Monday, 05/17/10 Green Mountain

I felt decent today and it happened to line up with me not having Sierra to wait for.  I was not entirely sure as to how much I was willing to dig, but figured I would put in a harder than normal effort up the front side of Green and see how it goes.  Parked at Chautauqua and warmed up the longer way up and over ski hill and then down to the Gregory TH.  There was a large group of college students approaching the Amphitheater Trail and I just missed starting before them, as I took a detour to throw out some trash I found along the way (had to cross the lot as the can on the Amphi side of the lot is now missing). 

First obstacle was the 6 or 7 college students (and dogs) who were well spread out across the trail.  I cleared my throat a few times and did the rock kick scuff hinting, but nothing.  They were busy in their own world.  I carefully contorted my way through, saying "thanks" before they knew what was happening, to be polite and be a smartass all at the same time, but still got bumped by one of the guys (90% his fault/10% mine).  I heard one of the gals yell "how bout an on your left next time" in a real smartass way as I bounded up and around the corner.  I seriously contemplated a "how bout you get the F@#K out of the way next time", but said nothing and kept moving.

I deliberately kept my pace in check, as I typically run the Amphitheater section a bit too fast.  It took some willpower to hold back, but I made the Saddle Rock junction in a very controlled 6:05, about where I wanted to be.  This seemed to be a good strategy, as it provided a good warming of the legs and I felt pretty fresh above.  I kept going at a reasonable effort, moving strong, but never feeling like I was totally killing it either.  Made the overlook in 14:2?, then the Greenman junction at 18:28.  I rolled pretty good through the flat/downhill section, concentrating on shifting gears well on all the undulations and variation of gradient.

I knew I would be close to PR, but was not too worried about it, I just was looking to get in a solid run.  I upped the tempo slowly throughout, but it felt like a very sustainable rate the entire time and I never felt like I was digging too hard, until I hit the final few switchbacks.  There was a touch of snow dodging, but I was impressed with how much snow has melted and it was hardly an issue.  I sprinted all out over the final homestretch, trying to dip under PR, but missed it by 4 seconds.  I was a little bummed to come so close, as I easily could have picked that up early on, but was buoyed by the fact that I felt as though I could have held that tempo for twice the distance, whereas last year, I was pushing much harder and was on or over the brink of implosion.

Still full of energy, I made a last minute plan to head down via Bear Canyon/Mesa Trail.  I was feeling strong still and pushed all the way back at a solid pace.

Splits on the up:

Amphi/Saddle Junction: 6:05
1st Overlook: 14:2?
Greenman Jct.:  18:28
Summit: 32:39 (avg HR 174/max 183)

Splits on the down:

4-way: 2:05
Bear/W. Ridge jct.: 8:28
Uppermost bridge: 12:06
Mesa: 24:28
Finish at Chautauqua: 45:52 (avg HR 156/max 171)