Run For the Trees 10K

I love small races. When there is only 100 or so people running, that makes the likelihood of me being dead last very, very real. So I have to step up my game. 

I made a goal to run a race every month of this year, and so far it's been going well. This is my third race since foot surgery, and although the first two miles were kind of hard, I hit the sweet spot around mile 3 and cruised from there. 

 The course took us along the river, through some neighborhoods and then straight through the middle of the University of Montana. It was cool because I had never been on campus before, and it's a beautiful campus! The only students I saw were two guys carrying a couch across the grass lawn. Haha, typical. 

The course was marked by orange cones with arrows on them. On campus there was one arrow that wasn't exactly clear, leading to me and a couple other people to go the wrong direction and consequently run an extra mile! I'm not complaining though, extra mile is extra calories burned and I wasn't going for a personal record anyway! 

Luckily there was a guy in our group of lost runners who remembered the course map and got us back on track. I'm glad there were other people close by when I couldn't figure out which way to go because I never would've been able to find my way back! Haha. Missoula is still a bit of a mystery to me. 

It ended up that I ran 6.9 miles in stead of 6.2 and when I crossed the finish line the race director asked me if I got lost, which we then laughed about. He promised next year the course would be marked more clearly, haha. 

So there's 9 weeks left until the Utah Valley Marathon, and I have A LOT of work to do. I need to solidify my after-work runs (which have been awful lately because of my new work shoes but should be improving soon when they're broken in) but my weekend long runs have been sublime! Running in Montana is equal parts challenging and completely exhilarating. Sunrise runs are my new favorite thing. In fact, sunrises in general are my new favorite things. I'm lucky (?) enough to see the sunrise every morning on my way to work and I'm convinced there is nothing better. So peaceful, and the moment when the western snow capped mountains turn pink is just so beautiful. Sometimes I have to remind myself to watch the road! Haha. 

Anyway I know I just went on a tangent... But I'm super determined and motivated to make these next 9 weeks some of the best training weeks ever. I mean, come on. I live in the most beautiful state ever, I have trails all over that I can run on... Of course it's gonna be amazing! 

I got fooled.

Let's all take a moment to appreciate the fact that my 16 year old sister completely schooled me on April Fools Day. She managed to make me cry from 1,000 miles away. I applaud her. 

I'll just leave these here. 

*disclaimer: I only cuss when I am angry/livid/loathsome. 

I'm myself again.

You guys. Winter was hard. The sun going down at 4:30, the snow falling for days, even weeks on end. Driving was no longer a joy, but a nerve-wracking foray into what could always possibly be my last drive alive. Seriously, my Honda was not made for Montana winters. But you know what? We survived. I survived. I made it through my first Montana winter without sliding off the road, crashing into a ravine, and dying in a fiery crash. Seriously, those were my thoughts every time I drove in bad weather.

The lack of sunlight really got to me. I walked around in a depressed, weary, and very pale state for most of January and February. Actually, we won't even talk about February. February can suck it. March wasn't much better, but it is over and that is all that matters!

So now, as it is what they call"spring time" (in Arizona it goes from not-hot to blazing in a matter of days), the days are getting longer. The birds are singing, singing so much that sometimes on my runs I turn off my music just to listen to the sounds of spring. The sun is giving off warmth for once. It's weird. There's a slight shade of green to some of the fields and lawns, as the grass peeks out from the thawed ground. The deer have little nubbins of new antler growth on their heads. And I am finally able to run outside again without fearing death by frostbite.

Now that I am running again four times a week, I am happy. SO HAPPY. Some runs suck, some runs leave me wanting to sing and laugh and cry all at once. I can run after work, I can run on the weekends. Running outside again gives me this uncontainable joy that carries me throughout the week. I have endless trails and paved paths to explore. Gone are the dark and sad days of winter. It is spring.

And I am myself again.