Course test numero uno...

Unfortunately, many people do not consider fun an important item on their daily agenda. For me, that was always high priority in whatever I was doing. ~ Chuck Yeager

Yesterday: nada
Today: Run - Leadville course, ~30 miles
Tomorrow: Bunny cages, COHRS, 3 hours

05:45 - I have been up for about 1/2 hour and am gathering my stuff to head up to the course to run roughly the first 21 miles of the course and then back to Leadville. I'll be doing some food tests, getting a feel for this portion of the course and seeing how well things are going in general. I'll provide an update later today.

17:45 - 12 hours later... I am home and showered. The jury is still out on what to think of that effort. The following is a full report:

I arrived in Leadville about 8:15 and, after using the second filthiest restroom in Scotland, donned my gear and started running about 8:30. It was a gorgeous day and already warm when I set out but I brought along some ballast for the hell of it (jacket, cell phone, etc.). Note to self, bring the bare minimum during the race. Let's just say that my pack was pretty heavy.

I followed the course with relative ease to Turquoise Lake and around to May Queen Campground, the site of the first checkpoint during the race. I arrived a little early, about 2 hours in, giving me a somewhat speedy 10-minute mile pace. I ran the majority of this section and believe that come race day, I'll want to back off a great deal.

I filled my water bladder at the available faucets, took a brief rest stop, and headed out to hit the Colorado/Continental Divide Trail just outside the May Queen limits. At this point, I wasn't feeling horrible but definitely wasn't feeling great. I had been eating fairly well but feel that I actually may have been drinking too much during this first leg. Hard to tell but my stomach had a sloshy feeling that was a little disconcerting.

The Continental Divide Trail gains a fair amount of altitude quickly - deceptively so. By now, I was starting to run/walk cycle and was definitely walking any uphill sections. I have had a recurring issue with muscle pain in my middle back and it was back with a vengeance along with some serious hamstring tightness/soreness in my right leg. I'll have to ask Shirley about that on Monday.

I finally made it to the Hagerman Pass Road (supposedly a mile but it seemed much longer) and headed west up this gradual climb. Normally, I would run something of this grade but opted for a run/walk mix to the Sugarloaf Pass cutoff. The north side of Sugarloaf (whatever side I was ascending) was actually much more tame than I expected and I made the summit without even realizing it. The back side, however, is another story. This was rough going on the descent and I do not relish the thought of having to climb back up after roughly 80 miles. It is loose, trenched-out and quite steep in spots. I'll be hitting this at night as well (unless something goes particularly awry). It seems longer than the front side too. Bonus.

I actually still felt okay when I hit the pavement at the bottom of Sugarloaf (~22.5 miles in) and deviated from the course to complete my loop back to Leadville. During the race, I'll bang a right and run along this road about 1 mile to the Fish Hatchery aid station. Today, I went left to complete the loop around the lake. This is where I started feeling quite poorly.

It was definitely warm and running on pavement is neither my forte or my preference but I suddenly felt like hell. I kept up my run/walk cycles, tried to choke down food and liquids and keep moving. the 1.3 miles back past the golf course felt like an eternity and the .8 back north to rejoin the race course was worse. My back was killing me, I was having problems running. Not so good.

I rejoined the course at about the 4.5-mile mark and headed east. I was just trying to keep up the run/walk action but found myself stopping from time to time to try to stretch out my back. My hamstring was feeling a bit better at this point but I was still unable to sustain any semblance of a run as I headed back up the Boulevard and back to Leadville. I had hoped to be able to run the last mile back to my car but only managed to run about half of this section and made it back to the car in just under 6 hours and ~29.1 miles. Hmmm.

So my goals have not really changed: Primary - finish in under 30 hours, secondary - sub 27, tertiary - sub 24. I managed roughly a 12-minute pace for today but am a little concerned about how to keep this up for about 3.5 times the amount of mileage. Given, I don't really have to but based on how I felt today, I am not encouraged. I think I'll be fine, just a little troublesome.

They say there is no such thing as a bad run and even given today's trials and tribulations, I have to agree. I got out for 6 hours, familiarized myself with the course, got up to altitude, experimented with food and whatnot and learned some more about pacing and how my bod reacts to this type of pressure. Good times.

I took a couple of shots during the run which I will try to post later. (View the full album here.) Right now, I am going to put my feet up for a bit and relax.

See you out there.

~stubert

Thursday (I think)...

Your prayers stink. ~ Michael Roach

Yesterday: Night Run - The Beav, 1 hour
Today: Hike, Coyote Trail, 1.5 hours
Tomorrow: Ride, Casa del Critters, 1.5 hours

Man, talk about busy. I have been swamped this week with more to come. Better too busy than not.

Last night I did a solo run down my street. I didn't feel so hot but it was nice to get out for a bit... even in the dark. I definitely need to do this a bit more to get used to keeping a steady pace. I felt great on the way down but once I turned around, felt worse and worse. They say there is no such thing as a bad run and this, I have come to believe is true. You learn something every time out.

Today, Rach and I went for a hike in Golden Gate Canyon State Park. It was a beautiful night to be out: birds singing, cool temperatures. We hiked up to the old homestead and then back the same way. This is definitely a favorite trail... not great for running but an awesome hike.

Tomorrow, I have work stuff to do in the morning and then plan to go for a ride. Saturday, however is another story as I plan to either run High Lonesome or head to Leadville and run the route over Sugarloaf. Any takers?

Movie moment: Last night, we watched Hoot. Not so good. Carl Hiaasen is one of my favorites and the book was fun in a kid's book kind of way but the movie left much to be desired. I'd skip it.

~stubert

Edit: Ooh! I totally forgot to mention this. Rach and I had to head to Boulder on Wednesday to pick up her car and we saw three moose cavorting in a pond near our house. I had heard that moose had been spotted in the area but had not seen any to date. There were a bunch of people pulled over to watch the trio swim and splash in the small pond just off the Peak to Peak (Kelly Dahl, I believe). Rach loves to watch animals drink and was treated to some serious guzzling action as the moose dunked their heads completely under water to drink. Pretty cool!

Just a tiny bit lost...

The clearest way to the Universe is through a forest wilderness. ~ John Muir

Yesterday: Run, Raccoon Popsicle, 2 hours
Today: Off (workin')
Tomorrow: Run, ???, 3 hours

Man, I am swamped. This is a good thing for sure but I am way busier than I thought I would be at this juncture. Things are going well.

Yesterday, I made the mistake of going for an exploratory run prior to a conference call. What I thought would be an hour and a half quickly turned into two as I got lost on the trails around my house. I used to run and ride up here all the time but it has been awhile since I navigated these particular trails. There is a huge network of trails in this area, most of which are old mining roads. They criss-cross the landscape indiscriminately and taking the wrong one is fairly easy to accomplish.

I ran at a steady pace from my house up to Golden Gate Canyon State Park where I spun a lap on Raccoon Trail. It was warm for up here - upper 80s - but I felt fine as I ran the first hour or so. I had a little time to burn and decided to take an alternate route home. I quickly got a bit lost and found myself having to backtrack then do a heinous poach through someone's back yard to get back home in time for my call. Plus, I had to run a lot faster on the way back than I planned but made it with a few minutes to spare. Good stuff.

Today was spent working and attending meetings. It was good to take a day off and to set things up for work over the coming weeks. Tomorrow's plan is a bit up in the air right now but I'll be out there and so should you. Tell your boss I said it was okay to take the day off.

~stubert.

Front Range Five...

The person who doesn't scatter the morning dew will not comb gray hairs. ~ Hunter S. Thompson

Yesterday: Run - Front Range Five, 5 hours
Today: Ride - Casa del Critters, 1 hour
Tomorrow: Run

Yesterday was a blast. My alarm went off at 3:45, rousing me to start what would be a long but fruitful day. Luke and I met at the Sanitas trailhead at 5, gathered our things and headed up what would be the first of five summits that day. Our goal had more to do with refining technique and honing our endurance than setting any speed records and we moved at a modest pace through the Sanitas Valley in the early daybreak. Mule deer dotted both sides of the well-traveled path as we moved up above Dakota Ridge and watched the sun rise over the eastern plains. We summited roughly on schedule and quickly descended via the western trail back to our cars where we grabbed our packs and headed south toward Flagstaff, peak two. (Sanitas summit was not documented with photos.)

As the sun began its rise higher in the east, we moved past the red rock formations that make up Boulder's west side and down into Eben G. Fine park. We were moving smoothly, though it was not even 6:00 and quickly made our way up the Flagstaff trail. After a brief stop at the Filthiest Bathroom in Scotland (what is wrong with people?), we continued our climb upward and summited Flagstaff Mountain shortly thereafter. Peak two down, three to go.

We traveled around the western side of Flagstaff and to the Ranger Trail trailhead where we began our ascent of Green Mountain. Green features an interesting, steady climb interspersed with steeper staircase sections that can really test your fitness. Fortunately, our goal today was not to push the fitness levels per se but to keep a steady pace throughout our effort so we hiked most of Green. We started to see heavier traffic on our ascent and were met by several short-range runners who were clearly very fit. It is not uncommon to see World class athletes training on the trails and roads around Boulder county. There are some really strong athletes in this area but we were also greeted by several groups of people who were not elite competitors out for an early morning hike. Some people's commitment to the outdoors makes up for the neglect of others (see paragraph 2). We summited Green on schedule, stayed a few minutes to enjoy the view, then started back down to the saddle where we would tackle Bear Peak. Two more to go.

To get to the Bear Peak trail, one descends from the saddle of Green to the south for about 15 minutes (max). This is one of my favorite places in the Flatirons. This portion of the trail system doesn't see a lot of traffic and features rolling trails through pine forests that then dump out to beautiful green meadows and a small stream across which the trail meanders. Luke and I ran quickly down this section to the Bear peak trail where we turned back south and headed uphill for the toughest climb of the day. The top third of Bear features a more exposed, alpine-style summit than any of the other peaks we would stand atop this day. We met a few other hiker/runners at the top of Bear and enjoyed the views of both the front and back ranges from the top of Bear. If you have not made the effort to summit this peak, I highly recommend it. And then there was one.

South Boulder peak is the tallest of the peaks we would climb on this day though its summit is less interesting than Bear. We wound our way down the west side of Bear to the saddle between the two peaks. From this junction (where Shadow Canyon trail meets the one on which we traveled), we continued upward to the South Boulder Peak summit. Mission accomplished. We returned to Shadow Canyon trail and quickly descended past a surprisingly large number of hikers to Mesa Trail, headed north briefly to Big Blue Stem and down to the South Mesa Trail trailhead where we were met by Megan to shuttle us back to our cars at Sanitas. Five hours on the nose.

View the full album here.

The remainder of the day was spent working and napping then I met up with a good chunk of the crew at Megan's parents' house in Gold Hill for a bar-b-que. When I got home, I helped Rach scrape wax out of Rock Shot's ears. Good times.

Today I plan to go for a short ride (better get on that) and tomorrow, it looks like I have scheduled the day off. I was planning to do some back-to-back long runs but may just stick with alternating running and riding from here on out to avoid any injuries. I think I will be bagging the super-long run as well and will opt for a 40-miler as my longest run prior to Leadville.

Movie time: Last night I actually watched a movie as well. Go figure. The Yes Men is a documentary that follows the exploits of a group of satirists who find themselves in the unlikely position of representing the WTO at a number of conferences and news events. I found the most interesting piece of the film to be the reactions (or lack thereof) they received from those entrenched in the business world. Only the college students to whom they lectured in one scene called them on any of their bs. Very interesting how people conform and accept that which is clearly wrong when their livelihood is on the line. I can't say that I haven't been guilty of this as well and this film was a clear illustration of the corruptive effect the desire to keep one's job/please one's boss/not look stupid in front of one's contemporaries can be. It would benefit us all to retain some of that college-age mentality from time to time.

Fight the good fight.

~stubert

LIfe in the mountains...

Summertime, summertime, sum, sum, summertime. ~ The Jamies

Yesterday: Run - Habitrail, 1 hour 20 minutes
Today: Singlespeed ride - Casa del Critters, 1 hour
Tomorrow: Run - Front Range Five, 5 hours

Have I mentioned recently how much I enjoy living up here? Summer is upon us... more so in some places than others. While it swelters in the valley, up in the mountains we are treated with near perfect conditions. Cool nights, warm, but tolerable days. Just wonderful. I feel a pang of sorrow when I see the snows shrinking on the mountaintops but know that come October, they will begin to load up anew.

Things are going well working from home. I got a lot of work done yesterday and have been working most of the day today. I spoke with a client about expanding my services to help their business and will be setting up a meeting soon to discuss the details of that endeavor. Luke has a lot of work coming in too so I am confident that I can make this work. Good times.

Luke and I went on a mellow run yesterday evening on the trail system West of Nederland. This was originally a bike trail that was put in several years ago and dubbed "The Habitrail" as it resembles those cool tunnel systems one can build out for their hamsters. It winds around the woods and used to have several technical obstacles along the way that have since been disassembled for some reason. It was a gorgeous night - perfect weather, really - and our pace was such that we were able to review some business stuff, go over Leadville strategy and enjoy the scenery without getting too worn out.

Tomorrow, we are planning an early start in Boulder on the Front Range Five. This will be a run/hike over the five main summits that make up the main peaks along the foothills west of Boulder: Sanitas, Flagstaff, Green, Bear and South Boulder Peaks. This should be about a 5-hour run but might be a little shorter depending upon how things go. We'll head out at 5:00 am, starting up Sanitas from 4th Street. Feel free to join in the fun and/or games if you are interested.

See you out there.

~stubert

Delayed Dad's Day...

Better late than never. ~ Titus Livius


Tuesday: Golf - Vista Ridge, 5 hours ~275 shots
Yesterday: Habitat for Humanity, Denver, 5.5 hours
Today: Run, Ned area, ~2 hours
Tomorrow: Bike ride, Casa del Critters, ~1 hour

Okay... Clearly I have not done such a red hot job of keeping you guys updated this week. For that, I apologize.

My first week out of the 9-5 world has been quite hectic thus far. I have been swamped with freelance projects plus signed on for volunteer work with Habitat for Humanity and had a previously scheduled day with my dad. Good times!

Tuesday was my belated Dad's Day celebration and my pops came over from Gunnison to spend the day goofing around Denver with me. First, we played a round of golf at Vista Ridge. Fun course. I still suck but had a great time. There were geese all over the course with little ones learning to fly. We also saw a big bullfrog who treated us to some serious croaking and some sort of stork or something. Not sure what he was. I think Dad shot in the high 80s and I rocked about a 215 or something. I stopped counting. The greens were really tough to figure out and the rough was, well... rough. Fun course though.

Later that night, we tried to get Dad checked into the La Quinta for which he had a reservation but apparently that was lost so we had to change plans and moved him to the Best Western. Dad is a huge Yankees fan so I got us tickets to go see the Bombers play the Rockies. (I forgot my camera, so no shots from there.) I normally am not a baseball going type of fella but had a great time at the game with Dad. The guy next to us was an uber baseball dork and was keeping score, calling his buddies with updates non-stop, and twitching all over the place in nervousness for his Yankees. Funny stuff. The game was a good one, relatively close and not a marathon session. Apparently you can't get anything at the game that hasn't been soaked, dipped, doused, rubbed, glazed or pickled in salt so be forewarned. I think I may have consumed a decade's RDA of the stuff. Good lemonade, though.

I got home around midnight and was up the next morning to get some freelance stuff completed prior to heading out to volunteer for Habitat for Humanity. This was the first day volunteers were on site and we had a bunch of prep-work to do in the crawl space. The foundation had been contracted out so that was all in place. Man it was hot. I am not a big fan of warm weather as you may know and it was about 97 in Denver yesterday. First, we leveled the crawl space floor and then spread pea gravel over the surface, pitched that down to a sump pump and then affixed a vapor barrier. By that point, we were virtually finished and were waiting for a load of lumber to arrive so that we could get to work on the floor joists. After hanging out for awhile with no lumber in sight, the foreman cut everyone loose early. I got home about 3:30 and started working on a couple of projects that I need to finish up by next week.

View the full album.

Today, thus far, has been spent working. I am going to go for a run with Luke here in a bit (I hope) and plan to spend the rest of the evening just relaxing with Rach. Tomorrow, I need to work most of the day and will try to get out early for a ride or a run.

I forgot to tell you more about the Spring Fling at the Colorado House Rabbit Society. So everyone brought their bunnies and Rach judged a contest. Some of the categories were: Looks most like their owner, Oddest couple, Funniest, Most relaxed, etc. It was fun to see the kids get all fired up when they won a prize. There were a couple of bunnies selling kisses (yeah) and a silent auction to raise money for the shelter. The turnout was amazing and we actually had to park across the street because all the spots were taken. Rach won the grand prize to sponsor an outdoor bunny run. I think she is going to do that in Rockshot's honor.

That's it for now. Gotta hit the trails.

~stubert

Patience makes perfect...

Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish. ~ John Quincy Adams

Yesterday: Run - Zoo Loop (GGCSP), 3 hours 15 minutes
Today: Massage/Hike/Walk - Somewhere, 1 hour
Tomorrow: Golf/Yankees Game - Denver

FINALLY a good run.

Yesterday's run felt great and I have no residual aches or pains this morning. Everything just clicked... from tempo to food to hydration. Hoping this is an indicator of things to come.

I headed out into the forest behind my house and wound my way up to Gap Road where I linked up with Elk Trail in Golden Gate Canyon State Park. GGCSP is one of the gems of the Front Range and, for whatever reason, not too many people seem to know about it. (Which, frankly, is okay by me.) Elk Trail is mostly downhill and starts in the conifers and slowly moves down through meadows and aspen groves, past an old homestead then eventually links up with Mule Deer Trail.

This whole area was once rife with Bootleggers and the remnants of their presence can still be found if you know where to look. There are abandoned cabins, rusted out delivery vans and the like dotting the canyons and hillsides in and around the Park. If you know where to look, you can see evidence of some interesting history.

Mule Deer rises up from the valley floor through the forest to a gorgeous high-meadow where another homestead once existed. This is one of my favorite spots in the Park where Coyote Trail meets Mule Deer. There is a small spring nearby and wildlife abounds (though I didn't see much during yesterday's venture). Rach loves it up here and we hike Coyote often.

Mule Deer continues through more arid terrain and eventually dumps back to some tricky, steep singletrack before it connects with Raccoon Trail. This is another favorite - a fairly mellow 2.5 mile loop that wraps through diverse terrain. The wildflowers were starting to peek out through the grass all along the route - boding well for this summer's season. From Raccoon, I hooked up with the campground loop, refilled my water and headed back home the way I came. More of a popsicle than a loop per se. I was home in just under 3:15 and then sat in the creek for awhile to soak my legs. The remainder of the day was spent freelancing and hanging out with Rach.

Lessons learned:

• Start out slowly: This is key to being able to set a decent pace long-term and to ensure that you don't blow up early on in the run.
• Clif Shots are gross - but are your friend: You have to just gulp these things down but they seem to help a bit. I still like the Margarita Shot Blocks better.
• Pizza doesn't work for a Stu: Dean Karnazes swears by it but it didn't really work so great for me. Perhaps it was the Soy cheese or the fact that Rach makes really yummy spicy pizza but my stomach couldn't take it.

View the full run album here.

My pops is coming to town tomorrow for a belated Father's Day celebration. We are going to play a round of golf then go to the Rockies/Yankees game. Dad's a big Yankees fan so I try to get tickets whenever they come to town. I am really looking forward to spending some time with him enjoying the summer weather. It is not supposed to be too hot tomorrow nor is it supposed to rain so we should be in good shape.

Okay, off to get some work done before meetings in Boulder.

See you out there.

~stubert

Must. Fight. Urge. To. Sleep. In...

I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death. ~ Nas

Friday: Run - Boulder Res, ~ 1 hour
Yesterday: Bunnies, ~4 hours
Today: Run - GGCSP, ~ 2 hours
Tomorrow: Massage - InMotion, 1 hour

I guess I missed a day there. Friday was good. I finished up work and went for a lunch run around the Res. I warmed up around Coot Lake and then ran around Boulder Res in 40:52. That isn't blazingly fast but is a personal best for me on this route. It is an average of sub-8-minute miles so that is WAY faster than I will ever run at Leadville. I just tried to keep a fairly steady pace the whole time and to keep from maxxing out my heartrate. Mission accomplished. I did experience some stomach cramps for a portion of the run but was able to just run through them. So that is encouraging. Overall, I felt okay for a change.

Several of us got together after work for Happy Hour. It was a lot of fun to have some of my co-workers get together for a send-off. I will really miss the people with whom I have worked for the past several years and really hope to stay in touch with them.

Yesterday (catching up), Rach and I spent the day at the Colorado House Rabbit Society's Spring Fling. There was a great turn-out and people seemed to have a good time. It was a little warm for the bunnies so we put ours in the shade and gave them a frozen bottle of water to huddle around. They seemed to have a decent time overall. I think it worked well as a fundraiser with lots of people participating in the silent auction, buying items from the gift shop and whatnot. Fun times.

Today, I am trying to get out the door for a run over in the State Park near our house. I'll probably head out from here and then do a big loop through the park and back home. I have a TON of contract/freelance work to accomplish this weekend so I need to get back in time to bang out some design work and code for a couple of clients. I am actually hoping to switch my schedule to work more weekends and take off days mid-week and I am guessing it will take a little while to get that sorted out. Right now my worst problem is rolling out of the sack at a decent time. I typically have been getting up very early each morning to go to work but the past few days I have felt the need to sleep in. I have to get back in the mode of getting up early so that I can be sure to get everything accomplished.

Tomorrow, I have some errands to run in Boulder and will be seeing Shirley for a massage. Right now, I don't really have any soreness so I must be doing something right. I bet Shirley will find something to work over, however. She seems to have a knack for that.

Ok kiddies. I should have some photos coming soon since I did get my camera the other day. Hoping to be able to spice things up with some shots for you guys.

See you out there.

~stubert

Tick, tick, tick...

Ten-thousand years I've been stuck in this bottle but now I'm free. Free. FREEEEE! - The Gits

Yesterday: Nuttin'
Today: Run - Boulder Res area, ~ 1 hour
Tomorrow: Ride/Bunny stuff - Altitude/Broomfield

Today is my last day at work. I am simultaneously sad, ecstatic, nervous, gassy, contemplative and um... I guess that is it. And I'm not really gassy. I just thought I'd throw that in there to see if you were paying attention.

Yesterday I felt like hammered crap when I got home so decided that I should just take it easy for the night. I am not feeling 100% today but am a lot better than I was yesterday. I had planned to take today off but brought in all my stuff to run at lunch. Tomorrow we have the Spring Fling at the House Rabbit Society and then I am gearing up for a long run on Sunday to finish up what turned out to be a pretty weak week. (Nice.)

Next week is chaos with a ton of freelance stuff to get done, golf and a baseball game with my pops, volunteering for Habitat for Humanity and training. I think things should settle down a little bit in the weeks to come as I get into a routine working from home and whatnot. At least that is what I am hoping happens.

So that pretty much covers it for today.

Don't you go changin'.

~stubert

Keep climbing...

People do not decide to become extraordinary. They decide to accomplish extraordinary things. ~ Edmund Hillary

Yesterday: Singlespeed ride - South Boulder, ~ 1 hour
Today: Run - Golden Gate Canyon State Park, ~ 2 hours
Tomorrow: Ride - Commute to work, ~ 1 hour

Yesterday, Luke and I went for a short ride around South Boulder and then watched Brad race. I now remember why I no longer race bikes. It looks kindof fun but in a massively painful sort of way. Brad was killin' it in the Singlespeed class however and would consistently put the hammer down whenever he came around to where Luke and I were standing. Plus he was sporting some sweet new socks so I am sure that made him even faster.

Things are crazy right now with switching up my work stuff. I am sure that everything will settle into a nice smooth workflow soon but these last few days have been hectic. I am looking forward to being able to focus more solidly on one set of goals starting next week. Having a flexible schedule will be most welcomed.

Okay... this is pretty cool in a "because we can" kind of way. I read about the planned attempt to scale Everest using 1924 technology the other day and apparently they actually made it! I am not sure I am convinced that this proves that Mallory and Irvine were the first to summit or even if it is an apples to apples test (my opinion, it's not) but it is still an interesting endeavor. Those knickers are pretty spiffy too. (Yikes!)

See you out there.

~stubert

Changes...

The man who looks for security, even in the mind, is like a man who would chop off his limbs in order to have artificial ones which will give him no pain or trouble. ~ Henry Miller

Yesterday: Run - Casa del Critters, ~1 hour
Today: Singlespeed Ride - Boulder area?, ~2 hours
Tomorrow: Run - High Lonesome?

Pretty definitive there, aren't I?

So things are winding down for me here at work. Friday is my last day and then I join the ranks of the self employed. I have a bunch of consulting and production work lined up and feel good about this move. It will provide some flexibility in my schedule that will be quite welcome in the coming months and will allow me to build on my strengths in business and strategy development. Plus, my commute will be MUCH shorter!

So I purchased a camera that was supposed to be delivered yesterday. This is the second time in two weeks that I have purchased something with guaranteed delivery that hasn't been delivered. Both times, they claimed no one was home when, in fact, Rach was there. Lame. As most of you know, we live in a pretty tiny house. Either these guys are knocking VERY softly or are not waiting any time at all for Rach to get to the door. Regardless, I am psyched to get this new camera so that I can post shots more frequently.

Last night I went for a run in the woods around our house. It was cool and raining so I had to bundle up a bit but it was fun to get out in the weather and the sloppy conditions to run around the wilderness. I tried to hook up a new trail someone built but it seems to only be about half-way done at the present moment so I had to bushwhack back around to the main trail. I have explored so much terrain in these woods that I pretty much know my way around at this point. I can remember way back when we first moved to the area and I would get lost up there frequently. Not really "lost" per se but confused about where I was in the grand scheme of the area. In this particular area, if you head one direction for any period of time you will eventually hook up with a road of some sort. You might be a few miles from home but you wouldn't be too bad off.

So my run went pretty well. It was short but I felt strong. I am looking forward to riding the bike tonight and then cruising through the remainder of the week. This weekend, Rach and I are going to be at the Spring Fling at the House Rabbit Society helping to raise money for the critters. I am hoping to do a very long run on Sunday if anyone is interested.

~stubert

Mellow Monday...

We are each our own greatest inhibitor. People don't want to do new things if they think they're going to be bad at them or people are going to laugh at them. You have to be willing to subject yourself to failure, to be bad, to fall on your head and do it again, and try stuff that you've never done in order to be the best you can be. ~ Laird Hamilton

Yesterday: Hit Range Balls/Hike - Casa del Critters, 1:15
Today: Run - GGCSP, ~2 hours
Tomorrow: Ride - Somewhere singlespeedy, ~2 hours

Yesterday, Rach and I took a nice stroll in the woods around our house. The songbirds were going crazy-nuts and surprisingly, we only saw one other person walking his dog. I love where we live - close proximity to fun trails and the ability to get away from it all in just a short walk from our house.

During lunch yesterday, I went to the driving range to get a few cuts in before playing a round of golf with my dad next week. I don't get to play very often so need to brush up on my skills (or lack thereof) whenever I can. I am looking forward to playing with my pops and hope to break 100. I shot a 102 the last time I played so I am within striking distance of the sub-triple-digit score. We'll see how things go. I usually do okay for most of the round and then fall apart on a couple of holes pushing my score way up. Dad shoots in the low 80s usually (I think). I am not sure I will ever play enough to be that good but it is fun to get out on the course now and again.

I also went to see Dr. Paul yesterday for my ankle problem (which seems to have been resolved) and my knee (which is still a bit swollen but has decreased in size markedly over the past several days). The knee stems from my unscheduled nose-dive back in May (see this post for details). The shot some pictures and believe that everything is a-ok so that was good news. I just need to select better places for splashdowns in the future.

And today is Luke's birthday. Age is one place where I will always beat him but visit his blog to congratulate him on trying to catch up.

Until next time...

~stubert

Suffer-fest...

Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dream. ~ Paulo Coehlo

Yesterday: Run - Local Rollinsville trails, 4 hours
Today: Ride or hike - Casa del Critters, ~ 1 hour
Tomorrow: Off

Yesterday's run was interesting. I felt pretty dreadful for most of the run with short bursts of time that felt decent. Not sure what was going on but I was having real problems getting into a groove. All day my legs felt heavy and clumsy. I think that some of this could be attributed to the high pollen count and the fact that I am experiencing some allergy-type reactions to the current state of the ecosystem. It could also be that I have just reached a bit of a plateau and need to fight through it. Or both! Good times.

I headed out with the intention of repeating my long run of a few weeks ago that took me to Nederland but shifted gears a bit to run more in the forest and explore some new trails. I did find a new singletrack just by chance off of North Beaver road. I was bushwhacking in the direction of Magnolia road when I stumbled across an old mining road that then turned into some decent singletrack. Not knowing the real name, I have dubbed this section "Smitty" and hope to explore it more on later ventures out.

This trail dumped out to an offshoot of Mag which I followed West to the Habitrail and then back to Rollinsville and home. I then took full advantage of our creek with a good soak. I need to figure out how to make it deeper, however. I think skinnier will be the trick to achieve a level of flow that fully covers my legs.

I believe that I am feeling the benefits of that soak today as my legs are only a little sore and don't feel too tired. I will probably go for a short ride or hike later but just got word from Pete that he was thinking of going for a run. I might be into that as well.

Movie time: Yesterday and the day before we watched the 1940 and 1944 versions of the classic film, Gaslight. I must say that the '44 version is vastly superior in every way. It is a little dated but features a fairly sophisticated plot (especially for the time it was created), solid writing and fine acting. Skip the '40 version, however. It is actually pretty bad.

Enjoy.

~stubert

Edit: Stories like this make running Leadville seem plausible. Now to channel my inner monk.

Productive Friday...

I'm reinforcing the header! ~ Buster Bluth

Yesterday: Nuttin'
Today: Ride - Casa del Critters, 1:45
Tomorrow: Longish hike/ski/run?

Just a quick one to try to get me in the habit...

Today I took the day off from work and freelanced and organized my home office a bit. Still not complete but getting there. I have a bunch of projects on which I am working with more on the horizon. I will definitely need to get myself in the groove, so to speak, in order to not get too bogged down with working all the time. I managed to squeeze out for a fun little ride in the local neighborhood and hooked up a trail I have been trying to link for a couple of years. Good times.

I actually am riding pretty well right now and managed to get almost all the way across a really technical spot I have been trying to nail for quite some time. That felt pretty good. I had one unplanned dismount (I didn't hit the ground) that bent my derailleur hanger a little bit and somehow jacked up my front shifter as well. Weird. I guess that is what I get for riding the geared rig.

I signed up to work with Habitat for Humanity on the 2oth to help build a house on West Kentucky Avenue in Denver. I helped out this fall with a project in the same area and it was a lot of fun. It felt good to be able to lend a hand to a project of that type and to volunteer some time to help out others. With my work schedule becoming less structured, I am hoping to be able to do more volunteering on a regular basis.

Tomorrow I plan to get out and about for some sort of adventure. I may just end up doing a really long run but am not quite sure of the plan. If you have any thoughts, feel free to let me know.

Don't you go changin'.

~stubert

The wind, it blows...

Bear Peak (in winter)

And this time, no tears. ~ Tobias Fünke

New format for you format luvvers:

Yesterday: Run - Cirque de Bear Peak, ~15 miles, 3 hours 15 minutes
Today: Ride - Casa del Critters (maybe), ~1 hour
Tomorrow: Run - Golden Gate Canyon State Park, 2 hours

Yesterday's run went fairly well. The wind in the foothills was nothing short of incredible. Gusts up to 90 mph and not a warm breeze to say the least. Luke, Bob and I headed out of Eldorado Springs about 6:00 and ran through the park for awhile to Eldorado Springs Trail (or something like that). Then up we went to a beautiful rolling trail that overlooked the canyon. This dropped down to Walker Ranch where we proceeded to take an unmapped road, bushwhack back to the planned road and drop down into Bear Canyon on the front side of the Flatirons.

I felt okay for the most part though Luke was really pushing the pace. We were chasing the sunlight a bit so it was good that he kept us moving at a steady clip though my heartrate was not where I wanted it to be. I think the combo of taking a couple of weeks off and allergy season have my system a little taxed. I seemed to feel better the longer we ran with the exception of very tight hamstrings and calves - probably holdovers from my hard effort on Tuesday.

We jammed down Bear and I managed to keep up with Luke pretty well which, if you haven't guessed already, is a tough chore. He just flies downhill and try as I might, I still haven't been able to keep up the whole way down Bear ever. I turned my ankle pretty well at one point but it seems to be okay, just a little sore today. My tendonitis issue seems to be behind me as I had no problems and no residual effects this morning. That is great news.

We ran South along Mesa Trail in the fading light, wary of bears and big kitties but saw none. The last mile and a half or so was on a severely overgrown trail that would have been tough to run in daylight, much less in the conditions we were experiencing post sundown. We made it back to the Eldorado Springs Pool at about 9:15. We dropped Bob back at his house and Luke and Nichole treated me to a hot shower, warm tea and yummy PB & strawberries on Bible bread. Good stuff.

The trees in Boulder took the brunt of this wind storm with several large branches and trees toppled in the road as I drove home. The weather this year has been nutty. We typically experience high winds on occasion but nothing like what we have experienced over the course of the last 6 months. Not sure what is going on but I worry about the effect of these climate changes on the flora and fauna. It is one thing to have marked change occur over the course of one's lifetime but for these changes to be coming so quickly it a bit unnerving.

And I leave you with a poem written by Marge Piercy sent to me by Pete:

What can they do
to you? Whatever they want.
They can set you up, they can
bust you, they can break
your fingers, they can
burn your brain with electricity,
blur you with drugs till you
can t walk, can’t remember, they can
take your child, wall up
your lover. They can do anything
you can’t blame them
from doing. How can you stop
them? Alone, you can fight,
you can refuse, you can
take what revenge you can
but they roll over you.

But two people fighting
back to back can cut through
a mob, a snake-dancing file
can break a cordon, an army
can meet an army.

Two people can keep each other
sane, can give support, conviction,
love, massage, hope, sex.
Three people are a delegation,
a committee, a wedge. With four
you can play bridge and start
an organization. With six
you can rent a whole house,
eat pie for dinner with no
seconds, and hold a fundraising party.
A dozen make a demonstration.
A hundred fill a hall.
A thousand have solidarity and your own newsletter;
ten thousand, power and your own paper;
a hundred thousand, your own media;
ten million, your own country.

It goes on one at a time,
it starts when you care
to act, it starts when you do
it again after they said no,
it starts when you say We
and know who you mean, and each
day you mean one more.

See you out there.

~stubert

Back on my own two feets...

Time is an abstract concept created by carbon-based life forms to monitor their ongoing decay. ~ Thunderclese

Hmmm.... I seem to have misplaced a day there.

Rach and I spent Sunday morning volunteering at the Colorado House Rabbit Society cleaning bunny cages. For those unfamiliar with the wonderful world of bunnies, this is an organization that connects long-eared critters with new owners. Hilarity usually ensues.

The Broomfiled chapter is currently home to approximately 150 little guys and girls looking for good homes. Rach spends quite a lot of her time working with COHRS: Linking up prospective families with critters, caring for and feeding the little munchkins, cleaning cages, coordinating volunteers and educating the public about how to care for their critters. The little guys seem to appreciate it.

Post bunny-excitement, the rest of the day was spent procrastinating my ride which was then cut short by a standard afternoon thunderstorm. I should know better than to wait so long to get out on the bike but somehow the day slipped away. Luke and Nichole then hosted a kickass bar-b-que which featured great company and a mean game of horseshoes. Luke still throws like a girl in case you were wondering.

Monday, I took the day off as I had meetings galore scheduled and today I am just about to head out for a lunchtime run. Bob and I are planning a Cirque de Bear Mountain run with Luke tomorrow post-work and I am hoping to hook up with the Boulder Trail Runners on Thursday for a night run. I have been really itching to get back out there and feel like this is the week to do it. The ankle is feeling better (so far), I haven't really been running for a couple of weeks now and Leadville is looming.

See you out there.

~stubert

Edit: Just got back from a short run and man, my heartrate was up there. Not sure what was going on but even on the downhills I was clocking about 170bpm. Yikes. Plus it is friggin hot outside. How can 80 degrees feel so boiling?

Edit2: So I just found out that my cousin, Tyler, is doing a 2500 mile bike tour this summer. He and a couple of buddies are starting in Montana and riding to the Mexico border on trails along the continental divide. Read all about it.

The Big Five-Oh...

Is that your blood? ~ Richard Chesler

Day 50 - pretty good for a working stiff, huh?

Today started early. Very early. The alarm rousted me at 4:15 and Luke and I were on the bikes by 5:45 for a fast and furious ascent of Pawnee Ridge. Luke had to be back in Boulder by 9:30 so we jammed up the Mitchell Lake trailhead and were at the top of the couloir in less than two hours.

The conditions were a little punchy on the trail up - several hip-deep postholes were masterfully created and decorated by Luke's bloody knees - but the tough going on the way up was rewarded with amazing snow for the ski down. Really fun Spring conditions. Check out the shots.

Tomorrow Rage and I head to the Colorado House Rabbit Society to clean bunny cages. Right now, our bunnies are tearing ass around our living room and totally trenching our living room. We should shave some bitchin' fire or racing stripes or something into their fur. I'll see if I can talk Rage into that. Photo documentation will occur, I assure you.

See you out there.

~stubert

Edit: I have very little tolerance for bad film at this point. My schedule is way too tight to spend 2+ hours watching a crummy excuse for a movie. I got through roughly 20 minutes of Blood Diamond before deeming it too poorly written to warrant my attention. Perhaps I missed out on really solid 2nd and 3rd acts but I'll never know. Good luck with that one.

Living with nature...

Life is rated R. ~ Seth Rogen

In a Fresh Air interview yesterday, Seth Rogen made the point that if one were to follow you home, you would probably do something that would warrant an R rating within about 15 minutes. I would have to say that he is correct. Fortunately, most of us wouldn't do anything PG-13-ey because there is usually blood and guts involved there. (Don't get me started.) Thus far, I have made a concerted effort to keep this blog G-rated and I expect to continue that trend. Just in case you were wondering, however, my life definitely receives an R rating across the board.

But I digress...

Yesterday, Luke and I did a quick post-work spin around the North Boulder area. I was riding my squishy bike but tried to keep with the spirit of Luke on his S.A.S.S. by staying in one gear. Singlespeeds were not meant to weigh 35 pounds or whatever my bike weighs at this point. This I can say without hesitation. We rode around for about an hour and I felt pretty [expletive deleted]-y for the first few miles then settled into things and actually felt okay. I did realize that I am really jonesing to run, which is a really good thing. I am going to try to force myself to take it easy for a few more days but want to work another long run into my schedule soon. Maybe next weekend.

I need to start training at night as well to get used to running in the dark. This becomes a bit of a logistical issue when one considers my proximity to large kittens and lack of running partners up by my house. Wildlife tends to leave groups of people alone but flying solo presents a pretty good target for a hungry kitty. Which reminds me of a story...

Back in the day, I went to school in Colorado Springs. People in the area started complaining to the local authorities that their poodles were being grubbed by lions in the area and wanted something done about it. Though I feel sorry for Fifi and for the cats that had to work through all that poofy fur, our encroachment into wildlands presents this type of situation. It is one of the things one has to deal with when one lives in the woods. You just can't leave mountain lion food lying around and expect it to be there in the morning. That goes for bears too, by the way. If you live in bear country, don't leave your trashcans outside overnight. I can not stress this enough.

Today, I am going to try to stay off the ankle yet again and go for a ride near my casa after work. I hope to hook up a couple of trails near my house that I found a couple of summers ago. I had hoped to do this on my last longer run but the snow that began to fall during my outing covered any trail evidence. I'll let you know how it goes. Tomorrow, I hope to get back up to altitude for some turns. There is still plenty of that action to be had.

See you out there.

~stubert

Edit: Incidentally, I woke up with [expletive deleted] Sade's [expletive deleted] Smooth Operator coursing through my brain. The only ways I know to get rid of monstrous songs of this nature are to either a) give them away or b) blow your brains out. I am going with option a, today so enjoy!