My Friends running the snowy trails.

Today was bitchin! I went with the a few of the folks from the Dirt Devils & Bad Rats up to Cuyamaca to do some trail running at elevation.

The trail seemed like it was never-ending uphill. Miles 1-5.5 were rugged trail up about 1500′. It was tough! At mile 6 we hopped on the Pacific Crest Trail and went up to about 5500′ in elevation. Thanks to the recent storms in San Diego, by 4500′ in elevation we were running through SNOW!

The Pacific Crest trail winded around the mountains and when we hit the mile 13 aid station, we were done. We ran through mud, snow, and small streams. I felt like I was in my element.

The 13 miles took a painfully slow 2 hours and 56 minutes. Much slower than we hope to do for the PCT. In that time I put down 64 oz of liquid, 7 servings of Nuun, 2 Honey Stinger Gels, and a package of Sport Beans.

This run was my hardest to date but also the best. I got to feel what it is like to run at elevation and in poor conditions. The weather was about 39 degrees F at the start and within a mile I was shedding clothing. It was a big eye opener for what the PCT 50 is going to be like. So I will be doing several more training runs out here.