Winter Carnival, Ice Beard, and Carrot Top

Here's a picture from the 2009 St. Paul Winter Carnival Half Marathon 10.25K. It was -12F with a windchill of -20-25 below, freaky cold. So cold they cut the race back from a half marathon to a 10.25K. I haven't ran it since, but I was reminiscing about that day and the sweet ice beard I had back then as its been damn cold around here this year. Steve in a Speedo has a good report and pics from this race, just click on the link.  This race is coming up this weekend and again I won't be participating, but I will be reflecting on it fondly and the weather should be a little warmer this year for all who participate.
We've had approximately 55 inches of snow this year. To put that in perspective, we normally only have 30 inches by this time of the year. I've even thought about skipping some of my upper body workouts lately because I usually have to shovel or use the roof rake to move all the snow. That job alone can be a workout.
If I have to manhandle that damn roof rake any more, I'll start to have shoulders like Carrot Top.

Anyway, I have no plan for an ice beard this year, but I may have an early summer race that may bump out the sprint triathlon I have tentatively planned for 6/25/2011. More on that on a later date.

Stay warm and train hard or train hard to stay warm.