My big goal for the Fall/Winter season is the Rouge to Orleans 124 mile race. This is a race along the Mississippi river levee from Baton Rouge to New Orleans. This is the inaugural year of the race and I’m really excited about it. I’ve run on this levee a handful of times and I really like it. I love that it is a point to point race and you run from one city to the other. And the fact that I have family in the Baton Rouge/New Orleans area makes it even sweeter. In fact, I’ll run within 300 yards of my Aunt’s house --- pretty cool huh?
Since Western States last year, I’ve run with no real focus or big goal. I’ve certainly enjoyed my daily runs and I’ve had some good races (24 the Hard Way). I have also had some really challenging races (Bandera 100K and Jemez 50). It feels good to finally have a goal that I am really excited about. Maybe not Western States excited, but still very, very excited.
And finally, I’m excited about the opportunity to stretch myself beyond 100 miles. The most I’ve ever run has been 106 miles at one stretch. I want to see what lies ahead of that mark. What will it look like? How will I feel? I imagine I’ll be able to see New Orleans at that point. Will the city seem so close I could touch it? Or will it look impossibly far? I look forward to finding out what is in store for me.
In the meantime, I’m ramping up my training. I have quite a few races before Rouge to Orleans. This is going to be FUN!
