A Banff Homecoming

The return from any holiday is often accompanied by a little "lull" upon returning home. I took a little down time from running - as I realized that I have been hard at it since last October! Almost a year of running, non-stop, with no injuries. How fortunate am I?? Knock on wood. One thing I noticed upon arriving home is damn, I live in the most beautiful place in this fine land. I drove through Montana, Wyoming and got to run through the Colorado Rockies. I drove and ran through some exceptionally pretty places, yet realized, that none of it compares to here. Just check out my buddy Steve's photos from this past weekend run. He has been living here for 20+ years and he said that this was one of the best runs, ever!! Mike also did a post on this epic run and posted his photos as well.

It has been an exceptional year for my running and I was fortunate enough to take quite a few running holidays, travel to some great events in beautiful places and meet some great people on the way. The blog was a big part of that and it helped me stay in touch with people I met along the way. It also allowed my to meet some new running friends! I have been pleasantly surprised at how much I have enjoyed blogging, both the writing aspect and the sharing aspect. I love to share my life in Banff with you and I enjoy the feedback!

Upon returning home, I noticed a few things around town that signified a change of season. The main one was snow on the mountains, but there were other things like the return of the elk to my front yard! The first weekend post TransRockies was the first weekend that I had nothing on the calendar. Nothing! So I though it was a good opportunity for some payback. I spent the weekend volunteering at one of Alberta's finest local trail races, the Moose Mountain Trail Race and then I went and cheered on friends at the Canmore Half Marathon. Fun, fun and fun. I love all aspects of racing and I especially love encouraging those people out there running and racing. I got to set the course for the 16km Moose Mountain race and it was my first run, one week after T.R. My legs felt great! Still, I decided to take yet another week off and give the body a well earned rest.

Some exciting running news, my husband has found himself a TransRockies partner and has committed to the race for next year! He will be running with our friend Holly who will be a perfect match for Keith in both pace and personality - I am so excited for them both! Also, as well as my husband committing some serious time to running the next year, I have found myself a new running partner. His name is Greg the Dog, he has moved in across the street and he reminds me a lot of Norman the dog. I am going to enjoy this new friendship and my new running dog, I can just tell. He even looks like Norman in his youth and is buff, smart and built to run!

This past weekend, I also enjoyed a weekend with my Mom. It was great and nice to just relax. Every weekend has been so busy for the last 3 months, that we haven't had time for a quality visit. Those of you who know me, know that next to runnin' my favorite thing is relaxin'. It was a perfect blue sky weekend to enjoy the sights of Banff and just, enjoy. I did sneek out for a few short runs and I can't believe how incredible I feel after my little time-out. I have run the last 3 days and I feel faster, stronger and motivated as all heck!!