Shawnee 40 miler, Downtown Sightseeing, & early summer vibes

A few of us got together last Saturday to run the Shawnee Backpack Trail.  We started a little after 5AM from the lodge and ran down to the trail.

A lot of the time you are in dense tree-cover, but occasionally pop out for some amazing views from the ridges. Temps were perfect with morning temps in the mid 40s and we warmed to mid 70s in the afternoon.  So it did get a little warm, but manageable. 

This is one of my favorite spots.  It is Campsite #6.  It is one of the most remote places to camp and backpack in the state.  It is nestled in a hemlock grove next to a stream.  

All-in-all it was a great run.  With nearly 9,000 feet of vert, this 40 mile run was the hilliest run I have done so far.  I signed up for the Shawnee 50 (technically 54 miles) in October and that will be about 12,000 feet of vert.

Summer graduated from preschool last week.  She was blessed with amazing teachers the last 3 years at Cypress Christian Preschool.

Dawn, my wife, was battling a cold last week and I got up with the kids both mornings over the weekend to let her catch up on some rest.  Friday night I camped outside, in the backyard, with the kids.  We were all awake by 6AM with the birds and sunrise, so we loaded up and ran around Downtown Columbus to check out the sights. They were wearing their matching elf pajamas.

Yesterday we reached 89°, so we filled up the pool and had lots of fun in the backyard.  Probably doing more of that this week.  Tuesday looks to be the hottest day for it. 

Our hot weather will be sticking around a few more days then a cold front later Wednesday will finally change our pattern. Be sure to check on plants and that they are watered because this early heat is stressing plants that do not have existing root systems. We will be mostly cloudy today with about a 30% chance for any given location to see some pop-up isolated rain. The best chance would be in the afternoon as our highs warm into the upper 80s. Our humidity will make it feel a little hotter. Higher humidity sticks around through midweek. The additional clouds should keep us a little cooler than Sunday, when we reached 89. Partly cloudy tonight with most of the rain winding down once the sun sets. Warm night with low temps in the upper 60s. Tuesday will be hot with high temps trying to reach 90 for the first time of the year. Mix of sun & clouds and only about a 10% chance of a stray shower or storm popping up. Wednesday starts warm and we should warm into the mid 80s before scattered showers and storms arrive, mainly for the second half of the day. This rain is with a cold front and finally getting our weather pattern back into a zonal flow, or west to east flow, of weather patterns. Thursday looks fairly dry with highs in the lower 80s and partly cloudy skies with lower humidity. Then an area of low pressure heads our direction on Friday and it is looking like some on and off showers and storms throughout the day. Highs will be cooler, with the rain, and going with a high around 70. The weekend is looking nice with a very low chance of rain. Once the rain kicks out later this week we should see some clearing for the weekend with partly cloudy skies and low temps in the mid 50s and high temps in the low-mid 70s. We will need to keep an eye on the timing of the Friday rain and hopefully it kicks out in time for a mild Memorial Day weekend. Have a good one!

Best,
Andrew Buck Michael

Mother's Day, Running with Summer, Gardening with Evan... Getting WARMER!

Good morning everyone!  We had a great Mother's Day this year.  Yes, it was very rainy, but we stayed inside and did some fun stuff.  We watched movies and I got Dawn and Summer painting kits.  Evan wanted to paint too, so I set him up with washable paint as well.

I have a big run planned this weekend with lots of hills, so I wanted to get some extra running on hills earlier this week.  Summer wanted to join me so we ran for an hour up and down a hill at one of the metro parks.  She climbed 500 feet and ran for 2.2 miles!  She said she had a lot of fun and wants to join me again sometime.  

 The cool and wet weather has been great for the cold crops for the garden! We have already harvested our first round of lettuce.  More lettuce on the way for the coming weeks.

It does need to warm up more to get our strawberries to start turning.  Right now they are getting bigger and bigger.  

Lighter frost this morning and mostly sunny skies will warm us up fast today into the mid-upper 60s. So jacket this morning then t-shirt temps this afternoon, with sunglasses all day. Beautiful afternoon! We will be very similar for Friday with temps slightly warmer. Most of Central Ohio will be frost-free, but there may be some light frost, in our frost-prone areas, for Friday morning. We warm to around 70 on Friday with mostly sunny skies. Futurecast is trying to pop a stray shower on Friday afternoon, but odds of that happening are very slim, thanks to our high pressure. We continue to warm a little more for the weekend. Cool mornings with lows in the mid 40s and warming into the lower 70s. Partly cloudy on Saturday and then a 30% chance of some isolated rain Sunday. We have an area of low pressure headed our way Monday and that will bring us a 60% chance of scattered showers and storms. We will keep a slight chance of rain through midweek and our temps continue climbing through the 70s. We may be pushing close to 80 or into the 80s by the end of next week! Have a good one!

Best,
Andrew Buck Michael

Fishing & first post-COVID wedding

Good morning!  Weather was so nice on Friday that I picked up Summer from preschool and we hit up the pond next to her school.  No luck, but it was great practice for casting for her.  Evan is great at reeling and didn't like to let the bobber stay out there too long.

Then I got cleaned up then Dawn and I went to Cleveland for a wedding for her cousin.  Great times.  The city was electric with the NFL draft.  It was really took because the city was all-in and Terminal Tower would change colors to match the current team on the clock to pick the next player. 

We drove home Saturday and spent time with the kids.  Then Sunday I woke up early to go for a run. Great view of the sunrise on my way to the trails.

Gorgeous day on the trails!

I did 20 miles at Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park.  I personally love Dyer Mill trail there and it is nice to get off the gravel.  

It got hot in the afternoon(for April) and we played with the water table. 

Good Tuesday morning! We will have a cold front passing later today and it will be triggering some rain for Ohio. We will have scattered showers and storms ahead of the front then lingering showers tonight as cooler air moves in. The rain will also be in pockets today so be prepared for rain from time to time, but most of the day will be dry to run errands or get outside for some fresh air. We will warm to around 75 today. The chance of severe weather is low, with a Marginal Risk of storms reaching severe criteria, with the main threat being gusty winds. The cold front will slowly cross Ohio from the northwest to southeast and it will cross through the afternoon and evening. Temps fall to around 50 by daybreak on Wednesday with some lingering showers moving out to the east and then partly cloudy with highs in the upper 50s. So a decent afternoon, but have the jacket handy tomorrow. Thursday will bring a mix of sun & clouds and highs around 60. A weak disturbance will bring more light showers for Thursday night and Friday. Highs in the upper 50s on Friday. Some clearing Friday night could lead to temps dipping into the upper 30s, but the biggest variable will be how many clouds we clear out overnight. Clearer skies will mean cooler temps. Saturday looks like the pick day of the weekend with a mix of sun & clouds and some scattered rain moving in for Saturday night and Sunday. Highs in the lower 60s on Saturday then mid 60s on Sunday with the rain. Models then agreeing on the rain kicking out quick and Monday is looking dry and mild.

Best,
Andrew Buck Michael