Telluride Mountain Run Essay

                 RUNNING

      Running. In some ways it’s letting go and being free. It’s very energizing to finish a great run.

I personally have had many great experiences during runs road and trail. I have seen tons of wildlife and great views many places I have run. The most memorable and most EPIC was when I saw a baby mountain lion. When I saw it I was just on this road loop outside Mancos, CO. It was amazing, the only problem was I didn’t know where the mom was. Later that day I saw a lot of deer at the same spot.

          I have had great and not so great experiences in racing. One of my best experiences was when I won my first race. It was the first race of the middle school cross country season in Monticello my first race ever.  I started out going really fast and close to the end I started to die off. But I still finished with the win and had a great first experience. Some of my worst experiences were the two times I went off course. Both the times I did go off course were times where I probably lost the win. The first time I went off course was in a cross country race where I was winning by a lot then I went off course and lost about 30 seconds. In the end I ended up getting second by two seconds. The other one was in a 5k road. The race was in the winter and it was snowing a lot on the racers. This was just I local race for fun. I took the lead right from the beginning and ended up getting half a mile on second place when I went off. It was sad but still good lessons.

          My favorite race distance so far is the half marathon. The half marathon is a fun fast race. The first one I ran was a flat road race, I got a 1:34:45 that time is in the top 80% of my age group in the world!! I think it’s pretty EPIC. The race really got me into half marathons so I ran my next one almost two months later… The Leadville Trail Heavy Half. The race is 15.5 miles so not really a half marathon but it still counts. The idea of the race is run up a mountain then run back. This one had 3,500 feet of elevation gain in 7.75 miles. It was very very tough. My latest one was the Wild Iris Mountain Run. The race had EPIC views but I was feeling the opposite I was not recovered from Leadville. I still had a great time and my old teacher won!!

          Trail running and long distances race aren’t for everyone but I think a lot of people that don’t like it would love it if they tried it. When you go on a first run it’s going to be hard but It can also be a lot of fun. Start out short and just enjoy it don’t start out thinking you have to run far and fast at first. A lot of people make that mistake and don’t enjoy. That’s how my first run was, it was at my summer camp and I was training for the camps 4 mile race. The run I did was 5 miles and it was not fun it was too far and too fast for a first run. But I tried cross country and I loved it because we started out easy. As I said before running is supposed to be like letting go and fun.

Wild Iris Mountain Run

THIS RACE IS AWESOME!!! This is a tough race but amazing course. This race was in Lander, WY which is a great town. The race was part of the 20th annual international climbing festival. The race was only two weeks after the Leadville Heavy Half so my body was not fully recovered. Though out the race my stomach and legs were really messing with me. So even though my body didn't have a good day it was an amazing experience, along the course were great views. I loved it!!

Leadville Trail Heavy Half

      Let me start off by saying this race is not for beginners! I found out about this race because I wanted to do the silver rush 50 run but then decided to do something shorter so I chose this. The idea of the race is run up a mountain then back. This race starts in leadville  then goes up to Mosquito Pass (13,185') then goes right back down into leadville. Fun right?      

This race was very fun though. It is very scenic and challenging. I had a great race until mile twelve. At mile twelve things started going wrong first I rolled my ankle then I started to get chafed by my shorts. and things just started happening like that. I still finished the race in 30th overall in the fastest year ever, and I was the youngest there! In the race this year the top 2 finishers destroyed the course record by 8 and 5 minutes! This was by far the hardest race I have ever done but also the most memorable. Thank you all the volunteers and the race director for making this an awesome race!!!

Leadville newspaper

Finishers mug!

Finishing

Altra Lone Peak Review

      I am reviewing to Altra Lone Peaks. I have tried a lot of minimal shoes and I have to say this are some of the best. They have great traction on the bottom but not to much. Just from looking at them you can tell they are made for trails, with the tread and the upper is thicker so it keeps out sand and dirt but is still very very breathable. One of the best part of it is the wide toe box. I have had zero drop shoes before but none with the toe box quite as wide. I love it a lot. Just the way the toes can spread is great.
       Next I want to talk about the weight and  feel of the shoe. so at first when I pulled them out of the box they felt heavier then I was used to but once I started running I didn't even notice. The very feel of the shoe is  great it has just the right amount of cushion so it is great on trails. The only thing that I didn't think was necessary was the mud flap on the back of the shoe, I just thought it was extra weight. But its not, it actually works it keeps mud off you shoe. Now down to the point I think that if your a trail runner and you are looking for new shoes get these. I had to get the womens because my feet are small.

Altra Lone Peak