Niko White Blazing it

Today, as my husband and I were bombarded with overly energetic dogs, Niko in particular, I figured it was time to take him back out on the trail and exercise some of the energy out of him. So off we went!!

This is Niko coming back to find out why I was taking so long.  He apparently didn't get the memo that we weren't running 6 minute miles on Christmas. Here's our run:

Niko White Blaze by fin16 at Garmin Connect - Details

I love watching Niko run.  He is normally so dependent on me, a "momma's boy" if you will, but on the trail, he's different.  He takes off like a bat out of hell and then looks back at me every so many strides to make sure I was still there.  Whenever he gets too far away from me, he pees on something, maybe letting me know what trail we're taking, and then carries on.  This morning was no different.  I decided to put one of Henry's old bear bells on his collar so EVERYONE within a 2 mile range could hear us coming.  FYI: attach bell AFTER we get to running location NOT in the car ride over.

As we scaled the first set of mountains, we were barely 10 minutes into the run, when I saw 2 very tall people up ahead of us on the trail.  Niko was otherwise preoccupied investigating a horse crap pile, so he didn't see them coming.  Now I say they were very tall because in another second I see why.....they were on 2 very big horses!  I called Niko back to me and he came rushing back just in time for me to grab his collar and HERE COME THE HORSES!! Santa hats and all. What nice people the riders were. Wishing me and Niko a Merry Christmas all the while Niko was freaking out barking at the horses from BEHIND me.  Yes, folks, I said from behind me.  Big bad tough 98 pound German Shepard, cowering behind Mom barking at some passing horses.  I was so proud.

As we continued on Niko kept a nice pace as we came up to the lake.  He very quickly found his way down to the water for a quick dip.  I don't think I have ever seen him jump in and out of water that fast! It must have been so cold!  He also managed to find every mud puddle that KK and I had managed to avoid : )

We did 4 miles and a quick cool down before loading back into the Toyota and heading home.  I managed to snap a picture of him "relaxing" on the ride home.  I actually don't think he will ever learn how to relax : )

Once we got home, he was off again, rough housing and racing around the back yard with Henry, not showing in the least that he had just banged out 4 miles with me on the trail.  Me, I hit the shower and then the couch : )

White Blaze Trail by fin16 at Garmin Connect - Details

White Blaze Trail by fin16 at Garmin Connect - Details

 This is the remnants of a camp that was once at Kittatinny State Park. 

 The only thing that was left as evidence that a house was once there was this chimney! No foundation, no nothing except the chimney.  Pretty cool : )

 Testing out my action shot capability on my cell phone WHILE RUNNING!! Not easy.

 

     Today KK and I went to Kittatinny to to get in a trail run.  Busy schedules and not enough hours in the day can easily melt away on the trail.  Not only because you NEED to watch were you're going, but the scenery is so beautiful, that even the grayest day can have a silver lining.
Other than us, there was no other cars in the lot as we pulled in.  Other than the occasional bird chirp or squirrel scampering, the only other sound was our oh so accurate and timely Garmins finding their satellite signals : )
     After a quick look at the trail map (I admit, I tried LOOKING like I knew where it showed we were before I actually saw the "you are here" arrow) and KK suggested we take the white trail in a loop near the lake.  Cool......AND WE'RE OFF!! And then.........we walked.  The first hill hit us like a mocking Mt. Everest, challenging us to try and carry on somewhat of a conversation as we climbed the hill.  Now, if you look at the GPS track provided in the link above, you may not think that an elevation change of a mere 80 feet should warrant such an extreme description. Hold on!, I would say.  That change was almost straight up hill for only about 100 feet!
     After that initial climb, the scenery quickly turned to fallen leaves, moss covered logs and picturesque old rock walls.  It was all I could do to stop laughing my ass off as I was slipping and sliding on hidden mud pockets, long enough to catch up in the conversation with KK.  I loved being able to run and not think about dodging blonde chicks yaking on cell phones while operating low riding hooptie Honda Civics....just sayin'.
     At some point in our run, I had an epiphany.  This run, single-handedly may have renewed my motivation to get out and start racking up the mileage!  A sense of renew-ed-ness (word?) settled over me (well, over my breathable New Balance running jacket, that is) and cleared my mind and made everything else melt away.  Granted, when training for a road marathon, you should, in theory, train on the road if you actually choose to train at all (enter the role my more motivated running partner KK played in getting me off my butt and actually train) so today's run is a perfect training run for our upcoming Muddy Marathon (we're doing the half, but still). Practice like you play.
     We rounded out our run with a quick cooldown back to the parking lot to finish off the 5 miles.  Refreshed is the perfect word to describe how I felt afterwards.  Maybe that wouldn't be the perfect word that my dining neighbors would choose when I sat down at the counter for some breakfast at the local diner, but oh well, the loud obnoxious man that sat down on the end of the counter probably made them scoot a bit closer to me and farther away from him.
     Today's run is best described in a monologue from the critically acclaimed blockbuster "Anchorman-the Ron Burgundy story":

Ron Burgundy: “Oop… I almost forgot. I won’t be able to make it, fellas. Veronica and I trying this new fad called, uh, jogging. I believe it’s ‘jogging’ or ‘yogging.’ it might be a soft j. I’m not sure but apparently you just run for an extended period of time. It’s supposed to be wild.”

Sussex Branch 6 miler

Sussex Branch 6 miler
     Today was pretty grey out when I was getting ready for my run.  I found some crew length wool socks (Drew; see, warm shins), and my warmer tights and was off.  I met KK at her house so we could drive my car to the end point.  We headed to our starting place at Drakes Pond. Today the plan was to run a point to point course, approx 6 miles on the Sussex Branch Trail.  When we got to starting point, we were just about to head off when  realized I left my car keys (car was at the end point) in KK's car.  What a disaster that would have been to have run all that way and made it to my car just to find out that the keys were all the way back at the starting point!! Jeeze! We also left the water in the starting car along with the warm clothes for the end.  We really need to work on preplanning ; )

     The trail was gorgeous! I loved passing the time looking at the hawks swooping down and the birds flying around.  The trail was covered with leafs, which made seeing the ruts and holes a bit difficult.  The Sussex Branch Trail is an old rail trial that runs for 27 miles.  Some of the sections are less cared for than the ones we were on today.  The last mile or so we were dodging huge mud canals and had to run on the road for a bit.  Not too bad and definitely  passed the time!  We felt like kids jumping in mud puddles and skipping through the bog : )

     I love the fact that I can run an entire marathon on this trail and still only be 15 minutes from my house.  My county has numerous trails that run through it and I plan on taking full advantage of them in the next few months.

    Our run was just over 6 miles, follow the link above for complete demographics.  We did it just over 1 hour.  Not bad, just a few minutes slower than a road run but way more fun!  I am looking forward to having more of these runs in my quest for the 100 miles : )

When my longest run was 13 miles, a marathon seemed nearly impossible.
When my longest run was 26 miles, 50 miles seemed nearly impossible.
When my longest run was 50 miles, 100 miles seemed nearly impossible.
When my longest run was 100 miles, 50 miles seemed like a nice, long training run.
--Karl King

2012 tracker

Mota mota got alot of motivation.....kinda

When the weather is cold and you wake up in a nice warm bed (and you just happen to be the best procrastinator in the world) trying to find the motivation to drag your warm butt out of bed and train sometimes comes down to having friends that are way more disciplined than you.  That friend of mine convinced me that I see would meet me at our local state park and run with me. 

As I rangle my 2 dogs into my SUV, they are so amped up that I'm starting to rethink my plan of bringing them.  I know that if I get to May (3 days at the Fair) and bomb, it's no ones fault by my own.  I have a hard time knowing that I am the one to drop the ball on such an awesome charity and it's no ones fault but my own.  So off we went to meet up.

After some coaxing of Niko to settle down and just run, we were off.  What a gorgeous day to be out with my dogs and running partner.  I've been having a hard time lately keeping motivated.  I remember the days of just getting up, throwing on some running clothes and going; not thinking twice about it.  Now, on my days off, I like to hang around the house and do whatever.   I would love to have the drive and discipline to head out faithfully each morning and get it done!

So we ran. And ran. And ran.  In reality it was just under 4 miles and exactly what I needed.  Henry (dog) was pooped but Niko (dog) could have gone on forever, which I will definitely utilize later on in my longer training runs.  I am also grateful that KK (way more motivated running friend) made sure I was locked in for running again tomorrow, same bat time, same bat place.

Perspective


More motivation

Training references

Here are some of the training web pages and links that I have spent countless hours, so far, pouring over to help me in this endeavor.

ULTRAmarathon Training

Ultra Running

Marshall Ulrich

In the begining......

A month or so ago, a friend of mine suggested a fundraiser of sorts. Several tragedies have fallen a particular family and he wanted to do something to help. He began with something like "I've asked a few other people to join me and they all think I'm crazy, so I thought I'd asked you!" I should have known from that, this was going to be an adventure.
The adventure was this: there is a running event in May, here in NJ, called "3 Days at the Fair". It's an event sponsored by NJ Trail Series, and offers options for your self torture : )
My friend (I'm sure that I may have a few other names for him at the end of all this) wanted to know if I was game for the 24 hour challenge and wanted to run 100 miles in that time.....all for charity......consecutively.

Now if you know me, you know that I procrastinate in a world class fashion. I put the "pro" in procrastination. This seems different. This is bigger than me or my procrastination perfection. I have the chance to push my body beyond anything that I have ever done and all for a good cause. I wanted to, hopefully, motivate myself to continue to train on a regular basis, and thought that this blog would help. Kind of like holding my self accountable for something by laying it all out there. I'm hoping this works, and maybe I'll learn something along the way ; )