It’s a beauty that comes with the San Juans. It’s a beauty the volunteers uphold. It’s a beauty that deepens by the year, a beauty that grows in gratefulness for all the support, for Lake City, for volunteers, for crews, for pacers, for fellow runners, for the chance to simply experience the beautiful country and enjoy the adventure.

It’s a beauty to which the extent you can’t describe, a beauty you have to simply experience for yourself. It’s a beauty and inspiration that can only…

Beautiful and hurty. If I was given a limited number of words to describe the incredible San Juan Solstice 50 Mile race, those would be the words I’d use. But those words simply don’t describe how extraordinary Lake City and the race were all-around.

First off, Lake City is such a cute and cool town. I can’t emphasize how friendly and welcoming everyone was, especially the volunteers. These incredible people donated all their time, not having paid positions – as all proceeds…

“I can’t believe how HAPPY everyone is," said Kathy Pieper, youngest and first female to ever do the Pikes Peak Ascent. There’s no truer statement about this past weekend. The happiness pouring out of Manitou and Pikes Peak confirmed yet again why the Pikes Peak Ascent and Marathon weekend is my favorite of the year.

At 7am on Saturday, I felt like the Ascent had snuck…

7am, Manitou Springs City Hall. A scaffolding of banners overhead, beautiful sunny day. Crazy runners crowded onto the street, nervously looking up at the summit 13.32 miles away, trotting back and forth anxiously for quick, last minute trips to the port-a-potties. A goosebump-raising singing of America the Beautiful, a rush of adrenaline and at last: the gun- the moment I’ve waited 365 days for, the official beginning to the celebration of my favorite weekend all year long.

Four…

Tapering – it’s something some runners love, possibly a magical world filled with rainbows and chocolate and ice cream off in the distance dreamed of during long runs in the bulk of training, or something runners hate, loving every single step of their last long run before the dreaded period known as the ‘taper’.

While I know plenty of people that covet the taper, counting down the days towards its commencement, I am of the opposite party – I (hmm not quite hate, but let’s go with it)…

For years on many runs, I’ve asked myself, “WHY?” Why do I spend hours upon hours, miles upon miles working and enduring pain, frequently to come to an injury? (Knock on wood that won't happen again this year!) I started out my Pikes Peak running with that thought – why in the world am I doing this? When I could be peacefully wrapped in a dream? When I wouldn’t have to be trudging after my mom, vowing to myself that after this ‘stupid’ Ascent, I’ll never set foot on this dumb mountain…

Two down, two to go in the Triple Crown. The Summer Roundup on Sunday morning kicked off the week with such a great start. After returning just two days before the race from Alaska and a whooping 22 feet for three weeks, the Roundup was at the back of my mind. Going to bed, I was stressing about getting into medical school (somehow not the race the next morning, for whatever reason).

Piling the family in the car to drive to Bear Creek Park, I was getting more excited…

1. On your flight to Anchorage from San Francisco, boarding at 5pm, the sun never sets.
2. You arrive in the Anchorage airport at 12:30pm and it’s so busy it looks like DIA in the holiday season.
3. Light is always entering your hotel room, even though the sun has technically set. (Have I mentioned it’s light forever here?!)
4. You can’t help but think…

In elementary and middle school, my family would often drive along Roller Coaster Road in Black Forest on our way to Fox Run Park. I remember that drive as a happy one, a peaceful one. Towards Fox Run from home - one of excitement - and from the park, one of satisfaction, peace, exhaustion, and occasional sunburn from a great day playing and running. Looking back at that drive now, going over what has been burned thus far in the beautiful forest that raised me, I can’t imagine the…

Countdown to the Garden: 4 days! I have a feeling that with my lack of consistent speed work, I won’t be as fast as I was hoping. (On top of the fact that the high is 88 for Sunday!)

I recently returned from a family trip to Philadelphia. While there, we ran in a very cool woody single-track trail in Fairmount Park, the largest urban park in the nation. Along the path leading to trails were various historic buildings, statues of historic figures, and adorable baby geese.…

Hooray! I am now home for the summer – finals are done, the Pikes Peak Sports website has replaced a Free Radical Chlorination bookmark on my computer, and I’m halfway done with undergrad! And what better way to kick off the summer than a run to Barr Camp?

It was the first time for me to run with my family’s new running partner, Jeff Watson, an orthopedic hand surgeon new to the area. (Welcome to the great running community that is Colorado Springs, Jeff!) I had heard about his sub-3…

Life is full of surprises. Cliché, I know, but these past few weeks and months have shown the truth in that.

If you would have told me when I was in elementary or middle school that by the latter part of high school and especially in college I’d be an avid runner, I would have said, “you’re crazy”. And now, I’m going crazy when I am too busy that I am forced to cut down my 2 hour workout to 1 hour, and even more so when I’m forced to take 2 rest days a week. .

And if you would…