Day Number 8- German Short-Haired Pointer Gone Wild

Ran in the woods for my eighth day in a row this morning. As you can see, my dog Dosewallips approves of the new routine!

Pend Oreille Bay Trail - Day Number Five

I ran five miles today with my daughters in honor of day number 5 of my streak. I ran on the beautiful Pend Oreille Bay Trail. A beautiful evening for a run with my daughters. Parking at City Beach in Sandpoint is within a nice warm-up of the trail.

My daughters waiting to run. They usually get a bit annoyed with pictures. That is Lake Pend Oreille in the background.

A shot along the bay trail.

Heading back to the warmth of the car. It was about 28 degrees out with a snow storm on the way tomorrow. Should be fun getting my run in!

Day 4 - Running Streak?

Okay, the only reason I went running this evening was due to this notion of a running streak. I fully realize that 4 days isn't a big deal, but the point is "the streak" actually made me go out and move a bit! So, it was dark, snowy and a few days ago I spotted wolf tracks in the woods.  Needless to say, I stayed away from the woods. I ran the minimum required by the national running registry to keep a streak going (1 mile). LAME?! No, not really....it got me off of the couch with Dose into the brisk evening.

Just four days ago, I was unsure if I wanted to make any sort of commitment related to a running streak. It only took four days for me to think a streak may have some motivational merit.

Interesting Running Streak Links:

Huffington Post
New York Times Article - 30 Years!
33 Year Streak

The scene heading out the door this evening...snowy and dark.

Day 3 - Time for Traction

Day number three today. Again, I am not making any commitments other than seeing if I can establish a habit this winter when it comes to my running. Usually, when I begin something like this I have a concrete goal in mind. This is actually a best practice when setting a goal, but related to running it hasn't always worked for me! Anyhow, it was Day 3.

I only ran 2.5 miles. I used a variation of the Yak Trax today because there is still a ton of ice on the trail. As far as distance is concerned, it is all I could fit in today, but figured exercise is exercise! My goal is to establish a good base so I can train for a fast half-marathon. I hope to run the Couer d'Alene Half-Marathon in May. My goal to run under 1:30. I think I can make it happen, as long as I stick with this during the winter.

I am amazed at some of the running streaks I have found online. I am actually pleased to get to 3 days in a row. I know, lame, but I have been running about 3 days a week with a longer run on the weekend. The challenge will be to string some days together. We shall see!

Check out the following sites:
Running Streak Registry
Jon Sutherland 44 year streak article

Enjoy!

Dose running past me going for some water!

Day 2 - Running in the Snow in North Idaho

Okay, day number 2. I ran 3.9 miles with Michelle and Dosewallips. Dose kept running away and exploring. A good run in the woods. Lots of ice and snow on the path. We had to run slow to keep from sliding off the path and into the trees. We did see another set of wolf tracks. It is doubtful I will do any night running over the next few weeks in the woods.

Michelle finishing a fairly long climb. The snow is melting!

Day One - Winter Running with a German Short-Haired Pointer Named Dosewallips

Day one today. Day one of what, I am not sure! There are many things that I do everyday including the following:

• Read the news online
• Brush my teeth
• Get dressed
• Read
• Household chores
• Work
• Enjoy family

I was thinking while out on a run today and thought how would my life change if I added exercise daily to my routine? Usually I am more content, happier, and have a healthier outlook on everything after I run. Generally, I am a better person to be around. My family would probably agree. So today is day one of.....attempting to establish a habit....kind of like brushing my teeth.

Today I ran 3 miles. Very easy run, very enjoyable. I took the time to stop and look at the animal tracks and enjoy the surroundings. However, today is Sunday. I find it much more difficult to make the time for running during the week. This blog will allow for some accountability to the task! 

Dosewallips coming back my way after running far ahead. 

One of the simple pleasures of running in the winter time. You never know what beauty you will find waiting to be discovered.

Had to get a picture of this today. I was following a bloody paw print, then came along this large canine paw. You can see the outline of my size 11 foot next to the paw. It measured over five inches! We did hear some howling last night. A good chance this was a wolf. They frequent an area northeast of our house about 30 miles away. 

Sunday Morning Run in Dover, Idaho

Up in the hills above Dover Bay Resort Community

Got in a nice 14 mile run on Sunday morning. We ran a loop through the Dover Bay Resort Community and looped over to the Bike Path across Highway 2. From there we went into the Ravenwood Trails/Syringa Trails from the Blue Gate off of the bike path. All in all an absolutely beautiful morning. Funny how those long runs seem much shorter when running with good friends.

Today I ran Fartleks up in the Syringa Trails near my house. I am enjoying mixing some speed into my workouts. I feel like all the trail running over the last few years has given me a bit of a "trail shuffle". Will be running the Athol Half-Marathon in two weeks. I also plan on hitting a few road races as well in the next six months. Snow will hit soon and I need some motivation on the calendar to keep me running through the cold winter!

Swiftwick Pursuit - Compression Sock Review

I wore compression socks for the first time on a long run at the Wild Moose Chase Trail Run up at the Mt. Spokane Nordic Trails a week ago. I haven't run without them since. I was having some terrible calf and foot cramps, along with general achille and calf pain in the weeks leading up to the race. I took the week off before the race and decided to give the Swiftwick Pursuit Compression socks a try on race day. I was expecting more pain, but was pleasantly surprised that I did not cramp up at all during the race and experienced only minor discomfort. A far cry from where I had been just a few days ago. 

I am guessing the compression kept the swelling I was having at bay during the race. Race day was freezing, so the full length socks helped keep me plenty warm. If you haven't ever worn Merino Wool socks, you are in for a surprise if you try the Swiftwick Pursuit. The comfort is awesome and on a 2.5 hour run they did an amazing job keeping my feet dry. This is the first long run I have had in months without any blisters.

The crazy thing is that I am going to buy a pair of these to wear to work! They actually can pass for dress socks and will be good to wear on the mornings I do my long runs before work. I definitely recommend these socks and will be checking out the other Swiftwick Products. 

Swiftwick Pursuit 12"

Wild Moose Chase 25K

Good times at the Wild Moose Chase 25K up at Mt. Spokane last weekend! We went up there with our friends Matt and Angie Brass. They are pictured above after collecting their awards for winning the race. They ran unbelievable races. The temperature at the start was around 35 degrees with cold rain and wasn't much warmer at the finish! Thankfully there was a wood stove blazing up at the Selkirk Lodge.

The race was a killer. Especially since I haven't been running enough to justify trying to run that far with that kind of elevation gain and loss. I was surprised at the number of long climbs, but I was happy to finish. Looking forward to running it again next year, with more miles and better training.

My wife Michelle won her age group as usual and ran an excellent race. I was impressed with how much steam she had up the last climb. It felt more like a scramble than a run for me at that point. Next up is the Athol Trail of Terror Half-Marathon!

Schweitzer Mountain Running

What does it take to get motivated to do some blogging? A mountain run up at beautiful Schweitzer Mountain! Schweitzer Mountain is located in Sandpoint, Idaho. A place that I consider a trail running paradise.

Vickie and Michelle heading up Upper Grrr x-country trail. Fairly mellow climb overall.

The fall colors are coming right along. The red colored bushes are mountain huckleberries. Even though they are getting a bit over-ripe, they still provided a bit of nourishment on the 10 mile run.

This is Colburn Lake on the Backside of Schweitzer Mountain. Up to this point, I have only seen it in the winter via snowboarding. The dogs took a swim before we turned back around.

Michelle and Dose (wallips) heading back up the cat-track from Colburn Lake.

Getting ready to head back down the other side. Lake Pend Oreille can be seen in the background.

We have been in Sandpoint, Idaho for a year now. We are loving all it has to offer our family. Next week we will be running the Wild Moose Chase 25K up at Mt. Spokane. My training has been just enough to finish the race, but not at blazing speeds by any means. Nice to finally get back into some consistent running!