February 24, 2013

I can feel a shift in the weather. Winter is still firmly in control, but a tiny bit of warmth and sunshine has been peeking in. I went for a run the other day in shorts and a t-shirt, and although it snowed the very next day, the warmth was wonderful. The trails are in poor shape, with the old snow freezing, consolidating, and getting covered with new layers of powder. You never know where you're stepping, so I've been opting more and more for asphalt city runs. It's not my ideal scenery, but I've learned to make the best of it, and I've been using the mind numbing city miles to listen to audiobooks. Dual purpose runs!
Also, and I know I'm way behind here, I'm loving the Strava on line run tracker. It's cool to see how you stack up against others who are running the same courses. Plus, you can't lie about your results, because it's tracked from space! Year to date, I've run 155 miles with 32,300 feet of elevation gain. Again, that's outer space verified.

A halo around the sun, warning of a storm.

Heading down, steep and rocky.

Breaking trail in the hills above my house.

Untouched. Beautiful light.

Coyote on the hill. I woke them from their nap.

A special moment for me. Watching them move across the slope is something I won't soon forget.

Heading home. Fully absorbed. 

View from my window. Early morning moon as I get ready to head out and run the streets.

February 10, 2013

It's still winter, and I've been doing a lot of dreaming and planning for the spring and summer. As the snow falls, I'm still training and making steady progress, although all this daydreaming of springtime isn't healthy with so much winter left.
Running on snow is weird. I've felt a bit of strain in my right hip from the unpredictable and unstable surfaces of packed and unpacked snowy trails. Your feet are constantly slipping, and often violently shifting in unpredictable directions. I've been spending more time than usual on stretching and mobility, and in a rare move of restraint, I substituted a long gym session for this weekend's long run. Thirty miles on the airdyne in one hour thirty five minutes.
Speaking of the gym, the strength and durability work is going well. I can't speak highly enough of the Wendler 5/3/1 program. Strength is important, and I look forward to my time with the barbell.
Last week, my friend Dan and I did two trips to the summit of Mt Olympus. It was a great early season gut check and I felt better than expected. As always, this early in the year, recovery was a little slow. On the bright side, we were only 10 minutes off my time for the last Mt Olympus double I did in June 2011 to prepare for Leadville. 13.2 miles, 8400ft gain, 7 hours.
Over the last couple years, my love of trail running has led me to amazing places in the high country of the Wasatch. I've developed a love for scrambling and low level climbing, and elevation is always attractive to me. Combining trail running with semi technical scrambling and climbing has become a bigger part of my daydreams and planning for future adventures, and these daydreams and plans have led me to some decisions. Participating in the Hardrock 100 is a big goal for me. Getting in though, is a huge hassle. If I want to keep trying the lottery, I have to continue running races on their qualifier list. I'm not going to worry about it this year. In 2011, I ran Leadville, qualifying me for the Hardrock 100 lottery for the next two years. I didn't get in either year. Last year was a total wash with injuries, so I'm due to run one of their qualifiers, but I'm not going to. If I get the fever later this year, maybe I'll try to get in to one at the last minute, but for now, my quest for Hardrock is on hold. My race list for now is as follows:

March 23 - 12 Hours of Moab (registered)
April 13 - Bosho Marathon
May - ??
June - ??
July 13 - Devil's Backbone 50 miler (registered)
August 10 - Kat'cina Mosa 100K (registered)
August 17 - Pacing at the Leadville 100
August 25 - Pacing my perfect wife at the Lean Horse 100
September 14 - Alpine to Slickrock 50 miler (not yet registered. DNF last year, so I need redemption)


As soon as the high country is accessible, I'll be working on some big personal goals here in the Wasatch. I don't want to speak too soon. I don't want to get ahead of myself, so I'll just continue the slow and steady progress. I'm planning on a big summer.

10 rep deadlift @310lbs

Mt Olympus double. Dan, taking in the view at the saddle.

                    

Mt Olympus double. Dan headed down for the last time, dropping into the inversion.

  Weekday snow slog above my house.

 The barbell, more often than not, is the answer.

 10 mile run from Little Dell Reservoir to Big Mountain Pass and back.

Headed down from Big Mountain Pass.

 My friend the airdyne.

Long run substitution.