Moab RRR 2012~ Lessons Learned

1.  Do training runs on BOTH sides of the road so that my feet toughen to different slants, thus preventing the big blister that formed on the ball of my foot on the 1st leg.

2.  Do training runs on all kinds of terrain.  Just because I like the trail best does not mean the road should be ignored.  Pavement is harder than dirt.  My blistered toes will remind me of this as well.

3.  Fear/anxiety can be a great motivator.  I was afraid of not hydrating enough, therefore I drank constantly, knocked back some chia slime and felt like I had plenty of energy.  I also used the porta-potty at every exchange:)

4.  My dislike/fear of crowds is always overshadowed by the positive energy in the air on RACE DAY!

5.  Having total strangers cheer for you is very humbling.  I know my family will, but it is always a shock when it comes from strangers so unexpectedly.  It's as if I matter.

6.  I like smiling when I run, just to prove a point:)

7.  I can power-walk up a calf-killing hill faster than I can run up it...at least for now.

8.  I didn't need even half the amount of food that I packed, but it was nice to have options.

9.  The lady directing the primary children's choir in church the day after the race had the same temporary tattoos that I did.  She was a member of the Moab Mafia :)

10.  Everything I have learned about myself through running was re-emphasized and reinforced as I was allowed to pass through the beautiful, stunning, scenic, adventure of this relay race with my amazing team/family.

11.  I was not one of those "pushed to the limit", nor did I ever feel like I "gave it all I got".  But I will be forever grateful to being a witness to those who were pushed and did give.  Their courage and sheer guts will not be forgotten and will be put in my reservoir  for future use when I DO need to push my limits and lay it all out there.

Because it's coming...

  Rock on Team Wander Wild. Rock on and run free.  Free from fear and doubts.  Because I know it's possible.  I saw it happen.


Learn more from Wildbound's perspective here: http://wildbound.blogspot.com/2012/05/red-rock-relay-2012.html

Glorious morning!

My after-work run yesterday with Paigey turned into a wonderful walk instead:) Thanks Paigey! It was awesome! This morning Rock dropped me off at the mouth of Ogden canyon, I put my earphones in, and listened to General Conference while I ran the river parkway all the way down to the 21st street pond. He parked there, rode his bike all the way up to the mouth of the canyon, kissed me as we passed each other, and rode back down to meet me at the pond. I beat him by about 10 minutes, but he doubled my mileage:) What a glorious morning!

Paradigm shift

I have been running 2-4 times a week for about 22 months now. The longest stretch of time I went between runs was 10 days last spring when I was quite sick with a bad cold/cough. Even through both winters I have made sure to run at least ONCE a week outside rather than on my treadmill. One evening a few weeks ago it had been snowing and was dusky and getting dark when I hit the trail running. I forgot my waterproof baseball cap and just had my earmuffs on to keep my ears warm. I was running west, with the wind, enjoying the absolute aloneness and stillness as I followed a set of tracks in the snow of another runner. By the stride length and shoe size I guessed the runner was probably a tall man. As I followed his prints in the snow, I noticed them going and coming back. The snow continued to come down and as I reached my turn around point of 2 miles out, his "going" tracks kept going and were getting fainter, but his "coming back" tracks were still visible. I turned around and started the run back to my car and soon realized how nice it had been to have the wind at my back. It was now in my face! And so was all the snow! So I tucked my chin down, kept my eyes on the tracks in the snow and "made a run for it". The funny thing was that not only were his tracks being obliterated but mine were as well. I wasn't cold, but my jacket and fleece tights were getting soaked, as was my hair and gloves. But my feet were toasty warm in my wool socks:) *Sigh*

As I got closer to the end of the trail and the darkness and snow were pretty well upon me, I realized once again how much FUN I was having! And that's when I felt the shift...

"If you run, you are a runner. It doesn't matter how fast or how far. It doesn't matter if today is your first day or if you've been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run." ~ John Bingham~

I have, up to this point, felt reluctant to call myself a "runner". I have always felt that I have not made the proper accomplishments, did not have a plethora of the right shoes (although I am working on that) or put enough time into it. After coming across the above quote recently, I have decided that Mr. Bingham is right. I just needed a shift in my self-perception. The run in the dark and the snow helped with that:) If you are looking for a paradigm, you might find one out on the canal road trail west of Weber High School...

Released

I was released today from my calling in the Relief Society. Strangely, I was too busy in December to post my contribution to our monthly Relief Society newsletter - so at the gentle prompting/reminder of a friend, here it is, short and sweet.

As the seasonal celebration of our Savior’s birth commences, we as a Relief Society presidency wish to express our love for Him and for all of you. Hundreds of prophets assured countless people down through the ages that He would come as Savior and Redeemer. And He did! Just as the song by Hillary Weeks says, “It was like there’d been a drought, and every word He spoke was rain...” He truly brought life, hope, love and the only way back home. Please know that our testimonies of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ burn as brightly as the Christmas lights on our trees. We may be small individually, but together we can light the world! We love Him. We strive to serve Him. We testify of Him and know that He not only lived long ago, but He lives today as well.

In his name, even Jesus Christ, Amen.

Wrappin' it up for 2011

Happy Holidays!

Hopefully this finds you all enjoying life and loving those in it. Our blessings are being counted and we are truly grateful that you are one of them.

Mayflower (13) is in 8th grade at Orion Junior High School. Her choir teacher chose her as student of the month last spring. Her braces came off and she flashes that smile around all the time! She continues her voice lessons, YW activities and babysitting jobs. She hiked 17.5 miles with me, Rock and Uncle JT up and down the infamous Half Dome in Yosemite with what appeared to be a smile on her face and a skip in her step. Upon further questioning by myself and the benefit of hindsight, she just wanted it to be over:) We then headed to St. George and hiked through the breathtaking Subway canyon with sisters, cousins and friends.

Michex (19) just finished her 3rd semester at Weber State. She has become a valuable employee in our office at Wasatch ENT & Allergy and it was hard filling her shoes as she took the summer off to go to Camp Sugar Pine in California with Scout as a camp counselor. We also nicknamed her “the Destroyer” as she took a sledge hammer to the side yard fence I wanted taken out and basically took the whole thing down herself!

Scout (21) has just finished her 5th semester and has completed her Associates Degree at Dixie State College. She took on the challenge this summer of accepting the position as ART Director at Camp Sugar Pine and had to assess, order supplies, clean, stock and then manage and teach all the art classes in the Art Barn at the camp. She was maid of honor for her best friend, Karli (technically our daughter #5) so we were all able to celebrate that day in September with the new Mr. and Mrs. Nick Brophy in Panguitch. Scout is now heading out on a new adventure as a nanny for a family in Glenview, Illinois. She leaves January 6.

Shematite ~(23) has kept herself either on the stage or in the garden this year. Both of which are her passions. She played one of the stepsisters in Into the Woods, was a chorus member in Curtains and now has a small role in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum which opens New Year’s Eve. I have given her free reign in my flower gardens and they are always beautiful and well cared for. Moving into a small house in Washington Terrace with some dear friends/roommates in September took her closer to her Terrace Playhouse and her job as Dr. Major’s nanny.

Rock ~ has finally given in and told the girls that boys are still yucky, but that they have to date them anyway in order for some grand babies to eventually show up. It was an interesting conversation:) Just to let him know that they were all on board with it, the 3 eligible ones had a group date at our house last weekend complete with spaghetti dinner and gingerbread houses.

We enjoyed our nephew Bid D staying with us for the summer, helping us with the “honey do” list. Many hours were spent with the chainsaw taking down the much too tall maple tree in our yard this summer. It’s a good thing we took it down on our schedule rather than having the BIG WIND Storm take it down for us. Rock loves being the Teacher’s Quorum advisor and was able to take the 14 & 15 year old young men in our ward on a canyon adventure I am sure they will never forget. Best. Hike. EVER. He and I also got to sneak in a quick trip to Mesa, AZ to visit his parents and their new house.

Desertbound ~ I love my calling in the Relief Society and being able to serve the sisters in my ward in some small way. After meeting a sweet, beautiful lady coming down the trail of Half Dome in Yosemite who had just completed the Lake Tahoe Ultra marathon (yep - 100 miles) and watching her stride, my goals as a runner shifted a little bit. I will take endurance over speed any day. But for my stage of life right now, I do what I can. That includes running a 15k on July 4th with my brother-in-law Wildman, several 5k’s and the funnest one of all so far...The Dirty Dash 10k! Rock, Michex, nephew Kyle and several friends from work joined our “GOT SNOT ENT” team in September and had a great time playing/running in the mud at Soldier Hollow. I am looking forward to many more happy miles!

It was probably not a good thing that all my preparation for Half Dome was physical rather than mental, because it was the toughest mental challenge I have faced in a long time. Go ahead and google some images of the Half Dome cables. You’ll know what I am talking about:) Thanks JT for going ahead of me and being my inspiration.

Our hands and heads may be busy with work and school but our hearts are always full as we count our blessings, renew our faith, grow our testimonies and serve others in the Gospel.

Our Savior lives. We joyously celebrate His birth and life.

Scout leaves January 2nd for her new job as a nanny for a family in Glenview, Illinois. For a year!

More later:)

Yosemite

Yes - Our trip to Yosemite was clear back in August, but it still needs a belated mention in the blog archives. So forgive me because here it goes...

Jaw - dropping.

That is the the reaction I had when JT, Rock, Mayflower and I turned the corner in Yosemite Valley and saw El Capitan for the first time. This is one of those places where pictures are worth a thousand words and yet just don't do justice to the scope of the landscape. I was simply speechless at times.

The first day in Yosemite Valley (hereafter known as "the Valley") was spent leisurely sight-seeing, taking photos and gathering some last minute trail beta and tracking down some gloves to use on the chains of Half Dome. We camped outside the park in a campground called Yosemite Pines. It was about an hour away, but the accommodations were much cheaper than in the Valley.
August 8th - Half Dome Day ...8.5 miles up to the top....which means 8.5 miles back down:)
Start time: approx 6:20 am
Rock, JT, Mayflower and I (DB).
Waterfalls - 2 major falls plunging hundreds of combined feet. Mist, moss, rainbows, weeping rocks, etc.
Breathtaking views - numerous at every corner.
Towering granite formations - always in view.
Trees stretching to the heavens - a forest full of them.
Until we got to the "shoulder" of Half Dome, Mayflower was the youngest person on the trail that I saw. Out of 400 permits for hikers that day, I saw only 2 boys younger than her.
Now about our little Mayflower. I am pretty proud of her. She was literally the energizer bunny (thanks in part to a little Zipfizz in her Camelbak) that kept bopping along the trail in front of us, waiting patiently as I took pictures and never whined or complained. She wanted to turn back twice (1. as she made her way up the granite steps cut into the shoulder of Half Dome and 2. when she first saw "the cables" to the peak. Her fear of heights and the exposure put tears in her eyes. It turns out that her fear of being left behind to sit and wait was greater), but only when her strength literally gave out and she could not safely pull herself up the cables did she wisely turn back. Rock turned back down the cables with her to make sure she got down safely and I was left to follow JT and pull myself and the camera up to the top and document his bucket list check mark. I had not prepared my upper body for this at all! Legs and cardio were no problem, but the dozens of pull-ups required while trying to keep my mind focused on putting one foot above the other while keeping a tight grip on both cables was one of the toughest things I've done in a long time. I kept thinking that if I turned around, JT would have no one to take his picture at the TOP! That, and the thought that I just might not get here ever again. ( A sad side note here - for some reason I can't get my pictures of Half Dome to upload here. Please see them in my facebook photos).

So, I hauled my sorry carcass up those blasted cables, never looking down, and blessing my garden gloves the entire way. I am extremely grateful that Mayflower wisely decided not to continue up the cables. She pushed herself past her limits as it was and I am very proud of her for knowing her abilities. JT and I enjoyed taking photos on top of Half Dome and marveling at the view of the valley. The "shuffle-slide" back down the cables was much easier for me. It felt like rappelling:) Only with much more concentration required seeing as the "rope" was missing. It was still very slow going, though, because those people coming up the cables have the right of way, so those going down scoot over as much as they can and let those pulling themselves up go past.
As the 4 of us made our way back down the trail, our water ran low. But knowing that we brought a water filter eased my mind. As we came back to the river to filter water, it was discovered that a small crack in the filter we noticed that morning had grown to the point that it was virtually unusable. The nice couple that we told to meet us at the river and we could fill up their water bottles were sadly out of luck as well, but extremely kind and forgiving. It was fun getting to know June and Brian from LA.

So we hustled down the trail, JT and Mayflower taking the slightly longer but less steep way we had come up, while Rock and I ventured down the Mist Trail to see another waterfall. We all met back up together near the end and finished the hike in just over 12 hours. Thirsty, hungry and tired never felt so good!

First of all, special thanks need to go to Little T for her amazing permit-getting skills. Without her, this special trip never would have happened. Next time for sure!
Second - My big bro JT rocked! It was so fun to share this adventure with him. It was because of him that I made it to the "TOP".

And last - My Rock and my Mayflower. You amaze me. You both made this adventure ...priceless.