They say that you aren’t an expert in something until you’ve made all the mistakes you possibly can. I moved into an office yesterday for the first time after working alone at home for five years. I’ve had big problems sleeping every since college, and combining work and home was not helping. But moving forward, the biggest change in my athletic life in the last couple of years has been learning to find the correct balance with all parts life, which will affect athletic performance. So since work-life tends to be the biggest determining factor in our more general quality of life, I find it necessary to dwell on the subject - hard.

I sure wish someone would have told me earlier in my life that partying hard at a wedding makes you faster (insert carbohydrate comments) during the next week, but I’m psyched to say I won my first legit race on Tuesday at the Turnagain Arm Trail Run! The run is a fund raiser for the UAA ski team and is organized by Trond Flagstad, UAA head coach. It’s a challenging run starting in Rainbow Valley on the seward highway, and climbing over 1000 feet with swoops up and down roughly 500 feet before descending into the Potter trail head at sea level 8 miles later.

Welcome back to Alaska, Pat. After a warm welcome from friends and an extended 5-day birthday celebration, I’m back in Ancheragua, AK. The last part of the drive was pretty sweet, and I only got ONE speeding ticket in Fort Nelson. Awesome.

Sorry, I hate that phrase. But when you’re gettin it, you’re gettin it.

I finally got under way towards alaska, and now am sitting in my van in a sun-baked parking lot just below the Chateau Lake Louise. I took off two days ago through eastern Idaho and Missoula then crossed the border yesterday at Eureka, MT/Rooseville B.C. I managed a nice 1 hour mountain run through some rolling cow fields in Lima, ID then a 1.5 hour skin up the Lake Louise ski area yesterday.