Preparing for the Grand Finale

2015 was supposed to build up to doing a 120 mile trail run in early October, the Big Foot 120. My training was all about trying to catch up after taking July and half of August off completely from running. I had to squeeze in long runs on the weekend mornings, and I had no time at all during the week to run. I would get up Saturday morning and head out the door. I enjoyed a few sights around West Seattle.


The Ladies near Salty's Resaurant

 

An eclectic neighbor

 

 

The grapes must have been good because there was only one left! (near the top of the picture)



 

I was getting nervous about the distance and, especially, the elevation gains on the race course. Two weeks before the race, I dropped down from the 120 mile to the 100K distance. I ordered my SPOT device for tracking, and started preparing my drop bags with food. And then, the week before the race I came down with a cold. I probably could have prevented it by taking better care of myself. I was staying up late at night working and I wasn't getting enough sleep. I hoped to improve, but I pulled the trigger and dropped out of the race on Wednesday before the race. I was disappointed, although I tried to look at the positives:

1) I still felt crappy on race day so I knew I made the right decision.

2) The weather was terrible. I heard reports of 60 mph winds on the ridge. And rain, and sleet, and hail. One woman got hypothermia.

3) I wouldn't have seen any of the lovely views from the trail because the weather was so bad. And I signed up partially because of the views. I planned on taking lots of pictures along the way.

4) I got to watch the race online via trackleaders.com as it followed everyone's SPOT devices! That was very cool.

 

It's time to look forward and get excited about what lies ahead.