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June 30, 2006
Redpoint on the Trail
Paul and I are sitting in the Phoenix airport right now. (Free airport internet! Cool!) We're awaiting our flight to Seattle. In Seattle, we will meet up with Paul's parents and then spend the next week driving, hiking, and running through the Canadian Rockies: Yoho, Banff and Jasper National Parks.
We sit here in the airport, our bellies full from nasty airport sandwiches and LOTS of water, and our legs aching. We look at each other with distant stares...exhausted. We cherish every second of sitting, simply sitting, on our tired butts and doing absolutely nothing besides waiting. What the heck? Why?
Because the Imogene training continues and boy are we dedicated. This morning we rolled out of bed at 4:45am just so we could squeeze in a run before catching our Phoenix flight at 3pm. And not only are we psyched about our dedication, but we have an exciting accomplishment to report: This morning, Paul and I finally conquered (or as we like to say, "redpointed") the Douglas Springs Trail all the way to Douglas Springs Camp and back. A grand total of 12 miles and 2000 feet gain with NO WALKING. It took us 3 hours. The trail starts at the end of Speedway Blvd and runs up into the Rincon Mountains on the east side of town. The beginning is probably the steepest section, but it's a reasonable enough grade that one can run it continuously (well, amatures like ourselves, anyway). We've been getting up early on weekdays and tackling this trail before work for the last 3 weeks; each run getting a little further up the trail then the last. Today we pushed hard. Whew, we're beat!
I've been a runner for the last 16 years. I've been a "trail" runner for the last 6 months. And as I trudged my way back to the car (with Paul dry-heaving behind me, haha), I realized that I had never run so far with no stops....ever. What the hell have I been waiting for?! :-)
Posted by April at 03:17 PM | Comments (2)
June 25, 2006
I Got Soul, and I'm Super Bad
We've put together a video of the "Super Bad" duo, Holly and Joe, ticking off some of the classic boulder problems at Priest Draw in Flagstaff, Arizona. Watch out, they are climbing S T R O N G.
Currently, the Brins fire and others are burning up around Flagstaff. Due to the extreme fire danger, they've closed the Coconino National Forest until the monsoon rains come. Unfortunately, this means Priest Draw is closed as well. Hurry up monsoons!! We've got more climbing to do!
Posted by Paul at 09:15 AM | Comments (0)
June 19, 2006
Fleet Feet
On the way home from work today April and I finally managed to find some time to stop at Fleet Feet, to get some expert advice about running shoes. Pete, the owner, happily greeted us and quickly went to work. He measured my feet, made me run on the treadmill, video taped my motion from several angles, analyzed my style, and recommended several shoes to try out. Believe me, I give this guy a lot of credit because my warped climber toes are not that appealing to deal with. Pete was very polite and even recommended socks that at least made my toes look somewhat normal. I tried several pairs of shoes on but I knew as soon as I slipped on a pair of the Montrail Hardrocks that I found what I was looking for. Finally, I think I have a good pair of shoes to tear it up on the trails. I can't wait to head out for a run Wednesday morning and test them out...
Posted by Paul at 10:31 PM | Comments (0)
June 18, 2006
Pass/Fail in Flag
This weekend Paul, myself, my sis Holly, her boyfriend Joe, lil Morgie and our friend Matt headed up to Flagstaff, AZ for some fun in the cooler temps. We camped at the campground on Upper Lake Mary and bouldered Friday and Saturday at Priest Draw. The beginner duo (Holly and Joe) is climbing strong, I must say. We showed them the classics and they ate them up, one by one, until the skin on their fingers was toast. Paul is currently working The Receptionist, v10, and making strong links (falling while "answering the phone" - for all you familiar with the climb). I'm working Anorexic, v6, and slowly sussing out the moves. Paul and I have a trip to Canada coming up soon so unfortunately we may not be back to the Draw for a little while. No biggie, our projects will be waiting when we return.
Sunday, Holly and Joe sped off with their mountain bikes to the Mt. Eldon trails, Matt sped off with his bike to Sedona, and Paul, Morgan and I headed up to Mt. Humphrey for some Imogene training. So far in our training, our runs have been successes. We've completed every trail run that we've set off to do and have loved every second. Well, today's run was a bit less of a "success". We hit the trail this morning at 9:30am. Way, way, WAY too late. We had planned to run a 12 mile loop that included the high point of Mt. Humphrey at 12, 000+ feet. About 6 miles in, however, as we stared up and up and up at the peaks above, we made the decision to bail. Yes, BAIL. Believe it. To sum up our position: we were low on water and hot as hell. Running above treeline in this kind of heat would be too much for little brown dog Morgie, and us too I suppose. So we turned around and ran/walked the 6 miles back to the car. Out-and-back runs = blah. 90+ degrees when your psyched to bag a 12,000+ footer = blah. A tired dog with tired legs and that oh-so-pitiful look of "take me home please" = blah. But, knowing that this stellar loop with amazing views exists and is only a short 4 hour drive away = CAN'T WAIT TO COME BACK AND TRY AGAIN!!!! :-D
Posted by April at 10:58 PM | Comments (0)
June 04, 2006
Committed
Two weeks ago, Paul and I, our friend Courtney, my sister Holly and Morgan were running along some trails up at the top of Mt. Lemmon. As we were trotting along, Courtney brought up the idea of Paul and I running the Imogene race in Colorado this year. A race? We're always up for a fun little race every now and again. Colorado is beautiful....sounds fun!
Ok, a little more explanation please: The Imogene Pass Run is a 17.1 mile point-to-point mountain race within the western San Juan mountains of Colorado. Ahem....emphasis on the word 'mountain'. The route connects the towns of Ouray (7810 feet) and Telluride (8820 feet) by way of the 13,120 foot Imogene Pass. You do the math. We're talking MASSIVE elevation gain here.
So we're trotting along up on Lemmon, tired, dehydrated and obviously completely delirious because Paul and I said "Let's go for it."
The race is scheduled for Saturday, Sept 9th, 7:30am. And today marks the first day of mine and Paul's PTA Training (PTA = Pain, Torture, Agony....a trademark reference by our friend JR). After a grueling 9 mile-er this morning, we sat down in front of the computer....and.....registered. No backing out now.
Stay tuned for the success...or failure...of April & Paul's ultimate trail running adventure up and over Imogene Pass this September 9th:
Posted by April at 09:41 PM | Comments (1)
Home Improvements
We've decided to embark on a little home improvement project: The Courtyard Porch.
Posted by April at 12:28 AM | Comments (0)