Maine, Vermont, A 100 Miler

• I'm tracking Emily running a 100 mile race and it's exhausting.  I'm sure she's tired too but mothers don't sleep when their offspring are alone in the dark woods running up and down mountains.  She is now at Mile 80 and being paced by a good friend. More to come on this.

Here's my FB status from yesterday to tell you a little more about the race.

I'll be thinking of Emily Halnon all day today, through tonight and into tomorrow as she runs her first 100 miler, Pine to Palm in Oregon. Not only does she decide to run a 100 miler she chooses a difficult one with 20,000 feet of climbs including 3 "epic" climbs of over 7000 feet. She has 34 hours to complete this race which is her goal. I hope she enjoys the journey. I'll be glad when she reaches the end!

This is Em during a 100 mile relay.  Now she's doing it all.

• No race this weekend so a bit more about Maine.  I love Maine.  No secret!  Last Saturday after the race we went to the beach and sat and watched people, the ocean, read, all that good stuff. Bliss. 

Yeah, I'm in my happy place.

• Then we drove to Nubble Lighthouse and took pictures even though I have several hundred at this point.  Then it was time to eat. What to get?  I got lobster macaroni and cheese.  My friends didn't finish theirs but I had no problem.
  
  
  
  
  We each had a couple of beers.  I forget what I got  first but then I got Shipyard Pumpkin Ale.  They put it in a Miller glass and put my friend's beer in a Pumpkinale glass. Well, that wasn't right so I got the beer switched around and all was right with the world.
  
  
  
  
  This is from my house, how it should be done.
  
  
  
  
  Sunday we got up early and a bike ride was on tap. First there was a catastrophe.  You know when you hear a bump and look in your rearview mirror and there are no bikes where there should be bikes that all is not right with the world.  I can feel some of you shuddering now (Kate). I pulled over and the bike rack had gone down (because someone hadn't clicked it shut) and the bikes had bounced on the road a couple of times while still on the rack.  I couldn't stop exclaiming over how stupid I was.  My friend kept saying it was okay. If you are going to do something to someone's bike or whatever, she is the person to be with. She stayed calm  and kept saying it all could be fixed.  Well, my bike was fine but hers appeared not to be.  She could ride it though we could see things that were bent.  We could quickly see it was not as bad as it first appeared.  (It has been in the shop now since it's trauma.  I couldn't talk about this until I knew it was okay.  It just needed a part straightened out and is fine.  Phew!) So we rode to Ogunquit Beach from Maine and I easily knew those would be the best two hours of my month even though the month had just begun.  Bliss Bliss Bliss.  And more bliss.  And then some more.  
  
  When I first got to the Nubble.
  
  
  
  I love this library.
  
  Oh my.  Bliss.
  
  
  Back in Vermont I have given myself two weeks off swimming now that I have no tris. I went back to the gym this week for my runs and they were quite good. I did a long run of 6 miles at home yesterday.  Yup, that's my long run these days.  I also have started strength and stretch exercises and a class. Badly needed.   I did my class in the middle of my run the other day and I was shaky when I finished the run. I badly need to do this and I'll let you know that I am.  There I said it. I am going to stretch and strengthen twice a week.
  
  Vermont is pretty sweet too.
  
  
  I got two short bike rides in after work, both quite nice. I hope to go longer today but I am waiting for it to warm up. Friday's ride was quite cold and yesterday's run was Arctic! 
  
  
   Back to tracking Emily.
  
  
  Okay many hours later......it was exhausting tracking her and there were times I was worried. But she came through in 28:10:35. She was the 8th woman. Go Emily! She was incredible in her first 100. I say first because I am a realist.  What a rock star she is.