June 5, 2009 |

Flyin’ solo

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You get your ass out there and you find that fucking dog. ~ Billy Madison



Rach is covering the House Rabbit Society this week while her co-manager, Nancy, is visiting Maine so I am flying solo for the week. Just me and the critters up here at the casa – and quite a few less critters than normal. Rach took down all the critical care guys so the house feels a little empty. I have moved my motorcycle, ski and bike collection in to fill the void and get a little Spring tune-up action going so that is filling the now-empty space. (I kid, I kid.)


On the running front, I am still at it though with ill-definined goals currently. I took Tuesday off to rest and went to see Star Trek, which was entertaining. JJ needs to relax a bit on the lens flairs but it featured an entertaining story, capable acting and good action with just a fine schmear of cheese. And what would Trek be without some cheese?


I ran short on Wednesday and did some surges which got me a couple of thumbs up from passing motorists on the Beav’. I felt great, actually and was able to keep my form solid throughout my run, which is precisely what we are after. So mission accomplished. Short, meet sweet.


Thursday got away from me a little bit with some work wackiness then a quest to find Rach a new headset so that she can actually get some work done while fielding calls at the shelter. I then went to see Sandy to get a little work done on my never-en ading ab problem and by the time I got home, my desire to run had wained quite a bit. I finally levered myself off the couch and just said, “Man, get your ass in gear and go run.” And I listened! Go figure. Usually I buck authority.


The first half of the run was decidedly unpleasant. My poor attitude was coupled with really not feeling well at all. It was late (I didn’t start until after 7p) and I had wacked down some ill-advised snacks just prior to the run. Plus I was feeling a bit exhausted in general. So I ran/walked up a trail near my house with the ultimate goal of reaching Golden Gate Canyon State Park. Clunkiness continued for about 2.5 miles until I started to feel it. The second half of the run went really well and I turned on the heat to finish up with a total time of 1:04 and 6.5 miles – all on dirt and technical trails. I think this is actually as fast as I have ever done this loop so all’s well that end’s well. The lesson learned is “get off your couch, jackass… you might be missing your best run ever!” (Not that this was my best run ever per se, but it could have been and I could have missed it, jeez.)


So I am off again today and have to roll down to Boulder for a meeting. I may try to catch another movie… not sure. Tomorrow is the big race that I am not doing (ugh). I am going to volunteer at Aid Station 3 so say “hi” as you run by or just come out to watch everyone else running the Dirty 30. Sunday I volunteer at the shelter and then am shooting some video for the shelter then am going to figure out how to work in an 11-miler. May turn into my first night run of the season. We’ll see.


On a less awesome note, I ask everyone to employ their good juju and point it toward the mountains of China for a bit. My buddy, Jonny Copp and two climbing partners are past due returning from a first ascent attempt of Dojitsenga, a 5,700-meter peak in the Kangri Garpo range. They are currently at least two days late. This is not really something new for J to the C but any good thoughts you might send his way couldn’t hurt. Read more about it.


As always, I’ll keep you posted.


Thoughtful strategy. Practical execution.

Clear thinking, honest perspectives, and experience shaped by years of doing the work. No shortcuts, no borrowed opinions, just lessons learned by showing up, solving problems, and following ideas all the way through.

Four hikers with backpacks walking along a rocky mountain ridge under a blue sky
May 8, 2026
We are each our own greatest inhibitor. People don’t want to do new things if they think they’re going to be bad at them or people are going to laugh at them. You have to be willing to subject yourself to failure, to be bad, to fall on your head and do it again, and try stuff that you’ve never done in order to be the best you can be. ~ Laird Hamilton Yesterday: Hit Range Balls/Hike – Casa del Critters, 1:15 Today: Run – GGCSP, ~2 hours Tomorrow: Ride – Somewhere singlespeedy, ~2 hours Yesterday, Rach and I took a nice stroll in the woods around our house. The songbirds were going crazy-nuts and surprisingly, we only saw one other person walking his dog. I love where we live – close proximity to fun trails and the ability to get away from it all in just a short walk from our house. During lunch yesterday, I went to the driving range to get a few cuts in before playing a round of golf with my dad next week. I don’t get to play very often so need to brush up on my skills (or lack thereof) whenever I can. I am looking forward to playing with my pops and hope to break 100. I shot a 102 the last time I played so I am within striking distance of the sub-triple-digit score. We’ll see how things go. I usually do okay for most of the round and then fall apart on a couple of holes pushing my score way up. Dad shoots in the low 80s usually (I think). I am not sure I will ever play enough to be that good but it is fun to get out on the course now and again. I also went to see Dr. Paul yesterday for my ankle problem (which seems to have been resolved) and my knee (which is still a bit swollen but has decreased in size markedly over the past several days). The knee stems from my unscheduled nose-dive back in May (see this post for details). The shot some pictures and believe that everything is a-ok so that was good news. I just need to select better places for splashdowns in the future. And today is Luke’s birthday. Age is one place where I will always beat him but visit his blog to congratulate him on trying to catch up. Until next time…
Runner silhouetted at sunset on a rocky trail, mid-stride between hills.
May 8, 2026
Progress comes from the intelligent use of experience. ~ Elbert Hubbard Yesterday: Run – Casa del Critters/Flume, 1 hour 15 minutes Today: Ride/Hike/Relax Tomorrow: Run/Hike – Pawnee/Buchanan Passes, 6 hours? Yesterday I ran around the house. Not literally, mind you, but in the neighborhood. It was a gorgeous evening – calm, cool. Perfect. The wildflowers are really starting to take off up here and I was treated with a bold display of color throughout my run. Tons of Columbine lined the trailside as I ran on old mining roads and singletrack trails. It is really fun to see how much differently I am able to handle familiar terrain. I used to have difficulties running this loop and would have to walk major sections. Last night, I ran the entire loop without trouble and was able to moderate my speed to maintain a steady cadence through the run. Good times. Contracting is staying steady. A bit of a drop-off this week given the holiday but I am still managing to put in a decent number of hours. I picked up another new project today and will need to get started immediately to ensure that it gets completed on time.  Tomorrow, we are going to head up Pawnee Pass and loop back around to Buchanan Pass in the northern Indian Peaks Wilderness. This should be a fun challenge as we’ll get up pretty high, have to navigate some snow (most likely) and will be out for quite awhile. I am looking forward to it for sure . Movie time: I forgot to mention Shopgirl, a Steve Martin vehicle, we watched the other night. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect but found this to be a charming film about loneliness. It was well acted and would recommend it for sure. The pacing is steady throughout and some might find it a little on the slow side but it was an engaging film that had a lot to say without being overly sappy.
Hands holding a tablet displaying a video player interface. The video is paused.
February 20, 2026
In case you hadn’t seen these (and also for my friends at Adventure Film ), here are a couple of must-see running movies from Joel Wolpert:  Geoff Roes: Slogging to the Top