Happiness: A Saturday Story

6:00am   wake up, get movin, get motivated

6:45am   turn on the seat heaters & hit the road

7:30am   arrive at Heritage Park Dirty Spokes Trail Race, butterflies ensue

8:30am   get your {8 mile} trail run on

10:00am   handsome husband gets an award, swoon

10:30am   post-race brunch at the grit, baby smiles & a trip to trader joe's

3:30pm   family nap in the sunroom, puppy cuddles & warm feet

5:30pm   wake up to tingling feet, espresso pick-me-up

7:30pm   GF chicken and pineapple pizza, GF brownies
9:30pm  fall asleep cuddled on the couch

The best way to spend a Saturday

xoxo

copyright Hiking in Stilettos

Frogtown Trail Challenge 2010

If I had to choose my favorite race of the year, it would be the 10 mile Frogtown Trail Challenge, hands down. This race has quickly become an annual tradition in our family. This year started on a beautiful, cool, crisp October morning. It was an absolutely perfect day for a race.

Before: clean, cold, and happy

What makes this race so much fun are the many obstacles that you encounter during the ten miles. It's not just running... there's a mile in ankle-to-knee deep water, multiple hill climbs (one of which is brutal!), a few ditches that are traversed with the help of a rope, a couple log crossings, and lots of mud. Also, the participants are excited and happy. From the seven years old tothe seventy years old, the sense of camaraderie is almost tangible.

The race takes a bit longer than your average ten mile trail run due to the obstacles. The intermittent spells of just running are through gorgeous wooded trails, covered in leaves and through a section of overturned logs.

With it's challenging and enjoyable course, enthusiastic and supportive volunteers, and beautiful location, the Frogtown challenge a great tradition that we have begun and can't wait to continue with next year's event.

After: muddy, wet, and happy


Fear the Frog!
xoxo


images courtesy of Frogtown Director Crew (Thanks, guys!)
copyright Hiking in Stilettos

Trail Running: It's Not About the Trail

Or about running, or staying fit, or losing weight, or getting faster, or winning races.

It's not about fancy trail shoes, or electrolyte replenishing, or protein shakes.

It's about finding inspiration, thinking through the day, or memorizing drug interactions until my mind just goes blank. It's about losing myself into the trees to the point where the only noticeable sounds are my breathing and the cadence of my feet. It's about melting into the woods and becoming a part of the trees and trail that surround me. It's about that one hour every day (or sometimes every week) that is completely mine. No obligations, no responsibilities, no distractions. Just me. And the trail.

Sometimes it's hard. Sometimes it's a choice. I can quit, cry, and complain or I can just keep running. (Don't worry. I'm not going to go all "running as a metaphor for life" on you here.) It's about pushing yourself farther. It's about pushing forward.

It's about feeling exhausted, sweaty, overheated, muddy, and completely empowered. It's about mental strength and perseverance. It's about overcoming self-imposed limitations.

So really, it's not about the trail.

It's so much more than that.

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Run This: Leadville Trail 100

The Leadville Trail 100 mile race began 29 years ago when ex-miner Ken Chlouber invented the "Race Across the Sky" to generate tourism in the city. The first LT 100 had 45 runners, only 10 of whom actually finished. To date the course follows the same 50 miles out and back as the original route, winding through the Rockies and topping out at 12,600 feet at Hope Pass. (It's important to note, too, that the lowest point in the trail is 9,300 feet.) The racers are provided with flashlights and batteries as approximately half of the race is run in utter darkness, (old mining roads in the mountains don't have street lights) and typically only a little over half of the runners make it to the finish. Exhaustion, broken ankles, and altitude sickness are common in the Leadville ER the weekend of the race.

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While I will admit that the idea of a 100 mile race is slightly intriguing, I definitely don't see myself actually withstanding 30 hours of running, half of which may be in the dark. (The 4:00 AM start time and mandatory medical check are also great deterrents.) The Marathon and Heavy Half Marathon, however, are a bit more within my reach. The half/marathon course winds its way through the historic mining district of Leadville via old mining roads and tops out at the 13,185 feet of Mosquito Pass. Not exactly your weekend trail run, but an appealing challenge nonetheless.

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So if you are in the Leadville, CO area during the summer months, there are a number of events for you to attend. From Lance-approved mountain bike races, to 10ks and training camps, Leadville has definitely made a business out of its trial running. But don't worry about the crowds of racers, Leadville still maintains it's small town affections. One participant described the trail 100 mountain bike race as riding with 1500 of your friends.

{image credit}
{read more about the LT 100 history here.}

Happy Trails.
xoxo


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