Week of July 7th to 13th, 2014

Monday:
0mi.  Drove up to Pittsburg, NH.  Jen, Griffin and I hike Prospect Mtn on the way up in Whitefield, NH.  It was a nice little hike with awesome views at the top and a good way to break up the long drive.  Pittsburg is gorgeous.  We're staying in a little cabin on the First Connecticut Lake.  I went fishing and caught a tiny dace in Lake Francis.   I didn't catch anything else but had a couple rainbow trout follow my lure.  The fishing up here is world class, but only if you have a boat for the lakes, and it's fly fishing only in the rivers and streams. 

Tuesday:
0mi.  Hiked up Sanguiary Mtn in Dixville Notch with Jen and Griffin.  Great hike.  Awesome views of the closed Balsams Resort below.  More fishing, nada, zilch, zero fish.  Oh well.  I'm gonna buy a fly rod and hammer the streams next year when we come back.  We love it up here and we're already talking about the next time we come up.  Fun trip!

Wednesday:
0mi.  One last drive of Moose Alley early in the morning.  We saw 4 deer and a snowshoe hare, but no luck seeing moose.  Headed home around 9:30 for the long drive back to Chesterfield. 

Thursday:
13mi/1:24 on the Grafton trails with Ferenc, Lena and Ellie.  Great run.  Awesome weather.  Lifted weights.

Friday:
8mi+/55min in Pisgah.  Feeling good.  Caught 3 rainbows in the afternoon.

Saturday:
15mi*/1:35 - Run with the Beavers 10mi trail race - 1:05:31 (6:33) 1st place.
Decent race.  I took it out hard, too hard!  I built up a comfortable lead and then was suffering a bit on the 2nd lap.  The first half of the second lap is difficult because there is a decent amount of uphill, though it is very gradual, it's tough when you're tired.  I started to feel hot in the second loop in addition to being a little gassed from the fast first loop.  The new start/finish made the finish much tougher.  Instead of finishing strong, blasting down a hill, we had to continue up a gradual climb which sucked the life out of me.  I was cooked.  I was pleased to get the win, going for my 3-peat at this race and sealing the victory in the Rhode Island Triple Crown of Trail Racing.  Garvin, Bentley and Jonny were next to cross the line all in the 1:08's.  They looked to have a good battle and team HammBoj was still in the lead.  It would come down to our 3rd man.  Seth ran a super 1:12 and then Boj came home with a 1:17 (the results have him at 1:15, but I think he was 1:17).  We lost to WTAC.  If I could have been as fit as 2012, it would have been interesting.  It was a fun day with Jen running the full 10mi distance and Pard dominating the 5mi in his age group and winning an award for the oldest finisher.  The guy is a beast!  Every time he does a race I'm proud and in awe of his fitness and vitality at his age.  71 years young!  I hope I'm can do the same when I'm that age.  Jen and I stopped at Big Gary's and stocked the fridge with cold chromium replacement beverages.  Thanks to Bob and Jackie for putting on an excellent event.  It's a shame that Bob and Mike Galoob couldn't race in the events they put on, because they certainly would have been in the mix for the Triple Crown.  Those are the sacrifices R.D.'s make to bring awesome events to us and I really appreciate their efforts.  Thanks, Jeff Walker, Mike Galoob, and Bob Jackman for an awesome series on some of the best trails in my home state!

Sunday:
8mi+/59min in Pisgah with Griffin.  Legs sore.  Nice and easy run.  I saw 2 garter snakes sunning themselves in the tops of blue berry bushes at Kilburn Pond.  Pretty cool sighting.  Nice swim after the run with Griffin.

Total for the Week:
44mi.  OK week.  I was fine with taking the zeroes while up in Pittsburg.  Next week, I plan on doubling and getting some good miles in.