I’m woken by the violent buzzing of Nick’s alarm. He has his phone set to the “old phone” ringtone, which in my 4am stupor feels like a minor explosion to my head.
The strident sound is accompanied by his phone vibrating on the plastic lining of my truck bed and an abrupt sit-up from Nick to end the aggression. I comment in a not-so-zen manner about the onslaught, to which Nick replies in his usual matter-of-fact way: “Well, we have to get up.”
Answering Jeff’s Question:
“Why do we bother doing this?” In the last 5,000 foot climb of the Ouray 50 mile run, Jeff Stephens, my pacer, asked me this question. It was two o’clock in the morning and we had just embarked on the final ten miles of the race. “There is no grand enlightenment waiting at the end so what is it that attracts us to this?” he continued.
Photo By: Fred Marmsater.
Initially, when I had planned to write this post, I thought that I would be discussing how to make a smooth transition from a winter of skiing to getting back to summer running. After a little more thought, it turns out that this transition has given me a greater insight into how multi sport mental toughness is the key to staying strong, both mentally and physically, while training and competing in more than one sport.
This Friday, July 15, SCARPA athlete Joe Grant will toe the start line of one of the toughest trail running races on the planet, the Hardrock 100. Traversing 100 miles with over 33,000 feet of ascent, the Hardrock challenges runners in the rugged and beautiful peaks of Southwest Colorado. Because many of you might get the bug to take on your first big race or mountain objective this summer, we asked Joe to give some insight into the training required to push your limits on the trail. And if a big day is on the agenda, we’ve got the award winning alpine running shoes to get it done.
Joe Grant snaps a spring selfie while running in the Indian Peaks of Colorado.
In the mountains, running has evolved. Throw in technical trails, a few thousand vertical feet, a little scrambling, and an activity humans have done for both survival and sport for millennia takes on a whole new dimension. Now infused with elements of climbing, peak-bagging, and route-finding, running has become one of the more incredible ways to explore the mountains. And it was with the goal of building product for efficient movement in rugged terrain that SCARPA completely redesigned its running shoes for 2016. Two years in the making, the SCARPA alpine running line is more functional and effective than it’s ever been. From light-and-fast ascents to the after-work jog on the local trails, these shoes get you moving. The new line is comprised of four models, the Proton and Proton GTX, two deep-lugged shoes for long, but fast days with bigger loads, the Neutron, an all-purpose trainer ready to take on anything, and the Atom, a minimalist, low drop race shoe. And so far the response has been even better than we could have hoped for. Learn more about what the media has to say about SCARPA’s brand-new line of running shoes below.
Jari Hiatt running the 403 Trail, Washington Gulch, Crested Butte, Colorado.
Like it or not, the leaves are changing, the temps are dropping, and summer is slipping away. That’s not all bad though because though we lose the warmth of summer we gain the jaw-dropping beauty of fall. From golden aspens to waves of orange and red tundra grass, there’s a lot to love about this season, especially if you’re a trail runner. We asked four of our trail athletes about their favorite spots to stretch their legs as the season changes. Time to lace up those sneakers and hit the trail.
Aspen Groves on McClure Pass, Colorado.
Spring is about transition: cold to warm, snow to dirt, and winter activities to summer activities. It’s a transition of muscle usage as well. Often fitness gains from winter activities can transfer well. But after several months of low mileage, it’s important to be smart about your first few trail running sessions. We asked to SCARPA Athlete Jeremy Duncan share his secrets that will help you pull your SCARPA trail runners back out of the closet and get back into the groove. Learn more about the brand new SCARPA alpine running shoes here.
Jeremy Duncan trains in the Roaring Fork Valley, Colorao.
Andy and Jason Dorais are accomplished ski mountaineers, known for flying up mountains in the Wasatch Mountains. But now that the ski season is slowing down, the two have been running trails. Andy told us a story on how they came to love running and their recent trip to the Paria River.
For so many people running is a chore. And although it was like that for us once, now running equals freedom and fun. It can be painful, but it’s always gratifying after the fact. How did we change running from monotonous drudgery to something fun we do nearly every day? Read on.
Based in Anchorage, Alaska, Matt and Agnes Hage take pride in producing authentic photography for outdoor brands around the world. This time, they took off to Baja California, Mexico for some adventurous trail running with some rad shoes.
Having lived my entire life in Alaska, I’d never really gotten to know snakes. But, as I learned, there’s something primordial embedded in my DNA that kicks in during a snake encounter.
There’s a niche in your training program for a great pair of trail runners – whether you’re dedicated to the sport or just using the single track as a transition-season training tool. But, like any outdoor endeavor, there are different ways to approach trail running, and different styles of doing it.
For Spring 2014, SCARPA introduces three new shoes that help create its most well-rounded trail-running program yet. Building on the success of its award-winning Spark, SCARPA has created a family of complimentary shoes for your trail running adventures. Meet the Ignite, Ion and TRU.
