Tales of Trails, Mountains and Rocky Roads

 It's been two months since The Divide 200, and after having a couple of weeks just recovering and not really doing very much, running has now recommenced at a far more leisurely pace, with the weekly speed session thrown in just to keep thing ticking over. My mileage in recent weeks has been hovering around 50 miles or so which as seemed manageable without overdoing things. I have been getting out to the local trails, and it's been nice just enjoying the running without any pressure. We've been really lucky with the weather this autumn again and even now as we fast approach mid-November, there is still no snow on the ground and temperatures are well above freezing. We did have snow a week or so ago, but it melted within a couple of days and everything is back to being that dull brown colour, although there are still quite a few lawns in the area that are still looking nice and green. I have been enjoying my running and I wasn't planning on doing any more races this yea...

 A month after completing The Divide 200, I finally finished writing about my experience, and so I allowed myself to read other blogs written by fellow runners who had also taken part in the race. I'd avoided looking at others as I didn't want their thoughts and experiences influencing what I wrote - I wanted to remember things from my own first hand experience, and I didn't want to compare things to anybody else, especially when I hadn't fully digested what I had achieved in those four or so days out on The Great Divide trail. I really enjoyed reading other people's blogs and I was fascinated to hear about how their races had gone, but the more I read, the more something became more noticeable to me - my race sounded so boring when compared to others! My race had no drama, no real mind games, no thoughts of quitting or doubting my ability, I didn't have any "dirt naps" at the side of the trail in the middle of nowhere, where I was too tired to carry o...