Month: March 2017

Over Thinking It

Well, apparently we’re all getting the equivalent of Cabin Fever in anticipation of our departure for the Camino in 7 weeks.

I’ve written previously about my concerns and self-doubts. Was I in good enough shape, did I have what I needed, was I carrying too much stuff, too little. For me, I got over that a couple weeks ago.

It appears though that my comrades are now approaching that same point, like I did, maybe they’re overthinking or trying to plan for every contingency. I realized that I was doing that and I let go. Whether I made the right choice, only time will tell. While reading other blogs, I’ve come across this quote several times “the Camino will provide.” In a few weeks, we’ll find out if it does and if it’s good or bad.

Colorado Bend is coming up next weekend and it should be fun but also challenging enough to make us aware that we’re working for it. A friend of a friend told Renee that they did not train with their packs and they also said that the first days were tough, one thing may have had to with the other. I’m glad that we’ve been training with our equipment and I know it will pay off.

I’m ready to go and I would leave tomorrow if I could.

Times Flying

Time’s flying and I can hardly believe that I’m now only 8 weeks out from departure. I’ve been really busy and I guess that’s accounted for the days slipping by without much notice.

R, B and Layden are in town and it’s great that we get to spend time with them, hopefully Brian can get a recruiting job here in the area especially with another grand baby on the way. With them in town and my travel schedule, my training has taken a back seat. It was really kind of odd that I wasn’t walking last weekend.

I need to get back on my schedule and keep pounding the miles out. With Colorado Bend coming up in 2 weeks, I’m hoping that I’ve done enough to meet that challenge.

My training insecurity may be overblown but, it’s real so I keep training to stay ahead of it. After CB, we have our final big walk in Bosque County at D&S ranch. I plan on going back to Cedar Ridge to get some more time in on the elevation changes. With the weather warming up, we’ll all be carrying more water which is more weight.

It’s Official

After all this time, discussing the Camino, training for the Camino and more discussing, I received my Official Credential so, I guess I have the blessing of the Catholic Church…I was sweating that.

It’s actually the little things like receiving the credential that have brought me the most joy. This little piece of paper, blank other than my name and where I’m from, will be stamped dozens of times to document and validate my journey across the Camino. Still puzzled as to why it means so much to me.

Los Tres Amigos (Leighton, Ann and Me) did another off the books walk on Saturday, this is 3 weekends in a row for Ann and me. This week we did just under 9 miles around White Rock Lake. One of us, I won’t mention any names, may have had a hang-over but it wasn’t me or Ann.

Once again, we set out together but we allowed our individual paces to set in and it was generally me in the front and Leighton bringing up the rear. We’ve discussed and agreed that there is no expectation for anyone to slow down or speed up. If you want to walk, walk. If you need to rest, rest. Ann has no problem with a steady pace, her only disadvantage is that her legs aren’t as long as others so there’s a natural advantage for me.

Sometimes it is nice just to walk in silence but most of the time, I think we generally like the company of at least one other person, I know that I do.

A friend and teacher at Ben Milam who likes to write told me that I should write something that was private each time I blog, he did this when I volunteered that I was having a problem expressing everything that I wanted to because I consider myself to be a private person. I appreciate his advice.

Considering that, I was concerned that maybe I was not fit enough for this trip, especially the first day over the Pyrenees. Everyone that talks or blogs about it says it’s the toughest day on the Camino. I think I let that get in my head.

After our outing at Cedar Ridge, I pushed myself pretty hard with my pace and I intentionally attacked the climbs to test my cardio, my knees, muscles and mostly my drive. While we did not do 15 miles, my confidence was renewed and I feel that it will not be the beast I’d built it up to be. Check here on May 19th to get the low-down.

I tried to walk with a full pack yesterday, I was carrying 3L of water so that was 6.6 lbs. of water on top of my pack and equipment at about 14 lbs. I could definitely feel the extra weight but I grew accustomed to it and as I consumed the water, I lost the weight. Except for a few legs of the Camino, I don’t plan on carrying more than 2 L of water…1 L = 1Kg or, 2.2 lbs. Ounces = pounds, pounds = pain!

Thrilled that Rick is in, he booked his flights last week. He was, in many ways, the person who got this whole crazy trip started. It would have been somehow incomplete without him.

I know that I’ve rambled a bit but I also feel more comfortable in my rambling so, you may have to get used to it.

I’m travelling a lot the next couple of weeks and with L,B and Chuck in town I’m going to have to get my workouts in wherever I can. Playing golf twice in the next couple weeks will get some walking in but I need to make sure that I get some dedicated walking in as well.

Cedar Ridge Preserve II

Our return to Cedar Ridge yesterday was a success, I think everyone gained some confidence in their individual stamina and I believe that while we still need to work on our fitness, any lingering thoughts or fears are probably gone.

I can tell you that I wondered about the first day, all the blogs and the people that I’ve talked to that have done it said it was the toughest day for them, I think they talked me into believing that and it worked.

The upside to that type of fear for me is that I worked myself harder. Personally, I’ve been training for this for 18 months. Whether it’s just general fitness, my ‘walkouts’ or my almost daily distance walking, I feel that I’m prepared. I will continue to work harder for the next 2 months.

Yesterday at Cedar Ridge, we all pushed the assents/descents. I purposely worked very hard on my pace and climbing, leaving the group behind several time, the challenge was to beat my fear of Day 1. It’s obvious to me that my treadmill workouts were very beneficial.

We all went to Café Momentum last night, I wrote about their mission earlier, to a person, we all commented that we were in much better shape and, the stiffness and aches that we experienced 5 months ago were minimal this time.

We’re all carrying our packs at or near our Camino weights and getting the final tuning done. My pack feels great as do my boots. Leighton is still trying to get his boots right, his orthotic is still giving him problems. Renee has her new pack, it’s small but she seems to like it and, it forces you to go minimal.

Renee and I had a running conversation this week about the schedule and length of some of the days. After looking at the rough draft, it was clear that there were some long days that could be avoided with a little tweaking. There are however, 2-3 that are just going to be long. The best understanding that came out of the conversation was that we each walk our Camino. If you’re tired or hurting, stop. If you want to walk on, keep going. No obligations nor expectations. We’ll meet up along the way.

A little update. First time at Cedar Ridge, we did about 5 miles, this time my Garmin says that I did about 7 miles and a more brisk pace.

We’re 10 weeks out.