Training Log Archive: Swampfox

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?