What a week!

We had a very special treat for Thanksgiving week - Kathleen's sister Kerrie and her family came to visit from Oregon!  It has been many years since we have been able to spend one of the major holidays with her family as they are all spread out pretty far and travel in the mountains can be precarious at this time of year.  Needless to say, we were very excited to have them come.  Of course, with three nieces in town, it was PLAY TIME!!!  Luckily we have a park around the corner for such frivolities...

 Go Faster!!!  Or not... Does Kathleen look a little green???!!!

 My special little girl!

1, 2, 3 ... GO!

We had a great time on Thursday with turkey and fixin's, lots of good times, and the first round of the Anne of Green Gables marathon .... Wait a minute, how did Kevin and I get hoodwinked on this one???  Blindsided by a 12 year old, a 9 year old, and EVEN the 2 year old got in on hornswoggling their dear old Uncle Steve and their very patient Dad!  Does anyone realize that each one of those 3 stinking DVD's is DOUBLE SIDED?!?!

So Friday was set aside for more touristing (I made that word up...) - they spent the day Wednesday cruising local hotspots while Kathleen and I toiled away at work.  We had The Manitou Cliff Dwellings, Ghost Town Museum, and the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo on tap - however, the zoo got cancelled in lieu of the ladies going shopping in the afternoon.  That meant nap time for the little one and football time for Steve and Kevin - finally some peace in the house :-)

 Cliff Dwellings - not the original transportation parked out front.

The new camera did great as this room was super dark inside.  

 Nice spot to build a home

 

 Some of the original residents..... Lots of educational reading and artifacts throughout the museum

There were many fascinating displays in the museum.  It was quite interesting to read about the original Anasazi residents of these dwellings who ended up leaving the area after a 20+ year drought.  There are interesting notes if you enlarge the photos.

A Horno oven on display - 30 one pound loaves of bread were cooked at a time in the ovens.

 

We had another fantastic family day on Friday.  Of course, Friday evening was the end of the amazingly long culmination of the aforementioned Green Gable-athon.  Hallelujah!  Saturday morning we visited for a bit with the family before they were on the road for Oregon.  It was a great visit and the little girls cried because they did not want to leave their favorite Auntie - aaah!  After they peeled out of town, we were torn as to what we wanted to do for a workout.  While we ran short both Thursday and Friday, for some reason we were not overly motivated to run.  What ...?  Add to that the fact that Kathleen has been chomping at the bit to get out on the bike  - she feels a bit boxed-in when she does not have her OPTIONS!!!  So we drug out the road bikes, shimmed one of her one shoes (chiropractor's suggestion), and headed out for a ride.

 South Suburban Reservoirs - Stratton Open Space

 Happy "Wheels"?  Enjoying the view of downtown Colorado Springs

Bundled up for a ride!

We were able to get in a nice bike ride, although it was a bit brisk at times, especially the 4.5 mile descent off of Gold Camp Road - in the shady side of the mountain, BRRRR!  We posed for a pic at the top of Gold Camp while warming in the sun for the cold drop back to Highway 24.  On the way down, we saw a gal coming up the road on roller skis.  Kathleen has always been intrigued by the roller skis and I could see the wheels turning in her head.  Oh. No.  We rode 30 miles and were ready to be inside the warm house when finished - those wind chills are a bit stout on the bike!

Sunday we wanted to try out fresh turf for a run.  We picked one of the staples of the Incline Club running routes - Ute Pass Trail to Waldo Canyon and back.  It is close to home and is a lollipop loop that starts at the Cog Railway Depot in Manitou Springs.  The Ute Pass Trail is part of the Ring The Peak Trail network that is being mapped around the perimeter of Pikes Peak.

 Getting started

 Starting up the Ute Pass Trail - lots of climbing to come!

 Original intersection of the Ute Trail and Ute Wagon Trail

The Ute Pass Trail is actually an abandoned road bed that was part of the original Ute Trail used by Ute Indians to travel in to Manitou Springs from Eastern Utah.  The Utes believed that the gods lived underneath Manitou Springs, and that the bubbling in the spring waters was the breath of the gods coming to the surface. 

 Heading up Waldo Canyon

After the long climb on UPT, we dropped down the connector to Highway 24, crossing over the road to the Waldo Canyon trailhead.  From there, it is back on the climb - theme for the day!  While it was completely sunny and blue sky when we started, weather was pushing in so we had to be diligent with our pacing and not lollygag which we are prone to do!!!  Waldo Canyon is a lollipop loop - 2 miles out, 3.5 mile loop around the canyon, and then the 2 back out.  High point for the run was at the top of the loop ~ 8130 feet.

 Running along and then this view opens up - Nice! 

 More Climbing....

  Kathleen enjoys the sun

 Overlook from Waldo to the highway

Heading down from Waldo

We had a great time on Waldo.  After dropping down the last section, it was back across Hwy 24 and then up more hills on UPT before the final descent into Manitou.  If we become serious about mountain running, this route will become a staple of ours as well.  Mostly runnable, with a few hiking spots thrown in for good measure.  The route was a bit over thirteen miles with 3700' accumulated elevation gain.  It was a great fresh route and will be on our favorite list before long!!  Elevation profile is below.  Quite a week - we are tired.  Happy Trails!!!

Where to begin...?

It has been a while since there was a sighting on this blog.  If I had a good place to begin, I would have posted earlier, but real life has conspired heavily against trail life for the past month.  First off, Kathleen is not running much.  Kind of a mystery as there was no injury,  doesn't seem running induced, but something structural going on that has caused most runs to come to a halt prematurely.  The past two weeks, she hasn't been able to go more than 4 miles.  So our chiropractor thinks he is on to something but it is frustrating for her because she feels her fitness, and the awesome fall weather, slipping away. So I have been doing long runs solo, which I don't like.  After all, we got into biking and running to share outdoor time together....

Garden of the Gods beauty

So two weekends ago got in an 18 miler, starting in Ute Valley Park with Kathleen, then ran over to Garden of the Gods for a couple loops and home.  It was a great run and it was cool to link multiple areas together.  Six months ago, I would not have thought of running to GOG and then running loops - normally we drive to the visitor's center.  Long runs that cover seemingly disconnected areas open up your mind to the freedom that long distance running affords you.  It was cool.

18 miles, 2550' elevation gain

Shoes - Pearl Izumi SyncroFuel XC

Remember me???

So you remember Yogi  from our Limbaugh Canyon run?  Well, he has been busy.  My sister's boss called her that Tuesday morning and said, "Hey, your brother's bear is on my patio looking in the window..."  Since when is he my bear?  Then our friend Jon, who lives adjacent to the park where we saw him, sends this photo that his neighbor took.  Sir Yogi allowed himself into the garage, found some snacks, and headed out to the driveway to eat...  

Stable Road - USAFA

 Kathleen's fine Italian bike slippers!

So Kathleen has been experimenting on the mountain bike to see if she can tolerate longer rides while we figure out her musculoskeletal issue.  Not to worry, we have MORE than enough places to ride!!  She took a nice Monday mountain bike ride two weeks ago over to the Air Force Academy.  Fall colors really starting to show, which makes everything more scenic!  She was able to ride 28 miles and enjoy some great Colorado fall warmth!

*********************

Next up on real world distractions, on September 15 we get a call that Kathleen's dad is on a helicopter to Sioux City and they don't think he'll survive the flight.  Massive aneurysm on his Aorta.  A normal aorta is 2.5 cm, at 5 cm it is considered life threatening and warrants emergency surgery.  His was 22.5 cm - WOW!  Long story short, he survived a risky surgery, which was a miracle.  So we were off to Iowa when he got out of the hospital. 

 The only game in town

So not much to choose from for trail running in this little Iowa town, if you recall from past visits.  Made use of the Puddle Jumper "trail" and a bunch of asphalt, but managed an 11 miler and a 7 miler while we were there.  We also did tractor duty - each of us on a riding mower, drag racing to get  the 2 acre lawn at dad's house mowed - cross training, right? We drove back home from Iowa Tuesday and were glad to be back in Colorado.

 Ridge trail, looking over to the bluffs of Ute Valley Park

 Fall colors in Ute

Saturday morning, headed over to Ute Valley Park for some cool trail running weather.  Gone are our unseasonable 80 degree days, replaced by 46 degree start and warming into the upper 50's.  But it is still good (and it beats snow...)

 Trickle of stream left

 Favorite arch

 Pikes Peak - snow from Thursday melted

 Fall is in full swing

 Trail through the trees

It was a great day to be out running.  I was able to get in 11 miles and had some kinks to work out of the legs from the two 12 hour driving days on our trip.  Once the legs got turning over though, it was good to be on familiar trails and getting into a comfortable rhythm.  Maybe Happy Trails are returning....

11 miles, 1600' elevation gain

Shoes - Pearl Izumi SyncroFuel XC

Shoe Love

I don't normally give much in the way of shoe reviews, but wanted to give a shout out to Pearl Izumi's SyncroFuel XC.  I have crappy feet.  There, I said it.  So what works for me may or may not work for anyone else.  But this shoe has a little for everyone.  I started with the green pair and they have worked so well, I welcomed the red pair out on their maiden run today.  The shoe is fairly light (sub 11 ounces in 9.5) but does not suffer from a lack of stability on the trails.  These have been on some gnarly terrain and are rock solid.  There is a slight amount of stability added for minimal pronation control, which is perfect for me.  The seamless upper is a dream - these puppies feel like your favorite slipper when you put them on.  NO hot spots from day one, and the upper conforms to your foot immediately.  This means the shoe will fit a variety of shapes of feet, and it also has an open toe box to allow your piggies some freedom when they start to swell.  I have only found a couple minor things I would change.  The outsole is a bit lacking in traction on loose surfaces, so they require a little care on steep downs or ups when loose surface is present.  I know most companies are going away from this, but I also would not mind a little forefoot rock protection in the midsole.  All told, a great shoe in my book.  Best I have run in in a couple years.

Holiday Smorgasboard...

It's been a while since there has been a running post here, so we'll catch up a bit on the past couple weeks.  It has also continued to be unusually cold for us, so it has been a bit less than "Happy" on the trails for those of us who would prefer more moderate temps. :)  We had family staying with us for a week, so bloggy-time has been limited.  So here we go - a quick rehash since Christmas Day:

Christmas Day was crispy cold with 15 degrees and a stout breeze.  We bundled up, laced up the screw shoes, and hit the trails at Garden of the Gods.  If you are going to freeze, why not have great scenery?!?!?  We had little traffic on the trails, so it was wide open for running - just a bit slow with the snow and ice.  Here is Kathleen cruising up the Ute Trail.

 

Looking north to the Gateway Rocks.

 

Kathleen cruises down the rocks in front of the Siamese Twins.

 

Is it Steve??  Not sure with 100 layers of clothes, but it was good to be out running in such an awesome spot on Christmas.

 

It looked REALLY cold on Pikes Peak with the wind swirling snow around!  We got in a nice 8.5 mile run and then headed home to prep the house for guests.

Shoes - Asics Trabuco w/screws

Family Christmas Dinner

 

Steve's mom and dad flew in from NY late Christmas night, so we actually celebrated Christmas as a family on the 27th.  We had a lot of fun, had our family tradition of Lasagna (mom's Italian background!!!), exchanged gifts, and even got to meet "The Boy" - our niece has a serious boyfriend, who until recently, has been known only as "the Boy".  He's nice, has a real name, does not seem to have a criminal past, and is on scholarship for baseball.  We always take a family photo, and we got creative this year since we had an extra set of hands to take pics for us.  Photo credit: The Boy.

Happy New Year

 

So New Years Day, we got out for a combo run.  We hit the trails in Ute Valley Park for a bit, then ran the multi use trail around Flying W.  Steve, dashing through the pines.  It was sunny and 30's and the shorts were a wee bit of a stretch, but I am sick of being balled up in a pile of clothes!!!

 

Kathleen is cruising through some nice boulders at UVP.

 

We stopped for family photo - maybe even an anniversary photo, since we didn't bring the camera on our date Thursday!!

 

Every year this little Charlie Brown looking tree gets decorated by local neighbors at Ute Valley - right in the middle of the trail.  Kind of cool to have the trailside Christmas Tree!  We got to run 11 miles and had a pretty relaxed day by ourselves - sometimes that is nice.  OH YES - my Buckeyes won the Rose Bowl too - SWEEET!

Shoes - K Asics 2150 Trail

S Nike Triax ESC

Deja Vu

 

It was supposed to be windy and cloudy Saturday, so we decided to run Ute Valley again as it stays pretty sheltered from the wind.  About 15 minutes into the run, the clouds peeled off and we had sun for the duration - nice.  The evergreens always provide a nice frame against the sandstone at Ute Valley - then Kathleen's vibrant colors stand out even more!

 

Cruising the top rim of the park with cloud-capped Pikes Peak towering in the distance.

 

Coming off the top of the ridge and revved up for the descent!

 

It is awesome to have this great park so close to home.  There is enough variety that it never gets old and always provides a strong work-over on the legs.  We were able to get 10 miles of trail running in under sunny skies - then within half hour of finishing, it snowed!  Colorado is funny that way. 

Shoes -  Asics Trabuco

Today - no pics.  Just a pretty boring 7 mile "tempo" run on Santa Fe trail.  Still a lot of snowpack on Santa Fe, so footing is tricky.  Sunny, windy, and cold - therefore the camera stayed put!!!  It was all good though and the legs felt fresh.  Hope that everyone had a great time the last couple weeks - Happy Trails!