Tales of Trails, Mountains and Rocky Roads

With my final race of the year fast approaching, I'm feeling really happy with how training leading up the race day has gone. With a greater focus on faster miles and flat running, I'm starting to really notice the difference, so much so that my tempo runs are now an average of 10 seconds per mile quicker than a couple of months ago. I suppose it helps that the weather has finally cooled off, particularly in the evenings when I tend to do my runs, but regardless, I am for sure feeling fitter, faster and stronger than I have done since the San Diego Marathon back in June. Last weekend, I tested my race fitness by taking part in the McDowell Mountain Frenzy 25km trail race. Admittedly most of my faster runs have been on road which makes a huge difference, but I figured that if I could do 8 minute miles on the trails, then that is a vast improvement compared to last year. When I looked at the entry list, there was some good competition for this one and I knew that if I wa...

I have no idea why I felt so nervous about Aravaipa's Punisher Night Trail Race 30km on Saturday evening, but just a couple of hours before the 6pm start, the butterflies were doing somersaults in the old tummy. For the past month, I'd been really happy and surprised at how well my training seemed to be going, and whilst 7 minute miling doesn't feel remotely as easy as it used to do, I was starting to feel much more comfortable running at a faster pace again. Enjoying some good quality training sessions The original plan  had been to run the 50k Pass Mountain race that same morning but a clash with Tillie's puppy school graduation day meant I had to transfer to the night race instead. I wouldn't have missed her graduation for the world and I'm pleased to say that the little girl was outstanding on her last training session despite distractions from her ever supportive bug brother and sister, Wilson and Brandy. The furries were also due for their annua...

It's been two months since my last race and I have to say that I've really enjoyed having a little downtime. Sure, I do have a goal race in December but for the past few weeks, I've been focusing on getting back some speed and gradually increasing the miles without the added pressure of racing. Recovery from the Mogollon Monster went really well and I've had some really good training runs where I've been hitting my target pace when required, and I've managed to keep abreast with the local running scene by doing some voluntary work at a couple of the Aravaipa events. During September and October, the weather in Phoenix was still pretty hot with temperatures still close to the 100 degree mark. Folks living elsewhere were talking about how autumn was in the air, and photos on social media showed damp, misty mornings with fog lingering in the fields, or pictures of mountains with a dusting of snow indicating that winter is just around the corner. It certainly d...

If you want to know about the Mogollon Monster 100 Mile Trail Race look here . In short, it's one hell of a tough race and in its 5-year history, only a few men have gone sub 24 hours whilst ladies course record stands at a little over 26 hours. An old friend of mine that's a keen mountaineer and has done some crazy adventures in their lives tackled it a couple of years ago - even they described it as “a tough one” where the terrain is “ ridiculously steep and loose-rock-kind-of technical” So why on earth would I even entertain the idea of something so difficult, especially when my running strengths don't include climbs? It's that thousand-dollar question .... why?! Running Friends will know why - we like to challenge ourselves, we like to see what we're capable of, we want to know how far we can push ourselves both mentally and physically. I know I can run 100 miles, I know I can run for 24 hours, but would I be able to do it on what's considered to be...