It snowing again - so what's new?

Yup, it is snowing again and I just came back from enjoying a crazy 6 mile run in it.  And I'm not the only one who is crazy since I was with several other crazy runners.  We just feel like we have been so cooped up and everyone is so stir crazy that we have to run oust side when we can.  And we have to go early because after all, the Olympics are on!  I'm such an Olympic junkie whether it be winter or summer so I am either taping or watching every minute that I can.  I can say without a doubt that the US Women's Hockey team is pretty darn awesome and that they could beat a bad NHL (and maybe even a good one) team.  It is cool too that one of the women (Molly Schaus) actually grew up in my hometown (one of the US men was born there as well).  And many of them have ties to the Northeast having gone to school there.  Of course, the Canadian team is comprised of several women with NE college ties as well.  Just watching the competition; however, makes you want to get outside.

And as well as an Olympics junkie, I am also a track junkie and I was pretty astonished by the gaff that Jenny Simpson made yesterday during the 2 mile event at the New Balance Indoor Games yesterday in Boston.  I cannot imagine how a decorated and Olympic, World medalist can miss count laps.  Especially when there is an electronic lap counter and a bell to signify the last lap.  What a complete cluster and total lack of concentration.  I'm certainly not world class and counting indoor laps when you are as slow as I is tough, but I'm not sure that I'd do that on a world stage.  I'm sure she felt pretty stupid when that was over. Oops!

This was also a week of controversy involving The Biggest Loser.  Watching this TV show is a guilty pleasure of mine and I did so want Rachel to win, but I also hope that what appears to be extreme weight loss was done to secure the $250K.  After all, she is my height and now weighs 15 lbs less than I.  If I weighed that little, I think even my thin and slightly eating disordered running friends would be bringing me in for an intervention.  I hope that we see her in the future with a few more pounds on that 5'4" frame.

Back to my week of running though as there are now 70 days left until Boston.  This was a bit of a taper week before the half marathon that I will be racing next weekend outside Phoenix.  I'm actually a bit worried about the weather as it will probably be 50F - 50F might feel like 80F to me since the warmest it has been around here in a long time is 25F!  This was a lower mileage week with only 38 total miles, but I had an awesome tempo run on Thursday.  I was a bit apprehensive considering it required 3-4 miles at 7:50 or so pace.  Now I figured I was up for it to some degree as things have felt pretty good, so I chose the indoor track again to do the workout.  Well, I did nail it which was very nice and it felt effortless.  My 4 tempo miles were actually 7:50, 7:39, 7:24, and 6:59.  It sure did help that I was able to chase down Brittany and Karyn in that 4th mile as I knew that would change my focus from the watch to how I felt.  And I felt good -yeah!

But alas back to the snow for the last two days and a lovely picture from the Cottonwood parking lot.  We ran 13 easy miles from there yesterday (cut short as we had two folks with hurting feet).  Most of the run was on the "drier" road and it was before it started to snow again and leave us with the 3" we have now.

And again, 70 more days.