The "brick"

So, I kicked off my training this weekend with a "brick." Not the usual triathlon brick training (since I'm not planning on doing any triathlons any time soon), but I did a very nice run-bike-run brick. And ok, it wasn't like all in a row, over 3 hours or something, or even in one day. Rather, this is what we did:

Friday - 18 miles of running
Saturday - 100k of riding
Sunday - 26.5 miles of running

The bike ride was supposed to be 100 miles, but Idaho had some serious flooding this spring and part of the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes was destroyed, so miles 18 to 36 were closed. Of course Tim (who I did the brick with) and I went around the "trail closed" gate at the 18-mile mark trailhead to indulge our curiosity and to see "how bad it could possibly be" (and we really wanted to get in our 100 miles). We rode along just fine until mile 21 when YIKES! the trail was literally washed away for 100 feet across. There was no way to get across. Not even a good running start would do it. :) So, we were forced to turn around.

Destined to get to the other side of the closure, we made the 1-1/2 hour long winding drive (with another like-minded cyclist who followed us in his car) to the next easily accessible trailhead and got in some more miles. The long drive took some of the oomph out of the workout but the overall adventure was grand! I mean, check out this picture (from the website) of the Chatcolet Bridge from the eastern shore of Lake Coeur d'Alene....so very beautiful!



As for the runs, they were equally as enjoyable. All dirt roads, easy pace, with focus on good calorie and fluid replacement to facilitate recovery for the next day.

Granted, not high mileage, I know. Some people work out like this every day. On the other hand, I am very lucky to fit so much fun into a holiday weekend. Also, I am ordinarily a very low mileage runner. I have shared my 25 miles-per-week average with y'all; the rest of my races run on the pure joy of running (and perhaps some pig-headedness, ok).

But see, I can't do that this time around. A few days ago I got my Spartathlon entry confirmation! And now, I MUST train harder and faster or I won't make even the first cut-off in this race. So, I had to kick-start my training, and I did so with a brick. I really should already be pounding out the miles, but I can't fool myself (or anyone else that knows me) that I will find the time to run any kind of high mileage. It's just not going to happen. Still, I definitely need to increase the miles as well as the cross-training to stay injury free. So, the first brick is done. Hopefully, there will be many more to come this summer.