Blog post by Vasque Athlete Krissy Moehl

Summer is here and it seems to be flying by.  This weekend I flew to Salt Lake City, met up with my buddy Roch and drove to Pocatello, Idaho for the Pocatello 50 mile race put on by Jared and Ryan.  This is a first time event but you wouldn’t know it.  These guys had it all, starting with an amazing course which had a little of everything for everyone.  Great climbs, beautiful scenery, perfect weather, solid group of participants, overly stocked aid stations, photographers, videographer... the list goes on.   The race starts and finishes at Mink Creek Campground which has a big grassy field that we filled with tents, good food and sore legs once all was said and done.  Fortunately there was a creek as well, not super cold, but enough to cool the legs.

For me, leading up to the race life had decided I needed more character.  (part of the reason I haven’t written in weeks) By Thursday I felt like it was coming at me from all angles.  Up to that point I was getting by, which I can do as long as I have an outlet.  Right now that outlet is running and when the arch of my left foot seized during a morning run at Cougar and the doc said it could possibly be a stress fracture something in my little heart snapped.  I started on the downward spiral worried that I would be spending the rest of the summer in a boot, left to deal with “things” without an outlet, and thoughts of my summer goals, Western States and UTMB were... I was in a bad head space. 

The doc (naturopath) treated it with four needles (acupuncture) and I iced and rubbed arnica gel on it all day Thursday.  Friday morning I woke early and stayed in bed contemplating what to do.  Should I still go to Idaho?  I decided to get up and go for a run.  My thought process being, if it hurts more, then I’ll know what the summer is going to look like.  If by chance it releases then I’ll go run 50 miles.  My spirits soared as I ran to Green Lake and my arch released.  I haven’t posted to Facebook in quite a while, but that morning I wrote “Krissy Moehl may just believe in miracles.”  I hurried to my friend and massage therapist Ellen and she worked out all sorts of knots and crunching things in my feet and calves.  Met a friend for coffee and then off to the airport, walking without a limp and counting my lucky stars.

Thursday I couldn’t walk without a limp, Saturday I ran 52 gloriously, tough miles.  This was my warning, time to get back on track, take care of myself.  I’m so thankful that I was able to join the great crew this past weekend.  I had the opportunity to spend time with Roch and Catherine, meet and finish the last 20 miles with Luke, camp out in a beautiful field, share campfire time and just be me with some great people.

Back home I am working through that character building stuff, keeping busy with my solid community of friends and family, tackling Conservation Alliance details including putting on some super fun events for work which we are calling Backyard Collectives and gearing up for Western States.  There are many good things to come this summer; it already seems to be going by too fast.