Another Year on the Move

Brownian motion is the presumably random movement of particles suspended in a gas or liquid.  As viewed on a map, a GPS tracing of our outings probably appears as aimless as humans in Brownian motion, acted upon by whims, wind, and gravity.  The outcome though has been fantastic.  Another year has passed (academic calender) and I have a whole new set of memories, a young happy son, and a bunch of new friends and loyal old partners.  And being July, I'm at the point where I now traditionally reflect on the great adventures and happenings of the last 12 months.

As I've already posted, Jason and I had a fun trip to Rainier at the end of June.  My 2011/12 ski season is now officially over.  Rainier made for a good finale even if things didn't turn out as planned.  I edited another budget home movie with the very little footage we were able to come away with while trying to go fast.


Mount Rainier Speed Attempt from andy dorais on Vimeo.

Finally cold in a downpour on Baldy

Last summer and fall, long adventure runs held my interest and climbing in the traditional sense fell out of favor.    Through the winter, the snow never came and I felt unsettled about the conditions until late spring.  We raced frequently and had a blast putting on our "Citizen's Series" at Brighton, which we hope to continue this coming year.  Once conditions improved, we tried to make the most of the short window and had beautiful days in the Tetons and locally.  Lately, running has again captured my imagination and long adventure runs have been the most enjoyable way to move in the mountains and I'm back to where I started last summer.

With the oppressive heat in the valley I've had four options for running.  Suck it up and go early, suck it up and run mid day, suck it up and run in the evening, or find a reprieve by going to the mountains to be blessed by their good tidings and cooler temps.

With a busy schedule and a young family, I mostly have to suck it up, but a couple times a week, I'm getting out for some really enjoyable mountain running.  Last week, I made the most of the rain and explored some single track on the northern end of Mount Timpanogos and then ran around the west side and ended up on top of Baldy (prominent foothill) in the middle of a down pour before descending to my parents house in Pleasant Grove. I also was able to sneak in a lap up Hidden Peak and a couple outings up Summit Park Peak.  

Summit Cairn on the Utah County version of Baldy

Jessie and the boy on a run up SPP.  We took turns hiking with the kid and running ahead

Then, this morning, I joined Jared, Tom, Mike, and CJ on a group solo of the West Slabs on Olympus. We traversed the ridge to the main summit, ran down the trail, and looped back on the road for a nice 11 mile "run".  

  

The above series of Tom, CJ, and Mike was taken high on the West Slabs as the fellas climbed through some nice lighting around 7:15 in the morning.  Jared was left out as he was up ahead doing his own thing. 

Tom succumbs to the pressure of the camera

So as I now turn my attention to the upcoming academic year, I look forward to the growth it will bring; personally, physically for my boy, and professionally.  At the end of this next year, my professional training will be complete, at least formally, and I look forward to more balance.  Another great hope is that I'll see many of you moving randomly through the mountains.  While our small band of core runners that comprises the Sugarhouse Track Club has still been getting out, it would be great to have some more along.  I'll post, email, and text future runs for those that are interested.