It's gonna rain: Week ending 7/17 + 7/24

It's Gonna Rain Part 1 - Steve Reich from Lost Highway on Vimeo.

Well! That was one hell of a two weeks.

Week 1: 69 miles.

Yeah, 69. You know whatimsayin. Hell yeah, bro.

This week is significant. Great Lakes Relay. Crossing the northern half of the Lower Peninsula in three days. 270 miles. 9.5 team members. Something like 4 cases of Oberon consumed.

It was an amazing weekend. Freel. Ashley said, upon bursting out of the woods: "That was the fastest I've run since high school track." My brother (a non-runner) said: "I ate dem. I ate those muthafuckahz like food. I was a shark. I said to dem: YOU FOOD!" Anya ran her 'brain-bake' leg of the course despite not having to. She said she just wanted to run 3 miles up and down sand dunes. In 95F weather. No tree cover. At the end of a 15 hour day. Yeah, girl.

Mentally, this weekend was huge. I mean, I didn't run more than I have in any one given moment, BUT that did not mean I was also prepared for this particular running feat. It was fucking tough, man. "Car #1, you'll have runners for Legs 4, 6 and 8. Be at the end of leg 3 for the hand off. Car #2, you get 2,3 and 7. Do have laminates of the directions for your runners? Car #3..." etc. etc. It was a shit load of logistics. And it was hard.

The course was gorgeous. Having been a Michigan resident for 5 years and having visited my family here in the South East corner...I had really no idea what this state is all about. Now, I get it. I won't make fun of those Pure Michigan radio ads anymore. This state is beautiful and I regret that I won't be able to see more of it in the immediate future because...

I'm moving to Chile in three weeks. I'll be teaching some English in Talca. This has been in the works for the entire year, but now it's official. I have a plane ticket and everything. So, that's that. No more pancake Midwest. Instead, I'll have seemingly-infinite stretches of decidedly not-pancake-flat patagonian mountains. Yeah. I've had this as my computer backdrop since december as a focus point:

I need to be sure to not take my good health for granted. I bitch about that shit too much to suddenly become hypocritical. If you can: Get out and do it.

It's going to be an intense couple of months here coming up. It's been an intense couple of months going down right now. When it rains, it pours...which is titties...assuming you're thirsty.

I love everyone. Kill'em all.

"I wanna be abated" Week Ending 7/10

50 run, 90:00 bike.

One for the books

Went to wildwood park this morning, pulled up to the gate at 6:25am, literally as the guard was unlocking it.

"You open now?" i asked.

"No, usually 7:00, but I'm here early, so what the hell?"

"cool."

had the whole park to myself for about 20 minutes. the morning was slightly chilled, the sky was flawless-blue, with a few clouds drifting around.

I listened to Smog all morning, running really really hard for about 12 miles (I glimpsed 4:40/mile on one of the gentle downhill rollers).

It was just such a gorgeous morning. I honestly stopped at one point and said out loud "Holy shit. This is perfect."

It feels amazing to not only have such a beautiful moment in one's life, but to also be very keenly aware and conscious of how amazing that moment is.

Fuck yeah.

"Have No Fear, It's Only Beer" week ender 7/3

mon- nathin'

tues- am- 11.5 diarrhea, pm- 3.5 dad + AVA!

wed- 11.5 betterish (7 donuts)

thurs- 7 wild n' fast

fri- bday. poto trail. 13 w/ eric

sat- 4 fast

sun- poto again. 13 w/ rob k.

63 miles

celebrated birthday on friday with a childhood friend, showed him the poto trail (i've run there every week for the past month as part of a deal i made with myself). he ran really well, but the trail always wins.

went up there two days later with my neighbor. he ran really well, too. but like i say...

i drank literally gallons of Oberon this holiday weekend and rode my oberon-color-schemed road bike around town, sporting a giant mustache and generally being a total asshole. it was a great time.