Distance: 10.98 mi
Moving Time: 4:30:16
Pace: 24:36 /mi
Elevation: 5,026 ft
Calories: 1,979

I started out a little overconfident, but was quickly humbled. Additionally, it broke my heart and stole my soul. With the fresh snow storms, the entire run was at least 6 inches above the ground. The lightly packed snow lead through a narrow trail that required constant and odd footing placement. I frequently buried my pole or footing several feet into the snow if I veered an inch in the wrong direction. Nearly every single step ended in a different place than where it originally struck. I often received an unwanted sinking surprise when attempting to launch from my trailing foot on a soft spot. Those were particularly frustrating.

I fell at least 15 times, several in which were awkward positions similar to the splits. I was on my back before I realized what happened on a few of them. On another fall, I slid down the mountain on my butt about 20 uncontrollable feet. That one was kind of scary. At least today though the rocks were covered and death wasn’t particularly likely.

I was pretty uncomfortable for most of the second, and all of the third hour. I was definitely crying inside. The only thing missing were tears. I also grunted and winced out loud more than usual today too.

The climbs felt like a steep escalator made of ice while going up against the flow. On the downhills, I felt like a drunken pinball crashing down the mountain. It was beyond difficult to find any type of cadence or flow.

Do you remember the scene in Rocky IV, where he’s pulling the sled through the snow? This definitely felt like the trail runners version of that. Nothing about today was easy, or even normal. It was brutal.

Soaked feet have been par for the course this past month. Feeling confident about that at least. The last few miles towards the bottom were slushy and icy puddles. I’m glad I never fell in those.

I really appreciate the additional difficulty and learning to deal with these extremely challenging conditions. I keep failing the lofty goals I set for these, but I’m definitely pleased with the outcome today. Keep throwing these big ones at me, I want that third lap!