March 25 - 31

03-25-2013
Mon-AM: 2:07, 4400' ~ Bear & Green
Started from Chautauqua with Joel and ran the Mesa over to Bear and then up it via Fern. Fern trail conditions were mostly excellently-packed, but only a couple people had been down the West Ridge. From Bear Canyon we blazed through shin-deep snow (with Joel bonking like a champ) up to Green before descending the front. Really nice outing in all the glorious snow but with comfortable temps.

03-26-2013
Tue-AM: 1:07, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
From Chautauqua, ran up and down the front with Joel. My shin was a little touchy, but the snow-packed trail was in perfect condition.

03-27-2013
Wed-AM: 6:30, 5000' ~ Longs Peak (14,255')
Up and down the Cables. Started from the trailhead at 6am with Joel. We wanted an early start to ostensibly capture alpenglow on the Diamond, but the clouds had different ideas. Joel still got some shots with great light above treeline, but there was a ton of blowing snow and the mountain itself was completely socked in all day, so not many epic views. Joel on-sight soloed the Cables (because he wanted to shoot me from above), which was especially notable considering his oxygen-depleted state and the near-constant spindrift. Above there I endured exhausting, hip-deep trail breaking to reach the summit. Of my eight Longs summits so far this year, this one had the most snow, by far. The round-trip would've been a couple hours faster without all the camera-work.

03-28-2013
Thu-AM: 1:34, 4000' ~ 1st Flatiron+Green+1st Flatiron
Cruised up to the flattie starting from Chautauqua and found it in surprisingly dry conditions (there were still some wet spots, but not as much as I expected) considering how much snow is still on the ground. Scrambled it in 15:05 and then slogged up to the summit of Green before descending to the base and scrambling it again in 12:25 with a 2:05 downclimb. That's the fastest I've scrambled the First since last fall, and a 40sec PR on the downclimb. Really fun morning on the hill.
PM: Climbing with jLu at Animal World in Boulder Canyon. A rare afternoon mostly clipping bolts.

03-29-2013
Fri-AM: 3:53, 5000' ~ Longs Peak
Up and down the Cables with Joe. I had a bunch of energy this morning for some reason...part of which, I suspect, was due to the new 6mm x 35m string I had in my pack for rappeling. Which is substantially lighter than the 7.8mm cord I used to carry. Anyways, the trail was excellently packed, but when we got to treeline it was snowing fairly hard and would stay that way the entire rest of the day, sometimes snowing really hard. When we got to the Cables, the dihedral had way more snow than just two days ago, which made it the most secure-feeling it's been all winter soloing it. We didn't spend much time on the summit as a nasty wind was blowing tons of snow around (really this was the case for a lot of the day), so made quick work of the North Face before running back down to the car amidst really heavy snowfall. Of course, there was sun at the parking lot.
PM: Climbing with Buzz on the 3rd and 2nd Elephant Buttresses. Got in four pitches.

03-30-2013
Sat-AM: 2:19, 4500' ~ 1st+2nd+5th Flatirons+Green Mt.
Biked to Chat, then scrambled the flatties. First flatiron link-up that I've done in a while. The slab on the left side of the Pullman Car on the 2nd was really wet, but some judicious stemming got me through. The morning's sun and warm temps got to me a bit, though, and sitting on the summit of the 5th while drinking from the pothole up there I decided I didn't have the juice to tack on the 4th as well before heading to the summit of Green. I also wasn't very excited about the certain post-holing on the descent on the south side of the 5th.

03-31-2013
Sun-AM: 3:25, 5000' ~ Longs Peak
Up and down the Cables, solo. Moved well up to the boulderfield, picking a good line across the tundra. There was a nasty wind above treeline, but nothing atypical or unreasonable and it died almost completely except for a few gusts once I got onto the boulderfield. The Cables climb went very quickly as a bunch of snow was packed into the corner, but then I slogged for days up the rest of the north face to the summit...lots and lots of postholing/trailbreaking. The summit was exceedingly pleasant; I didn't even need to put on my puffy jacket. The downhill went very quickly. I plunged back down to the Cables in 6min, didn't even bother to get out my harness and rap cord and instead just downclimbed the whole thing in less than 5min before taking off my crampons, stripping down to only a short-sleeve t-shirt, and running back to the trailhead. The whole descent took me 0:58.
PM: 1:03, 3000' ~ 1st Flatiron+Green Mt.
Couldn't resist the 70F weather, so biked up to Chat for a scramble and a summit. One of those glorious outings where the legs just never really get tired, felt very strong on the uphill and descended the front back to Chat in only 21min.

Hours: 21h53min
Vert: 33,600'

Wow, this turned into a really good week of mountains. I had a little scare with the shin again on Tuesday, but my avoidance of extended flat running since then seems to have kept it happy. It felt 100% today. Weeks like this get me very very excited for racing and summer and adventures in the high peaks. Just have to remain patient and not do anything silly so I can stay healthy.

Joe rappels through spindrift on the Cables route on Longs Peak on Friday morning.

Joe at Chasm View.

Looking back toward the Twin Sisters from above treeline on Longs this morning.

Keyhole moonset.

Crossing the Boulderfield after tagging the summit this morning.

March 18 - 24

03/18/2013
Mon-AM: 0:53, 1600' ~ First Flatiron
Biked to Chat, hiked up to the First, scrambled it, and hiked back down. Cold, breezy day, especially up on the rock. Just taking it easy on the shin.

03/19/2013
Tue-AM: 0:53, 1600' ~ First Flatiron
Exact same outing as yesterday. Bike, hike, scramble, hike, bike.  Not as cold, though.

03/20/2013
Wed-AM: 1:03, 1600' ~ 1st and 2nd Flatiron
Biked to Chat, hiked up and scrambled the 1st, but then instead of just hiking back down to Chat I downclimbed the 2nd, which is something I've always wanted to do as a test for linking all the flatties together as quickly as possible. It was interesting, but not something that really appeals to me aesthetically.
PM: 3hr?, 1600' ~ First Flatiron
Went up the 1st in the afternoon with Joe and Geoff. I was really just tagging along for the fun of it while Joe did the grunt work of dragging the rope up and setting up anchors for Geoff who was climbing it for the first time, on belay. Pitching it out with a rope makes you realize just how big a formation it is. Fun afternoon hanging out on the rock, though.

03/21/2013
Thu-AM: 0:48, 1600' ~ First Flatiron
Biked to Chat, ran to the base, scrambled it, and ran down. Which was a notable improvement in the shin after limiting myself to hiking all week. This was my 60th ascent ever of the First Flatiron, 59 of those occurring since last July.

03/22/2013
Fri-AM: 1:51, 4000' ~ 5th Flatiron & 1st Flatiron+Green Mt.
Biked to Chautauqua and ran up to the base of the 5th Flatiron. There was quite a bit of snow at the base, but really well consolidated so I didn't have any issues getting on the face. I haven't been on the 5th in almost two months, so some of the sequences felt a little rusty, but the arete finish on that rock is by far the finest of any of the flatties, I think. After downclimbing, I picked my way to the top of the mountain...still haven't found a super-efficient route for that but it's getting there. After tagging the summit I ran down to the base of the 1st and then scrambled that--I was starting to feel the duration and accumulated vert of the outing by time I got to the top. Downclimbed and ran back down to Chat. Shin was pain-free, but about an hour of this was steep hiking/scrambling, not running.

03/23/2013
Sat-AM: 2:17, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
Ran from my apartment with Joel, met Jurker, and headed up to the Gregory lot in a snowstorm, where we headed up and down the front of the mountain in a ton of fresh snow. Close to knee-deep on the upper parts of the mountain. Cold and humid and snowy on the run home.

03/24/2013
Sun-AM: 1:56, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
Same run as yesterday, with Joel again. Trail still had very loose footing; put in a casual effort on the uphill.

Hours: 10h41min
Vert: 18,000'

I was happy with this week because I think I did a good job of managing the niggle in my shin and was able to keep getting out in the mountains without making it worse. By the end of the week it was feeling a lot better. The weekend's snow was a bit of a bummer after the extended warm weather we had before that. I definitely have spring fever.

This week's shin issues have made me realize that I'm going to have to be conservative with the running for a few weeks, much like last summer where I focused on vertical and steep hiking/scrambling for a long time before the shin was strong enough to do consistent, sustained running. This is fine fitness-wise as long as my races have suitable amounts of vertical, but not so great in a proper running race (see: Leadville 100 last year). So, Transvulcania will be interesting, but given my results at Cavalls del Vent last fall (the TV field this year will have most of the same European players) I'm confident that this kind of preparation will still be effective, the most important thing being arriving at the starting line healthy.

I've been really digging this song lately, and really, the whole album (which you can stream at bandcamp):

Atop the Fourth Elephant Buttress in Boulder Canyon. Photo: Jenny Jurek.

On the Dome in Boulder Canyon. Photo: Jenny Jurek.

Slogging up Green on Saturday with Scott and Joel. Photo: Scott Jurek.

March 11 - 17

03-11-2013
Mon-AM: 2:09, 4000' ~ Bear & Green
Biked to Chautauqua then ran the Mesa over to Fern. The bottom half of Fern was in really good shape but above the saddle was mostly wallowing through drifts. Trail was packed well over to Green then and I descended Greenman-Saddle Rock-Amphi in a sprightly 16:25, not really pushing it, just taking advantage of the nicely packed conditions. Afterwards, climbed a quick lap on the Dome in Boulder Canyon with Joe before the wind and Joe's understandable unwillingness to be tough again just yet made us call it a day.
PM: 1:08, 3000' ~ 2nd Flatiron+Green
Biked up to Chat and cruised up and down the front of the mountain.  I was testing out some new rubber on some NB protos, so stuck to the less-committing slopes of the 2nd Flatiron rather than the much more tenuous 1st Flatiron. About half-way up the mountain I ascended into a snowing cloud that I was able to escape on the run back down to Chat but by time I got back home it was snowing pretty well in town.

03-12-2013
Tue-AM: 1:56, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
Woke to 3-4" of fresh snow, so ran from my doorstep up the front of Green and down Ranger-Gregory. Tired legs, definitely still adjusting to the increased volume.
PM: 1:08, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
From Chat, went up and down the 1st/2nd Access route. Took poles, and while they weren't needed on the exquisitely packed trail to the 1st saddle, they were nice to have in the post-holing above there. Theatrical evening scene on the summit with a setting sun shining dramatically through low-hanging cloud layers.

03-13-2013
Wed-AM: 3:39, 5000' ~ Longs Peak (14,255')
Up and down the Cables for Longs summit #7 of 2013. On the pre-dawn drive to the trailhead the wind was blowing really hard--same in the parking lot--so I was kind of dreading the march up the hill. There was a lot of new snow below treeline so I wore crampons and took poles, which helped a bit, especially since I was breaking trail. The wind was definitely blowing up on the tundra but it wasn't impossible and once I got to the Boulderfield it wasn't bad at all. Tons of spindrift was coming down the north face, though, which made things fun, and then the summit (2:27 up) was stuck in a cloud so I didn't get any views. Of course, things warmed-up on the downhill (1:12 descent) and overall I was psyched to have gotten in a fun summit when conditions weren't seeming very good early in the morning. For most of the climb I was feeling like the altitude wasn't really affecting me, but then the last 1000' sucked as much as usual, taking the usual full 15min to get from the top of the Cables to the summit.

03-14-2013
Thu-AM: 2:02, 4000' ~ Bear & Green
Biked to Chat, then ran over on the Mesa and up Fern to the summit of Bear, over to the summit of Green, then down the front back to Chat. Didn't take spikes with me but the warm temps meant that my hyper-lugged 110s gripped reasonably well in the snow all morning.
PM1: Climbing w/ Joe. My first time up the uber-classic Yellow Spur in Eldorado Canyon.
PM2: 1:19, 3000' ~ 1st Flatiron+Green
Biked to Chat, ran up to the base and scrambled the First, downclimbed and continued on to the summit of Green in dwindling light. Turned on my headlamp for the descent. Really nice to spend basically the whole day outside from sun-up to sun-down in perfect weather.

03-15-2013
Fri-AM: 0:42, 1600' ~ First Flatiron
From Chautauqua, just cruised an easy lap on the First before meeting Jenny to go climbing. Moved well on the rock, but took it easy on the approach and descent, trying to be nice to my slightly sore shin. I guess you can just never assume old injuries are gone for good.
PM: Climbing with Jenny. Went to the Elephant Buttresses for a couple quick ascents of the Third and Fourth Buttresses. Fun to see improvement and lead routes that I had trouble following just a couple months ago.

03-16-2013
Sat - nothing. Taking the weekend off in order to be careful with my shin. After suffering through almost 18 months of issues with it before last summer, I'm pretty wary.

03-17-2013
Sun- 0. The wind deterred me from even getting on any rock. But the shin is definitely improving.

Hours: 14h03min
Vert: 26,600'

Was feeling really solid all week, with great weather the second half of the week, but then it finished off a little frustrating with an old, nagging, niggle kicking back up a bit. I have lots of experience with the shin pain, though, so am hopeful that I can treat it right and not have it jeopardize too much mountain time. It's a good reminder, though, that I need to remain patient and vigilant as I ramp up the training volume.  Can't neglect any link in the chain.

It is spring. Summit of Green Mountain.

Rime ice on the Diamond and the north face of Longs on Wednesday.

Last bit of the Yellow Spur on Thursday, Eldorado Canyon. Photo: Joe Grant.

March 4 - 10

3/4/2013
Mon-AM: 1:34, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
Started from the library and ran up the front and then down Ranger to Flagstaff to Eben G. Fine and back to the library. The trails were pretty much bulletproof ice which was sort of frustrating, but my hip was 100%. Top of Green was in a cloud.

3/5/2013
Tue-AM: 1:31, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
Started from the library again, but went up Gregory-Ranger and down the front. Felt good.

3/6/2013
Wed-AM: 3:54, 5000' ~ Longs Peak
          Up and down the Cables. Really good day on the mountain. Was on the trail shortly after 7am and made the right decision to take poles this time. It's sort of awkward because it would be good to wear KTS crampons below treeline, then Microspikes across the tundra and Boulderfield and then back to crampons for the technical bit up and down the North Face, but I always start out in Microspikes below treeline even though they don't offer quite enough bite. Anyway.
          Made good time up to treeline but then lost a bunch of time wallowing around in the drifted snow right at treeline and in various spots across the tundra. I will pick a much better line next time. Only a few big gusts of wind as I came over the shoulder of Mt. Lady Washington and onto the Boulderfield and it was downright warm if you were in the sun. The climb up the Cables went really well. The first crux at the base of the dihedral is non-existent right now because of all the snow piled up at the base. But it was difficult wading through that. Above there I was able to feel really solid the whole way and even questioned why I brought a rope for the rappel, but I'm glad I did. No reason to go out and take unnecessary risks.
          Topped out after 2:32, spent a couple minutes eating a gel and taking a couple pics before heading back down. The rappel went well with the 30m rope. It leaves you a few feet short of the second eyebolt, but the angle there is mellow enough that it's not a big deal to just lean into the wall and set up the second rappel, which is quite short down to the snow apron. As I started running down the boulders below the Cables a large party of climbers started trickling uphill, which sort of surprised me. No less than four of them were wearing La Sportiva Spantiks. Which is a crazy 7000m double-boot that costs $750. Maybe they were training for something, but I was sure comfy enough in my 8oz New Balance 110 Winter's (with KTS Steel crampons). The rest of the run was uneventful but so warm that I stripped down to my short-sleeve shirt well before treeline.
PM: 0:49, 1600' ~ First Flatiron
Was excited by the nearly +60F day, so got out for a cruiser lap on the First at sunset. In retrospect, I probably should've waited one more day before climbing it as there ended up being a lot of water running down the face and lots of snow on ledges and in cracks. This made it a touch more adventurous than I'd bargained for in a few spots, but it worked out. Due to the wet conditions, the scramble took me a full 20min.

3/7/2013
Thu-AM: 1:48, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
Met Jurker at the library and headed up Gregory-Ranger and down Greenman-Flagstaff. Lots and lots of ice. Almost too much. Nice warm morning, though. Afterwards, simul-climbed a quick lap on the Dome in Boulder Canyon with jLu to complete the Team Jurker morning. Acupuncture in the afternoon.
PM: 1:16, 3000' ~ First Flatiron+Green Mt.
Biked to Chat, ran up through the heinous mud and slush and ice, and scrambled the First before heading up to the top of Green right at sunset. The First was quite a bit more dry than yesterday, only a couple wet spots. Descended the front.

3/8/2013
Fri-AM: 3:22, 5000' ~ Longs Peak (14,255')
          Up and down the Cables. I wanted to get in another lap on the big mountain before the storm this weekend, and I was treated with a winter car-to-car PR and nearly perfect weather conditions. The trail below treeline was packed out pretty much perfectly and I (finally) wisely just followed the packed track up past treeline instead of trying to blaze the shortcut that was packed in earlier this winter. This got me to treeline 6min faster than usual. Across the tundra up to the Boulderfield I also did my best job yet picking an as-snowless-as-possible line and enjoyed essentially completely calm conditions before making it to Chasm View in 1:49 where I stopped to put on a couple extra layers and my crampons (the lower cardiac output of technical climbing always requires a little more insulation to stay warm).

          The Cables dihedral went quickly (~5min climbing time), and then I enjoyed a packed trench through most of the 3rd Class terrain to the summit, courtesy, I'm sure, of the Southern Adventist mountaineering class I ran into on Wednesday. I was at the summit at 2:14 and only took a couple minutes to hit a gel, sign the register, put on my harness, and snap a couple pics. It only took me 6min to descend back to the top of the Cables where I rappelled the first 50' (I have a 100' rope) and then I decided to just downclimb the bottom half, which felt totally secure and definitely saved me a couple of minutes. I was back at Chasm View at 2:30 total time where I removed my crampons and ran all the way back down to the trailhead sans metal traction, hitting treeline at 3:09 and completing the full descent in 1:08. Really fun morning.
PM: 1:14, 3000' ~ First Flatiron+Green Mt.
The rain/snow showed up later than I thought it would, so I biked up to Chat to sneak in one more lap on the First and Green Mountain. Rock was the driest it's been all week, so I cruised up it in 14min before marching through the slush to the top of the mountain. Only bummer was that when I got back down to Chat my bike had a flat, making for a long, chilly walk home. I could've run it, but I didn't want to push things after already putting in such a big day.

3/9/2013
Sat-AM: 1:58, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
From my apartment up Gregory-Ranger and down the front. Started out in lightly falling snow but by time I was on the trails it was a full-on blizzard with rapidly accumulating snow. Heavy, wet, slushy spring-time snow. Which didn't help things with my super-tired legs, but good to get out and tag the summit in the winter conditions.

3/10/2013
Sun-AM: 1:55, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
Ran from my doorstep, up Gregory-Ranger and down the front. The trails were packed out but generally punchy and unconsolidated, making for inefficient footing and slow times. Gorgeous morning, though.

Hours: 19h21min
Vert: 32,600'

I think I can finally feel some fitness returning to my legs and lungs. It's definitely spring-time now, so my return to health is happily coinciding with my competitive juices starting to flow again.  I need to start gradually building up the running legs, so will probably add a weekly long run (as opposed to a long hike/slog/scramble/14er summit) from here on out. We'll see how that goes, it's certainly been a while since that's been a regular part of my weekly regimen.

Also, I've got a new post over on the UD Blog.

Mt. Meeker, from the summit of Longs Peak.

The north face of Longs pierces an azure sky on Wednesday.

Summit of Longs, Wednesday. Mummy Range on the right skyline.

The Longs-Arapaho traverse (L.A. Freeway) stretches out behind me.

Chasm Lake and Peacock Pool 2000' below, from the summit of Longs.

Feb 25 - March 3

2/25/2013
Mon-AM: 1:21, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
From Chat, went up and down the front. Slow ascent with lots of loose footing in all the new snow.

2/26/2013
Tue-AM: 1:17, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
Exact same run as yesterday except that it was dumping snow again this morning and I went up with poles, which made a big difference in uphill efficiency with the still poor footing. Got acupuncture afterwards.

2/27/2013
Wed-AM: 1:14, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
Same run again but slightly better trail conditions so I climbed a couple minutes faster. Warm, sunny morning had me in a short-sleeve shirt.

2/28/2013
Thu-AM: 5:24, 5000' ~ Longs Peak (14,255')
Oy. Long, tough day on the hill. Left the parking lot knowing it would be cold and breezy (-30F windchills), but was still hoping to get up and down via the Cables in 3h30 or so. Within 10min or so I knew I should've brought my trekking poles for uphill efficiency---the shortcuts were still covered in fresh snow and above treeline there were lots of deep drifts to wallow through---but so it goes.
                    Once past Jim's Grove the blowing snow became pretty out of hand and I began wishing I had goggles. This only got worse once I popped over the ridge onto the Boulderfield and I eventually decided that soloing up the Cables sounded pretty sketchy in such high winds. So I headed to the Keyhole, but just past the other side a particularly obnoxious gust of wind tore my sunglasses right from my face and flung them somewhere far down the snowy slope, never to be seen again. Dammit. I decided to try on-sighting the Northwest Gulley, hoping that getting in the chute would shield me from the hurricane a bit, but about half-way up the spindrift was insane and it was all I could do to keep my eyes from freezing shut. I had fleeting thoughts of even completely bailing at this point, but with only ~1000' of vertical left I was loathe to give up now.
                    So I meticulously backtracked down the 4th Class terrain to the standard Keyhole Route and took that over to the Trough and up to the Narrows and the Homestretch. The Narrows surprised me with how much snow there was in a couple spots---much more and I don't think I would've been too happy to be soloing it. Crampons and axe were definitely mandatory, and the Homestretch was a total snow climb as well. Finally made the summit after a very hard-fought 3:28, threw on the puffy, sucked down a gel, and descended the North Face via the Cables rappel. Rappeling that line, I definitely kicked myself for not just ascending the North Face because it seemed to be oddly (relatively) sheltered from the wind there, and there was so much snow in the crux dihedral that it would've been quite easy to climb.
                    Felt like I spent quite a bit of time bumbling with the rope and my crampons, but I finally got into a stilted rhythm stumbling my way back across the Boulderfield and down to treeline where I again wallowed around in the snow way too much looking for the easiest line down. Below treeline I finally got back on packed trail and made it back to the parking lot about two hours later than I'd planned. Oh well, any time I can stand on top of Longs, it's a good day; I love that mountain.

3/1/2013
Fri-AM: 1:16, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
Up Gregory-Ranger and down the front, from Chautauqua. Legs were tired from yesterday but it felt good to get out and do some running on the way up instead of the hiking that typically occurs when going up the front. Trail conditions are really good (packed snow) right now except for all the drifting from last night.
PM: 1000', Climbing in Eldo with Dakota
Really debated on whether we should pay to get into Eldo if there wasn't going to be anything dry to climb. Despite there still being a ton of snow almost everywhere (including the 500' of vert on the approach) the rock itself was 99% dry. Dakota led up the first long pitch of the Green Spur, and then from the Red Ledge we went up pitches 3-6 of Rewritten. Another stellar day in the canyon. A little chilly on the rock, but not bad.

3/2/2013
Sat-AM: 1:12, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
Really nice run from Chat up the back and down the front. Trail is in great snow shape.
PM: 500', Climbing in Eldo with Jon and Jenny.

3/3/2013
Sun-AM: 3:57, 5300' ~ Torreys (14,267') & Grays (14,270') Peaks
Parked at Bakerville and ran up the road to the trailhead. Took Kelso Ridge up Torreys before tagging Grays and heading back down. The main trail was decently packed but heavily drifted in some spots. Once I was on the ridge I enjoyed a totally unexpected reprieve from the wind until I was right below the summit. The traverse between the two peaks was super windy and by far the most unpleasant part of the day. Didn't see anyone else out there until I was running back down the road to the highway.
PM: 0:31 ~ Runners Roost Denver group run
First completely flat miles I've done in a long time, so it was nice to start working those back in. Hip was 100% and there was loads of pizza and beer afterwards, so it was a fun evening.

Hours: 16h12min
Vert: 25,300'

It feels like I've finally really turned the corner with my hip flexor.  I've run every day for three full weeks now, and my pair of forays into the high country last week have registered zero negative effects, so things are really looking up.  Having said that, I decided over a week ago to not make the trip down to New Zealand for the Tarawera 100K in 10 days, and despite my hip showing significant improvement I know it was the right choice. I've done no long runs of any type since December and don't have any desire to travel all that way to muddle through 62 miles with poor fitness and a very likely chance of re-injuring myself. Depending on how things go over the next few weeks, I could see myself joining the fun at Lake Sonoma next month, however. We'll see. Transvulcania is a race that I'm very excited about and I don't want to jeopardize my preparation for that...or all the necessary groundwork that needs to be laid now in order to reach the goals I have for this summer.

Unpleasant conditions on Longs last Thursday. Looking up the North Face, which I just rappelled.

Summit of Longs Peak.

Torreys Peak on Sunday. Kelso Ridge is the right skyline.

Nearly to the summit, looking back down Kelso Ridge.

Grays Peak, from Kelso Ridge.

Could use a drummer, but otherwise not bad.

Feb 11 - 24

2/11/2013
Mon-AM: 1:06, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
Biked to Chat and went up and down the front. Psyched to finally have the hip back to feeling in fine fiddle. Determined to stay smart with it this time around.

2/12/2013
Tue-AM: 1:40, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
Biked to Chat and met Jurker, Rickey, and his friend Bryce for a run up Bear Canyon and then down the front of the mountain. Apprehensive about the longer distance on my hip but Rickey needed the relative flat of the Mesa trail to loosen up his achilles at the start.
PM: Climbing with Joe at Animal World, Boulder Canyon after acupuncture at mid-day.

2/13/2013
Wed-AM: 1:05, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
Biked to Chat and went up and down the front of the mountain. Finally starting to feel some strength on the hill again.

2/14/2013
Thu-AM: 1:04, 2700' ~ 2nd Flatiron+Green Mt.
Biked to Chat and scrambled the Freeway on the 2nd on the way to the summit.

2/15/2013
Fri-AM: 1:16, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
Biked to Chat and went up and down the front. Didn't wear Microspikes, but it would've been helpful in the 2-3" of fresh snow, which definitely slowed progress.

2/16/2013
Sat-AM: 1:13, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
Biked to Chat and went up Gregory-Ranger and down the front. My first time running up the backside in a really long time, but it was good to start working on that uphill running rhythm again.

2/17/2013
Sun-AM: 1:11, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
Biked to Chat and went up and down the front. Tired this morning.
PM: 1500', Climbing in Eldo Canyon with Buzz.
Really fun afternoon. When I got to Buzz's he asked if I'd brought my rope---inexplicably, I hadn't, I just assumed he would have one.  Well, it turns out all of Buzz's ropes are totally non-standard (short, skinny, static) so we ended up taking his only lead rope, which was only 30m long because he normally uses it for simul-climbing.  In the end, this led to a little more adventurous afternoon in the canyon. When we got to the base of Rewritten/Zot on the Redgarden wall there was (understandably) a line to get on the route, so Buzz instead carefully led up the West Chimney (directly to the right of Rewritten). I took the next pitch up to the Red Ledge and then we traversed over and simul-climbed Swanson's Arete to the top of the Lumpe Tower, which was a total blast. Definitely solo-able material.

In classic Buzz fashion, getting down was a touch trickier. Our short rope made the standard rappels impossible and we both wanted to avoid downclimbing all the way down the East Slabs as we hoped to get in another route before the sun set.  This led to Buzz belaying me as I led a wildly-exposed but reasonably juggy down-traverse pitch before belaying Buzz past the difficulties.

After the quick 4th Class descent back down the west side of the ridge we found Rewritten to be open and I convinced Buzz that we had plenty of time to get up it before running out of light.  I led the first run-out pitch, but was forced to belay Buzz up the crux a little short of the usual ledge because of our short rope. From there we simul-climbed up to the 4th pitch where I then led the uber-classic hand-traverse and finger crack before we simulclimbed the last two pitches to the summit. Ended up getting back to the base of the climb just as the sun was setting in perfect timing.

Hours: 10h43min
Vert: 20,500'

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2/18/2013
Mon-AM: 1:14, 2800' ~ 2nd & 1st Flatirons
Biked to Chat and ran up to the base of the First. The bottom 30-40' were covered in ice and snow, including my usual entrance onto the rock. Above there, things looked good. I spent a lot of time looking for an alternate way onto the rock and even started up on a small lie-back feature slightly farther north on the base before backing down as I wasn't willing to commit to the slabby section above it that would connect me into my usual line.  Ran over and scrambled the 2nd Flatiron as a consolation, even though there was still some snow and ice in the gulley leading to the climb onto the Pullman Car.  On the run down from the summit of the 2nd you go right by the base of the 1st and when I got there I decided, screw it, I'm gonna give it another go. Funny how much easier some rock moves feel once you're warmed up and in the flow. The lie-back and the slab went with zero issue but above there I had to improvise a few other moves because of snow and ice still lingering on some cracks/ledges. There was a BD stopper stuck in the perfect finger-lock hold underneath the Ear chimney move, so I resolved to come back the next day with a nut tool to retrieve the booty.

2/19/2013
Tue-AM: 1:20, 3000' ~ 1st Flatiron+Green Mt.
Ran to the base, scrambled in 16min, downclimbed in 3min, and then continued on to the summit of Green. Strategically brought a nut tool with me and was able to get the stopper from under the Ear. Acupuncture in the afternoon.

2/20/2013
Wed-AM: 1:20, 3000' ~ 1st Flatiron+Green Mt.
Was able to sneak in just under 15min on the scramble today and then on the way down descended Greenman to Gregory (kind of the longest way down the mountain), just to get a little extra running in. Cold morning, could tell it was going to snow, so I was psyched to get in one last ascent of the First for a while. Hip has been feeling quite good.

2/21/2013
Thu-AM: 1:54, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
Lots of new snow this morning, so I ran to the Gregory trailhead where I met Gavin, Skurka, and Jeff for a lap up and down the frontside. Jeff broke trail all the way up, which was nice of him.

2/22/2013
Fri-AM: 1:46, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
Ran to Gregory to go up and down the front. Lots of new snow on the mountain but the trail is starting to get established.

2/23/2013
Sat-AM: 1:12, 2700' ~ Green Mt.
Biked to Chautauqua and ran up and down the front. Trying to remain conservative with the hip.

2/23/2013
Sun-AM: 1:57, 3000' ~ Green Mt.
Ran to Gregory and went up and down the front right in the thick of the snowstorm. Probably close to a foot of new snow up top. Hip seemed 100%.

Hours: 10h43min
Vert: 20,500'

Injuries are a funny thing.  I've run every day for over two weeks now, but I still don't have 100% confidence in my hip. But it's never really hurt, either. I'm hoping that with continued vigilance, diligence with my exercises, and acupuncture, I'll gradually get there.

These last few days of snow in Colorado have seen me using some new tactics for getting up the hill, notably a pair of trekking poles and some of Kahtoola's new K10 crampons. We haven't had much snow all winter, so this might seem like overkill, but when the footing is deep, unstable, and loose the combination of these two things definitely makes the uphill a lot more efficient.  When I first saw the K10's I wasn't convinced of their utility.  They only have 3/4" teeth (compared to the full inch on Kahtoola's KTS Steel model), but now I see that they're a much more durable (made from a steel alloy) but only slightly heavier alternative to Kahtoola's aluminum crampon.  And the buckling system is very clean and simple.  Who knows how much more snow we'll get down here in Boulder this season (I stick to the KTS Steel with the 1" teeth for the high country), but I've been enjoying the K10's extra bite this past week when Microspikes have been pretty ineffective.

In The High Country

Last July, I got an email from Joel Wolpert about filming me on some of the mountains I was running up at the time.  I'd first met Joel in November 2010, when he contacted me about making a short film for Running Times about running in the winter.

Our subsequent actual face-to-face meeting was quite odd.  I was out for a typical jog up Green Mountain when I came upon Joel about halfway up the hill, at the junction of the Saddle Rock and Greenman trails. He was wearing a plaid shirt, a blaze orange trucker's hat, and had a camera tripod slung over one shoulder, which---given the rest of his outfit---from 100 yards out I thought might actually be a rifle.  He introduced himself, though---"I thought I might find you up here"---and after doing some filming with him the next day and seeing the final result, I was impressed with what he could do with just a camera, a tripod, a rented steadi-cam, and his running fitness (even with low-altitude, West Virginia lungs).

So, when he called me up in July, I was happy to work with him again, knowing that he had the vision and ability to produce something beyond the standard mountain porn.  What sets Joel apart---and what I think will be apparent in the final product---is his impressive commitment to the craft. Eventually, Joel was able to russle up some backers---including support from my personal sponsors, Ultimate Direction and New Balance---but before any of that happened, Joel simply packed up his aging Subaru wagon in mid-August and sight unseen drove half-way across the country to meet up with me in Leadville for the 100 mile race.

Post-Leadville 100, we spent virtually every day of the next month together, each of us living out of our respective vehicles as I bounced back and forth between Boulder and the state's high mountain ranges, chasing as many summits and scrambles as I could before the weather turned and I had to fly off to Spain for a race. A family man, Joel committed to my itinerant summer lifestyle of 14er summits, mountain stream baths, Flatiron scrambles, trailhead sleeping, and coffeeshop internet-snaking. Don't worry, it's not as romantic as it might sound to some, but it does let me see a lot of mountaintops.

Lots of people can wield a camera, a few more can work some magic in the editing room.  Not very many possess those skills while also being able to keep up on pre-dawn 14er missions and 5th Class scrambles with a 1000'+ of exposure, clinging ropeless to the rock with one hand and pointing the camera with the other. And then keep it up for a month, also dealing with my at-times obsessive and uncompromising personality. Without getting paid.

Obviously, I have a bias, but I'm excited to see what Joel comes up with this time around.

Jan 21 - 27

01-21-2013
Mon-AM: 2:06, 4500' ~ Flatiron Trifecta+Green Mt.
Ended up being pretty tired, so after hitting the first three Flatirons I just slogged to the top of Green instead of scrambling the last two as well. Tired legs. Appt at Peak Performance Acupuncture in the afternoon.

01-22-2013
Tue-AM: 5:47, 5000' ~ Longs Peak (14,255')
Up Kieners down Cables with Joe. Really good outing. Got to Chasm Lake in 1:14 and the entry to Broadway at 1:48 or so. Waited for Joe at the ledge before the first crux even though we both felt really comfortable today, like we could've soloed it.  Roped up and I led as we simul-climbed across Broadway and up the Crux Cracks before packing the rope and marching up to the Diamond Step and the summit. Really nice kicked-in steps in the upper snowfield, made things easy. Got to the summit at 4:12 where we didn't spend too much time before rappeling the North Face and then running back down to the trailhead via the Jim Grove trail.  Lots of wind between treeline and Chasm on the way up and then on the Boulderfield on the way down; otherwise, a perfect day.

01-23-2013
Wed-AM: 2:05, 4500' ~ Odd Flatiron Trifecta+Green Mt.
Starting from Chautauqua, scrambled the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Flatirons before heading up to the summit of Green.  This is a really nice two hour outing because it links up the best Flatirons with the most sustained and quality climbing, and the off-trail connections between each of these flatirons are really logical. Tired legs after yesterday's long effort.
PM: Climbing, w/ Joe. 4th Elephant Buttress in Boulder Canyon, Northwest Face.

01-24-2013
Thu-AM: 2:01, 4500' ~ Odd Flatiron Trifecta+Green Mt.
Same exact run/scramble as yesterday, except that I had a lot more energy. Would've done the full Quinfecta, but wanted to be a little rested for another run up Longs tomorrow. Acupuncture afterwards.
PM: Climbing, w/ Joe. Dome in Boulder Canyon. East of the Sun and East Slab.  By the time we climbed the East Slab the sun was down and the moon was high.

01-25-2013
Fri-AM: 4:56, 5000' ~ Longs Peak (14,255')
Up Kieners, down Cables. With Joe. Not too windy, but kind of a chilly day with misty clouds blowing across the upper reaches of the mountain. Simul-climbed Broadway and the Crux Cracks again, but we're getting it quite dialed in, so it goes really quickly. The snow on upper Kieners was, unfortunately, a bit drifted so that our kicked steps from Tuesday were pretty much gone, which made this section much harder work. 3:37 to the summit and a 1:19 descent.

01-26-2013
Sat-AM: 2:04, 4500' ~ Odd Flatiron Trifecta+Green Mt.
Nice warm morning, but I was moving slowly on the talus with tired legs and an ankle I rolled on yesterday's descent. Felt good on the scrambles, though.

01-27-2013
Sun-AM: 2:01, 3000' ~ 3rd Flatiron+Green Mt.
Easy run from my doorstep. Thought the rock was going to be wet after the rain (!) last night, but it was drying quickly in the rising sun and I didn't have any issues, even without sticky rubber. Descended Ranger to Gregory.  Good to test the hip with some more sustained running, but it is still tight/twingy.

Hours: 21hr
Vert: 31,000'

Similar to when I did the Kieners Route on Longs Peak for the first time this past summer, it's been hard to stay away from it this past week after notching my first winter ascent.  It's just such a nice line on the mountain that is technical and exposed enough to keep things interesting but not too scary or difficult.  So, three trips up Longs in eight days.  In between I've been getting in as much scrambling as possible, trying to maximize this warm January weather and take things a little easier on my hip flexor.  In the coming weeks I'll probably branch out to a couple other 14ers (but Longs is so close and so much fun!), and hopefully start incorporating more sustained running into the routine as the hip allows.  Gotta start preparing for the flat profile of the Tarawera 100K at some point with longer continuous runs, but I need to be mindful of whether my legs will hold up to that.

Summit of Longs Peak. Photo: Joe Grant (and that's proper film, not Instagram :)

Joe (the tiny speck) at the bottom of Lambs Slide.

Joe on the entry to Broadway. Upper Lambs Slide behind.

Broadway and the Lower East Face. Photo: Joe Grant.

Joe just above the crux of the Broadway traverse.

Joe on upper Kieners after the Crux Cracks.

Steep snow.

North Face of Longs (Cables route is just to the right of the Diamond).

Jan 14 - 20

01-14-2013
Mon- nada.

01-15-2013
Tue-AM: 1:12, 2600 ~ Green Mt.
Went up and down 1st Access from Chautauqua. Wow, running up and down mountains is hard. But the hip was 100%.

01-16-2013
Wed-AM: 1:54, 3000 ~ 2nd Flatiron+Green Mt.
Oy, this run kinda wrecked me. Ran from my doorstep, ~18min to Chat, then bumbled my way up the hill. Wouldn't have made it up the 2nd (Freeway route) without Microspikes, so was pleased I brought those. Bonked hard about half-way down the hill and it was about all I could do to stumble home.  Reeaaally not fit right now, but a good place to be in January.

01-17-2013
Thu-AM: 7:30, 5000' ~ Longs Peak (14,255')
Up Kieners, down Cables with Joe. Fantastic day on the mountain. Next time we can definitely simul-climb, which should cut almost an hour off the car-to-car time. My first 14er of the year, first calendar winter ascent of Longs (though both my October and November outings were in "winter conditions" I would say), and a January grid slot for Longs. Highly satisfying outing; I was reminded of why I did Kieners seven times this past summer.

01-18-2013
Fri-AM: 1:13, 2800' ~ 2nd Flatiron+Green Mt.
A little tired and sore from yesterday, so deliberately took it easy today. Flatirons look basically dry enough to scramble but I was wearing a pair of shoes with screws in them, so was forced into staying on only the 2nd Flatiron, which is moderate enough to be climbed without much friction. Another crazy warm day.

01-19-2013
Sat-AM: 2:58, 5700' ~ Flatiron Quinfecta+Green Mt.
Damn, the Quinfecta is just the best. It's been a month since I've been able to get any scrambling in, so I decided that depending on conditions today I was going for all five Flatirons.  Things got off to a tenuous start on the First as a couple of key holds had ice and snow on them, but I just improvised and took it easy.  The base of the Second required a much more difficult start than usual in order to avoid the snow and ice, but again, no issues. The Third was the driest rock of the day.  After overcoming the snow at the base of the Fifth it was dry enough, but descending its south side required hip-deep postholing in the shade. In running shorts. Ouch.  The Fourth was probably the most sustainedly tricky with the whole Birthing Canal section on the second piece being completely full of snow, not to mention that by this point I was bonking like a champ (I forgot to bring a gel or two) and was desperately sucking on snowballs.  I gamely trudged to the top of Green, but was able to regain some energy on the downhill.  Slowest time I've ever posted on this link-up (barring the first scouting mission), but it was easily the trickiest conditions I've done it in and me at my worst fitness. Temps probably hit +60F today. A week ago, the highs were in the single digits.  Gotta love the Front Range.

01-20-2013
Sun-AM: 2:10, 3000' ~ 3rd Flatiron+Green Mt.
Quite tired today, so just tried to take it easy. Yesterday took it out of me.

Hours: 16h56min
Vert: 22,200'

Well, 2013 had a bit of an inauspicious start for me.  While visiting my parents in Nebraska over Christmas I developed a bit of tendonitis in my right hip flexor (damn runnable terrain!) and it's taken me until this past week to finally come right...but now--after some really helpful trigger-point therapy at Peak Performance Acupuncture and some excruciating body work from Jeff Staron--all is finally right with the world again.  Or at least moving in the right direction.  I still have to manage it, but at least I can get out in the mountains again.

Boulder is getting it's annual spate of unseasonably awesome January weather right now, so I've been getting back on the Flatirons for some scrambling and am looking forward to start making regular trips up to Longs Peak, too.  Joe and I got back up there again yesterday (Tuesday, 1/22) for another lap on Kieners, so things are going well on that front.  Main priority right now, though, will be to get my hip 100% healthy and keep it (and the rest of my body) that way.

Went to a Walkmen show Monday night, too. Probably my favorite band.  Here is a (different) full concert of theirs:

Lambs Slide at the entrance to Broadway right now on Longs Peak. A lot of exposed water ice. Colorado is very dry.

Joe on upper Kieners on Longs Peak. The Notch in the background.

Dec 10 - 16

12-10-2012
Mon-AM: 2:11, 3300' ~ Green Mt.
Up Gregory-Greenman and down Bear Canyon from my doorstep.  This is about the flattest possible trail loop you can do in Boulder and still summit one of the 8er peaks.  Taking every single twist and switch-back on the Green-Bear trail, it seems to be almost a full mile longer than the old line.  I must admit, on a day like today where my legs were tired and I was just looking to go easy, that new buffed-out singletrack was pretty fun to cruise.

12-11-2012
Tue-AM: 1:01, 800' ~ East Leadville
Got up early in the dark and did an out and back on 7th St before spending the rest of the day doing a film shoot with NB at Turquoise Lake and Twin Lakes.  Bitter cold, windy, and snowy all day, I felt bad for the film crew as I spent a lot of time just sitting in a heated SUV in between takes.

12-12-2012
Wed-AM: 2:32, 4500' ~ Mt. Elbert (14,433')
I had the morning off from shooting with NB while they constructed an interview set, so I got up early and headed up the mountain--my 26th summit of Elbert all-time and 21st this year.  This might be my slowest-ever ascent (1:48), though, due to breaking trail through ~6" of fresh snow below treeline.

12-13-2012
Thu-AM: 1:56, 4000' ~ Green & Bear
Planned on doing some scrambling, but it seems that Boulder received a bit of snow while I was out of town and there was still some ice and snow on the Flatirons, so instead I just opted for the standard Double Hump outing, heading up Bear's West Ridge and down Fern Canyon after summiting Green. Mellow easy effort today.

12-14-2012
Fri-AM: 2:18, 4500' ~ Bear & Green
Ran from the house up the Mesa trail to Fern Canyon, which was fun because I haven't gone up it in months. Descended the West Ridge of Bear and then grunted up the 1000' climb to the summit of Green before descending the front and heading home.  Such a great loop.  28min ascent of Fern from the Mesa Trail--you'd have to be going really fast in order to make running above the Nebel Horn Saddle worthwhile (I hiked every step today)...

12-15-2012
Sat-AM: 2:32, 5800' ~ Flatiron Quinfecta+Green Mt.
Just did my usual outing Chat-to-Chat except that I descended Ranger-Gregory instead of the front of the mountain, adding 5min to the overall time.  I was 1:56:15 at the summit of the Fourth Flatiron (the end of the climbing...I scramble the Fifth before the Fourth), which is only a couple minutes off my PR, so I was moving pretty well despite having to check my foot placements a few times on the Fifth due to a few remaining pockets of snow and ice.  By time I made it to the top of Green the clouds had moved down out of the high mountains and a few flakes were starting to fall.

12-16-2012
Sun-AM: 2:46, 5800' ~ Flatiron Quinfecta+Green Mt.
Oy, bit of a rough day on the mountain.  Started out tired and sluggish and then bonked like a champ on the Fourth (and final) Flatiron.  I could tell on the climb to Sentinel Pass that things were going sideways, but then my scramble of the Fifth was fairly normal before totally cratering on the slog up the Fourth.  That flatiron alone took me five minutes longer than usual. Still marched to the summit of the mountain to finish out the day, though.  I guess each of the last five days has been a pretty solid outing and it finally caught up to me.  The real reward today, though, was the low-lying layer of clouds blanketing the city...pretty awesome to be in some heroic, exposed position on the face of a Flatiron and feel like you're just floating on top of the clouds.

Hours: 15h16min
Vert: 28,700'

Another solid week.  Right now, my main goal is to get out and do a lot of scrunbling if the weather and rock conditions permit, and if they don't, then do a more "normal" run.  This has been working out well, giving me a fun mix to the daily rhythm.  I'll be heading home to Nebraska to see my parents at the end of this coming week, but I still want to tick some more December 14er Grid slots before the first of the year...Longs, Grays, and Torreys specifically.  Don't worry, Homie, I'm a neophyte with only 96 grid slots (out of 708) at current.  Silly, arbitrary peak baggery goals such as that are easy for someone like me to denigrate, but the fact of the matter is, there's part of me that is a lists/numbers guy and even more importantly, these kinds of goals can motivate me to get out the door and have experiences that I would otherwise let slip by.  Once I'm actually out there on the mountain my inspiration and motivation becomes much different--it almost always transfers to being the mountain itself, not some tick-mark on a list--but lists admittedly often offer a crucial, initial, inertia-overcoming nudge.

I do have a loose goal for 2013 of summiting Elbert, Grays, Torreys, Longs, Pikes, Evans, and Bierdstadt in each month of the year.  Maybe not Evans and Bierstadt...for some reason I've just never found those peaks to be very inspiring.  Maybe because there's a road to the top of Evans? Maybe because the approach from Echo Lake is so long?  Maybe because the trailhead at Guanella Pass seems cheatingly high? But, they are on the Front Range and that's why I'm including them.  I think March will be the crux month as this is typically the most wintry month of the year in Colorado and I'll be out of the country for most of it.

Moving right along, race-wise 2013 is looking super-exciting for me.  Of course, Hardrock really has no match when it comes to being the race-that-inspires-me-most, but the Ronda del Cims 170K in Andorra three weeks beforehand looks to be at least as aesthetic of a course, and--being included in the Skyrunning Series this year--it should attract a top-shelf group of athletes. At 105 miles/40k' of techy vertical, and the sobering fact that it took Miguel Heras 30hr to get around it...there's no way it won't be an epic outing in the Pyrenees.

My second half of the summer should be equally as quality.  I'm excited to go back to Speedgoat to support Karl's directing efforts and hopefully have a proper good run there--last summer was a scantily-salvaged disaster--and then Dakota's brand-spanking-new Telluride Mountain Run (T-Rad!) is sure to be an instant classic.  I love the fact that it's an off-distance 44mi and comprises one clean loop starting and finishing in Telluride.  As anyone who has been to the San Juans knows, there's simply no way you can go wrong there, course-wise.  And the course he's devised looks to be a true monster.  Right now he's sand-bagging everyone with the 15k' vert number, but it's really more like at least 16k' and we've had some programs register as high as 18k'.  It's gonna hurt.  Seven hours will probably be super impressive. But at least the scenery will be as good as it gets.

After that, I'll be treating my attempt at Nolan's 14 at the end of August like a race effort--train specifically all summer, focus, and taper--and it's probably the thing that I'm most excited about on my calendar.  Finally, if there's any gas in the tank after Nolan's, it'll be hard to stay away from UROC given that it's the Skyrunning Series Final this year and virtually in my backyard.  It looks like Francesca and Gill have done there level-best to put together a proper mountain course whilst linking together a bunch of Colorado's most iconic mountain towns (Breck, Frisco, Copper, Minturn, Vail).

Just gotta remain healthy...

I don't post many (any) Flatiron pics because they are all some variation of this. I find it's really hard to capture the scale and angle of the rock when solo, both because I'm holding onto the rock and because there's no one else around for scale.  This is looking down the East Face from the summit of the Third during a recent enchainment.  The low-angle, slabby final pitch is in the foreground with the rest of the face steepening and disappearing below.  I guess looking straight down on the pine trees nearly 1000' below offers a little scale.

Of course, I'm still making it to the top of Green regularly; I'll be right around 200 summits this year. This is representative of a pretty typical December weather day in Boulder this year.  Wildly mild, though that might finally change later this week...

La Plata Peak as seen from the summit of Elbert on Wednesday. Lots of blowing snow that morning due to some heinous winds and fresh powder.

I know I'm way behind on the whole Beach House thing, but I'm glad I finally gave them a chance. This song and really this whole album has been nearly non-stop for me for a few weeks now.

Dec 3 - 9

12-3-2012
Mon-AM: 2:33, 4500' ~ 3rd Flatiron+Green & Bear
Got up early for a romp over the peaks before flying to Texas.  Legs took a minute to get going but once they did I cruised a really solid pace for the full loop up Bear's West Ridge and then down Fern Canyon back to Chautauqua and back down to my apartment.

12-4-2012
Tue-AM: 1:15 ~ Town Lake, Austin TX
Steady cruise all the way around the lake with Jurker (10mi+ loop).  A surprising amount of dirt to run on right from downtown and the hot humid weather even motivated a short swim at Barton Springs in the middle of the run.

12-5-2012
Wed-AM: 1:15 ~ Town Lake, Austin TX
Reprisal of yesterday's outing, but solo, and no swimming as it was a markedly cooler morning.

12-6-2012
Thu-AM: 1:44, 3000' ~ First Flatiron+Green Mt.
I was hoping to go for the big Double Quinfecta this morning, but as I jogged out of Chautauqua there were a few sprinkles and then half-way up the First this changed to snowflakes, so that, combined with my tired legs made it easy to bail after the First and just head to the summit of Green and enjoy a run down Bear Canyon instead.

12-7-2012
Fri-AM: 4:07, 10,000' ~ Double Flatiron Quinfecta
One of my favorite days on the mountain recently. Starting from Chautauqua I scrambled all five flatirons, twice, in an out-and-back fashion: 1-2-3-5-4-5-4-3-2-1.  Right away I was in a pretty good groove and that just kept getting better the longer I was on the rocks.  On the bushwhack from the summit of the 4th back to the base of the 5th (for my second ascent) I traversed straight south, snuck around the backside of a big slab and descended the south side of the 5th, thus avoiding the hideous descent down the gulley between the 4th and 5th Flatirons. Also, on my second ascent of the 3rd I crossed the dry streambed next to the Royal Arch trail and did a full ascent of the 3rd, starting at the very bottom of the rock, instead of the standard East Bench start.  By time I'd made my way back to the base of the First Flatiron there were no less than five different parties roped up and perched on the lower East Face.  I was able to climb past them quickly and efficiently, though, and thanks to carrying a bottle of water and four gels I finished feeling strong. Full time Chat-to-Chat was 4:07:17. Including downclimbs, this outing consisted of somewhere between 100 and 110 pitches of climbing.

12-8-2012
Sat-AM: 4:31, 6200' ~ El Chubbo Fat Ass Marathon
Headed up to Ft. Collins with Joe to get a tour of Clarkie's backyard hills.  I'd never done any running in Ft. Collins (other than racing XC), so it was fun to get in some miles with friends on fresh terrain.  Very runnable terrain, I must add, making this the longest proper run I've done in exactly a month.  Legs were tired from yesterday's big outing.  Afterwards was a jovial gathering at the Casa de Clarkie, replete with food, brews and friends. Good times for sure.

12-8-2012
Sun-AM: 2:38, 5700' ~ Flatiron Quinfecta+Green Mt.
I awoke to dry (but cold at +18F) conditions when I'd been expecting rain/snow, so I modified some old gloves into fingerless gloves so that I could get some skin on the rock and went and laced the Five Fountains one more time.  Can't stay away, especially when I know I'm going to be out of town the next few days.  Despite the cold it turned into a very pleasant morning out on the mountain.

Hours: 18h03min
Vert: 29,400'

Not much new to report.  Things are pretty mellow this time of year and I've been embracing that by focusing on a lot of scrambling (which, at the intensity I tend to go, still gets the heart rate high and keeps it there, believe me).  This week involved a lot more "real running" than usual, though, because of the trip to Texas and then the Fat Ass on Saturday.  If it ever snows, there will continue to be more of that in the mix.

The five numbered Flatirons on the east face of Green Mt here in Boulder.

A salty duo rehydrating at Clarkie's after El Chubbo. Photo: Rob Timko. 

Definitely worth 15 minutes.