Maybe I won’t run 50 miles

Update to my post about pondering a 50-mile run: I’m not doing it. There are a number of reasons, and I know that I will occasionally regret the decision, especially since a good friend of mine did sign up so I will hear all about it from him. But a few factors won out, and I am resting easy in my decision.

  • Could I do it? Probably, because I’m just stubborn enough.
  • Would I like the sand? Not really.
  • Do I dread the idea of running many miles of mud in Portland all winter? Yes.
  • Am I unsure about committing so many of my days off to long runs on trails? Yes, because I just moved and want to do lots of local things with anyone who will welcome me.

I have spent the past two weeks pondering the decision and watching as the race filled up. A number of people gave valuable, thoughtful input, and I appreciate every comment (here, Facebook and Twitter), email and in-person conversation.  I will definitely consider doing it in 2019, which gives all of you plenty of time to decide to join in!

In the meantime, I do want to find a fall race. The plan had been Portland Marathon, because it would be a full-circle/demon-exorcising event for me. Also, I now live here and could sleep in my own bed, AND one of my best friends was going to come run it and we’d make it a girls weekend, hopefully with another friend. Well, then the marathon had to change course, and it’s now an out-and-back through an industrial area (along Highway 30, called “dirty thirty”). Also, the race directors are under federal investigation for questionable non-profit actions. 2017 is clearly not the year for me to run this race.

I know there are a million other fall races. The task now is to figure out which one I want to do, which time is better for me, and whether I can travel or should stick closer to home. So many decisions! Who wants to make a weekend out of one of the umpteen options?


3 Responses to Maybe I won’t run 50 miles

  1. Hey! I chatted you up on this on IG, so there was THAT platform too, haha

  2. If you ran the Twin Cities Marathon, you could stay with us! Mouse wants to see you!