Well...here we go with my very first blog post. I never thought this day would come but here it is!!!
I will keep things short and sweet for my first post as I am "riding on training wheels" right now. Wow I have so much to learn!!!
Most of you that know me know that I love doing things that others won't try. Not that they can't but that they won't or refuse to try. So as last work week was winding to a close I shot Swede a quick text. All it said was "want to get stupid Saturday?" in which he replies "you know it brother!!!". After that well...our minds shifted to when/where and we are planning. Chris (aka Swede) is in the midst of training for the Leadville 100 and I the Wasatch 100. Since Swede's race is closer I wanted to make sure we had him primed. I asked him to lay out a course and DAMN did he ever.
Saturday morning rolled around and the alarm went off at 3 AM. Talk about hard to roll out of bed but I knew the fun was about to begin. I threw on my Brooks gear and grab my North Face rain jacket as it was raining and we would most likely be in the rain all day. Loading up my vehicle the caffiene was starting to kick in and I was starting to get fired up (no surprise). With the radio booming and the rain falling I was on my way to meet Swede at 4 AM and we were off!!!
We stated our run at 5ish at the trail head of Lilly Lake in RMNP. The sun was not quite up and the fog was heavy. It was setting up to be an epic day!!! The first couple miles came easier than normal for us. We rolled though some good climbs and faster flats. The birds were singing and the world was waking up. I absolutely love these moments when you are just "there" as the world comes alive.
We stopped at one point a few miles in at the junction of the Estes Cone trail. We both looked at each other knowing this scramble was not on the route and both said "why not"...off we went. It was .7 miles up and roughly 800 feet of barely marked trail. At the top we were hoping the fog would clear so we could see the sunrise from 11200 feet. Well...as we waited it just did not happen. Little did we know what was coming. As we descended down the mountain from Estes Cone the skies cleared for a few moments. It was almost like we were meant to be there at that time. Swede and I both were frantically grabbing for our cameras as we had a front row seat to Longs Peak and Mt Meeker at daybreak. Truly one of the most incredible sights I have ever seen.
As we returned to the trail junction that we were originally on we knew this day was going to be incredible. We left the spot and headed out the trail to a nice gentle descend. While on the trail I was telling Swede about the Leadman idea. As we started talking he said it is something he would be interested in as well. So...looks like Swede and I are getting "stupid" again and taking on the Leadman Series.
The rest of the trip was breath taking section after breath taking section. It was either the view or the 11-12K elevation taking your breath away but either was it was epic.
As we made our way back to Lilly Lake I could not help but notice as dirty, wet, and muddy as we were we still were both smiling from ear to ear. These days don't come around often but when they do...DAMN!!! We had just ran 22 miles at 6900 ft of vertical climb and topped out over 12000 ft elevation.
As we "refueled" with the food Megan and Steph (thank you to the both of you) made for us the skies opened up. Rain was coming down hard and people were scrambling around trying to stay dry. It was kind of funny to watch the folks in nice white shoes running through the mud (well a little funny). We had very little rain during the run and it was ironic that it happened when it did. Kind of like the run was meant to be.
All I can say is WOW what a run!!! Swede put together an epic run in RMNP.
So there it is...my first blog post. I hope whomever reads it enjoys it. I am always open to comments to make it better.
Looking back maybe this was not so short and sweet after all...oh well!!!
I will keep things short and sweet for my first post as I am "riding on training wheels" right now. Wow I have so much to learn!!!
Most of you that know me know that I love doing things that others won't try. Not that they can't but that they won't or refuse to try. So as last work week was winding to a close I shot Swede a quick text. All it said was "want to get stupid Saturday?" in which he replies "you know it brother!!!". After that well...our minds shifted to when/where and we are planning. Chris (aka Swede) is in the midst of training for the Leadville 100 and I the Wasatch 100. Since Swede's race is closer I wanted to make sure we had him primed. I asked him to lay out a course and DAMN did he ever.
Saturday morning rolled around and the alarm went off at 3 AM. Talk about hard to roll out of bed but I knew the fun was about to begin. I threw on my Brooks gear and grab my North Face rain jacket as it was raining and we would most likely be in the rain all day. Loading up my vehicle the caffiene was starting to kick in and I was starting to get fired up (no surprise). With the radio booming and the rain falling I was on my way to meet Swede at 4 AM and we were off!!!
We stated our run at 5ish at the trail head of Lilly Lake in RMNP. The sun was not quite up and the fog was heavy. It was setting up to be an epic day!!! The first couple miles came easier than normal for us. We rolled though some good climbs and faster flats. The birds were singing and the world was waking up. I absolutely love these moments when you are just "there" as the world comes alive.
We stopped at one point a few miles in at the junction of the Estes Cone trail. We both looked at each other knowing this scramble was not on the route and both said "why not"...off we went. It was .7 miles up and roughly 800 feet of barely marked trail. At the top we were hoping the fog would clear so we could see the sunrise from 11200 feet. Well...as we waited it just did not happen. Little did we know what was coming. As we descended down the mountain from Estes Cone the skies cleared for a few moments. It was almost like we were meant to be there at that time. Swede and I both were frantically grabbing for our cameras as we had a front row seat to Longs Peak and Mt Meeker at daybreak. Truly one of the most incredible sights I have ever seen.
As we returned to the trail junction that we were originally on we knew this day was going to be incredible. We left the spot and headed out the trail to a nice gentle descend. While on the trail I was telling Swede about the Leadman idea. As we started talking he said it is something he would be interested in as well. So...looks like Swede and I are getting "stupid" again and taking on the Leadman Series.
The rest of the trip was breath taking section after breath taking section. It was either the view or the 11-12K elevation taking your breath away but either was it was epic.
As we made our way back to Lilly Lake I could not help but notice as dirty, wet, and muddy as we were we still were both smiling from ear to ear. These days don't come around often but when they do...DAMN!!! We had just ran 22 miles at 6900 ft of vertical climb and topped out over 12000 ft elevation.
As we "refueled" with the food Megan and Steph (thank you to the both of you) made for us the skies opened up. Rain was coming down hard and people were scrambling around trying to stay dry. It was kind of funny to watch the folks in nice white shoes running through the mud (well a little funny). We had very little rain during the run and it was ironic that it happened when it did. Kind of like the run was meant to be.
All I can say is WOW what a run!!! Swede put together an epic run in RMNP.
So there it is...my first blog post. I hope whomever reads it enjoys it. I am always open to comments to make it better.
Looking back maybe this was not so short and sweet after all...oh well!!!
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