Holcomb Valley 33

The Holcomb Valley 33 Mile Trail Run is a great local race put on by my neighbor Tom Speigle of Team Big Bear. This race is in it's 17th year and has a long history of being a stellar run. Being in my backyard I have been itching to get to the start line and after pulling out last year due to a bum knee and running all winter with the thoughts of this race in my mind I was ready on race day.

The course heads up the Cougar Crest trail in the first couple of miles and while I knew the best plan was to take it easy and save for the other 30 miles when the gun went off that plan went out the window. I ran with the eventual overall winner Guillaume Calmettes for the first 6 miles and was definitely pushing my comfort limits. At the top of Delmar Mountain rd I was passed by two guys from the wave behind me. It was at this point that I told myself to just settle down and run my own race. I had a goal of going sub 5 hours and knew that would take some consistent running to achieve.

This long stretch of PCT all the way to Holcomb Valley Road was supposed to be the bread and butter part of the race for me. At least that is how I imagined it. Instead it was a tough battle to stay cool and keep moving. I wasn't running with a watch so had no idea how my time was but I didn't get passed during this long section which was a good sign. As I approached the aid station at the end of the PCT I spotted 3rd place in front of me. At the aid station it was pretty obvious he was having a rough go. It was HOT! I took some cold water and dumped some ice on the head and then started up the hill back towards the finish.

I expected this hill to be rough. Its hot. You have already ran 20+ miles to get there. And there is no shade. Suprisingly I felt pretty good on the way up and before I knew it I was on more level ground and running fast. The next aid station gave me a big boost when they said that 2nd was not too far in front of me and fading. I grabbed some watermelon and cold fluids and was off. I was pretty determined to keep my podium spot at this point and the thought of moving into 2nd was a real possibility. Approaching the next aid station at mile 27.5 I spotted 2nd place and he was in the same shape as the previous guy. A quick hello and goodby and I was off and running toward the finish.

The last few miles were a blast. It was the first time I have ever been able to run hard for more than 20 miles or so and not feel really beat up during the end. All the running this past winter was paying off!

I crossed the finish line at Meadows Edge in 4 hours and 57 minutes in 2nd place overall! Definitely one of my best races to date. It was definitely the decision to hold back at mile 8 that let me finish strong on a hotter than normal day in Big Bear. I'll be back next year for sure...hopefully for the win.

Xterra Snow Valley and the Dirty Double

Xterra Snow Valley is a great weekend of races put on just down the road from Big Bear Lake near Running Springs, CA. The weekend would consist of an off road triathlon on Saturday and a half marathon trail run on Sunday. This combo is called the Dirty Double and makes for one hell of a weekend.

This wasn't the first time I had been to Xterra Snow Valley. Check out the report from the 2010 Triathlon here! My how time flies...

Points Triathlon Report - 1500 m swim, 21 mile bike, 10 trail run

Swim: 16min 53sec
Bike: 1hr 20min
Run: 45min 51sec

2 hr 23 minutes - 18th Overall

Surprisingly similar to my experience here in 2010, except a little longer. The swim started things off pretty rough considering I haven't been in the water but a couple of time since Ironman last August. I started to overheat in my wet suit and had to turn over and let water in a few times to cool down. The water was nice and things spread out pretty quickly and I settled into a decent rhythm on the second lap and then it was on to the bike.

I love riding mountain bikes, but have always just been damn slow at it. I went pretty hard on each lap of the bike. I new my buddy Paul Romero was behind me in the water and he's a great biker, so was trying to stay in front of him. He caught me on the descent on the last of the 3 laps which wasn't too bad I thought. The bike was tons of fun. Uphill was double track giving plenty of room to pass, or be passed, and then some seriously fast downhill. There was a bit of carnage on the course as it seemed plenty of folks were in over their head on the bike. While I'm not to strong on the bike I have no problem going downhill fast so it was a lot of fun.

On to the run and I knew this was going to be a tough run. It is basically up and down some steep ski slopes. Running in any sort of rhythym is pretty much impossible. But its so much fun. Some portions have you running off trail in and out of these little water gullies. Another section is one of the steepest hills I have ever ran up. I like the tough run and felt good for most of the 10k. There is plenty of aid and I'm a big fan of coming back to the finish area and then having to go out for another lap.

Overall I had a ton of fun and was in good spirits for the next days half marathon!

Half Marathon Report - 13.1 mile trail run

1hr 44min - 5th Overall

Woke up Sunday and felt pretty good. Got a good warm up in and was ready to run. The race starts with a very cool 1k lap where you get to run back through the start with all the spectators and 10k runners creating a nice scene. After this 1k lap you do two 6 mile laps of a pretty fun course. While it's not the biggest hill ever, the trail goes up pretty good for the first half of the loop. Although very runnable I could feel the triathlon effort in my legs and running up hill was harder than normal. I tried to keep up with the first two guys but they were off pretty quickly. Near the top of the first hill I got passed by another two guys and couldn't hang on to their pace for more than a few hundred yards.

From this point on I settled into a rhythm in 5th place and was pretty much alone for the remainder of the race. Coming through the start/finish for the last lap was a lot of fun, and then it was back to up hills and dead legs for another 45 minutes. I felt pretty good other than having tired legs and its hard to not have fun running in the mountains with a bunch of other people. Very cool race. My buddy Scott Hoffman was there and got this great shot of me running!

After the race it was back over to the Snow Valley side of the hwy for a veggie burger and a beer and the awards. Overall winner went 1hr 31 in his first trail race ever setting a new course record, very impressive. I managed to post the fastest combined times for the points tri on Saturday and half marathon on Sunday earning me the Dirty Double Award. How cool! I was pretty pumped for this award and am already making plans to go back next year and defend. Nothing like taking home a little hardware after a great weekend!

San Gorgonio Run

At 11,502' San Gorgonio is the highest peak in Southern California. You have to say "southern" California because once you go north a bit this would barley be a bump. It's a great mountain to have basically in our backyard up here in Big Bear. I've done overnights on the summit and at dry lake and snowshoed to the top in the winter and hunkered down in 60+ mph. This year I have been able to run to the summit and back to the car a couple of times. Here is the most recent run.


Total round trip time of 3hr and 50min was pretty good. I started around 5:30pm and made it to the summit in just under 2hr30 minutes taking the trail from South Fork via Dry Lake to the top. A few minutes on top to eat something and snap this pic.

And then it was down the Dollar Lake trail as the sun set over the Pacific Ocean just in the distance. Running the first few miles along the ridge on top of San G as the sun set with nobody around was a very special moment. These rare times can really remind me just why I love to run so much, because of the places it can take me and the moments I can find along the way. The more I run, and the further I go, the more of these moments I find. Its amazing.

The run to the car was fun as it turned dark. Getting down from the top in 1hr 20min involves some booking and is a lot of fun. I think, given ideal conditions and fresh legs, and no time on top, I might be able to go car to car in under 3hr 34 min, the current FKT held by Paul Romero and Karen Lundgren. They took the north slope gully to the top, but I think the dollar lake trail as and out and back has potential to be the fastest way to go. We'll see, I am planning a FKT attempt for this fall!

I got engaged...check it out!

back and running with SPOT

It's been a while since I have visited this site...and even longer since the last post.

I've got new motivation now that I have recently been gifted a SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger and hopefully will be able to keep up with some regular posting on this site! Stay tuned.