Exactly 1 year ago today (coincidence, not planned) I explored the Box Elder Trail with a friend and have been dying to get back. I put the peak on my list of summit goals for the year, and this morning I finally bagged it. I posted on some FB groups and an impressive roster of local runners joined. 15 in total (which is the group size limit) + 2 others who came a bit later and did the loop in…
Well, it’s done. I finally ran an ultramarathon. The Bryce 50k is in the bag! Distance: 30.7 miles Elevation gain: ~ 5,349 Time: 7:17:34 Place: 30 out of 86 (100+ started but not all finished) Other than a couple Ragnar Relays, I have run two 5ks and one 5 mile race. As adventure runs, I have gone 20+ miles a handful of times, and over 26.3 only once – none in the race context however. In other words, I not…
I am running my first ultramarathon in a couple weeks – the Bryce 50k (~31 miles). I have *almost run that far once, and it was slow. I have done a number of runs in the 20-25 mile range, but none have been races. Aside from 2 Ragnar relays, the longest race I have done was a 5 mile Turkey Trot back when I still lived in Nebraska. In any case, I have not trained very well and figured I…
2 easy run around the Orem foothills. The Orem Police gun range trailhead is just 2 miles from my new house, so this will likely be my primary set of trails. And, thankfully, there are a million of them. On top of the primary Bonneville Shorelines trail system, Mtn. Bikers have built a network of connecting trails. In any case, very close, very fun.
This last week my family moved from our beloved Davis County down to Utah County. I have really come to love the Davis County trails. Exploring them. Trying to promote them as many are sadly under-used. Apparently that will not be a problem down here in Utah County. Everything appears blazed out and well marked…….and spectacularly gorgeous! Here’s my last in Davis and first in Utah County. For my last run in Davis, I hit Mueller Park. I had never…
2 runs, only 3 days apart. The first, up the Farmington Canyon singletrack to Sunset Campground and then down the road on Monday. A recovery run of sorts and it felt great. I PRd on the loop and a 5k PR on the way down! It was only in the 70s but it felt so hot. I was SWEATING! 3 days later, on Thursday, I headed up the Fruit Heights upper terrace from Shepherd Creek to Baer Canyon and back…
After running the Good Water Rim Trail at the Wedge area of the San Rafael Swell on President’s Day I immediately resolved to do a follow-up run at the canyon bottom. Today a few other Wasatch Mtn. Wranglers joined me on the adventure. Overall it was a fairly “flat” route. 22+ miles, but only about 1,850 ft. elevation gain. That didn’t mean it was easy though. Those 1,800+ ft. were concentrated in a medium, small, and BIG traverse over ridges…
I recently took a new job about 50 miles from home. This means long train commutes. Until my family moves, I am working Tuesdays and Thursdays at home. This means that if I put in extra hours on MWF, which I inevitably do while working 1.5 hours each way on the train, I have a little time to run during the days on T/Th. Today, I decided to combine work + play. I took a large pile of papers that…
My wife’s brother’s wife, Rachael, has been getting into trail running and asked if I would take her out on some trails while she is up visiting Utah this week. As you can imagine, she didn’t have to twist my arm. I decided on Antelope Island and she was excited to try out the Buffalo 25k course – which would be a distance and elevation gain PR for her. She crushed it. We hit the trail around 7 and…
I have explained before my aversion to group runs. I’m slower than most of the 100-miler ultramarathoning trail runners who I have the pleasure to know. So group runs quickly become solo runs. For Presidents Day, however, there was a group run that I just couldn’t resist. A 21-31 mile run along the Good Water Rim Trail in The Wedge are of the San Rafael Swell. Wow. The group totaled 26 runners – a collection of Wasatch Mountain Wrangers, Orange…