Weekend..

What an amazing weekend! We (Jo and Ben and I) did our first camp of the year in Fruita. A desert town on the border of Utah this place is AMAZING when it comes to trails. We camped out in the sand for 3 days and biked/ ran each day until we were wiped out. I had intended on running a 25 mile trail race but decided that it would not be conducive to my goal of getting fast. So each day I went out and ran a fartlek... Friday was hard (5k effort) up the hills and jogging down for 8 miles. Saturday was a BRUTAL 18 mile run through some of the most rugged terrain I've ever been on that included a 30 foot climb down a cliff that had ropes already in place.. it was over 80 degrees and I started strong running the downhills at a fast effort and the uphills easy but finished kind of weak. I got very dehydrated- a poor choice on my part. Today (Sunday) was an amazing run on a trail called Zippity Do Da that was SICK! Huge climbs (~40 degree) with huge drops and rollers. Epic run.. I got in to a group of mountain bikers and ended up running tempo for a good portion of the 11 miles. I was able to drop the guys on the hills and then they would creep back on the flats and of course catch on the downs- all the while they got a kick out of seeing someone on foot not getting dropped by their two wheeled machines and cheered me on- we stopped at a trail head and they offered me water and were genuinely nice guys. They made me wish I was part of a sport that embraced a fellow athlete regardless of how they happened to be moving through the world.
I ended the week with 80 miles feeling amazing and rejuvenated. Maybe it was the desert? The views were inspiring and thought provoking and the running was spiritual.