As I prepare for my favorite race of the Triple Crown, the Summer Trail Roundup, I am continuing to try to get up into the mountains as much as I can. Traditionally, the majority of my training is on Barr Trail and at Bear Creek Park but this summer I'm trying to get as many peaks in as I can. I have gotten several training runs in with the Striders at Bear Creek Park but I'm not confident of my leg-turnover speed so I'm a little…

I'm not getting any younger. I was running before yoga in the park on Saturday and realized that I hadn't taken a day off for 7 days which is a lot of consecutive training days in my typical regimen. No wonder my legs felt tired. It's easy to do when you have the glamorous career of teaching and don't have to work in the summer. Besides forgetting what day of the week it is (premature alzheimers?), I have been indulging in the best that Colorado has to offer. If my body holds up to enjoy…

While it's still pretty early in the season for 14'er climbing due to all of the snow, I have recently bagged a few. The snow adds an interesting element that I haven't experienced before. I am not, by any means, an expert mountaineer. I was very grateful to have my friend, Anna, an EPCSAR volunteer, on the Mt. Harvard hike as it became a longer day than…

"Mountains are enormous but they all have a top, set your dreams to reach them and be strong enough to keep them."

-Zug Izland (stolen from a friend's Facebook post)

Hills, hills, hills, and the Incline. This year marked my 7th straight 10 mile jaunt through Garden of the Gods. I managed to run 11 minutes faster than the first time I ran this course. It…

Today was a lesson in humility. Every time I attend a Strider's 6 a.m running session, I am reminded how it feels to be at the back of the pack. The Sunrise Striders meet at 6 a.m on Tuesdays and Thursdays which conflicts with my school-year work schedule. I try to get to some (I think I have gone to two??) workouts in the summer since I don't have to be at work at 7:15 a.m. Perhaps I would be faster if I got my butt out of bed early enough to train with them more consistently? I wish I…

Last Sunday I arrived at Memorial Park in hopes to get a head-start up Barr Trail before it got too hot. I ended up high-jacking a ride up to Elk Park with Michael Everson and Roger Austin, two bad-a*% IC'er's. Humbled by their legendary Incline Club status, I tried again to get a head-start in hopes not to hold them up too much. I ended up getting to the car about 20 minutes after they finished. I didn't care (sorry Michael-I'm slow). The run was absolutely beautiful.

The trails were…