outta mind outta site

Trail running, the Ragnar Relay, and why my entire body currently hurts

I actually posted this first on Facebook, and am cross-posting here. If only Facebook would keep/return its notes import feature, this wouldn't be a problem. Stupid Facebook.

A brief report on the trail Ragnar Relay Series I just returned from in West Virginia...

So, there's no getting around it: a lot of it was a really, really tough experience - but due to circumstances out of the organizers' control. The weather was bonkers. We were at the tail receiving end of a tropical storm, and as a result, almost every trail was near washed out and we were running or hanging around in the driving rain. Running the trails in daylight was incredibly difficult and involved a lot of delicate walking and scrambling. Running the trails at nighttime, on your own, with only a headlamp to guide you amongst slick boulders, twisting tree roots, and barely-defined paths (sometimes covered in mud so bad and so deep that it literally sucked the shoe off of one of our teammates) was a nightmare. And it was cold. Oh so cold. We worried we would NEVER BE WARM AGAIN. It was pretty darn miserable at parts.

The other difficult part was that I seriously underestimated how tough trail running is. Most of you know I'm a longtime, relatively dedicated runner. My last marathon was 3:49. I generally run at an 8 or 8:30 minute/mile pace, and consider myself overall in good shape. It's fair to say I slacked on the training for this 17-mile trail run because I thought I could wing it pretty easy. 

Man, I was so wrong. Trail running uses muscles that I'm relatively sure my body has never exerted before in its life -- not to mention making pretty good use of all the regular running muscles, too. (And my triceps are as sore as anything else. What's up with that?) The technical aspect of it is difficult -- anticipating when and where your foot can land several steps ahead of all the other steps that you're actually currently running. And did I mention the hills? There were kind of a lot of them, and my quads would just not power me up most. 

That said. The race was well organized, and the folks running it made some good decisions on the fly, like allowing most runners to double up with partners towards the end to help us all finish the course in less than 24 hours. There were smores a-plenty (though they ran out of coffee, which, now that I think about it, nets them some pretty huge negative points). And though I didn't sleep more than 3 hours, and I was honestly totally terrified to set off by myself into the woods at 4am, with nothing but instinct and a headlamp to guide me, it was kind of exhilarating, too.

But where the experience really shone was with my 7 awesome Ragnar teammates. Sleep was restless and there wasn't much of it; the weather was wet and miserable; we were exceedingly nervous about the trail conditions; and somebody from our team was running exhausting miles literally every hour for 24 hours. And yet? Everybody remained supportive, positive, organized and kind. If there was any situation where a short temper, pissiness about our situation, or a nuclear meltdown could have been expected it was here, but it simply didn't happen. We ended the day with cheers and smiles and plans for Ragnar 2014. (Jesus christ. Is the human capacity to remember pain and misery short or what?)

So many thanks to Michelle Campbell, Bronwen Rice, Stefanie Winzeler, Paige Wooden, Tyler Frisbee, Cortney Higgins, and Allison Harris, (not to mention the dashing male support team of Seth D. Michaels and Alias) for the many hours that went into making this happen, and for such a great time. Here's hoping there's lots of aspirin, whiskey and hot showers in your immediate future.

Weekend Report: Into the Woods

Have you read this recent study that came out that says living in a city can actually MAKE YOU PSYCHOTIC? I decided it was high time to get the antidote before it was too late, so I grabbed some friends, made some chili, and hightailed it into a PATC cabin in the southwestern Maryland woods.

We stayed here:

We spent a lot of time doing this:

The girls spent a lot of time watching the boys do this:
WORK IT

We went hiking up to some rocks with a view and it looked like this:

And at the end of the we were all tuckered out, just like these two:

Good news, it worked -- none of us are psychotic. YET.

The state of my body

I'm glad to have made it through my Montana backcountry adventures unscathed, because as you may know if you follow me on Twitter, I do indeed have a stress fracture caused by running. It's in my right tibia, and I was a bit worried that it would really hinder me on the trip, especially on the days we were hiking 8-10 miles.

However, nature is magical and my leg didn't hurt one bit! It probably helped that one of the women in my group worked at a spine surgeon's office and was handing Celebrex out like candy. Maybe constantly swimming in the icy cold water of mountain lakes helped, too. Whatever it was, my leg is feeling a lot better, though I'm still taking it a bit easy, and I'm not going to run for a few more weeks at least. And I have dropped out of my planned October marathon. Le sigh.

It might all be for the best. I'm a bit burned out on running, anyways, and I'm interested in trying out something new. Which is why I finally, after much hemming and hawing, signed up for CrossFit at my gym. I promise that, no matter what I end up feeling about it, I'm going to try my best not to be an obnoxious person about it. Well, I hope, anyways. My best, admittedly, might not be very good. I'm never going to call a gym a "box," though. HOLD ME TO THAT!

I currently feel relatively well cardiovascularly conditioned - the Glacier hikes were pretty easy for me, even the steep uphills. And I credit that to all my running, and also tons of Balance Gym spinning classes (take them with Stacy - she'll make you cry/vomit). But I don't feel particularly strong, and I never have. Not once in my life have I been able to do a pull-up, for example. I'd like to remedy that.

I've also just come to accept that though I will always love and return to running, I'm somebody who sort of likes to flit from fad to fad, different routine to different routine, in order to stay interested in exercising. I enjoy trying out different exercise and fitness things. I even considered buying the Insanity videos a few weeks ago, as I sat in front of my TV a few weekends ago for a full 30 minutes, transfixed by their infomercial.

So we'll see how the CrossFit adventures go. I start my Foundations class in mid-September, so I'll keep you posted, and as soon as I get as strong as the Incredible Hulk (surely within a few sessions, right?) you'll all be the first to know.

Life goal achieved: Visiting Glacier National Park in Montana

Two years later, I finally did it. And it was nothing short of stunning. The tally:

-4 days of backcountry camping and hiking in the eastern side of Glacier National Park
-30 miles hiked
-3 lakes swam in
-10 big-horned sheep horning in on our hiking trail
-1 giant bull moose who blocked my access out of the pit toilet
-3 very happy friends, who have a new annual tradition of gathering and camping in some beautiful wilderness in the United States (we're thinking Utah next year - any tips?)

(Susan, myself and Parker atop the summit at Redgap Pass)

I'm pretty sure this trip is the embodiment of "a picture's worth a thousand words," so I'll let my Flickr set do the talking. You can also see Susan's exquisite photos here.

 

(for those curious, we used a guiding service, GlacierGuides.com, and flew in and out of Kalispell and also stayed in the Glacier Guides Lodge on the nights bookending the trip. All 3 of us would heartily recommend all of the Glacier Guides services. I'm definitely happy to answer any further questions, just post a comment below!)

Cynthia and Andy Got Married!

I have a group of dear friends that I made when I lived abroad in Italy from 2002-2003. Though we're all over the place, we still keep in touch, and now we're starting to get married. Robin and Phil kicked off the trend in August 2009 in Jackson Hole; Cynthia and Andy followed up a year later in Lake Placid, NY; and it looks like I'll be keeping the tradition going in 2011. But I'll save that for another post. Below, revel in the photos of beautiful Lake Placid (seriously, what a stunning part of the country), and photos of the happy couple indulging in some of the best soft serve ice cream I've ever tasted.

Weekend in West Virginia

Dear old Andrew turned 30 this past weekend, so he gathered a lovely group of people out at the Seneca Shadows campground in West Virginia for some camping, some bonfires, some rock climbing (for some) and a little bit of bourbon (and bacon wrapped hot dogs) for all. 

Even though it poured most of Saturday, it was wonderful. Before the rain, we got in some time at the creek and some naps in a field. I even read Oprah Magazine. (It's good, am I right?) I was particularly proud of myself because I pitched and de-pitched my tent all by myself. I mean, I did accomplish that goal previously, but that was in my living room, with Zach monitoring. This time, it was just me, six stakes, an unwieldy rainfly, and pure willpower.

Anyways, turns out West Virginia is real nice, and the people are even nicer. I also had a fantastic solo 7am morning hike (forest magic means no hangover Sunday morning) where I saw bunnies, a box turtle, and FOUND $10!(!(!(!11!!! NATURE RULES! Then the hiking trail wound up in the tiny little village area and I bought coffee and hung out with coffee shop puppies. 

A lot of folks stayed to do something terrible-looking called the Via Ferrata. You may not find it terrible-looking; you may even think it appears "fun" or "awesome." You are crazy. Look at this shit. However, I left Sunday early afternoon after two cans of Coors Light and then stopped for McDonald's on the way home. That's real living.

A few photos, unceremoniously and without permission stolen from Lana. (Sorry Lana! I'll take 'em down if you want.)

Way Too Much Information About My Toe

So, this situation with my toe. Remember it? I freaked out about it for a few posts a while back and have remained largely silent on the topic because, well, who wants to hear about a terrifying and gross issue with a toenail? YOU DO? WONDERFUL! Because I am about to go into some extreme detail, because, man. This toenail. What to do.

About two months ago I went on a lovely Memorial Day weekend cabining/hiking trip with my usual crew of folks. The Sunday morning I was there, I was unceremoniously iced. By a bro. At 10 AM. And the flavor was like, Mango Smirnoff. This is a series of indignities, but, when you're iced, you're iced, and I drank the disgusting bottle of goo like a pro. 

I'm not saying it was related to happened next, but it certainly didn't help: As I carried breakfast dishes up the slick wooden steps to the cabin, in my flip flops, I fell. In an awkward, embarrassing mess. It was immediately apparent to me that I had badly scraped my knee and badly stubbed my toe. But more than anything I was just embarrassed. Until I looked down at my left big toenail and saw that it had been ripped off from its bed, though was still relatively firmly attached at the left corner base. And there was blood everywhere. Augh.

I tried to hold my shit together with relative success, but it was painful, and I was mad that I wouldn't be able to hike or swim in the creek for the rest of the trip. Instead I got drunk on Longhammer beers on a bench, so the rest of the trip wasn't a total loss, but still. I figured the toenail would quickly fall off and I would be well on my way to starting this new life of running I had committed to in advance of an October marathon.

The toe was painful for longer than I thought, and it was two weeks before I was able to start running. But then...the pain went away. The toenail hung on. And now it's still there -- half off, half on, obviously relatively dead, but at the same time not really seeming to...change. The right side is completely off -- like, I can see under it through to the other side. Lovely! But the left bottom is still attached fully and seems completely normal.

The obvious answer about what to do is just wait it out. New nails grow slowly, and surely one is coming in that will eventually bump this one off. 

But at the same time: IT'S BEEN TWO MONTHS! Good lord almighty, how long to do I have to wait before my toe doesn't scare small children when not bandaged? I'm an impatient person! Luckily, it hasn't really affected my running schedule yet, but...GOD I REALLY WANT A PEDICURE.

Any advice? That's not "Go to a doctor, dumbass"? 

Accomplishing 30 While 30: Learning to Pitch a Tent

I did it -- the very first goal on my 30 while 30 list! Okay, granted: It's not in the great outdoors. It's in my living room. But, hey, I did it! I am a tent pitching master! I even got the rain fly on correctly. Huzzah! 

For anybody interested, this tent is an REI halfdome that my parents got me for Christmas. It is lovely and has more than enough space for two people. 

PHYSICAL PROOF!

Now, I just have to figure out a place to go do an overnight camping trip by myself. That's not my backyard. Anybody have any suggestions?

Accomplishing 30 While 30: Wilderness First Aid

So, part of my list was to get certified in both CPR and wilderness first aid. I did the CPR part back in February, and was aiming to get the WFA part done this quarter.

But as I kept looking around at classes, I kept seeing that they cost hundreds of dollars and took up whole weekends, sometimes more. I've been unable to find anybody who's taken one of these certification classes, so I was unable to determine if they are useful and worth the investment. So I took an in-between step: I ordered a pretty solid first aid kit (I never had one before, believe it or not), and aim to buy a book or two related to WFA. Oh, and to never go camping without folks who know what they're doing. I injured my toe pretty badly on my last trip, but thankfully, 3 people there had first aid kits, and knew exactly what to do. Ugh. This toe. It's still freaking me out. Anyways.

This seems like a cop-out, and I'm not saying a WFA course would be useless. But I figure if I educate myself through some solid resources, and train myself on how to properly use my kit, I'll be okay. And I do know CPR. I have a pretty card that proves it.

I'm counting this one as a sort-of-done. It was something I started off thinking was necessary, but as I go through this year and evaluate my needs and costs, it seems like I want to do it less and less. Mainly, I just don't have a few hundred to drop on it. And the camping I do is relatively tame. If I ever go backcountry camping for weeks in a remote location by myself, I'd consider it, but for now I'm hoping an REI first aid kit and book can get me through anything I encounter.

I Went Cabining and All You Get is This Lousy Photo Recap

For Memorial Day Weekend, six of us headed off to the woods to John's Rest cabin. Fun things happened—weird bugs, readings from a 1917 book about venereal diseases that we found, and plenty of icing—but I also managed to completely wipe out on some stairs (in flip flops) and totally eradicated a toenail. It's really gross, guys. It's kind of hanging on, just...dislodged. And I'm distressed. I'm pouring hydrogen peroxide on it and neosporin-ing it like it's my job, but it's certainly put a damper on the plans I had to make a grand return to running this week. Ah well. Last time I tried to do a marathon I got a stress fracture; maybe my body is just screaming at me, "GIVE IT UP, OLD LADY! NO MORE MARATHONS!"

Anyway, cabining! I'm too freaked out over my toe to write anything of substance. So. Photos.

Thoughts on a cabin

My latest favorite thing about going cabin-ing (it changes frequently) is the fact that I don't have to wear make up. Yes, I get that that is something I could do in DC, too. But then people would run screaming at the sight of me. In a cabin, we are in a 10x10 room. There is nowhere to go, except to the dark, bear-filled woods. My friends are trapped with me and my make up-less face. While I'm wearing a furry hat and a headlamp. And crowing over the fire I just started. With dryer lint that I've been packing away for a month. Can't visualize this lovely scenario? Here: 

P

Oof. They should have a campfire tale about me. It'd be called "The Woman Who Didn't Invest in Either Under-Eye-Concealor OR Mascara." Boy scouts blood will run cold.

Anyways, returned from yet another wonderful cabin funtimes weekend. This one was out at Jones Mountain, which I've written about before. The weekend was full of fire(s)...uh...don't use the two-burner Coleman gas stove that sits under the bench as you will SET YOUR SHIRT ON FIRE and only via quick-thinking Andrew and his trusty little leatherman-like thing will you be able to turn off the FLAMING BURNING SHOOTING KNOB COVERED IN LEAKED GAS...um, where was I? Oh, yes. Fires, Trivial Pursuit, beer, champagne, whiskey, more beer, more champagne, birthday wishes, and, oh yeah, our new favorite game: Trying to break the crap out of some pieces of wood with giant rocks. Behold:

And people tell me they don't understand how we can keep ourselves entertained out in the middle of nowhere.

30 Things I'm Thankful For: My Trip to Wyoming

Note: While I'm taking the time to look ahead to 2010 and my 30th year, I don't want to forget that I had a pretty spectacular 2009. So I'm going to take the next 30 days to also look back on moments from the past year that moved me and for which I'm thankful. 

#29: My Wyoming trip. Truth be told, I could probably come up with 30 reasons I'm thankful for this trip alone. But I'll just compress it all into one little post, even though I feel that this trip, weird as it sounds, marked some sort of…turning point for me. Turning point how? I'm not exactly sure. I just know I felt different afterwards than I had before. I know that the trip made me consider exactly what I wanted out of life. I know that it was definitely the best week of my year, and probably my favorite thing that happened in 2009. Other things I'm thankful for:

30 While 30: Get Certified in CPR and First Aid

Wondering what this is? I turn 30 on January 11th. Every day until then, I'm listing 30 goals I'd like to accomplish in my 30th year. If you have an idea for me, leave a comment!

#27: Get CPR and first aid certification. So, when I started this first 30 While 30 goals list, I probably had about 10-12 concrete goals in mind I wanted to do. The rest have come to me as the process has taken place, or people have suggested them to me. I've kept a list of potential ideas the whole time, adding some, deleting some, tweaking some. Some have made it to my final 30 While 30 list; some have been trashed, never to see the light of day (or be accomplished by me, at least this year. Maybe 2011!).

Last week I was talking to a PATC member about possibly volunteering for them and I mentioned that next weekend we're hiking out again to Jones Mountain. He expressed some surprise, as it's a long, uphill hike in, and then later sent a vaguely...well, take a look at this section of the email, emphasis mine: