When the off season is a fractured elbow...

While the running 'season' may have begun last Saturday, December 20th, when I expressed such to Brendan, tomorrow may as well be more of a reality check.

Last week's 5.6ish mile headlamp run was essentially a bit of WD-40 on these rust ol' joints.  Tomorrow though is a true test of the past few years of rugged beating our bodies have taken.

Brendan glowing in the pre-dawn glow of my headlamp 12/20/14

The Wildwood Trail in Forest Park, Portland, Oregon should be a good jump in to the year of 2015 for running.

Wunderground.com tells me currently that at 10am there is a 96% chance of rain…I think it'll be a wet one.  I questioned Brendan's packing of what appears to be a $1 poncho but I think his head may be on a bit straighter than mine.  I've a Mountain Hardware jacket that should do the trick with light rain, but eventually the rain gets to me and I'll allow my body to pursue homeostatic conditions through its natural processes.

Prepping for our early run on 12/20/14 with a headlamp and Nuun

While the weather may provide a bit of its own fun, nutrition is always a point of contention.  Do you bring some sort of gel?  Trail mix?  Gummy bears?  Clif Bars?  Other granola bars?  Nuun is always a staple the day before, the morning before, and a diluted amount during a run to keep my electrolytes up and balanced.  Gel used to be my go to…it has become difficult to stomach it now, but in moderation I'm good to go.

It is amazing that with all of the preparation for weather and time on the feet, the excitement just builds! The trail provides so much for a mind and body to find focus.  Yes, the pounding of the soil does affect the muscles and the joints, but the mind has so much to give to the body if you let it.  Tomorrow will be the first time of the year (2015) to find myself back on the path that I strayed from when fracturing my arm in September of this year.  I have to remind myself that I took nearly 2 months off without even putting my running shoes on to heal-that wasn't supposed to be my off season but it turned in to it.  I can't explain the excitement that is inside me just thinking the that 8 hours and 14 minutes from right now I will be hopping out on to a trail to run/hike just around 30 mile, not because I have to, but because it is what my body is telling me I am to do to be me.

Preparations for Saturday, December 27th's 30ish Mile WildWood Trail run in Forest Park, Portland, Oregon

2015-The Year of the (uninterrupted motion of the legs)..Running

I've declared 2015 the Year of the (uninterrupted motion of the legs)…I attempted to search for a reasonable synonym to 'running' and I felt most were lackluster.  Therefore I've utilized a statement, opposed to a word, to describe the year to come.  That said, this post comes to announce that I am putting my foot down.  Just over 5 months ago when the clock ticked 30 regarding my years on this planet, I declared this the decade of all decades (yes…I may declare that when I hit the 40s, 50s, 60s, or 70s), but I mean it.  Great things are to come.

Back to the running…ahem…uninterrupted motion of the legs.  That is one small piece of the puzzle.  About three and a half months ago, September 2nd to be exact, I flipped over my handle bars avoiding a squirrel after volunteering at Oregon Public Broadcasting on their fundraising drive, broke my elbow, and my running took a backseat for a couple of months.  I backed out of one race, but inevitably ran the Klickitat Trail Half after months of not running and surprised myself with the effort.

This year, I am proud to announce that I have been invited to be part of Team Nuun for the 2015 season!  Nuun (http://www.nuun.com) has been a hydrating asset not only in my physical life over the years but as a regular part of my nutritional regiment in maintaining hydration, mental acuity, and physical endurance.

I am still finding out how to best utilize this blog regarding passions that I hold (running, beer brewing, educational policy-of course the profession comes out), but I figure word vomit is a way to start.

Back to running though.  So far this year my registration is:

- May 3rd-BMO Vancouver Marathon (Vancouver, BC, Canada)

- May 9th- Smith Rock Ascent 50k
- (Not registered-Volunteering to sweep the 2nd half of the 100k Gorge Waterfalls Race here in Oregon)

Stay Hydrated!