Tales of Trails, Mountains and Rocky Roads

I've been a competitive runner ever since I was just 10 years old and over the past 30 years or so, I've competed in countless races ranging from 800 metre track races to 100 hundred mile trail events, and more recently, a 24 hour race where one runs as far as possible in that limited time frame. Every single race has been different and every single race has meant pushing myself to my limits to get the best result I am capable of on the day. I've trained hard, I've raced hard, there have been times when I've completely surprised myself and been over the moon with my result, and there have been times when I've felt extremely disappointed and frustrated at a performance where I've felt I could have done much better. I like to think that I'm physically and mentally strong, but how do you measure that strength? Even now, after hundreds of races over the years, I am still not 100% certain about my true limits - at what point do I finally admit that I...

There's something about running at night that I can't quite put into words. I love that stillness of the night, the endless silence, where the only sounds are those of my own breathing and my footsteps hitting the trail. Occasionally, my thoughts are interupted by the hoot of an owl, the gentle barking or howling of nearby coyotes, or a rustling in the bushes of some unknown creature hidden in the darkness. I actually feel more alive as the sounds of the wild come to life, my senses becoming far more alert, far more acute. I don't feel afraid when running alone on the trails at night, not even when I hear the rustlings, not even when I'm convinced there is something watching my every move in dark as my headtorch illuminates what I think is a set of eyes hiding in the bushes as I pass by.  Then there is the night sky - that beautiful midnight blue - one of my favourite colours. Living in Phoenix, we are blessed with the most amazingly clear night skies with millions...

The Dam Good Run wasn't in my race plans for this year, but when my training schedule called for a 25k run at "best pace", the timing of it fitted perfectly and  so I found myself registering. There were a few distances on offer ranging from 2 miles up to 40km, but I was trying to stick to my schedule as closely as possible and so opted for the 26k. The race took us back to Lake Pleasant - the start venue of the Crown King Scramble - but this time, we would be running across the New Waddall Dam before joining the trails that meandered up and around the nearby hills, with amazing views of both the lake and the surrounding areas. Shores of Lake Pleasant and Start of the Dam Good Run  Although I was treating things as a training run, it wasn't meant to be easy and I was fully determined to work hard and push the pace when and if I could. I was a little concerned that my legs would still be suffering from the previous day's adventures, when a group...

The Crown King Scramble 50km was everything I expected it to be, and more. With great organisation, a tough course, outstanding scenery and lots of jolly good fun - and the fact that I finished soaking wet with sweat with salt stains across my face and all over my clothes, covered in dust and dirt from head to toe, absolutely starving and in desperate need of an ice cold beer, with tired, heavy legs but a big smile on my face - they were all sure signs of a damn good race. The race started at 6am alongside the shores of Lake Pleasant just as the sun was about to pop its head above the nearby mountains. The air was still quite cool although it was certain to warm up as the morning went along, with temperatures well in to the mid 80's expected later on in the day. The atmosphere at the start was a mixture of nervous excitement and anticipation as we all knew what lay ahead - 50km or 31 miles of uphill running, climbing from around 1500 ft at Lake Pleasant to nearly 6000 ft in...

March marked the beginning of my return to trail running and for the past couple of weeks, I've been building up for my next target race - the Crown King Scramble 50km - by getting out on the trails again and building some strength for the hills that I will encounter on the course.  Having been in Phoenix for over 6 months, I'm now far more familiar with the nearby trails and with Andy working and me not having access to a car, I find that I'm reconnecting with my trail legs at Apache Wash and the Phoenix Sonoran Desert Preserve, as well as Deem Hills. Some of these trails are pretty tough with extremely steep climbs, and whilst they may not last for much more than half a mile or so, they are very rocky which makes them far more technical and much more difficult to run up and down compared to many of the trails I've ran in the past. Deem Hills The other problem of course here in Phoenix is that these trails are desert trails - not that running in the desert...