Eleven at the Lake

Yesterday morning Mom and I knocked off our 11 mile walk around Lake Shawnee. I'd never really been around the entire lake, so I was looking forward to seeing all it had to offer while walking the new hike/bike trail, which was supposed to go all the way around. We drove to the lake and got there just after 7:00 a.m., when the weather was absolutely beautiful. It was only about 60 degrees and there was a wonderful breeze. We guessed the trail was about 7 miles total, so we found a parking lot and headed out around the baseball fields and across the dam. The view of the early morning sun on the lake was just beautiful! Of course I forgot, again, to bring my camera along, and this would have been the perfect spot for lots of pictures! We resorted to taking a cell phone picture with the cute little ducks.

One of the most beautiful areas around the lake that made me most regret that I'd forgotten a camera was the botanical gardens on the west side. I found one picture on the web that gives you a tiny glimpse of how beautiful this area is, so picture this scene times about 100. There are TONS of beautifully landscaped flower gardens and walkways all around. There are gazebos, bridges, streams, benches and all sorts of other viewing areas that make it the place perfect for photos. In fact, there were several professional photographers there taking family pictures! The area was so beautiful. I told Mom we are definitely going back next week and I'm bringing the good camera! I did take this one picture with the cell phone that might give you an idea of the beautiful landscape around there.

After walking through the flower gardens we headed back down the main trail, passing boat ramps, the "junior" lake, tennis courts, play areas, shelters, and fishing areas until we came to the golf course. After walking along the golf course for a while, the trail abruptly came to an end. We followed the road for a little while, and then saw a sidewalk over to the right, so we decided to take it. We had no idea where it went, but we followed it up a hill and into a really nice residential neighborhood. We wound through this neighborhood for a little while until our sidewalk again came to an end. As we pondered where to go and what to do, I noticed that my Garmin Forerunner said we'd gone exactly 5.55 miles, which meant we were exactly half way done with our walk. Even though we were running a little low on water and snacks (we'd planned to go back to the car and refuel in 7 miles) I suggested we just head back the way we came, so that we'd get back to the car in exactly 11 miles.

Looking back, this probably wasn't the smartest idea, because it began to get really hot, really quick. After tracing our steps back in the other direction we walked for a couple more miles until we found a beautiful shady spot to sit and have the couple of protein bars that Mom had smartly packed. We changed socks and did a little stretching, and then after about 15 minutes we headed back out onto the trail. We walked back through the flower gardens a little later, took a quick break to watch the sailboats dancing around the water, and then finished up the last 3 or 4 miles. With about 2 miles left, as we were rationing what little water we had, Mom started getting a little lightheaded, but we took a quick rest in the shade and I made her remove the hat that was trapping all heat in her body. That helped quite a bit, and we finished up our last couple of miles just 4 hours after we started. We slowed down quite a bit at the end, but it was understandable since it was 86 degrees by this time!

Overall we had a wonderful experience at Lake Shawnee and I'd totally recommend going there if you get the chance. It's not at all what I imagined when I thought of a lake in Topeka! :)

Our New Team Member

Tonight my brother called to tell me that he's going to join our 3-Day team! I can't explain how stinkin' thrilled I am! My brother is AWESOME!!! :)

The 10 Mile Mall Walk

If you can believe it, Mom and I finished our first 10 mile walk today entirely inside the mall in Topeka! Ugh! I headed over to her house this morning at 6 a.m. in the midst of a pretty intense thunderstorm. Since walking outside was clearly not an option, we headed over to the mall and started doing laps with the rest of the Saturday morning crowd. As you can imagine, there were very few people under 60! We had hoped that the rain would let up in time for us to take the end of our trip outside, but by the time it stopped raining we were a mile or so from being finished, so we ended up doing every last step inside! After a little shopping, we hit Olive Garden for the endless soup, salad and breadsticks! :)

While walking in a climate controlled building was pretty nice, walking on the hard tile flooring wasn't ideal for the knees and back. Even with the less than ideal walking surface though, we really only stopped for one short 15 minute break in the middle of our 10 miles. Once again, Mom finished with no problem!

A Glimpse into the San Diego 3-Day

This video might give you an idea why I wanted my mom to experience the event specifically in San Diego. The community support out there is outrageous. Watching this video from last year and remembering how cool it was brings tears to my eyes!

Our 9 Mile Adventure

On Saturday, Mom and I took our second long training walk down the Shunga Trail in Topeka. The last time we took a 6 mile stroll down this hike/bike trail, the early morning sights and sounds were so pretty I swore the next time I'd remember to bring my camera. I didn't, but we again witnessed the beauty of the natural grasses, flowers, trees and fields. Saturday morning's walk included some beautiful low-lying fog as well as some amazing August weather.

We walked about 2.25 miles down the trail in one direction before turning around to head back to the car. Upon our arrival, we took a potty break at the tennis courts and then relaxed for 15 minutes or so while we loaded up on snacks and drinks. Pretty soon we were ready to take off again, and we headed down the trail in the opposite direction. After a couple of miles, we were preparing to round a corner when we heard a loud pop that sounded a little like a gunshot. The ensuing cracking and crashing made us realize it wasn't a gunshot at all (thankfully) but rather a tree falling in the wooded area that lines the trail. We made a few jokes about hearing trees that fall in the forest, but when we rounded the bend we stopped in our tracks. There was a massive tree that had fallen right into the hike/bike path and branches and wood had shattered everywhere. We were in such shock! As we stood there and inspected the damage, a couple of other walkers who'd originally come from this direction came around the corner after us. One of them had walked past that spot just minutes before the tree had fallen! It was so freaky to think that in just a couple of minutes we would have been walking in that exact spot as well!

As we were standing in awe, surveying the damage, I realized that I actually did have my camera--at least the one on my cell phone! Mom posed with the fallen mess for some perspective.


Is that not amazing? The main trunk of the tree looked pretty healthy and alive, so we had no idea what could have caused it to fall. It was crazy!

After our little tree adventure, we continued down the path until it came to an end, which turned out to be less than two miles later. We headed back towards the car, but had to walk back in the original direction for a while just to make sure we got our full 9 miles in. We arrived back at the car after walking about 9.4 miles! Mom did great and is all ready to take on 10 miles this coming weekend!

My First Donation

I just want to say a big THANK YOU to my friend JoAnna, who got my fundraising started this weekend! JoAnna is an extra special donor because she's also a survivor--she's one of the big reasons that I walk! JoAnna was diagnosed just a couple of weeks before my mom back in late 2005, and she amazed and astounded everyone who knew her by continuing to volunteer at the Humane Society multiple days a week throughout her chemotherapy. She is an incredible person who always puts the needs of our shelter dog friends ahead of her own!

Thanks JoAnna!! I'm so thankful for that first donation!

Let the Fundraising Begin

This week I got my fundraising page all set up, although I haven't yet had the chance to send out any solicitation emails. Since I don't really love asking people for money (does anyone?), I was kind of hoping that my friends and family who regularly read my blog would just spontaneously decide to make a donation so that I wouldn't even have to bother them about it. I mean really, everyone close to me knows how passionate I am about this event and this philanthropy, don't they? Do I really need to explain it in an email? I guess maybe I do. But it still would be nice if someone would like to throw a small donation my way just to get me started! :)

It's Official!!!

Today Mom and I took a big step forward on our 3-Day journey--we officially registered for the San Diego event in November! I'm so super excited!! I haven't gotten our fundraising page quite up to speed yet, but I'll add pictures very soon. Be on the lookout for an email coming your way soon with more information!!

Easy Week

This weekend there wasn't much to report on training because Mom and I actually didn't go out and walk together. It was an easy "rest" weekend of training--a weekend where the schedule has you scaling back on your mileage to take a break and allow your body some recovery time. Since we were only supposed to walk 4 and 3 miles on Saturday and Sunday respectively, I left Mom to walk alone since I knew she'd breeze through those walks with ease.

In case you're interested, here is the schedule we're following this year. I slightly modified the 3-Day organization's suggested 24-week training schedule, only because when we followed it a couple of years ago we felt way over-prepared. This one has the same long walks on the weekends, but just not as many miles and not as much cardio during the week.


As you can see, we're currently 16 weeks away from the actual event in November. Last year, my friend Vikkie and I followed the 16-week training schedule put out by the folks at the 3-Day, and we still felt somewhat over-prepared for the 60 miles! You know what this means? It means YOU still have plenty of time to join us in our goal of walking 60 miles in the Breast Cancer 3-Day this year!! I'll be sending out a recruitment letter soon! :)