Due to a combination of partying too hard last night and inclement weather, I'm foregoing my usual Sunday bike ride. Instead I did laundry, which I do roughly weekly.
It used to be that I did laundry when I ran out of underwear. If I ran out of shirts I might just give it a sniff test, and re-wearing dirty socks, well, who's going to know? However, triathlon training generates a lot more dirty clothing, which really can't be reworn. Occasionally I've washed bike shorts by hand in desperation, but generally the tech gear gets smelly, and it stays smelly until it's been washed in the machine. So weekly laundry it is.
So as I'm doing laundry, I note the increasing number of race shirts I own. As I finish more races, I accumulate more and more race swag, which usually includes a shirt, often a tech shirt. They are, slowly but surely, taking over my closet. On the plus side, having more tech shirts means less laundry, plus they're good to wear around when it's hot out, even if I'm not working out. But on the other hand, I only have so much space, and it's starting to look like I'll need to get rid of some of my old shirts. I don't even wear a bunch of my shirts any more, since I do laundry so often and just keep wearing my favorites. I'm already at the point where 90% of the time I'm wearing either a race shirt or a metal shirt (as a metal fan, band t-shirts are the other thing I tend to accumulate).
Then there's the other typical race swag - water bottles. I have a small army in my kitchen cabinets now. They do vary in quality, one of them is a small crappy white plastic one with "Al's Barber Shop" written on it (I still haven't used that one) and the Steamboat Lake Sprint got me the nicest bottle I own, a Camelbak with a jet valve. At this point I have enough water bottles to fill all my bike cages and keep one at the pool and have some left over. It's awesome having a lot of water bottles, but if I keep doing races, I'm just going to keep getting more. What am I going to do with all those water bottles? Do I start giving them away as presents? I'm thinking at this point that I'll get enough that I'll be able to just toss them during races, but I don't really want to do that because why throw away a perfectly good water bottle? Eventually I will just build a raft out of water bottles and take up boating.
I've gotten some unusual swag items, like a nifty pint glass from the 2011 Summer OPEN triathlon, and a headsweats running hat from the 2010 Rattlesnake sprint triathlon that says "finisher 2010" along the brim, which I've worn in every triathlon since. I almost snagged a visor at the Boulder 5430 sprint this year, because they gave away some stuff after announcing the results, but some kid got to it first. I did get a travel coffee mug though, and it's pretty nice, although it's for a running race I didn't do so I feel a bit awkward having it.
Race swag is just another way that triathlon slowly takes over your life. Your clothes and dishes are logo'd, you have finisher medals stuffed in your desk, bags of race swag get stuck in the closet to be stumbled upon later, and every day you're reminded that you are a triathlete.
Which is actually pretty cool.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Trail running - joy from pain
Today I went for a trail run up Flagstaff Mountain on View Point Trail, just up to where it hits the road, then back down, starting from downtown. Mapmytri doesn't have this trail on their map so I approximated using the sattelite, it says the distance is 2.93 miles, while Nike+ says it's 3.55 miles. I'm guessing it was about a 5k.
View Point trail is fairly rocky, and of course it's pretty steep in places, but it's nowhere near as brutal as going up Mt. Sanitas. There were only a couple sections where I felt like my lungs were going to burst. My heart rate only got up to 187, though, which doesn't seem very high considering my last run LT was like 183 or so. I was definitely taking tiny little mincing steps going up, which is probably why the Nike+ reading is so high. Coming down I went pretty fast, as fast as I felt comfortable with the rocks, because tripping and flying headlong down a rocky mountain does not appeal.
I started out just after 3pm so my resolution to start running earlier clearly didn't pan out today, but it was much cooler than the last time I tried doing a little running on this trail. It was only around 80 degrees or so. Of course the trail is mostly exposed to the sun, so I was pretty hot, and coming down I was really aching for some water, but I felt good overall. I did stop to rest at the top and twice on the way up, but my heart rate drops pretty quickly.
Today's music selection was Rammstein. I am a big Rammstein fan, and one of their songs struck me as especially appropriate when it came on as I was busting my butt up one of the steep sections, "Ich Tu Dir Weh" off their latest album "Liebe Ist Für Alle Da." The title means "I hurt you" and it's about sadism, and implied masochism (the vocals are from the point of view of the sadist, but it's implied that the person the sadist is hurting enjoys it). This song actually got the album banned in Germany for under-18 sales. I'm not going to list all the lyrics, but the chorus seemed to describe how I was treating my body when I forced it to run up the rocky trail:
Despite the pain, today was a good run and I feel good about it. The Xterra is next weekend and I'm pretty confident that the run course won't be as steep as this one, so I'm hoping for a respectable time. Considering the course is something like 4.8 miles I'm not sure I can finish the run in under an hour, but I'm going to try my hardest to finish in under 1:15, which I think is doable. Next year I hope I'll have improved my running enough to the point that I can expect to run better than a 10 min/mile in a triathlon, but for now it's best to keep my goals realistic!
Summary:
Distance: 3.1 miles (approx)
Warmup/cooldown times: 11:19/10:15
Time from trailhead to summit: 17:45
Time from summit to trailhead: 11:55
Total time: 51:12
View Point trail is fairly rocky, and of course it's pretty steep in places, but it's nowhere near as brutal as going up Mt. Sanitas. There were only a couple sections where I felt like my lungs were going to burst. My heart rate only got up to 187, though, which doesn't seem very high considering my last run LT was like 183 or so. I was definitely taking tiny little mincing steps going up, which is probably why the Nike+ reading is so high. Coming down I went pretty fast, as fast as I felt comfortable with the rocks, because tripping and flying headlong down a rocky mountain does not appeal.
I started out just after 3pm so my resolution to start running earlier clearly didn't pan out today, but it was much cooler than the last time I tried doing a little running on this trail. It was only around 80 degrees or so. Of course the trail is mostly exposed to the sun, so I was pretty hot, and coming down I was really aching for some water, but I felt good overall. I did stop to rest at the top and twice on the way up, but my heart rate drops pretty quickly.
Today's music selection was Rammstein. I am a big Rammstein fan, and one of their songs struck me as especially appropriate when it came on as I was busting my butt up one of the steep sections, "Ich Tu Dir Weh" off their latest album "Liebe Ist Für Alle Da." The title means "I hurt you" and it's about sadism, and implied masochism (the vocals are from the point of view of the sadist, but it's implied that the person the sadist is hurting enjoys it). This song actually got the album banned in Germany for under-18 sales. I'm not going to list all the lyrics, but the chorus seemed to describe how I was treating my body when I forced it to run up the rocky trail:
Ich tu dir wehIn English:
tut mir nicht Leid
das tut dir gut
hör wie es schreit
I hurt youIt was definitely the appropriate tune for the way that my glutes were feeling as I ran and quick-stepped up large chunks of rock arranged like "stairs." Now that's definitely not what the song is about and the lyrics are not for the squeamish, but it was pretty much my powersong of the day.
I'm not sorry
it does you good
hear how it screams
Despite the pain, today was a good run and I feel good about it. The Xterra is next weekend and I'm pretty confident that the run course won't be as steep as this one, so I'm hoping for a respectable time. Considering the course is something like 4.8 miles I'm not sure I can finish the run in under an hour, but I'm going to try my hardest to finish in under 1:15, which I think is doable. Next year I hope I'll have improved my running enough to the point that I can expect to run better than a 10 min/mile in a triathlon, but for now it's best to keep my goals realistic!
Summary:
Distance: 3.1 miles (approx)
Warmup/cooldown times: 11:19/10:15
Time from trailhead to summit: 17:45
Time from summit to trailhead: 11:55
Total time: 51:12
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Sunday Bike Ride - Live Free or Bike Hard
Route: Wonderland Lake and Foothills North trail
Distance: 9.43 miles (including riding through town to get to/from home)
Time: approx. 50 min
This week's bike ride was pretty short because I was still pretty tired from the trail run yesterday in addition to being short on sleep because of volunteering for the Outdoor Divas Triathlon. I started out from home and biked up to the Wonderland Lake area, which has a wide gravel path going around the lake. Portions are also cement bike path.
The wide gravel path continues north from Wonderland Lake until it hits Lee Hill drive, and I believe that section is technically the Foothills trail.
The path is very flat except for one section where it connects to the Wonderland Lake loop, which is short and pretty steep. Other than that, though, it's just cruising along the foothills.
This is actually taken from Foothills North, looking northeast.
Foothills North trail, itself, however, is rocky as hell. It was actually too difficult for me with my bike, level of skill, and current energy level. I kept peeling off backwards. So even though I was actually fairly close to the end of the trail I decided to just head on home.
The wide gravel path is very popular with runners and families and people out for walks with their dogs.
The Wonderland Lake area is higher in elevation than most of Boulder, so you get some really nice views.
This is Wonderland Lake itself. This photo is not very impressive, but the route I took didn't really go past a super-scenic view of the lake, which itself doesn't look that picturesque due to the overcast anyway.
Barring the section of Foothills North that's north of Lee Hill Drive, this is an easy route that was good to loosen my legs up after yesterday's run. I think in the future I'll tackle this trail on foot, however, unless I am looking for a short easy ride, and leave the very rocky section for when I get a better bike and/or am more skilled on the mountain bike.
Distance: 9.43 miles (including riding through town to get to/from home)
Time: approx. 50 min
This week's bike ride was pretty short because I was still pretty tired from the trail run yesterday in addition to being short on sleep because of volunteering for the Outdoor Divas Triathlon. I started out from home and biked up to the Wonderland Lake area, which has a wide gravel path going around the lake. Portions are also cement bike path.
The wide gravel path continues north from Wonderland Lake until it hits Lee Hill drive, and I believe that section is technically the Foothills trail.
Barring the section of Foothills North that's north of Lee Hill Drive, this is an easy route that was good to loosen my legs up after yesterday's run. I think in the future I'll tackle this trail on foot, however, unless I am looking for a short easy ride, and leave the very rocky section for when I get a better bike and/or am more skilled on the mountain bike.
Volunteering for Outdoor Divas Triathlon!
Today I volunteered my first triathlon.
The Outdoor Divas Triathlon is in Longmont, CO at Union Reservoir and has the same course as both the Summer OPEN Triathlon and the Oktoberfest Triathlon, as all three are run by Without Limits Productions. I raced the Summer OPEN this year, which spontaneously became my first duathlon because heavy rains the week before the race had upped the E. Coli count in Union Reservoir to ridiculous levels and the swim portion was canceled. I also raced the Oktoberfest last year, so I am pretty familiar with the course.
Outdoor Divas is a sprint triathlon and it is also an all-female race. There were about 500 athletes there, with a few relay teams, and a busy expo and many children and husbands/fathers/significant others/friends looking on.
I got up at 5am so I had time to get my crap together (I didn't need much crap) and stop for coffee and a ham-egg-cheese sandwich thing from Starbucks. I ended up getting there about 6am, which was about 15 minutes before I was told to show up, but I wasn't the first one there so I didn't have to wait around.
First I did body marking, which is trickier than it looks. I wanted to get the numbers nice and dark because I get annoyed when my numbers rub off too quickly, but the chisel point on my giant sharpie didn't really help things. I was pretty glad that I'd run races there before because this race had a LOT of first-timers, who were understandably nervous, in addition to athletes who just hadn't raced at this venue before. Being able to answer their questions about the course and transition area made me feel really helpful. I mostly stood around chatting with other volunteers as we marked people up, until transition closed.
Then I was on kayak duty. Most of the other kayakers/lifeguards were people that worked at Union Reservoir and park rangers. It's been a long time since I was in a kayak, since I had to stop kayaking for a couple years after shoulder surgery and never got back into it (although I wouldn't describe myself as an avid kayaker before my surgery, I was experienced enough to be able to roll my kayak). Fortunately paddling isn't really a skill you forget, and the most annoying part was sitting out in the sun on the lake. I assisted two athletes, one who wanted to take off her wetsuit mid-race (weird but okay by me, I had bungees on my kayak to secure it) and one who needed to rest on my kayak. So I felt useful! All of the swimmers made it out of the water, which is awesome.
After I turned in the wetsuit to the announcer tent so the athlete could pick it up later, I was on finish line crew handing out finisher medals. So, a couple things about that.
So afterward I basically wandered the tents looking for food samples, which ended up being mostly Luna bar. Personally I don't care for Luna bars but I wasn't about to be picky.
Then I got to rifle through the registration tent for goodies. I snagged myself a tech shirt and another blue water bottle, because even though I am starting to have a giant water bottle collection, I figure there is no such thing as too many. However, I saw on the facebook page that someone was happy about pint glasses, which means I must have missed the pint glasses. Or they had been put away/all given away. So, that's kind of a bummer. Also I find it a little irritating that the back of the t-shirt says "tri like a girl," considering the majority of the athlete field was over 25 and therefore hardly "girls." (This is the same reason I don't like the "Irongirl" label, because when I first saw it I thought "That's great, let's get girls into doing triathlons and multisport when they're teenagers!" and then I realized that's somehow also supposed to apply to grandmothers in their 60's.)
It was pretty awesome volunteering overall. I felt useful and it was really cool to see athletes in the swim from out in the water (I was definitely checking out the form on the lead swimmers) and also great to be on the finishing crew. You get to see so many happy faces cross that finish line, I had a grin on my face the whole time, even as I was grumbling about being hungry. (Which was legitimate as it had been five or six hours since breakfast, which wasn't particularly big to begin with.)
I think I will volunteer for more races in the future, and yeah, that discounted race entry sure is a good incentive, but it's also just a good experience overall. And hooray for all those newly-minted triathletes!
PS: I forgot my camera, so no pictures. And I did get food, finally - I stopped at Chipotle on the way home and got a massive burrito, which squarely hit the spot. All's well that ends well!
The Outdoor Divas Triathlon is in Longmont, CO at Union Reservoir and has the same course as both the Summer OPEN Triathlon and the Oktoberfest Triathlon, as all three are run by Without Limits Productions. I raced the Summer OPEN this year, which spontaneously became my first duathlon because heavy rains the week before the race had upped the E. Coli count in Union Reservoir to ridiculous levels and the swim portion was canceled. I also raced the Oktoberfest last year, so I am pretty familiar with the course.
Outdoor Divas is a sprint triathlon and it is also an all-female race. There were about 500 athletes there, with a few relay teams, and a busy expo and many children and husbands/fathers/significant others/friends looking on.
I got up at 5am so I had time to get my crap together (I didn't need much crap) and stop for coffee and a ham-egg-cheese sandwich thing from Starbucks. I ended up getting there about 6am, which was about 15 minutes before I was told to show up, but I wasn't the first one there so I didn't have to wait around.
First I did body marking, which is trickier than it looks. I wanted to get the numbers nice and dark because I get annoyed when my numbers rub off too quickly, but the chisel point on my giant sharpie didn't really help things. I was pretty glad that I'd run races there before because this race had a LOT of first-timers, who were understandably nervous, in addition to athletes who just hadn't raced at this venue before. Being able to answer their questions about the course and transition area made me feel really helpful. I mostly stood around chatting with other volunteers as we marked people up, until transition closed.
Then I was on kayak duty. Most of the other kayakers/lifeguards were people that worked at Union Reservoir and park rangers. It's been a long time since I was in a kayak, since I had to stop kayaking for a couple years after shoulder surgery and never got back into it (although I wouldn't describe myself as an avid kayaker before my surgery, I was experienced enough to be able to roll my kayak). Fortunately paddling isn't really a skill you forget, and the most annoying part was sitting out in the sun on the lake. I assisted two athletes, one who wanted to take off her wetsuit mid-race (weird but okay by me, I had bungees on my kayak to secure it) and one who needed to rest on my kayak. So I felt useful! All of the swimmers made it out of the water, which is awesome.
After I turned in the wetsuit to the announcer tent so the athlete could pick it up later, I was on finish line crew handing out finisher medals. So, a couple things about that.
- It was really damn hot standing in the sun at the finish line, so I don't even know how bad it must have been running. Yow.
- Handing out things and getting timing chips off seems easy until like seven people cross the finish within seconds of each other.
- Why do I look huggable? I had two athletes hug me when they crossed the finish. No one else got hugged. I mean, I wasn't going to deny them hugs, but I'm not really the hugging type, so I don't know why I was the one getting hugged.
So afterward I basically wandered the tents looking for food samples, which ended up being mostly Luna bar. Personally I don't care for Luna bars but I wasn't about to be picky.
Then I got to rifle through the registration tent for goodies. I snagged myself a tech shirt and another blue water bottle, because even though I am starting to have a giant water bottle collection, I figure there is no such thing as too many. However, I saw on the facebook page that someone was happy about pint glasses, which means I must have missed the pint glasses. Or they had been put away/all given away. So, that's kind of a bummer. Also I find it a little irritating that the back of the t-shirt says "tri like a girl," considering the majority of the athlete field was over 25 and therefore hardly "girls." (This is the same reason I don't like the "Irongirl" label, because when I first saw it I thought "That's great, let's get girls into doing triathlons and multisport when they're teenagers!" and then I realized that's somehow also supposed to apply to grandmothers in their 60's.)
It was pretty awesome volunteering overall. I felt useful and it was really cool to see athletes in the swim from out in the water (I was definitely checking out the form on the lead swimmers) and also great to be on the finishing crew. You get to see so many happy faces cross that finish line, I had a grin on my face the whole time, even as I was grumbling about being hungry. (Which was legitimate as it had been five or six hours since breakfast, which wasn't particularly big to begin with.)
I think I will volunteer for more races in the future, and yeah, that discounted race entry sure is a good incentive, but it's also just a good experience overall. And hooray for all those newly-minted triathletes!
PS: I forgot my camera, so no pictures. And I did get food, finally - I stopped at Chipotle on the way home and got a massive burrito, which squarely hit the spot. All's well that ends well!
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Trail running is tiring.
Today I went for a trail run as part of my training for the XTerra Lory later this month. I went on the Betasso Preserve Canyon Loop, which according to mapmytri is 3.22 miles and according to my Nike+ running shoes is 3.6 miles. So a bit more than a 5k.
The run took me about 50 minutes, including a warm up and cool down, to complete the loop. I did modified long intervals:
w/u 6 min
run 20 min
rest interval (walking) 5 min
run 15 min
c/d 4 min
The rest of the cool down was basically shaking out my muscles and stretching at the trailhead. Because the loop is essentially a long downhill to the lowest point followed by a long uphill, the second run leg was definitely more difficult. However I managed to push through by pacing myself (i.e. go from a run to a jog to a "this is kind of like jogging, if you squint" pace depending on the incline). I really enjoyed running the trail, actually, and will definitely do it again, but I will probably stick to Wednesday or Saturday runs to avoid mountain bikes.
This was also the first run I've done where I actually carried a water bottle with me, which I did by just holding it in my hand. My right shoulder started to complain a bit so I switched it to my left hand, and that seemed to work fine. I don't really need a specific fuel belt for now, I don't think, but really I should get one in the future, or one of those straps to help you hold the bottle in your hand or something.
However, trail running really adds an extra jello-like quality to your legs. Not only do you get it in your glutes more as you bust it uphill, but the extra effort of watching your step, avoiding tree roots and rocks, and the quick little downhill steps really works all those little stabilizing muscles. So while my pace was pretty crap, I don't think I did too badly considering running is my weak sport and I've done very little trail running at all this year.
And yes, I will probably regret not having done more trail running when I'm racing in a couple weeks. But with two weeks left to the race I just have to do my best with what time I have left!
The run took me about 50 minutes, including a warm up and cool down, to complete the loop. I did modified long intervals:
w/u 6 min
run 20 min
rest interval (walking) 5 min
run 15 min
c/d 4 min
The rest of the cool down was basically shaking out my muscles and stretching at the trailhead. Because the loop is essentially a long downhill to the lowest point followed by a long uphill, the second run leg was definitely more difficult. However I managed to push through by pacing myself (i.e. go from a run to a jog to a "this is kind of like jogging, if you squint" pace depending on the incline). I really enjoyed running the trail, actually, and will definitely do it again, but I will probably stick to Wednesday or Saturday runs to avoid mountain bikes.
This was also the first run I've done where I actually carried a water bottle with me, which I did by just holding it in my hand. My right shoulder started to complain a bit so I switched it to my left hand, and that seemed to work fine. I don't really need a specific fuel belt for now, I don't think, but really I should get one in the future, or one of those straps to help you hold the bottle in your hand or something.
However, trail running really adds an extra jello-like quality to your legs. Not only do you get it in your glutes more as you bust it uphill, but the extra effort of watching your step, avoiding tree roots and rocks, and the quick little downhill steps really works all those little stabilizing muscles. So while my pace was pretty crap, I don't think I did too badly considering running is my weak sport and I've done very little trail running at all this year.
And yes, I will probably regret not having done more trail running when I'm racing in a couple weeks. But with two weeks left to the race I just have to do my best with what time I have left!
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Why I need to start running in the morning
Lately I have been short on sleep, and so I have been catching up the past few days by sleeping in. All that aside, however, I am just not a morning person in general. I far prefer to stay up late at night, accompanied by the cozy glow of a computer screen, and possibly a cat sticking his butt in my face or trying to drink out of my glass of water.
For these reasons I tend to run in the afternoon/evening, after I have come home from work, or after a leisurely weekend morning spent making and eating pancakes. However, it is time to face the facts: I cannot run in the afternoon any longer, because it is too damn hot.
Today, according to Weather Underground, it was 92 degrees Fahrenheit when I decided, in all my foolishness, to go for a run. Despite having a couple of large glasses of water before heading out, I was thirsty almost instantly. I had decided to do just a short 5 km, but even though I chose a route that offered the best shady trees available, the sun still managed to reach down to me like a hammer. I can't even imagine what it would have been like around noon, beating down mercilessly from directly overhead.
There was a slight breeze, and this did help to cool me off, along with the small breeze I generated by running, but really, it was futile. Sweat dripped down my face, almost as if I were crying sunscreen-flavored tears, doing little to cool me off. As I am a large person, it is easier for me to overheat than a smaller person, and this certainly disadvantages me on days like today.
Did I run all I meant to? No. I could think only of getting home and drinking some cool, fresh water, or at least as cool as I can get out of my apartment taps. I did, however, shorten my run via tacking on a short leg of trail, so I did at least get some trail running practice in.
Now I sit inside, half-naked in front of the air conditioner. Only 25 minutes spent running, but I feel as though it were twice as long. Either I need to harden my body to high temperatures, or get up early in the morning.
It remains to be seen whether my distaste for heat can overcome my distaste for getting up early enough to run before work. Even though it is still hot in the mornings, the difference between 92 and 75 is hardly trifling. And yet, I don't know if that's really enough motivation to drag me out of my comfy bed when I don't absolutely have to be up that early.
For these reasons I tend to run in the afternoon/evening, after I have come home from work, or after a leisurely weekend morning spent making and eating pancakes. However, it is time to face the facts: I cannot run in the afternoon any longer, because it is too damn hot.
Today, according to Weather Underground, it was 92 degrees Fahrenheit when I decided, in all my foolishness, to go for a run. Despite having a couple of large glasses of water before heading out, I was thirsty almost instantly. I had decided to do just a short 5 km, but even though I chose a route that offered the best shady trees available, the sun still managed to reach down to me like a hammer. I can't even imagine what it would have been like around noon, beating down mercilessly from directly overhead.
There was a slight breeze, and this did help to cool me off, along with the small breeze I generated by running, but really, it was futile. Sweat dripped down my face, almost as if I were crying sunscreen-flavored tears, doing little to cool me off. As I am a large person, it is easier for me to overheat than a smaller person, and this certainly disadvantages me on days like today.
Did I run all I meant to? No. I could think only of getting home and drinking some cool, fresh water, or at least as cool as I can get out of my apartment taps. I did, however, shorten my run via tacking on a short leg of trail, so I did at least get some trail running practice in.
Now I sit inside, half-naked in front of the air conditioner. Only 25 minutes spent running, but I feel as though it were twice as long. Either I need to harden my body to high temperatures, or get up early in the morning.
It remains to be seen whether my distaste for heat can overcome my distaste for getting up early enough to run before work. Even though it is still hot in the mornings, the difference between 92 and 75 is hardly trifling. And yet, I don't know if that's really enough motivation to drag me out of my comfy bed when I don't absolutely have to be up that early.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Sunday Bike Ride - With a Vengeance
Route: Prairie Vista/Flatirons Vista North loop, then High Plains Trail/Coalton Trail out-and-back (Marshall Mesa and Doudy Draw area)
Distance: 15.01 miles
Time: 1:45
I started off at the Greenbelt Plateau trailhead and crossed the highway to do Prairie Vista/Flatirons Vista North loop first, which is really easy singletrack. It's great for beginner mountain bikers. I wouldn't recommend going counterclockwise for beginners, though, because Flatirons Vista North is actually a gravel road and it has a really steep section with loose rocks right near the trailhead, which is much easier on the descent. Other than that section, though, the Flatirons Vista trails are really just fun singletrack that require little to no technical skills.
This is the tricky section I mentioned, looking down. The worst of the hill actually drops off where you can't see it in this picture, but since this is literally right by the trailhead, it's easy to decide if you want to tackle it or not.
Then I headed back across the highway for the out-and-back on High Plains and Coalton. High Plains has a couple extremely rocky sections right at the start of the trail, but then it really does smooth out into mostly hard-packed dirt. High Plains is definitely more challenging than the Flatirons Vista trails, but it is still a fun, easy cruiser, with only one hill where you really need to be on the small ring.
I hadn't done Coalton Trail before and it had a surprise hill on it, which you can see in the distance in this shot. Well, it wasn't that much of a surprise, since I first hit it going downhill, so I knew I'd have to come back up. But it was really a steep bastard, and the road bed is kind of loose, so I was weaving around trying to find a solid line up that I wouldn't skid out on. I had to stop and gasp a bit when I got to the top. (Still not as bad as Olde Stage, though.)
I don't know if I'll do Coalton again, since other than that hill it's really kind of boring, but I still like the Prairie Vista/Flatirons North/High Plains route.
As for how I felt, for breakfast I had scrambled eggs with red peppers and cheese, and two pieces of toast with butter. I think there was too much protein/fat and not enough carbohydrate, because I totally bonked coming back on Coalton. I had shot blox with me but I should have eaten them earlier in the ride. I was kind of feeling crappy already on Flatirons Vista, not bad enough to stop, but really only about 70%. But these are really fun trails that are nice and easy, good for a quick workout without getting too far out into the wilderness. They are pretty popular and have a decent amount of traffic, mostly other bikers but also hikers. Also, the Flatirons Vista trailhead is now a fee parking area, unless your car is registered in Boulder County. Greenbelt Plateau is still free parking, though.
Distance: 15.01 miles
Time: 1:45
I started off at the Greenbelt Plateau trailhead and crossed the highway to do Prairie Vista/Flatirons Vista North loop first, which is really easy singletrack. It's great for beginner mountain bikers. I wouldn't recommend going counterclockwise for beginners, though, because Flatirons Vista North is actually a gravel road and it has a really steep section with loose rocks right near the trailhead, which is much easier on the descent. Other than that section, though, the Flatirons Vista trails are really just fun singletrack that require little to no technical skills.
Then I headed back across the highway for the out-and-back on High Plains and Coalton. High Plains has a couple extremely rocky sections right at the start of the trail, but then it really does smooth out into mostly hard-packed dirt. High Plains is definitely more challenging than the Flatirons Vista trails, but it is still a fun, easy cruiser, with only one hill where you really need to be on the small ring.
I don't know if I'll do Coalton again, since other than that hill it's really kind of boring, but I still like the Prairie Vista/Flatirons North/High Plains route.
As for how I felt, for breakfast I had scrambled eggs with red peppers and cheese, and two pieces of toast with butter. I think there was too much protein/fat and not enough carbohydrate, because I totally bonked coming back on Coalton. I had shot blox with me but I should have eaten them earlier in the ride. I was kind of feeling crappy already on Flatirons Vista, not bad enough to stop, but really only about 70%. But these are really fun trails that are nice and easy, good for a quick workout without getting too far out into the wilderness. They are pretty popular and have a decent amount of traffic, mostly other bikers but also hikers. Also, the Flatirons Vista trailhead is now a fee parking area, unless your car is registered in Boulder County. Greenbelt Plateau is still free parking, though.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Sunday Bike Ride - Bike Harder
Route: Switzerland Trail - from Sugarloaf Mountain trailhead counterclockwise, closing the loop with Sawmill Road, Gold Hill Road, and CO 72 (Peak-to-Peak highway)
Distance: 22.88 miles
Time: Approx. 2:30
This week's long ride is one I've been meaning to do for quite a while. I made a sort of aborted attempt last summer on a whim, but mostly I've only done out-and-back on the south branch, which is only about ten miles and really easy (bar the altitude and bone-shaking descent). The Switzerland Trail is an old railroad grade, and according to the mapmyride.com software, the average grade is 3.7% on the trail itself.
What isn't really clear in these pictures is that the dirt road that is the Switzerland Trail has some tricky gravel patches and also rocks. Lots of rocks. They aren't huge rocks but they are rough and all over the trail, so while going uphill is fine, picking up speed going downhill will really rattle your teeth.
It is also that time of year in Colorado when there are tons of wildflowers in bloom in the highlands (the altitude goes from about 7700-9300 feet)
Sunset Township is basically a little cluster of houses on the lowest point of the route, which can also be reached by Fourmile Canyon Drive.
This is looking across the valley at the descending side of the trail, after starting up the other side. It is a 4.64 mile climb (category 4 according to mapmyride.com) and it's not difficult, but it is loooong.
At this point I was starting to get a bit worried about those rain clouds in the distance. But I kept going, because I was almost to the top of this climb.
This is the Mount Alto Picnic Area, which is an official picnic area because the National Forest Service says so. There is an official picnic area sign, even, though I didn't get a picture of it. In addition to this giant chimney there are also smaller barbecue pits. I took a nice long lunch here, although I just ate this "sweet and savory" maple pecan bar that I got at REI and washed it down with plenty of water. Regrettably it had chocolate in it that melted, and I don't really want either to wipe chocolatey fingers on my cycling gear or lick my fingers, so I was kind of annoyed at that. I guess I didn't check the label closely enough to notice the chocolate, but really, energy bars shouldn't melt when it gets hot out!
This is just past the picnic area, where you can see the Switzerland Trail clearly winding along the mountains. Obviously there is quite a bit of elevation gain on this trail.
So here is the thing: the Switzerland Trail intersects Gold Hill Rd (GHR) and you can either turn off onto GHR or stay on the trail. But my map said that the trail ends in a scree slope next to Sawmill Rd, which didn't really tell me much but it seemed like it wouldn't be too difficult to hike to the road. Above is looking back from the end of the trail. Below is the actual end of the trail.
Well this is looking down from the actual road to the scree slope I had to hike. I did just carry my bike up, it was fairly short, and the most difficult part was just being tired and that the tree there snagged my bike tire as I was hiking past it. But if you do the Switzerland Trail all the way to the end, this is what awaits you.
The view across the valley is nice from Sawmill Rd, though.
Remember those rainclouds? Yeah, I hit those right at the highest elevation of the entire route, on GHR. There was lighting. I ended up walking my bike up a good chunk of GHR because with the wet gravel, rain, general fatigue, and a guess that it would be better to not actually be on the bike with lighting around, I decided to just go ahead and take longer. GHR is the steepest part of the entire route, and after 12 miles of riding with a long, sustained climb for about half of it, I was too low on energy to tackle it properly. I'm not sure if I needed more food or not, but I think it couldn't have hurt.
But at last there is the intersection with highway 72, and it is all downhill from there.
And this is taken from the south branch of the Switzerland Trail, looking southwards.
It did not rain on the south branch, actually, and while when I started off on the branch I was riding through a muddy, foamy rivulet on the road, I actually outran it onto dry ground. So the rain was pretty much localized in the most annoying place on the entire route. Hooray!
Would I do this again? Yes! Despite the exhaustion and rain, I had a blast. The long sustained climb was challenging, but mostly because it was so long, rather than technical difficulty. There are really spectacular views on the entire route, and while I would probably just go onto GHR at the intersection with the Switzerland Trail, rather than following it all the way to the scree slope, even hiking my bike up that wasn't too bad. If anything I was defeated by not quite having the endurance at 9,000 feet that I do at 5,500 feet! But next time, I definitely will start earlier in the day to try and avoid the afternoon storms.
Distance: 22.88 miles
Time: Approx. 2:30
This week's long ride is one I've been meaning to do for quite a while. I made a sort of aborted attempt last summer on a whim, but mostly I've only done out-and-back on the south branch, which is only about ten miles and really easy (bar the altitude and bone-shaking descent). The Switzerland Trail is an old railroad grade, and according to the mapmyride.com software, the average grade is 3.7% on the trail itself.
Yeaaaaaah.
Well this last leg of the Switzerland Trail is about 4 miles, so I'd have to ride back 4 miles (over some tiring scree sections, as well) to get back to GHR. So instead I left my bike and hiked up to see how bad it was.
It did not rain on the south branch, actually, and while when I started off on the branch I was riding through a muddy, foamy rivulet on the road, I actually outran it onto dry ground. So the rain was pretty much localized in the most annoying place on the entire route. Hooray!
Would I do this again? Yes! Despite the exhaustion and rain, I had a blast. The long sustained climb was challenging, but mostly because it was so long, rather than technical difficulty. There are really spectacular views on the entire route, and while I would probably just go onto GHR at the intersection with the Switzerland Trail, rather than following it all the way to the scree slope, even hiking my bike up that wasn't too bad. If anything I was defeated by not quite having the endurance at 9,000 feet that I do at 5,500 feet! But next time, I definitely will start earlier in the day to try and avoid the afternoon storms.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Sunday Bike Ride - Bike Hard
Route: Betasso Preserve Canyon Loop (clockwise) / Community Ditch Trail
Distance: 3.22 miles / 4.44 miles
Time: approx 30 min / approx 25 min
This week's Sunday Bike Ride was originally going to be two or more loops of Betasso Preserve, but due to inclement weather (i.e. thunderstorm) I ended up bailing after one loop. I still wanted to bike more, though, so I drove down to the Doudy Draw trailhead and did a fast out-and-back on Community Ditch.
Betasso Preserve restricts usage by mountain bikes - it is closed to bikers on Wednesday and Saturday. Bikers are also restricted in what direction they may travel on the Canyon Loop trail, which is the main trail (there is a junction to another loop but it's not on my trail map and I don't know where it goes, as I haven't biked or hiked over there yet). Signs are posted directing bikers in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction, so you won't meet any other bikers head-on. However, hikers and horses are allowed to go whatever direction they want. I have never seen a horse, but I have seen evidence of horses, by which I mean you may bike through some horse poop.
Betasso Preserve is scenic singletrack through a wildlife preserve. There are benches at a few points on the route with a good view. This picture is taken from the first bench going clockwise from the west trailhead.
Going clockwise, the beginning of the trail is more of a dirt road than singletrack, but soon enough it narrows down. There are some rocky sections but only one or two that are technical at all, and those aren't very difficult, and they are short and easy to hike past if necessary. Because I ride a hybrid mountain bike, there are a couple spots where I can't quite get the proper traction and I have to dismount briefly, however this shouldn't be a problem with a good mountain bike.
What isn't really evident from most of these pictures is that for a good portion of the trail, the singletrack is cut into a very steep slope. It is a sharp dropoff in sections, and there is one corner that I dismounted for because it was too sharp and steep for me to trust myself not to skid out. There are sections where it would be very bad to go off the trail. This is not a good route for people who are afraid of heights or cliffs or feel shaky on singletrack.
Here's a view from another bench, you can see to Boulder from here.
The next pictures are from Community Ditch trail, starting from the Doudy Draw trailhead. The trailhead is on CO-170 and does require a $5 parking fee if your car isn't registered in Boulder County. Community Ditch trail is essentially a road, but it isn't used by cars any more and is overgrown so that it is more like three singletrack trails running side by side. It's flat and fast and very easy.
Looking west you can see the storm in the mountains that I was avoiding. It got pretty windy on this ride, but remained sunny.
Overall I would rate Betasso Preserve as easy/intermediate, and Community Ditch as very easy. I don't really like splitting up my bike rides like this, but I wanted a longer bike ride and the weather wasn't cooperating. Mostly I should get going earlier in the day to do rides before the weather comes in, but Sundays are great for sleeping in and having a leisurely breakfast. I still had a good day, and I didn't get struck by lightning, and that's what's really important.
Distance: 3.22 miles / 4.44 miles
Time: approx 30 min / approx 25 min
This week's Sunday Bike Ride was originally going to be two or more loops of Betasso Preserve, but due to inclement weather (i.e. thunderstorm) I ended up bailing after one loop. I still wanted to bike more, though, so I drove down to the Doudy Draw trailhead and did a fast out-and-back on Community Ditch.
Betasso Preserve restricts usage by mountain bikes - it is closed to bikers on Wednesday and Saturday. Bikers are also restricted in what direction they may travel on the Canyon Loop trail, which is the main trail (there is a junction to another loop but it's not on my trail map and I don't know where it goes, as I haven't biked or hiked over there yet). Signs are posted directing bikers in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction, so you won't meet any other bikers head-on. However, hikers and horses are allowed to go whatever direction they want. I have never seen a horse, but I have seen evidence of horses, by which I mean you may bike through some horse poop.
The next pictures are from Community Ditch trail, starting from the Doudy Draw trailhead. The trailhead is on CO-170 and does require a $5 parking fee if your car isn't registered in Boulder County. Community Ditch trail is essentially a road, but it isn't used by cars any more and is overgrown so that it is more like three singletrack trails running side by side. It's flat and fast and very easy.
Overall I would rate Betasso Preserve as easy/intermediate, and Community Ditch as very easy. I don't really like splitting up my bike rides like this, but I wanted a longer bike ride and the weather wasn't cooperating. Mostly I should get going earlier in the day to do rides before the weather comes in, but Sundays are great for sleeping in and having a leisurely breakfast. I still had a good day, and I didn't get struck by lightning, and that's what's really important.
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