Imogene Training: Shanahan Ridge to Chautauqua

I completed another training run today in preparation for the Imogene Pass Race coming up in September. With a little under three months until race day, I'm slowly but surely building on my miles and little by little plan to incorporate longer runs and training at high altitude. For now though, I only have one 2-hour training run under my belt (which was just last weekend) so I chose to do more of the same this time around. 

You can view my route on mapmyrun.com. Since some of the run was through the woods, I had a hard time finding my exact route on the map, but it looks like I ran somewhere around 9-9.5 miles in 1.5 hours. The website shows that, at most, I gained 600 feet--I have a long way to go in terms of climbing! The run was very pleasant with some challenging climbs followed by restful downhills the whole way to Chautauqua. I didn't run all the way to into the park because I only planned to run out 45 minutes before turning for home. Based on the increasing number of hikers I passed nearing the turnaround point, I'd say I was very close to the park.  Pace-wise, I felt surprisingly good. I think I'm finally getting the hang of this slow and steady trail running concept. Years past, I found myself trying to keep my "road running" pace on the trails only to be defeated by rocky climbs. I walked a lot. Now, I keep a steady pace and run the entire time. It may be slow, but I believe slow is the best way to train for now. 

I was hesitant to even go out for a long run this weekend after feeling less-than-stellar all week. On Wednesday, I participated in a research study and had a fair amount of blood drawn in the morning. During the last couple of draws, I experienced that stand-up-too-fast-and-everything-fades-to-black feeling. Yuck. Perhaps I'm battling a little iron deficiency again. On Thursday I was miserable: sleep-deprived, headache-y and nauseous all day long. Aside from generally feeling awful, it was a hectic week at work and school. This left little time for running. But, after hydrating this morning, drinking some coffee and eating a decent lunch, I decided to give the long run a shot. Like I said before, I felt surprisingly good considering everything.

I snapped a couple of photos with my iPhone... it is just too beautiful out there not to share them on here. 

Long run #2 done. Next weekend my cousin and her husband will be coming to Colorado and we'll be in Buena Vista with them. I think I'll try for at least an hour of trail running each day we are there: a good transition into training at altitude.