Slow and low...

Don't bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself. ~ William Faulkner

Sun: 3:00, 18 miles, LSD road and trails

Ah, the long slow day. Time to reflect, mingle and just keep putting one foot in front of the other for 3 hours or so.

Today I met up with the group in Boulder to get in some time on the old feet. I parked at the mall then jogged over to Pott's Field for the meet up. After a short delay, we were off, making our way through the mostly abandoned Boulder surface streets on a crisp, cool Sunday morning.

We headed west and ended up at Eben G. Fine park at the mouth of Boulder Canyon then meandered up to Chautauqua. Enchanted Forest to Mesa to Bear featured mixed running with variable conditions. Many areas were completely dry but north-facing sections were icy. If you are planning to log longer hours Mesa-west, traction might be advisable.

One item of note: there were TONS of runners out today on Mesa. Many traveling in packs and most who really appeared to know what they were doing (vs. casual runners). Boulder is a running town but this was an interesting phenomenon, even for Boulder. Great to see groups of people out there getting after it for sure.

After jamming back down Bear Canyon Drive we worked surface streets again to Martin Park then jumped back on Boulder's extensive network of bike paths. With about an hour remaining in my scheduled run, I headed back north flying solo and picked up the tempo to try to log a full 18 miles in the 3-hours scheduled. Mission accomplished.

I learned some things today: I can sustain a mellow pace for a significant amount of time; public restrooms are available at the Chautauqua dining hall if you need them; miles tick off quickly when running with a large group (I actually knew this one); I sweat like a hypertensive gorilla even when it is cold out (um... I knew this too).

All in all, it was a very good run. I did have some lingering issues later in the effort with the spot between my shoulder blades catching fire and some slight abdominal and sciatic nerve involvement but post run I wasn't completely wiped out nor do I feel damaged in any way. I even had the energy to do a little more work on the house I started yesterday. Project finished. Bring on the snow!

~stubert.

Docs...

RIP.

They need dip-tet boosters yearly or they develop lockjaw and night vision. ~ Dot

1:30, 11 miles, tempo

Got my run on this morning then went to the doc for a check-up and tetanus shot. All appears to be doing well with the bod and I didn't even feel the shot. That nurse was a magician, I tell ya. Either that or she faked the whole thing and is selling my tetanus medication on the black market.

Ran tempo this morning and almost missed the train. Started at around 75th and Jay in Boulder and leisurely ran up to the starting point only to remember that I forgot to slather on the Body Glide. This... ladies and gentlemen, is a problem. So I started my tempo early and jammed back to the car then pushed the pace up Jay to meet with the Wednesday tempo crew. I made it with seconds to spare (well, or a few late) and ran a progressively faster tempo for just under 5 miles at which point I shut 'er down and jogged back to the car. Good, solid run for me and I really felt great throughout.

Took Beep-kitty to the vet this morning as she had some follow-up surgery from a lump we discovered last week that proved to be cancerous. Dr. Bock felt like the procedure went really well and that he got good margins. The lab results should be back in a day or two then we'll know for sure but she seems to be recovering nicely at this point.

I also got my old G4 desktop back from the shop and it is in need of a power supply. That's $400 so the old girl may get repurposed as a liquor cabinet or a planter or something since that is about $100 more than the stupid thing is worth. (Purchased in '03 for ~$3000 - lovely.)

Tomorrow work and a quick, easy run.

~stubert.

Tempotastic...

We have the technology. ~ Narrator

1:28, 10.77, 55 minutes tempo

Tempo runs can get a little interesting. Today's was mellow at the start, then smooth and awesome, then pretty miserable. Typical, really - but the wheels really came off about 45-50 minutes in. Especially when I tried to keep up with Art who was spinning 6:40s. Not pretty.

I parked just over 2.5 miles from the start and warmed up on the paths and roads of east Boulder. Then we did a few strides and queued up for tempo - splitting into about 3 groups. This is the third week I have come out to run with this group and it is a lot of fun to get in some good miles with other runners. My group started second to last with Art chasing and moved along at a pretty steady 7:30ish pace. Fairly sustainable from my perspective. About mile 3 I was feeling solid and kicked it up a notch to about 7:15s.

Overall, I wasn't feeling super red hot today. I was still wearing the effects of Sunday's long run and yesterday's massage left me feeling a bit clunky. I ran alone for the next couple of miles then heard Art rapidly approaching so I slowed a bit to let him catch then tried to keep up as we ran past my starting point and across Valmont. He actually toned it down a bit from his standard 6:40 pace (I think) but I was unable to match that for long and soon turned back around to finish up my scheduled 55 minutes (poorly) then run some semblance of cool down.

All in all it was a great run. I was able to push myself and run very relaxed, just wasn't quite able to keep up with someone faster and vastly more experienced than I. Nothing to be worried about for sure. Just part of what one has to experience to get better, stronger, faster.

~stubert.

Weekends are good...

Chase atop Green. With mountains.

Slipped my mind. ~ Dean "The King of Empty Promises"

4:04, 16.19, LSD

This was an action-packed weekend. Got up early on Saturday to do a quick run in the 'hood. The trails around the house are still snow-jammed so it was slow going but fun to get out and give them a go. Ended up with just under 4 miles in 40 minutes.

Rach and I then met my Dad and Donna for a screening of Puccini's Turandot. The Met has been broadcasting their performances to theaters across the nation (world, maybe) and they are pretty awesome. The screening we attended was completely packed so that bodes well for the program to extend for years to come. Good stuff.

Sunday, I met up with Chase for a long, slow run in Boulder. Beautiful day for it, too. We started out at the South Mesa trailhead and rocked the Mesa Trail north to Chautauqua. Then we headed up Gregory Canyon, Green Mountain and back down to Mesa via Bear Canyon, then south to Bluestem and back to the trailhead in a mellow 4 hours. My longest run for quite some time. Felt awesome and was good to have some company. Just what the doctor ordered.

Also, here is a video of our new kitty, Nino, who has some interesting quarks: She likes peanut butter, chili, yowling, potato chips, hostile occupation of the bunny magic dream cottage, refusing to recognize our right to exist, being a meezer, catching mice, watching Rach shower (me too! go figure) and... drinking from the tap.



Looking forward to more fun and/or games this week.

~stubert.

edit. GPS info for this run.

Snow becomes water...

The slow one now will later be fast. ~ Bob Dylan

One reason I have very little tolerance for people who complain about the weather here in Colorado is that it so frequently changes. Yes, we might have gotten nearly 4 feet of snow last week but that certainly wasn't going to stick around very long. And rest assured, it hasn't.

After my foray to the gym on Saturday, I headed to the valley early Sunday to help Rach clean runs at the Bunny shelter then jammed up to Boulder for a long(ish) run. I read trail reports that indicated heading west, into the foothills might not result in the most fluid of forward motion so opted for an easterly route.

Temps were just about perfect and cloudless skies accompanied my as I started the day's adventure at the South Boulder Campus trailhead and ran south on very muddy roads, eventually intersecting with Broadway (or Highway 93 at this point). I felt great and though I had forgotten my Garmin, used the iMapMyRun app on my iPhone to track my progress. Pretty cool, actually, if a bit of a battery hog. Marshall road to Bobolink to the South Boulder trail... all ticked off quickly as I maintained a steady pace and felt strong.

Phase two of the run switched from dirt to slab as I made my way North and eventually hooked up with the Boulder Creek bike path and headed back West. I was running for time so had no real agenda regarding route and decided to run up the flank of Flagstaff then make my way back to the start. I definitely started feeling the pavement as I made the switch back to dirt and settled into an alternating power hike/run up to the saddle and back down to Chautauqua.

Rolling back down to Moorhead, I had problems keeping the pounding at bay but once the roads flattened out I settled into a steady pace and actually felt pretty solid. A brief stop to say "hi" to Houseboy Bob who was busy pushing his custom buggy around the front yard then on to the finish. Final tally: 17 miles and 2:40. Not blazing speeds but as always, good times.

I definitely felt the run after getting home and probably should have taken some extra measures to stave off soreness before getting back on the road. Some ab involvement and my hips were a bit sore. I was not as fatigued as I thought I might be the following day and it was great to see the bod kick into gear and recover. I even headed back to the gym today for some weight and plyometric training. It was good to get some activity in the legs today and I plan on adding these types of activities to my regular regimen. Setting my goals for 2010 pretty high so I'll need to keep things moving throughout the winter months to accomplish everything I am aiming for. This was more than a little tough last year so I'll have to stay focused and plan to come out of the winter months in stellar condition to hit the ultra circuit hard.

This week I have runs scheduled for Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday (though this may be replaced by some skiing) and again both days on the weekend. Drop me a line if you want to join in the fun and/or games.

~stubert.

Get your adventure on...

Give 'er. ~ Anon

I have been a member of the Adventure Film team since its inception and this year's festival is shaping up to be a great one. We have been screening films non-stop for months and are getting down to the final few weeks before the Festival which hits the screens of Boulder November 12-14. This year's crop of films will surely honor the legacy of our fallen leader, Jonny Copp.

So mark your calendars, save the date, follow Adventure Film Festival on Facebook or AdventureFilm on Twitter and come out to check out the awesome movies we have lined up.

Hope to see you there.

~stubert.

Rollin'...

Don't bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself. ~ William Faulkner

The nice thing about being confined to short runs is that they are much easier to squeeze into a hectic schedule. Friends and family in the area make for good times and being able to keep my training schedule is a bonus, for sure.

Friday, I spun a quick 4.5 miles or so on trails and dirt roads near my house. Still feeling no pain but I am having a bit of a plateau where I am unable to get my heartrate down or run as fast as I'd like for the amount of effort required. These things happen and usually one can just roll through them after a few small changes. Overall, I felt great and it wasn't like my average pace was super slow... just took some more effort than I would prefer to keep up the flow.

Friday night I headed to Denver to meet up with the Roach clan. They are in town for the Harley-Davidson Dealer Meeting (they own Palm Springs Harley-Davidson) and after watching soccer at the Hyatt, headed over to Root Down for a very tasty meal. Pretty cool restaurant, Root Down. They converted an old service station into a hip joint and used sustainable building and recycled materials throughout. The floor was salvaged from an old high-school gym and many of the service station features remain intact. They were even playing awesome 70s-era kung-fu movies in the bar. Good stuff. Tough to get a reservation but the food was awesome and well worth the wait.

Didn't get home until super late so slept in a little on Saturday then watched the final "real" stage of the Tour. I must say that Contador rode really well and seeing Lance step back into the fray for a podium finish at age 37 after 4 years away from competitive cycling was quite impressive. I was hoping for an Astana sweep but it was great to see some fresh faces out there giving their all to the sport. All in all an exciting Tour. Once the race was over, I hit the trails again for my longest run in what seems like forever. Wait for it.... 5.25 miles! Look out Tony Krupicka, I'm on your heels. (Congrats to Tony, by the way, for crushing in the White River 50 USATF race with a course record 6:32:09... that's 50 MILES in six and a half hours, people. Awesome.)

Again, felt a little off regarding fitness or whatever is going on but no discomfort in my abdominals so I'll consider it a win. It was fun to be out in the woods for a run so you won't catch me complaining.

Post-run, Rach and I headed down to Boulder to meet up with my pops and his special lady, Donna, at the Sunflower Café for lunch. Good eats and great company. They were in town to visit her son who lives with his family in Broomfield and to go to the Rockies game. Hopefully they had better weather than the last time they hit the ballpark. They were on-hand the day the stadium had to be evacuated due to a tornado warning back in June. Excitement abounds.

Rach and I then headed to Broomfield to help out some bunnies and spent the rest of the afternoon at the shelter. There are some awesome little guys there right now (well, there always are) and I spent the afternoon dolling out pets, watching Rach groom and care for a couple special needs bunnies and cleaning up. I even helped one volunteer break into her car so it was a day where I could flex all my special-talent muscles - the petters, sweepers and grand-theft-auto groups got a good work-out.

All in all, a great start to a summer weekend. Hoping to work on the shed foundation today then get to run again tomorrow.

~stubert.

Sunday run report...

Bob and Stu go running.

Let it flow. Let yourself go. Slow and low, that is the tempo. ~ The Beastie Boys

And a weekly summary! Whee!

Bob and I hit the trails this morning for what turned into a pretty long run. Long enough that we ran out of water and I, being one who can process fluids like wildfire, got into a little trouble.

Click on the photo to get the full effect. Hawk 1, snake 0.

We headed out from Bob and Lindsay's about 9:30 and did a clockwise loop into the foothills of Boulder. Really a gorgeous day (a little warm for my tastes but I am a great big weirdo - see above). We ran south on Moorhead to the South Campus (or whatever it is called) and then headed up to Big Bluestem. Along the way we stopped for some photos then saw a hawk that had grabbed a snake and was circling above. Cool to see and great for the hawk. The snake... not so much.

It's getting green out there.

We made our way west to the Mesa Trail then dodged hoards of hikers all the way back to Chautauqua. Seems like every third person we passed knew Bob so we had some nice breaks to check out the scenery and enjoy our time in the outdoors.

Once we hit the Chautauqua, we went over the saddle to the Gregory Canyon trailhead then up and over the first ridge of Flagstaff. By this time, I had run out of water and was starting to bonk a bit so we jammed down to Lolita's for a fill up. Bob treated me to a great big Gatorade and then I had to find a bathroom. Finally opted for the Library, which had a cool display detailing the inner workings and history of the Boulder ditch system. Yeah, I did say "ditch".

I saw a lot of this later in the run.

So we meandered our way back to Bob's and my abs started acting up. Coupled with the dehydration, I was only able to run in short spurts. Oh well. 16 miles total with an unimpressive time of 3:40 or something. That's okay though, it's all about time on your feet.

Post run, I had some problems reminiscent of last year's 50-mile race where I feel like I really have to pee but then can't. I have to really start working harder on consistent fluid and food consumption. Gonna see if I can set a timer on my watch or something. Running the marathons last fall got me out of the habit of taking sips every 3 minutes and powering down food at a regular clip. Dargh!

So here are the week's numbers:

Monday: Run, 3.15 miles, 33 minutes
Tuesday: Run, 5.2 miles, 51 minutes
Wednesday: Hike, 8 miles???, 2.15 hours???
Thursday: Run, 4 miles, 35 minutes
Saturday: Run, 6.86 miles, 1 hour 20 minutes
Sunday: Run, 15.9 miles, 3 hours 44 minutes
TOTAL: 43.11 miles, 9 hours 20 minutes

All in all a pretty solid week. I think this week will be fairly mellow leading up to the Dirty 30 on Saturday.

Rach is making origami bunnies right now, which is super awesome. Yet another of her many talents.

~stubert.

Consistency is key...

To avoid situations in which you might make mistakes may be the biggest mistake of all. ~ Peter McWilliams

I have been running fairly consistently of late with days off Wednesday and Sunday. Mixed it up a lot in between. Last Thursday, I ran down our road and back (about 8 miles in 1:10) then did a loop in the neighborhood on Friday. That was supposed to be "easy" and I suppose it was in a mountainous sort of way.

Saturday, Bob and I headed out with Lindsay and their new pup, Leah then carried on to the BoboLink trail and back over to South Boulder Creek and around to their place. Ended up being 12.5 or so and we did it very slowly. Just soaking in the cool, Spring conditions and enjoying the run. I hit the gym today and logged 4+ on the track.

Overall, I am feeling like I am getting there but my abs are still a problem. Hoping that with consistent training, a lot of stretching and some gait guidance, I can get it cleared up in time to feel more confident about tackling Leadville again this year. Right now I am vacillating but am actually really fired up to do it. Giving until the end of May to make my final decision.

Tomorrow I'll be down in Boulder for an 8-miler if anyone wants to go for a fun run in the early afternoon.

~stubert.

Apparently, I didn't get the memo...

One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it. ~ Oogway

A new study has taken a look into "the perfect running pace" and determined that though this pace is unique for each individual, the average optimal pace to travel 1 mile for males is 7:18. It does sound as if the study took into account only traveling a single mile so it would be interesting to know what the pace would be for those traveling greater distances. Anyway, that is my running link for the day. Enjoy!

I took Saturday completely off in an effort to recover a little bit from Thursday and Friday's skiing excitement and drove down to Boulder on Sunday to do some really sloppy trail running. It was beautiful out, a bit breezy at times and the trails were wet and muddy. Good stuff.

I started out at Eben G. Fine park and made my way under Canyon Blvd to Prospect Park. My heartrate spiked pretty much immediately (gotta work on that) as I made my way up and over the hogback and on to Sanitas. I ran/walked up the gut of Sanitas , enjoying the scenery and perfect running weather then dropped off the top toward 4th.

This trail was SUPER muddy and very slick at points. I fell once but managed to get a hand down to keep from being coated in sloppy, wet clay, so that was a plus and eventually made it down without further incident and on to the Wonderland Lake trails.

This section was very wet but at this point, it didn't really matter so I just tried to keep a sub 12-minute pace and let my legs spin. Unfortunately, my abs were really acting up and so I am sure I looked less than graceful. I ran North across Lee Hill road, up to the top of the hill and turned around for the return journey.

The only complication came while climbing back up the muddy access to Sanitas - just slow-going. I was pretty bonked by the end as well and man, my guts were killing me. Only 9.5ish miles, which took me about 1:45. Not stellar but given that I haven't been running at all really, I am nursing two injuries, and it was only my second time on major hills/trails since who knows when, I'll go easy on myself.

So the great experiment of running marathons over the fall months seems to have only really resulted in my having a nagging injury (abs) and less improvement in the efficiency department than expected. I'll keep working to get the ab problem resolved... perhaps that is what is holding me back. The knee had several "twingey" moments but overall was okay. I definitely wouldn't want to run 50+ miles on it right now.

Given the lingering injury situation, I have decided to postpone the double traverse until the fall but am looking at a few options for 50k races in May/June. The first, the Sage Burner, is in Gunnison on May 23rd. It follows a lot of the Rage in the Sage course which I used to race/train on heavily when I raced Mountain Bikes. This course has a hometown feel for me so it would be a fun one to do. The second upcoming event is also a "home course" kind of deal - The Golden Gate Dirty Thirty. This race is on June 6 and is run on the trail system near my house where I spent a lot of the last two summers training. Should be a lot of fun.

I am going to take today mostly off (will probably head to the gym later to lift) but am hoping to start ramping things up, move skiing more to the backcountry and start to feel better soon. At least that is the goal.

By the way, if you ever have electric motor repair needs, go see the guys at Boulder Electric Motor. They are awesome.

~stubert.

Like a step back in time...

Our challenge for the future is that we realize we are very much a part of the earth's ecosystem, and we must learn to respect and live according to the basic biological laws of nature. ~ Jim Fowler

This was a decent week of training. Not quite what I had planned but a lot of hard running. Which is good. I did just notice that a long post I created on Thursday somehow didn't get published. Bummer. It was about a movie I saw on Wednesday night (Sharkwater) that documented the horrible treatment of sharks for the fin industry. Really revolting and one of those films that makes one really despise the human race and our propensity to feel that we can just dominate all other species without concern for their well-being or the impact of our actions. If you want to learn more about long-line fishing (bad), finning (also bad), check out savingsharks.com.

On that light note, here is a summary of my running adventures this week:

• Sunday (9/14): 20 miles on the Boulder Backroads course, 2:58ish. Hit the Boulder Backroads Marathon course with Caleb for a great run. I had a 17-miler teed up and Caleb was scheduled to do a 22-mile run so we split the difference. Good times. We started out early (7:30) fromCoot Lake under cloudy skyes and cool conditions -- perfect morning for a long run. I felt great from the beginning and only faded in the last couple of miles. Was super-psyched to hang with Caleb (his personal best marathon is a 3:02 or something at the NYC marathon last year) and even lead a little at times. He dusted me with a nice surge up the last hill and was able to maintain at the top while I faded. Just couldn't go that fast any longer. Fastest sustained pace over a course this long I have ever done.
  
• Tuesday (9/16): 10 miles on the Boulder Creek path, 1:21. I decided to step it up a bit and instead of doing an 8-miler with a few strides, opted for a much harder run with a 2-mile warm-up, 3-mile tempo, 2-mile jog, 3-mile tempo type of deal. I have to say that by the end of my first 3-mile tempo, I was not running pretty. Fortunately, I can chalk this up to a steady uphill. At least that is what I plan to tell myself. Actually, I felt strong and recovered quickly from the first interval to finish the run up strongly. The last tempo was really only 2.5 miles or so since I got onto city streets and got hung up by lights and whatnot. All in all a good run.
• Wednesday (9/17): 5 miles in the Casa Forest, 00:50. Just a quick recovery run in the woods near our house. I had to squeeze this one in as it has been a really busy week with work and whatnot. Felt okay, not great. Still a little tired from yesterday's hard effort and Sunday's big run.
• Saturday (9/20): 7 then 5 (12 total) in Boulder, 1:52. Today was Bob's wedding day so he invited people to join him for a morning run in Boulder. Ryan and I were the only two brave enough to hammer the groom on his wedding day (actually, we took it pretty easy). I went down early to get in some miles before meeting up with Bob and Ryan so I sorta did a double. It was fun, actually. I started off on the network of paths in Boulder and ended up on the Boulder Creek Trail where I warmed up for a couple of miles, then did 3 miles at tempo, then warmed back down at about a 9-minute pace back to Bob's. Once we left his place, we headed up roads, mostly to the NCAR road. This is actually kindof a cool place to run since the atmosphere nerds at NCAR have marked the road in 25 meter increments all along the way. it is about 2K to the top total and we pretty much went all out for the final .5K. I felt great at the top and was really able to settle into a fast pace without feeling like I was going to completely explode. Just kept throttling up a notch until the end. Good stuff. Wish I had felt better on the first 7-miles of the day but whatchagonnado?

Total mileage for the week: ~47
Total time for the week: ~7 hours

So for the week, I was off what I had hoped to achieve for distance but still had a solid week of hard training. I missed out on runs on Thursday and/or Friday due to work and weather and maybe a little bit of apathy, but that is all okay. I am thinking I may do the Denver marathon on October 19th as a warm-up for Vegas. Still noodling on that but I'll let you know.

~stubert.

Running is in our genes...

`Cause tramps like us, baby we were born to run. ~ Bruce Springsteen

Yes, I realize I just quoted the Boss. And I also realize how incredibly uncool that is. But I just read this great Discovery Magazine article about how humans are uniquely able to run long distances.

Biomechanical research reveals a surprising key to the survival of our species: Humans are built to outrun nearly every other animal on the planet over long distances.

Pretty cool stuff, I must say. Probably not enough to offset my Bruce quote but whatchagonnado?

Today I didn't have a run scheduled so I went to the Rec Center to lift weights. It has been a LONG time since I hit the gym and I suspect I am going to pay for it tomorrow. I tried to take it easy and mostly managed to do so but given the time that has elapsed since my last sojourn into the weight room, I am not counting on being soreness-free in the morning.

Tomorrow I have an early appointment in Boulder, then a conference call and then will do an 8-miler with some strides down in the valley. Probably will just work some of the great bike/pedestrian trails Boulder has to offer but we'll see what happens in the morning.

Work it.

~stubert.

Holy crap another week...

These guys at school… smoke. ~ Gavin

How did that happen? Another week just whoosh… in the past.

Well, here's the summary:

• Sunday: 12.5 miles up Rollins Pass, 1:47. Pretty good run. I was a bit tired from the day before but after about 3 miles started feeling okay and so I just kept going until the road maintenance wore out (at the second train bridge). Cool and a bit windy but nice to go on an evening jaunt in the high country.
• Tuesday: 9.5 miles in Boulder, 1:19. Brutal run. Not sure if I was still just wiped out from the weekend or what but I was definitely not feeling it today. Had a 9-miler on deck with ~4 miles at 10K pace. I am pretty sure I ran the planned 4 miles at 10K but that isn't saying much. It was my 10K pace for the day, not what I would consider a real 10K pace (if you get my drift). Pretty much maxed out. A bit ugly. If I have learned one thing after years of training and competing (and trust me, it took years of training and competing to learn this), there is no such thing as a bad training day. There's always something to be learned and something to be gained, even from what seems like the world's worst day out there. Plus, you were out there and not stuck in some goddamned cube for a few hours so chalk that up to goodness.
• Wednesday: 5-mile recovery run in the woods, 00:49. We had a bear pay us a visit Tuesday night so I was on the lookout for our fuzzy little friend throughout my run (no sightings). Just a fairly mellow run in the hills near our place. Walked the steepest sections in an effort to keep my heartrate down. Nice and cool with a brisk wind. Perfect woods running conditions. My left ankle was bugging me a bit and since that horrendous effort a couple weeks ago, my right knee has been giving me a little grief but on the heels of Tuesday's beating, this was a good, slow effort.
• Thursday: 9.5 mile Boulder Res loops, 1:21. Great, relaxed run at the res. I headed west from the East Eagle trailhead and did a short loop on the Eagle Trail then did a clockwise Res loop. Threw in Coot Lake for good measure (and some extra miles… this is not a 10-mile loop as published). Ran into Caleb just as he was getting started, which was super cool. Caleb notched a top 1000 in the NYC marathon last year with a 3:02. Pretty awesome, if you ask me. Hoping to get together with him in the coming weeks to have him kick my ass on one of his slow days. In any event, I felt strong and was able to keep a good pace throughout without taxing myself too much. Nice and cool (though you wouldn't have known it from the way I sweat) and no wind. Saw a couple of pelicans, which was awesome. I really like pelicans for whatever reason. Not necessarily a rarity in Colorado but still cool to see.
• Saturday: 5-mile recovery run Eldora road from Ned, 00:40. Just a nice, easy run on the only flat road I could think of in the area. Steady pace up, picked up the speed a bit on the way down. Felt really strong and worked on running smoothly and efficiently. About a half mile before the turn, another runner warned me of a bear up the road but I didn't see it. It is definitely that time of year, apparently, and the big critters are all out and about trying to pack on the pounds before the long winter.
  

Total mileage for the week: ~41.5
Total time for the week: ~6 hours

Not too shabby. I generally stayed on schedule this week with a couple of runs being just shy of planned. Overall, I am feeling pretty well and am not getting burned out. I am a bit concerned about what happens when the snow starts flying but we'll just play that by ear and not worry about it before it happens (which it will). Last night it snowed down to about 10000 feet so it is definitely on the way.

I also tried out a new pair of shoes today: the Pearl Izumi Surge. It is always a bit iffy trying out new shoes but Saucony no longer makes the ones I prefer (and they are much more of a trail shoe anyway) so I thought I'd give the Surges a shot -- particularly since I am doing the road thing for the coming months. First impressions are positive. They are definitely lighter than what I normally use and felt stable and fast on the road. I was planning to use them for tomorrow's run but decided that was a bad idea to jump into a fresh pair of shoes for a long-ish run. If these keep working well for me, I'll probably pick up another pair for use during the event as well. That is the plan, at least. I'll keep you posted. So far, I like them.

Tomorrow, I have a 17-ish miler planned for down in the valley. May turn this up a notch to 22 and run with Caleb. I'll let you know.

~stubert.

Well that went poorly...

I don't feel the sickness yet, but it's in the post. That's for sure. I'm in the junkie limbo at the moment. Too ill to sleep. Too tired to stay awake, but the sickness is on its way. Sweat, chills, nausea. Pain and craving. A need like nothing else I've ever known will soon take hold of me. It's on its way. ~ Mark Renton

Headed down to Boulder early this morning to join Bob, Thomas and Zack for a 12-mile circumnavigation of South Boulder and Bear Peaks. This was supposed to be about a 3 hour adventure but ended up being more like 5 hours (for me). Yuck. Not even sure how long we were out or how far we went but I do know I ran out of water and ended up with heat exhaustion or something. Not the best run of my career.

From the onset, I was sweating profusely (as I am known to do) but felt I had packed enough food and water to make the full loop. We bushwhacked up to the Bastille trail then down into Eldorado Canyon. If you have never been to Eldo, it is worth the trip. Lots of spectacular cliffs and people climbing and whatnot.

Once we reached the canyon floor, we headed up, up, up to Walker Ranch then up some more to the north trailhead. From there we started up a "private" road (thinking this would lead us to our ultimate destination more quickly given our experience the last time we tried this route) and were about a half mile from where we needed to be when confronted by homeowners who explained that we needed to head back the way we came. Ugh. So back we went.

Surprisingly, a few minutes later we were offered a ride by the same person who had turned us back. We gladly accepted and were driven to the top of Flagstaff to jump on a trail that would eventually lead us to near where we intended to go in the first place.

By this point, I was rationing water fairly aggressively and started not feeling particularly well but soldiered on down Bear Canyon to Mesa Trail. Once we hit Mesa, all hell broke loose with my body and its ability to keep anything resembling a steady pace. I told the other guys to go on and quickly feel behind as I walked the majority of the way back down to the trailhead.

In a word, I felt pretty shitty and quickly grabbed some spare water from my truck and then plopped down in the creek to try to cool off and soak. I wasn't particularly hungry (not a good sign) but thought a Jamba Juice might do the trick so I drove to Superior (the nearest Jamba location) and checked movie times since that was going to be my next goal. The closer I got to the store, the less I felt going to a movie was going to be a good idea so I decided to head straight home after getting my fix.

While placing my order, I started feeling REALLY sick and woozy so rushed over to some seats they have in the store to sit down. I put my had down on the counter and tried to not get sick. The woman who took my order brought my card over to me (I had abandoned it in my rush to sit down) and I suspect she thought I was wickedly hungover or a junkie or something then just a short time later, one of the other staff members came over to bring me my order, ask if I was okay and offer to bring me a damp towel. Super cool. I had broken out in a crazy sweat and had goosebumps at this point. Then my hands went numb. Oh joy.

After drinking some of the cold, tasty beverage, I started to feel a bit better and decided it was time to hit the road. I asked for some water then started driving back home up Coal Creek Canyon. After awhile, I decided that I probably should pull over because I was just feeling worse and worse. Once I started seeing double, I immediately pulled over to take a nap. I rolled down the windows and climbed into the back seat to see if a little rest would help things out. Then I started puking.

So I threw up a little, then a lot, then rested for at least an hour. Not even sure. I didn't call Rach to tell her what was going on because I didn't have a signal when I pulled over but she called after awhile to see if everything was okay. She had offered to come get me when I was down in Superior but at that point I was feeling okay so I didn't take her up on it. In retrospect, that would have been prudent.

I rested for a bit longer and was feeling better so I headed on up the hill. After about a mile, I started feeling sick again but there wasn't anywhere to pull over. So I fought it for as long as I could and then fortunately a pull out appeared and I took it. I threw up a few more times and then called Rach to meet me in Pinecliffe which was only a couple of miles up the road. By the time I made it to Pinecliffe, I was feeling much better and so I just kept driving. I passed Rach going the other way at the end of our road and she turned around to see if I needed help. At this point, I felt well enough to make it the remaining 3 miles to our house. Rach is so awesome to come help me out.

Once I got home, I took a shower, drank a bunch of water and rested for a bit. I am feeling a lot better now but am pretty sure my temp is still up a bit. I have been whacking down popsicles and water and am now starting to feel a bit hungry. May try some actual food in a bit.

So the moral of this story (or lesson anyway) is to always bring more than you think you will need and start your runs that have the potential to get warm early, early in the morning. Especially if you are a Stu who is inclined toward excessive temperatures and requiring way more water than your average bear.

I think I'll take tomorrow off. And probably Tuesday as well.

~stubert.

[edit]: And my back is killing me after moving 2-tons of pellets twice on Thursday.

Back on the bike...

Pain and suffering are often the catalysts for life's most profound lessons. - Dean Karnazes

Yesterday: Night Run - Mesa Trail, 1 hour
Today: Ride - Neighborhood trails, 1 hour
Tomorrow: Ride - Leadville course (maybe), 3 hours

I guess I am going to get back on the bike for a bit to let my shin heal. I ran last night with Pete and it really gave me some troubles. Hurt from the very beginning and afterwards it was really painful. So I'll be giving it some rest to see if I can get it back in shape.

Yesterday I worked in the morning on a project for Quintess. Luke is in Mt. Hood skiing so I am covering for him for the next few days. I then jammed down to Boulder to run a few quick errands and see Shirley for a massage and some ultrasound on my leg.

I then went over to Pete's to hang out and wait for the sun to go down. Jess and Brad were going to join us but weren't feeling up to it so just Pete and I set out at sunset to run a small portion of the Mesa Trail.

It was warm last night - calm and clear. Good running weather. Running at night is a different experience than daytime jaunts and I am growing quite fond of it. We didn't see any other people during our hour out on the trail and it was a peaceful run through the Boulder Foothills. I am planning to do one of these a week until the race so jump on the train if you feel like getting out during cooler temperatures to experience running in a whole new way.

Pete mentioned that upon moving to Boulder, he was out late one night and encountered two night runners. At the time, he thought these people were quintessential Boulder weirdos. Running at night? Jackasses. Welcome to the fold, Pete.

Today I have a bunch of work to do and a couple of conference calls. I may try to scoot out for a ride in the early afternoon but that may need to wait until this evening. I am considering jamming up to Leadville tomorrow to ride the course from Fish Hatchery to Twin Lakes and back but work may get in the way of that little adventure and it may need to wait until the weekend.

And on a final note, check out Kiva.org. This is a cool site that let's individuals participate in microloan programs around the world. Pretty cool to be able to make a difference in people's lives from afar.

See you out there.

~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

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

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.

Wetter is better...

Open the sky and let her come down. ~ The Cult

Yesterday I was the Singlespeed commuter extrordinaire. I rode the bus in from Ned and then rode from the station to work - about 40 minutes. I was in dire need of a haircut and Shannon at Al's Barber Shop had a 1:30 available and was going to be on vacation for a couple of weeks, so I took it. Luke joined me on my trek back to Boulder and showed me some fun bike-path trails out in the Gunbarrel area. We grubbed some burritos, Luke goofed around while Shannon went to work on my melon, and we rode back to his house via 4th Street/Wonderland Lakes.

Shortly after parting company with Luke, the clouds broke open - drenching me completely. It was a warm day so I wasn't really bothered by it. Sometimes it is fun to ride in the rain. I made it back to work safely and then grabbed the bus back to Boulder/Ned since my clothes were soaked. There are few things worse than having to put on wet gear so I opted out of riding back to the station.

I somehow squeezed in an appointment with Mark at In Motion for this afternoon and will probably try to ride this evening at home depending upon his diagnosis and recommendations for activity-levels over the next few days. I am feeling really fit right now and don't want to lose it but maybe a rest is in order. Gotta take these things in stride.

Log some miles for me.

~stubert

Edit: Oh yeah, if anyone wants to bring me a replacement Jamba Juice (Protein Berry with Immunity, please) I'd be most grateful. I dropped mine on the way in to work and it exploded all over the foyer. Good times.

Semi-Cirque de Boulder...

Pain don't hurt. ~ James Dalton

So yesterday went relatively well. Luke and I got started around 4:30 from the 7-mile mark of the Cirque de Boulder route. Let's call it the semi-cirque. We started off under overcast skies and moderate temperatures. Pretty near perfect conditions. The first half of the route went smoothly and Nichole and Pete met us at Gregory Canyon to help crew. Special thanks to those two as we were both out of water by this point and it is always good to see a familiar face.

We jammed up to the Mesa Trail and this is when my right ankle started acting up. No biggie, just kept running and ignored it. We were treated to some amazing views with the sunset highlighting the Flatirons. Really just a gorgeous evening.

We dropped down Blue Stem around dusk and pushed the pace along 93 and got to the Bobolink trailhead (I think) just as darkness started to set in. There was a pack of howling coyotes in the meadow through which we ran just yipping up a storm. Really cool to see this much of the Boulder Valley and Foothills in Springtime. The wildflowers and dogwoods were blooming, the pines were sprouting fresh needles and everything is getting green again.

We ran through the darkness under an amazing new moon to Luke's parents' house and grabbed a ride back to our starting point to retrieve my car. All in all a good run.

I am a bit hammered today. I felt like I was hungover this morning. I don't think I rehydrated enough post run and definitely didn't eat enough after we stopped running. My left knee swelled up quite a bit where I banged it last week but I think this, along with the ankle issue, will resolve itself in due time. I plan to limit my activity to hiking and biking for the next few days. All told, we logged at least 23 miles in about 4.5 hours. A bit off our intended pace but a pretty decent effort nonetheless.

Today, I drove to Gunnison to hang out with my parents. I head back to the Front Range tomorrow and will probably take it a bit easy thru the weekend. I'll keep you posted.

~stubert