I have never responded to Michael's comments to my blog. He appears to be talking to me, but I assure you, this was a completely one-way conversation, most of which I have no idea what he's talking about. I have kept them in my "Awaiting Moderation" folder so that I have complete control over them. He has backtracked and deleted his comments from other blogs, but he can't do that with my blog unless I publish them. He did post these to my comments section which indicates he intended for these to be viewed by the public, so all the information in them was written by him with the intent of public viewing. I will not, however, publish these comments to my blog. Instead, you will see them all through screen shots I have taken. Due to the primitive formatting, the messages are in order from bottom to top in each photo. I had issues uploading them, so they aren't cropped, and you will see comments in there twice. And, once again, keep in mind this is a one-way conversation. I never once responded to the this person until yesterday (1/19) when I replied to some of his comments on other people's blogs.

Read each photo bottom to top:
12/26/15-1/3/16
1/6/16
1/6/16-1/7/16
1/7/16-1/9/16
1/9/16-1/10/16
1/10/16-1/13/16
1/13/16

1/13/16-1/14/16

1/14/16-1/15-16
And there you go!
And, by the way, Michael, I do have a gun, and I know how to use it.
This is just posed:
Just posing for the camera
And this is what happened when I got serious:

Oh, if Michael doesn't drink, why does he have an Untappd account, a beer drinking app?

MW Part II
MW Part III
MW Part IV
MW Part V
MW Final Order

Thursday, January 14, 2016

Treadmill/Tamworth

1/6/16- I woke up at 4:30am to bang out a 5-mile progression run on the treadmill. Felt pretty good and ran a 7:20/mi average pace. Not bad. I love getting a good run in before my 34-hour shift. It was another slow shift in North Conway on Wednesday, and I managed to get another full night of sleep.
The only 911 I had was my own emergent need for Starbucks. :)
Thursday 1/7/16- I woke up at 6am to shower and have coffee, then drove down to Tamworth for the next 10 hours of my 34. Quiet down there, too. Our only call was for a fire alarm activation that we were cancelled en route on. However, our truck's radio wasn't working and we never heard the radio traffic cancelling us. I sounded like an idiot when I signed us off on scene only to be told we had already been cancelled. I imagined the snickering across the OMVA channel. Haha. I didn't mind getting out for the drive anyway.

I brought my big snowshoes along to make out a ski track, but the snow was so solid that the snowshoes didn't break through it at all. I ended up just walking loops around for about 20 minutes.

My 16 year old Tubbs
After works, I decided to do a run that felt bittersweet. The last time I ran it was three days before Lone Gull, when I was feeling SO good. It was a beautiful run with a gorgeous sunset, and I took a lot of pictures along the way to share with someone who lives elsewhere. I wanted to share the beauty of this run. Life was great. So I was happy to be doing this run again for the first time since being back running. Unfortunately, it ended up being a not-so-great run. There they were, in my car. My microspikes. I knew better. I knew the road would probably be icy, but did I bring them along? No. I ended up on a 10.3 mile loop, 2/3 of which was on a slightly sandy icy slab. In the dark with onlyna headlamp to see. Some of the time I could run on the edge of the road, but even that was slippery. I was actually surprised to still do that run under an 8min/mi pace. 7:54. And some good hills. 780ft of elevation gain. So it wasn't a wash. Just more of a disappointment since it didn't hold a candle to the last time I ran it in September.

                   BEER OF THE POST
The end of a 34 hour shift always calls for a beer. Tonight, I chose a favorite of mine for the last 4 years. Breckenridge Vanilla Porter.

Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Mt Kearsarge North Below Zero

I thought Monday's run was cold, but I woke up to temps below zero! And since it was Tuesday, I had to get up and get out first thing before John came home at 10am.
I left the house headed for a run on Hurricane Mt Rd, but within a half mile of a drive, Mt Kearsarge came into view with its fire tower literally glowing in the sun. It was such a beautiful day despite the cold temps. I immediately changed my mind and decided that I had to run up there instead. I never do mountain runs in the winter without my running pack and an emergency bivy, but this time I didn't have it with me. Not the smartest move, but I felt confident I'd be fine.

Not surprisingly, I was the only car in the lot that early. Spot joined me for this one, and she was so happy to be out there. At 12 years old, she is still super strong. Fast downhills are the only place where she's slowed down, but she still keeps up well enough. We headed up the well-packed trail. I had on microspikes, of course. It was COLD. I think it took me a good mile before I warmed up, and the entire run up was very slow. One of my slowest times up the mountain. A little discouraging. My fastest time up is 48 minutes. Today, it was 57. I've obviously lost a lot of my uphill speed, but I think the extreme cold also had something to do with it.

Once at the top, it was GORGEOUS! Bright sunshine, blue skies and a fresh layer of snow covering all of the mountains. Spot and I went the fire tower which had been warmed up by the sun. I was soaked in sweat from the run up, though, and began to chill quickly. I couldn't stay long, so I took some pictures, then we headed back down.




The conditions weren't quite perfect enough for one of those extremely fast runs down Kearsarge. Snow was a little too thin with the icy layer just underneath. It still had a good grip, but I wasn't confident enough on it to let myself go at full speed. Plus, I'm still having the on and off back pain, especially with the downhills, so I'm not sure I would have opened it up anyway. So I took it pretty easy. Towards the bottom, I started passing people carrying full Everest-like gear on their way up. I bet they thought I was nuts. Haha. 5.9 miles for the run. Glad I made the decision on Kearsarge. It was so worth it.

John and I spent the afternoon running errands and then picking up our season passes at Black Mountain. Since we were there, we decided to take our first ski of the season. They only had one trail open at this point, but it was still fun. We did three runs. The day had warmed up to the 30s, so skiing was actually very pleasant. I felt pretty good on my feet. This is our 5th season skiing at Black, so I've definitely improved at skiing, but it still scares me to death a lot of the time. John loves it, so I do it for him, and I get such a sweet deal on the season passes that it's hard to pass up.

John had ninja class that night as usual, and I decided to do a short 3 mile snowshoe run near the gym while he was in class. It was more just breaking trail through a heavy, icy crust. Wicked slow, but definitely a good workout.

Needless to say, I was beat after the day's activities. I hardly sat down other than driving. I had dinner and a Foolproof Peanut Butter Raincloud Porter. Good stuff. Then I was in bed early.

Monday 1/4/16

Usual Monday at work. One call. Seems almost predictable. Weather was brutally cold so I wasn't looking forward to that part of the run. I brought enough clothes, though, and just went out there and did it. I live in NH. I don't love the cold, but if I want to run outside, I have to get used to it again.

I wasn't sure how the conditions would be on the dirt road sections, but I decided to give it a go anyway and run a loop in Madison/Chocorua from the Silver Lake train station. It started off on the clear, dry road on High St, but as soon as I hit North Division Rd, I was running on an ice slab that was fortunately covered in a decent amount of sand. It really wasn't too bad. The same conditions continued onto Savary Rd. It's tough running in the dark with just a headlamp because it's hard to make out the footing. Sometimes it looks like it's just dirt, but it turns out to be just more ice covered in sand. So it takes a lot of concentration when all I want to do is just run. I was happy when I got back on the pavement of Washington Hill Rd and Deer Hill Rd for the run back to the car. I hadn't paid attention to my time during the run, but, based on feel, I felt I was in the 7:50s for pace. I was completely shocked to see I had run the 8.7 miles at a 7:01/mi pace. Way faster than I thought and with 782ft of elevation gain. VERY happy with this run!

Tuesday, January 12, 2016

Sunday 1/3/16

Even though I had raced on the track on Saturday, it was more like a rest day since I ran less than 4 miles. So I was ready for something longer on Sunday. I was stuck close to home, so I hit the Wildwood/Tabor Circle mile 10 times. I really liked the 1min on/1min off thing I had done the weekend before, so after the first 3 miles at an easy, slower pace, I did the middle 4 miles for 1min on/1min off. The times were interesting because it really depended on where I was on the road for the fast vs slow part. The pace went 7:15, 7:26, 7:15, 7:26 for those four miles, since each mile was pretty much the exact opposite of the one before it for where I would end up on the 1min on. So it looks like I was very consistent without even trying to be. I ran the last 3 miles also very easy for 10.1 miles total. 7:33/mi pace and 794ft of elevation gain. Good run. It felt productive.

Since I had dragged John to the BU Mini Meet the day before, I asked him what HE wanted to do on Sunday, and he chose Uberblast. It's an arcade place with laser tag. It used to have indoor bouncy houses, too, but they moved locations that only allow the bouncy houses in warm weather outside. That was a bummer, but we still had a fun time. I love laser tag.

He creamed me at laser tag.

Not that much bigger than my real gun
After Uberblast, we took a 3 mile walk at Pudding Pond with all 3 dogs and finished up just before the sun set.
Caught him before he could turn around!!

Sunset over Pudding Pond

Goofball dogs

The Sgt. Pepper that Bob gave me. If you like black pepper, then you'd love this. 
Sounds like my kind of article!! So applicable. :)

Saturday, January 9, 2016

BU Mini Meet

Friday 1/1/16- First day of the New Year, and I was feeling New Year's Eve when I woke up. I hadn't gotten to sleep until 2am, so I slept in a little on Friday morning. I got up, had some coffee and then just ran from home. I had some errands I wanted to do after so I didn't want to waste time driving around to a running place when I had a good running route right out my door. It's one I've done variations of many times, up through Cranmore Shores, to Tasker and Allard Hill Roads and topping out on Modock Hill Rd before turning around and going back. I felt surprisingly good during the whole run. The roads were clear except the dirt road section of Cranmore Shores and Modock Hill, so I ended up with 2 miles of the 12-mile run over 8min for an average pace. The rest of the run stayed in the 7s or 6s. My only disappointment is that I'm seeing my uphill speed has been greatly diminished. My time up to the top of Allard Hill Rd was a minute slower than my fastest. I'm starting to notice this across the board. Significant decrease in speed on the uphills. I guess I know what my biggest loss was while injured. Overall, though, the run went well and happened to be my fastest time ever actually running this course. 12.4 miles (I added in a extra .3 at the end that I don't normally do), 7:33/mi pace. 1033ft of elevation gain. I think I really need to work on some short hill repeats if I want to get that back quickly. Otherwise, I don't see me back to where I was anytime soon.

The rest of Friday was low-key. Ran some errands. John came home in the afternoon. I took John to open gym for an hour at his gymnastics place and walked the dogs on a trail out behind the gym. I went to bed early that night. We had a very early morning drive to Boston on Saturday morning.
Walking the dogs while John did open gym

Caught John in mid air on the trampoline 
Saturday 1/2/16- Because I'm a sucker for the USATF-NE All Terrain Series, I registered for the BU Mini Meet a week prior. The 3000m on the indoor track is the first event in the 2016 series. After looking through the track schedule, I thought that BU might be the only one I could fit in my schedule (this would be wrong, but those track meet listings are confusing and primitive). I had never run on an indoor track before. The closest I've come to a 3000 is the one and only time I raced on a track in high school for the 2-mile, filling in for someone who was injured. I came in 2nd to last. I'm in absolutely no shape whatsoever for anything on a track right now. I'm SLOW and definitely on the heavy side. I must have looked obese standing on the line next to those other women. Haha. But here I was, driving to BU at 5am ready to test myself in out. I was pretty nervous.

I got there before 9am, checked-in and then found John a good spot in the stands where he could plug in my phone. This was going to be a boring day for him, but the kid was a trooper. The 3000m was to start at 10am, but they didn't get the heat listings out until about 10 minutes prior, so I didn't know when to warm up. I found out that I was in heat 6 of 7, so I had a long time before the start of mine. I had seeded my time based on a calculator of my latest 5K (a sad 19:24). It spit out 11:02, so that's what I put down. I also asked Amanda Wright during the week and she gave me an estimate of 11:00, so I felt like I had at least put myself in the right heat. Heather Mahoney and Dave Dunham were in heat 5, so I was pretty sure I was in the right place. I was seeded 8th for the heat. I hung out in the middle of the track for awhile watching the other heats then finally warmed up. The first thing I noticed was how freaking hot and dry it was in there. I was dying on the warm up. Way too hot, and my mouth was immediately dry. This was just the warmup! I didn't know how I was going to handle the actual run. Awful. I only did about 1.5 miles then went back to the starting area to watch heat 5. At this point I was SO nervous. Like really, really nervous. I had no idea how to run this thing.
BU Indoor Track. 
Finally, it was time to line up. I wasn't really sure how the start worked, so I had to ask the girl next to me. She was cool and told me what to do. I felt stupid, but I would rather feel stupid asking than doing something stupid once we got going. The race went off quickly and I just fell in line. When the other half of the group merged, I kind of got stuck in a big group. Jennifer Rappaport fell in line in front of me. I wasn't sure if she was going too fast or me too slow, but the pace was comfortable at first. Then I realized I should probably pick it up a little. I didn't feel like I was pushing myself enough after the first 2 loops. So I passed Jennifer and decided to focus on the girl in front of me who seemed to be running about where I wanted to be. I didn't pay attention to the clock at all as I went by since I really didn't know what splits were "good", and there was no way I was doing math in my head while trying to run. I just kept running circles and focusing on the people in front of me. I held a pace that I felt wasn't too much, in hopes of being able to pick it up the last 2-3 laps. My mouth was SO dry the entire time. I wanted water!! Fortunately, the 3000 is short so it went by quickly. As planned, I was able to pick up the pace the last 3 laps. I passed the girl I had been following, then got passed like I was standing still in the last 50m. That was impressive. I have none of that kind of kick in me ever. I watched the clock as I came through and was pretty psyched to come in just under 11 minutes! 10:58:45. Not bad at all for my first try at this in awful shape. I was dying when I finished, though. That hurt for sure. Scott Mason was there taking pictures. I was horrified to see how big and out and of shape I looked. I have A LOT of work to do.
 The meet ended up having so many participants that it went on forever. We hung out until 2pm-ish since we were going to have beers and food after with Bob Jackman and Scott Mason. They wanted to watch their friends in the mile, so it took awhile getting through all of the heats. I actually enjoyed watching the meet and realized I needed to give this another shot, but I'm going to give myself some time to try to get this body in shape beforehand.
I am HUGE!!
After Bob and Scott's friends were done, the four of us walked down to the Sunset Grill and Bar. For 3 beer snobs, the we had to go to the right place, but Bob knows his beer and picked this place for its 113 beers on tap. You can't go wrong with that. And it did not disappoint. Both the draft and bottles menus were books. The hardest part was choosing which ones! All the 3 beers were really good, and the food didn't disappoint either. Bob chose well! I would definitely come back here.
Scott took a picture of me as we were leaving.
We walked back to the car. Bob and I did a little beer exchange. I gave him the two Fat Alberta's I had been holding hostage, plus a few extra beers I'd thrown in the bag. Bob gave me these two. The Sgt Pepper was SO good. Still holding onto the Two Roads for the weekend.
I said goodbye to those guys then John and I headed home. It was a long day, but I'm so glad I went down and stepped out of my comfort zone. Now, I know what I need to improve on in the next month.

Thursday, January 7, 2016

2015 Recap

2015 was a great year for me. It's hard to even do a recap because there were so many highs. The year started off on a high note that just got higher until it crashed and burned by October. But all in all, it was my best year running and racing, and I'm hoping to make my way back up in 2016.
The biggest Series highlights:
2015 Granite State Snowshoe Series women's champion
2015 USATF-NE All-Terrain Series 2nd woman
2015 USATF-NE Mountain Running Series women's champion
2015 Seacoast Series women's champion
GSSS Championship Race at Castle in the Clouds. Photo by Scott Mason
Say what? I'm on a track. ATR Series 5000m torture. Notice Amanda Wright slowly sneaking up on me, only to blow past me in the last 100 meters. Haha. Photo by Scott Mason

Bretton Woods Fell Race. Last race of the USATF-NE Mountain Series. Photo by Gianina Lindsey

York Days 5K. Seacoast Series. Photo by Maine Running Photos

I was really happy I got to complete so many different Series here in New England and to have done so well. I did 4 out of the 7 New England Grand Prix races and still managed a top 20 finish for the women's open category. Someone asked me today how many races I won (1st woman) in 2015. I was shocked to count 19!! And that doesn't count any of the Summer Series races at Whitaker Woods. Way more than I thought. Sweet!

In 2015, I ran a race nearly every weekend up until getting injured, so it's hard to narrow down my top races, but I'll give it a try.

Boston Prep 16-Miler- This race was totally unplanned, and I pretty much went into it blindly with no idea of my fitness level. Probably the hardest road race I ran all year, but I surprised myself by finishing 2nd woman overall in 1:45:45 a 6:36/mi pace. I was shocked. This was THE race that set me up for the year; the moment I knew I was going to do well in 2015. So probably the most significant race of 2015.

Eastern States 20-Miler- Two months after Boston Prep, I ran another surprisingly awesome race, finishing 3rd woman in 2:11:33. I was amazed how I was able to hold such an even pace for 20-miles. Ran exactly my goal and knew I had put everything in place for a sub-3 marathon. I could run evenly, fast and all by feel. Major confidence booster.

Merrimack River Trail Race- I chose this race because it's the race I really gave everything I had. I had been holding an easy 2nd place woman until I veered off course, winding up 6th woman. I ran until I could barely run another step to get back to 3rd. One of my truly best efforts of the year. I couldn't be disappointed with this one. To get back into a good place after the blow of realizing I was off course meant a lot to me. I gave it my all. My CMS teammates and I would end up winning the top women's team for the USATF-NE Trail Race Championship.
Just before going off course. Photo by Michael Quintal
Sleepy Hollow Mountain Race- I love this race and was so happy to finally take the women's win here in a much improved time over the 2 previous years. This was only the second race in the Mountain Series I had ever won, and it meant starting off the Series with a win.
Photo by Scott Mason
Vermont City Marathon- This one is obvious. My first sub-3 marathon in 2:55:48, 4th woman. This race was the culmination of every bit of training and racing I had done in the 5 months prior. Everything just went so right. I never hit a wall. I ran a pretty even pace all by feel and had my mental game on right. This was my #1 goal race, so the high after this one lasted a long time.
Photo by Scott Mason
Whiteface Sky Marathon- Probably the hardest, yet most awesome race I ran all year. The worst weather by far of any race I had ever done. Cold rain, extreme wind. The mud! As much a mental game as a physical one. This was the race that made me feel strong in every aspect. About 19 miles with over 9000ft of elevation gain. 4th woman in 4:59:44. One of the last people to squeeze in under 5 hours. This entire weekend trip with John and one of my old trail friends really made it the best weekend of the year. I'm hoping to go back again in 2016.
Photo by Kendra Farstad
Loon Mountain Race- This makes my top list because it was the first time in 5 times of running it that I felt I had finally figured it out! And I had an awesome race! I ran with my CMS teammate and friend, Regina Loiacano, nearly the whole way which gave me the push I needed to finally beat that mountain, finishing 4th woman in 1:12:13. New (and longer) course for us women, but still my fastest pace ever in the 5 years. Regina, my other CMS teammates and I, once again grabbed the women's team title for the USATF-NE Mountain Championship Race. Fantastic day all around for personal and team goals.

Photo by Scott Mason
 SELT Trailfest 4 and 10 Miler- Very low key event,  but it made my list because it was my first race double ever, and I was first woman in both. The 4-mile race started an hour before the 10, so I had little recovery in between. It was a good way to test my strength to see if I could do well in both. Huge boost in confidence (that would be smashed to pieces a month later haha). The whole atmosphere of this race made it one of my favorites for the year. John ran (and enjoyed!) the kids race. Then it was topped off with local beer from Stoneface and good times with running friends. Sometimes low key, smaller events are the best.
Photo by Carolyn Shreck
Lone Gull 10K- I was looking forward to this race for months and ended up having an awesome race with a huge 10k PR despite the horrid heat and humidity that nearly choked me to death when I stepped out of the car. 12th woman in 38:28. I had looked forward to going back to Gloucester for the first time in over 8 years, and it was the last NE GP race of the year. We had a full team. All of the other runners I had gotten to know over the last year were there. It was just a big day. The final large road race of the year. Running well. I was so happy to have such a good race before the BIG INJURY one week later. It was my final high note. No pics from Lone Gull. The only two are of a group, and I'm way in the back.

So, obviously, the year took an unexpected turn for the worse with my injury. I was out two months from running. I cross-trained, did what I could, but I lost everything I had gained. I also lost my social life. So the two together were a tough loss. I made sure to keep myself in the running world as best I could, but it wasn't the same. That being said, I was able to finish off 2015 back to running. It hasn't been pretty. Most of it has literally been painful. But all I can do is just keep moving forward into 2016. 2015 was an awesome year overall in running and in life. Team changes, trying new things, becoming myself again (Goodbye, Leslie Beckwith) and running well all while being a good mom to John. Cheers to 2015! And on to 2016, my 40th year and a schedule full of racing!




Photo by Scott Mason
BEER OF THE YEAR 2015
Had to pick both, as I lived off of the Shandy all summer. And Fat Alberta was as good as Bob Jackman said it would be.