All Downhill From Here

Last night I picked up my friend Linda L. and we showed up at Gord’s Running Store for the usual. This was anything but usual for Linda, who broke both her ankles last winter. She is not able to run yet, and going down hills gives her trouble, but she walked 30 blocks last night while the rest of us ran. What a trooper!

The Zen quote went something like this:
The fish swim – there is no end to the water. The birds fly – there is no end to the sky. Then it was something about wind. I forget the exact wording, but I have an image of a big woosh bearing me upward. It was a nice thought.

Tim and I ran down the Curling Club stairs and followed Memorial Drive out towards the Zoo. We turned around at the “short zoo” point, went through the park to the Inglewood side, then back to Center Street and back up. We chatted about work and friends and death (he’s in the funeral business) and what we were like as teenagers, and how our parents dealt with it. It was very cloudy out and smelled like rain, but we stayed dry (aside from sweating. it was 16C/60F out).

Sylvie and her friend passed us on the way up the Center Street bridge. Her friend was running with her little bulldog, Uno, who knows he’s absolutely “number one”. Cute.

 As we reached the top of the hill above Center Street bridge I saw Dawn and Kris a ways ahead of us and Tim and I tried to catch them before they made it to the crosswalk light. We didn’t make it, but Dawn hadn’t stopped winning there. After we crossed the street Dawn did a quick shoulder check and then took off like a shot the last 1/2 block to Gord’s. We laughed in surprise and then tried to catch up. I gave quite a burst of energy at the end and managed to touch the No Parking sign with a whoop just after Dawn did. Finishing sprints with friends are so much fun 🙂

We had a nice visit afterwards and it was good to have Linda back with us again. Heal well, Linda!

Dang it, this blog chair is slippery lately. I’m having a hard time staying in it long enough to post.

A couple of ORNs:
Tuesday it was warm and sunny when I got out with Gord’s runners and Krista was back, oh Hallelujah! I was starting to miss her. It would have been nice to see Tanya too, but they seem to be alternating on me, and what’s happened to Tim lately? Tim? You out there? I digress. Krista and I did a very nice run out to the Tom Campbell hill and then went up and down a couple of the Bridgeland hills on the way back. We walked a little more than usual, in the middle, but in the flat stretch on the way back home Krista challenged me to a block of as-fast-as-you-can. She told me I’d better be ahead of her, too. Hah! and then she ran so fast I could barely keep up! That woman can SPRINT. I bet if we’d done it 3 times I would have beaten her in the third, though. 30/30s for her next week 🙂

Thursday it was about 12C/54F and I got out in a warm, gentle, lovely rain. It had rained harder for most of the day, but while I was out it was pretty much a drizzle. I ran the first 2 miles at a pretty good clip and then slowed down to meander through some wooded single-track dirt trails. I’m being very careful with footing in an effort not to injure myself before my upcoming road marathon, but I just can’t stay away from the smell of wet dirt and fresh new leaves.

I covered about 6 km in each run.

Last night Little Runner and I headed out to Spruce Meadows to watch some of The National, and Coach Dianne met us there. We ate supper in the stands and chatted about riders with names like Rich Fellers, Ian Miller, Beezy Madden and Eric Lamaze. Little Runner had fun rolling down the grassy slope between the rush seats and the ring. It was a little chilly out and threatening to rain, so the crowd was pretty thin. On Sunday when we go back I’m sure the crowds will be thicker no matter what the weather.

We made it home just in time to tuck Little Runner in and watch the Fifa World Cup with Soccer Boy. Since I’ve got a German living next door, I’ve actually been to Germany once, and I’d had a Heineken earlier at Spruce Meadows, I cheered for Germany. I’ve never really followed World Cup soccer before, but being a soccer (and now a referee) mom, I considered it educational for SB. and me. Doesn’t hurt to be a Global Citizen once in a while.

Working on the May Challenge results  and June Challenge now. Really…

Is it tomorrow yet? No? I’m pretty sure I mentioned that I’d post the results to the May Challenge and a June Challenge “tomorrow”. It isn’t tomorrow yet. Do you know that if you type the word “tomorrow” too many times in a row the spelling starts to look really wierd?

Yes, I’m tired and punchy. Yes, the last week has been quite the whirlwind (barely had time to run 3 km during the week) and the weekend was NOT enough time to catch up.

I did run somewhere around 17-18 miles one after the other on Sunday morning. I’m kind of sketchy about the actual distance I covered, but however far I ran, it took me 3 hours and 40 minutes. Yup, longest run ever. I will run even longer on the Father’s Day weekend. I AM getting in my runs this week, starting tonight at Gord’s.

I’m feeling pretty tired and allergic (sneezy) this last week or two, but not sick. Two weeks until the taper starts. I can do this.

Sorry to keep you in suspense about the May Challenge results and prizes, etc. but Life and marathon training are taking priority. Oh, and work. Time to get to work…

Sunday morning we were up early again. My daughter and I were on the road by 8:15 am, headed for the Sprint at Chinook’s Edge in Innisfail, where my buddy, “Coach” Dianne was racing her first triathlons of the season.  I arrived at the race shortly after Dianne left on her bike. Her husband was there with their boys (“Tigger”, 6, and “Garfield”, 2.5 yrs) and Little Runner played happily with them in a play area near the pool. When we were expecting Dianne back from her bike ride, her hubby handed their youngest over to me by putting him up on my shoulders. It was kind of difficult to take Dianne’s cycling picture, but somehow I managed, and I was glad that Garfield didn’t mind being with me when his Dad left with his older sibling (“Tigger” had a birthday party to attend).We all cheered Dianne out of bike-run transition before Derek and Tigger left and then Little Runner, Garfield and I headed to a nearby school playground.

 I started my stop watch so I’d have an idea of when to head back to the finish line.We waited for Dianne at a park bench conveniently located maybe 25 meters from the finish. When the red shirt with the bright pink hat in the distance waved at us, we hooted and hollered back.

Yay Dianne!

We stuck around the finish until all of the heats were done. I hung out in the food tent with Nancy C. and Little Runner pitched in as a “chip girl”. There was another girl her age assigned to following finishers around, giving them water and demanding their chips. I nicknamed the other girl the “Chip Nazi” and Little Runner the “Chip Monkey”. Garfield had been getting more and more tired while Dianne put away her gear, and shortly after she sat down to eat he laid down in front of her for a “nap attack”.