On Monday, March 22nd, I started a week-long trail running challenge with Aravaipa Virtual to gain as much vert as possible! The following post chronicles Day 1 of the journey.
Monday morning came, and I knew where I was headed. I’d fallen in love with a particular trail up to a cute little peak in the McDowell Mountains, and I’ve enjoyed a training season of at least one lap up and down per week.
While I didn’t know much else about the week, this would be my starting place – that I knew.
So, this morning I headed up there, and wow, was it a fun climb!
I know that’s not the usual attitude with climbing. Climbing burns. The vert can hurt.
But on this day – a sunny yet cool AZ spring morning – I felt like I was floating.
I moved with ease up the 1,000 ft ascent to the peak. I wasn’t pushing the pace by any means. I was just enjoying a combination of hiking and slow jogging up the mountain.
All-the-while, that floating sensation lighting my heart up.
It lasted all the way to the peak, at which I stopped for a moment to soak in the familiar yet still magical views (the city of Phoenix on one side, the 4 Peaks and Superstition Wildernesses on the other).
A moment to soak in the good feels.
Then I was heading back down the other side. I took the trail down almost all the way to the trailhead. At that point it looked like it was flattening out. Since I was here for vert, I felt no need to do those extra miles and was happy to turn around and head back up.
I felt gravity more on the second climb, plus the Arizona sun was starting to bake. Still, I made the next 1,000 foot climb to the peak for a second time, a smile on my face the whole journey.
After stopping for a second peak selfie, it was all downhill, and I could simply enjoy as my legs carried me down the several miles to my car.
Then it was time to go home and refuel, relax, and work.
The highlight of the morning’s run was the ease at which I felt I was moving up the mountain.
Feeling like you’re floating uphill is fun, but the best part is that there’s a certain joy that goes along with finding some success after putting in the work.
It takes a lot of work to get to a point that any level of uphill can feel easy, and feeling that pay off is something to be enjoyed fully.
Now, understand that hard work is one piece, and in this case, putting in the miles and elevation week after week is certainly classified as hard work.
But it’s not all about hard work – it’s about being smart and strategic:
How can I put in enough time on the trails while also allowing my body to recover?
That’s what I love most about ultra running – it’s a complex, multi-faceted challenge – one in which there are always more pieces that you can look at, think critically about, and try to strategize.
Hard work is one piece.
So is time off. And so is fueling your body, stretching your muscles, and tending to inflammation or other signs of injury.
The list goes on and on.
I had put in the hard work, and then I had rested and recovered last week. Returning to the trails today, I enjoyed the outcome of that combination.
And I made sure to enjoy it while I had it, because I know that as the week goes on, my muscles will fatigue and the climbs will keep coming – many steeper than the trail I chose today. And as that unfolds, the grind will set in.
I felt the grind on my second trip out that day. It also didn’t help that it was a solid 2.5 miles of very little elevation gain until I got to the true destination: Bell Pass.
Isn’t it funny how one’s mindset changes everything? Often times, it’s the pass which we dread. We know that steep and long uphill is coming and we don’t look forward to it.
This time was different.
It took about an hour of running before I actually hit the steep uphill to the pass. I had a constant thought pattern arising filled with annoyance over all these miles.
But the thing about this challenge – for me at least – is to enjoy the full experience. So, alothough the goal-oriented self was peeved over inefficiencies, I did by best to notice those thoughts, recognize them for what they were (just thoughts), and continue looking forward at the beautiful McDowell Mountains that were mine to enjoy in this perfect AZ spring weather.
After about an hour, the trail started pointing upwards. And, before I knew it, I had arrived at the destination. What was the true destination, you ask?
Well, sometimes life isn’t so subtle.
This was perfect. Here’s where I could gain some elevation. So that’s what I did – time for a few hill repeats!
By this point I certainly was not floating. The burn was real as I pushed uphill. But not too much of a burn, as this was only day one.
By the 5th or 6th repeat, the sun had begun to set, which was my cue to start covering the three miles back to my car.
The journey back was fun but long as I took care with each step. The trails in the McDowells can be incredibly rocky, and I’ve learned the harsh repercussions of that more than once.
The setting sun made for a beautiful trip, changing colors by the minute until finally sinking below the horizon as I spotted my car.
I was tired and ready for dinner. I also really needed a shower and was ready for an early bedtime.
Then, I’d get up and do it all over again tomorrow.
