The Flasher

Last night I was not sleeping well, I kept waking up in a sweat, then having to cool down before I could sleep again.

This morning I ran only 7 miles and my legs were flat as a pancake. No energy whatsoever, probably from not sleeping. I decided to do a little shopping for the trip, I only had to get a few items, some drink mix and some Lara bars, and then went to the sauna.

I think I was hot flashing in the sauna. It felt so hot in there. I don't know why. I stayed only 20 minutes and then I had to get out. I didn't feel bad, I just felt hot. It was a different feeling than I usually have. Heat coming from inside me, instead of on the outside. I still have that feeling, even as I sit here typing.

I did some packing for the Double Mick, mostly making piles of stuff I think I might take, and then I have to sort through it and eliminate all but the most important stuff. I hate to pack, mostly because it upsets the girls. They sniff everything, and they know I'm going somewhere, so they start following me around more closely than usual.

If you know anything about Australian Shepherds, their baseline is to be under your feet at all times, so when I'm packing, I feel boxed in. I can't take a step in any direction without running into dog.

I filled up Isabelle's pool today and she sat down in it as soon as I took the hose out. It's hot outside, it's hot in the house, and I'm hot flashing. There's no escaping the heat. It's a good thing I'm heat trained. I wonder if heat training helps with tolerating hot flashes?

Maybe I could sell that as the next miracle cure, take out big full-page ads in the newspaper alongside the erectile dysfunction ads, and then I could pay for all my Badwater expenses and run across Death Valley multiple times every year.

Maybe not.

One cool thing that did happen today was that one of my paintings sold in the restaurant. Other than that there isn't much "cool" anywhere right now. Unless I climb into the freezer, which I've considered doing.



Happy Friday!

Zom-B-Gon!

Much better day so far today. It was cool and cloudy this morning. I took Iris for 2 miles and then did a total of 8 miles for my morning run. Then I went to the sauna, which thankfully, I had to myself most of the 45 minutes while I sat there and drank three liters of water. I checked all the corners and in between the boards. No zombies in there. The sauna was safe at last. I remembered to bring my Zom-B-Gon.


Starbucks Via instant coffee is the best thing since...the iPhone? I'm not going to say sliced bread, because that might not pass the Mickey Check.

I started making my lists for South Dakota, started making piles of clothing and supplies for the trip, signed up for an online review course for oncology certification which I plan to test for later this year, and made a special trip to Starbucks for a package of the good stuff to take on the trip.

This afternoon I'll do a bit more packing and hope to get a nap in. Then I'll do my evening run. Maybe another 6 miles with some strides.

It's weird being in this non-training state, it's a maintenance phase. Next week is just a long week in the woods, a 5 day fun run. I'm looking forward to it, but I'm also wanting to get beyond the recovery phase from this because I am so excited about picking up the speed and training hard the second half of this year to do some serious damage to my 48 hour PR at Across the Years.

It just occurred to me that yesterday was National Running Day and I didn't even run. Ha! I like that. As I've said before, if everyone is doing it, I'm not...

I didn't even plan that one and it worked out perfectly.


Yesterday afternoon I did a bike ride and felt so much better afterwards. I was talking with a friend about cycling yesterday and it reminded me of one of my old mountain biking buddies in Crested Butte, back in the late 80s. Carole and I used to do long bike rides year-round, and here's a picture I found of us, riding our bikes to ski up Washington Gulch above Crested Butte in 1987.

That was back in the days before iPhones, widespread use of personal computers and the Internet, and Starbucks on every corner...but we still hit it hard every day and made our own adventures. I've tried to continue living my life like we did back then, 25 years ago. I feel like I've done a pretty good job of it.

Carole is no longer with us, she died in 2002 from brain cancer. But she lived her life fully every day and pushed herself to her potential. You never know how many days you have, so make the most of each one!

How Not to Meet Women in the Sauna

1. Shave. Bringing your razor to the sauna is not entirely socially appropriate. Yes it does show you have talent by doing it without a mirror, but if you cut yourself, it can be quite unsanitary. Also, getting your little chin stubble hairs all over the bench is not fair to the next person who sits down in that spot that already contains your dried sweat. Keep some samples of your DNA to yourself.

2. Have business conversations on your cell phone when there are 4 other people in the sauna with you. We don't need to know the details of how you flubbed up that last contract and you need to dictate an e-mail to your secretary, as you tell her on the phone, in order to get everyone on the same page immediately, because, as you tell her on the phone, you're sweating in the gym right now. Now there are 4 potential customers you've just lost because we all know you flubbed up. And yes, you're sweating in the sauna, which happens to be in the gym, and we can all see you sweating.

3. Infuse the air with your favorite scent of essential oil. Not only might ylang sandalwood jasmine lemon eucalyptus not be the flavor of the day, but for the sake of other people who might want to use the sauna in the several hours or days following your presence there, leave it at home, or in your car, or wherever only you can smell it. Same with cologne- keep it to yourself and use only when you're around people who want to smell you, and when you're not in a small space with other people. The smell of sweat-infused pine boards baking at 180 degrees has never been proven carcinogenic, and it's okay for people to be able to inhale while they're in the sauna. It won't hurt them one bit.

4. Engage in conversation with the woman in the sauna about the intimate details of your life, even though you just met her but you already feel warm, comfortable, and confident sharing this small space with her. She doesn't need to know about your prior DUI conviction, your hepatitis, or your messy divorce. There's a reason why she's in the exact opposite corner of the sauna from you with a towel over her face. Did you know the towel actually maximizes the benefit of the sauna? Really, you should try it. But it only works if it goes over your face...

5. Repeatedly puff your chest and make loud, heavy breathing noises as you inflate your chest wall to maximize the dimensions of your rippling pectoralis muscles. There might be a health care professional in the sauna with you who could mistakenly think you're in respiratory distress and call 911. It might be the fastest way to get you out of the sauna.

I am sure there are women out there who are just as guilty of doing socially unacceptable things in the sauna, but this is what I've observed being in the sauna with mostly men. My advice: Bring a towel.

A Day of Surprises

I enjoyed having the day off today. Normally I work Monday and Tuesday together, but it's a nice break right now just doing one day at a time. I don't get nearly as exhausted that way. I took the girls for a walk early this morning and the day was heating up fast. I got an e-mail from Miles, the sports editor at the local paper, who was interested in an article on the Quad Rock, so I got to work on that right away. Nick's in Europe, but I was able to reach Pete who gave me all the information I needed.

I went over to the sauna for 35 minutes and felt pretty good in there. I can tell my tolerance isn't quite what it was last year. Partially because I haven't been doing it, but I also suspect thyroid. It's a fine line, if I want good heat tolerance, I have to make myself get hypo enough, but that comes at a price: gaining weight and poor running performance. It's a trade off for sure. Since this year my priority is not to do any major events in the heat, I'll stick with what I have now.

After the sauna I was pretty wiped out. I drank an S-cap smoothie and worked on the article until I had it basically done, minus some details from Pete and editing about 200 words out. I went for a bike ride along the Spring Creek and Poudre Trails, about 21 miles, easy. I forgot about the big Hewlett Gulch fire up Poudre Canyon, and the smoke was visible above Grey Rock and the foothills north of town. The river is starting to rise a little, but it's low this year.

Then as I was riding back home, I came across this: swarming bees. I've had some experiences with swarming bees around here. One time Allsion Horn and I were running along the ditch near Tavelli Elementary, a million years ago, and we were stuck on the canal bank, with nowhere to go, unless we took a dive in the icky water. The swarm was just high enough and Allison and I are both short enough that we decided to run underneath the swarm. Fortunately we never got stung, but found out later that was really a dumb thing to do. At least we don't have the killer bees here like we did in Arizona. We had a 4 foot honeycomb in our garage rafters from those bees.

After my bike ride I came home, ate lunch, worked on a few things, and took a nap. Then I got ready for my run with Shannon. I had no idea what to expect. I thought I'd struggle with running a faster pace and decided to just go with whatever happened. But once we got out there, I was moving well, even pushing the pace up the hills without realizing it. I managed 8:30 miles for 10 miles. Not bad for a week after my race. I feel like my effort in Iowa was much more mental than physical. My knee felt decent tonight too. I could feel it slightly in the last 3 miles but it's not even what I'd call sore. It's just there.

Not a bad day's work!

This weekend Ed and Dale and I are meeting in Boulder to take Rocket for a test run at Boulder Reservoir and then we'll do a planning session somewhere afterwards. The Double Mick is only a month away!

The Doctor is IN

Finally, on the last day of May, a warm day in Fort Collins! It was warm outside of the sauna.

I ran 32 miles up at Horsetooth Reservoir today on the hills after yesterday's off and on rain after the Houska Houska. Today was cool to start, I was freezing until noon, I had my long sleeved fleece turtleneck on until the last 6 miles! Everyone else was out in shorts and I was freezing.

The air was cool but the ground was warm, because I saw two HUGE bull snakes on the asphalt at the turnoff to Reservoir Ridge. I couldn't pull out my cell phone camera fast enough and they slithered back into the grass as cars went by. They were big!

After my run, I stopped by Runners Roost to exchange a pair of shoes. I cannot even wear 7 1/2s anymore. I put them on and the toes on my left foot go numb from being squeezed together. Just 5 months ago I was able to wear them. I ordered 7 more pairs of Brooks Addictions, mostly 8s, but a couple of 8 1/2s, to get me through Badwater. I will break each of them in before July.

Houska Houska was fun as always, it was a Saturday Night Live theme and there were Coneheads, Killer Bees, the Blues Brothers, Father Guido Sarducci, and so many other creative costumes. I got the honor of running with my friend Morgan, whom I never see anymore. We ran the entire run together.












After the Houska Houska I went to the sauna, lifted, did a few more miles with the girls, and took a long nap. Then I had to go to the store and buy supplies for this week's running. I'll have to get more at mid-week, for making sandwiches, because it won't last if I get it now.

Today I went back to the sauna, it's been unusually hot in there lately. I've only been able to tolerate about 35 minutes each day this week. Unfortunately today I resembled this one guy's therapist again. I said as little as possible and kept the towel over my eyes. This guy loves to try engaging people in conversation even if they are not looking at him. I watched him do it with 5 different people. If they were quiet or ignoring him, he would lie there and sigh loudly, over and over again.

Most people didn't want to talk, myself included. Call me a cold heartless b**** but I'm not being paid to be his therapist. I'm in there to relax, to think about Badwater planning, drink a lot of fluids, and concentrate on staying in the sauna. I don't go there to socialize.

I am sure the poor guy is lonely but I'm not able to help him. I have run into him twice now, only when I go to the sauna later in the day. Usually I'm there before noon and I don't tend to run into oddballs.

The other thing that always seems to happen this time of year is road construction, and always between my house and the sauna. This time it's at Horsetooth and Lemay. I guess it will lengthen my heat training sessions, if I roll up the windows and crank the heater as I sit there through multiple light changes in backed up traffic.

The next two weeks will be a challenge since I'll have to go to the sauna after my runs each day. But after I get back from Arizona, I will be tapering and can go any time I want. For now, I need to remember my sign, psychiatric help $150 an hour. If I got enough clients, I could pay for Badwater!