I know it has been a very long time since I have posted. I guess I just haven't felt like posting and I don't have any photos to share. Although the photo above looks alot like me at Whistler, it is a pilfered photo from their website. Pictures make the blog so much more exciting!
I have had two memorable and bloggable experiences since my last post:
1. Ran my first 50K since last May
2. Took a 3-day Ski vacation in a foreign country
Bridle Trails 50K Race
On January 13 I ran the Bridle Trails 50k race in Bellevue, WA. I wasn't really planning on "racing" so much as just trying to get out and have some fun. Oh and of course finish a race which as beaten me down more than any other. It is a little strange and sad that prior to two weeks ago I had dropped out of this race both times I had raced it! I think that I have only dropped from one other race in my running career! I should have never dropped from those previous two races, but in the past I was always able to justify the drop since it is a Fat Ass race and it is in the middle of winter. It means very little in terms of my fitness since I am usually just trying to build a good base during January. And alot of the time the weather is absolutely dreadful for this race. In fact, last year there was a downpour during the entire race and the temperature was around 35-37 degrees. It started snowing during that race and at one time I found a 100 yard stretch of trail covered by a shin deep pond!
This year the race and the weather were much more enoyable, although still challenging. It was about 25 degrees during the race and some packed snow and ice covered the majority of the trail. But at least it wasn't raining! One of the unique challenges of the Bridle trail race is that the race starts at 3 pm thereby requiring the runner to run at least 3, if not 4, 5 mile laps in the dark. When I think about it this really isn't that much of a challenge since most northwesterners have to deal with running in the dark on most weekdays during the winter!
I had a relatively fun time this year and finished with a somewhat slow time of 4:42 which I blame on a couple of bathroom stops, slippery ice and a slacker mentality! The true highlight of the race was getting to hang-out with a lot of runners who I hadn't seen in a few months. Some of the local runners are such amazing and truly genuine good people. It is refreshing and somewhat comforting to find others who revel in their sport and who value the way they live in much the same way as I do.
Whistler Ski Vacation
Last weekend (Jan 20-22) I drove up to Whistler with a group of guys for three days of skiing. I had a great time avoiding injury and shredding pow, but it was a little strange since I knew no one in the group which I went with. Most of the guys were Microsofties who somehow new each other through the digital world. I just got connected through the Mountaineers UTHRS group. The trip worked out great since there weren't too many responsibilities to hang with the group, but at the same time everyone was responsible enough to make sure that skiing was the top priority. We stayed at a ski in/ski out condo on the side of Blackcomb mountain with a defective hot-tub!
The only thing that perplexed me throughout my stay was the insistence of so many people to use the safety bar on the chairlifts. Although I have not skied at a ton of ski areas I am not used to using the safety bar. I have never really been too worried about falling off the chairlift, except for when getting on and off! When I have skied in Washington it seems like you can usually spot the safety bar users from a mile away. Generally they seem to be beginners, kids or nordic ski types. But at Whistler about 75% of the lift riders seemed to put down the bar, even quite a few rowdy teenagers! I discussed it with one of the guys in the group, Dima, who had lived in Canada for most of his life. He suggested that it is a cultural thing that many more people in Canada, and possibly elsewhere, were more accustomed to using the safety bar out of habit. This got me wondering if the use of safety devices whether lift safety bars, seat belts, bike helmets etc. was more prevalent in other countries and whether or not Americans (the U.S. kind) are less safety conscious. In this country are we all just a bunch of risk-takers or non-conformists and/or are does everyone else use safety devices because they truly believe in their safety or because they have been brainwashed into believing in their inherent safety? Personally, I am not so convinced that the safety bar is really very necessary. Maybe it is more likely that I will fall out of a chair than that the chair will fall off of the lift, but as long as I take care not to fall out of the chair then that shouldn't happen, right? Obviously there are too many issues here to resolve and they are primarily influenced by my opinion. I am guessing that my issue with the safety bar is really childish and probably has more to do with my resentment of nanny state control than anything else. Of course the safety bar is not a regulated device and no one is required to use it but it's heavy-use got me thinking about implied as well as regulated control. It appeared to me that alot of those people who used the bar may have used it due to it's feeling of safety rather than it's actual safety value. Lately I am realizing, more and more, that although I profess to being somewhat liberal in my outlook and politics I am really very libertarian. I definately value the responsibility of evaluating and choosing the way I want to live my life, or ride my chair lift! Now, due to karma, I will probably fall off my next chair lift!
