Siberian Slime!

Several weeks ago I was told by veterans of the Siberian Express 7.45 mile trail run that it is a good idea to "wear old shoes". Well, I forgot. I did bring a towel and a change of clothes and shoes, but here are my best running shoes AFTER I cleaned most of the mud off:



I had run the out&back trail at Kickapoo before, but not when it was this wet and muddy. Also, only a portion of the course was on this trail because of a bridge being out. The course included multiple stream crossings, near-vertical muddy hill climbs, stretches of ankle-deep muck where many people lost shoes (whew, I was a good lacer), and bottleneck areas near the start. Plus, I had a cold and was blowing my nose every few minutes. Thus, I was very surprised when I finished #24 in women (only the top 25 get prizes) - especially since my time was a slow 1:13! Here is the cute little medal:



It's too bad we don't have a picture of my muddy self after the race (I wore shorts!)