Adventures in Running: Western States and Weekend Adventures

Western States
I had a last minute opportunity to pace Denise Bourassa at Western States this year. I was pretty excited to head down to Squaw and be around all the excitement again. It was a great weekend and Denise finished 8th! She impressed the heck out me with her perseverance and mental toughness. I was excited to be a part of her team and help get her to finish line in the the top ten :) Congrats Denise!

It was fun to see so many other friends/racers over the weekend too. I was able to catch up with some old friends that I haven't seen for ages! I was so proud of everyone and impressed with the efforts put out despite the heat.

Ian Sharman, myself, and Meghan Arbogast

I was also able to run the Montrail 6k Uphill Challenge the day prior to WS. I ran last year and had a blast and was excited to do it again this year. I was the first woman up the mountain again this year, running just over 32 minutes. Both times I've done the 6k Uphill race I've been humbled as I cross the finish line- this is just the start of the WS run. They still have to run 97 more miles! What a tough start to the day! Granted most runner probably don't red line up to the top like I did, but still, they have the same amount of climbing to cover. Anyway, it was a great effort and I had fun running and spending some time at the Chalet at the top. Oddly enough (or not at all) Max King won the men's race. I swear everywhere I race around the country I see someone else from Bend on the podium. Small world.

Montrail 6k Uphill Challenge. Not my best photo…..
Credit: Ian Sharman

After getting back from watching Western States I was pretty inspired to start training. This was good timing because 4th of July fell on a Thursday, giving me a 4-day weekend. And I sure took advantage. I went running up in the mountains every day!

Thursday: Zach and I started a 4th of July tradition last year that involved a long adventure. This year was basically a repeat of last year, just in a different place. We ended up out in the mountains for 8 hours….lost for a good chunk of it. We did make it back AND managed to stay awake for fireworks!

Middle & North Sister

Climbing down the back of South Sister

Hiking somewhere in between south and middle sister...

Remnants of the Pole Creek fire

Climbing down the backside of South Sister. A bit terrifying...

Running down the scree field on South Sister

Relaxing after the run. Happy 4th!

Friday: Devils Lake & PCT loop. I was pretty tired, but it was a beautiful 11 mile loop nonetheless

View from the PCT

Saturday: South Sister via Green Lakes and Morraine Lake trails. I took Riley with me on this run. Lots of comments about a dog summiting South Sister….