10. “I think he’s had too many stim-o-steroids.” (Said to Golden after he rambled on about about some equation of whether it was worth packing three quarters up and out or if the $.75 worth of weight would be more of a detriment to his performance than they were worth)
9. “It’s a squnk” (Said after we saw the ugliest squirrel looking thing that was colored like a skunk. It turned out to be what we later called a “Kabab Squirrel”)
8. “Sorry, it was my first time”
7. “Forget it, it won’t help!” (Danny when Brian offered him his extra Gu from a 1/4 mile ahead and hundreds of feet above when Danny suddenly dissapeared)
6. “That felt weird”
5. “Guys, I think I’ll just drive around.” (Mike while looking at the expanse of the canyon)
4. “Danny, all I’ve heard out of you this whole trip is grunts and groans” (Kendra to Danny in the hotel room as he was moaning about his sore muscles)
3. “Are we there yet?” (Mike SEVERAL TIMES during the drive and a little more desperately during the run)
2. “It’s like watching Jack Bauer being tortured” (Golden to a screaming Danny as he was using the jets in the hot tub to massage his sore muscles. The other guests in there got a chuckle out of watching this display)
1. “We have to go THERE!?” (A few of the guys on the North Rim pointing to the South Rim in the very far distance)
L to R: Dan Moody, Brian Beckstead, Justin Gardner, Derek Whitney, Golden H., Mike Vick
Here we are in Arizona less than 24 hours after running Rim to Rim. The 2007 rim to rim trip has been momentous so far. We had a great time on the North Rim Thursday night—hiked out to Bright Angel Point, bought a large pizza and sat at the sun room talking about the pain we were about to embark on while the sun set. Nice. We got up a little late and started in to the canyon. It was a nice change to actually see the whole North Rim Descent in full light—something I’ve never seen before. We all took the excursion out to Ribbon Falls which was well worth it this year—although some of our group might disagree! We made very good time to Indian Gardens and then the SUFFERING began. People started dropping like flies, and the pain we had been dreading the day before became a reality. That said, everyone made it out ok, although personalities had been altered. Brian suddenly took a liking to Bratwurst, Mike was quiet for the first time in his life, and Danny was well, just Danny. More to come later…
For those going to Rim to Rim this weekend, we are planning on having the first group meet at Runner’s Corner at 11:30am. The drive is 6 1/2 hours, so this will allow us to get to the North Rim, watch the Sunset, set up camp, and get to the lodge before it closes. Brian will be heading up a second group will need to leave right after work and will be arriving late. If you are planning on coming this weekend, please call Golden at 473-5596 so we can coordinate timing and vehicles.
The big problem with going in June seems to be that no one wanting to go in June has gone before and there isn’t anybody able to head up the group. If there is going to be a group going in June, we still need a volunteer to head up the mission. Any takers?
Also, if you are going, please sign up for the Rim to Rim e-mail list. Everything else we know about the Grand Canyon trip is currently posted here. We’ll keep everyone posted as soon as we know more.
A few of our Sojourner Girls have fared well at the State Track Meet over the last two days. In the 4A 1600 Meters, Kendy Christensen was third and Krystal Harper was fourth. In the 3200 Meters, Krystal was able to repeat as State Champion and Kendy was 3rd. Samantha McMillan not only won the 1600, 3200, and 800—but set State Records in all of them. Due largely in part to their contributions, both Kendy & Krystal’s team (Orem) and Samantha’s team (Judge), became State Champions in their respective classifications. Way to go girls!
Kendy Christensen & Krystal Harper, both runners from our nationally placing Cross Country team, both faired well over the weekend at the Region 7 Championships held at Orem High School. Kendy convincingly won both the 800 and the Mile, while Krystal put on a killer late race surge to win the 2 Mile. Congrats to these 2 girls and their hard work. Photo Credit: C. Christensen
Ok, so it was trail 51! My bad. It’s been a while since I’ve been up there—obviously. It was a beautiful morning and for those of us who did make it to the overlook, we had a great view down the canyon, up the front side of timp, and over the valley. The way back was fast and furious but quite fun. For those that took trail 49, they had a great…uh…adventure. Either way it was a nice run on a nice morning on a nice trail with some nice scenery…minus the *nice* trail for those who took the wrong turn.
-Golden
Opinions have been voiced, logistics have been analyzed, and the voting has been compiled. It looks like we may have 2 groups going to the Grand Canyon this year. The main, official, whatever-you-want-to-call-it group will be going Memorial Day Weekend (that’s May 25-28). However, there is also a contingent of people who would like to go one of the two first weekends in June. We will need a trip planner/captain for that second group so we can get you guys together—any volunteers?
Ok so here’s the planned itinerary for the Memorial Day weekend group going to the Grand Canyon. Please sign up for the Rim to Rim mailing list so we can keep you up to date on everything. Thursday, May 24th, early afternoon: Leave Runner’s Corner and Drive to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon (Camp overnight) Friday, May 25th, dusk: Begin run at the first hint of light. Go, suffer, conquer! Saturday, May 26th: Run into the Havasupai Indian Reservation and Play in the waterfalls all day, run out before dark. Sunday, May 27th: Wake up very sore; Chill in (Mesquite?, Vegas?) and probably sleep and lie in the pool all day. Monday, May 28th: Visit somewhere cool on the way home (Great Basin National Park?)
Ok, now that said, we will probably have 3-6 vehicles depending on the size of the vehicles. So we will need both vehicles and drivers to go around while we are running, please let us know if you have access to either. There will be at least one group (Brian’s Group) that will only be doing rim to rim and won’t be doing Havasupai. There will probably be at least one group coming back early and at least one group that will be staying and playing somewhere on Memorial Day. Bottom line is that there should be options for just about anybody.
Registration for the annual club sponsored Hobble Creek Half Marathon is now open. This is our biggest event of the year and the club is proud to put this race on. See the official site for details and registration info. Also, don’t forget our annual Strawberry Days 5k and kids races on June 23rd.
