Very humid today, and later at work than I had planned (again), but I made it to Metacomet anyhow to get out to the sign-in log and back for 3.4-miles.

Witnessed several broken trees due to the severe storms that have been rolling through the last week.  This one below is right at the sign-in log at the lookout.

On this day in 2008, I completed the Hallockville Pond - Mt Institute Marathon with Wuzzam and Tippi.  The 25+ miles were completed in 5:29:07, and ended with a dip in Hallockville Pond.  This was my 36th completed marathon and Tippi's 12th.

With my two ventures to the Holyoke Range area last week, it seemed appropriate for me to post an old piece written about 21-years ago, about the 7 Sisters Trail Race...

SIX PACK CHALLENGE

One of the first things to remember about running, especially in an event or race, is to run your own pace. Never ever let outside influences affect you. It is very easy to get caught up in the excitement of a big start, tearing off at suicidal speed only to suffer for it later. It’s also easy to get in a group and despite realizing you may be going a bit too fast, hang on until it’s too late. Or in my case, letting running store employees intimidate me into something I knew better than to attempt.

Two days before the 7 Sister’s race, visiting the Running Shop in Northampton, I engaged conversation with two salespeople about this years event. They asked all the normal questions, one being "Are you taking the 6 pack challenge?"

When I told them under two hours would be impossible for me, they mentioned that Fred changed it to "under 2:10, and the only thing worse than those who take the challenge without having even a remote possibility of dipping under the limit are those who chicken out with a legitimate chance at the prestige of beating Fred for a six pack."

At this statement, 41 customers in the store turned toward me, sideways glances filled me with a trembling fear, and I stuttered out a weak childlike "give me my application back I’ll take the challenge." A small cheer lit up the store as I stumbled out onto main street mumbling "what have I done ???"

The second thing to remember about running in a for real trail race event, is never start at the front of the pack unless you plan on winning the thing. We who were "courageous" enough to sport Aidida stickers on our foreheads designating 6 pack status were allowed to start at the front of the pack at the base of Bare Mt.

Most of you who know me realize that I usually start mid-pack and like to comfortable slowly make my way towards the front, if I am lucky that day. Well, this day I started out four spots behind Matt C, and chased him up the mountain at a pace that left my legs shaky. Being in front left me no choice but to run at a much faster speed than I normally would attempt on such a vertical (it seemed) climb.

The half way point was reached in decent time, but by the 3/4 point of the race my legs had it. The pace was too much. My mind was willing but my body couldn’t. I thought that maybe, if I was a consumer of alcohol, it would have given me the little extra incentive I so badly needed to push a little harder. But all I had on the line was a six pack of grape juicy juice, and that wasn’t enough for me to risk blowing my heart out of my chest. So on came the slowdown.

I inched up the two steep climbs approaching Hitchcock, pushing my legs hands on knees to help with the effort. Thinking of excuses (muddy, slippery, warm, record number of participants) on why I wouldn’t beat Fred for the challenge (all the fine excuses I had bit the dust when I later heard Matt C set a new course record, bad knee and all). 

Suddenly realizing that if I had just run my normal pace I may have been just as fast if not faster, those last two miles would have had me energized and finishing strong instead of being tired and lazy, all the early cushion I had lost at the end. I re-learned an important lesson, one I had already experienced in the past, and never should have had to re-learn: Run your own race, let the crowds go, listen to your heart and never bet on a trail race (Nature will whip you every time).

{05/01/1996}

Still warm but supposedly less humid, and another trip to the Holyoke Range.  On Tuesday, I turned around on Long Mountain, and I wanted to complete the section.  

Looking over the online mountain bike map that is available, I parked on Harris Mountain Road, and memorized the turns to stick on the North Harris Trail until I could intersect the Metacomet-Monadnock / Robert Frost duel line.  From there, I'd simply re-climb Long Mountain, drop off its east side back to Harris Mountain Road, and with energy remaining I'd make an attempt at getting to Bay Road on the Metacomet.

The North Harris Trail is fantastic, with a handful of intersecting trails.  There may be an extra or so that wasn't on the mountain bike map, but I came out right where I had wanted to.  Speaking of that mountain bike map available online, whomever provided that really provided a fantastic service.  

The route was really great, and I had energy enough to make it to Bay Road.  That section, once the Metacomet and Robert Frost split, isn't all that memorable.  The trail is fairly nice, and the ridge-top wooded section is fine, but there is a power-line crossing and a jog behind a mansion before dropping down to Bay Road, which has a rope available to help you back up due to the steepness of the little dip.

I completed my day with 6.5-miles and a decent chunk of climbing again.  Just under 30-miles for the week (29.8).

One Balanced Rock

Two Balanced Rock

 West off Long Mountain

 Marker for Amherst & Granby

A good chunk of time was spent this morning weeding our flower beds, which needed it.  I also slept later than usual, which was fantastic.  Mid afternoon was my time for a run, and due to the day getting away from me, I minimized drive-time and went to the Metacomet to stay close to home.

I was hoping for something in the 6-mile range, and I thought a really good turn-a-round spot would be the notch.  Turned out to be 2.9-miles from Route 20 to that point in the bottom of the two rises, so my thought worked.  Ended the day with a comfortable 5.8-miles, and a short drive to Old Newgate Prison and Copper Mine for a few photos (site is still closed, unfortunately).

A view of the Quarry in West Suffield from the Metacomet Ridge

 Open Ledge along the trail

 More open ledge trail

 Remains of Old Newgate Prison

 

I looked forward to a run in the woods all day today.  I chose McLean, and the Westledge Trail.  I had not been on this route in several years.

Prior to starting my run, I ventured off Firetown Road a short distance to check on Northgate Falls and ruins.  Only a hundred or so feet from the road, a path leads to a nice series of falls, and old stone foundations.  With the rain of the last 3 days, the streams were really roaring.  I am not sure this stream has a name, but it is a tributary of Bissell Brook in Simsbury.

After that, to the Eddy and Westledge Trailhead to make my way up the hill to the turnaround at Highridge Road.  Once the trail levels off, I noticed 3 or 4 cellar holes and an array of stonewalls.  A little research reveals that this area was once a busy little community known as Pilfershire.  I hope to remember to re-check this area in late November or early December.  It will be fun to see how many cellar holes I can find.  I recall there being some foundations north of this trail as well, which I've seen a few times but not in the last 5 or 6 years.

Ended with 3.5-miles, and a re-check of the waterfall I had visited on Sunday, July 9th.  For a short trail, there is much to recommend while on it.

Northgate Falls, lower

 Northgate Falls, middle

 Northgate Falls, a bit higher

 Northgate Falls, upper at stone-work

 Falls of Westledge Trail

 Falls of Westledge Trail with cave overhang

Music 2017...

Effort #21, Suicide...

The Primitives, from the fall of 1984. An original song of mine, lyrics and music. I can not take credit for the incredibly powerful drumming of L. That was all her. And while I can not take credit for the lead guitar work, I do recall that I asked Skippy to play a "wicked lead" over the riff throughout the entire song. I heard that in my head before the song existed.  We had Aldo (vocals) and DL (bass) playing on this one as well, from the Art Studio in Adams.

Similarly to "You Blister My Paint", this was written after reading Anthony Burgess' "A Clockwork Orange", and was influenced by that novel (and supporting film).

 

No running today, there was just too much rain and difficult weather as well that kept me after work for a bit.  Instead, I wanted to revisit status on some of the goals that were set for 2017.

At the beginning of the year, I made up a short list of a dozen sites to explore while running or hiking.  I posted the list in April, and since we are officially at the second half of the year, it would be great to see what I selected and how I've done (so far).

  1) The Lead Mine
  2) The Goshen Stone Chamber
  3) The Balanced Rock in Williamsburg or Conway
  4) The 1926 Memorial Plaque set in a rock in Williamsburg / Conway
  5) Chesterfield Gorge, including a run along the old path
  6) The Thoreau Pine and Grandfather Pine in Monroe State Forest
  7) See some of the many large boulders in Monroe State Forest
  8) Continue with Savoy Graveyards, especially to find the 2nd Hathaway Burial Ground
  9) Check the waterfalls above the Hairpin Turn on Route 2
10) Hike the Tophet Brook, as much or little as possible
11) Balanced Rocks in NY State and Pittsfield/Lanesboro
12) Burnt Hill in Heath

The following challenges have been met -

• The Lead Mine / April 15th
• Goshen Stone Chamber / April 27th
• Balanced Rock in Williamsburg / May 19th
• Chesterfield Gorge / June 9th
• Savoy Graves including the elusive 2nd Hathaway Burial Ground / June 26th
• Burnt Hill (reconnaissance only) July 10th

I am happy to see that I've met half the goal locations, and the other half are real possibilities.  I have been adding additional "spots" to a list, for next year, most likely....

Well, I have been  thinking about Joseph Allen Skinner State Park in the Hadley, South Hadley, Amherst, and Granby area of western Massachusetts.  I've been thinking about it because my friend Hill-Billage participated in the 7 Sisters Trail Race this year, and wrote a fantastic article about the race, himself, and the route.  The article made it sound "fun" and "worthwhile".  It made me remember that once upon a time, I also had challenged those hills.

I ran the race from 1992 through 2001, and then one more time in '02 or '03 (just can't remember).  The first time I raced it, in '92, it was also my first "trail race".  I wore a complete gore-tex outer shell (top and bottom), and vasque gore-tex hiking boots.  There were only about 60 or so participants in the race that year, and I was pretty close to the end of the line.  As a matter of fact, on the way back from the turn-around, I stepped off the trail to take a leak, and when I returned to the trail I could not remember which way to go.  It was foggy, so I couldn't see the sun in the sky, and I was exhausted.  This was somewhere around mile 8 or 9.  I had to wait for the next runner to come by before I could re-start. 

The great news was despite feeling pretty defeated by those hills, I decided to keep with it.  During my 10 or 11 finishes, I twice ran 2:12 at this race, which for a 200 lbs man, is pretty good (I think).

Not only did I stop going to the race about 15-years ago, I also stopped visiting the area, other than one trip in 2009.  So, with a day of predicted rain and high temps and humidity, I took the drive to the Notch Visitor Center, and would attempt the Mt. Holyoke side of the range (not as rocky and constant up and down, which would be helpful after the rain).

The section is 5.2-miles, but I thought that I'd like to make it to Long Mountain at 4-miles, before turning back.  This was a good call, because it was really humid and by the end I was worn out.

The section of trail is fantastic, with climbs up Norwottuck, Rattlesnake Knob, and Long Mountain.  The route also passes the Horse Caves, which are impressive as well.  There are also decently lengthy sections of old roads through flat or rolling sections, where running is actually easy.

I made it to Long, saw that the trail started to drop off and decided to head back.  I was at 4.0-miles, in 1:11:00.  I knew I was breaking off the Metacomet onto the Robert Frost Trail on the way back, and that would give me a break regarding an additional climb up Norwottuck.  I decided I would like to run the return in an even hour, and see how that went.

Once finished, I stopped the gps at 7.8-miles and 2:03:00.  The second half (3.8-miles) was done much better than an hour, it was completed in 52 minutes!  I was gassed, mostly due to the heat and humidity, but the climbing was starting to take its toll as well.  Excellent section that I plan on coming back to in the fall, as the colors arrive in the trees and the humidity leaves New England.

A view off Norwottuck

 A view off Norwottuck

 A view off Norwottuck

 A view off Norwottuck

Coming down from Norwottuck towards the Horse Caves

Horse Caves

 Horse Caves

 Off Rattlesnake Knob

 On top of Long Mountain, looking back at Norwottuck

I visited as quiet a place as I know, Catamount State Forest in Colrain, Massachusetts.  I spent a decent amount of time hiking and running in this location during June & July of 2015, but haven't been back since.  It was as rewarding as I remember it.

I had a route picked out, and it ended up at 6.2-miles.  The stonewalls are many, as are the cellar holes.  There are many "features" throughout this forest.  I'll attempt to sort it all out as the summer rolls forward, but for now, here are a few special pictures to tie us over.

Marker on Stone from Earl H. McLeod

 View north of  McLeod Pond

 Large Foundation along the route

 Balanced Rock

 Another View of Balanced Rock

Yet Another View of Balanced Rock

 Site of First Flag raised over a school

Cave, from the outside

 Cave, inside looking out

 Roadside Memorial along Route 2

This was going to be a fantastic day weather wise, especially for July.  I wanted to run a ten-miler, without driving too far.  It came down to Shenipsit, Tunxis, Metacomet, or McLean.  No offense to the other spots, but Mclean has the best maintained trails and it isn't even close.

I parked on Canton Road, and ran a pretty large loop with only a little over 1/2-mile repeated.  In the repeat section's defense, it is one of my favorite trails anywhere.

This loop meant a bit of a shaded road section along Firetown, but it is a nice climb, and I did not see one car during my journey along it.  Visited the waterfall along the Westledge/Eddy trail intersection as a bonus.  Once finished I had 10.1-miles in 2:09:00 for a 4.7 mph average.  That was great, as the loop had 1,900' of climb and I felt really comfortable throughout.

 Falls off the Westledge Trail

 View of the Western Barndoor Hills

 

An early trip to the airport at 5:00 a.m., a call-in to work at 6:30 a.m., some family visit time up to noon.  Got out to McLean around mid-afternoon to run an enjoyable 4-mile loop with 550' of climb.

Topo of the Route

A wonderful memorial marker along the trail

Today's route, another view

One day while running from Route 2 toward South County Road, along Whitcomb & Flat Rock Hill, I came across a man-made stone structure that left me confused towards it's origins.  This would have been back in the mid-1990's.

For a few years, whenever I would run from Whitcomb Summit to Windsor Jambs, I'd pass this structure and wonder.  It wasn't until Wuzzam and I pieced our way through the Dunbar, Whitcomb, Jambs Marathon in September of 2014 that I decided to get an answer to the mystery.

I asked Tim Z, a friend, who resides in the area.  He knew immediately what we were describing...  one of the alignment towers for the Hoosac Tunnel construction.  Best news, evidently, is that there are a few more alignment tower locations worth searching for.

http://www.hoosactunnel.net/alignment.php

http://www.jkrails.net/Towers.htm

I know I've been very close to the Spruce Hill and Rowe sites, but as of yet have not seen the remains.  The Notch Road site, despite supposedly being in the best condition, has been a complete mystery to me.  I've used the websites above (links provided) to gather gps points and map the locations for a late November / early December potential search (just before heavy snow fall).

The next couple days are going to very busy at work, and we have family staying with us through Saturday, so a few days off running will be necessary.  

At the beginning of 2017, I was hoping to run one-thousand total miles this year.  I know from 1990 through about 2014 I covered between 1200 and 1500 miles annually.  But, the last few years have been in the 500-700 mile range.  So I made up a spreadsheet with a rough guide to get me to 1032-miles during 2017.

I projected a high end for weekly mileage at 30, and low at only 10-miles.  The 10-mile weeks were scheduled for the four-weeks in January, and the last week in December.  In between those dates, miles would grow in spring toward summer, and begin to dip again from late July to fall.

Last week was roughly the half-way point of our calendar, Six-months completed.  On June 30th, I had completed 488.9-miles, which was a Friday.  If I looked at the end of my 26th week (half-way point of the year), which brings me through July 2nd, I hit 502.1-miles.

My projected mileage to the July 2nd date (26th-week) was 457-miles, which has me with a little bit of a buffer.  So far, I am on-track!

Phelps Road and the Metacomet heading south at 5:00 p.m.  Pretty awesome early evening to run.  I ended up signing the log, for the first time this year I believe.  My best year signing in was 2012, when I managed 104 visits to the logbook.  From 1993 to about 2008, I ran this section of trail 3 or 4 times a week, year round.  But...  there was no sign-in logbook.

What I have recorded, for a few years anyway:

2011 -   50 Visits

2012 - 104 Visits

2013 -   57 Visits

2014 -   47 Visits through October (... I am not sure what I did in November & December). 

I think I can piece together last year and this year (2016 & 2017).  That is something I'll work on.

Getting back to today's run, it went great and I felt fine.  This was my 8th straight day of running, which is really something.  My previous best consecutive day streak this year was 6-days.  Last year, I doubt I ever got over five consecutive days of running.  Slowly, I am getting in decent fitness.

I finally saw the birch growing around the old White Pine or Hemlock that had fallen over (I just can't recall which it was, but the area is populated by White Pine, and the Hemlock were all harvested about 15-years ago off this ridge, so I'm going with White Pine remains).  It is located right at the sharp right-turn heading south, about 6/10-mile out from Phelps Road.

Birch using old White Pine remains for support

The sky was washed out but the view from the chimney was still impressive