slowly getting back into the swing of things

The last two weekends I've been going out and trying to feel a bit more normal. Last weekend the Trailblazers held a mock race up in the Bear Creek/Pinhoti area near Ellijay, GA. The event was a rogaine format with a focus on navigation and had both trekking & biking legs. I teamed up with Jim Farmer (so I could ingest all his nav knowledge), along with Karin Jacobi and Vlado Barun. We started on foot and they were cool with mostly walking. I didn't want to overdo anything and figured a few hours on trail would be enough for me. And it was... and then some. We did some light jogging and it felt pretty ok. But when we did a nice bushwack up the side of a mtn, I knew I went overboard and had to use a walking stick to help get me back to the transition area. Bummer! It wasn't terribly painful; more of dull ache that I knew wasn't quite right. We were out about 3.5/4 hrs (prob a bit too long for my debut). The bike however was fine. I've been wanting to ride up here for so long and can't believe I just haven't found my way up before now. The trails were perfect (as was the weather)! A combo of some fast hard-packed stuff (ok, not that I really go that fast ever), whoop-di-dos, great challenging climbs leading to scenic views (both of which I def enjoyed), then some good descents that of course challenged me too. After about 3.5hrs of riding we hit the 5pm cut off - a great full day! A few of us stopped by Bear Creek to clean up - I soaked my foot in the chilly water hoping to ease the ache a bit. (Brenda & Lee chose to simply sit in the middle of the creek - yikes!) After gorging on food at a local mexican eatery I had a long drive home.

from my phone, while slowly moving, out the front windshield, catching some dash. but still beautiful.

Today I hung with Ken, Shelley, John J, John B, and Liz at Blanket's Creek. We rode 3 loops (about 15miles) on the intermediate & advanced trails, changed shoes, and went back out for a run. Liz kept me company on the beginner loop - I wanted to avoid lots of elevation change and rocks and concentrate on a light nice jog. We did a bit under 4 miles and I felt minimal discomfort. (Wed at spin I did 2 miles on the treadmill and felt pretty good too).

So I think that I am finally progressing. I did withdraw from the North Ga Adventure Race next weekend (with much sadness!) but I know that was definitely the right decision. I don't want to jump ahead to quick and risk reinjuring myself. I plan to finally join my early am running crew next week to up the distance a bit and see how things go. If well, there's a trail race on the 1st I'd like to do, followed by the Blue Ridge AR the next weekend. Fingers are crossed my plan works!