Catch Up!

Smiling ONLY because I'm finally at Sun Top -- the second major climb at the White River 50mi.

July 27-August 2. 15mi. 3 days.

Another week of library visits. Not much running. I actually felt OK on my three runs post White River, but I've pretty much decided that Wasatach is NOT a good choice for me at this point. The incentive to get out and run big miles wasn't really there.

July 20-26. 77 mi. 4 days.

My biggest week in 6-8 years. I made an eleventh hour decision to run The White River 50 Mile with a couple of friends -- literally decided on Friday morning -- and improved my 50mi PR by about 30 minutes. I didn't have quite as much left during that last 6 miles as I did 2 years ago, but I ran the second uphill much better this time around and feel like I paced it all out pretty darn well. Despite this 8:46.29 performance over 50 miles, I'm still feeling far from ready to run at Wasatch. Too many other things to accomplish in the next 5 weeks to prepare for that race properly it seems...

July 13-19. 44mi. 5 days.

Uhg. Kind of an uninspired week. 2 x 2900 ft (in about 3 miles) at Copper Glance Lake felt super hard. Nearly 10, 000 ft of climbing on the week though, and a pretty good amount the week before as well.

Twisp River 60k AND the TVR!

May 11-17. 63mi. 5 days.

A big week that consisted mostly of a BIG weekend. Given that I wasn't feeling all that great last week, I'm very pleased. The first 3 days were not unlike the previous seven: relaxed. However, on Saturday morning the week ramped up with The 11th Annual TVR Classic!

The Titus Contingent, 2009.

In this year's Winthrop installment, 11 contestants traveled almost 85 total miles on the Liberty Bell High School track. Personally, I ran 39 laps, 365 meters, which adds up to about 9.9 miles (or around 6:03 pace) for the 1 hour contest. Definitely, this was a little bit better than expected, but I think the easy week or so leading in was a major factor.

Preparing for the descent. A rest atop Lookout Mountain.

On Sunday DAY I slowed down considerably, but ran about 37 miles along a potential 60k course in the Twisp River/Lookout Mountain area west of Twisp. This Rainshadow Running coordinated event was, not unlike the TVR, a pretty good effort for me. We logged about 8:15 minutes of running time, and my legs still felt pretty darn good at the end of the run. Not time to linger over snacks etc. though. The "all day" run is not so convenient for the rest of the family back at home and I was anxious to be there myself.

Going forward... we shall see. I was pretty psyched by the way that I felt this week, and especially on the weekend. However, I am stepping in to the local high school art teaching position for the rest of the year (until June 11) and I know that it will seriously limit my running. Priorities are easy to level in this instance, so the longer running can roll again in June.

The Sun Mt. 50k

April 6-12 51mi. 5 days and one looong race.

Again, all's well that ends well. I patiently paced myself though 50k on Saturday, finished without crashing, and got out for a short run again on Tuesday. The two days off was over cautious (and subject to work schedules) even. 5:06ish and a 9th place finish for the first ever Sun Mountain 50k. James Varner and friends did an excellent job making last minute adjustments to pull this thing off. The course held up well on soft ground and was perhaps even more challenging than the original route. James estimated about 6000ft of climb, so it also qualifies as an excellent hill workout at this point in the spring :)

I'll hope to keep similar weekly totals between now and the Sunflower Rely on May 2nd. After that, maybe I'll finally get in a few long runs with my Wasatch cohorts.

Cle Elum Ridge Run: Take #4

Trailing the lead pack in the early climbs. Comfortable, and waiting...

Catch-up time - again! Not a lot of miles to record since my last post, a mid-30ish mile week, a mid-20ish mile week, and a couple of 40+ mile weeks including the Cle Elum Ridge 50K on Sept 13th.

It was the fourth time I've run that course - the sight of my first ultra as well - and I was feeling pretty capable of a 5hr type performance. In each of the last three runnings I've bonked pretty hard at some point or another. In 1998 I didn't know what the heck I was doing, and thusly the last 10 miles were humbling. In 1999, the fade hit me in the last 3 miles -- where I was subsequently passed by two folks in the last mile -- and finished 3rd the hard way. 2004 I was not running all that much so I took a more conservative approach to the whole race...

This year, given more experience and decent training - if not as youthful "spring" in my legs - I figured that I could run a similar, but more complete race than the 1999 version. It went pretty well.

I settled in to about 5th place early on, but during 4 bathroom stops between miles 4 and 12 I lost sight/touch of the others in that initial group. The eventual winner went by as well during one of those respites and I followed him up a few small hills before dashing into the woods again.

If you've looked at the course profile, you'll know that the major climbing takes place before mile 16. Its ALL downhill to 21.5 and then a roller coaster (with several creek crossings) to the finish. I tried to save something so that I could run the last 9 miles with more success than in previous years.

The creek crossing just before mile 21.5. A little wobbly at this point.

A short bad patch between about 18 and 21.5 because there was no water available between 12 and 21.5. It was warmer than usual and I had drained my two bottles on the climb from 12 to 16. Thankfully, I recovered a not-on-the-verge-of-cramping stride again shortly after the 21.5 mi. aid station, and was able to ramp things back up to cruising speed through the final 9 - the feeling I had hoped for at that point.

It also helped immensly that I caught the 3rd place runner with about 4 miles to go. He was obviously feeling slightly worse than I, and it was a good motivator to push myself over the last part of the course. Without a brief glimpse of him going around a corner, I'd have been pretty content where I was and probably coasted to the finish. Good feelings as well, because in 1999 I got caught on this part of the course. Nice to turn the tables even though the personnel were slightly different :)

In any case, it WAS fun as well. Friend Mike Fitzpatrick also ran - despite my late invitation - and did and admirable job in finishing something like 27th - about 6:14 I think. He was worried enough about finishing that he wanted to start in the early wave (1 hr before). For better or worse, I convinced him that he'd do fine, and have more company, if he started with the rest of us. Indeed. He ran a great race!

June 20th - August 3rd

Not to worry, I'm not going to log every mile! Seriously inadequate blogging however... no excuses. During this "phase" of the summer, there HAS been some running, some road tripping, and at least one trail race of the Minnesota variety. A weekly mileage breakdown, and then some highlights.

June 16-22: 54mi

June 23-29: 21mi
My pre-afton taper began, plus the drive to minnesota, plus a mid-vacation surprise flight back to portland for family emergency...

June 30-July 6: 46mi
An excellent run or two around Lake Harriet in Minneapolis, and a 5th place finish at the Afton Alps 50k: 4:19.19. The race felt good, and I swear that I was holding back for the entire first lap. Nonetheless, I still came through in about 1:56 -- faster than I should have -- and the heat plus the lack of adequate 3+ hour runs definitely caught up to me on lap two. Felt like I held things together alright, but I didn't do a very good job of "racing" with the few people that did catch and pass me on the second lap. A fun course with lots of great support. Well organized to boot!

July 7-13: 16mi
Some definite post-race let down. Easy does it!

July 14-20: 38mi
Feeling better this week. 4 days of running, AND I got into the woods again for 4:32 minutes (about 20mi) on a trail near Leavenworth, WA. I ran to the lakes pictured below...


While this is NOT my photo (nor is that me in the photo) this IS Lake Viviane, the pinnacle of my run, and the first of the Enchantment Lakes in the Icicle Creek Wilderness area. The run itself, the entire day in fact, was about as perfect as could be. I did a booksigning at A Book for All Seasons in Leavenworth from 1-3pm, hit the trails by 4, and then squeezed in a 9:30pm showing of the new Batman movie just after showering and throwing down some food :) I was so jazzed up that I had a hard time falling asleep when the movie was over... at 12:30 in the morning.

July 21-27: 28mi
A shorter, 11mi trail run over Cutthroat Pass was the highlight of the week. Also several dips in the river, but its really been too cold for that of late. Hotter next week. Good for river dipping. Bagged on the White River 50mi this year. Maybe next.

July 28-August 3: 37mi.
Back in a respectable mileage zone again. I'll try to keep it between here and 50+ for the next 6 weeks. I might do the Cle Elum Ridge Run on Sept. 13th, but I'd also just be happy with a 4-6 hour run on some trails every other week. Nothing too long in this set, but I did run 5 days, with 3 runs in the 9-10mi range.

Uhm... An Update!

A June 10th snowfall blanketed nearby mountain peaks. Yes indeed! The heat will be here soon enough...

June 2nd- 19th: Up and down with the training...so it has gone. A 30ish mile week and then a 50ish mile week. I've run when it made sense and I DID finally get my book art off and in the mail. Hooray! The most recent 7 day stretch has been my very best of the year - I think. 86 miles in the last 7 days, including a 22mi 4.5 hour trail run on Thursday morning/afternoon. Even better, I had already logged 2.5 hours (16mi) and about 3900ft of climbing on Tuesday morning. The recipe for now is rest. Following are some highlights.

June 19

20-22mi. 4:28. Parked at W. Buttermilk snowpark up the Twisp River Road. Used trail no. 440 to follow the Twisp River NW to War Creek and then eventually Slate Creek Trail Head. This 6+mi stretch along the river is fantastic. Great undulating trails amidst the shady trees. Entirely runnable, but nicely rolling. At this point, the Slate Creek Trail heads up! For 1.5 hours I mostly hiked, with a little bit o' running. I never did reach Slate Lake, but I was very close. A little too much snow to deal with in the final shady stretch. Plus I was getting tired and ready to turn. Felt strong on the decent, and the new Montrail Streaks are working well. Stable and roomy enough on the steep downhill. Always a good test. Especially when wet. Which mine were. 4 x H20. 1xcliffbar. 1xCB. 2xGu. 2xsalt. (ST)

June 18

7mi. 57min. Power's Plunge to Black Bear and home. A cruise with some climbs. Felt better than anticipated after Tuesday's run. (ST) BIKE 30min to town with K.

June 17

14-16mi. 2:24. Big climbing today as I waited for some car repairs in Twisp. From town, I ran the Lookout mountain road to the abandonded fire tower. 3900ft of elevation gain in my 1:28 effort to the top. My distance estimate is a "best guess" given the much quicker decent. Running hard the entire way back down still took 50+ minutes. Still, its likely closer to 14. A little short on water today. Not iodine. 2xH20. 2xgu (ST)

June 15

15-16mi. 2:30ish. Wolf Creek Trail plus some additional with Brian. Added on to the end after an abriviated trip on the trail. Brain was feeling tired today. (ST)

June 16

THE TITUS VAN RIJN 2008 - THE WINTHROP ADDITION

The afterglow of an excellent Titus!
From left to right: Erik Brooks, Annie Filer, Molly Filer, Carol Filer, Taylor Woodruff, Dawn Woodruff, Chris ?, Sarah Brooks. Not pictured: John Roth, Lyn Roth, Keeley Brooks

9.63mi. One Hour. Plus I ran a mile to warm up so... I get to log 10.5 miles for the day!

All totalled, 11 local paticipants logged 76, 733m or 47.68 miles. The morning was near perfect, with 8:40ish AM starting temps in the low 60's. It heated up just a bit this was not at all a factor.

Of special note for this year's race: 3 TVR newbies participated. Among them, 13 yr old Taylor Woodruff. Taylor, with early teen guts and determination on his side, rallied to his 7.15mi (11500m) performance after only one hour of sleep. He only slept for an hour, because a wolf scat/pawprint expedition with his dad and older brother turned into a sleep-in-your-clothes-by-the-fire-on-top-of-a-mountain adventure. It is up for debate as to whether or not Taylor's dad had planned to camp out ahead of time, but there was not tent and no sleeping bag. This is a fact. Still, Taylor showed up not-so-bright-eyed and ran in his first-ever TVR. Apparently, this is also the first time that Taylor has ever run more than 3 miles in a stretch. Give that boy another black cherry soda! Congrats Taylor!!

In the saddle

May 26-June 1: 55mi. 5 runs. Back on track and feeling better. Not so much sleep for tonight however, as I finish the last of my current illustration work. You can't win 'em all. The 3 hr barrier was a decent goal achieved this week. Also very happy to have run at least three days with lots of hills. A similar range, to perhaps 60mi next week. Hopefully a 4+ hour run for next weekend.

June 1

18-20mi. 3:10. Ran from home to the Wolf Creek Trail. About 35 minutes of climbing at the start and then a nice rolling, gradually uphill trail until turning back near Hubbard Creek. North Fork Wolf Creek was running cold and fast. Very crossable, but also wet :) Speaking of which, it rained a LOT today. I missed out on most of it during the run. Just some spit. The trail/woods were still relatively sopping from the rain last night. Not something we talk about too much in this part of the cascades, so I'll save that soaking feeling for the parched days in August and September. 1xc.b. 2xgu. 3xH2O. (casIII)

May 31

HIKE: A great 2hr, late afternoon hike with S on Patterson Mt.

May 30

12mi, 2:09: Up onto Lucky Jim Bluff as accessed from community ski trail southwest of Brown's Farm. Ran from home/FS 800 for about 50min before the powerwalk climb to the near top o' the bluff. Great views and a fine spot for a snack before turning around. 1 x c.b. 1xgu. 2xH2O. (casIII)

A good indication of the bluff's edge, and of the much flatter valley bottom heading northeast to Mazama.

An excellent craggy snag near my snacking spot.

Hawk Hunted!

May 5-11: 5 days. 48mi. Most of this week's mileage was accomplished via back-to-back medium-long runs on Sat. & Sun. In each instance, I ran for just over 2 hours on hilly terrain. On Sunday's faster effort, I used a single powergel and a PBJ sandwich for fuel, in addition to 2 x H20 bottles - one of those being 1/2 lemonade. Fine combinations all around, but it still isn't hot and I wasn't really out there for all that long. I also took 1-2 s-caps on each run... Next week I'll step up the mileage into the mid-upper 50's and see what that feels like. Need to do a tempo run and perhaps another LSD in the 18-20mi+ range. Also, BIKED 4.5 hrs this week. Most of it with K in tow.

Highlight of the week: The attack by a Northern Goshawk on Friday afternoon. The scene of the battle was a short section of trail less than 10 mintues from home. I won't be going back until fall... These birds are VERY protective of their nesting sites! On it's first pass, it knocked me in the back of the head. I reacted to the blind-sided flutter and sqwaking too late, and hit the ground only after being 'thwacked'. I basically sprinted the next 200m of winding trail, avoiding dives 2-3 by repeatedly throwing myself on the ground. Scary stuff from a 2-3 lb bird!

Photo Shoot 2007

Last April, a friend of mine, MacLeod Pappidas, was asked to submit some photos for an article in Trail Runner Magazine. Unfortunatley, the job never quite came to pass, but we did spend a fine spring morning running around - at times looking just a bit too serious!

We hiked up Patterson Mountain at about 5am. From surrounding peaks and vistas, you do get at least some sense for our Methow Valley home turf. Enjoy!

En Mass

Less consistant recording of the running as things have gotten busier and time more compressed. So it goes. If I get my rear out the door for 11-12 miles today, then I will have succeeded in getting back to 50mi+ for the last two weeks -- three cheers! Three extra cheers for the fact that major training for Wasatch is coming to a close. I've never achieved BIG weekly mileage, but I have run a lot more than in the previous 4 years, done more 2-6 hour runs than ever before, and gotten to the point where a 30 mile run feels pretty darn nice. I also took some fine photos in the last two weeks, some of which I will be adding below...

August 18

6mi, 40:24: A quick and easy. I haven't run this "fast" in a little while and I'm happy to feel some snap in the legs this soon after Thursday's 30mi. It took 3 weeks, but I think that I've finally recovered from White River. (a5)

August 16

30mi, 5:52: A gorgeous long run over Twisp Pass to Dagger Lake. A sharp turn near the PCT junction and up Macalester Creek to High Camp. Awesome views of Macalester Peak and also a lot of the smoke from the Domke Lake fire on Lake Chelan. Up to South Pass and then down the South Creek drainage to complete the loop. Really felt good. 2x Clip II mixes in my water plus an assortment of Cliff Blocks, Bars and pb n' j. (cas II)

Dan, mugging for some breakfast burrito sponsorship at Twisp Pass.

Perhaps the best "happy runner" photo that I have taken this summer. High Camp.

Also a fine shot!

August 13

2mi running, 8 mi HIKE, indeterminute time... A small bit of running in addition to about 8 miles of hiking with Keeley and my mom on Monday night/Tuesday morning. Carrying a 4 year old on shoulders in addition to my 40+ lb pack also seemed training log worthy. (cas II)


Week: 52 miles. 5 days of running. 7 library visits. 350+ miles of driving... A busy week again on the road, but two really nice longer runs as well. August 8th I ran about 3hrs up into the Snowy Lakes area near Leavenworth, WA. This involved climbing 4000ft in about 6.5 miles. Tough! I almost made it to the Enchantment Lakes region and I will definitely have to go back for that sometime. An almost perfect late afternoon run :) On Saturday, August 11, I ran 4hrs plus -- Up over Cutthroat Pass enroute to Methow Pass and then back again. About 23 miles as best as I can figure. Again, excellent! Not really hot at all, in fact I wore light gloves for the entire run. Small twinges of pain in my right heel were a little bit bothersome (Plantar fascitis?...) but that has been a non-issue since. (v & a5)

An unnamed lake (on my map anyway) enroute on my afternoon run south of Leavenworth. A sometimes rocky and challenging trail with lots of climbing.

The best self portait to date...

Snow Lake in the Alpine Lake Wilderness Area.

Near Granite Pass on the Cutthroat/Methow Pass run. That should be 8970 ft. Black Peak in the background, and YES I am wearing the same shirt that I wore 3 days earlier... testing for Wasatch of course!

White River Photos

Near the aid station at Corral Pass, 16.9mi.
© 2007, Glenn Tachiyama

Decidedly more tired and beestung at Sun Top, 37mi.
© 2007, Glenn Tachiyama

Finally finished, and pretty satisfied with whatever that watch says!
© 2007, John Wallace III

July 16-29

Weeks: 6 days. 97 mi. Not a lot of days spent running during this 2 week stretch, but I took a 2000+ mile road trip/vacation, tapered a bit, and nursed a nagging hip flexor injury so that I could race twice. By some certain grace, the hip pain is gone despite running the Tahoe Rim Trail 50k on July 21 and the White River 50mi on July 28th...

July 28: White River 50mi. 8700ft elevation gain. 9:18.38. 35th place. I reserved judgement on running this race until the day prior. On the heels of Tahoe, it seemed like a good training run for Wasatach, but I developed a cold AND I was a little uncertain about the recovery of my legs etc.. All turned out OK. A conservative first climb answered most questions about my fitness and I was anxious to push a little harder by our turn around at the second aide station (around 3hrs). All day, running downhill was the roughest on my recovering legs. Adding insult to subtle unstableness, I was stung by a yellowjacket smack on my lower lip near the 4:30/25mi mark!

Note the swollen lower lip!

I was only about 15-20 min from the next aide station when this happened, so I was able to get a Benedril and to spend about 5-8 minutes monitoring for any more serious reactions. It had been a long while since I was last stung.

I moved on from this point with hyper-awareness of my breathing etc. for about the next hour. At the Fawn Ridge aide station I took some ice and held it to my lip for the first 10 minutes of the hike/run to Sun Top. Around the 6 hour mark, I was feeling pretty beat, but somewhere around mile 40 (halfway down from our second "summit" at Sun Top aide station) I got a second wind. The sting was no longer a worry and I was also excited to be thinking about single digits again!

The last 10 miles felt really good. I regained some ground that was lost by my daylong pedestrian pace on the downhills, and passed 8-10 people in this final stretch. Calorie management experiments on the day were also a decent success with a combination of Hammer Gels, Gu, Gu20, Cliff Bars, Cliff Blocks, PBJ's and the Succeed Clip II drinks which I started at around 3 hours. A reminder: Hammer Gels seemed a little less sweet than GU. Gu2O was tasting GREAT in the final 6 miles, and the Succeed was MUCH better when adding some ice. It was otherwise bearable, and didn't give me any stomach problems -- although this was only a 9 hour effort. I'll be going slower and eating more real food early on I hope at Wasatch...

July 21: Tahoe Rim Trail 50k. 6895ft elevation gain. 5:20.51. 5th place. Pretty clear right from the start that I wasn't going out with the leaders. I settled in to what looked like 5th-8th place (uncertain about the mix of 50k/50milers ahead of me) and tried to find a pace that would agree with the altitude. 20 miles of the race were run above 8000ft and I was definitely NOT used to that. I intended to push myself, but also wanted a solid 30+ mile run at some altitude more than anything else.

Minor discomforts aside, said altitude provided AMAZING views of Lake Tahoe from both Marlette Peak and Snow Valley. It was far and away the most scenic 5ok that I have ever done.

I ran mostly by myself amidst a sea of 100 milers that had started 1 hour prior and shared the first 18 miles of our course. This was especially fun on the Red House Loop as we chatted some and shared in similar misery on the sandy climb out of the loop. In that last 1o-12 miles I was very aware that the eventual women's winner was just behind, and this definitely spurred me on in the final miles. Despite many electrolyte caps, I fought cramping in my upper quads the final 8 miles. Still, any real biting cramps were held off until after the finish. I will certainly use these caps in all future runs/races of 2hrs plus... Where have you been in the marathon race plans!!?

Not a great, full service-report, I know, but I should get to work on other things. Below is a shot of fellow Carleton College friends (92'-95') and race participants. Fellahs reuniounaj NO. 9 is done and gone. See you in Minnesota for 2008!

A nice long run!

Week: 54 mi. Not quite the "60 in 6 days" that I had mentioned previously, but I did finally log a solid long run. Read Thursday's entry for better details, but suffice it to say that 29 of this week's 54 miles were logged on that day. Kind of the point I guess!

June 24

8mi, 54+min: "SPEED" Felt much better today. So much so that I decided to up the pace for a while. Push a little bit on tired legs if you will. 5 minutes of tempo uphill followed by 12 additional minutes after turning back down. At least 2.5 mi at a good threshhold clip. Some easy running to start and to finish up. (ax)

June 23

4mi, 30:21: Recovery running still. Got the legs moving and I felt better than yesterday. (ax)

June 22

3mi, 26:19: As pace would indicate, this was an easy run that wasn't. Still, good to do. A brief cruise around Repbublic, WA as I prepared for my first library visit of the NCRL system's summer reading program. (ax)

June 21
29mi, 5:37.15: A summer solstice run, and a fine one at that! Ran from Billygoat Trailhead to Cougar Lake with Wasatch compatriot Dan Kuperberg. About 5000 feet of climbing with a very nice mix of runnable terrain. Great country. Especially views from Lucky Pass, on this surprisingly snow-free route into the Pasayten Wilderness area.

I was certainly feeling it once we passed the 4 hour mark, but all-in-all a very good run. The down's are harder on me than the ups in most cases. Not too sure what to do about that except to keep running them and to get used to the jarringness -- if that were an actual word. (cas) A few pics for posterity:

Dan, just beyond Lucky Pass with Rampart Ridge in the background.

We staged these two action"shots for appropriate effect!

June 19

3mi, 23:44: An easy run to make sure that I get in 6 days o' running this week... (a5)

June 18

7mi, 54:30: Easy distance. Home to townish on the Winthrop Trail. On advice of my brother-in-law, I'm trying to slow up a little on these maitenance runs. Not too successful as yet, but we'll keep trying. (ax)

Wolf Creek trail to Gardner Meadows

June 15

4mi, 31:20: A nice easy run on the heels of a long school visit/bookstore visit day in Arlington, WA. A good chance to stretch the legs before the 3hr drive home. (ax)

June 14

20mi, 3:36.21: LSD with Dan and Max. A really nice run on the Wolf Creek Trail up to Gardner Meadows. A near perfect afternoon in the low 70's. 3400ft of elevation gain. Some great views of Abernathy Ridge from the Meadows area.

Dan, Max, and I at the turn around in Gardner Meadows. Even better views that I did not capture, and an amazing array of weathered wood. A fire about 8 years prior burned this area nearly ridge to ridge.

Max, unfortunately, was pushed just a little bit past his comfort zone. The poor dog was REALLY tired after about 2 hours, but defined doggedness and persisted as best he could. Not a lot of activity from him in the two days since however :) (cas II)

June 13

7mi, 50:41: After dinner mint. A post-dinner ramble down Wolf Creek Road. Felt surprisingly good. Two days off will do that, I suppose. (brn)

So begins the June

Week: 53mi. 6 Days running - FINALLY! A good long run, some speed/strength of sorts on the track, AND the heat has arrived. I'm a little tired and have lots of painting to do in the weeks ahead, but the running is going well. Will try to log another 3+ hr run this week and aim for a hill workout in lieu of any 6 min pace runnings. Ciao...

June 3

6mi, 47:43: Easy D. Not too far, but a fine cap to the week. Kicking off June with 50+. Hope I can keep it going. (ax) BIKE as well today. 1hr+ in AM with S&K. Another 50min later in the day enroute to my MVN board meeting. X-training this week as well!

June 2 -- 100 Days to Wasatach...
10mi, 1:05: TITUS VAN RIJN. "Race", speedwork, strength, etc... 15, 210m (9.45mi) in 60 minutes o' running. Pushed a little for the fist 3 mi -- 6:12, 5:59, 6:05, but after letting up for a lap, I never quite found the sub-6:15 drive again. Ran solid for the end of my longest week of the year. Joined as well by a lovely group of participants here in Winthrop, WA this year. Black Cherry Soda and watermelon were enjoyed by all at the 9:30am finish. With temps headed into the mid 90's, we tried to get it started on the earlyish side. (racer st)

TVR 2007 participants from Winthrop, WA. 192.5 laps. 77065m. 47.886 miles!

June 1

4mi, 30min: Easy in the evening. A run down the road behind our house. After dinner with food in the belly. Not a great feeling, but a fine easy run. (brn)

Flip it! Another weekly summary.

Week: 41 miles. Two big accomplishments -- a good long run of 2:5o AND I brought my camera along for fun! A little silly perhaps, but the views are good and the sunflowers are starting to bloom. More pics to be posted as the training continues.

Arrowleaf balsmroot - the local sunflower - on south shore of Patterson Lake. Cabin Creek Trail.

Wasatch realization o' the week: 20 of the last 40 minutes in this week's long run were spent bouncing down some single track amist the bitterbrush. The jarring palpable. The legs begging for flatter ground. I might have decended 1200ft. The last 5mi in Utah will drop about 3000ft... after 95 previous miles of joy and lord know how many hours of running :)

Mt. Gardner in the distance. Patterson Lake below.

April 28

18mi, 2:50.11: LONG I'm calling it 18. I have no real idea except that I didn't walk very much and I ran the downhills pretty quick. Black Bear spur from Wolf Creek. Lower Fox to Aqua Loop and a random exploration of abandonded F.S. 5386. Too many dead trees to pick around, but found the end. Little Wolf to Thompson Ridge. Rader Creek. South/North Patterson loop and Power's Plunge to home. Solid run. Legs tired coming down from Patterson, but felt fine again on the flats to home. (cas II)

PS Somehow already blowing out the sides of these Brooks Cascadia IIs. Not so preferable for a "trail" shoe with only 120 miles on it thus far...

Fork in the trail on Patterson Mountain. Downhill from here...

Post run chicken enchilladas AND a super delux reverse hug.

April 27

7+, 51:14: For the life of me I can't remember where I ran... must have been great! (brn)

April 26

6mi, 41:15: A good easy run. W.C. Road to Merle's Trail. Good to slow down after yesterdays "race" down the Winthrop Trail. (cas II)

April 24

10mi, 1:15.24: Up-tempo. Good speed on the downhills! Black Bear spur to Kraule Trail. Lakeside to the Winthrop trail and then to pick up K in town. A great new route with good loop potential from the front door! (cas II)