Banff 2020...here I come!

[SaskAlliecat]

Oh boy. What have I done?

I finished my last trail race saying I wasn't going to race this next year and I was just going to enjoy the year of carefree running and volunteer for the event (BeaverFlat 50) instead. Then the organizers posted that the registration was going to open December 1st this year. I spoke to my trail running partner who has been out for the year with an injury and we decided we would run the 5k next year, still get our poutine, beer and bling, then volunteer at the 43k aid station and enjoy the day, helping the 50k runners at the final aid station to get them to the end. I had come to terms with that, and was looking forward to it. I went out to the lake on my day off and ran the 5k course and went to my friend's house for coffee afterwards. We had a great visit and I expressed how much I missed running with her this year. Fast forward 2 days. She is committed to getting her knee better and was planning on signing up for the Banff HM in June with her daughter and did I want to join them. A road run in beautiful scenery; what more could you ask for? I hmmmed and I hawed. Do I? Don't I? FOMO kicked in and I did it! I registered for the Banff half marathon June 2020. Yikes! But we are committed to having fun, low pressure, low stress. Our predicted finished time..... before dark (on the longest day of the year 😂). Goal: to finish upright and smiling, having a fun day with my running buddies. I guess I'm running another HM next year 🤷‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️⛰

[Katnap Marathon]

Well... it would have been rude to refuse! 😁

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to Katnap]

Exactly! 😂

[Beachcomber66 Administrator Half Marathon]

Oh Sask; total lack of will power!! I am thinking about the Great North Run (Tyneside) next year..will I be influenced by the fact that my 70 year old friend ran it this year? You bet!! Gluttons for punishment ( I don’t think they have heard of Poutine up there though). Good on you, it sounds like a wonderful run. 😊😊

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to Beachcomber66]

Will power? What's that?!? The older I get, the less I have 😂

I'm getting quite excited about it. It will be a fun weekend I'm sure, with a bit of running in there.

[Bluebirdrunner]

Allie, you will enjoy this one! Training with your friend and her daughter will be fun, no record breaking required, road running it all sounds perfect. You can run HM distance already and its in June. Plenty of time for relaxing runs first. 😊xxx

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to Bluebirdrunner]

That is exactly what I was thinking. I enjoyed my training this year but I really missed running with Denise. We'll have a blast training, traveling, and then running however we need to on race day to keep it fun. I'm looking forward to a girl's trip.

[Sandraj39 Half Marathon]

Sounds like a very good plan to me - good luck to you both!👍🙂

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to Sandraj39]

Thanks Sandra 🙂

[cheekychipmunks Half Marathon]

Hahaha, it seems to be an affliction of us runners. The inability to stick to our guns and say no! But how much fun would that be? 👎 😅

Yay, good for you! You and your friend will love it, and you have a lovely long time to train and look forward to it! 😀🏃‍♀️👍👊💪

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to cheekychipmunks]

Like I said to Beachcomber above, I've lost all will power as I get older 😜. But how do you say no to a girl's trip, running, the mountains.....perfection!

[cheekychipmunks Half Marathon in reply to SaskAlliecat]

Absolutely. No way you could pass that opportunity up! ❤️❤️

[linda9389 Administrator Marathon]

Resolutions are made to be broken! How great to be baxk running with your partner. Enjoy.

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to linda9389]

Thanks Linda. I'm super pumped! She's still battling some knee issues, but is determined to get them sorted. This is the incentive she needs and we'll have a blast running, hiking, and getting stronger together. Can't wait!

[linda9389 Administrator Marathon in reply to SaskAlliecat]

I'm so, so pleased for you .... it's been obvious what a huge hole she has left in your running this year, this feels like great news for sure

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to linda9389]

I got quite emotional visiting with her a couple days ago and expressed to her how much I've missed our time together. We would still visit a bit this summer, but it isn't the same as slogging up the hills, sweating, swearing (ok, that's only me), laughing, opening up about our deepest darkest secrets and fears. Why is it so much easier to do that when you're following each other in the hills or running side by side. It will be so nice to have her back. Fingers crossed her knee gets sorted soon, but in the meantime we're hoping to get some great fall hikes in (although they are calling for 30 cm of snow this weekend...so we'll see. Maybe we'll be snowshoeing instead 😆)

[linda9389 Administrator Marathon in reply to SaskAlliecat]

Crikey! snow already! that will make for a looong winter

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to linda9389]

Hopefully it doesn't stick around......or hopefully it does and we get more snowmobiling in this winter. Either way, I'm good. We have found wintertime activities that help to pass the time but the last few years our local snow has been crappy and so cold you couldn't do much. We're due for a snowy winter and my snowmobile is all fixed up itching to get used; hubby bought an enclosed trailer to haul them better with. We're ready 😁. The poor farmers though. They were working so hard trying to get harvest done and now we've had 2 days of heavy rain with a temperature drop happening in the next day and a half hence the snow. Not good but we can't do anything about it unfortunately.

[linda9389 Administrator Marathon in reply to SaskAlliecat]

[Decker Ultramarathon]

Sounds amazing Sask - I'm sure you will love it, running with your friend again in one of the most beautiful spots in the world. Best of luck with your training!

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to Decker]

Thanks Decker. Banff used to be in our backyard and I've missed it since we've moved to the prairies. It will be nice to get back and the icing on the cake will be running with my training partner again. Yay!

[backintime 10 Miles]

It sounds wonderful and you have decided it's a no-stress run so you will enjoy it : )

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to backintime]

Exactly! No time goals, just enjoying the scenery with great company 😊

[David_G Metric Marathon]

Well done Sask!😀 Who could resist a challenge like that?😉 There’s plenty of time to get ready for it anyway!🙂👍🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️👏👏

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to David_G]

Exactly. My goal was to keep some distance in my legs over winter and to actually do my glute strengthening exercises. This is the incentive I need to keep it going.

[TailChaser Marathon]

Sometimes you just have to shut your eyes, hold your nose and dive in! It’ll be great Sask!! 👏👏

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to TailChaser]

Thanks TC. It should be fun!

[Irishprincess Administrator Half Marathon]

Oooh how exciting Saska! I loved Banff when we visited ten years ago now. My husband use to live there (before I met him) and we had a "special" birthday treat with the Calgary Stampede and the Rocky Mountain railway! It really was a magical holiday. But I just fell in love with Banff when we arrived. The scenery is just stunning. I even bought a Christmas decoration from the Christmas shop there and every year when I hang it on the tree I think of that special holiday.

I envy you this run as the scenery will be worth the training alone 🙂

Good luck to you all and I'm already looking forward to it even though I'm not running it 😂😂

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to Irishprincess]

It really is a pretty area and I've missed it. We used to live just north of Calgary and would often go to Canmore, Banff or Lake Louise to go hiking, camping or skiing. It was nothing to drive an hour and a half, spend the day in the mountains and head home. We were so fortunate. It'll be a much longer drive for this trip but still so worth it. It just means we get to make a weekend of it. Yay!

[Irishprincess Administrator Half Marathon in reply to SaskAlliecat]

We stayed at Lake Louise too on that trip. It’s stunning and I only wish I had been a runner then 😕

[Lavender1962 Half Marathon]

Ooh! How exciting! It will be amazing running a half marathon in Banff. You’ll be running with a friend, her daughter and in a beautiful place. You have time to take it easy before your training.

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to Lavender1962]

It should be fun. I'm nervous but excited. I'm looking forward to just running for fun for the next little bit and not worrying about following a plan.

[Couchpotato2 Marathon]

Hahahaha... I would have put money on this

[SaskAlliecat Half Marathon in reply to Couchpotato2]

🤷‍♀️😊