Sunday, September 1, 2013

Back into the Haze

Week Summary 9/1/2013

Saturday
Combination Short: 3.0 mi (+178 ft); 10:35 pace
Sunday
Deadmans Scripps Loop: 6.4 mi (+1,186 ft); 11:35 pace
Weekly Totals: 9.3 mi (+1,364 ft); 1:45:06 on trail
August Totals: 132.9 mi (+17,019 ft); 33:24:13 on trail

The echoes of Leadville have all but faded and I'm feeling very ready to get back on the trail. It is only the search for the variables (fuel, elevation, training flaws??) that brings the occasional reflection on my DNF. I want to learn from the experience, but I'm also ready to move forward.

The smoke plume from the Rim Fire near Yosemite has become semi-permanent along the eastern front, bring Unhealthy air-quality readings to Carson, Reno, and beyond. There's no way I'm going out in that. But I begin to ache from the inactivity, should I hit the treadmill? 

Saturday morning, however, dawned unexpectedly clear and it was time to begin again. I bopped easily out to the Combination Mine and came back home, jonesing to tack on some miles but knowing I should ease back into things. It was nice to have a relatively haze-free day, but the plume hung ominously to the south so that even a minor return of southerly wind would bring its return. On Sunday, that's what happened. Darren and I managed to beat it with an early-morning jog around Nine Mile Hill via Scripps and Deadmans. We rustled up my first rattlesnake of the year in the first half-mile, but, other than a odd helicpoter buzzing the canyons, it was a nice cruise before the smoke settled in. 

Great to be on the trail again...  I've no big plans right now. Will probably accompany Darren to the Headlands 50 in a couple weeks; while Darren races I can get in some trails at Rodeo Beach. A 50K at Graegle, California, looks interesting at the end of the month. Then my thoughts turn to finishing the Tahoe Rim Trail on the Desolation and Barker Pass segments. It's time to complete that loop, though in segmented fashion. The smoke needs to clear up so I can get into a bit of a routine again; let's hope that Tuolumne gets some rain soon.


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