Team Gab Virtual Race

This weekend Dennis and I went down to Arizona to visit my dad and stepmom, after I was unable to go over New Year's. This was an opportunity for us both to visit. Our friend Morgan graciously took care of the girls this weekend while we were gone.

This weekend I ran in the Retro Run 5K, an 80's-themed race in Kiwanis Park in Tempe. But the real reason I ran was not to dress up like Flashdance or to run a blazing fast 5K, (which would have been a nice bonus).

I ran this race primarily to support Team Gab. Gabby Gonzalez is the 5 year old daughter of my fellow blogger Heather Rusch Gonzalez at 365 Days of Awesome. Gabby has ALL, acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and was diagnosed a year ago. Since then she has endured treatment and has toughed it out with a spirit that most adults couldn't muster.

When Heather announced the Team Gab Virtual Race on her website, I wanted to find something I could do in that timeframe.

Since it's in honor of Gabby, I was going to go all out and live it up, dress like an 80's workout chick, and run as hard as I could.

There wasn't much question about what a Colorado ultrarunner was doing running a 5K in Tempe, Arizona. The day we left, the yard looked like this.

We arrived at Kiwanis Park early enough to figure out how to get to the parking area- we drove around the neighborhood like a couple of clueless snowbirds. We've only been gone from the valley a little over 5 years but I can't remember my way around. But in Phoenix, we fit right in. No oxygen tank or Depends, yet,though Dennis is a card carrying member of AARP. I had pre-registered, but Dennis made a last minute decision to run the race and had to sign up.

Timing chip on top of leg warmers? Not very retro.

The t-shirt was retro- remember these old cotton things?

Yes I looked like a dork but I didn't care. I was in good company.

Dennis was all business, no costume, not very retro. What was he up to?

I had to warm up, and I was afraid to run very far away from the staging area because of my dorky outfit. We ran down the canal for about a mile, but then I stuck to the parking lot.

We all lined up for the race, the gun went off, and that was it. There were a few hundred people in the races, a 5K and a 10K. The course was not easy, there were some long stretches crossing grassy areas of the park, and a lot of sharp curves on the bike path and sidewalks. We had to negotiate the slower 10K runners, who started 5 minutes ahead of us. Whatever. Lots of ups and downs with underpasses on the bike path too. It was a challenging course. I was so pleased that my ankle didn't bother me one bit on the grass sections.

I was following metallic chick the last 2 miles. Once I caught up to her, I wanted to pass her toward the end but there was this little kid who kept getting under my feet and I didn't want to elbow him out of the way on the narrow sidewalk. Since I was running to support a child, I didn't think it would be a good idea to trip a kid and knock him off the sidewalk. I was feeling decidedly non-violent. Metallic chick finished 3 seconds ahead of me. But, come to find out, she's 20 years younger than me. So then I didn't feel so bad. She was born in the 80s!

I found Dennis shortly after I finished, he had gone to the car to get the camera. He won the race overall! 19:04. Not bad for an AARP member! In my relative youth, I won the women's masters. I was the 5th overall woman to finish, my time was 22:43. It was faster than the race I ran a month ago, and given the terrain, I felt like it was a decent time. I'm making a little progress, and that's all I need to see to keep me going.

After the race we wandered around, Dennis got a chair massage, and we talked with people.




The Breakfast Club was there too.

In my opinion, this well-costumed couple ruined the overall effect with their not-so-retro minimalist shoes...and since I am such a fashion diva myself I have the right to judge...

Dennis picked up his overall award.

I got my age group award. It's been a while since I placed in a non-ultra event...It felt more special because it was for Team Gab, and I know there are lots of people out there running virtual races in her honor this month and next. Team Gab is symbolic to me, it's about supporting Gabby and her entire family. Mom and Dad, and her siblings, who put so much time and energy and have made so many sacrifices to keep Gabby on track with treatment, and keeping her life as normal as possible, even though it's far from normal.

Heather's (Gabby's mom) amazing optimism and energy jumps off of every one of her blog pages. Her creativity and her ability to find the fun in a bad situation is a gem for this family, and anyone else who reads her words. Check out her blog. It could break your heart to see what this family has been through, but when you read Heather's words, it's truly uplifting.

(In case you can't read it, the little blue card I'm holding says, "For you, Gabby!")

Back at the ranch...

My dad hams it up for the camera. Then he decided to cook lunch for us. He is an awesome cook. My friend Stephanie still talks about the meal he cooked us after Across the Years in 2008.

After lunch we all wandered over to the pool, my dad, my stepmom Ronna, Dennis and me. It was 75 degrees and sunny, perfect poolside napping weather. The early spring flowers were blooming.

That night we went out for Thai food and then went home and watched The Help. What a great movie. The next morning, we met my sister-in-law Becky, and my niece Jenny, who is 14 going on 21, for breakfast. Jenny is torn between going into acting and going to medical school. I wouldn't be surprised if she figures out a way to do both.

Sunday afternoon we flew back home. It was a short visit, but lots of fun. The Buffaloes were thrilled to see us, we were in big trouble with them.

What a great little escape from the Colorado winter in January. Here's to you, Gabby!

What would you do with an extra 24 hours?

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Some people might say, "Sleep!"

It's almost February, and it's a leap year, which means we have an opportunity to devote 24 extra hours this year in service to something greater than ourselves.

Think about this: If a sedentary person simply committed to moving for 24 hours this year, even if they spread it out over about a half hour a week, that's 24 hours of benefit toward their health. I hope that in those 24 hours they would realize they feel better as a result, and continue to add activity to their routine.

For those sedentary people, they are not only helping themselves, but they are also helping others. Just think about the public health impact it could make if large numbers of sedentary people got up and started moving. The physical health benefits are only the tip of the iceberg.

The social implications of sedentary people increasing their physical activity include improved mental health, reduced health care costs, improved productivity, and would benefit everyone in gazillions of other ways that would make this blogpost way too long if I tried to write about it here. My point is, when you take care of yourself, it helps everyone else, too.

If you're a beginning runner, think about how you could use the extra 24 hours for your benefit in fitness. You could add a half hour a week of running spread out over a year, or you could spend that half hour a week doing weight training or cross training. Or try a new activity for fitness or recreation this year, give yourself 24 hours to try it. Take a class, sign up for a trip, or organize an outing with some friends.

Here's my 24 hour challenge to you.

No matter what you do, look at the 24 hours as an opportunity to give back to others. Here are three things you can do:

1. Volunteer for 24 hours of your time this year, whether it's in your community, or at races you usually run, it gives something back to the sport that you value so much.

2. Donate 24 hours of your pay this year to a charity. For most people that's 3 days of pay. It sounds like a lot, but if you were to spread it out, it might not seem like it impacts you.

3. Add 24 hours of fun and fitness this year, as I described above. You're taking control of your physical and mental well-being when you increase your activity level or diversify your old routine.

This year I plan to do all three.

This year, I want to volunteer at my favorite race, Badwater, on the medical team again, which is actually more like a 50+ hour commitment, but I'll call it 24 hours. I am also running a 24 hour race on the track, in which I'd like to cover more than 100 miles. And I am donating 24 hours of my pay this year to the PVHS Foundation, between a payroll deduction program and other small donations spread throughout the year. By the end of the year, I'll probably have given more than another 24 hours in volunteer service to my community, in wellness and cancer-related programs.

A leap year is an opportunity. Spread the word.

Test Drive

Twenty three miles at the lakes today. It was fairly pleasant for running, cool in the morning, and occasionally the wind would pick up and freeze me but by the end it warmed up into the high 40s and it wasn't bad at all. This was my longest run again, since last July. I felt good in the last 10 miles, which surprised me. I thought I'd be dragging. I did take yesterday off, which helped.

Today I took this "vehicle" for a test drive. I actually only ran with it for the first 2 miles, because my traps were killing me after that much time. The handles are too high for me.

I borrowed it from my friend Kristin, who is a lot taller than me and it was too short for her. I'm trying to find something to take with me on my adventure run this summer in case I end up doing it mostly solo, which I think is what's going to happen. I might be able to get minimal crewing in parts of the run, but I will need something to carry my gear and ice if it's hot and I'm on my own.

Other than that, I liked it, it felt stable, and even on the dirt my water bottle stayed in the holder, and stuff didn't bounce around. I piled it up with rocks to make it more realistic- I think they weighed about 30 pounds. If I could rig something up so that I had handlebars below the existing ones, I think it would be perfect. I'll be looking into that, and smaller used baby joggers next.

Yes, I'm being secretive about my plans. It's not going to be as long as last summer's run, and it's not connected with any race, but I'm not telling any details until I pull it together.

Today was one of those runs where ABC rules applied. For new readers, ABC means Always Bring a Camera!

The first lap around the north lake was with the baby jogger, but then I ditched it in my car, and took off with my camera. The lakes were partially iced over, but I could hear the "glug-glug-glug" sound under the melting ice. We've had such mild temperatures for the past few weeks, there's almost no snow in town.

After a few laps I saw this bald eagle in the tree halfway around the loop. The bird stayed there for at least an hour, I took pictures on two of my laps.

I was only planning on running 18 or 20 miles but I ended up with 23, I felt so good. And I was treated to this view at the end.

Now that I'm home, the wind has picked up considerably. The weather gods must have liked me today! Tomorrow, hills at Horsetooth.

A New Look

Yes, you're in the right place. This is Journey to Badwater, sporting a more artistic look, discarding the old Quaker gray. Let me know what you think of the new design.

I plan to do a lot of running this weekend. Hope you do, too.

Never a Dull Moment

Ancient proverb: She who runs with buffaloes will never be bored.

Today I was entertained on my run with the Buffaloes, from start to finish. The girls needed to go out- I just got done with my two days in a row of 12 hour shifts and as usual when I'm working, they have been forced to take time off from running while we both work long days.

So by my first day off, I am usually exhausted (which I refer to as my "work hangover") and the girls are revved up like a thousand charging buffaloes.

Well, maybe 500.

Sometimes it's hard to get Isabelle to go outside. For some reason she's got it figured out that she wants to take every other day off. Smarter than a lot of human runners. She can be bribed, though, if I tell her we're going to Arfy's or Starbucks.

Arfy's is the nearby pet supply store with special treats that they get just for going in the door. Last week the girls both ended up with new leashes when we went to Arfy's.

If I say we're going to the mailbox, that usually works to get Isabelle to go. But if I say we're going for a run, she only wants to go every other day.

If it's her self-designated rest day, she'll allow me to put the leash on her, but she makes her decision afterwards. She will lie down, and no matter how much I try to convince her, or even tug on the leash, she will dig in and refuse to go. It looked like it was going to be one of those days today. But this time she got up, and then she pulled us the whole way.

A half mile from our house is the LDS church. The geese love to hang out on the grass there, and where the geese hang, so do the droppings. So we begin goose poop diving on the leashes- giving mom a chance to do her rowing exercises. Pulling two 55 pound dogs back from the goose poop in the grass all winter, I have great lats- who needs P90X when you have Buffaloes! What flavor are they today, Iris?

A little over a mile from the house we reached Horsetooth Road, a major street, which is near the intersection to the street leading directly to the hospital. Lots of ambulance and fire truck traffic along here.

Today we saw a fire truck with all the lights and sirens going, racing to somewhere. When this happens, Iris and Isabelle both freeze in their tracks, sit down on the spot, point their chins to the sky and howl together, in perfect pitch and harmony.

Isabelle high, Iris low, in their vocal salutation to the fire trucks. "Haaaaallllooooooooooooooooooooo!"

Then we turned down another side street. The UPS truck driver who works in our neighborhood drove by. Whenever he comes to the door, the girls go crazy, but Iris also goes crazy when she hears the truck come down the street to stop at a neighbor's house. I always thought it was the squeaky brakes on the truck that tipped her off. But today just the sound of the UPS truck made her go wild. She started pulling on the leash, lunging and barking. The driver recognized us and waved as he drove by.

I took the Buffs home after a few miles and went out to finish my run. I really didn't feel bad today, after two long busy work days. I did some strides, and I feel okay.

I can tell my thyroid medication has kicked in. I'm no longer exhausted in the afternoons. I'm not freezing my butt off all the time, either. Now it's the opposite- I'm back to hot flashing. My face and palms turn red, and I start sweating everywhere.

It happens during the day at work, and even worse at night, throwing the covers off, then getting cold and pulling them back over me. I fixed one thing, but that throws something else off. I was also feeling extremely irritable and sensitive for a few days, quite the RPB.

At least now Dennis can send me to my woman cave, and I'm happy to have my time out room.

Not so much

Orange sunset...

TEBOWANDA!