Vernal or bust
Today we’re loading up the station wagon and heading West to the land of opportunity: Vernal, Utah. Our team is heading out for the Dinoland Triathlon and the junior team has been there all week for a training camp. Jordan has been building Vernal up since he went to this race last year, so I’m excited to finally experience it for myself. Gulliver is even coming along! It’s his first time (that we know of..) out of Colorado, his longest car ride, and his first multiple-night camping trip.
June has flown by between our trip to Hawaii, Jordan’s Stroke & Stride mishap (in which he fractured his tibia), traveling to NJ to see my family, and launching our new and improved and renamed MileHighAthletic just yesterday (Powder7.com — check it out!).
I hit a bit of a rough patch with training while in NJ, when the best I could muster was a 7:20 mile and it felt like I was in a near sprint. I had big plans for a few days of solid runs at sea level, but I let them fly out the window once I realized my body was wiped from all the traveling and whatnot. I got in some easy stuff, but more than anything I enjoyed the time with my family — I hadn’t seen them since Christmas! I also had the best dance partner ever at my cousin’s wedding…
My nephew, Luca.
…Though the next day he insisted on continuous “helicopter rides” around my parents’ backyard and a relentless game of soccer. Carrying a 2-year-old while running is no easy task!
Once back to Colorado I got back into the swing of training, lots of good rides and even one of my better tempo runs to date (6:40 avg for 5mi), which was a nice surprise after my 7:20 sprint at sea level the week before.
The rides though! They were awesome this week! The camera might be the iPhone’s best feature…so convenient always having it right there..
Kayakers in Clear Creek.
Ominous clouds over North Table Mountain on my way home from a heinous crit loop workout.
Stopping for just a second to enjoy the view as I descend Parmalee Gulch.
Have to go through Red Rocks...my favorite.
Jordan had a big bowl of gnocchi waiting for me!! What love =)
My new favorite ride that I wish I could do every week (but is kinda hard to b/c it’s a one-way deal): The Chatfield-Golden Special. Lots of climbing (someday I’ll calculate it all) and all the best climbs.
View Chatfield-Golden Special in a larger map
Alright, we’re off! =)
