Star City Half Marathon

Right after the Richmond half, I decided to run the Star City Half in Roanoke with my friend Emily. I literally signed up on Wednesday on the last possible day to sign up and ran it on Saturday. This marks my first half marathons on back-to-back weekends!

The Star City Half is a smaller race that starts on the Ronaoke River Greenway (my favorite place to run in Roanoke!), winds through the downtown area, up and down some hills in the middle of the course, and finishes along the river on the Roanoke River Greenway again.

I decided to run this for fun, so I ran with Emily and her friend Allison for the first 3.5 miles, then I took off so I could go at a little faster pace. I was surprised at how good I felt after running a half marathon the previous weekend! Both races were for fun and I ran at easier paces so that helped.

I finished in 2:07:19 official time, but it was probably about 2:06:48 net time since I started closer to the back. I thought our bibs had chips, so I'm not sure why there wasn't a chip time. Anyway, I'm glad I wasn't trying for a PR since the results weren't accurate!

Emily got a PR with 2:23:20!

After the race, we went to Lynchburg for the Poplar Forest wine festival and had a great time indulging after getting our exercise out of the way that morning! :)

Richmond half again

This was my fifth year running Richmond! (2011-half, 2012-full, 2013-half, 2014-full). It's the ONLY half I've run multiple times. I normally would rather run a different race than repeat the same one, but there's something I love about Richmond! For one thing, Richmond is where I started training for my first race. The 6 mile loop from Boulevard to Pope to Brook is a route I ran regularly, and to this day is probably my top favorite running route. There's something nostalgic about running that course again during the race and thinking about how I fell in love with running there.

There's so many more things to love too - the fall colors, the fall temperatures, the beautiful neighborhoods, the downhill finish, the finisher's blankets, and the awesome medals! Richmond is always a great experience and I highly recommend it!

The weather was great this year. It was cold in the morning, but not as frigid as previous years, and once we started running we warmed up pretty quickly. We parked in a parking garage about 10 blocks away and stopped in the Omni Hotel for awhile to stay warm, so we only had to wait out in the cold for about 20 minutes before the race started.

I ran with Tristan and her friend Joy and we kind of took it easy. None of us had trained exceptionally well and we weren't trying to PR, so we went at an easy pace and talked for most of the race. I started to get antsy during the last few miles and wanted to go a bit faster, but figured there was no point since I wasn't going to break 2. So I tried to just enjoy it and take it all in, and honestly there was a certain relief in that. I felt great and it was nice to just run and not worry about pushing for a time.

At the very end, I couldn't hold back and told the other girls I was going to sprint to the finish. Running down the big hill at the end is always a little scary, but such a fun way to finish. It was one of my slower half marathon times, but was probably the easiest effort I've ever put into a race. I NEVER thought a half marathon would be easy, but this one was!

Official Time: 2:12:12     Pace: 10:05

Utah National Parks: Bryce Canyon

Bryce Canyon - This was my second favorite of the four parks (and almost tied with Zion)! The rock formations are so cool. I couldn't stop taking pictures! I was only at Bryce Canyon for about 24 hours, but I saw and did so much in that short amount of time.

The first day I just drove to different viewpoints and walked the short path from sunrise point to sunset point, which has some of the best views! You can look out and see the amphitheater, which is just rows and rows of hoodoo rock formations. Each stop along the way is breathtaking!

The other lookouts aren't quite as spectacular as Sunset/Sunrise, but you can still see many different rock formations - some look like arches, bridges, tall spindles, or sand castles. It's truly one of the most unique places I've ever been!

On the second day I hiked down among the rock formations of Bryce Amphitheater. I took the Queens Garden Trail to Peekaboo Loop, and then hiked the Navajo Trail on my way out. For a shorter hike, I would recommend skipping the Peekaboo Loop and just hiking Queens Garden and Navajo Loop. There are a lot more rock formations and it takes about half the time. Hiking through "Wall Street" at the end of the Navajo trail was really cool, and I also loved seeing some hoodoos up close!

Hoodoos are tall skinny totem-pole shaped rocks that are formed by water or ice eroding the rock layers at different rates. It was fascinating to find out how these spindly rocks are created.

If I went back, I would check out the Fairyland Loop, but I was really happy with all that I was able to see and do in just 24 hours!

One downside to Bryce - there's not as many places to eat as Zion, so your options are pretty limited. They have one restaurant, but it's kind of fancy with long waits, so I went to a little pizza place across the street because that's all there was to choose from. Next time I would probably drive 20 minutes to the nearby town and try to find something there.

Utah National Parks: Zion

I was going to do a post about all the National Parks I visited in Utah on my way back, but didn't get around to it for a long time, so my memories aren't as fresh and this won't be as detailed as it could have been. Still, I want to remember what I liked about each park.

Zion National Park - This was probably my favorite of the four! The landscape is breathtaking and there are tons of good hikes. When you get into the park, you have to take a shuttle everywhere. It's actually really convenient because the shuttles run every 5-10 minutes, you can start and end a hike at different points, and you don't have to worry about parking (other than getting there early initially to find parking at the visitor's center).

I went hiking through a canyon and loved it! It was so cool to look up and see the huge rock formations on either side, and it was a new experience to wade through thigh-deep water in many places. I recommend a walking stick - other people leave theirs behind at the entrance to the Narrows and you can pick one up. It definitely helps you gain more stable footing when you can't see the bottom of the river.

The little town right outside the park is so cute and there are lots of places to eat and stay. I stayed at a campground right outside the park that had a few more amenities than campgrounds inside the park. The next day I did a shorter hike, but I would love to come back and hike Angels Landing. I also really want to do a canyoneering tour. I heard the Subway is a good beginner canyon to try.

Crossfit continued

I went back to Crossfit again a couple times, but I was really busy and only went once each week.

First week: Again, this is the kind of workout I really like. Lots of variety. I can actually get my elbows to my knees now! (but still can't get toes to bar). The hardest part of this was the box jumps- I actually got winded after doing 12, even though I think I'm fairly good at box jumps.

WOD: 20 Min AMRAP
250m row
12 box jump (24/20)
9 slam balls (40/25)
6 Toes to Bar
3 HSPU
Rest 1 min…

Second week:

WOD: 5 Rounds For Time

30 Double-Unders
30 Sit-ups
30 Squats

Oh boy. I didn't think this workout would be that hard. It wrecked me. I did this two days ago and my quads are so sore I'm having trouble walking, especially going up and down stairs (I've been this sore before, but only after a half marathon or marathon!). I was going to go hiking in Yosemite and I couldn't go because I'm literally having trouble moving. My abs are sore too.

This workout was deceptively easy, but the amount was just too much. The squats were unweighted air squats. I can do a lot of squats. The total amount of 150 didn't seem too bad at the time, but now I'm feeling it, and I don't want to be this sore because of squats! (If it was due to a race, okay). Doing 150 sit ups was also a lot.

So now I'm unable to work out for a few days because I'm too sore. It's frustrating. I'm kind of mad about this workout!

I want to try Crossfit some more when I get back to Lynchburg, but I really have to be careful about how much I'm doing, and when to limit myself. I want to build up my strength slowly, not tear my muscles down so badly that I can't work out the next day!

Crossfit take two

I'm on my second try with Crossfit. The last time I tried it I ended up doing too many kettlebell swings and hurt my back. I was laid out on the couch for a few days afterward trying not to strain my back any further. Despite that injury, I've always liked the concept of Crossfit - short, intense workouts and strength training, along with a team aspect. There's a Crossfit gym here and two of my friends are into it, so I started going with them.

I've gone for about 3 weeks now, several times a week. The verdict: There are things I really like about Crossfit, but I'm not completely sold on it yet. Some of the workouts have been great and I really like learning new lifts. We've gone over deadlifts, cleans, squats, shoulder press, and rows. I also really like working on pull ups, handstands, and double unders. I've been practicing handstands and pull ups at home because I want to be able to do them without assistance!

First day: This was a great starting workout. Nothing too hard. I can't do toes to bar, so I did knee-ups instead while hanging from the bar.

SWOD: (Strength workout of day)
Back Squat
Bench Press 

5@75%,  3@85%,  1+@95%

WOD: 12 Minute AMRAP (As many rounds as possible)

200m Shuttle Run (50m x4)
50 Single-unders
15 Toes to Bar

Second day: Also a really fun workout. I did knee-ups instead of knees to elbows and handstand holds instead of the push-ups. We did some sit-ups and cleans at the end.

WOD: 4 Rounds For Time

21 Wall Balls (20/14)
15 Knees to Elbows
9 Handstand Push-ups

Third time: I liked practicing deadlifts and learning the proper form. For the WOD, I did handstand holds facing the wall (which is tougher than outward facing).

SWOD:
Dead Lift and Shoulder Press 

5 @ 75%,  3 @ 85%,  1 @ 95%

WOD: 3 Rounds for time:
50m Walking Lunge
50 ft Handstand Walk
50 Abmat Sit-ups

_________________________________________________________________

Week 2 Day 1: The deadlifts and burpees were actually really tiring, and this was the first workout that I thought was maybe a little too repetitive with the deadlifts. Deadlifts is a big full body movement and we did a LOT of them. I was glad I kept the weight relatively low.

SWOD:

Back Squat and Bench Press
5 reps @ 40%,  5 reps @ 50%,  5 reps @ 60%

WOD: really long to type out, but it was basically a bunch of deadlifts and burpees for 3 min x3 AMRAP, and then we did a full 3 min of ab mat sit-ups at the end.

Week 2 Day 2: I actually enjoyed this workout even though I had to modify everything! I used a band for pull-ups, I did push-ups on my knees, and I used a band for dips. BUT it's a lot of arm muscle movements, especially triceps.

WOD: 4 Rounds For Time (2 minutes rest in between each round)

Run 400 Meters/Row 500 Meters
20 Pull-ups
20 Push-ups
20 Dips

Week 2 day 3: I liked the GHD sit-ups at first. It's on a device that lets you extend your trunk and reach for the ground, then tuck up into a crunch. But after doing a few rounds, it made me a little dizzy. The trainer wanted me to try handstand push-ups with abmats under my head, but I really struggled with it and ended up kind of falling on my head a little bit. This is one of the problems with Crossfit: too much too fast!

WOD:
30 GHD Sit-ups

20 Cleans (155/105)

10 Hand Stand Push Ups
20 GHD Sit-ups
10 Cleans
5 Hand Stand Push Ups

So there were some good workouts, and some that I felt were too much (either too much of one thing, or too many exercises using the same muscles). Some of the trainers were better than others; the really good ones focused on form and making sure the workout was scaled for each person. And overall I had fun and enjoyed most of the workouts and met some cool people!

I still have my reservations about Crossfit. It's easy to overdo it, especially if you're competitive and like to push yourself (like me!). If the workouts are too repetitive or if they aren't varied enough from one day to the next, it's easy to overwork one group of muscles. However, I like working out with a group and having the workouts written for me. I like the high intensity intervals. I like the strength training, especially deadlifts and squats!

See Jane Run SF Half Marathon

I finally got a new PR!!!

I'm not sure why it's taken me so long to write about this race. I was busy with life for awhile, making new friends in California, and somehow never sat down to write about my best race ever!

To be honest, I'm not sure how I got a PR! I didn't train for this race any better than some other races. I did my long weekend runs, but not a whole lot during the week. I had been doing a lot more hiking, so maybe that helped?

Either way, I had a great race and got my PR without feeling sick or getting sore afterwards. Win-win!

Cat and I drove to SF on Saturday and picked up our race packets in Alameda. It was a small expo, but they had some good stuff. We got free Ocho chocolate bars, free granola bars, and we bought some Asics socks that I love! The reusable tote bag was a nice bonus as well.

After that we decided to head across to the SF area. We had a wonderful dinner in Mission. We wandered around afterward and saw Delores Park and hung out in the Mission area for a bit. Then we drove back across the bridge to our hotel in Alameda.

Race morning was uneventful. We had a short drive to the start since we were staying in the area. Originally I thought we could walk, but it ended up being a bit farther than expected, and anyway we had no trouble finding parking as they have a big lot to park in (it does cost $5 though). It was a smaller race (about 1000), so it wasn't too crowded at the start. They had a fun set-up in the park with blow-up markers and tents everywhere.

I started near the 2:00:00 pacer, but I wasn't expecting to stay there. My plan was to run this race for fun and not push myself too hard (to the point of feeling sick like I did in Key West). Early on in the race, I got ahead of the 2 hour pacer, but I figured I started out a little too fast and they'd catch up to me later (spoiler alert: they never did!)

From the very beginning, I felt good. The weather was the perfect breezy cool weather that San Francisco is known for. There were a few times during the race when I got a little hot, but then that breeze would blow through again and cool me off again.

The race was along the shoreline of the Bay and it was beautiful. I honestly don't remember a lot of it now (I'm writing this almost 3 months later!) but I remember loving it! It was flat, either along the water or through pretty parts of town, and the weather remained cool for the most part. It's the perfect race to try for a PR!

Even though I wasn't planning on it, I quickly realized I could get a PR on this course! I've had that thought before though, so I didn't get too excited. I just continued to run at a fairly comfortable pace and hoped I'd continue to feel this good during the second half of the race.

I amazed myself by running a sub-9 min pace mile after mile! I'm not saying it was easy, but it was a breeze compared to other races where I've really tried to push myself, and still couldn't run a 9 minute mile. I kept running at a steady pace and didn't really push myself until the last mile or two. I lost all my data from my Garmin, which is really frustrating, but I know I never ran a mile over 9 minutes which is a big deal for me!

Official Time: 1:53:34     Pace: 8:40     Place: 81/1030     Age Group: 18/125

We celebrated with champagne and snacks at the finish area! What a great day and fun race!

Santa Cruz

For the last weekend of my 13 weeks in Sonora, I went to Santa Cruz with a bunch of co-workers. We rented a big beach house with 4 bedrooms that was within 10 minutes of the beach. It was such a fun weekend! We'd go to the beach during the day, come back to the house and relax for awhile, and go to downtown Sonora at night.

The popular boardwalk/beach in Santa Cruz was not my favorite. It was overcrowded, difficult to find parking, expensive, and the traffic getting to and from the beach was terrible. Also, the actual beach was very windy and the sand kept blowing up in our faces. The next day we went to Capitola Beach, which I preferred a lot more. There were still a lot of people, but not as crowded as Santa Cruz, and it was more of a laid back beach town with cute little shops and restaurants. It had that quaint peaceful vibe which I loved.

Downtown Santa Cruz is a lot of fun, with good restaurants and cafes. It was fun just to walk around and explore. One place we really liked was called Pizza My Heart, where you can get specialty pizza by the slice. They have a Watsonville Apple pizza, which has green apple slices along with pepperoni and bacon. It was different and delicious!

Overall it was a great last weekend with all the new friends I've made in Sonora.

Andddd, I'm extending my contract! After my 3 weeks off, I'm coming back to Sonora for another 13 weeks. There is still so much I want to do and see in the area, and I've met so many fun, cool people here. I just wasn't ready to leave!

I'll be back to NorCal soon!

Wine Tasting in Murphys

Cat and I have been wine tasting in Murphys twice now and had a great day each time. Some of the wineries are better than others, so I thought I'd make a list of the ones we liked best. I'm not a wine connoisseur by any means, so I won't even bother trying to describe the wines. The wineries I liked are based on the overall service and variety of wines offered.

First Trip:
1. Vina Moda - loved this one. Great variety of wine to taste- a white, and a rose, and a few reds I think. A couple of their wines have won awards. The descriptions of the wines are hilarious!

2. Frog's Tooth - It was okay. All the wines were pretty good, but none stood out as amazing.

3. Villa Vallecito - Didn't care for this one as much. A couple of the wines just weren't very good, and we didn't get great service there.

4. Newsome Harlow - This place was average, but they charge $10 instead of the typical $5, and then the lady ripped us off when we went to pay by double charging us. So I'm not a fan.

Second trip:
1. Milliaire - This is one of my favorites: good wine, good variety, liked them all! I really love the Pinot Grigio, the sparkling white, and the Clockspring Zinfadel. They have a deal where you can get two whites for $24.

2. Lavender Ridge - they charge $7.50, but you get cheese samples with 3 of the wines. I loved the cheese and wine pairings! They also have lavender soaps and candles to buy, as well as cheeses.

3. Hatcher - This winery is in a cool old cellar. It was $8, but they had about 9 different wines on their tasting menu, plus a dessert wine, plus a little bread basket. The wines were good, but the bartender there is really grouchy.

4. Tanner - This winery was open until 5:30 (most close at 5pm). they gave us great service!

5. Bunting - This winery was open until 6pm, but they stayed open later for us. Very friendly people. It's a newer winery apparently, but pretty good.

Subsequent trips:
La Folia - I liked a lot of their wines, but I love their Barbera! I tried it at a restaurant in Sonora, and the next time I went back to Murphys, I had to go to La Folia to buy a bottle. It's a little pricier, but so worth it! They have a lot of wine on their tasting menu, but they're kind of stingy with the pours. They charge $8 a tasting, and they're open till 6pm.

Still want to try:
Zucca
Hovey
Renner

Best Four:
1. Milliaire
2. Lavender Ridge
3. La Folia
4. Vina Moda

California Wine & Cheese

Earlier this month, my roommate and I had a wine and cheese night at our apartment. Most of the rehab staff came (about 10 people) and we told everyone to bring either a bottle of wine or cheese or a side dish. Cat and I made a cheese board with fruit, chocolate, cheese, almonds, and salami.

The crackers in the middle were topped with goat cheese, a drizzle of honey, and a blackberry. They were probably my favorite treat. Cat also made delicious baked brie topped with a maple pecan glaze. We had many other plates full of cheese, crackers, grapes, and more of the crackers with the goat cheese and berries. It was such a fun night! Others brought nachos and cheese, spinach dip, Brie dip, apples with bleu cheese, and different kinds of wine.

We had a blast trying all the different snacks and wine, and hanging out together outside of work.

On Saturday my roommate Cat and I went to Murphys, which is a cute little town about 45 minutes from Sonora. Murphys is known for its many small wineries. We went to a bunch of them over the course of the day and got lunch and dinner in town. It was a fun relaxing day of eating and drinking. My favorite winery was Vina Moda. We had one white wine, one rose, and three reds there, and liked every single one!

Cheers to the Freakin Weekend

I spent last weekend in San Francisco with Emily and Ross. It's great to have friends that love to travel, and it's great to see some faces from home. We had planned to hike in Yosemite, but due to flight delays, we decided it would be more time efficient to spend the whole weekend in SF.

Day 1: We walked around Union Square and Chinatown. I got some free skin care samples at some shops in Union Square, and we got lunch in Chinatown. Then we rented bikes and biked across the Golden Gate Bridge. On the other side of the bridge is a cute little town called Sausalito. Biking around Sausalito was my favorite part of the weekend. There are cute little shops and it's right on the bay. We took the ferry back to SF and had dinner that night at Gott's Roadside, a burger place in the Ferry Building Marketplace. We relaxed at the hotel pool Friday night.

Day 2: We had delicious made-to-order omelets at the Embassy Suites. I highly recommend them for the rooms and the breakfast. We drove into town and wandered around Fisherman's Wharf for awhile. We got to see the sea lions at Pier 39. Then we got in line for the main event of the day: Alcatraz. I'd been once before, but Emily and Ross had never been. It was fun to see it again. We took the ferry across and did the Cellhouse audio tour. The audiotour at Alcatraz is great because it's narrated by former guards and prisoners. It was super cold outside at The Rock and we got hungry since we hadn't eaten lunch.

We made it back on the ferry and ate at WipeOut on Pier 39. Ross and I got the Chicken Teriyaki bowl and it was amazing- lots of fresh vegetables, chicken, and grilled pineapple! After lunch, we went back to the hotel for a bit and got changed for dinner. When we headed back downtown, we stopped at a cafe/bar to meet up with Ross's cousin. Buena Vista is famous for their Irish coffees. While we were waiting there, we saw the bartender making dozens of them. We got dinner at McCormick and Kuleto's seafood restaurant, which was our nice dinner of the weekend. After that, we wandered around Ghiradelli Square, got some free chocolate samples, and got some delicious ice cream. 

Day 3: We just had the morning on Sunday to do some sightseeing before Emily and Ross had to fly out. We ended up going to see the famous Painted Ladies houses and Golden Gate Park. We walked around the lake at Golden Gate Park and saw baby ducks and a waterfall. It was a nice peaceful end to our trip. We squeezed a lot into 2.5 days!

Our song for the weekend: Cheers -Rihanna 

Local trails near Sonora

I'm loving this California assignment! There are so many things to do in the area, and I work with a lot of travelers who are always wanting to get together and do things. These are two of the local hikes that I frequently go to with my co-workers:

Table Mountain:

Natural Bridges:

View from the top of Table Mountain:

San Fran

Spent the weekend in San Francisco.

Discovered a new SF favorite: Ferry Building Marketplace. Lots of specialty shops, including a cheese shop, coffee shop, ice creamery, olive oil shop, gluten free bakery, and a shop that only sells pig parts. I tried a cheese plate from the cheese shop, coffee, specialty ice cream, and a burger at Gott's Roadside over the course of the weekend. I just kept ending up at the Ferry Building! On Saturday they had an outdoor farmer's market and I got some fresh fruit.

Biked all over SF. The city has plenty of bike lanes and even though some parts are super hilly, it was way more fun to bike around the city than to drive. I really enjoyed biking through Golden Gate Park especially.

Hiked at Point Reyes National Seashore. The trail along the bay wasn't as exciting as I'd hoped, due to all the fog (but that is only to be expected in San Francisco). It was a long drive to the other end of the park to see the lighthouse. I got there just as the trail was closing, but still got to see the views of the shore and lighthouse from above.

Mirror Lake

Last weekend I went to Yosemite again for some more hiking. It was an absolutely gorgeous day! I'm really loving all the California sunshine! I did an easy 5 mile round-trip hike to Mirror Lake. It was a little muddy since it had rained the day before, but the trail was pretty flat compared to last week's hike.

It was kind of hard to get a good picture of the reflections, since California is having another drought year and the lake isn't as full as normal.

Still, I love how these turned out! There were several places along the lake where you could see various reflections of the surrounding mountains. It was really cool.

I love Yosemite. It seems like I see something new and awesome each time I go back there!

Yosemite Falls Hike

I am on my third assignment now, in Sonora California! This little town in Northern California is only about an hour from the entrance to Yosemite Park, so I'm planning to visit a bunch while I'm here. A couple years ago, when I visited California for the first time, Yosemite was the highlight of the trip!

Last weekend was National Park Day, so I got into Yosemite for free! I took the opportunity to do a day hike to the top of Yosemite Falls. It's one of the hikes that I didn't get to do last time.

Distance: 7.2 miles round trip
Time: 4 hours (2 hours to top, 1/2 hour for lunch, 1.5 hours down)

It was a strenuous hike, and it got especially steep near the top. I was determined to make it up with as few rest breaks as possible. I made it into a competition to see how many people I could beat. I passed a lot of people on the way up without getting passed once (of course no one else knew they were in a competition)! The views at the top were worth every step.

I hiked over the rocks to the source of the waterfall. There were less people over there and it was a great spot to eat lunch and enjoy the view. There's also a few stairs that you can walk down to look over the ledge where the waterfall drops- but be prepared to get hit with some spray!

I loved this hike, even though I had to walk an extra mile to and from the parking lot which added an extra hour of walking time. On the way there I had to walk because the shuttle was full, and on the way back, I decided to walk and look around a little bit more. The valley floor was somewhat crowded due to the free park day. After my hike, I stopped in the visitor's center for a bit and then got a sandwich at Degnan's Deli (their chicken salad is delicious!).

I can't wait to go back to Yosemite for more hiking! I still want to do Lower Yosemite Falls and Mirror Lake (shorter, easier hikes) and Glacier Point (almost 10 miles round trip, which will be an all-day hike).

Country songs to put a smile on

These are my current country faves because they make me happy!

Sam Hunt - Leave the Night On
"It's still early out in Cali, baby don't you wanna rally again?"

Billy Currington - Don't It
"Get on it, take a shot you can sip on it, find a floor we can dance on it, slow song it"

Zac Brown Band - Homegrown
"Small town and it feels like home, I've got everything I need, and nothing that I don't"

Ski Season in Colorado

One of my reasons for taking an assignment in Colorado during winter was the chance to ski out west. I've done plenty of skiing in New England: Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont, but never out west. I've been wanting to go for awhile, so this year was the perfect chance. I got the Epic Season Pass which gave me access to all Vail Resorts.

Vail
The Mountain: LOTS of terrain. There were several good black diamond and double black trails, as well as many blues and greens. The back bowls were closed when I was there. It would be even better with all the bowls and glades open. It can be hard to get from one side of the mountain to the other to ski it all.
The Resort: Vail is ritzy. There are lots of expensive stores and restaurants, and it's hard to find bargain lodging if you want to stay close to the slopes. The nice thing is that everything's within walking distance. The wide cobblestone streets are really pretty, and it's nice to be able to walk around without worrying about traffic. (I did find one great cheaper restaurant called George's - it's in a basement and set up with couches amid tables. It was so cozy and the food was delicious!)

Breckenridge
The Mountain: Breck is similar to Vail in terms of the type and amount of terrain. There's plenty of black diamonds, glades, and bowls. When I skied, the conditions were slightly better at Breck. It takes a little more time to get to the base of peaks 7 and 8 - you have to take a gondola lift from the parking lot.
The Resort: Breck had a lot more bargain options than Vail for lodging. I stayed in a two bedroom condo off of the four o'clock run for less than $200 a night. Breck's main street has lots of dining options and shops that are more affordable than Vail. It's a little farther to walk, but there's street parking and parking lots that are free after 4pm.

Keystone
The Mountain: I had so much fun at Keystone! It may have been that it was just a good powder day, but every run was awesome. I skied the North and South bowls, which was my first time skiing hike-to terrain. The bowls had wonderful barely touched snow, then the trails dumped into pristine glades. Those were my favorite runs of the year!
The Resort: I can't comment on the lodging because I didn't actually stay at Keystone. One of the great things about Keystone is that it's within an hour drive of Golden, Colorado. I stayed there and drove in for the day. It seemed like there were more locals than at Vail or Breck. I ate lunch at LaBonte's BBQ and their signature bowl was amazing.

It wasn't the best ski season- it's been unseasonably warm this year in Colorado. But I did get a few good days of powder, and I'm glad I finally got the chance to ski out west - I loved it! I already want to come back to Colorado to ski again next year.

Movies Based on Books

I recently watched a lot of movies based on books, so I thought I'd do a little review here.

Mockingjay: Part 1

This is the most popular book to movie franchise right now. I saw the movie a few months ago. I loved the Hunger Games books. I think the movies are pretty good, but certainly not as good as the books. I don't especially love the casting. Jennifer Lawrence is a good actress and I like her a lot in other movies, but she's not how I pictured Katniss. She has grown on me with each sequel though. I liked this movie, but I'm even more excited for Part 2, when we get to see more of Peeta! It's kind of annoying how movie companies keep splitting the last book in a series into two movies, but it makes a little more sense with this book because there are two distinct parts.

The Host

I saw this about a year ago, but I wanted to include it because I really liked this movie! I actually never read The Host, but it's written by Stephanie Meyer, the author of the Twilight books. I watched this movie not expecting too much, but I thought it had an intriguing premise: aliens are trying to inhabit earth by taking over human bodies as their "host". It turns out some humans are able to resist better than others. It sounds weird, but it's a really good fun story. It's kind of hard to describe, but definitely worth a watch.

Divergent

This is probably my favorite movie of the bunch. I read Divergent and liked it (although the other books in the series weren't nearly as good). The movie made the book come alive almost the way I pictured it, which rarely happens! This is one movie where I thought the casting was perfect (unlike the Twilight series and Hunger Games). I loved the casting for Tris, Four, and Eric. I also thought they did a good job with the fear landscape scenes. Maybe this book was easier to adapt because it has more action sequences and less thinking/feeling/emotions that can't be conveyed onscreen. For that reason, I thought the movie was just as good as the book. Maybe even a little better, because Four is smoking hot! (and so are his tattoos!)

The Fault in Our Stars

I never read this book, but I'd heard a lot about it. I knew it was a tear-jerker, so I decided to watch the movie instead of trying to get through a depressing book. The movie was cute, but not great. Shailene Woodley did a good job and was completely different from the character she played in Divergent. However, her love interest was embarrassingly awkward at times. Maybe he was awkward like that in the books, but it came across as really lame in the movie. If you can get past some of those totally cheesy initial lines, the love story is pretty cute, especially the fact that they bond over a favorite book. But both characters have cancer, so you know it's not going to end well. 

I kind of hate depressing endings, but this one at least had some depth to it. I cried a bunch watching the movie, so I can't even imagine how much I would've cried reading the book.

Overall, I would recommend all of these. The first three are more light-hearted and fun, and I would watch all of them again. The last one is a tragic story that I will probably only watch once. It makes you contemplate life and death and the meaning of our existence, which is sometimes more than I want to think about when I watch a movie.

Edit: Forgot to mention another recent book-to-movie: Gone Girl

My mom read the book and said she wouldn't recommend it. She said it was dark and she didn't like the ending. So I didn't read the book, but I was interested in seeing the movie to see what all the buzz was about. It was a good psychological thriller. It's a movie where you're constantly second guessing everything that happens and trying to figure out how the characters are manipulating each other. I heard that the movie's ending was different from the book, so I read the last 100 pages of the book to find out how they differed. People lied. They are a few minor details that are changed, but overall the endings are the same. The ending is kind of frustrating, but with a plot like that, you can't expect to like how the story turns out.