2019- Year in Review

Tuth be told-yes, I am still training and racing but too busy living life and or during the school year to keep up with this blog. My main season is still May-August because I'm in the village during most of the school year but I do make occasional escapes to Anchorage when school is out say 4 or more days......if the weather lets me. I managed to sneak out every month this fall but October....shhhh...!!!

I opened my season with another win at Arctic Valley in Anchorage first weekend in June in the 12mile long race. I love this course and train the hills on the treadmill at my place in Tuluksak specifically for this. I'm not getting any younger and don't know how much longer I will still be competitive before I'm not and will finally retire, but I'll take the win! It was a big one too with a 25 min margin! However, in the final 200m I was finishing with a guy and a black bear ran out perpendicular across the road just behind us and one of the volunteers was standing in the middle of the road with his rifle just in case! Never a dull moment! Three days later, I had another blackie encounter on the Coastal Trail near the airport at Woronzof. This blackie stepped onto the trail about 5 meters in front of me! I could hear the bear's claws on the pavement. I stopped and got out my spray and made noise and never took my eyes off the bear as I backed slowly the hell off. Blackie was looking right at me took a step forward and then just stopped. As I was backing off I heard a cyclist coming from behind ad yelled STOP BEAR!!!!! He turned out to be a tourist from Ohio clueless about bear safety! This is more dangerous than the bear encounter...an idiot who instinctively turned back and wanted to ride away !NOOOOOO OMG it could chase you!!!! Back off slowly never take your eyes off the bear. Then he thought of maybe waiting and going around it!!!! WTF the bear has the right of way doh!!!! Back the fuck off ! We waited a few minutes before the bear went off to the side. I did not know if there were cubs nearby and didn't want to find out. We turned back and the guy was shocked to see a bear "so close to the city"......Ummmmm we get them downtown picking trash we have had brownies spotted on this trail too. Bear bell and bear spray during bear season non negotiable! I carry the .357 in the bush it's easier no conceal carry laws in the bush.

Fast forward a couple weeks to Moscow and the Park Run in Kuzminki! Just a 5k shakeout run after a busy travel schedule and other life events. Just before Iflew out, I passed the general science praxis and added that qualification since I am now teaching secondary science. I will likely do this til retirement. I could go in 5 years, but probably want to do 10 to have the full 25 and benefit package. Sadly, Russian programs are just not stable and with the idiot governor cutting everything including education in a major way, I just don't see any more opportunity to teach it. (well sure the Axis of Evil aka the DOD is always looking for people like me but my soul is never for sale especially to them!) Yes, there are still programs in Anchorage, yes I've been asked more than once, but I need stability and unfortunately I cannot afford a a massive paycut either....like to the tune of 25-30k. I would never be able to save for a home on that, and I have been able to do this while in the village. Additionally, it would impact my retirement hugely. Science is actually a good fit for me and I've always been a science nerd. I have enough credits for a biochem minor but wasn't rich enough when I was an undergrad to do the major and a 5th yr of school. It's something I regretted later because with a science and Russian background I could have written my own ticket as Russia is so on the cutting edge of science. Hell, I used to translate stem cell research for the clinic that does these treatments outside Moscow! Science is always changing too so I don't have to keep doing the same thing and boring the kids either. 

June 30 I returned to Yakhroma and ran Moscow Trail I'm still not sure what happened here but there's still suspicion. I ran the 30k this year and sat in 3rd the whole race was announced as 3rd as I crossed the finish only for the top 3 to be downgraded a place when the awards came. Leonid and several others at the finish said they never saw the so called winner on the course on the full loops. This year they did not have timing checkpoints on the loops to prevent a Rosie Ruiz stunt. It all reeks of a rat and to hell with it-not wasting my legs on that anymore there are many more mountain /trail events where this bullshit isn't an issue. 

A week earlier I ran the Tushino Half just as a prerace tempo

After that I spent the next 3 weekends Winning 15k trail runs in Moscow and sitting on my ass...literally!

For the first time since I competeted in the 20-24 age group- I ran the USATF Alaska state Championships in Anchorage at the Dome where I won the 3000, mile and 800.

First weekend in August, I did the  Skinny Raven Alaska Distance Classic Double Up. School started a week later this year (and consequently winter break is now a week shorter). The last time I did this was also un the under 30 category when it was atill held at the Park Strip! It's now at UAA and the double means you run the 5 then 30 minutes later you run the 10 and they total your times to get the winner. I Finished 5th in the 5 and 3rd  in the 10 to win the USATF Alaska road masters in both and edged out the next  woman by nine seconds who won the half in May and beat me then by much more. She got me in the 5 but dropped back some 2 minutes in the 10. Long tempo workouts and long intervals are part of my diet so soming back in the 10 was more like doing a back to back long interval workout /tempo for me. I am now also the oldest fart to win the double....ever. 

Do not pass go do not collect 200$-go straight home to the recovery room!!!

Plans for 2020-

There will be races on both sides of the pond. Another major life event is on tap for next yr...hopefully summer...but I'll post on that when the time comes.