2025 Is Shaping Up

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2025 Is Shaping Up

January 11, 2025

We are ten days into 2025 and my schedule is starting to take shape.

1/17 Edit: I’m DNSing the Cap Peak race. I have a weird achilles pain that isn’t subsiding quick enough. I’d rather not go into 2025 with a chronic tendon issue. I think, but I’m not positive, this is caused by the latest Lone Peak shoes that I bought 2 weeks ago. I’ve also had right groin muscle pain and my right knee isn’t 100%. All of which I think are connected to the latest Lone Peaks that I bought. Altra has been cost cutting. They have switched to different materials in some parts of their shoes. I think the different foam/rubber they’re using for the tread of the shoe is what’s causing this. The latest Lone Peaks also tend to slip off the heel of my foot on steep ascents which made me tie my laces quite a bit tighter than I normally do on climbs. On social media I’ve noticed some of their long time sponsored athletes have left their crew. I think, but can’t confirm, that their cost cutting might be why. Looks like I’ll be finding new shoes. Hey Speedland, wanna help a brotha out?

Next week, Jan 18th, I have the always fun Cap Peak Mega Fatass 50k. This is a 50k that goes up to the top of Capitol Peak near Tacoma, Washington. Well, it’s supposed to go to the top of Cap peak. A few years ago a gal busted her femur and had to be airlifted off the mountain. They’ve been rerouting the course if the weather is bad. I hope we get to go to the top this year. I really enjoy this course for whatever reason. I exclusively listen to the podcast Twilight Histories while I run this one. I can’t exactly explain why but there’s something about that course and podcast that go so well together.

I don’t have much planned for February or March but in April I’ll be down in Arizona for the inaugural Arizona Monster. I couldn’t be more excited about this event. First year races are always a bit of a boondoggle as things get figured out. This course is wild and will present a few challenges. I trust the professional badasses I’ll be working with.

May 11th is the Tillamook Burn 50k which I plan on sweeping. Last year Haley and I showed up to sweep that race only to find out there were three other sweeps, so five in total. Her and I wound up just running the course for fun.

May 31st I’ll be sweeping the Cape Mountain 50k over on the Oregon Coast. I haven’t swept this one before, I don’t think? I’m excited.

June 13th – 17th I’ll hopefully be down at the Tahoe 200. I say hopefully because I’m not sure if I really have the time to do this one. We’ll see. I really love this course. Really I enjoy Tahoe in general. It’s a breathtaking area in terms of beauty. Every mile of this course is just stunning.

Soon after Tahoe, June 25th to 29th, I’ll be either running or volunteering at the inaugural Copper Kings 100 out in Butte, Montana. I miss Butte very much. I’m very very excited to get back there. I’ll be at the Bird cafe for sure. I’ve never been to a town quite like Butte. I’m including the good and bad in this description. It has such an interesting history full of ridiculousness. The Covelite International Film fest takes place there in April. Tap ‘er light.

July 26th I’ll be sweeping almost 50 miles overnight at the Hood Hundo. I believe this is going to be Haley’s first hundred so that’ll be fun. Good luck Haley!

August 8th – 12th is the best race of all time, the Bigfoot 200. What’s there to say besides this race changes lives. Whether you run it, volunteer or crew this race it changes who you are.

In October I’ll be using my 4-week sabbatical to head off to SE Asia for a backpacking trip. The main goal here is to hit at least 2 Jay Festivals. The Jay Festival, or Vegetarian Festival or Nine Emporer Gods Festival, is a celebration that takes place in several SE Asian countries. It’s to honor some gods. It’s also a VEGAN FOOD FESTIVAL which includes self mutilation and other fun activities. My friend Joules is going with me. This should be an extremely fun time. I’m so excited to eat all the foods I can find.

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Rim 2 Rim 2 Rim

November 23, 2024

So, back in April, Haley took a climbing trip down near Vegas with her pals. She wanted to do a rim 2 rim 2 rim run and I couldn’t think of a good reason not to. So that happened.

My experience was overall amazing. I had the best time with Haley and Eric. Eric really destroyed both of us which is amusing because he is more of a climber, I think. It was pretty tough. I don’t think I ate enough food early on. This most likely lead to some nausea and cramping, which manifested on the climb to the North Rim. My legs came back a bit until the climb up Bridal after the sun went down. I really struggled up that. Kudos to Haley for staying with me while I was on the struggle bus.

One thing I learned about the Grand Canyon is those steps/stairs are total bullshit. I understand why they are there but they just suck. I’d rather have a dirt slope or incline.

Time wise I was a bit behind where I would have wanted to be. That’s fine. I can try again next year. Anyone want to go? I’ll be down there in April for the Arizona Monster and could pop over for a quick r2r2r.

After the run we hit a great lil vegan mexican spot in a mall. It was called SoyMexican.

Elapsed Time	Moving Time	Distance	Average Speed	Max Speed	Elevation Gain	Calories Burned
19:16:26 hours	19:15:24 hours	56.77 mi.	20:21 min/mile	2:12 min/mile	12,621.39 ft.	10,415 kcal

I really struggled on the climbs because of cramping and nausea. This was one of those outings where it really falls apart, lol. It was a great experience.

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Food
Recipes

Brioche Buns

November 21, 2024

I’ll share my go to brioche recipe. It’s vegan and delicious. It’s also very versatile. I usually add in a few tsp of onion powder.

½ cup (115g) melted vegan butter, or olive oil. I usually use miyoki’s tub butter.
¾ cup (190g) dairy-free milk, warm and as needed
2 tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar, or coconut sugar
1 tablespoon instant dry yeast
3 cups (375g) all-purpose plain flour
½ teaspoon salt, if using unsalted butter

Proof the yeast by melting the butter and dairy-free milk in the microwave to around 80-90F, add the sugar if you want, then add the yeast. Wait a few minutes until bubbles occur. This means your yeast is set to jet. This step is optional but it’s a good idea to make sure your yeasties are active.

Next dump all the ingredients into your mixer and mix for 5-10 minutes. You want a smooth and soft dough.

Let the dough rise for ~1 hour at, or slightly above, room temp. Until doubled in size. It’s best to be cautious on the first rise rather than letting it go too long. Don’t use up that sugar.

It’s time to form your dough balls. I usually weigh my dough and divide by 8, or ~120-140gram per bun. Put dough balls on a cookie sheet and let rise for 1 more hour or until desired size is reached.

Bake at ~350F for 12-14 minutes or until you get a nice brown starting on top. I tend to under bake my buns because I toast them later.

Optional: create a glaze using honey/syrup/whatever and some water. Brush the glaze onto the top of the buns when removed from the oven. You can flavor the glaze with things like garlic, paprika, parsley, thyme, etc.

And some photos.