Driven

View Bench/Red Rock trail - Draper

With Scotty boy up to VB and down for just under 8 miles, them met up with some tough-looking folks for a run on the same trail system for a total of 14.4. Nice sunny morning. 

Ten on Matt's secret trail after work.

 You have heard of running with the bulls? I ran with the cows.  

Lake Mountain Loop

We came, we saw, we ran around the mountain.

With Josh, Craig, and Scott. I need a couple of ultra distance runs before March 23rd, so with this I need at least one more. 

We started at about 7:30 AM on the S West side of Lake  Mountain and ran a loop around and back. Temp was very cold to begin but we warmed after 5 minutes. We had a good time. About mile 15 I was getting sore but accepted that I would finish even if I was miserable. The front side had a lot of hills and I ran them because I didn't want to lose momentum. From the last high point at Enoch Pass Craig and I ran the last 6 fairly quickly and I ended feeling rather good.

Four on the bike path near home, mid-day. I am glad we did not run out on the snow-covered trails of Antelope the other day. The bike path is only partially covered with crusty snow, but requires a lot more effort to run over.

Six on the bike path, which puts me at 40 for the week. Do I dare go big tomorrow for 60?

Grandeur Loop + Pipeline

 I had a goal to reach 60 miles this week and I completed with the last 18 on Mt. Grandeur and in Millcreek Canyon. I wanted to do a Grandeur Loop double up but I was moving too slowly and my calves are getting sore.

I got to the summit of Grandeur in one of my most recent slowest times. I was moving pretty well up until I had to stop and move some product, and then the slick snow and ice near the summit cost me some minutes. Then, the descent from the summit was slow because ice on the trail is very dangerous. I stopped to apply some mini spikes but I still moved slowly so that I did not fall. I would hate to break a wrist or an ankle up there.

I ran from the Church Fork/Pipeline junction as usual to Rattlesnake Gulch, then decided to go out a mile to the point and back, and then go back three miles and turn around. This plan gave me eight extra miles so I can claim a 60 mile week.

Ten on the bike path to Kaysville and back. No big woop.

Six in a loop from home down to Glover Lane and back. My favorite bike path is covered with problem snow so I had to run on the road today. Bah. Will go back and get 4 more later tonight.

Did the 4 to get my ten. Ran the first 3 miles in 20 minutes, then a cool down for the last. 

Ten on the bike path to Kaysville. Some black ice, but no falls.

I like big vert and I cannot lie...

Grandeur 10 Mile Loop X2

Uhh! Double-Up Uhh-Uhh!

Lap 1:

Start at 6:15. Freezing canyon wind. I mean freezing. I haven't been as cold since Henry's Fork last March. First half-mile I had to double face palm. Nobody else on the mountain. Lots of snow but lots of steps from previous hikers. Relaxing pace, knowing I had to do one more (maybe a third?) trip up in a few hours. As usual the canyon breeze cuts out after about 500 feet of climbing. Dependable! Reached the top with no fanfare, no stopping, just dove into the snow going off the East side of the summit. Snow: Deep! Can't touch the bottom. Wearing short socks - cold ankles! Unlike two weeks ago, no ice. Yay. Any fall on this section would actually be a good time. Winter arrived at last - six weeks late. I stopped off to move some product under a tree, could see someone hiking up the steep part of the trail 150 yards below. If he had looked real hard he could have seen me desecrate the wilderness. I didn't care. Gotta move the pile. I must have unwittingly put on my invisibility cloak because when I approached the hiker he did not make eye contact, nor did he reply to my "good morning". Maybe he did see me doing the old world birthing position up under that tree and hates me for it.

Run down Church Fork, much better without ice but still a technical snow challenge. Down on Pipeline, ice rules. The run to Rattlesnake over bulletproof ice is not pleasant. Before the descent into Rattlesnake, I stopped to apply some glide over my nethers. Wouldn't it be funny if two women came up the trail to see my tights down and my hand playing pocket pool? Well, first a black lab announced their arrival, then one woman, then another and her pooch. Fortunate I had finished gliding and repackaged everything just mere moments before I could have been mistaken for the Millcreek Flasher. Down Rattlesnake, slowly, over icy trail. I would rather move like an 80 year old than fall and break something...like an 80 year old. Down to the road, canyon temps are always more cool than up on the trails.

Three or so miles back to the car, wanting to go home. But first, pancakes at McDonalds. Drive-through, got the stuff, pulled over to chow. What! No pancakes? Freak. I want - no, I need those pancakes. Back through the drive-through. I am not a jerk, I just ask nicely for my pancakes and they magically appear in a bag, handed to me by some purple-haired chick. Cool. Chowtime: Of course the pancakes, but also biscuit, scrambled eggs, hashish browns and half a sausage patty. I call home to see if my wife will help me rationalize coming home and skipping the second lap up. "Do you need me at home?" I ask, hoping she says yes. "Otherwise I'm going up for a second lap." No? Darn. I'm here, I have the time and the energy. I decide to go back up.

Lap 2:

Canyon breeze: Still freezing, even with sunshine. Damn. I start up again, this time in full glorious winter sunshine. A third of the way up I look down and see a man coming up fast. Oh no, I'm going to look like a pathetic amateur hiker, going so slow. A bit later he approaches near, I get a look at his face. Jared Campbell. We say our greetings as he passes, then as an afterthought I start to ask him something. "Ar"-- But before I can get even a half-syllabel out he is already ten feet past me. Moves fast! He owns the mountain. Mountain owner. He's climbed Grandeur over 1,000 times, literally. I continue on, slowly. Up the 7,000 stairs. My guess is that Jared is going to the top and then coming back the same way. I'll ask him when we pass each other again. Later a man and woman descend past me with their two labs. I give the friendly pooches some pets. It's therapeutic. As I predicted, Jared came trotting back down and this time I managed to querry: Are you Jared? Instantly his glove was off and his hand out to shake. Nice fellow. I continue my slow slog to the summit. At last I arrive for the second time that morning. I climbed 6400 feet since 6:15 AM. No stopping, just continued on, stepped off the East side and down in the steep snow. Screw that summer trail crap. If I am going to get my ankles cold and wet, I'm taking the quickest way down. Same deal down to Church Fork, but slower. Did not see anyone in Church Fork this time.

Down on Pipeline, running over bulletproof ice is even more unpleasant the second time. Sun is out. Warm. Me, starting to feel like shyte but must continue on. This is not a walk, or a hike. This is trail running! More women in Rattlesnake. Women look so pretty in Winter. Down to the road, still cool in the canyon. Slightly limping now, wishing I had an R2 unit: "Artoo, that stabilizer's broken loose again. See if you can lock it down. Hang on back there!" (That's a Star Wars reference, people.) On Wasatch Blvd about a mile from the car a paraglider dude swooped above the road, then landed in the school grass field just as I ran by. Looks like he landed in the midst of a bunch of kids who were sledding the hillside. Cool. I love America. Then I ran past some slob carrying a guitar case. I could smell the fried foods he has been eating for years upon years. Ran it in back to the car to complete the second ten mile loop for the Grandeur Double-Up. Uhh! Uhh! (That's a Sir Mix-A-Lot reference, people.)

As I arrived at the car park, there is Jared Campbell, looking like he is going back up for another one. I mean his third one because while I ran down Church Fork, he had come down, went back up, then back down, and as I drove away he was going up for his third Grandeur run for the morning. Mountain owner.

Ten relaxing miles on the ol' bike trail. No big woop.

Eight miles in the morning.

Average Pace: Hella slow 

Seven miles in evening on the Bonneville Shoreline with Dorsimus.

Average Pace: Even more hella slow 

Lone Peak

 A 12.5 mile climb up to Lone Peak and back on snowshoes should equal at least one mile of running, right? I was on my feet and moving for 10.5 hours through one of the most scenic places in Utah. I felt great today - strong and fast climbing over 6,000 feet to an 11,000 foot granite Wasatch peak. Running has done wonders for my fitness. It's a super power.

Ten on the bike path to Kaysville and back. 

While a very easy physical effort, mentally tonight was one of the toughest workouts I've done. Tonight my wife and I heard the news of the horror suffered by Susan Cox's children at the hands of a monster. That news shook me. We cried. I was stunned at the act of pure evil that took the lives of those two boys. My boys are the exact ages of Susan's boys. Instinctively I visited their bedroom and caressed the heads and hands of each of my sleeping boys. I needed to touch them, to hear them breathing, to feel their warm skin and know they are alive and safe. There is evil in this world. There always has been. Violence against children shakes me to the core and if ever there is a cause for me to take, a cause and mission for me to offer my whole heart, it would be to protect children in every way from the evil people that seek to harm them.

I didn't plan to get out tonight and run, but after I heard the news of the manner in which those boys were murdered I had to get out and move. But I couldn't forget what I had heard. Every few minutes I thought of the disturbing news, and I deflated and my pace slowed. I could not be comforted by my favorite music coming through the earphones. I did the ten miles but it was a chore.

Dear God, my prayer is that you would erase from the memories of those precious children the pain those boys felt all their lives, and especially the last minutes of their mortal lives.

I ran 15 miles on the bike path to Layton and back. Slow.

A quick five after dinner. 

No gloves, one shirt instead of the usual two. Spring warmth in what is usually the coldest month of the year. 

Antelope Island

 With Matt W (Dorsimus) for a preview of the 100 mile course. My intent today was to cover at least 40 miles including the uphill portion and then the Ranch out and back. Midway through the run it became clear I was having an "off" day. Legs are sore, which slowed me considerably so I called it good after 19 miles. On the other hand, Matt was solid and finished five minutes ahead of me. I know I can do much better so I will consider this one a kick in the butt to motivate me.

 The takeaway from this training run is I would like to be able to complete that first 19 miles  under 3 hours on race day.

Mt. Wire

I had a realization tonight. I am undertrained for hill climbing. Suck. After the shambles of a run out on Antelope I've fretted over what the problem could be. Most of my running for the past several weeks has been on flat pavement. While I have been getting lots of miles on my feet, I have missed a lot of vert miles and quality trail miles.

Time to activate the Krupicka Plan. I will be going up Mt. Wire twice a day for the rest of my training. This means either a double up in the morning or one in the AM and one in the PM. I will get 10 quality trail miles each day I do this. On days I can only get one I can get 5 miles on the road but from now on the majority of my miles will be trail with serious vert. For the rest of this week I may do one on Wire each day and begin the program of doubles next week.

I went up tonight and was discouraged at how weak I felt, but I know that with more training on the hill I will get strong.

Running down was great. I got my downhill legs back. I love my Cascadias.

I found a new awesome trail in Centerville that is all hill. Got me 5 miles and almost 2,000 feet of verttical smile.

Eleven miles from home to Flag Rock and back. TheMrK showed me a terrific new secret trail right above Farmington. I will be hitting this one a lot. 

Check out that elevation profile - steep! 

The Wedge, Little Grand Canyon, San Rafael Swell

With Craig, Scott, and Matt. 

I love the desert.

I ran strong to the turn around at mile 15.5, then I stayed back with Scott on the way back.

Holy smokes I would have never guessed we ran 2,447 of elevation. (Maybe that is an error but that is what the Garmin says)

Burned 3500 calories. Yee haw!

Look at that convoluted trail!

Flag Rock

 I found my training hill. I can get 11 miles and nearly 2,000 feet of vert right from home. Tonight I ran in the dark starting at 9:30 PM. Warm night. Up on the bench trail I had the sensation of being in a dream, for a moment the feeling of  not knowing if I was dreaming of running or running in waking reality. Probably an indication I should have been home in bed. I did not want to go out tonight and made good effort to excuse myself from going out in the dark. While I made excuses I got dressed, then decided I would go out and turn around after a few miles. I wanted to go up to that rock with the flag on it above the city, so when I warmed up after a few miles I knew that is where I would go. After my 32 mile desert run Monday my legs felt very good tonight. 

Flag Rock (again)

Tonight I met up with Mr. The K and we ran up to the flag rock above Farmington. Much slower than last night because my legs are well used this week. At the flag we hiked a few hundred feet higher and indeed I got 2,000 of vert out of this one. I was chilly on the run back and K suggested I may be calorie deficient. At home I immediately made a muscle milk shake, then drove to the store and purchased 2 pints of Chunky Monkey ice cream and a big ol' sandwich. I watched some Apocalypse Now and stuffed my face.

Mt Olympus party at the summit

I helped my buddy Joe celebrate his 400th trip to the summit of Mt Olympus today. We had hot dogs, cupcakes, brownies and ice cold Coca-Cola. Mmmm-mmnn. I ran from the trailhead all the way to the first stream crossing, then had to move carefully over the icy trail. I caught up with my friends who had started hiking 20 minutes before me and stayed with them for the remainder of the ascent. We stayed at the top for an hour of partying. The descent through the rocks was fun and a little challenging. 

 4,200 feet vert

Nine more miles from home to make a 70 mile week. Woot.

Flag Rock with Mr. The K. Another good solid 11 miles with climb. The route runs past a Chevron so the product movement is more civilized than out on the trails.

A few Words About Fitness

 I am about to turn 41 and I am in the best shape of my life. A lot of friends peaked years ago; I see what they look like now compared to how I knew them in high school and I cringe. Overweight, given up, slipping willingly into middle age and accepting all the usual health problems associated with being sedentary. Now, I know I could drop dead of a massive heart attack any day, but not for being overweight and having poor nutrition. Still lots of life left in me. Since the new year I have been eating very little fast food, and much more whole foods. Lean meats, vegetables, fruit. My legs are strong and most of the blub I've carried around for the past decade is gone. I began working on my upper body too. I haven't seen my abs in years. There they are! I am back to skinny. High School skinny. My clothing no longer fits. Did this all at home - no freaking gym, no gimmick mail-order equipment, no pills, electric shock belts, shake weights. None of that crap. Just running, free weights and crunches at home, and using more calories than I consume. So now I am eating ice cream - along with my usual meals - just to stay up on calorie consumption. The thing is, I believe most everyone can do this. we just have to want it.

A Little Ultra Before Church

Parked at White Rock bay, ran over to the Mountain View trail, did the short out and back same as will be in the 100 mile run, then down to the Ranch. Back North, did the out and back again, then finish at the car for 28 miles. I said hello to Meltzer as he just finished running the back trails. 

My new favorite music is the Cocteau Twins. 

Did an evening run up to Flag Rock with JK. It is a clear, chilly night but up on the bench I peeled off clothing and did the steepness in t-shirt. Smooth up in ya.

Antelope Island

I ran the West side trails, including the Elephant Rock out and back for a total of 19 miles. Much better than last time I ran this loop. I felt strong throughout, although at mile 1 I had to pull over and obscure myself behind a craggy boulder to do some, uh, "product placement".  Today's product: liquid! Yay! I shoved my soiled wipes into a crack in the boulder, like a pilgrim shoving a prayer into the Western Wall. "Dear God, make these trots go away. Stat! I got 18 more miles to go."

Prayer was not answered.

I've been practicing fueling technique, ingesting a swallow of gel every 20 minutes. The plan works well; I had good energy the entire run. Ran it in strong, and some nice fellow parked next to me shared his bagels with me.If not for the poo stops I would have easily completed 19 miles under 3 hours. 

Centerville Hill (Zig-Zag)

 Feeling good after work and ran up the hill listening to PF The Wall. About 2,000 vert climb. 

Centerville Hill (Zig-Zag) 

With JK after work. This run is all hill, a good workout for climbing and downhill.

Flag Rock

Keeping things easy this week. Met up with Mr. The K in Farmington and we did the ol' run up to Flag Rock. This one is becoming my bread 'n' butter.

Buffalo Point run on Antelope Island

Start at Mountain View TH, then out to top of Buffalo Point, then down and around the point back to the MV TH. 

One final run out on Antelope and I now have run the entire 50 mile course. Now I just have to run it all twice next week. I've been feeling crappy the past few days, as if a virus is skulking around in my system, looking for a weakness in my immune defense to become a full blown sickness. Today's run was more for course recon than fitness, but I concluded the way I felt running the trail today - not even close to 100% - could be a simulation of how I will feel in the midst of the 100 mile run next week.

Bring it on.

Five miles on the bike path 'smorning with JK.

It's go time.

Happy Birthday to Me: Run A Hundred Miles on My 41st Birthday

The final few days before the 2012 Buffalo Run 100 I was walking around sick to my stomach with anxiety. I was ready as could be, ready to go, but with nowhere to go until noon Friday when I and 50 other hardcore running maniacs would start a hundred mile journey in and around Antelope Island. I managed to get some useful sleep the night before, but it is never enough. The noon O'clock start time helped, but I became to dawdley in the morning, even watching one of my favorites - Chariots of Fire - to fire me up with inspiration. Then there was a last-minute stop at Wal-Mart on the way out to get moleskin. When I finally arrived at the island, I ran up to the group gathered at the starting line and heard "Twenty seconds!" Shit. I didn't even stop running, so actually I did 100.10 miles, counting from my car to finish.

My plan was to put on earphones and listen to my favorite music for 50 miles while running a comfortable pace. After an awkward start and some pack adjustments on the fly, I saw the leaders round the fence opening and run past me on my left. That's when I saw him in all his glory: Speedgoat. It was like one of those slow-mo shots you see of some beautiful creature doing what it does best.  I saw him only once more at close range when he dashed through the Frary aid station, eleven miles ahead of me, not stopping or slowing.

Overall, I had a very good front 50 miles. I learned to never again wear my waistpack  with two full bottles for a serious long distance run. Heavy, bouncy, awkward. I left it at the first aid station at Elephant Head and just ran from there through all the back trails carrying the two essentials: bottle of water and wipes. Just before the switchbacks I made a clothing adjustment and 50 yards uphill was aware I had dropped my wipes. Gotta go back for 'em! Dudes heading uphill may have thought the heat was getting to me and I was turned around; thing is, it wasn't hot. Thank God it wasn't hot out there all day. We had cloud cover and some wind and temperature was perfect.

I ran the switchbacks. Easy. Up and over, back toward Elephant Head. I could see Karen wearing white shirt and red shorts about a mile ahead. I finally caught up to her at mile eighteen. Between breaths: "Are you Karen?" What if it wasn't her? What would I then say to this woman? "Yeah" she replied promptly. "Are you Matt?" My bud Scott had talked to this woman a few nights before, told her she may see me out on the trail. We ran for about half mile, chatting, then I kept my pace and got ahead. Back at the race headquarters at mile 19 I had to take 20 minutes to correct all the mistakes my disorganized lateness cost me. A change of shoes, moleskin applied to my now seriously blistered feet, exchanged the waist pack for two hand-held bottles - ah much better. I even moved my car closer to the tent area. (Is that illegal? I did ride in a vehicle during the race.) So I just blew 20 minutes at an aid station. Crap. Ah well, a learning experience. And I did learn on the go that in a well-aided race such as Buffalo, a bottle or two is about all you need.

Back at it up the hill, then down to the East side of the island. Kind of a blur from here but I remember the guys at the small aid station down at the fence line being super nice. I had enough mental capacity to grab my headlamp heading out of  my car to leave at he fence line aid station. I estimated it would be about sundown by the time I ran 22 miles out and back - and I was exactly right. I ran by myself 5 miles to Frary aid and was greeted by super positive, friendly and helpful volunteers. "What do you need? We got hot soup broth, drinks, sandwhiches, GUs..." 

"Broth! I want broth. And Coke. They became the two words I said most at the aid stations throughout the night and into the morning. A variation was "Ramen. Give me Ramen!" Later that night as I ran my next 50 miles in the dark,  Matt W. (Dorsimus) wrote a soulful sexy hit song titled 'Coke & Ramen'. You can find it on K-Tel's collection of Ultra Running Hits.

As I slurped broth at Frary, a cowbell rang out for some important event. I looked up. It's him - Speedgoat.  Cool, I will get a chance to say hello and good job and - hey! He's not stopping. Doesn't he eat? Doesn't he need Coke & Ramen? He moved quickly. In a few moments he had disappeared again into Ultra space. Seeing him 11 miles ahead of me did not discourage me at all. I just thought, 'cool, man'. 

I got back on the trail, happy and warm with broth. So warm I removed my shirt and ran the rest of the first fifty miles topless.  They had a dude set up on the most scenic part of the trail taking pro photos. Should I smile? Look serious. Give a thumbs up? Look into the camera? I opted for Serious Running Face, like the one Dan Vega had when he finally passed me coming the opposite direction. He looked pissed. Heard later he was chased by a bison bull.  He was the last year winner, but this year was looking all Speedgoat. And in the end it was.

Finally arrived at the Ranch aid station early evening, and caught up with Karen again. She was looking good, fast. She went out of the station before me and I would not see her again until I finished my first fifty. After more broth, Coke, Gu I began the long haul back to civilisation. I consider the Ranch the equivalent of Wastach's Brighton "The Morgue" station. It is way out there and when runners who are 18 miles from finishing show up, we probably look near death. I know I felt it later the next morning as I sat at the Ranch again.

I ran out from the Ranch feeling terrific. Again through the Gladiator-style tall white grass the camera guy snapped another of me. I again gave him Serious Running Face. Back though Frary, the handsome, friendly-faced dude said I made good time to the Ranch and back. That was encouraging, but I wonder if he tells that to everyone. A little boy, about the same age as my six year-old boy, asked me what I needed. "Coke," I replied very politely. "Thanks man! You guys are awesome." The atmosphere at those aid stations is so positive I want to volunteer next time. Seems to be a very fun time. 

It was getting dark. I hoped to get to my headlamp at the next aid before sundown. I ran around a long curve on the East side of the island and beheld the sunset. Nice. A lasting light to get me to my headlamp. Hoofed it up the hill and I saw some figures silhouetted against the silvery dusk, standing on the road looking down at me. It was my crew. Brethren! Matt and Scott walked with me to the top of the hill, then we agreed to meet in about an hour at race headquarters where Matt would go out with me to begin my next fifty.

Up the hill for the last six miles of the first fifty.  Now I was wondering if I would see my family at the last aid station. They were camping near in Bridger Bay. The trail through the tundra above the beach was well marked with reflective sticks. The trail drops runners straight into the last aid station. I heard my mom shout "There's Matt!" Then I hear "Dad!" Then I shout: Yeaaaah! My parents, my wife and my boys all there. Just a sweet moment, I want to cry. Hugs, kisses, and of course Coke & Ramen, the off again into the night, around the North end of the island. I felt terrific. I mean, really good. I was bounding around the rocks, passing three guys, singing to the music only I could hear. Ran it in to the end of first fifty. Smooth up in ya!

Scott and Matt were in the tent, waiting. I ordered the usual. After several minutes of preparation, Matt and I walked out into the night. Yes, walked. Although I had felt terrific coming off my fifty, I was now into unknown territory and I felt sick. We walked the first few miles up the hill to allow me to digest some needed mid-race nutrition. When we got running, finally, it was much slower. Better to take it easy than to puke. I looked forward to the Lone Tree hill to get a break from running. We got to Elephant Head aid and I ordered up some Coke & Ramen, then out to the turn-around at Elephant point. A lot more walking now, which was getting me down. This is a RUN and I wanted to run. But I couldn't. Had to walk some. We met Karen after the turn-around and I never saw her again until I finished later that day. I expected her to catch me sometime during the night but she later dropped at mile 70.

Down the hill to Split Rock Bay I got chilled. Matt let me wear his jacket. I felt like we were now going steady. All I needed was his class ring.

Down at the lowest point of the Split Rock trail, the clock turned over to midnight, and my clock turned over to 41 years. What the hell was I doing out there? Seriously, it was just an understated, quiet yet intense way to turn one year older. I loved it. Of course Matt sang to me, and the singing didn't stop there. We went through all the Ultra Running Classic Hits, all by the original artists:

Coke & Ramen

Glide My Crack

Feeling Like Shyte at Mile 65

Get Glid (Past tense of glide)

Anton Krupichikikia

Do the Ultra Shuffle

Glide My Sac

And many more!

Somewhere in all that laughter I got a nice burst of energy and we picked it up really well for a good stretch through a rocky section of trail I even ran some of the switchbacks. The pattern throughout the night was pretty much this: Hey, feeling good. Feeling like crap. Feeling kinda good. Nope, feeling like poo. Good! Crap!

And so on.

Matt kept me going, kept me in good spirit. One last Coke & Ramen at Elephant Aid and we made the long 4 mile run back down to race headquarters and mile sixty-nine. We could see several lights from headlamps at various points along the trails we had just run. Leaving the aid station we walked up the hill heading toward the Mountain View trail and my final 31 miles. Felt like crap, ran when I could. We met Scott at the end of the mile out-and-back and said goodbye to Matt. Thanks man.

Scott and I started off walking. And walked some more. He was able to coax some running out of me, but sometimes it didn't last long. I just did what I could, but it became clear to me I would not go under 20 hours. That's ok. But damn, I do not want to be out here more than 24 hours! Scott knows how to get me to laugh, and laugh I did, even when it hurt and he never let up. All night long and into the morning. He got me to the aid stations, but we didn't camp out. We got in, got the food and drink and went out carrying the cup of noodles. I could jog for a little while, then walk. Jog and walk. All night long. Frustrating. My legs were fine, even my blisters did not bother me. My knees were not hurting. I always had plenty of energy and stayed plenty hydrated - maybe too much hydrated because I stopped a lot to urinate. It was my lungs. They had filled with mucous. I could only take half-breaths and became seriously out of breath very quickly, almost hyperventilating. There was nothing I could do. We reached the end of the line aid station at the Ranch just as morning broke. I was weary, but never once did I even give a serious thought to dropping. I was going to go 100 even if I had to walk the final 16. But hell no I wasn't going to walk 16 miles. That sucks. I've done that and it sucks when there is no awesome mountain peak to justify the distance.

I ran as much as I could and it was very difficult for me. Scott was there to prod me, telling me to get running. Back through Frary aid. I sat in a chair, weary. The dude asked me what was my high point of the run; I told him on the other side of the island, turning 41 on the trail, running swiftly through the dark feeling a burst of energy at mile sixty-two. He asked me what was my low point. I answered: Right now.

The sun was fully up as we left Frary on the long trail back to the North end, and to the finish. I knew my family was there, but it was so far away. I had to set goals like, reach the fence line aid. A running dude, looking like Jurek came bounding toward us. Wow, he is running strong, I thought. Oh, he's the leader in the 50 mile race, which began a few hours before. Ten minutes later, a woman was next. Then a trickle of other runners, then a steady stream of fifty milers, all looking strong. "Good job" they would breathe to us as they ran past. We saw some familiar faces, even one who is subject of one of Scott's and my favorite inside jokes. Good times. As far as I could see, nobody was behind me. Good, I don't want to get passed.

Up the hill for the final six miles. Toughest hill climb I ever had, and this thing is barely a hill. At the top I did get passed by an older man, an experienced 100 miler. He moved well and disappeared down a hill above Bridger Bay.

I ran in to the last aid station at mile ninety-six, hoping to see my wife and kids. They were not there, but my parents were. I sat for a minute, ate half a banana, drank one last flat cup of Coke, then Scott had me up and moving. Walking, but moving. We entered the shoreline trail and I got into a good but difficult pattern of running and walking to catch my breath.  Scott looked back at the aid station up the hill and stated that a runner had come in. It woke me up. The running became more consistent. Around the rocks the trail twisted. It was a beautiful warm morning. My shirt was off again. Just keep moving. It's ok if I get passed once more, I thought to myself. We made the turn around the North end of the island and then headed South. The trail traverses a small, rocky bay, then makes a final curve with a view of the big white tent and the finish line. Scott cracked the whip. Get moving, he's gaining. He wants to catch you. I ran more now than I had in the previous 6 hours. Keep moving. He's a half mile back. He's coming. You're doing great. Keep moving . The walking breaks became shorter and less frequent. He's back there! Don't let him pass you. Make him earn it! 

We moved out of the rocky lakeside trail, then down to the gravel road. Some hikers strolling up the trail toward me had no idea. An elderly woman asked "You guys running a marathon or something?"

"It's a hundred mile race" I shouted. "And I'm at mile ninety-nine."

"Gasp!" (Not me, her.)

Scott: He's still coming! Move! Go strong up this hill. Run it. Run this hill.

Me: I can't.

Scott: Power hike it! Hills are nothing to you. 

Me: I'll try.

I ran the top half of the hill. And it is barely a hill, but at 99 miles, it was a difficult hill.

I turned the corner for the final .90 miles to the finish on a straight dirt road. I could see the big white tent, the parked vehicles, the children playing, the other runners returning from the other races. Scott hounded me to keep moving. We had an 11 minute pace, then a 10, maybe down into the nines. I got into a loud, controlled breathing pattern. Shhh! Haaa- Shhh! HHaaa-shhh! Scott looked back for the runner. "Has he come up the hill yet?" I asked. "No," says Scott. "The hill wrecked him. Keep going!"

I was there. One more corner and another .25 miles to the finish line. When I knew I would not get passed by mystery runner, I took one last walking break to catch my breath, then ran it in strong. I saw familiar faces. My boys holding signs. My wife. My parents. Over the mat, I thought I heard a "beep!" registering my time chip. Cheering, clapping, hugs. Someone shoved a belt buckle into my hand. Then a guy on a P.A. : "One hundred mile finisher. And it's his 41st birthday!" More cheers. Awesome. A good homecoming. 

OK, so I learned some valuable lessons for the future:

Do not be late

Moleskin the problem areas before I go out

No waist pack

Figure out what the hell was happening with my lungs

Coke & Ramen 

Next up: Speedgoat 50k

then

Wasatch 100 

Spring. I freaking love it. Trained all through Winter wearing long shirtss, knit hat, gloves and tights. I am goosed up to go out on the trails in just shorts and a tee.

The early mornings will be awesome. Up Farmington canyon; the trails on the shoreline; the Wasatch canyons - I am gonna do 'em all. Zion, Grand Canyon? Timp. Lone Peak. Olympus. The Twins. I will be running all of 'em.

Goosed up.

Starting over, gotta start somewhere. 

Feelin' Hella Good

Was going to do three but 4 was easy.

Neighbor lady probably not much older than myself gets in her car, drives around the neighborhood with her dog running along.  I feel sorry and want to tell her that's why she has a fat ass. 

Training for Speedgoat 50K begins NOW.

And Speedgoat is itself a training run for Wasatch. 

Ran the Flag Rock loop with Mr. The K.

Secret trails above Farmington. Only the curious know these trails exist because they cannot be observed from the valley floor. 

Movin' some product. 

Flag Rock loop, reverse direction 

 With Mr. The K, we ran up the North side to Flag Rock above Farmington, then down for a loop going the reverse of the usual direction. No two ways about it, the el. gain is steep from the road, even if it is only 1700 total. 

Flag Rock loop with Mr. The K & Dorsimus.

Hail.

With JK, ten quality miles on the Bonneville Shoreline from Farmington to Bair Canyon and back.

I got Speed goat on my mind. Hills. Lots of hills.

It is difficult to accept, but I must. I am in injury limbo. I have neither speed or distance ability at present. I desire so much to run the mountain trails  above Farmington but I know the descents would wreck me.

I will take a week off, then come back and see how it feels. Time to get on the bike.

I have 3 months until Speedgoat. As soon as I am all put back together I will train to win and I mean win. Why train for anything less? I am going to get lean and fast.

Five 'smorning around the nesting ponds.

Three on the pavement. Encouraging. 

If no problems I will be increasing weekly miles quickly.

Five on the bike trail. 

No big woop.

Ten more in the evening hours.

Still no big woop.

Ave Twins 8 miles with Mr. Wasserman.

Twas a beautiful morning out on the foothills above SLC. I think I will do it again tomorrow.

From home to top of Cemetery Hill (Farmington Cemetery) and back for 7 miles.

No big woop.

Ten up to the old Aves Twins and back with Scotty. If you are not running these trails, you are missing out. Yes, I'm talking to YOU.

Flag Rock loop with Mr The JK.

Farmington Festival Days is hosting the Flag Rock run on July 14. Should be lots of fun. I want to finish with a fast time so I will be training a lot on the loop.

Zion National Park Traverse, May 11-12 2012

The Team: JUN, Scott Wesemann, JSH, Dorsimus, MatthewVH

Craig Lloyd "JUN" recruited me to be part of his pacing/crewing team for his attempt at the 96 mile double traverse of Zion. A week before, I dropped out because of persistent IT band pain in one of my knees. Then a few days before the scheduled trip to Zion I felt better about my knee and I was back in. I don't want to make the knee problem the focus of my story so I will say this: For most of the 55+ miles I completed, I felt a stabbing pain in my left knee. Sometimes it would be light, other times it was intense enough to cause me to limp badly. I took a calculated risk running a long distance on an inflamed, irritated IT band but I felt it was manageable, and best of all I didn't miss out on one of the best adventure runs of my life.

Thursday evening we slept in a one and a half star Cedar City motel. I made the mistake of inspecting the room too closely. Is that pubic hair on the blanket? What is that brown smudge under the bathroom doorknob? Looks like pudding. After a night of not much sleep for me, the five of us arose at 5AM, got dressed for the day and headed out. We drove to Kolob Canyon where about 6:15AM Craig began his 96 mile journey, with Matt "Dorsimus" Williams and Josh "JSH" running with him as far as they could. Matt was on the healing side of a flu bout, and Josh has had persistent knee problems but they all took off running strong down the hill into the Kolob Canyon fingers area. Up on the road we could see the tiny figures of our friends running on a red-dirt ridge top. Looks like fun, boys. See you in thirteen miles at the Hop Valley TH.

Scott and I had a couple hours to spend before meeting the runners at their first crew stop. We drove into Hurricane and got some breakfast food. Because I wouldn't be running with Craig until he began his second park traverse at 4 or 5 in the afternoon I allowed myself to consume an egg sausage muffin from McDonald's. Plenty of time to process that saturated fat. Scott and I arrived at the Hop Valley TH and looked for the guys. Craig estimated he would cover the first 13 miles in 2h30m. He came in ten minutes early, running strong. Matt and Josh were nowhere near. Later I learned that Matt had to deal with issues related to his recent illness and Josh took a wrong turn and ran many extra miles looking for the way. He arrived to rejoin Matt and Scott 3 hours after Craig had come in. With no sign of either of them, Craig asked me to saddle up and run the next leg with him. B-b-but I just ate an Egg McMuffin! With sausage! Can I really run with that thing oozing through my arteries? The hell with it. I'm going for it. All suited up now, I ran with Craig from the Hop Valley TH at mile 13 to the East Rim TH at mile 48.

It was a clear, warm summer day. Yes, the calendar says month of MAY but it felt like a perfect summer day. It was warm but not oven warm. We ran the Wildcat Canyon trail then connected to the West rim trail. I really did not have much of an idea of where we were. It was conical forest overlooking one of the branches of Zion Canyon. We gained altitude but it was gradual and easy. There were some rises and dips along the way, and we passed several backpackers. Ultrarunning! I would yell as we sped past. One shirtless, solo backpacking dude simply smiled at us and exclaimed F*** yeah! It was a beautiful day.

For most of this leg Craig had low energy. We did not stop very much but kept moving, even if he had to walk. He was fast on downhill where I fell behind because of the knee, but I could catch up. Miles clicked by and I enjoyed myself. At the edge of a great cliff of the canyon rim we found a spring and re-filled our hydration packs. We were both completely empty at that point so the spring was fortunate. It was getting very warm and we would be without tree cover the next 5 miles. Craig filled first, then I filled mine and got it packed. I looked up and Craig was gone. No problem, he is not far. Then I went in the complete wrong direction. Downhill instead of up, then onto a trail that just did not seem right. Overgrown, not much use. I turned around, then wandered around for 20 minutes backtracking, criss-crossing a meadow. I went back to where we had seen a few signs above the spring. I looked closely and one pointed down to The Grotto. I took it and went steeply down the trail cut into the canyon rim cliff face. The cut rock trail was blasted and paved by depression-era ingenuity and hard working Americans. I blasted down the switchbacks hoping to catch Craig. Did I mention it was getting hot? More down, running on white sandstone. Several solo tourists heading up - but not your usual fatty tourists. These were super tourists. Only the super ones made it this far up the trail, 2500 feet above the canyon floor. I feel kindred to their spirits.

I rounded a corner and could see the road 2,000 feet below. Large groups of people were milling about on a saddle near Angel's Landing. No time for fun here, I had to keep running and dodging hikers down the paved switchbacks cut into the red sandstone. Ran without stopping. This is what I had come to Zion to see and do, these awesome cliff trails. At last I arrived at road level, crossed the bridge that spans the Virgin River and found my friends waiting for me and attending to Craig at the Grotto shuttle stop. Craig looked like shyte. I had a cool cola soda drink and dressed my now blistered feet and was ready to go. Meanwhile, Craig had revived and was also ready to go. We started off again, walking up the canyon road toward the Weeping Rock trail where we would make the 2,000 foot climb out of the canyon. We went straight into it, never stopping. Just a steady fast hike up and up. I enjoyed winding through the folds of Hidden Canyon, but honestly, mid-day on a hot day is not the right time to be up there to linger and savor the features. I felt sorry for the college students up there in the heat, glad I was just passing through. After a while we left all people behind and it was just us again. The terrain changed as we climber higher. We followed rock cairns that marked the twisting trail. We did stop for brief 30 second breaks in the shade to help keep our body temperatures down. Eventually we reached the rim level and were in forest. We could now run if we had the ability but Craig was now battling a problem with his diaphram, causing shortness of breath. He couldn't run for more than a minute or two at a time. We got into a run/walk pattern and just kept moving forward. Again our water supplies were low and we were glad to find an active spring running from a pipe. All filled up again, and Craig seemed to feel better so we set out for the final five miles of the Zion traverse.

I could describe the final 2 miles of the Eastward Zion traverse in one word: sandy. Mostly downhill was nice but the sand was an annoyance. No matter, just grind it out. I came in a few minutes before Craig which means he picked it up pretty well in the last few miles and moved steadily toward the completion of his first traverse of the day. Notwithstanding the problems he had most of the day, never once did he indicate abandoning his plan to go back and repeat the full 48 miles. I told the boys I was not going back up that sandy trail in the other direction. Really, it was my knee that hurt a lot at this point, but to run on sand uphill confirmed it for me. No way I wanted to go back into that. I did, however, come up with a plan for me to get the full traverse. That would simply be to meet Craig back at the Hop Valley TH sometime early the next morning to run with him the last thirteen miles in the opposite direction. Scott would also be with him, as he left with Craig to run the full traverse on the reverse lap. Matt and Josh fixed up Craig and re-supplied him for another 11 miles and we said goodbye to him and Scott. We agreed to meet them at the Grotto three hours later.

On the road back toward Zion Canyon I decided I was not done for the day. Despite my aching knee, I wanted to go back up the switchbacks and summit Angel's Landing, a 5 mile round trip hike some 1,500 feet straight up from the canyon floor. Matt and Josh stayed with the van and I shuttled in alone and arrived at a deserted Grotto. After a short break at the restroom I tapped my timer and began a run up the switchbacks. I told myself I could stop and just hike but running actually felt better than hiking up the steep trail. It was after 6PM and not many tourists were on the trail so I did not have to dodge anyone going up. I climbed up from Scout Lookout, making full use of the chains (Altra Instincts were almost useless on smooth, sandy tilted rock steps), impressed with how sustained the climbing was on this route. At the top is a natural rock cairn about 6 feet tall. I tapped it and looked at my timer: 49 minutes from road to summit. Could have been faster on a different day but I was happy with it. I lingered on top for ten minutes then made the descent. Near the bottom it was dark enough to switch on the headlamp and I met Craig and Scott just as I crossed the river bridge. They were heading up the switchbacks, hooting and full of energy. They had made a fast eleven mile run from the East Rim TH where I had last seen them, even arriving at he Grotto 17 minutes ahead of Matt and Josh (who had to ride the shuttle in).

Matt, Josh, and I boarded a shuttle back to the van and then drove into town for a delightful meal of fast food tacos. The girl taking my order told me I smelled of sunscreen. I thought she was gonna say I smelled like a bum. We then drove to the Hop Valley trail head to wait several hours for Scott and Craig to show up after their 24 mile leg from the Grotto. I decided that yes, I wanted to go the last 13 miles and therefore complete the full Zion traverse. But because my knee was the one thing that would slow me and the others, I thought it would be a good idea to leave an hour before it was estimated Craig and Scott would come in to their last crew stop at Hop TH. After a nap in the van I got up and left alone, in the dark, and began walking toward Hop Valley. I did not mind the darkness. It was a beautiful night. What I did mind was the sand. Sand! Miles of more sand. Matt told me to become friends with it. As I hiked deeper into the wilderness I was hoping, expecting to see in the next few hours the bobbing headlamps of Craig and Scott behind me. Nothing. The trail descended several hundred feet into a cold, moist, dark canyon. Hop Canyon. The place was spooky. I heard nothing but the ambient desert night sounds. Water trickling.  Ground birds whistling in the dark. I wondered if any big cats were following me.

Although I had never before been in the canyon, I had a map and some directions from Matt. Just follow the footprints and you cannot go wrong. There are lots of footprints. You will come to a T in the trail. Go left. OK, easy. I followed the obvious trail which followed a sandy creek. Then I came to a place where the footprints disappeared. I began to doubt. I looked for signs of foot traffic. Some appeared old and not nearly enough for a high traffic area. I wandered the canyon from side to side, up and down a section, for hours. I kept looking for headlamps which I expected to appear in the darkness up canyon. They never appeared. I felt lost. Had I taken a wrong turn? But there were no turns! I decided to just wander around in the same area looking for clues that corresponded to the elementary map I had of the area. But really, I had to move around just to stay warm. I was wearing two shirts, running tights, a light hooded jacket, a knit cap and light gloves. Dawn finally arrived and I decided to backtrack up canyon and look for any side trail I may have missed in the darkness. I also was wondering if Craig and Scott were even going to be covering the last 13 miles. Maybe one or both of them were too wrecked to continue past Hop Valley TH. Any number of things could have happened to one or both of them on their run up from the Grotto. With morning light filling the canyon, I walked back to where I had hiked in hours before and what a relief to see a figure wearing a read shirt and black shorts walking toward me. It was Craig, and Scott was not far behind. I was happy to no longer be alone, but that happiness was quickly replaced by dread of now having to cover 7 miles after wandering around all night, with a bum knee, serious blisters, and waning energy. Plus, the guys were not too happy to see me. They both experienced bonkeyness up on the West Rim trail and arrived at Hop TH after 5AM. They were grumpy. Craig and Scott were on the last leg of a 96 and 48 mile run through Zion, respectively. The time for pleasantries had passed. Quickly I fell behind, my left leg was almost useless. I tried to run but the best I could produce was a grotesquely asymmetrical and bumpy limp. Six miles of this? I cannot do it! I'm effed! But I had to. I didn't want to get left behind, and following Craig was my only ticket out. He knew the way. We climbed up and out of Hop Valley and instantly the air temperature changed from cold to pleasantly warm. We ran down to the LaVerkin creek (one of the prettiest I have ever seen, especially in the cheery summer morning sun) and followed the trail all the way back to the Kolob Canyon road.

The last five miles out weren't all that bad. It was tough, for sure, but I managed to run a significant portion, even did the ultra shuffle up hills. I came in a few minutes behind Scott, and Craig finished several minutes before both of us. There were four of us there to celebrate and cheer his victory, the first known back-to-back double Zion Traverse. Awesome.

I felt good about completing a full traverse, and treating myself to a touristy run up to Angel's Landing, especially when only a few days before I was doubtful I could run more than a few miles on a bum knee. Would I go back and do it again? You bet your asteroid, kid.

What is Skyrunning?

Kilian J sez:

"Skyrunning is the philosophy to go fast in the mountains. My philosophy is, if I’m in my home and I see a nice mountain, I want to go to the top. You just go with shoes, shorts, and you go to the top and back down for dinner. So the philosophy is to go running in the mountains and go from the bottom to the top to the bottom. So they are technical races and they are like the mountain."

That is my philospohy and it has been especially since I began running. Up the mountain and back before breakfast. Up the mountain after work. Up the mountain twice. Three times. Routes to summits that a few years ago would take all of half a day to complete, I now do in a few hours.

Flag Rock Race course

In July I will be running the Flag Rock race as part of the Farmington Festival Days. 'Smorning I ran the loop with Mr. The JK, somewhat relaxed pace but we both ran all the hills. At flag rock we met three dudes up there doing trail maintenance, even one of the dudes was the 'father'of flag rock trail - the man who made the trail. Another dude told us last year's winner did a 1h5m time on the 7+ mile loop. D'oh! We got some work to do to give him some competition this year. 

The extra 4 miles was cuz I ran from home and back.

Run up to fire break road and back. Felt like shyte so I did not do the Flag Rock loop.

Francis Peak, 26 miles, 5500 vert

 Lighten Up, Francis.

For a few years now I have wanted to make a run up Farmington Canyon. When I started to get serious about trail running and "sky running" I wanted to make a run up to Francis Peak. The mountain overlooks Davis and Morgan counties, and the peak is distinctive for the giant air traffic control RADAR spheres that occupy the summit. It is named for some smarty pants pioneer babe, Esther Bunchaothernames Francis.

Yesterday I sent a text to Sir Mr. The K and casually suggested Do you wana make a 26 mile, 5500 foot run up to Francis Peak? Now, neither of us had ever run up to the top of Farmington Canyon, and Francis is 5 miles and a couple more thousand feet higher. But of course he was in, so that's what we did 'smorning.

I am loving that Farmington Canyon is closed to vehicles. Thank you landslide. We had the road to ourselves. Rather, the squirrels did not seem to mind us being there.  We ran the entire dang thing. The nice feature of Farmington Canyon is its gradual climb.  We gained several thousand feet of up but it did not feel stressful on the legs.

The view at the summit is pretty grand. Prettymuch the entire Great Salt Lake is at the feet of the viewer.

The run down was pretty casual. We were not out to break any records. This was a casual, mini-adventure run. But we did manage a sub 8 pace.

Smooth Up In Ya.

Flag Rock Loop

A short training run at Snowbird.

I have been to Snowbird and the surrounding area many times. Now, seeing it with a trail runner's perspective it is astonishing how vertical the trails are.

Speedgoat is gonna be epic.

Flag Rock loop with JK.

Five in the evening on bike path.

How do I post bike miles? Cuz that is what I will be doing until I can cure my ITB pain.

Thirty Two miles bike, one hiking mile.

Back to basics.

Last night I dreamed of running a 100 mile race and I came to a river crossing. The water was dark, cold and deep.

Superior South Ridge to Superior Peak and Monte Crisco

Freaking Wasatch. I love it.

You know that place in the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings books where Elrond and the elves live, Rivendell? It is a place of safety, comfort, relaxation and mountainous beauty. To me, Snowbird is Rivendell. Every year I like to take my fambly up Little Cottonwood Canyon to stay a few nights at Snowbird .

Right across the skreet from Snowbird is Mt. Superior, a giant, red rock mountain that is the high point on the Eastern end of the Cottonwood Ridge. Straight up from Snowbird is the South Ridge, a line of lighter-colored jagged quartzite that sways up a couple thousand feet from the road to the summit.

This morning at 4:30 I met Scott and Craig at the LCC park & ride where we jumped into Craig's vehicle for the drive up to Snowbird. It was cold to start and I was wishing I had brought my light jacket. We worked our way up to the base of the ridge, hiking an old (and mean old! Probaly a 100 year old) mining road. The higher we climbed I warmed sufficiently to forget the cold. Most of the route is class 4 (using hands) and low class 5 climbing. It gets very vertical just a few hundred feet above the road. The next mile is a continuous knife-edge ridge scramble with terrific exposure. To the left: death. To the right: death. Hang on. The three of us enjoyed the climbing and it is no exaggeration to proclaim the South Ridge as the best ridge scramble in the Wasatch.

When the sun cleared the Eastern skyline the mountain lit brilliantly and the boys captured many good photos of the climb. The waning moon was still up over the Pfeifferhorn and the Alpine Ridge across the canyon. I had my new GoPro HD rolling and I hope I got some good footage.

Freaking Wasatch.

Craig got ahead after I stopped for a break and when I hiked further up he came into view. He was, it seemed, stretched out on a vertical wall with a serious drop directly under him. He was at the crux. It would have been a fantastic photo but I don't believe Scott was able to get one. I always by-pass the crux and walk around to the West. No need to push my limited rock climbing skils.

On the last segment of the climb the rock quality of the ridge shifts to darkly red-tinted and coffee colored boulders. Craig and I made a dash up to the summit and looking back down the ridge did not see Scott. We decided to make another dash over to Monte Cristo (Crisco) because I cannot stand tagging Superior without completing with Monte Cristo. I estimated 7 minutes each way for a RT of 14 minutes. We took off over hard snow cornices and slippery smooth rock and ran to the summit of Crisco in six and a half minutes. The run back was about the same and Scott had reached the summit of Superior just as we came back.

The East ridge of Superior in not a pleasant hike. Loose and sharp rock all the way. I went down as fast as I could to get it behind me. Once the trail became consistent Craig and I  ran until we summited a small sub peak above Cardiff Pass. We took another break and waited for Scott, then we all took off down the trail to Alta, then ran another mile and a half down the road to Craig's car at Snowbird.

Only a slight over 5 miles but those were quality miles. Smooth up in ya.

WTH was I hiking Mt. Olympus at 1 AM this morning?

Note to self: Do not run the Flag Rock loop after work in the high-eighty degree summer evenings.

Brighton Ridge Run/Wasatch Crest

Summertime. Gotta celebrate by taking advantage of the longest days of the year. 

Jun wanted to run the Wasatch Crest one morning this week but when that wasn't possible we did the next best thing - we ran it in the evening well after the sun had set. We planned to meet in the canyon around 9:30PM.

For a warmup - and to get my mind off a crappy day at work - I went up to Brighton and ran to Twin Lakes Pass (10,000 feet) from Silver Lake, then up to Wolverine and Tuscarora, then down to Brighton from Catherine's Pass. Six miles. I love the solitude; however I did come up behind a guy and a gal out on a date as they hiked down from the Brighton Lakes. I must have been very quiet as I bounded down the trail at them from behind, so I snapped my fingers to let them know I was coming. They looked surprised anyway. Got to the car and drove down to Mill D TH to wait for Jun and his buddies.

Jumped in Jun's car and now four of us drove up to near Guardsman Pass to do the Wasatch Crest trail up to Scott Hill, then continue up above the Willows on single track to Desolation Lake. From the lake it was downhill to the junction with the Dog Lake fork, then back down to my car at Mill D. Just under 10 miles. All in the dark. No moose sightings. Swell. Garmin will show you:

Farmington Pond to Baer Canyon and back

Ran to the summit of Pfeifferhorn after work. Although I love the trail, the lakes, the mountain-- I felt lonely up there and wanted to get home.

The Red Pine trail is one of the most rocky, technical trails I know. But it is awesome cuz it keeps the bikers away. 

Did a nice ten mile trail run with M.G. 'Dorsimus' Williams from Kaysville to the Great Western Trail and back.  That trail always kicks my ass for some reason.

Snowbird to American Fork Twin Peaks and Baldy via Gad Valley

I started at the Creekside platform at Snowbird - where Speedgoat 50K starts - and jogged uphill to American Fork Twin Peaks. One word to describe: Steep. Up Gad Valley to just below Hidden Peak, where the narrow ridge to the Twins begins. I topped at the west Twin in 1:59, then ran over to the Bastard and back to the East Twin, then down to Hidden Peak (they keep the restroom open all night FYI) and then up to Baldy. Descent via Alta ski runs and that was no damned fun. Dead ends, submerged feet in icy puddles - but I eventually found my way  back to my vehicle at Entrance 1.

Got a look at most of the Speedgoat course. Sadistic.

I got 10,500 feet of vertical smile in 4 days. Garmin sez take a look:

Looking for PACERS to accompany me for Wasatch 100 Mile Endurance Run in September.

AM :Five on the bike path from home.

At 5:30 PM 15 miles to Bountiful and back.

 FACT: Men run slower in hot weather.

94 degree heat kicked my ass.

Ten on old rail trail bike path to Kaysville.

Twelve on Gad Valley trails at Snowbird.

Ten to Kaysville & back.

 Light and fast; No water, no gels, no watch. 

Wipes mandatory, but did not use them.

Concentrated on form, relaxing my feet and allowing them to feel the surface.

I've been shuffling up huge hills lately; Felt good to open the throttle and go fast on flat ground.

Trail Work at Alta

Today I was up at Alta doing trail work to satisfy the W100 work requirement to run. Very little sleep the night before so I was fatigued from the moment I got up and dressed. I prepared everything I would need to run up at Alta and Snowbird when I would finish the work assignment in the afternoon. However, as the hours dragged it became apparent I would not have the energy to do any kind of run after. Early in the day I bonked.  So I took a gel. The torrential rain & thunder storm that ended our work day made it certain I would not be heading up to Mt. Baldy in the afternoon.

The group I was with built a new short section of trail did re-vegetation work on either side. It was funny to see all the runners show up in their trail running shoes. I was wearing mine. There was a woman there who is the female version of Karl Meltzer. The backward hat, sunglasses, Hokas. She looks like him too. Speedgoatress.

Farmington Flag Rock race is this Saturday. 'Smorning I ran a two-mile poo shake out to the school where the race will start. This was a trial run to simulate the race as much as possible. The rumor is the course record for this 7 mile trail and street run is 1:05, set last year by some speedy dude. There are a couple of significant hills to climb, then a steep descent through jerky switchbacks on the back side. It ends with a mile of road through town. To date my fastest time has been somewhere around 1:20 or more.

'Smoring I ran it in 1:06, including a couple minutes of walking. The last mile I was really down on energy but tried to keep the pace up. I think the key for me is to run steady uphill, go wildman animal on the trail downhill, then get into a nice fast groove on the outro road mile. And run all the hills. On race day there will be no walking. Debating whether to run without water on race day. Hoping that with a few more training runs I will shave off some minutes.

Completed the morning jogging two miles home. Joggin, not running cuz I was whipped.

Wish Jared The Mr K could be running but he has to deal with a bum ankle. MGW Dorsimus will be running so it will be nice to have a familiar face in the group.

EDIT: I found the results for the Flag Rock 2011 race. Course record is 1:11:24 not 1:05.

That's encouraging.

Night run with Jun and his bro from Utah capitol building to Aves Twins and back. Anton-style with minimal clothing.

This one was not even close. There was one guy, the winner, and then there was the rest of us.

I ran 2 miles from home to the race staging area of Farmington's annual Festival Days celebration. For some reason the races never interested me...until I heard of the Flag Rock trail run. Seven miles of fast trail, some road, with 1800 feet of climb. That's my style. So I trained through the late winter with Mr. The K (The Mr. K) Jared, who is also Farmington resident. We had climbed up to Flag Rock several times over past 6 months, figuring out the course, trying to get strong on the uphills. This course is all about uphill. This is the second year of the Flag Rock race, and the the best time for the inaugural race was 1:11. Going into this I knew I could go under that time by 4 or five minutes.

The race logistics dictated the 10K and Flag Rock races start at the same time and on the same line. Not wanting to get in behind a crush of 400 runners I staked a place up front. At go time I went out swiftly but not too fast. The first hill is a killer and comes up quickly. A block up, then a hard right turn, two blocks more then I watched 4 runners peel off to the left of the crowded line and turn toward the hill. The 10K runners continued straight. OK, so I knew I had 4 guys in front of me to pick off. There was a kid, then last year's winner, then guy in red (Josh) then ahead of them all and expanding his gap with every stride was Kyle, a cross-country runner for local college.

I stayed steady up the hill, waiting for those two GUs to kick in. I passed last year's winner, then pulled up and ran next to the kid. He stayed with me to the top of the hill, where we both caught Josh in red. At the turn onto the trail portion of the course I got out front of both but they stayed close behind. After the first climb I already felt hammered. Just tried to maintain a steady forward pace. Crossed the creek (the water gate up higher was closed so we crossed it dry), then began the middle uphill segment. Finally I began to drop the kid and guy in red. Another killer uphill climb over a trail with large embedded stones and occasional loose gravel. I ran virtually all of it.

Finally a break from climbing comes with a short relatively flat and slightly downhill segment of trail. This was my time to rest up for the last big climb up the switchbacks to Flag Rock. Then I looked up and saw him. Kyle, cross-country demi-god, was already halfway up the switchbacks. When I reached the base, he was close to the top and had this race in the bag. Not only in the bag, but he destroyed any previous record. I pushed up the switchbacks, took a few steps walking but mostly stayed consistently running. I looked down and saw Josh with red shirt coming up strong. Also, a lady was closing fast.

Finally at the top (my fastest ever time to the top at 36:20) I took a few steps walking, necessary to balance myself because now I was wobbly. Stepped over the rocks at the flag pole, then began the traverse over to the descent portion. After a few more slight uphill pushes it all goes downhill. The trail jerks back and forth down short, narrow switchbacks. Use the trees to swing me around the hairpins. I didn't see Josh red shit behind me but I knew he was there. Down to the firebreak road I tossed my bag of wipes to some lady offering me water. I did not accept because I was carrying my bottle. Up to my right I saw red shirt descending quickly. I knew then he would pass me at some point along the next 2 miles.

Down to the pond, on asphalt now, I tried to stay consistent. It's almost over. Down the last hill to the road. Red shirt passed me in the tunnel that goes under the road. He rounded the u-turn back to the street and quickly pulled away. I made a desperate attempt to close on him in the last long, straight mile, and had a little success, but by that time my tank was nearly empty. At the traffic signal saw Jared watching. Good to see a familiar face. Run it in one last turn then the finish line. Josh red shirt 1hr 6m30s, mine was 1hr 7m. Kyle the demi-god? He had come in at 55m16s, had gone home to shower, eat breakfast and come back to watch 2nd and 3rd come in. Probably.

It was a fun effort. I ran probably the hardest I can remember. Matt Twinkies came in just under 1:17, followed closely by Matt Williams and his bro. Matt took a wrong turn late in the race and probably ran an extra quarter mile. Smooth up in ya!

At the awards I met the first and second place winners and we congratulated on another. I love this sport.

I will be back next year. There is a serious course record to challenge.

I didn't stop my watch for about 30 seconds after I came in.

Parish Creek Trail to Skyline, 11 miles 4,017 verty

If my pace seems hella slow, it was. Felt like poo the entire way. 

OK so I had a rough start on the day. I got home, ate, got some rest, did some yard work and then planned to change the situation. At 5PM I drove up to Little Cottonwood Canyon and ran up to the Pfeifferhorn. Summit in 1:25:30, my best time. Nobody complimented my sweaty upper body nudity. 4316 verty

When I finished the Pfeifferhorn run I drove straight to JUNs house in Draper and met him, Scott and Kreuzer. We then went and did a ten mile night run on some nice Draper trails. By that time I was back to being hella slow so that rounded out the day to where I had started. 1880 verty

Total vert for the day: 10,213

With Coach John Shmitts I ran Anne's Trail to View Benchmark. No big woop.

So I am running Speedgoat next Saturday. 'Smorning I ran the course through Gad Valley to Hidden Peak, then jogged over to Baldy and back down to the tunnel. Through the tunnel then a quarter of the way down Peruvian Gulch, then up to the ridge trail back to Hidden Peak, then followed the course down to the finish. Total milage was just under 17, with 6221 feet of climbing. That brings my weekly total to around 18,000 feet of vertical smile.

I got the first 3rd of this course memorized now. It begins immediately with some mild switchbacks, then traverses East toward Snowbird Center and then goes up some steep switchbacks. It was at the base of these switchbacks that I looked up and saw Speedgoat hiking down toward me. Speedgoat in his natural habitat. He was out marking the course with orange ribbons. Tending his baby. I jogged uphill on the right and puffed out "How ya doing Karl". A quick reply of "Hey, good", and we both continued on. The trails at Snowbird are steep. I mean steep. At the top of the switchbacks and after some exaustingly steep section I rounded the corner to Chip's Run to make the traverse back toward Gad Valley. I ran past some dudes shooting arrows at a lifelike deer buck. Bam! A nice shot to the upper torso. I ran the entire next uphill segment up to Mid-Gad where the first aid station (water only) will be. Then the course winds through forest for a few miles to the top of Gad 2 Chair, and back down again to pick up the main road up Gad Valley. From there to the rocky switchbacks are some of the most frighteningly steep trail I have ever been on. I would never ever never want to ride up this thing in a vehicle. Fortunately the course goes off road before the big hill (but I missed it and went up the hill) and makes a nice wide switchback to join the road again higher up. Then the trail goes through rocky talus all the way up to the top of Little Cloud bowl and the final stretch to Hidden Peak. The fastest runners will get to Hidden peak in 1hr30m, I know it. It took me 2:15 but that was me taking an easy pace and stopping a few times for potty breaks.

Lots of tourists on Hidden Peak, Baldy, and between. The trail up Baldy was strewn with tulip petals. Some ladies were descending wearing crowns made of wildflowers. OK. At the summit I saw musicians packing up and I guessed there must have been a wedding there recently. Cool. I would love to marry a babe on a mountain top. As I ascended Baldy I saw my friend Dave The Immortal Ridge King Armitage hiking down. He told me he had begun that morning hiking the South Ridge of Superior, then hiked down to Alta and now on his way to Hidden Peak to ride the tram down. Dave must be pushing 70. I know he has hiked every ridge and peak in the Wasatch, multiple times.

I descended Baldy and then ran down to the tunnel. A sign outside said Peruvian Gulch was closed because there was an archery thing happening in the area. That explains the dudes with bows shooting at fake animals. I went through. Out the other side to the top of Peruvian I saw a rope indicating the area closed to all traffic. I went under and jogged down to where the trail ascends the ridge back up to Hidden Peak. Tough climb. Hell no I didn't run all of it. I was pooped at this point. Imagine having 26 miles on my legs at that point. I will find out next week what that feels like.

I refilled water at Hidden Peak then started the descent back down Gad Valley. The final descent of the course is more direct than the ascent. It began to rain. Nice and cool. Another runner caught up to me and we chatted all the way down to the parking area. He was doing repeats up to Hidden Peak, had done two and was going up for a third. Not me, I was done.

I estimate that if I am feeling good for the race I can get up to Hidden Peak in 2 hours, do the Mineral basin loop in 2:30, then do the rest in 2 hours and I can finish in 6:30. That would be sweet.

Eleben from home on the rail trail. Hot. Shirtless. Sweaty. Sexy. Ooh la la.

Speedgoat 50K

My first 50K race. More accurately, I didn't race. The fast guys and gals up front raced. I merely survived to finish. I started a few feet behind some of the best mountain runners in the world and enjoyed being in a world-class ultra running event.

A few thoughts:

I ran with Josh (JSH) for the first mile or so then caught up with him near Hidden Peak. He must have jammed right through the Peak aid station and flew downhill because I did not see him again until near Pacific Mine. He may not think so but he turned out an impressively decent time considering how little he had been able to train the last several months.

Got stuck behind a long line of walkers on Chip's Switchbacks when I would have rather been running up those things. I hate that feeling of not being able to pass.

I had a goal of getting to the peak after the first climb in 2 hours. I got to the peak in exactly two hours. However, long before the peak it became apparent that my downhill skills were lacking. I passed more people on the uphills than I did on the downhills.

The course was marked very well and there was an attentive marshal at every tricky turn. It would be almost impossible to get off course in Speedgoat 2012, and it can be a very tricky course.

I had a goal of finishing under 7 hours. Once I was deep into Mary Ellen Gulch and on the way up I had to accept that I would not be going for a relatively fast time. Rather, I focused my energy on getting to the finishing arch. The climb up to Mt. Baldy was heartbreaking. Meltzer said there was a twist going up Baldy: The hike up from Larry's Hole aid in Mineral basin was brutal, and when we finally reached the ridge between Baldy and Sugarloaf, we got sent back down several hundred feet on a service road before we had to make a very steep goat hike up 1,000 feet to Baldy ridge. There was no freakin' trail, only orange pin flags marking a route up the rocky mountainside. It was at the base of this climb I had my first and only thoughts of DNF.

Pacific Mine aid station was a party zone. Goat Lady, legendary Roch Horton hosting, ice cold wet towels, someone sprayed mist on me. Popcicles. Everyone leaves with a smile.

My family met me on Hidden Peak after the last climb. I got emotional and had to run to them uphill. I hiked close to two guys up the Peruvian Ridge trail then somehow out-hiked them, getting to the summit several minutes ahead. I firmly believed they would catch me on the last 4 miles down but I was surprised to have held them off. Another runner, a lady got very close on the descent from Baldy. She was just a few switchbacks away at the top of Little Cloud. I somehow stayed ahead of her all the way down. I said I wasn't racing but I also did not want to get my place degraded if I could help it.

Finishing was awesome. Every runner gets a terrific welcome and a Speedgoat medal. Ultragen recovery drink hit the spot. I immediately sat down under a shelter with some other runners, Kilian just a few chairs away. A runner immediately to to my left congratulated me. Thanking him I asked who had come in first. He replied, "Kilian, Ricky second, and Max King third." I nodded my head, "Awesome." At the awards I saw that the guy that I had that short conversation with was in fact Max King.

Anna Frost is a babe.

My time was 8h11m, about 800th place. 

My Garmin measured 32 miles total; 11,252 feet of vertical smile.

I think next year I would like to volunteer then run Speedgoat in 2014. I think I would have a good time out there on the course watching the runners and helping them to the finish.

Look at this tough course:

Gannett Peak -

22 miles

22.5 hours

I am not goingto call this one an ultra run. Maybe an adventure run and certainly an ultra hike. I certainly did not run 42 miles. Rather, the distance was covered in a combination of running, hiking, scrambling, and mountaineering (including snow climbing and hanging from a rope over a crevass).

I met Greg at his home at Holladay, UT and we were on the road driving to Wyoming by 4:15PM. We arrived to Elkhart Park about 9:30PM and camped on a flat spot on a nearby Jeep trail. We awoke at 2AM and began running up the trail at 3:30AM. The first several miles went by quickly. We found a shortcut between Miller and Eklund lakes that saved a mile of hiking. The waning moon was almost full so we had nice bright light through the forest. I made my pack as light as possible but it was heavier than what I am conditioned to carry on long runs. (Very sore feet at the and of the day.) At Seneca Lake I just did not want to run very much anymore. The trail into Gannett is rocky the entire way. At the pass before Island Lake we ran and covered ground more quickly but it was difficult for me to have a running mood again. I was fatigued from lack of sleep.

Sunrise over Titcomb Basin was effortlessly spectacular and the entire day, weather-wise, was perfect. We ran more up the basin along the lake shores. Above the lakes we stopped and I made myself a nice Ultragen recovery drink to prepare me for the climb up to Bonney Pass. Never again will I hike up over Bonney Pass without sufficient snow cover. If I ever go back it will be in July, with snow covering all the climbs. The climb up to the pass is miserable, The climb down from the pass is miserable. And we had to repeat it in reverse later in the day.

Down on Dinwoody Glacier Greg and I oohed and ahhed at the fast-running streams of pure water running downhill over the ice. We jumped several open crevasses, some were frighteningly deep. The glacier doesn't care. It will swallow you whole.

We hiked up the lower Gooseneck ridge to were crampons were required to climb further over snow. Finally we arrived at the bergschrund (Wikipedia: Bergschrund:

A bergschrund^[1] (from the German for mountain cleft) is a crevasse that forms where the moving glacier ice separates from the stagnant ice or firn above. It is often a serious obstacle for mountaineers, who sometimes abbreviate "bergschrund" to "schrund".)

There was no snowbridge available to cross the schrund. It had collapsed to a narrow platform about 4 feet inside the crevass. To the left of the collapsed bridge was a 30 foot deep pit with a floor of rotten snow and ice and dark holes scatterd about. Immediately obvious, however, was a blue climbing rope, anchored unseen somwhere above on the steep snow slope. I did not think twice, just hopped down, grabbed the rope and walked myself up a slanting, narrow little ramp of snow to the upper lip of the bergschrund. Immediatley after I cleared the upper lip I turned, looked down and wondered how the hell I was I going to climb down. Greg decided to look for an alterative route up on some rocks. I carefully climbed up the 55 degree slope, using my ice axe and kicking steps. At the top I met two climbers descending the peak. They were getting ready to descend the rope. I told them to look for Greg because several minutes had passed and I could not see him anywhere below. As they descened Greg came up and they let him pass. He never did find an alternative way up.

We hiked the remainder of the ridge and reached the summit 10.5 hours after beginning our journey. Pretty slow actually but 2 hours faster than my climb up two years ago. We got photos and video of the summit, ate lunch, then began the descent. My right knee began to hurt and I recognized it as ITB inflamation. The pain became more intense the more we hiked down over the rocks. Above the crux, the slope with the bergschrund, I was anxious to get down. I grabbed the rope and walked myself down, kicking steps. A slip would have been disasterous. At the upper edge of the schrund I got on my belly and hung my feet over the edge. I had to trust the rope with all my weight. Pointing my toes into the snow wall I kicked the front spikes of the crampons while lowering myself. It was quick and what a relief it was to stand on the collapsed snowbridge. I hopped out and then motioned to Greg to begin his descent. He came down as I had, using the rope. I guided him down the drop from the top of the schrund and with all that nonsense behind us we continued our descent of the mountain. It was getting late.

Re-crossing the glacier going uphill was slow. My feet soaked in the slushy melting snow. The climb up to Bonney Pass was miserable but shorter than the other side. On the pass crest we ate some food, dreading the descent back to the top of Titcomb basin. I repeat, I will never again climb Bonney Pass when there is no snow. At the base we filled up on water and I drank some Ultragen to see me through the next several miles. In a few minutes I had more energy than I had all day. I began to run. I wanted to get to Island lake before sunset. I was feeling rather well and the running gave me hope to be out in 4 to 5 hours. Greg, however, was not feeling well. Near the lower Titcomb lake we set into a brisk walking pace. We did reach Island Lake well before sunset but I knew it would be a long walk out. We switched on headlamps at the pass above Little Seneca lake. Eleven miles over that kind of terrain is a very long walk, and with each mile my energy and endurance faded. Greg never seemed to get that burst of energy he was hoping for, and he even had to vomit at the side of the trail. For my part, the IT band continued to cause pain to the side of my knee.

We arrived at last to the trailhead. It was 2AM. We drove to our camp spot and both fell asleep within minutes. When we got up later it was well past dawn.

I wore my GoPro camera the entire way and got hours of video.

On the way out I had determined ideas of never going back to Gannet. Bagging that summit in one day comes with a large price. If I ever change my mind it I will require certain conditions.

Gannett Peak video

Flag Rock loop. Felt like poop.

Lone Peak

Via the Cherry Canyon Logging trail>Bear Canyon

They say we are supposed to listen to our bodies. My body said sleep in. I really needed it. I hated missing out on the action in Henry's Fork today (see JUN's, Scott Wesemann's and JSH's blogs later) but I wasn't primed for it. As a consolation I finally did that Summit run up to Lone Peak. Probably my 15th time up there and this one was far and away my fastest summit and round trip. I started from the Orson Smith TH and took the Cherry canyon trail to the Bear Canyon junction. This route goes to the Outlaw Cabin and by-passes the cirque. There are shorter routes to the peak, such as the Jacob's Ladder route, but for the sake of getting there from the valley, that would be cheating. Anyway, I wanted the miles.

It was nearly noon when I started. Hot. Made sure to stay hydrated and take S-caps. Another reason I chose this route instead of the shorter Jacob's Ladder is there is fresh spring water in Bear canyon, and I needed that water both on the way up and down.

Summit in 2:55. Not super fast but as I mentioned before I have never been up there in under 4.5 hours so a new benchmark for me. There are guys around here who could easily take the same route and be on top in 1.5 hours.

Retraced the same route down and got to the car in total of 4:39 moving time. Among my peers there are guys, like JUN, who have a much faster downhill who could run down faster and clear 4 hours. Plus, it was very hot on the descent. I would like to go back on a morning and go faster when it is cool.

 I continue to show up in photos and video clips of other Speedgoat runners: Shirtless guy at 1:38 & 1:43 & 2:02 is MVH.

Grandeur Loop

10.6 miles, 2:18 RT

3500'

After work drove straight to West Ridge TH. Legs still mucho tired from Lone Peak. Wanted to get to the top before my Rush album ended. Made it with a few seconds of the last song to spare. (Bonus point to anyone who knows what album has EVERYDAY GLORY as the last song.)

Time to Summit: 57:21

My god some guy recently hit the summit in 33 minutes. [Actually I just saw that was via Church Fork fro the road, which has less vertical and maybe is a shorter distance.]

Ran the backside of Grandeur to Church Fork. Babes out on the trail with dogs probably given to them by their boyfriends. No snakes on Pipeline.

Nice cold Ultragen recovery drink immediately at the car.

Broad's Fork Twin Peaks

One of the biggest mountains around. I have been up there several times but this was my fastest time up and down. Experimented with a different way up after the beaver pond. Was nice to be on familiar terrain coming down. My most favorite downclimb around here is the ledges on the descent from the Twins to the saddle.

Running opens up a lot of possibilities in the mountains. Stuff that a few years ago would take 6 to 8 hours I now get done in half the time.

Crossed paths with a moose. He turned and glared at me. No fear in those animals. On the way down the upper bowl a little owl circled me a few times. I wondered if it was going to try to carry me off. Found cheap sunglasses on the way down. I am always finding crap in the mountains. On Lone Peak I found a knit hat and a Patagonia shirt. One of my favorite shirts is a long-sleeve Buffalo Run shirt I found at a trailhead a few years back.

Ten miles.

Utah Triple Crown: One Day Run of Three highest peaks in Utah - King's, South King's, Gilberto

Fastest Known Time (barely)

I have desired to do the Triple Crown for a coupla years.  I gotta give credit to JUN (Craig Lloyd) for doing the legwork (literally) for establishing the fastest combination of peaks and routes between. Last month he ran a crazy fast time of 8h29m for the Triple Crown and held the fastest known time for summiting all three peaks.  Until today.

I left home saturday morning at 4:30AM and drove 2.5 hours to Henry's Fork campground in the high Uintas.  It was about 8:15 when I started my watch at the fencepost and began running up the trail. I tried to move as quickly as possible with a McDonald's #2 meal bouncing around in my tummy. I averaged a 10 minute mile up to mile 4, then slowed down a bit as the rocky trail gains some altitude just before Elkhorn Crossing. I arrived at the bridge in 56 minutes.

The run up to Dollar Lake was pleasantly quick and never having actually been to the lake I had to ask directions of a lady on the trail, then feel my way to it and around. Past the lake I began the upward climb to Gilbert Peak, Utah's 3rd highest. Steep. Slow. Up on the plateau I hiked steadily in the direction of the summit, also never having been to this particular mountain. I had prepared myself for the false summits so I was pleased when I finally found the true summit sooner than I had expected. I arrived there in 2h42m. I did not stop, just turned around. Jumping down through the rocks I was bored and talking to myself in a funny Dracula accent (First peak of the Treeple Crown!) when I was startled to hear the voice of a nearby hiker calling to me. Kept moving down to find the steep chute into Henry's Fork basin. [Note to self, do not ever climb up this chute. It would be a real sufferfest. Ask Scott W. and JSH.]

Down in the basin and back on the trail I stashed some clothing and a water bottle near a spring that I would utilize on the way out. I chose to go straight up to Gunsight pass and not take the freaking switchbacks. I got up and over the shortcut to Anderson flat in 15 minutes then proceeded to Anderson pass where I passed a dozen hikers on the ridge up to King's summit. I reached the summit in 5:02. Stayed less than a minute and descended to South King's. South King's summit at 5:27. Did not stop, just circled the small rock tower and began the hike back up to King's. There were some suspicious looking clouds overhead and I wanted to get off the mountain ASAP. Also, I knew that to get the FKT I needed to keep moving. It was gonna be close.

I chose not to go back to the summit of King's, traversing a hundred feet lower. I then decided not to go back down the hiker's route, and angled down the face of the mountain instead. I re-crossed Anderson plateau and arrived at Gunsight pass at 6 hours 42 minutes. I found my stashed clothing and made myself an UltraGen drink, then banged out the last 9 or so miles back to the trailhead. Mostly I managed to keep my pace below ten minute miles. I knew I did not have much room for error if I wanted to come in under Craig's time. I can in fact claim a victory but only by a tiny margin. Craig's time last month was 8 hours 29 minutes and I got to the fence post at 8 hours 26 minutes and 53 seconds. I felt like I was chasing JUN all day out there. Our splits and total time are virtually identical. I have a complete understanding of the effort he made last month. It was no easy thing.

Overall I felt terrific all day. Weather-wise it was bluebird. On to the next adventure.

Gear used:

Lucky Speedgoat 50K T-shirt

Red wristband

Nathan Hydration pack

1 handheld water bottle

Cheap sunglasses, scratched

Montrail Mountain Masochist shoes (appropriate name)

1 flask EFS gel, 1 flask Hammer gel, 1 Stinger Waffle, Power Bar Energy Blasts, UltraGen Recovery drink mix

Sausage McMuffin with Egg, hash browns, orange juice (pre-run)

I am sure I broke a toe. It is black and blue. It is one of those useless toes however, so, no biggie. I was running swiftly down a rocky trail from Brighton to Midway and slammed my right foot into the side of a berm. Later, I turfed it on same rocky trail, directly behind three fast running dudes. They heard the wipeout and turned to see me get up and run again. Minor cuts and scrapes. 

It was a preview of the last 24 miles of Wasatch 100 Mile Endurance Run. Went with a group all prepping for the run.  When a trio of three faster dudes came through about mile 10 I stayed with them to the end. Our very own FRBer Kendall was the shirtless dude. I usually am shirtless, too, but opted not to today. The Nathan hydration vest would have produced a seriously dorky tan/burn line. Lots of runners out on that trail today. It's gonna be epic.

East Mountain Wilderness Park to Fernberg out and back. Snake.

Millcreek Loop: Dog Lake, Reynolds, Desolation Lake

Upper Millcreek Canyon is a paradise. Really. It is what my heaven will be. I started from the Big Water trail and ran up to Dog Lake, made a side trip to Reynolds peak, then back down and then up to Desolation Lake. From Deso I followed the crest trail to the top of Millcreek Canyon then connected to Great Western Trail back to the trailhead. It gets hella dark up in there at night. Fortunately the big shiny moon was like a spotlight on me. 

Did I see a moose? Of course I saw a moose.

Pfeifferhorn

With Greg J. We took it real easy and relaxed-like. On the summit we saw the storm coming and hauled butt back across the ridge. Not a minute too early when lightning began to flash around us and on the peak where we had just been. We huddled under a rock a hundred or so feet below the ridge and got soaked. I was terrified, afraid to go out in the open for fear of getting struck. Waited for the storm to pass then made a break down to the lake. Made it back to the car without headlamp.

Does this even count? Ran around in heavy rain, with lightning flashes overhead at 5AM in an attempt to go up Timanogos. I should call it Timpa No Go. With JUN, Scott W. and Dorsimus. I don't think I broke a sweat, although I wouldn't be able to know because we were thoroughly soaked.

Francis Shed to 'B'Aid on Wasatch 100 Course

I drove up on Skyline Drive to the shed at the top of Farmington Canyon. I ran 5 miles from the shed to where the 'B' aid station will be on Friday. I covered the distance in just under 59 minutes, then ran a half mile further up the road and turned around. A strong runner on race day should cover that distance on 1 hour or less, even with 18.75 miles already on the body. I ran it fairly relaxed. Got a bee sting in my inner thigh. Yeouch. 

Five quick before work.

Wasatch Front 100 Mile Endurance Run

Last year I followed Scott W's progress at Wasatch and then announced it was my intention to enter, train for and run Wasatch this year. Yesterday I fulfilled that promise to myself.

I stood right in front at Go and went out ahead of the mass of runners. I did this simply to get ahead of the mass before the trail narrows significantly a half mile in. I moved to the right of the trail whenever a runner approached to pass, but I stayed in the top 20 up to the top of the climb below Chinscraper. 

In the morning I had three pair of shoes lined up on the kitchen floor. I tried two pair on and then decided to go with my older Cascadias because I had a good experience wearing them on my first 50 mile race. It was the wrong decision. Somewhere between Chinscraper and Francis Peak my feet had swollen and I developed terrible blisters on my small toes. In addition, the swollen feet made the shoes a size too small and I could feel my individual toes fighting for room in that compressed space. I had a painful run down from Francis Peak to the first aid station at mile 18. I arrived at the second aid station above Bountiful, checkout out quickly, then up the road about a quarter mile I sat and field-dressed my blisters. Up to that point I had been close behind 24 and sub 24-hour runners. I had run from Francis shed to Bountiful with Emily, the eventual women's winner, and Sarah who was the second woman. After the blister stop I pulled up with a fellow named Jeff, from Maryland. We kept pace together through Sessions all the way to just before Lambs Canyon and he went on to a sub-26 hour finish.

Arriving at Lambs Canyon I was happy to see my wife and boys. Jared Mr. K was there too and he was a big help. I was inspired to run up the hill to the aid station because I saw Scott W do it last year when everyone else was walking it. 

I had terrific energy all the way through to Lambs Canyon. Indeed, I ran into and left Lambs feeling well, but the blisters were slowing me and there wasn't a thing I could do. The change of socks at Lambs didn't help as much as I had hoped. 

Something happened to me after the stop at Lambs. On the trail that ascends to Millcreek I became weak to the point of slowing to a crawl. I did not have a headache, nor did I have a stomach ache. Almost every ounce of my energy was gone. What was happening to me? There was no way I could go 45 more miles in that condition. I thought about going back down to Lambs Canyon aid. I sat on the trail twice. I never sit on the trail. This was a new, strange and frightening feeling I had. I ate gels, Power Blasts, drank water, did the S-caps. Nothing revived me. I stopped to sit on a log and a group of three came up to me. I knew two of them from a run with them a few weeks prior. I told Seth Hale to tell someone at the next aid station (5 miles away) to....then he cut me off and point blank told me I was not going to quit. He said get up off that log and keep walking. I did as instructed. The group of three soon were out of view behind of trees and their voices grew faint until I was alone again. More runners passed me on the descent to Millcreek Canyon road. That was OK, I told myself. I had already decided to get down tot he road, walk 3 miles to the aid station and call my wife to come get me. The lack of energy combined with the blister pain was too much for me to keep going. On the hike up the road I was passed by several more runners, each hiking twice as fast as me. They all said the same thing to me: You will get it back. I told myself: No I won't. In my mind I was already at home, warm and showered, dressed in comfy clothing and watching a movie with my wife and boys. I had given up. 

It was dusk and getting cold. About that time a small SUV rolling downhill stopped opposite me and I thought the lady driver was going to ask me a question. I took off my earphones then saw a guy jump out of the passenger seat and run around to me. He was a fully suited up ultra runner. Davy Crockett had hitched a ride and came looking for me. In my self-pitying walk of shame I had almost forgotten about Crockett. I was supposed to meet him up near Desolation lake over an hour ago. Like a skilled physician he asked questions to ascertain my condition. I told him the basics but I did not tell him of my intention to get to Millcreek and quit. Instead of a lot of sympathies and talk of "well you did your best", Davy told me to get to Millcreek aid, get warm, get food, deal with the blisters, and get going up to Brighton. Brighton! It may as well have been a continent away. No. I was already home by the fire, eating Chunky Monkey ice cream. But I couldn't say no to this guy. He had hitch-hiked up from Midway, then spent the afternoon running around upper Millcreek and Big Cottonwood Canyons. I got the soup, the Coke, had a look at my toes (watery, exposed, sensitive skin where the bandage I had ripped off took a chunk of dead skin) and wondered how in the world would I even walk ten feet. Surprisingly, I could. We went up the dark trail and were virtually alone all the way to Dog Lake. 

It turned around. I felt good. Not just good but really good. The No-Doze Davy had given me may have had something to do with it. I am pretty sure we ran most of the trail to Dog Lake. We got up there fast. We ran down to Butler Fork, then hiked the steep sections up to Desolation, but also we ran a lot of the trail to Desolation and passed two or three groups of runners. Got some soup and hot Chocolate at Deso then continued up to the Crest trail. We ran quite a lot of the Crest trail too and caught up with Kendall Wimmer whom I had see down at Millcreek aid.

On the road down to Brighton I was not terribly fast due to the foot pain but we ran virtually all of it. The chilly air in the basin was uncomfortable so we ran up the hill to Brighton "The Morgue" aid and checked in. To me the place was nothing like a morgue but was warm and friendly. An oasis. My wife was there and my boys were sleeping on the floor. Scott W's friend and his wife were there, Kelli was there, the gal from the Stiders store, where I sometimes buy supplies, was there. (I may be leaving others out who were there but it was kind of a blur) Some guy - might have been an angel - put his arm around me and told me there were toothbrushes in the restroom. I may have been a filthy pig that night but I was going out of there with a fresh mouth.

With a full tummy we left Brighton and hiked up to Catherine Pass. I am glad I had run the last 25 miles a few weeks prior. I knew what was coming. The descent to Ant Knolls was excruciating. My feet were hammered. Thus the long stop at Ant Knolls aid. Almost all of the 20 minutes there was for re-dressing my bandages and duct-taping moleskin to my forefeet. Josh Greenwell and his pop had finally caught up to me there and we leap-frogged the remainder of the morning and finished within five minutes of each other.

Pole Line Pass aid was one of my favorite. It was lit up brightly and was such a relief to come in there. Out of my drop bag I mixed up an Ultragen recovery drink and took it all in a minute.  Shortly after leaving Pole Line I started to feel the way I did when I left Lambs. I weakened significantly. Holy smokes that was it! I drank an Ultragen at Lambs, too. It is a 300 calorie drink that has the best stuff in it. But lesson learned: It is a recovery drink, not to be taken during the run. My theory is that all those calories suddenly dumped into my stomach must have just re-routed all my energy to work on digesting the drink. I had to walk a lot after Pole Line, especially the long, long, long uphill that leads through the conifer forest.

The remainder of the morning was spent simply getting those miles behind us. I liked the little aid station at Rock Springs. It sits right on the trail, a drive-thru. If I do not get picked in the lottery next year I want to volunteer to work at one of those remote, middle-of-the-night aid stops. 

If I recall correctly we were just down from The Plunge at sunrise. Running that, with the soft powdery sand underfoot, was much easier on the feet than the rocky The Dive. I could not run that like I did on the training run through there a few weeks earlier. I was looking forward to Pot Bottom because I believed there would be awesome breakfast food there. I was disappointed when all I could get was a PB & J but it would have to do. With seven miles to go I was looking forward to getting up that 2 miles of dirt road to the last downhill section. I knew that the last 5 miles would go fast and they did. The trail is very rocky through there but I did surprisingly well. I could smell the finish. I could see the finish at one point still several hundred feet below. I caught back with Josh at about mile 98.5 and suggested we should run together to the finish. His foot was hurting pretty badly but I knew he would not finish too far behind. 

The last mile and a half I ran quickly. I put aside the foot pain and did not stop until I went under that banner. I lost Davy somewhere around the bend in the road near the golf course but with about a quarter mile to go he drove past in his car and waved at me. He quickly parked across the street from the lawn and jumped out in time to run with me to the finish. Nobody there was the wiser.

28 hours 32 minutes 

Family and friends were there to see me in and that is the best feeling. Crossing the finish line really does make all the lows and struggles of the past day worth it. Craig and Matt were there to welcome me in as fellow runners, and I learned of Craig's smokin' fast time of 24hr25m. Later, as I watched runners come in all day, I got a little emotional each time I saw those individuals reach 100 miles. Scott W came in later in the morning and we congratulated him on his 2nd Wasatch finish. He fought hard for this one and did not let go.

Special thanks to Davy Crockett for imposing his will on me. Yes, I did all the work but he provided the level-headed perspective I did not have in my moment of crisis. He was never pushy, rather, he was matter-of-fact confident in what I could do. 

Lessons learned:

1. I gave up to easily. I did not believe I would "get it back" but I did and now I am a believer. 

2. Figure out the shoes. If I can run on happy feet I can run several hours faster. 

I will do Wasatch again.  

Seriously. One mile.

In other news I signed up for the Pony Express 100 mile endurance run, coming October 19.

I am pretty much an addict by now. 

Six quick on road and trails in West Farmington.

Four.

Five miles to the bird nest place and back.

Did a good speed/tempo workout at Bountiful HS track with Mr. K this morning. 

Rolled out of bed, suited up for a short run to the bird nest place. Would rather have slept in but didn't want to break my streak of running for 6 days this week.

Run up Lone Peak with Kreg. Starting at 5AM A nice loop starting at Cherry Canyon, to Bear Canyon, past Outlaw Cabin, up to peak in 2:52. We descended through the cirque and down Jacob's Ladder trail. Dynamite weather and temp. Ended this week with 43 miles; more than I had expected 2 weeks after Wasatch, but I felt great this morning, especially going up.

Olympus West Slabs to South Summit and Loop

So Craig and I wanted to go run up a mountain today.First it was gonna be Mt Nebo, but not enough time. Then it was gonna be Broad's Fork Twins, but too rainy. So we decided on climbing the West Slabs and a run down from the summit back to the car in a 7 mile loop. I had climbed the West Slabs a coupla years ago. It is a 45 degree (maybe more?) incline of quartzite, with lots of great holds. If you pick the right line it is easy and safe. Pick the wrong one and...

We traversed over to the South summit of Olympus, then ran down the trail and connected with the new trail that traverses back to Olympus Cove and the car.

Thank goodness it did not rain.

At Bountiful HS track this morning, 7X800s (Yasso) to get me in shape for fast running. It was me and the old ladies until the cheerleading squad showed up. They formed a mob wearing red sweatshirts, and chanted loud pro-BHS slogans as they slowly jogged around the track. They never did catch me. Then they did some calisthenics, and the krinkly pom poms came out of a bag. Fortunate for me I was finished with my laps when the horrible music blasted over the P.A. system. I thought it would scare the old ladies away but they weren't running to their cars like I was.

I ran up Mt Timpanogos early this AM. I mean early. I began running up the trail about 3:45AM. Time to summit was 1h56m, including two potty breaks (number 2). Without those breaks I can easily go under 1:50. The great thing about Timp is that all of it is runnable.

Very chilly morning but I stayed warm enough, even wearing shorts and a long-sleeve shirt. As per usual, lots of hikers on the trail and lounging about the saddle. I would like to go back another time with a warm sleeping bag and a mat and just snooze at the saddle for a few hours before sunrise. That appeals to me. As I descended I saw Scott W coming up. I gave him the unopened  can of frat boy beer I found at the summit.

With JK I did seven miles around the BHS track in a tempo workout.

Stress Fracture!

My right foot has been bothering me since after Wasatch, especially on downhills. I felt it a lot when I ran the new BST around Olympus and it really slowed me down coming off Timp Saturday morning. After seeing a sports med physician and looking at x-rays we concluded it is most likely a slight stress fracture of one of my metatarsal bones. I need six weeks off.

I am out for Antelope 50K and Pony Express 100 mile.

A quick run after work wearing shorts and T-shirt. I am excited to get back into some miles and training.

The ol' Lone Peak with Martinez and Kreuzer. We went up Cherry Canyon then Bear Canyon past the cabin, then up to the peak. We goofed around a lot and had a lot of fun. We descended through the cirque then connected back to Cherry canyon.

Lone Peak Style:

I made a video:

About 6.5 miles up Mueller Canyon trail to Elephant Rock, with MGW. Lotsa snow for a good workout. We broke trail, then the peeps followed. We are so awesome.

Grandeur Peak

5 on rail trail.

 10 more this evening. No water, no gels, no headlamp.

Lake Mountain with Scott, Craig, Jared and Ghost. Warm enough to go shirtless about half way up and down.

 Farmington

F-town races rule. Took my fambly to the park for some T-giving 5K action, and a 1k race for the boys. All I wanted was to break 20 minutes for 3.1 miles. I got there in 19:47, 9th place overall. Next year maybe I should train to get a better time. Wife did well, ran all of it in 26: 19. Woot. MGW was there too with his fambly, came in 21:41. Sweet.

Run up to Flag Rock and beyond. With Matt, Aaron and Craig. The beyond part was shwack through scrub oak trying to follow a new trail.