The 2018 running of the San Juan Solstice 50 was this past weekend, and I’m happy to say I made it through for a second finish without any major issues along the way. Things went smoothly for me in just about every category and I was able to improve on my time from last year by over an hour.
Our move to the Vail Valley, in addition to our lean snow year, had me trail running a lot more in place of backcountry skiing throughout the months of April and May. I was able to log six 20+ mile runs leading into the SJS, which included another go at the Dirty 30 in early-June and a fun morning climbing Grouse Mountain from the streets of Eagle-Vail. I was hopeful all the vert and miles on trails would translate to a better race in Lake City this go around. Keep reading…
For the past year or so, Ben has been telling me about the Golden Gate Dirty 30 ultra marathon in Golden Gate Canyon State Park. He had a really good experience last year during his race, and he knew I would like this race given my running and trail running background. I kept it loosely on the radar throughout the year, but never too seriously. 32.2 miles on single track is a big commitment to train for. Keep Reading…
Last weekend I headed up to Golden and participated in the first running of the Sawmill Trail Races in White Ranch Open Space Park. It was a fun way to get some exercise in December while we continue to wait for the actual ski season to begin. Put on by the Human Potential Running Series, the Sawmill had been held as a “Fat Ass” run for the previous few years (“fat ass” here meaning a more laid back “fun run” style of race). Keep Reading…
Probably my biggest single goal for the summer was to run my first 50-mile trail race. Well it didn’t take long (three days into the summer to be exact) to fulfill that goal at the San Juan Solstice 50 in Lake City. Though a complete whirlwind, it was one heck of a day out there.
After securing a spot in the lottery in January I began ramping up the miles and vert throughout the winter and into spring ski season. Then it was on to the Dirty 30 in early-June, which is perfectly placed in the calendar as a “training race” being exactly three weeks ahead of the San Juan Solstice. A few more big days in the hills after the Dirty 30, including a run of the Barr Trail on Pikes Peak (which somehow was my first time up that route), and I finally felt “ready” to give the SJS a go. Keep reading…
