2011 year in review

Summary
2011.  Done.  Another year in the books.  While not as good of a year as 2010, I feel like I learned quite a bit about dealing with setbacks this year:  the flu and a strained calf in winter, and achilles pull in mid summer, and shin periostitus in the fall.  Altogether I managed 1799 miles in 2011  (avg 35 mpw) , significantly less that the 2334 miles I ran in 2010.  More than that one single number was the inconsistency.  I was all over the map with my weekly mileage, with no real clear periodization or string of quality weeks outside of the build in March to April to a PR at the Zurich marathon.   Looking at a histogram (not shown) of my weekly mileages, its clear I need to spend more time in the 40 and 45 mpw range, and try to do less 50-60's.

Miles per week vs date

Highlights

Quality time spent on the crest of the Jura's (overview) in the spring, including a summit of Dent de Vaulion and Mont d’Or in the Jura range in a continous biting rain in January (I am an optimist), my first Chamois, summits of My Tendre I and II, including Dent de Vaulion for a second time, and Le Suchet, and Le Chasseron covered in the blooming crocus.  La Dole was also a nice summit, but North of Mt Aubert  my attention and my routefinding went awry, and it wasn't till fall that I was finally able to connect my footsteps all the way to Creux de Van.

  

On the crest of the Jura's:  Mt Tendre in spring,

 

Creux de Van,

Le Chasseron, 

and Le Suchet.

The nice training block (4 weeks at 50 mpw) in March and April netted me a 9 min PR at the Zurich marathon.  The other road marathon I did this year wins for most festive/drunken race of the year:  Marathon de Medoc.  7000 people in costume running through the wine country of Bordeaux.  Wine at the Aid Stations, dance floor at the 40 km mark, all you can drink beer and wine at the finish line.

As spring progessed the pre-Alps and Alps begain to open up and I had a chance to get to know Moleson over the course of three summits of Moleson (I, II, and III), .  I enjoyed pretty much all time I spend in this range, including Col de Lys and Col de Soladier.

Moleson and me from the summit of Teyschaux

The Moleson Teyschaux ridgeline

On the way up Col de Lys

Col de Lys and Dent de Lys from Col de Soladier area

The summits and climbs of Valais featured very heavily in my summer weekends, my first Boquetin sighting on the summit of Cornettes de Bise was memorable.  The incredible climbs  (numbers crunched here) out the valley floor of the Swiss canton of Valais were on the order of 5000 ft in 5 mi (ex. Pas de Lovenex).

Cornettes de Bise - Garmin says:  22 mi with 8560 ft of vertical.  ~ 16% grade average.  

The highlight of the year was a return to where it all  all started to marry my beautiful wife on Dimple Hill during the Mac 50km.  April and I also did some nice hikes around Col de Barbarine, Lac d'Emmoson and summited Pic Chausy and Le Pare, and circumnavigated Mt St Helens with Frank and Ken in Fall.

Married at the Mac, on Dimple Hill

 

Pic Chausy

Le Pare

 

April on the blast zone around Mt St Helens on the Llewitt trail

Mt St Helens circumnavigation

Despite the achilles pull I suffered halfway through, Verbier St Bernard was a very enjoyable race.  It had a relatively small and social field, the climb up Val Ferret over into Italy and back to Grand St Bernard pass was amazingly beautiful.  I've now been to Italy twice, both time running there and back from Switzerland.  The highlight of this course was easily the mother, two daughters and cat that were course marshalling in the town below.  The time I spend in the Val Ferret on this course was enough to justify a return to tag La Dotse, this place is beautiful.




Lowest Lac de Ferret

 

Le Dranse at the headwaters of the Val Ferrett

Lowlights

Injuries.  Flu in January followed by a strained calf on what would otherwise be a routine summit of Bald Hill which took until March to fully heal, and dealing with shin splints throughout the fall.  I have to admit that I am not completely enamored with European trail racing culture.  The conga line overcrowding that characterizes races such as Swiss Alpin 50m just doesn't appeal to me at all.  It's like paying to get stuck in traffic.  The atmosphere, even in the middle of the pack, is so serious.  No one seems to talk, and the races are dominated ~90+% by men.  UTMB was similarily crowded (and overhyped).  Trail quality at Trail de Faverges was an absolute joke.  Think of switchbacks as a banked turn in a waterslide park and you get the idea of the amount of work that goes in to trail maintenance in the part of the world.  

Outside of the races themselves was the context.  I love wilderness.  I love the idea that there are places in the world where humans do not dominate, and I think theses are very important.  I never saw anything remotely wild in the time I spent in Switzerland.  Cows cover the entire crest of the Jura mountains, and are similarily ubiqutious in the Alps, and somehow this gets passed of as natural beauty.  According to my European friends its really nice to stop in the middle of a hike to eat a restaurant.  I couldn't disagree more (full post here).  

Prognosis

In retrospect the shin periostitus I suffered in the fall was not something to be ignored.  It eventually resulted in a switch from the 'mile' to 'km' option at Javelina Jundred, which is an amazingly beautiful and fun course.  Frustration with managing half my desired weekly mileage was enough to encourage me to take almost 2 full months off of running, and I am optimistic about getting back to it.  A trial run last week up Iron Mtn outside of San Diego, CA went well enough to return my thoughts this years plan:  Burning River in late July or Georgia Jewel in September.  It's too early to sign up for anything.  I'm planning to start at 5, yes 5, miles per week, and add 5 more every month.  This will leave me with enough 50 mpw to build nice fitness before either race, but requires a good deal of creativity until then.  Yoga, a return to road cycling for my first century, and a bit of a home gym should keep my occupied.  What I really miss about running at the moment is that day to day consistency.  I found it nicely on the  Le Flon route this year.  What I'm aiming for a very consistent, not over eager, slow build back to running fitness over the entire first half of 2012.  If I can get some races in great, otherwise patience is key.

Building an (internet) running base

Time heals all wounds so they say, but I've always viewed extended breaks from running with disdain.  I haven't really needed or taken one since I started running consistently in 2008, but I have also not dealt with shin splints on the level at which I incurred this year.  In the 2 months prior to Javelina Jundred (km) I olny managed a dissapointing half of my preferred weekly miles (25 mpw vs 50 mpw).  To really heal this up for the 2012 year I've been taking time off from running, 3 weeks so far, and 1-3 more weeks expected.  I'm apprehensive about how those first steps will feel when I get back to it.  If my shin still hurts I will have to add another month off and then reassess.  The long term goal is to toe the line at Burning River in late July in the best shape I've been, and make an attempt at a sub-24 finish.  I haven't decided fully on this race though, there are some other ones in the Midwest that look interesting, including Mohican, but if the injury takes longer to heal than I currently expect I will also look at Georgia Jewel in late September, or Ozark/Pinhoti in early November.

Saturday afternoon bike ride in December?  Yes, please.

Having said all that I am not actually frustrated with so much time not running.  It feels like an investment in the 2012 running season, and I've found plenty to do between yoga, crossfit (3x per week now), spin and road cycling.  Since the road cyling around here is so pleasant, I'm also looking at trying my first century (road cycling 100m)  next fall.  It's something thats been on my five year plan for at least a few years.    Trail running still appeals to me far more than anything else so I have of course been keeping up on my internet running by following yesterdays race in Marin and making up a calendar of races to look at.  I'm patiently excited for 2012.

Three Saturdays worth of rides in the country outside of Bloomington

JJ 100 (km) race report

Somehow I managed to muddle my way through the Javelina 100 (km) race last weekend despite an almost complete lack of training.  The course, the volunteers and the organization were amazing at this event.  It was really a spectacle.  Camping the night before at the start line, we were awakened numerous times the calls of coyotes.  I was really excited to spend the entire day in the desert.

After 1/2 hour of running in the dark, the sunrise did not dissapoint.  The scenery was amazing in the morning light and somehow my shins were not hurting.  As an aside, if I ran this race again I would not carry a headlamp to begin with, if it's not cloudy out there will be plenty of moonlight.  I felt good on the first lap, the rocky section up was fun, the rollers even more fun, and I managed a good constant tempo back down the slightly boring double track no the way back in.  On lap 2 I saw a giant tarantula on the dirt road and struck up a number of interesting conversations which made the time go by quickly.  Starting lap three I felt absolutely great, I was excited by my 'time bank', always a dangerous notion, but I quickly began to  fatigue, in my hip flexors especially.  As the lap wore on my overall run/walk balance listed dangerously towards the latter.  I muddled my way through a good chunk of lap 4 before sunset.  I never ran another step after it got dark.  Ugh.  I get so tired after sunset, I am not sure why, but the same thing happened to me at Western States last year when I zombie-walked my way down all of Cal St.  No matter, I finished  my first 100m that day because that is what I set out to do, and I was in good shape to do.  I did not feel like walking the last 50 mi this race, so I called it quits after the 5th lap.  For me there was no point to walking in the 100 mi, when I was perfectly happy to have finished the 100km.  

It was fun, it was a great race and (before the sun set) I enjoyed myself thoroughly.  Since its raining cats and dogs here in Bloomington IN today, I put together a few plots illustrating my day.  Many people took the 100km option, probably half of all drops occurred here.  Darkness and the onset of rain were probably important factors. 

Fig 1:  Attrition rate vs lap number.  Each lap is 15 mi, except the 7th, which is 10 mi.  Attrition rate is defined by percentage of people finishing each lap (click to enlarge).

Fig 2:  Cumulative time at 100km binned by time.  All runners are considered, whether they ran 100km or 100m.  I ran a 14:28, putting me right in the middle of pack (full results here).  The 14:28 is a 1 hr PR over my only other 100km time at Waldo 2010.

I got much slower with every lap, presumably due to my poor training.  Why was my training poor?  Shin splints.  I battled with them for about 2 months this spring, but they went away and I was feeling great for months all summer, including when I signed up for race.  Then they came back, with a vengeance.  I ran ~25 miles per week for about 2 months before the race, except for the week I ran around Mt St Helens.  It just wasn't enough.  Alternatively, my tapering was fantastic, and my shins did not hurt all race.  The long and the short of it is a prescribed 1 month off of running.  I'm at the 1 week mark right now, its not so bad, not so great either, but I am keeping busy with yoga, lifting, swimming, spin class and road cycling.  It's a great way to see the country side and I might have to finally do a century ride next summer.   

Fig 3:  My lap time vs lap number.  Lap 5 = zombie walk  (click to enlarge)

Race-wise, I'm not sure if I'll be doing a 100 miler next year.  I've considered Burning River in late July, but I really enjoy the 50 mi distance.  It's easily my favorite.  I'm mulling all this about in my head as I ponder what 2012 will be like.  What I do know, is that 2010 was a great season of running because of the successful buildup to WS100.  I was strong and consistent all Spring, and I toed the line at WS in the best health I've ever been.  Ideally my 2012 season will consist of the same, with the emphasis on consistency and injury free running, even if my mileage is a bit reduced.  I'd like to experience that 'best shape I've ever been in' feeling again, and that's why I'm taking a month off to heal this nagging injury.  Internet running and 2012 planning will have to suffice for a bit.   

Jogging in the Jura: an overview

Jogging in the Jura:  An overview

Summary

Easily accesible from the major cities on the Western Swiss Plateau, Geneva, Yverdon, Neuchatel and Biel/Bienne, the Jura mountains form a natural border between Switzerland and France.  I spent the last year living in Lausanne, and over the course of 6 months or so managed to run the southern half (or 2/3) of Jura mountain range in Switzerland considerably.  If you are looking for information on a distance hike or run in this area I hope you might find this post useful.  My intention is to give you some good quick ideas about quality distance routes in the Jura:  which features are really nice, and which parts are forgettable.  

 

I’ve organized this post as follows:  a short summary (and link to) of specific routes, from South to North, with recommendations for shorter hikes or longer distance connections where appropriate.  I’ve also made notes about nice climbs, routes which traverse the crest,  and routes I haven’t done but would add next.  The route information given below and in linked posts is skewed towards getting to/from trailheads from Lausanne via the train, but people with cars and those who live or vacation in Geneva, Nyon, Yverdon-les-Bains and Neuchatel will also find useful information here.

When to go

The best time to head to Jura crest is just after the snow melts and just before the cows go up.  In 2011 this was April/May.  The weather on the crest can be downright nasty in winter (La Brevine currently holds the record for coldest temperature in CH).  Don't go up in January unless you are particulary desperate. The smell and ubiquity of the cows can be even nastier.  Think crocus.  If you see crocus out in numbers on the crest it’s the right time.  

  

Additional resources

You can print maps from here.  Make sure to check the sections and local trail tab.  Train schedules here.  In terms of additional equipment … It’s Switzerland, you’ll never be more than 10 minutes away from a barn, house or restaurant, and all the trails are really well signed. 

An overview of the routes described below (click to enlarge)  

An overview of the routes described below (click to enlarge)

Specific sections:  South to North

La Dole from St Cergue (post)

La Dole is a worthy day trip from Geneva, and St Cergue always seems to have a nice happy vibe to it.  The radar ball on top and shear rock face near the summit of La Dole make it easy to spot even from Lausanne.  There is a very nice unforested section near the top, but the route to/from St Cergue is characterized by cow pastures and roads.  It’s lacking in quality single track, but the climb up from La Rippe near the CH/FR border is not.  I would do that again.  Be sure to take in the amazing rock fences just to the south of the summit of La Dole.  I never did get a chance to head south from here.  It looks mostly unforested, and I believe Crete de la Niege is the highest peak in the Jura.  The only problem is that it most likely has to be done as an out and back, since navigating public transportation across the CH/FR border would be a hassle.

  

St Cergue, Col de Marchairuz, Crete de la Nueve, Mont de Biere, Mt Tendre (post)

Mt Tendre is a really nice destination from the Col de Marchairuz.  Actually, in between the two, the Monts de Biere area is one of my favorite places in the Jura, make sure to summit these minor peaks on your way to or from Mt Tendre.  The Southern half of this route, from St Cergue to Col de Marchairuz including Crete de la Neuve, is largely forested, fairly subdued, and not recommended compared to the Northern half of the route from Col de Marchairuz to Mt Tendre.  I climbed up to the crest from the Swiss plateau starting from Biere and starting from Montricher.  They were both nice, but the climb from Biere skirts a shooting range and includes more paved roads.     

Mt Tendre, Col de Mollendruz, Haut de Mollendruz, and Dent de Vaulion to Vallorbe (post)

North of Mt Tendre the Jura Crest trail returns to more dirt double track.  It’s not bad, not great, just sort of ‘meh’.  Things can get a bit confusing around the Col/Haut de Mollendruz, but the climb up the Dent de Vaulion (from Le Pont area) is a true Jura classic.  It’s mostly unforested and the views of Lac de Joux are unparalleled.  

  

Dent de Vaulion and Mont d’Or from Vallorbe (post)

In contrast to the Southern approach from Le Pont, the northern approach to the summit of Dent de Vaulion from Vallorbe is controversial at best.  The lower half is a maze of logging roads, and on the single track quality on the upper half of the climb is poor.  It’s mostly forested and sometimes feels like game trails, despite the ubiquitous blazes and rocks and trees.  The climb up Mont d’Or from Vallorbe also suffers from a surfeit of paved roads on the lower half, but gradually opens up to pasture near the summit.   Near the top is a metal can painted with Swiss colors on one side and French colors on the other.  How cool is it to cross this border on foot?

Vallorbe to Le Suchet, Mont de Baulmes, Ste Croixe and Le Chasseron (post)

The approach of Le Suchet from Vallorbe is long, boring and mostly paved.  If I wasn’t out the connect all my footsteps I wouldn’t have done this, and having done it wouldn’t do it again.  Vallorbe is a really quick train ride from Lausanne though.  Anyways the summit of Le Suchet is nice, and the area around Mont de Baulmes into Ste Croixe is one of the nicest parts of the Jura Crest.  I’ve gone up Mont de Baulmes on the Aigulles ridge itself (just OK, not actual singletrack so much as a suggested unconstructed route) and on the high quality singletrack which climbs up and over the ridge halfway down.  Take the latter, from there there are multiple ways to drop into Sainte-Croix, all of which are pretty nice.  Sainte-Croixe also has a nice atmosphere to it.  I like it there.

The climb North up Le Chasseron from Sainte-Croix is a classic.  There is a huge section of this trail which is unforested on the ridge.  You’ll love it.

  

Mt Aubert area (post) 

While the first few miles North of Le Chasseron are largely unforested and make for nice running, north of this the Crest dips down and the becomes a jumble of paved and dirt roads with no clear direction.  It’s really easy to get lost around the Mt Aubert area, and not a particularly nice area to be lost in.

Creux de Van to Neuchatel (post)

The switchbacks up to Creux de Van from Noirague are worth your time.  Nicely constructed, well used, and seemingly maintained, there is good reason this climb is so popular.  The Jura crest in this area is incredibly scenic.  Go there.  

I never did make it up to Le Chasseral, Tete de Ran or Mt Racine, but these would have been my next destinations, had I not returned to the US.  Surely I've missed quite a few local routes.  If you have suggestions regarding this area please leave them below.

 

Mt St Helens circumnavigation / Loowit Trail

There are giant volcanoes in the Pacific Northwest.  You can run around them.  Since Volcanorunning has a pretty good writeup of the logisitics and I'm feeling lazy, I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Mt St Helens circumnavigation on the Loowit trail - 10/15/2011.  Garmin says ~31 miles, but it runs a lot slower.  I think we (me an my wife April,  Frank and Ken were a bit faster) managed about 11 hrs.  It's a fantastic run, very accessible from PDX for out of town runners as well.  This one was awesome!

Frank and Ken navigate the lava rocks at dawn.  We started at 6 am with an hour climb through the forest by headlamp. 

A new day dawns in the WA Cascades

The first part of the trail (clockwise circumnavigation on the Loowit trail) alternated between islands of firs and large coarse lava rocks

Is Mt St Helens still on the right?  Then you are not lost.

April, Frank, and Ken navigate the lava fields.

Climbing out of the Toutle River valley was one of the highlights

Toutle River valley

This years fresh crop of Douglas Fir cones on the branch.  Really makes me miss the fresh hop beers of the PNW

April climbs up out of the Toutle Valley

The money shot.  Mt St Helens from the North.  The 1980 eruption came down this way.  Here is a nice aerial view.

April in the blast zone

Up and over Windy ridge and off the Plains of Abraham

April smells the barn

Yep.  You can run around Adams too.

The last portion of the route (4 to 5 o'clock) goes up and down a series of deep lava valleys.

More Adams

Aid Station on the way back in. 

Moleson and Me pt III: Leaving Switzerland

My time in Lausanne Switzerland is drawing to an end.  As I’m happily moving on to another postdoc in Southern Indiana I find myself trying to wrap my head around the running experiences I’ve had in the past year.  Thus it that for my final weekend mountain run I found myself on top of Moleson, heartrate over 190, gasping for breath, exalted in the beauty of what I’ve decided to be my favorite local mountain.

Moleson and Me

The places we run carry connotations defined by the emotions we bring to them, and experiences we've had on previous trips.  I spent the spring training for the Zurich marathon.  I probably only missed 2-3 weekends in the mountains in favor of long road runs along Lake Geneva but I’m actually not a road runner at all.  In April the mountains finally opened up and I summitted Moleson with the promise of a long and prosperous summer mountain running in the air.  My body was slowly awakening from the slumber of a cold and dark winter spent between a far too small studio apartment and a packed subway train.  I enjoyed to ridgeline so much I returned a week later to show my friends. 

The classic Moleson Teyschaux ridgline

Given that I had only 1 year to explore my surroundings I spent the rest of summer weekends all over Western Switzerland (Suisse Romande, the French speaking part).  The Jura’s, which form the border with France, the Valaisan alps, Cornettes de Bise, the Val Ferret, Les Diablerets, Rochers de Naye, Col de Lys, Pic Chaussy, the list goes on an on.  Ultimately it’s hard to not draw a comparison between the Swiss mountains and the mountains of my home, the American West.  The two could not possibly be more different in terms of our (humans) relationship with them.

Approaching Moleson from the North

I never found anything remotely resembling a wilderness in Switzerland.  In fact many of mountains here have restaurants at the top, which can be reached in the comfort of a gondola.  There are cows EVERYWHERE.  Essentially the entire crest of the Jura mountain range is cow pasture.  I grew up on the Pacific Crest Trail.  Not literally, but actually, yes literally.  I hiked days upon end entering and exiting one wilderness after another.  Wilderness is the most important idea in the world, not tax cuts for the rich, not medical care reform, food aid to Africa, Saudia Arabian women behind the wheel of a car, Greece’s financial obligations to the EU, or the rise of China. 

Descending Moleson's eastern switchbacks

The concept was invented in America, literally.  In the 1800s, it was essentially invented as an idea and then a state institution by a Scottish immigrant named John Muir to whom we owe so much of our legacy.  The American Wilderness Act was passed into law in 1964.  It reads

“A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his own works dominate the landscape, is hereby recognized as an area where the earth and community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.”

Amazing.  In the American West it’s almost by default that we accept the idea of a wilderness.  It’s our legacy.  In Switzerland, at least as far as I can tell after an entire year’s worth of weekends running in the mountains, wilderness does not exist at all whatsoever.  One is never more than a kilometer from the nearest restaurant, furnicular train, cow, or electric fence.  Nature has ceased to exist outside of the scope of human economic enterprise.  The mountain meadows have been grazed so long that ‘pasture’ has simply replaced the word and meaning of ‘meadow’.  The physical effects are obvious and ubiquitous.  But what works beneath the surface is insidious and dangerous.  Nature has taken on a different meaning for many Europeans.  On a continent where the idea of wilderness has for the most part been lost for many many generations, ‘nature’ has come to encompass agricultural and pastoral activity, simply because there is no other alternative.  I could go on about this forever, but actually I prefer to think instead about what and incredible idea we have back in the American West.  Wilderness.  A healthy relationship with our mountains.  Thank you John Muir.   

The SouthEastern approach from Les Paccots

Garmin says 3900 ft of vertical in 13.8 miles.  The final pitch up to Teyschaux's summit (red track in front left) was at 42% grade (1180 ft in 0.53 mi).

The detritus of years worth of weekends spent in the mountains of Western Switzerland.