Quest For Kings (double attempt)

Kings Peak is the highest peak in the state of Utah, reaching an elevation of 13,528 feet at the summit.  My friend Craig was putting on an informal race called Quest For Kings.  The route starts at Henry's Fork, run 13 miles to the summit, then turn around and do it in reverse.  The whole run has about 5,000 feet of cumulative elevation gain over the 26 miles, and it's all above 9,500 feet in altitude.  After some talking, myself, Scott, and Matt decided to make an attempt at a double.  We also heard that Crockett would be attempting a double, starting about 7 hours ahead of us.

The plan was to get to Henry's Fork around 7:00 or 8:00 in the evening, set up camp and try to sleep for a few hours before starting at midnight.  Well, we ended up taking entirely too long to get out of Salt Lake and stopped way too long in Evanston.  We finally reached Henry's Fork around 9:00 pm.  We talked it over and decided that by the time we got camp set up, we'd only be able to sleep for maybe an hour, if we could sleep at all.  So we made the decision to get ready and go.  We started our journey at about 10:45 Friday night... Mistake number one.

Scott & Matt scouting out the route



Having never been on this trail before, I let the boys lead out and guide me through the forest.  It was nearly a full moon out and the temperature was more mild than I anticipated.  The first 5 miles were great.  We kept a running pace for most of the way and finally reached Elkhorn Crossing where the forest opens up and leads you into the meadows.  Apparently we were very slow though compared to splits the guys had on previous attempts.  This trail is unbelievably technical.  Rocks litter the trail in places where you can run, and the last 3 miles to the summit is a completely different story.  More on that later.  It was tough navigating the terrain at night, which is probably why we were so slow.

A few miles later we ran into Crockett who was on his way down from his first summit.  He warned us about a snow covered section just above Gunsight Pass that was really sketchy.  He crossed it during the day when it was slightly soft and said it was one of the scariest things he's ever done.  In the cold and dark, it was guaranteed to be a slide of death, so we navigated below it.  We were also able to turn off our headlamps and run up this section by the moonlight, which ended up being a lot of fun.  After a quick scramble up to the plateau, we got our first look at the mountain.  Stunning!

I'm still all smiles before Gunsight Pass

We descended into the basin and mistake number two reared its head.  Scott was wearing his Hoka Bondi B's and he wasn't able to navigate the boulders very well in them.  He tweaked his ankle countless times on the boulders and would yell out "HOKAS!" which would get me laughing.  The Hokas slowed our pace significantly, especially on the descents.  I'm sure he'll never wear those shoes on that trail again.

We got down into the basin and made our approach to Anderson Pass.  Once we got here, we were all feeling a bit wounded.  I was starting to feel a little bit of vertigo; nothing too serious. Matt was getting a major headache, and Scott was dealing with nausea.  Matt pushed on ahead to tag the summit and get back down quickly.  I stayed back with Scott and let him dictate the pace since I could tell he was feeling it.  I don't know what this, we'll call it "paternal" instinct I have is all about, but I really want to make sure people are ok when they're with me.  I'll always stick back and hang with someone who's not doing well.  I feel like I owe it to them for some reason.  Kinda weird.  Anyway, with about 100 yards to go I pushed ahead and hit the summit at about 3:50 am.  I snapped a few pictures and waited for Scott.  He arrived shortly after and we hung out briefly before tackling the descent on the talus slope.  About 25 yards off the peak Scott doubles over and starts puking everywhere.  I did my best not to laugh, but some of the noises he was making were killin' me.  After 5 or 6 sessions, he finally stopped and we continued down the mountain.

My first Kings Peak summit

Once we got back down below Anderson Pass, Scott decided he should get some calories and he choked down a gel.  I could tell he had no energy, but I know what it's like trying to eat something after you've just yakked all over the place.  We made it back to the plateau and Scott laid down for about 15 minutes to take a nap.  He said he swore he was talking to us, but we weren't talking to him at all.  He was obviously exhausted.  When we got to Gunsight Pass we ran into Crockett back on his way up the mountain.  He went on to finish the double!  We filled up with water at the spring just below the pass and got to actually run again.  It felt good.

We kept a slow running pace the rest of the way down, stopping to chat with others on their way up the mountain.  They couldn't believe we had already been to the top and were heading back down now.  Lots of people out on the trail, and I'd imagine it would get even busier once all the scouts were awake and on their way.  We ended up finishing just after 9 AM, 10 hours and 27 minutes after we started.

Feeling great in the early morning

We went back to the car to refuel and decide what we wanted to do.  Because of the time it took for the first lap, we didn't think we'd have enough time to do a second due to time committments.  If lap one was any indication of things to come, I'm sure lap two would have been a bad idea.  I'm glad we made the decision to call it a day.

On the home stretch

I learned a few things on this trip.  I learned that my body adapts well to the altitude.  I wasn't sure how I'd hold up having never been that high in elevation before.  When we go back to attempt the double again (which I'm hoping will be in the next couple weeks), we definitely need a better game plan.  We need to show up the night before and camp, then wake up early in order to tackle both summits in the daylight.  We underestimated how slow we'd be on the trail in the dark.  The boulder sections are especially difficult to maneuver through at night.  Scott learned to leave the Hokas at home and Matt learned to keep lots of wipes on hand.  It was a ton of fun and I'm officially hooked!

Attempt at Timp 7/13/11

Went up and made an attempt at Timp with my friends Matt, Craig, and Scott. Having never been there before, the surroundings blew my mind. This was my first time on this trail, and I left wondering why I had never done this before.

After about 2 miles in, we were in snow the rest of the way up.  I slipped on a set of Yaktraks once we hit the snow.  Traction devices on your feet only do so much when the snow isn’t hard-packed. Lots of slipping and sliding. And I was the idiot that didn’t bring trekking poles! Scott offered me a set, but I didn’t think I’d really need them. I managed without, but things would’ve been much easier with them, that’s for sure.

There were a few places we couldn’t find the trail so we’d just climb straight up in the snow. I actually love this kind of “bushwhacking” on hikes, but there were a few really steep spots where I was afraid of falling. And I’m a baby when it comes to heights!

We didn’t make the summit, but made it just below the saddle. We made the decision to turn around there because of time, and because the approach to the saddle was sketchy. It needs a few more weeks to melt down. Coming back down was fun since we got to glissade down on our butts in a few different places. It was an absolute blast!

On the drive home we talked about the “run” and how weak it looks on paper. Less than 10 miles in 4 hours... Are you kidding me? Even with the vertical, it seems pretty pathetic. I can tell you that I’m spent though! This is why I measure my long efforts in time on my feet, and not in miles. There’s no way to express the amount of work we put in out there, for such small numbers (other than the time of course).

2011 Ragnar Relay - Wasatch Back

I told myself I'd only sign up for this if I was feeling good after Squaw Peak.  Since two weeks isn't necessarily ample time to recover, I didn't want to waste my money by signing up in advance.  Turns out my legs were ready to run again two days after Squaw, but my feet were not.  I had a couple blisters that I wanted to make sure were healed over before I started running again.  So I took 6 days off.  After a few runs I could tell that my legs were still quite tired, but felt like I could run a few easy relay legs.  So I began my search.

One week before the race I found an ultra team that needed a runner.  It was a co-ed team consisting of several out of state runners.  I was excited for the opportunity so I emailed them and told them I'd take the spot.  I was also excited when I found out I had a choice in which leg I was going to run.  I chose to be Runner 5 for two reasons: the 17 mile 2nd leg, but more so for the 3,000 foot climb on the 3rd leg.

Friday morning came and I met up with the group.  The team consisted of: the captain, George, who completed an Ironman last year and regularly competes in half Ironman events; Dennis, who also does triathlon events; Hana, also into triathlons, is a regular age group placer; Ken, an avid runner, ran 4 different Ragnar events last year and was previously CEO of Ragnar; And finally Marianne, who ran a sub-4 hour marathon last year.  Our team seemed to be pretty solid.

My first leg was scheduled to be just over 7 miles on relatively flat terrain.  On an ultra team, you run two normal legs back-to-back.  So Runner 1 would run legs 1 & 2, then Runner 2 would run 3 & 4, etc.  Well, the runner before me, Marianne, was struggling on her first leg and asked me to run the second half of that leg for her.  She obviously hadn't trained much since her marathon last year, but I know she was also working on no sleep the night before due to a graveyard shift at work.  This turned into the theme for the day, where she'd run the first part of her leg and someone else would run the second. 

So my 7 turned into 10.5.  I tried to keep it at a moderate pace and not get too caught up in catching people.  Things basically went according to plan and I finished it in 1:16:32, or a 7:17/mile pace.  A little bit faster than I'd wanted to go, but it felt good so I went with it.

My second leg started at 3:07 in the morning.  I knew it would be a slog, especially since I hadn't slept yet and since it was in the dark.  The conditions were nearly perfect though and most of the run was on a graded trail, so it was just what I needed.  The first portion of the leg, 9.3 miles, went well.  I felt good and was alert.  At the transition to the second portion, I had George grab me a pancake since they were serving them at this station.  It tasted amazing and I just kept taking little bites for about 25 minutes while I was running.  But I started having doubts about running.  What was I thinking?  Can you really do this?  Then my brain kept telling me it was ok to walk and to just stop for a minute.  It was a constant battle for nearly an hour and my tired brain just wanted to quit.  But my body kept moving.  I didn't stop but kept the pace really easy.  I finished the leg just as it was getting light out.  Total leg was 16.9 miles, 2:28:19, or a 8:46/mile pace.  I passed the baton to George and went to the van.

I arrived at the van to find everyone asleep.  Looks like I'm driving!  I ended up driving for awhile til I was finally relieved of my duty.  I tried to sleep, but it just wouldn't come.  I didn't end up sleeping til 12:30 Saturday afternoon, and it was only for about 45 minutes.  I felt much better after I slept though.

My "final" leg was 7.2 miles up Guardsman Pass.  Over 3,100 feet of climb.  I was excited.  My legs felt fatigued, though (as you can imagine.)  Two weeks isn't enough time for me to recover in order to put forth a hard effort.  So I stayed at a steady pace.  Based on how I felt, my goal was to do the climb in 90 minutes.  I also wanted to attempt to run the whole thing.  The first portion went well, but I found that it was quicker to power hike in some places, so that's what I did.  I passed a lot of people while I was doing this!  I ran through the transition and about halfway through the second portion I had nothing left in the tank.  I wasn't bonking, but my energy was low and my legs were fatigued.  I powered through it though, and even had a few moments where I was able to run hard, trying to give myself some motivation.  I finished the leg in 1:22:54, or a 11:31/mile pace.

Man, it felt good to be "done."  However, George ended up getting "dead quads" on his 2,000 foot descent coming down Guardsman.  He ran through transition, but then we pulled up to him walking about a quarter mile out.  He was done.  So naturally, I pulled off my jacket and jumped out to finish his final leg.  I was slow though!  I gutted it out and came through the finish with my team waiting.  We ran it in together for a finishing time of 28:36:46.  I forgot to start my watch since I had to get out so suddenly on this last leg, but I would guess I was right around a 9:15/mile pace or so.  Like I said, really slow but I had nothing in the tank so I just had to gut it out.

Overall it was a fun experience!  Not sure if I'll do it again, though.  Not enough bang for the buck when it all comes down to it.  I ended up forking out about $300 to run 41.5 miles.  In contrast, I paid about $240 last year to run 100 miles at Wasatch.  You do the math.

2011 Squaw Peak 50

I'd been geared up for this race all year.  I knew I could blow last year's time from Squaw Peak out of the water, so that was the goal all along.  As race day was slowing approaching though, things began to fall apart on the training front.  Events in my personal life began taking their toll and I was having a hard time getting out the door to run.  My desire was kaput!  I wasn't eating right either and lost about 8 pounds.  Then the week before the race, I find out we're doing an alternate "snow course" instead of the standard route.  Overall I was just pretty bummed.

On Memorial Day I hit a turning point, though.  A switch in my head just turned on and I actually wanted to put forth some effort for the first time in weeks.  Did a couple short runs outside in full winter gear.  Yeah, it was over 70 out on both days, so great heat training.  I was also back on my eating schedule.  Things were starting to look up, but I wondered if it was too little, too late.

I slept a full 5 hours before waking up to get ready for the race.  Had my usual bowl of cereal, a few slices of toast, and a Z Bar on the way to the race.  I got there early to check in then ran back to my car to hang out before the start.  It was in the mid-40's at the start, so I had no desire to stand out in the cold any longer than I had to.  With 5 minutes to go I made my way to the start and after a quick countdown we were off.

I stayed up in the top 30 or so for the first few miles on the pavement, then we hit the single track and I felt really comfortable where I was at.  I continued to climb and fell in behind Davy.  Pretty soon though, we're not seeing any markings and heading in the wrong direction.  A group of about 6 of us decided to turn around and sure enough, a string of about 50 runners were coming behind us, also off course.  We eventually found the turn off, but probably lost 10-12 minutes on our detour.  The worst part was now I was bottlenecked behind slower runners on the climb up to Hope Campground.  It was slow going, passing where I could, but mostly just hanging tight.  I arrived at Hope Campground 15 minutes behind schedule and 9 minutes slower than last year.  The theme of the day: You guessed it... Chasing that 15 minutes all the way to the finish line!

The descent into Rock Canyon was a lot of fun.  The trail was more technical than I had imagined, but it worked out to my benefit.  It was also between Hope and Rock Canyon that I started making a number of passes.  After a quick stop at the aid station at the bottom of the canyon, I made my way onto the Bonneville Shoreline Trail and would follow this trail for the next 9 miles or so.  It was a relentless rollercoaster, but I tried to keep a steady pace, reeling in a few more runners.  I also saw my parents for the first time on the day.  I told them I didn't want them to crew me, but they were there for support and were taking pictures anyways.  I have a great family!  After some more annoying ups and downs, I finally came into the Spring Creek aid station.  Fellow FRB'er Kelli was there at the aid station and she hooked me up with what I needed, along with some motivation, and had me on my way.

I settled into a nice pace behind Phil Lowry and matched his pace on the climb out of the canyon.  It was super rocky, but lots of fun.  Once we hit the top, I put things into my downhill gear and picked off several more runners.  It was also here that the leaders were on their way back from the turnaround.  I figured I was in about 19th place at this point.  I knew people would be camping out at this aid station and resupplying, but I didn't need anything but water.  I refilled my water, thanked the volunteers and was out in about 20 seconds.  I probably passed several more people with this move alone, then passed 3 more on the way to the next aid station.  It was also a lot of fun seeing all the runners through here and wishing everyone luck.

I had a longer stop when I arrived back at Spring Creek since I had to resupply.  Then it was off to face the heat.  Luckily the sun was at my back, but the 9 mile stretch of the BST was right in my face!  I just tried to keep things slow and steady and was able to pick off 5 more runners on this stretch.  I was going through S-Caps like mad though.  Probably averaged 3 per hour on this stretch.  Yikes!  I even had to break a few open to get the immediate release so I wouldn't get dizzy.  But, I made it back to Rock Canyon feeling pretty good.  My friend Scott and his family came up to greet me here, along with my parents, and it was a much needed boost.  My dad told me here that the next runner was 9 minutes ahead and was the "guy in yellow."  I had him in my sights all day long up to this point, but was never able to catch him so I had no expectations whatsoever.

The climb out of Rock Canyon was great!  There were a number of people out hiking so there was plenty to distract my mind, but my body kept pushing forward.  Sure enough, I eventually caught the "guy in yellow."  Turns out it was Shane Martin who took 3rd last year.  He said he wasn't really feeling it on the climb.  I stuck with him for a bit because my stomach was giving me fits and I needed a distraction.  We talked for a bit, but being fatigued and distracted isn't a good thing as we ended up missing a turn.  Not again!  We backtracked about 200 yards and finally found the turnoff, but we were greeted by the runner that was behind us.  Oh well!  The three of us worked together to get to the top of the climb, then Shane took off downhill.  I knew there was no way I could match that pace with my stomach in an uproar, so I followed as fast as I could.

I came into the aid station as Shane was taking off.  I also caught a glimpse of another fellow FRB'er, Bryce.  He was obviously having a good day out there as I know he'd been dealing with some injuries.  I refilled 1 & 1/2 bottles and took off in pursuit.  I didn't think I could catch either of them, but didn't want to lose my placing which was 9th at the time, I believe.  Unfortunately, this section was an oven and I was already feeling dehydrated.  I downed all 30 ounces within a little over 2 miles and was left to suffer the last few miles.  I was completely disoriented.  I missed 2 more turns as well.  One I recognized after about 20 seconds, but the other took me about 3 minutes to figure out before I turned around.  The funny thing is, I remember seeing the flagging but my mind completely dismissed it and I continued forward instead of turning off!  It was an absolute circus!

The final two miles were horrible.  I was reduced to trotting, then bending over with massive stomach pains and being forced to a walk.  It went on and off like this til the finish, during which I was passed.  It was a bummer.  Finally I saw the Vivian Park sign and decided I had to run it in from there.  Finished in 10:13:28 which was good enough for 12th overall and 3rd in my age group.  I guess I got passed twice on my miscues coming down the mountain, even though I never saw the runners.  Haha!  All I can do is laugh about it.

Aside from going off course multiple times, I feel like I had a pretty good day out there.  I ran well for basically 45 miles, then was left to suffer during the last 5.  That's what ultras are all about though, and that's probably why I continually come back for more.  Thanks to everyone for the support and congrats to the finishers.  It was a tough day out there!

Derailed On The Zion Train

The forecast was not looking good.  Weeks ago when we decided to head down to Zion National Park to try our hands - or more appropriately, our feet - at the Zion Train (aka Zion Traverse, Trans Zion, etc.) the timing looked to be perfect for the 48 mile run across the park.  We chose to go mid-week when there were less crowds, and in the middle of May before the weather started getting too hot.  I'm sure any of us would've chosen hot over the conditions that stared us in the face.

We met up Tuesday night after work.  Those running the train were Craig, Scott, Matt, and myself.  Scott's nephews, whom Craig dubbed Ed & Frank, also came along to drop us off at the start and pick us up at the finish.  After sharing some laughs and stories on the road down to Zion, we stopped just outside the park and found a place to set up some tents.  We quickly set up camp and got to bed.  I don't think any of us slept well as we were intermittently being hit by showers and heavy wind gusts all night.  When do you really sleep well before a big event like this anyway?  If it's not rain and wind, it's excitement.

After a long night, we were awoken not by alarms, but to Ed repeatedly barking "my stuff's all wet!"  Turns out he failed to zip up his tent all the way.  That'll do it!  After quickly breaking down camp and getting dressed, we headed into the park and arrived at the trailhead where our adventure would begin.

From left to right - me, Craig, Matt, Scott


Finally, we were all aboard the Zion Train and ready for an epic adventure.  We started at the East Rim Trailhead and would be making our way west.  The first several miles are a gentle climb and went off without any problems.  Those first few miles also involve a lot of sand which keeps you honest.  In any race or adventure run, the adrenaline is flowing in the early stages and while it may feel easy, it's always good to hold back a bit or you'll usually regret it later.  The sand certainly helped keep me honest early on.  Plus, who wants sand all over in their shoes when they're running?!

The miles were absolutely ticking off.  We were running through some of the most unbelievable scenery.  And the fact that it was constantly changing, left me entertained literally every step of the way!  I honestly cannot describe it.  Atop the East Rim Trail, the park opened up and we were shown some of the breaktaking scenery that lay ahead.

After our quick jaunt around the East Rim, the first significant descent of the day began.  We took the opportunity to let out some "whoops" and "yeehaws" as we absolutely bombed it down the technical trail!  It was incredible.  The scenery again changed from beautiful canopies of pines, to sandstone slabs with cairns to guide us along our path.  Once the slabs ended, we found ourselves on a slightly paved trail and we knew what was coming up.  A little bit of this...

And some of this...

All while surrounded by this...

We eventually made our way down to the Echo Canyon trailhead and ran the 1.5 miles down to The Grotto where we'd meet up with Ed & Frank to refuel and drop any gear we felt we didn't need.  After we left, they were headed to hike a few of the trails in this canyon themselves. 

We'd been blessed with great weather up to this point; slightly overcast, cool, and a few short sections of hailstorm.  But it was here that it started raining for the first time.  We weren't excited about the prospects of rain and had been crossing our fingers the whole trip.  We topped off our water bladders then started the big ascent up Angel's Landing en-route to the West Rim Trail. 

I pulled out my green jacket that I'd put away after about mile 1 and put it back on to help combat the rain.  The other three pulled out their trash bags and we climbed.  And we climbed some more.  Then some more.

Matt was crashing a bit through here so I decided to hold back with him while the other two went ahead.  I told myself before the run even started that I was gonna be the caboose on this day.  I had no desire to burn out my legs two weeks before Squaw Peak. Scott and Craig never got more than a hundred yards or so ahead of us, though.  For as terrible as Matt was feeling, he sure was staying steady!

Matt pluggin' along with the other two just ahead

Eventually the rain turned into snow.  From a runner's standpoint, snow is much better than rain.  Snow doesn't soak you to the bone!  So I was really optimistic at this point that we'd be able to continue our journey, all while snow lightly fell down around us.  But my hopes were short lived.  As we climbed higher and higher, the conditions got worse and worse.  After reaching the West Rim Spring, we took a quick break so Matt could refill his water.  The snow was coming down hard at this point, but we decided to continue on for at least a few more miles to see if things might clear up.  My hands were starting to get a bit cold so I began putting them down my shorts to keep them warm!  Hahaha.  My feet were starting to get a bit cold as well, but along I trudged.

Craig and Scott truckin' along in the storm

We started gathering opinions from everyone at this point.  No one wanted to stop, but we felt like we had to explore our options.  We could continue on for another 20 miles to Hop Valley, not knowing what to expect.  The weather was getting increasingly worse by the minute and there were no bailout points between the two places.  Or, we could turn around and get out of this mess.  No one was offering opinions.  I know I was being stubborn and wanting to finish what I started.  I'm sure everyone else felt the same.  Finally, the train was officially DERAILED after a few hundred yards of this...

Realizing that we were looking at 30 miles to finish the journey, if we had to go through mile after mile of this, we wouldn't finish for a very long time. That's if we didn't die out on the trail! So with some regret, we made the smart move and turned around.  I think there was a sense of relief from everyone; myself included.  Now we could just enjoy the journey to the Visitor's Center without the fear of the unknown hovering around us.  We all took off our rain gear and headed back.

We hooted and hollered all the way back down the trail.  At this point there were quite a few tourists out.  Craig and I were flying down the path, hoping people would move aside when they hear us crashing down the mountain.  Most of them did, but some were just oblivious.  On the switchbacks, people aren't moving at all so Craig starts hopping the barriers between them!  He jumped off one, not knowing what was below... Turns out it was about an 8 foot drop!  Nice work.  Then less than a mile from the bottom a natural waterfall was literally falling over the trail.  You had to run through it to get by.  And so we did, screaming our lungs out as we're flying underneath it!

We arrived at the Grotto absolutely drenched!  We had the biggest smiles on our faces though.  There were about 15 people waiting for the shuttle to arrive when we came through.  They had to be wondering what in the world was wrong with us; we were soaked, but laughing and joking around.  We probably looked like the biggest idiots!

From here we ran the 5 or so miles of road down to the Visitor's Center, dodging shuttles along the way.  It was awesome though.  We were all relieved to almost be done and were excited about getting dry.  The only question that remained was whether or not Ed & Frank would still be at the Visitor's Center when we arrived.  We were relieved to find them there upon our arrival!  We quickly got into dry clothes and headed home.  It was nice knowing we'd made it out alive and would be getting home early also!

What an amazing adventure!  Even though we didn't end up running the 48 miles we'd planned, we still ended up with 29 miles or so on the day and 5,000+ feet of vertical ascent.  It was everything I'd hoped for and then some.  I certainly see myself going back to finish the entire thing sometime in the future.  Hopefully that ends up being sooner rather than later!

Onto more adventures!

Winter Is Coming

Recently I've been glued to my TV on Sunday nights watching HBO's new series, "Game Of Thrones."  It's based on the A Song Of Ice And Fire series by George R.R. Martin that I've been reading.  We're only two episodes into the season and I've been very pleased thus far.  It's fun watching the characters come to life.  And it's strange knowing what's going to happen, but fun watching it play out in front of my eyes.

Try wearing Ned's gear on a run!

One of the oft-quoted lines is that of House Stark; their words are "Winter Is Coming."  As I sit here and watch the snow fly out the window, it feels like winter is coming.  I realize we're nearly into May and winter is passing, though with the Squaw Peak 50 on the horizon, it looks like I'll be dealing with winter on race day.  So winter is definitely coming for me!

I'm not looking forward to slogging through mile after mile of white stuff in June.  What happened to the four seasons?  Instead I get 8 months of winter?  What a crappy tradeoff.  I'm especially done with snow covered trails, and post-holing up to my knees in snow.  It was fun for a few months, but this is getting ridiculous!  I want to be in the thin air, gasping for breath as I climb higher up a mountain face.  I want to go on a run with my wife (she doesn't do cold).  I want to feel the warmth of the sun shining down on my back.  I want salt caked on my face.  Mostly I just want it to be summer!

Since Squaw Peak looks to have plenty of snow however, I have no choice but to embrace the winter.  Looks like I'll need to keep up on my winter running skills.  So here's to one more month of cold, wet fun!  Winter is coming June 4th, whether I like it or not.

Life's Little Lessons

I meant to sit down and write out this post about a week ago.  Sometimes life gets in the way though, but I'm ok with that.  My family and close friends know that my grandfather passed away just over a week ago.  He was a shining example of what a role model should be.  He was constantly serving and helping others, and always supported those he loved in their endeavors.  In recent years, he showed a lot of interest in my running adventures and always inquired as to how races and training had gone.  I feel lucky to have had such a great person in my life.  I'll definitely miss him, but look forward to seeing him again someday.

This event provided me with some time to deeply ponder what's really important in my life, and for that I'm grateful.  I've become more cognizant of the fact that running is nowhere near the top of that list.  At the end of the day, running - and particularly ultrarunning - is a self-indulgent activity.  No one but me benefits from the hours I spend running.  While it helps me maintain balance in my life, it does not serve to uplift others in any way.  Life frequently finds ways of reminding me to schedule running into my life, and not vice versa.
 
With all that said, recovery has gone well in the last two weeks.  I was only sore for about 2 days after, but took 5 full days off just to give my body some rest.  I've been running about every other day since and I'm looking forward to getting back on schedule this week.  I've got about 8 weeks until the Squaw Peak 50 and - based on the snowpack we're experiencing here in Utah - it looks like I'll need every bit of training I can fit into my schedule.

The lessons I learned from this last race will also aid in my ability to find success.  Actually racing an event taught me more than I learned in any other event last year; and last year was my "rookie" year!  This most recent event taught me valuable lessons about nutrition, water/salt balance, the value of a great crew, mental toughness, gear, and how training mileage relates to races.  That's the short list.  I could ramble about how each of these items pertain to me, but I won't.  It's sufficient to say that I feel much more prepared going into the summer than I thought possible.  And the importance of being prepared - both physically and mentally - cannot be overstated.

Today I have a happy outlook on life and look forward to my upcoming adventures in running!