SEPTEMBER 2023 Monthly Running Challenge

Hi all. I’m going to go for 50 miles again. I stuck to as much flat as we have here & got 3.27 miles. My toe was starting to throb on last bit but it’s getting better overall.

@Laurz9191 - Good luck for ur race. From reading back u will do brilliant. I think ur stronger than u think Looking forward to ur race report.

@martaindale - hope u love ur new watch! Always sad to see the old one go.

@AlphaHowls - U r so unbelievably modest! For me ur daily mileage has Whahoo factor & ur monthly goal makes me think how lucky we r to have u as part of this group.

September Goal: 130 Miles

9/1: 3.30 miles

3.30/130 miles completed for September

I am going to set my goal at 130 this month. There is a RTY streak challenge this month so I will be doing that. I haven't decided if I will just count running or if I will include walking. I started out the month with a little over 3 miles. It was a little warmer than yesterday, but still pretty nice. The moon was still pretty and I saw a deer. Other than that it was uneventful.

@laurz9191 Good luck on your race tomorrow!

quilteryoyo wrote: »

@7lenny7 Wow. Those times Courtney put in are amazing....and breaking the records by over an hour! It is also amazing that her mom even tried to run the race. Do you know their ages, out of curiosity?

Courtney is 38 and her mom is 66. Why they picked a extremely difficult 50 miler as a first trail ultra, I have no idea. I finished it, but only 9 minutes ahead of cutoff and at the last aid station I was only 5 minutes ahead of cut off.

It looks like Courtney's mom finished a 20 miler this past May, finished her first trail ultra, a 50k, in July, and is registered for a 100k later in the year. She's no stranger to long distances, though. She's a frequent entrant in the local FANS 24 Hour race.

@AlphaHowls - I also have to have my laces all flat, not twisted anywhere and I will re-lace them so they are crossing the same way if they are not.

@7lenny7 and @Teresa502 and any other Courtney fans here is an article from the NYT yesterday about her. It is gifted so you shouldn't hit a paywall. They talk about what a great person she is and how she is so encouraging to other runners!

Yes, @teresa502 is correct, my friend Rachel Bell Kelly ran the Hardrock 100 this year. Her race report is here.

@Laurz9191 - You will be awesome! Just enjoy yourself and have the best race possible!

Got through all my appointments and tests. Had my first ever PETScan too. Kind of like an MRI but pretty sure I will glow in the dark tonight. I am exhausted but hope to get a good nights sleep and out with Hobbes in the morning. We are cooling off and had unexpected rain this evening and the possibility of more the next couple of days.

Ha! Way to start the weekend. The reservoir where I often run locks up after dark. All summer long it is 8:00 p.m. Sometime this week they changed all the signs to 7:30 pm closing. I didn't notice.

As I got back to my car, at 7:45 pm, it was eerily quiet. Yup I got locked in for the night.

It reopens at 5:30 am tomorrow morning....I took an Uber home. Fortunately it's Saturday tomorrow and I don't have any appointments I have to attend. I'll Uber back to get it.

September Running Goal: 17 runs, 65 miles

1. Sep 1 - 4.95 miles

Current: 1 runs, 4.95 miles

@AlphaHowls I love the picture! Thanks for sharing!

martaindale wrote: »

Those of you who are on Strava probably saw this already but my watch bricked yesterday. I've had it for 4 years and wear it all the time so I feel like it had a good life. I have ordered a forerunner 625s and it's on the way! I might try out the adaptive Garmin plans for fall training this year. Mix it up a bit.

Sorry about your watch. My now-dead watch lasted 4 years of daily use as well.

Yesterday we wanted to do something fun as a family, so drove down to see some WWII bunkers in Czech. We never actually got to see the inside... waited for the next tour only to find out we needed Czech cash, drove to a nearby town for an ATM and had lunch while we were there, and when we drove back to the bunkers, people were coming out and tours appeared to be over. The guy was saying something about the sign, but even the English and Polish translations weren't making sense of why he was closing at 2:35pm on a Friday. Polish and Czech languages are similar, but not close enough in this instance. Oh well.

So we drove on and saw more tanks and bunkers from the outside, then went to a spot with a view and an "open-air museum of the black oak" which turned out to be a single sign next to a dead tree 🤔. We continued on and saw a zip-line park (next to a truck stop in the middle of nowhere) so stopped and I stayed in the car the whole time while the kids did the "hard" course. It looked really difficult and at one point one child was way up in the air sobbing and trying to figure out how to get across what looked like log swings (only sideways and just far enough apart that you had almost no way to balance yourself between one to the next) but they both overcame their fears and somehow finished the entire thing. Everyone else who attempted it while we were there, quit before the third obstacle and moved down to the easier course. By the time we got home, I was beat and just went to bed. I still feel like I've got some sort of sinus/cold thing going on.

Squash Army is under attack by slugs. I gave them the coffee treatment (took the grounds and added water, spread it all around) and they clearly didn't like that. So I'll repeat that regularly and maybe if I have energy, will go get some gloves and gather the disgusting little offenders by hand. But then what do I do with them?

Oh, running goals. Nope, I don't have any. I'll be cheering the rest of you on, engaging in food discussions, and giving updates on the squash and cold-water tub in my garden. 😁

Welcome back @Zaxa2021
That would have freaked me out @chris_in_cal I was locked out. Way to keep a clam head and Uber out of there 😀
@TheMrWobbly we have the same mindset! I could SO see myself doing that!

Did a HM this morning. Felt a lot better than I thought it would. Didn't feel like I needed to walk once 😀

September Goal: 130 Miles

9/1: 3.30 miles
9/2: 1.51 miles

4.81/130 miles completed for September

I ran 1.5 miles this morning for my streak. I got some new glasses yesterday. I wear contacts almost exclusively, but they have been less comfortable than they used to be. Plus, this is the time of year that the ragweed just kills me. I thought I would see how it was with the glasses. It was ok. I still prefer contacts, but I think I could run in the glasses if I need to. I was mostly concerned about running in them because they are progressive lenses. Getting old sucks. My eyesight has never been good and now I have to add presbyopia to my nearsightedness. I'm still planning to wear my contacts for my long run tomorrow, but it is good to know that the glasses will work if needed.

I got up early for a lovely, relatively cool, 11 mile run. Along the lake, through the countryside, then back along the lake, with a stop at the convenience store for a breakfast sandwich and hash browns. Washed down with a shower beer. Now a bit of relaxing before sailing. There's a sailing race this afternoon and I'm crewing on a friend's boat

@chris_in_cal - so glad you were not locked in to the park, just your car was! I suppose the police could likely have gotten you out though if you were.
@TheMrWobbly - I too have picked off other runners to at least keep up with if not pass. It is really sobering though to have someone 20-30 years older zoom by you and out of sight! But then on the other hand we may be zooming by someone much younger than us who is just starting out and is still slow 😊
@polskagirl01 - it would be interesting to tour those bunkers now that you know what you need to have to do it. Is it a far drive? How did your kids feel after completing the hard zipline course? I hope they felt like they had really accomplished something because that is pretty cool even if they were frightened at times because they overcame it!
@7lenny7 - beautiful pictures! looks so serene and peaceful!
So happy Courtney won the UTMB! She is amazing! 3 100 mile races in what, not even 3 months - WOW! I mean even just finishing the 3 would be an incredible accomplishment, let alone winning all 3.

Once again our weather is confused. Yesterday afternoon and evening we had rain. Not just a bit of drizzle but real pouring rain. Then overnight and this morning more rain. The good news is it is nice out - low 70s and not supposed to get any warmer. I have waited a bit so it isn't quite so wet out but Hobbes and I are heading out for a neighborhood walk.