Thelma and Louise Vacation

Well, we have been busy. Everyday has been jam packed with stuff to do. I think I last left off after my late night hike Sunday morning. So we slept in a little Sunday morning. Then we both got our massages from the best masseuse in the whole entire world, David Casper.  It was pretty painful, but my hip hasn't been too painful to walk on since. It still bothers me, but is manageable.

Then in the afternoon, we went to Mill Creek. They have a water hole that is about a 1 mile hike off the parking lot. There were 3 water crossings. The first one was kind of "aggressive" as a local put it. The next ones were pretty easy. I'd like to add my advertising spot for Keen sandals. They are the best things in the world. You can hike in them, raft in them, get them wet and they are always comfortable. The water hole was pretty cool. There were a bunch of young guys jumping from the rocks.  The water was very cold, but it was upper 90s outside so it evened out.  No, I didn't jump, I'm not stupid.  As we were coming in, one kid was getting splinted up for the hike out after he more than likely broke his ankle.



On our way back from Mill Creek, we ate at Milts.  This place has been recommended to both of us by people who travel here regularly.  I would have to say it was pretty yummy.  I had a cheeseburger and it was very good.  The tator tots were my favorite, though.  I would recommend this place to.  It’s a little off the main part of town, but it’s easy to find.

After dinner we went back to the house and laid around for a while.  Then we decided to go shopping.  We went to a place called Gear Head.  It had everything you would need for your weekend Moab adventure.  Then we hit a few more shops in town before heading back home.

On Monday, we drove up to the La Sal mountains.  They are just south of town.  You go from red sandstone desert environment, to a cooler mountainous environment just 20 minutes from town.  We took David’s 4X4 4Runner up there so we were able to take some single lane mountain roads.  The first place we stopped was called Oowah Lake.  Mountain lakes are the best.  It had a creek that ran into it. 

We hiked back to it and I was able to find a tree that was down over the quickly moving water.  Being the adventurous one, I climbed out on it and laid down.  It was so loud, yet the most peaceful thing ever.  The sky was clear and the water was cool causing the temp around me to be cool and not the sweltering heat we’ve had the past few days.  I could have laid there forever.

Then we drove to our next stop, Warner Lake.  It was a very small lake, almost more like a pond. It had a gorgeous mountain in the background.  The water was mostly still and it made for a great picture.

After driving the La Sal mountain loop, we went home and rested for just a little while before we were off on our next adventure.

That afternoon, we met up with our guides for our canyoneering trip, Dustin and Chris.  There were 10 of us in the group (originally 12, but we had a couple fall out due to the heat and have to be extracted).  We had to hike in 1 mile on the 1000 deg slick rock with no shade to get to our first repel.  We had one short crevasse jump that was pretty fun. I think I did it pretty gracefully.  When we got to our first repel, we got to share a small tree for shade.  It was awful.  We got all harnessed and helmeted up.  We got a short instruction on repelling. 

It wasn’t really that difficult.  I decided to go 2^nd because I didn’t want to stand in the heat any longer and the 90ft down in the bottom of a canyon sounded a lot better than where I was.  So I got hooked up to the safety line.  Then hooked to the repelling rope and laid back till I was sitting in my harness. It was actualy kind of hard to look down so I didn’t. It probably would have been a little scarier if I had. It was pretty easy to get down.  About half way there was a ledge where you had to walk a few feet to get to back to repelling.  He told us to keep our heels on the wall.  Guess who doesn’t listen.  I’ve watched movies where people repel.  It was much more fun my way.  I got down pretty quick.  Then I waited for Barb to come down.  She was pretty scared, but she did a great job.  After a few more came down, and our other instructor returned from the couple we lost, we walked to the next repel.  This was behind Morning Glory Arch.  We hiked to this arch last time we were there.  This one had about 30-40 ft of straight wall, then just a free repel.  The 1^st 5ft of this one was kind of uncomfortable.  Once I got to the flat wall it was better.  I felt like I saw back in my harness better.  I zipped down the wall then I was free of the wall and just hanging there.  It was a pretty neat view and I was able to turn around and look down and around.  Once I was on the ground, we hiked about 2.5 miles out of the canyon.

We stayed in for dinner that night.  That’s the benefit of staying at a house.  I had been having trouble with my phone today.  I couldn’t upload any of my Snapchat photos. I couldn’t upload anything to Instagram or Facebook.  I couldn’t even send pics in a text.  I stayed up late working on it.  I decided not to do the early morning hike that Barb and David were going to do with the members of the Sierra Club.  I just get like I had been going nonstop since we got here and I needed a break and a little alone time.

So today, Tuesday, I got up around 9am and went to breakfast at the Moab Grill. They had Wi-Fi so I was able to get some photos off my phone and backed up so I could access them if my phone continued to act up.  After breakfast, I went to give Fiona a bath.  Its her second one on this trip, but I can’t seem to get the bugs off the front bumper.  I used the heck out of the brush and got some, but I worry they will bake on in this heat.  After the wash, she needed to dry, so I decided to drive south of town.  I drove by the entrance to the La Sal mountain loop that we had taken yesterday. 

I remembered a spot where I wanted to take a pic of Fiona.  There were way more cows on the road today than yesterday so that was interesting.  I got to the pull off where I wanted to get the pic of Fiona.  I chatted with some guys from Maine who said all their friends ask them why they would come to the desert for vacation.  We all kind of looked out at the view and WE knew why.  Then I decided to drive the rest of the loop.  It was nice and curvy and the side of the road was a drop off into the mountain in spots.  It was so much fun.  It would have been more fun if the road wasn’t in such bad condition in spots that I couldn’t really get Fiona going too fast.  After the drive I headed back home.  Barb and David are still gone, so I’m so glad I didn’t do that hike.  I’ve enjoyed just sitting on the couch in the quiet and working on my blog.  Not sure when they will be back so I may be on my own for dinner tonight too.  Hmmm…where shall I go tonight?

Thelma and Louise Half Marathon

Barb and I are back in Moab for another half marathon. This time we did it as a relay.  I started the relay at 0630 hrs.  It started near the trailhead for Corona Arch.  This is the arch we hiked last year.  The race ran alone the Colorado river.  It was nice and shady for me since it was in a canyon and the sun was still behind the canyon walls.  It was still hot though.  Once the sun hit me and was pretty exhausted.  Barb and I had watched Thelma and Louise the night before the race.  During the race they had a Brad Pitt stop, with a bunch of “hot” locals.  They had a tanker truck sitting along the route along with an unoccupied Sheriff car (in the movie it was a trooper, but who beside other LEO’s knows that).  They did have some firemen hosing the runners off.  If only they could have thrown in some hot firemen (they were way too young) that would have been nice. My cut off to get to my finish and catch the boat back down the Colorado River was 1:15.  I passed Barb around my 6 mile mark.  She said they recorded her start time and just sent her at without me being there.  When I got finished (official time 1:33:42) the boat had already left.  So they told me to wait for the van that was sweeping runners that weren’t making the time limit for the half marathon.  I saw the van head my way, then turn around.  The people at the turn around station were cleaning up so I decided to help.  They gave me a ride back on their truck with a trailer, but they had to pick up cones and mile signs on the way.  So, I pitched in an helped.  There was no phone service and the volunteers didn’t carry radios so Bard had no idea where I was.  She was freaked cuz I didn’t get off the boat or the sweep van.  I eventually showed up and was able to take our baton across the finish line for a official time of 3:38:42.  We both finished and got metals.  That’s all that matters really to us.

After the race, Barb and I went back to the house and took a 2 hr nap.  Then we got up and went to Susie’s Branding Iron.  I had steak and shrimp.  I was so hungry.  Then we decided to hit the Canyonlands Rodeo.

After that, I took a midnight hike to a creek.  It was a warm night and when I got within 5 ft of the creek, the temp dropped at least 10 deg.  The best thing was there were so many stars in the sky.  I can’t even tell you the last time I saw the Milky Way.  It was so beautiful  I was able to lay there and see several shooting starts.  It was so quiet and the air was so breathable.  If it weren’t so damn hot and housing wasn’t an issue, I’d move here in a heartbeat.

So, today we both got massages.  Now we are talking about going to the same place I went last night but in the daylight.

Moab UT, Post Race

Well, Sunday came and went and I completed my first half marathon.  I didn’t set any land speed records, but at least I did it.  I spent a lot of time taking photos and video.  It was a great course and very beautiful.  I just wish there had been more shade.  The heat really sucked.  I told the people at Mile 10 aide station that they needed half naked firemen with a hose at this station hosing everyone down.  They thought it was funny, I was being serious.  I spent the rest of my vacation putting a video together.  It took forever to figure out how to get it out of Movie Maker and onto the web.  My best effort had me putting it on YouTube.  Hopefully I can share it from there.  Hopefully it will also inspire more people to do this race.  The course is amazing and I can’t even imagine running a race in the middle of a city.  This race is put on my Moab Half Marathon which hosts 4 races in a year.  The Other Half is actually their last half marathon they do.  That’s probably where they came up with the creative name.  The last race they do in December is called the Winter 10K.  It is Dec. 5th and I think Barb and I are going to come up for it also.  That is also the same time they do their city Christmas parade.  Then in March is the Canyonlands Half Marathon.  It is on a course the runs along the river in a Canyon area.  We won’t have to worry so much about the sun, but it will be March so that shouldn’t be a problem.  Then in June is the Thelma and Louise.  It runs along the area where we went on the Corona Arch hike.  It is a half marathon relay.  I will probably start the race.  The first runner has to finish their 6.55 miles within 1:15, which is about an 11:30 min mile.  Then the other runner, Barb, would retrace the course I just ran.  Barb will be shuttled to her staging area in a boat on the Colorado River.  When I am done, I will be shuttled back that same way to the finish line.  We drove the course today and it is very flat with no major hills.  It is also a gorgeous course also.  That should finish out all 4 races in 1 year.  So, since I have to save all my money and train, I will probably have no social life.  Looks like another year of being single. Here is the link to my race video. The Other Half Video

Monday, Barb and I spend the morning getting massages.  It was one of the best massages I have ever had.  The voodoo hippie wackados here can really work some magic on the ol body.  I was starting to notice a sharp pain in my foot that morning.  I am worried I got a stress fracture or pulled a tendon.  It didn’t help that during a hike Tuesday, I rolled it on a trail and probably jacked it up even more.  I guess we’ll see.  I have an appointment with my doctor when I get back Friday.  Monday afternoon we went up into Arches National Park to do a few short hikes.  We didn’t want to get to crazy, we did just run a half marathon after all.  The first hike we did was the Park Avenue Hike.  It was a short 1 mile on mostly slick rock.  The next stop was Double Arch. This was one thing I hated about being injured and sore, we had to take the short touristy hikes to see stuff.  Therefore, lots of people.  I have so many pics from this trip, I think I’m going to put a slide show together with all my pics.  Here are just a few of my favorites.  I spent so much time on the race video that I didn’t get to put a slideshow together yet.  I’ll try to blog when I get it all completed.

We were originally suppose to leave on Wednesday, but we decided to stay an extra day.  So, Tuesday we decided to do 2 longer hikes.  In the morning we did the Corona Arch and Bowtie Arch hike. It was about a 3 mile round trip hike.  Most of it was on slick rock.  There was one point on the trail where you had to  use a cable and some holes cut out in the rock to go up the rock.  Then we had to take a ladder up another short cliff.  Bowtie arch was what they call a pothole arch.  Corona Arch was more of what you think of when you think of arches in this area. The pic on the left is my favorite pic and it is Corona Arch.  The right one is Bowtie arch.  On the way back down the trail, I stepped on the rock wrong and rolled my ankle.  I have always been pretty lucky that I have flexible ankles.  All those years as a middle blocker and I never had a major ankle injury.  I was able to get up and walk around.  It was kind of painful, but I could walk on it so it couldn’t be too bad.  After lunch, we hit the Negro Bill trail. This led to Morning Glory Bridge.  I didn’t get many photos with my big camera because we went on a trail that took us to an area where we were climbing around.  Even with the sling, the camera was a pain.  So I stuffed it in my backpack.  Then it started raining on us.  It rained most of the hike up to the bridge.  I was able to get my cell phone out and take a few pics.  It was a 5 mile round trip hike.  It was done mostly in the rain and thru some poison ivy.  Luckily for Barb and I, neither of us seem to be allergic.

So, this morning, I woke up and my ankle was a mess.  I could barely walk on it. We went into town and had breakfast then I hobbled around picking up all kinds of touristy crap.  At least when we come out here the next 3 times, I won’t have to spend so much money on souvenirs.  It rained a lot while we were.  The rain would come in, then it would be sunny again.  Then clouds and rain real quick then more sun.  The weather is weird.  I decided to get Fiona out on the streets.  We went up into Arches National Park and I think I got a perfect pic with her and the scenery up there.  Then we drove the course for Canyonlands Half Marathon and Thelma and Louise.

We are headed back to Wichita tomorrow morning.

Getting Ready for Race Day

So, we made it into Moab Thursday night after a 14 hour car ride.  It is hard to travel when you are hydrating for a half marathon.  We made at least 6 potty stops.

Friday, Barb and I got up early and did a short walk.  We walked to the main street and got some coffee and went back home. After a yummy breakfast at Sweet Cravings Bakery and Bistro, we headed to Canyonlands National Park to check out some touristy sights.  I’m not a fan of the touristy stuff cuz I’d rather stay away from people when I travel, but we didn’t want any long hikes so we don’t get injured or tired.  We saw some really pretty places in the park.  It made me wish I had never sold my truck cuz there were some really great jeep roads that were mostly just off road roads, that the Tacoma could have handled.  It also gets you away from the crowds and down into the canyon to see things.  We mostly stayed up high and looked over the canyons which was really beautiful also.  You can see more photos at my public Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/lifeinfocus515.   We came back into town and got ready for dinner.  We went to this really fancy smancy place called Jeffery’s.  It is a steakhouse.  It kinda reminded me of the old Scotch and Sirloin before it moved into that big place on Kellogg.  It was a very small place.  I got a tenderloin steak which was perfect.  Of course, I got a dessert.  It was a chocolate cake that tasted like a mix between a chocolate brownie, home made hot chocolate, and chocolate mousse.  After dinner, we spent a little time walking around town before calling it a night.

Today, we went and had breakfast at the Jailhouse Café.  It is in the old courthouse and jail for the county.  Its been mostly cloudy today and it sprinkled a little bit at breakfast.  We decided to go check out the race course.  It is a little ways out of town.  They are shutting down the whole road for our race for 5 hours tomorrow.  The road is a curvy road that runs along the Colorado River.  It is going to be a beautiful run.  I may forget all about the fact that I’m injured and haven’t put in a lot of miles up to race day, cuz I’ll be distracted by the beautiful scenery.  I don’t have any cell service on the run, but I will be taking plenty of cell pics and video.  There is a 3 1/2 hour time limit on the course, so I’m gonna just give it my best shot. My hip is been bothering me all week so it doesn’t seem to be getting better with the fact that I’ve been resting it for a few days.  After we checked out the course, we went downtown to pick up our race day packets and check out the expo.  They had a lot of Other Half shirts on sale so I got  a lot of stuff for cheap.  So, I have my bib and race swag so I guess its official.  I am gonna put my phone on airplane mode tomorrow when I run so I can get as much battery out of it as I can for pics.  So, I won’t be able to get any text messages or anything while I run.  The rest of the day we are just being lazy.  We have the pasta dinner tonight with all the runners.