Fall Has Arrived!

View from about half way up Madonna at Smuggler's Notch

It finally really feels like fall in VT. It's the time of year when girls are pulling out the boots and sweaters and putting away summery dresses and the time of year when you actually have to remember to wear a jacket when you walk out of your building. There's nothing worse than rushing off to class and realizing half way there that wearing just a cardigan is not going to do it for the day. It's also the time of year when VT is absolutely gorgeous.
When thinking back and trying to decide what to write about today it seems that the past week was filled with the usual math work and Ben & Jerry's consumption. (The flavor of the week was Dublin Mudslide)


One thing that I'm really excited about is the first ski team workout. There were only three of us there, but we were all really happy to get things going. I was really glad to hear that the other two girls there, Katlyn and Larissa, have been working out on their own and are both serious about getting things moving in the fall. Ahhh, I love fall, but I love winter even more. I can't wait to ski!

Me, Katlyn, and Larissa chillin' at the top

We did a hike up Madonna, which is one of the mountains at Smuggler's Notch. My dad had a "creative way" to go up the mountain. This sounded terrifying, but it wasn't all too bad. At first we did some 6-6 1/2 min bounding/ski walk intervals with a couple min rest. After doing a handful of those we just hiked the rest of the way to the top. It was a good workout, especially after racing the day before.

Fave pic of the day

As far as XC goes this week we had a couple of crazy muddy, rainy runs. We also had the VT State Meet at Middlebury on Saturday where the boys came in 3rd and we came in 2nd! We were obviously pretty happy with our finish as a team. As far as my race goes, I was really surprised to find out that my time was faster than last time. Before I even hit the first mile mark I started feeling pretty sick. It's the absolute worst when you've got yourself ready to work really hard in a race and your stomach just doesn't want to go there. I felt like I wasn't running as well as last time, but I still kept my head in the race and worked the flats and the uphills. I think it's a really good sign that even though I felt much worse and thought I was going much slower that I actually came out with a faster time. Getting faster every race definitely helps the motivation during the week. We head for Boston on Friday and race Saturday. Wish us luck! It's a HUGE race.


This week should be a fairly easy one. I have an exam in Abstract Algebra, but I'm not overly worried about it. Because I had a Prob/Stats exam Friday and have the Abstract one coming up I have no math homework for the week, which is pretty much unheard of. I'm not sure what to do with myself. I should probably start with cleaning this room. It's completely absurd.


Check out the slide show for more XC pickies! Ah, what a beautiful weekend.