Training Log Archive: Bash

I ran the Kolapore Church / Paradise Highway loop counterclockwise while 'Bent and Eddie did a longer run. It was a warm, muggy, cloudy morning that hinted at the thunderstorms coming this afternoon. I didn't walk much but in the second half, I could definitely feel that this is a long run for me now. But I can still do it and I can train to do more.

After some gardening, I checked on two friends running the Western States 100. Norm Nadon, former owner of Running Free Orangeville, finished in the Golden Hour (between 29 and 30 hrs) with lots of time to spare.

My other friend Jennifer Shultis was the first runner to miss the 30-hour deadline, finishing 2:08 outside the time limit. The live coverage followed her along the road and onto the track. She didn't give up; she kept running. She's been living with multiple myeloma for the past 6 years - the same incurable cancer my Dad had - and as the announcers watched her run and shared her story of living with cancer, they were both in tears. So was I. A few minutes after she finished, they pulled her into the booth where she gave a more articulate interview than most people could do at any time in their lives, let alone after 30 hours of running. Well done.

'Bent and I hiked and swam the dogs at Peasemarsh Beach in Thornbury. Great find!

'Bent and I went to 3 Stage with the plan of doing an easier ride than last week's rocky bounce around Kolapore. It was a steamy hot day and we didn't plan to stay out too long. Since we're not super familiar with 3 Stage, I had Trailforks handy so we could try to stay on blue trails. I'd forgotten there are some very gnarly blue trail sections at 3 Stage! But it was a fun ride with lots of variety.

We met a couple on the trail. The guy pointed at 'Bent's inside-out Buff under his helmet, keeping bugs off his neck. Sounding impressed, he asked, “Is that an ESAR buff?!”

'Bent smiled modestly and said, “Yes.”

“Cool! My father used to do that race! By the time I was old enough, they weren’t holding it anymore.”

We need to meet older mountain bikers, I guess.

John Robinson, one of 'Bent's dentist friends, dropped by our Kolapore place and we took AdventureDog for a warm hike to Metcalfe Rock and back.

AdventureDog has had an excellent week - although he has no idea. I've been trying to get stuff done in anticipation of his eye surgery. The poor guy scratched his cornea 3 months ago and it turned into an indolent ulcer. He's been to 3 vets of different types and has been getting up to 9 eye drops daily - different ones with specified timing and he hates them. It's been pretty miserable for him and Thursday was finally going to be his surgery. The recovery wasn't going to be easy either - a sewn-in contact lens to protect his eye, a cone 24 hours a day for a couple of weeks and, of course, more eye drops.

Our fantasy was that he would be prepped for his operation and the surgeon would exclaim, "His eye spontaneously healed! It's a miracle!"

As it turned out, that's exactly what happened. I dropped him off in Toronto and drove almost an hour home. Just before I got there, the surgeon phoned so I turned around. Two trips to Toronto and back before 11:30 am and I couldn't be happier about it. :)

A little physio before dinner.