A Slow Return To Health, One Day At A Time

Wow, I stopped blogging almost 5 years ago, precisely when my life spiraled out of control. My addiction to running crumbled as my addiction to marijuana and other drugs took hold. I stopped racing and training after The Kendall Mountain Run in 2008, skipping the Pikes Peak Marathon and Imogene Pass Run after my girlfriend of 10 years broke up with me. I was surprised and heartbroken, and replaced trail running in the mountains with alcohol, bars, drugs, and a lifestyle that would consume me. Today, nearly 5 years later, I am 8.5 months sober and freshly out of rehab. Running is once again an addiction for me, my daily high. Although treatment was in a city without access to the mountains, I made due with the treadmill, setting it to rolling hills and dreaming of the mountains. After 3 months of treatment and infrequent runs on the treadmill and in a state park, I stepped on the scale and looked down in disbelief. 172 pounds? No way, the scale must be broken! I'd never weighed that much in my life. I'm about 5'9.5", and checked into rehab at about 155. Back in 2008, I weighed about 142. Almost 6 months later, I'm down to 148, running every day, logging about 60 miles a week, and can't believe that I have almost 9 months sober. I'm finally back on the west coast, and am filled with gratitude, hope, and faith. While I may never run and race again at my modest levels of 5 years ago, running is and remains an incredibly positive force in my life, the one healthy addiction that I have. I am proud to say that I am still a running addict, and my addiction to mountain running and trail running remains strong. I hope to document my journey back to health and sobriety on this blog, and am excited to see where this trail takes me. Hope to see y'all on the trails. I'll be the guy with the big smile on his face.

Recent Race Results

July 13th - Barr Trail Mountain Race - Manitou Springs
12th place 1:47:32 (12 miles)
good effort, but comfortable, especially on the downhill



July 19th - Kendall Mountain Race - Silverton
1st place 1:50:52 (13 miles)
bonked the last half mile on the flats - didn't fuel properly
dry heaving over last 1/2 mile and puking at finish - fun, fun...
technical descent and wrong turn slowed time by at least a minute



July 26th - Kennebec Challenge Mountain Run - La Plata Canyon (Durango)
3rd place 2:06:57 (15 miles)
led over the summit, and passed by 2 on the descent
wet and slick after a heavy night of rain and fog and drizzle during the race, cool
took it easy on the descent and ran well with myself to avoid any more falls

Animas Mountain

Ouch... I am hurting right now... pics to follow...

More Pics

Silverton 6/8 - 6/10

Silverton 6/8 - 6/10

Happy Summer!

Too much time since my last update, but the arrival of summer and the opening of the 4x4 passes around Silverton have provided me with the necessary inspiration and incredible new terrain to share my latest adventures running in the mountains. Although I''d been averaging somwhere between 40 and 50 miles a week all through May, every mile of trail I consumed was in and around Durango and Sailing Hawks, Animas City Mountain, and the Colorado Trail from Junction Creek. Monotonous to say the least... no surprise that blogging became just a little tedious. Anyways, I've camped in Silverton the last two weekends, getting in 3 solid runs at altitude each weekend, and savoring the terrain that these 4x4 roads offer. The consequences of our huge winter here in SW Colorado are obvious in the mountains around Silverton. Most trails will be buried until late or August and the snow pack above 10,000 feet or so is simply massive - it still looks like winter up there. Thankfully for my purposes the town of Silverton plows (more like a perilous excavation with a huge bulldozer) the 4x4 passes that lead to Ouray, Lake City, Ophir, and Creede. Running these roads is as much as I can ask for -they're beautiful, dry, runnable, and the perfect training for the Barr Mountain Trail race and the Pikes Peak Ascent and Marathon. So, the camping has been beautiful but chilly and the runs have been tough but simply amazing. Last but not least, I finally invested in a Garmin 305 GPS training watch and HR monitor. The GPS function is awesome - so much data, though I am most interested in elevation and distance. This last weekend I made use of it for the first time, tracking all 3 runs in Silverton. Below are my first attempts to integrate some of the GPS info into this blog... thanks for your patience...