Last week I mentioned that Taylor and I will be running the Mount Diablo Trail Marathon on Sunday, 9/15 to celebrate my 28th birthday.  We were met with a rather unusual sight after our deep tissue massages yesterday: Mount Diablo was (and still is) on fire, and our race may be up in smoke too.

The race director posted the following message earlier today:

The Diablo event is currently ON HOLD due to the current major fire on Mt. Diablo that started on Sunday (9/8) at 1:30 p.m. Currently, the course is not affected by the fire and we’re hopeful that the event will be held as planned. We’ll post updates here as we know more. Thanks for your patience.

Although missing the race would be disappointing, it wouldn’t be the first time we’ve dealt with inclement weather come race day.  In December 2012, record rainfall threatened the North Face Endurance Challenge and ultimately resulted in course modification for both the 50K and 50 miler.  We made the best of it then – Taylor “paced” me, which is the most polite way of saying  she slogged through roughly twenty seven miles in the pouring rain during my first fifty.

After the race and over a large cauldron of mulled wine, we talked about what we’d do if mother nature stepped out of line again.  We decided to skip races where our pictures could be mistaken for a scene from the original Woodstock, and the same goes for Mount Diablo this weekend: running a strenuous trail race amidst compromised air quality isn’t worth it to us.  Instead, we’ve come up with a plan B closer to sea level: trail running in Marin, followed by celebratory beers on the water at Marin Brewing Company.  I may even light a controlled fire of my own on top of an ice cream cake.  Whether it’s a race course inferno or an unexpected trail closure along your favorite route, a backup plan is never a bad idea.