Flagstaff Loopy Trail

While I advertised running part of the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Flagstaff Half Marathon course, 11 runners unanimously agreed to run the Flagstaff Loop Trail. None were disappointed.

Neil proudly dons his new Boston Stand as One Tee!

I posted live on Facebook if anyone could guess who wears this tattoo. We had such guesses as Robert Plant and Rob Zombie. Well, at least one Facebook follower got it right (yes, you will have to go check for yourself!)

As we headed up the urban trail, I posted a shot on Facebook of everyone's least favorite hill going up Observatory Mesa. This is the hill runners face at the beginning of both the Sacred Mountain Prayer Run 10K and the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Flagstaff Half Marathon. I am hoping to hear creative names for this hill and not the many expletives that I've called it over the 28 years that I've been trying to reduce the grade.

What do you call this hill?

Once at the well hidden loop trail turn off, we caught our breath and re-grouped. It was then onto the fabulous single track that criss-crosses observatory mesa. Once we descended back to the Karen Cooper Trail, Neil proved that he still had some game left in his legs. His dead sprint of course was to take the NATRA money/pin up shots of the week.

 

 

As we returned to Thorpe Park everyone's motors slowed. We then hit the kickstand for refreshments and stories of future adventures, such as Bruce's trip to Nepal. What a day! Meet at 7:45 AM next Saturday at Mountainaire Tavern and bring a brunch potluck item. We will run Kelly Canyon and drive back to David McKees for post-run brunch!

An Elevationally Challenged Chuck Wagon

Six runners (Tzeidle, Marcy, Garret, John, Bruce, and David) and one dog traveled down the mountain for the final Sedona run of the season on the Chuckwagon-Gunslinger loop.ChuckWagonGunslingerLoop On the map, it appears that there is little elevation change on this trail -- but that is misleading. The hills are many -- just not big enough to show up on a topo map! There is only a difference of about 200 feet in elevation from the high point to the low point but there is over 800 feet of total elevation gain/loss along this trail.

Afterwards, we went to Indian Gardens Cafe/Garlands in Oak Creek Canyon to enjoy breakfast, coffee, cider, and other goodies.  (Thanks to David Blanchard for the post)

Fisher Point Pin Ups

 

On a picture perfect morning, only five NATRA runners made it out to Fisher Point. We ran by last week's wild fire that was adjacent to the trail. While completely cold, we enjoyed the smell of the freshly burned forest floor. No doubt grasses will begin to thrive shortly.

 

As we neared the dreadful climb up to Fisher Point, I wondered if I'd be able to weenie out the ascent again but when all agreed to make the climb, I caved into peer pressure, and it was well worth the view! 

 

With Keith and Tony shedding their shirts, I again caved into peer pressure and Tzeidle took the April men of NATRA calendar pin up! 

 

With legs dragging, we all successfully made it out of Sandy Canyon completely exhausted. Thankfully Tony agreed to reenergize our day with his Seasoned Kitchen coffees where we ran into Chris and Tobin - a perfect way to start the day!

Hangover IV (In Production)

Nine NATRA runners and two dogs took on a new Forest Service system of trails in the Schnebly Hill area. This was by far the hardest 8 miles ever, feeling more like 12 miles See David Blanchard's GPS Track. Not only was it hot and dry, but the death defying narrow single track kept everyone on edge.

As we neared the slickrock saddle of the "mitten," we ran into David and Susan, who we had to thank for finding out about the run. Once into the saddle and headed down towards Schnebly Hill road, we felt like aliens had beamed us to Moab, engulfed by slickrock. The run had about 800 ft of elevation gain, yet somehow, both directions seemed uphill!  At about mile 6.5, Neil's legs gave out and he hailed a subaru cab ride back down.

This run easily had the best scenery of any Sedona trail. On the return, the tourists and jeeps had awoken, a small price to pay for another picture perfect run in Sedona. Back at the vehicles and everyone dehydrated and out of water, we returned for a nice shady break at Indian Gardens. Aly convinced Neil that dry hard apple cider was the perfect revitalizing beverage and she was spot on!  Once recovered from the heat, we returned to a blustery Flagstaff where the winds of change were bginning to blow.  

Sandy Seep Ressurection

 

Though I often hesitate to call this run due to the usual unrelenting winds and heat, and that Rhiannon always begged me to leave it off the calendar, not to mention the heart pounding uphill run on what is basically beach sand, we resurrected the Sandy Seep run.

 

 

Thankfully, the March winds were absent as was the usual searing sun. The gray overcast saturated Mount Elden's highly eroded landscape. As I was sharing my vivid thoughts with the group, some asked what I had put in my cereal. Well folks, it was simply yogurt, granola, and a vanilla gel shot. Something was in the air and runners were particularly chatty.

 

 

We spent more time on breaks discussing our favorite "Easter" movies than we spent running! Quite a few History of the World and Life of Brian references were made. The return run was fast and furious with few speaking words on the steep downhill. What a day!

Wet Beaver Creek Roaring Run

 

12 NATRA runners, Dylan and Bodie enjoyed a beautiful spring run up Wet Beaver Creek with the sounds of the thundering creek echoing through the canyon. When we arrived at the Fort Tuthill meet spot, we noticed a rather brisk chill in the air and we could not get to Beaver Creek soon enough! We spied purple, yellow, and red blooming flowers, a wonderful ode to early Spring.

 

While there was much talk about folks making the infamous jump, the stiff cold breeze at the "crack" deterred anyone from taking the plunge! We had a nice tailwind pushing us downhill and back to the trailhead. A perfect way to beat the cold Flagstaff winds of March. All returned to Flagstaff and hit the Campus Coffee Bean to warm up.



Making of Lap the Leprechaun

When the Mayan Apocalypse Run to End All Runs brought out a record number of runners to a NATRA group run, I wondered how we could keep the momentum building. My pal Mike, a co-conspirator in the MARTEAR, thought we could set our next sights on Saint Patrick's Day. When Mike said he found our Leprechaun (Marc Potter), it was game on, the Lap the Leprechaun 5K.

 

 

In addition to the dozens of formal foot races that benefit our local non-profits, we now have quite a line up of colorful Flagstaff running events that are free to all and very, very family friendly. 

We now have a free running event for every season. Beginning with our new Lap the Lepreachaun run which is on the heels of Spring, we also have our annual Independence Day 4 on the 4th, where kids are given headstarts. In the fall we celebrate Thanksgiving with the Turkey Predictor Run where watchless participants have to guess the time it takes them to run a loop in Buffalo Park. Finally, while the Mayan Apocalypse Run was a one time event, it also occurred on the Winter Solstice, which is what we will now turn into a tradition, since no asteroids hit Buffalo Park.

 

What makes these runs even more special is that all are free with the only suggested donation of cans for our local food banks. Folks have been more than generous and we have collected hundreds of pounds of food during these events.

 

The Lap the Leprechaun 5K proved every bit as successful as the near end of the world run. While we did not garner the world wide viral attention on Facebook, we still had our second largest group run with 50 participants dressed in green. As one participant noted, we had the "Largest Leprechaun ever" with Marc Potter relishing his role of getting lapped. Potter dressed in his Guinness hat, Leprechaun robe, and carrying a staff, graciously allowed all runners to lap him. Of course no Saint Patrick's Day celebration would be complete without a trip downtown where many runners refueled at the Zane Gray Ball Room!