Have you ever considered the following: Why can we run a maximum of 20 miles and it feels tough in training, but then we can go out and run a 31 mile race?

There are probably lots of science-based answers concerning the training process… cumulative fatigue… tapering…. race day adrenaline… blah blah blah. But I think there’s something bigger than all of those things. The biggest thing is your mentality.

It’s all about your frame of mind. When you head out determining to run from point A to point B, your mind and body are on board – they adjust somehow. You mentally accept that you’ll be out there for 6, 7, or 8 hours. That’s why you can do it. The mind is a powerful thing.

I’ve run an ultramarathon. That doesn’t mean I can go out for a 15 mile run and not be tired and ready to be done at mile 15. Why? It’s all about that frame of mind. I set out to run 15 miles and on that day that’s as far as I can go.

Distance running is a metaphor for life. We adjust to whatever is in front of us and whatever we are up against. And each time, we find a way to keep going.

How do you get in the right frame of mind?

I’m linking up this evening with Holly @HoHo Runs and Tricia @MissSippiPiddlin’ for their Weekly Wrap link up. Be sure to click over to both of their blogs to check them out and see who else is linking up!

This week I’m going to share a few of the runs I have done over the past three weekends. My running lately has not been stellar. I haven’t run nearly as much as I’d like to. That’s partly due to time constraints and also partly due to a high hamstring tendinopathy thing I’ve been dealing with. The latter seems to have mostly resolved, at least.

When I have gotten out for some trail running, I’ve been making it count. I’ve also moved away from focusing on mileage as much. My primary focus has been on elevation gain and time on my feet. Over the past three weekends I have run a total of 42 miles with over 14,500 feet in elevation change.

Sunday, May 22
I headed over to the Cascade falls in the Jefferson National Forest with my little sister, Rachael, and my husband, Barry. Rachael hiked to and from the falls while Barry and I did our own running workouts. I chose to run two repeats to the falls for a total of 8 miles and 1,500 feet in elevation gain/3,000 feet total change.

I first hiked the Cascades when I was in high school and I never imagined that eleven years later I would be running “hill” repeats there! It’s crazy the way your mind shifts when you step into the world of long distance and trail running.

Friday, May 27
Just five days later I was back at the Cascades again to run more repeats. Three this time for a total of 12 miles and 2,300 feet in elevation gain/4,600 feet total change. My legs were feeling tired from Sunday’s run, but I still had a good time with this run.

I saw a large black snake on one of my trips up to the falls. I also saw a lot of hikers out enjoying the day. It was fun when I would see groups several times and they would either cheer me on or ask how many times I was going to run up and down. It gives you a boost when people are in disbelief at what you are doing (even if they also probably think you’re crazy).

Saturday, May 28
There’s no rest for the weary, so the very next day I headed up to Pandapas Pond, also in the Jefferson National Forest, for another day of climbing. No repeats this time. Instead, I just did one of my favorite 6-ish mile loops, which covers 1,100 feet in elevation gain and 2,100 feet in total elevation change.

This run was a good chance for me to continue to practice moving on tired legs. One of the trails I climbed is called Snake Root. It stayed true to form and had lots of roots and also another big black snake (this seemed to be the weekend for snakes).

Sunday, June 5
Today was another day with a lot of climbing for me. I was up bright and early (well, dark and early since it was 3:00 AM and the sun wasn’t up yet) for my third year running Conquer the Cove 25K trail race in Roanoke. This is a tough race! This year was super humid and I ran my slowest time. However, I was running this race as a training run and I finished feeling tired but still relatively fresh. I covered 15.8 miles and a total of 2,400 feet in gain/4,800 feet total elevation change.

There were definitely times when I questioned signing up for this race again. Some parts of the course are just so tough. In the end it was another great Mountain Junkies event. I even crossed paths with a young black bear around mile 10! The mountains are alive and I’ve certainly had my share of wildlife encounters lately. Full details on the race (and the bear encounter) next week!

So that’s what’s been going on with me lately!

What have you been up to lately?

What is it about the word marathon? The word itself seems to have a certain intimidating quality about it.

It sounds so hard to me. The big, bad marathon. The holy grail of road racing. The word everyone associates with running races (even when they make the mistake of asking you “how long is this marathon?”).

Want to know something crazy? When I had the flu and missed my second peak week during 50K training, I considered dropping down to a shorter distance. That’s not the crazy part, that’s actually probably the smart, logical part. I figured if I couldn’t train properly I probably needed to run something shorter and find another 50K later on. Here’s the crazy: The next option down at North Face was the marathon. For some reason, that sounded less appealing to me than the trail 50K. So I stuck with the ultra. Which leads me to another realization… I don’t feel like the word ‘ultramarathon’ holds the same stigma as ‘marathon.’ But that’s probably another post for another time.

What do you think about the word marathon?

I’m linking up today on the Wednesday Word linkup, hosted by Debbie. Each week Deb gives us a word prompt to write about. This week’s word is empower. I’m probably going a totally different direction than most this week, but that’s the fun part about this link up.

When you were a kid, did you ever think about having a superpower? I think back then I probably wanted the power to fly. That would be cool. But I’ve since changed my mind. Now, I would want the power to control time. Is that lame??

Let’s ignore all of the ramifications every movie has ever taught us about meddling with time (although it worked out fairly well for Sirius Black…). Just go with me on this one. Life seems so busy and rushed now-a-days and I often find myself feeling like I just don’t have enough time in the day. There are so many instances where I wish I could just stop time and live in that moment. The ability to slow time down, speed it up, or freeze it would be amazing. I have a lot of stipulations to go with that, but we’ll keep it simple today and just leave it at that.

Unfortunately, I do not have this superpower (or any, for that matter). When I go out on a run, particularly on trails, I refer to that time as “Western Time.” It’s the closest I get to controlling time, and for now that’s good enough for me.

If you could have any one superpower, what would it be and why?

I hope everyone is having a nice Memorial Day weekend! Let us not forget the reason for the holiday and the sacrifice made by so many individuals and their families. Freedom doesn’t come free.

I thought this weekend would be a good time to share my recent trail run at Manassas National Battlefield Park. The weekend before last I was up at my dad’s house for my little sister, Rachaels, college graduation. On Saturday morning I was able to sneak away for a short trail run at the battlefield. It was something I had wanted to do for awhile!

It was already fairly crowded in the parking area when I arrived that morning, although that was to be expected because it was a gorgeous morning. Parking was free, and I wandered into the visitor’s center to get a park map. The employee there gave me a few pointers on following the trail and sent me on my way. My day began on Henry Hill, at the spot where General Thomas J. Jackson earned the name “Stonewall.”

His nickname was given to him by General Barnard Elliott Bee. While attempting to rally the shattered Confederates for a final push that ultimately caused the Union forces to retreat he said “Form, form. There stands Jackson like a stone wall; Rally behind the Virginians.”

From there I began my trek around the First Manassass Trail, just over 5 miles in length. I ran past some cannons, pictured above, that mark the primary battle lines where the Union and Conferederate armies squared off on a warm July day in 1861. Not long after that, the trail led into the woods.

I meandered through the woods for the first mile or so. It was fairly crowded near the Visitor’s Center and the main attractions. But the further down the trail I went the quieter it got. I saw a couple of horseback riders and a hiker here or there, but that was about it for awhile.

Around 1.5 miles I ran on a long boardwalk section through a marsh area. For whatever reason, I always love running across bridges and boardwalks, so I thought this section was really neat.

I then arrived at Stone Bridge, where Union forces advanced in an attempt to distract the Confederate army from their main advance further upstream.

From here, the trail meandered through the woods along Bull Run stream. I enjoyed views of Bull Run and wildflowers. As I reached the halfway point I encountered a few short, but steep, climbs as the trail wound up through the woods and back through farm fields.

Overall, the run was not super hilly. It was primarily rolling hills with a few short, steep climbs about halfway through, with one long hill towards the end.

Just before mile 4, I was running through a field and came to an intersection. The trail wasn’t marked, so I took my best guess based on the map and following the loop in a counterclockwise direction and turned right. My guess turned out to be wrong, though, and after running down a hill I arrived at a parking area. I pulled out my map, but had a hard time matching up the four different trails I could see leaving the parking lot to the two I saw marked on the map. Finally, I realized my mistake and saw I should have turned left at the intersection. After losing 5-10 minutes, I made my way back uphill and back to what I now realized was Matthews Hill. The cannons lined up here show the Union’s artillery positions, pointing across the battlefield toward the distant Henry Hill where I had begun my run.

Matthews Hill also overlooks Stone House, which was the next point of interest on my tour. On any other day, I would have stopped to walk through the house. But on this day, I was starting to run short on time for Rachael’s graduation party (thanks to getting lost) so I had to keep moving.

I ran up the long Henry Hill as my watch hit 5 miles, and then ran by the final point of interest along the First Manassas Trail – Henry House. The cannons near Henry House mark the spot where fierce artillery clashes took place. Henry House (which can be seen in the distance below) was caught in the middle. An elderly woman named Judith Carter Henry refused to evacuate her home during the battle, and was killed by cannon fire. She is buried nearby.

Just shy of 5.5 miles, I arrived back at the Visitor’s Center to conclude my run. Manassas Battlefield was a really neat place to run, and I’d love to explore there again. There is another trail, Second Manassas Trail, that is just over 6 miles long. But that will have to wait for another day. On this day, I had to hurry home to celebrate Rachael’s graduation!

Today’s post is part of the Weekly Wrap link up, hosted by Tricia @MissSippiPiddlin’ and Holly @HoHo Runs. Be sure to check out their blogs and see who else is linking up this week!

Have you ever gotten lost while running/hiking/biking on trails?
Do you enjoy historical sites and tours?