Scott loves trails

Well, it didn't take too much to wash the bitter taste of Mt. Mitchell away. Fortunately, a New Hampshire snow mountaineering training course and then a jaunt to the Costa Rica cloud forest with Esperanza came on that trip's heels, and provided great new thrills! The EMS snow mountaineering course and one-day guided ascent of Mt. Washington certainly "took me out of my comfort zone," as they say--and then some! The stuff we did (two other guys I didn't know and an instructor named Craig) on day one was well beyond what I thought we might do that early. I expected the self-arrest, crampon and ice ax travel, and glissade training. But not the rope travel seminar or rappel. The most breathless moment was learning to frontpoint up a short steep section while roped up. I didn't get the hang of stuff as fast as the other guys, who were more experienced on snow (and probably not as freaked by heights). But while my heartbeat raced and I was sweating bullets at time,

Would you believe an "extreme" winter trail run that gets shortenedby...winter weather?! Well, that's what happened at yesterday's Mt.Mitchell Challenge 40 miler, if you can believe it. And I'm fit tobe tied! That's three wevents in the space of a year that weatherhas prevented me from making to the start line, or has shortened byweather, including two Mitchells. But our friend Mason was one ofthe lucky, swift few who go to got to go to the top and do the fullchallenge, so hats off! (I hope you made it back today through therare winter snow that got at lower elevations in NC today, dude!Fortunately, I flew home last night and the rain didn't stop flightsgetting out from Charlotte.) Needless to say, Mitchell is seriouslyoff my list now, and I think given the poor planning of raceorganizers and those who help put this one on, I would urge others tothink twice about making the trek down for this race, too.Here is my saga, and the rationale for my critique of