FINALLY!!!!

The sun came out this past weekend. I know that may not mean much to non-Washingtonians, but we haven't seen the sun for months. I'm focused enough that I've been able to train through the bleak cold, gray weather, but it hasn't been all that much fun. Running has felt much more like work than a sport that I love.

All that changed over the weekend. This is going to shock you, so make sure you're seated. I got 3 days, yes I said 3 whole days, of running in nice-ish weather. Can you believe it? Well if you live in Washington, you know what a treat that was, and I took full advantage of it. Now, I don't like to go into training specifics too much, because I feel like it's a bit self absorbed to write down the details of my running week to week, but I will say that I had 3 days of good, hard running.

Friday morning began bright and early with a trip out to Squak Mountain for some uphill threshold work. The weather was quite suitable, but the company was the story of the morning. Justin Angle and Tom Ederer were the real troopers of the day. They were out there by 5:30 am to grind out a double ascent. Phil Kochik, Greg Crowther, Scott Jurek and myself opted for the late start (6:45 ish), since we were only doing a single ascent. Even though we all live in Seattle, it was the first time that we'd all come together for a run. Good times!

Saturday began less bright but even earlier. I hit the road at about 3:30 am on my way to the Capitol Peak 50 miler. I arrived just after 5am and had plenty of time to check in and put myself together for the 6am kickoff. The start was a little chilly, but the skies were clear and the sun had begun to take hold in the sky. The 55k and the 50 mile started together, which was nice for me, because I was able to run with 55k runner, John Berta. The first 10 or 12 miles passed easily chatting with John. I was feeling comfortable running with John, but I reminded myself that I was running 50 miles and I let him go to chase down the lone runner in front. From that point on, my day was spent running alone. Considering the hard 2500 feet of ascent I'd done on Friday, my legs felt quite fresh all throughout the day. I was really focused on steady eating, even to the point of forcing food down when it didn't sound appealing. I truly believe that being able to eat constantly is as much a part of running well in hundreds as just about anything else, and being able to eat a lot on the run requires training as well. Anyway fuel and electrolyte intake remained constant, and I felt good all throughout the race. Even contending with about 4 or 5 miles of snow, I was able to run 7:37 and win the race. I was quite pleased with the time and effort I put forth. It was a terrific hundred mile training race.

To cap off the weekend, I headed out Sunday morning for the SRC trail run. We ran our typical 14 mile loop, and although I started out very slowly, I felt great once I warmed up. This was my biggest weekend of the year, and I feel like I'm coming into form at just the right time. And maybe, just maybe, the weather will start coming into form as well.