Training Log Archive: Swampfox

Well, well, well, besides being the last day in March and a precursor chemical to April, it's also Game Day, and a lot of people will be heading downtown to their favorite restaurants and sports bars, and even just regular old get drunk cowboy bars. In order to keep things as orderly as possible, the City Council has issued some special regulations governing conduct downtown for the hours from 4 pm until 11:59 pm:

1) If you're not going to be dressed in Brown and Gold, you must be dressed mostly in blue and have at least one KU sticker prominently affixed to any outerwear.

2) If someone greets you and it's not someone you are acquainted with, instead of the usual response "Go Cowboys", it will be acceptable to say "Go Jayhawks" instead, but it should be said with less exuberance than would be used with "Go Cowboys".

3) Patrons will refrain from cheering when the VIllanova team makes any dunks or three point shots. Light applause will be permitted if they make a free throw attempt, as a show of good sportsmanship.

4) When ordering any alcoholic beverage, patrons must demonstrate spelling proficiency by spelling correctly the name of any Kansas player the bartender or server names. Misspellings of "Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk" will not be counted against the patron.

Other than that, it will probably just a be a usual Saturday afternoon in downtown Laramie today.

More winter today, though temps were on the milder side of winter (30s in town, somewhat under that up top.) Biked some, which was about as chilly as expected. Skied some, too, with some new snow and grapple coming down right before I started. Even did some running, and by far running proved to be the best choice for the day's conditions.

The sun was 100% not fun and in fact was 100% nowhere to be seen, all day long.

Some decent wind today made for some decent biking. And it also elicited some vehicle restrictions on portions of I-80.

Skied also, with conditions very different from yesterday--the snow had warmed during the day and was refreezing by the time I was out. Still, the trails weren't much chopped up and so even though things were getting crusty and fast, it wasn't rutted and perilous. Full moon was out, but was being filtered by thin clouds where I was, so it didn't really feel full. The werewolves must have felt the same, because I didn't see any.

More snow, more winter. Ideal skiing conditions, so skied long and skipped running again, until the nearly full moon was high in the sky. Dead calm towards the end, which left the crows baffled--being used to gliding with little effort wherever gusting winds will take them.

Back to winter; it snowed most of the day, with substantial accumulation up top at Happy Jack. Looked like the groomer just kind of mailed it in, quitting way before the snow did, so the trails were deep in new snow and very soft. Skating was still possible, if you were willing to work at it.

I skied longer (2+ hrs) and skipped running, which looked like it would have been quite tough on the unpacked snow bike trails.

The water managers must be breathing easier with these late March snows.

A swing back to spring today, with 100% sun, and while it never got outright mild, it was trending that way by mid-afternoon. Nice enough for biking in shorts even so.

Trails conditions at Happy Jack were also springish, with softening and some melt in the thinner, more sun exposed spots, and things re-freezing late in the day. Ran after skiing, and saw one really big bird taking off through the trees, but was unable to determine what sort of deadly bird of prey it was.

Essentially winter again up top. Crisp temperatures, decent breeze, dry snow, nice grooming. Top skiing conditions! Extra nice that after an almost all gray day, some sun emerged for the last 2 hours of the day--wouldn't have experienced that without the clock change and longer days.

Ran into Phil as he was skiing and I was running (after skiing) and we caught up some for a few minutes, by which time I had become surprisingly cold. Had to pick up the pace after that to get the furnace going again, and even then my hands never warmed up entirely even by the time I got back to my truck.

Based on ski trails I had observed yesterday, I made plans to ski today, and got out at around noon. By then the snow had softened some, but the skiing was quite nice--a little slow in some areas, but overall the speed was fairly uniform and downhills posed no problems with surprise "sticky" sections.

Ran afterwards on snow trails and made one of the most unusual wildlife sightings I've ever had on the trails up top: a winter Weimaraner. It was a good sized adult example, looked to be hunting for prey, but was friendly enough for all that--or at least it didn't appear to be sizing me up as a possible food item. Too bad I didn't have my camera with me so I could have documented it for Fish and Game.

Snow/grapple was moving in as I was moving out. A classic spring/winter day.

Took bike in to the bike shop for some maintenance on Thursday, probably wouldn't have ridden on Friday anyway considering weather and wet streets, and got it back today at around noon. And, a few hours later, I had a few hours in on the bike--now sporting some new handlebar grip/tape. The prior tape was quite old and worn, and I had left it on for so long only because it had been put on by none other than... J-J's dad, who ran a seasonal bike business out of his attic, and who had been kind enough to re-grip my bike's handlebar while I was staying there while working on the Townsend map.

Ran snow trails late in the day, and was surprised to stumble across a tribe of snow campers who had set up far back along the Headquarters Trail, taking advantage of a nice spot with deep snows. It was a good sized group of about 20 or so. They were about the last thing I was expecting and I was almost in the middle of them before I realized what was going on, so intent I had been on watching my footing. Even so, I think I became aware of them before they became aware of me, because of course the last thing they were probably expecting was seeing a swampfox out there. It can work out that way sometimes, with surprises all around.

I was glad they were friendly and not hungry cannibals.

The day never warmed up as much as it was supposed to, in large part because the sun was filtered by thin clouds most of the early and mid parts of the day, and then real clouds moved in later. Means skiing probably isn't over yet, unless I want it to be.

You never know, but it could be today will be the last day I ski this season. The snow was all but completely saturated for large percentages of the trail net, and I have the feeling that one mild, sunny day (ie--tomorrow, by the forecast) could result in an awful lot of the sun exposed snow melting away and begin rushing down slope as liquid water. Wasn't interested in running pavement and I knew the snow trails would be mostly mush slush, so skied longer than planned and passed on running.

Saw 2 virginal white, miniature crocus blooming, the first I have seen this year anywhere. Spotting them was helped by the fact they popped up in my yard and not somewhere else.

Also, caught sight of my shadow while I was skiing in some very, very slow snow. Uh-oh! Could be 8 more weeks of winter!

C • 8 weeks of winter 2

Saw the first robin of the year, as it was sipping some water from a street puddle. With everything still covered in snow, there probably isn't much for it to eat yet, except for over at McDonald's, where there are always a few stray french fries on the ground.

Conditions for skiing had transitioned to something decidedly more spring-like. Ran some after skiing, and the trail I was on was still fairly soft--my shoes were sinking in from about 1/2" to 2" with every step, which makes for tough going. It wouldn't seem like 1/2" of give would matter so much, but in fact it does.

As I was stepping on the snow at the trail head with my skis, Tyler was coming down the trail, finishing up. He had done one circuit of the trails and that was going to be it, but when he saw me, he decided to keep his skis on and head out with me. He apologized in advance that he was going to have to go slow because he was a bit tired and had eaten practically nothing all day--just a couple of cookies, an apple scruff, and three Cheerios. I complimented him on his restraint with the Cheerios. But it was kind of a ridiculous apology because a) I don't mind taking it easy skiing with someone else and b) Tyler is a much, much better skier than me anyway, and I'm giving up many years to him. I think he finished in the top 60s or 70s at the Birkie this year, off a pretty subdued base. He could ski faster than me if he were skiing backwards and with only one broken pole.

We ended up doing 2 loops, for something over 2 hrs. Conditions were really good, and for a change my skis were pretty good, too. Funny to have snow so much better now, so late, than compared to what we had at any point in December, but so it can go.

I tacked on some running on one of the snow bike trails after that, and listened to the Embedded Podcast on the way home.

Very nice ski conditions this afternoon--sunny, below freezing, snow was dry and coldish (colder than the air temp, at any rate), and the trails were well groomed. Even late in the afternoon there was plenty of untouched corduroy. Skied for 2+ hrs, then did a short run. There is still very little packed on any of the snow bike trails since the last storms, and so really too deep to run in.

Skied for a bit over 2 hrs and followed that with a short run on snow trails. Snow was falling the whole time with about 2" of new snow at the beginning. Conditions were vastly improved over yesterday, partially because it had gotten cold enough over night to firm up the snow from the recent big dump, and partially because the grooming pass today got things mostly well leveled out.

Ran into Mark as I was looping through the Meadow as he was headed out, and ended up skiing about an hour with him of the middle of the time I was out.

No bikers (no bike tracks) out today, a little surprising. But maybe there wasn't enough packed trail for them, and word about that was out.

Got out on skis for the first time in a while. Trails had been rolled and some had been groomed on top of that, but things were very bumpy, somewhat rutted, and varying between warm and soft and cooler and getting crusty. Typical for right after a big spring snow, at least around here. Another grooming pass tomorrow should make things better.

I wasn't keen about any of the downhills, given the conditions. Didn't ski long, and switched over to running, and ran mostly in the prints left behind by snow shoers on some of the non-groomed trails. A lot of it was tough going, and it was fun. I was overdressed with a long sleeve t-shirt under a jacket--a short sleeve t-shirt would have been perfect. Or what I had on would have been perfect had there been some wind, but there wasn't.

This week was spring break for both the college and local schools, so not many people were around.

Finally we had a decent snowstorm. In fact, by far and away the biggest of the season, both by depth and water content. It made for some very fine Yowsa!, and the streets were transformed to rivers when the sun came out.

Unfortunately, as sometimes happens with these larger spring type storms, there was relatively little wind and so the snow coverage became quite uniform over the landscape. That turned the valley and surrounds utterly white, but it also meant that running was more or less a no go, except for on streets. I ventured up top at the end of the day, hoping that ski trails had been groomed, but they hadn't, and the parking lot was still unmolested and very deep in snow. The Happy Jack highway had been only plowed out as narrowly as possible, with no shoulders exposed and very high banks of snow as the edge of the plowing, so running up there was not really an option--not a smart option, anyway, as the road surface itself was still under a thin layer of snow/ice, and fairly treacherous for both foot and vehicular traffic. And in the case of a runner vs vehicle collision, it's clear who the big loser would be.

The Ides of March is an excellent time to ask the question: do you wanna boogie woogie? Do you wanna Lightnin' Hopkins?

And speaking of the Ides of March, for those of you about to head to Yellowstone, you'll have company! The grizzly bears are emerging from hibernation, and they are hungry, so be sure to pack an extra big picnic.

A little bit of rain arrived this afternoon, upending what had been so far a 14 day dry stretch of March. The reason it was only a little bit is that it quickly transitioned to a whole lot of very wet and heavy snow. The timing was not the best, as I was out on my bike as all this began, and not equipped to withstand much wet snow. By the time I got back home, my hands were all but useless. It's a good thing I didn't have to pass any dexterity tests in order to gain admission into my abode, like threading needles or changing guitar strings with a short time limit, etc. Back indoors, I quickly made some hot green tea, which I then poured over my shoelaces to melt them so that I could then untie them.

Otherwise, it was a strictly ordinary bike ride.

C • Cold hands 9

O' at Pelican Bay, 12kms 35 controls, mild temps in the upper 50s or better, filtered sun, easy breeze out of the east, patchy snow--especially in areas of sage and on the shaded back slopes. Ran at a steady pace mostly, with higher effort on the climbs. No animals sighted unless you count a not particularly friendly women with three not particularly friendly dogs--but everyone survived, with no harm done.

My intent was to get out in mid-morning, so I skipped breakfast. But I was overtaken by various events and did not get started running until about 2:30. At least my stomach was good and empty!

I had several small hesitations, but otherwise good flow and felt quite good running through the vegetation and terrain, especially considering a new O' season is just getting underway.

Came back home to read the news that rumors were now fact: Toys R Us is going to liquidate. I wonder how many people my age, +- 10 years, can say they never stepped into a Toys R Us store?

Snowflakes were in the air today, but just a trace fell, and no measurable accumulation, and so the first 10 days of March have passed with no new snow to speak of.

A herd of vigilant geese were on the golf course today. They would stalk unwary golfers and wait for putting antics to begin--when the geese would then launch furious hissing attacks and wing beatings, forcing the golfers back into the clubhouse! It was very exciting watching, probably the most exciting thing that has happened at any golf course anywhere over the past 100 years.

After watching that for a while, I ran on some very icy trails up top. Strangely, the trails weren't slippery though, at least for the most part. I was very careful anyway. At one point some geese reinforcements flew overhead, no doubt headed for the gold course.

Conditions much like yesterday--sunny, a few degrees warmer, still enough wind to make it feel chilly. Ran trails, which were varying mixtures of concretized snow or ice. Paid much more attention to getting good footing than in getting good speed.

Encountered one moose which was standing right in the trail; after some encouragement it moved off the trail, but it remained near enough that I walked slowly until I was safely past it. It seems like I've seen a good many more moose than winter than in any previous winter. I've changed my attire up this winter and have been running mostly in Armani suits, but it's hard to believe that could be the difference.

7 days into March, and not a single snowflake has fallen. March and April are the two snowiest months of the year here, so not a good sign for the snow pack going into Spring.

Big winds and effectively cold today. Ski trails were, as expected, bullet proof, and I gave no thought to skiing. Instead, I ran, in O' shoes for some extra purchase on the slippery surface, and concentrated on keeping upright while the winds concentrated on sending me tumbling. The gods must have been favoring me, because in this contest I prevailed. Kept my eyes peeled for Steller's jays, but there the gods weren't with me, as I saw none.

But I did see one skier, who I complemented for how well they were handling the ice.

The forecast is not looking promising for an extended ski season at Happy Jack this year and it could be all said and done in the next week or so.

C • Steller’s 1

O' at Remarkable Flats, 11.5 kms, 33 controls, sunny, mild (50F), windy, mostly dry bare ground w/ scattered areas of drifted snow.

When it's windy and you want to feel it, you can do worse than Remarkable Flats. But I only saw one downed green tree, so it wasn't as windy as it can get.

First time out orienteering in this new O' season. Supposedly a storm is on the way in, and gathering clouds off to the west and south by the time I was finishing up made it look that way. Sharply colder by late afternoon.

No cows, and no fat cat businessmen with diamond encrusted stick pins.

Very mild, very sunny, and decent wind, so out on the bike again, today heading south of town into "ranchetteville". Saw several trains heading in different directions, and even saw, off in the distance several mountains.

Ski trails were pretty trashed out and I just went out long enough to get a feel for how much had melted away.

Then headed out to run. Just a few minutes in, I was hailed down by a guy and a girl--probably a couple, but something about them left me unsure--who were looking for their lost dog, and were wondering if I had seen it. I told them I would keep my eyes open and that I would do my best to catch it if I saw it. But inside, I was thinking that if the dog had run off from them and wouldn't come back, the chances I would be able to call it to me were pretty small. They gave me some dog treats that might help in luring the dog to me, if I saw it. I told them that the treats looked delicious and that I was sure I would enjoy them. And then I changed my planned route based on what they had told me, to hopefully increase the odds of a dog sighting. I never did see the dog, but the dog treats were as delicious as you would expect.

When I got back to the trail head, the parking lot was empty save for my truck. As I got into my truck, I noticed something on my windshield that had the right size and shape to be a traffic ticket, and for the life of me I couldn't figure out what I might have done. I was parked legally and had a parking pass for the area correctly displayed, sooo.....???

So I might as well find out what I had done, I thought, and reached around to grab the ticket. Which proved to me be not a ticket. Rather, it was a note from the dog people, thanking me for all my help, and letting me know they had got their dog back. Even though I had effectively done nothing at all, I was still glad to find out they had recovered their dog. I've always thought that Happy Jack at night, in the winter, must be a frightening place for a lost dog to be, and at least a couple of dogs go missing up there each winter.

I read an article today from the NY TImes: "Do You Have What It Takes to Be an Olympian", which featured Marit Bjorgen. It was interesting, though it may be that was because I was struck by how much we have in common, and it only starts with the fact we both have names beginning with the letter "M".

Of course, amidst the many similarities, there are some differences as well. Bjorgen is a female Norwegian national team member, and I am not. Bjorgen has competed in several Olympics while I have only been to several Olympic venues. Bjorgen has biceps of steel that don't need to be photoshopped to look impressive, and nobody would consider my spaghetti biceps even remotely worthy of photoshopping. Bjorgen has won 15 Olympic medals and I once got a diploma from kindergarten for spelling, which is odd, because I can't spell worth a darn today.

But then there is the evolution of her basic training method over time, which became a model of very high volume done mostly at light intensity with relatively small amounts of high intensity training. The article didn't break the respective volumes down by percentage figures. That is about the same way I have trained almost the whole time I have been orienteering: at high or quite high volume, with a very high percentage of that at an easy or very easy intensity, and some regular amounts of high intensity training--typically 1-3 times a week (much dialed back during winter.) The main difference over time from when I was starting out was an improvement in the quality of the higher intensity training. I didn't start with much knowledge of how to train, and it took time to learn, or at least to learn what worked for me.

Nowadays I don't consider what I do so much as training as exercise, but I continue to exercise at volumes that most people would consider quite high. In part it's a lifestyle choice and a choice to be fit, but also in large part it's because I simply enjoy being outside and exercising. If I didn't enjoy it, I imagine I would spend much less time at it.

But today I out and enjoying the outdoors for quite a while. It was sunny and mild and very windy, so I started out by biking and testing the wind strength, which was formidable. For that reason I didn't dare take the Curtis St overpass (over the interstate), which is always busy, very narrow, and has guard rails only a few feet high. If you got bumped, you would end up down below on the interstate, and that probably wouldn't be good.

Then I headed up to ski. Given that it had been sunny all day and temps went into the lower 50s, I expected spring skiing conditions, and was not disappointed. When spring conditions set in, I usually just take a quick ski around, mostly to see who else might be out and to check to see how the trails are holding up.

Then I ran snow trails, south facing portions of which are now becoming ice trails, with more attention needed for foot placement. Trail markers were out for what I presume was a bike race, but either it took place earlier or was going to take place later, or else I just totally missed the bikers as they came through, because I didn't see any bikers.

All in all, a very nice early spring day.

C • Another woman... 2

Nice enough to get out for some biking, and enough breeze to keep the air fresh and flowing.

Of course, when it's nice enough for biking (without armoring up in multiple layers of clothes), then it's also nice enough to change skiing conditions to kind of "springish". Some spots were getting thin, and if the snow gods don't cooperate soon, then perhaps the man gods with shovels will.

A wide variety of malefactors and evil doers were out and about, and almost all of them were wearing skis and wielding poles. Pretty fine stuff, and anyone's guess as to how long the skiing will last at Happy Jack now that March is at hand.