Another Day on the Trail

In the weeks since my unexpected lottery win (and Sarah's first 100-mile finish!) we have been strategizing on how best to prepare for HURT. The H.U.R.T. 100 is run on a modified loop course, with about 5,500 feet of elevation gain per loop, so basically what we're trying to do is get used to climbing hills, and more hills, and -- oh yeah -- still more hills.

Today's run was not bad - 19 miles with 3,800 feet of climbing - but we'll be adding more hills to the loop.

Oh - and there was some unexpected excitement, too! As we stopped partway through the loop to refill hydration packs at our water drop, Sarah was bouldering (and had just jumped off the rock) when I caught a glimpse of this little creature out of the corner of my eye...

I pulled Sarah out of the way - she was just about to step on the snake - and then she got really, really close anyway and took this photo with her iphone.

But it's a great photo, no? Totally worth the risk. :-)

See you on the trail, friends.