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100 Mile Training Log Week 0

I’ve been getting back to running the last few weeks but it was only last week when I signed up for the 100 that it’s getting serious; now money is involved. 

I also committed to writing about this journey. I’m not much of a video person or I’d document this somehow on Instagram. I’ve been off TikToc for a year or more because it was too addictive and a time suck. 

I’m a writer and reader. I like to read books, news and inspiration. While I can appreciate a  good reel or video, my preferred method of processing life is the written word. 

Here is my training update from this week, before the real training plan begins. 

Notes from an 8 mile long-run on Saturday April 4

Started out slow and sluggish. Maybe drinking wine the night before my long run was not a great first step. I started the run listening the Ann Patchett’s Commonweath but decided about 15 minutes in that listening to a novel about divorce, and how young children are involved in a messy, multi-family fight, traveling across the country to see moms and dads, and manipulation and vengeance in the family – nope, not going to keep going. I sent the book back to Libby and with nothing else available in my queue – I went back to ad supported Spotify and listened to My Like list. 

I felt some momentum mid-run on Newport Highway; a busy highway for a spring break Saturday. There’s a lot of traffic noise,  full sun, a bit of shade, a nice wind on the way back. 

I walked a lot and ran a lot. I’ve been proud of myself for doing what I set out to do these last few weeks, despite my written plan to run 9 but really felt I could proudly accomplish 8 in just under 2 hours. 

I remembered how last week, after a 7 mile run, my left ankle and the muscle/tendons hurt about one hour after my run, I wanted to be cautious and not push it too much. I did a bunch more exercises at the gym this past week to help prevent the soreness: calf raises, and flex exercises to stretch those muscles. 

I didn’t want to be injured before the true training started. 

As I run I’m hopeful that all the extra calf raises and the extra work I did this week to stretch that muscle out will help me. 

I finished 8 miles. The most I’ve run since last summer. I’m not sore an hour later. Everything is good. 

I woke up Sunday – not too sore. Nothing hurt. I was a bit wobbly as I walk; per usual. Go about my day, walking a bunch with dogs and work, but not doing too much. Then, I head out for a “recovery day 30 minute WALK” and suddenly the tendons around my left ankle hurt and throb. I wobble back home. Put on compression sock. Stretch. Ugh. Four hours later the pain is totally gone. What is going on?!

I remember, on retrospection – that is the athlete life. Injuries. I’m going to have injuries. It’s part of the deal. 

As I sit on my sofa and occasionally flex my foot back and forth, side by side, a bit of pain. I need to do everything right. Eat right. Stretch. Weights. Rest. 

I got this. I just have to “get this” every day. Thanks for reading. 

Next Week is Week 1

Running Song of the Week: This is Me

Best lyric:

I am brave, I am bruised, I am who I’m meant to be, this is me
Look out ’cause here I come, And I’m marching on to the beat I drum
I’m not scared to be seen, I make no apologies, this is me.

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Why I Signed Up for 100 Miles (Again)

This year, for my birthday, which is over seven months away, I signed up for something.

My final attempt at a 100-mile run at 55 years old. I will toe the line when I turn 56.

Thirty hours. One flat trail. Just me, my mind, and the question I’ve apparently decided I’m not done answering yet: Can I finish a 100 mile race and get the buckle? 

The truth is, I’m not the same runner I was the last time I took on this distance. I’m a little older.  A little slower. A wee bit heavier. And, a little more aware of what 100 miles actually demands physically, mentally, emotionally. 

And still… I signed up anyway.

Not because I think it will be easy. Not because I’m chasing some perfect finish time. But because there’s something unfinished here. Something that keeps tapping me on the shoulder, quietly but persistently, saying: You’re not done yet.

So here we are.

This time feels different, though.

I’m going to write a weekly training update, similar to what I did while training for the Leadville 100, which I didn’t finish. 

I’m committing to showing up every week, sharing the highs, the lows, the small wins, and the messy middle. Not just for anyone reading, but for myself. 

I want this to be fun, too.

Somewhere along the way, in the grind of miles and expectations, it’s easy to forget that choosing to run 100 miles is a little unhinged.

AND, also kind of magical. It’s a privilege to test your limits like this and to have a healthy body and mind to try. 

So this is me, choosing both: the challenge and the joy.

If nothing else, this will be a record of showing up and being consistent. 

On my birthday, I’ll step onto that flat trail with 30 hours ahead of me and a version of myself that’s been built, one week at a time, right here.

Let’s see what happens.

—Week 0 begins now.

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How To Be a Mountain Babe 2026 version

I had to laugh out loud when this article I wrote in 2010 came up on search.

Okay, it came up because I Google’d myself. Come on, don’t you? 

I remember, as clear as day, many things from the article:

  1. Working my first ski job where I traveled to all the company’s ski resort to train people on a “very beginning” CRM from 1999-2005. 
  2. Traveling to Park City for work and walking everywhere and exploring the city
  3. Reading about Kristen Ulmer
  4. And how all her points about mountain resort living are true, even 25 years later (although I don’t really live in a mountain resort town as of this writing)

Here’s what I wrote: 

Kristen Lodge – How to be a ‘Mountain Babe’

Sky-Hi News | Mar 12, 2010
Kristen Lodge / Outdoor Adventures (note: I wrote a weekly outdoor column from 2008-2011)
Grand County, CO Colorado

At 29 I got my first ski industry job and moved to my first ski town. Part of the job included traveling to ski resorts to train sales and marketing staff on sales software. The best part of the job was wandering around the ski town, eating breakfast and reading the local newspaper before a training class.

I clipped articles and photos from each town’s newspaper to remember the town and would add it to the list of places I might live someday; it’s a habit I’ve never lost.

I remember the day I read Kristen Ulmer’s article, How to Be a Mountain Babe, while sipping coffee and eating a bagel in downtown Park City. The article made me laugh out loud and wish my hair was long enough for pigtails.

I clipped the article and have re-read it over the years. It still holds true, even 10 years later, about ski town living, and it reminds me to live a healthy, outdoor lifestyle. Reading it now reminds me of all the cool mountain babes I’ve met over the years in all the ski towns I’ve lived in. Here is an excerpt of my favorite lines; used with permission from the author:

“In a mountain town, low-maintenance women who are excellent at sports and tell the occasional dirty joke are perfection.

“A baseball cap to keep the sun out of your eyes is standard. Two pigtails are now trendy and adorable, but remember their purpose is to keep hair out of way. And long nails … no way. If you’re a true mountain babe they’ll break.

“Smoking cigarettes is NOT cool (no exceptions), and drinking too much will hinder your athleticism. It’s OK to party, but remember, being in the mountains is about living a healthy lifestyle and enjoying the outdoors. And be careful who you “hook up” with, next week you’ll probably meet and fall in love with his best friend.

“Don’t expect to meet men, you’ll only meet boys (with toys) – and lots of them. Almost all have gorgeous athletic bodies and college degrees, but under that dirty baseball cap is a mono-dimensional play hog who’ll always choose climbing or powder mornings over cuddling or going for coffee.

“This is where “no whining” stickers are birthed. Even if you can’t keep up, a “wow that was great!” positive attitude goes a long way.

“A crummy, beat-up car is cooler than a new 4X4.

“Must-haves are limited to top-shelf sports gear. Pick one sport, and obsess. Not only is it exceptionally fun to be really good at something, but you also want the glory of being called ‘that sick mountain biker with the honed legs’ or ‘the Betty who launches monster halfpipe tricks on a snowboard.’

“Take up other sports occasionally, just to prevent burnout and narrow mindedness.”

Kristen Ulmer wrote this in 1999. She was a pioneer of Extreme Sports and a mogul specialist on the US Ski Team. In 2003 she started sports training, introducing mental and Zen aspects to winter sports in a clinic called Ski To Live. She is a called the “Ski Guru” by Outside Magazine.

“I’m proud of my ski career, and jumping off 70 foot cliffs was exciting, but not nearly as exciting as helping people access what they’re capable of – not just as athletes or business men and women, but as human beings.” Visit her website http://www.kristenulmer.com

She went from mountain babe, to mogul specialist, to life/business coach.

The mountain lifestyle can be tough at times, especially in a down economy. I’ve thought of leaving many times. I have friends with bigger homes, nicer cars, and larger 401Ks, but I like it here; trying to be a mountain babe.

Link to Source: ​​https://www.skyhinews.com/news/kristen-lodge-how-to-be-a-mountain-babe/

Thanks for reading.

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Traveling the North Carolina Coast in February

The classic way to start a last minute trip, saying out loud: I need to get out of Dodge. I haven’t traveled much since September and the last four months have been about work, fostering dogs, stress about the shelter, and a failed dog adoption. I suffered from general unease, stress, and just wanted to see my mom.

The original trip plan, concocted while trying to fall asleep on Friday night: head to the Outer Banks, head north to Ocean City, head north to Rye, NH to surprise my parents, head north to Gorham to be in the White Mountains, head west to Killington to see a place I lived, head west to Lake Placid then head back to Tennessee. 

All these places were on my Grand Plan To Go See Places list.

On Friday, I requested the following week off from work. It was approved and Saturday I woke up to more trip planning and making my first hotel reservation. Then, I started seeing weather and news reports of a Nor’Easter heading to the northeast with blizzard conditions. After reading updates for hours and watching webcams for even more hours, I realized that I needed a Plan B, and couldn’t go north. However, I could go east to the North Carolina coast and spend time in the Outer Banks, which I’d never been to, and visit other seacoast towns near it. 

Going on the road with two anxious dogs sounded terrible, but I needed to get away and didn’t  want to kennel them. They are road tripping to the seacoast with me. 

I booked a cottage in Nags Head and on Sunday morning, along with my two reactive, crazy dogs, I drove to the ocean. The drive was long – 9 hours with several stops for bathroom breaks and dog walks. Chet panted with anxiety for the first two hours but I think he finally got it, we were going to be on the road for awhile. Rain and wind were constant throughout the final four hours of the drive. When we finally crossed about three or four bridges, where I thought I might die if the wind gusts blew me off, we arrived in Nags Head and the rental cottage.  As promised, it was right across the street from the OCEAN ! 

The wind continued and the ocean was angry. As I crossed the street and walkway over the dunes, there it was. The waves were huge and the ocean was loud. The wind was whipping about 20 mph. As I walked back to the cottage the sunset to the west was pink and beautiful. Since I didn’t want to get back in the car and I was unfamiliar with the place, I ordered pizza delivery, which I typically don’t do – I’m more of an order and pick up kind of gal. 

The dogs relaxed. I ate pizza and started to plan for the next day. 

I walked back over to the ocean and walked the dogs for a bit. The wind was going to continue to be an issue but at least the rain stopped. I turned on the TV to watch the news and weather reports.

I woke up and walked on the beach with and without dogs. I loved being at the water’s edge and listening to the sound of the ocean. 

We drove around Nags Head and out to Kill Devil Hills and Kitty Hawk. All these place names I’ve only heard and read about and I’m actually here. I stopped to get breakfast and continued the tour of the Outer Banks. We parked at several different public beach access points and piers and I took it all in.  

Next stop Cape Hatteras National Seashore. As I enter the National Park and Route 12, there were runners and walkers with hiking poles. I wondered how far they are going. They all wore  ultra packs and were bundled up against the wind and sun. 

The first stop was the Bodie Island Light Station:

We continued out to Rodanthe.

We walked along many of the beaches. I just took it all in. 

We drove back to the cottage to relax and I figured out the next two days. I decided on a house one block from the ocean in Surf City, NC. The Surf City I knew is in Huntington Beach, California, known as “Surf City USA”. I ran the Surf City USA Marathon in 2015. It was fun to see the real town in North Carolina named Surf City. 

This was the view from the rental house in the morning:

The beach city was exactly what I hoped for: low-key, not many people, beautiful beaches, and more bridges to cross and stress about. I was pleasantly surprised to see no people on the beach in the morning and evenings. There were very few people in homes near me. I loved it! No one for my dogs to bark at. February in Surf City is a dream. However, it would’ve been great to swim in the ocean, one of my favorite things to do, but it was February. 

The next day I drove south to Wilmington, Wrightsville Beach, and Carolina Beach. The highway to get there was named after Michael Jordan who grew up in Wilmington and played basketball at the University of North Carolina. I really wanted to see Wilmington downtown since the Dawson’s Creek tv show was filmed there; I’m a big fan of the show. Also, One Tree Hill was filmed there, also a big fan of the show. The beaches were busier here since it was so close to a big city. I didn’t stay long but stopped at a few beaches and a pier.

I couldn’t wait to get back to Surf City and just walk on the beach and relax. There are no high rise hotels like at Carolina Beach. All the homes in Surf City are painted in different pastel colors and give such a relaxing vibe. Back at the rental house I could hear the constant roar of the ocean. It was never quiet. The wind was still fierce and the ocean still mad, but I loved it here. 

I was never much into the beach or ocean after moving away from New Hampshire in my 30s. I always said “I’m a mountain girl.” All my travels had been to mountains to ski, hike, run and explore. After driving over 1,400 miles in five days I’m in love with the ocean; the ocean of my youth and teenage years.

My history is the beach. As a kid my family spent a few summers in Ocean City. We lived on Lake Champlain growing up in Plattsburgh, New York. As a kid we were always in the water whether it was a lake or ocean. My family moved to Rye, NH in 1985 and we lived one mile from the ocean. I loved swimming in the cold, New Hampshire ocean water. I walked, biked and ran the roads near the ocean in my teens. I really just took it for granted all those years. I never learned much about oceans and its critters. 

Now I want to learn everything about ocean and sea life. I can’t wait to go back to the North Carolina coast. 

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Great Fiction to Read Patchett, Evans

I’ve been reading a lot lately, instead of running and hiking. It’s been so cold here (22 degrees as I write this) and I just want to sit on the sofa and read, with my dogs next to me. 

All my fiction-reading started with a review of the book, The Correspondent. I haven’t read fiction in a long time so I thought it would be a good change. When I looked at my bookshelf for something to read – all I saw was nonfiction. I needed to escape into fiction. 

The Correspondent is a book of letters that the main character wrote to her friends, family, authors and newspapers. What made this book so special to me was how deeply invested I became in all of the characters. They felt real to me and I could imagine where they lived and how they looked. I cared about their choices, their regrets, and the things they wrote to each other. 

I couldn’t put the book down and read it in two days. By the end, I was crying my eyes out.

The main character did all the things she was scared of. She was one tough woman. She made some bad choices throughout her life, like we all do.  It reminded me how powerful people’s stories are, and it made me want to write letters, reach out to family, friends AND newspapers and tell them exactly how I feel.

More than anything, it was a gentle but persistent reminder to fully live all of our days, no matter our age or where we think we are in life. I also think it was a lesson about aging.

It was my reminder that every person in my life is complex. I will never know what their inner life is. And, I will never truly understand why people do what they do. I think that is why I was balling my eyes out. We can never really know the people we love.

Additionally, I rarely read books from the New York Times Best Sellers list. The Correspondent didn’t land on that list until a full year after publication, purely through word of mouth. I have told every reader in my life, “You have to read this book.” 

After finishing this book, I wanted to start another book as soon as possible. I loved getting back into reading and being so absorbed in a story that I couldn’t wait to wake up to read it or get home from work to read a few chapters. I rarely turned on the TV.

I remembered in The Correspondent , Sybil, the main character wrote a letter to Ann Patchett and Ann wrote back. Sybil wrote to many authors and I thought that was a clever twist, especially when they wrote back so I googled Ann Patchett and read a few reviews of her books. I decided my next read was Tom Lake. I remember hearing about it when it came out but never read it. 

Now, I’m reading it and it’s so good. It takes place in a fictional town in northern Michigan, where I’ve been. Plus, the mom was from New Hampshire and attended the University of New Hampshire, my alma mater. I liked how the story depicted Michigan and New Hampshire, and the fictional summer stock theatre by a lake. The characters are complex and compelling. I was drawn in instantly to the main couples’ story, including the surprise twist in how they met. I loved learning about the personalities of the three daughters. I loved how the mother’s past is slowly revealed through the book. I’m halfway through and can’t put it down (except wanting to write this post – perhaps to draw out the eventual ending to the book)

Patchett is such a great writer and storyteller. I loved, loved, loved her book, The Dutch House and read it twice. I also listened to the audio version narrated by Tom Hanks – so good!

I remembered, too. I saw Patchett speak. It was 2019 and I was living in Concord, New Hampshire. I bought tickets to the event which included a signed copy of her new book, The Dutch House. The talk was held at The Capitol Center for the Arts’ so it was just a short walk downtown. Peter Biello was with her on stage and asked her questions. He worked at NHPR at the time and did a great job on stage. 

I found the above picture in my Google Photos from that night. I sat in the first row and was riveted by the conversation and wanted to learn everything I could about the writing life.

This is what I wrote in my journal from that night:

Ann Patchett was so awesome last night. I started reading The Dutch House once I got home and it’s good. One of the questions that she answered had to do with publishing. She said that it is your name: you do all the editing and make it be representative of your work. She talked about the idea of a home as a central theme in the book. She said our home is where we throw our lives. Home is emotionally charged. Every novel needs a home – it connects people.

She said the book is also about hurt feelings and the things that hurt us in our childhood. The idea that the characters can’t get out of the situation they are in – that is what she likes to write about. 

She said that part of her life she interviews authors and she reads all the time. She has a bookstore in Nashville. She said Margret Atwood’s new book is so good, as is Harlan Cobin. She was funny, smart and made me want to know all her books. 

She said all that matters is the white, hot center of your heart. Find that and write about that. It teaches you to access what you really care about. She said I can’t teach you about having something to say. Writing a novel is like swimming the channel. You have to stay in the present and you can’t look forward and you can’t look back. 

She said find the time to do what you love. If you have something to say you will find the time.

She makes me feel like reading and watching the news and being involved in this crazy world.  Going to an author reading does energize me and brings me back to the world. I laughed and genuinely enjoyed the conversation. She was really engaging.

Twenty years ago I bought Patchett’s 2004 memoir, Truth & Beauty, about her friendship with Lucy Grealy. I thought her story of coming up as a writer was fascinating. 

The point of this post is really just this: Ann Patchett is amazing- Read Her Books!  Virginia Evans is a wonderful storyteller – Read This One. These books have gotten me through a cold, snowy winter in East Tennessee.