Colorado

Where to even begin? I feel out of practice…

Whew, ok…let’s GO!

I moved on October 17th driving from Ithaca, NY through Ohio, Illinois, Iowa and Nebraska to my now small, bougie city of Boulder, Colorado. The drive across the country was absolutely gorgeous. The midwest has a lot of open space, most of it being used as farmland. Well wouldn’t you know that October is PEAK FARM SEASON so all the available land was lush with either corn, windmills, trees with changing leaves, cows, or all of the above. What was most stunning to me was the systems of irrigation the farms used throughout the fields. The complexity that early settlers figured out just left me in awe. I also loved all the dirt roads running alongside and through the middle of the fields. Through they were constructed for easier truck access, I absolutely salivated thinking about running through those fields, on those dirt roads, with the farm smells. I prefer manure to city exhaust any day of the week….though running by a bakery tugs at my heartstrings too.

Each night I stayed in random hotels, ran on hotel treadmills and ate copious amounts of peanut butter and yogurt. I was lucky enough to be near fellow podcaster and Twitter wordsmith Scotty Kummer on my second night, so we got breakfast at a delicious joint near the really shady hotel I picked to crash at. That meal was probably the best of the trip. My microwave hotel room concoctions, though delicious, were simply not up to that level. Scott couldn’t believe the hotels I was staying at (no, I don’t read reviews) but they were free with all my travel points and to be honest, I only watched Big Bang Theory and slept there.

I rolled into Boulder on Saturday afternoon and was greeted by my housemate and landlord Elliot, his three pets and a beautifully clean house to call home. It took very little time to throw all my stuff in my room, so we went for a short walking tour of our neighborhood and I picked up some groceries. I am really lucky with this Craigslist find for sure. He and I get along great, have open communication and respect each other.

My first morning, I met a new person for a great run up Green Mountain. Might as well jump into the scene the only way I know how. I was amazed at how many people were already out at the early time I get my butt out of bed. I am even more blown away by all the people that have to be over 70 still going up the peaks. I hope that I am just like that when I get old (I’ve also realized that for some men, it is worse to be called “old” than racist, sexist or homophobic…but I digress). I started my job at Skratch Labs the next day and what a whirlwind it has been! The first week we catered two events, one at Specialized Bikes and another at Twitter. Boy am I glad we met those amazing people before Elon took over. My job for Skratch is the run the front-of-house operations for Skratch Labs Cafe, opening this coming January. The initial plan was to open in November, but building permits in Boulder take time, then with the holidays and hiring/training, it seems smart to push the opening date to 2023. Opening a cafe has tons of moving parts, all of which I’ve learned in my first three weeks. Skratch is a small company, so all members of all teams know each other and are on the same page. This is so important, especially for me being new, because everyone knows what is going on, what the company mission is and how to proceed in their role to best represent that. My days are filled with rice, coffee, sustainable companies, cup sizing, building plans and design. I love it and I cannot wait until we open! My morning runs are about to get SUPER EARLY!

Speaking of running, not many people know this, but Boulder has some of it. It has been relatively easy to find people to run with and also days to explore on my own. I prefer to be able to run from my door and within a mile or two I have dirt trails, a track or roads, all of which have others running on them so I don’t feel like the weird one with a headlamp on at 6AM. My next race is a 50k so I have been catching long runs on the weekends with Boulder Underground whose members are all training for CIM taking place on the same day as my 50k. I’ve tried to catch a few other group runs during the week. My goal this week is to get to trails for my mid-week easy effort. Sometimes I’m just tired and keeping it closer to home works better for me. Usually I find myself like other runners; if someone texts me to go running I will opt for what they are doing.

These past few weeks have been super fun for the spectator sport of trail running. My best friend Riley won a golden ticket at Javelina Jundred so I will be returning to Western States in a pacing role! I could not be more thrilled for them. To be honest, I know I am obnoxious sometimes, but I prefer to cheer for others and be on a team rather than focusing on me. Embracing help for Western States last year was rather uncomfortable for me and I jokingly told Riley that this was the “dry run” for their eventual race here. I didn’t know how right I was! In world running news, my teammate Allie continues to crush it both at the Golden Trail Series championships in Madeira last week and just won the World Championships in Thailand for the 8.5k uphill race. I am absolutely stoked for both of them!

Psychologically I have been feeling some things since my workout Thursday. I am very aware of the plan I have for 2023 and that does not include WSER or GTS. Those things are great and maybe someday I’ll focus on them, but this year my heart wants something else. That focus has not kept me from feeling a bit jealous of what other people have. I hate this uniquely human trait. I am jealous for things I do not want! This happens to me in low moments, like after mediocre workouts or crappy days, and I contemplate my worth.

Am I a one-hit wonder?

I don’t want the spotlight, what am I jealous of?

Why am I such a shitty person?

I don’t deserve what I have do I?

I’ll never be as good as I was will I?

These thoughts enter and leave my mind sometimes during my day-to-day, especially when I am so excited for others, yearning to feel that fit or spent after a goal has been achieved. That’s what I think it is mostly. I am so in awe of Riley achieving this HUGE goal they’ve been wanting for over 5 years. I think I am coveting that work. The effort. I love doing the hard work. Sometimes I forget that the daily training I am do IS THAT WORK. This is what I love, regardless of outcome or recognition…but I would be lying if I didn’t say that is cool too sometimes. But only for a day, then I would prefer to go back into “head-down-training” mode. That is where I find the most joy, quiet miles either alone or with a friend, sharing our thoughts, exerting effort, maybe throwing up or throwing back a gel. It’s here, where I am right now, that complete me.

So…Colorado, you’re alright.

The podcast…I’m taking a break. Moving has kind of shifted my life and I need to sort it out before I start recording. I am also waiting for the “want-to” to hit. Podcasting is my hobby, something I do for fun. When I want to pick up the mic again and have time to do it, I will. For now, I’m content to explore Boulder, do my best at my job, have fun running and be me. The podcast will come back, when I want it to.

See you out there :)