Arizona Trail along Walnut Canyon

17 folks ran the Arizona trail on a blustery Saturday morning. Newcomers Mike, Joel, Jennifer, Jillian, and Melissa joined Bob, Don, Rhiannon, Eric, Janie, Mackenzie, Neil, David, Tony, Jut, Bruce, and Sara as they jumped over downed trees, battled the gale force head winds and climbed in and out of a side drainage of Walnut Canyon. The winds did not seem to slow Annika and Skylar. The downside of the outbound winds meant a return tail wind to push them home. Afterwards all headed to the Seasoned Kitchen and Tony's cranberry muffins, Chai Tea and made to order coffee drinks! Download today's photos

Margs Draw to Broken Arrow to Chicken Point

Christopher, Jenny, Neil, Eric, Janie, Daniel, Gayle (going long from I-40 down Schnebly Hill Road), Mackenzie, Amber, Noreen, Rhiannon and Tim ran Marg's Draw to Chicken Point. Gnocchi, Sklar and Soren dogged the run. Along the way they made the usual wrong turn and added a mile to the run. Later, they ran into more jeep tours than ever as tourist season in Sedona is hitting its peak. Spring surely seems to have sprung today as the temperature quickly heated up during the run. After 2 hours of running in the heat, all Tim could say was, "Running is stupid". We then all huddled around the shade at New Frontiers and enjoyed iced drinks, the scene a far cry from the chilly runs of late. This was the last Sedona run until next November.
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NATRA meets Earth Marathoner Kanpei!

Mark, Neil, Rhiannon and Sara met up with Earth Marathoner Kanpei on Route 66 late this afternoon! He was so quick we had enough time to take a few snap shots and then could barely keep up as he heard there was ice cream at the Woody Mountain Store! But seriously, what a remarkable feat that Kanpei is accomplishing! Kudos to Kanpei! We wish you luck on your journey!

Jim Thompson Trail

Seven runners, three dogs, four walkers, and Cameron escaped a blustery winter morning in Flagstaff to enjoy the spring climate of Sedona, 3000 ft down the hill! Thanks to David Blanchard and the Running Bob for providing photos of the run. Download photos from the run.

Earth Marathoner in Flagstaff!!!

Japanese comedian and ultra-marathon runner Hazama Kanpei is on a
challenge to run and sail, non-stop, around the world.
Kanpei has already covered more than 14000 km, from Japan and 70 days
across the Pacific by yacht, and today is day 109 of his journey,
He's currently running across Arizona, and he is due to arrive in
Flagstaff in the next couple of days. You can find out more about Earth Marathon at the Supporters Club website, where there are daily photos, videos and maps.

Fort Valley Trail System

Kristen, Jenny, Neil, Tobin, Peter, Bruce, David, McKenzie (and Annika), Chris and Tobin (Josie and Wyatt), Amber (Soren), and Dave ran up and up and up the Fort Valley Trail system until they finally hit the pipeline. Starting out the crew spied an Earth First petroglyph in the cement footing at the gate. In all the years of running, no one had ever noticed this. We figured, well, when the gate is open, we don't go by the footing, and when the gate is closed, it is covered by snow. Always something new to see! Once we hit the trail, we ran into biker friends Jackie and CJ out for a morning ride from Cheshire. We had several stream (snow melt) crossings and ran through the Fort Valley restoration treatments which have provided great views of the Peaks! Afterwards we returned to Tony's seasoned kitchen for coffee and that was when the real fun began. Amber had to drop Soren off at home so the guys tried to figure out how to use the coffee machine. Thanks to Dave's heroic efforts, the group had strong espressos by the time Amber returned. Thanks again to Tony for providing us a great place to hang out! !Download run photos.

I Heart Huckaby Trail!

Thanks to Bruce Higgins we have the following post and photos!

It was a beautiful day in the Sedona environs as Susan, Steve, Pam, Mckenzie, Jason, Elizabeth, Dean, David, Dave, Bruce, newcomer Brett (lately of Vermont and a pastry chef lookign for work), and, of course, Annika ran this short, but hilly route. The verbena and blackfoot daisys were in full bloom as spring has come!Download today's photos.