2 Canyons, 2 basins, and 3 ski resorts

After being seriously fatigued, suffering from anti-running disease, and feeling like I'm a month behind on my training, I decide to give up on the Wasatch 100. After finishing the speedgoat 1 hour 10 minutes slower than last year, and feeling like death I calculated an estimated time at Wasatch of between 33-38 hours. Clearly time is not everything, and its a great accomplishment just to finish the race, at any time. But I don't think I'm really willing to give up my life for another month of the summer to running when my time is almost certainly going to be slower than before.

As you can guess, the last month or two of training is where your friends and family suffer the most because your gone pretty much all the time running. So to have the chance again in the future to get a better time, save a little wear and tear on the menisci and other such body parts, I think I will wait for another year. Plus, I may not even get a belt buckle this year and we all know its really about the belt buckles.

As soon as I settled in with the thought of riding my bike, climbing, chilling out, and NOT running all the time I of course got right back into.... you guest it, running. Here is one of my runs from this week that I particularly enjoyed.

Distance: 11.6
Time: 3:20
Ave HR 138
Max HR: 174
Cal: 1920
Pace: 17:09
Altitude: unknown

Since the map ended up super small, and I can't really tell whats happening I'll give you the route.

Start out at Brighton Ski resort, take the Catherine's pass trail to the ridge between big and little, then take a left up the steep climb to the South, follow this trail through the sand pit to the top of Alta. Catch the Alta road all the way down to the bottom of Albion Basin. After you leave the camp ground, as I did, you may take a short trail detour up to the top of the ski for free lifts, then back down to the road on nice single track. Then follow the road down toward the entrance to Grizzly gulch about 1/4 mile before the first big switchback (going down) catch a steep trail on your rights that leads up to the power lines. (the same route you would skin up Grizzly) Follow it until reaching the top of the last basin before Twin lakes pass and watch for a double track turn back to the left on Davenport Hill tell the low saddle into East Silver Fork. From there, the trail deteriorates significantly and sometimes you either have to carefully go from karn to karn, or just make your own trail.

Go past the old mine via a nice trail and then follow the faint trail down the ridge, as it weaves around. You will lose the trail a number of times, but with a little luck you usually pick it up. After lots of steep, lose, rocky decents you will make it to the real hiking trail at the bottom. Take it all the way to the pavement where you will stay left until you reach the cheater trail onto Solitude Mountain Resort's, Queen Bess trail. From their follow in East up the canyon until you merge with the paved solitude road, take it down to the town and finish by the lake. Without a shuttle you will want to continue via the solitude road past the pond all the way to silver lake. From silver lake straight line it to your finish.