Last Mountain Run of 2010...

This morning, Scott, jLu and I got out for first tracks to the summit of Green Mountain via Gregory-Ranger.  Yesterday produced the first legitimate (~6-8" or so in town) snowfall of the year, and after slogging through the wintry beauty to reach the summit I was instantly reminded on the downhill just why running in the winter is so fun: it often feels like pure play.  The powdery, cushiony surface spares the joints, the absolute muffled stillness is calming, and crystalline dressing on everything inspires.  It was a fantastic 296th (350th lifetime) and final trip to Green's summit for the year.

Our goal.

Scott powering his way up Gregory Canyon...

...and eventually, the summit rock of Green.

#296: tomorrow I start over.

Scott floating the descent through Gregory Canyon.

Nothing beats some properly-garnished Flatirons.

I suppose a few closing thoughts on the year are in order.  First, the numbers:

January:     488mi, 71h 50min,   91,500',   31 Greens
February:   501mi, 75h 33min,   101,300', 36 Greens
March:        547mi, 81h 08min,   94,700',   31 Greens
April:          673mi, 101h 19min, 120,400', 35 Greens
May:            522mi, 73h 18min,   76,100',   21 Greens
June:           674mi, 102h 09min, 113,900', 22 Greens
July:            501mi, 74h 23min,   77,700',   11 Greens
August:       459mi, 88h 06min,   66,400',   12 Greens
September: 435mi, 66h 35min,   85,300',   17 Greens
October:      668mi, 99h 37min,   128,900', 34 Greens
November:  461mi, 69h 35min,   97,000',   28 Greens
December:  356mi, 53h, 01min,  56,300',   18 Greens

2010:  6285mi,   956h 34min,   1,108,100'  296 Greens
                                                                       29 Bears
                                                                         6 SoBos

That's an average of right at 120.5 miles per week and 17.2 miles, 2h37min and 3036' vertical per day.

2010 was, by almost any measure, easily my best year of running ever.  Statistically, physically and spiritually I think, after 15 years, I finally arrived at a volume/combination of miles and vertical that has allowed me to sustainably maximize running's positive bearing on each of those areas.  I know for sure that in 2010 I was racing at my highest-ever level, and due to my notable consistency (only 16 days off the entire year, most of those in December) my enjoyment of running was at its highest-ever level, too.

Best Run(s)
There were a lot.  It is natural that a race is typically a "best run" because I have typically consciously set up several months of training in order to feel really, really good for that particular run.  As such, Western States and White River were certainly stand-outs.  In both I felt remarkably effortless (save the last 20 miles of WS) and both runs were further enhanced by sharing them with good friends.

A very close honorable mention was my solo 68 mile/10:16 run around Pikes Peak in early November.  While I didn't feel particularly physically proficient during that run (I was in the midst of a period of very heavy training preparing for the TNF50 Championships), it was mentally and physically much less of an ordeal than I had expected.  Plus, it was a loop that I had thought about doing on and off for very many years.

Another honorable mention was an 8hr outing in the Indian Peaks with Scottie in July.  We covered a ton of ground, saw many incredible sights, tread many miles of sublime singletrack, spent a whole lot of time above treeline and generally took advantage of our abilities to travel all day on foot with few physical consequences.  It was a blast.

Worst Run(s)
Without a doubt, my DNF at Leadville, obviously.  I've never run myself into the ground before, and let me tell you, it's not a whole lot of fun.  I learned much, though.  While I've had plenty of other crappy runs this year, none of them were so bad as to result in me passing out, so Leadville takes the cake.

A close second would be the profoundly mundane evening jog on November 18th where I strained my calf for good and did the damage that ultimately kept me out of the TNF50 showdown at the beginning of this month.  It was the only real injury disappointment of the year for me, and it came at a supremely inopportune time.

Well, that's enough.  Let me leave you, though, with a most aptly-titled track by one of my favorite bands, The Walkmen.  I've been listening to these guys for almost two years now, but ever since I saw them at the Fox Theatre here in Boulder in October they've been nearly non-stop on my music-playing device.  Much to the chagrin of my roommates, I imagine.  But, I think the passion evident in this song should at least partly explain why.  Happy New Year!