Fight for Air Austin stair climb

This weekend was the American Lung Association's Fight for Air climb in Austin. This year, they added an "extreme" division, where they combine the times for two runs up to the 31st floor of the Frost Bank Tower. Of course I signed up for that, which I figured wouldn't be a big deal, since even three times up is fewer floors than I did last November in the Willis/Sears Tower. I was hoping to do well, but I did not expect to win, even if my "win" was based on a technicality. A large contingent of the national stair racing team, West Coast Labels/X Gym (two of whom I met three weeks prior in Houston) was expected, and expected to do well. One team member did have a better time than me, but because of issues with the timing equipment they couldn't sort out in time for the awards, they gave me the trophy for the overall best time. The upshot is, since they gave me a team t-shirt, I guess I'm on the team. Now I have a bunch of stair fanatic friends to fuel my interest in the sport.

Fight For Air Houston/Ironman Texas preview

This past weekend, I went down to Houston for my third ever stair race, up the 48-story 1001 Fannin building, in the Fight for Air Houston event. Like the first stair race I did last May, this event is a fundraiser for the American Lung Association. While I was a little disappointed with my performance, I was much more disappointed to not get any kind of prize or recognition for coming in second with a time of 7:39, a mere 28 seconds behind the winner. One of the main reasons I did this race, though, was so that I could go The Woodlands, a town north of Houston, which will be host to Ironman Texas in a few short weeks, to preview the course. All in all, it was a good weekend, I just would have liked at least some cheap bauble for my efforts.

Enchanted Rock "Extreme" Duathlon

Last Sunday I raced in the Enchanted Rock "Extreme" Duathlon, just outside of Fredericksburg. The "extreme" bit is the 400-foot vertical run up to the top of the rock at the end (which I figured wouldn't be that bad after climbing the Willis/Sears tower, but that wasn't after a 16-mile bike ride). This race is put on by the same people who do the Natural Bridge Du and Lost Pines Tri, both of which I've done well at. This race attracts a higher caliber of racer than some of their other races, so the competition left me in fifth place in my age group, my worst finish at one of their races since my very first triathlon, back in 2010. That won't stop me from coming back next year and trying to beat my time of 1:46:08, however.

Beaumont Gusher Marathon

While I didn't have the marathon I wanted, at least I wasn't battling knee pain (like the Austin Marathon last year), nor had I just ridden my bicycle 112 miles after swimming 2.4 miles (like IronMan Louisville in August). I didn't even come close to my target time (ideally 3:30, but happy with anything under 3:59:59), but at least I set a big PR in my third race at the full marathon distance with 4:35:32. Considering how warm, humid, and most significantly, windy it was out there, I'm not too unhappy. Other than the weather, Beaumont's Gusher Marathon was very well organized, and I would certainly consider doing it again.

Mt. Rainier Winter Skills Seminar

A couple weeks ago, I flew up to Seattle to spend a week on the side of Mt. Rainier at 10,000 feet. Like my trip to Portland in December, this trip was about preparing for my upcoming trip to Denali/Mt. McKinley in June (or maybe that trip was prep for this trip, and this is the Denali prep). Compared to my previous trip to Rainier, in 2009, this trip went into much more depth of technical training, from knots to crevasse rescue. Plus, the weather was much more extreme, and the summit was not the primary goal. While I really wanted to return to the summit (and go up that last little bit to Columbia Crest), topping out at 11,500 was not a disappointment based on the conditions we faced the day we went up (not to mention the conditions we faced the days prior). It was really a great week getting to learn new skills, and to get to know the nine other clients and four RMI guides. Well worth the price of freezing temperatures and a toenail or two.