Prescott Arizona

Prescott Trip/Run Log

TOTAL MILES: 7.7
TOTAL TIME: 1:19
TOTAL ELEVATION(FT): 1717
YEARLY MILES: 302.1
YEARLY TIME: 50:17

Goldwater Park/Prescott-4.2 miles

Since my long awaited trip/run at the Grand Canyon was shelved for the time being, I will tell that story another time, I decided that since I had the time off from work already through Tuesday that I would instead take a trip up a couple of hours northwest of Phoenix to hang out with my buddy Jon in Prescott for a few nights. I have been up there enough to know that the Pine forests are a definite must for anyone interested in hitting the trails so I found a nice little spot to enjoy a short run along Goldwater Lake, west of downtown. The fall colors were in full form leaving the trails and surrounding area full of beautiful autumn colors bouncing to and from, reflecting off the calm lake. The run was nice and almost entirely on packed dirt and pine needled trails. I was able to take a route that wound along the shores of the lake in snaked its way through the Pine forests that shaded the west end of the lake. It was a beautiful short run and my legs felt surprisingly good for not getting good sleep or really any runs in in the week prior. Save for some stiffness and soreness due to the concrete pounding at the tail end of the run it was a good time.

Thumb Butte/Prescott-3.5 miles

After growing bored of the stagnant nature that sometimes accompanies Jon and the cast and crew that can convene in the living room at his abode, I fought through the "smoke" of the living quarters and headed out early Monday morning for the short drive up to the Prescott landmark, Thumb Butte. Rising to 6600ft above the city, Thumb Butte is a inner city gem that grants any runner with a swift vertical gain over less than a mile achieved. I had run this before so I knew that not only was the initial portion paved but it was also super steep. I obliged and set about the top in the early morning sunlight. I was not feeling the initial ascent and after just a quarter mile resorted to a speed hike up the trail since I could tell that my lungs were not yet accustomed to the elevation level. After reaching the crest I continued on to the summit which was accessed through a narrow what seemed like hidden trail that I was able to find spying me through the surrounding sage bushes. The hike to the top and the sub sequent run down the backside of the butte back down to the trail head was refreshing but I could still feel some tightness and fatigue in my shins from the fast outing on the pavement the day before. Overall it was a great day in the sun and what made it even greater was the surprise visit of a family of mule deer waiting down below just outside of the trail head parking lot.

Looking back I am happy with the trip, the runs, and the overall laid back vibe that accompanied the few days up in Prescott. It is always a welcome place.

The Last Few Weeks(with some heat squeezed in there)

10/2-10/15
TOTAL MILES: 21.0
TOTAL TIME: 255 mins
TOTAL ELEVATION(FT): 4338


MONTHLY MILES: 21.5
MONTHLY TIME: 301 mins
YEARLY MILES: 294.4
YEARLY TIME: 48:58

South Mountain Park-PM
Terrible outing in once again scorching temps without a cloud in the sky. I am thru with the mid ninety's and up weather and have been for quite some time. The other outing was a shorter one up Mormon Loop. Uneventful.

Lost Dutchman State Park-PM
Nice, once again hot, run in the park which was refreshing, yet steep in every way imaginable. Good to find some new dirt though. I will head out there more frequently in the winter for sure.

Silly Mountain Park-AM
Another hot day that cut my running short. I did however get a flyover by a Apache helicopter which was kinda cool, and close. Overall good run with some decent progress on the steep stuff, albeit minimal.

Will post some snaps of the runs here soon.

Running Log/Speed Ascent Of Mormon Trail

9/27 - 10/1
TOTAL MILES: 4.4
TOTAL TIME: 57 MINS
TOTAL ELEVATION(FT): 1542


MONTHLY MILES: 0.5
MONTHLY TIME: 6 MINS
YEARLY MILES: 273.4
YEARLY TIME: 44:43

South Mountain Park; Mormon Trail-PM
Decided to head over to the park after work for a scramble up a familiar trail at dusk. Felt decent the whole way. Let up a few times when I could of pushed it but all in all it was a decent time for the ascent(17:35) considering it gains over 1500' on the way up over less than 1.25 miles. I will use that as a benchmark if I am lucky enough to make it out a few times over the winter.

Flume - Bon Iver Live @ Comerica Theatre

A recent clip from a Bon Iver concert attended. Sorry for the unsteady hand. Close your eyes and feel free to drift off.

9/19 - 9/26
TOTAL MILES: 14.0
TOTAL TIME: 153 MINS
TOTAL ELEVATION: 1376 FT


MONTHLY MILES: 27.1
MONTHLY TIME: 324 MINS
YEARLY MILES: 269.00
YEARLY TIME: 43:46

South Mountain- PM, PM
Desert Classic Trail, etc. Easy pace. Hot. Some pain in both heel and forefoot has kept me guessing. Hydration fine but pain in foot caused some extra exertion and a few extra stops that made me lose some concentration.

Treadmill- PM, PM
Tempo work and some steep miles at 10+ incline.

We can all dream right?

Peralta Trail Run/Scramble

9/5 - 9/18
TOTAL MILES: 5.1
TOTAL TIME: 80 MINS
TOTAL ELEVATION: 1714 FT


MONTHLY MILES: 13.1
MONTHLY TIME: 2H 51MINS
YEARLY MILES: 255.00
YEARLY TIME: 41:13


I was blessed to be able to make it to Peralta Trail behind the Superstion Mountains for a quick but super-steep run/scramble up to Weavers Needle and back. I call it a scramble because there is no portion with more than maybe 30 yards of runnable trail. This trails is about as rocky as you will find in and around Phoenix, and it is steep as hell. The trail can be a real pain in the ass when you are trying to stay in a decent stride only to find yourself zig zagging to and from avoiding the jagged surface more times than not. On top of that you are basically straight uphill for the entire 2.25 miles to the crest. Normally I find myself in a pretty good stride on this trail but this was the first time I had run it with the Trail Minimus' I had purchased and I will be the first to say that the surface really pounded the hell out of my feet on this particular day. I am still inclined to run in the Minimus but for whatever reason I just was not very light on my feet and it showed, especially on the way down. Nevertheless, I made it up in a decent time and enjoyed the beautiful 95 degree weather for a short while before attempting to add on another mile or two on the backside of the mountain only to lose the trail and encounter more ridiculously jagged trails so I made my way back up and headed back down in the twilight hours.

Though it is cooling a bit I am still encountering water shortage problems because of the prevailing temps. I hope it will get down into the 80's here by weeks end and then I will be able to head up for longer runs with just my 20oz'er and enjoy some more trails on the backside of the mountain.

8/29-9/4

08/29 - 09/04
TOTAL MILES: 8.0
TOTAL TIME: 91 MINS
TOTAL ELEVATION: 2065 FT


MONTHLY MILES: 8.0
MONTHLY TIME: 91 MINS
YEARLY MILES: 249.90
YEARLY TIME: 39:53


So I was lucky enough to be able to make it up to Pinetop, Arizona with my family and friends for a short weekend in the White Mountains in what turned out to be an extremely taxing weekend on yours truly. I know from experience that vacationing with my wife's family can seem to be anything but a vacation with all the time constraints, places to see, and the alarms, set at 6am each day, so I knew that this weekend would be no different but still found myself extremely pleased to take the drive up north through the misting desert skies up to the magical mile high city of Pinetop. 
Luckily for myself we had a trail system that snaked its way through the property with which our cabin lied so early both mornings I was able to get out for a couple of short runs in the so-so picturesque ponderosa forest that hugged the back of the property. After a 4 mile slow run down Horton Creek Trail that found me winding past open meadows swarming with flies, and through open cow pastures trampled to mud, also swarming with flies, I preceded to take to both the tennis courts and the ping pong table for some much needed court time. However, with the long delayed visit to the tennis court I found myself nearly unable to stand after about a 2 hour tennis outing followed by a hour or so of extreme ping pong action. So by the time I found myself back on the trail the next morning I was extremely drained of any reserves. Moving forward though it was a great weekend and I was happy to get some time running in and hopefully the next few days will bring a dip below the 110+ degree temps which are still the norm here running into September.

Daily Tune. The Clogs, featuring Matt Berninger-Last Song

The North Face® Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc® - Running through nature

Total Distance: 2.9 m
Time: 35:00
Location: Treadmill
Total Miles: 241.90 m
Total Time: 38:22
Elevation Gain: 3643 ft

With temperatures looming at the 112 degree mark for basically the last 2 weeks straight my running has been reduced to a trickle. I have found little time with work and other "adult" things clogging my entrance to the awaiting trail. However, a trip to the White Mountains this weekend will hopefully bring atleast one good run on the trails. I have been mainly concentrating on steep runs on the treadmill as I was not too happy with my overall performance on the steeper portions of the Highline Trail that I ran a few weeks back so my main focus has been running at a decent pace for half mile increments of inclines stretching anywhere from 7%-15% on the treadmill. I can honestly say that I would rather run in the open mountain air with the 90 degree sun beating down on me than slugging it out on these damn treadmills at a 15% incline. Ugghh.

Mogollon Rim/South Mountain Pics

Some of the views were grand.

Mogollon Rim/South Mountain Runs

Total Distance: 8.9 m
Time: 1:43
Location: South Mountain; Pyramid Trail, Pine, Arizona, Pine Trailhead/Highline Trail
Total Miles: 239.00 m
Total Time: 37:47
Elevation Gain: 3643 ft

I have a love, hate relationship with the state of Arizona. I find it hard to believe sometimes that I decided on the desert as the place I hang my hat. Reason being, there are those days where the heat, the death (of most living things in the low desert), and the landscape of my desert home just eat away at my motivation to do mostly anything. However, I do find myself some days coming to a truce with my dry, deserted friend and agreeing that when you can look past "green" as being the epitome of beauty; ie green pastures, trees, lawns, forests, etc. then you can realize that Arizona has it's perks and it's tiny little pleasures that it call's it's own.
After a routine run atop South Mountain on Pyramid trail for a measly few miles in the 100+ degree heat, I finally made the long awaited trek up to the Mogollon Rim's Highline Trail for a relatively short but grueling 6 mile run today. I knew I would enjoy the run considering it is both scenic and more importantly at 5000+ altitude. I was not let down. The trail which was easy to access, lead immediately through an open acreage of ponderosa pine's with little shade, letting the 85 degree weather seem a little hotter than normal. Then immediately came the ascent. I knew from the trail map that it would have a fair share of vert right from the get go and even though I held strong for the first 1.25 miles the Rim proceeded to chew me up like a chunk of jerky. I had hydrated myself plenty and got in enough calories I felt to hold me over but over the course of a little under 3 miles up this Rim the vert/elevation just took its toll. However, I do feel like I held my own especially on some of the tough climbs as I just concentrated on the perks of finally getting to the top and taking in the views. I ran most of the tough climbs with a good groove and only really hit rock bottom on a few of the initial climbs.
Now, as some of you may know, this is the same route that the Zane Grey 50 ultra-marathon is run on and I took solace in the fact that I knew that no more than 90 days or so prior Geoff Roes floated through those same trails, breathing in the same views on the way to his strong victory at the ZG50. So in short, it was an amazing experience and an amazing trail.
All in all the run was super awesome and one that I will stroll down again, maybe with a bib on someday?

Highline Trail/Zane Grey Course Run

So I think I was able to wipe my slate clean of chores for the weekend and free myself up for a short drive up northeast of Phoenix on Sunday to what we here in the valley of the sun call "Rim Country" for a much delayed run on the Highline Trailhead, east of Payson. Some may know the area or trailhead as the starting point of the Zane Grey 50 Miler which is run the 4th week of April, zig zagging across the Mogollon Rim in one of the toughest 50 milers in the country.
Needless to say I am stoked for the trip and ensuing run. I will try to get some snapshots of the course/trails to post shortly after.
Off to sleep, dreaming of packed, shaded singletrack and flowing, bubbling streams.

Treadmill Monotony

Total Distance: 7.1 m
Time: 1:07
Location: Treadmill(Uphill/Incline)
Total Miles: 230.10 m
Total Time: 36:04

Total Elevation Gain:

This past week showed no signs of cooling down at any point. The low for the week was 106 degrees so my endeavors were forced indoors once again and that partnered with a busy work schedule has seen me only manage 2 days on the treadmill over the past week. Thankfully though the 2 runs were successful in terms of incline running. I was able to maintain both runs at a little over 3 miles each and with significant inclines for the duration of each run. I am happy my endurance going uphill, I just need to find the right time to start making longer runs a staple on the weekends. No excuses. I am looking at maybe going up north to the Mogollon Rim this weekend for a 8 mile run along Christopher Creek. The elevation is about 6500 feet so I should know how my fitness has come along by completing this run since a large portion is on a steady incline. On another note, my nutrition has improved a bit and I think I can feel it in my running. I am noticing that my recovery after these longer uphill runs is progressing to the point that I think I can run alot longer and even at a higher incline with little stress on my muscles, knees, etc.

That is all for now. Hope y'all enjoyed my little piece of ear candy.

Sufjan Stevens "Futile Devices" Live on Soundcheck

Humphrey's Peak. Take Two!

Felt like posting some snaps from my buddy Rob and I's recent hike up Humphrey's Peak in Flagstaff. Note the shaded, pine cushioned singletrack. As good as it gets in Arizona!

Total Distance: 5.2 m
Time: 51:00
Location: Treadmill, South Mountain Park(Pyramid Trail)
Total Miles: 223.00 m
Total Time: 34:57

Total Elevation Gain: 800 ft

The last week and a half has been pretty unspectacular. I had planned on reintroducing myself to the alpine forests of Flagstaff this past weekend with the hopes of getting in atleast one longer run either before or after my friend Rob and I hiked Humphrey's Peak, the highest peak in the state. This was not to be. I had packed all my running gear and headed north with anticipation of the hike and the impending run. Upon arrival we found that Weatherford Trail, the main trail to the summit, was closed due to logging somewhere up along the first ridge so we had to head down to Humphrey's Trail to make our connection to Weatherford, then to the top. It was a hot day, about 85 degrees or so, so I knew that that would take a little extra effort on both our parts to make it in one piece to the summit. I realized soon after we had started that Rob was not going to make it to the top this day. He was complaining of a headache and further up started to cramp up so I knew that this was going to take a little longer than expected. We made it to the first saddle which lies about 400 feet from the summit in good time but I knew that it would take a miracle to coax Rob into making it that last 400 feet which I knew he was capable of.
In summarizing the day, Rob said "No Mas", around the 12,500 feet mark and I proceeded to tell him to stay put and I would be back down in a jiffy and I darted up the rugged talus field hopping, zig zagging to and from. After reaching the top I took in the views and decided to get back asap. No more than 15 steps from the summit I stepped off of a rock and turned my ankle in the loose volcanic rock bed that covers the summit. At first I did not think it was a bad sprain, which in hindsight is was not, but as I tightened my shoe and put on my game face for Rob I realized that I would have to hop on one leg for the next 4.5 miles back down to the parking lot. Not cool.
I will spare you the long, gory details of agony, etc. and just say that it was a long day. So to make a long story short, no long awaited Flagstaff trail run ensued. So, after a week of no running or physical activity at all for that matter I was able to make it out to South Mountain for a shorter heat drenched jaunt on Pyramid Trail in the center of the park. It was hot, I was out of water, and I did not have the mental toughness to push through a medium length run so I called it a day after just 3.2 miles albeit with a decent amount of uphill.
I am looking forward to the remainder of the summer though.

2+ Weeks Of Running....

Total Distance: 16.8 m
Time: 2:49
Location: Treadmill, Phoenix Mountain Preserve, San Tan Regional Park
Total Miles: 217.80 m
Total Time: 34:06

Total Elevation Gain: 1996 ft

I have been pretty off and on with my consistency in regards to running the past few weeks. I don't really have any good excuses since the weather has actually cooled off a bit and I have actually had some spare time, not a ton, to hit the trails. I think I am just waiting for that one good chance to get a longer, more meaningful run in and then I think I will be back on track mentally to start putting in more time. We will see, right?

I was able to get a few runs in on the dirt though including a nice few miles with my older brother Sean at Dreamy Draw Park within the Phoenix Mountain Preserve and another morning out in San Tan Regional Park in Queen Creek. My run at Dreamy Draw was supposed to emulate the run I did with Anton Krupicka back in June. Unfortunately though I was not able to pick up Anton's Trail Minimus footprints and we strayed from that route over the course of the run but all in all had a great early evening run along the flowing ridges that shoot up from the park surface. In reality, I do like the Phoenix Mountains, atleast what I have seen of them, and hope to get more time in on them this year because of their gradual hills, and sprawling, open valleys. They are a treat.

I was also able to make it out to my buddy Rob's neck of the woods for a run in the San Tan Mountains. I had never been into the park so I was a little green in the gills as I left the truck early in the a.m. I had told Rob that if I had not phoned him within a 4 hour time window then for him to come looking for me. My goal was for 10-12 miles, a lofty one huh? I wanted to see where I was in regards to the run that I had planned in Navajo country in September so I needed to try and get in a longer run on the trails to test my endurance. I think I am clinging to a thread to be honest. I had not planned well enough since I had forgotten to bring a couple of GU gels along with me, so I basically was planning on running for 2+ hours with no calories to hold me over. I knew I would be in for a long morning early on when I came through a clearing and realized that the next portion of the trail would be in a deep sand wash. This next mile took alot of energy and leg strength, and that combined with my lack of calories pretty much set the tone for the remainder of the run. I was able to push myself along but I found myself struggling with the full CamelBak strapped to my back and the combined heat/energy lul. The trail proved to be so-so, with the majority of it just slow rolling trails that contained no sign of life. After a sluggish 7 mile trek I collapsed on the bench in the parking lot in the 99 degree heat, which felt a heck of a lot hotter, and eventually chit chatted with a nice young park ranger before hitching a ride with Rob back to the bustling city, cooking in the distance.

i feel like my attraction to the mountains has somewhat hampered my ability to run consistently since I now primarily only run on that surface. I have noticed that the mere thought of running the roads makes me nauseous. Though, in the long run I think it will be the better alternative considering I have been able to maintain a honest love for running since I made the transition of road to trail running. My goal this week is to get in 2 mountain runs, with a long 2 hour run, and maybe one long treadmill run at incline. I am also venturing to the only true alpine zone in Arizona this weekend to conquer Humphrey's Peak once more, Flagstaff. Wish me luck.