Up back/down W. Ridge/Flagstaff road
8 miles/2,523 vert./1:15:43 RT (34:37 up)/164 avg. HR (176 avg. on the ascent) Garmin Data
Met up with Brandon at the Gregory TH a bit after 4pm. The plan was for him to push for a PR, yet I was not sure how I was going to help, it was either stick with him to pace and harass, or go ahead and be a rabbit. I was on the fence as to how much effort I wanted to put in today and just figured I would just ease into it and see how it went. I was moving fast and strong right away, but felt kind of crappy at the same time with a bit of an abdominal cramp. It was cooler than most days this summer at the start with a momentary sprinkling of rain, but that ended quickly and before long the sun was back out and it was probably in the low 80's, an improvement, but a far cry from good PR conditions.
My time checks were solid and I kept a strong tempo, pushing hard, but it never really felt too deliberate or forced. Memory of my splits from my previous PR in May of last year were fuzzy, I knew I was ahead at the cabin, but then I thought I was further ahead at my next two checks and may have gotten a little over confident and backed off a bit. I have this terrible habit, whether it is a PR attempt on Green, or a race up Pikes to look at the watch and either rest on my laurels a bit if I am ahead of projected pace, or get discouraged and slack off if I am behind at all. A few years on Pikes, I have just not even worn a watch (89 Tour/final TT Lemond style), but then I have no idea whether I am on 2:35 pace or my more usual 2:53 pace.
Anyways, just after passing the 4-way, I spotted Rob up ahead who we had planned to meet at the summit. Passing him gave me a bit of a boost as I ran quickly by on the very steepest section of trail, showing off a bit, trying to make it look easy, but it bit me in the ass however, as I blew up soon after and had to mostly power hike it in to the summit, where I made a final dash to sneak in 1 second under PR.
We all met up on the summit, chatted for a bit, then Brandon and I headed down W. Ridge to run down Flagstaff Road, while Rob opted for Ranger/Gregory. We took it fairly casual on the road, but with about 2 miles to go, I was getting another abdominal cramp and was feeling a bit crappy on the pavement. I bailed onto the trail, where I immidiately felt better and then jumped back on the road for a bit more beating.
Though 1 second is really nothing, I was pretty happy to better my best, if only by a little. It was 30 degrees warmer than my previous best on that route, plus I am 40 now (vs. 38) and also have twins, so it felt like a bit of a victory. Though it may not matter on race day (usually does not), I feel it is a good indicator of my fitness leading up to Pikes in less than 3 weeks.
Splits:
Aug. 2011 (vs. May 2010)
1st bridge: 2:11
1mile at top of Greg Cyn: 12:44
Cabin: 15:00 15:03
Ranger/Greenman jct.: 18:31
Flat spot on NW ridge: 22:53 22:53
4 way: 31:24 31:23
Summit: 34:37 34:38
avg/max HR 176/187 176/183
