I went for a “run” yesterday morning – met Tyler at the Mount Falcon trailhead which took me through the town of Morrison for the first time ever. It is funny that I have lived in Colorado for 30 years and there are places in Bangkok that I know better than some areas here. It is not that surprising (even in 30 years you cannot go everywhere within an hours distance) but still it is “funny.” What is it to “live” somewhere, what does it mean to be from a location. I think about that sometimes – I have a tendency to see all those around me as people experiencing – in my case – being a Boulderite and with that come certain assumptions about what that means. But in reality there can be quite a broad spectrum of experiences from “this is the best possible ever” to “living in constant fear and the lowest time (place) of their life.” Knowing that is part of the recipe for empathy.
My “run” with Tyler (remember that?) was 8.66 miles (~14 km) and ~ 2000 ft (~600 m) elevation gain fast hike that was a mix of actual running and slow walk across ice. To be honest, some of the uphill segments were ice free but walking was still the best option (for me and my lungs).
As I called it on Strava, it was a “Screw shoe” worthy run – but unfortunately I had not brought my screw shoes. We had a snowstorm about a week ago now and it has been cold (though sunny) since. So all the shaded places were covered by well packed snow (well packed to the point of basically being ice.)
Running is how I aim to keep fit and is also one of my “projects.” I am planning on running an organized race next year in Moab, Utah called the Moab Trail Marathon. I had originally planned to run that this year (it took place a month ago) but 2020 had other plans. Though the race happened this year anyway, the organizers of the event were kind enough to allow those of us derailed by the pandemic to postpone our entry until 2021, so I did.
Yesterday’s run was magnificent, even though I did not feel particularly fit for it. Like Morrison, I had never been to this trail before and the views from the top were stunning (sorry, I did not take any photos from there, oddly. Perhaps it was more of an experience than something that can be captured in that way. I’ll use that as an excuse anyway.)
My right knee has been letting me know it exists recently so I was a bit concerned about the descent. (I always double check that I spelled this word right. I want to be known as a decent word-wright.) But the descent was actually quite easy, when taken with appropriate care.
The rest of my day was not nearly as productive. But perhaps recovery was my unconscious intention so I will defer to my body’s wisdom and move on.
Ken MacClune 