An athlete's account of undergoing breast cancer treatment

I have been making a conscious effort to not be so busy all the time.  Running around, lack of sleep, and persistent stress is not good for body or mind.  That said, this past month has been craaaazy busy.  Fortunately, it was crazy in all the good ways!

It started with three consecutive weekends of racing, the first being a little 5k running race I did with Dizzy.  Although I have incorporated a weekly trail run into my training, I do NOT consider myself a runner, in fact I have never competed in a running race.  That said, a race is a race, even if it is a "fun" race and I planned on "racing".  Dizzy, apparently, had the same plan.  I typically trail run with Dizzy off leash, so I was caught a bit off guard with him charging full gallop and dragging me behind.  I'm sure we looked pretty comical, however even with a stop at the doggie pool for some wading, Dizzy's strategy proved successful and we finished 3rd overall with a time of 22:45.  I have no idea if that is fast or not.

Dizzy and me before the Friends of Animals k9-5k.
I love the hot air balloons floating in the background.

The following weekend, Shannon and I traveled to Steamboat Springs, CO for the Steamboat Stinger a 50-mile race where Shannon and I relay raced in the Co-ed Duo category.  Despite being a short 2-night trip, the fun we had made it worth the effort.  The course, while not technically challenging, has over 3500 feet of climbing per lap.  For this reason, it was the perfect course for my super light Pivot Les275.  The race went well, I felt really good, and after a cumulative 4.5+ hours of racing, I missed catching the third place team by 30 seconds.  We were still pretty psyched to finish 4th place in the competitive co-ed duo category.

 Finishing off my 25-mile lap

 Hangin' out at the MTBRaceNews tent post-race

Co-ed Duo podium

Next up was the Wasatch 360, a local 6-hour race that benefits Summit Bike Club, the junior development program I help coach.  Once again Shannon and I raced coed-duo.  Over the course of six hours, an epic battle brewed among the top three co-ed teams.  Despite my best effort, Shannon and I came up just short of the win, however the fun we had duking it out will make this one of our more memorable races of the year.

Eating an apple on the podium is probably poor form....but I was hungry!
Note:  Cutest podium girls ever!

The craziness continued with a long day volunteering at the Park City Point to Point and a trip to St. George.


I am now gearing up for my first solo 50miler this year, the Draper Fall Classic.  I raced this race in 2012 so I know what I am in store for which includes a long, but fun day of buffed out single track.

With the craziness of the past month, I admit that I have had some days of fatigue, however overall,  I feel really good.  I am most pleased that after a summer of inconsistecy, I put together two really strong back-to-back weekends of racing.

That said, I am looking forward to life slowing down a bit.....but first I am going to race my bike for 50 miles...