View of the La Sal Mountains from the highway.
Halladay.
Locale for the prerace meeting.
Briefing.
Looks like Halladay has a question.
Campsite.
Race prep at the campground.
At the start on Saturday morning; about 5:50am.
After a few miles on the rocky Pack Creek road; the trail narrowed into some pleasant singletrack.
One of a million sweet aspen groves.
First light
After we popped out of the Pack Creek Canyon, we were treated to some nice views of the La Sals.
Morning in Moab
After the singletrack, we briefly ascended to the first aid station at around mile 9+.
After the AS, we headed down another FS road for a while...
The course presented a number of challenging obstacles.
The singletrack en route to Squaw Springs.
Sunny aspens
The only lodgings available in Moab for the weekend.
Shades of autumn
Squaw Springs aid station. They found me hilarious.
From there, we remained on singletrack, topping out atop Boren Mesa before heading down to Oowah Lake. A great section.
Looking back on the climb up to the Mesa.
Boren Mesa: My favorite Boren outside of Oklahoma.
Heading down to Oowah Lake, Chris Gerber from the Boulder area motored by.
I am fast!
Oowah (ooh-ah) Lake. Mile 17.5ish.
Me at the lake (Gerber photo)
Gerber: Leadville Stud
Gerber's brother; admiring the aspen. Chris would ride all the way back to the Front Range in that Honda after the race. Now that is real toughness.
The long climb to Geyser Pass.
This disrupted my 6 minute mile pace.
Photo by Moab Glamour Shots.
Some cyclists.
Sarah Palin supported this bridge before she opposed it.
Nearing the apex of the climb.
This pretty much sums up the morning. Moab is the the real Aspen - but no Gucci store.
Being a cow here seems pretty sweet. Until a bear eats you.
Geyser Pass. Elevation 10,500. About 21 miles in.
These aspens were quaking; trust me.
Looking back toward Gerber. Soon he would be long gone.
Burro Pass is near the photo's center.
Burro Pass; Elevation 11,180; the course high point
Looking back from the pass
I followed the Trail Trail from the Pass
Heading down some amazing singletrack toward Warner Lake
The section featured a number of easy water crossings
And, believe it or not; more aspens
Nearing the lake
Warner Lake; note the storm just beyond
The aid station; around mile 26
The trail headed over Miner's Pass and then into Miner's Basin; this is the last substantial climb
A harsh thunderstorm raged; complete with hail, which hurt my delicate head and made me shiver
Slogging up the soggy mountain...
Here I am listening to the Ipod. Vanilla Ice claims that "his style" is like a "chemical spill."
Nearing the Pass, after the rains had largely abated
The Pass; Elevation 10,800 feet
Part of the USFS snowmobile reduction program.
Unlikely speakeasy; Gerber built on his legend by downing a beer for the second year in a row. I ate two saltines.
Heading down toward the La Sal Loop Road.
We passed by the recent fire
The road. Yuck.
Burn zone
Redrock views
Off the road and down the popular Kokopelli trail for several miles...
Another burn shot. Ouch.
Sad goodbye to the mountains as we begin the slickrock part of the race. :(
See?
Mile 36 aid station. I stayed loyal to my saltines diet. The lowland heat (7200 ft) was starting to bother me.
Turnoff onto the Porcupine Trail
Rocky Road
Passing a lot of 4-wheel drive vehicles made me feel fast.
Final aid station; around mile 42, elevation 6440.
The rest of the race followed the torture highway. After being in the cool alpine terrain all day, it was uncomfortably hot.
The finish!
The bustle of the finish area.
My best Wilson impression. Like Wilson, I have mixed feelings about Tom Hanks too.
