~ To thy own self be TRUE ~

This weekend, I ran my 16th Half Marathon - 35 Race at the Colfax Half Marathon in Denver Colorado. It was an experience to say the least and now it's time to begin the work on ME and learning MORE!! http://www.runcolfax.org/

During my race, I felt the air thicken, tried to 'suck air' best I could and was not able to maintain a steady breathing pace for myself - as I did that through the course, my body tried to do all it could to push itself, only to find cramps around mile 6/7, worse at mile 9 and then throughout the rest. Pulling in, yet, another slow half for me. YET --it's ANOTHER half !! Not everyone is able to say that they are able to run this many halves in their lives. So, I'm walking away GRATEFUL!! Not only am I walking away GRATEFUL, I'm also walking away proud.

My good friend that traveled with me, PR'd the course!! She and I trained together and she was able to breathe better then I and BAM!! A PR for her !! YAY!!! Now, that - that right there - makes every cramp worth it !! I love it when others do well -- I had to mentally embrace that I was not going to do well in this race when the cramps began and that by pushing myself farther then what my body would handle, was an idiotic move, so .. I let it go. Prayed for her, let her go and BAM !!! She finished with a PR !! WTG lady !!
The course was absolutely AMAZING!!! It was FLAT and beautiful,with so much scenery http://www.runcolfax.org/ . There was also more support, from the local Fire Dept, Police Dept and any other dept - for every, YES EVERY, intersection there was someone supporting it one fashion or another!!! It's definitely a race I'd suggest to someone !! 

After the race, we were also able to meet up with some of the TEAM R.E.D. http://byronteamred.blogspot.com/ members who ALSO traveled to Denver for this race !!! LOVED IT !!

Then there were the two best hosts a girl could ask for !!! Richard and Carlos, who both organized and ran the expo - which, they did an amazing job at and the results show the facts!! They also ran a full marathon after being at the expo for 3 days prior!! NOT ONLY did they do that - they also had TWO groups of runners that they coach/train out there - to see the connections, the reactions, the celebrations, the joys and the accomplishments that they were able to celebrate, was a phenomenal experience to watch unfold!!  My heart melted as the stories came together that day and I was so blessed to be able to witness the end results, where the people that accomplished their goals that day, set into action in their self confidence.

While I was out there, I was able to also volunteer at the expo - which was very rewarding !! I LOVE to Volunteer - if you are not willing to volunteer, maybe you should try to step up and DO it. Give back what others give to you and you WILL be amazed!! I was even blessed to be in a photo op with the http://www.cofirefightercalendar.org/ Colorado Calendar Firefighters ~ Who, BTW, were on the course AND we were able to run through the fire station!! Thank YOU ... that made my race that much better :D

  

Then I need to mention -- a special piece of the Expo for myself. A Reunion of sorts with the previous Sponsored Runners from TEAM MARATHON. Here you see myself, Richard Kalasky and Caolan MacMahon, who'd I'd never actually met, even having had been on a team together for over 2 years together, until this day !!! WE ROCK!!!! And ALL ran the race as well!! :D BOOOM!!!!

 

From the race events, we decided we'd add in a little vacation action and see some wonderful things ~ Such as the Bronco's New Stadium:

Then there was the Stanley Hotel:

Nope, didn't see anything suspicious!! REDRUM...Heerrrreeee comes Jooohhhnnnyyy....

Then there were the Chipmunks and Elk towards the Estes Park and the Rocky National State Park:

 Boat Poses  ... who doesn't need core work after a Half ??

 The Chipmunks literally came up to you and were your buddies, IF you had something for them - their little fingers wrapped around yours to grab the goods. Pretty intense.

 These bad boy elks were EVERYWHERE towards the Parks!! They were HUGE and were pretty much Right There ...

 Then we headed up the mountain side - to experience the view that I'm pretty sure will always leave an impression on my soul. I seen the universe come together, as I seen the amazing scenery that only something much more powerful then I could ever put together. I was in awe and I did NOT want to leave as the snow and winds set in. I wanted more then anything to sit an veg in 'God's Land' and never ever leave. The peace that flowed into my heart that day, well, it filled me up for awhile, knowing that anything that's in front of me is a piece of cake compared to the making of that beauty. Absolutely profound scenery, that's never captured in pictures.

Last, BUT NOT least ~ The HK Ranch and the family behind it.

We were blessed with a wonderful place to stay at the entire time we stayed in Colorado, not only were the hosts amazing  and absolutely welcoming, so was the rest of the family.

Here's the entrance to the welcoming home:

 Above are views of their breath taking back yard.

 Here's PorkChop the PIG - yes, he comes into the home .. he's one of the family. There's also chickens who lay the eggs, Roosters who oh so gracefully crow, as well as Turkeys ( named: Christmas and Thanksgiving - HA ). Oh, I can NOT leave out Buzz -- he LOVED to cuddle!!

 It was absolutely overwhelming meeting a team mate whom I'd felt was a good friend, without ever having had met him physically and confirming this feeling and the thoughts... Richard was all that I had heard and also all that I had learned about him. Driven, Dedicated, Persistent, Hardworking, Talented, Fun, Loving, Exceptional Athlete, a great coach/trainer, a great leader and so on and on and on ...He is definitely a close friend to my heart, as we connected and hope we are able to run together again sooner then later. 

 Carlos was also just as exceptional as he perceived to be, when we met through Face Book!! He was not only welcoming, a kind soul, a hard worker, a wonderful host, he kept track of us girls and made sure that everything was taken care of. Carlos is also a wonderful, talented athlete who is very knowledgeable in nutrition. He warmed my heart with every effort he put forth the entire time we were there. I knew I was in good hands, when I met Carlos. I can NOT forgot to mention his talent in decorating and art -- Oh My Gosh -- The bedroom picture does NO justice to his skills at their home!!! LOVED the STAY !!

 This family has more love and hospitality then many I've ever met !! I felt the love and extremely comfortable in Colorado, so much that I'm actually contemplating the next trip back out there !!

It's not about the successes behind the races that I attend, it's the memories that are made. This was another trip that I do hope that I never forget. There were so many memories that were created and the joy, laughter, love, kindness, accomplishments, goals, dreams, sights, adventures, challenges and so much more that were endured these past few days that I'm forever grateful that my life is what it is.






"Happiness is not what you see, it's how you FEEL"
"It's not the staircase you need sweat about it, its gently attacking that first step"
"How do you KNOW if you don't DO?"





ONWARD TO EPIC!!