Catchy title to this post, I knew it would grab your attention. Now read this article.

Had a great run on the trails of SolVista with the dogs this morning.

A video of us on our hike.

Here is a video from last years race. These trails are near my house.

Interesting article

“We knew that we had to grow or we were going to die, literally,” said Ted Wang, former mayor of Granby.

“Our sales tax was completely flat,” Wang said. “Inflation alone was eating us alive. We knew we absolutely had to do something to increase our economic engine.”

As a result, developments such as Granby Ranch, which includes SolVista Basin, Grand Elk Ranch & Club and Orvis Shorefox, were brought into town limits. Although these projects are geared toward second-home owners, Wang said the town required a strong commercial component be a part of each project. Grand Elk, for example, includes 350,000 square feet for commercial use along with its 730 housing units. In its initial submittal to the city of Steamboat Springs, Steamboat 700 proposes 272,000 to 331,000 square feet of commercial with 1,837 to 2,243 homes.

My friends from Steamboat via Killington just became parents. Courtney June Windt was just born.

Congrats Matt & Erin. I can’t wait to meet her. For the record: I predicted a girl, and I was only 2 days off on the date.

Yeah You!

http://proxy.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/030418
 
Q: Why do casual runners put themselves through this?
You really have to love competing to understand. For instance, my first time hiking Mount Washington was the worst experience of my life — hot, miserable, endless, almost as painful as the ESPN column I ended up writing about Mount Washington — yet I eagerly did it two more times. Does that sound rational? Of course not. Maybe it’s that moment when you see the finish line (or the top of the mountain, or whatever) and feel that rush of exhilaration, or the feeling of warm pee running down your leg, with no repercussions. I’m really not sure.
Then again, I’m not sure I understand the marathon thing, or triathalons, or any of those things. Anything that causes your toenails to fall off and dehydrates your body to the point where you lose control of your bowels … well, that isn’t high on my “things to do” list. That’s just me.

http://edoarde.wordpress.com/2008/04/20/writing-to-specification/

My version of The Simple Life

• Waking at 5am, writing, hiking and then a long run watching the world wake up.
• Singing in the car on the way to work.
• Writing a post on my blog and wondering who really reads it
• Being accountable and never calling in sick
• A full moon that lights up the sky as I take my dogs for their final walk before bed.
• Finishing a good book even though you secretly wished it never ends
• Freshly brewed coffee that is ready when you wake up. .
• Homemade chicken soup.
• A long hot shower after a long hot run or bike.
• The sound of water in the YMCA swimming pool as I swim laps
• Looking forward to visiting NH some day soon and all the people I will see. The best kind of thinking; wishful.

I ran the mileage I was suppose to and the first 40+ week.
I will be Ironman.

Just ran an hour in the snow. Ugh. Got home and got confirmation for the Steamboat Marathon. There’s no backing out now:

Name: Kristen Lodge
Race Entered: MARATHON

Bib #: 297
Gender: F
Age on Race Day: 37
T-Shirt Size: M

The Main Event

The Mountain

The Crowd

I’m not really suppose to take 3 days off, but I was only 5 miles off my plan. I’ll be better this week. I have to be: 7 weeks until the Steamboat Marathon - OMG.

We just got 8.5 inches of Snow in Winter Park. What the heck?? I’m never going to be able to run on hiking trails.

Arrested Development

&

Chicken Dance

Today I skied-*the last time in-*season 2007-2008. I didn’t really even feel like skiing today but felt compelled since this is the last week Winter Park Resort will be open. I was hoping to ski with my friend Gary, but he had a class (he teaches at NSCD).

So I skied a few runs solo, including Derailer on Mary Jane which is an endless bump run. My final run was Whistlestop which always reminds me of the awesome movie Fried Green Tomatoes-*: Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe-*a-*best selling novel by Fannie Flagg.

My final run down Whistlestop was almost tragic.-*I tried to fix my zipper while skiing and-*caught an edge. I fell hard and came-*[too]-*close to hitting a tree. It was bad-*karma. I had the-*feeling I could have died or at least been severly-*injured.

I knew it was time to get off the mountain.

Last week the Principal of the Fraser Elementary school died. She died in a car accident on rt 40. I didn’t know her and never met her, but I think of her every day while driving to work when I pass the accident location. That could’ve been me; it could have been any of us, the many-*who drive that road every day.

17 people died on the slopes in Colorado this year.

Today, I’m thankful for everything I have. I am home, safe and sound as I write this post.
I take risks every day with the activities I participate in from driving, to skiing, to running on backroads.

My plan for next winter is Nordic Skiing and working from home.

I believe in pink, I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles.
~ Audrey Hepburn

“Racing teaches us to challenge ourselves. It teaches us to push beyond where we thought we could go. It helps us to find out what we are made of. This is what we do. This is what it’s all about. ”

PattiSue Plumer, U.S. Olympian

Every step in life is a run from safety to the dark, and the only thing to trust is what we think is true. - Richard Bach