Summit junkie!

Jun invited me to do a group run this morning on Ann's trail in Draper, but I wanted to get a few more miles, so MattV and I met early at 6:30 to run View Benchmark before we met the group. It was cold when we started, but we warmed up quickly as we gained elevation on Ann's. We had a really fun time talking and laughing and we made it to the summit of VB in exactly an hour which included a few pit stops. It was windy and cold and we didn't stay long. The run down was fun. We kept a steady pace and only had to slow down to move over the icy sections. One summit and 8 miles in the bag and we headed to Chevron to meet the group. We ended up on the Red Rock trail and ran a loop on Ann's. We all just chatted the whole time and enjoyed the views as we gained elevation. It was a really fun run with some great friends. First summit of 2012. I guess I need to come up with a new goal now.

Draper BST with Jun and Dors

What a fun run on a perfect trail in shorts and t-shirts. It felt like early October out there today and we had a really good time. We chatted for about the first 3/4 of a mile and then Jun put some distance on us. I tried keeping him in my sights until we hit 3 miles where we took a short break. On our way up the steep road I was hanging with Jun and my legs felt really good, but then he decided to push it and really put some distance on me to the 4 mile turnaround.

On the way back Jun and I talked for a little over a mile and then again he picked up the pace. I felt really good until about a mile to go and my legs started to feel some fatigue. The weather was almost perfect for running and I really enjoyed it out there today.

PM: 50 minutes at the gym lifting (upper body/core).

Dude Peak attempt with Jun:

Jun and I wanted to run to Dude Peak, which is on the north ridge above City Creek Canyon. To get there we started on the BST at the base of City Creek and turned left toward ensign Peak. MattV and I ran this last week and I really love the trail. It is a steady climb up to the ridge where there are several bumps that have radio towers on them that you can see from Salt Lake and Davis County. We took a slightly different route than Matt and I and went straight up the hill instead of taking the longer more gradual approach. I'm not sure it saved any time, but it was fun going up a different way, plus we got to top out on a few minor hills (not quite summits).

When we passed the radio towers Dude peak looked really far away and after about 20 minutes of running it didn't seem to be getting any closer. We soon realized that we were not going to have time to make it all the way to the summit, but we didn't care. We were running in shorts, t-shirts and enjoyng the warm sun. We decided to take the more gradual route on the descent and we had a fun time chatting the whole way. I did start to feel slightly bonky, so I downed a gel and then 30 minutes later I took another one because I could tell my energy was low.

The run down was a lot of fun. Once we hit the single track Jun took off at a blistering pace and I couldn't keep him in my sights. This is a tough run and I can't wait to get back and hit Dude when we have more time. Check out Jun's blog for some sweet pics.

Solo run up Mt. Wire.

I wanted to get out and enjoy the weather, but I didn't want to pound my legs too much, so I did a solo run/hike up Wire at a very easy pace. The temps were perfect and I really enjoyed being out there today, but I didn't push it hard at all. 50 minutes to the top and very slow back to the car. My legs felt really good though after I finished.

Another incredible run up to View Benchmark via Ann's trail with Jun and Dorsimus today. I was going to take the day off, but when Jun told me that he was going running it sounded like fun and since my legs felt really good I figured there was no reason not to go. The air was clean up above the inversion, the sky was blue and it was a perfect day to be out on the trails. I reached the summit in 46ish minutes and we enjoyed the view and chatted for a few minutes and then braved the steep icy sections on the way down. The last few miles were a lot of fun just cruising at a faster pace and chatting the whole way down.

Weights at the gym. No big woop. 

Weights at the gym. Great session with some good friends. 

Lake Mountain 50K (Circumnavigation of Lake Mountain) with Jun, Jsh and MattVS

Matt wanted to get in a long run to prep for his 100 mile race in March, so we got some of the fellas together and decided that the Lake Mt. 50K course would be the perfect option. We started out a little after 7:00 am and it was downright COLD. The car said 15 degrees and while everyone got their things together I tried stretching and dancing a bit to keep warm and it took a mile or two to start feeling good. Almost right out of the gate we started to climb up to Soldier Pass and we kept up a pretty decent running pace all the way up. The views from the pass were stunning and we were the only humans within several miles in all directions. After that we dropped down into the Cedar Valley where we could see the fog hovering eerily  and waiting for us to enter. As usual we were laughing and joking and the miles were clicking by.

When we got lower into the valley it became quite apparent that the temps had dropped significantly and we all felt it. We were dressed appropriately, but we all had to make a concerted effort to keep the water moving in our hydration tubes or they would freeze within minutes. Jun actually had to mess with his for several minutes after it froze up. At about mile 6 I took off a glove to take a gel and my hand was so frozen that it became totally numb and I couldn't even open a zip lock bag. The gels also were almost solid and became a little more difficult to swallow, but as long as we kept moving we were all fine. There was a fine layer of frost covering all of the bushes and brush and we all started to accumulate it on our facial hair as well, but we were having a great time.

 The dirt road we were on eventually takes you into the edge of Eagle Mountain and after a short stint on some pavement we were back on the trail that would take us around the north end of the mountain. We stopped here to take a break and at that point the trail seemed to be numerous rolling hills the rest of the way. At about mile 17 I noticed that my hamstrings were a little tight and I would try and stretch them out whenever we stopped. At mile 19 we had a cache of food and drinks and we took about a 15 minute break to eat and replenish our energy. I was feeling really good except for my hammies. They were still tight.

 The next 6 miles were pretty tough for me. I usually really enjoy hills, especially on a long run like that, but they were really hurting me and the farther I went the tighter my hamstrings got. It wasn't terrible, but it definitely slowed me some. It was one hill after another as we made our way south on the east side of the mountain. Eventually we topped out on Enoch pass with about 6 miles to go. I had been behind Matt on the way to the pass and he was running really strong up every hill and I was impressed with his toughness.

Running downhill was such a relief for me and my legs felt instantly better. I did have some fatigue, but my hamstrings were no longer hurting and it was nice to be able to run under a 9:00 pace, however I still wasn't keeping up with the other guys and Matt and Jun took off at a blistering pace which was very impressive considering we were over 26 miles in. I settled into a 9:00 pace for the next 3 miles and I was pretty content with that. Eventually I caught up to Josh who had stopped to take a break and we ran in the last couple of miles together. His ankle was hurting and my legs were quite fatigued, so we went pretty slow. Those were some tough miles, but it felt really good to finish. Check out Jun's blog for some really good pictures.

My wife and kids were watching some sort of 'chick' show that I had no interest in, so I went downstairs to watch the Jazz Lakers game on the TM. 4 slow miles while watching Kobe hoist up shot after shot. While running my legs felt ok, but as soon as I stopped they got a little stiff, but nothing to worry about.

Weights at the gym for 40 minutes. I tried to get out for a run today, but I wasn't able to get out.

Malan's Peak solo:

I had to visit a customer in Ogden today, so after my appointment I decided to take my lunch break running to the top of Malan's Peak. I did this run about a year ago with Jun, Dorsimus and Bryce and loved it, so I was excited to get back up there. I started at the 27th Street trailhead and parked my car in the neighborhood below. The trail was completely snow covered, but it was very well packed in all the way to the top.

I tried to run as much as possible on the way up, but my calves were pretty tight, so I did power hike some of the steeper sections. It was really cold and the sun doesn't hit the switchbacks much. I warmed up quickly though and had a fun time working the switchbacks all the way to the top where I ran into an older guy that was on his way down.

I stayed on top for about 15 minutes responding to some work emails until my hands became numb. I took a gel and then had a really fun run all the way down. I was wearing my Altra Lone Peaks and they are incredible in the snow. I didn't slip once and even ran the steeper sections faster than I normally would because they grip so well in the snow. I really need to hit this peak often. It is a ton O' fun.

View Benchmark via Ann's with Rob B.

My good friend Rob texted me yesterday to see if I wanted to do a trail run with him this morning and I'm always up for a good trail run, so we met in Draper to do View Benchmark. Rob runs mostly on pavement and he was excited to get in some trail miles. The wind was blowing pretty hard and I was a little worried about what the summit would be like, but we were dressed for the cold. 

We had a really good time and just chatted the whole way up. Rob really enjoyed the trail and the views. There was packed snow covering most of the trail with a few icy sections, but it wasn't bad. Rob actually did really well and pushed it hard on some of the hills. We hit the summit in 49 minutes and it was windy, but not as bad as I thought it would be. We stayed on top for about 10 minutes taking in the views and Rob took a few photos.

The run down was a lot of fun. I let Rob lead and he pushed the pace wherever he could, although he twisted his ankle after slipping on some ice. The last two miles were at a 8:00 pace and it was really enjoyable and my legs felt solid the whole day.I should also mention that I wore the Altra Lone Peaks again and they were awesome! I think I am finally getting used to the zero drop.

Total time including all breaks 1:31.

I don't mind running in the cold, but I hate the wind and it was really howling out there with this storm, so I decided to just get in some TM miles. 10 min warm up on the elliptical and then 3 easy miles. I ended with a 7:30 mile to get my heart rate up. No big woop. 

Mt. Wire solo:

I started from the zoo. There was a thin layer of snow covering the trail most of the way, but 2-3 people had already been up and put in some tracks. The snow wasn't really an issue except in the steepest section where it was a touch slippery. I felt really good today, so I pushed it pretty hard most of the way up and even though it was bitter cold I was sweating a lot. Up high on the ridge it got windy which made the cold air sting on my face and I had to turn my head to avoid it, but luckily it wasn't sustained and there were breaks where I could warm up some.

I ran from the second saddle all the way to the top and hit the summit in 43 minutes which is one of my faster times up. The wind was really strong up there and it almost took my breath away, so I didn't stay long at all and on my way down to the towers my head was actually so cold it felt like a Slurpee brain freeze. Luckily the wind wasn't as bad when I hit the saddle. I had to take it slow through the steep sections because there was quite a lot of ice, but after that I had a fun cruise back to the car.  I'll be at the gym lifting later (Yeah- arms n back).

Weights at the gym (upper body/core). It was a very good workout, probably my best session in the last few months.

Churchball. I haven't played in months. It was fun, but I played the whole first half and barely broke a sweat. No injuries so that was a plus.

Rain!!! I was forced to run on the TM today. I wanted to do at least 10, but I couldn't take it after 7. Pathetic week!

I really want to run to the summit of View Benchmark from my house, so today I just went out to see how far up to the top of Suncrest I could get in 45 minutes since I had 90 minutes to run. From my house I ran to 1500 N. in Highland and then went west to 6800 W. where I turned and went north. At Freedom Elementary I turned left and followed that to 7200 W. I was excited to run the huge hill here. I think it is as steep as any I have seen in northern Utah County and it was fun to blast down the hill and then make the steep climb back up to the top. When I reached SR-92 I turned right and ran on the road that has been blocked with construction cones. The construction crews were nice enough to leave the Honey Bucket open, so I took a quick potty stop and then continued to the road that goes up to Suncrest (Highland BLVD). I was able to run almost a mile and a half up the road before I had to turn around. I had to stop and make a phone call in a neighborhood and I was getting chilled fast. 

The run down and back home was fun. I had a lot on my mind and the miles went by really fast. I did make another potty stop and also had to make another call, so that slowed me down, but my pace was faster on the way back. Hopefully I can run all the way to the top of VB next time.

Weights at the gym for an hour. I worked my upper body and core. 

View Benchmark with Jun:

Jun and I had a tough but very fun run up to the summit of View Benchmark in winter conditions. The trail was completely snow covered from the start and after about a mile we were breaking the trail all the way to the top which made the running tough. There were several inches to run through, but as we got higher on the mountain the drifts became deeper and it really slowed us down. The final push to the summit became more difficult because we were post-holing in deep snow and getting blasted by a really cold wind. When we left Jun's office it was nice and sunny and it was hard to believe that we were getting slammed with this cold wind, but there was no way we were going to turn back. 

We slogged up to the summit in 1:06 which is about 20 minutes slower than normal. The summit was enveloped in clouds so the views weren't great and the wind was very cold. After Jun made a phone call we took off down the mountain running as fast as we could, but at times we were really slowed down by the deep snow, but we were having a blast. We usually run fast the last two miles, but it wasn't really possible to push it with all of the snow. We did pack a nice trail in up there though. Just before we got back to the car we saw a HUGE buck running on the side of the mountain. I rarely see 'em that big in northern Utah. It was a really fun day and the effort was much greater than the mileage total would indicate.

Check out Jun's blog for some pics.

Salt Lake County canal loop with Jun:

This is a run originally done by Crockett and it is 25 miles of running on dirt trails/roads that run next to canals that run right through the Salt Lake Valley. We started out at a park near Camp Williams at 4:00 am. Just after we started we had to crawl under a fence and then within the first mile I was already heating up. I was expecting it to be colder out there. We had an absolute blast laughing and joking and just chatting at a comfortable pace and the miles flew by. We had to cross a few roads and go over a few fences, but nothing serious. The trail winds through a lot of rural property, neighborhoods and for quite a long way runs in the back yards of several houses. We had a lot of dogs barking at us and set off a lot of motion lights and I'm sure we woke up a handful of people. At mile 8 I took a gel and almost barfed it up. Sick!

At 90th South we got off of the canal road and ran east for about a half mile until we reached a different canal trail that we would follow all the way back. We took a small break to dump some rocks out of our shoes and have a gel and I noticed right away that there was a bit of a headwind on the way back and it lasted almost all the way back to the car. The run back had a little more adventure as we had to jump more fences and cross Bangerter highway. The fence before Bangerter had some barbed wire and I just about sliced my bits and pieces while Craig laughed and threw trash at me. haha. At about mile 19 I noticed that my left hamstring was really tight and it slowed me down the rest of the way. We did stop a few times so I could stretch it out, but it seemed to get a little worse with each passing mile. The last 3 miles are much more rural than the rest of the run and it was really cool to see that part of the valley. Eventually we came to a paved road that took us up a hill and right back to our cars. It was an awesome run and I will definitely do it again. About 95% of it was on dirt trails/roads which is amazing considering we ran so far into the city. Check out Jun's blog for some pics.

4:16 total time including all breaks.

Weights at the gym for an hour. I worked my upper body and core. The weight room is pretty dead on Saturday. I love it. 

5 on the TM. No big woop. 

Mt. Wire solo:

I parked at the zoo and ran to the trailhead. It was really warm and I was thinking I could have gotten away with shorts, so I pulled up my long sleeves and took off my gloves. It was muddy and sloppy right from the start and I tried my best to stay on the patches of snow. Just before I reached the ridge I saw a woman coming down with 6 dogs (none of them on a leash). As they got closer one of them made a beeline for my packaged goods where it commenced a sniff-fest. I felt kind of dirty and cheap after such a quick encounter, but I'm used to that on the trail, so not a huge deal. By the way, how many dogs to you have to own before you can get on Animal Hoarders? She was the only person I saw the rest of the way.

The trail was still pretty muddy and slippery and I just got into a comfortable pace and pushed it on up. The higher I went the more the wind blew, then the sun ducked behind some clouds and it got cold. At the second saddle I decided I was taking it too easy, so I ran hard the rest of the way to the towers and on up to the summit. It has been a while since I pushed it that hard on the final stretch. I didn't stay long at all.

The run down was slower than normal because of the snow. I just took it easy on the steeper slick sections and then once I was down to the first saddle I picked it up and ran it in.

View Benchmark peak with Jun and Dorsimus:

I love this run! Even when the conditions are crappy I still enjoy every step. It was a bit muddy and sloppy out there again today and it slowed us down, but the weather was fantastic and it was a great day for a run on the trails. Dorsimus lead out and I spent the first two miles trying to make up some ground. Once we got to the VB trail I slowly caught up to Dors, but Jun was still ahead. I tried to run as much as I could and I only hiked a few times on the steepest sections. I tried to push it up to the top, but it was hard running in the soft snow because we would sink every few steps.

The views from the summit are always saweeeet and today wasn't any different, some of the best views along the Wasatch Front up there. The run down was slow at first while we made our way through the deeper snow, but once back on Ann's trail we opened it up a bit. I ran pretty fast down the hills and had a blast. We ran the last few miles at a pretty quick pace. I didn't have my Garmin on, but I am guessing 6:50-7:00ish, which was pretty good considering the crappy conditions. Jun and Dors both caught me just before the finish and Dors went down hard in the mud a few seconds later. No harm done. Once again the effort was a lot tougher than the miles. Jun put up some really good pics on his blog.