Grand at race pace

With great conditions up high in the park stretching into mid-September and beyond, I’ve been making a point of getting high while conditions last.  I finally climbed Mt Owen last weekend (the last major summit in the park for me) and this past weekend threw down on a hard race pace effort on the Grand.  I was aiming for sub 5 hours round trip, based on trip reports from the late Steve Romeo as well as Brian Harder.  I got a casual 10:30am start from the trailhead and had great weather, and was able to stay just warm enough without having to put on a shell or gloves on the upper mountain.   The day ended up being more fun and less suffering than I was expecting.  I pushed hard but could probably cut a little time (10min?) next time, but doing so is low on the adventure list.   Having climbed the OS a few weeks prior and having the routefinding fresh in my head was huge for moving relatively quickly (yet still slow enough to be safe) on the upper mountain.

summit in 2:55.  hard to believe both andy anderson and kilian jornet can go car to car faster than i can summit

Splits: 60min meadows, 1:55 lower saddle, 2:55 summit, 3:25 lower saddle, 3:56 meadows, 4:40 trailhead

Stats: about 14.5mi and 7200vert in 4:40 round trip

Rose: breaking the 5 hour mark on this local testpiece on a beautiful fall day

Thorn: feeling like a dick yelling and bullying people off the trail so I could pass

Bud: next time I’ll be up the grand will be with skis

the Grand from Driggs

Well clearly I’ve been busy and the blog a low priority as it’s been six months since I last updated it. Oh well.  Let's cut to the chase, a writeup of a recent noteworthy adventure.  On a rare smoke-free day in mid-August, I managed to fulfill a goal of mine since moving to Driggs last summer – the Grand in a day from the house under human power.  

distorted panoramic from atop hurricane pass

I left the house at first light and rode an uneventful hour to the teton canyon trailhead.  I then stashed my bike and swapped shoes before starting up the trail to hurricane pass.  The classic view of the tetons from hurricane pass felt a little different than usual…perhaps cause I was about to try to cross this rugged trail-less terrain straight to the Grand?

I made sure to enjoy the mile or so of trail down to the south fork of cascade creek before crossing the creek, filling up on water and starting the off-trail odyssey to the lower saddle.  Gaining the ridge just west of the Dartmouth basin wasn’t bad but the descent into the basin was a challenging mix of scree skiing, boulder hopping and steep dirt sliding. The Dartmouth basin felt like a barren wasteland of rock and snow that rarely sees human traffic.  Once across, I started up the Dartmouth couloir which proved to be the mental lowpoint of the day, again a challenging mix of stable talus, shifty talus and loose scree.  I slowly willed myself onwards and upwards until cresting the ridge near the black dike, a few hundred vertical feet above the lower saddle.  I spent several minutes sitting, eating, drinking, etc and mentally recharging.  

a picture from a different/smoky day, showing the climb to the ridge west of the dartmouth basin, as well as the prominent dartmouth couloir which splits the black dike just left of the lower saddle

looking east across the dartmouth basin 

lower saddle from the dartmouth basin

up the dartmouth couloir.  about as fun as it looks

I then launched upwards on the climber’s trail, thankful for a trail and to be feeling and moving much better (cause and effect perhaps?).  I got several funny looks and comments from the hordes of guides, clients and other climbers descending the trail.  Once at the upper saddle, I paused for a minute to check my shoes, let my heart rate drop and to mentally switch gears to safe/slow climbing mode.  I carefully made my way up the OS route, which I was a little concerned about doing in running shoes for my first time but ended up being a non-issue.  I spent a few minutes on the summit chatting with other climber’s before starting down. This was my fourth time descending the grand and I finally didn’t get lost trying to find sergeants chimney or other landmarks of the way down.  Once safely at the upper saddle, I knew I had it in the bag, it was just a matter of grinding out the off-trail section before a relatively easy climb and descent of hurricane pass (on a trail!) and a downhill bike ride home… 

top of the couloir!  the east face of table mt is the prominent rock buttress in the background

looking west to hurricane pass on the way home

Crossing Dartmouth basin the second time was torturous due to the sounds of running water under the rocks but I was never able to find actual access to running water.  The climb out of the basin proved easier than expected.  Mid-way down the descent to cascade creek, I finally had access to water (the first in several hours) and guzzled down the cool water as if I hadn’t drank in days.  Once across the creek and back on a trail, my enthusiasm for the day continued to soar as the remaining miles were easy and I knew I was on pace to hit my goal of sub 12 hours round trip.  I ran into two moose (momma and baby) coming down from hurricane pass but otherwise just cruised down to the trailhead, hopped on my bike and hammered out the hot, dry, dusty ride home.  Although the view of the grand from my driveway was the same as always, I had a deep sense of satisfaction with what I had just done.

the grand from my driveway on a different/smoky day.  i lucked out with the clear skies i had

Stats: about 22miles and 900vert on the bike, 18mi and 9500vert on foot.  6:38 from house to summit, 11:43 round trip.  If anyone wants specific route info for accessing the grand from the west side, just holler.    

Rose: a goal fulfilled – the Grand from my house under human power 

Thorn: mental low in the Dartmouth couloir  

Bud: teton trifecta from the house?  (a low priority on the list but on the bright side, descending the west ridge of the south teton would be way easier than dropping into the Dartmouth basin and having to climb out of it again on the return to hurricane pass)

2018 Bridger Skin to Win

After missing the bridger race last year, I was excited to return this year.  From what I had gathered they were having a good winter and it’s one of the best race courses I’ve done.  I had a perfect execution of my pre-race plan and a second place finish.  Read on for a full recap.

at the finish with brian in close pursuit

I was slow off the line in the le mans start (fiddling with leashes as the race organizers insisted), but pushed the first climb HARD to quickly move up into 5^th place.  I passed several rec racers on the ridge bootpack and maintained 5^th position to the top of hidden gully.  I arrived moments after 2^nd and 3^rd place had departed, exactly as I had hoped for.  The plan was to then use the downhills and steep technical climbs 2-4 to make moves up into second place, as I knew Foote would be untouchable off the front. 

I had a good transition and skied hidden aggressively to arrive at the next transition with Brian, who was 6^th to the top of hidden but skied it recklessly fast to also pass alan, sam atkins and another unknown racer from Bozeman.  I had a quick ski to bootpack transition and was surprised to have already moved into second place as I started up the booter with brian, alan and a third racer in close pursuit.  I employed old wall to wall skins for the super steep climbs 2-4 but still found myself slipping, sidestepping and clawing my way up ridiculously steep sections.  I pushed hard on climbs 2 and 3 and eased back a bit on the downhills, making sure not to crash and be passed.  On the fourth climb to the ridge, I could see Brian had dropped the others and was still within striking distance if I made a mistake.  By the time I ripped skins near the top of slushman’s lift, I seemed to have a comfortable gap to brian as I skied the wind rollers down the ridge to the final bootpack.  Brian seemed to have really dropped the hammer as I was surprised to see him arrive at the final transition as I was dropping in for the final descent. 

I was horrified to feel some cramping in my right hip flexor as I tried to ski as fast as I could, worried that brian would catch me.  At the bottom of the run and the first of two little uphill skates, I felt my hip flexor cramping worsen and with brian moments behind, I was sure he was going to cruise by me.  I somehow stayed ahead on the first skate section and then furiously poled along the cat track, thankful to have waxed my skis a few days prior.  On the final uphill skate to the finish, I didn’t dare look back to see how close brian was, I just franticly skated as best my cramping hip would allow, hopeful I could hold him off.  Thanksfully I did by 23 seconds although at the time it felt much closer than that.

bringing home the bacon

Overall I had a blast and was stoked on how well I was able to execute my race strategy.  Thanks to brian for the exciting battle near the end and props to Foote for the commanding win.  Full results here.  I rounded out the day with some skiing with bria til awards and then some cragging in hyalite the next day before heading home.

Rose: perfect execution of my race strategy

Thorn: cramping hip flexor on final descent and skates and sense of despair of brian blowing past me

Bud: a great start to my racing season.  I’m excited for more.

neither Bria nor I are good at ice climbing but we had fun visiting hyalite for our first time

Thoughts: the skin tracks at this race are ridiculously steep, a notion that the race organizers seemed to be proud of at the pre-race meeting.  I recommend cutting down an old pair of skins to wall-to-wall size for your race skis.  useful not only for this race but also when using race skis in the backcountry.   The race organizers do a great job putting on this event and the included hot lunch at the finish, lift ticket, beer coupon, generous podium prizes and large raffle make it an excellent value.  Highly recommended.   

Fall Biking

Back in early summer, I bought a cyclocross/gravel bike.  A new toy/tool for adventure.  I’ve been having a blast getting out on some longer rides, daily bike commuting and shuttling myself between trailheads for point-to-point mountain runs. 

Three recent noteworthy rides include JayP’s gravel pursuit 60mile race, riding the tetonia to ashton rail trail as well as my first century ride, “around the block.”

Although JayP’s 60 and 120mile gravel bike races outside Island Park, ID were on my radar all summer, I didn’t commit to racing until the day before.  With crappy mountain weather in the forecast for the weekend and knowing some friends would be there, I gave in and decided to dabble in a completely new venue of racing. 

Needless to say, I was well out of my comfort zone as racers zoomed past me in the initial rough mile, dodging huge potholes and mudholes as the group of approximately 60 riders in the 60 mile race splintered apart.  As the course changed to better gravel, I started to find a rhythm and slowly start passing some riders.  The first of two climbs of the course was paved and not really knowing the etiquette or proper execution of drafting with other riders, I rode alone, pulling away from the group of 3 that tried to group up behind me.  Not long into the first major descent (now gravel), I suffered a front pinch flat and spent the next 14 minutes changing it.  Miserably slow from a racing perspective I know, but hey, it was my first real time changing a tube (other than practicing in my living room while watching a how-to video the first week I owned my bike). 

A depressingly large number of racers cruised by while I was working but nearly all were nice enough to yell and make sure I had everything I needed.  With a 14 minute stop, the racing aspect of my day was clearly over but I continued on, determined to still enjoy the rest of the ride.  I spent nearly the entire remainder of the race alone, trying to remind myself I was racing and should push hard.  However no-mans land is an easy place to slack off and my pace on the second climb was certainly easier than it could have been.  I made contact with 2 riders in the final couple flat miles and was excited to have a brief battle with one in the rough final mile and out sprint him to the finish. 

double rainbow at the finish

Despite my flat and poor finishing time, it was fun to ride at a hard effort for my first time and get a taste of gravel bike racing.  If I try racing again, I need fatter tires to allow for bombing over rough terrain with seemingly reckless abandon with other/faster riders.  The overall organization and vibe of the event was great and definitely recommended for novice or experienced riders alike. 

Tetonia to Ashton Rail Trail

A week later, I decided to check out the 30mile old railway trail between tetonia and ashton.  With high winds (20-30mph, gusts to 40) in the forecast, I hoped for the best and set out from the house, riding ~10 miles of mostly dirt roads to tetonia to the trailhead.  The ride to ashton went well with mild winds and spectacular fall foliage and 3 large trestle bridges.  

trestle bridge and golden aspens

longest of the three trestle bridges on the right

I refueled at a gas station in ashton before reversing my route home.  The forecasted high winds arrived and made for a slow, oftentimes brutal ride home.  Despite having railings, it was downright scary riding across the trestles given the intense crosswinds threatening to blow me off my bike.   There was also a memorable hill I tried to coast down but given the strong headwind, I found myself having to pedal in order to keep moving.  Downhill.  I spent far too much time cranking in a low gear despite the flat grade just to keep moving forward at a snail’s pace.  I had to stop in groves of trees several times for a break from the wind, but kept on battling and eventually made it home.  Excluding race pace efforts, this was the most spent I have felt in a long time.  Lesson learned on riding 80 miles on a windy day.

this is easily the best time of year to do this ride

Around the Block Century Ride

On the last weekend of nice fall weather, I opted to checked out the area’s single most classic century ride – a paved 110 mile loop from jackson to victor to swan valley to alpine to hoback junction to jackson.  Living in driggs, I naturally chose to start and end my ride in victor, which would mean I would end with the steep ascent of teton pass at ~mile 90.  The weather was perfect, I had just enough layers to stay warm on the fast, windy descents and had a great 7 hour ride.  I carried minimal food and a credit card and stopped at swan valley, alpine, hoback and wilson gas stations for snacks and to refill on water.  The small climb up pine creek pass was a breeze and although it was hard and slow, the big climb up teton pass at the end of the day wasn’t as brutal as I feared.  Although I am in no rush to spend 100 miles on pavement again in the near future, it was rewarding to tick off a worthwhile century ride. 

RUT 2017 - VK and 50K

The 2017 RUT was easily the most memorable and enjoyable of the three years I’ve taken part.  And this was despite being on the tail end of a cold, complete with a hacking cough and flowing sinuses.  Bria and I drove up Friday morning to check-in and shake out our legs before the 1pm VK.  I love how simple in theory yet painful in execution a vertical kilometer is – find a mountain that is at least 1000m of elevation gain, and race to the top in the shortest and steepest path.  I gave it all I had but didn’t feel as though my sickness allowed me to get into my “highest gear.”  I finished in a disappointing 1:02:24, shy of my goal of breaking the hour one mark.  I hung out on the summit above the smoke and cheered on other finishers til Bria arrived – who dispelled her skepticism with a great showing in her first ever running race.

paincave during the vk (crystal images photography)

post-vk smiles

Saturday was spent cheering on friends and family running the 28k, including Abby from Chicago and two cousins from Dallas and DC area who came to get a taste of Montana mountain running.  Suffice to say I think it was an experience they won’t soon forget…

I was up early Sunday morning for my third go at the Rut 50k.  Before sunrise it was already warm and evident we were in for a hot day.  I tried to run the initial 15 “easy” miles to the base of headwaters harder than prior years but in retrospect I think there is still room for improvement there.  I lost contact with jeffrey at the first aid station when I had to stop at the porta-potties to address some GI issues.  This happened once more in another ~30 minutes but then things settled down and were fortunately a non-issue for the remainder of the race.  I had an absolute blast on the headwaters climb and descent, easily my favorite part of the course. 

headwaters (crystal images photography)

approaching swift current aid (bria photo)

top of africa climb (bria photo)

It was great to see family at swiftcurrent aid and drench my head with cold water before starting up the bonecrusher climb to the summit.  The ~6mile descent and small amount of climbing to the base of the Africa climb again felt way longer and slower than the mileage suggests but I was pleasantly surprised to pass a number of people on this descent, as it’s rare that I pass people on a downhill.  I was surprised to reel in Jeffrey on the road coming into andesite aid, who had started hard and was now suffering a bit.  The aid station crew at andesite did an outstanding job cooling down runners and catering to any and all needs of those suffering from the heat.  Thanks for your hard work!  I was anxious to finish and get out of the sun so I exited quickly for the final 5ish miles to the finish.  Fiore caught me on the long winding switchbacks and it was fun to chat with him for a few minutes before he dropped me, despite having ran both the VK and 28k in prior days.  What a crusher.  I would go on to finish a few minutes behind him, in 7:41. 

I was again shy of my race goal (sub 7:30) but given the heat and less than full health, I couldn’t complain.  I ran a smart race and moved up through the field (79^th at moonlight aid#2, up to 49^th at finish).  All race results here. 

chocolate milk and an ice bath jacuzzi - post race heaven on a hot day

Sipping chocolate milk in the ice bath Jacuzzi may very well be the best immediate post-race activity ever I’ve yet enjoyed (and a stark contrast to last year – a dash to the hot tub to stave off the shivers).     The remainder of the weekend was a great mix of friends, family and good food.  As usual, a big thanks to Foote and everyone else for all their hard work putting together another memorable RUT weekend. 

Rose: too many to choose from

Thorn: sickness

Bud: I’m ready for a new RUT challenge – 28k next year or vk/28k/50k triple crown?

Alaska Basin Eclipse Weekend

It’s been a month now since the eclipse but those few precious minutes of totality are forever cemented in my mind as one of the coolest phenomenons I’ve ever seen.  Bria and I spend the long weekend up in the alaska basin and had a great couple of days.  The hike in Friday evening after work went smoothly and we set up camp just before dark. 

entering the basin with buck glowing in the evening light

We spend the next day taking a leisurely hike up to hurricane pass, to take in one of the best views in the range.  Sunday was spent scrambling the east ridge of buck, with a long, slow descent linking together ledge systems down the east couloir from the notch below the south ridge.  But we persevered, bootied an old rap station along the way and eventually made it back to the buck-static saddle and onwards to camp. 

top notch wildflowers (bria photo)

remnants of a marmot, melting out from his cold grave

atop hurricane pass

approaching the east ridge of buck 

jammin' up buck (bria photo)

buck summit

weaving our way down 

had to get creative to get around the bergschrund (bria photo) 

imbibing on the bergschrund runoff

Monday morning we broke camp and moments after hitting the trail, were pleasantly surprised to bump into jeffrey, out for a pre-eclipse run.  We continued up the sheep steps to the devil’s shelf and started trending west towards the devil’s stairs til it was time to post up for the eclipse.  We were both taken back by the big temperature drop as we slowly added layers til we were both bundled in puffys and hats.  I’ll never forget how incredible totality was, with the orange sunset-esque glow to the west, the twinkling planets and the surreal feeling of being in a sci-fi film with a black orb blocking out the sun. 

not a bad spot to lounge and stare at the sun (bria photo)

sunset-esque glow to the west (bria photo)

moments later (bria photo)

hiking out through waist deep wildflowers 

Soon after totality passed we hit the trail, largely in part to warm up.  We would periodically stop to glance at the progress of the remaining partial eclipse but quickly agreed that partials are nothing exciting once you’ve experienced a total.  The main teton canyon trail and the park lot were a crowded mess (cars were parked along the road for nearly a full mile before the trailhead).  We made it home in a half hour (instead of the customary 20-25min), discussing how far we would have traveled (like most people) to see totality.  The answer was far, since it was truly such an amazing, unforgettable event. 

Rose: must I say it again…totality was spectacular

Thorn: over an hour of “will it go or are we cliffed out?” on our buck descent

Bud: maine or vermont in april 2024??

Kit Lake

I spent the anniversary of Kit’s death alone in the mountains, traveling to kit lake, the 2^nd highest lake in the tetons.  The weather felt in tune with my emotions – a mix of dark threatening clouds, rain, hail and sunshine.  I made a loop of it, starting with table mountain, to hurricane pass, to kit lake, to sunset lake, to alaska basin, to devils shelf, down to the trailhead.  I spent awhile at the shore of kit lake til rain prompted me to get moving again, thinking about my life since his passing, but I won’t even try to put those thoughts and emotions into words here.

Suffice to say I hope I am leading a life today that he would be proud of.

kit lake, snowdrift lake and mt wister