Saturday..is it ever going to warm up?

First, I want to thank Erin for giving me the advice this morning about the direction of the wind. Her words of wisdom included; The wind was blowing from the NW,  be sure to run into the wind on the way out so I would have a tail wind on the way back.

Sounds easy enough!  Unfortunately, I started from the wrong trailhead to the Big Dry Creek. I started with a slight tail wind and ended with blustering, cold headwinds!! Oh well, good training.


Today I hit 100 miles for this year!

Thursday..the day before the Royal Wedding!

Today I went on my run and was wondering how many people will be watching the Royal Wedding tomorrow.  If you go to the Pet blogosphere, many of our beloved furbabies will be attending the Royal Nuptials!
For instance Fergie and Jake, @ Two Special Wires, have packed their bags and are on their way to England and will get there just in time to be guests of the Royal Couple!
Unfortunately, I have to work tomorrow and will not be able to attend the wedding.

What about you? Will you be watching the wedding, saving on DVR or were you lucky enough to get a Royal invite?



Have a wonderful Friday!

Monday's run to Eastlake and back

My training schedule for today called for a 30 min. run.  Since we were in Thornton, I decided to run to the lake and back. It was a little chilly to start, but I was dressed properly and by the time I was 1/2 way through, I had to take off my gloves.


I hope you have a great week,
Shawn

April snow bring's May flowers????

The first thing I do Saturday morning, besides getting a cup of coffee, is to turn on the news and see what the weather is going to be for the day.
This morning Trusty Weatherman said the temp would reach the 50's with snow and/or rain showers in the late afternoon. I must repeat THE LATE AFTERNOON!! He did not say anything about THIS MORNING.

I want his job..can you imagine if I made mistakes like the Trusty Weatherman does....Well, we will not go there!

So, back to my story. Believing the Trusty Weatherman,  I wanted to get on the trail to complete my 7.5 mile run before the snow started.  Ha Ha Ha Ha!1 Was I surprised when a quarter into my run it started snowing blue blazes..and I had to keep going.

The sky is cloudy but the temp was 39 degrees.

Still not too bad!

Starting to snow but I could not capture it with my camera.

Halfway through! See the water droplets from the melting snow!

Dang Snow!

Is that a smile?

Yikes, see the ice-sicles on my eye lashes!

My eyes are frozen shut!   Help!!!!!!!!!!

Thursday's 30 minute, out and back!

I went to Loveland to conquer THE HILL! I did pretty well and stopped 1/2 way to catch my breath then continued on up the hill. I forgot to look at my watch when I started up the hill,  but  on the way back I remembered. I started down at 1. 40 mile and when I got the the bottom the Garmin showed 1.80 mile which means the climb is .4 of a mile!  Funny thing, I  have to stop once on the way up but I sure do sail down!
I was  chilly, 39 degrees, when I started but I was dressed warm enough and had my gloves. About an hour after I got home the sun was shinning and you could feel the warmth in the air.

Here is the Nitty Gritty,


Saturday is my 7.5 mile run and it's supposed to be cold and windy...wish me luck.

Monday in Loveland!

Today's run, minus camera, was OK but I did not make it up that darn hill.

I tried but I just run out of breath. I have decided to go back to Loveland Wednesday night, after work,  and try again Thursday morning.  This has to be the best training..Hills!


Because I could not make it all the way up the hill without stopping, while running back down, I stopped half way, then ran back up. Actually, that time I did better.

When I got to the bottom of this curve, I turned around and ran back up.

Hope you have a great week!

Saturdays Photo Op

I was scheduled for a 3 mile run on Saturday and because I was in Loveland..and had my camera..well, I did quite a bit of picture taking on my run.

My starting point.

Can you see the straight line? That is where I am heading.

That road is a 7.5% grade..and my lungs can verify that!

A little reprieve before the climb.

Here we go!

Almost to the top.  I had come up this far and needed a rest! Actually, I had to stop three times!

The top!

Now the fun would begin, I could run back down!

Time to turn around

Beautiful morning!

Guess I better slow down!!!

Just over the rise and it is smooth sailing,

WOOO HOOOO!!!

Almost home

My neighbors dog, Buddy, will carry these huge sticks for his entire walk!

Buddy is an amazing Pit/Lab mix. His face is beautiful but he kept running around so I could not get a close up. It was such a treat to end my run while watching Buddy have so much fun with his stick.

Thursday's 30 minute, out and back!

Last night, Mother Nature blessed us with a much needed rain!  I was so excited to see the rain falling when I left Church last night and as far as I know it must have rained all night. This morning when I woke up it was snowing! Great big snowflakes were falling from the sky,  this would have been great except I had to run 30 minutes today.

Good news,  I live in Colorado and if you do not like the weather, just wait a couple of hours,  it will change.  That is what I did, I waited until 1PM when the temperature had climbed to 40 degrees and off I went.

Today was a great run. I felt some improvement in my lung capacity and my legs felt fine. Unfortunately, I did not wear my HR monitor but I feel my HR was around the 170's.

Monday in Loveland!

Today was a new day, we were in Loveland and I only had to run for 30 minutes. Unfortunately,  the battery on my Garmin was dead and I did not take my charger. I did have my Polar watch for the time but I wanted to know the distance of the KILLER CLIMB!

Close to our house is Loveland's water reservoir, which was built a few years back.  During the building of the reservoir, the city built a road with a 7.5% grade.  I can take this road on one of my running paths and wanted to know the exact mileage.  Let me tell you, it feels like a mile but I am sure it is not more than a 1/4 mile!

I decide this would be a good run for today, get in some hill practice and do a little speed work. HAHAHA!!!!
It was good hill work but I was so beat, the speed work was not happening! I had to stop a couple times going up the hill to get the heart rate down but did recover quickly and ran the entire hill. My goal is to run up the hill, without stopping, by May.

A few years ago, I could run up this hill and kept my HR around 184-192. I guess I have to realize that a few years can make a big difference.  I will keep a positive attitude and my eye on the dream!

My longest training run so far

There is not one good thing I can say about this run except, IT IS OVER!

By far this was the most difficult, did not think I would make it back, miserable, @#$%& run I have ever had. I wanted to sit down on the trail and pray someone would come by and offer  me a piggy ride back to my car. I HATED EVERY LAST MOMENT  until my last 100 yards!

After my run, I tried to analyze what went wrong and I came to the conclusion that:

       1.  I was not able to run, for a week, because  I was having vision problems in my left eye.

       2.  My nutrition was in the tank for a run. Yesterday, I had a decent breakfast and lunch but skipped dinner
            because I ate too much cake at work and was not hungry. This morning I only had a banana before
            my run.

These are the only two things I can contribute to such a poor run.  I will be back on the trail Monday morning.  hopefully with proper nutrition I will do better.

April 2nd..Happy Birthday to Miss Emma!

Miss Emma, Nana and Erin( Emma's Mommy)

Fourteen years ago today, Miss Emma was born. It was a snowy Colorado spring morning when this little angel entered our world. Our whole family was at the hospital, waiting for her to arrive, and when we finally heard her precious first cries our lives were changed forever.
Emma is a very special young lady, so like her mother in many ways. Emma is the type of child who wants to make sure everyone is happy. She never wants to disappoint, or hurt, anyone. She is maturing into a woman that is caring, loving, thoughtful, ambitious, creative, intelligent, a lover of animals and all those around her. She does not get involved in teenage petty fights with friends..she is the peace maker. She has a sweet, spiritual side that will continue to grow as she matures.
She is a lovely flower bud ready to bloom into a magnificent blossom.

Today I dedicate my run To Miss Emma..

May you:
always find the best in others,
continue to grow spiritually,
succeed in school,
Always see your glass half full,
Be a champion for the underdog,
never succumb to peer pressure that could put you in harms way,
always know that  family is the most important part of your life and you can come to anyone of us if you need help solving a problem

I pray you make your way in this world with a smooth road,
I hope you enjoy the small things, realizing it is not the material things you have in life but the love of family and friends that will bring true happiness.
Always remember how much you are loved.

((((HUGS)))
NANA

Stay tuned for Jonah's birthday Post!