The Adventure Continues… On to Moab

Yesterday was my last day in San Diego. Before I headed home I went out for a good hard 11 ½ mile run and felt great! Last run at sea level, so it’ll be the last time I’ll be able to run that hard for a while. Time to go back to the mountains and high altitude running & riding.

Yesterday, my boss in Colorado Springs said “Why don’t you stop in Moab on your way back and take a day to ride some of the awesome trails there”, or something like that. Man what a great idea! What a great boss! So I called the real boss and she thought it was a great idea, so Moab here I be!

Got to Moab just before midnight after a 13 ½ drive. The last two hours of the drive was “Mandatory Metallica” on Sirius Radio. Very Cool!

So got started around 10 AM riding one of my favorite trails in the world. Porcupine Rim is about a 30 mile loop that starts with a long 12 mile climb from town to the trailhead then a 2 – 3 mile technical climb to the top. Then a rough and technical 15 or so mile rolling descent to the bottom. The last 3 miles or so is a single track that is very technical in sections and very exposed to a long drop off.

Riding Sand Flats Road to the Trail Head

Riding up Sand Flats road I was passed by several shuttle buses full of mountain bikers that didn’t want to bother with the work of riding up. I think one should earn their down hill, but that's just me. I took my time climbing Sand Flats and stopped quite a bit to take pictures. My legs were still a little tired from the run yesterday, and once I hit the technical stuff there would be plenty of grunting to get up over the rocks.

2 - 3 Miles of Technical Climbing

At the Top!

At the top were a ton of people that had been shuttled up (there is another trail that they come in where they don’t have to climb), so I took a few pictures and headed down so I wouldn’t get held up. About 10 minutes into it I broke my chain. Even in the 10 min or so it took me to fix my chain, only two people came by.

Coming down Porcupine Rim is more fun than is legal in a lot of places. My Yeti 575 was made for trails like this. I felt like I was ripping it. At the single track I rode a little bit more careful cause I was alone and mistakes here can be deadly. Once at the bottom, thanked the Lord that both me and my bike made it in one piece, then rode back to town, finishing (counting the broke chain) in just over 4 hours.

Don't want to make mistakes here!

After the ride I attempted to go running. The plan was to run Cane Creek Road to the top of Hurrah Pass and back. I guess that would be 12 miles or so. After 5 minutes I bagged it. The legs just weren’t cooperating. I decided to listen to my body and go eat. It’s better to save it and have something for the CRUD run Saturday. Tomorrow back to Colorado Springs!

Friday: Run: 1.6 hrs, 11.6 miles
Saturday: Bike: 4.2 hrs, 32 miles

Last Ride in San Diego

The Lunch Time Urban Assault Crew

Today was the last ride with the Urban Assault Crew. What a great bunch guys to ride with. I can’t believe the time here in California has come to an end. It seems like it just flew by. My son described Iraq as “The days are long but the weeks go by fast” and that’s how it was here. 4 AM runs, 10 – 14 hour workdays, lunch time rides, quick workouts at the gym and do it all over the next day. There were so many great people I met here both at work and play. Thanks to Jim, Dave, Rob, George, Dominic, Rudy, Darryll, Kenny, Donald (I know I’m missing a few) from the Urban Assault Crew. Your hosipitality was awsome and your rides are a blast. Then there was Ron Brogdon & Odale Baker from Sand Diego Major Taylor Cycling Club. I wished I could have rode some more with you, but time just snuck up on me. Any of you guys ever come to Colorado, I’d be proud to show you around.

Our ride today was rolling hills and fairly hard. Rolling hills for me are tougher then long steady ones. When we finished, I decided to go to the coast one more time. So I rode to the coast and through Torrey Pines State Park and back on a beautiful day in the 70s. A great way to end my stay! Thanks again guys.

Torrey Pines Overlooking the Pacific

Tomorrow morning I head for home via Moab. I guess while I’m there I ought to do one of my favorite loops in the whole world. Porcupine Rim!

Bike: 4.3 hrs, 57 miles, 3920’

I Get to Ride My Bike All Day!

Peñasquitos Canyon

This morning I got up and realized that I get ride my bike all day! No work, no chores, no errands, no blogs to update… well ok 3 out of 4. Today was a 5+ hour mountain bike ride in Peñasquitos & Lopez Canyons. I went pretty easy all day, just exploring new trails and climbing and descending whatever came my way. The legs were still feeling yesterday's run so I wasn't flying up the climbs. Yesterday I ran many of these same trails and today explored more of them on the bike. Friday, Saturday and today were just easy endurance rides/run. Saturday, ran in these same canyons intending on running about 13 – 14 miles. I got caught up in exploring new trails and ended up running 18.5. Friday was a great relaxed road ride of 2.4 hours out to the coast. Training is going well, despite the travel and long working hours!

Ridin Down the Canyon! Waaaaahoo!

Friday, Bike: 2.4 hrs, 36 miles, 2421’
Saturday, Run: 2.8 hrs, 18.4 miles
Sunday, Bike (MTB): 5.1 hrs, 42.5 miles, 3219’
Week Summary:
Bike: 10.3 hrs, 119 miles
Run: 6.4 hrs, 42.5 miles

Good Climb Day (Thursday)

Today, I think I was still feeling the benefits of altitude at our lunch time Urban Assault ride. Maybe another reason I felt so strong was I didn’t run in the morning. We rode the Highland Valley climb (the same Tour of California climb we watched) and I felt like I couldn’t ride hard enough, or the climb couldn’t get steep enough. The legs just went. The rest of the ride went like that with every climb. I got to be king of the mountains today. Woohoo!

Black Mountain is a pretty significant landmark in the Rancho Bernardo area. It seems no matter which direction you approach Rancho Bernardo, Black Mountain and it’s microwave towers can be seen for miles. I’ve wanted to either ride or run to the top since I’ve been here. So this evening, after work, I ran to the top. It was kind of a disappointment. It wasn’t near as hard as I thought it would be, even after such a high intensity lunch ride. Rather than run the service road up, I ran a trail that was much steeper. Many parts of the trail were too steep to run, so it was more like hiking. I was just getting warmed up when I reached the top. I ran the service road down, then some surrounding hilly trails until it was too dark to see. Good climbing day today

Bike: 1.3 hours, 22 miles, 1,319' climbing
Run: 1.4 hours, 7.5 miles, 1,401' climbing

Black Mountain

At the Top

View from the Top

Back to Pounding the Pavement

Back in San Diego with long work hours, 4 am runs and urban assault bike rides. It was good to get back to Colorado and run & ride in the mountains again. It makes training seem more like play than training. When I got up Tues morning at 4 and headed out the hotel at 4:15, I noticed the hotel clock had not been moved up for Daylight Savings, it read 3:15...Och!

Ralph and I stopped by for the lunch time ride but the guys had left early so we rode a route Ralph found last week. It was a nice course on some semi quite streets with steep climbs. Lot's of fun, until some guy drove up and told us we were trespassing on private roads. Private roads? It was a good ride and I really felt the oxygen.

This morning was an easy 5 mile recovery run. Worked straight through the day so wasn't able to ride. Went to the gym and worked on core in the evening.

Wed:
Run: 43:49, 5 miles
Strength: 35 min, primarily core

Tues:
Bike: 1.5 hours, 18 miles
Run: 1.5 hours, 11.6 miles

A Tourist in My Own Town

Being away so long gave me a whole new perspective on home. I was beginning to take the awesome trails, mountains, and scenery right out my front door for granted. Today I rode what I call my standard loop. It’s about a five-hour ride that I do pretty regularly. I never really appreciated what an incredible ride this is until today. Great single track, scenery, climbs, descents, clean air, and it’s just out my door. I have access to hundreds of miles of incredible trails without having to drive to them. All the tools for Leadman training are right here, a mountain biker/trail runner’s paradise!

Playing in Ute Park

Today was a fairly casual mountain bike ride by myself, as I didn’t want to push to keep up with anyone. Started out with an hour or so of semi-technical riding in Ute Park, then Monument Trail to Bear Creek. Cut through Stratton Open Space and up the Chutes to Cheyenne Canyon. Down and up Columbine Trail to Gold Camp and Cap’n Jacks. Cap’n Jacks is a great single track descent. I always forget how fun this trail is until I do it again! Down the Chutes (another fun downhill) and back home the same way I came. Just another day in Paradise!

Another Day in Paridise;Cheyenne Canyon

Sun:
Bike: 5.2 hours, 45 miles, 4219’ climbing
Week Total:
Bike: 13.7 hours, 136.5 miles
Run: 8 hours, 44 miles

New Trails & The Incline

Heading up Williams Canyon

Today was another great run with CRUD, although like last week, there was enough steep climbing to classify our little adventure as a run/hike. We started in Manitou and ran up Williams Canyon to Cave of the Winds and proceeded up a steep trail that most of us didn’t know about. It took us to the top of Williams Canyon with some incredible views. Definitely going to have go back up there with Roswitha!

A New Trail!

Max Enjoying the View Over Williams Canyon

Steve explaining the Geological Features to Max

Eventually we came to Waldo Canyon and our group split. JT and I ran a loop around Waldo Canyon then back to Manitou via Ute Indian Trail.

Once back to Manitou, Max and I decided to climb the Incline. (Although Max really didn’t have a whole lot of say in the matter). I just had to do it while I was here. The Incline is probably one of the best training tools for the Leadville 100 other than the Leadville 100 course itself. It is the remains of an old cog railroad. From top to bottom the incline is 1.02 miles long and rises 2011 ft. Avg grade is 41% with the steepest grade 69%. Matt Carpenter founder of the Incline Club and an incredible mountain, trail, and ultra runner has a nice web page describing the Incline: http://www.inclineclub.com/incline.htm

The Start of the Incline

No Gym Stair-Stepper Can Ever Match This!

About ¼ way up it started snowing and by the time we got to the top we were socked in and I couldn’t get any descent pictures. Matt’s web site has some great pictures. An easy run down Barr Trail completed the run. Felt pretty good today. I think I've re-adjusted to the altitude.

At the Top

Saturday: Long trail run.
Run: 4.1 hours, 17 miles, 4659’ climbing
Friday: Easy recovery run.
Run: 47min, 5.3 miles

More Pictures at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/larry.dewitt/CRUDWilliamsIncline?feat=email#

http://picasaweb.google.com/swbremner/20090307WilliamsCanyonTraverse?feat=email#

Time for a Rest

Today (Thursday, March 5) was climbing day. I had decent climbing legs on the run, but they disappeared on the bike. Started the day with the CRUD hill climb. I could definitely breathe better than last week! It was a beautiful morning with no snow at all. Pretty much everyone set an all-time PR or a season PR. I ran a 39:15, exactly 3 min faster than last week. We took Columbine trail back down for a total of 10 miles.

Dan (on a single speed) Had to Wait on Me Today

As soon as I finished the run, I jumped on my bike, rode through Ute Park, Garden of the Gods, & up Gold Camp. Met Dan at the base of High Drive and we proceeded to climb up Palmer Trail to Section 16. I normally have to struggle to keep up with Dan, but keeping up today just wasn’t in the cards. I thought Dan was getting frustrated waiting for me, but he was actually enjoying watching me suffer.

Starting the Climb up Palmer Trail

Section 16 is one of the more technical & steeper descents around Colorado Springs. Sometimes I can ride it really well, and sometimes not so well. Today was not so well. I was a bit slow & crashed once but got down ok. It’s an incredibly fun descent, when you’re on.

Coming Down Section 16

We then rode Intemann Trail to Red Rocks and two very fun trails that were new to me! From there we circled back to Section 16 and back to Gold Camp. I crashed hard just before we reached Section 16, going over the handle bar and hitting a rock with my head and shoulder. Luckily nothing broke and we continued on. From Gold Camp I headed home via Red Rocks, Garden of the Gods, and the Flying W Ranch hill. I have this tradition (some call it superstition) that when I ride home from long rides, no matter how tired I am, I have to go home via the Flying W hill. I sure didn’t feel like climbing that hill today, but I’ve been here many times before and will be here many times in the future. I spent a good part of the rest of the day with an ice pack on my left shoulder and an ice pack on my right wrist. I’m fairly banged up and I think its time for a rest. Climbing Back Out of Red Rocks

Thursday, March 5:
Run: 1.5 hrs, 10 miles
Bike: 4 hrs, 33 miles, 4219’ Climbing

Commuting

In Colorado Springs, this week my training has been commuting to work. It’s a great way to get in some base miles and save money at the same time. In San Diego, my world is work, the gym, the hotel, and the grocery store. All within walking distance. I work lots of hours, train, eat & sleep. A very simple life. In Colorado Springs I have a 19.5 mile commute to work. I ride to work, work, run at lunch, work, and ride home. Not much time for anything else. I have put gas in my truck one time this year. Practically the only driving I do is back & forth to the airport.

Commuting to/from Work

My commuting set-up makes me look like a nerd, but that’s OK. I ride a 15 year old Schwinn, with a head light, blinking tail light & usually pull a BOB trailer. I carry my clothes, shower stuff, breakfast, lunch, tools, and work stuff, such as folders, books, and sometimes my laptop. Going up hill feels like riding a tandem with your partner not pedaling. The route to work is a combination of bike paths, trails, dirt roads, and residential roads with little to no traffic. It’s a great ride!

My Commuting Rig

Wednesday:
Bike: 1.5 hrs, 19.5 miles commute to work. (Roswitha was in the neighborhood and gave me a ride home)
Run: 31 min, 3.7 miles

Tuesday:
Bike: 3 hrs, 39 miles commute to/from work.
Run: 1.1 hrs, 8 miles w/10 * 15 sec sprints.

Monday:
Strength workout, primarily core.

Back with the Gang!

A Very Fast Group

Today was a fun & painful day on the bike. There were a lot of studs on this ride and the urban assault rides in San Diego paid off. We started at the Woodman trail head and headed for the Falcon Trail. Once we hit the single track it was game on. I struggled somewhat on the climbs and lost contact with the front group, but we regrouped every 15 – 20 minutes. After an hour or so, I seemed to be doing better and wasn’t getting dropped on the climbs. Every time this group gets together it’s like a race. My legs were feeling yesterday’s run, but I was stronger than I expected and held my own. This was a good intensive mountain bike ride which I haven't done this year. The lunch time road rides in SD are where I've been getting my intensity this year, so this ride was not a complete shock to the system.

Kara, Stud of Studs, Climbing on her Single Speed

Everyone on this ride is fast and tough. Guys like Dan & Kara Durland who do 24 hour solo races, Leadville 100 and other epic races on single speeds. Relatively few women even finish the Leadville 100 Mountain Bike Race. Kara finishes and wins year after year on her single speed!

Hitting Ute Park on the Way Home

After the ride, (about 3 hrs) I had to do what one has to do when they're training for the LeadMan. Ride some more. I continued on to Ute Park and did less intense but technical riding. My legs were really feeling the climbs but I was riding my beloved trails in my beloved Ute Park. After about 1 1/2 hours or so I headed home. This was also my first ride on my 2009 race bike. It's sweet!

Bike: 4.6 hrs, 37 miles, 3760'

Total for Week: Bike: 13.4 hrs, 152 miles Run: 7.9 hrs, 40.8 miles