Summit junkie!

View Benchmark double-up solo:

I needed some miles, so I hit VB via Ann's for a double. It was pretty hot, but I was feeling good when I started. After about a mile I got a stitch in my side that lasted until mile two and that slowed me some. I carried one handheld bottle, so I had to stop for water at the connector trailhead every time I passed. There is now a fence barrier that is in place at the Connector trailhead to keep people from taking the short cut to the VB trailhead. I jumped over it. I felt decent on the first summit and hit the top in 47 minutes. I only saw one dude on a bike and nobody else the rest of the way. I felt really good all the way down, but it was getting pretty hot. Back at the car I drank some Powerade, took some salt and had a gel and wiped all of the salt off of my face. It was a nice break. The first RT was 7.87 miles.

Summit #2

I felt pretty good all the way up again, but the heat was getting to me, so I slowed some. I also had to stop on my way up the connector trail to stretch out my left hammy that was getting tight, but overall I was feeling good. Up to the summit in 52 minutes. Slow, but I did take a few breaks on the way up, so not terrible.

On the way down I stopped to fill water and there were 4 bikers there that were surprised that I was able to get water out. This is the second time in the last week I have had to show people how to get water out of that fountain. It requires you to push the button for about 10 seconds before anything comes out. I took another gel and chatted with them for a few minutes and then ran it into the finish. My legs got heavy the last mile and I was glad I was done because it was really getting hot. Overall it was a fun day out there and I only saw a few people in 3 hours on the trail.

Today is going to be really busy, so I woke up at 5:00 am to hit the gym to lift. I put in a good 45 minutes and I was pretty worked. I think more old people go to the gym early and I have observed that they love to prance around the locker room completely naked. One dude even combed his hair at the mirror totally nude. All I wanted to do was wash my hands and now that horrific picture is seared into my brain. Sick!

View Benchmark solo:

I got up early to hit VB via Ann's because today I'm going to be slammed and it was the only time I could get out for a run. I arrived at the trailhead and there was a dude in a car already there (This is very rare. I never see other runners at this TH). I was wondering if it was Jsh, but it wasn't his car. I got ready to go and the dude got out of his car and started stretching. When I got out he started to run up the trail. I was about 100 yards behind him and I started off with a nice easy run to wake up. We wound in and around the first canyon and then I could still see him ahead of me when we went around the bend and started going into the second canyon. I never did see him turn the corner and head up the other side, so I started wondering where he was and I figured he was either going to the bathroom or waiting to strangle me. I never saw him again.

My pace was decent on the way up, but I was still too tired to be pushing anything hard. I hit the summit in 46 minutes and didn't even stop, I just turned around and ran back down. I stopped to fill my water at the Connector trailhead and then had a nice cruise back to the car. I didn't see anyone else up there today. Bring on the caffeine.

View Benchmark solo:

Life is crazy right now, so I have been forced to get up early in order to get in my training runs and since I have been getting to bed late I'm exhausted, so I shouldn't be surprised that my run today was horrible.

I started at Ann's trail and never could get into a groove the entire run. I won't get into specific details, but basically nothing seemed to go right and I slogged to the summit in a slow 51 minutes. The run down wasn't much better. I caught a slight groove the last few miles, but even that wasn't great.

Nalgene bottle shower at the car with a lady on the trail stopping to watch. Haha.

View Benchmark solo:

Yesterday my run up VB was horrible, but today was a totally different story. I got up early to run before work and hit the trail while it was still dark. It was a bit breezy, but the temps were perfect. I felt fantastic right from the start and my pace was much better than yesterday and I could tell it was going to be a good day. My legs felt fresh and I enjoyed every minute out there. I have noticed some changes just in the last few weeks up there and the Fall colors are definitely coming out, which seems a little early, but the yellows and reds are both coming in and it is a reminder that it is going to be cold in the mornings really soon.

I got up to the summit in 44:50 wich was 6 minutes faster than yesterday. I saw a couple of big bucks just below the summit (nice racks) and one of them stopped to stare at me for about 10 seconds. The air is finally nice again and the views were outstanding. I enjoyed the sunrise and took in the views that have been so hazy and smoky lately, but not today.

The run down was just as good and I actually ran it in strong all the way to the car. I felt so good at the finish and I was thinking that I wanted to keep running, but I just didn't have the time.

Draper trails- View Benchmark and sub peak solo:

I ran to the summit of VB via Ann's trail. I felt pretty good all the way up and enjoyed the run. I hit the summit in 46 minutes. I took a few minutes to stretch and check out the views and then I ran over and hit the sub peak as well. I ran back down to the connector trail where I stopped to fill up my water and then I decided to keep running, so I took the right fork on Ann's and kept running all the way to the tunnel. I took a quick break there to stretch and dump some rocks out of my shoes and then I had a nice cruise back to the car.

I felt really good all day out there and kept a pretty quick pace for most of the run.