Cursed Realm of the Faceless Ghost

My first run of 2012 was a mixed bag. On the one hand, I got to run outside on one of my favorite trails on an absolutely beautiful day. On the other hand, I felt awful, and calling my pace slow would be an understatement. 

Despite plans for something longer, "one of those nights" with Elliott meant that I slept in later than expected and as a result I ended up with time for a quick run up Grove Creek. I ran the same route [almost?] exactly one year ago and I was postholing after just over a mile. Today the trail was bone dry all the way to the bridge.

I'm not sure if it was the lack of sleep last night, the car time this weekend, or the high [for me by today's standards] mileage last week, but I was not feeling good. I hit the bridge in 27 minutes and change, which I think is more than 4 minutes slower than the last time I was up there, maybe a couple of months ago.

Still, I'm glad to have gotten out to run some vertical before a new semester starts tomorrow. I've set some goals for myself this year, and although they're ridiculously low, they're realistic for my current situation. As embarassing as it is to say it here, I'll go ahead and tell everyone that I want to run at least 30 miles per week all year long in 2012.

Yep, that's it. And the sad thing is that I wonder if I'll be able to do it. But hopefully things will get better in the summer and I'll be able to get back to some real mileage before the next school year begins.  

I went over to the gym this evening to meet my minimum daily mileage quota. There are a lot of people there lately--clearly, I'm no the only person with plans for the new year.

Anyway, four miles in 31:25. Basically, I ran at an 8:30ish pace, with a quarter mile at 5:30 or so at the end of each mile. 

Day three of sticking with the new plan. Four (nearly) midnight miles on the treadmill, three super easy and the fourth not so much. With any luck, I'll put in a lap up the south face of Big Baldy tomorrow. There's no snow there, so someone may as well run it. If anyone's interested in 3200- feet over two miles, let me know ASAP and we'll see if we can coordinate our schedules. 

I went to "run" Big Baldy, as planned, but I got a late start, so instead of going to the lightning rod at the false summit, I ended up turning around at the false summit before the real false summit. I had a headlamp with me, but that's just not a trail I want to run in the dark. 

<iframe width='465' height='548' frameborder='0' src='http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/139226172'></iframe> 

By the way, when I try to upload my Garmin files online, it freezes mid-upload or, even worse, crashes my browser well over half of the time. I use Chrome, but I've had the same problem using Firefox and even [shudder] Internet Explorer. Opera doesn't support the necessary plugin, so no luck there. I've had the problem on three different computers, so my computer isn't the problem. Has anyone else deal with the same issue? If not, maybe my watch is the problem.

Weak effort today. But it was a long day, and by the time I made it to the gym I was tired and hungry and my legs were sore from Big Baldy the day before, so I did 3 easy miles and called it good.

Yesterday, Jun invited me to run Lake Mountain with him and his brother today, so at about 6:30 I staggered out of bed to meet Jun. As I was heading to the basement to find some clean clothes, I noticed a text from Jun saying that the new baby had had a rough night and he wouldn't be able to run. So, I staggered right back to bed and slept for another three hours or so. 

Once I finally dragged myself out of bed for real, I realized that there was snow on the ground. I thought about trying to hit Big Baldy, but at the last second I decided that the trail was too steep to be good under the likely conditions. So I decided to head over to Saratoga Springs for a solo run up Lake Mountain.

I've read lots of reports of runs up the mountain, but I've never been there myself, so I was looking forward to a new adventure. I was especially interested in the climb because it sounds like it stays runable all winter long, and I'd love to have a semi-local option for legitimate year-round vertical (treadmills are great for climbing, but you really need the descents to prepare your legs for the trails).

It was cold and windy at the trailhead, but as I entered the canyon the wind died down, only to be replaced by fog and light snowfall. the amount of snow on the dirt road built gradually as I climbed, and by the time I was about 2.75 miles up, I was having some serious traction issues. I figured that I was slipping because the tread on the shoes I was wearing--road shoes--had become packed with snow. But at about 3 miles my legs slipped out from under me and I went down hard on my side. I brushed away the snow on the ground and discovered a thick layer of clear, bulletproof ice underneath.

I picked myself up and continued climbing, but things didn't get any better, so at about 3.6 miles I finally decided to turn around. The descent was a killer--traction was nonexistant, and despite my 14:00/mile shuffle, I went down three times, each harder than the last, and had several other close calls.

Eventually I made it back to where the traction was passable, and the rest of the descent went without a hitch.

I was disappointed not to make it to the top, but I'll have several more chances throughout the winter. I think I may need to invest in Microspikes first, though.

So, this concludes my first week of the new year, and I've already failed to reach my minimum mileage of 30. I'm not worried about it, though--the reason was to ensure a minimum amount of training, not miles. I managed to sneak in three good climbing days this week, so the mileage is a bit deceptive. After all, 6200 feet of climbing in a 26 mile week is respectable.