Silver Falls Trail Run 2023

Birthday Weekend! 

Once again we planned to spend the first weekend of November at Silver Falls State Park camping and running in the woods. 

Usually my birthday falls on the weekend or super close to the Silver Falls Trail Events so we always celebrate at the same time. This year my birthday fell on the Friday of our adventure weekend.  I spent the day getting lots of love from my students and a beautiful boquet of flowers from my hubby.

Hanging out with some of my favorite people at one of my favorite parks? That’s a BIG win! Joe, Wendie and I had signed up for the 7 miler. Josh was signed up for the Half Marathon. 

But coming off my epic 50k the week before I caught a cold. I didn’t stay at South Beach and camp with Joe. I went home and slept most of Monday. Good thing I had taken the day off! Although being actually sick was not how I had envisioned my “day to relax and recover”. 

I spent most of the week using DayQuil and NyQuil to make it through the day and sleep through the night. I didn’t have a fever and I tested negative for COVID. So I just had a yucky cold. 

I also had a really sore toe. I did really well avoiding blisters this year at Dia de los Muertos Endurance Run but I got a blister under the toenail of my second toe on my left foot. It hurt quite a lot and then I caught the edge of the lifted toenail on a blanket and OUCH! 

I ended up cutting off a bunch of the toenail and then spent the week with Neosporin and a bandaid on my toe. Shoes and socks were not my favorite. 🤣

We got to the campground and got all set up before 5:00 pm and then hung out until Josh and Wendie arrived.  We had originally planned to have a "fend for yourself" evening.  Joe and I were going to have leftovers from home.  But Joe thought it would be fun to head into Silverton and try out a pub instead.  Josh and Wendie were on board with that so we headed to Silverton when they got to the park. 

Dinner was at the Silver Falls Brewery.  We sat outside because even though it was raining it was quite warm out.  And they had a covered area and the table had a table top fire container.  The food was amazing and we had a great time!  Good idea Joe!!

Birthday dinner!  Fifty-Four is off to a great start!

Sign on the door of the bathroom at the brewery.  Accurate!! lol

We headed back to the park to get settled in for the night.  

I was thinking about my race Saturday and how I was going to make it happen. 

Then suddenly I realized I didn’t need to. 

I had nothing to prove. 

I had nothing to prove to anyone. Especially myself! 

You have to understand that in the past I have done this race (and others) even when I wasn’t healthy or had injuries. 

I was so worried that people would think I was a quitter or a pansy that I pushed through migraines, massive blisters, aching knees, etc. I didn’t want anyone to think I was making excuses. 

This week was different. 

I didn’t care.

Want to know why I didn’t care? (Because I am going to tell you.) 😂

I already know I’m a badass! 

I don’t have to prove it to anyone! 

Especially myself!!!

That is such an amazing and freeing realization. 

I didn’t give a shit what anyone thought. 

My toe hurt, I had a cold all week, I was tired, and it was supposed to rain all day.

And I didn’t want to suck it up and do it anyway. 

So I didn’t. 

And I had a fabulous time!!

Josh was going to take my race instead of doing the Half Marathon. But he caught the same yuck I did the weekend before and decided he was also badass enough that he didn’t need to race. (He got 100 miles at DDLM!) 

I got to see all my various friends that were there off on their run.  I went over to where they had a big fire going in the park shelter.  The lovely ladies volunteering let me have a piece of Marionberry Pie.  Always fun to chat with people at events and find out about where they are from and what they do.   Then I wandered to my truck and watched a live stream of my volleyball girls playing in the state playoffs. After that I went back to the finish line to I watch my people cross the finish line. 

We talked and laughed and cheered for people and it was so much fun. 

Joe and Chad before the race!

At the start, only 7 miles to go!

South Falls never disappoints, but in the fall it is spectacular!

Love all the fall color!

Coming to the finish after conquering Nutcracker Hill!  (If you know, you know)

Nice work Joe!

Wendie kicking ass at the finish, with Josh holding out a beer for her!

Beth finishing strong!

Didn't get pictures of Suzanne, Breck or Holly but they all did great too.  Suzanne beat Breck and anytime you can beat your teenager, its a good day!

Then we went back to the trailer and got a solid nap in. I love naps! Especially all cozy in our travel trailer! 

For dinner we had chicken enchiladas that I had made at home and all we had to do was heat them up. Joe got me firewood so we could have a fire in the fire pit. It was awesome! 

Always fun to sit around the fire and just talk and laugh!!!

We got up the next morning and had a leisurely morning since we weren't volunteering until 8:30 am. We had breakfast and then did somethings to get the trailer ready to leave.  Then we headed out to the start line so we could volunteer for the Half Marathon.  We usually help out at the aide station that is about 3.3 miles into the race.  Always fun to cheer for people!  I especially enjoy cheering for the people at the very back of the pack since I can completely relate to where they are.  

Even got to cheer for some of the people I met the day before when I was hanging around at the start and chatting with people!  So fun!

It wasn't long before the race sweepers came through and we were packing up the aid station.  

Back to the trailer to finish closing it down and then we were heading for home.  

It was nice to get home and not feel like we had to rush to get things put away and then go to bed.   We had the entire afternoon to take care of things and just be chill.  

So I don't have a medal for this race. 

And I am okay with that. 

I know I do need to get moving and have a regular routine with being active. 

I also know I need to decide on my next adventure, because it's part of what helps me keep moving.

But for this race weekend I was totally okay with not having to prove my badassery. 

Giving myself more credit then I have in the past.

Must be growing up a little.  

Last Chance Triathlon 2013

I was very, very, very nervous about doing a sprint triathlon.  I don't know why but this race had my stomach doing rolls all week long.  I was super stressed about it and I'm pretty sure my friends were tired of hearing me whine.  I questioned why I thought I could do it, I wondered what I was thinking when I signed up.  I basically was a complete basket case.

This morning I woke up and finished getting my stuff together.  For the first time ever I had the issue with going #2 and having it be disgusting and smelly.  I know, too much information, but all my running friends will totally get what I'm talking about.  I leave it at that. 

Goober #3 was also participating in the triathlon so we had two bikes and all our gear to load up.  Joe made sure that our tires were pumped up and our bikes were good to go.  It was a bit weird having Joe be the camera guy, helper, cheerleader, etc.  That's usually my job.  :-)

We got our bikes set up with all our stuff.  Geez, there was a ton of stuff to have out and ready.  Then we went in to get our numbers put on our legs and arms and then get ready for the swim.  Standing around waiting is just the worst!  The first wave started at 8:00 a.m. but I was in the 8:20 a.m. wave start.  So that meant an additional 20 minutes to be nervous.

There's a lot of gear needed for a Tri!

Meighan and I were the only two people in our lane.  We decided to each take a side of the lane rather than circle swim since it was just the two of us.  She has been on the local club swim team for over three years so she is a really good swimmer.  I knew she was going to kick my butt on the swim part, and she did!  I had some struggles with feeling out of breath and was having a hard time finding my rhythm at the start.  Probably because I was going faster than I had in training.  No matter how hard I try to keep my activity slow during the start of a race I can't seem to do it very well.  It always happens during running races so I guess now I know it happens during other sports as well.  When I started taking a breath every stroke on one side I did better so I did that more than I had during my workouts.  At 8:40 a.m. they had one last wave to start.  So two people joined me in my lane while I was finishing up.  I ended up finishing my swim in about 25 minutes.  Which for me was really good.  That was a nice way to start!

Swim caps are not my best look but I really love this picture.  Mostly because of my swim partner.  :-)

I hustled outside to get ready for the bike portion of the race.  Holy moly, it was cold!  It was a foggy morning and the fog wasn't burning off so it was cold.  I had decided to wear my compression shorts and sports bra under my swim suit so I could take off the swim suit and put on my shirt and bike shorts.  I'm sure it wasn't a pleasant sight for people to see me standing there half naked and dripping water but oh well.  A girl has to do what a girl has to do.  :-)  I got changed, ate part of a banana, drank some water and then headed out.  Did I mention that it was cold?  

I headed out to the main road and the first thought was that I felt pretty good.  So I just decided to move along and try and have a good pace until I wasn't feeling good anymore.  Then I would adjust accordingly.  I had a couple people pass me during the first couple of miles which was no surprise.  But then I passed a few people myself.  Now that was a surprise!  On runs I am used to being roadkill.  I rather enjoyed being able to pass other bikers and have them be roadkill.  I kept waiting for my legs to give out on me but they kept feeling good.  I also kept waiting for my butt to start hurting.  Usually that starts about mile one.  Today it didn't start getting uncomfortable until about mile 10.  My legs started getting tired about then too.  But I knew I was getting close to the finish of the bike portion so I pushed through it.

Getting off the bike was an adventure.  It took a few tries to get my leg to lift high enough to get over the bar of the bike.  lol  I'm sure that was entertaining to watch.  Then I walked the bike over to my spot   and worked at getting ready for the run.  I took off the bike shorts and put on my running capris and headed out again.  Joe shouted to me that I needed to take it slow because I would feel like I was going slow but would be going faster than I thought I was.  I thought I was going slow.  I felt like I was creeping along.  I couldn't feel my legs, they were all tingly.  I couldn't feel my toes, they were numb from the cold.  I got a half mile into the run and my Nike+ app said that I was running at a 11'30" pace. What the heck?  I felt like I was doing a 15' pace or worse! lol  So I tried to slow down.  My goal for the 5K was to just run the whole thing.  I ended up with a 12'12" minute pace.  Wow.  I couldn't believe that I ran that fast after swimming and biking!  I even passed someone!  (Another roadkill!)

The race finishes on the high school track.  I had to run almost an entire lap and it was a long lap!  But I kept going because I knew that my husband and daughter were waiting for me at the finish.  I crossed the finish line and walked right into Joe's arms.  Got a big old hug from my best friend and number one fan.  I absolutely know that I could not do the training or any of these races if he didn't believe in me and support me along the way.  I'm so blessed to have such an amazing man as my partner in life!  I also had to give hugs to my daughter, two fabulous women who I am beyond blessed to have cheering me on and my buddy Matt, who had already finished his first triathlon.  :-)  It was quite the little party at the finish line!

Woot Woot!  What an amazing feeling!

Going home and taking a hot shower was heavenly.  That was followed up with a nice long nap.  Then I had to do homework.  That was a bummer.  But I got it done.

My friend Matthew also participated in the triathlon this weekend.  It was his first race of any kind!  He did awesome!

Triathletes!!!  The smiles say it all!

I also got a new toy this week.  I purchased a Fitbit.  I have been wanting to get some sort of tracker for awhile.  I was leaning toward a Nike Fuelband because I do my runs on Nike+ so they would go together.  I finally decided to get the Fitbit for a couple of reasons.  First, it tracks sleep.  Since I'm having issues with being tired all the time I thought that would be interesting information to have.  Second it syncs up with myfitnesspal.com so I can put my meals and activities into that app and it automatically tells my Fitbit and all that is factored in.  The only thing that I have been disappointed about is that it won't automatically sync wirelessly to my phone or iPad.  Turns out my technology is too old.  The oldest iPhone it will sync to is the 4s, I have a 4.  The oldest iPad it will sync to is the 3rd generation, I have the 2nd.  But I have the little doodad that goes into a USB port on my laptop so it does sync when I am on the computer automatically.  I've only had it up and running for two days so it will be interesting to see what kind of data I get.  

I got the Fitbit Flex.  I decided to get the one that I can wear like a bracelet.  If I bought one of the clip on ones I can guarantee that I would wash it at some point or lose it.  They aren't very big.  The flex is very light weight and can get wet so I can wear it in the shower and the rain (an important factor living in Oregon.)  It comes with two different size bands to put the Fitbit into so there is no worries about getting one that fits.  And eventually....when I lose enough weight.....I can switch to the small band because I already have it.  :-)  (Positive thinking right there, did you see that?)  You can also purchase bands that are other colors because the Fitbit part slides into the band so it is interchangeable.

This next Saturday I run in the Runaway Pumpkin Half Marathon.  Last year I didn't train for it (at all). It poured down rain all morning and since I walked most of it, it was a very long morning!  And none of my running people were there.  That was a long morning of misery without anyone with me to keep things fun.  It was pretty much the most awful race and hurt for days afterwards.  This year the weather forecast looks like we could could get an amazing fall day.  Clear and crisp, perfect running weather for me.  :-) I'm looking forward to this year being a fantastic run.

This picture a friend posted on Facebook and it sums up how I felt this week and how I often feel.

 Via Facebook-Credit unknown-Love this!

I think I love it because I feel week and scared often but push through to be victorious.  But I can be Badass all the time!  

I don't have my official time for the triathlon yet.  I finished in the 2 hour 15 minute range.  I was hoping the results would be up so I could share my finish and my splits.  No such luck.  Maybe later.  But the really, really, really important part isn't my finish time.  It's that I did it.  From start to finish.  I got in trouble today for saying on Facebook that it was "Just a sprint triathlon" and I have promised not to put down my accomplishments by using the word "just" anymore.  Except for this....

Wow....Just Wow!!!!!!  

**UPDATE**

This is my official results from the triathlon.  The swim was actually about 25 minutes but the tracking pad was outside.  :-)  Hadn't done the bike distance in less than 1:15 before.  :-)  Never thought I could do a swim, then a bike and manage to do a 5K in less than  40 minutes.  I'm pretty happy with my first try at a tri.  :-)