Mama Grouse and Chick On The Trail

It's been a cooler-than-normal summer around here, likely due to the "Icebox-Effect" from all the leftover winter snow that still blankets our San Juan Mountains. That cool air settles into Lovely Ouray every night and makes good sleeping weather...the kind where you still need a blanket by midnight or so.

Know When To Fold 'Em

"The most appealing thing about you is that nobody has ever experienced the order of things exactly the way you have... You can't tone down for any audience-real or perceived. That's poison. That diminishes your calling. We simply aren't capable of creating great things with the objective of being appreciated by everyone who witnesses."  "Creative Creatures,"   by Julliet

Dumb and Dumber

The only way to prepare for a high altitude race is to train at high altitude.

Transforming Burning Desires Into Deeds

In a passing, yet poetic reference to mountain tops, climber Jürgen Wellenkamp said,  "...a much more beautiful land where burning desires were translated into deeds." From The White Spider, Heinrich Harrer's classic accounts of first ascents on the Eigers North Face.

Shortcutting Bear Creek Trail's Boring Switchbacks

Well, here we go again. This is what happens when plans made in "Jello" get left out in the rain.

A Promontory Promise Kept

I pointed the promontory out from Main Street Ouray. "Look, that's the cliff I was on last year that was so amazing. We've got to get up there, you won't believe your eyes looking down. You can see all of Ouray, including our house. "

Biker Versus Runner: Ouray to Yankee Boy Basin

"Good health, peace of mind, being outdoors, camaraderie: those are all wonderful things that come to you when running. But for me, the real pull of running—the proverbial icing on the cake—has always been racing."  Bill Rodgers