Steamboat and More

Ran Steamboat a few weeks back. The 15k version. Fun race that loops twice up some nice hills through Glen Oak Park and finishes at the 4 mile finish. First time running it since 2003. As is typical, race morning was hot, humid, didn't carry a bottle but drank at every aid station.

Had for me what was a good race. 1:23:14, 8:57 pace, that's good for uh....347th out of 591 total runners.

My 2002 time was 1:18:16 in cooler conditions.

2003 was 1:18:36.

This indicates I'm not quite back to the kind of shape I want to be in, but progressing nicely.

I'm planning on running the Jubillee Trail 6 mile this weekend, the first in a series of trail runs organized by Dave Tapp.

Goals after that are up in the air. Maybe a fall marathon or 50k as yet to be determined. Moose Mtn. isn't happening in lieu of a trip to Tennessee. And then, all efforts go towards McNaughton Park 50 in the spring.

More Colorado: Pics are forthcoming. I'm lazy.

I will add that our slower hikes up into the park were productive, and we were actually able to identify lots of wildflowers in the foothills around Boulder and Highlands Ranch, the Montane environment of the trails at Grand Lake, and the higher subalpine and alpine of RMNP and Evans.

Here is what we saw: Lanceleaf Chiming Bells (like the bluebells of spring in Illinois), Wild Blue Flax (abundant), Blue Columbine, Showy Daisy (one of my favorites, member of the Aster family), Wild Geranium, Purple Fringe, Scarlet Paintbrush, Fairy Primrose (vibrant pink, another favorite), Wild Rose, Porter Aster, Pussytoes, Yarrow, Rocky Mountain Loco, Heartlead Arnica, Old Man of the Mountain (sunflower), Snow Buttercup, Alpine Avens, and Yellow Stonecrop.

I'm sure there were more, but those are the positive ID's.