Extreme Momentum

Josh is getting married!  Woohoo! So, what to do for a bachelor party?  Run, of course.  After a late night Particle show at the Miramar in Milwaukee on Thursday night, we opted for a late Friday morning run at Lapham Peak.  The plan was to run the Ice Age Trail for 60-90 minutes.  Snow was expected the next day and temperatures had already plummeted into the 20s with a nice 10-15 MPH NE wind.  Just like our days training back in Beloit!

I ended up  taking point (as usual) and decided a nice vista from the observation tower was necessary first.  Up, up, and up we went (OK, that’s just a few hundred feet here in Wisconsin).  Little did we know that Josh was packing some of his namesake scotch with him.  Ahhhhh…toasts rang around on the top deck and we admired the view.  Damn, it’s cold, let’s get down and get moving.  After a shot of Dewar’s (and a some good downhill run), we started to warm-up.  The next several miles were literally a run back in time.  The years might have passed, but some things never change.

I peeled off early, but the rest of the gang kept going so Dave could get his 30 miles in to end his month of X miles for X day of the month (that’s another story).  Did we need strippers?  No.  Did we need booze?  No, but it really helped.  We had all we really needed–us (and some Asics, Brooks…)

During my CX workout at Montrose on Tuesday night, I spotted what I thought was a raccoon on Cricket Hill.  As it got closer, I noticed a white stripe running down its back.  Hmmm….that’s no raccoon, that’s a skunk!  One flick of my Niterider in its direction and it went scurrying the other direction.  I was a little surprised at first, but then I realized that skunks, like raccoons and possums, really are scavengers and like their trash.

The encounter reminded me of one of my favorite games growing up–Quick Jump It’s A Skunk!  Each player started with a certain number of marbles.  A motorized skunk spun around the board and players had to flick their paddle to avoid getting hit and losing a marble.   Whomever had the most marbles left on the end of the game, won.  I know, it’s a stupidly simply game, but when you’re 7 years old…

I biked up at Kettle today for the first time in about a year. The day was cold and mostly cloud, but the trails were sweet! I did the blue loop twice. There was new single track that bypassed some of the hairy, eroded areas of the past.  Even though it was only my third time MTBing this year, I couldn’t believe my fitness. I was a little rusty the first time around with some sloppy technical skills, but my second lap went smooth  (until I bonked at the end) once I got into a rhythm.  I had planned on running on the Nordic trails afterwards, but I actually forgot my running stuff.  Oh, well, I was pretty zonked and sure was ready for the drive home.  Kettle is definitely worth the drive in the fall, when the weather is good and the crowds light (but the traffic still sucks).