Wind River Peak Fastest Known Time, Trail Runner Magazine, and more Mountain Running

I chose an interesting schedule this year, with basically no racing during spring or early summer, and all competitive running during the late summer and fall.  This plan makes sense here in Wyoming because it takes forever for the mountains to melt out.  If I race too early, I don't get a chance to train in any of the spectacular high country in the Winds and other area mountain ranges.  So, with the Telluride Mountain run just being a little more than a week away, its time for me to rest and reflect a little bit on a rockin' June and July of running in the backcountry.  Here are a lot of photos from a few different long runs:

 Montana's Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness, Peak 10,375 above Elk Lake

Monument Peak is the one with the dark storm clouds above it.  That's about how it looked the day I tried to propose to Jenny up there...

Lingering snow on Hellroaring Pass

The ridge line above Elk Lake

Beautiful country

I would have spent all day up here if it weren't for all the clouds moving in

Ridge Running

Looking down into the Hellroaring drainage

Elk Lake panorama

Did someone highlight these? Unbelievable!

Nestled right in the middle of the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness is Christikon, a Lutheran summer camp that is a little piece of paradise.  We volunteered to help out at the camp for a week this summer, and I managed to get away for a couple of good runs.  For anyone that has been to Christikon, you know what a special and unique place it is for so many reasons.  One reason that this area is special to me is because this where I really got comfortable in the mountains; we backpacked and hike a ton, and got started on mountain running too.  It is always great to go back, and the running certainly doesn't disappoint.

The Bears Ears and Lizard Head Trails, Wind River Range

Running high and exposed at almost 12,000 feet

The iconic Lizard Head Peak.  The days run would end at Lonesome Lake in the Cirque of the Towers, in the far background of this photo.

Some snow never melts

Another view of Lizard Head Peak just because it is so awesome

The Bears Ears and the Bears Ears Trail

Wind River Peak, 13,192 feet, Fastest Known Time?

After scouring the web, I'm pretty sure there is no established FKT or "Fastest Known Time" for an ascent of Wind River Peak.  Wind River Peak is a amazing mountain because it has about 2000 feet of prominence and it is 40 miles from a higher mountain.  It really is a massive mountain that sits at the heart of the southern Wind River Range.

There are a number of ways to approach Wind River Peak, but it makes the most sense for me to start from Worthen Meadows Reservoir.  I ran down the Sheep's Bridge Trail, up towards Pinto Park, and then I took the Deep Creek Cutoff.  From Sheep's Bridge to the summit its about a 5,000 foot climb. Ouch.  After reaching the summit in 3 hours and 49 minutes, I headed down towards Tayo Lake, on to the Middle Fork of the Popo Agie, and up an over Roaring Fork Pass back to Worthen Meadows for a round trip time of 7 hours and 38 minutes.  In all honesty, I was moving pretty fast for this run but I spent a lot of time taking pictures, talking to backpackers, and I even talked to Jenny on the phone from the summit for a little bit.  It could certainly be done much faster.  Maybe a project for next summer?

Well for now, I don't know of a faster time up Wind River Peak summit I'm calling this it.  Here is a link to my "Movescount" page for the breakdown.  The elevation data is not right because my Suunto watch seems kind of defective, but the map and the time are accurate.

Wind River Peak - Movescount

On our way up from the Deep Creek Lakes

A perfect day on the summit to relax and my new favorite shoes: the Salomon Sense Pro (in green!)

The views coming down to Tayo Lake are amazing.  I spent way too much time taking pictures.

Beautiful patch of Columbine on the way down

I ran out of chlorine water treatment towards the end of the run, so I started to strategically drink from some untreated stream water.  A few days out now my stomach is starting to feel pretty jacked up; hopefully I didn't pick up some crypto or giardia.  But, I do have Celiac Disease, so my stomach always seems to be a little off.

I couldn't resist a picture of Tayo in his namesake Tayo Lake

How does one recover from all of this running?  Blueberries, waffles, omelets, and coffee are a good start.  I've also been drinking a lot of Gu Recovery Brew with whole milk after runs and that seems to help as well (and it actually tastes good).  A much needed massage with Jagoe Warren really helped loosen up overly tight hamstrings and hips as well.











Trail Runner Magazine, September 2014

I was pleasantly surprised a few weeks ago when well-known writer and runner, Meghan Hicks of Train Runner Magazine and iRunFar.com, emailed me asking for a little assistance writing an article about trail running in the Wind River Range.  She specifically wanted to feature Lander as a "Top Trail Town".  Super cool, right?

I answered a bunch of questions for her, suggested a few routes, and gave some other beta.  She turned it all into a nice article in the September 2013 issue that is on shelves now.  I got a copy at Wild Iris in Lander, but I know the magazine is available at places like REI and Barnes and Noble.

Next up, the Telluride Mountain Run in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado.  A neat 38 mile run with a whopping 13,000 feet of climbing, and an average elevation of 11,500 feet.  Good clean fun.

Summertime

After spending some time in Wisconsin visiting family, we stopped in Sheridan to help crew and pace Evan in the Bighorn 100.  Evan didn't have the best day on the trail and ended up dropping out after 30ish miles.  I was going to run 50 miles with him, so it was a bummer I didn't get to do that, but it was an even bigger bummer for him.

So, after getting back home to Lander it was time to really get after it and starting training hard again for  the races coming up, which of course means some Wind River Mountain Running.

Pinto Park

I started with a 12-mile run up Roaring Fork Pass, and then the next day a 26 mile run to Pinto Park.  The view of the Cirque of the Towers from Pinto Park never gets old.  I got stormed on a little bit, but otherwise it was a good run.

Next was a run to Wind River Peak.  Ideally, I wanted to get up the mountain because the forecast was perfect, but I knew snow conditions would make that challenging.  I also picked the most elevation intensive route to Wind River Peak, trying to get my legs some more vertical in preparation for the Telluride Mountain Run and The Rut.  So, I just made too slow of progress to get to the summit of the 13,192 foot mountain in a reasonable amount of time.  But, the 31-mile effort took me to the Ice Lakes and Deep Creek Lakes, still some of my favorite places to run.

Slow going on the trail to the Deep Creek Lakes

Tayo walking the line

A sign of summertime

Wind River Peak cirque

How embarrasing: a "selfie".  Proof that I was there.

Just a few days after my jaunt to Wind River Peak, I headed over to the western side of the range to Big Sandy.  I did a 23-mile run to the still very snowy alpine terrain of Clear Lake, Deep Lake, Temple Lake, and Temple Pass.

Deep Lake, with East Temple Peak and Temple Peak

Temple Peak, from Temple Pass

Snowfields down Temple Pass to Temple Lake

Big rock with some snow

The other very exciting event in June was Jenny running the Northfork 50 mile race.  She had a lot of knee pain after Zion, and basically didn't run at all for three weeks, but then really went for it at Northfork.

No pain, no gain?

At mile 32, Jenny was in real pain, and I could tell some self-doubt was creeping in.  She re-fueld, took off, and soldiered on.  I was fearful it might be a while until I saw her at the next aid station.  But man was I wrong.  She had an amazing rally; she picked up her speed, and held a strong and steady effort to the finish.  A very experienced ultra runner, Rick Rochelle, told me before the Bear 100 to remember that "things always get better".  I've believed him, and so far its held to be true, and Jenny's gutsy run was just another example of this mantra being true.

Finishing strong

All smiles at the end

 This was technically Jenny's first "ultra marathon" race, and there was an award for the first place "first time ultra runner" which Jenny picked up with a time of 10:52.

Lastly, we celebrated the 4th of July in Lander, which is about he coolest party ever.

Lander Fireworks: We take this shit seriously.  Photo by Bryce Giesmann

Lander Pioneer Days Rodeo

The Zion Traverse

I'm going to try and not say too much about the Zion Traverse and let the pictures do the talking.  The Zion Traverse is a almost 50-mile route across southern Utah's Zion National Park.  Five of us from Lander did the run on June 2nd, with me and Evan starting at the East Entrance, and the team of Jenny, Emily, and Amber starting from Lee Pass.  We couldn't have done the run without my parents, who made the trip down from Wisconsin to watch our little one for us, resupply each group half way through the run, help cook meals, etc.  So thanks Mom and Dad!

Evan and I started on the sandy trails of the East entrance shortly after sunrise.  The temperatures were very pleasantly cool, which we appreciated because the day before was in the upper 90s by the afternoon.  With the mellow downhill trails, cool temperatures, and fresh legs we made quick progress down to the spectacular network of trails and slot canyons to Zion Canyon.

Somewhere around Echo Canyon

 After a quick pitstop at the Grotto, we headed up the other side of Zion Canyon towards Angel's Landing.  Still feeling fresh, we zipped right up the zig zagging switchbacks, which were thankfully still partially shaded.

I guess they are called "Walters Wiggles"

 Angel's Landing itself was very cool, but the scramble up was just OK.  Naturally it was a little crowded (everything is compared to Wyoming), and many people were in way over their heads.  There are chain hand rails the whole way up, which are pretty overkill, but I suppose they help a lot of people with the big exposure.

Big views on Angle's Landing

Top of Angel's Landing

The next section of trail along the West Rim was some of my favorite of the whole run.  Evan and I made slower progress here because we stopped to take so many pictures of the endless jaw dropping big views.  We didn't care though, we felt good and weren't in any hurry, and opted to take in the landscape and worry about speed another day.

Views from the West Rim Trail

By the time we were getting to the West Rim Trailhead to meet my folks at about mile 32, it was starting to get hot, we had ran out of water, and we were starting to feel a little tired.  We rested up for awhile, drank a bunch of ice cold coke, ate some food, and got ready to go again.  We reached the west  rim just 15 minutes after the ladies group so we had fun handing out for just a little bit.

West Rim TH Resupply

All of the runners

The best running of the day in the West Rim parking lot

Up until mile 32, the run was pure bliss. After that, things got tough for both groups.  It got hot, I mean really hot.  I don't have actual temperatures to say just how hot it was, but it was hot and it sucked and you can just trust me on that.  Our situation got worse in that many of the spots that supposedly had water according to Andrew Skurka's website did not have any water.  We were aware going into this that Utah had a dry spring and it was already June, so water could be scarce.  But running out of water when its really hot out is always depressing.

Evan and I made our way to the Kolob Plateau and Hop Valley while the ladies enjoyed the West Rim and cooked on the way to Zion Canyon.

The ladies trying to get some water from a "spring"

The ladies working their way to Zion Canyon

The ladies almost to Zion Canyon

Zion Canyon

Things went from bad to worse for me in the Kolob Plateau.  I started to have lot's of heat exhaustion symptoms highlighted by diarrhea and heat cramps.  I tried to stay in the shade and drink fluids, but nothing was going down without making me sick.  I sort of stopped eating and drinking, which I knew would have consequences, but more diarrhea was not really acceptable.  So the running slowed down eventually to a death march pace, but I tried to continue to enjoy the beautiful terrain.

The oven known as the Kolob Plateau

One foot in front of another time on the way up to Lee Pass

I choked down an Epic bar (which I usually enjoy) in an effort to get some more energy back, but that came up later as the most disgusting looking throw-up I've ever seen in my life.  We finally made it back to the car after about 13.5 hours.  Not the time we were hoping for, but fortunately this was a "fun" run and not a race, so its all good.  On the drive back to our campsite I threw up a few more times, and I wasn't able to eat anything until the next morning, which was a huge bummer.  The ladies had a tough finish too, with even less water than us, tendonitis flaring up, and gashes from falls; they finished just as the sun was going down.  So none of us were as fast we would have liked, but it was a good exercise in moving forward and staying positive, even when we all felt like crap.

So that is Zion in a nutshell. Since then I've been on vacation in Wisconsin, which has been quite exciting; my brother got engaged and Jenny's sister had her first baby!  On Saturday I'll be in Wyoming again pacing Evan for the Bighorn 100, and then Jenny runs the Northfork 50 the following weekend.  Maybe we'll fit a little relaxing in there somewhere as well.  Maybe.

Moccasin Lake Challenge

The Moccasin Lake Challenge was hands down the most unique running event I've ever been a part of.  The race director, Mikey Chingman, was very clear that this was not a race, but it was a challenge; a spiritual run to challenge yourself on the mountain; to run for your loved ones both present and departed; to spend a day on the mountain discovering who you are.  There was no first place or last place.

Well over 100 runners and even more community members at the start

The run was supposed to start at 10am, but to be frank, in typical Native style we didn't start running until 11:30, but that was OK.  We didn't start for an hour and a half because there was a ceremony honoring "Bunny" Shoyo, Jr., a Shoshone council member who passed away earlier that year.  Bunny was a strong supporter of running and keeping Shoshone culture alive.  After the the ceremony there was a cedaring (or "smudging") for the whole group.  Cedar smoke was wafted over all of the runners and prayers were said in Shoshone.  Four different songs were played by the Fort Washakie Ramblers, which is one of the local traditional singing and drumming groups.  To top it all off, before heading to the starting line everyone got in a circle and did a round dance.  Yep, you had to dance before you ran. At the starting line, everyone was given some cedar and sage to take with them on the run for protection.

"Honor Song" for Bunny Shoyo

Me and my BFF at the start

The road to Moccasin Lake is a typical mountain road; rocks and ruts of every shape and size, long switchback with big drop off at every turn; sticky mud still from melting snow.  Another fun part of the event is that you did not have to stay on the road.  Since it was not a race, runners were allowed to cut switchbacks or take whatever shortcuts you wanted.  I ran the whole way with Evan and we stuck to the road to get all 18 miles in, but some people ran as few as 14 miles due to their shortcuts!  Either way, we all climbed over 4,000 feet and ended up at beautiful Moccasin Lake and had a great day in the mountains.

Getting up there

Throughout the day the skies looked threatening, and it looked as if thunderstorms would give the runners a cold and cruel shower at any moment, but the skies held of, as least where we were.  The run to Moccasin Lake is beautiful, with views of mountain meadows and alpine peaks, still blanketed in snow, at every turn.  Aid along the way was fantastic, with people driving by in pick-up trucks regularly offering water and Gatorade.  Several other drum groups were set up along the way as well, with their drum beats matching our heartbeats as we steadily climbed up the mountains.

Storm clouds looming in exposed terrain

Arriving at Moccasin Lake was fantastic; volunteers were already cooking burgers and 8-years old's were piled on four-wheelers and ripping through the mud.  We were pleasently surprised at our race swag too; thick, high quality Under Armour pullovers with a cool logo.  These were especially appreciated because it was cold up there above 9,000 feet.

Evan and I at the still frozen Moccasin Lake

At the beginning of the run, Mikey said it was mandatory that you got a ride back down on the back of someone's truck.  He said the idea behind this is so that you can see where you ran, and so you could be humbled.  He wasn't kidding; the ride back down was humbling, and a blast.

What the hell is all back here? Thanks for the ride!

View from the back of the truck on the way down... notice the foot prints on the left

The chicks enjoying the ride down

I was almost bounced out of the truck only once, and now my pack has a few oil stains on it from the bed of the truck, but we had a joyful ride back down cheering on other runners as they continued their journey up the mountain.

If you can, do the Moccasin Lake Challenge next year.  There has been a lot of tension between whites and Natives this past year with the EPA talking about boundaries and huge settlement checks coming out, but the Moccasin Lake Challenge was the perfect way to bring people together.  There was nothing but positive energy, encouragement, and togetherness.

A couple more pictures...

Jenny and Emily cruising into the finish

Chilling at Moccasin Lake, Wind River Indian Reservation

Next up, just over a week until the Zion Traverse.  I'm really liking 2014 so far.

Spring Mountains

Not big mountains, but they are still mountains.

Now that some of the snow is finally starting to melt, the past two weeks I was able to get up into the lower elevations of the Wind River Mountains (affectionately known as "The Winds").  This of course brought lot's of mud and snow, but also good climbing and descending, big views, and no rattle snakes.  Jenny and I even took a day off of work so we could run together with our good friend, the legendary Emily Tilden.

Lenticular cloud above the Lander Front and melting snow

Bad Ass Chicks

Jenny and Emily working their way up Fairfield Hill

The big mountains are still buried in snow, which really is a good thing, but for someone such as myself, views like this are a tease.  I can hardly wait to go and visit these old friends that I have not spent time with since September.

Wind River Peak is still nicely blanketed in snow, and will be for awhile. 

I was pleasantly surprised last week to be able to get in 75 miles of running with a little over 9,000 feet of vertical.  Not bad at all for the end of April in Wyoming.  I did a back-to-back on Friday and Saturday, with Friday being 25 miles up and around Fairfield with Jenny and Emily, and then I ran the Lander Half Marathon course on Saturday in 1:37.  The temps were in the lower 80's Saturday, so I tried to get some speed on my tired legs while suffering a little bit in the heat to get ready for the Zion Traverse.  Sunday was a much needed day of rest.

A couple of weeks ago my feet felt pretty beat up after running in the Moab area, I had one of those "never say never" moments and bought a pair of these:

Hoka One One Rapa Nui 2

That's right, I finally jumped on the Hoka One One bandwagon with the Rapa Nui 2.  In the last couple of years I have loved wearing low to the ground shoes, with a low drop, and firm cushioning.  As it turns out, my joints and feet are tolerating that less well than they used too.  Enter the maximum cushioning and low drop of Hokas. They aren't perfect; some of the stitching inside rubbed parts of my feet totally raw.  But to be fair, the cushioning and protection were marvelous with the 10,000 feet of descent this week.  I do feel like my legs and feet felt less beat up (besides the blistery stuff) after a heavy week of training. They are the least cushioned of all the Hoka shoes (which kind of blows my mind), but they still have more than is really necessary, in my opinion.  I am sure that I will keep using them throughout the season, especially for some long days.


Finally, the friendly folks at First Endurance were kind enough to give me some products to sample before I really get into the 2014 racing season.  I used their EFS drink much last summer and I really liked it, especially on really hot days.  I'm looking forward to trying out the EFS Liquid Shot (their version of gel) and Ultragen recovery drink.  Cheers!