Back Again...

The week really had me down with congestion and fever so I didn't get out for any runs. Really missed the daily fresh air and trails.
Saturday was an indoor meet  at the University Wisconsin Platteville. Nice facility and efficiently organized meet but still a long day for everyone.There were a lot of athletes and it began snowing while we were in so the trip home was more treacherous than usual. We had some good performances and are getting closer to setting the athletes for events at next week's regionals.

The NJCAA National meet is in The Armory in New York so it was fun to watch my DVR recording of the Millrose Games yesterday when we got home. Interesting to see the track and even some shots of the exterior of the building...be there in three weeks.

Got out to the quarry trails again today and wore my wooden Iverson snowshoe runners because they do a better job of packing snow. There had been some ski activity and at one point another snowshoe runner but I was first tracks on some of the ancillaries.

Someone ahead of me was wearing some older Tubbs racer's that I also use at times.

Wishing I Could Go Out and Play

Maybe Tomorrow.

On the Edge

Spent my Saturday travelling to Grinnell for another indoor meet. NIACC did well and got a couple more national qualifying performances against some 4-year colleges. We had six 1st place finishes on the day. Very nice indoor facility.

The cyclic weather dropped snow again yesterday followed by cold today. Nice sun and some freshly groomed trails gave me an energetic start then I noticed that snowmobiles had used the Winnebago River so I did as well.

I haven't ventured onto the ice at all since a mishap years ago that found me standing chest-deep in a very cold, watery hole in the ice and no easy way to get back up onto the wet ice! But I trusted the snow machine paths and knowledge of routine cold temps to feel secure with the extra distance on a level surface.

The river provides a different scenic beauty than the quarry loops.

Need to be especially aware of divets and open areas that could allow a breakthrough!

Easy running.

7 miles and plenty of enjoyment. Saw some hawks (Red-tailed) and spooked off a couple of Barred Owls.

Recant the Rant?

OK, so I provided photographic evidence of how hikers were destroying the snowshoe running (and snowbiking) conditions. Today, I need to qualify that by saying that not all hikers have the same disregard. The prints visible during today's loops show that at least two of the folks are attempting to walk the same general routes but without affecting the main trail conditions.

To these outdoor enthusiasts I say "Thank You". Just as is most often the case, I should be careful not to lump all into the whole. I'm sure there are some snowshoers or some bikers that are oblivious to other uses of the same area and can wreck the experiences of others.

Bikes and snowshoes on the left; walkers and hikers on the right!

Great weather conditions today as temps warmed to the mid-teens and winds were manageable. Put in my traditional 6 mile loop and enjoyed being outdoors while catching up on podcasts.

Still Looking Back

The other day I spent some time on a post regarding my background in Dubuque. Today, I drove through Dubuque on our way to return my son's dog to him after our dog-sitting for the past 6 weeks. As I drove past Washington Middle School, I remembered that my time there as a student (then called Washington Junior High) was actually the very beginning of my interest in running as an activity.

We moved to Dubuque and I was the new kid from out-of-town when I walked the halls in the fall of 1964. I saw a list of top 10 finishers from an annual cross-country race that was an intramural competition early in each school year. I took the challenge of trying to introduce myself by making the list and signed up. The race was all on the school grounds and started and finished on the football practice field built into the hillside behind the school. I stopped briefly today to take a photo of the site...that hasn't really changed since I was there 50 years ago!

I remember we had a choice of running up the longer, more gradual slope (on the far side of the first photo) or the shorter, steeper slope closer to the building (in the middle of the 2nd photo). I chose the steep slope and the move pulled me ahead of a lot of the others competing that day...ended up 5th overall and made the list in the hall. Turns out I also made the list for contact from the track coach for spring and I've continued to run ever since.

Multi-Use Rant

I'm a strong proponent of activities to get people outdoors and exercising. Whether that be training similar to what I enjoy or simply a family hike, I have always been passionate about helping promote. This has been through past part-time work at a running and ski shop, to volunteering at Lime Creek Nature Center, or through membership in local clubs like North Iowa Touring, Mason City Multi-Sport, Nature Club, or the now defunct running club back in the early 1980's.

But for all encouragement I get from seeing folks out using the trails, I can't help but feel frustration when I see abuse, such as indiscriminate trash. Or sometimes the surprising amount of manure left along the trail by horseback riders. Then again, the same folks that are hiking seem to have little regard for trail snow conditions. Hikers walk down the middle of the newly groomed skate-ski trails or more annoying to me personally they tear up some of the ancillary trails that I've previously bragged about self-grooming into nice runnable condition.

The past couple of days, I've struggled for balance on a few of my previously packed line because of hikers that couldn't seem to walk straight!

I still put in 8 and 6 miles on Monday and Tuesday but I do wish the hikers could be more careful. Think I'll take a couple off from the snowshoes to recover some spring in my stride. I've been working rather hard lately without much recovery. This week sits good for rest and the weather is bitter again anyway. 

Iowa Games...Iowa State Snowshoe Championships

Every year that I've gone to Cedar Falls for the State Championship Snowshoe Race, I've been assured of a challenging course. Scott Gall the race director is well-known for for a unique style of using the terrain for what he calls "a true snowshoe course". Again he did not disappoint. Nature cooperated with a bit of fresh snow during the week and a new layer the morning of the race.

Here's a video from the 2011 race that helps demonstrate some of this course. 

One problem with snowshoe races, especially in Iowa, is you can never depend on having snow for the races. More than once this race has become a trail race rather than running on snow. Perhaps this is one reason why participant numbers have varied greatly here through the years. This year's conditions were great and it is disappointing that more runners didn't show up for the race.

Over 30 hearty souls hit the line to start and, for whatever reason, I took off like I used-to-could only to realize, early on, that an older, wiser Curt should slow down to a manageable pace for a 60-year-old. My first 5K loop actually had me in pretty good position but I was relegated to my typical regimen of walk-running the 2nd loop because the loose snow was playing a bit of havoc with my knees. The course turned a bit to sugar-snow and I didn't get many solid foot plants. 

Results. Scott and friend, Randy Bill, ran the race together to finish 1st and 2nd, with former Mason Citian, Chris Jensen, following closely in 3rd. Randy said he and Scott were a bit guarded in opening up to race each other because they're both heading to a 50K  race next weekend. I ended up winning my age group  and qualified for the U.S. Nationals held in Vermont again this year. I  first ran Nationals in Vermont in 2006 and then again in Minnesota (2007) and Wisconsin (2011). 

Calling today's total at 7 miles after warm-up and cool-down.