Please welcome Amy to the blog today. She is actually a friend of a friend and the owner of Jackson Hole Packrafts and Rentals (more on that coming soon....) In our brief exchanges via phone and email, I knew she would have something great to contribute here! This post is a little "rewind in time" so make sure to check out her full bio at the end! As always, comments and discussion are welcome and appreciated!
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| Location of my bachlorette party |
Our campsite was the quintessential spot for an IFOT – a
term used locally by photographers standing for "
In
Front
of
Tetons". We pitched
our tents on the bluffs of Shadow Mountain, taking in the clear skis and
peaceful surroundings.
Four lovely ladies joined me on this camping excursion. They
schlepped borrowed tents, bottles of wine and a chocolate cake made in a bread
pan, with two muffins perched on top. It only took a little convincing to move my bachelorette
party from Jackson Hole’s bustling bars out to the serene Gros Ventre
camping area directly across from the Tetons.
It helped that I had a rock solid excuse for not drinking a
sip of any concoctions my friends would otherwise dream up: I’m five months pregnant.
That magical evening on Shadow Mountain helped to quench a
thirst that’s been building in me all summer for my beloved outdoors. When I first learned I was pregnant, my second thought was, "what will happen to my ultrarunning?" (My first thought was panicked
excitement).
That’s how whole-heartedly devoted I was to ultras. I had
structured my whole summer around the two 100-mile races I was signed up for. I
had a job that could accommodate long hours of training. I had tracked down a
crew and pacers months in advance. I was calling random names and numbers given
to me by friends of friends to find people to hit the trail with.
Hours after I took that positive pregnancy test, I dug out
an article from Ultrarunning magazine on running during pregnancy. Several experts were interviewed in the article, with this
general consensus:
