This weekend was the annual Chuckanut Training Run (thanks for hosting Balanced Athlete and Aspire Adventure Running!) I’ve run the Chuckanut 50K twice now (2016 race report and 2017 race report), so I knew what to expect on the course. However, I was grateful to have this opportunity to get reacquainted with it’s challenges and charms, and have…
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Taking the Leap: From Half Marathons to Ultramarathons
Read moreI’ve often been asked, why (and how) did I make the leap from half marathons to ultramarathons? After I respond, the person’s follow up comment usually is, “I could never do that.” Guess what? You totally can! I’m an average runner (with occasional delusions of grandeur), so if I can do it, you can too. If…
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Sunrise to Mystic Lake – now with (a bit) more mileage!
Read moreAnother fantastic day running with friends on the Wonderland Trail in Mount Rainier National Park! 20 miles, stunning views, and excellent company. All of my favorite things in one day! First off, Ellen, Tara, and I left Seattle in the very early hours, but that meant we got a cotton candy sunrise (complete with alpenglow)…
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Night Running
Read moreThis weekend I had the new experience of trailrunning at night! A friend of mine, Ellen, (of the Image Lake adventure) is going to pace a runner at Cascade Crest, and I’m training for my first 100 miler. Neither of us had trail run at night before, and we figured it probably shouldn’t be a…
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Pacific Crest Trail 50K
Read moreThis past Saturday I ran a wonderfully casual Pacific Crest Trail 50K that’s part of a training weekend for Cascade Crest 100. However, many folks running it were doing it just for fun or general training (like myself), and not specifically in preparation for Cascade Crest. It’s a point to point, so we carpooled to…
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Image Lake via Miner’s Ridge Trip Report – 31 miles
Read moreWOW, what a fantastic day on a beautiful trail! My friend, Ellen, is training for her first 50 miler (yay!), and both she and I needed some big mileage for training purposes. She heard of this runnable route up to Image Lake, boasting great views, and it was exactly what we needed. 31 miles and 4,400…
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Cascade Endurance Fall Training Camp: Jumpstarting my Motivation and Training!
Read moreIt’s been a tough summer of little-to-no running for me. Instead, it was an interesting mental challenge: recovering from an injury and also getting over the disappointment of not having any of the summer adventures I’d hoped to experience. Now, however, I’ve been given the all-clear to get back into training (while just monitoring some nagging…
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Part of Section J – PCT
Read moreWe had absolutely perfect weather today! Started off cool, and ended up warm, but comfortable. We ran with my coach’s group, but after 8 miles, everyone else turned around and we kept going. Adam was feeling really good, so he went ahead of me and then turned around at 11 miles. I made it to about…
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Back Into Training
Read moreWell, after a week and a half of coach-sanctioned rest, I’ve finally gotten back into training the last few weeks. What am I training for, you ask? Saturday, September 12 – Beat the Blerch Half Marathon We ran this race last year (inaugural) and it was a blast. Can’t wait to run it again! How…
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Summerland-Panhandle Gap
Read moreLast long training run before my race! It was in the upper 80s in Seattle today, so heading up to the mountains held more than one appeal. This training run was with my coach’s (Alpenglow) group, and it’s always fun to have the varied company. And Adam came out today! It was his first “real”…
