I've been doing a bit of training and mucking about recently but haven't been posting. springtime is always so busy with school winding down and soccer season in full effect. yes, for some odd reason the high school soccer season in Alaska is in the spring. tell me how that makes sense...
the weather has been amazing so far this spring, meaning April; upper 60's, sunny, even a few days nearing 70. I'm hoping that it continues and this is an awesome summer, making up for last year's non-summer (rainy and cold). even if the summer isn't good I've almost spent more time outside this year than last year collectively.
as summer is right around the corner (school gets out next Thursday) I hope to be posting more frequently. my 'training' is going well, not consistent yet but well. core workouts happen about every other day, with a run, bike, or hike on the alternating days. my longest run so far has only been 1.5 hours so I need to start building that up if I hope to achieve my racing goals this summer. my first race, Turnagain Arm Trail, is in 2 weeks. it's about 8 mi. so it'll let me know where I stand fitness wise.
there is a huge difference between my running now and before my last knee surgery. the PT was just what I needed. it actually taught me how to run. last night I went up the back of peak 1 (Flat Top) then crossed over to peak 2 to run down. it's a pretty common training route for mountain runner folks. I was allowing myself 45 min. up and about 30 down. I had taken the little guy in the backpack the weekend before and had only made it to the cliff band in 30 min. (about 2/3 of the way up). to my surprise I was to the top in 31:30 and back to the car in 46:40.
wow. fastest I've ever run that. I thank God for blessing me with the ability to even still run, let alone be faster than I ever remember being. if one has read past posts one knows the challenges I've faced with this. I am so grateful that I'm able to run after 4 knee surgeries.
yee haw! bring on summer.
we started off down the trail a little before noon. it was another gorgeous day in which temperatures would reach near 70˚. i had worn long sleeves thinking that it would offer sun protection as well as warmth if it were windy up high. the shirt was quickly shed on the first climb as the day heated up. legs burning i reached the saddle between Little and False O'Malley and began to run up the ballpark (the large bowl below the main peak).
there was a bit of snow to negotiate at the saddle, and again on the lower reaches of the ballpark, but it was to be expected. from this vantage point i thought that leaving the ice ax at home was a mistake as it appeared that the up gully contained a lot of snow. (this wouldn't be the case though as the snow ribbons were easy to negotiate around.) the trail becomes more of a route after turning off at the top of the ballpark and heading up the gully. i pushed hard and reached the top of the gully in under 20 minutes, and 20 minutes after that was standing on the top of O'Malley.
the view from the top is amazing as in one direction one sees Anchorage and beyond, and in the other the Chugach range stretches as far as the eye can see. looking down on the east side of the peak one sees sheer cliffs falling away for thousands of feet. Black Lake lies in the shadow of the peak and at this time of year is still mostly frozen and drifted over. it's mind blowing to think that in a couple of weeks the lake will be completely thawed and ready for a chilly mountain swim.
all in all it was an amazing day out. my watch died shortly after reaching the peak so on the way out i had no idea if i was on track for my 4 hour time or not. i pushed hard though, or at least as hard as my legs would let me. coming down the scree and the snow is always fun and easy on the 'ol knees. when i reached the car the clock showed my total time had been 3:04. that was total time so subtracting the 5 or so minutes I spent on top and refilling water bottles at the Campbell creek crossing (i ran out of water on the way back), i figure it was under a 3 hour run. i've got a little sunburn and a few scratches to show for it...it was a blast.
