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Berthoud Pass

21 Sunday Sep 2014

Posted by Ed Mahoney in Colorado Trail, Running

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

Boulder Marathon, boulder marathon cancelled, CDT, continental divide, Denver Marathon, GoGo Squeez, New Balance Leadville 2010, Pearl Izumi

sunriseI receive the email Friday afternoon informing me that the October 5th Boulder Marathon is cancelled.  I have made such a big deal out of this race that I’m stunned.  But only momentarily.  I quickly recover and register for the Denver Marathon October 19th before it’s full.  I’m fast to move on.

A few hours later, I drive up via I-70 to Idaho Springs.  I meet La Plata at the Tommyknocker brew pub at 6:30.  We break bread and share grape.  More specifically, we have jalapeno poppers and mac-n-cheese with red chili.  This is similar to Cincinnati chili, but with mac rather than spaghetti.  Very satisfying and highly recommended.  After dinner, we shuffle my van to the massive parking lot on top of Berthoud Pass and camp down at the Herman Gulch Trailhead off I-70 at exit 218.

Herman LakeThis site is less than ideal with incessant engine noise reverberating along the canyon walls throughout the night.  I don’t sleep well, but at least it’s warm.  We breakfast on oatmeal and trailhead coffee.  At 6:30am, we hit the trail.  We gain 3000 feet in elevation over the first six miles.  By this time, we also shed our cold weather gear and are down to running shorts and a T.  I wear my Pearl Izumi 2and1 ultra trail running shorts.  The long seam brief works well to protect against chaffing.  These shorts are great but could use additional pockets.  I’d like to see what I call a “shark knife pocket” stitched on the brief alongside the outside thigh.  It would be underneath the shorts so it would not be visible.  I’m thinking of two or three times the size of the gel pockets along the back sides.

saddleDespite the steep grade, we get in a little running each mile.  I can’t begin to describe how perfect this supple trail is for running.  You can see it well here if you click to enlarge this photo.  The ground feels raw with fresh dirt.  We’re quickly above treeline and mostly stay above 12,000 feet.  Our highest point is 13,200.  Not surprisingly for a trail following the Continental Divide, it runs mostly along the very top of the ridge with unbelievable views in every direction.  At one point, we are running a thin ridge lined with craggy rocks.  I feel like I’m running across Godzilla’s spine.

ridgeThe sun is out strong and creates interesting light between glare and shade along the ridge.  You can see how the trail undulates along the ridge in this photo with La Plata.  You can even see some snow to the right.  The cool air countered the full sun and kept us comfortable all day.  We both forget to wear hats but apply liberal amounts of sunscreen continuously.  Still, the backs of my legs are now sunburned.

beaver creek coupleThe muscles in the backs of my legs are hurting too.  The 6000 feet of total elevation gain is a tremendous workout for my calves, hamstrings and glutes.  This twenty-plus mile run along the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) is perfect marathon training.  Rather than the three hour, twenty mile workouts I’ve been running on the weekends, this run will take eight hours.  We planned for eight and we finish with twelve minutes to spare.  Clearly, it’s mostly hiking, but at an aggressive pace.  Averaging over 12,000 feet, we are often winded as if we are running.  It feels great to be up here with light packs.  The weight in my pack is mostly from the 70 ounces of water in my camelback reservoir.  I also carry warmer gear should the weather turn bad – which it never does.  For nutrition, I carry Epic Bars and Hammer Gels.  I have Skratch mixed in my water.  The idea is to practice consuming what I will rely upon for my marathon to ensure my stomach can handle it and that it keeps my muscles from cramping.  Everything works out great.

rocksMy new trails shoes also do well.  These New Balance Leadville 1210s have a rock plate in the front of the sole.  I don’t feel it in there, these shoes are so pliable, but I never feel any rocks either so it does the job.  These would have been fine shoes to race the Boulder Marathon in, on that course’s dirt roads.  Their tread proves capable on this extreme trail by gripping loose dirt with confidence during steep descents.  My ankles are quite fatigued now, hiking boots would have provided better support.  But I love being able to run a trail with light shoes and pack.  I’m thinking though about buying new shoes for the Denver Marathon as that run is entirely on paved streets.  I’ve been thinking about buying a pair of Hokas.  I know they are a bit gimmicky, but everyone I’ve talked to, like Gadget Girl, absolutely loves them.  I would need to train in them of course first, but I have time for that.

jones passAnother new item I intend to pick up for the Denver Marathon is a gel-like snack La Plata gave me – GoGo Squeez.  It’s 30 calories less than my 90 calorie Hammer Gel, although 3 times the volume at 3.2 ounces.  Still, the real fruit content is yummy.  Not often you can say that about these sports foods.  Plus the twist cap is convenient and overall the pack is less sticky than gels.  There is nothing better than real food.  Fruit performs well in terms of supplying quick energy.  All these products do well on my stomach while running.  And fortunately, I didn’t have issues with the poppers from the night before.

berthoud passI expect to see more people out on this trail, being so close to Denver.  I can’t imagine a better day to be out here.  We do see a couple wearing Beaver Creek caps.  Several other hikers and one trail runner.  And a few bikers.  They really impress me with the technical nature of this trail.  Good for them though, riding on top of the world.

jennysSaturday’s 20.6 mile trail run was so much better than I could have imagined.  Perfect in every way.  From the weather, to our pace, to my conditioning that made itself evident.  Despite the altitude, my breathing felt strong.  And the workout my legs received will help me in the Denver Marathon.  We lunch at Jenny’s, a small cafe in Empire.  We both eat the half pound buffalo burger.  Very tasty.  We will meet up again next weekend for a forty mile backpacking hike along the CDT that extends from near Breckenridge to the Grays and Torreys Peaks.  We’ll be joined on this outing by La Plata’s college buddy, George Schools.  George is an extremely fit athlete from Austin.  This could turn out to be a three-day race under the load of 35 pound backpacks.  Can’t wait.

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Gear & Swag

19 Saturday Oct 2013

Posted by Ed Mahoney in Running

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

camelbak, Denver Marathon, Pearl Izumi

Durango StartI don’t have sponsors.  Apparently there is some FCC disclosure regulation that requires bloggers, or writers in any medium, to be clear about sponsorships when reviewing products.  I rarely focus on reviews but figure I mix in my product endorsements as part of the details of my stories.  I feel compelled to relate my first race experience with my fairly new Camelbak during the Durango Ultra.  While I’m at it, I’ll share my feedback on the swag I picked up today at the Expo for tomorrow’s Denver Marathon.  I have my head down in this pic at the start to the Durango Ultra starting my Garmin.  That’s me in the blue jacket and red hat.  Rob is to my left – to the right of me in the pic.

camelbakI’m as quick to dis a product as I am to praise it.  Making my contribution.  Mentioning products accounts for many of the search results that lead to my blog, so I figure there’s value.  I don’t want my review of the Camelbak Rogue Hydration Pack to come across as negative.  It failed several times, but it failed so gracefully.  I only filled the 70 ounce reservoir less than half full with water.  Rob and I debated a great deal on how much we should leverage the aid stations.  I packed some Chia Seed bars in my pockets and stored extras in this pack.  I had to remove the pack to reach the pockets, which I did to eat several more bars, but that wasn’t at all inconvenient considering my pace.

I bought this pack because my blue running vest chafes my tailbone on long runs.  This wears high on my back.  I love the fit.  I wore it for my recent Georgia Pass run and it met all expectations.  Fairly quickly in the ultra though the little black plastic connector that attaches the clip for my strap fell off.  It remained attached to the chest strap, but seemed too complicated at the time to reattach to the shoulder strap.  And I didn’t need to reattach it because the drinking hose attaches in a similar fashion and position.  The hose held my pack together in lieu of the chest strap.  I simply tucked the chest strap under the other shoulder strap to keep it from flapping. This is what I refer to as failing gracefully.  The water hose served as a redundant strap.  Until the little black plastic connector that attaches the hose clip to the shoulder strap also fell off.  Completely.  I stored it in my pocket.  Then I discovered an extra flap of material on the strap that I could tuck the end of my hose into and continue to have it hold my pack together.  This worked so well, I’m not sure it isn’t designed for this purpose.  So yet another redundant system.

I can’t tell you if any of this is by design.  I find it brilliant nonetheless.  Or maybe I’m just a running MacGyver.  That ultra was a total success from a gear and nutrition perspective.  Combined with the snow covered Las Platas, it was a great experience.  Hope tomorrow’s Denver Marathon is just as enjoyable.  I picked up my race bib and related swag today.  I’m disappointed the race shirt is short-sleeved.  And that it’s essentially the same as last year’s shirt.  And that it’s ugly.  It is a more manly blue than last year’s baby blue, but that’s the only good thing I can think to say.  I like to wear the race shirt when the weather supports doing so.  I just learned the forecast calls for 45° when the run begins.  Previous forecasts were for 31°.  The 5 mph wind hasn’t changed, and is fine.

The day will warm up to 49° and is really perfect running weather.  But it’ll be cloudy all day.  The sun makes a noticeable difference in Colorado.  Everyone’s different but for me, an October marathon in Colorado calls for a long-sleeved shirt.  This run starts at 7:15am.  Sunrise isn’t until 7:16 tomorrow.  I want to be warm and comfy while I wait for the run to start.  And, I don’t know if this is scientific, but the downtown in a city is always colder than elsewhere in a city.

ultra shortsSo I won’t be sporting the official event shirt tomorrow.  I’ll layer with one of my short sleeve, cotton Moab race shirts underneath one of my favorite long-sleeved, running jerseys.  I picked up an awesome Pearl Izumi running jacket I could wear too.  The sleeves come off making it a vest.  Had the weather not warmed up to 45°, I’d consider wearing it.  Even better, I purchased a pair of Pearl Izumi ultra running shorts at the expo.  I spent some money at the expo.  The liner in these shorts wrap all the way around the legs – almost like having some short tights underneath.  These will keep me feeling toasty.

Durango FinishI won’t bother with gloves but will be wearing the 2013 Boulder Marathon hat.  That event was cancelled but they gave out the hats.  I’ll be looking for any others.  Because I’m a gentleman runner, I registered for the Platinum Lounge.  This gives me close-up parking and a private area to warm up and cool down before and after the race with coffee, bagels, private restrooms and other amenities.  I may not run fast tomorrow, but I’ll be comfortable.  Actually, I expect to run well – possibly in 3:45.  I’ve been dreaming about a 3:30 marathon to qualify for Boston, but can’t point to any recent runs to suggest I can run that fast.  I’ll be happy with anything under 4 hours.  What I want more than anything is to run a consistent pace without cramping or bonking.  Wish me luck.

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Gadget Girl

06 Sunday Mar 2011

Posted by Ed Mahoney in Running

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

garmin, McIntosh Lake, Moab, Patella knee straps, Pearl Izumi

I ran 7 miles this morning with my friend Amy. I rarely run with anyone because I don’t generally have the time to synch up with people, but it’s amazing how fast the time goes by when you’re chatting away about your kids, training, injuries and the next big event – which for us will be Moab. We ran on one of her favorite trails, McIntosh Lake in North Longmont. Nice route, it’s a 3.5 mile loop about half trail and half sidewalk.

Now, you know I like gadgets as much as the next guy. But apparently not as much as this girl. Amy has it all. She wore this killer wind jacket – it was so light – made by Pearl Izumi. I could have used that for the IPR last fall where jackets, gloves and hats were pre-requisites for lining up in the corral. The weather was just cold enough for a light jacket. I got by with a single layer compression jersey, but the wind picked up before we were done and dressing any lighter would have become uncomfortable.

Of course, Amy had a top-of-the-line Garmin GPS sportswatch. This thing knew our distance and would have told us what we had for breakfast if we were interested. Now the next piece of gear might surprise you. She wore patella knee straps. I’m not sure what brand but they could either be ProCare, Bioskin or Breg based on the pictures at this gear catalog website. Amy has had knee surgery and swears by these straps. The last gear of significant note would be her compression shin socks – not the full socks which I understand you can also buy. I like my compression tops and tights, so I have no doubt those things feel good. The theory is they help with circulation to avoid cramps. She also wore some good looking Mizuno shoes which I heard are among the lightest on the market; and she had this cool running long sleeve top – not sure the brand – that had holes to hook her thumbs through to act like partial gloves. Perfect for today when the temperature was such that many other runners on the trail were in fact wearing gloves – but it was too warm for me.

Running with Amy this morning was a wake-up call. Before we run the Canyonlands Half Marathon later this month, I need to gear up. High altitude running in the desert could be tricky. It’ll likely start out fairly cool but warm-up dramatically. I’ll want light and efficient gear. I want what Amy has, but in more masculine colors.

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