Ben Lomond Peak

Got in some (h)elevation. Today I did the peak solo. I got a later start so I could incorporate the heat a bit. I really wanted to push the pace to see what happens. I have run this twice and both were almost identical in time.
Up 2:30
Down 1:30
Total 4 hours
I hit the trail around 7:30 am and set the pace. I felt good going up. I can really tell I am improving on climbing but have a long way to go. I just kept the pedal down and every time I thought about backing off I thought of Jaimes quote "Suffer now of suffer later". Well I have done the suffering later thing way to much. I realize I will suffer at Wasatch but it is not too late to suffer less there. I hit the top of the main climb and was happy it was over. I also wanted to work on my recovering breathing a bit so when I finished the climb I didn't walk, I turned it into a jog since the trail was runnable (by my standards). From this point there in some gradual climbing but you can run a majority of it. The views are amazing all around. it really is easier to do when you can enjoy the beauty. I kept on trucking and hit the climb to the top.
I buckled down and went for it. it is much steeper and lots of switchbacks. I still didn't stop but as it got steeper, the legs sure did slow down. I reached the peak @ 2:09 which is 21 minutes faster than I have done it in the past. This gave me a good boost. I stuck around the peak for a minute and watched the mountain goats. I was all alone and feeling pretty special.
I started back down with a goal to beat 1:30. I ran about everything then as I was feeling about as good as i have in some time....BAM! I went down. When the dust cleared, it was time to assess the damage. Knee-bleeding, back-sore, forearm-bleeding, butt-scratched up, mouth-full of dirt, everywhere else-DIRTY, pride-not so good. It took a few minutes to survey and clean up. The trail here really, really dusty so I can only imagine what it would have looked like from another angle. I started running again realizing my time would slow. I actually felt pretty good but I sure looked like shit. I guess you need a good fall once in awhile to make you feel even more alive.
The rest of the run was uneventful and I hit the parking lot in 3:25.
Up 2:09 (21 minutes faster)
Down 1:16 (14 minutes faster)
Overall 3:25 (35 minutes faster)
Great run, great fall, better recovery!