I probably should have drawn an easier route for my first attempt at a marathon distance run – but it is just too easy (and fun) to draw lines on maps, tracing trails and ridge-lines, etc… In any case, I drew it, so I ran it: The South Mountain Western Ridges Marathon+. In all, it ended up tracking to 29 miles – almost a 50k. Phoenix’s South Mountain Preserve is located on the southern edge of town – a series…
Tomorrow morning I will attempt my first marathon-distance run. I have chosen the western ridges of the South Mountain Park/Preserve located on the southern edge of Phoenix, AZ. The longest I have run before was about 20 miles. So, this will be a jump in distance for me. I know that the strava tool I used to draw the route over estimated the elevation gain (it is more in the 6,000 than 8,700 ft, range). Conversely, I suspect that the…
In one of my many other lives, I run a music blog, Desert Island Mixtapes (also on facebook). I just posted my Best Albums of 2014 list. Some good running tunes on there. This year, I ran a LOT to the new Spoon album, Braid album, and S. Carey album. The S. Carey album in particular got heavy rotation when up in the high mountains. Enjoy!
Just in time for Christmas and everyone’s wondering what to buy their running friends, I recently updated the Gear pages. You can there find the lists of what I have been using lately, some short- and long-form reviews on what I do and do not like. Enjoy!
I recently discovered that a fellow Western historian here in SLC trail runs and immediately set to planning a time to hit the dirt together. On a couple Tuesday mornings recently we have met at 6:00 AM and put in a few miles, talking about trails, races, and history. The company has been great and he hasn’t even seemed too perturbed by how slow I have taken some of the climbs. Seriously – I just can’t seem to muster much…