The past month turned out to be rather eventful, so I thought I might share some of the highlights. I just finished raking leaves, and the temps are on the decline so I know the white stuff isn’t far behind. However, this has been one of the more legitimate fall seasons I can remember in quite some time, and it’s been perfect running weather. The result was an enjoyable mix of running activities that kept things interesting and entertaining! I managed to rack up some decent mileage along the way as well :)
Run for the Roses 5K/10K: As previously reported, I began the month with a great pair of race PRs. They came out of the blue considering the significant distance I had logged the day before, and it felt great to feel like I had some of my speed back after feeling a bit sluggish that past few months. Earning 3rd place finishes in my age group for both races was a nice surprise as well!
Vardo-Style Slumber Party: When it comes to ultra-training, it’s always nice to train for the overnight portion of longer races. The distances are pretty straight forward but there is no way to simulate running overnight without just doing it. So, I thought it would be fun to turn an overnight training run into more of a group event and invite everyone out to stop by when they wanted, and for as many miles as they wanted. I started running at 10:00PM on the 10th, and kept running until around 9:00AM on the 11th. I was really happy that so many friends decided to come out and log some miles throughout the evening and we had a blast. I stuck to the same 5-mile route so folks would be able to join us on the hour, and it worked out perfectly. I had company the entire evening, with other folks running anywhere from 5 to 25 miles. We got expectedly loopy in the wee hours of the morning, but the constant flood of energy kept me going, and I was happy with the 51 miles I logged. I managed to stay away until Saturday evening before crashing pretty darn hard!
Des Moines Marathon: October is prime marathon season, and the DSM marathon is becoming a nice little tradition for me. I can always count on other friends being down there, so it’s a wonderfully social race, and it didn’t hurt that I ended up with a marathon PR this year either!
Niland’s Cafe Run: Last week, a good friend decided he wanted to run to a cafe in a neighboring town for breakfast. This random run is one of the reason I love my group of friends so much! The cafe was 20 miles away from his doorstep, and the route was a straight shot down a former highway. I’ve biked this route on many occasions and have always wanted to run in this general direction, but this was my first chance to do so. Six of us in all made the journey, I logged 24 miles, and there was a stack of chocolate chip pancakes waiting for me at the end. Does running get much better than that on a beautiful Saturday morning? I think not!
Halloween Run: Our running group has a nice little Halloween run tradition that we kept alive this year as well. Everyone donned their best costumes or selected from the handy costume bin that one of our wonderful group members keeps on hand for just such occasions. Our route this year meandered around town a bit more than in past year, but it meant we were able to stop at several houses, as well as pass out candy to people in their cars while they were stopped in traffic. We even swung by a friend’s house to give her daughter a personalized reverse trick-or-treat experience, and she made out like a bandit with her candy stash! The Jello-O shots a few of us snacked on as we made our way around town helped put us in the spirit as well!
This picture managed to get even more creepy!
Overall, it proved to be an excellent month of training and racing. The numbers and the experiences will make the impending winter months that much more enjoyable. How was your month? What do you have on the horizon?
Total Runs: 26
Total Miles: 292.69
Year-to-Date Miles: 2,614.3