2nd Half of August (and 1st Week of September) Updates

September 9, 2018 / racingthestates / 1 Comment

It’s Football Season! Go Broncos!

Like a lot of bloggers, I do regular “updates” posts talking about what’s going on, keeping me active on the blog and general updates related to my blog (running and travel). Ideally, weekly updates posts would be relatable for people, but that’s too ambitious for me; I have tried this in the past without much success. So, I’ve been doing (roughly) twice a month. I’ll also have current likes, obsessions, books I’m reading, tv shows I’m getting into, updates with each job have, etc.

Holy crap. I need more hours in the week. The end of August and September has been so busy between all of my jobs and house projects. I haven’t had a chance to do much blogging. I have a bunch of posts half written or ideas ready to go. Hopefully, soon I’ll finish them! You can expect to see a Fortitude 10k Recap, a couple running-related book reviews, and some gear reviews via being a BibRave Pro! Until then, here are some updates since my last updates post!

From the last weekend in August, I have had quite the packed schedule and haven’t had a day off, until today (Sunday). I finished up August by race directing our Erie Half/5k for 3W Races and a couple of Cross Country meets. That put us into September with more cross country meets, more 3W Races work and more races to direct.

End of August
-Race Directed the Erie Half and 5k. It was a full day of running around like a chicken with its head cut off.
-I did get to work a really cool event for 3W at the end of August. A local health center (UC Health) was filming a commercial that involved creating a fake 5k race. The artistic director for the commercial wanted the “race” to look real and borrowed a lot of our timing and race equipment and I was needed to go set it up and take care of it! I was so enthralled and fascinated by the whole thing; seeing a film crew and watching all that goes on behind the scenes just to make a one-minute commercial is pretty crazy. I can’t wait for the final product to come out! And no, I didn’t get to be IN the commercial! My break into stardom comes later…… (in case you didn’t get it, this is foreshadowing for something later in this post!) 😉

-August 31st: Arapahoe Invitational Cross Country Meet. This was our first real meet of the season and was a true cross country course with grass, dirt, water crossings, etc! Our kids did great, many had personal course records, and our new runners getting their feet wet (literally) in the cross country world.

September
-September 1st and 2nd were very busy!
-On Saturday the 1st, we took the cross country team up to Leadville for a great race! This super fun course at 10,000 feet elevation brought a lot of hardware home for our kiddos. Our JV and Varsity boys teams took first, our Girls Varsity took 3rd and our JV girls took second! In three of the races, we had the overall winner and in the 4th race, we had the 2nd overall winner.

The Leadville Meet

-Then I high tailed it to Denver to set up a 3W Booth at Mile High Stadium for the next day’s expo/race.
-Then I high tailed it up to Longmont for my Mom’s husband’s 60th birthday party.
-On Sunday, I woke up early to work the booth at Mile High Stadium (not my favorite thing to do for my job) and then back up to Longmont again for a family dinner with my Mom’s side of the family.
-MONDAY was fun as I ran the Fortitude 10k! I’ll do a whole race recap, but I met up with my friend Katja and we ran the 10k “together.” She’s way faster, but we hung out at all other times. I ran it in 51:56 which isn’t a 10k PR but is the fastest I have run a 10k in a REALLY long time! I also randomly got pulled to the side to be on Channel 2 News for an interview! So, now, I’m TOTALLY famous! 😉

: My Mom recorded it

: At the finish line

: At the Start

: The 2nd Fortitude 10k, but my first!

-And Tuesday, it was back to the grind at 3W and cross country; I worked in the office at 3W HQ getting ready for the Denver 5k in the mornings and then had to jet up cross country practice in the afternoons!
-Thursday and Friday were packet pickups for the Denver 5k and truck loading.
-Saturday was the big day; The Denver 5k! I’m used to race directing half marathons and a 5k is much more fast-paced, but it helped to have four other staff members there since our lack of volunteers would have shown! (Side note: no one wants to volunteer anymore for races! What gives!?)

Enjoying a post race beer with the crew and racers

And finally, I get a day off… but alas, I have to get off the computer and help on the house… say la vie!

New/current happenings in the world of Golden Mountain Guides:
Not much new, just trying to keep up with it all between my other jobs. It’s slowing down a little bit, but every weekend has been fully booked. I just wish I, personally, had more time to work on some marketing stuff.

New/current happenings in the world of 3W:
Not much NEW. As I said earlier, yesterday was the Denver 5k and next weekend I am race directing the final of a four race series for the Prairie Dog Half Series and then the next race that I’m working is the first weekend in October when I time the K9 Canter.

New/current happenings in the world of coaching:
Cross country season is in full swing with meets every week and practices every day (except Sundays). I’ve missed a few here in there due to my other jobs, and I hate missing them because I love coaching those stinkin’ kids, but you do what you have to! Our next meet is Tuesday down in Elizabeth, CO and then next Saturday (but I can’t go due to race directing) at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

What I’m reading:
-I just finished up Kara Goucher’s “Strong” which was pretty good. It’s a little too hokey for me, but I get the main point and purpose (using the power of the mind).
-I’m now in the middle of “End of the Rope: Mountains, Marriage, and Motherhood” by Jan Redford. No, I’m not pregnant, but the book is about a climber girl trying to figure out her place in the world as she deals with life and death in the mountains. So far, I’m really enjoying it even though there have been some terribly sad moments.
-You can see what I’m reading regularly on GOODREADS! Give me a follow!

What I’m Watching:
I haven’t been watching much lately. In my last post, I told you about my Disney Movies challenge. This week, I did get to watch a few oldies like “The Watcher in the Woods” (CREEPY!) and “Herbie Goes Bananas” (Not a good one). I’m into the 1980’s!

What I’m Listening To:
I finished up all the OLD episodes on the BibRave Podcast but have a few more of the latest ones to catch up on, but I’ve been taking a break and actually listening to the radio! Weird, huh?

What I’m loving at the moment:
Coaching. Those two hours of the day that I’m coaching are the only thing getting me through the weeks. During those hours, coaching is all I’m thinking about and getting to interact with the kids and share running tidbits and advice is awesome. Plus the actual time running lets me clear my head a bit (until the next kid asks a question) and relax.

What I’m hating at the moment:
Feeling SO TIRED! Everyone knows me as the tired person and I hate that. Maybe someday in my life, people won’t see me as always being tired.

Noteworthy:
I’m signed up for the Scooby Doo Virtual Run Challenge and you should do! There are two virtual races for the challenge, one in September and one in October. They are meant to be something to do with your dog, but you don’t have to have a doggie to participate. You get a medal for each race AND a challenge medal (and so does your dog!). Plus, part of the proceeds goes to the Best Friends Animal Society!

-Sign up and join me! 🙂 Use coupon code: BIBRAVE for 10% off!

#60HikesDenverChallenge – Denver: Washington Park

February 1, 2017January 28, 2017 / racingthestates / 1 Comment

wash-park

(For 2017, I have a goal of getting through all 60 trails in the book “60 Hikes Within 60 Miles Denver Edition.” You’ll see these posts all year-long. You can find a lot of info on each of the trails in the book, but I’ll highlight some things each time in addition to including my experience and opinion on the trail. The number below is associated with how they are labeled in the book if you have it.)

Trail #18 – Denver: Washington Park
Completed: 1/25/17 | Mode: Running!
Location: Denver – Virginia Ave. & Downing St.
Distance: 2 miles (I ran extra and got in 3.25)
Difficulty: Easy, peasy
Surface: Hard packed dirt on the outer trail and a mix of concrete, asphalt, and dirt inside around the lakes and fields
Exposure: Lots of shade from GIANT old trees!

20170125_133816

My Experience:
It’s well known to people who know me that I hate driving. I hate driving in Denver even more. So when I needed to run an errand for work in Denver, I decided to kill two birds with one stone. The only trail in the book that is in Denver proper is Washington Park. Now, I’ve run here before, a handful of years back on a first date with a guy I met while trying out online dating. I remember making two full loops around the park (about 5 miles total) and thinking it was a lovely run. Coming back to this park, I can’t help but reflect on the terrible online dates I had back then, but also on how in-shape I was, being able to easily bust out 5 miles on a whim. The three plus miles I did this past week was pretty exhausting, but I digress.

Wash Park (what the locals call it) is a little bit of nature amidst the busy city. While you can still hear and smell the cars, there are giant old trees around every corner reminding you just how old Denver is. The trail encircles a few ponds, large fields, and tennis quarts. This is a super popular place for summer activities. Think volleyball, running (duh), kite flying, paddle boats, and more! A lot of races happen here as well.

20170125_134642

Pros
-Flat
-Lots of surfaces to choose from (hard packed dirt and concrete/asphalt)
-Can get a lot of miles in here depending on how many loops you want to do

Cons
-Can hear/smell/see cars
-Can get crowded especially on the weekends and in the summer
-Traffic around and to/from here can be a nightmare
-Limited amounts of “good” parking

20170125_133109

Tips
-If you’re driving into the city, I’d visit during the week when there will be plenty of parking. Side street parking gets tricky.
-Depending on how many miles you’re trying to get, you can do the outermost loop (like I did) and then add some miles by going around the little ponds to create variation.

Overall
Although I’m still unsure as to whom this book would be intended for, I’m going on the assumption that people who live in Denver would buy this book to experience trails close to home (within 60 miles). I’m not sure this place needed to be included, not would I call it a “hike.” Sure, it’s a great city escape and lovely place to run for the locals, but I wouldn’t come back, driving 30 minutes, just to run here.

20170125_135444

Check it out (affiliate link):

Check out some of the other popular cities:
Seattle:

Washington D.C.

San Francisco

AND LOTS MORE!

Patriot Day 5k – Post Race Recap and Unexpected PR

September 12, 2016September 11, 2016 / racingthestates / 2 Comments

Well, it’s been awhile since I’ve done a “post-race recap.” I’ve been running a few races this year but haven’t really taken the time to review them. Since this blog is partly about running, it’s about time that I recap a race of mine.

This past weekend was a “holiday” of sorts to remember and honor those that served our country on that awful day 15 years ago. I was a freshman in high school sitting at my desk in earth science watching the news as the two towers fell down.

I will never forget that day and our country will always remember those that had fallen with the towers. The company I work for, 3W Races, holds a race every year to honor those first responders and military that were there that day and that continue to serve our country. The Patriot Day race started out as a 10k and 5k but this year we only did the 5k. Not being responsible for the production of this race, I decided to run it! Talk about perks of the job!

This race is in Denver and around a beautiful park in the city, Sloans Lake. Being a super flat course (the most flat of any of 3W’s courses), I wanted to see what my current fitness level is by racing as hard as I could. I didn’t want to wear a watch, I just wanted to go off of feel. After getting this time, I plan on picking some running goals and deciding what I actually want to do with the sport.

14238129_1108118839223169_1466040881162767160_n

I showed up to the park pretty early, getting plenty of time to talk with friends and get a warm up in. One friend in particular told me he wanted to PR which would be a sub 25 minute 5k for him. He told me he wanted run with me, or at least keep me in his sights. I figured we could run together since my time would be somewhere around 25 minutes anyway. That’s what I’ve been running in recent races.

The whistle was blown and off we went. My friend and I ran pretty hard from the start line. I have a bad habit of starting off too fast, and even though I tried not to this time, I knew we were running pretty quickly! I don’t know even remember what the time was, but we were both shocked when his watch beeped at the first mile marker. I told my friend that it’s okay, we can still get that PR as long as we hold where we’re at.

By mile two, he was still on my shoulder; I knew he was set up for a PR. I waved my hand up, holding a “one” on my fingers telling him we only had one more mile left. I pushed it a little harder, still feeling great.

Then, with three-quarters of a mile left, I looked down and saw my shoe untied! I swear I doubled knotted that thing and ironically, I was even thinking about shoes untying while running. UUURRRGGG. Not stopping, I just became very aware of where I was putting my feet down at.

I passed a group and they reminded me of the mishap but I still kept going. I passed my friend’s wife on the course and told her he was right behind me. Looking up, the finish line was in sight and I pushed even harder.

Noticing that I was finishing around 23 minutes, my friend was definitely in for PR. I looked back and there he was, flying in for a minute and a half PR! So excited, we high-fived and he thanked “Coach Vestal.”

Feeling pretty good, I started thinking about my PR. I honestly couldn’t remember it, but had my phone with me. Checking my blog, where I record such things, I found that I had beaten my PR as well. I couldn’t believe it. I had not goal of a PR, just a fast race. I have been feeling super slow lately, and not as fit as I used to be, but I had indeed ran my fastest ever 5k! The best part, is I still feel room for improvement!

A PR kind of day, about half a dozen of us gotten PRs! It was awesome! We all got to take turns re-setting the time clock to our times, and took some celebratory pictures then headed to a local brewery for celebratory beers.

I was also 1st in my Age Group!

Colfax Marathon Relay – Pre Race Prep

May 14, 2016 / racingthestates / 1 Comment

Picking up my packet for the 2016 Colfax Relay

At 4:00am, tomorrow morning, my alarm will be going off.

At 4:45am tomorrow morning I will just be parking my car.

At 5:00am tomorrow, I will have finished my coffee and start walking over to City Park in Denver.

2016, running!

At 5:15am, I’ll be starting my warm up for a 6.4 mile run.

When it gets to 5:45am, I’ll have taken off all my warm clothes and be waiting in Coral A with a bunch of other eager runners.

And at 6:00am, tomorrow morning, I will starting the first leg of the Colfax Marathon relay for the third year in a row!

2014 Relay team, and all City of Golden employees running colfax!

As always, I am running with four other lovely ladies that all work for the City of Golden in some way. Consisting of HR, police officers and rec center employees, our ladies relay team, the Golden Foxes, are racing in the Colfax Marathon Relay – The Government Cup to try to raise money for the Foothills Animal shelter.

A couple of years ago, we placed 4th and raised $1,000 for a different Golden charity. I hope we can do it again!

2014 Packet Pick Up

Chances are, when you finally read this, I’ll have finished the first leg of the relay, approximately 7:00am, and be patiently waiting around the expo for the rest of the Golden Foxes to finish so we can celebrate!