Sierra

Sierra
Sierra

Friday, February 22, 2008

S. Boulder Peak/Bear Peak (Bill Loop)

2/22/08
~10 miles/~3,500vertical
167 bpm average for S. Boulder ascent
54:44 up S. Boulder, 10 minutes to Bear, 1:48 total

Hooked up with Dave at the last minute for a trip up S. Boulder. We started off at conversational pace, but I was quickly panting and finding myself giving quick one word responses and waiting for just the right moment to say anything more than one word. Dave makes it look so easy and talks casually, you forget how hard you are going, until you glance at the HR monitor. We kept this up until the log steps 1/3 of the way up Shadow, but he slowly kept creeping ahead. There was not much I could do and did not want to completely blow, so I just maintained my own pathetic rhythm. Dave got the summit in 51:?? and I was about 3 minutes back.

He then talked me into making a loop out of Bear. 10 minutes later, we were on the summit of Bear and hardly paused as we took off down Fern. Lots of snow and ice the entire way down. I was going fairly quick I thought, but still cautious enough to not break my neck. Dave of course kept getting ahead, but would graciously wait periodically.

This was a great run, and the hardest I have gone in months. I felt pretty slow and out of shape, but I guess most people feel that way running with Dave no matter when and I also have to remind myself that I am barely through my second week of anything resembling "training". It will come.