Two days ago I completed a grueling 37 mile ultra race called the Black Canyon 60k. Ok, I admit, I didn't necessarily train for all the downhill in this race so I was hurting for certain at the end. My quads were spent by about 26 miles with 11 miles to go. I managed to do a 19:00 per mile pace for those last 11 miles. Not my best, but I'm really glad to finish with a smile on my face. My time was 10:35 - quite a long day to be on the trail. The weather was actually really nice to run in. Very cool at the start in Mayer, AZ. and gradually warmed up to the mid 60"s during the run with a cool breeze going down into Black Canyon City - just right outside Phoenix, AZ.
The Black Canyon trail is actually quite rough in many places - totally built for horses and mountain bikers who love lots of rocks. This wasn't my favorite kind of trail to run on for 37 miles. At the end, my feet were sore - and I wear really cushioned running shoes too! There were a total of 3 stream crossings - one of which went up to my knees. Running back up the trail out of these canyons turned out to be quite a feat as well! Tough stuff! It was however, very beautiful in many places and as you made it down into the valley, more saguaro cactus appeared. I managed to take a few pictures in the midst of being passed my many many faster runners that needed to get by me on some very steep grades! The attitude of some of these faster runners needing to get by you in order to get their "PR", I was not happy with. I gradually forgot about it and managed to strike up a few conversations with a few other runners that were running my pace. That was nice.
When I finished I struck up a conversation with a guy who has done around 250 Ultras and he's only 52 years old! Unreal! I headed for my car in the parking lot and proceeded to take off sweaty clothes. I needed to drive back home which should've been just a 2 hour drive but turned into a 4 hour drive because all 2 road closures! I was so tired and also forgot to pick up my drop bag at the end! So I had to drive back to the races offices a couple days later.
Here are a few shots of the trail. Thanks for everyones support!
2/21/23 Donated $100.00 to the Shiley Alzheimer's Research Center
