Recipe for a Tailwind

This entire week so far has been nothing but WIND. Constant blowing and cold. We got a few sprinkles one day but no more moisture, just a steady howling with a few extra strong gusts, the kind that split trees in half, blow trash cans over, and generally make a run down any street lined with trees into Russian Roulette.

I went out anyway, just for a few miles each day, 4 or 6 miles at a time. It really wasn't that bad, even running into the headwind. Probably because I knew I'd be out there for such a short time. I've been following the forecasts for Iowa and it doesn't look much better there, actually worse because of rain, but it looks like this storm system is headed east, so I might have a strong tailwind blowing me across Nebraska. Could save money on gas that way.

I waited until tonight to run because the wind was super gusty today. Once the sun went down, the wind died down quite a bit and there was a sliver of a moon out, and there was still light in the sky until almost 8:30.

Iris has been following me around, every time I go to the bathroom she follows me and stares at me. Isabelle is more subtle about it but she's been watching me, too.

The bags are packed, reservations made, I have a plan for the race. I was talking with a running friend from Georgia the other day, Beth McCurdy, and we were laughing about last spring in Cleveland. She was telling me the story of when we were running North Coast in that heinous windstorm last year, and Beth decided to drop out and she told me, I said to her, "Oh, no! Why?" She tells people, "Because I'm not from freaking Colorado!"

Beth runs with Joe Fejes, and according to Joe, running a 24 hour is like baking a cake, following the recipe. I have my own recipe for this one and I think it has plenty of wiggle room for bathroom breaks, changing clothes, and any quick stops that are needed.

I'm ready as usual, overpacked, for whatever the weather gods throw my way. All I can do now is let the wind blow and follow the recipe.