Sunday, December 4, 2011

West Highland Way 2012!

Confirmation this morning by email that both Neil and I have been accepted into the West Highland Way Race in 2012. This will be Neil's 4th and my 3rd. We have agreed to do the journey together again - something I highly recommend every couple try. I recall in our first year Dario commenting that there were no marriage counsellors on the route!

We actually do quite well together, Neil lets me set the pace and we help each other through those down moments along the journey. The goal is to finish together. One ultra we did together Neil whacked his head on a tree and I really thought I was on my own to the finish line. So you never know what an event will bring!

From January to April I will be taking an education leave from my work to complete my Masters of Science Degree at Simon Fraser University. This will be a focused time of study but also an opportunity for some change to the training patterns. Change is good!

On December 1st we committed to the Marcothon - running for 25 minutes every day through the month of December. So far so good! We even squeezed the 25 minutes in before a Christmas party on Friday night. Saturday Neil, Liza and I had a 2.5 hour run in the Buntzen Lake area. Today we had a shorter run at Hayward Lake so I could attend an annual Christmas Wreath Making party. I used Cedar boughs and Holly from the Holly bushes in our garden. I plan to get up early most days this week to do the 25 minute run in the morning and then will have a few evening runs as well. We are planning on a snow shoe run this Thursday night at Grouse Mountain as the weather looks clear and cold.

We have decided to stay home here in Vancouver for Christmas. We were considering spending Christmas in Scotland but with me preparing for the thesis writing and upcoming courses it all seemed a bit much. We will keep it simple and plan for our WHW trip in June! Exciting!

4 comments:

  1. Will be great to see you both back again in June. I was delighted to see your entries arriving - you have both become race regulars and it wouldn't be the same without you! Have a great Christmas. Ian (Beattie - it was easier to post as Anonymous :-) )

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  2. Thanks Ian - all the best with the organizing! You all do such a great job with the event - perhaps one of the reasons we like to return!

    Cheers,
    Carolyn

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  3. Carolyn, interesting comment about couples running together! I can hear my husband screaming No Way! :-) We walked it together for our honeymoon which was great. This will be my 1st WHWR as a runner. But in June 2012 we will embark on 2 very different journeys. Good luck for your preparation! Looking forward to meeting you. Silke

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  4. Congratulations Silke on your entrance to WHW!
    It is an incredible journey...with or without your spouse! Doing it together also simplifies things for crewing coming from overseas. All the best with your training.

    Cheers,
    Carolyn

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