Training Reset: Begin at the Beginning

Sabino Canyon with Twirly

After the North Face Endurance Challenge, I took a well deserved break from training. FOMO had my 2013 schedule pretty packed with training; I began the year with six races scheduled, plus a couple of pacing gigs - as the year comes to a close, I have completed ten races plus the pacing gigs, and the injury-causing Zombie run. Not too bad compared to the 2012 schedule, but still more than I had planned. The first half of 2014 is booked solid, and the back half is vacant. I can already feel the vacuum waiting to be filled after Western States.

Red Star Ridge was a bit too icy

Fall Colors

The holidays find Twirly and me in Tucson visiting family. The temperate weather made it easy to get out and explore the craggy desert trails almost every day of our trip. Twirly got her first Garmin from Santa (Twirly's idea, not Santa's) and we put it through the paces. I don't get to run with Twirly very often so I really enjoyed the week of recreational running through beautiful places. The fall colors in Sabino Canyon were bright, and the views from Mt. Lemmon were inspiring.

SFRC on the AT

Our flight out of Sacramento to Phoenix had a layover in Salt Lake City, and as the plane ascended eastward, we looked out the window and found Auburn. The flight path took us directly up the Western States course, giving me a preview of each canyon (they look just as steep as the elevation profile). I was able to identify the course from end to end, finishing at Squaw Valley, which had pitiful snow cover for this point in the season.

Training begins with the New Year, and I am chomping at the bit. The week off and relaxed volume/pace of the holidays has allowed my toes to recover (mostly) and my legs to get heavy. The Pacifica Foothills Trail Half Marathon looms three weeks from now, and I'm eagerly anticipating the plans that Mauka Running has in store. Stay tuned for the year in review and my goals for 2014.