Coach Jen B

The third time is a charm.  Right?   Well.  Sometimes.   On the way to Mount Washington.  I was the crazy, chatty self that I am.  And Ward was focused a quiet.   I drive him absolutely crazy.  And Tucker is sleeping in the back trying to block me out.   PR dinner right here!!!!   Nothing says run fast like a huge burger with an onion ring and fries!  I remember eating something similar just before I ran the MDI Marathon.   Parking lot yoga on a beautiful day.  I wasn't the only one.  But maybe I was the only one propping my phone against my water bottle to document it.   Leading up to the 2018 Mount Washington Road Race, I had severe doubts.  I wasn't sure what to expect with this race.  There are so many factors that go into this race.  The training  and time I put into the prep work, my fitness level, mental/stress levels, and the weather.   ...

Today I ran my 2nd Bradbury snowshoe race for the 2018 season, which was my 2nd time completing the White Out (4 mile) race.   Earlier this week, Maine got dumped on (again) with some fluffy white snow about midweek and then another smaller storm yesterday, which was making for perfect snowshoe conditions.   But then another storm moved in and this time it brought rain.  It rained a bit yesterday and the forecast was calling for rain during the race.  But luckily it did NOT rain during the race.  The weather gods nicely waited until the race was over until the rain started.   Getting back to what makes me feel awesome before a race, a vinyasa flow and some pigeon.    But the little rain we did get made the snow super slushy, which definitely created a super challenging  (and very fun!) course today.   Today I felt great.  I felt ready to take on the trails at Bradbury.  Which was so different than last Sunday's MidW...

It is THE winter road race in Maine.  I've looked forward to this race every year since I started running it.   The MidWinter Classic is a 10 mile race in Cape Elizabeth held on Super Bowl Sunday and it just seems normal to get up and run 10 or more miles, swing by Trader Joes and buy all of the food for the game, then come home and eat/drink and watch some football.   It's just what we do!   photo credit: Maine Running Photos  This year was absolutely no exception.    I didn't know what to think of what my race would be like going into this year's MidWinter Classic.   My mileage was WAY down.  I was down and out from a back strain which sidelined me for over a week.   To add to it, I've be sick several times since the start of 2018.  Ugh.   It wasn't looking good for this years race.    But I was registered and I was going to run, so I just ran.     photo credit: Allyn Genest If you liv...

There are runs where everything clicks and all is perfect.  Either you crush you run and hit all of the paces you aimed at.  Or the weather is simply perfect, and you don't care about your pace, and just take in the fresh air and gorgeous views.    Then there are some runs when everything goes wrong.  Your breathing is off, or the weather is absolute crap.  Or you set out to hit specific paces and come no where near them!     post half marathon, easy run, smiles in my new awesome race shirt Learning to embrace each run for what they are, and accept that even though that run sucked the big one, you had the opportunity to run.  Not everyone has that chance.  Not everyone has the ability to lace up their shoes and get out the door.   selfies mid race with Allyn! When I think about the Maine Marathon course, a feeling of "home" comes to mind.  This course is where it all began.  Well, at least my lov...