Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!

Well, the January thaw is officially over and has been replaced by a deep freeze. Actually, yesterday and today aren't too bad, but it's been bitter cold during the night and it's going to really freeze up in the next few days. Last week I started a new ultra training regimen that went rather well, except for a little soreness on the bottom of my right foot. Here is how the weekly training typically will go with this schedule.

-Monday: Rest
-Tuesday: 1 hour easy
-Wednesday: 1.5 -2.5 hours hillwork
-Thursday: 1 hour easy
-Friday: Rest
-Saturday: 3-5+ hours (15-30 miles)
-Sunday: 2-4 hours (10-20 miles)

My first goal is to complete a 50K trail run, then move on to a 50-miler. Right now, I plan on running the Trail Mix 50K on April 19, followed by the Ice Age Trail 50-miler on May 10th. If those both go well, my next challenge will be the FANS 12-24 hour run on June 7. I'll try the 12-hour run and see how that goes and shoot for a goal of 100K (62 miles). After that, there's the Afton Trail 50K in July. I've run the 25K version of that before in 2002 when I was training for my first marathon (Twin Cities Marathon). Right now, my confidence is very high since I've been able to run 20 miles already rather easily. In fact, I anticipate running 30 miles during a training run before the 50K in April. If all goes well this year, I definitely will be shooting for completing a 100-miler next year. Who knows, maybe I'll get ambitious this Fall and try one?

Other than running, not much else has been going on at home. My job interview last Friday went very well and my recruiter received a lot of positive and encouraging feedback from the HR director I spoke with. So, now it's just a waiting game to hear if I get an offer. This week my wife and I have tickets to go see the Minnesota Wild hockey game on Friday. That should be a great time as always. Of course, Sunday I will be glued to the TV watching the Pack try and win the NFC Championship and go to the Super Bowl. Go-Pack-Go!!!