Fun racing weekend!

Tomorrow is a big day for me...my first ever trail race!! It's kind of a ridiculous trip really but I still think it's going to be fun. If I had planned it better i'd be camping out there tonight and tomorrow night but I didn't...so i'm not! Anyways, I'm doing the Nipika Crazy Soles 25km Trail Race in Kootenay National Park! It's about a 3 hour drive from Calgary and the race starts at 11am. However the package pickup is from 8-930 which sucks but I did manage to meet someone who is going to pick it up for me as he's camping out there tonight, fewf! So I don't need to worry about that in case i'm late for some reason. I would still like to be there by 9am so I can relax a bit, stretch my legs after 3 hours in the car, and get organized! So i'm aiming to be on the road by 6am!

Like I said, it's my first trail race and I don't really know what I should bring with me in my hydration pack besides the obvious drink, food and bear spray (yes we've already confirmed how terrified of bears I am). So for those of you out there that trail run/race...do you have any tips/pointers for me on things I should bring or do etc? Since I have never run a trail race before I have no idea how long it should take me to do it...I only know how fast I am on the road! So I would like to think I can do it in 3 hours but I hope it's not wishful thinking. If the race starts at 11am and I'm done by 2pm...that gives me a little time to relax, chat, eat, and enjoy the post race atmosphere before I have to boot it back to Calgary.

Why am I "booting" it back? Because I want to get back at a decent hour, get a decent sleep and get up at 5am again to run the Calgary half marathon on Sunday! I'm not crazy...I mean i'm not going to race it or anything...I would love to be able to hold 5 min kilometres for the half but that might be wishful thinking depending on how sore I am from Saturday! I just want to start getting used to these double days of long runs as I start preparing for the 6 days of running at Transrockies in August (which by the way I just finished paying for today so I'm officially doing the race now...no turning back baby!).

Anyhow, I'm excited but nervous about this weekend...I don't know what to expect tomorrow and I don't want to wimp out on Sunday's run either! I love the big city races so Sunday should be lots of fun!

Wish me luck! I'm bringing my camera so I hope to get some great pics during tomorrow's run!

Indecisive!

Ok soooo a long time ago I registered for the Crazy Soles Nipika Trail Run 25km in Kootenay National Park taking place on May 30th as my first trail race of the season. For some reason I had thought it was way closer to Calgary and then when I realized it was about 3 hours away I got to thinking maybe I wouldn't want to do it. So then I decided I wouldn't do it and ended up registering for the Calgary half marathon which is the day after this trail race on May 31st.

Now I can't decide which to do...I kind of want to do both. But I know I should be doing more trail races and less road races in preparation for Transrockies. Argh. I also feel like I could get a kick ass PB in the Calgary half but if I do the trail race the day before (no matter how easy I try to run it), i'm sure i'm asking for a slow half the next day. Do I care? Well I shouldn't but I'm sure I would seeing as how darn competitive I am. My second half of Boston was a PB so I can't help but think I should be able to beat it? Hmmm....

Bah, i'm so indescisive...I just started reading Sunshine Girl's race report from last year and now I want to do it. You know what part of my problem is? BEARS! How do I get into trailrunning/racing without freaking out about bears...i'm terrified. I don't want to be doing a race where i'm likely to be on my own for the most part...in the woods...and run into a bear. Bear spray does not make me feel safe. Maybe if I can find a partner who'll stick with me throughout the whole race I'll still do it...hmmm. Guess I could call up my bro and see if he's interested. I don't think he's quite there yet in terms of distance...he's slowly building up his long runs. Any of you guys want to be my running buddy in 3 weeks in Invermere? Come on...you know you want to... :)

I'm taking another day off from running today...still a bit sore from Sunday's run. I'm going to do some easy cardio for an hour...the stupid crosstrainer elliptical thing and probably some bike. The rain has now started in Calgary today so I don't feel too guilty about being inside!

Happy training! :)

(and seriously, if you want to be my running partner for a fun 25km trail race in 3 weeks let me know!!!)