Naive Hope

I'm back at it this past week after a month hiatus from running.  Of course, there were a few mountain backpacking trips since the mid-May race, but no other physical activity.  I think it was the longest span of time I have voluntarily not run since I began back in 2004.  And, I had begun to feel awkward about it.  Apparently, I like running more than I realized.  Notice, I didn't say "love"--too strong of a word for something that feels like hard work most of the time.  But, I do need to run, or, at least do something that has me moving.

In regard to races, there is nothing significant on the horizon.  I am training for a local trail race, but unless I feel like I in good enough shape to actually race, I won't show up.  I've given myself the flexibility to wait until the day of the race (it's an evening start) to make a decision and have confirmed with the RD to just show up and register on race day.  We'll see.  Other than that, I haven't figured out what I will do next, but, hopefully, something will pique my interest.

This weekend will be lots of fun!  Olga and I have the entire weekend alone and since neither of us is training for any huge race, there is plenty of time to just "relax" (that's sarcasm when one's wife likes to be on the move all the time!).

There's also Western States, which I plan on monitoring often via the live internet feed.  It would be a lot of fun if we could be there this year.  Last year was epic, especially standing on the track a few feet from the finish line and watching the record be crushed.  Since I began training last week, I've been using WS as a motivator to make an attempt at getting in the best shape of my life.  Mainly, drop those last pounds that affect my performance are are unneeded. Visually, I have the body of Dave James (even the midsection unless he got rid of that for WS), just not the speed.  Since I've been trying to get into WS for 4 years now, the odds have to, eventually, turn in my favor.  So, I've naively convinced myself that I will be on the start list in 2012.  And, that is what swims around in my head when I want to have a sugar-laced snack, bag a gym session, or not give an honest effort on the trail.  At the very least, it keeps me entertained.