And I’ve signed up for another trail marathon….not because my last 1/2 marathon went so well (ie it totally didn’t) but because I want to prove to myself that I can do it and because I really really love trail running. Even if I’m super slow and fail terribly at it. Although I think this time will be different. The race is scheduled for April and so I’m a good month into my training already. We had training at our new church (helping with a church plant….more on that to come) and afterwards Clint grabbed his bike and I packed my trail shoes and we were off. The kids were with my parents all afternoon.
We couldn’t have asked for a nicer day. Blue skies and bright sunshine. The breeze was a bit cool, but it didn’t matter. Although I’ve lived in Colorado all of my life, save college, there are still so many areas that are new to me and that I haven’t hiked. I’ve done a ton of hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park but not many other spots so I’ve been exploring some close by areas. My friend Amanda is new to the area and has been blogging about hikes she and her family are taking, their goal is to do 52 this year, and so I’m learning and discovering a lot of closer hikes that I turn into trail runs. We chose to do Coyote Ridge Trail because it was super close to our new church site and connected to trails all along the front range.
It was a really good trail for running, good inclines, lovely descents and amazing scenery the entire time. Clint brought his mountain bike and he’s still new and figuring out mountain biking so he had some areas where he just walked with his bike but I think he really enjoyed it too. At a few different spots along the trail we had some deer just standing watching us go by. During part of the run I listened to a podcast by Lara Casey from Cultivate What Matters (more on that to come in the future too), and during part of it she talked about doing what you love. At that moment I was on a gorgeous downhill into a valley with sweeping views and felt so alive. We ended up doing nearly 13 miles (the last mile because we got all the way back to the car to discover Clint left the bag with our water/keys/his phone back at the out house 3/4 of a mile up the trail). It was great day and a good excuse to enjoy the hot tub that evening when we got home!
Hiking Mommy 