12/13/2010: Shannon's Trail from CMRC to the summit of Crotched. Then Upper Link, Summit Trail West, Lower Link and back on Shannon's. Actually it seems that Shannon's Trail is closed right now but a new "accessible" trail called the Gregg Trail will take you to the top of the knoll where you can pick up an unmarked Shannon's Trail. The sign says it is closed to blueberry restoration. Either way it was a fun loop. Even if I left from Crotched Mountain Town Forrest I would rarther ascend Crotched by lower link than Summit West or Summit East. More things to think about: Going straight when I reach what I thought was the intersection of the Bennington Trail and Shannon's trail, a longer loop starting at CMTF and going Link, Summit West, Lower Link, Shannon's, Upper Link, Summit East, Link. 1:12, 4.5 miles , 1200' vert.
12/14/2010: Skatutakee and Thumb Mountain loop; Hariskat, Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down Trails. A little more than an inch of snow covered the ground and flurries were falling backlit by a bright sun and blue skies between the dark clouds. Quite good running! I might be able to trail run this winter afterall. I will try screws in my shoes soon. We'll see how that goes. 1:07, 4.5 miles, 850' vert.
12/17/2010: McCabe Forrest behind the house. Stream was flooded with amazingly huge ice formations so I had to go out to the road and use the 202 entrance. It was cool running by the river again. Tested out new screws in the soles. Not enough ice/snow to really tell but at least the screws didn't jab into my feet. :30, 2.2 miles, 100' vert.
Weekly Summary; 11.7 miles, 2150' vert.
I read in Ultrarunning about putting screws in the soles of shoes to act as studs in icy and snowy conditions and was intrigued by the idea. I found sheet metal screws at the local hardware store for $3.99 for box of 175 screws. Sized 3/8" number 6 sheet metal screws, hex head they seemed a little long but actually installed well (a somewhat time consuming process). Now all I have to do is play with the pattern until I find a good balance of quantity to grip. In rereading the article it recommends about 8 or 9 per shoe. I have somewhere near 20. Might need to pare it down a little.
I signed up for the Wasatch 100 lottery this week as well. I think I stand a much better chance of making it into this one than either Western States or Hardrock. Also, it will be held in September so I will have ample time to train for it. I am crossing my fingers.
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