I might need a helmet!

(photo by: Glen Tachiyama)

I can't even call this post Chuckanut Mountain 50K race report. I am so delinquent on blogging. Seems like every time I sit down to post a thought something comes up. Life is busy right now but it's all great stuff so choices are easy.

A small Chuckanut recap: I had nearly a 15 minute PR. I shocked myself! I ran well and had minimal inhibition by my nagging hammy. It gave me some fits on the ridge trail section but seemed to mostly cooperate for the rest of race. The downhills were the worst but I still ran fast with a shortened up stride. The flat section home was a bit edgy. One over stride and zing! Fortunately I was no worse off after the race and a week in Hawaii over spring break was perfect healing. Team Lululemon, Portland has been put together and I am proud to be representing such a fun company. The team gear is super cute and not logoed out. Meggan did a great job pulling this together and hopefully the company will expand the team next year.

Chuckanut was such a great race for me. It really was a stepping stone in bringing my short game up to speed. Cheri and I have been tearing around the trails like crazy using each other as carrots both with intention of making the other work. I absolutely LOVE these kinds of workouts and focus. I have never done this kind of trail work before and it has paid off. Black Saturday's are hard but a totally different kind of hard. The change up is perfect timing for me. I am still working with the Daniel's principles but applying them a bit differently than I have in the past. Using heart rate to determine my workload on the rolling terrain vs. pace. After a tiny scrape on forehead from a dangling branch that come so fast I didn't see it I wondered if we should be wearing helmets on these workouts! Cheri is a fabulous downhiller and I sometimes feel like I am going to kill myself trying to keep up. One false step and I am a goner! My miles are up and my intensity is up in a different way. My trail pace is improving greatly.

Next up Peterson Ridge Rumble 60K next Sunday. Bill, Cheri, Micheal Gary and I all heading up for some Central Oregon trails. Peak training for Bighorn starts after Peterson. I am anxious to see what that entails for weekday stuff. I know the long back to backs will be an element.