May 29 - June 4, 2017 Sandwich Dome, Pemi Loop XVIII

Monday: 8.1 miles, 2850', 11:30 pace. A daybreak start and brisk effort got me up and down Sandwich Dome in 1:38:21 and back home before breakfast.

Tuesday: Zero. Blew my  morning and lunch run windows on figuring out how to get the check engine light in my Forester to shut off. I achieved success, I think.

With the occasional malfunctioning emissions system, creeping fender rust, and nearly 178,000 miles, I'm not sure how much more life I'll get out of this car. I know everything is finite, especially tools that get used on a daily basis, but I love my Forester and there's really nothing else out there that quite matches it's appeal to me. Now, it seems like most everything that would fit my needs is too expensive, too slow, too clumsy, or comes with a shitty CVT transmission. My options are limited and I plan to string this baby on as long as I can. Specifically, I have a 2007 Subaru Forester Sports XT with a manual transmission in World Rally Blue. What all that means is that it's a turbocharged all-wheel-drive station wagon in a very rare options package and color, especially with the stick shift. Ten years ago I scoured the website of every Subaru dealership in New England looking for the exact combo I wanted, with the intent of owning it for the long term. At the time, it'd been a year since I'd graduated college, I'd established some stability, and wanted to reward myself for making it through school. Getting a kick-ass new car was one of the motivations that kept me plugging away on relevant school work and coping with all the other bullshit gatekeepers in academia. I'll be sad when I finally do have to let her go.

Wednesday: 3.9 miles on the mountain bike. Went for a ride in the evening with a friend until a broken chain cut things short.

Thursday:
     AM: 5.2 miles, 436', 8:19 pace. Easy morning run.
     PM: 11.2 mile bike ride at lunch.

Friday: Zero.

Saturday: 12 miles, 1952', 11:00 pace. Pawtuckaway trails with Kieth.

Sunday: 30.6 miles, 9405', 14:15 pace. Pemi Loop number 18 is in the books. Had to work a lot harder for my 8:13 finish than I would've liked due to snowy, wet conditions, not enough calories, and too much beer the night before.

Totals: 56.2 miles, 14639', 11h 48m.