Saturday, January 20th
Waking up in an empty underground parking garage at 5:30am was a bizarre feeling. We decided to splurge and head to IHOP for all you can eat pancakes for $4.99 (this has been a blessing, thanks IHOP!). After witnessing some interesting interactions and eating my weight in pancakes (Cat only had 2.5, weak!), we headed up to Brighton to for some fresh powder from the storm that started the night before and was still continuing. We parked in a park and ride lot at the base of Big Cottonwood Canyon around 8am. We thought that would be the smart decision and it ended up paying off. Less than 5 dollars a piece to have someone else drive us up a snowy mountain seemed like a no brainer. Due to traffic, since it was a weekend and the first storm of the year for Salt Lake, it took us almost 2 hours on the bus to reach Brighton. I grabbed my subpar board that I left at the repair shop a few days ago and we were ready to rock and roll and enjoy a wonderful powder day!
After our legs were toast, we headed to our next stop: Grand Junction, Colorado!
I have been in touch with my buddy Tony the last few months about meeting up somewhere on our travels. A little background on Tony; during my first trail ultra, Orcas Island 50k last year, he ended up by my side at a section called powerline. This was the hardest section of the course for me (and many others). It is a 2.5 mile climb at a 16 percent grade. My heart rate was way too high and I was entering a dark spot in my head, even contemplating quitting, when he showed up. He graciously decided to hike the section with me and was the moral boost I needed. After summiting Mount Constitution, we ran the downhills for a bit, saw some wildlife, and he took off to finish a few minutes in front of me. If it wasn't for him I don't know if I would still be pursuing the running thing.
Alright, enough background. We ended up meeting at a small authentic mexican restaurant and caught up with life, work, and running. Also, got to see his doggos! After some good hugs, we parted ways. He was headed back home to LA, and Cat and I and some more mountains to explore. But first, I needed to get a run and a shower. So we went to Planet Fitness, did the things, and got back on the road reenergized.
We made it to Gunnison, right outside Crested Butte, around 2:30am and set up for van sleeping at the visitor center in town. It was snowing, but we were at our destination. Tomorrow was going to be a great day!
Sunday, January 21st
Another night of sleep without being harassed, winning!
We woke up after only 5 hours of sleep and headed to the base of the mountain. We parked at the day parking lot, made some oatmeal, and took a wonderful 2 hour nap!
We were so refreshed after waking up and ready to take on another powder day! It was another beautiful day without incident...until I got a little too airborne on a tree run and got stuck on a branch. This tricky little nub coming off a tree got stuck between my boot and my binding. I was literally stuck upside down!!! It was a bit scary for about 20 seconds, until I realized I could use my arms to push up the rest of my body and get unstuck. It then became super comical as I caught up to Cat and told her of my woes. No more than 3 minutes later, we got stuck in powder past our knees. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. The other highlight of the day was Catalina becoming much more confident jumping around on small hills. She is a jumpin' fool!
Once again, our legs were jell-o and we headed to our next stop: Copper Mountain!
But first, I had something important to take care of: Vermont 100 registration! Luckily, I registered and got accepted within minutes of registration opening. I was going to do the damn thing in July!
The drive was, for lack of a better word, crappy. We got stuck in a storm and had to go through three different mountain passes through the night, but we made it! Seriously, so thankful for snow tires. No slipping, no scares, just slow speeds.
We made it to the parking lot in Frisco, CO and shamelessly used their restroom and made shrimp ramen in the parking lot. It looked like tomorrow was going to be another wonderful powder day! We couldn't ask for much more! Except for a charged generator. CRAP! I made the mistake of not charging it enough earlier that day and now we were going to suffer because of it. No power=no electric blanket!
Cat and I both cocooned up in our individual negative degree rating sleeping bags and made it through the night. I woke up around 4am and checked the real feel temperature on my watch. IT WAS NEGATIVE 10 DEGREES! Hopefully, this will be the coldest we will have to deal with. I will not forget to charge the generator ever again!
Stay Warm and Run Wild!
No comments:
Post a Comment