I did a trail run today that was a long overdue: the infamous Dipsea trail, all the way from our house to Stinson Beach. While it was only around 9 miles or so in total distance, I'd hazard to guess that it was in the vicinity of 2500 feet of climbing in total, if not more. Suffice to say, it was gnarly. Coupled with the 85 degree temperature, it left me a whimpering mess.
For all of you who are unfamiliar with the Dipsea, of Marin's hundreds of trails, it is probably the most famous. It is the home of the Dipsea trail race, which is the second oldest run in America after the Boston Marathon. The Dipsea is also widely considered the first ever trail race. Hit the link if you have a moment; there's a lot of history to the Dipsea.
The other thing about the Dipsea, is that it is a freaking monster. I went from my house and dropped down to Muir Woods, and picked up the trail by a river crossing (see the plank of wood you have to run across to get to the other side). From there, it's a steady climb for about 1.5 miles. It levels off for about a half mile and then it reaches Cardiac Hill, one of the most legendary hills in all of trail running. Cardiac goes on for an eternity, and takes you through grassy meadows and into primary Redwoods. If I wasn't suffering so badly, I'd probably say that it's the most beautiful trail I've ever hiked/ran (note: wasn't feeling great today, so my ascent included a lot of power hiking). Once you hit the peak of cardiac, you exit woods and are greeted with a stunning, panoramic view of the Pacific, that is not to be believed.
You then jump on single track and follow it for another mile or two until you reach Steep Ravine, which is a monster descent (kind of an oxymoron, I know). After going downhill for upwards (or should I say downwards -- noted in the pictures of the steps) the trail levels off and it's another three miles or so of singletrack to downtown Stinson Beach. I was greeted at my "finish" line by The Wife and the kids (noted in picture) and we ended up having a picnic lunch and three hours at the Beach.
The last photo is of the kid's in my neighbors "car" which he is preparing to take to Burning Man next month. California, baby.
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The Wife suggested I bury my Tour rantings at the bottom of these posts, so that's what I will do.
Man, now THAT was a stage. One of the better stages I have seen in a long, long while.
If any of you are still here with me, check out my commentary from last night; I NAILED my predictions.
I said to watch out for Rasmussen, Mayo and Valverde and that is EXACTLY how they finished. I might not know much but I do know my cycling. Good for Rasmussen; he's the skinniest dude I have ever seen -- and I include myself -- and I simply do not know how he manages to power himself up those mountains. He deserves to wear Yellow but any talk of him making the podium is way too premature.
I thought that the second group -- Valverde, mayo, Moreau, Kashekin et al, *really* blew it. For the life of me I could not figure out why the were constantly attacking one another and not working together, especially as it was clear that Vino was hurting badly. If they were smarter, they could have taken huge chunks of time out of him and ended his GC changes. Instead, he's still in the game. Kudo's to Kloden, who really won my respect by holding back and helping Vino through the final kilometers. I thought for sure he was going to leave him and go on the attack, but he stood by his captain.
I am still not sure what to make of Levi; he's having a very enigmatic tour. I suspect he was slightly off his game, but he marked Vino and Kloden well and didn't seem to be exerting a lot of energy. Though he ended up putting about 30 seconds into Vino, I was hoping to see more of an attack on the final climb. I think that would have truly demoralized the Astana boys. I suspect, however, that Levi is rounding into good shape. I can't wait to see what he'll do in the Pyrenees next week.
The real revelation of the day was Disco's Alberto Contador. I cannot express how impressed I was: that boy can flat out accelerate up hills. He suffered a flat in the final 4k's and still took eighth. If not for the flat, I think he would have come in second or third. The only think that mystified me a little was with Contador and Popo up front and on the attack. Levi was left alone. I am curious as to what Johan was thinking.
Anyway, an epic day of racing. Tomorrow is a rest and then one more stage in the Alps. Watch for a monster Vino attack on Tuesday to show the field that he's still alive and kicking.
6 comments:
looks like a fun Sunday run! really just the beach part looked fun and the rest sounded gnarly! and yeah the wife was correct , and thanks for the easy way to skip the tour stuff, since i am not a cycling enthusiast. but your blog, your subject! good times!
oh and wow on the neighbors "car"!
Just catching up. Congrats to you and your mother-in-law. Also, saw my first iPhone in the wild and was impressed, so enjoy it. Lastly, anyway to put yout Tour stuff even lower down? Like on some french guy's blog or something?
The high school crew and I were away this weekend. We rented a beautiful cabin up in the Catskill Mountains. Excellent time! Sort of a "Silbo's East". Of course, I played the part of Johnny Drama and cooked up a storm. Anyway, the point of this is that Anderman and I were all psyched to go for a run when he realized that he accidentally packed two left sneakers. I wasn't about to pass up the bucolic mountain jog, so I headed off solo. Suffice it to say I got totally lost on these confusing mountain dirt roads and ended up running WAY, WAY more than I had signed up for. I started to get a little anxious so I flagged down a blue pickup truck and asked to be rescued. Thankfully no "Deliverance" music was playing in this guys truck so I jumped in the back and I was driven safely down to the lake where I met up with the rest of the crew. It's now two days later and I can barely walk.
Everyone sends their regards and Cheri has received a clean bill of health post her second surgery/RAI.
I think Levi was off. Lance would not have finished like that, he would have noted that Vino was weak and driven a stake into him. I think Johan is keeping options open with Contador and Levi for a podium finish. I think he has doubts about Levi - me too.
One thing about Contador, it's unclear whether he will be able to stay strong all the way to Paris. He's only 25, he doesn't have much experience, so he may blow up by the end.
Besides Rasmussen, Moreau was impressive to me. He kept attacking and was the only leader who actually showed leadership.
Nice run on the Dipsea, next time I'm there we'll have to do that at night.
I hope you don't think that after my surgery I am suppose to jog and do 9 miles. I will keep it in mind though...I will just do my walking in the Adirondack mountains. I am so glad that you were up to it. Just don't go overboard.
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