The Wedge at the Little Grand Canyon in the San Rafael Swell with Jun, Dorsimus and MattVS: This was my first time down to the Swell and it did not disappoint. We met at the American Fork park n ride at 5:00 am and it took about 3 hours to get down to the Wedge where there is a sweet lookout into the Little Grand Canyon. We would be running on a rim trail that goes around the rim of the canyon for just over 15 miles and then back. It was 20 degrees when we got out of the car, but the sun was shining, with no wind and it looked almost perfect for running. After a few pics and a little goofing off we hit the trail. The first 5 miles were a lot of fun running in the mid 8's, talking and laughing a lot. We also stopped at most of the lookouts to take pictures. My hamstring was really tight and sore after my run up Lake Mountain on Saturday and I was worried about it, but hoped it would loosen up. It didn't bother me at all early on, but was tight. At about mile 5 I noticed that my stomach was unsettled and by mile 7 it hit hard and the guys had to wait for me for a few minutes. From about mile 10 to the half way point I was running by myself and had to stop a few more times to deal with my stomach. Damn tamales. They were good though. I passed Jun on his way back and he told me I was about .5 from the turnaround. I also passed Dorsimus and then MattVH and I convinced MattV to hang back with me because I was worried about my hamstring which was now really tight and hurting. We took about a 10 minute break at the turnaround taking in the views and I put some glide on a hot spot on my toe and had some GU chomps. The next 5 miles were by far the most difficult of the day for me. My hammy was really hurting and I had to stop again because of my stomach. Matt was a good sport to hang with me. I popped 800 mg of Ibuprofen about mile 19. I hate taking it when I run, but it was almost a necessity. We had a pathetic pace back to where we had cached some food just after mile 22. I had run out of water and the Coke I had stashed was fantastic. I also refilled my water and ate about 500 calories. The Ibuprofen also started to kick in and I couldn't believe the difference.I felt like running again.
The next 4 miles we tried to pick up the pace and just chatted away. I was having fun again and enjoying the views that we would stop to take in at the lookouts. It was tough getting into a fast pace on this trail because it winds a lot and there are a lot of rocks to deal with, but I really enjoyed it. About mile 26 we stopped so Matt could retrieve some clothes he had stashed and I told Matt to just catch up and I would run slow, but I got two great songs in a row on the ipod and all of the sudden my legs were feeling incredible and my energy was up so I picked up the pace and ran it in pretty well the last 4.5 miles. The last mile on the road I was feeling really good and I actually saw the 7's for the first time in a long time. I was having fun and felt great when I saw Jun and Dors driving toward me about a quarter of a mile from the finish. I ran it in hard and jumped on a rock and yelled out a primal scream. Awesome. MattVH came in a few minutes after, but he also had an extra mile since he ran back with me and I am sure I slowed him down on the way back as well. I really enjoyed this run, even though I went through a lot of issues out there. The views and the company were as good as it gets and I was happy that I finished strong. I can't wait for the next adventure.
Total time including all breaks: 6:11. I think the total moving time was closer to 5:20ish. You can check out some pics here: The Wedge
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