Too tired to write...but here are pictures!

Morning in camp on Day 2.

I climbed that!  Hope Pass, Day 2.

Getting closer to home, Day 3.

Court's daily saline infusion.  Good times in the med RV!

Camp Hale, Day 3

Running from Camp Hale, Day 4

Mount Holy Cross in the background, the so-called "best view in Colorado," Day 4

"On Top of the World," 360º view of the Rockies, Day 5

Only the good stuff to keep me going on Day 5.

Vail Village in sight, Court couldn't be happier, Day 5

Pachamama's ice bath, a daily ritual, this time in Gore Creek, Day 5

Not exactly roughing it, Day 5

Just one stage to go, Day 6

Aspen forest, Day 6

We made it!  Soooo happy!

Dreams do come true!

Thanks Rain and Thomas for treating us like rock stars!  Best cheerleaders ever!

TransRockies run at Beaver Creek: Running at the speed of life | VailDaily.com

TransRockies run at Beaver Creek: Running at the speed of life | VailDaily.com


An article in the Vail Daily this morning featuring my teammate!

We Made It!!

What an amazing journey!  Today Courtney and I arrived smiling in Beaver Creek after running 115 miles and climbing over 21,000 from Buena Vista since Sunday.  This all seems very surreal to me, because finishing this race has been nothing more than a dream until today.  It feels so good to be done, and I am so proud of our team effort to reach the finish.  I am going to describe in more detail our experience, but right now I'm just excited to use a real shower and sleep in a bed for the first time since we started.

Pictures to follow...

Off to the finishers banquent and then TransRockies "Stage 7."  I think a little fun is well in order!

Trans Rockies Day 1

Really quick post here, because I am bushed!  We had a great run today, finished 6th in the open women.  It was really hot today, I drank 4.5 liters of water and was popping one salt stick cap every 1/2 hour.  I felt good.  I did a little towing, as Court was feeling the heat a little more than I.  We got some solid recovery in this afternoon.  It's a great atmosphere here: this is event is described as summer running camp for grown-ups. 

Tomorrow is the "short" stage: 13 some miles.  We going over Hope Pass, which means we climb over 3,000 feet in under 3 miles.  I'm getting out the short poles and plan to do some hardcore ski walking, I think we should kick ass.  The weather tomorrow should contrast strongly to today's, including very cool temps and possible storms.  Should be beautiful, though!

I realized today that I just completed the longest race I've ever run today, and now I'm going to repeat 5 more days in a row!

It's go time!

Just a quick note before we take off tomorrow at 9AM!  Don't know if I'll be able to sleep tonight with all the excitement and anticipation.  We had a great day in Buena Vista getting our swag bags and catching up with everyone on the Salomon crew.  Tomorrow our stage takes us 20.6 miles to Railroad Bridge Campground and includes 3,029 ft of elevation gain.  See you on the flip side!

It's official!

T Minus 38 Hours!!

TransRockies will here in less than two days and excitement at the Robinson/Weber camp is high.  I've spent the week acclimating and taking in the sights and eats of the Avon/Eagle, CO area.  It's amazing how much I eat at altitude, even without training.  That my metabolism is through the roof is very convenient, because there's been plenty to eat between cooking at Court's, visiting her family, and checking out all the local joints.  I found my new favorite carbo loading zone in the west, which is the Columbine Bakery in Avon.  All I'm saying is that somebody better be waiting for me next Friday in Beaver Creek with a box of their pastries!

Court on our morning run

Running through the clouds in Eagle.

The sage brush looked and smelled amazing in the morning air.

Today Court and I did some all-important team fashion coordination, and we put the final touches on our team flair (just wait for the pictures!)  We also finished rigging up our team tow line out of webbing, a bungee, and a pair of caribiners.

Because TRR is a team race, you have to stick with your partner from start to finish, regardless of how you both feel.  Ideally, both team members will be an equal match for each other, but everyone is expected to have their highs and lows.  So in that case, you just whip out your handy tow line and the stronger teammate gets to haul.   I really like the element of teamwork that this will add.  Can't say at this point who will end up on which end of the line, but hopefully we're both still smiling. . .

Salomon Presents: The C-Rob and Shaulynne Show

TransRockies bound!

113 miles, 20,000' of ascent, 6 days in the Colorado rockies.  Should be amazing!

Its time for the GoreTex TransRockies Run!!  I can't believe it's here after months of anticipation . . . I can't believe I let Courtney and Gui talk me into doing this!

Tomorrow, I'm am off for my big adventure of the summer: I'm flying to Denver, and then driving to Eagle for six day of acclimatization before things get started on the 22nd, all with my good friend and college teammate, Courtney Robinson.  

From the first time I met Courtney at Home Plate brunch (the only all-you-can-eat meal on campus), I knew we would get along just fine.  Since then we've done a lot of eating together, and partaken in many-a rowdy adventure, but nothing will compare to what we are about to embark upon...

The course map: we begin in Buena Vista and end in Beaver Creek.

The course profile: lots of climbing above 10,000'.

The meal I met Court

Here's us up at Moosilauke Lodge.

Blueberry pie with mountain sunset crust!

Red Iguana in Salt Lake: it's worth the trip.

(I was hard pressed to find any pictures of us that didn't involve food or eating!)

All geared up (5 pairs ought to do it, right?)

I really couldn't have chosen better company for 20+ hours of running in one week.  We have a lot to catch up on, and although Court is known far and wide for her inexhaustible chatter (she is said to put the 'mouth' in Dartmouth), I think 113 miles should be sufficient.  So off I go . . . I will do my best to post regularly during the run, so check in daily starting on the 22nd!

Switching Gears

Today was the last day of summer program with Piotr and Go! Training.  And there's no better way than to go out on top than with classic threshold intervals on the Coulee in Afton.  Everyone looked so strong, and the progress that has been made over the summer was very evident.  Personally, I have been focusing on lengthening out my classic stride and increasing my range of motion.  I have resumed PT on my shoulder, and thanks to the expertise of Mark at PTOSI, I have gained a lot of mobility in that joint, which has really helped me open my shoulder when skiing.  Next up, I'm off to Colorado to acclimate for TransRockies (Aug 22nd-27th).  By the time I get home it will be time to switch gears for the next phase of the training year, in which I increase the specificity of my training and approach top form for the impending race season.  

The whole Go! Training gang.  Nothing like a great group to motivate you at 7AM practices.

Just another day at the gun show.

Jojo Winters, Caitlin Compton, Piotr Bednarski, me and Sara Morse

Miss Compton shows how its done.

Thanks Avho and Greg at FinnSisu for tuning up my boards!  Now I'm ready for 2 and 1/2 more months of top-notch training before I head out West for the SuperTour opener (eek!)