A Long Time Coming with McCoy in the Mountains

For years now Joe McCoy and I have conjured up ideas about the kind of adventures we could happen upon in the mountains. Ever since discovering that we shared similar passions for the outdoors, the mountains and adventuring, we hooped it was only a matter of time before we could finally get away and bring those ideas to life. Well, we were finally able to capitalize on all those years of scheming and dreaming and what a whirlwind of adventure we were able to embark upon.

From Denver to Buena Vista, then up into the "hills"

Late Thursday evening (the 26th) I picked McCoy up from Denver International Airport on the far east side of Denver. We had a solid three hour drive ahead of us and after a quick bite to eat at a Qudoba on the west side, we jumped on HWY 285 and headed south and west towards Buena Vista. It had been 6 months since we had last seen each other and over a year since we had last really had time to talk for an extended amount of time, so we spent the better part of three hours catching up.

Once we arrived in Buena Vista we navigated our way west of the town and into the mountains. The trailhead we were aiming for was the N. Cottonwood trailhead. The road accessing the trail was dirt/gravel, but it wasn't that rough and we made good time. We pulled into the parking lot a little after 11:00 PM and quickly went about finding a place to pitch the tent for the night. It didn't take long to get the tent up, get our pads and bags in the tent and lay down for the night. Even with our pent up excitement, we were out pretty quickly.

We were in no rush in the morning since our destination for the day was only 4 miles away. This was my first time using my new pack, the Aether 70, so I held up our departure a little bit in trying to figure out, on the fly, the best way to pack all of my stuff into it. As I was packing, McCoy noticed a prickly critter wandering away from the car. It was a rocky mountain porcupine, and a good sized one at that! By the time I got my camera out he was lumbering away and I was only able to get a picture from the back. We finally packed up and got organized around 8:30 and were ready to hit the trail.

We hiked along at a quick, but comfortable, pace, often stopping to take in the scenery along the creek. It was a cool morning and made for great hiking weather. We finally ran into some unavoidable snow around 11,000 ft. Although unavoidable and soft, it really posed no problem and we continued to trek towards the lake. We knew we were getting close as the topography began to flatten out and the ground began to become almost marsh-like. Right around two hours since leaving the trailhead we were treated with the lake and the beautiful cirque surrounding it.

First view of the mountains which lay in wait

Kroenke Lake and the surrounding cirque greet us

There was one other group (a couple and their dog) already at the lake and contemplating making a push for the summit of Yale, but with the clouds rolling in a little bit they decided against that course of action. They were, at the time, occupying a campsite at the head of the lake and so we began circumnavigating the lake looking for another good spot. We wanted to give them some space and we wanted some space to ourselves as well. The snow around the lake was evidence for how much snow had been laying there during the height of the snow-pack. There were areas, in the shade, which still held over 5 feet of snow! After circling the lake entirely, we settled on a nice campsite at the southwest corner. We promptly set up camp and took a nice little nap.

After our nap we set about exploring the area. We wanted to scout out our route for the next morning and our attempt to gain the summit of Mt. Yale. We soon discovered that the trail we thought would take us to the base of the ridge we wanted to ascend was often blocked by substantial snow fields. Thus, we decided just to make our own route up in hopes of staying as dry as possible. During our reconnaissance mission, we found ourselves on the cliffs above the lake and that afforded us a spectacular view down into the cirque.

High above Kroenke Lake

Our next order of business was gathering some firewood. We had decided that it was a necessity to jump into Kroenke Lake, and since the lake was cold (very cold!), the ambient air temperature was cool, and the winds were fairly stiff, having a fire ready was also a necessity. Looking back at the video (see below), a few things are evident:

Are we really going to do this?

1. Both excitement and nerves came into play 
2. This little foray proves that we are still boys at heart: this is evidenced by my stupid comment right before we jump, "...this is what men do..." Really, men? More like dumb boys!
3. McCoy's leap/ dive into the water is MUCH more graceful than mine!

The process of warming up was helped immensely by the space blankets McCoy had and the nice fire we had built. Once we were sufficiently warm, we set about preparing dinner and then winding down for the night. It was quite windy and that made any attempt to sit around the fire and enjoy the evening somewhat futile. Plus, we knew we were facing an early start to the morning and a pretty tough, off-trail, hike to the summit of Yale. We doused the fire and were in bed by 9:00. 

Some examples of the snow fields we crossed (lower right)

We were up and at 'em a little after 4. We prepared our day-packs and were heading towards Mt. Yale around 4:50 AM. We made quick work of the route in the beginning. Much to our hiking pleasure, the snow fields had frozen during the night and this made our path to the base of the ridge much more direct. Both of us felt much stronger in the early morning hours than we anticipated. Our only source of consternation was the wind and clouds Fortunately, the clouds were not of the thunderstorm variety but they were shrouding the peak and obstructing our view. Even with these low hanging clouds, the rising of the sun was a great thing to behold. We stopped about halfway up the ascent of the steep slopes to gain the ridge so we could snap some pics.

Over or around?...ok, around...oops!

Once we reached the ridge, we had to make a decision. We could either follow the ridge direct, which would take us to about 13,500 feet in elevation but then back down a few hundred feet, or we could skirt the point ahead and attempt to stay at a level elevation of 13,200, which would hopefully connect us back up to the ridge proper. We decided on the latter option. I won't say that it was a mistake, but it ended up being the tougher of the two options. All in all, however, we continued to make good time. The clouds continued to come in and out around us. Fortunately when things would clear we were able to get some good pictures to the south. 

 A nice scramble over the hump

As we continued to make steady progress up the ridge and towards the summit, there were a few other times we had to make a similar decision as before: up and over, or around? There was one spot in particular which looked like a nice little scramble so we decided to go up and over. This is when we realized that the low hanging clouds and the low temperatures were yielding slightly icy conditions. Fortunately there is very little exposure on Mt. Yale and we felt very comfortable pressing on. We soon had the summit in our sights and although we had met one other person who had come up from the other side of the ridge, we had yet to see anyone else and when we gained the summit, we had it to ourselves. Over the past 19 years I have experienced a range of weather conditions on 14er summits, and while this definitely wasn't the most miserable I had ever felt (that prize goes to Mt. Elbert, 1999. Right, dad?) I am pretty sure it was the coldest. The watch read 30 degrees and if I were a betting man I would say the winds were a sustained 30-40 MPH with 50 MPH gusts. According to NOAA, that creates a balmy wind chill of 15 degrees! 

Throwback to my most miserable 14er summit.

My coldest 14er summit to date, and 40 MPH winds to boot!

The clouds had the summit socked in pretty solid so after a few obligatory summit shots and a little snack, we began heading down. We had the summit to ourselves until the very end, at which time the fellow we had seen earlier made it up and was kind enough to snap a picture of us together. 

McCoy atop his first 14er

"The Shirt" continues it's journey

We made a great team

On the way down we encountered one other group on their way up. I guess the weather was enough to keep most people away. Only seeing four other people on a collegiate peak summit on a Saturday in late June is pretty remarkable in my opinion. We took a much different route on the way down and while the wind seemed to be intensifying, there were more breaks in the clouds and we were able to get a few more great shots of the peaks all around us. The slope we descended to get back to the lake was much steeper than that which we ascended, but it cut off a pretty good chunk of distance. It was a combination of loose scree, snow (which we mainly avoided) and steep grassy areas.

"Screw it, i'm just sliding down." --McCoy

Our route down from the ridge. Middle right, between the snow and the rock outcrop

After picking our way through the last few snow fields, patches of dense vegetation in the form of willows, and some marsh land, we made it back to camp. It was just a few minutes shy of 10 AM and we were ready for a nap! After our nap we decided to pack up camp and head back to the car. Our initial plan was to stay at the lake another night, but we figured variety is the spice of life, so why not look for something else? After a Pizza at Pizza Works in Buena Vista, we headed back up into the hills, using our Collegiate Peaks wilderness TOPO map as a road map. Well, that worked out about as well as forcing a square peg through a round hole. After much disappointment while attempting to access "roads" which apparently only existed on the map, we settled on making the slow, yet sure, trek to Frenchman Creek TH. My 4runner performed remarkably well on the steep, rutted, and rocky road. We settled in for a relaxing evening with a nice fire, a campsite right by the creek, and couple of creek-cooled beverages. What a way to wind down a couple action packed days in the mountains.

Winding down after a hard day's work

Sunday morning brought packing for the final time of this trip. Seeing as how we were pretty grimy and McCoy had a two hour plane ride back to SanFran, we decided to take a bath in Frenchman Creek. And we thought the lake was cold...Yikes! The creek was FRIGID. It was, however, very refreshing. Sorry, no video footage. We headed back down the short jaunt to the 4runner and back into Buena Vista. After getting a quick bite to eat at Coyote Cantina, the nearly three hour journey back to DIA commenced. We jammed to some country music most of the way, made a quick pit-stop at REI in Denver, and before I knew it McCoy was headed through security. It was an incredibly successful adventurefest in the mountains and I can't wait to do it again. Not that I expected anything less, but Joe and I work very well together in the mountains. When it comes to decision making about where to set up camp, what route to take, or how to maximize our fun, our collaboration was spot on. Thanks for being a great partner in the mountains, McCoy!

Special thanks to McCoy's future wife, Chelsea Kilway, for allowing him some mountain man time! You ROCK, Chelsea!

A Week with the Little Sister

**WARNING**

After having devoted a large part of my life to distance running over the last seven years I am prone to adopting the attire in which I spent much of that time. That attire usually consists of abnormally short (as defined by the general public) running shorts and often no shirt. If such attire offends/disgusts you: beware! Much of this blog is likely to contain pictorial representations of me and friends/former teammates adorned in the aforementioned attire. 

Cheers!
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I gave you fair warning!

A Little bit of Background:

It has been nearly 19 years since my father and mother uprooted the family from a small farming town in SW Ohio (also my mother's hometown Hillsboro, OH) and moved to a small mountain town northwest of Colorado Springs called Woodland Park. I was five years old and my little sister was 2 years old. Thus, Woodland Park was where I started my formal schooling and also where I began to form many great memories. 

It has been nearly 13 years since we moved once again, but this time it was back to Ohio. Ever since the move back I have jumped at nearly every chance to get back to Colorado: back to the mountains. Now with the first year of being a big-boy under my belt (shout out to all of you Medina City Schools readers out there!) I was rearing to use much of that oft demonized time-off as a means to get back to the mountains. What better way to kick off the trip than by spending a week with my sister, Calleigh? I figured we wouldn't have many opportunities left to spend a week of uninterrupted sibling time together, so with her still in college and me still single (more on that to come) we might as well jump at the opportunity.

Time for a Road Trip!

Loaded up from Newport and ready to hit the road

The trip started on Monday evening, June 16th. I picked Calleigh up in Cincinnati after the World Cup Fountain Square Viewing Party (GO USA!) and we began heading west towards the mountains. If your plan is to drive straight through, which ours was, it is much easier to start the trip in the evening, say around 8:30 PM EST or so. This allows you to miss major traffic in all of the big cities along the way: Indianapolis, St. Louis and Kansas City, which we did. To make a long story short...19 hours and 1260 miles later we arrived at our destination: Colorful Colorado. It was great to have someone else in the car on the trek across the middle of the country.

Quick stop at the state border

Calleigh drove approximately 4 1/2 - 5 hours, which may not seem like a lot, but after having done the exact same trip solo a few times I can attest to the fact that those 4 1/2 - 5 hours of rest/relaxation are HUGE.


The plan all along was stay with old friends of ours from when we lived in the area, Steve and Kelly Gragg. They have graciously opened up their home to us in the past and they did so again. It cannot go without saying what wonderful friends we have who still live in Colorado. Most of them we met through church when we lived here, and while cliche to say, we consider them more as family than anything. Once we made it to the Gragg's house on Tuesday we crashed pretty hard and used Wednesday as a recovery day as well. We drove into Woodland Park (the Graggs now live in Divide, CO) and drove around a little bit, but other than that we laid pretty low.

Rock Climbing

The view across the river from our climbing spot

On Thursday we decided to head to Eleven Mile Canyon to do some rock climbing. It had been a while since I had been climbing there, but I found what I thought would be a pretty good wall to climb on and so we headed out. The hike getting there was half the adventure. After attempting to follow a less than adequate description on how to get to the specific wall we wanted to climb on, we simply decided to forge our own path. After much boulder-hopping, trail-scouting, and river-skirting, we finally made it to our destination.

Calleigh maneuvering up the climb

 It was a great spot to climb and we didn't see another person the whole time we were there. It had been close to a year since either of us had climbed so it felt good to dust off the shoes and climbing gear (literally) and have at it. The rock was very solid and I enjoyed the lead-climb very much. Calleigh also had a good time and climbed quite strong. It was also her first time belaying and she a great job of that as well: knowing she held her brother's life in her hands and all! We each ended up climbing the route a couple times each and that was the only route we ended up doing that day. In hindsight we should have set up another route after that one, and I think Calleigh was all for it, but with Friday's adventure in mind we called it a day and headed back to the car. We expedited our trek back by crossing the river on a fallen log instead of looping all the way around to the bridge. Not the safest choice, but definitely more adventurous!

She made it to the top

Having fun rappelling down

I didn't climb shoeless, just rappelled that way

A Friday on Mt. Belford 

Friday was the day I had been looking forward to since we started the trip. Calleigh had agreed to climb a 14er (that's Colorado speak for "fourteen thousand foot mountain" ) with me and I was pumped! I had done one as recently as last summer (Click Here to view a report on that trip) but Calleigh had not climbed one for quite a few years. She was excited but also, understandably, a little apprehensive. After a little bit of research, the mountain I chose for our journey was Mt. Belford, which stands 14,196 feet above sea level. This mountain sits in the Sawatch Mountain Range in the Collegiate Peaks Wilderness between the towns of Leadville and Buena Vista.

The 3:55 AM alarm came early, obviously, but I wanted to make sure we were on the road no later than 4:30 as I knew it would take close to two hours to get to the trailhead. One of the cardinal rules of climbing 14ers is that you should be off the summit by noon. Mountain thunderstorms are notorious for rolling in quickly in the afternoon (even sometimes before) and they are nothing to mess with. We arrived at the trailhead around 6:15 and were off and hiking by 6:25; it was a balmy 36 degrees Fahrenheit.

Unlike some of the 14ers, this particular route up Mt. Belford contains almost no introductory phase when it comes to elevation gain. After a quick descent to a bridge to cross, currently raging, Clear Creek, the hike is quite punishing and unforgiving, but that's what makes it so special! We made remarkable time in the beginning, especially for not being acclimated. At 10,000 ft above sea level, which is close to the elevation of the trailhead we started from, there is 30% less oxygen than at sea level and at 14,000 ft there is 40% less oxygen than at sea level. If you've never experienced this phenomenon before, just take my word for it that it is quite distressing on the mind and body. Quick aside: this can be explained using a simple understanding of partial pressures and by applying a simple gas law, but I won't take the time in the here and now!

The ice is evidence of the chilly morning

Not too long into the hike our suspicions that it was quite cold were confirmed when we came to our first un-bridged creek crossing and discovered ice. I went across first and promptly stepped on an iced over log and fell into the creek. Fortunately it was shallow and fortunately I had water-proof boots on! Seeing this, Calleigh chose a different route and I am glad she did. She later informed me that had she fallen in, she was turning around, and I can't blame her. Cold feet on a cold and windy day are a recipe for being miserable.

Snow remnants from a BIG winter in the Colorado Rockies

We saw our first patches of snow right before we made it to tree-line around 11,700 feet, and when we finally broke through the trees and into what is known as Missouri Gulch the views were breathtaking. I have experienced many basins and gulches such as this one but the scenery and topography never cease to amaze me. Views like this are what make all of that painstaking hiking worth it.

Missouri Gulch

The trail gave us a small respite from the unyielding elevation gain, but it didn't last long. Before we knew it we were once again gaining, and gaining steadily, as the trail switch-backed up the usually rocky, but sometimes grassy, northwest slopes of Mt. Belford. It helped that our end goal was in sight for most of the rest of the time. I got in the habit of gaining about 100 vertical feet and then stopping and waiting for Calleigh to get to me. I was pushing a pretty tough pace and she was doing very well to stay right on my heels. I tried to be cognizant of letting her rest some when she caught up to me each time, but I probably could have been a little better at that as well. I'll try to remember that for next time, Calleigh!

The rocky and grassy slopes of Belford

As we neared the top, we allowed a more quickly moving fellow hiker to pass us. She was moving well, was quite cute, and happened to be around Calleigh's age. She will be entering her last year as an accounting major at Western State in Gunnison and she even ran track her freshman year. What's more, she was a middle distance runner! What was her name? Well...I never did ask. I gathered much of the aforementioned information as she hiked with us a good bit on the way down, but never did get her name. Shame on me, I guess. (Mother: insert comment here about why I am still single ;) )

Calleigh traversing a switch-back with a phenomenal backdrop 

Lots of snow left!

We reached the summit a little before 10 AM and, while still cold and windy, there wasn't a cloud in the sky. It was an amazingly blue sky by the way and it was evident how much snow there was this winter by the surrounding peaks.

We had ascended nearly 4,500 vertical feet in just over 3.5 miles. I ate a little bit of cheese, summer sausage, and crackers on top and Calleigh had a few honey roasted peanuts. We had the cute-girl snap a few photos of us and then soon after than headed back down. Normally, given the pristine and cloudless sky, I would have lingered a bit longer on top, but the wind was biting and we were ready to start heading down.

This yellow shirt is dedicated to Medina Girls Cross Country excellence. It's first stop (after New Balance Outdoor Nationals) was the top of Mt. Belford: 14,196 feet above sea level. 

It is often said that it is the return back down the mountain that is the most dangerous. Generally, people let their guard down, not to mention they are tired and their mind often wanders. Fortunately Mt. Belford is a tame mountain and while the trail is steep, it is defined and easy to follow. We made good time without incident, but the pounding was taking its toll on my head. I had given Calleigh a little bit of Excedrin at the top as she was starting to feel a little headache coming on. As usual, I felt pretty good at the top but the jarring on the way down caused me some grief and when we finally reached the car I was ready for a couple Excedrin myself!

Descending back through Missouri Gulch. It warmed up considerably on thee way down.

It took us just a little over 2 hours to descend and when we made it back to the car I headed straight for Clear Creek to soak my feet in the ice-bath like water and dip my head under for a brief instant. I am guessing the water to be somewhere around 45 degrees Fahrenheit at the present time as there is still a good amount of snow feeding the streams from up high. We piled back into the car (boots now off, what a feeling!) and headed back down the dusty, bumpy road to Hwy. 24 which would take back to Buena Vista and then back to the Graggs'. We stopped in BV for a milkshake at and I grabbed a few Rootbeers and Cream Sodas in vintage glass bottles from the local gas station (they are really good!).

In summation, it was a great day in the mountains. I was very proud of how well Calleigh handled the whole thing. It is not easy to come from close to sea level and in 72 hours be trudging up the side of a mountain, but she took it in stride. I think she will be ready to tackle another one the next chance she gets! In total, Mt. Belford probably marked half a dozen, or so, 14ers completed for her and sixteen for me.

The Last Few Days

The last few days of our time together were a little less active from a physical exertion point of view and involved spending more time with old friends. I mentioned at the beginning of this post that we truly have some of the best friends we could ask for and it was nice to spend time with many of them. Saturday, Sunday and Monday evening we had dinner with a different set of friends and it was great catching up. On Sunday morning we headed down to the early service at Calvary Worship Center with the Graggs. It was my first time hearing Al Pittman preach and I was thoroughly impressed! He pulls no punches and tells it like is and it was wonderful to hear such biblical teaching.

On Tuesday morning Calleigh slowly packed in preparation her flight back to Cincinnati. Even though the flight wasn't scheduled to take off until we a little after 7 PM, we had decided we wanted to take the back way to Denver and in the process stop and see one more set of friends, have lunch, and take our time driving along the S. Platte river. We left the house around 10:30 and after a few pit-stops in town started moseying our way to Denver. After visiting our old friends, the Casey's (also former employers of both myself and my dad at their rough saw lumber mill) we headed down to the town of Deckers and had lunch at the local cafe. We then continued along the scenic route, following the Platte river for a good twenty miles and stopping here and there for some rock hopping and picture taking. Calleigh was even brave enough to wade into the freezing water for a picture.

The water was cold but the boulders are so inviting!

We ended up at DIA (Denver International Airport) around 5:10, quickly parked and headed inside. After a hassle-free check-in, thanks to Frontier's online check-in system, we quickly moved to Calleigh's gate. I went with her as far as security and then after a quick hug and goodbye, she was off and I was heading back the way we had come. Leaving the mountains can leave you with a sunken feeling sometimes. The great anticipation of getting there during the 19 hour drive across the country is opposed so harshly and suddenly by the quick and unforgiving actions of boarding a plane. While I don't know for sure, I am guessing Calleiigh was experiencing some of those emotions. It's hard not to.

Just before going through security. Safe travels!

I am glad we were able to spend this time together. Life seems to fly by so rapidly that it seems only yesterday we were arriving for the first time in Woodland Park, CO: me being 5 years old and her a mere 2. With her planning to enter law school after this last year of undergrad, who knows if we will again be afforded so much time together in a place we both love so much. Thanks for a great week, Calleigh. I am very proud of the young woman you have become and can only hope we will be adventuring together in the mountains again soon.

My view just as I was pulling back into the Graggs' neighborhood after dropping Calleigh off. I hope this is a sign of things to come on my impending adventures!

The Season Comes to an End

Greensboro, NC (site of New Balance Outdoor Nationals)
June 15th, 2014

I realize that the title of this blog implies that the entries will concern “Paths Less Traveled” and I also realize that Greensboro, NC is hardly a path (read: destination) which is traveled infrequently. However, the end of this track season also marks the beginning of what I hope will be a summer replete with the aforementioned paths and destinations less traveled. Likewise, it would be very remiss of me not to take time for at least a quick reflection of the season. This season was unlike any other I had ever experienced in that instead of being the one who was competing I was, instead, on the other end of things; I was coaching. While I miss the competition, my teammates, my coach, and many other aspects of being the athlete, I loved every...well almost every...second of coaching. 

Ouch!

Just another run in the cold and snow around Medina.

Officially it (the track season) started in early March, but in reality it started much earlier than that for most. Most of the success which was realized by the girls would not have come to fruition had it not been for them enduring the dark and bitterly cold winter of 2013-2014. To be successful at anything, and by successful I mean the best you can be, there must be sacrifice involved. Distance running is no different, and that sacrifice this year, more often than not, took the form of time, pain and the loss of feeling in toes, fingers, and faces. Neither ice, nor snow, nor single digit temperatures, nor below zero wind chills kept them away from pursuing their goals. So, to them, major props.

I had no real reason to expect most of these girls to buy into the training I was doling out to them. Many of them had been very successful under their former coach (Medina legend!) Phil Brewer, and it can be difficult on an athlete, physically as well as mentally, to have to transition to another coach’s training and philosophy. Well, to their credit they did buy in and were largely successful in achieving their goals. Much of that success is owed to the tradition and culture that was previously established at Medina and once again I must invoke the name of Phil Brewer in order to thank him for being the cultivator of said tradition. Having the privilege of teaching right across the hall from him, I can say that he is a continuing presence in that he is wholeheartedly supportive of all of the girls and myself.

I must also thank Scott VanFleet. As the head coach of the track team (and another Medina legend to boot!) he did more than anyone when it came to providing me with an opportunity to coach. For one he recommended me for the position, but even more meaningful than that was the support and freedom he gave me to structure things how I wanted to structure them. I am sure there were times when he doubted whether or not my the workouts and training I prescribed would provide the best benefit, and I undoubtedly made mistakes through the season, but he never encroached in a negative way. In just one short year of coaching with him I have learned many things about the art of it all. Here's to another decade of him being the head coach! 

For the sake of brevity I cannot highlight all of the season’s successes as they are quite numerous, but suffice to say that much was accomplished.

• Maria Scavuzzo as conference champ in the 1600: 5:10
• Sarah Pack as conference champ in the 800: 2:19
• Tessa Dombi running a 33 second PR in the 3200 at Berea Relays (11:31)
• Nabbing 6 of 7 possible regional qualifying spots at the Amherst District in the distance events, which included:
• 4x8, 3rd
• 1600, Maria (2^nd) and Tarynn (4^th, also a 12 second PR in that race)
• 800, Sarah (2^nd)
• 3200, Maria (2^nd) and Tessa (3^rd)

Unfortunately, the Regional meet was somewhat of a heart-breaker. Top 4 in each event advance to the state meet and the 4x8 team was 5^th, Tarynn was 5^th in the 1600 and Sarah was 5^th in the 800. Fortunately the 4x4 ran a great race and qualified with the 4^th spot.

A great experience for everyone.

Of course, then there was the 4x1600. At the Berea Relays in early May, the team of Maria Scavuzzo, Kimmy Vidika, Tarynn Cullings, and Sarah Pack ran 21:17 and in doing so broke the school record and qualified for New Balance Outdoor Nationals. The meet was a great experience for all of them, and while the end result wasn’t as fast as they would have liked, I think it was the process that was the most gratifying aspect of the whole thing. It is a long season and to try and sustain top form for so long can be a difficult thing, but these girls continued to stay committed and competed to the best of their abilities. Those types of experiences are the ones which just continue to build on the distance running tradition at Medina High School and inspire bigger and better things in the future.

The record setting 4x1600 team.

I try not to be TOO intense.

Is this an end to the season? Yes, but for everyone it is much more than that. In fact, it is a beginning of sorts. For some of the graduated seniors it the beginning of their collegiate running careers. For the underclassman it is the beginning of a new focus (after a well-deserved break): the fall cross country season. And for me? It is the beginning of a reflection process on the first year of coaching. My collegiate coach, Lee LaBadie, always told us that he gets 90% of the credit when we have good workouts and that we (as athletes) get 90% of the credit when we have good races. Well, this season was littered with good races and in the end, my first year of coaching would have been nothing without a group of athletes who had the desire and motivation to be successful and put up with my slightly temperamental and ever-demanding nature. The success, therefore, is >90% attributed to them.

In retrospect, THAT is the path less traveled: having a group of athletes who buy into a program and put everything on the line in an attempt to achieve greatness.

In closing, there are a few other parties I must thank, for without them the season, and what I know about coaching, would not have been complete:

• The parents and families of the athletes
• My high school coach, Chad Sexton
• My college coach, Lee LaBadie
• My parents, Cory and Ellen Olson 
• Jeff Harrison and Jill Miller
• The administration at the high school
• And, once again, the girls on the team. Without them, there would be no team. 

Now, onward towards my summer adventures…

Grand 'ole Pikes Peak as seen from Woodland Park, CO