Jeff Gallup's Posts - Pikes Peak Sports2024-03-28T12:44:45ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGalluphttp://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2797450769?profile=RESIZE_48X48&width=48&height=48&crop=1%3A1http://pikespeaksports.us/profiles/blog/feed?user=3dejajuey81qf&xn_auth=no50's before 50: The Bear Chase Trail Race 50M Race Reporttag:pikespeaksports.us,2014-10-03:5021591:BlogPost:6002322014-10-03T03:27:24.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">50 before 50: The Bear Chase Trail Race 50 Mile Race Report</h3>
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<br></br>Well... the smile says it all.. I made it!! On Saturday September…</div>
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">50 before 50: The Bear Chase Trail Race 50 Mile Race Report</h3>
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<br/>Well... the smile says it all.. I made it!! On Saturday September 27th, 2014, I completed my goal of running a 50K (2 actually), and a 50 Miler before I turn 50 in two months! That gives me 50 more years now for a goal of a 100K and 100 Miler! :-)<br/><br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>So, if you want all the gory details, stay tuned for a full race report below and a lot of pics from the day. If you just want to cut to the chase, 1. I finished! 2. I finished before the cutoff! 3. I didn't hurt myself, and 4. I'd do it again and am already looking for a new distance goal. :-)<br/><br/> And before I forget, this was a really really well run race, and the volunteers were amazing! I would highly recommend this one for sure.<br/><br/>Boom, now you can get back to what you were doing, or just scan the pics and skip the blah blah blah... BUT.. if you love race report blah blahs as much as I do... here you go :-)<br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Pre-Race dinner... yum!</td>
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So... the race was up in Lakewood, CO... about a 2 hour drive from here, so we headed up the afternoon before and stopped for some pre-race fuel at Tokyo Joe's... good stuff!<br/><br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Fellow INKnBURN Ambassador Rebecca Walker</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Ali Smith, Tonia Smith, me, Christoph Sholtes, and Dan Smith. </td>
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<br/>After a so-so night's sleep (I always struggle the night before), my wife delivered me to the parking/shuttle area around 530AM and I headed over to the Start/Finish area. Here I had the pleasure of meeting a number of folks from the different Facebook running groups I am part of and it was so great to meet them all in person (not all in the pic above). It's one of the few times I've been at the start of a race and known so many people... that was pretty cool. What was not cool was that I didn't put enough time in my morning for coffee!! Ah well, I corrected the problem with some caffeinated gels at the first aid station!<br/><br/>
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So, with the sun still not up yet, the 50M and 100K'ers all took off at 630 AM for the first loop of our adventure (50M was 4 laps, 100K 5 laps). The trail started of meandering alongside a creek for a mile or so, and then looped back on the other side of the creek working its way back. At this time it was pleasantly cool, and the single track was smooth and easy to run. I was running a little faster than I told myself I should, but it felt so nice out and I knew that once the sun came out it was going to heat up fast. The trail stayed in the trees mostly until the first aid station (3.2 mi). There I grabbed up some gels, topped up my bottles and tried to get a little food in. <br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Mt Carbon</td>
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Eventually the trail exited the wooded areas and we ran along the lake/reservoir. Here is where I started to feel that sun... gently warming at first, but I knew it was going to get hot in a hurry. Mt Carbon was the first significant climb with one switchback and a long traverse up the side that you can see in the pic above.<br/><br/>
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<br/>Upon reaching the summit, you could see Denver off in the distance (hard to see in this pic). From this point on was a nice downhill run into the golf course area of the trail.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>After winding behind homes and around the golf course a bit, the section with the water crossings came up. I wasn't sure what to expect at first, but came to welcome this section later. In the course of 1/2 a mile or so, there are 3 water crossings like this one.. the deepest being about mid calf on me. Refreshing for sure, but I wasn't sure how my feet would holdup getting wet 12 times throughout the day.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>After the third crossing, the trail exited out onto a wide sidewalk path that ran between the golf course and some amazingly huge and beautiful homes, on up to the 2nd aid station at mile 7.8. I refueled with some food from the station (PBJ, Chips, Coke... ugh.. I know I know..) Also, I was carrying with me Mama Chia pouches (which really work well for me), <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2014/01/burned-out-on-gels-fuel-100-electro.html" target="_blank">Fuel 100 Electro-bites</a> (which I alternated with gels from the aid station), and S Caps. I stuck to a schedule of taking in one of those items every 3 miles at least, and when it got hot, one S Cap every 30 minutes.<br/><br/>
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<br/>From the 7.8 mile aid station to the one at 10.1 Miles (Just before where this pic was taken) is what I came to call later the "hell" zone... Just over two miles, but it felt like 10! Primarily because that section is totally exposed to the sun, and has some very long stretches where you can see the trail way way off in the distance so it felt like I was not even moving. I did ok the first time through here, but I dreaded it on the next 3 laps.. Eventually after leaving the aid station at 10.1, there was one more climb to negotiate... not that it was super steep or long, but when you have been cooked by the sun and your legs are complaining, it is difficult to fight your way up the grade.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>Finally the course brings you back to the start/finish and the main aid station. I finished the first 12.5 mile lap in 2:49 or so... the only time I would be under 3 hours for the day! <br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Getting advice from the boys for lap 2</td>
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<br/><br/>What was really awesome was having my wife and boys cheering me on each lap. And, since the laps were so long, they had time to go to Chatfield and the corn maze, a movie, and dinner! I got to do what I love, and they had a great day as well!<br/><br/>
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<br/>So, off I went again for lap 2. By this time it was getting warm.. actually felt really hot to me but I knew it was just going to get hotter! Heat was the one thing I couldn't really train for... up where I live it seldom gets out of the 70's, and today it was supposed to be pushing 90.. <br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Coming into the 2nd aid station, lap 2... needing a double refill!<br/><br/></td>
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I ended up completing lap 2 in 3:17. Slower than the first lap, and by the time I finished it, I was really feeling the heat. I tried to eat more at the aid station, but was starting to experience mild waves of nausea that made it difficult. Nothing sounded good, which was a bummer because the stations had some great stuff!<br/>
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<div>Cue Lap 3, or what I fondly call "The beat down"... I knew that this would be a really tough lap, but it was compounded by the fact that the heat of the day and the sun were peaking.. and my stomach felt like crap. I literally spent most of this lap just trying not to puke, and trying to continue moving forward. I didn't want to eat or drink anything, but continued to force myself to stay on schedule, otherwise I knew I would be doomed.. at some point I wouldn't be able to keep going. At the first aid station in lap 3, I was happy to meet another Facebook friend Heidi, who was working that station. She was a lifesaver as she grabbed my sweaty hat off my head and proceeded to load it with ice. With it perched back on my head, and the ice almost giving me a Slurpee headache, I slammed down some chips, ginger ale, and Fig Newtons (Yum!) and headed off to meet Mt Carbon and the "hell zone" yet again. During this time (at least I think it was around this time) I also met Sheila (in the pic above) and we got to run together for a bit and to chat some as well. That was a nice distraction as we both had an opportunity to go off about how hot it was! </div>
<div>Basically I survived this lap.. that is about all I can say about it... finishing in an agonizing 3:52. BUT... I did survive it... I went through probably the lowest points of the whole race, and probably the lowest lows I've experienced in an Ultra and I got through... Those of you that have experienced this know what I'm talking about... I went through several periods of asking myself "why are you even out here... why are you even doing this? You don't belong out here...".. ugh.. </div>
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<div>So, being in that state, I was so happy to see my friend Mark Lofquist (<a href="http://paleorunners.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Paleo Runners</a>) coming up the trail about 1/2 mile away from the loop finish. Despite recovering from an injury, Mark came out to pace me on the last lap of the day, and I couldn't have been happier. We had a few chuckles, I got some of my whining out, and we headed in to the main aid station to gear up for the last go around. </div>
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<div>The boys met us and ran with us across the start/finish which was awesome... I was still moving, but wow, talk about some aches and pains at this point. Mark appears to be signaling to the bar tender for a round of beers! </div>
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<div>So I managed to reload some fuel, some salted water melon, and tried to get my head on straight for this final go around... at this point I had run 37.5 miles... 3.5 further than I ever had before, and that felt good. </div>
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<div>Off we went, with the boys leading us out for the first 1/4 mile or so... At this point I was having a hard time keeping my legs moving! But, as we entered the shady tree-lined section along the creek, the air began to cool down finally as the sun was getting lower... we started this lap just before 5pm, and I was happy to be ahead of the 6pm cutoff to start the last lap. Also, it was going to be dark before I finished this lap, so it's a good thing I brought a headlamp.... which of course I forgot in my drop bag!<br/><br/>So, for the next several hours Mark and I ran on.. or at least I tried to run on. He shared some of his paleo pancakes and strawberries with me, which were amazing. We managed to hit the water crossings before it got too dark, so it wasn't super creepy! My feet started to hurt, and I could sense some blistering coming on, and my right foot was really stinging leading up to water crossings. After we got out of the next aid station and headed to the "hell zone", I was glad that it wasn't nearly as hellish since it was cooler, and it was getting pretty dark so you couldn't see how long a straight stretch it was. <br/><br/>It was here that my legs really started to tire, but Mark kept encouraging me on. At one point, I took a page out of Jason Robillard's ultra running primer "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Never-Wipe-Your-Squirrel-ultramarathon/dp/1484007840#" target="_blank">Never Wipe Your Ass with a Squirrel</a>", and instead of slowing down, I tried running as fast as I could for as long as I could. Which, in retrospect, may not have been the wisest thing to do considering I couldn't see the trail any more, but it gave my legs a wake up call. From that point forward I think I was running more than walking... and I could hear Mark behind me say..."hey.. that mile was 1 minute faster than the last.." and then " oh hey.. that one was 2 minutes faster than the one we just did".. And the gap to the finish finally began to close.<br/><br/>As we neared the end, I could see fireworks off on the horizon.. not sure what was going on, but it was cool. Of course, Mark took the opportunity to start messing with me by saying "what fireworks?" implying that my mind was shot... which after the heat of the day, it really could have been. But then he proceeded to ramble on about Dean Karnazes and gold panning, and who knows what else... or maybe I imagined that...<br/><br/><br/><div class="separator"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RfGu2AmtQ_E/VC4LmLCpNNI/AAAAAAAAV5k/x_Gf1Eu-mr8/s1600/10611_72111_2113.jpg"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RfGu2AmtQ_E/VC4LmLCpNNI/AAAAAAAAV5k/x_Gf1Eu-mr8/s1600/10611_72111_2113.jpg" height="426" width="640"/></a></div>
<br/><br/>So, the last and final lap was covered in 3:41 (11 minutes faster than the beat down lap), and Mark and I finished by the lights of our cell phones... What a tremendous rush to finally hit that final step and to see my wife and boys at the end. I was also happy to see Ali and Dan Smith from <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/320777387993139/" target="_blank">CO Ultrarunners </a>cheering me on at the end..<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>Woo hoo! I made it! I got my 50's before 50! What an amazing feeling to finish, and to try and comprehend the distance I had covered. I still find it hard to believe... I told myself after finishing this one I would enjoy a break and not think about what was next... but of course, less than a week after this milestone I'm mentally looking forward to a 100K attempt in 2015... and who knows... a 100 miler may be in that future too? But not to jump ahead.. one step at a time as they say... I'm just going to relish this one for a bit :-) <br/><br/>If you were wondering about gear etc, I ended up running the whole race in the <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2014/07/trail-ninja-b2r-trail-performance.html" target="_blank">B2R Trail Performance</a> shoes, <a href="http://www.inknburn.com/" target="_blank">INKnBURN</a>, the <a href="http://www.orangemud.com/collections/running-packs/products/hydraquiver-vestpack-hydration-pack" target="_blank">Orange Mud VP2 Ves</a>t (review coming up next!), <a href="http://switch%20sunglasses/" target="_blank">Switch Sunglasses</a> of course, and a generous helping of <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2013/08/rock-on-rocktape-and-rocksauce-review.html" target="_blank">Rocktape </a>for my ankle/achilles, and small patches on the balls of my feet in my normal hot spots. I ended up with very small sub surface blisters on each foot which faded away in two days, after a few days of rest, I felt great... and today I went for a 5 mile trail run which really felt good... so a much quicker and better recovery than I expected!<br/><br/>So.. there you go. If you stuck around this long.. thanks! Also, I wouldn't go give thanks to my family and friends.. I appreciate all the support you have given me... it means a lot and pushes me onward!<br/><br/> If you have any questions/comments, feel free to leave them below thanks!<br/><br/><br/>Happy Trails!<br/><br/>Jeff<br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.com">http://barefootinclined.com</a><br/>barefootinclined@gmail.com<br/><br/><br/>Oh! one more thing... I can't forget my friend Rob Sanchez, who I saw on the trail several times (once handing out SunRype bars!). He took a pic of me as I climbed Mt Carbon, and when I saw it, it looked familiar.. then I realized why :-)<br/><br/>
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</div>Race Report: Tommyknocker Ultras 50/100K, Woodland Park, CO 9/6/14tag:pikespeaksports.us,2014-09-10:5021591:BlogPost:5952542014-09-10T03:51:31.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Human Potential Race Series: Tommyknocker Ultras 50K Race Report</h3>
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<br></br><br></br>My new favorite t-shirt! Well,…</div>
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Human Potential Race Series: Tommyknocker Ultras 50K Race Report</h3>
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<br/><br/>My new favorite t-shirt! Well, after my INKnBURN gear of course :-). It's official, I completed my 2nd 50K this weekend, and it feels great!<br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Ready to go!</td>
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As you know, I was just a little worried going into this one, as I hadn't followed a super strict training program like I did for my first 50K back in May. I was happy to learn that I really was ready to push myself for almost 34 miles, with a new distance PR and time on my feet PR :-) <br/><br/>This was the inaugural running of the Tommy Knockers 50/100K, and the first race for the<a href="http://humanpotentialrunning.com/" target="_blank">Human Potential Running Series</a>. While the race did have a few glitches (as to be expected), I felt that it was really well run, and such a great adventure! I am looking forward to this one again next year, as well as all of the other races on the calendar for HPRS. <br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Laurie, Kurt, and me </td>
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<br/>The volunteers were amazing! And, it was so cool that one volunteer was fellow INKnBURN ambassador (and 10 time Leadville 100 Finisher) Laurie Nakauchi! <br/><br/>Before I give you the blow by blow details, I will note that the biggest glitch in the race was really not preventable. It was unfortunate that a property owner who lived along one of the roads/easements wasn't happy with having a race going by, and ultimately harassed 100K runners, and painted wrong markings and moved tape markers to throw off the course, causing many 50K'ers to take a wrong turn and run up to 6 more miles in total after getting turned back around. The response by the race crew to get everyone redirected, and to deliver extra water on the trail was great. I can't say enough about the support. Also, to RD "Sherpa" John Lacroix's credit, his very detailed runner's manual (and pre-race meeting) both emphasized that although all efforts were made, as ultra runners we were responsible for knowing the course, AND the manual noted that vandalism could occur. I was running with a map, and although I wasn't impacted by the vandalism, I did need it in order to stay on course around mile 26.<br/><br/>Oh.. and since I'm sure you are dying to know.. I ran this race in the <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2014/07/trail-ninja-b2r-trail-performance.html" target="_blank">B2R Trail Performance</a>, the same shoe I ran my first 50K in. And they performed flawlessly! I brought backup shoes, but didn't need them... 9 hours on my feet, 3 deep water crossings, and getting rained on, and my feet still felt great and I had all the traction I needed!<br/><br/>
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<br/>So, off we went at 8 am to the sound of John striking a huge rock with a pick axe! The first part of the course was up Painted Rocks Rd (dirt road), but then turned off onto the network of Forest Services roads/trails in the Pikes Peak Ranger District. I met Mike (above) early on in the race, and we ran together until the 2nd aid station around mile 8. For trying to acclimate to the altitude (he came up from Texas) he did awesome! The pic above was coming into the first aid station after a lot of climbing... we joked that we had better be running in the pic :-)<br/><br/>
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<br/>This was at the Mile 8 aid station. It was such a beautiful morning and beginning to warm up. I dropped my arm sleeves off at the first aid station. Everything was feeling good, and the trails were great. Compared to my first 50K, I felt like I was staying well ahead on my hydration and fueling. Plus the food at the stations was great.. snagged some plantain and banana chips here that were perfect!<br/><br/>
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<br/>Coming into the Mi 13 aid station, I was still feeling pretty good. The trail didn't have as many steep climbs in this section, but a lot of rolling hills. The thing about this course was that there seemed to be very little flat! It was either up or down.... I fueled up at this station, grateful for an ice cold bottled Starbucks Mocha that my friend Matt (working at the station) had stashed for me... that really hit the spot. He brought beer as well, but I just wasn't feeling it so had to pass :-) I snagged some Mama Chia pouches from my drop bag, as well as a USB charging stick to boost my Garmin.. I knew I would be pushing the limits of the charge on my watch and wanted to keep it going.<br/><br/>After this, the next aid station would be just past mile 21, so one of the longer hauls on the course. I was a little concerned about this leg because it is in this zone (mile 15-21) that always seem to hit a wall or low spot. I anticipated this happening here, but I'm happy to say it didn't! I think much of it has to do with fueling and hydrating earlier (rather than when I really felt like I needed it). Also, it was during this leg that I caught up with a group of runners that were ahead of me.. I was confused at first, but when I got to one of the turns on the trail, I found out that they had gone the wrong way (due to the vandalism I noted earlier) and were just getting back on course after running an extra mile or 5 depending. I assured them we were headed on the correct path (I had ridden the course a week earlier), so we all headed on down the first really steep descent. During this drop I had a chance to chat with a nice lady that was in her 20th year of running ultras! So cool... <br/><br/>Once we reached the bottom we had a water crossing (first one I got my feet wet in), and then started a really arduous and steep climb up the other side.<br/><br/>
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<br/>Finally hit the aid station at mile 21 and took a little extra time to grab a sandwich, more Coke (I know I know... terrible stuff, and the epitome of processed junk, but dang it works for me in an ultra!) and a few more Mama Chias from my drop bag here. I was feeling great here because I was pretty certain I had avoided my normal low and was gearing up to keep going. I was also posting pics to Instagram while on the trail which was fun. But of course my phone eventually died, so anyone following may have thought I did too!<br/><br/>
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<br/>While the day was beautiful, it was also a typical Colorado day in the mountains. By the afternoon, clouds rolled in and so did the thunder and lightning. Around mile 23 the hail started dropping and the wind picked up. I got nailed with a quarter sized hail chunk right on top of my head! I ducked under a tree (which didn't help much) and hung out for 5-10 minutes for the worst of it to pass. I was starting to feel a little beat down at this point, but then I had to stop myself and say... "You are running an ultra marathon!! This is AMAZING!!" Which brought a smile to my face, and the edge off the pain.<br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">oh look.. another uphill! :-) </td>
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<br/><br/>After several more grueling climbs (5,100 ft overall on the course), a sun break, more heavy rain, and almost getting lost (took one wrong turn, realized it after .25 mi, consulted my map and got going again), I finally hit the final aid station close to mile 30. Felt so good knowing I was so close! I enjoyed some hot broth that really seemed to bring me back to life... followed by a shot of some awesome Moonshine corn whisky! That was some good stuff... and off I went with a big grin on my face.<br/><br/>
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<br/>So.. as I finished the last 3.5 miles (downhill!) I passed Othman who was struggling with a 50 lb rock... why? Because whoever found this marked rock.. and carried it over the finish line would win $250! And that is exactly what he did.. taking almost 3 hours to cover that last 3.5 miles! That was so amazing! <br/><br/>
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<br/>I finished the day by relaxing with some terrific BBQ and other munchies while we waited for the rest of the 50K and 100K runners to finish. I ran 33.8 miles, and spent 9:08 on my feet, and didn't sit for the two+ hours after the race. I met a lot of great people, made a lot of new friends, and just had a blast. I can't wait to run this one again next year... maybe the 100K? <br/><br/>I am so looking forward to future races from Human Potential Racing... Check out their next race.. the Indian Creek Fifties by clicking <a href="http://humanpotentialrunning.com/races/indian-creek-fifties/" target="_blank">HERE</a>.<br/><br/>And the best part? I woke up the next day feeling better than I have on days after running half that distance, and was able to run a few recovery miles as well. And that confirmed it... I'm going for 50 miles in 2.5 weeks on 9/27! Wish me luck, or call me crazy.. either works!<br/><br/>Happy trails!<br/><br/>Jeff<br/>barefootinclined@gmail.com<br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.com">http://barefootinclined.com</a><br/><br/><br/><br/>
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</div>Eric Orton Interview!tag:pikespeaksports.us,2013-12-19:5021591:BlogPost:5258802013-12-19T17:40:36.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
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<p>Wow.. just wow! I am really…</p>
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<p>Wow.. just wow! I am really excited to share with you an interview I had with Eric Orton last week, and a really cool startup called ZOZI!</p>
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<p><br/> OK... what or who is <a href="http://www.zozi.com/denver" target="_blank">ZOZI</a>? Just think ADVENTURE... and very cool gear and amazing guru's. And Eric is one of their great guru's who has designed a custom trip to Nicaragua as part of ZOZI's "12 days of Adventures" giveaways. Check out his adventure, plus all the others and enter to WIN here! <a href="http://www.zozi.com/12days/">http://www.zozi.com/12days/</a></p>
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<p><br/> <br/> Anyway... make sure you enter, as there are some really amazing adventure trips being given away! And, sign up with ZOZI to get info on local adventures at discounted rates, and also some really cool gear as well. AND... if you stick around after the interview below, one BI reader will win $100 towards ZOZI getaways or gear! Talk about a rocking Christmas present!</p>
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<p><br/> <br/> OK... now to my interview with Eric. I was really excited to get this opportunity since I really enjoyed reading Eric's book,<i> The Cool Impossible</i>.. and his B2R Road shoes and strength training program got me ready and through my first marathon in January.. Check out the book review by clicking <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-cool-impossible-by-eric-orton.html" target="_blank">HERE</a> and the B2R review <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/12/im-ninja-born-2-run-road-performance.html" target="_blank">HERE</a>.<br/> <br/> <b>Barefoot Inclined Interview with Eric Orton:</b></p>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="background: white; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Barefoot Inclined:</span></b> <span style="background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;"> What are your thoughts on pure barefoot running, versus minimalist?</span></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Eric:</span></b> <span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">I think there is too much emphasis on this and attaching categories and making it black or white, right and wrong. I believe there is a proper or best way to run and this includes, run form, proper strength and muscle activation, shoes, the way we eat, how we think, and the way we train. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">I feel most of this was lost in Born To Run and the only focus became barefoot and minimal running. I use barefoot running as a tool to help teach form, develop strength, and to help athletes transition to a more natural shoe.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> I coach runners to perform as best they can at races and to accomplish long term race goals and it is very hard to achieve proper run training running only barefoot. Some can and do it well, but for most of us, we need good protection against the terrain and the ability to run faster when needed in training. With proper training including form, strength, and run training, it is my goal to eventually get my athletes in as minimal a shoe as possible that also provides the protection needed for any given day. For example, when I go for an easy run on the road here in Jackson Hole, I will run in a very minimal shoe. But when heading for the trails and mountains, I need a very protective shoe to that shields my feet from rocks and doesn't allow my feet to fatigue prematurely if I am out running all day.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Barefoot Inclined:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> <span style="color: blue;">What is your definition of a minimalist shoe?</span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Eric:</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> To be honest, I hate this word and how we have this need to place things in categories. I understand why, but it takes the real purpose and focus on WHY away from the consumer and we then lose the opportunity to educate the consumer. If we need a word, I like Natural the best because it speaks to the WHY and as I described above, minimal might mean different shoes for different purposes. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">But getting back to your question. I would define minimal or natural as a shoe that has a zero drop or very close to it (~ 3-4mm drop or less) and allows your feet to feel the ground. But the key element here is this type of shoe will allow good form to help activate muscles better. In other words, the shoe does NOT make good form, good form comes with practice and you can still have bad form with these shoes and even barefoot. Going barefoot or running in minimal shoes does NOT guarantee good form, you need to learn what good form is and apply it. But once good form is applied, THEN these types of shoes will further enhance the natural muscle activation that takes place first and foremost at the feet.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> The health of a runner is dictated by how well he or she can use their feet naturally and that is how these shoes become a training tool in a variety of ways for everyone. When we run with good form and use our feet well, our muscles work well all the way up the leg to the hip. Why is this important? Well it takes away the tug and pull of dominate and dormant muscles which ultimately alleviates the muscle tightness we have been conditioned to think is inherent with running. This is what the shoe companies are missing and they all are treating this movement like a fad because they do not understand it themselves, or care not to educate because it is hard for them to you sell other "categories".</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Barefoot Inclined:</span></b> <span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> <span style="color: blue;">The B2R Road Performance shoe is really great (my favorite road shoe), when can we expect a trail version to be released, and are there any plans to offer other road models as well?</span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Eric:</span></b> <span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">The trail shoe is amazing and I can't wait to get it in the hands of the B2R fans. My goal with this shoe was to produce what is missing in the market and design a shoe that allows for natural foot stability and movement I spoke of above BUT also provide great protection. We have had testers who use this shoe for short trail runs and have had one run 50 miles in it. So we really nailed it. B2R's long term strategy is to have an endurance or long course line of shoes to compliment the current road shoe and the soon to be released trail shoe. We also have a casual moc and a gym training shoe coming out at the same time of the new trail shoe. If all goes well, we should expect these three new releases in late January, so stay tuned.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Barefoot Inclined:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> <span style="color: blue;">Your "Cool Impossible" is the dream of one runner in every household.. What do you see in your future to help achieve this? </span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Eric:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">This goal is two-fold. One, it is meant for me to lead by example of what the cool impossible really means, a huge goal and it doesn't get much bigger than one runner per household. I want runners and readers of The Cool Impossible to see my goal and understand it is not so much about the outcome, but the "cool" things and amazing things that come to us through the process of living this cool impossible. Too many of us are stopped by fear because before we start a goal, we want to know what the outcome will be. We ask, can I do it, what will happen, will I succeed? Well, that is impossible to know until we live our goal day to day. So, this need to know will stop us before we even start and our actions are being decided on something that is impossible to know. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">So yes, one runner per household. My passion and mission in life is to use running as a vehicle to help people live the life THEY WANT. When people are empowered to live the life they truly want, they eat better, they take care of their bodies, they treat others with respect and compassion and become just a little bit more open minded to other beliefs. Through running, we can create a healthier and better world. And running is something most all of us can do.</span><br/> <span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><br/></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Right now I am putting together a team to help me with this campaign and mission. There is a create Ted Talk out there about starting a movement and the overriding point is when starting a movement, you need help and others to help carry the torch. As a coach, it is sometimes hard to ask for help and it is tricky to find the right kind of help to keep this an authentic and organic movement.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Right now my focus is on building my website community, helping the runners there as much as I can and eventually encourage them to become ambassadors for this global running movement. I have a few projects brewing that hopefully will include a TV/digital media platform for my message. And, as I mentioned, I am in the process of putting together partners and sponsors to help me travel and show how adventurous running can be and give it a "face lift" to the general public. </span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Barefoot Inclined:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> <span style="color: blue;"> Do you do all of your running on the trails and in the mountains? </span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Eric:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Yes, the majority of the time, but I am sure to keep some road and track work for speed and leg turnover. My season is very diverse and goes something like this:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Winter – depending on snow conditions I try to get on snow trails as much as possible to develop strength and endurance. It stays cold here in Jackson, so the snow stays which allows me to do my road running on snow as well, which is a lot of fun and gets me on some great mountainous roads that I would not be on in the summer. In the winter I focus on running quite a bit and try to make extreme adventures to keep me motivated during the cold, but without forcing it and making it a "have to". I also sprinkle in ski mountaineering, climbing, snow biking, Nordic skiing and of course, alpine skiing at the resort.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Spring – This season is the least desirable Jackson Hole has to offer. It really can be a mix of snow, rain, sun, clouds, cold, etc. During this time I back off a little on volume and take the great strength I built in Winter and work on my speed. I will hit the track for speed sessions and as the lower elevation trails start to dry out, I will run some fast tempo and intervals on varied terrain.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Summer – There is no better place to run than Summer in Jackson Hole. This is a time where all my winter and spring prep has me ready for hitting all the high elevation trails and canyons in Teton National Park. This is my high mileage time and I try to do as much on trails as possible, which leaves only my true recovery runs for the road. Summer projects also take center stage, whether it is hitting the races I have chosen or putting together new trail link ups, traverses, and high alpine ascents.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Fall – I usually schedule my most important races for fall, so I am able to use the summer of running to prepare. The days also get a bit cooler and shorter, but I am also doing as much mountain running as possible before later Fall and snow hits.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Barefoot Inclined:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> <span style="color: blue;">What does trail running do for you... what does it provide? (besides a workout of course :-) )</span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Eric:</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">The great thing about living in Jackson is everything is so close and accessible. So having the ability to run for a living and run on trails everyday really centers me and gives me that daily reminder that I live a very cool life and I am fortunate to have this ability and health to explore the mountains and wildlife right out my door. I also came from a team sporting background where making athletic moves and plays was a big part of my ability and when I am in the mountains running on technical terrain or even having to climb or scramble up a rock formation, it gives me this feeling of athleticism that I sometimes miss when running roads. It truly brings that mind and body connection to the forefront and gives me a very creative mind. When I was writing my book, I would go for a run and assemble thoughts and actually write while running.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Barefoot Inclined:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> <span style="color: blue;">How much of running is mental vs. physical... and what advice to you have for new runners who aren't sure about their physical capabilities?</span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Eric:</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> In my book, I start out be saying I believe at first, the mind follows a good body. Sometimes we often hear it the other way around, where the body follows the mind. But from my experience as a coach and athlete, it is hard to feel good about yourself mentally if you are not feeling good physically. So, at first, the body must get strong and well and this promotes mental confidence and empowerment. Through time, this starts to alter and as we become strong and capable physically, the mind takes over and leads the way.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">So in advice to new runners, first and foremost running is good for us if done right. Yes, it is a skill to be learned and one that we all can learn. And, running can be fun and getting to the point in your running where YOU have the ability to manage you effort is the holy grail for new runners. With this, I really think it is crucial for them to understand appropriate run intensity and effort. This will help keep efforts as easy as possible when first starting so it stays enjoyable and something you gain power from, not torture. This will promote consistency and will help running to be FUN - leading to that physical confidence I mention above. In fact all runners need to understand intensity for long term improvement.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Barefoot Inclined:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> <span style="color: blue;">What's the next big thing for Eric Orton?</span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Eric:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Short term, I am preparing for the US paperback release of <i>The Cool Impossible</i> in May 2014, which will lead to the long term plan of more run clinics, run expeditions, and launching of my global running campaign. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Barefoot Inclined:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white;"> </span> <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">Tell me about your relationship with ZOZI. What do you do for them as a ZOZI Guru. How does this align with your passions and goals? And you’re working with them to give away an adventure to Nicaragua? Tell me about it.</span></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Eric:</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">As I mentioned above it is tricky to find great partners and ZOZI is a great partner. I was fortunate enough to be one of the original ZOZI Gurus and now to be associated with the likes of Bear Grylls, Jimmy Chin and others, is truly humbling and an honor. </span></div>
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<p></p>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">ZOZI is all about adventure and living life to the fullest every day and this is a very authentic way of being that we both share. And the Nicaragua adventure giveaway is a great example of promoting this way of life. That there might be a different way to look at traveling and living and how this can create experiences that mold how we go forward with our life. I traveled to Nicaragua last February as an invited runner to the Fuego Y Agua Ultramarathon hosted on Ometepe Island. This trip blew my mind, running up volcanos, with monkeys, thru jungles and reinforced how adventure brings people and cultures together. Running is truly a unifying force and this is what ZOZI wants people to experience on their own. ZOZI is the catalyst and care takers of this adventure mindset and what life is all about.</span></div>
<p><br/> Thanks Eric! I appreciate you taking the time for the interview!<br/> <br/> Now... if you want to win $100 credit towards ZOZI adventures and gear, check out the Rafflecopter widget below. I'll run this contest until 10PM MST on December 24th, 2013 and then randomly select one lucky winner... Merry Christmas! Contest is open to the U.S. and Canada.<br/> <br/> <a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/ee49b043/" id="rc-ee49b043" rel="nofollow" name="rc-ee49b043">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a></p>
<p><br/> <br/> Happy Trails and good luck!<br/> <br/> Jeff<br/> <a href="http://barefootinclined.com">http://barefootinclined.com</a><br/> barefootinclined@gmail.com</p>
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<p></p>Running Naked! Bolder Boulder 10K 2013tag:pikespeaksports.us,2013-05-29:5021591:BlogPost:4501962013-05-29T04:16:36.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Racing Naked! Bolder Boulder 10K Race Report</h3>
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<br></br><br></br>Yes... I am bold! Bold…</div>
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Racing Naked! Bolder Boulder 10K Race Report</h3>
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<br/><br/>Yes... I am bold! Bold enough to race naked! Well.. ok, not exactly naked. I wouldn't want to subject anyone to that... BUT.. bold enough to run with naked feet! Or at least give it my best shot...<br/><br/>
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<br/>On Monday May 27th 2013 was the 35th Annual Bolder Boulder 10K, and the 5th year that we have participated in the event as a family. This year was the second time I've run instead of walked the event. Last year I ran it in <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/05/yabba-dabba-doo-bedrock-earthquake.html" target="_blank">Bedrock Earthquake</a> huaraches, and this year I had set my sights on completing the event barefoot.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>Here I am at the start, along with my father-in-law Jerry (with his game face on). I just love this event... it is so much fun. It is know as "America's All-Time Best 10K" and I believe it. It has to be one of the most well run events from beginning to end. They smoothly get more than 50,000 runners/walkers through the event by 11:30 am, allowing those who choose to stay an opportunity to watch the men and women international pro's race and finish in the University of Colorado (CU) stadium.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>There is nothing like finishing your 10K in a huge stadium with crowds cheering as you take the final lap!<br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>And, all along the course there are so many great bands playing, and even more entertainment from the folks in the small Bolder neighborhoods trapped in their homes during the event. Their yards include slip-n-slides, snacks, crazy music etc... all the things you would expect from fun loving folks (some who begin imbibing adult beverages before 8am!).<br/><br/>
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<br/>Bacon instead of energy gels... why didn't I think of that!<br/><br/>Anyway, as far as the race went, I had high hopes even though my longest run barefoot was 2.5 miles, and I had managed a 5+ mile walk barefoot. I carried my "<a href="http://muddyj.com/juaraches/" target="_blank">J"uaraches</a> custom made by my buddy <a href="http://muddyj.com/" target="_blank">Muddy J</a> as my backup, so I wasn't too worried. By the way, the "J"uaraches are amazing, and my next post will be a full review of them!<br/><br/>
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<br/>So, at just before 9am, our wave started the journey to CU Stadium. Granted, it was one of the faster walking waves (my wife, her dad and sister, and our boys would be walking), so I did spend some time weaving around walkers as I ran. For the first two miles I was feeling pretty good... the asphalt of the normally busy roads was smooth, and they also had a lot if nice painted lines to run on which were really nice. My feet were holding up until about 2.5 miles in when the course began weaving through the small neighborhoods. Here, the road was much less smooth, and the sidewalk was not much better. This is where the limits of my unshod conditioning were met. Determined not to do any serious damage, I stopped just short of the 5K mark and put my thin leather huaraches on. In retrospect, I probably should have done so sooner, as my feet were a bit tender, but I pushed on.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>Surprisingly, I didn't get a lot of looks... whether when barefoot, or in huaraches. I saw one other guy running barefoot, but beyond that, very few minimalist shoes or sandals which still surprises me. As I approached the CU stadium, I stopped and took my sandals off... I figured I had to at least finish this thing naked. I winced my way into the stadium, and made the lap around the track to finish. The track was covered in an aluminum platform flooring which had some anti-slip material on it. Normally it would have been ok, but my tender feet were not happy! But I stuck it out and finished. Hopefully there will be some good shots from the race photographers later.. I ended up finishing about 2 minutes slower than last year, but I was happy with that since I managed to barefoot to the halfway point this time.<br/><br/>
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<br/>From there I grabbed all my race swag (they have the best canvas lunch bags filled with all kinds of goodies/snacks), a cold beer (Michelob Ultra.. I wouldn't call it a beer per se, but after running over an hour in 80+ temps, it was great), and found my mother-in-law in the stands to sit and wait for the rest of my family. Upon examining my feet, I had a quarter sized blister on my left foot... and of course my feet were nasty dirty! That blister has since faded a day later and my feet are feeling good.<br/><br/>As for my family, they had a great walk... for one of our twin 8 year olds, it was his second time, and for the other his first.. so that was awesome.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>After we all got settled, we enjoyed watching the pro men and women run the race at incredible speeds... we could watch them on the big Stadium screen along the course, and then see them finish live in the stadium.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>Allan Kiprono of Kenya won this year, with a time of 29:28 .... WOW<br/><br/>After that, we got to enjoy the annual Memorial Day festivities including sky divers representing each branch of the Armed Forces, appearances by honored veterans, the induction of 75 men and women who took their oath of service on the field, and a very moving 21 gun salute.<br/><br/>
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<br/>So there you have it... another Bolder Boulder 10K in the books! Already looking forward to next year. If you haven't participated before, and get the opportunity.. I truly recommend it!!<br/><br/>Happy Trails!<br/><br/>Jeff<br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.com">http://barefootinclined.com</a><br/><br/>
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</div>Running Naked! Bolder Boulder 10K 2013tag:pikespeaksports.us,2013-05-29:5021591:BlogPost:4501942013-05-29T04:00:00.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Racing Naked! Bolder Boulder 10K Race Report</h3>
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<br></br> <br></br> Yes... I am bold! Bold…</div>
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Racing Naked! Bolder Boulder 10K Race Report</h3>
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<br/> <br/> Yes... I am bold! Bold enough to race naked! Well.. ok, not exactly naked. I wouldn't want to subject anyone to that... BUT.. bold enough to run with naked feet! Or at least give it my best shot...<br/> <br/>
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<br/> On Monday May 27th 2013 was the 35th Annual Bolder Boulder 10K, and the 5th year that we have participated in the event as a family. This year was the second time I've run instead of walked the event. Last year I ran it in <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/05/yabba-dabba-doo-bedrock-earthquake.html" target="_blank">Bedrock Earthquake</a> huaraches, and this year I had set my sights on completing the event barefoot.<br/> <br/>
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<br/> <br/> Here I am at the start, along with my father-in-law Jerry (with his game face on). I just love this event... it is so much fun. It is know as "America's All-Time Best 10K" and I believe it. It has to be one of the most well run events from beginning to end. They smoothly get more than 50,000 runners/walkers through the event by 11:30 am, allowing those who choose to stay an opportunity to watch the men and women international pro's race and finish in the University of Colorado (CU) stadium.<br/> <br/>
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<br/> There is nothing like finishing your 10K in a huge stadium with crowds cheering as you take the final lap!<br/> <br/> And, all along the course there are so many great bands playing, and even more entertainment from the folks in the small Boulder neighborhoods trapped in their homes during the event. Their yards include slip-n-slides, snacks, crazy music etc... all the things you would expect from fun loving folks (some who begin imbibing adult beverages before 8am!).<br/> <br/>
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<br/> Bacon instead of energy gels... why didn't I think of that!<br/> <br/> Anyway, as far as the race went, I had high hopes even though my longest run barefoot was 2.5 miles, and I had managed a 5+ mile walk barefoot. I carried my "<a href="http://muddyj.com/juaraches/" target="_blank">J"uaraches</a> custom made by my buddy <a href="http://muddyj.com/" target="_blank">Muddy J</a> as my backup, so I wasn't too worried. By the way, the "J"uaraches are amazing, and my next post will be a full review of them!<br/> <br/>
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<br/> So, at just before 9am, our wave started the journey to CU Stadium. Granted, it was one of the faster walking waves (my wife, her dad and sister, and our boys would be walking), so I did spend some time weaving around walkers as I ran. For the first two miles I was feeling pretty good... the asphalt of the normally busy roads was smooth, and they also had a lot if nice painted lines to run on which were really nice. My feet were holding up until about 2.5 miles in when the course began weaving through the small neighborhoods. Here, the road was much less smooth, and the sidewalk was not much better. This is where the limits of my unshod conditioning were met. Determined not to do any serious damage, I stopped just short of the 5K mark and put my thin leather huaraches on. In retrospect, I probably should have done so sooner, as my feet were a bit tender, but I pushed on.<br/> <br/>
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<br/> <br/> Surprisingly, I didn't get a lot of looks... whether when barefoot, or in huaraches. I saw one other guy running barefoot, but beyond that, very few minimalist shoes or sandals which still surprises me. As I approached the CU stadium, I stopped and took my sandals off... I figured I had to at least finish this thing naked. I winced my way into the stadium, and made the lap around the track to finish. The track was covered in an aluminum platform flooring which had some anti-slip material on it. Normally it would have been ok, but my tender feet were not happy! But I stuck it out and finished. Hopefully there will be some good shots from the race photographers later.. I ended up finishing about 2 minutes slower than last year, but I was happy with that since I managed to barefoot to the halfway point this time.<br/> <br/>
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<br/> From there I grabbed all my race swag (they have the best canvas lunch bags filled with all kinds of goodies/snacks), a cold beer (Michelob Ultra.. I wouldn't call it a beer per se, but after running over an hour in 80+ temps, it was great), and found my mother-in-law in the stands to sit and wait for the rest of my family. Upon examining my feet, I had a quarter sized blister on my left foot... and of course my feet were nasty dirty! That blister has since faded a day later and my feet are feeling good.<br/> <br/> As for my family, they had a great walk... for one of our twin 8 year olds, it was his second time, and for the other his first.. so that was awesome.<br/> <br/>
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<br/> <br/> After we all got settled, we enjoyed watching the pro men and women run the race at incredible speeds... we could watch them on the big Stadium screen along the course, and then see them finish live in the stadium.<br/> <br/>
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<br/> <br/> Allan Kiprono of Kenya won this year, with a time of 29:28 .... WOW<br/> <br/> After that, we got to enjoy the annual Memorial Day festivities including sky divers representing each branch of the Armed Forces, appearances by honored veterans, the induction of 75 men and women who took their oath of service on the field, and a very moving 21 gun salute.<br/> <br/>
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<br/> So there you have it... another Bolder Boulder 10K in the books! Already looking forward to next year. If you haven't participated before, and get the opportunity.. I truly recommend it!!<br/> <br/> Happy Trails!<br/> <br/> Jeff<br/> <a href="http://barefootinclined.com">http://barefootinclined.com</a><br/> <br/>
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</div>Big Mountain Trail Race 10Ktag:pikespeaksports.us,2013-04-26:5021591:BlogPost:4394272013-04-26T20:47:43.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Big Mountain Trail Run 10K Race Report and INKnBURN shout out!…</h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Big Mountain Trail Run 10K Race Report and INKnBURN shout out!</h3>
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<br/><br/>Hey there! So.. the <a href="http://bigmountainar.weebly.com/index.html" target="_blank">Big Mountain Trail Race</a> was last Sunday and I'm finally getting around to a race report!<br/><br/>This was the 2nd year for this race, which I <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/04/big-mountain-trail-run-race-report.html" target="_blank">ran last year</a> as well. It was my first race since my marathon at the end of January, so it felt really great to get back out there.<br/><br/>First of all, it was a spectacular day for a trail run! The temps were in the low 50's, the sun was out, and the trail was dry but not too dusty. I was really looking forward to this race because the trail is beautiful, and the downhills are a lot of fun (notice I did not mention any joy about the uphills..lol).<br/><br/>
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<br/>I was also really looking forward to running this race with my friend Matt. Over the past year or so I've managed to peer pressure him into not only taking up running, but minimalist running of course! Matt, being an engineer, has no problem seeing the logic in barefoot/minimalist running. He's been logging miles in <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/10/in-living-color-xero-shoes-huaraches.html" target="_blank">Xeroshoes 4mm Contacts</a>, and<a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/08/vivobarefoot-breatho-trail-review.html" target="_blank">Vivobarefoot Breatho Trails</a>. Now he's talking me into running the <a href="http://www.bsim.org/The_Twenty-Eighth__Presentation.htm" target="_blank">Big Sur Marathon</a> with him next year... I love it!<br/><br/>
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So, last year I ran this 10K at 1:12:03 and I was really hoping to improve upon that. I kind of question the distance on the race, as leading up to this, its been my fastest 10K, even with the rugged switch back climb for the first 2.5-3 miles of the course. But regardless, I wanted to improve over last year.<br/><br/>So, I'm happy to report that I finished in 1:10:01. Not huge, but it's a PR and I'll take it! I ended up running in the <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/12/sticky-fingers-vff-spyridon-review.html" target="_blank">VFF Spyridons</a>.<br/><br/>This event is pretty well run, considering it is only their second year for this particular race. There were a number vendors there with some cool stuff to see while waiting for the race start. There was also a 5K and half marathon option available. I think Matt and I agreed to do the 1/2 next year as a last longer run before Big Sur... guess we'll see!<br/><br/>Also, last year they only had cotton t-shirts in the swag bag, but this year was a very cool tech shirt made from recycled plastics.. it's the bright yellow/green one pictured at the start of this post. I'm happy because it is a shirt I will actually wear and use going forward!<br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>Another cool thing was that after completing my run, I was asked if I was willing to answer a few questions about the race etc... being in an oxygen deprived state I nodded numbly, had a mic attached and proceeded to try and not make a fool of myself. Fortunately, only a few snippets of my rambling were caught, but you can see them here:<br/><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_365101878"><br/></a><a href="http://www.krdo.com/news/Colorado-runners-hit-the-trail-with-no-fear-of-attack/-/417220/19839498/-/k1upxlz/-/index.html">http://www.krdo.com/news/Colorado-runners-hit-the-trail-with-no-fear-of-attack/-/417220/19839498/-/k1upxlz/-/index.html</a><br/><br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>Finally, I wanted to give a shout out to <a href="http://www.inknburn.com/" target="_blank">INKnBURN</a>, the company that makes some amazingly cool tech shirts and accessories. I was wearing the "Wave" tech shirt, and I got a lot of great comments about it while on the trail and afterward. More so than I did in the Carlsbad Marathon, but I'm guessing INKnBURN is pretty popular in California since that's where they are based. Anyway, the shirt is super comfortable, and of course the styles are amazing. If you get a chance, check out their site <a href="http://www.inknburn.com/" target="_blank">here,</a> and if you decide to pick up a cool shirt, use the code JeffToldMe to get 10% off! (set up an account to use the code).<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/><br/>So what's next? <a href="http://www.gardentenmile.com/" target="_blank">The Garden of the Gods 10 Mile</a>... coming up on June 9th. I ran this one last year, and really enjoyed it, even though it was a road race. The stunning beauty of the Garden of the Gods area makes this run so cool. I snapped the picture above when running it last year.. yes, I can sightsee and run at the same time! Hopefully a better time for me in this one as well..<br/><br/>Anyway, happy Friday! Thanks for tuning in... have a great weekend!<br/><br/>Jeff<br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.com">http://barefootinclined.com</a><br/><br/>
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</div>For the love of it!tag:pikespeaksports.us,2013-02-22:5021591:BlogPost:4200332013-02-22T22:43:00.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">For the love of it... or how a 10K trail run turned into 10.5 miles</h3>
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<br></br><br></br>Wow... today was such…</div>
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">For the love of it... or how a 10K trail run turned into 10.5 miles</h3>
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<br/><br/>Wow... today was such a great day. I'm not exactly sure what all came together on my run today, but it sure felt great. No, I didn't set a PR.. (I was actually quite slow)... no, not a milestone training run. I just ran. I love trail running... and today I ran because I loved it so much.... no other reason.<br/><br/>I set out today to run a local loop trail because it was a beautiful day, and since I'm shooting for the 120 day challenge, I needed to run at least a mile anyway. Besides, I had some new trail shoes to test out for a review. But once I got on the trail and started thinking about it, I realized that today my main reason for running was because I truly loved it. And that still sounds kind of crazy to me. I think I was in a thoughtful mood because I am about halfway through Vanessa Run's book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BGTJ60O/ref=oh_d__o00_details_o00__i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1" target="_blank">The Summit Seeker</a>. I love the way she describes why she runs and in many ways I can identify with it. Also, what came to mind was a post in early December from my friend Trisha at <a href="http://barefoot-monologues.com/" target="_blank">Barefoot Monologues</a> about how getting so wrapped up in training that you lose sight of why you started to begin with and you lose the joy of running.<br/><br/>Her post was really great.. and you can read it by clicking<a href="http://barefoot-monologues.com/2012/12/09/how-the-ultra-marathon-killed-the-runner/" target="_blank"> here</a>. A great quote that stands out is:<br/>"<span>Today I realized something very interesting: that running makes me happiest when I am doing it for </span><em>no</em><span> reason. </span><em>No reason at all." </em><br/><br/>At the time, I thanked her for such a great post and the message, but truthfully I was in the middle of a set marathon training schedule, and doing my training runs etc etc.. so I didn't dwell on it a lot, but that message did stick and linger in there somewhere. I think that is why I was not overly upset about missing my marathon goal, but instead just happy to have finished the race, and to have enjoyed the experience. <br/><br/>But today, that message rang home... the empty snow covered trail, beautiful sky and mountains.. the foothills all to myself. And the feeling that I could go anywhere... this is why I run. <br/><br/>
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<br/>When I got to the top of the loop... I paused to take a break and enjoy the scenery and the quiet. And then I decided I was enjoying myself too much to head back home. So, I ventured over onto Rampart Range road and just kept running... I've been down this road many times before, but it was much different than the Jeep jarring washboard, dust cloud billowing drive in search of some fun 4X4 trails... instead it was a 5 mph, quiet and peaceful ride... the only sounds being the birds, wind through the trees, my steady breathing and rhythmic footfalls.. <br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>So, I ventured on until I thought it was a good time to turn around.. didn't pay attention to the distance, or my time... just enjoyed being able to move and enjoy the beautiful place we live.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>So.... does that mean I will no longer be training or entering races? Nah... races are great fun, and are motivational, so not going to change that. But... I'm thinking I am going to shift back to more of a free form training program.. just running when and how far feels right for any upcoming races. But most of all, I'm going to do my best not to get sidetracked or distracted again from the whole reason I got out there to begin with...running because its what I love to do.. Thanks Vanessa and Trisha! Life is good :-)<br/><br/>Happy trails!<br/><br/>Jeff<br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.com">http://barefootinclined.com</a></div>At The Hop, or Random Taper Ramblingstag:pikespeaksports.us,2013-01-14:5021591:BlogPost:4095602013-01-14T18:04:37.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
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<p><br></br><br></br>I know... totally random, but I'll eventually get to why I'm rocking to old 50's tunes...<br></br><br></br>First of all, congratulations to all the winners from the Happy and Healthy 2013 giveaway, and a big thank you to all the…</p>
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<p><br/><br/>I know... totally random, but I'll eventually get to why I'm rocking to old 50's tunes...<br/><br/>First of all, congratulations to all the winners from the Happy and Healthy 2013 giveaway, and a big thank you to all the great sponsors. That was so much fun, and I can't wait to do it again for 2014!<br/><br/>So, here I am, two weeks out from my first marathon.. kind of wavering from feeling like I got this, to second guessing the training plan, to mildly freaking out that I'm not ready... to wondering how I got here to begin with.... I'm guessing this is somewhat normal? I hope so....<br/><br/>Ok.. so back to "At The Hop"... First, let me drop in the Youtube video here so you can enjoy a little music with your reading...<br/><br/><iframe width="420" height="315" frameborder="0" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/U3KjDpvmtwU?wmode=opaque"></iframe>
<br/><br/>Ok... so here's the long story. Saturday the 5th was my 2nd and last 20 miler on my training program. I was a bit nervous, even though I made it through my first one. At the last minute, one of my FB peeps and and running idols, Mark Lofquist at <a href="http://paleorunners.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Paleo Runners</a>, left me a little quip for motivation. Basically he reminded me to keep my stride light and quick.. "pop pop pop!". Well, 4 miles into my run I passed by the "Venture Foods", a very small grocery store in the equally small town of Divide, CO. I needed a bio break (due to my pre-run coffee), and to warm up quickly, since it was 1F when I started my run. As I made my exit, "At the Hop" was playing in the store, and was subsequently stuck in my head.<br/><br/>So, as I took off, this song was on permanent repeat for the next 16 miles, but of course with the lyrics changed to "lets go do the pop" .. and "pop pop pop pop pop"... goofy as it sounds, it sure helped.<br/><br/>I know a lot of people run with earphones and music, but I just can't do it.. I have to hear what is going on around me.. so I'll settle for the music (and odd rambling thoughts) instead. Also, while I was running it dawned on me that all my long runs had been in thermal compression pants, and I started worrying if running without them in the warmer So Cal climate would make a difference... I fretted about that for at least an hour...<br/><br/>Thank goodness for the power of social media.. I posted that question up on a few of the running groups I am in... got enough feedback to understand my bigger issue would be overheating, and that I am going to be a ok in just shorts.. I know, silly things to stress about.<br/><br/></p>
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<p><br/>On the plus side, regardless of how I run, I am going to look great! Thanks to the cool folks at <a href="http://www.inknburn.com/" target="_blank">INKnBURN</a> I'll be running, plodding, walking, crawling in this rocking tech shirt! Should make it easier for my wife to find me in the crowd! Stay tuned for a full review after the race :-)<br/><br/></p>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br/>So... any advice on coping with the next two weeks until the big day gets here? Or do I just continue find things to worry about like getting the flu, injuries, alien abductions and the like? I'll take all the advice and feedback I can get!</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br/>Thanks.. and happy trails!</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br/>Jeff</div>
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<p></p>Do Life!!tag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-12-28:5021591:BlogPost:4036952012-12-28T16:30:00.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
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<p><br/><br/> I just finished this book, and really wanted to get a review up before it goes on sale on 12/31/12!! And, stay tuned for your chance to win a copy when it is released next week as well!<br/><br/> Before reading this book, I had not heard about Ben, or his amazing journey, so I am so glad I was asked to review this book and learn more about his amazing story!<br/><br/> For an amazing visual summary of his journey, take a look at the video below...</p>
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<p><a href="http://youtu.be/8SbXgQqbOoU">http://youtu.be/8SbXgQqbOoU</a></p>
<p><br/><br/><br/> As for the book, I found it equally as inspirational and moving as this video. Now, if you are not a runner, don't think that this book isn't for you. It really is for everyone. Granted, Ben Davis discovered running as his key to true happiness, but the message delivered is that the key could be just about anything, as long as it is a healthy obsession to drive you forward... or as the book is titled... to drive you to truly "do life", rather than sitting back and letting it pass by. Ben does an amazing job of truly bringing you into his shoes... even in the darkest and lowest moments, and by exposing himself at his rawest moments, carries you forward in his journey to happiness and health. And, it was not an overnight or painless transition as Ben recounts many setbacks and challenges that are to be expected.</p>
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<p><br/><br/> Now, as someone who has been on a journey to better health and happiness, I really identified with many of the stories and feelings that Ben relates in this book. Not everyone is going to have the same challenges, or even the same journey, but the basic foundation and strategies offered in this book are sound and offer some great ways to begin thinking about how to change your own life. Again, things aren't going to be the same for everyone, and Ben notes this often in the book, but the key message remains that you can take control and live life to its fullest, and it's never too late to start.<br/><br/> From a runners perspective, I really enjoyed this book as well. Besides just documenting the ups and downs of his journey, Ben also takes time to offer a lot of running advice for new runners, based on his experiences. Included in the book are several training programs for various race distances and some great advice on training, strategies, and gear. These are by no means in-depth programs (there are complete books on each of these areas), but there is a lot of info I wish I had known when I first started running. So, if you are a new runner, I would highly recommend this book for the simple tips offered, combined with the inspirational story.</p>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">What is also really cool, is that Ben's journey and philosophy has been transformed into a movement as well. You can check out the Do Life Facebook page at <a href="http://www.facebook.com/DoLifeMovement">http://www.facebook.com/DoLifeMovement</a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And from that page, here is the mission:</div>
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<div class="mvm uiP fsm" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px;"><br/><div style="background-xg-p: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"><b><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; line-height: 150%;">Mission</span></b></div>
<div style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; line-height: 150%;">What is Do Life?</span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; line-height: 150%;">Do Life is a choice to take control of our lives. </span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; line-height: 150%;">It is refusing to accept that life has to be ordinary or inconsequential.</span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; line-height: 150%;">It is identifying the areas of our lives that need improvement.</span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; line-height: 150%;">It is deciding to change.</span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; line-height: 150%;">And the key thing about Do Life is that it’s not about just one thing; if you want to become </span></div>
<div style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; line-height: 150%;">a better father, you become it. If you want to be a better student, you do it. If you want to run a marathon, you run until you can’t run anymore, and then you keep running. </span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; line-height: 150%;">Do Life is a movement dedicated to achieving these things and helping others as they Do Life as well.</span></div>
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<p><br/> And so.. there you have it. Would you like a copy of the book?? It will be released on 12/31/12, and one reader will have an opportunity to get one of the first copies. Or, you can order it <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Do-Life-Creator-120-Pound-Happiness/dp/0451414918/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1356643164&sr=1-1&keywords=do+life" target="_blank">here.</a> Please note, contest is open to the U.S. and Canada only. Winner will be drawn from all entries via Random.org after the contest closes at 10PM MST on December 31, 2012.<br/><br/> Enter below... good luck and thanks for reading!<br/><br/><br/><br/> <a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/ee49b08/" id="rc-ee49b08" rel="nofollow" name="rc-ee49b08">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a></p>
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<p> </p>Hydrapak Gelbot and Honeystinger Reviewtag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-12-06:5021591:BlogPost:4016222012-12-06T03:37:24.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
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<p><br></br> <br></br> Even though it doesn't look like it outside, it is definitely the Christmas season! I know, to be politically correct I should say "holiday" season, but I'm not going to be politically correct. And hopefully, we'll see some winter weather and snow…</p>
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<p><br/> <br/> Even though it doesn't look like it outside, it is definitely the Christmas season! I know, to be politically correct I should say "holiday" season, but I'm not going to be politically correct. And hopefully, we'll see some winter weather and snow here in Colorado sometime soon. I can't believe we are into December, and even today up in the mountains, we hit 60 degrees... wrong.. just wrong. Anyway, I am certainly in a giving mood, so I'm excited to offer another few reviews, and a giveaway.</p>
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<p><br/> So, today I'm reviewing some fuel and hydration options, namely the <a href="http://www.hydrapak.com/" target="_blank">Hydrapak</a> GelBot, and a selection of products from <a href="http://www.honeystinger.com/" target="_blank">Honey Stinger</a>. As my running distances continue to extend, I've been learning more about hydration and fueling techniques, as well as the myriad of products and gear out there to support it. As with many things running, it comes down to finding what works best for you. Hang on while I give you a brief summary of my impressions of both of these companies and their products, and at the end you'll have an opportunity to win a GelBot of your own!<br/></p>
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<p><br/> So, the cool folks at Honey Stinger sent me an assortment of their products to try out. I had heard some good things about them, but had not tried anything yet. I've tried and reviewed products from both GU and Clif (reviews <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/09/gu-and-hydrapak-review-and-giveaway.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/05/2-for-1-and-giveaway-nuun-hydration-and.html" target="_blank">here</a>), but am always looking for other options. Oh, and before I forget, I did ask them about the Lance Armstrong packaging. Yes, its being changed (for obvious and disappointing reasons), but stock will be out there for a bit until they shift over to new packaging.<br/> <br/> So, first off, one of the things I liked about Honey Stinger is their focus on natural (and organic) ingredients. Granted, I know that there are arguments that when you get down to sugars (as in a gel), they are basically the same chemically, but I feel better about seeing an ingredient list with organic ingredients, and a short ingredient list to boot. So, bonus points to Honey Stinger for working a little harder to keep folks like me happier about what they use to fuel up.<br/> <br/> First, the chews were great, but not particularly better or worse than Clif Shot Bloks, or GU Chomps... other than being organic/natural. I did enjoy the caffeinated limeade ones the best. But, I still find chews a bit difficult to take in while running... still worry about inhaling a chunk!</p>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The energy bar and protein bars were pretty tasty, and I ended up using them as a pre-run snack/breakfast... they worked well for that. But the waffles? I REALLY enjoyed those... what a great treat about 8 or 10 miles into a run.. I enjoyed both flavors... kind like a cookie, but not. Easy to eat... and was easy on my stomach. </div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Honey Stinger product I liked the best however was their organic energy gels. I tried the Fruit Smoothie, Acai Pomegranate, and Vanilla (missing from the pic because I used it before taking it!). The flavors were great (with Vanilla as #1 for me), terrific organic ingredients, but most of all was the consistency. Honey Stinger gels are probably the thinnest that I have tried, and that works much better for me. I have a harder time with thicker gels, especially when its well below freezing outside. AND, the thinner gel works awesomely with the GelBot from Hydrapak, which is up next!</div>
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<p>I was first introduced to Hydrapak when I reviewed their Woolly Mammoth insulated bottle back in September <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/09/gu-and-hydrapak-review-and-giveaway.html" target="_blank">here. </a> Hydrapak is just a great company with great products. The GelBot certainly meets those standards as well. Not only is the GelBot a great water bottle, it includes an additional feature that is a stroke of pure genius.</p>
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<p><br/> <br/> Inside the bottle is a 3.2 oz capacity chamber that attaches to the nozzle/lid. Just the right size to hold two gel packs (depending on the size). At the bottom of the chamber is a sliding plunger. Once filled, you attach it to the nozzle, slide it into the bottle and tighten it down.</p>
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<p><br/> <br/> Now, with the nozzle pushed down (closed) all you have to do is squeeze to deliver gel out of the center of the nozzle. The pressure simply slides the plunger up to dispense gel. Now, keep in mind, a really thick gel, and sub freezing temperatures means you may have to squeeze like crazy, and simultaneously try and suck it out like on a straw in the worlds thickest milkshake... but it will work. If you aren't crazy about an additional workout while running, I would recommend a thin gel... like the Honey Stingers! Anyway, if you want water, simple pull the nozzle up, like most bottles, and squeeze to dispense the water (or your fluid of choice).<br/> <br/> I really like the ability to dispense gel in the amounts I want while on the go. Fumbling with a gel pack, and then having to down the whole thing at once is not my preference, as I'd rather spread that fueling out if I can. Granted, this only holds two, but for this same reason, I could carry more gels using a gel flask, also available at Hydrapak. <br/> <br/> Finally, this bottle really works well in my <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/11/nathan-quickdraw-elite-review-and.html" target="_blank">Nathan Elite</a> handheld sleeve (see picture way at the top). If you want one, the 20 oz runs about $12-$14, so I think its a great value!<br/> <br/> So, once again, thanks for hanging on through another wordy review. I mean, you did read it right? Or did you just jump straight here to the end for the giveaway?? :-) No matter, lets get to the giving away!<br/> <br/> <span style="background-color: white; color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px;">Follow the instructions on each option below to earn entries. Contest will close on Monday, December 10th, at 10PM MST. Winners will be selected at random from all entries using random.org. Contest limited to residents of the U.S. and Canada only. Thanks! </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px;"> </span><br/> <span style="background-color: white; color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px;"><br/></span> <span style="background-color: white; color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px;"><br/></span> <a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/ee49b07/" id="rc-ee49b07" rel="nofollow" name="rc-ee49b07">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a></p>
<p><br/> <br/> <br/> Thanks, good luck.. and Happy trails!!<br/> <br/> Jeff<br/> <a href="http://barefootinclined.com">http://barefootinclined.com</a></p>
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<p></p>Am I truly born to run?tag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-10-16:5021591:BlogPost:3826892012-10-16T19:41:46.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title"><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/10/am-i-truly-born-to-run-born2run-preview.html">Am I truly born to run?? Born2Run Preview....…</a></h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title"><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/10/am-i-truly-born-to-run-born2run-preview.html">Am I truly born to run?? Born2Run Preview....</a></h3>
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<br/>I just love this cover of the Japanese version of the book. The original cover photo taken by Luis Escobar had Caballo Blanco (Micah True) in it. Anyway.. thought it was fitting since this book motivated me the most to run, and more importantly to run the right way :-)<br/><br/>
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Which ultimately has led me to sign up for my first marathon at the end of January. Still can't believe it! My primary goal for this marathon? To finish under 5:30 (don't laugh.. well, ok go ahead) so I can try to get a spot in the <a href="http://www.pikespeakmarathon.org/" target="_blank">Pikes Peak Marathon </a>next August! I know.. even crazier.<br/><br/>I'm just starting my 2nd week of a 16 week training schedule for this marathon. That in itself is kind of nutty to me... for the last year or more, I've just ran when I felt like it... and tried to run my next race distance at least once before the race so I would know how it felt (and whether I could make it!). But of course now, jumping from a 1/2 to a full marathon is a whole new ball game. So, I am using the Runners World app on my iPod and created a 16 week schedule that I'm hoping will help me ramp up to the distance (my long run so far is 15).<br/><br/>
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<br/>So.. I couldn't have been more excited to get an inquiry from <a href="http://born2run.com/">Born2Run.com</a> asking what I thought about their site and products. Born2Run was started by <a href="http://www.runningwitheric.com/" target="_blank">Eric Orton</a>, who coached<a href="http://www.chrismcdougall.com/" target="_blank">Chris McDougall</a>, author of Born To Run. I loved reading <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Born-Run-Superathletes-Greatest-Vintage/dp/0307279189/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1300140631&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Born to Run</a>... and recognized Eric's name from the book. You have read the book right? If not, stop reading this... go read it... and come back :-). Also, go check out Eric's site.. it is pretty cool.<br/><br/>
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<br/>I was really intrigued by the <a href="http://www.born2run.com/Home.aspx" target="_blank">Born2Run</a> site, and the shoes, training products etc. that Eric has available on his site. And I was really stoked when the goodies above arrived. As I am just starting my official marathon training, this was perfect timing. I had noted that I was by no means a high-performance runner, but really just your back of the pack minimalist runner just trying to keep moving. But, that turned out to be a plus, as a slow novice runner, what better candidate to see how these products and programs could help!<br/><br/>So, pictured above are the B2R Road Peformance Shoe (with the cool split toe), split toe socks, 3mm insoles (which I removed since I liked the shoes better without), the Level 1 Strength Training DVD, balance board, trekking poles (for balance), and a cool carrying bag.<br/><br/>
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<br/>I've run once in the shoes so far, and really liked them, and I will continue to use them for my road runs, and probably the marathon as well, but we'll see how it goes. So consider this kind of a pre-review of the shoes, and the strength training program.<br/><br/>
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I'm going to use the strength training (and running form) DVD, in conjunction with the balance board/poles, and an exercise ball to work on my foot/leg strength and core on the days I'm not running... and I'll probably put up a post about halfway through training with an update...<br/><br/>So... we shall see if I am really born to run, or destined to flail away at it stubbornly... regardless, I have no inclination to stop!<br/><br/>Thanks for stopping by... look for a cool giveaway coming up very soon!<br/><br/>Happy trails!<br/><br/>Jeff<br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a><br/><br/>
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</div>Get those kids running!tag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-10-08:5021591:BlogPost:3784392012-10-08T14:30:00.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title"><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/10/get-those-kids-running-part-2-kids.html">Get those kids running! (Part 2): Kid's Injinji Toe Socks Review…</a></h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title"><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/10/get-those-kids-running-part-2-kids.html">Get those kids running! (Part 2): Kid's Injinji Toe Socks Review</a></h3>
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So back in April, I had put up a post <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/04/get-those-kids-running.html" target="_blank">(click here)</a> about getting kids out there and running, and talked about the Spring <a href="http://www.landsharkrunclub.com/fall/" target="_blank">Landsharks</a> running team our 8 year old (then 7) twin boys had joined at their elementary.<br/>
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Well, they enjoyed it so much that they wanted to participate again this Fall. And I was excited because in the Fall the focus is more on cross-country type running. In anticipation of their fall season, the cool folks at <a href="http://www.facebook.com/injinjitoesocks?fref=ts" target="_blank">Injinji</a> sent them some of the new kids socks to try out.<br/>
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<br/> Ok... so before I let my boys give you a full review, let's talk about the colors. They currently come in the gray/blue or purple/pink. Now, I obviously I have twin boys, both different sizes. When the socks showed up, I had a minor panic... one pair was pink and purple! I even went as far as to send an email with a heads up that I may need to get those swapped out for the blue/grey. But, obviously the insecurity is my own. When the boys saw the socks, J says "oh hey cool! I love these colors!". So.. never mind me :-). That made me feel pretty good... I truly hate when things are promoted as "boys" color or style, or "girls".. kids are kids and let them decide. But of course I had concerns about him being teased at school... however that was not an issue because he had no problem letting his peers know that he was specifically chosen to "test and review" these socks for the company, and would be helping to provide a review on the internet based on his impressions. Case closed :-) I also have to give credit to the boys PE teacher... my wife had given her a heads up and noted that the boys said that she would know all about minimalist running.. so, she quickly got educated.. and then let the boys talk about their socks during PE... too cool.<br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Getting ready! And yes.. that's me in the back running sweeper.. or "turtle" as I like to call it :-)</td>
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<br/> Ok... so after receiving the socks, the boys were more than anxious to wear them.. bugging their mom to ensure they were clean for practices and for their big meets! Here they are getting geared up for one of their 1 mile runs at the local golf course. And in case you were wondering, they ran in water shoes... super flexible, super flat... and from Wal-Mart.. super cheap!<br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Hopefully just a start on a good collection of medals!</td>
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<br/> Ok.. so on to the review! You already know how I feel about Injinji toe socks, based on the three reviews I've done <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2011/12/injinji-outdoor-series-toe-socks-review.html" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2011/11/moonlighting-and-review-of-injinji-toe.html" target="_blank">here,</a> and <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/08/injinji-compression-socks-review-and.html">here.</a><br/>
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So.. at the risk of losing all future reviews to my boys, here is their video review of Injinjis toe socks for kids!<br/>
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Ok Injinji... you heard it from them.. let's get some new colors, and new features! However, if you include the lighting enhancement, they expect credit for that idea! And, <a href="http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/index.htm" target="_blank">Vibram</a>, if you are tuning in, you have a couple of dudes here ready to give your kid's sized VFF's and good run and a comprehensive review!<br/>
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So.. get out and get those kids running!<br/>
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Thanks again for tuning in.. and if you have any comments/questions/feedback, please let me know below!<br/>
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Happy trails!<br/>
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Jeff<br/>
<a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a></div>From the magic of Elves.. Softstar Runamoc Dash Lite Reviewtag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-09-16:5021591:BlogPost:3695422012-09-16T17:34:04.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title"><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/09/from-magic-of-elves-softstar-runamoc.html">From the magic of Elves... Softstar Runamoc Dash Lite Review…</a></h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title"><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/09/from-magic-of-elves-softstar-runamoc.html">From the magic of Elves... Softstar Runamoc Dash Lite Review</a></h3>
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<br/><br/>Ok... let me just start with... I'm in love! Yes.. in case my wife is reading this one... I do love you the most... but as far a minimalist shoes go? I may have found a close second!<br/><br/>So.. what shoes are these? They are the <a href="http://www.softstarshoes.com/sale/limited-quantity-dash-runamoc-lite-black-silver-2mm-street-sole.html" target="_blank">Runamoc Dash Lites</a> from <a href="http://www.softstarshoes.com/" target="_blank">Softstar Shoes</a>. For those of you that are familiar with Runamoc's.. you may know exactly what I'm talking about. If you aren't familiar, hang tight while I provide a little background on the company, and a detailed review of these great shoes.<br/><br/>
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<div class="separator">First of all, Softstar shoes are handmade in Corvallis, OR where elves have been<a href="http://www.softstarshoes.com/how-we-make-them" target="_blank">handcrafting</a> shoes since 1984. After close examination of the Runamoc's, you can truly see and feel the quality of the construction and the materials. </div>
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<div class="separator">The Dash Lite's come with the option of 2mm street sole, or a 5mm trail sole. I chose the 5mm, since I try to spend as much time as I can somewhere on a rocky trail in the deep dark woods. </div>
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<div class="separator">The soles are a very flexible Vibram sole (same tread pattern as on the <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/05/yabba-dabba-doo-bedrock-earthquake.html" target="_blank">Bedrock Earthquake huaraches</a>), and on top sits a leather insole of about 2mm I would estimate. </div>
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The uppers are made of an ultra soft, ultra light perforated leather, with a very roomy toebox. The lacing is a simple straight-up 3-eyelet design, with a wide tongue. They are easy to lace up, and are very comfortable all around, with or without socks.<br/><br/>What is most amazing about these shoes is how much they feel like a pair of super comfy slippers that you simply don't want to take off.<br/><br/>Oh.. here are the specifics on these as noted on the website:<br/><br/><br/>
<h3>Details</h3>
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<li><strong>Zero drop</strong> sole between toe and heel.</li>
<li>Ventilated leather uppers keep feet cool with <strong>quick-dry</strong> properties.</li>
<li><strong>Wide toe box </strong>- so your toes can grip, spread & splay away!</li>
<li><strong>Lightweight</strong> - between 5.6 oz to 8.7 oz depending on the type of sole you choose and how big your paws are.</li>
<li>Designed and made in Oregon using <strong>100% made-in USA</strong> raw materials.</li>
</ul>
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Ok... so, quality materials, great minimalist styling and features... but when it comes down to it, performance is key right? Before I get into my impressions of how they performed, let me preface it with a quick story about how I first heard about Runamocs... I first came across them on Donald Buraglio's blog, <a href="http://www.runningandrambling.com/" target="_blank">Running and Rambling</a>. I have a lot of respect Donald as a blogger/reviewer, and a runner. So.. Donald ran the Leadville 100 this year, in this very shoe. Amazing.... 103 miles and 36 hours in the same shoes... (he kept them on after his 28.5 hour finish time because they weren't bothering him). So... need I even say anymore about performance? I think the Leadville 100 speaks for itself! Anyway, if you want to read his epic story... check it out<a href="http://www.runningandrambling.com/2012/08/leadville-trail-run-100-mile-race-report.html" target="_blank"> here</a>.. its worth a read!<br/><br/>
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<br/>But of course, I can't just take the Runamoc's performance at Leadville as gospel, so I had to log some miles in them myself. Granted, I didn't run 103 miles.. but I got around 40 in them... and no, not in one go. My long run in them above was around 9 miles, and much of it strewn with foot bruising rocks like the ones above.<br/><br/>First of all, my feet were amazingly comfortable in all my runs. The best way I can describe it is having the flexibility and freedom of a good running huarache, but with a super comfortable and soft fit around the feet, and no strap between the toes.<br/><br/>Also, even with only a ~7mm cushion above the ground, these truly felt like I was getting more protection that I would in my Trail Gloves which are thicker. Not sure exactly what was going on there, but I wasn't going to complain... I'm going to chalk it up to more elf magic!<br/><br/>
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<br/>Another way I can tell when I really like a shoe is how often I reach for them. Lately, I've had several shoes arrive at the same time, and in order to be diligent about providing good reviews, I need to log miles in each of them. BUT, for those runs where I wasn't worrying about reviewing, I gladly reached for the Runamoc's... right now that is a good indicator of my thoughts about them!<br/><br/>Ok ok... by now you are thinking I am just totally infatuated and blinded from anything negative to say right? If so, you are probably close, however I did have one slight annoyance in these shoes. Due to the perforated styling of the leather upper, I found that I would pick up small particles of dirt/rocks in looser terrain. They would manage to work their way into the shoe, and unlike a huarache, I couldn't take a few strides to fling them out. However, the perforations are small enough that what did get in there wasn't a real problem, I just noticed it a bit. I'm going to have to ask Donald if he had this problem, and how often he stopped to clear them out. I'll let you know what I find out.<br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Our little town from the top of the trail run</td>
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<br/>So.... for the moment, these are my favorite non-huarache trail runners... and who knows? They may hold that position for some time. <br/><br/>Ok... if you are sold and want to try a pair... good news! This same model is now on sale at<a href="http://www.softstarshoes.com/sale/limited-quantity-dash-runamoc-lite-black-silver-2mm-street-sole.html" target="_blank">Softstar for $77.60</a> (compared to $97 regular). That is a great deal on terrific minimalist shoes. Even at the regular price, Runamoc's are priced competitively in the minimalist running market, and even more so when you considered the hand-crafted quality and proven performance.<br/><br/>Again, as I always note, please let me know if you have any questions/comments/feedback.. I live for comments!<br/><br/>As always, thanks for tuning in... and please continue to stay tuned as I have a great giveaway coming soon for any trail running coffee lovers!<br/><br/>Happy trails!<br/><br/>Jeff<br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a> <br/><br/><br/>WEEKLY CHALLENGE! Are you up to it?<br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption"><a href="http://tribesports.com/challenges/mini-home-circuit-blast-legs-chest-core" target="_blank">Take the challenge on Tribesports.com!!</a></td>
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</div>Vivobarefoot Breatho Trail Reviewtag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-08-16:5021591:BlogPost:3587212012-08-16T01:53:28.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
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<p><br></br><span>Ok... so I'm probably one of the last to put up a review for the </span><a href="http://www.vivobarefoot.com/us/mens/breatho-trail-light-grey-red.html" target="_blank">Vivobarefoot Breatho Trail</a><span>... but better late than never! I've had these since late May, and so I've probably logged more miles in them than I normally do…</span></p>
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<p><br/><span>Ok... so I'm probably one of the last to put up a review for the </span><a href="http://www.vivobarefoot.com/us/mens/breatho-trail-light-grey-red.html" target="_blank">Vivobarefoot Breatho Trail</a><span>... but better late than never! I've had these since late May, and so I've probably logged more miles in them than I normally do before putting up a review. Summer kind of got away from me... road trips, forest fires too close for comfort, and the usual distractions. So, working on getting caught up on reviews...</span><br/><br/></p>
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<p><br/><br/><span>One thing I noticed right after the Breatho's arrived was that I was having some cool color coordination going on, purely by coincidence. I'm digging the red/black/white/gray combo of</span><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/05/yabba-dabba-doo-bedrock-earthquake.html" target="_blank">Bedrock</a><span>, Vivobarefoot, and Injinji!</span><br/><br/><span>Anyway... getting distracted already. This is the second pair of Vivobarefoot shoes that I have reviewed. Back in December, I reviewed the Neo Trails </span><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2011/12/viva-vivobarefoot-neo-trail-review.html" target="_blank">here.</a><span> When the Breatho Trail was first announced, it was positioned as a warm weather version of the Neo Trail. I really do love my Neo Trails, but they are certainly a cold weather/snow running shoe. The Breatho Trail is similar to the Neo's, especially with respect to the proprioception, the sole and tread pattern.</span><br/><br/></p>
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<p><br/><span> However, as you can see above, the outer is certainly lighter weight, and much more breathable (hence the naming convention I am sure!). They really do drain pretty well.. I had no issues after stepping into a creek or two with them drying out (of course the lack of humidity in Colorado is a plus) Also, the Breatho's don't have a separate tongue like the Neo Trails, but instead are constructed with in a one piece style.</span><br/><br/></p>
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<p><br/><span>Also, the lacing is similar to the Neo Trails, but the Breatho adds a "Lock-Lacing" system shown above to help secure the tension of the laces after you have set them. I found that this worked pretty well, however, just like the Neo Trails, if I didn't double knot the laces, they would almost always come untied during a run. Not sure if it is due to the slickness of the material, or the fact that it seems the laces are too long. Regardless, its a minor issue.</span><br/><br/></p>
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<p><br/><br/><span>The tread pattern is the same as on the Neo Trails... I really love the lugs on these. They grab really well. However, I wouldn't run much on pavement with these, aa it seems it doesn't take much to begin wearing them down. We'll see how long they hold up with just trail running.</span><br/><br/><span>As for specifications/features, below are the details as posted on the Vivobarefoot site:</span><br/><br/></p>
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<ul>
<li><b>Upper:</b> Breathable Mesh: Comfortable and lightweight, this mesh allows ventilation and airflow around the foot</li>
<li><b>Lacing:</b> Lock-Lacing System: Zigzag webbing eyelets make sure the foot is secure in the shoe</li>
<li><b>Collar/Panel & Lining:</b> Dri-lex: Lightweight, performance lining for moisture wicking and superior comfort</li>
<li><b>Insoles:</b> PU Insole: 3mm insole with hex-flex moisture management system</li>
<li><b>Sole Construction:</b> Off Road: Rubber outsole specifically designed for off road surfaces with directional lugs to maximize surface contact for superior barefoot traction</li>
<li><b>Outsole Thickness:</b> 2.5mm with 4.5mm lugs: Offering maximum proprioception with protection and ultimate grip</li>
<li><b>Toe Guard:</b> TPU Toe Guard: Protects the foot and prevents scuffs for additional durability</li>
<li><b>Weight:</b> 272g/9.6oz</li>
<li><b>Eco Credentials:</b> 100% Vegan</li>
</ul>
<p><br/><span><span>As far as the sole goes, my only wish is that Vivobarefoot would incorporate some kind of rock plate, similar to that in the <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/02/merrell-barefoot-trail-glove-reviewand.html" target="_blank">Merrell Trail Glove</a>. For longer runs, and especially on rough trails, I've grown to like just a little bit more protection. A 1mm rock plate wouldn't take much away from the proprioception, but would help disperse some of the shock from nastier terrain. But, it's not a show stopper for me... just a nice to have. </span></span><br/><span><span><br/></span></span></p>
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<p><span><span><br/></span></span><span><span><br/></span></span></p>
<p><span><span>Like the Neo Trails, the Breatho Trail includes a 3mm removable insole. I removed them in my Neo Trails, however I chose to keep them in the Breatho. Why? Well.. to my chagrin, there is a sizing discrepancy between models. My Neo Trails are a size 43. A good fit, but on my right foot, my second toe is just a tiny bit longer, and it had a tendency to rub and push on the front of the Neo Trails... only bothered me when walking, and not as noticeable when running. So, I thought I should order the Breatho one size bigger to alleviate that issue. Well, I missed the notation on the Vivobarefoot website that says the Breathos run one size bigger, so order down one. So, the result is, this pair is probably a tad too big for me. So, to compensate, I kept the insoles in, and I also wear a slightly thicker (original weight) <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2011/12/injinji-outdoor-series-toe-socks-review.html" target="_blank">Injinji Toe Sock</a>. So the moral is, pay attention when ordering! </span></span><br/><br/></p>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Before run... so clean!</td>
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<p><span>Based on my prior Vivobarefoot experience, I took a chance on these and went on my longest run to date at that time. I ran 10.5 miles on </span><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/05/first-impressions-and-face-plant-waldo.html" target="_blank">Waldo Canyon Trail. </a><span> As you may know, this trail is now closed due to the terrible Waldo Canyon Fire that started on 6/23, just days after my run. So, I'll always remember that run as a first for a double digit distance, and as my last opportunity to get a glimpse of a truly beautiful trail run.</span><br/><br/></p>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">one of my favorite views of Pikes Peak from the trail</td>
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<p><span>The run went really well... I really appreciated the traction of the lugs on the steeper climbs on loose gravel. Also, overall, the shoe felt very comfortable. Again, my only negatives were that they came untied once (I forgot to double knot), and I nailed a few really good rocks with the ball of my feet, and even with the raised lugs, it smarted pretty good. Hence, my wish for a simple and effective rock plate. But beyond that, my feet stayed really cool (I ran with Injinji lightweight socks), and I didn't develop any hot spots at all. Didn't run into any water on this one, but as I noted earlier, the Breathos handle that well also.</span><br/><br/></p>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Love the quartz outcroppings...</td>
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<p><br/><br/><span>And of course, the Breatho Trails have made numerous trips up the Manitou Incline, and back down Barr Trail. Right now, the Barr Trail is very busy with runners getting their last training runs in before the </span><a href="http://www.pikespeakmarathon.org/" target="_blank">Pikes Peak Ascent, and Pikes Peak Marathon</a><span> this weekend... the Marathon is on my list for next August... and who knows, the Breatho Trails may be the shoe to make that run with me.</span><br/><br/></p>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Sunrise at the top o' the Incline... </td>
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<p><br/><span>So, overall, I am really happy with the Breatho Trails as a great warmer weather minimalist trail shoe. I highly recommend them if you are looking for a minimalist trail shoe with great traction and proprioception. They retail for $90 on the Vivobarefoot website, a pleasant reduction from the Neo Trails which now retail at $115. My guess is that these shoes will continue to work well into the cooler fall, but when the snow flies and gets deep, I know I'll be back to the Neo Trails :-)</span><br/><br/><br/><span>As always, if I've missed anything or you have any questions please let me know! </span><br/><br/><span>Happy Trails...</span><br/><br/><span>Jeff</span><br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a><span> </span><br/><br/></p>
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<p><br></br><br></br><span>Ok... time to work on some new posts. Sorry I've been such a slacker, but it's summer time and I've just been trying to enjoy it.. hope you have too! Yikes, just looked at my ticker to the right.. one week to my first 1/2 marathon! Look for a race report here soon :-)</span><br></br><br></br><span>Speaking of enjoying, we took a 2 1/2…</span></p>
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<p><br/><br/><span>Ok... time to work on some new posts. Sorry I've been such a slacker, but it's summer time and I've just been trying to enjoy it.. hope you have too! Yikes, just looked at my ticker to the right.. one week to my first 1/2 marathon! Look for a race report here soon :-)</span><br/><br/><span>Speaking of enjoying, we took a 2 1/2 week road trip to California in July. What a GREAT trip. It's the longest vacation I've taken in a long time, and certainly one of the longest road trip for the boys (they turn 8 later this month).</span><br/><br/><span>We left Colorado and headed to San Francisco for 5 days... here are a few pics from this first part of the trip.</span><br/><br/></p>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">One of what seemed like a hundred pics of the Golden Gate :-)</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">You know we scored some chocolate</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Goofballs at the top of Lombard Street</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Parking garage in Chinatown.. they all had fortunes :-) </td>
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<p><br/><br/><span>San Francisco was so much fun... I even found some time to run while I was there... I couldn't pass up the chance to run with a lot more oxygen than I am used to! I got several beach runs in... we stayed right next to Ocean Beach and Golden Gate Park.. I could get used to early morning beach runs!</span><br/><br/></p>
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<p><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><span>From San Francisco, we worked our way down to San Diego, driving as much as possible on PCH1, hugging the coast. Spent some time in Monterey, saw some Redwoods... and just enjoyed the casual drive down, and the spectacular views. </span><br/><br/></p>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Pfeiffer Beach near Big Sur... what a great find for a lunch spot!</td>
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<p><span>Eventually we made our way down to San Diego, where I have family, and we spent another 5 days there... so relaxing..</span><br/><br/></p>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Toured the USS Midway with my dad (retired Navy)</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Yep.... vacationing is hard work!</td>
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<p><span>I did manage to log more miles in San Diego. Primarily in the Mission Trails Park system. There are some really great trails in the area, including a run up Cowles Mountain.. the highest peak in San Diego.. ok, that's not saying much, but it was a good climb and a fun run down the back side..</span><br/><br/></p>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">On the way up Cowles Mt</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">I was told if you didn't touch the rock at the top it didn't count..</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Bedrock sandals worked great!</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">View of the trail heading down the backside, into Santee</td>
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<p><span>Ok... finally it was time to head home, but the trip wasn't over yet! We decided to head home via the Grand Canyon. That was really exciting as I had not been there before, and it was the first time for our boys as well. We stopped there, and also spent some time at the Petrified Forest/Painted Desert, and Gallup NM of course.</span><br/><br/></p>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Grand Canyon.. and a goofy foot</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Painted Desert, AZ</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Wish we could see this lit up..</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Driving along the old Route 66 was a treat</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">In Gallup NM of course. And yes, we're related to the railroad paymaster that the town was named after... :-)<br/><br/></td>
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<p><span>So.. there you have it. That is how we spent a good part of our summer... hope you all are having a terrific summer as well!</span><br/><br/><span>Stay tuned as I have a few more reviews that I am behind on, but will get posted soon. Included are the Vivobarefoot Breatho Trail, GU Energy, Nathan QuickDraw Elite, and Injinji compressions socks... along with some give aways!</span><br/><br/><span>Thanks for following and reading... </span><br/><br/><span>Happy Trails!</span><br/><br/><span>Jeff</span><br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a><span> </span><br/><br/></p>
<div class="separator"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zTHvduyid74/UBwJxf3fVCI/AAAAAAAAA6s/bYTPbK-6ezU/s1600/405259_424687220903404_1140813492_n.jpg"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zTHvduyid74/UBwJxf3fVCI/AAAAAAAAA6s/bYTPbK-6ezU/s200/405259_424687220903404_1140813492_n.jpg" width="199"/></a></div>The Pikes Peak Guy interview... and giveaway!tag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-07-23:5021591:BlogPost:3498162012-07-23T15:47:38.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br></br> <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q3d7ztCG2T4/UATgR0HhcpI/AAAAAAAAA0A/V5L8HyRVlFg/s1600/423203_355794261127709_198985228_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q3d7ztCG2T4/UATgR0HhcpI/AAAAAAAAA0A/V5L8HyRVlFg/s400/423203_355794261127709_198985228_n.jpg" width="266"></img></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br></br> Ok... I am beyond…</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br/> <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q3d7ztCG2T4/UATgR0HhcpI/AAAAAAAAA0A/V5L8HyRVlFg/s1600/423203_355794261127709_198985228_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q3d7ztCG2T4/UATgR0HhcpI/AAAAAAAAA0A/V5L8HyRVlFg/s400/423203_355794261127709_198985228_n.jpg" width="266"/></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br/> Ok... I am beyond excited to be able to dedicate a post to the awesome project and work of <a href="http://www.facebook.com/thepikespeakguy" target="_blank"> "The Pikes Peak Guy". </a> If you are not familiar with his project focused on "America's Mountain", you can find it all on his website, <a href="http://www.mypeak365.com/">http://www.mypeak365.com/</a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br/> PPG summarizes his journey: "Pikes Peak is the most visited mountain in North America and the second most visited mountain in the world behind Japan's Mount Fuji. And over half a million people reach the summit house every year by the Pikes Peak Highway, Barr Trail, or the Pikes Peak Cog Railway. From June 1, 2010 to May 31,2011 I set to capture a unique photograph of the Pikes Peak every day for an entire year and share it with the world. This book is the culmination of those photographs and the story of what it took to get that picutre each day. This is my journey over 365 days of Pikes Peak<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 22px;">!"</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.mypeak365.com/">http://www.mypeak365.com/</a></td>
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<br/> I began "following" this project about a month after it started, and it was so awesome waiting to see what each day would bring. I also was fortunate to meet PPG that summer and participate in a photo shoot. Not only is he an amazing photographer, he is just an all around great guy!<br/>
<div><br/></div>
<div><br/> He and I both agree that this would be a great time to bring some focus to Pikes Peak and the surrounding area, as we are struggling with the aftermath of the devastating Waldo Canyon Fire that burned over 18,000 acres and destroyed close to 350 homes. Waldo Canyon is only a few short miles from the base of Pikes Peak. and it is very fortunate that more of the amazing landscape in the area was not scarred more. So, the reminder is... don't take the beautiful landscape of Colorado (or anywhere for that matter) for granted... the next day it could be gone!</div>
<table align="center" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;">
<tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ptoJHG_6Ddc/UATlPnoLjgI/AAAAAAAAA0g/x0m4Ss94WHI/s1600/PPGuyWording_250px.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ptoJHG_6Ddc/UATlPnoLjgI/AAAAAAAAA0g/x0m4Ss94WHI/s1600/PPGuyWording_250px.jpg"/></a></td>
</tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: #f1f3f8; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16px; text-align: left;">I'm an ordinary guy hoping to create something extraordinary. Capturing the beauty of Pikes Peak in photographs every single day for a year~ and sharing that with the world. I hope you enjoy.</span></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<div><br/></div>
<div><br/></div>
<div><br/> So, PPG was kind enough to take some time to provide an interview AND some swag for a give away. After the interview below, I've posted instructions on how to enter to win a soft-cover version of his amazing book! Also, one lucky winner will enjoy a 2013 wall calendar with amazing pictures from his journey. So... check out the interview and enter to win!</div>
<div><br/></div>
<div><div style="text-align: center;"><br/> <b>The Pikes Peak Guy (PPG) interview with Barefoot Inclined (BI)</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;"><br/></div>
<div style="text-align: left;"><div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>BI: </b> Tell me a little<br/>
bit more about how you came about deciding on a project like 365 Days of Pikes<br/>
Peak? How far ahead of your project start did you begin thinking about it? What<br/>
was your goal?</span></div>
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</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>PPG:</b> I had come up with the idea for the project about 6<br/>
months or more before I started, but hadn’t told anyone about until April 2010.<br/>
The minute I started talking about it, people told me that I had to do it! </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So I<br/>
started planning immediately and set a launch date of June 1<sup>st</sup>,<br/>
2010. My goal was simple; capture the beauty of Pikes Peak in photographs every<br/>
single day for a year... and share that with the world.</span></div>
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</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>BI:</b> What challenges did you anticipate prior to starting the<br/>
project, and which challenges caught you by surprise?</span></div>
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</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>PPG:</b> As I started preparing for the project, I knew it would<br/>
be a challenge to find enough time everyday to get out there and find the most<br/>
beautiful shot the day had to offer… what I didn’t anticipate is what that<br/>
really looked like.</span></div>
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</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">There were some days where I had my day all planned out and<br/>
would get up at 4am to go for a long hike and set up deep in the forest for a<br/>
sunrise shot. And it would fail miserably. The sunrise ended up being<br/>
completely unremarkable! So I would hike back out, get home 8am and head back<br/>
out on my lunch break to try again. But mid day shots seldom work so I would<br/>
keep my eye on the weather and the light the entire afternoon and plan an<br/>
evening/sunset shoot instead. I would end up hiking out on a cliff in the<br/>
middle of nowhere, and wait for some magic at sunset. If I got home by 9pm on a<br/>
night like that I was lucky. Then I had 3 different photo shoots to sort<br/>
through. Often times that would be 500 pictures or more – and it would take<br/>
hours. I would pick my favorite shot of the day, write about my experiences<br/>
that day, and race to publish it on my blog, Facebook and Twitter by midnight.<br/>
I had to get it published by midnight because it was called the “Picture of the<br/>
Day”, not the picture of the day before! This hard deadline drove everything!</span></div>
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</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So on a day like that, I started at 4am and finished at<br/>
midnight - and then I would start all over again the next day. Not every day<br/>
was like this, but it happened often. To that extent, I had no clue what it<br/>
meant to do this every day for an entire year. <br/>
I had to readjust everything in my life to accommodate for the time<br/>
demands of the project and not let it overwhelm me. But soon found my groove<br/>
and I can honestly say that it was one of the most enjoyable and rewarding experiences<br/>
of my life!</span></div>
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</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>BI:</b> I imagine you’ve met a number of people during your<br/>
journey, especially those who’ve helped you with access to locations etc. Besides meeting new people, what other<br/>
benefits have you gained during this project?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>PPG:</b> I think one of the biggest benefits of the project was<br/>
that it forced me to explore every corner of our community and I found the most<br/>
beautiful places on earth – right in my own backyard. I hike and explored some<br/>
of the most remote locations you could imagine. I thought I knew the Pikes Peak<br/>
region better than most, but I was discovering new things every day and loving<br/>
it.</span></div>
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</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>BI:</b> What was it like working with Kickstarter to get the<br/>
funding to publish this book? Had you<br/>
considered following a more traditional publishing route first?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>PPG:</b> Kickstarter was probably the most interesting part of<br/>
this entire project. By using a crowd source funding solution to get the book<br/>
published, I changed the way many people think about bringing their dreams to<br/>
life.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">At the time my Kickstarter project funded, it was the 3rd highest funded project in my category. <br/>
This was a huge accomplishment for someone who had never been published<br/>
before for someone who didn’t even use their own name! And the publishing world<br/>
is taking notice.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Kickstarter gave someone like me the chance to do something<br/>
that the traditional publishing world would have never given me, and it is<br/>
doing the same for so many others who have great ideas/projects and a tribe of<br/>
people who are willing to support them.</span></div>
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</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Kickstarter changes the game for everyone, and I guarantee<br/>
we will all be hearing more about it as time goes on.</span></div>
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</span></div>
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<tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3q38VlRcrgs/UATnYofiIxI/AAAAAAAAA0o/L1J1OZGfDhg/s1600/554677_426872227353245_1233298942_n.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3q38VlRcrgs/UATnYofiIxI/AAAAAAAAA0o/L1J1OZGfDhg/s640/554677_426872227353245_1233298942_n.jpg" width="640"/></a></td>
</tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.mypeak365.com/">http://www.mypeak365.com/</a></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
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</span></div>
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</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>BI:</b> Some of my favorite pictures from the book are the ones<br/>
that don’t necessarily have the Peak in them.. <br/>
had you planned shots ahead of time for those times when the Peak wasn’t<br/>
visible?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>PPG:</b> My original vision was to get the summit of Pikes Peak<br/>
in the shot somehow with each picture. But as I began to explore all things<br/>
Pikes Peak, I realized that the summit was just a part of it. There are so many<br/>
beautiful things in our community that represent Pikes Peak that I had to<br/>
adjust my vision and incorporate those into the project or it wouldn’t be<br/>
complete!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>BI:</b> It’s been just<br/>
over a year since you completed the year long project.. besides publishing the<br/>
initial book last Fall, what else have you been up to?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>PPG:</b> Well, as of today I have published 3 books and the 2013<br/>
calendar, and I am very proud of that! As you know, I published the hardbound<br/>
coffee table book in October of last year, and today have created a newly<br/>
designed softcover version that is in limited release now, and will be<br/>
available in bookstores this September! I have also published a keepsake book<br/>
entitled “Images of Spring” and finally there is the 2013 wall calendar. It has been a ton of work to get these books<br/>
published, but I am so proud of how wonderful they turned out. My next focus is<br/>
to do a gallery exhibit and show the world how amazing the photos look in large<br/>
print.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
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<tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--TAaXIW9Tso/UAToBRtOu6I/AAAAAAAAA0w/qPFhM22c-YA/s1600/P4100072.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--TAaXIW9Tso/UAToBRtOu6I/AAAAAAAAA0w/qPFhM22c-YA/s640/P4100072.JPG" width="480"/></a></td>
</tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes... those are PPG's trail trekking feet!</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>BI: </b> Ok, now I have to<br/>
change subject a little… a few months<br/>
back you posted pics of your new Vibram Five Finger KSO’s.. What prompted that, and what are your<br/>
thoughts on minimalist shoes and the natural running style?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b>PPG:</b> I love those<br/>
shoes!!! Sorry, I just had to blurt that out.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">But the truth of the matter is that it was you and your blog<br/>
that got me thinking about minimalist shoes. I have had a lingering knee injury<br/>
that has kept me from running over the past year and so I had been working on<br/>
my elliptical to try to gain strength and get back to my pre-injury shape. After reading your blog I decided to take my<br/>
shoes off just to see what it did and how it felt. I was shocked at how taking my shoes off made<br/>
me change my long stride and heel strike approach to running… and how that in<br/>
turn took the jolt and impact off my knee. Within a month my knee pain was<br/>
virtually gone and I was running again. I am not saying this is a solution to<br/>
knee problems, but for me it was exactly what I needed and my Vibram Five<br/>
Finger KSO’s are the most amazing shoe I have ever owned. They are the only shoes I hike/run in now.<br/>
One of the most interesting and unexpected things I like about them is how<br/>
connected I feel to the trail. <i> ( BI Note: I was able to take PPG up the Incline for his first trip.. we had a great run and looking forward to more!)</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br/>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal"><br/> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I can tell you that over the course of the project I hiked<br/>
hundreds of miles… and I wish I knew about them from the very beginning! </span></div>
</div>
<br/><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br/> <a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4aCHWxjNyd8/UATo5WiknAI/AAAAAAAAA04/IWQKhJALhUE/s1600/538639_402041396502995_1166720252_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="356" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4aCHWxjNyd8/UATo5WiknAI/AAAAAAAAA04/IWQKhJALhUE/s400/538639_402041396502995_1166720252_n.jpg" width="400"/></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br/> And now... the give away! One lucky winner will get a soft cover version of "365 days of Pikes Peak The Journey" pictured above. I have the hardcover version and it is AMAZING.. not only do you get all 365 pictures, you get the stories and comments as posted in Facebook as the project was in progress.</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br/> <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GMicMEO5fPI/UATpW8jeoEI/AAAAAAAAA1A/1ng1rrxyGBc/s1600/294986_402038913169910_322218178_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GMicMEO5fPI/UATpW8jeoEI/AAAAAAAAA1A/1ng1rrxyGBc/s400/294986_402038913169910_322218178_n.jpg" width="400"/></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br/> Also, one winner will also receive a 2013 Wall Calendar! Ok... to participate please note the entry drill below! I will select winners randomly (Random.org) after the contest closes at 8pm MST on Friday, July 27th. </div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br/></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br/> <b style="background-color: transparent;">Participation:</b><br/>
<b style="background-color: transparent;"><br/>
</b><span style="background-color: white;">To participate, please leave a comment below confirming EACH of the actions completed in each comment (don't summarize in one post). The more you do, the more entries in the contest! (Up to 6 entries per person) </span><b style="background-color: white;">NOTE</b><span style="background-color: white;">: If you choose to post anonymously, please leave your name or first name and last initial, and then make sure you click on my profile and email me with contact info so that I can contact you if you win.. thanks) Also, contest limited to folks in the U.S and Canada.. thanks.</span></div>
<br/> <b style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">1.</b><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> Leave a comment below about what you think about PPG's journey, of let me know if you have a question for him!</span><br/>
<br/>
<b style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">2.</b><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> Share this blogpost for the contest to your Facebook page (links at bottom), and leave me a comment that you shared it.</span><br/>
<br/>
<b style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">3.</b><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> "Follow" or subscribe to this blog (link to the right), and leave me a comment to that effect.</span><br/>
<br/>
<b style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">4.</b><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> "Like" </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Barefoot-Inclined/212665608801909" style="border: 0px; color: #96205b; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Barefoot Inclined</a><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> on </span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Barefoot-Inclined/212665608801909" style="border: 0px; color: #96205b; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Facebook</a><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> (click, or see link to the right), and leave a comment that you have "liked" it.</span><br/>
<br/>
<b style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">5.</b><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> Share this blogpost for the contest on Twitter (see links below) and leave a comment letting me know.</span><br/>
<br/>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><b>6.</b> "Like" <a href="http://www.facebook.com/thepikespeakguy" target="_blank">The Pikes Peak Guy</a></span><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> on Facebook and leave me a comment letting me know.</span><br/>
<br/>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">After the contest closes on Friday, July 27th 2012, at 8pm MST, I will be using </span><a href="http://random.org/" style="border: 0px; color: #96205b; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto; text-decoration: none;">Random.org</a><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> to generate sequence numbers for all comments received, and determine a winner. I will contact winners via the email addresses provided when commenting (but not shown or shared).</span><br/>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br/> Happy Trails!</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br/> Jeff</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br/> <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br/> <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lrxItTz05NY/UATrpUfXbkI/AAAAAAAAA1I/nljn5ChHVfk/s1600/548807_370267756350925_309035619140806_1138808_192101183_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lrxItTz05NY/UATrpUfXbkI/AAAAAAAAA1I/nljn5ChHVfk/s1600/548807_370267756350925_309035619140806_1138808_192101183_n.jpg"/></a></div>
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<br/></div>Garden of the Gods 10 Mile Race Reporttag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-06-11:5021591:BlogPost:3344502012-06-11T21:31:38.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
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<div class="columns-inner"><div class="column-center-outer"><div class="column-center-inner"><div class="main section" id="main"><div class="widget Blog" id="Blog1"><div class="blog-posts hfeed"><div class="date-outer"><h2 class="date-header"><span>MONDAY, JUNE 11, 2012</span></h2>
<div class="date-posts"><div class="post-outer"><div class="post hentry"><a name="2160543846126189106"></a><h3 class="post-title entry-title">Garden of the Gods 10 Mile Race Report</h3>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption"><a href="http://www.pikespeaksports.us/photo/albums/garden-of-the-gods-10-mile-run-1-1" target="_blank">Courtesy Pikes Peak Sports and Anya Inman</a></td>
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<br/><br/>So, yesterday was my first race longer than a 10K. I don't think I could have picked a more beautiful place to run! <a href="http://www.gardentenmile.com/" target="_blank">The Garden of the Gods 10 Mile</a> is a race that runs through and around the <a href="http://www.gardenofgods.com/home/index.cfm?flash=1" target="_blank">Garden of the Gods</a>, a beautiful park at the base of Pikes Peak in Colorado Springs. If you'd asked me a year ago if I might run 10 miles, I would have laughed. At that time I was trying to get one lap around the track without stopping to catch my breath. Leading up to this race I had not run more than 7 or 8 miles, and most of those on the trail, so last Monday I did run 10.5 at Waldo Canyon just to assure myself I could do it. On that run, I did bruise my left foot a little, so spent the week fretting over how much it would bother me yesterday.<br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Getting ready to go</td>
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<div class="separator">The race started at 7am in Manitou Springs, and the turnout was around 1600 runners. Some were running a 5K that was being introduced this year, but most were there for the 10 mile. As you may know, I am a slower back of the pack runner, and my goal for this race was 2 hours. Second goal was to beat the 2.5 hour cutoff before the park was reopened to traffic! Temp at the start was 57 degrees, and it even felt a little cool... I was glad, because I know this one would be tough with the hills, and even tougher if it was too hot. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption"><a href="http://www.pikespeaksports.us/photo/albums/garden-of-the-gods-10-mile-run-1-1" target="_blank">Courtesy Pikes Peak Sports and Anya Inman</a> </td>
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<br/>As a minimalist blogger/runner, you know I was debating what shoe to wear. I ended up opting for the <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/02/merrell-barefoot-trail-glove-reviewand.html" target="_blank">Merrell Barefoot Trail Glove</a>. I was thinking of the <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/03/march-madness-merrell-road-glove-vs.html" target="_blank">Road Glove</a>, but because of the bruise on my foot, I opted for the Trail Glove and the slightly better protection from the rock plate. Overall my foot felt great. The pic above was around mile 4 I think... a long grinder of a hill, and into a strong wind also. It was pretty windy in the park that day.<br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption"><a href="http://www.pikespeaksports.us/photo/albums/garden-of-the-gods-10-mile-run-1-1" target="_blank">Courtesy Pikes Peak Sports and Anya Inman</a></td>
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<br/>So, I did see quite a few VFF's out there, and a few NB and Merrell minimalist shoes... and at least one guy going barefoot. Would love to be able to work up to that some day.. he looked like he was loving his run.<br/><br/>Here are some of the pics I took while on the run... I apologize for the quality, but I took these with my iPod touch while running (I was focused on making my goal!).<br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">First good climb towards Balanced Rock</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Balanced Rock</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">yay.. a downhill!</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Didn't realize the moon was there until I looked at this later</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption"><a href="http://www.pikespeaksports.us/photo/albums/garden-of-the-gods-10-mile-run-1-1" target="_blank">Courtesy Pikes Peak Sports and Anya Inman</a><br/><br/><div><span>The wind and hills were tougher on the front 5 miles, and I managed the first half in 59 min or so, and the last 5 mi in 56 min and change. So I did 1:56 overall, and was happy to have made my goal. And best of all, I finished knowing that I could go another 5K and call it a 1/2 marathon. I'm signed up for the <a href="http://www.gtishalf.org/" target="_blank">Georgetown-Idaho Springs 1/2</a> in August, so feeling pretty good about that one. I just want to work on a better pace to finish that one in 2:15 if possible. If you have any tips on getting faster, let me know! I am pretty sure for me its a matter of stride length.. I think I'm too paranoid about over striding, so am probably going too short. </span></div>
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<div><span>I also spent a lot of time on this run focused on this white line. It reminded me of a great blog that I follow called <a href="http://www.runningonthewhiteline.com/" target="_blank">Running on the White Line</a>. This focus came in handy on the hills as I imagined it as a magnetized strip drawing me up the hills, or a metal rail to ride on the downhills. I know.. kind of goofy, but hey, I'll try any mental tricks if it gets me to the finish!</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption"><a href="http://www.pikespeaksports.us/photo/albums/garden-of-the-gods-10-mile-run-1-1" target="_blank">Courtesy Pikes Peak Sports and Anya Inman</a></td>
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<div class="separator">This cracked me up and made me smile. Each of the aid stations were staffed by local high school cross country running teams... they were all in costumes and did a terrific job of cheering runners on and keeping them hydrated. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Photo courtesy of <a href="http://www.outtherecolorado.com/" target="_blank">Out There Colorado</a><br/><br/><div class="separator"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-C4XusuYqtcQ/T9Zf3_mxsoI/AAAAAAAAAxE/7yG6m7E54xo/s1600/IMG_0458.JPG"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-C4XusuYqtcQ/T9Zf3_mxsoI/AAAAAAAAAxE/7yG6m7E54xo/s640/IMG_0458.JPG" width="480"/></a></div>
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<div class="separator">Although in the pic above this one (last 1/2 mile), I look like I'm going to die... I did finish it, and it felt really great. Even got my first medal! (didn't realize they handed those out). Anyway, I would highly recommend this race.. challenging yes, but the course was so beautiful and the event well run... looking forward to next year!</div>
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<div class="separator">Happy trails (and sometimes road)! </div>
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<div class="separator">Jeff</div>
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</div>Kickball! Or... let's not grow up.... and beer!tag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-06-04:5021591:BlogPost:3299752012-06-04T21:24:30.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Kickball! Or... let's not grow up.... and beer!…</h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Kickball! Or... let's not grow up.... and beer!</h3>
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<br/><span>Just had to share this story as it got me thinking more.. </span><br/><br/><span>Yesterday I was up on our roof, clearing off some pine needles and cleaning out the gutters. We live adjacent to the football and baseball fields at the middle school. I could hear some guys yelling and cheering from up there, so assumed they were playing softball on the field. However, there was this distinct thumping/pinging sound that was oddly familiar... I moved a bit to see through the trees.. that awesome sound was that of a guy kicking a classic red cherry ball... they were playing kickball!</span><br/><br/><span>I thought... wow... kickball.. I remember how much fun that was as a kid to play.. you didn't need any equipment... just something to turn into bases, and a good bouncy cherry ball. Listening to them hooting and hollering made me smile. It's that whole "never grow up" mentality. I think we all need to recapture and keep that joy of childhood play in everything we do. I know that for running, that is a big part for me. I keep running primarily because of how fun it can be... just for the sheer freedom of being able to do so. I mentioned this a little in my post about kids running </span><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/04/get-those-kids-running.html" target="_blank">here</a><span>, and I really do believe we could all gain by keeping that playfulness near the top of our priority list.</span><br/><br/><span>Now, don't get me wrong. Pushing the childhood joys of just having fun doesn't mean dropping all responsibility. I didn't jump down off the roof and fun over to join the game (although the thought crossed my mind), since I had things I knew needed to be done that day. BUT.. that being said, I made a mental note that I need to look at incorporating something like that kickball game into life. So, a word of warning to my monthly poker buddies... we may need to put together a kickball game soon... just for the sheer fun of it.</span><br/><br/>
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<span>Now.. speaking of FUN... I am catching up on all the great podcasts on </span><a href="http://trailrunnernation.com/" target="_blank">Trail Runner Nation</a><span>(They are awesome), and this particular podcast had a discussion about the </span><a href="http://www.beermile.com/" target="_blank">Beer Mile</a><span>. I guess it's kind of an unofficial race event, but are pretty popular. I mean, beer and running.. who wouldn't like that? The deal is you run a 1/4 mile, you drink a beer (while stopped), run another 1/4 mile, another beer etc... for a total of 1 mile and 4 beers. I guess the trick is to not only run fast, but drink fast too! Whoever came up with this one... pure genius! I'm going to have to see if there are any around.. or set up my own! </span><br />
<div>Speaking of Trail Runner Nation... I'm loving the podcasts and it's a great site. If you love trail running, I'd check it out and sign up (easy to do, and you can sign up using your Facebook too). So.. check it out at <a href="http://trailrunnernation.com/">http://trailrunnernation.com/</a> and check out the podcasts!</div>
<div>Ok... that's my ramblings for today... stay tuned for more gear reviews soon, and hopefully some giveaways.. in the interim, nervously awaiting my first 10 mile race on Sunday... <a href="http://www.gardentenmile.com/index.htm">http://www.gardentenmile.com/index.htm</a> </div>
<div>Happy trails!</div>
<div>Jeff</div>
<div><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a> </div>
</div>First impressions (and a face plant): Waldo Canyon Trailtag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-05-31:5021591:BlogPost:3278662012-05-31T16:29:16.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">First impressions (and a face plant): Waldo Canyon Trail</h3>
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<br></br><br></br>So yesterday I finally decided to run …</div>
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">First impressions (and a face plant): Waldo Canyon Trail</h3>
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<br/><br/>So yesterday I finally decided to run <a href="http://www.inclineclub.com/maps/waldo.htm" target="_blank">Waldo Canyon Trail</a>, instead of my usual <a href="http://www.manitouincline.com/" target="_blank">Manitou Incline</a>/Barr Trail. I don't know why I haven't done this one, as I've heard great things about it. Perhaps I was a little intimidated by the climbing, and the 7 mile length. So glad I finally did! I've driven past the trail head for this one many times, and it gets quite popular in the afternoons on the weekends, and now I know why.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/><br/><br/>Right away after a few switch backs the trail carries you out to a point that sticks out over the highway in the pass. I look up at this point all the time, so it was so cool to finally be up top. Amazing the mixture of quartz, granite and sandstone... really cool.<br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>Here is another look up the pass from the lookout<br/>
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To get to the loop portion of the trail it is about 1.7 mi of rolling trail that runs along some ridges and down through the trees.... some really pretty (and tight) single-track. Loved seeing all the yucca's and other flowers in bloom.<br/>
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<br/><br/>At the beginning of the ~ 3.5 mi "loop" portion, there is a very cool bench (Eagle scout project), and a well marked sign noting the loop. I went clockwise around to hit some of the steeper stuff going up, versus down.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>I had read the info on the trail markings before hand, because I was paranoid about missing a turn and ending up somewhere in Utah... but fortunately the trail is very well marked. After starting the loop I knew I would cross over the stream 5 times (stream is relative as not all of it had water right now). After the 5th crossing was the switchback on the trail that I was worried I might miss... as you can see below, not hard to miss :-)<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>From this point the trail continues to climb to reach the high point about halfway through the loop. Overall the trail gains just over 1,000 ft.. starting at just over 7,000 ft and reaching close to 8,100 ft at the top. What I really liked about this portion is when the trail really opened up to great views of Pikes Peak..<br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Cruising in front of Pikes Peak</td>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Love the different colors of dirt and rock along the trail</td>
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<br/>Finally, the downhill portion of the trail begins..... my favorite part of course.. Here's the best part... I was cruising along and thinking "wow.... I love this trail... it is so awesome... it's beautiful... I'm just gliding on down the trail.... it doesn't get any better than this...." and of course, those of you that run trails knows exactly what happened next! Yep... see this pic below? I took it after the header I took.... yep, see that root in the trail... just exploded out of the ground and grabbed my foot... I know it wasn't there before hand!
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<div>So.. after it grabbed me, I tried to recover, but it never happened. At least I'm learning a lot about trail running, and I am getting better at precisely knowing how much time I dedicate to recovering from a trip, and when to give it up and switch to damage control. Realizing I couldn't save it, I tucked my shoulder down and ended up rolling into a thicket of small trees/bushes off to the right... I feel bad because I snapped one off pretty good... anyway, next think I was laid out... looking up through the cool green leaves.. took the required 30-45 sec systems check of my body (old guys like me understand this), and once I realized I was just scraped up and nothing more... got up to brush myself off. Ended up with some good scrapes on my face, arms, knee etc.... but nothing long lasting... oh, and I did manage to lose another pair of $2 sunglasses.... if anyone is out on the trail, look around this broken bush below... you might score a pair!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">The spot I decided to take a little "rest".. note broken branch :-(<br/><br/></td>
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<div>After this little adventure, I continued on the downhill portion, following the switchbacks to the end point of the loop. The really cool part about this section is all the different rocks you run into... one section was all lime stone... very cool looking, but a little slippery... that changed over to the more traditional red dirt and sandstone stuff... which was equally cool. Finally, I got back to the trail heading back down to the parking lot... I had read that going back seems a lot longer than when I ran in that 1.7 mi... and it was true... I kept thinking I was getting closer :-)</div>
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<div>Anyway.... I will absolutely be back on this 7 miler soon and often. I plan to run the inside loop twice to get my mileage up over 10 miles... should be a great time. </div>
<div>If you want more info or details on the trail, click <a href="http://www.inclineclub.com/maps/waldo.htm" target="_blank">here</a></div>
<div>Oh.. and don't forget about the Nuun and Clif Shot Bloks giveaway! Click <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/05/2-for-1-and-giveaway-nuun-hydration-and.html" target="_blank">here</a> to enter before Saturday!</div>
<div>Happy trails!</div>
<div>Jeff</div>
<div><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a> </div>
</div>Bedrock Earthquake Reviewtag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-05-26:5021591:BlogPost:3257952012-05-26T01:24:14.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title"><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/05/yabba-dabba-doo-bedrock-earthquake.html">Yabba Dabba Doo! Bedrock Earthquake Review</a></h3>
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<br></br><br></br>Ok... I apologize…</div>
<h3 class="post-title entry-title"><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/05/yabba-dabba-doo-bedrock-earthquake.html">Yabba Dabba Doo! Bedrock Earthquake Review</a></h3>
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<br/><br/>Ok... I apologize for the title of this post, but I can't help it if I'm a nerd... when I hear <a href="http://bedrocksandals.com/earthquake-sandals.php" target="_blank">Bedrock</a>, I think Flintstones of course! Maybe its not so much nerdiness as age... ah well, getting distracted already.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>I'm very excited to finally put together a review for the Bedrock Earthquake huarache sandal. <a href="http://bedrocksandals.com/index.php" target="_blank">Bedrock</a> is a very cool company, started by two friends Dan and Nick, and was officially launched last June via Kickstarter. They both share a passion for trail running and geology, and they started designing and building their own huarache for trail hiking and running.<br/><br/>
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<br/>I've been working with Dan for the past few months, and I've learned a bit about their company. They thing that strikes me most is that both Dan and Nick are focused on continuous improvement. The <a href="http://bedrocksandals.com/earthquake-sandals.php" target="_blank">Earthquake Sandal</a> that I reviewed is a follow on to the original<a href="http://bedrocksandals.com/sandals.php" target="_blank">Classic</a> sandal they designed, and it has also gone through a number of improvements recently, and I know that more are in the works. It's so great to see a company that gets feedback on it's products and immediately focuses on improving it. Anyway, let's get on to the review:<br/><br/>
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<br/>As far as huarache style running sandals go, my only other experience has been with Invisible Shoes. I've owned a pair of the 6mm Contacts since last fall. While this is not exactly a direct comparison between the two, I will mention a few things that may be helpful to those of you familiar with Invisible Shoes.<br/><br/>The Earthquakes are made with a 6mm Vibram "Gumlite" sole, which according to Bedrock is a mesh between neoprene and rubber. The result is a very light-weight sole with great ground feel. The Earthquakes are probably half the weight of my Invisible Shoes (judging by holding the pair of Earthquakes in one hand, and one Invisible Shoe in the other.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/><br/>The tread pattern is a series of little dots, that almost look like sucker-cups. Since the sole is so flexible, these little dots provided me great traction in loose dirt and gravel. I haven't had much opportunity to run in real wet mucky stuff yet, but my impression is that these will grip well for a sandal.<br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>And of course, the required "flex" test for minimalist shoes. As you can see, the Earthquakes are super flexible for a 6mm sole. These would be easy to pack!<br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>Finally, the Bedrocks utilize military grade nylon strapping to attached to your foot and ankle. The straps follow the standard huarache pattern, looping through slots next to the ankles and then through a hole between the toes. The nylon strap is then ignited to melt, then flattened to hold the front of the strap in place. There is a little bit of a lump there, but after running it bit, it flattened out more and isn't noticeable between the toes.<br/><br/>As opposed to thinner cord-type material, the nylon strapping is very soft, and comfortable against the skin. The single buckle on top slides up and down on the main strap so you can adjust the position, and with a simple twist, you can then use the buckle to adjust the tension of the strap to what is most comfortable. I fiddled with the adjustments a bit, finding the right tension for my heel and my foot. Once I liked where it was, the settings didn't move. That is a huge bonus with these sandals. While you may take a while dialing in the exact fit for your taste, once you find it, the sandals stay that way.<br/><br/>Bedrock offers a great video on how to make these adjustments which is below:<br/><br/><iframe width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/QSYo21xmVCU?feature=player_embedded&wmode=opaque"></iframe>
<br/><br/><br/>Besides this super easy and effective strapping method, the Earthquake also features a unique rubber heel strap. As you can see, this is an elastic strap (made from used bike inner tubes) allows a little flex in the heel strap which makes it very comfortable, snug, and it stays put while running. I really like this feature.<br/><br/><div class="separator"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Btq2mQiWXeM/T8AlOl6ib0I/AAAAAAAAAl0/kwbCUuWOWOs/s1600/DSC_0545.JPG"><img border="0" height="267" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Btq2mQiWXeM/T8AlOl6ib0I/AAAAAAAAAl0/kwbCUuWOWOs/s400/DSC_0545.JPG" width="400"/></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Rhec6cuw19M/T8AlvCl36AI/AAAAAAAAAmE/c7y3Ug_vvVU/s1600/P5180112.JPG"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Rhec6cuw19M/T8AlvCl36AI/AAAAAAAAAmE/c7y3Ug_vvVU/s320/P5180112.JPG" width="240"/></a><br/><br/>So.. how are they on the trail? Awesome! I really enjoy getting out on the trail with the Earthquakes. The 6mm soles and tread are a true sweet spot when it comes to minimalist trail running. The flexibility of the sole gives the Earthquakes great proprioception... almost feeling like its closer to 4mm or less, however they still do a terrific job of absorbing many of the foot bruising sharp rocks and junk that can really slow you down. I took them on a few loops at Lovell Gulch near my house (pics above), and of course up the <a href="http://www.manitouincline.com/" target="_blank">Manitou Incline</a> and down Barr Trail (below)<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/><br/><br/>I have to say that after about 35+ miles of trails (and a few road miles), these sandals are really comfortable. What is awesome about them is that they are so light, and the strapping works so well, that the sandals stay stuck to the bottom of your feet, and the straps remain comfortable. After a longer run, and wearing them all day, I had no red marks or sore areas on my feet. This great fit also helps a lot on downhill trail runs.. again, no issues for me in the Earthquakes.<br/>
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<div>So... if you are looking for a comfortable, well-built, pair of minimalist huaraches, and especially if you like trail running, the <a href="http://bedrocksandals.com/earthquake-sandals.php" target="_blank">Bedrock Earthquakes</a> are a excellent choice. I don't have a lot of negatives to offer around these sandals. As with most shoes, my larger concern would be how they hold up over the long haul, so I will make sure I provide a follow up once I put a significant amount of wear on them. </div>
<div>If you have any questions about the Earthquakes, or if I've missed something, please let me know. Or just email <a href="http://bedrocksandals.com/contactus.php" target="_blank">Dan at Bedrock</a> and I know he'll take care of you quickly! Also, I forgot to mention that Bedrock sponsored their first full and 1/2 marathon trail race this year in Virginia. Check it out <a href="http://bedrocksandals.com/bedrock-trail-marathon.php" target="_blank">here</a>. I saw some pics from it, and the trails just looked gorgeous! </div>
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<div>Finally, I love the little Bedrock sticker that came with them.... it fit perfectly above my<a href="http://eatmorekale.com/">Eatmorekale.com</a> sticker on my water bottle!</div>
<div>Ok all.. thanks for slogging through another review... I hope it was helpful! Have a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend! I'll check back in after the <a href="http://www.bolderboulder.com/" target="_blank">Bolder Boulder 10K</a> this Monday!</div>
<div>Happy Trails!</div>
<div>Jeff</div>
<div><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a></div>
</div>i go kigo!tag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-05-17:5021591:BlogPost:3235022012-05-17T16:49:32.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">i go kigo! kigo drive review</h3>
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<br></br><br></br>As part of my continuous pursuit for great minimalist running shoes, I've looked at a number of different companies and shoes in…</div>
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">i go kigo! kigo drive review</h3>
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<br/><br/>As part of my continuous pursuit for great minimalist running shoes, I've looked at a number of different companies and shoes in the market. I remember seeing a few blurbs about <a href="http://www.kigofootwear.com/default.asp" target="_blank">kigo footwear</a> and I was intrigued by their design, and the company itself. I am very fortunate to have been provided an opportunity to test and review the kigo "drive" pictured above. Before I dive into the nitty gritty review however, I did want to talk a little bit about the company.<br/><br/><br/><br/>
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First of all, it was no mistake above that I didn't capitalize kigo, or drive. As a matter of fact, virtually everything on kigo's site is that way. One of the co-founders has a Masters in Literature, and she loves poetry and the creative use of language, hence the e. e. cummings style :-) I think it also reflects on the minimalist style of their shoes, and their company philosophy. And, it saves me the time of hitting the shift key!<br/><br/><br/>
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I also am impressed about kigo's focus on sustainability. From the philosophy about work, packaging, and reuse/recycling to the materials used in the construction of the shoes, kigo is truly benchmark. kigos are recyclable too, and the company will give you 25% off a new pair when you return your old ones! I'll cover more about the materials in the review below, but if you want to read all about it, check it out <a href="http://www.kigofootwear.com/footprint.asp" target="_blank">here. </a><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fcbfuDpCBWk/T7RzIoIuuKI/AAAAAAAAAiw/4bKGbjHXYFc/s1600/DSC_0548.JPG"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fcbfuDpCBWk/T7RzIoIuuKI/AAAAAAAAAiw/4bKGbjHXYFc/s320/DSC_0548.JPG" width="264"/></a><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>Ok.. now on to the part you've been anxiously awaiting for... well, at least I hope so! Before I jump into the performance of this shoe, here are the the technical specs that all minimalist shoe fanatics like myself live for:<br/>
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<li>Zero drop outsole (of course)</li>
<li>2mm outsole, with a 2mm removable insole</li>
<li>4 oz average weight per shoe (yeah.. these are light)</li>
<li>Zero toe spring</li>
<li>Speed lacing</li>
<li>Anatomical foot print </li>
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<div>Next to my Vibram Flow's, these are by far the most minimalist shoes I've run in, from a ground height perspective. I kept the insoles in, because I found that it provided the best fit for me inside the shoe. Without the insole, I felt it was a little too roomy and I couldn't snug up the laces enough. However, the proprioception with the insoles is still outstanding. And talk about light weight! I loved how nearly felt like I had nothing on my feet. </div>
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<div>As far as the soles go, I like the imprint.. it leaves cool footprints! However, it is not a super aggressive tread, so I would be careful in instances where traction could be a problem, but this tread pattern worked great on the road, and surprisingly well on the trail for me as well. I think the flexibility and ground feel from the shoe allows for good gripping when needed. Also, you'll notice that the shoe is almost straight... it was funny because the first time I put them on, I wasn't sure I had them on the right feet! It made me aware of how even many minimalist shoes have some kind of structure or form to them. These didn't put any odd pressures anywhere on my feet. And the toe box was plenty roomy for me as well. I think my feet are "average", so for these shoes, my concern would be if you had a narrow foot.. you may not be able to tighten things up as much as you may like and they could feel sloppy. </div>
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<div>So... how do they perform? I will admit that when I first saw these shoes, and even after I tried them on, I was skeptical about how well I would like them for running, especially trail running. They just seemed too insubstantial, and I was concerned about durability as well as comfort. </div>
<div>For my first run on the road, they felt great. What struck me most was the fact that I had nothing to think about or contemplate about the feedback from the shoes. They were very comfortable, so comfortable that I forgot about thinking about them, and focused on running instead. The light weight made me feel I could run faster, so that's what I did. I was out for a 5K, but that decided to just push that first mile... I ran my first sub 8 minute mile, which for me is fast considering my running pace is in the 10:30-11:30 range. And over the 5k, no hotspots or stopping for adjustments etc. Also, as you can see above, I paired the kigos with <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2011/12/injinji-outdoor-series-toe-socks-review.html" target="_blank">Injinji Outdoor Series</a>, light-weight toe socks (no show length). This turned out to be a really great combination with this shoe. </div>
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<br/><br/>Are the kigo drives trail-worthy? I would say yes! Granted, I'm not an ultra distance runner (not yet at least), so my long trail runs are in the 6+ mile range. I took the drives out to my favorite trails to see what they could do. The first thing I noticed was that even with a 4mm ground height, and no rock plate, I wasn't getting that sting from some of the nastier rocks that I've felt in shoes with 6 or 8mm of height. I don't know if it was because I was mentally making myself run lighter (which is not a bad thing), or that I was getting better at dancing around some of the tougher stuff. It was probably a combination of both, but there must be something about the composition of the sole that help disperse some of the terrain without sacrificing the ground feel. Regardless, I was pleasantly surprised that such a thin and light shoe performed as it did. Granted, they still may not be substantial or protective enough for really long technical runs, but I'll let you know when I get there!<br/><br/>Also, you can see me daintily putting my foot down for a stream crossing, but on the way back, I jumped in with both feet to see how they dealt with water. WOW... at least right now, these uppers are the true definition of hydrophobic. Water beads immediately and drops off... This is because the uppers are constructed of <a href="http://www.kigofootwear.com/PDF/PET_CYCLEPET_Information.pdf" target="_blank">CYCLEPET,</a> which is a flexible fabric made from plastic jugs, which is then treated with an eco-friendly water/stain repellent called<a href="http://www.agc-group.com/en/examples/examples_06.html" target="_blank">AsahiGuard E-Series</a>. What remains to be seen is how long this treatment will last over time. Also, the fabric of the upper stretches and molds to your foot, as I've noticed over a few runs. kigo's website notes that you can reset, or tighten the fabric by washing (no soap), and sun-drying them.<br/><br/>
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<br/>Of course, none of my reviews are complete unless I've gone up the <a href="http://www.manitouincline.com/" target="_blank">Manitou Incline</a> a few times, and down <a href="http://www.trailsandopenspaces.org/hiking-pikes-peak.html" target="_blank">Barr Trail</a>. I haven't been up the Incline as often as I was going over the winter, but this morning I was about 30 sec shy of my personal best going up.. I credit the light shoes! Then of course, I had to put my feet up in front of Pikes Peak.. hard to believe I am planning on running up and down that next summer!<br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>Oops... forgot about the price. You can get the drive for $91 retail on the kigo site, or from one of their retailers here.<a href="https://www.kigofootwear.com/retail.asp" target="_blank">https://www.kigofootwear.com/retail.asp</a>. While not exactly inexpensive, these are priced in the "normal" range for minimalist shoes, and not bad considering the eco friendly materials and processes. BUT as a special bonus for readers, you can use the code <span>BFIREVIEW </span>at checkout for 20% of your purchase through 5/24/2012.<br/><br/> So.. there you have it. I know.. long-winded, but if you've hung on this long, congratulations. If I've missed anything in my review, or if you have questions, please let me know. I'll probably put up another longer term review later this year after logging more miles in these great shoes. For a cool story about the long-term durability of their shoes, check out their 12 month long world trek on this blog <a href="http://vamoskigo.com/2012/05/16/six-months-and-going-strong/" target="_blank">Vamos Kigo!</a><br/><br/>Happy trails!<br/><br/>Jeff<br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a> <br/><br/>
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</div>Hats off! Pearl Izumi Fly In-R-Cool Reviewtag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-05-15:5021591:BlogPost:3226452012-05-15T20:24:58.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Hats off! Pearl Izumi Fly In-R-Cool Review…</h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Hats off! Pearl Izumi Fly In-R-Cool Review</h3>
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Ok... really, a hat review? Yes! First of all, hats are an important running/trail running accessory. Especially up here in the high-altitude Colorado Rockies... BUT, even more important to guys like me that are follicly "challenged". What hair I do have on my head is a poor excuse, so its much easier to just keep a clean shaven pate.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>Besides a bald head, I also sweat... a lot. I've literally sweated like a steam billowing locomotive at -35F (-37C for my Canadian friends.. hmm.. that's pretty close). I'm sure you all wanted to know that... anyway, my point is without any hair to catch it, a hat becomes even that much more important.<br/><br/>So needless to say, I run with a hat all the time. I've got a basic Nike mesh cap, and an Adidas Adizero running hat, and they both work ok. But, this week I've had the opportunity to try out a very cool running hat from <a href="http://shop.pearlizumi.com/index.php" target="_blank">Pearl Izumi.</a><br/><br/>
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<br/>I've known Pearl Izumi from the past as a company that makes some great bicycling clothing and accessories, but I didn't realize that they also had running products, including shoes (unfortunately nothing too minimalist yet). Check out their<a href="http://shop.pearlizumi.com/index.php" target="_blank"> site</a> for the cool stuff they have. The model I tested is the "Fly" with In-R-Cool technology. From their website, here are the specs:<br/><br/><span>The Men's Fly In-R-Cool® Cap is out lightest weight run cap and features our In–R–Cool® technology to keep you cool and dry in the hottest conditions.</span><br/><br/>
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<div>•P.R.O. Transfer fabric with In-R-Cool® technology provides optimal skin-cooling effect and<br/>moisture management when you perspire<br/>•Perforated bill saves weight<br/>•Silicone prints grip sunglasses<br/>•Reflective elements for low-light visibility<br/>•Black bill underside protects eyes from the sun’s reflection<br/><span>•0</span> mm drop from back to bill in a true minimalist design (ok.. I added this one) ;-) <br/><br/></div>
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<br/>As you can see here, this hat is super light weight, with a stretchy "one size" fit. Generally these don't always work for me as I am at the end of the spectrum where some generic sizers like these are still too small for me. Yes, I have a fat head. However, this hat still fit comfortably which was great.<br/><br/>
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<div class="separator">Here are the cool silicone prints on the hat for holding sunglasses in place. Initially I thought they wouldn't do much, but they really did make a difference. Running on trails, I have a tendency to take my sunglasses on and off, depending on how much shade I am in. Perching my glasses on this hat while running through the darker parts of the trail worked out great. My shades stayed locked in place much better than with my other hats. </div>
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<div class="separator">Most importantly to me however, was the moisture management qualities of this hat. This hat stayed cool, and wicked away a lot of moisture. Best of all the head band kept any and all perspiration from dripping down into my eyes. For this reason alone, I give kudos to Pearl Izumi for a great design. Another great feature is that because of the light weight material, I can rinse this hat out, and it dries really fast. </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pFRlsG2uQls/T7KoFG1SDrI/AAAAAAAAAh8/R-UygzqzpBw/s1600/14161101_509.jpg"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pFRlsG2uQls/T7KoFG1SDrI/AAAAAAAAAh8/R-UygzqzpBw/s200/14161101_509.jpg" width="200"/></a><br/><br/>And.. if you aren't crazy about the black, they have a few other cool colors.<br/><br/>Ok... so the tough part. The hat retails for $25, but you may be able to find it for less if you poke around. Generally I have spent $10-$15 on a hat (since I'm cheap), but in the case of the Pearl Izumi Fly, it is certainly worth it to spend a little more, as you certainly get what you pay for in this model.<br/><br/>
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<br/>Finally, any avid trail runner will love this sign. Given a choice, I'd be on the trail any time!<br/><br/>Have a great week.. and happy trails!<br/><br/>Jeff<br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a></div>Big Mountain Trail Race: Race Reporttag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-04-27:5021591:BlogPost:3165572012-04-27T03:31:19.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Big Mountain Trail Run Race Report…</h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Big Mountain Trail Run Race Report</h3>
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On Saturday I ran in the <a href="http://www.bigmountainar.com/BMTR2012.php" target="_blank">Big Mountain Trail Run</a> that was put on by Big Mountain Adventure Racing. The race was at <a href="http://tfocc.org/" target="_blank">North Cheyenne Canon Park</a>, and consisted of a 1/2 marathon, 10K, and 5K. I was really looking forward to this race, as it was advertised as 90% single track, and a downhill finish.<br/><br/>
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<div class="separator">Above is the map of the run. The first mile was a pretty steady climb up, but nothing too crazy. I was happy that I could push through most of the smaller switchbacks and climbs without slowing down too much. However, just past the first mile was an intense series of switchbacks. I mean the kind where look above you and see at least 3 separate lines of runners zig-zagging up... and by then they were all speed hiking up because of the steepness and the loose dirt. This tough climb continued on to pretty much the 2.5 mile mark where an aid station was set up on Gold Camp Road (X point at the top of the map).</div>
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From the aid station, the course turned to running on Gold Camp Road. Above is a picture of one of the old train tunnels on the road (not positive this is the same one.. I didn't bring a camera). Felt great to run through the tunnel after refilling on water and making the tough climb. It was nice and cool :-) <br/><br/>From there the course was another .5 or more along the road (and still a steady climb) until reaching the next connector back to the single-track back down the hill. I was so happy to hit this point as I knew it was all downhill (well mostly) from there and I could take advantage of making up time from the climb, as well as recover a bit.<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>The trail itself was beautiful... I wish I wasn't in a hurry so I could have enjoyed some of the views more, but I tried. I'm going to have to go up there again sometime when its not a race to check it out. I ended up finishing at 1:12, which I was happy with... considering my first (and only other 10K) was mostly road running and I did that bout 30s slower than this one. Achilles was still nagging me.. especially on the uphills, but a couple of Advil kept it quiet most of the time.<br/><br/>
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<br/>Here are a few more shots borrowed from the Big Mountain website. Again... some amazing views and really fun trail running. Also, this was the first year this race was held, and I was impressed with the way it was organized. Chip timing for everyone, free burritos from a local restaurant, plus plenty of other snacks and beverages available. Oh and a coupon for free beer at <a href="http://www.phantomcanyon.com/" target="_blank">Phanton Canyon Brewery</a>!! The trail was well marked and staffed also.<br/><br/>Also, there were a few vendors on site which was cool. I got to check out the <a href="http://www.shopnewbalance.com/men/shoes/running/trail-running/MT00BL" target="_blank">New Balance Minimus Zero</a> trail shoe... Wow.. talk about a light weight shoe! It literally felt like it should be disposable or something... would love to try some out, but they almost seemed like too little for a rough trail.<br/><br/>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Courtesy of <a href="http://www.pikespeaksports.us/">http://www.pikespeaksports.us/</a></td>
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<br/>Another great thing about the race is that a friend decided to sign up at the last minute. That was really nice, since I generally don't know anyone at these races (I haven't been to many yet), so end up standing around looking at what shoes everyone is wearing. Anyway.. here is a funny pic from the start of the race... seems like every race photo of me is goofy... or maybe its not the photo.. its just me :-)<br/><br/>
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<br/>So what's next? yep.. it's time for the<a href="http://www.bolderboulder.com/" target="_blank"> Bolder Boulder</a> 10K again! I am really looking forward to this one. I've walked it the past 4 years, but this will be the first time I actually run! It is such a great event with live bands all along the route, people partying in the front yards like crazy... followed by a great Memorial day event at the CU stadium (complete with Armed Forces paratroopers and fly overs) and where we can watch the conclusion of the professional racers after we complete our run. Ok.. you all know how slow I am, but I am going to put it out there. My goal for my 3rd 10K is to finish under 1 hour... I know that still sounds slow, but for an old overweight guy like me, it would be great!<br/><br/>Have a great weekend... get out and do something fun!<br/><br/>Happy trails...<br/><br/>Jeff<br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a> </div>Get those kids running!tag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-04-15:5021591:BlogPost:3143302012-04-15T04:51:13.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
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<p><br></br><span>I know I mentioned a few posts back that our twin boys, age 7, just joined a running club…</span></p>
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<p><br/><span>I know I mentioned a few posts back that our twin boys, age 7, just joined a running club through their school a few weeks ago. They are in 1st grade, and they were both very excited to join the team. Now of course I was just a little bit excited too, seeing as I've managed to be bitten by the running bug in the last year.</span><br/><br/></p>
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<p><br/><br/><span>What was really cool was that the team at their elementary school attracted 56 kids! I thought that turnout was really incredible. Spring is more focused on shorter track type events, so they will be running two meets focused on middle distance (400-800m for K-2), and one focused on short sprints (50 and 200m). If they continue in the fall, the program is focused on cross-country events, with distances ranging form 800m to 2400m.</span><br/><br/><br/><br/><span>So far, what I've seen of the program has been really great. Just about all of the activities and drills in practice are focused around games and having fun. There is nothing greater to see than kids out there running with big grinning faces. I have to remind myself when I'm out on the trail to quit being too serious, and just enjoy the ride, the view, and the freedom to move.</span><br/><br/></p>
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<p><span>Now of course, being of the mindset that I am, I attended the first practice very interested in how they would talk to the kids about running form. Or as my wife noted, prepared to go off on them about how they are doing it all wrong! But, as it turns out, the initial discussion with the kids was primarily about arm movement, and breathing.... nothing about foot strikes. Which makes sense, especially with the younger kids. When watching them run, I noticed that almost every one of them ran with a relaxed and natural mid-foot strike without any over extension. Even in clunky, thick heeled shoes. Just made me realize that poor form probably develops later and over time. (Just a thought, I'm no expert). </span></p>
<div>I did have to cringe a little at the next practice when one kid asked about how to land when running... the coach proceeded to say that some people land on their toes, some land on their mid-foot, and some (gasp) land on their heels... and that it was all OK. But, again, the overall push was to keep it fun for the kids, which they did very well. </div>
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<div class="separator">Now... while I would have loved to put our boys in a pair of these <a href="http://www.merrell.com/US/en/Barefoot_Kids" target="_blank">Merrell Trail Gloves</a>, that would look just like <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/02/merrell-barefoot-trail-glove-reviewand.html" target="_blank">Dad's</a>, I have a very difficult time with the expense, compared to how long they will fit these guys at this age. So, for this go around at least, I'm trying them out in some basic water shoes. The shoes are flat and flexible, and for the time and distances they are running, seem to be working out great. They do keep bugging me about getting them some VFF's, but I may be able to convince them to go with some<a href="http://www.invisibleshoe.com/" target="_blank"> Invisible Shoes</a> for the summer (that match Dad's of course). My guess is that if they truly get hooked on running, and continue to run and Incline with me over the summer, then an investment would be warranted. </div>
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<div class="separator">I just had to repost this pic above, as it is one of my favorites. It's that look and feeling that I see in the kid's faces when they are running. That's what it should all be about.. running because it's fun... because it's play... and more so because we CAN. Too often I think we take for granted the bodies given to us, and the fact that not everyone is fortunate to use them to their full capacity. So... let's get those kids running, and at the same time, recapture that joy in ourselves... </div>
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<div class="separator">Loved this pic I found too when poking around on Pinterest... I still haven't quite figured that out yet. </div>
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<div class="separator">Anyway, enjoy the rest of the weekend. I'm looking forward to the <a href="http://www.bigmountainar.com/BMTR2012.php" target="_blank">Big Mountain Trail Run </a>10K this coming Saturday.. I'll be sure to post up a race report afterwards..</div>
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<div class="separator">Happy trails!</div>
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<div class="separator">Jeff</div>
<div class="separator"><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a></div>It's an election year... vote for me!!tag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-04-13:5021591:BlogPost:3132402012-04-13T05:12:36.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">It's an election year.. vote for me!</h3>
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<br></br>Hey all you Pikes Peak Sports members!... just a quick post to ask for your support. I…</div>
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">It's an election year.. vote for me!</h3>
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<br/>Hey all you Pikes Peak Sports members!... just a quick post to ask for your support. I would love to test and review what appears to be my dream minimalist trail shoe! A vote for me is a vote for the Incline!!<br/><br/>If you have a minute, and could visit this site <a href="http://www.runningandrambling.com/2012/04/get-out-vote-vibram-fivefingers.html">http://www.runningandrambling.com/2012/04/get-out-vote-vibram-fivefingers.html</a> and vote for my picture #9 (via a comment), I would greatly appreciate it!! I promise to provide an very comprehensive review on the VFF Spyridon LS if I win!<br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>Thanks so much,<br/><br/>Jeff<br/><br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a> </div>Random Ramblings...tag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-04-05:5021591:BlogPost:3110572012-04-05T03:53:47.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Random Ramblings....</h3>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">This came up in an image search on random ramblings :-) <a href="http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/221695/in-this-random-rambling-thread-we-post-random-pictures" target="_blank">Photo Source</a></td>
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<br/><br/>I felt like it was time for another post, but didn't have a single topic that I've been dwelling on so instead you get a bunch of random stuff.. so I apologize for the rambling but here goes...<br/><br/>First, I haven't run in a week and a half, and it's driving me a little crazy. I managed to develop Achilles tendinitis in my right foot, primarily from over use I believe. I made it 48 days into the 120 day running challenge (run at least 1 mile per day), and I'm guessing the fact that I didn't take a break contributed to it. <br/><br/>
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So... in order to prevent any surgical views of a torn achilles, I bailed out of the challenge and am resting. Which means no running.. which a year ago wouldn't have meant anything. But, after successfully developing a passion for running (my wife would say obsession), not running is tough to do. I have however been trying to work biking and other workouts in during this time.<br/><br/>For a great recap of what it's like to not be able to run... check out this post from fellow blogger <a href="http://pensivepumpkin.blogspot.com/2012/04/d-is-for-dead-as-in-my-training-plan.html" target="_blank">Pensive Pumpkin.. </a> similar to her situation, I've taken this opportunity of down time to sign up for a race... because of course that is what you do when you can't run.<br/><br/>
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<br/>So.. I'm signing up for the Cheyenne Canyone 10K trail run on April 21st. I think I'll be able to start running again next week (with breaks inbetween) to get ready for this one. It really sounds appealing because it is 90% single track, uphill on the first half and a downhill finish, and it goes through some old train tunnels.. Anyone in the CO area doing this one? <br/><br/>
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<br/><br/>Next random item is that our 7 1/2 year old twin boys just signed up for the "Land Sharks" running team through their elementary school. Of course I'm pretty excited, and they are too. First practice is tomorrow so we'll see how it goes. They are in 1st grade, so will be running 400 and 800m races. Wish I could afford to outfit them in the latest Merrell's or VFF's! Ah well... going to try out some decent water shoes.. just something flexible and flat (and affordable!).<br/><br/>
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<div class="separator">Oh.. and before I forget.... another CONTEST is out there... and for SHOES! I know those two words get every barefoot/minimalist runner out there in a lather... Anyway.. this one is from Skora.. they have a pretty cool line of upscale minimalist shoes.. Can't believe I'm sharing this as it reduces my chances of winning! Entry deadline is 5pm PST on Friday the 6th, so check it out here! <a href="http://minimalistrunningshoes.org/skora-running-form.php">http://minimalistrunningshoes.org/skora-running-form.php</a></div>
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All randomness aside, I would be remiss if I didn't spend a little time talking about a sad and tragic loss this last week. Micah True aka Caballo Blanco died, but true to form, he died doing what he loved most... running. I learned about his incredible integrity and character when I read "Born to Run" last year, and got to know more about him via his great Facebook posts.<br/><br/><br/>As with many other readers, fans and friends, I have clung on to a few of his quotes from the book which includes:<br/><span>"<span>Don’t fight the trail. Take what it gives you,” he began. “Lesson two – </span><span>Think Easy, Light, Smooth, and Fast. You start with easy, because if that’s all you get, that’s not so bad. Then work on light. Make it effortless, like you don’t give a shit how high the hill is or how far you’ve got to go. When you’ve practiced that so long that you forget you’re practicing, you work on making it smooooooth. You won’t have to worry about the last one – you get those three, and you’ll be fast.”</span></span><br/><span><span><br/></span></span><br/>There have also been a lot of really great blog posts about Micah.. a few of my favorites are from <a href="http://barefoot-monologues.com/2012/04/01/for-the-white-horse/" target="_blank">Barefoot Monologues</a>, <a href="http://vanessaruns.com/2012/04/01/how-will-caballo-blancos-death-change-ultra-running/" target="_blank">Vanessa Runs</a>, and <a href="http://pensivepumpkin.blogspot.com/2012/04/c-is-for-caballo-blanco.html" target="_blank">Pensive Pumpkin</a>.. check them out as they are better with words than I am.<br/><br/><span>RIP Caballo Blanco.</span><br/><span><br/></span><br/><span><br/></span><br/><span>Happy trails everyone... hope it's a good week and weekend!</span><br/><span><br/></span><br/><span>Jeff</span><br/><span><br/></span><br/><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a> <br/><br/><span><span>”WE are the messengers. Fueled by the message we carry. When the message is of Truth/Beauty, love, Hope and Peace, we will always have the strength to find our ways home, on this, our beautiful Mother Earth. Run Free!”</span><br/><span>-Micah True, March 26, 2012</span></span> </div>March Madness: Merrell Barefoot Road Glove vs. Trail Glove reviewtag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-03-25:5021591:BlogPost:3080842012-03-25T22:51:35.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title"><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/03/march-madness-merrell-road-glove-vs.html">March Madness: Merrell Road Glove vs. Trail Glove Review…</a></h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title"><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/03/march-madness-merrell-road-glove-vs.html">March Madness: Merrell Road Glove vs. Trail Glove Review</a></h3>
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<br/><br/>Ok! I've think I've logged enough miles in both of these great shoes to be able to provide a good summary of my impressions from each. Also, in February I did a review of the <a href="http://www.merrell.com/US/en-US/Product.mvc.aspx/22875M/60903/Ash/J39029?dimensions=0">Trail Gloves</a> which you can check out <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/02/merrell-barefoot-trail-glove-reviewand.html">here.</a><br/><br/>So, first of all, it may seem a little odd to compare a "road" shoe to a "trail" shoe, but in the case of Merrell, the distinction is somewhat blurred. I know a number of runners that like the<a href="http://www.merrell.com/US/en-US/Product.mvc.aspx/26342M?green=651F9AA3-2036-596D-A665-6F7D71071174">Road Glove</a> for trail running, and some that love the Trail Glove for road running!<br/><br/>First of all, just a run down on a few of the comparative specs. From a sole perspective, both shoes use a Vibram TC-1 rubber sole, and a 4mm compression molded EVA midsole. I know this sounds like I know what I'm talking about, but I'm really just relaying whats on the official specs :-). From there, the differences lie in the tread pattern, stack height, and rock plate.<br/><br/>
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<br/>Sorry for the water in the pic, but I had snapped these after taking a run in them and hosing off the dirt. The Trail Glove is on the left, and while it has a slightly more aggressive tread compared to the Road Glove, it is relatively tame compared to other trail shoes, like the<a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2011/12/viva-vivobarefoot-neo-trail-review.html">Vivobarefoot Neo Trail</a>. Also you'll noticed that both have kind of a molded arch that slopes upward. When wearing them, you do notice a little pressure back from this area in both shoes, perhaps slightly more noticeable (at least to me) in the Road Glove, however I seldom noticed that feel once I started running, and over time they have flattened a little also. Interestingly from a weight perspective, the Road Glove is slightly heavier than the 6.2 oz Trail Glove, but honestly, for a guy that has 35 more pounds to lose.. whats a fraction of an ounce? ;-)<br/><br/>The Trail Glove sits with about a 12mm ground height, and the Road Glove around 10mm. Because of that, you do get a bit better ground feel from the Road Gloves. A nice feature of the Trail Glove is that the mid-foot also contains a 1mm plastic rock plate that does a good job of dispersing sharp impacts, but remains flexible so as not to interfere too much with the ground feel. Also, the Road glove, even with a slightly smoother sole, still grips relatively well on the trail. I wouldn't feel comfortable in either for extreme traction situations, but when you are talking loose dirt/gravel/water etc... both shoes provide a reasonable amount of traction.<br/><br/>
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<br/>From a fit perspective, I found that there is a distinctive difference between these two shoes. Both shoes are comfortable to wear without socks. They breath well, and the seams are relatively unobtrusive. However, based on running in both, my preference is for the Road Glove as it has a slight edge in barefoot comfort. From a KSO (keep stuff out) view, the Trail Gloves do fit snugger around the ankle, helping to keep rocks, sticks, squirrels etc from getting into your shoe. The Road Glove isn't bad, but does run a tiny bit looser.<br/><br/>The most striking difference for me was the feel on my foot when laced up. The Trail Glove has a distinct tightness across the midfoot.. kind of a band that runs across the first two lace crossovers nearest the toe and sloping back towards the arch. The Tru-Fit lacing system on the Trail Glove (left) does allow for some customization, but regardless of how I adjusted, I still felt this snugness. When I run in them, I feel that band squeeze with each foot strike. Now, is it a bad thing? For me it really didn't cause me any issues, other than I noticed it. Perhaps if you have a narrow foot, it would be less of an issue, and maybe this fit would be better. It does however cause me to want to run more on my forefoot, and not always bring my heel all the way down.<br/><br/> On the other hand, the Road Glove (right), did not have this feeling at all. If anything, this shoe has to be one of the most comfortable shoes I have run in. In many ways, once I get going, I almost don't notice that I am wearing them at all... which is surprising for a shoe (versus non-traditional shoes like a huarache, or VFF's etc). As far as the toe box goes, both shoes were roomy and allowed flexing and stretching without issue.<br/><br/>
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<br/>Ok.. so to get a true comparative test on these shoes, I ran with one on each foot! Ok, I wouldn't recommend this method with very distinct shoes as the difference could really mess you up.. but since they are pretty darn close, I threw one one each foot and hit the road. And yes, I got some odd looks of course! BUT... this test really brought home the key differences and similarities in the shoes. While running on the road, I could sense the better ground feel from the Road Glove, as well as the comfort of the fit, and from the Trail Glove, that interesting tightness mentioned above is much more pronounced. With respect to traction, I could not really tell the difference.<br/><br/>From the road, I of course headed off to my favorite proving grounds.. the <a href="http://www.manitouincline.com/">Manitou Incline</a> and<a href="http://www.backpacker.com/october_08_americas_10_most_dangerous_hikes_barr_trail_pikes_peak_co/destinations/12621">Barr Trail.</a><br/>Here again, both shoes performed very well, but as expected, the advantage goes to the Trail Glove, specifically for the extra shock dispersing action of the embedded rock plate. I could sense a slightly better grip from the Trail Gloves, and in particular when up on my toes a bit more and climbing. However, the Road Glove performed great on the trail... I just had to watch my step a little more, since any nasty rocks were going to transfer pain just a bit easier.<br/><br/>
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<div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-5848912829620007638"><br/><br/>And yes, as you can see from the picture, I applied my research scientifically.. ensuring that I swapped right to left the shoes each time I ran.. running three on the road and thrice on the trail.. I know.. I'm a nerd. Anyway, here I stopped at one of my favorite photo op locations on the way down to connect with Barr Trail... never get tired of seeing Pikes Peak from here.<br/><br/>Ok.. so the final verdict? Of course I can't just pick one... ask any barefoot/minimalist runner to pick ONE favorite shoe from their collection of 6 or more pairs and they go into a mental lock up. But seriously, if it were between these two shoes, I would have to go with the Road Glove, primarily because of the comfortable fit. The perfect Merrell Barefoot Trail shoe for me would have the comfort/fit and ground feel of the Road Glove, combined with the rock plate in the Trail Glove, and a beefed up tread pattern for sloppier conditions. I know... never happy. Ah well..<br/><br/>I hope this was helpful to those of you considering one of these shoes, or if you have one and are considering the other. Regardless, Merrell is a great minimalist shoe company, and they make a quality product. Hopefully someone there reads this and designs my perfect trail shoe!! <br/><br/>As always, if I've missed anything (which I'm sure I have), please let me know with a comment below.<br/><br/>Happy Trails!<br/><br/><span><span>"You were born to run. Maybe not that fast, maybe not that far, maybe not as efficiently as others. But to get up and move, to fire up that entire energy-producing, oxygen-delivering, bone-strengthening process we call running." ~Florence Griffith-Joyner</span></span></div>
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<div class="post-body entry-content"><span><span><a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a></span></span></div>Sea level is for sissies...tag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-03-15:5021591:BlogPost:3047102012-03-15T03:21:08.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Sea level is for sissies...</h3>
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<p><br></br> <br></br> Ok... for those of you that have run or walked the…</p>
<h3 class="post-title entry-title">Sea level is for sissies...</h3>
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<p><br/> <br/> Ok... for those of you that have run or walked the <a href="http://www.bolderboulder.com/" target="_blank">Bolder Boulder 10K</a> in Boulder, CO, you'll recognize this sign at the high point of the course. Living at 8,500 feet, we would joke that this course was for sissies too!<br/> <br/> This last weekend I had the opportunity to go to Seattle to visit my older kids, and of course had to run while I was there. What I learned was that running at near sea level was in fact for sissies.... or more specifically.. ME! Wow.. what a difference it made.<br/> <br/> On Saturday I met a friend for what was to be a short run.. maybe 5K. After a pleasant conversation along the Cedar River Trail, we completed 5.2 miles and it felt like less than 2! I just couldn't get over how good it felt.<br/></p>
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<p><br/> So of course, I couldn't wait to get out on the trail again the next day. It was a little bit chillier (around 40F), and the rain was really coming down hard. I actually sat in the car waiting a bit to see if it would slow down at all.<br/></p>
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<p><br/> About the time it slowed down just a little, I decided to just get out and get going. I figured I would warm up anyway, and you can't live in the Seattle area and be afraid to get a little wet.<br/> <br/> <br/> So... off I went, and 1 hour and 17 minutes later I had just ran 8.2 miles. My longest run to date, and at a pace faster than I have run before. If I hadn't had a date with my kids for breakfast that morning that I needed to get to, I might still be out there running right now! What was so great was that I could spend the time focused on my form and pace, and not distracted by trying to avoid a cardio-pulmonary seizure...</p>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So.. I've come to the realization that we just don't have nearly enough oxygen up here! Ah well, I am pretty sure that after a few more runs there, I wouldn't have felt nearly the boost that I did. But it was a great ride!!</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">One thing that I did notice, was that running that far on smooth pavement really started to create a lot of tightness in my feet and calves. Fortunately, I figured out that by periodically moving off to the side to run on the loose gravel and dirt did wonders to relieve that tension by providing an uneven surface that worked like a massage. </div>
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<p><br/> <br/> In addition to visiting family, and running. I did get the opportunity to do a few touristy things in Seattle. Before moving to Colorado 4 years ago, we had lived in the area for 18 years, so it was really great to visit. This included a trip to <a href="http://www.pikeplacemarket.org/" target="_blank">Pikes Place Market</a> of course... where all the fresh flowers made me anxious for spring.<br/></p>
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<p><br/> I also got the opportunity to pop into the <a href="http://www.borntorun.com/" target="_blank">Born to Run store</a>. It was really cool to be able to see and pickup a wide variety of minimalist shoes that I have been pining for. I know.. spoken like a true "barefoot" runner :-). <br/> <br/> They did have a clearance table of what looked like returned shoes. I dug around in there, but didn't find anything I "needed" in my size. Was tempted to get one of their cool T-shirts, but $30 for a thin shirt that amounted to free advertising wasn't working for me.<br/> <br/> Anyway, I'm back home now, and altitude or not, it is really good to be back. Temps have been in the mid 60's and I was able to get out today for 3.3 miles in my Invisible Shoes... I took them off for about .5 miles of it and that was awesome... tender feet, but the feeling is the best and I look forward to getting more naked miles in as the weather improves.<br/> <br/> Happy Trails! <br/> <br/> <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a></p>Go with the Flow... VFF Flow Reviewtag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-03-06:5021591:BlogPost:3027742012-03-06T04:54:38.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
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<br/> A little over a month ago, after a race on a Saturday I popped into Goodwill since it was nearby... lo and behold.. sitting on the shoe rack (with a golden aura around them) was a pair of basically new Vibram VFF Flow's just like the ones below... in my size... for $19.99... no way I could pass that up, especially when they retail for $90 to $100... so, the shoe collection grew! I must really be getting into "barefoot" running, based on the number of minimalist shoes I own :-).<br/> <br/>
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<br/> Since that time, I've had an opportunity to put some miles on these, and I wanted to provide my initial impressions.<br/> <br/> These are my first pair of VFF's, so I can't compare them to any other styles out there. I can tell you that I really do like the feel of the individual toe sleeves, and the overall running comfort. That being said however, this particular style runs really warm, and they fit really snugly... in an almost claustrophobic way. The upper is a neoprene material, so it feels like a putting on a wetsuit. Once I was in them, my feet felt like mini Jacques Cousteau's sans aqualungs. <br/> <br/>
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<br/> Now, the bonus of this 2mm neoprene upper is that these are very warm. When I first put them on in the house, I could feel my feet and toes start to sweat a bit. The material doesn't breathe very much, but I guess that is the point of this particular shoe, as it is targeted for cold weather and water sports.<br/> <br/> My first runs in these were on the roads in the neighborhood, and all were around temps ranging from 15-30F (-9 to -1 C). I had no problem with my feet staying warm in the Flows. Had I been wearing other minimalist shoes, I may have included wool <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2011/12/injinji-outdoor-series-toe-socks-review.html" target="_blank">Injinji toe socks</a>, but they were not needed here. Not even sure I could get these on with socks however. On a few runs I purposely stepped into available puddles to see what the cold water would do. As expected, the water soaked in, but then proceeded to warm up and stay warm around my feet and toes.<br/> <br/> From what I understand, the Flows have a 2mm insole, on top of a 3 to 3.5mm sole, so a little less ground feel than what would be expected from a KSO for example. This extra insole probably helped with the insulation from the frozen ground. Even with it however, I thought the ground feel was really great (probably the best out of the shoes I own), and I liked the ability to flex my toes individually.<br/> <br/> As for the sole, there is some very fine siping cut into the forefoot and heel area, but my guess is that these probably help most on wet pavement (like tires) etc. As you can see, besides the siping, there really isn't any kind of tread or traction design on these. I avoided as much ice as possible, as you are not going to get any kind of traction. I would be concerned with slick mud of course also.<br/> <br/>
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<br/> <br/> Besides the cool looking camo soles, I also liked the ease of tossing these in the washer after trashing them in the mud. They wash up nicely, and dry out quick also... well, in Colorado's single digit humidity they do!<br/> <br/> In addition to putting some road miles on these (including the bane of minimalist/barefoot runners.. the dreaded chip seal), I also took these out on the trail. <br/> <br/> <br/> And where would that be? The <a href="http://www.manitouincline.com/" target="_blank">Manitou Incline</a> of course!<br/> <br/>
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<br/> The Flows performed well during the climb up the Incline. Temps were around 20F (-7C), but most of the railroad ties were clear of ice. In the few places I had to go on compacted ice/snow, my feet stayed plenty warm. I also appreciated the ability to "wrap" my toes around more things such as rocks to gain a little better feel as I worked my way up. Certainly one of the advantages I can see in the VFF style of shoe over my other minimalist shoes.<br/> <br/>
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<br/> Arrived at the top just at sunrise again... never get tired of this view that is for sure. From here it was the 3.5+ mile run down Barr Trail, and again, the Flows worked well. They didn't have the same protection as I get from my <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2011/12/viva-vivobarefoot-neo-trail-review.html" target="_blank">Neo Trails</a> for <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/02/merrell-barefoot-trail-glove-reviewand.html" target="_blank">Trail Gloves</a>, but I enjoyed the extra feedback and just took my time and watched my step... and it certainly reminded me to keep the proper form while descending the sometimes rocky trail.<br/> <br/> So, I do appreciate the extra warmth of these shoes for winter running, however once summer arrives, my guess is that I won't wear these much. However, I think they would make a great water sports shoe, and I may try and use them for those occasions. Regardless, I did enjoy my first experience with <a href="http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/index.htm" target="_blank">Vibram Five Fingers</a>. Since I love trail running so much, the pair I'd really love to try out would be the new <a href="http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/Five-Fingers-SpyridonLS-Mens.htm" target="_blank">Spyridon LS's</a> as they were built for trail running. Hopefully I'll get that opportunity sometime soon!<br/> <br/> Once again, thanks for tuning in. And of course, I'll leave you with yet more sunrise shots from the Incline and Barr Trail.<br/> <br/> Happy Trails!<br/> <br/> <span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #010101; font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif';">"You were born to run. Maybe not that fast, maybe not that far, maybe not as efficiently as others. But to get up and move, to fire up that entire energy-producing, oxygen-delivering, bone-strengthening process we call running." ~Florence Griffith-Joyner</span></span><br/> <br/> <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a> <br/> <br/>
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</div>End of a Series... and the Beginning of further and faster..tag:pikespeaksports.us,2012-02-26:5021591:BlogPost:3007692012-02-26T23:59:00.000ZJeff Galluphttp://pikespeaksports.us/profile/JeffGallup
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<p><br/> <br/> Saturday I ran the 4th and final race in the <a href="http://www.pprrun.org/" target="_blank">Pikes Peak Road Runners</a> Winter Series. This series is in its 33rd year, and is comprised of a variety of trail races in and around Colorado Springs. The last race was a 10K, and it was my first official 10K race (running that is... I've walked the <a href="http://www.bolderboulder.com/" target="_blank">Bolder Boulder 10K</a> several times).<br/> <br/> It felt really great to finally run a 10K, and made me realize that I really can continue to add distance, working my way to a marathon and beyond. A year ago when I couldn't run 200 yards without stopping to catch my breath, I would never have believed it.<br/> <br/> It was a beautiful sunny Colorado day, and even though most of the course was covered in snow/ice, the <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2011/12/viva-vivobarefoot-neo-trail-review.html" target="_blank">Vivobarefoot Neo Trails</a> (with Yaktrax for the more slippery first half) performed really well. The course was hilly, with a couple of pretty long grinds. On two of those, I switched to a fast walk when I realized my "running" was slower than walking! Regardless, I finished with a 1:12:31, against my personal goal of 1:15:00. What really helped was a little pull from a really nice guy Andrew (in pic above). We had been passing each other off and on most of the race, but at 4.5 miles in and working our way up another hill, I asked him how his VFF's were gripping on the course. Being a minimalist runner, I'm always looking for those running in non-traditional shoes :-). Anyway, our conversations inbetween grabbing what oxygen we could provided a nice distraction, and I think we both kicked up the pace in the last mile. Thanks Andrew!<br/> <br/> Also, before I forget, many of these pics come from Tim Bergsten at <a href="../../" target="_blank">Pikes Peak Sports</a>.. Tim runs an awesome site, takes amazing photo's and videos. If there is a race going on, you can count on seeing him there.. thanks Tim! <br/> <br/> Here is a quick recap of the first 3 races: <br/></p>
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<p><br/> The first race was a 3.3M true trail run. Another gorgeous Colorado day in Cheyenne Mountain State Park. A lot of single-track, that happened to be covered with some pretty slick ice and some fun downhills. Ran this in the Neo Trails and Yaktrax. Finished in 39:19 For a full report click <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/01/i-am-trail-runner.html" target="_blank">here</a>. <br/></p>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This little girl pwned me. Courtesy of <a href="http://www.pikespeaksports.us/">http://www.pikespeaksports.us/</a></td>
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<p>The second race was a 4 mile out and back along Fountain Creek in Colorado Springs. Basically packed dirt/gravel and pavement. Gradual uphill heading out, and downhill coming back...wee! First run in the <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/02/merrell-barefoot-trail-glove-reviewand.html" target="_blank">Merrell Barefoot Trail Gloves</a> and they were fast and comfortable. Finished in 41:01.<br/></p>
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<p><br/> <br/> Race #3 finally lived up to the Winter Series name. This was a 5 mile race, and when I arrived it was 18 degrees, the wind was blowing 20+mph, and it was snowing sideways! Fortunately it was an out and back with the wind behind us on the uphill. Needless to say, it was pretty cold on the way back. This was also a day dedicated to running for Sherry Arnold, which made it pretty special. I also posed for a pic with two other runners running for Sherry... I later found out that Tiffany (in the middle) writes a great blog at <a href="http://www.irun-4-mom.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">iRun-4-Mom</a>. Obviously, this was another run for the Neo Trails. For more, click <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/2012/02/winter-run-for-sherry.html" target="_blank">here</a>. Ran this 5 miler in 58:13.<br/></p>
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<p><br/> Which brings us back to the last race yesterday. Leading up to this one, I was a little nervous, as I had only run farther than 6 miles one time before, and that was the Wednesday before this race. Now I'm excited to run more, and am looking forward to the Bolder Boulder on Memorial Day. I have always enjoyed walking this one, and now I'm hoping to run it, ideally as close to 60 minutes as I can.<br/></p>
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<p>What a great day, and a great way to end the series! Besides looking forward to longer races this year, I'm also looking forward to the Fall Series put on by Pikes Peak Road Runners this fall too. Here's to further and faster in 2012 :-) <br/> <br/> Happy Trails!<br/> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1046528364"><br/></a><br/> <a href="http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/">http://barefootinclined.blogspot.com/</a><br/> <br/> "We run, not because we think it is doing us good, but because we enjoy it and cannot help ourselves...The more restricted our society and work become, the more necessary it will be to find some outlet for this craving for freedom. No one can say, 'You must not run faster than this, or jump higher than that.' The human spirit is indomitable." <br/> -Sir Roger Bannister, first runner to run a sub-4 minute mile</p>