Sometimes the mountain just needs to be put in its place. This is my story of a very rainy trail run on the Island of Maui and just how much fun misery can be… Our first week was spent relaxing at a familiar spot on Kauai. Well, Katie and Odie got to relax. I ended up having way too much work to do and spent more time indoors than I would have liked, but hey, it’s tough to complain when working in a place like Kauai. Keep Reading…
Last weekend I headed up to Golden and participated in the first running of the Sawmill Trail Races in White Ranch Open Space Park. It was a fun way to get some exercise in December while we continue to wait for the actual ski season to begin. Put on by the Human Potential Running Series, the Sawmill had been held as a “Fat Ass” run for the previous few years (“fat ass” here meaning a more laid back “fun run” style of race). Keep Reading…
Probably my biggest single goal for the summer was to run my first 50-mile trail race. Well it didn’t take long (three days into the summer to be exact) to fulfill that goal at the San Juan Solstice 50 in Lake City. Though a complete whirlwind, it was one heck of a day out there.
After securing a spot in the lottery in January I began ramping up the miles and vert throughout the winter and into spring ski season. Then it was on to the Dirty 30 in early-June, which is perfectly placed in the calendar as a “training race” being exactly three weeks ahead of the San Juan Solstice. A few more big days in the hills after the Dirty 30, including a run of the Barr Trail on Pikes Peak (which somehow was my first time up that route), and I finally felt “ready” to give the SJS a go. Keep reading…
On June 3rd I ran in the 9th annual Golden Gate Dirty 30 trail race. It was my second “ultra” race and one I could definitely see going back to run again in the future. The event is so well executed thanks to a crew of awesome volunteers and one very dedicated race director, it’s tough not to view it as one of the premier 50k races in Colorado if not the country.
Truth be told the Dirty 30 was intended to be a tune-up race for my first 50 miler at the end of the month – the San Juan Solstice in Lake City. The Dirty 30 is a tough course and a perfect lead-in to a mountainous 50 miler like the SJS. Snaking up through the hills of Golden Gate Canyon State Park near Blackhawk, the course racks up 7,300 ft of elevation gain over the 32 mile distance. Keep reading…