Day of the Hikes

On one of my very few Saturday's off this summer, my roomie Debbie &  I decided to capitalize on our time in the mountains. We set out to do 9 seperate hikes (each 3 miles or under). Although we only completed 6 of the 9, we still enjoyed our time out in the woods w/ the pups.

Run Wild Missoula (The Tail of a Half Marathon FOX)

Let me just start by saying that when I was in the 6th grade I was the exact same height (5' 6.5") that I am today. I was called the Holly Green Giant by my classmates (a name I still despise to this day) and teased quite a bit about being head and shoulders taller than the rest of my classmates. The saving grace of my height at the age of 12 was that I was quickly recruited onto a traveling basketball team (despite my initial hatred of sports at an early age) to play year round for the next 7 years. While my peers began to grow like weeds around me, so did my love of the sport. But after 7 years of year eating, sleeping, and breathing basketball it was time to move on to other sports. I've mixed hands w/ several in the past few years. However, the one sport that has stuck w/ me is the one used as punishment in all other sports. Running.

Back in March I blogged a post asking for some guidance. I was feeling restless about life and needed something to focus my unused energy on. Not long after, during one of my late night runs w/ Bosco, I was overcome w/ an emotion to become a member of Team FOX and run my half marathon to raise awareness for Parkinson's. As soon I was home, I sat w/ my computer in my kitchen and applied to become a member of Team FOX. That very night I also submitted my registration for the Missoula 1/2 Marathon. I was committed.

Having never raised a dime for a non-profit organization, I set my goals at a reasonable amount, $250. However, with the help of Donor Anonymous, I not only reach my initial goal, I shattered it in only 1 week of fund raising. Two more times I raised my goal, first to $500, then again to $1,000. With only 48 hours left before starting time, my final goal was reached. Thanks to the Brin-Wojcicki Challenge, the $1,037 I raised will be matched dollar for dollar.

I was up at 4am on race day to chow down on a Snickers bar and a bottle of Pepto. I needed enough time for my stomach to settle before my 6am start time. I was downtown to meet the bus around 5am, then off to the starting line. I did some stretches, dropped my bag at the appropriate drop zone, then settled in to people watch. There was an MC in tights wearing his underwear superhero style (outside his tights) that entertained before the cannon and firework start. I was making good time (for me) and pacing an 11 minute mile at the half way point. Around mile marker 7 an old knee injury started acting up. By mile 10, my left knee was useless. I was pushing myself to walk/run every other block for another mile, before I was completely unable to use it. I walked the last 3 miles and finished at a 3:04:11 time. (don't worry Momma, my appointment for the Orthopedic specialist is on the 30th)

Despite the fact that we live on opposite ends of the country I was able to talk to my dad as I crossed the finish line of the Missoula 1/2 Marathon. I kept a blue tooth headset around my neck as I ran the race. I had planned on using it to listen to music along my course, like I had relied on on so many runs before, but there was so much going on along the entire course that I never needed any sort of a mental boost from music. Who's ready to help me find my next adventure?

You can still donate towards my Team FOX fundraising efforts till the end of 2012! Because I am a new member this year, all funds I raise through the end of the year will be doubled. Visit: MY TEAM FOX PAGE to donate today!

4th O' July

Happy Independence day from the top of Missoula. I hope your days was filled w/ lots of family, friends, & BBQ's.

Glen Lake

Glen Lake is a beautiful high mountain lake in the Selway Bitterroot Wilderness. The trail begins south of Stevensville and winds through the remains of a burn area. En route are breath taking views of the Bitterroot Valley.

Myself, Becky, & my new roomie Debbie took off w/ the pups towards Glen Lake late this morning. We all had the day off for the Fourth of July & wanted to do something fun to celebrate.

Debbie had the great idea of building a snowman (b/c how many people can say the built a snowman on the 4th of July? This is my second year in a row!). We hung out around the lake for a while, appreciating the beautiful country in front of us before returning back to Missoula.

Zoo Boise

Zoo Boise is a small zoo located in the heart of downtown Boise, Idaho. While it is small in size, it is home to a collection of exotic and colorful animals to educate the public about our wild counterparts.

While in Boise for Shane's championship football game we visited Zoo Boise. It may of been the case that I drug him to the zoo, but either way, I got to go to a zoo! It's been entirely to long.


The butterfly exhibit may of been one of the best parts simply because of the array of species available to photograph.

Although, getting the chance to feed a sloth bear could top just about anything!