You Know It's Warm When...

Purple-and-white-hands Lauren is skiing without gloves. And these days, I'm skiing without gloves.

Warm skiing in Aroostook State Park yesterday.

I probably also should've gone glove-less in the Acadia FCU Marathon on Sunday but I had visions of getting cold at some point during the 40 kilometers. No need to worry. It was a balmy 40-something degrees.

Many potential race goers found themselves sipping coffee on Sunday morning, preparing their pre-race breakfast when they were interrupted by the decidedly un-winterlike sound of a complete downpour. This was no wintery mix. This was rain. Those that decided to head to Madawaska anyways were in for a treat. The rain stopped and the trails were in remarkably good condition.

Suffice it to say that the marathon was awesome. First of all, I didn't bonk like at the Frostbite 40 km. It's nice to finish a marathon without that numb-face-all-I-can-think-about-is-sugar feeling. Secondly, it happens that not freaking out during a mass start is a good idea. My plan was to ski with Sarah D but I ended up just behind the boys after the first couple ks. The pace felt relaxed, so I stuck with it and ended up skiing 3 1/2 laps with Andrew from UMPI. Then he sped up and left me in the dust. But those 3 1/2 laps were fun. We chatted about whether or not we'd catch Paul Stone and speculated on the snow conditions in Craftsbury. Despite the casual conversation, my max heart rate for the race was 190! That must have occurred in the first 2 ks.

Lapping through the stadium.

And the last but not least reason the marathon was awesome? Acadia FCU put up cash prizes, meaning I broke my personal record and earned more than $35 at a race. Thanks guys!

Look at those beautiful hills in the background! I love Four Seasons.

We made Paul late for the start because he was rilling almost everyone's skis. Thanks Paul!

Many thanks to fourseasonstrail.org for the photos.