Not sure what to expect with the fresh snow, I was fired up to give my legs a good spin today and figured Flagstaff would be a good bet. Much to my satisfaction, all of the new snow had completely melted off the Flagstaff Trail by the time I started my run at 4:20pm.. It took me a while to warm up (maybe all of Flagstaff?), but my legs were feeling pretty good and I was making decent time considering how little I was putting into it. Made the top in 18:23 and headed down the road, crossed Flag and kept going toward the Ranger Cabin.
The fresh snow from the previous night/morning became increasingly evident and did a nice job of hiding the ice underneath. With no traction today, I just picked my way through and made the most of it. As expected, the amount of snow increased as I ascended. First, a thin layer over ice, then mashed potatoes over ice, then finally drifted fresh snow on the old trap door snow pack near the 4-way. I was pushing a little more than usual, but the pace/effort just felt good in general and it did not feel like I was knocking myself out. Sank deep, up to my knees in a few spots approaching/at the 4-way jct., maybe into old holes or perhaps making my own new ones, hard to tell, but it caused me to tread lightly for a bit.
I pushed hard up the final rocky steps to the top, just seeming to float up the big steps that have lately been giving me pause. I was surprised to have topped out in 45:39. I am not entirely sure, but that might be a PR for me running Green via Flag which was especially encouraging given the conditions.
Knowing the trail back down to the cabin would be treacherous, I took it pretty conservative and even so, took some huge slips mimicking the guy on the wet floor sign, but managed to land each one with style and grace. I felt cat-like, but tried to not let it get to my head and focused on the task at hand. From the Ranger cabin, I opened it up the remainder of the way back down Gregory, super-computer computing. This was just one of those days where everything physically and mentally just came together. Now if the stinking snow would just go away!
Splits:
Flagstaff: 18:23
Crossed main Flagstaff road: 21:53
Ranger Cabin: 24:13
4-way: 42:35
Summit: 45:39 (avg HR 168, max 180)
Descent: 24:55 (avg HR 146, max 167)
