Sunset Trail and Fungi hunting

A lovely morning and not too shabby a turn out for a busy weekend in Flag considering most are either climbing the mountain to conquer cancer or are off at Trans Rockies. Even still Neil, David M., Kate, Craig, Glen, Kara, Joel and Randi found their way up Schultz Road on a gorgeous August morning. As soon as I bolted out behind Joel, I spied several Caesar Amanitas and a number of other large gilled mushrooms and knew right away, this run would be short-lived for me. As I noticed my first King Bolete, I stopped in my tracks (conveniently the hill ahead would have taken care of my forward motion, but we will say it was one of the largest, finest edible mushrooms that did me in). Once finding the prized King, I was on my hunt for more. Hitting the switchbacks of Sunset proved fruitful. With one hand holding on to 3 prized gems, I decided, running was too dangerous. Right then, I caught up to Summer Series runner Peter Price. When his hiking partner saw me barely able to hold my mushrooms, she pointed out that in England, collectors used "skirts". She then showed me how to pull up my running tank and use it as a skirt to hold the mushrooms. Well, didn't quite work out for me and I still had one free hand for more mushrooms. The return did not disappoint. As I went downhill, I had missed a bunch of monster boletes near the Sunset Trailhead.



As I approached the parking lot all loop runners had returned and I showed off my finds. David and I returned home, melted some butter and had some of the most delicious boletes I've ever eaten. Next week's run, Kendrick Mountain. Mushrooms will be plentiful there!

Big Brothers Big Sisters Half Marathon Run/Walk/5K

The 33rd Annual Big Brothers Big Sisters Half Marathon had a record number of finishers and an outstanding 40 runners who completed the Half Marathon walk! Congrats to all. Feel free to comment on the race on this page. The race director is happy to receive all comments so that we can continue to improve the race!

Mountain Man Triathalon Flagging

Had a chance to help flag traffic for athletes at the Mountain Man Triathalon. Congrats to Soulstice Mountain Trail Race co-founder Paul Brinkmann who finished his first Half Ironman Race!!!! It was a great day to cheer friends on the course and help with another of Flagstaff's outstanding race events!

Machine Solutions Soldiers Trail Race

Runners embraced the rain at today's Machine Solutions 10 and 5K runs. Jared Scott out-kicked Billy Orman in the closest race I've ever seen in Flagstaff. They rounded the final stretch stride for stride when Jared's toe was the first body part across the line. Sara Wagner ran away with the women's title. Enthusiastic volunteers kept the race lively and despite the torrential downpours and river and mud crossings, runners reveled in the madness all the way to the finish line!!!

NATRA/FBO Arizona Trail Day

The rains came early and often, and as I arrived at our annual NATRA/Flagstaff Biking sponsored Arizona Trail Close the Gap Trail Construction day, water was rushing down Forest Road 164B. As my Honda Civic wound around the rocks and mud, I arrived at base camp where Gary and Gay called in the towel. 72 volunteers had signed up for the weekend with some from as far away as Oklahoma. While spirts were dampened, we still enjoyed Late For the Trail Coffee and held the NATRA raffle with lots of Soulstice/Flagstaff Urban Trail System giveaways. Aaron suggested that while we would not be working on trail, volunteers could assist with efforts protecting homes in the Schultz Fire area, and many headed that way. There is still one more Arizona Trail work weekend coming up August 28th-29th, so hopefully this section will get completed! Contact sghohner@cox.net to reserve your spot today!

In other news, thanks to Steve Rhode, NATRA has made its appearance on the Great Wall of China! Thanks Steve!

Rhi's Last Hurrah....Arizona Trail, Walnut Canyon

A beautiful morning for 12 runners on the Arizona Trail from Walnut Canyon north to I-40. The day started off cloudy and damp, a fitting weather pattern for Rhiannon's last NATRA group run as she and Tim are headed to Portland, Oregon! Once we raffled off some great FUTS caps, shirts and bandanas, we hit the trail. Right off the bat, we scared a large herd of about 20 elk. As we descended from the old growth tall ponderosa pine stands to the lower pinyons and junipers, we were overpowered by the sweet scent of cliffrose. Our view of the Peaks in the open grassland was marred by the blackness of the Schultz Fire. Feeling strong running downhill, I ran a bit too fast and on the uphill return my legs decided to rebel against forward motion. David Mckee made the return walk less painful as his jokes distracted me from the hurt in my legs. Back at the trailhead we returned to the Seasoned Kitchen where Tony whipped up his finest coffees for all.

Schultz Creek

A remarkable turn out of 25 runners on a sultry, stifling humid morning. Prior to running, we held a quick raffle for Flagstaff Urban Trail caps, shirts and bandanas. We will continue to celebrate the 50th mile of FUTS with raffle giveaways at the next two runs. As a result of the heavy rains of Friday, the trail was in perfect condition. The wild flowers were spectacular with more columbines than I can ever remember. Even more amazing was that most of the runners completed the entire loop! At the top of the Lincoln Logs the water was flowing and it felt like we were in a rain forest! Once the sun broke through the clouds, the temperature quickly heated up and by the last half of the run, Schultz Creek trail was nearly bone dry. We all returned to Late For the Train and filled up the outside benches.