When I'm skiing I almost always have a mantra running through my head. Some of the common ones are, high hands, compress, drop the body, or any number of sound effects. It's a bad habit that I've picked up from years and years of being coached.

Because I'm not particularly concerned with improving my running technique, when I run I usually merely have random thoughts or song lyrics floating through my head. (The kind they tell you to imagine as helium balloons and to gently push away when you're meditating.) Recently though, I have had a fairly constant mantra during my runs. It's "I'm going to die." I'm running through the mountains, thinking about that can of bear spray back in Anchorage in the garage chanting to myself, "I'm going to die, I'm going to die, I'm going to die."

I obviously have not actually died yet but I ran up Arctic Valley Rd yesterday and stopped on the way up to check out the bear tracks crossing the road. And thought, "I'm going to die." Other than that it was a good run, almost all L3 up to the ski area. Then I was almost back to my car, less than 500' away, and two bear cubs frolicked on out into the road in front of me. I threw on the brakes, back pedaled, and told myself, "I'm going to die." It was almost a relief to find the bears. Although I was pretty nervous about not knowing where mama bear was ("I'm going to die"). Luckily, a nice couple with two young children and a rented minivan drove up behind me and I stuck out my thumb and hopped in for the 500' to my car. Let me tell you, those bear cubs were way cuter from inside a car.