Going for a run , waiting for the TNF 50 Mile to start!!

While it is like 50 below Zero in Montana I will take advantage of this mild sunny day here in Abruzzo Italy to get in a few miles. here is what it looks like....

Correre sotto la pioggia in riva al mare in inverno!

Fun little 8km down by the sea...they had a cool husband and wife relay. each partner ran 4km.

Rome with Roxy

I never get tired of Visiting Rome!  This time I jetted over on a sweet double decker modern bus.  22 Euros was the price, which is a little more than half of the highway toll you must pay if you drive your car. (Thanks to Italian privatization efforts of public infrastructure and assets)

My dear friend Roxanne and her husband came to Rome for a few days from London.  We Spent the day walking about and yapping about all kinds of things.  Two things stood out as highlights for me other than the company.  One was that I finally got to see the Caravaggio paintings I had missed the previous times.  Second was witnessing an Asian tourist bounce a coin (accidentally) off the head of another oblivious tourist while trying to get good luck from some fountain ritual. Of course you had to throw with your back to the fountain. this guy was up on the second tier, and was a horrible shot.  He did some kinda screwball line drive right into the head of the guy next to me, the coin ricocheted up into the air and landed into the fountain.  I had just turned around and the timing was perfect to witness the deed.  Ironically the Asian chap who threw the coin never realized he beaned someone else, and the guy who got beaned   didnt know what hit him.

Enjoy the fotos. 

Limone Skyrace, 2013

Limone Sul Garda, Italy-    October 13, 2013

We just returned from a great trip to Northern Italy.  We went up to Limone on lake Garda for a Mountain race that drew competition from all over Europe.  There were a lot of great Athletes, about 450 entered, many champions.  Although my optimal days of running fast are behind me, I find that I enjoy my racing much more now at my mid-life age.  It is exciting and challenging to be in a race with such Talent.  The perspective of the ability and strength of these runners is so much more profound having run the same course.

The pictures I include in this post many were mostly taken by Adele (mostly the race fotos).  Limone is beautiful and full of tourists, almost all the guests at our hotel were from Germany, very cool.

The Race?  I made my goal of summiting in 2 hours (just under 12km), I was feeling good.  The middle section up top took me from race mode to survival mode, for me it was the most brutal part.   In the descending I struggled, Partly because of inexperience and in large part due to my North Face shoes that sucked.  I sacrificed Protection and traction for light weight, and this was a big mistake.  I lost a lot of time and got passed by at least 100 runners. 

There are pictures of champions like, Emilie Forsberg, Killian Jornet, and Zaid Ait Malek who I met in Spain last year and is very excitingrunner.  Zaid posted the best descent time and grabbed 5^th overall.  Then there is the beautiful and classy Silvia Serafini, This years champ Stevi Kremmer and of course me!  and the pictures of the lake, the town and the hotel.

PROS and CONS

Pro-   good food and beverage post race (unlimited beer on Tap)

Con-  Cheap Paco de Gara

Pro-  Fun Challenging course

Pro-  Seeing, meeting and running with superstars.

Con- Race timing splits, just weird and weak.

Pro- Great weather an my support team was amazing.

Con-  (and new pet peeve)  Ass Holes who do not know how to run with ski poles. 

           I almost got jabbed in the eyes twice, took one shot to the testicles and another near miss. I could hear and see other situations.  This is a problem that needs a solution.  Someone will get hurt seriously, either by getting stabbed in the eye, mouth, or neck…..OR, by getting thrown down the mountain after repeatedly jabbing someone else who gets fed up an succumbs to “trail Rage”!

Great experience! Two thumbs up!

  

  PS. I do have a black eye now but it was from the last time I crashed, I landed into the refreshment guy and a Photographer, and that was my fourth crash.

Limone Sul Garda , Italia 13 ottobre 2013

Siamo appena tornati da un fantastico viaggio in Italia del Nord . Siamo andati fino a Limone sul Lago di Garda per una gara di Mountain che ha attirato la concorrenza da tutta Europa . C'erano un sacco di grandi atleti , circa 450 iscritti , tanti campioni . Anche se i miei giorni ottimali di esecuzione veloce sono dietro di me , trovo che mi piace la mia corsa molto di più adesso , alla mia età di mezza età. E ' eccitante e stimolante di essere in una gara con tale talento . Il punto di vista della capacità e la forza di questi corridori è molto più profonda di aver eseguito lo stesso corso .

Le foto che sono in questo post molti sono stati per lo più presi da Adele (per lo più la gara fotos ) . Limone è bella e piena di turisti , quasi tutti gli ospiti del nostro hotel erano dalla Germania , molto cool .

La gara? Ho fatto il mio obiettivo di summiting in 2 ore ( poco meno di 12 km) , mi sentivo bene . La sezione centrale fino in alto mi ha portato dalla modalità di gara per modalità di sopravvivenza , per me è stata la parte più brutale . In discesa ho lottato , anche a causa di inesperienza e in gran parte a causa di mie scarpe North Face , che schifo. Ho sacrificato la protezione e la trazione per il peso leggero , e questo è stato un grosso errore . Ho perso un sacco di tempo , ma ho superato da almeno 100 corridori.

Ci sono foto di campioni come , Emilie Forsberg , Killian Jornet , e Zaid Ait Malek , che ho incontrato in Spagna l'anno scorso ed è molto excitingrunner . Zaid ha registrato il miglior tempo di discesa e afferrò 5 ° assoluto . Poi c'è la bella e di classe Silvia Serafini , Questo anni champ Stevi Kremmer e naturalmente me! e le foto del lago , la città e l'hotel .

Pro e contro

Pro- buon cibo e delle bevande post gara (birra illimitata su Tap )

Con- economici Paco de Gara

Percorso impegnativo Pro- Fun

Pro -Seeing , incontro e correre con superstar .

Tempistica Con- Race divide , solo strano e debole .

Pro- Bel tempo un mio team di supporto è stato incredibile.

Con- ( e nuova cosa che meno sopporto ) buchi di culo che non sanno come far funzionare con i bastoncini da sci .

           Sono stato quasi conficcò negli occhi due volte , ha preso un colpo ai testicoli e un altro vicino a perdere . Ho potuto sentire e vedere altre situazioni . Questo è un problema che ha bisogno di una soluzione. Qualcuno si faccia male sul serio , sia per ottenere pugnalato negli occhi , la bocca , o al collo ..... o , da sempre buttato giù dalla montagna dopo aver ripetutamente colpendo qualcun altro che si stufa un soccombe al "Sentiero Rabbia " !

Grande esperienza ! Due pollici in su!

  

  PS . Ho un occhio nero , ma ora è stato dall'ultima volta che sono caduto , ho atterrato nel ragazzo di ristoro e di un fotografo , e che è stato il mio quarto incidente .

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Limone Sul Garda , Italia , 13 de octubre 2013

Acabamos de regresar de un fantástico viaje al norte de Italia. Nos subimos a Limone en el lago Garda en una carrera de montaña que atrajo la competencia de toda Europa . Había un montón de grandes atletas , unos 450 entraron , muchos campeones . Aunque mis días óptimos de funcionamiento rápido están detrás de mí, me parece que me gusta mi carrera mucho más ahora en mi edad de la mediana edad . Es emocionante y desafiante para estar en una carrera con tanto talento . El punto de vista de la capacidad y la fuerza de estos corredores es mucho más profunda que hayan recorrido el mismo camino .

Las fotos que se incluyen en este post muchos fueron mayormente tomada por Adele (en su mayoría la carrera fotos) . Limone es precioso y lleno de turistas , casi todos los huéspedes de nuestro hotel eran de Alemania , muy fresco .

El Race? Hice mi objetivo de alcanzar la cumbre en 2 horas ( un poco menos de 12 km) , me sentía bien . La sección central hasta arriba me llevó desde el modo de carrera para el modo de supervivencia , para mí fue la parte más brutal . En la descendente luché , en parte por la inexperiencia y, en gran parte debido a mis zapatos North Face que absorbían . He sacrificado protección y tracción para el peso ligero , y esto fue un gran error. He perdido un montón de tiempo , pero yo pasé por lo menos 100 corredores.

Hay fotos de campeones como , Emilie Forsberg , Killian Jornet , y Zaid Ait Malek a quien conocí en España el año pasado y es muy excitingrunner . Zaid registró el mejor tiempo de descenso y cogió 5 en conjunto . Luego está la bella y con clase Silvia Serafini, este año campeón Stevi Kremmer y por supuesto me ! y las imágenes del lago, la ciudad y el hotel.

Pros y Contras

Pro - buena comida y bebidas después de la carrera (cerveza de barril ilimitada )

Con- barato Paco de Gara

Desafiante campo Pro -Fun

Pro - ver , conocer y ejecutar con las superestrellas .

Con el tiempo -Race se divide, simplemente extraño y débil.

Pro - Gran tiempo un equipo de mi apoyo fue increíble .

Con- (y nuevo motivo favorito ) Agujeros culo que no saben cómo manejar con bastones de esquí .

           Casi me clavé los ojos dos veces, tuvo un golpe en los testículos y otro por poco . Podía oír y ver otras situaciones. Este es un problema que necesita una solución . Alguien va a salir lastimado seriamente , ya sea por una puñalada en el ojo , la boca o el cuello ..... O , al ser arrojado por la montaña después golpeando repetidamente a otra persona que se cansa un sucumbe a " arrastrarse Rage" !

Gran experiencia ! Dos pulgares para arriba!

  

  PS . Tengo un ojo negro ahora, pero fue a partir de la última vez que me he caído , me aterrizó en el tipo refresco y un fotógrafo , y que era mi cuarto choque.

Monte Amaro and the 3 refuges

Sky Running according to wikipedia is running at an elevation above 6500 ft. at inclines over 30%.  It has been around since the 90s and now there are organized races all over.  You can race the vertical kilometer or run some crazy ass Ultra trail that goes for 100 miles crossing mountain peaks.  I have run a few of these races here in Europe and it is a wild experience.  

So in the interest of fun and to better prepare for the competition we headed up to the local mountains.  Danilo and Francesco are good strong runners with a good knowledge of the area.  I felt lucky to be able to tag along, and sometime thats how I felt, like I was hanging on.  

My lungs felt ok, but clearly a different group of muscles was being worked.  Even running the steep downhill trails was a killer.  and there was no way to just zone out like road running.  Focus was a must for every step, because one mistake and fall and you can get seriously hurt.

Its called sky running but in truth you are not always running, its almost impossible.  I have seen guys young and old running up shit that I was suffering just hiking. Then there are spots, breaks in the trail where its run-able but your heart is beating out your chest and your legs are on fire, but you switch gears into a run.  Exhilarating stuff.

here are some pictures of out outing.  we wwere gone about 7 hours, starting at sunrise we managed to cover a little more than 30k (19 miles) and climb im guessing a total of at least 6000, maybe 8000 feet.  We stopped for lunch, took some breaks, enjoyed the view, spent time in a beautiful setting doing something unique and pure.  Enjoy the fotos!

Trassacco Race

The weather was perfect for for the 200 runners on the mountain today.  The race bag today was fresh carrots and a bag of local potatoes.  I love it!  I didnt run fast enough to win a prize but I noticed the top three in each category got a case of beer....wish I would have known this before hand.

A little tour of Northern Italy

There are a lot of pictures in this album, 336 to be precise.

I tried to edit them down but it was hard.

Essentially the images are from the recent road trip Adele and I took.  we went north, after originally planning to go to Sicily we changed for a meandering trip to Venice and back.

We covered about 1300 kilometers (780 miles) which is not a lot by USA and especially Montana or Idaho standards.  But in a little Fiat Panda it was a journey.

I could really write a small travel book about it all...but, i will stick to the bare minimum.  

Spoleto was the first stop to see a well preserved castle.  

Next was Assisi, which was the best...what a clean pleasant visit. 

There are tourists of course but people who come to this part come for spiritual  or intellectual reasons....so you dont see the hords of ice cream sucking lookie loos. I was honored to go into the tomb of Saint Francis of Assisi and touch his tomb.

Next up Perugia, Heres to my Risho friends in Missoula and all my friends I had great memories with at the restaurant.

Great historic University City.  If you ever go...go to the under ground city.

From Perugia we drove to a nearby lake and set up tent in a camp ground.  35 euros, and it included a pool and hot showers.

In the morning on the way to Florence we passed through Siena.  Siena had a lot of tourists, the masses of people, all speaking different languages. German, Dutch, French, Chinese, etc etc.

Siena was interesting for a horse race in the town square they were preparing for..a big annual event Adele told me at which horses always die.

Florence (Firenze) was very cool, a larger city with a lot going on.  The history of the renaissance etc..  some churches are free to enter and see but most things are at least 10 euro.  I /we were content to wander the streets.

Then to Venice, we camped with a view of the island and took a boat shuttle across.  I was excited for Venice...I mean who hasnt heard of it.  The unique history and the continued precense in the art world.

after Camping on the ocean front for another 30 euro, which is a great deal.  We headed for Padua and the Scravengi Chapel to see Giottos historic work.  What a cluster Fuck it was driving into this town.  Yes I was very happy to spend 40 minutes inside the chapel in an exclusive visit.

enjoy the pictures, ill try and add some captions.  

The first picture of the album should be a map showing the route we took.