Monarch of the Wasatch

summitpost pic I was too busy slogging through snow and mud to care about pics

Thought I would get one more trail summit in before the snow hits.  Ben Lomond has a great 14.6 mile trail that I have been itching to time trial on.  Started run at 3:20 p.m. The first few miles I was stoked that I was able to keep running non-stop all the uphill.... then I hit the mud and snow, and more mud and snow. My mile pace slowed drastically.  By the summit I was post holing through so much crust my ankles began to bleed.  At that point the game changed to make it to the top, not speed. I topped out in 1:53 hrs.  No goats to behold, but enjoyed 60 seconds of an awesome sunset.  Then more heinous post holing off the summit then slogged for miles through slush and mud. Of course I forgot my headlamp and pounded the last 4 miles in the pitch pitch dark. Good confidence builder to finish despite the poor conditions; night running with no light is a great test of mountain instincts. Finished in around 3:20 hrs, didn't really care at that point just glad to be done. Overall great run, but should have done it 3 weeks ago. Fox in Headlights, Wendy's Frosty, Home, Steak, NPR election coverage, bed..

summitpost pic