On The Loose: June 9th to June 15th

Monday, 6/9--South Sentinel

1,818', 50 minutes

So good to get back to the hills! My legs were pretty fresh, so I made it to the summit in right over 30 minutes with a moderate effort, and then took my time on the way down, taking pictures of flowers.

Tuesday, 6/10--South Sentinel + Some North Pengelly

3,220', 1:28

This was a little slower than yesterday, and I think it may just be because I can't go fast right when I wake up. I need at least a couple hours to get to speed. Still, it was decent, and good to be getting hills in again.

Wednesday, 6/11--Up Pengelly, Down Sentinel and Back

4,095', 1:53

Another beautiful morning in Missoula. On the way down the M, there was a horde of high schoolers making their way up the switchbacks. It was nice to see, but it also felt too crowded. It felt like I was suddenly on a Colorado Front Range 14er on a weekend morning.

Thursday, 6/12--Up Pengelly, Down North Pengelly, Up Sentinel Gulch, Down the North Ridge a bit and back

5,068', 2:15

The legs were feeling good today, and I think I even sped up a bit near the end of the run (no rush, just for the joy of going fast). This run was a confidence booster for Old Gabe, which seems incredibly close, especially since I haven't done an ultra since October.

Friday, 6/13--University Mt. + Sentinel + North Pengelly

6,450', 2:59

Some rain the night before made for a foggy run through and over and in between the clouds. This mixed with the brilliant flowers on University created a beautiful clash of colors--grey, blue, red yellow. God I love running in the clouds! I hit the summit of University in just under 59 minutes, fairly good for me, especially on a long run.

Saturday, 6/14--Off

Sunday, 6/15--Stuart Peak Attempt

3,685', 3:00

The trail was almost entirely snow free right up to the wilderness boundary, and then, as if to emphasize that I wasn't just in the woods--I was in wilderness--nearly all snow after the boundary. And fog--the layer of fog came right about at the wilderness boundary, too. Not totally aware of where I was, I got as far as I could trying to follow signs of a trail, but turned around once I lost track and wasn't sure which way to go--it was pretty flat and unclear which way was up. I realize now, looking at the map, that I was about half a mile from the summit as the crow flies. This will have to wait for another week.

24,336', 12:25

A solid week. I'm feeling ready for Old Gabe 50k on Saturday. With my recent excursion to the alpine, I'm a little curious to see how the course is. I know there will be some snow and a lot of mud, I'm just unsure how much of the course will be snow covered. It looks like I'll have some competition coming from Zack Strong (who holds the 3rd fastest time at Old Gabe, at 5:38) and Peder Anderson (5th at 2013 Bridger Ridge Run), but the field is less than 40 runners in the 50k, so it might just be the three of us actually racing. Breaking 6 hours seems unlikely with the conditions, but I'm excited to see how well I can do, and maybe get my first win in an ultra.