Strong Women and What Your Feet Look Like as a Bend Trail Runner in Summer

Happy Saturday!  Third post in three days now...how's that for exercising my writing muscles?  Thank you for your comments and emails about jumping in a triathlon.  It's been so helpful to read your tips and advice.  Kristen's comment made me realize more than ever how thankful I am for having strong and supportive women in my life.  Not just women but friends and mentors that are there to inspire, guide, advise, and be there to help you along your way.  I feel so fortunate to have had so many people like this in my life.  Recently, I've seen this to be especially true.  I think a big reason for this comes from being in a place where I have rooted and am reaching out to my community more... making friends, connecting, and being open to building new relationships (work and personal).

This morning was another reminder to me of how thankful I am for strong women in my life.  My friend Carissa is here on vacation with her family and she reached out to myself and friend Shelley to see if we wanted to run a long run with her.  I'm so glad she did!  And I'm so glad I got out of bed early to start my day with a trail run with these two women!  Our 13 mile trail run felt like only 3 miles with the good company and beautiful forests.  And I drove away feeling mentally, emotionally, and physically charged.

One of the things I loved the most about my run with Shelley and Carissa is how refreshing it was to be out there with women that inspire me.  Capable women.  Intelligent women.  Women that read and have ideas. Women that challenge themselves and seek new opportunities.  Mothers.  Athletes.  Professionals.  Women that make me think.  Women that uplift and support.

I found my sixth person for the book club I'm starting!  Shelley.  And if Carissa lived here, I'd ask her to join too.  We aren't going to have a book club where we read only books but it will be a group of these women who want to learn and be inspired.  We will read articles, listen to podcasts and enjoy books of all kinds (entertainment and educational).  And I'm 100% certain that these 6 women will inspire, support, uplift, and encourage each other to find greatness and be our best selves! We will learn together and challenge each other.  I'm excited!!

And below is a picture of what your feet look like when you come home from a long trail run here in Bend in the summer!  Gotta love the dry, hot, mountain dirt!  Looks like I'll be hosing down with the dog this summer before I'm allowed in the house!

I know, nasty dirty legs!  

Thanks also for those of you that asked about my trail 50k.  I just might be back soon to write a bit more about that!  Lots to say.

Oh, yeah, and before I forget something so exciting to me.... CONGRATS to my good friend Marci on her marathon PR today at Grandma's Marathon!!  2:33:33!!  4th woman overall!  Love this girl to pieces.  I'm so so thankful for her, another very strong, supportive and wise woman in my life! Can't wait to take her out for a congratulatory beer when she comes home to Bend.

Amanda

Mostly on Instagram with my blog these days with pictures and long captions.  :) 

Visit Central Oregon on Mother's Day Weekend: Races for the Whole Family! And Moms Run Free!

Smith Rock Ascent Trail 50k and 15mile.  Photo courtesy of Paul Nelson Photography

If you're like me, the new year means making a plan for the upcoming months and penciling in a few things on the calendar!  Marathon and ultra marathon training is underway and I've started to think more about other races I want to enjoy during this training cycle as either training runs or time trials. I'd also like to find some fun family friendly races this spring where my kids can run too! So far, I have no races penciled in before the Boston Marathon in April (hope to find some) but  I do have a few races after the marathon that I'm looking forward to! 

My current race calendar looks like this:

April 20th: Boston Marathon. I'm supposed to run this as a training run for my 50k...we'll see how that goes. 

May 9: Smith Rock Ascent 4 mile race with my daughters (Moms run FREE).  Free kid run for my son. These races will be a fun opportunity for all of us to get outside, share time together, and be active while working towards a goal.  

May 10: Smith Rock Half Marathon at easy pace for a training run.  

May 25: Trail Factor 50k--My first ever ultra marathon in Forest Park/Portland, OR. And I'm so excited to run it with my husband (his first ultra too).  

Come Visit Bend, Oregon!

I know some of you have commented on my posts or Instagram pictures saying how you'd love to come run or visit Bend, Oregon. Well, if you're serious and can get away, Mother's Day weekend just might be the perfect time!  Bring the whole family for a weekend of racing, celebrating the Mothers in our lives, and enjoying beautiful Central Oregon!  Here are some more details about the racing part:

On May 9th and 10th, Go Beyond Racing has several scenic races for you and your family to choose from.  They are all located at Smith Rock State Park, which is known as one of the most scenic places in Oregon and only a short drive from Bend, Oregon.  Whether you prefer a race on trails, shorter distances to run with your kids, or faster and flatter road races, there is something for everyone.  There's even a free mile kid run for your youngest of runners.  Here is a short blurb directly from the Smith Rock Ascent website:

Welcome to the Smith Rock Ascent! Spend the weekend at one of the most scenic places in Oregon – Smith Rock State Park. Whether you prefer to run on trails or on the road, we have a course that you’ll love. Saturday is all about trails. Choose from a 50K, 15 mile or 4 mile route, all run on trails throughout the park. There’s even a free kids race. Sunday is road day. With a half marathon and 10K, you’ll be able to stretch your legs on this flat and fast course, with views of the rock faces.

Smith Rock Ascent Trail 50k and 15mile.  Photo courtesy of Paul Nelson Photography
I've never seen such amazing race photos.  This guy Paul is quite the race photographer!  I've spent so much time looking through the different events he shoots at...INCREDIBLE!  

A few bulleted points

• Moms get to run with their kids FREE when they register them for the 4 mile race! This a shorter distance option (for all ages of course) that still offers the same incredible views and single-track that the 50k and 15m races!  
• The kids mile fun run course is along the top of the race start/finish area.  All kids will receive a finisher medal.  What a great way to get the entire family involved!  
• On the 10th is when the half-marathon and 10k road races are held.  A few words from the site on this:  "This road race is sure to become a favorite, featuring two great distances that provide amazing views of the Cascade mountains, sheer rock faces at Smith Rock State Park and unique beauty of the area.  Both courses should be quite fast with minimal elevation change. "
• The races held on Mother's Day will mean a rose and entry into a drawing for a spa package for all the moms that finish!  

Smith Rock Ascent Trail 50k and 15mile.  Photo courtesy of Paul Nelson Photography

So, whether you are a family of runners or a family that wants to get on board with some new running goals by training for some races, here's a weekend that works for everyone! It's definitely something worth penciling in on that calendar of yours for a weekend of running, travel, family, and celebration!  

Be sure to let me know if you are going to be visiting Bend or the surrounding area for these races!  It would be fun to meet you! 

Amanda

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You can also find me writing at Run with Me Kids

Few Words Friday with Pictures and Captions

I have very little time to write a post here.  In fact, I should probably be making lunches, finishing teacher letters, herding kids, and gearing up for this busy last Friday until Holiday break!!  Seriously, not sure how we will fit it all in today.

Lots of holiday fun (and stress) happening for all of us I'm sure.  I just keep reminding myself that holidays should be joyful, not stressful and that I need to let things go!  Like holiday cards...for the third year in a row.  But my husband really wanted to send a small amount of cards out this year.  So, we made it happen in the 20 minutes we had from getting all three kids home from school right before I needed to leave again to drop my oldest off for gymnastics.  It was hilarious actually.  We found the tripod, got dressed semi-descent, convinced all three kids to mostly cooperate and picked up a plan for the dog (we'd use pine cones as his attention grabber...just like his ball).  One problem.  We couldn't find the camera.  I started to get annoyed but before I could throw a mommy/wife fit and go on a rant about how nobody else did their part to be prepared (yes, I'm kind of in that mode the last few days..poor family), my husband had his phone camera taped onto the tripod and we were kind of ready to roll!   The kids were themselves and the dog sat for the timer (really, he sat for the pine cones he was focused on) after lots of orders to "stay" and "sit".  All five of us were shouting the orders so I'm pretty sure the neighbors wondered what was going on.  It was our version of Christmas Caroling.  We only had time for a handful of shots but we got pictures that were GOOD ENOUGH! In fact, I'm kind of digging the imperfections this year...blurry faces, closed eyes, last minute (I mean really last minute...right down the wire with closing time...and way more stress involved than needed) Costco cards with a print that I really don't like but chose because it worked good enough and I was out of time!

My fourteen mile run yesterday sure does help make these busier days run so much smoother!  Even though I was near tears yesterday with trying to fit everything in with the kids, and the stupid lists (after all the time it took to run), the endorphins were capped off at a nice level!! Oh, and I ran along some of the most beautiful trails I've seen yet since moving to Bend in August so this was SOUL Food!

This spot is around mile 7 of my run yesterday.  Right before I turned around to make my 14.  I'm pretty sure this is darn near at the top of the list when it comes to the most beautiful parts of the trails I've run on since moving to Bend!  I took off at a spot off Hwy 20 near Meadow Camp and ran down to the Deschutes River Trail.  Wow!!  It's almost as if this section had its own mini ecosystem.  More like the lush forests near Portland and down the Oregon coast.  So odd for the high desert Central Oregon trails.  This trail is incredibly diverse..starting at the top and dropping down to meadows, up rocky mountain sides, along the river, and so much more.  So HUMBLING for long run pace...I had my Garmin on for distance and wish I would never look at the pace because it's so so slow!!  My dog was in heaven...he had to have run at least 20 miles to my 14 with all his up and down, back and forth, running off with other dogs, and continuing to run circles around me.  

The starting point to my run.  Much more typical terrain for the trails here in the high desert of Central Oregon.

  Lots of this other stuff going on too:

A beautiful Sunday RunHappy run along the trails at Shevlin Park. This was taken on an icy bridge over Tumalo Creek.

Easiest kid-made ornaments ever.  Air dry clay, fingers for prints to make the heart, a pencil to put the hole for string, and a toothpick to write on the back!  

Thanks to Laura from Mommy Runs Fast, we had a fun recipe for gingerbread cookies.  I wasn't in the mood to do this at all and really kind of dreaded it but as soon as we started, my bad mood faded and I was warmed by the experience!

Final bullet points:

• Kids made mosaic frames and boxes for their teachers this year along with a heartfelt card.  Note to self, wash the grout off BEFORE it dries!!  It really isn't fun to have to sand it down after the fact!  ugh.  
• My gift to the teachers this year was a letter from my heart telling them how thankful I am.  This was so EASY with my oldest daughter's teacher.  Wow, wow, wow, and then some.  The whole school and staff, really. 

I'm officially out of time. Maybe even running late.  But if I kick it into warp speed, we will rock this morning and make it a wonderful day!  Oh, and thank goodness the HAT was invented for days I don't have time to wash my hair (um, that might be more days than not).

Wishing you and yours so much PEACE and JOY!

Amanda

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Year of Running 2014

One of my favorite races from 2014!  Trail 30k near Asheville. First in AG and an incredible amount of peace and freedom that was found!

Let's see if I can make this post short and sweet!  I'm jumping in on Miss Zippy's Year of Running link up.  I've only done a handful of link up posts since starting this blog but this one is fun and simple!

2014 was a very memorable year for me with running and racing!  I spent most my year in Asheville, NC where I truly tapped into my love for trail running.  I have so many amazing memories from running there and training for Boston 2014.  It was one of my favorite running years that I've ever had. But for different reasons than the past.  2014 also brought an incredible amount of travel where I was able to run in so many beautiful and new places:  St. Croix (a 20 miler on this island in the Caribbean was long and hot but unique in a really powerful way.), Boston (visiting a friend and for Boston 14), Charleston, Savannah, Tennessee, Colorado, and so much more!  Now, living in Bend, OR, running has taken an entirely new page where almost all my runs are on trails and I start training for my first trail 50k (and Boston 15) TODAY!  No personal records with running in 2014 but definitely some personal FREEDOMS with running!  I've redefined what running is in my life and I'm even more thankful for all this sport offers!  

Best race experience?  Even though Boston turned out to be quite rough at the end (what marathon doesn't really?) with throwing up and finishing slower than I wanted, I was proud of my 3:28 and so so grateful to be there with my whole family and some very special friends during such a powerful year for the Boston Marathon.  I even got to ride the bus to the starting line with my dear friend Jenn.  So thankful to have had this experience!   I'm breaking the rule here and listing two races by counting my trail 30k in May: Cradle to the Grave 30k in the Pisgah National Forest outside of Asheville.  I got to do this with my husband and a few friends.  It was my second time doing this race but I was so much more prepared the second time.  I ran most of the race by myself but I think it was better that way.  This race is perhaps the biggest reason why I'm so drawn to trail running and racing now.  Such freedom and peace and joy to be found when you are out there running through such natural beauty.  

After Boston.  This kiss and time with my family was better than any finishers medal.  

Best run?  I'll choose one of my best runs.  Since so many of my runs in 2014 have been favorites, I'm just drawing from a hat here.  My best runs have been about the experience...the scenery...the freedom I've found in soaking up the world around me and truly enjoying the run for the gift it is without putting as much into the time on the clock.  When I was in Asheville, I ran at night a lot.  Not because I couldn't run in the day but because there was such peace to be found running those quiet streets in my small town where I lived.  One night in February sticks in my mind the most.  I wrote about this in Gift of the Run; Beauty to be Found.

Such beauty greeted me on my run tonight. Lonely streets, 
snow covered ground, 
little footprints and happy snowmen winking at me with crooked grins, lopsided hats and carrot noses -- signs of the joyful life that graced another snow day.
Small town charm surrounding me as I passed churches and little bungalows with red doors... 
The sky lit up with the sun peeking through for a glorious sunset over the Blue Ridge Mountains.
It stopped me in my tracks. 
Standing. 
Staring,
     in awe at the beauty that is there for us when we slow down to take it in. 
I ran on with the perfect song in my ear, my heart feeling big and wild 
       passing field after field, 
street after street 
of BEAUTIFUL. 
Then there it was...the bright and full moon leading me home, 
smiling down on me while I counted the first stars of the night...feeling blessed and beyond grateful to be living this life and to have the gift of the run.

Best new piece of gear?  I didn't get much this year when it comes to running gear.  A pretty simple year with regards to material stuff.  But I did buy a few new Oiselle items.  My red Oiselle distance shorts have been WELL LOVED!!  I also started running in a new/old pair of Brooks Cascadias.  These shoes.  ROCK!  Next piece of gear on my list:  a simple Ironman Timex watch like I used to run with before I got a Garmin.  Excited to run Garmin-free for much of my runs and perhaps all my races.  

Pretty sure I wore these red shorts almost daily this summer.  Don't judge.  I washed them too.  

Best piece of running advice you received?  Hmmm, this is hard.  I think this goes back to an email I received from someone after a post I wrote near the Boston Marathon in April.  They said something to me about staying within myself with my goals.  These words stuck with me so powerfully!!  I thought on them lots and actually wrote one of my favorite posts about it and how it applied to RUNNING and LIFE. You can read that here:  Stay Within Myself.  

Stay Within Myself 

Most inspirational runner?  How the heck do I answer that?  Gee, so many inspirational runners.  I'm inspired daily by so many of you.  I'm going to say my friend Jenn.  Love this girl so much.  She used to write a blog called Running Sane and that's how we met in 2010.  Since then, she's become one of the most special people in my life.  A sister.  Friend.  Truly family.  We've shared so much of our lives together through daily emails, training logs, trips across the country together, skype chats, and so much more.  A constant in my life. The mostly unlikely of friendships considering she lives in northern MN and I've been all over from Oregon to NC, but a friendship that is beyond special.  I've had the joy of sharing my training with Jenn through several training cycles and I've been lucky enough to hear about several of hers too.  Even when she's not training for anything specific, she inspires me with running (and life in general).  Seeing how she focuses on a goal, digs deep,  and has fun with her running in off season (but yet still seeking some sort of excellence) makes me want to do the same.  Above all, I'm inspired by how she continues to find strength and balance through running.  As a mother, wife, sister, daughter and friend.  Even though we are often different with our goals with running, when I hear about her goals, workouts and races, something clicks in me and I find a hunger and strength that might have been a bit dusty.  She doesn't have much time to train in the winter (and have you ever heard about a northern MN winter? ha!) because of having all three of her kids in competitive hockey (So much involved! And these kids are TALENTED!) and working beyond full time but she still makes time to be her own personal bad Ass with running!  Just the other day she wrote to me about her treadmill run (short but sweet) and it made me want to get out there and push myself a bit more than usual!  Thanks for inspiring me friend!  Looking forward to riding the bus together again in Boston 2015!

Riding on the bus to Hopkinton with Jenn before the Boston Marathon!  The most fun I've had in athlete's village.  Laughing before a marathon was energizing!  

If you could sum up your year in a couple of words, what would they be?  FREE.  PEACEFUL

Your turn.  What were your Bests of Running with 2014??  Answer here or link up with Miss Zippy with your own Year of Running 2014 post.  

Amanda

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All Things Running: Emcee (yikes!), Boston Marathon Thoughts, Healing Trail Runs, Trail Fun and More

It's Halloween day and I've yet to put a costume together.  My husband and I try to get in the spirit and make memories by dressing up with our kids and it often means coming up with a costume idea last minute.  Except last year when Whiplash from Ironman 2 was part of our family for the night. I won't say how excited my electrical engineer husband got about creating that costume.  Let's just say there were several nights of work (electrical work included) involved.  And boy was it authentic! So, we have about four hours to pull something together.  We're thinking a modern Luke and Leia--if we can't find a blonde wig for him then it will be an older Luke that has started buzzing his hair off (since it's much sexier than a comb over).

Running Running Running!  Lots of running thoughts lately.  The summer is officially over and this girl is settling into her running season.  I'm not sure what this winter holds for me with running but I'm getting excited to think of some plans.

Road Running vs. Trails
I ran on sidewalks today for one of the first times since we moved here.  Almost all my running has been on dirt, rocks, hills, and winding trails through the trees and along the river.  I'm not complaining one bit.  I'll take trails any day over the road.  However, I try not to pay much attention to my watch when I run on the trails since pace is MUCH slower.  Today I dropped my son off at his Montessori school and then ran to a meeting downtown.  It was a pleasant surprise to see what my pace was on sidewalks/road compared to the trail!  In fact, I rarely run with a watch these days on the trails now that I know the distance of most my routes.

Something New That Makes Me Nervous: EMCEE
Yikes yikes yikes!  So, I agreed to be the Emcee for the Sister's Happy Girls Half Marathon and 5k (put on  by Lay It Out Events).  I'm a mix between excited for the opportunity and nervous as all heck! Public speaking is something I'm not bad at once I'm comfortable (after all, I was a teacher for almost 10 years) but the first time for anything is just a little scary.  I'm kicking fear to the curb and trying something that scares me.  I think each time we say "YES!" and put ourselves out there (even if it means stepping outside of our comfort zones), we open doors that lead to new possibilities and connections. As soon as I agreed to do this, I sent a text my friend Sarah Bowen Shea (Love this gal!) and she gave me a short text pep talk and gave me the link to her article about her own Emcee experiences:  Fun at the Finish Line.  For any of you at this event, I'm warning you now that my voice might be ten octaves higher than usual until I relax.

Boston Marathon Indecisiveness 
Boston Boston Boston.  The Boston Marathon is in April.  That means many people start training in December.  Some like shorter training plans and start in January.  In the past, I've used October to December to build a strong base and get my mileage up before using a specific plan.  This year brings up a whole bag of indecisiveness:

1. First thing I'm questioning is if it is even in my best interest to run Boston this year.  It's expensive to get there, I've already done it four times, and it just might not be the best idea on a number of levels.
2. If I do run Boston, I need to decide how I'll run it and how I'll train for it. The Boston Marathon weekend is so much more than just a race weekend.  It's a weekend where I get to see some of my closest friends as well as be involved with the running/marathon community on one of the most exciting race weekends out there.  Nothing quite like Boston when it comes to the marathon.  Talk about ENERGY!  I can certainly train in a way where I just log miles and don't train specifically for any time goal.  This would allow me to run Boston for fun and possibly use it as a training run for an ultra marathon.  I'm also looking into different training plans that I might use if I do decide to train a bit harder.  Another option is finding a coach to work with (maybe even someone new to coaching (or just wanting to grow their coaching business) and wanting a guinea pig and someone to help them advertise/market through my blog.  However, with the latter, I'm not so sure I'd want just anyone telling me what do when it comes to running/training so it would have to be a seasoned runner who knows their stuff!  My gut tells me I'm going to go with training myself and possibly carrying my training over to an ultra marathon.  Of course, it all depends on this body of mine and how well it holds up! Oh, and who knows what a Bend winter holds.   

Trail Run Fun

Many of us have seen the Instagram pics of runners running on trails. One of my favorite Instagram feeds to follow is Speedy Mama Jess here in Sisters, Oregon.  I love seeing these kinds of shots! They are inspiring AND I get to see all the beautiful spots people run while seeing them enjoying doing what they love.  However, I admit, I always wonder how much time they took to set up their camera timers to snap the perfect shot.  It makes me laugh but I also think it's fun and I enjoy the pics as much as they enjoyed taking them!  I suppose this is part of what blogging and instagramming is all about:  capturing moments and sharing our lives with others.  On Tuesday, my husband and I hit up the trails for 11 miles.  It was such a gorgeous day so we decided to try one of those timed running pictures.  We'd never done it before and it made for some good laughs.  Our dog thought we were a little weird with our running back and forth for a few minutes while getting our shot.  But I think he kind of liked the game.  When we were ready to run on and not try for another shot, he actually turned around again thinking it was picture time. Ha!  Made me laugh.  

Deschutes River Trail taking off from Meadow Camp

Healing Trails

If you asked me about my favorite trails to run on here in Bend, Oregon, I'd have to say Shevlin Park would be the first place that comes to mind.  Now, I've only been here since August and I haven't even begun to discover all the trails there are around here but for now, Shevlin Park is where I go when I want to get lost in the trees and be alone with my thoughts and the beauty surrounding me.  It's GORGEOUS!  A bit less on the high dessert feel and more of the lush GREEN that I love.  Tumalo Creek trail is one of the easier trails in Shevlin Park--just what I needed for my Thursday run this week.  I won't go into details (yes, I'm allowed to be vague on here--it's my blog after all) but I will say that there were a few days this week that proved to be rather difficult and deeply painful on an emotional level--related to some news I received about a friend.  Running in the forest was just the medicine/comfort I needed. It was a time to be wrapped up in all the forest has to offer:
old, wise trees
fall colors
still and white waters from the creek
soft dirt
shaded paths
steep climbs that take you above some of the tallest trees
and
the perfect rocks on which to sit.

Plenty of tears and conversations/prayer on this run.  But also an incredible amount of peace, healing and hope in my heart once I finished.  Thankful for the gift of the run.  And beyond thankful for these forest trails I have at my fingertips.
  

Much wisdom and peace to be found on a trail run in the woods. Beautiful how these forest walls with their still and white waters, old towering trees and winding trails can pull us in so deeply and bring us so gently back to ourselves--telling us stories, whispering answers, and listening to our heart's every word. I'm so thankful for the gift of running. 

I have much more to say about running but this post is getting way too long so I'll leave some for next time.  I want to ask about recommendations for running pants, share some of the things I'm loving lately with running stuff, and put some potential races out there.  Oh, and I plan on trying this hands-free leash with my dog (honestly, I'm not sure what to expect with this type of leash...part of me fears falling on my face!) and then writing a review and giving one away to one of you!

Happy Friday!  And Happy Halloween to those of you who take part in it.


Laying it on thick with the questions today but lots I want to ask:
1.  Have you ever been an emcee at a race or somewhere else?  Would this make you  nervous?
2.  What are your favorite marathon plans that you'd recommend if I decide to use a plan for Boston?  
3.  Do you have a running coach you'd recommend?  
4.  Do you find healing and comfort through running?  
5.  Are you dressing up for Halloween?  Your kids?  What will you be?  

Amanda

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