Summit junkie!

Highland loop run solo:

I could still feel some slight sluggishness (is that really a word) in me legs from the Timp run on Friday/Sat so I decided to get in some flat miles. It seems like most of my runs lately have been in the early morning or later evening, so I also wanted to get in some heat training because I haven't done much of it this year. I started my run in the early afternoon and it was already 94 out there. Right from the start the heat sapped all of my energy and I just didn't feel like running in it. Ughslowtonso'sweathotashell!

It took me two miles to get into any sort of a groove and at times I felt like I was running hard only to see a 9:00 pace on my Garmin. When I hit Kohlers and turned west I actually found a bit of pep and soon found my pace dipping into the high upper sevens, but that only lasted about a mile. Hot, sweat, heat, slow!!!

I really need to run in the heat more because right now I just can't do it well.

AP: 8:51

Weights at the gym for an hour. Arms n back. Wasatch hunerd training doesn't get any better than this.

Shambles! Caution! Eating at Buffalo Wild Wings prior to a run is like guzzling nitroglycerin and detonating it a mile in. I took some clients out to lunch today and they wanted BWW. While there they decided they needed to try almost every flavor of wing. Well, I got caught up in the moment and ate way more than I should have and about a mile into my run I had a rodeo commencing in my gut. I spent the next three miles in gastric distress and I was actually proud of myself for going 4.5 miles before exploding. I'll stop with the details here. 

View Benchmark solo:

Because of the UGE fire burning above Alpine I wasn't sure where I would run this morning. My plan was to get up early and take a look at the smoke and decide where I could run without inhaling gobs of smoke. VB was totally clear and the rest of the Wasatch looked pretty socked in, so it was an easy decision. 

I wasn't feeling great for the first few miles which I think was due to the heat and the Buffalo Wild Wings hangover. Slug! By time I hit the VB trail some good music hit the ipod and all of the sudden my tummy started feeling much better. Maybe I farted. I cruised up to the VB summit and checked out the views. Mostly I was looking at the fire that is out of control to the east. As soon as I heard about that fire I knew it was going to be bad. That area is steep and full of timber and there is almost no way to fight it without Mother Nature stepping in. Hopefully they can keep it from going North to the Alpine ridge and the Lone Peak Wilderness area.

Luckily there wasn't much smoke on top as there was a wind blowing north and most of it was hovering above the Wasatch range. I got into a good groove on my way down and just as I got to the bottom of the gradual hill I ran into three runners coming up, which is odd because we rarely see runners up there, so I stopped to chat with them. It was a guy and two girls training for the Kona TRI. We chatted for a few minutes and they were asking me where the trails go, so I offered to run them up to VB and they thought that was awesome, so I ran back up to the summit with them and they totally loved it. We chatted and checked out the views and then ran back down to the VB trailhead together. They were really cool.

Back on Ann's I finally started feeling really good and pushed the pace all the way back to the car. My Garmin hit 9 miles just as I came off Ann's trail and I finished in 1:38. I was happy I was able to get out of my funk. Happy 4th everyone. Be safe out there.

Dimple Dell gully with Jun and Brent:

Rain rain rain! We had planned on a run up to View Benchmark, but the rain made us change our plans. It rained on us the entire run, but we had fun and it felt nice to be out of the heat for a change. We kept a very decent pace the whole way and finished it off strong. I think we finished in just under 9:00 pace for the run with 600 feet of climbing.

View Benchmark solo:

After work and it was hot! I made pretty good time the first two miles and I stopped to fill my bottle at the drinking fountain at the trailhead at the top of the connector trail. I was so sweaty, but once on the VB trail the wind picked up and it kept me pretty cool all the way to the top. I wasn't wearing a watch, so I don't know what my time was to the top, but I would guess about 46ish minutes. I actually got chilled because of the wind, so I didn't stay long at all. On the way down I stopped to fill my bottle again and then had a nice cruise back to the car. 

Draper Trails/View Benchmark with Rob Bladen:

I had a really fun run this morning in Draper with my good friend Rob. We met at the Equestrian park at 6:30 am and started there. We hit the Gasline, Ghost Falls, Clarks and Ann's to the tunnel and then around the mountain to the connector trail to the VB trail. Rob got right to it and kept up a pretty good pace most of the run. At times I was sluggish and he had to wait, but I felt pretty good for several miles and after the connector we continued on up to View Benchmark. I was tired, but it felt good to keep pushing. 

We went back Via Ann's to the BST and then back to the trailhead. My legs did get fatigued the last few miles, but my energy was really good most of the way back and we kept a decent pace. Total time for the run was 2:56 (including all breaks).