Tales of Trails, Mountains and Rocky Roads

As we come to the end of another year, I can safely say that in running terms, I've had one of my best for a long time. Whether it's been due to reaching a milestone birthday or simply setting myself new challenges, I really don't know, but one thing's for sure - I've finished every race I've done this year with a smile on my face. Looking back on what I've achieved, I certainly can't complain; 1st lady at the Frozen Ass 50km, 1st lady at the Fast Trax 100km, 2nd lady at the Lost Soul 100km and 2nd lady at the Edmonton Marathon, as well as several race victories over the shorter distances along the way. The major thing for me though was running and winning my first ever 100 mile race in a shade over 21 hours.Even now I still can't believe I did it, especially considering how well I coped both physically and mentally with the distance, and I'm pretty certain that another 100 miler is on the cards in the not too distant future - it's just deci...

It’s strange the different things that motivate people - for me, it’s having a target race to focus on, where everybody knows about it, and there is no shying away from the training and commitment required if I want to succeed. This year however, a few other things have helped me along the way which probably explains why I feel I’ve had one of my best years of running for a very long time. At the beginning of January, I joined the Trentham RC “Run 2013” Facebook group and set myself the goal of running 4000km (2,500 miles) by the end of the year to mark my 40 th birthday. I’ve been conscious of this goal over the months, keeping a record of all miles logged, and I’m happy to say that with just 3 weeks of the year remaining, I’m currently at 3866km and feeling pretty confident that I will exceed my original target. Many of the km covered are a result of the ultras I’ve raced this year. I wanted to run well in the 2013 Alberta Ultra Series and having now come to the end, I feel ...

Last weekend was the Last Chance Half Marathon and with things turning more towards winter as the days go by, I figured I would squeeze in this last road race of the season before the proper wintry stuff sets in. I turned up at Eau Claire not really expecting anything spectacular. I certainly didn't have a race plan and the only goal I had was to run hard to help gauge my current fitness level and to determine how recovery is progressing following all the ultras I've done recently. With light snow falling and a brisk wind making it feel more like a chilly -18 degrees, conditions were hardly ideal for a fast time, and with a distinct lack of speed work for well over 2 months, I anticipated  finishing in around 1 hour 40 mins.  Start of Last Chance Half Marathon The course followed the river for a short while before turning back towards Eau Claire and heading out in the opposite direction past the zoo. I found that I was really enjoying the run although I was curs...

I can’t believe that it’s November already, but then since September, I’ve been pretty busy racing ultras and acting as a tour guide for UK visitors. It’s been a fantastic couple of months and it seems really strange and extremely quiet now that things have settled down and life has gone back to normal. Beautiful autumn colours of Alberta   Thankfully, winter arrived a little later in Calgary this year, prolonging the fall which I have to say has been absolutely beautiful. We had some balmy temperatures along with gloriously sunny days and gorgeous blue skies, and even in the city, everything has looked amazingly beautiful with the autumn golds, oranges and yellows on the trees. With living in Mahogany in the South East of the city, we also get to see some of the fantastic sunsets over the mountains,  and with the development of the new wetlands progressing so well, it’s meant some fabulous easy runs over the past couple of weeks whilst I’m still recovering from my 1...

It all feels a little surreal – did I really complete a 100 mile trail race at the weekend? I’ve got one blister under my big toe nail, scratch marks on my neck from where my backpack rubbed, grazes on my legs from barbed wire and bracken, and a swollen right ankle, but other than that, I’ve been in much worse condition after running a marathon which makes things even harder to believe. I’ve also been pretty sleepy since just after 4am on Sunday morning and I’m starting to think that maybe it was all just a dream, and yet I have my medal and I have my punched checkpoint card which can only mean one thing – yes, I did run/walk 100 miles and yes, I did cross that finish line. Flashback to February 2013 – I reached my 40 th birthday and I was reminded of all those people that have a midlife crisis when reaching a milestone point in their lives, when they realize they are getting older and have the urge to do something outrageous to help them cope. I also had people telling me I nee...