Rocky Mtn West

Casper Marathon

Published June 7, 2015

After a day of hiking & river rafting on the North Platte, woke early Sunday for marathon #31 – my Wyoming state run.

Staying at the host hotel, meant all was needed was running shorts & my Newtons – short walk downstairs, Casper Marathon actually starts & finishes from the Ramada Riverside parking lot.

What to wear? Light rain, cool start, 40% chance of showers. I’ve run my share in the rain this year – bring it on! Local cannon send-off & 6 miles of road before hitting cement trail. Rain lifted early – greeted soon after with sunshine & warm air.

Ran steady thru the golf course, 4 miles of turns & increasing heat (no trees). From mile 14 (thru 24), shared the path with runners lapping ahead. Mentally tough watching folks run AT you (5 miles further on their journey)…lotta relay runners.

Mile 17: Fort Caspar – struggled with form, my breathing labored. Altitude? Walked mile 18 & the set of hills in Paradise Valley.

Park benched in Morad Park, seemingly nothing left. My friend Cliff waited at mile 21 – and we walked. Stopped to steady myself (heat dizzy). Puked ‘til nothing but dry heaves – and we walked.

Worst marathon finish to date – it’s a marathon, not a walkathon – felt broken. Only 186 finished, I placed 152.

K R HAGA (Bib 69)

Male from LOUISVILLE, CO

Finish

05:49:20

In 6 days I’m running Rock N Roll Seattle – tough to pick oneself up after a complete fail 🙁 Gonna get some sleep, clear my head & start over in the morning. This too shall pass.

It’s not how we fall, but rather, how we pick ourselves back up that counts. Stand up, plant your feet and make a statement.

: all smiles rainy start

: FINISH #31 — Ayres Natural Bridge (near Douglas WY)

Posted in Marathons/Ultras, Rocky Mtn West | Leave a comment

Wyoming ROAD TRIP

Published June 6, 2015

First 2015 marathon in the West – ROAD TRIP!

Have always wanted to hike in Wyoming’s Bighorns – just south of the Montana border – so planned a 3-day weekend around the Casper Marathon on Sunday. Unfortunately, late spring snow (2 weeks ago) followed by a week of heavy rain impeded my plans – State Highway 16 from Buffalo to Ten Sleep flooded so…Plan B.

North on I-25 from Colorado to Casper, straight shot. Stopped an hour short, near Douglas – first destination: Ayres Natural Bridge. Snapped a pic & snagged some sage (natural car deodorizer & FREE). Short walk over the natural bridge cut by LaPrele Creek (tributary of Wyoming’s North Platte River). Peaceful place. Would stop here again on Sunday, after my run.

Storm clouds rolled in. Spent the afternoon at Casper’s Tate Museum viewing dinosaur bones, then the Nat’l Historic Trails Interpretive Center – 4 major wagon trails passed thru Casper (Oregon, Mormon Pioneer, California & Pony Express).

Dinosaur digs & fossils make “the Cowboy State” a paleo- tourist destination. More dinosaur finds in Wyoming than any other U.S. state.

So many fossils at Tate – WOW! In New York museums, you see maybe 2 or 3 dinosaurs. In small town Wyoming – big dinosaurs, little dinosaurs, mammoths, sediment fossils. GREAT way to spend an afternoon. Highly recommended.

: 2 miles off the Oregon Trail, often visited by emigrants traveling West

: natural bridge cut by LaPrele Creek

: dirt road treasure near Douglas (LOVE this sign)

: a paleo- tourist destination

: 11,600 year old Columbian Mammoth (unearthed locally in 2006)

: afternoon storm clouds rolling in

: Mormon Pioneer handcart

: the Pony Express – St Joseph MO to Sacramento CA

Started Saturday at Garden Creek Falls in Rotary Park (crazy beautiful), then hiked Casper Mountain. Not the Rockies experience of the Bighorns, but a good 5-mile day hike. Probably not the best prep, day before a marathon but…I’m a lover of mountains.

Afternoon plans? Float trip on the North Platte. No rapids here, lazy river float. What I most remember is our Riverton-based guide’s colloquial speech. A fourth generation Wyomingan, he recommended a trip to Fort Caspar where Native Americans were slaughtered. Couldn’t be taught not to steal cattle – so were exterminated. I asked about Sacagawea’s grave site in Fort Washakie. He commented she was a Sheep Eater, a Mountain Shoshone. Seriously? And if so, who cares? None of his facts matched any ‘semblance of reality.

In rural Wyoming, there are Cowboys & there are Indians. Seems the two do not mix – even in 2015 🙁

: Bridle Trail – 5 miles roundtrip

: 1957 tragedy – 4 teens veered off Mountain, 3 survived

: lazy river float, no rapids here

Posted in Rocky Mtn West | Tagged hiking, museo, rivers-lakes, waterfalls | Leave a comment

Grand Teton National Park

Published August 24, 2014

Woke a little stiff after yesterday’s marathon but excited to see sunshine – first in days. Friday’s attempt at seeing the Tetons ended early, most of the day spent at Visitor Center(s) viewing park films & museum artifacts.

Today with 10 hours before my flight back to Denver, wanted to fit in a hike – the landscape so beautiful, reminiscent of our Colorado Rockies. And as clouds cleared, snow was visible on the high peaks – first of the season.

Snapped some of my most memorable shots of the trip this morning. WOW!

Decided on Inspiration Point as today’s hike destination. Bought a boat ticket across Jenny Lake to cut 2.5 miles off the hike distance. Jenny Lake, named after a Shoshone guide in 1872, is one of the Park’s largest bodies of water. That said, the trip across couldn’t have lasted more than 15 minutes.

Stopped a few minutes at Hidden Falls – a half mile UP – then continued on the well defined trail to Inspiration Point.

The quick stairmaster-esque hike & elevation was similar to Boulder hiking but the landscape so more lush. It’s been a wet summer this year in the Tetons; waterfalls & rivers running high, tall Pines & multiple varieties of wildflowers peppered the forest’s green floor. Only wish there had been more time.

Visiting America’s National Parks highly recommended.

Day after July’s marathon in Missoula I went whitewater rafting, this month I hiked Grand Teton National Park. Finding creative recovery an active part of marathoning. A-ok to keep re-setting the bar 🙂