September, 2010

After I signed up for the Denver half marathon, I tried to convince my sister, who doesn’t run and has never raced, to join me. She must have had a good day because she said yes (really?!). She also said she wanted to run a race prior to the half (seriously?!).

Lucky for us, a 10K was planned for Sept. 25 in Casper and Sept. 26 in Colorado. We had options. She said she wanted to come to Casper (really?!). I doubted she’d visit because she hasn’t since I moved here. I’ve been to Fort Collins more times than I can count.

Weeks passed and I didn’t think it would happen.

And then it did.

Sam drove to Casper and ran her first race and the farthest distance in her life. I smashed my PR while running a pace that didn’t wreck my knees or any other part of my body. I finished my first 10K in 1:05 in 2009 and I finished Saturday’s race in 0:55 (unofficial watch time) — that’s an 8:52 minute mile! Pretty fast for not pushing myself too hard.

We both had fun — and didn’t kill each other!

Sisters at the finish line.

The Support the Girls 10K was a perfect first race for her and pace race for me. The course included pieces I run all the time, with lots of curves and a few small hills. The race was small and the organizers did a fantastic job of making the day more about having fun than winning a race. The race raised more than $6,000 for breast cancer programs in Natrona County.

Finish line.

I don’t run fast, but I did yesterday.

It was my first run in the “cold,” at 37 degrees. I didn’t feel like I was running hard. I walked for a few seconds nearly every mile to adjust my new running tights. I finished with plenty of steam left to run another mile or two.

So I was surprised to look at my watch when I was done:

That’s for four miles — just under a 9-minute mile. That might not be very fast for a lot of people, but the last time I ran that fast for longer than 3 miles I messed up my knee. This run was very good news for what’s been a long recovery and a boost for my runner’s-ego.

Bring on Saturday’s 10K!

I grew up with guns in the house. My dad and little brother hunted ducks, pheasants, deer on occasion. I took gun safety classes but was never interested in picking one up myself. I also wasn’t too thrilled about waking up early to sit in the cold and be silent. (Anyone who knows me knows all three of those aspects of hunting do not jibe with my personality.)

Then I moved to Wyoming, where guns are everywhere — in truck beds, on political billboards, in my neighbor’s closet. I’m not afraid of guns, but I wouldn’t know what to do with one if I were to pick it up.

So when my friend Carol suggested we attend a ladies’ shotgun clinic in Casper, I said, why not? We’re both (kinda) Wyoming girls now. It was free. The weather was supposed to be nice. And I was curious who would show up.

We were two of about 20 ladies who showed up for the clinic sponsored by the state Game and Fish Department. A few were seasoned hunters. Many wanted to feel safer around guns owned by spouses. Others wanted to take out rattlesnakes, skunks and other backyard nuisances. One woman had no desire to shoot anything but wanted to learn how to make the sound of pumping a shotgun to scare off intruders.

We learned basic parts and how to safely handle several types of shotguns. We practiced loading, switching the safety on and off. We sized up several types of shotguns and found ones that fit. We suited up with protective eye wear, ear plugs and, in some cases, pads that fit over bra straps to protect against recoil.

Then we went out to shoot.

Have you ever shot a gun before?

I actually did pretty well, and it was fun to blow the targets to pieces. (Dad, settle down, please don’t run out and buy me a gun.)

We got some pointers from the bronze medalist in the Beijing Olympic games, Corey Cogdell. She only practiced competitive shooting for two years before making the Olympic team.

Corey shot targets and then shot the pieces. Whoa.

Then we went out and shot some more. I did better the second time but relaxed my shoulder on the last shot and took a little recoil in my upper arm. Two rounds was enough for me and Carol.

The closest I’ll get to holding an Olympic medal.

I’m not joining the trap club any time soon, and I have no plans to hunt, but I feel better knowing I could if I wanted.

I joined more than 8,000 people riding in the Tour de Fat parade in Fort Collins on Saturday. Tour de Fat = tailgating + Halloween + bicycle parade + music festival.

I went last year with my sister, who is a senior at Colorado State. This year, the CSU/CU-Boulder rivalry game was held in Denver on the same day, taking my sister and many other college kids with her.

I went down Friday and stayed with Stefanie, a good friend from college who’s well on her way to a Ph.D. from CSU. We woke up earrrrrrly to get “dressed” in our mad/lazy/crazy housewife outfits: muumuus, robes, curlers, slippers. Total cost for both outfits: $6 during a Salvation Army sale. We biked about 5 miles to a house party for mimosas and warm zucchini coffee cake.

It actually took a lot of time to look like we just rolled out of bed.

The ride to the New Belgium Brewery wasn’t far, but when we got there, we hit a wall of bikers.

Stopped at a light.

We cut around the crowds and got to a spot further down where the crowd thinned. We settled into a spot behind Peter Pan and Tinkerbell and next to a guy blasting classic jams out of a speaker on a cart behind his bike.

After the parade, we met Stef’s friends at Steakout to watch football. The three games pleased everyone in the group: Iowa/EIU, Mizzou/UIUC and CSU/CU. Two wins, two drinks, half a cheeseburger and a ton of fries later, we walked back down to the brewery to catch the end of the post-race festival.

More than a dozen warped bikes were available for people to try.

We heard an awesome band from Chicago — Mucca Pazza, which describes itself as a “circus punk marching band.” It reminded me of klezmer+big band. The stage was packed with at least 20 musicians dressed in marching band and cheerleader uniforms.

The whole day made us too tired to do more than shower, eat and watch a movie. So that’s what we did. Sunday was another early morning for me because I had to be back in Casper for the fantasy football draft. A whirlwind trip to Colorado, but well worth it for a one-of-a-kind event and quality time with an old friend.