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| Susan is very excited (and a little scared) about her 2013 racing schedule! |
Sunday was a rainy day and I was having a hard time getting motivated to finish some work-related projects. I glanced over at my "race pile" - an ongoing, never ending stack of papers, postcards, brochures, and magazine tear-outs that contain various bits of information about events that I think would be fun to do. There are trail running races, standup paddleboard events, mountain bike adventures, long distance bike races...some event you can do with your dog (I don't have a dog but I have a very accomodating cat). So I decide that now's the perfect time to draft up my 2013 race calendar.
I haven't been training much lately since the hematoma on my calf is still swollen and very visible thanks to a mountain bike race crash over three weeks ago! Not to mention that the rest of me is also feeling very swollen (more like bloated) since "that time of the month" just hit and I feel about as fit and in shape as an Umpa-loompa from Willie Wonka. My body may be bloated and hematoma'ed but my mind is ready to train!
I start out with my ultimate wish list - which means I am independently super wealthy and I have all the time in the world to do nothing but train and race. Oh, and I also enter into a somewhat delusional state and imagine myself being in a super fit, super "lean and mean" shape (which means I'm about 8-10 pounds lighter than my current weight and I could keep up with Lance Armstrong on my bike or Dean Karnazes trail running on Austin's greenbelt). So taking all this into consideration, this is what 2013 looks like:
January - Big Bend 50K Trail Run
February - Rocky Raccoon 100 Mile Trail Run
March - RAAM Challenge 200 Mile Bike Race (solo)
May - Jemes Mountains 50 Mile Trail Run
July - California Death Ride Bike Ride
August - TransRockies 6 Day Trail Run
October - Furnace Creek 508 Bike Race (2 day)
December - Coyote Moon 100 Mile Trail Run
My philosophy with choosing races is that they should always give me an excited feeling in the pit of my stomach. The excitement can come from the venue itself or, more frequently, because the event scares me a little bit. I think it's good to get pushed out of my comfort zone when I start getting too "comfortable" (or lazy) with what I'm doing. Fortunately for me (or unfortunately for those around me), this usually means doing longer and longer events or going to some crazy part of the world. So as I sit back and look at my 2013 ultmate wish list, I get butterflies in my stomach. And those aren't the menstral cramps talking either.
If I proceed with even part of this list, 2013 will have several firsts - my first 100 mile trail race and my first solo 200 mile bike race. There come the butterflies again!
I'll sit on this list for a few days and then make my final selection, which will probably mean cutting the list down by half. If I'm serious about 2013 then there's no time to wait - training officially starts back up again on Monday (that's today)! Someone better tell that to my hematoma.
Go.Do.Be.
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Need a way to jumpstart your week? SweatyShe Mondays are thoughts and humorous musings from the world of active Shes.
OMG that is quite an intimidating schedule,are you going for a yearly mileage total??
ReplyDeleteNo. Just looking for really fun events that scare me a little bit. I figure this should do the trick! Care to join me? :-)
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