AZSpeedgoat

Running with a broken heart

2010-06-05T12:01:00.000-07:00

I am back at it and ran the circumference trail today and did squaw peak also. Need to get in shape for Speedgoat 50K - July 31st. Snowbird UT.

Blue dominates Humphries-6/6/09

2009-06-08T08:43:00.000-07:00

Saturday Blue took Katie and I to Flag to climb Humphries. We parked at top lot so it took a mile or 2 off the whole deal. It was about 7 miles with 3000 ft elevation gain. It is still a great workout and gets you to about 12,000 ft at the saddle where we had to turn around because of high winds and super cold temps. Katie and Blue did awesome and it took us about 1:50 to get up and 1:30 to get down. We saw Alvin Adams, Kirk McCarville and 2 Bobs, Bachani and Redwanc. All training for Hardrock as well. Not 33 AA, he was just hiking.

Katie and Blue were pooped, I felt great and did a double SP the next day a felt better than I have since Jemez. Hopefully I can start running soon. I need to start training for Western and HR.

A New Speedgoat

2009-06-01T08:41:00.000-07:00

There is a new speedgoat on the way. He or she will be here just in time for the annual butt whoopin U of A gives to asu in football. 11/28/09. In fact he may even be the starting safety by then. Check out the guns on this kid. While the battles for naming rights to this fine looking little human have Katie and I at each others throats, he or she continues to work out and is producing some serious pipes. How does one score HGH inside the womb? Vote to name the new speedgoat on the upper right. Write in votes go in the comments sections.

In other news, I have only run once since Jemez produced a stress fracture in my 5th metatarsal in my right foot. I am trying to give it time to heal and get to the start line in Squaw for Western States. While this is supposed to be my big mileage week with tapering coming in 2 weeks, I am actually going with a 5 week taper this year and will see what happens. See everyone Wed, maybe.

Jemez 50 Miler (52.3)

2009-05-19T16:21:00.000-07:00

I just got back from the Jemez 50 miler and it is the new leader of the hardest 50 miler in the country award. Wow, was it tough. Andrew and I flew to AlbeQ. NM and drove to Los Alamos. We went to the pre race briefing and dinner where Andrew won an Ultimate Direction waist pack. I won squat! Here is my report of the days events.

At the start, The Posse Shack, it was a great, there was coffee, soda, bananas, muffins, and a million donuts, mmmmm donuts. The race starts at 5am (4am Phx time) and at 4:58 I was in the porta jeff by the start line. I got out just in time to head off down this dusty road with 170 other morons for a day of fun in the mtns of NM.

The race starts at about 7500 ft and heads up rolling hills for about 5 miles thru a canyon to the first aid station and a quick bottle fill. I am just trying to settle in get a feel for my knee that has been bothering me since Zane Grey. My knee feels normal meaning it was popping in and out and clicking and in tolerable pain. Climbing is much easier than downhills, we would be doing alot of both today. After passing thru AS#1 we headed up another canyon for a 1900 ft climb in 2 miles, gradual for this course. I was following Betsey Kalmeyer, the 6 time winner of the Hardrock 100. She can climb, but we weren't pushing too hard yet. I could still see Andrew and Jamil way up the mountain so I thought, I must be doing o.k. As Betsey and I got to the top AS #2 (7.1 mi) we topped off bottles and started down a very steep canyon, switchbacks that were so steep we should have just used them as steps and gone straight down. There were little pebbles covering the ground and at every turn we would slide on them around the corner. After a few of them, I took a look out at the horizon as the sun was coming up and DOH! slip and fall. Now my arms and body are across the trail and my legs are dangling down the hill, Betsey looks back to see if I am o.k. and she goes down. We both get up, dust ourselves off, and continue. I told her I would take credit for that one. We start running again and I notice my knee doesn't really hurt as much, I think I just popped it back in place. Almost to the bottom and Betsey slows down to go around another steep switchback and her legs go out, she hits the trail rolls off a rock and down to the next switchback and wraps around a tree. If not for the tree she may still be going. She got up and kept running. She now has blood dripping down both legs. Now at the bottom of this canyon we are running along and we come to a waterfall and a ladder, what? This is a first, so we climb it and keep going. That was weird. After a couple miles of rolling trail along a creek we pull into Caballo Base aid station. (10.1 mi) This would start the first of 3 climbs over 10,000 ft. The climbs in NM are steep and long. Caballo went on for about 2+ miles and climbed 2200 ft. This was an out and back section where I would soon see the leaders come cruising down, very cool. The first guy came thru and then no one for about 5 minutes, then towards the top they were more frequest. I saw Jamil fly by and then Andrew, we chatted very briefly, all is good, get going. At the top of Caballo (10,440 ft) we turn around a tree and head back down. I stopped, got some agua and looked around, the views were amazing. I was nervous to test my knee on such a long steep downhill but it felt great, I was cruising and having a blast passing people coming up saying wrong way and crap like that, anything to make me laugh. It is all about me you know. Pulling back into Caballo base (14.2 mi) I took the First Endurance Liquid Shot for the first time. Major race mistake to try something new on race day but my stomach has never had any problems with anything so I said what the hell, I have heard great things about this new product. It is true, it gave me quick, even energy for hours. I planned to take one every 10-ish miles and I had good energy all day. Now heading for Pipeline AS was an uneventful climb of about 3 miles and 1500 ft. Running into 17 mile AS I saw Neil Blake, a local NM buddy of mine that I was excited to run with. He was in a chair nursing a bad hammy, he was going to call it a day but we took off together. Heading for the Caldera Preserve you start by basically going off a cliff for about 1/4 mile straight down, but sliding or falling the whole way. This did no good for Neil's hammy so he checked out and had to go back up the schute to drop. He has bigger fish to fry soon. The next section is rolling dirt roads thru a huge grassy meadow until we get to the 21 MI AS. Topp off and keep going,

I am now headed for the dreaded Cerro Grande climb. While not as long as Caballo, this climb goes over furniture sized boulders and then straight up a mountain forest with no trail. I had to laugh out loud at everyone grabbing trees to pull themselves up the mountain or to stop them from falling back down, not sure. Every time you thought you were at the top, oops false summit, keep going. Finally at the top, the clouds are rolling in and I am all alone now. I pop another liquid shot and start the long downhill to Pajarito base. This was about a 5 mile downhill section that was really fun. It went along the creek the whole time, not too steep we were able to cruise the whole way at a good pace. I had that #2 feeling again and finally had to get something going. I was hoping there was a port a jeff at this upcoming 28 MI AS. No such luck, so I filled up and headed out of there with baby wipes in pocket and looking for a good place to squat. #2 in the forest with fried quads is not fun. Big canyon, huge rock, problem solved- 5 minutes lost but also 5 lbs lost. Good trade for the next climb.

So I head up yet another canyon for a 3 mile section to the base of the Paja ski resort. This stop was welcome as I was getting hungry and had a couple PBJ sections and some chips. Me and 2 others took of for the next climb and were a little out of it and took a wrong turn and ended up on the wrong trial for about a mile. Finally we started heading back and ended up at the aid station again to ask directions. They pointed straight up the ski run. This was a double black diamond that went on forever, so after a few more chips, we took off and started the 3rd climb over 10K ft. This was getting really tiring now. with an extra 2.3 miles on our tired legs the climbing got slower and slower. The longest climb of the day took for-ev-er. Finally after the 4th false summit I could see all the way down the hill to the ski lodge, our next AS. We had to go down another double black run to get there. This was soooo painful on the quads. It reminded me of HR when I had to walk backwards downhill. We are only at mile 36 and it feels like mile 60 in a 100. It takes everything to just get out of an AS now. The next section wasn't too hard and was actually runnable. So pulling into 39 MI AS I felt pretty good. Throwing down another liquid shot I got my picture taken with their mascot sheep and took off for home.

All the big climbs now done, all I had was basically a 1.5 mile gradual climb and then 10 miles home mostly downhill. Still full of energy I had a blast running the single track thru the last section of forest before getting to the desert section. I was starting to see more and more runners limping along because of fried quads they could not do downhills. It looked very painful but I didn't have time for sympathy. I had to break 13 hrs and only had 1:15 to get 8.5 miles now. The last 2 sections were really fun, cruising single track and downhills thru the canyons I pulled into 48 mile AS with at 12:30. Topped off and headed out. Downhill my ass! All I saw were switchbacks up, bummed out I started to head up. It wasn't that bad. Once at the top I could see trail to the tunnel under the freeway to the posse shack. Cruising thru the last mile in a race is always cool, just thinking about the long day and all the different things you go thru out there. It is a crazy sport but there is nothing better than giving total effort all day and getting over the finish line. 12:50 total time. 40th place out of 170 starters. Jamil kicked ass again at 3rd place 9:53 and Andrew was 14th in 11:13. Good WMRC showing for sure.

This is a very hard race that I would do again. 2 days later I still feel pretty worked and I think about all the downhills when I walk down the stairs and my legs give out. Well organized, well marked and had very good volunteers. A-

JJMRC

2009-05-14T15:26:00.001-07:00

Blue and I went out for an easy 5 miler this morning off of 32nd st TH. We got a late start at 5:30 and saw JJ at the top of the first mile climb. He was out walking with the boys taking it easy today. I think he was yelling at me for running 2 days before a race. I have the Jemez 50 miler Sat in the mtns of Los Alamos NM. This is one of the toughest 50's in the country with 12,000 ft of ascent combined. With 3 peaks over 10,400, it will prove to be a very good challenge and good training for Western and Hardrock later in the summer. These pics are from some crazy sections of this race. Looks like fun, huh.

WMRC-5/13

2009-05-13T14:53:00.000-07:00

We had a great group today! 19 runners and 2 dogs. Blue and some other hound. Firby from my office decided to show up and go for it. He brought his buddy Scott as well. Let's just say Firby underestimated the effort it takes to run 6 miles on trails. We took an easy route and an easy pace and Firby said it was the hardest thing he had ever done. He did a great job to keep going when everything in your body and head tells you to stop. It is now 3pm and I haven't seen him in a while, I think he is asleep underneath his cube. Scott did great also, he finished with the rest of the crew. I finished with Firby's bookbag on my shoulders and a pissed off dog because we had to walk some of the last couple miles. I didn't want Firby to get lost and have to be taken out in a helicopter. Good job Firby, takes balls just to show up. See you next week.

1:05, 6 miles, 1000 ft climbed, Here is a picture of Blue waiting for Firby.

TMRC 5/12

2009-05-12T10:29:00.000-07:00

55 minutes- 4 miles. Blue and I met Honey, Wardo and Joe G with his dog Sonja for an easy run at DD. It is getting pretty hot for dogs so we took it easy. Honey was coming off of her R2R2R run on Sat and was also pretty tired. Took bright angel/NK both ways and it took her and Kirk 15 hours. She said it was pretty hot and they were worked. I guess so, last time we did it it took just about 11+ hrs. Kirk tried to drive home after throwing up for the last 3 hours of the run and was having dry heaves in the car so honey took over. Normally this wouldn't be funny, but if you have done the canyon with Kirk this is par for the course and kind of amusing. Honey is a bigger sucker, she is going back again this weekend to do it again. Doing the overnight trip like the attached picture of our last trip. I am off the Los Alamos NM to do the Jemez 50 miler in the mountains this Sat. See you all tomorrow for WMRC easy run.

JJMRC

2009-05-07T08:12:00.000-07:00

Me and JJ sans dogs went out for an easy run off of 32nd st TH. We thought it was gonna be 1:30 but JJ was doing his speegoat tryout run so we were moving pretty well. I never looked up except to drink so I am not sure where we went. It felt like the end of hardrock when JJ was just pulling me along but at the end we were exactly where we were supposed to be. We went over Palm Saddle to Circumf to Red Canyon to Swithback alley and back 2000 ft climbed in 7.6 miles. 1:23 finish. JJ has one of those new fangled doodads that measures everything. I can't figure out how to put the image on here but trust me, it is cool. We did run into a "gang" of mountain bikers and a full on melee erupted, reminded me of the scene in anchorman. That is what I will leave you with. You stay classy Phx.

WMRC 5/6

2009-05-06T14:31:00.000-07:00

Blue and I went out with the WMRC this morning for a good 6 miler and the heat is officially on. I don't mind it that much but Blue is not diggin it. He was very thirsty when we finished. Higgie led a great route and we had about 16 people and 3 dogs, well, 1 akc and 2 mutts. Nevertheless, it was a successful run and my knee held up pretty good and I am looking forward to tomorrow's 8-9 miler with JJ. Should be a good test. I feel great going uphill, fitness is good but the knee feels a little wierd. I guess I will just try to power thru it and see what happens. Peace out!

5/2 WT Ford Canyon Run

2009-05-04T09:03:00.000-07:00

Honey and I set out to run from Waterfall to Ford Canyon to Goat to Bajada and back. Things didn't work out that way. After a great 2.5 mile warm up heading over to Ford canyon the trail start to climb over rocks and washes and thru bushes. I am used to this kind of terrain and Honey had done this "trail" many times. We finished Ford Canyon and made it out of the wash at 55 minutes and to the top of the switchbacks in 1:04. The we started running over to the goat camp trail and my knee felt like it just gave out. It was really painful to run downhill and I knew my day was going to be cut short. After we got to Goat camp/mesquite intersection, I told Honey I was done and had to cut it short. She was tired also so we started heading back. Mesquite is a gradual long downhill that is a really cool trail. It reminds me of the Canyon where you can see the trail sooo far away. My knee was just getting worse as we went along and at about 2 miles to go I was limping along pretty good but still running about 8-9 minute miles. Towards the end we slowed down pretty much as it is very rocky (where Jamil bit it a couple weeks ago). Here is where Honey rolled her ankle pretty hard so we were both limping in and looked like we got hit by a bus. We finished the 12-13 mile loop in 2:01 and felt like I had just done a 100. My knee now feels a little better but something is wrong in there, damn Zane Grey! My next race is in 2 weeks, another hard 50 miler in the Mtns of Los Alamos, NM. Jemez Mtn Run. I hope I can get my knee right or I am in trouble on that one. It is like a mini hardrock. Oh, we'll give a try tomorrow and see what happens. Peace out.

Post ZG week

2009-04-30T08:52:00.000-07:00

Normally I slack off the week after a big race, especially ZG. But this year I felt o.k. I ran with Bill Barthen and crew on Tues for about 4 miles and WMRC on Wed for about 6 and today Andrew and I hit it really hard for about 8-9 really fast. This was a loop that Honey and I usually do in about 1:15 and Andrew and I did it in 1:04. I wanted to push myself outside of my comfort level to gain more speed and this is exactly what we did. What a great run this morning. Higgie joined us for a bit and we even saw JJ, Racheal and Michael out there. Great weather. Blue slept in today. I think I am headed for a big loop in the white tanks on Sat. At least 20, possibly about 26 if I can find the Ford canyon route by myself.

This week: 18 miles- 3 hours.

Zane Grey Report

2009-04-28T14:42:00.001-07:00

What a great day for the WMRC. Jamil won the race, Joe did a great job RD'ing and I will never run that race again...again.

After Higgie and I were kicked out of our cabin for the night, we settled on Motel 6 in Payson. It was smelly with weird stains all over place. Then Chip called and asked to stay with us, we said sure, come on up and bring some Pine Sol. Since we were supposed to be staying 1.583 miles from the start and now we were 18 miles from the start we had to get up extra early just to make it there in time. No worries, Higgie was in charge.

The early morning started out with me on the phone with my home security co. in Phx. They called me 5 minutes before the race telling me my alarm was going off and there was a gas leak in my house. Well, not much I can do from Payson so I gave Higgie all my info and told him to take care of it and I left to go try to catch up with the other 120 + runners that have already started.

ZG starts with about a 1.5 mile climb up the rim and levels out with great views and rolling trails coming into the 1st aid station. I got there in about 1:40, 15-ish min behind my goal. Oh well, it was gonna be a long day anyway.

Chip and I took off for AS #2 and were making good time over the next 9 miles. A good climb starts every section at ZG and this was no different. While I felt better this year, I wasn't moving much faster. So we pulled into mi 17 at 3:25, working our way back to the front of the pack but wasting a lot of energy doing it.

Over the next 8 mi section, Chip started to pull in front and soon it would be the last I would see of him. He ended up 6th pl and an hour ahead of me. While I was still in reach of a good time I could feel a bonk coming on so I started pounding water and gu's and ate a sandwich at mi 25 AS. I hung out there a little bit and then started to hike the little climb out of there. At the top I could see all the way across the next valley, how far I had to go and it hit me, "I HATE THIS RACE!"

I kept going and overcame that down cycle and actually had a good time of 2:05 on that 9-10 mile section. This race is never ending rocks, pricker bushes and heat. Twisted ankles and thrashed legs await at every turn. Up and down and never able to get into a rhythm, I just wanted to go find my pacer to have someone to talk to.

I pulled into 33 mi AS and found Higgie and Kirk waiting to help. We got something to eat and drink and Higgie and I headed out to the long section of 33-44 mi. Higgie and I never made it to this section last year so it would be good to see.

On the first long climb we passed a friend of mine Steve who will also be at HR this year. As my pacer, Higgie has many duties. Carry my bags to our hotel room, wash my car when Honey throws up on it, mainly keep me moving when I feel like crap late in a race. The last part he is very good at. Until...... we start heading up the 1.5 mile steep climb at mile 38 and a chick, yes a chick, named Andi passes us and Higgie starts talking to her and all of the sudden, boom, higgie is now pacing her and I am about 100 yds behind. WTF Higgie, you're fired! I start to freak out a bit and yell up the canyon, "am I dragging something" looking behind me, it felt like I was dragging an old tire or a fridge or something. I was moving very slowly. We finally got to the top and Higgie remembered where his bread is buttered after I slapped him upside his head. We start to pick up the pace and I start to recognize some of this trail as we are heading into mi 44 and finally the last section.

In 44 AS, there is the friendly face of Lizzy girl. She gets us everything we need, takes our picture and sends us on our way. We have again another long slow steep climb out of 44. This is only about 2 miles until it evens out a little but I am starting to get really tired and wonderig when the next girl will pass me and then I will be all alone as I watch her and Higg run off into the sunset. Higgie is a smart pacer, he starts taking pictures because he knows I will fake run while the camera is out. So click, click, click and run, run , run. We are making good time and guzzling gu's and starting to have fun. All of the sudden we can hear the highway and the finish line, I get all excited and ditch Higgie for once. I cross the finish in 11:43. What a great day of training. I will never do this race again.

At the finish, my legs are tired and my stomach is growling, I have a beer and some chili and wait for some other runners to come in. ZG is a great race that I will never do again. Higgie! Drive me home! Thanks for helping out, I had a fun day.

4/23

2009-04-23T10:49:00.000-07:00

ZZZZZZzzzzzzzzz, I can't run every day! Blue and I played ball in the yard and picked up blue poop.

WMRC 4/22

2009-04-22T08:22:00.000-07:00

Blue and I went out with the WMRC this morning for an easy 6 miles. The majority of us are doing Zane Grey in some form this weekend. Zane is a 50 miler (51 actually) in the mountains above Payson on the highline trail along the Mogollon Rim. It is a tough, rocky, long and hot trail with many steep climbs. Every year at the finish line I say that I will never do it again and here I am, about to toe the line again. It will hopefully take less than 11 hrs to complete and won't leave me as beaten up as in years past. Attached is the elevation profile to see what we are doing. The only other question is, why?

6 miles, 55 minutes, 500ft-easy pace

4/21 Run TMRC

2009-04-21T08:39:00.000-07:00

Honey, Wardo, Andrew, Blue and I went for an easy hour from 32nd st TH and did the Big Higg lolli pop loop. It is as flat as you can get out there and still probably climbs 1000 ft. It was an easy pace and we all talked and discussed ZG coming up this weekend. Blue wasn't in on the conversation as he was busy hunting owls. He saw an owl fly off into the night and I think he is out there still going after it. It wouldn't surprise me if I got home later today and it was stuffed and mounted up on the wall with his other trophies. Go Blue!

Who says Blue can't walk on water?.....

6 mi, 1 Hour, 1000ft

4/18 Run

2009-04-20T08:33:00.000-07:00

Double Squaw Peak Circumference run....10 miles, 2:03:09, 3300ft ascent.

I went to squaw peak with the intentions of just doing a double and when I got there I decided to do the circumference loop with a trip to the top and when I got done I thought I would just do it again. This is a tough run and a good judge of my fitness level right now. Anything under 1 hour for the first loop is a good sign. I did the first in 59: 30 and the 2nd in 1:03. It was getting hot but it was good training for ZG this coming weekend.

4/17 Run

2009-04-17T08:31:00.000-07:00

Honey, Blue and I went out for an easy run off of 32nd st trailhead this morning. We did the big Higg Lolli pop loop. Blue was a little crazy this morning. Many rabbits and birds that we ran into kept him a little distracted. Overall a good run at an easy pace. Taper time for Zane Grey next weekend.

6 miles, 59:13, 1000 ft. Felt really good, blue was a dick!

4/16/Run

2009-04-16T09:02:00.000-07:00

While Katie ditched us and slept in because it was not over 65 degrees, Blue and I headed to the visitors center for something a little different. We started from VC and ran over to Shaw, ran to the top of Shaw Butte and then down the other side and ran over to North Mtn and ran up that then down another way and back to the VC. It was harder than I thought. I felt really good and Blue was a good boy today. Just another area of the preserve that he gets to dominate.

7 miles, 1:07, 3000 ft ascent

WMRC 4/15 Run

2009-04-15T09:13:00.000-07:00

WMRC went out for a nice easy 6 miler on the trails of the preserve this am. Higgy led us at a pretty good pace and Blue and I stayed in the very back to stop from going out too fast. It works, we had a slow run, just what the Dr. ordered. Blue felt better after few day under the weather and a hurt tail.???

6 miles, 1:05 800ft climb

TMRC 4/14

2009-04-14T09:08:00.000-07:00

Honey, Kirk and I did the Tuesday run from DD on trail 100 to the Shaw Butte visitors center this morning. It was great weather and the sun is coming up earlier each day. Headlamps for only 30 minutes. Blue was a little hungover from his big b-day celebration a couple days ago so he stayed home. He went out after Katie and I went to bed that night and got into some trouble at a local strip club....Now he is grounded for 2 weeks. (for not taking me with him)

11 miles, 1:39, 1200 ft climb

2009-04-13T10:52:00.001-07:00

Blue had his 2nd birthday party on easter sunday. He didn't want to make a big deal of it or miss the Masters so he just invited his good friend Dixie. They ate, swam, chased balls and crapped in the yard. Well it was kind of crap. Dixie ate a bag of flour the day before so she was pooping white dust everywhere. Here are some pics of Blue's big day.

4/11 White Tanks

2009-04-13T10:04:00.000-07:00

Honey, Andrew, Jamil and I went to the White Tanks today for a long run. This is now my favorite trail run. In the drizzling rain we started out going up the Waterfall trail and then cut over to Goat Camp and took that way up and over the down to another parking lot. 11 miles, Jamil and Andrew were haulin ass and I was just barely keeping up. Honey came up a few minutes later and had rolled her ankle so she decided to call it after 11 miles and went back to the car on the road. We turned back and headed up a 3000 ft climb in about 3 miles. It was very good training for hardrock. Coming over the top the trail leveled out and was just beautiful. We were moving pretty good until we got over to the mesquite trail. Then we were moving ridiculously fast. I was falling back of A & J while still running under 7 minute miles for about 3-4 miles. This part reminded me of the south kaiabab trail in the Grand Canyon. When we finally could see the parking lot down below I saw Jamil and Andrew stopped ahead and knew something was wrong. Jamil had tried to jump a big boulder in the trail and smashed his knee into it. He went down and there was a lot of blood running down his knee. We jogged it in the last half mile and were done. What a great run! Thanks Honey for making me go!

22 miles, 4700 ft ascent, 4 hrs

4/9 Run

2009-04-10T09:34:00.000-07:00

Blue, Honey and I went for an easy 7-8 miles this morning and tried to keep it flat which is not easy to do in the mountains. We ended up having a great run and Blue may have scared up the first rattlesnake of the season. He was intitially startled but then he jumped into the bush and grabbed the rattler, killed it, skinned it, and yesterday he had it mounted to a board and put it up over the fireplace as one more of his many trophies.

7-8 miles 1:15, 1500ft- tired legs, felt better as it went along. Rest fri for 25 miles on Sat.

WMRC 4/8

2009-04-08T10:09:00.000-07:00

WMRC had a great run this morning. We switched it up a little and went across the preserve thru some different trails to the dreamy draw lot instead of 40th st. We had an easy 3+ miles first and then turned up the juice on the hills. We ended up going about 6+ miles and about 1500+ ft climb. Second half much harder than the first. Blue Dog dominated his buddies O-dog and Kopie again, he led almost the whole way.

6 miles-1:05- 1500 ft. Feel really good right now.

TMRC 4/7

2009-04-07T11:19:00.000-07:00

Holy Crap! TMRC is on! Me, Kirk, Andrew and Paul did the TR 100 to shaw butte and back while Higgie and Wardo went the big hill and back for about 55 minutes. The Shaw Butte run is very hard, long and steep. I felt really good although my legs were still pretty tired from three 2+ hours runs in a row. Training is going very well and I need to keep it goin gwhiel tryig not to overtrain and risk injury. I am walking a fine line right now.

Blue is pissed at me. He gets to go tomorrow for an easy 1:10 at WMRC with his buddies Otis and Kopol.

15+ Miles- 2:23:23, about 2500 ft.

4/5 Run/Climb

2009-04-06T08:50:00.000-07:00

I went to do a double Camelback on Sun am and the parking lot was crazy so I went to the village and ran from there adding about 4 miles to the day. I was really tired by the time I got to the mountain I was draggin ass going up and over. It was good race like conditions. Very tired legs, non-stop climbing and dehydrated as well. I actually started to feel better on the 2nd time up and but my knees hurt coming down. After a hard 1:40 for the over and back I had a nice easy run back to the car and finished at about 2:10 for the day. It was a hard workout but will do wonders for training in the future. 10 miles, 3000 ft, 2:10.

4/4 Run

2009-04-06T08:48:00.000-07:00

Blue and I went out Sat am for a 12 mile Honey Loop. We took it it easy and came in just at 2 hrs for the loop, It was about 12 miles with about 2500 ft climbed in 2 hours even.

HR Run 4/2

2009-04-02T09:42:00.000-07:00

This run labeled Hardrock training for badasses only was "enjoyed" by 3 people. Not even Blue attempted this. Honey and I took off from 32nd st TH over the palm saddle where we met up with Higgie then to Honey ridge and down to 40th st lot, then up 40th st and 40th st ridge trail, steep and long, then back down to main trail to white house over to 32nd st ridge down to Wed lot and over to zig zag mtn. up and over and down to 32nd st in about 1:38. This was about 9+ miles with about 2500 ft of climb up. It was hard, fast and very fun. See, Honey I didn't tell anyone what happened to you.

9 Miles, 1:38, 2500 ft, 1 bonk

WMRC Picture day 4/1

2009-04-01T09:37:00.000-07:00

We had a great day and had everyone out for a group picture in the desert this morning for our normal wed am run. We went 6 miles in about 1:05 with many good climbs on a beautiful morning. Blue and I were all over the place trying to get pics of all the runners and ran pretty hard and felt good.

TMRC 3/31

2009-03-31T10:44:00.000-07:00

Blue, me, kirk, kevin (yes kevin!), dave c, and wardo did an alpine start at 4:30am today and ran from DD tr 100 to Shaw Butte visitors center and back. It was about 11+ miles with some really good climbs. Kirk and dave actually did the summit to add and few extra miles but blue (me) is not ready for that. We had a nice casual pace on the way out and busted it hard on the way back, I feel it today. It was a great run!

11+ miles-1:47 many good climbs

3/27 Run

2009-03-27T08:52:00.000-07:00

Blue and I went to Dreamy Draw this morning for a nice 9 miler at Dreamy Draw. We were supposed to meet Honey but she must have slept in. I have stood her up a few times, maybe this is just payback. Well Blue and I did a trail 100 to Ridgline to 40th street then Marky loop home. It was a hard run and i was very tired (still am) but a good end of a hard week of training.

TR 100-Ridgeline-40th st-Marky Loop-DD 1:29 approx 8-9 miles-legs are tired.

3/26 Run

2009-03-26T09:07:00.000-07:00

Blue and I did a really good 9-10 mile loop in the preserve from 32nd st trailhead over Honey ridge to 40th st and back to white house across n down to wmrc lot then over zig zag mtn back home. Guessing about 1500-2000ft in about 9-10 miles. Legs felt tired the first mile up to the saddle because of additional 5 mile run last nite, then slowly felt better all morning. Great weather!

9-10 miles 1:31 1500+ ft climb with Blue, Great morning! GO CATS!

Here is Blue with his friends Slick and Dixie!

WMRC 3/25

2009-03-25T09:29:00.000-07:00

We had a great run with about 15+ Blue, Kopol and Otis. We took the Honey ridge for the first time and it was a great climb. Everyone seems to be getting into really good shape.
6 miles-1:10 with lots of climbing. GO CATS!

3/24 Run

2009-03-24T10:08:00.000-07:00

After a little time off to watch hoops and repair a little hammy issue, I hit the trails again today. Blue was a happy dog. Easy, flat 7 miler in 52 minutes on the bridal path. Tomorrow we hit the trails again with the WMRC.

The CATS are once again in the sweet 16 representing the PAC-10. The others have gone home and the respectability of an entire conference once again rests solely on the shoulders of PAC-10 basketball royalty. You are welcome!

3/20 Run

2009-03-20T09:10:00.000-07:00

Blue and I did a great loop from 32nd st trailhead this morning. We went over the first saddle down th ethe left then over to 40th st and back then to the white house. From there over and down to Wed lot and then up over the zigzag mtn back to 32nd st lot. It was about 9-10 miles with many climbs in about 1:19.

It is March and that means basketball to the Cats. It usually means spring break to the devils but somehow they found their way in. Hopefully the Cats can play with a little more heart and a sense of urgency. Win or go home!!!

3/18 WMRC Run

2009-03-18T09:08:00.000-07:00

The WMRC had a good run this morning. About 15 of us + Blue headed out for the ridgline to 40th st and had a great run. It took about 1:04 and about 5.5 miles with lots of climbing. Lot sof talk about upcoming races and trips. This is a fun time of year to be a trail runner.

1:04- 5.5 miles 1000+ft of climb.

Here is Blue after the run in his car.

3/17 Run

2009-03-17T10:28:00.000-07:00

The TMRC set out for Shaw Butte about 4:30am this morning and had a great run. Me, Blue, Ward and Dave C. turned around at the visitors center for about 11 miles and Kirk, Honey, Andrew, Joe and Lizzy went to the top of Shaw Butte for a total of about 15+.

While I almost went down twice and my hip hurt pretty bad early, I had a great run and we went pretty hard on the way back. 11 miles- 1:45- good climbs- felt pretty good the whole time.

3/12 Run

2009-03-12T08:41:00.000-07:00

Today Blue and I went out for about a 7 miler at a pretty fast pace with some good climbs. We saw JJ w/ Kopol and Otis at the 32nd st lot at the start and then again about 30 minutes later. Kopol was much better behaved today and didn't try the funny business on Blue once. We were planning to go over and down to Wed lot and up the switchbacks to 32nd st. Due to a lack of time, we had to cut it short and head back down palm canyon. It was a great run with no fatigue from OP 50 in my legs.

I ran for the 2nd time in my new Fireblades from La Sportiva. They were light, fast and very comfy. Although I think I still need a 1/2 size bigger, I am very pleased with this new shoe. Thanks La Sportiva for sponsoring the Speedgoats.

WMRC 3/11

2009-03-11T10:19:00.000-07:00

We had a good recovery run this morning with about 18 people + Blue and Kopol. I know dogs like to smell each others junk but when Kopol tries to hump Blue during the run, that is just rude. The funniest part was spraying Blue with my water bottle and watching him tumble on his side trying to get away from it. Lord knows he has seen my fall many times so it made me smile....

6 miles- pretty flat, pretty slow- 1:05

Old Pueblo 50 miler

2009-03-09T09:36:00.000-07:00

On Friday abunch of us headed to the mountains s/o Tucson to run the Old Pueblo 50 mile endurance run. This is one of my favorites and this will be my 4th yr in a row. I have finished under 10 hours every year and that was again my goal.

After a healthy off season of pizza, beer and getting married, I felt as fit as a pro bowler from Wisconsin. I ramped up my training over the last month to try to get ready for 50 miles in the trails around Sonoita. I felt pretty good going in but a little heavy. This race is a good training run for the rest of the season.

As the gun went off at 6am on Sat , about 160+ nutjobs headed out for a day of running in the Santa Rita mountains. Running with Chipper for the first 7 miles was fun as we did many training miles together back in Phx. Joe Galope was on a mission from the get-go. He was looking strong and would have a really good day.

Running straight thru the 3 mile aid station (AS) with a quick hello, we got on to the AZ trail section still feeling pretty good. This is a great single track section looking east to the sunrise and the food and drink of the 7 mi aid station. This early in the race, we are still bunched up together and many people talking and settling in for a long day.

Thru the 1st few sections I was walking every uphill fast and hitting the downs pretty hard, trying to save energy and my calves. After getting thru 7 mi and 13 mi with little trouble we started the long climb up to gunsight pass. This is the

high point of the race and rewards your eyes with great views of Tucson and your quads with a 3 mile screaming downhill. Ouch! Coming off the pass with about 7 runners including Bob and Jerry of AZ and Neil Blake of NM was a lot of fun. I have run many times with them and that made me feel good about where I was in the race. I went ahead of all them and pulled into 19 mile AS on fumes.

It had been just over 3 hrs and I had only taken 2 gels. Should be 4-5. Oh well. I sat down and started eating, drinking and just hanging out. Joe Galope caught up and left before he even saw me. Then, in came Bob, Jerry, and Davy Crockett of Utah. I said adios to them in favor of a chair and a PB & J, my favorite ultra food. I started getting up as I heard Honey coming in. If she saw me sitting, she would yell at me, so I started heading out for box canyon. Every time I looked back, there she was about 100 yds back but we never ran together in that section. This is a section I usually lose it on but I kept up a pretty good pace that day. As we pulled into 25 mi AS, I sat down again and had a choco milk and PB & J. I was still trying to make up for the lack of calories in the first 3 hrs. Honey sat next to me and said hi and off she went. She is running a good race so far. Someone at the AS offered me a V-8, I looked at it and said if I drank that, it would probably end my race. Not a bad idea now that I think about it. No, thanks and off I went to the box canyon section.

Miles 25-29 are pretty much an uphill dirt road that goes on forever. I hear it is very pretty but I never looked up from my shoes except to make sure I wasn't running off a cliff. This is tough, hot and getting old really quick. One by one I am getting passed by Honey, Davy, Pam Reed and Paul Grimm, who cruised up Box Canyon like it was downhill, trust me, it is not. I came into 29 mi AS on fumes again. My fueling plan was not working. I sat down again as everyone I just caught up to left me again. Bad thoughts were entering my head.

After a 5 minute break I started back out to the AZ trail section. We did this part 22 miles ago and it was much tougher the 2nd time thru. It is now hot and uphill with no one around. I started getting some energy back and got it going pretty good. Now I am passing trees and rocks like they were standing still. As I pulled into 33 mi AS, I saw Honey, Neil, Bob, Jerry...all the folks I thought were way in front of me. They all took off and left me with my chair. Then Kirk and Lizzy came in. They looked great! They asked if I was o.k. and I said, "sure, just having lunch" they filled up and took off. Now with the bad thoughts out of my head, I powered on down the trail. The next section is long, hot but mostly downhill. This is where I caught some energy and passed everyone except for Honey. She was gone. Lizzy and I ran together for the rest of the way into 40 mi AS. Lizzy was running real strong and left me when I sat down to eat again. Kirk took off again also.

Now we have 10 miles to go and the first three is the most boring tedious dirt road ever. It just goes on forever, a little uphill but runnable if you can talk yourself into it. I did barely and was slowly catching up to Lizzy. At the end of the road is a long steep climb. Getting to the top is great, the reward is another long cruising downhill section thru streams and covered in pines. This is starting to get longer than I remember, then boom 46 mi AS and Lizzy and Honey. They must have slowed down because I felt like I was barely moving.

We all took off for the finish and after the last big climb at 47 mi I just hit the wall. No energy and even worse, my mind pretty much gave up. I sat down on a rock and watched as Honey and Lizzy faded away towards the finish. I took a gel and a couple salt tabs and washed it down with water. It all came up as quickly as it went down. After throwing up, I usually feel better, but not today. I took so much to just get up and walk it in. I gave up on breaking 10 hrs and just decided to take it as a good training day. As I turned to get on the single track to the finish, I started to feel a little better and started to run it in. A mile later I was turning the corner for home and I heard everyone yelling, "1 minute, 1 minute" I knew what this meant. I started running and crossed the finish line at 9:59:38. Under 10 hours. My goal was complete.

What a tough day, but also very good. I learned a lot from this race that I will be able to use in future races. Thanks to the new RD's Steve and Lynda, they did a great job! Thanks to all the volunteers and friends who helped me along.

3/4 Run

2009-03-04T08:09:00.000-08:00

WMRC had a nice easy 6 miler this morning, we had about 18 people + Blue out for the pre OP run. I will now rest for the next 2 days to get ready for the 50 miles on Sat.

Something is a miss, it looks like either someone is recruiting illegal votes below or someone just doesn't know how dominant Blue actually is. Either way, I will be calling for a full scale investigation and a recount.

3/2 Run

2009-03-03T09:14:00.000-08:00

Blue and I did 7.5 miles on the bridal path this am at a pretty good pace. Taking an easy week to rest up for Old Pueblo 50 miler this Sat.

2/28 Run

2009-03-02T07:24:00.001-08:00

After playing football all day on Sat, getting out of bed was a little tough. But I did and went for a great 12 mile Honey Loop with Honey, Blue, Arron, Deb, Michael, Kirk and Higgie. It got pretty hot and I think Blue is done with long runs in the heat. I felt pretty good and Honey and I (and blue) hit it pretty hard in the second half. Great warm up for Old Pueblo 50 miler next weekend.

12 miles- 2:10 lots of climbing

2/27 Run

2009-02-27T08:43:00.000-08:00

8miles- 1:10- Ran solo from 32nd st trailhead to 40th st and back, about an 8 mile lolli pop loop. Tried to keep flat to get my legs back from all the hills in the past week. Felt good late. Blue is going to be pissed at me....Cats lost and played with no heart, this will get them out of the tourney in couple weeks if they don't play harder. At least asu lost also....Sc*3w you higgie for voting for buddy.

2/26 Run

2009-02-26T07:17:00.000-08:00

Honey, Blue and I ran the Marky loop. 59 minutes- approx 6 miles-approx 1500 ft climb. Felt good, ran hard. Go Cats- beat Washington tonite!!!

Welcome to the Speedgoat page

2009-02-25T09:56:00.000-08:00

The WMRC had a good run this morning and Kirk was on fire. Whoever thought the quickest way between 2 points is a straight line, never ran with Kirk. The quickest way is always straight up and over the nearest mountain.