The Usual. And the Unusual.

The usual: Our Saturday morning long run at the Rochester Athletic Club. I so enjoy these runs, both for the run, and for the camaraderie of friends. So many super friendly people. For one, Jen Bradt is such a hoot. Her conversation makes the miles pass so quickly. And the things we talk about ... only on the run! Topics like blowing your nose ... sans kleenex. And with several triathletes in our pack, the conversation amongst the guys drifted to guys being able to pee, without getting it on themselves, while riding a bike. A talent, for sure. Seems like there are no taboos when it comes to conversation amongst runners on the run!

The unusual: Dan Strain has been solving the Rubik's cube once per mile on some of his runs this week. One run he did it 7 times in 6 miles or something like that. Now his goal (his dream??) is to solve it once per mile during the Med-City Marathon. Apparently something in a math-related conversation with me during last week's long run provoked this thought. Hmmmmm ... can't remember what that could have been! Anyway, he's looking for someone to mix up the cube for him each mile. Any takers out there??? This is tooooo funny. I so wish I was going to be at Med-City as several friends are running their first marathons there this year and I'd really like to see Dan at mile 26 with his Rubik's cube. :-) What if he gets to 26.2 and he hasn't solved it yet?? The suspense is mounting!

My morning run: It turned into 20.00 miles. 2 miles more than I wanted but there wasn't much I was going to do about it. I woke up late today and popped out of bed when I saw the time. Just about enough time to dress, cut the pan of bars ...

gather up my stuff, and head to the RAC. I grabbed a Hershey's kiss and tasted about a 1/2" piece of a bar to make sure they were OK. They were. :-) Another keeper recipe (link posted yesterday--all these Land O'Lakes recipes have been dy-no-mite!!). Well, I started fading fast at about 14 miles and decided to head to Great Harvest at 15.80 miles for a hunk of bread. My tank was totally on empty, and I knew it. So I got a (big) sample slice of Honey Whole Wheat bread and headed back toward the lake and the water stop. This added more than 1/2 mile to the route, which was more than a mile long. So by the time I got back to my car, I had 20.00 miles on. And I was beat. Totally spent. Next week will be a lot shorter, that's for darn tootin'!!

I had to laugh at all the comments I got this morning about my April Fool's post on Wednesday. Apparently, I had a lot of people oozing sympathy for me ... until they scrolled down past the picture. Ha! Gotcha!!

A couple of weeks ago, I got a really fun shot of our merry little band of runners heading down 18th Ave SW. I cruised on ahead so I could snap a photo. No problem when heading down hill! A very fun shot.


So I decided we needed a complimentary uphill shot. Well, that meant that I had to beat everyone else up this almost 1/2 mile hill and get my camera out, on and focused before they all got to the top. Argghh. But I was game, so I did it. I'm glad I did. It's another fun shot. By George, they're even smiling. But I think I left my legs on that hill!!


So ... on to tomorrow and the Fool's Five Road Race (5 miles, Lewiston, MN). The forecast is calling for snow, and lots of it (6-12 inches), and wind, and lots of it (20-30 mph sustained). K.C. and I are driving over to run it. He said he's actually looking forward to running a race in a blizzard. Me? Not so much! Especially the way my legs are feeling today. I think a slow jog might be in order. My Ice Bugs (shoes with carbide spikes) might also be in order. Also, my upper body is a bit sore today after raking yesterday. I don't ding around when I rake ... ;-)

Fetzer 20K: Everything is coming together very nicely. I feel like I should be stressing out about something at this point, but I'm not! Ron Giles and I picked up the race equipment from the shed this afternoon. Thank you for your help and the use of your pickup, Ron! This weekend, I will finalize all the volunteer assignments and send them out. Shirts will be printed early in the week. I'm anxious to see how they turn out. Entries are still being accepted!

From the Spring Classic folks: Tom O'Leary, Judy Weller and I (Jean Murray) are looking for volunteers (and runners!) to help with RTC's Spring Classic races and Kids Mile events, Please consider volunteering or referring this to your family & friends that might be interested!! It's a great way to put a little spring in your step! We have a variety of jobs starting with Packet Pick-up on Friday evening at Running Room, and many jobs before, during and after the races on Saturday morning, May 2nd. Give a shout if you can help us out! And thanks in advance for your consideration!!

I'm about ready to roll on the floor (again!) with hunger so will bring this post to a close now. In an hour, I'll be joining the TriRochester folks for the season kick-off pizza party at Rochester Cycling and Fitness and have to get the banana bars frosted yet. Should be fun!

Quote for the day: "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are." --Theodore Roosevelt

Toodles!!