Easy treadmill. Last day of running until ATY in six days. I'll just do some power walking. I need to try to heal up a bruised inner knee cap that has been a bother for a couple months. It is managable, but gets painful running a 8:00 pace or faster.
OK, what are my crazy plans for 2012? Most of it is tentative. I've decided to skip Wasatch this year, and let someone else take a turn. I have four finishes there. It is fun to run with friends, but I can run that course anytime.
February - Rocky Raccoon 100 - Going for my 5th finish and the 500-mile award. Last year I did very well, placing 3rd in my age group in that huge field. I look forward to running again with Karl Meltzer (after he laps me). I hope to run further with him this year.
March - Buffalo Run 100 or Barkley. Barkley is the toughest 100-mile race in the world. It really isn't a race because only a handful of runners have ever finished it. It is more like a cruel self-supported adventure run. I would be pleased to finish two loops, 40 miles. With my experience doing solo-adventure runs, I think 60 miles is possible. I need to decide by Sunday if I'm going to apply for the lottery. Right now I'm leaning toward waiting until 2013. Even seriously considering doing Barley is amazingly insane. I have two friends who have done 60 miles of it who are pushing me to join then.
April - Grand Canyon Tonto Trail end-to-end. I'd like to be the first person to run the entire Tonto Trail from Garnet Canyon to Red Canyon end-to-end, about 100 miles. Others have backpacked it, but no one has been known to run the entire thing in one stretch without camping for the night. Last year I did South Bass to Cottonwood Creek. I'd like to go back and do it right. This is all inspired by John Annerino's classic book, "Running Wild" when he ran through the Canyon several times. But he never ran the entire stretch of the Tonto, he left it at South Bass. Also, it took him several days to do the section I want to do in 30-35 hours. To do this requires additonal 45 miles getting to and from the start/end points. Crazy.
April - Salt Flats 100 or early May - Northcoast 24-hour (USATF national championships). If I do very well at ATY, I'll be tempted to shift my efforts this year to fixed-time races. It would be fun to run with the very elite runners at NC24. I'd go if I think I could go over 120 miles.
May - Zion 100. I would skip this if I go and do NC24.
June - Squaw Peak 50. Going for my 8th finish
July - Grand Mesa 100
August - Skyline Drive end-to-end 100+. Need to go finish that one.
August - Cascade Crest 100 (lottery). I really enjoyed that race last year, super course.
September - Pace at Wasatch or Plain 100. If I don't get into CC100, I may instead go do Plain 100 again. I love that challenge and I know I can always do well there.
September - Bear 100??? I'll always be tempted to run it. (if I don't run Plain 100) I have six Bear finishes.
October - Pony Express 100 - What I may do, is run it the week before the race, running an end-to-end from Simpson Springs to the Nevada border - a much tougher course.
December - ATY???
I certainly will sprinkle in adventure runs along the way.
Absent this year is Bighorn 100 (6 finishes) and Tahoe Rim 100 (5 finishes) | 