The Most Beautiful Run In Utah

If anyone out there is wondering what I've been up to, here's the basic breakdown:

• organize 10K race
• sometimes workout
• school
• organize 10K race
• sleep
• organize 10K race
• school
• sleep
• organize 10K race

I'm sure you get the idea. The 10K is finally over, and I feel really good about it. That is, I feel really good it is over. Unfortunately, I didn't run this year because I dislocated my knee several, several weeks ago. And...I still can't run on it.

So, the day before the race, I'm doing the usual race director "stuff": making and receiving calls to/from the (angry) Utah Highway Patrol, Utah Department of Transportation, and the Kanab City Police Department in an effort to smooth some misunderstandings over (that, for the record, were not technically my fault). In addition, I'm trying to register the procrastinators for the race while listening to them complain when I tell them I'm out of medium shirts. I'm tired. I'm hungry. I'm sick of my phone ringing. And all I REALLY want to do is spend a relaxing night with Latimer before he leaves on the river the next day. So, as all this is whirling around me, I wonder, "WHY THE HELL AM I DOING THIS?

Fast forward to the next day: Beautiful, windy day at the newly renovated Kanab City Park...the finish line for the race. Volunteer shuttle drivers are there: on time, with smiles. Mom, Mary, and Jimmy show up with the post-race feast of food, donated by the local grocer. Oranges, watermelon, cantaloupe, grapes, strawberries, bananas, apples, and more are cut up and prepared thanks to Mom and a few of my Earth Science girls who wanted extra credit. Another saint shows up and sets out the unique sandstone trophies. Then Beau and Jeff come to set up the sound system. Gil, a 74-year-old runner and volunteer, works on getting the finish line banner and cones set up. My volunteers for the aid stations and finish line show up (again, Earth Science students seeking extra credit). Things are coming together.

I head up to the starting line at Moqui Cave, a touristy shop roughly five miles outside of town, with the stopwatch to start the race. There's over 200 runners ready to "toe the line". Mr. Highway Patrol shoots his gun, I click the stopwatch, and the runners take off. Part of me wants to be out on the road with them, but it's also really interesting to be where I'm at. I jump in a borrowed truck and wind my way down the road towards the finish line, slowly though, so I can call out words of encouragement to my neighbors, friends, students, and family while enjoying the vermilion cliffs and gently flowing Kanab Creek.

Now the finish line. I make some final touches to the food and trophies. I watch as the runners cross over the line. There are so many people helping me with so many little things. Many runners and spectators approach me with comments on the race...most of the comments are positive. There haven't been too many glitches today. Eventually, everyone crosses the line and the awards ceremony begins under the pavilion. The runners are enjoying their feast and stretching out on the lawn looking tired but content. I think about the people and businesses who support this run by giving their money, time, and talents, and I think about all the people who had to work together to pull if off. It gives me a sense of pride for the community I am a part of. As I look over the happy crowd, they seem to answer my question from the day before. Now, I know why the hell it's worth it.

The post-race feast at the park.

The Megimer. Megan and Mindy

The starting line at Moqui Cave.

Keeping it real.

On your mark, get set, GO!

I don't know.

My Little Big Brother in action.
Hi Beau!

Some of my favorite students.

By the way, all the kids in this picture have over 100% in my class,

so they didn't need the extra credit.

They are just overachievers. And AWESOME.

Latimer finishes strong, sporting his

"Love Your Mother" t-shirt in honor of Mother's Day.

This is Sally Quinn.

One of my favorite persons in the whole, wide world.

Lisa Church and my Mom. They are both AMAZING

and put a lot of time into helping me with the race.

My sister Char helping with the runner cards.

Cowboy enjoys a stroll with Meghan and Jim Quinn.

Tell me you love the shirts!

The awards ceremony.

Exhaustion.

MRBT has me in writing.

Last summer I played. I went to Jackson and worked at Mad River Boat Trips, did a few river trips in Utah, spent my birthday in Alaska, and ended the summer with a river trip through Grand Canyon. This summer, I thought I would be more responsible. Some priorities were to: refurbish an old dresser, go through old files and boxes of letters and get rid of shit, and take some classes and beef up on science. Maybe, if time allowed, I could take a some trips and visit family and friends. Then, a few friends helped me see the light (aka: the big GUILT trip). And I realized I had to go back to Mad River Boat Trips, or I would miss out on things like this:

Sophie Monster

and this...

Tetons

and this...

Yellow Boats and Cool Office Girls

and this...

Good Music by Stackhouse

and this...

Helmets, Drysuits, Lifejackets, and KC

and this...

Good Friends and Good Food with a View

and this...

Ian.

Enough said.

Sign Up Now!!!

From left to right: The "Miles" Girls: Charlene, Jamie, Sonya, Megan, Mary, and Janis. Not pictured Colette.

If you want to see these beautiful ladies in action, join us for Kanab 10K Run and Walk on May 9th, 2009. The race starts north of Kanab at Moqui Cave on Highway 89 and finishes at the La Estancia Clubhouse. You will enjoy: beautiful views of the vermillion cliffs, a feast of post race refreshments, and custom made trophies three deep in each age division! Top male and female finisher receives a 4 day river trip through Canyonlands National Park and Cataract Canyon (scenic flight included).

Pre-register in person at Adobe Fitness or Kane County Travel Council. Or pre-register online at www.active.com or www.runnercard.com. Forms are also available at www.adobefitness.com. Applications can be mailed to Megan Smith PO Box 329, Kanab, UT 84741. Makes checks payable to Kanab 10K.

For additional information, contact Megan at 899.0364.

8 what?

8 Favorite TV shows: (We don't actually have TV...just a lot of episodes on DVD.)
1. Friends
2. Lost
3. The Office
4. and that's all I got...what other TV shows are out there anyway?
5.
6.
7.
8.

8 Things I did yesterday:
1. Measured javalin throws at the Kanab track meet
2. Made an offer on a prime piece of property
3. Felt rejected when said offer was not accepted
4. Planned a portion of my Earth Science Atmosphere Unit (*this took up about 8 hours of my life, and it was only the Nitrogen Cycle)
5. Made the guest beds for Lat's cousins who said they wanted to crash here on their way back from running Westwater
6. Unmade the beds when Lat's cousins called to say they were too tired to drive so they're crashing at a hotel in Green River (bastards)
7. Realized how non-fun my life has been lately
8. Looked at my TO DO list for the Kanab 10K, but didn't actually DO anything

8 Favorite Restaurants:
1. Marys Kitchen
2. Hell's Backbone Grill
3. Painted Pony
4. Benja
5. Bit'n'Spur
6. Curry in a Hurry
7. The Noodle Company
8. Rocking V

8 Things I look forward to:
1. The end of the school year & not having a job for awhile (42 more school days to go...)
2. Going hiking over Spring Break (even though it's only a measly 3 days off)
3. Going hiking over Memorial Day
4. Trip to DC in June/July
5. Grand Canyon Trip with Lat in June
6. Going back to Jackson
7. Our month long river trip in October
8. My knee getting better
Also, I look forward to the wine, shower, and sleep that I am about to partake in.

8 Things on my wish list:
1. I wish little Raymond would get all better.
2. I wish the school year was over.
3. I wish I could say NO to more people, more often. A HELL NO every once in a while would be nice as well.
4. I wish my knee would stop dislocating. It really makes my life miserable when it does that.
5. I wish for more time.
6. I wish that our investments would stop losing money.
7. I wish we would think more about our choices and the effect we have on our world.
8. I wish I was in Marble Canyon with Latimer tonight.
I also wish that Latimer and I can go with KC on all of his "wish" destinations.

8 Tags:
1. No
2. one
3. looks
4. at
5. my
6. blog
7. anymore
8. since I haven't posted since last April.

Bye Bye Buddies, Hello Sunny Santa Barbara

Saying bye to my buddies @ Lee's Ferry


The Megs

Meghan has been wanting to go down the river for a few years now, and Latimer had an opportunity to take her down as his helper or "swamper". I didn't know what I would do for two weeks without my two favorite peeps, so I decided to take a week vacation to Santa Barbara to see Melissa and Christian.

I'm not going to lie: I LOVE SANTA BARBARA. I had the best time. We went out for fish tacos and mango margaritas right after I flew in. And let's not forget the dessert...cupcakes at Crushcakes...so damn good. The next day Melissa and I went to the Farmer's Market, and I was in heaven. Farmer's Markets are amazing. I support them 100%. About a year ago, I read Barbara Kingsolver's book titled "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle". I highly recommend it. I will never look at all-things-food the same way again. The rest of the day we wandered around the shops in Santa Barbara before heading to the beach where we sat and read for several hours. I got home to a HUGE vase full of daisies, roses, and lilies that Latimer had sent me from the river. Oh, and Christian took away my beer privileges because I spilled a Moretti all over his leather chair. Opps.

The next day, I went for a long run with Latimer's cousin, Owen, and Owen's friend Jeff. The rest of the day was spent soaking in the sun under the big oak trees that surround Christian and Melissa's property. They have an abundance of wildlife on their land. When we stayed here over Christmas, we saw a bobcat hanging out in the yard. I've also seen hawks, turkeys, and various small birds. Ricardo and Lucy (the house finches) built a nest in the cactus plant near the front door, and they hatched while I was there. Baby birds are really ugly, but I still love them. That night we had a BBQ at John and Mary's (Lat's uncle and aunt). All the aunts and uncles were there as well as Lat's Nonni and Great Aunt Amelia. No cousins were there except for Owen and I.

On Monday, Melissa and I had breakfast with some of her girl friends. We shopped. I got a massage and a tarot reading which was pretty interesting. And then the beach. Of course. The next day was similar, only we had pedi/mani appointments instead of a massage. The big deal of the day was that Christian showed me the trail network system he's creating behind the house. There are loads of poison oak everywhere, but it will be amazing when he completes it.

On my last full day in Santa Barbara, I met our friend Josh at the SB City College track, and we ran some laps and stairs together. I went to visit Lat's Aunt Carol since I was in the neighborhood, and we had a great talk before taking a long walk on the beach. She and I found a lot of beautiful sea glass and shells... I think she's a lucky charm because I have never found that much cool stuff on a walk before. I headed home the next day, and Lat and Meghan got off the river the next day after that. It was a good reunion, and we all had good trips!

Seeking Starlight Arch

Sunny is so photogenic. I can't get enough of her!
The Girls: Becky, Tara, Megan, & Nell.
The Arch
Josh & a view: What more could you ask for?

Okay... I get it. I have some catching up to do. My apologies. So, this blog goes back to April 12th. I lead a hike to Starlight Arch as part of the Monument's Walk and Talk series. I took 10 members of the community and my Sunny dog into the backcountry to seek out Starlight Arch. My fellow hikers included: Charlie & Jake N., Gary K., Becky M., Bobbi F., Nell T., Josh S., Josh & Tara B., and Steve. We made it to the arch by noon and spent a few hours admiring the forever view that stretched beyond the pink cliffs of Bryce Canyon before heading back. Afterwards, (and off the clock) we met up at my house for beers. Then a bunch of us went to watch The Kite Runner at the Crescent Moon. Not a bad day!

No April Fools

A man and his boat...
The Megs and The Lats
Our Honey...Sunny

This is real my friends. I have joined the black hole of the blogging world. That's right--I've offically sold out on this whole blogging business. My promise is that this will not become one of those "cross-stitch, scrapbooking nightmares". (My favorite blog line of the week.) I am open for suggestions on how to improve the page...yaddee, yaddee, yaddee. I'm not a wonder woman at this kind of thing so help a girl out!

I suppose this will provide a good medium to record the comings and goings of the Lats and the Megs as well as keep our family and friends up to speed on our life. And there is no time like the present...

Today, I am recording one of the "goings." Sunny and I took Latimer down to Lee's Ferry to bid him farewell as he embarked on his first river trip of the season...thirteen days in Grand Canyon. It wasn't easy to say good-bye, but I managed to do so with only a few tears. After leaving our man behind, Sunny and I were a little blue, but the drive past the Vermillion Cliffs and up and over the Kaibab cheered us up. Seriously, it's so damn beautiful here! We live in such an amazing place. That's one thing I'm grateful for. Now, leaving my man for 13 days...not so much.