I did not get out of the house until after 11am and by then, the sky was looking pretty bleak toward Boulder. I was hoping for the best, but as soon as I started down the hill West of McCaslin, I could see a wall of rain and the temperature dropped from the mid 40's to the upper 30's. As soon as I drove into the squall of blustery wetness, I thought to myself that I did not need to be out in that mess, so I whipped a u-turn to head home. I backtracked a mile back toward home and felt really bad at the prospect of squandering a few precious hours of free time, so I busted another u and headed to Gregory TH.
A truck coming down Flag confirmed my suspicions that it was snowing up high, so I just had to endure rain for a short while. 6 or so minutes up Gregory, the rain stalled out and there were increasing traces of snow. Above the cabin, snow became the predominant surface and once on the NW ridge, it was a full on howling blizzard with at least an inch of fresh snow, with deeper drifts in spots.
Though I was wearing shorts, I was dressed just well enough to be comfortable(ish) as long as I did not slow down or stop for anything. I was so thankful that I made the decision to head up the hill. I was wearing the Hokas again and they did very well in the snow, but were a little slick on wet rock (as many shoes are, and they did however keep my feet relatively dry, as they are so high off the ground). Now it is snowing here at home in Louisville and I can't wait to go back tomorrow and play a bit in the new Wintry playground.
Splits:
39 up Gregory/Ranger (semi casual/survival pace)
22 down Gregory/Ranger (pushing a bit at times, but being super careful on the wet rock)
I flipped a U on my bike close to Pinecliffe because of the clouds... it started to DUMP as I pulled in. Perfect timing. Remember getting caught in the snow on the bike? I've done it in July up on trail ridge.
ReplyDeleteDouble baby jogger yet?
Tim, nice work getting out on that ride, running in the bad weather is one thing, but riding in it is a whole nother ball game. Having ridden my bike in some terrible weather (not to mention some trying times on Winter 14ers, or the 2008 PPA), today was no biggie, really one of the more enjoyable outings in a while.
ReplyDeleteNo baby jogger yet (we don't have one yet), but also I think they are a little too small for running, but I think I could make it work for a walk on a warm day. Certainly by Spring, I will be getting them out for some nice runs on the gravel/paved paths and would also like to come up your way sometime.
Ya, you definitely need to wait until the girls have enough neck strength and head control. I started with Ben when he was ~3 months but I used a neck pillow and I ran on the Coal Creek Path which is super smooth. You also want to make sure to get something with wind/ sun protection! I have a double Trek jogger that is also a bike trailer that you can fully enclose and also has a good sun cover. If you're up for a brutal run then definitely come up any time. The roads up here are smooth and very quiet with tons of vertical.
ReplyDeleteI was running up skunk canyon a little ways as the snow started... around 11...it was getting wet fast for sure. Nice decision to get out regardless!
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