Rule No. 1 and the Durango Hogback

There have been a number of  you who have asked me about Josh's Rules and Rule No. 1, in particular.  Josh's Rule No. 1 is "Don't be dumb." I thought I was flirting with breaking this rule today until I arrived home after my run and saw some videos I would truly dub as people being dumb.

My run today was scheduled to be a 15 minute tempo run.  So far, I am 0/3 this season as far as meeting objectives on tempo runs.  The first two I attempted were on the treadmill at SJC and, while the second was better than the first, both missed their objective.  Today, I was a little achy in the upper gracilis area and so I thought decided rather than pound out 15 minutes on the concrete, I would do a time trial of sorts on the Durango Hogsback Mountain.  The most treacherous parts of Hardrock are very similar to this climb so I figured it may be a good bench mark for this season (just add sleep deprivation and 40-50 miles covered before it, oh, and add about 5k feet).  Anyone who has climbed this foothill will tell you that there are three big concerns: lack of traction, narrowness of the ridge, and angle of the slope.  The hill is less than 1 mile from the meadow at the bottom to the peak so it should be no big deal, right?

My running of it was relatively unremarkable.  It took me almost 10:00 to scamper up the 35+ degree slope from the meadow.  Running an incline of that magnitude really feels more like doing lunges.  My usual modus operandi is to pitter patter my way up any steep incline but with the shale giving way under my feet, pitter pattering it seemed more slippery than larger steps.  The drawback to larger steps on this kind of ascent is that the ridge at points is maybe 8 feet at the widest and 3 at the narrowest points.  There is one part where having one foot four or five inches either way would likely earn you a ticket to slide down one slope or the other.  I spent about 5 minutes at the top admiring the view, the rock carvings, and Perin's Peak to the west.  Because of the loose footing and steep angle, the return trip took me about 15:00.  I am pretty sure I can get the ascent faster but I'm not sure I want to get the descent too much faster (though I'm sure some people can run this in half that time... we'll get to Rule No. 1 in a minute).

This is not my favorite mountain or climb but it is useful in that I think it steels a person in a few ways:  The narrow trail forces you to focus on foot placement.  The steep angle forces you to muscle up as much as possible and keeps your heart rate well elevated. The loose terrain, especially on the descent, makes you listen to the trail and your body.  A misstep on this trail and you will have a very bad day.  Which brings me to Rule No. 1: Don't Be Dumb.  I consider today's ascent and especially today's descent fairly conservative.  No doubt that as I do it more I will be more comfortable with the route and my speed will increase but a person simply cannot afford a lack of focus or mistake on this trail.  I've fallen and eaten enough dirt to know when something will likely trip me up if I'm not careful.  When I returned home, I did some Google research (highly academic work for spring break) and found some videos of some very amazing descents of this hill by mountain bikers and a couple on skis.  This alone could spark a discussion of Rule No. 1.  Nonetheless, I took my time.  I think the me-being-dumb factor increases with the speed in this case.  So take your time, don't be dumb, and go climb that mountain!

A Google Earth View of Hogback.  The Trail goes starts at the dirt road on the left, goes up the skinny ridge, meets the main ridge and summits at about 7500'.

Slow Cooker Baked Beans

Happy Saturday everyone! I am going to divert from my usual topics of clarinetting and running for a more universal topic: food! Many of know that I enjoy a vegan palate for many reasons which I don't care to expound upon in this post. Some of you have asked me to share my recently found recipe for baked beans. With the summer approaching, this could be the hit of many a vegan BBQ or tofurkey weenie roast (though the carnivores will also enjoy it!) As a scholar, I should inform you that it is not an original creation but was included in a book called "Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker" by Robin Robertson. This book has 200 great recipes. They are easy and fun to make! I did make some changes because I didn't have all the ingredients as they are printed. Here is my adaptation. I'll put the original ingredients in parenthesis when they differ. Let me know if you make it!

2 teaspoons grapeseed oil (olive oil)
1 medium onion minced (I used the food processor and it looked like pudding)
4 5oz cans navy beans
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup maple syrup (not a typo, I didn't have the 1/4 cup light molasses so I doubled the maple syrup)
1 small can tomato paste
1 Anaheim Chile (1 tablespoon minced chile in abodo)
2 teaspoons brown mustard
1 teaspoon apple vinegar (1 teaspoon rice vinegar)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup water
(1 teaspoon liquid smoke)

1. Heat the oil in a small skillet. I used cast iron but that is not mandatory. Sauté the onion.
2. Add the onion and beans to the croc-pot. Set it to low.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the maple syrup, (molasses), chile, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper. Add the water and blend with a whisk until well blended.
4. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours. (Just before serving, stir in the liquid smoke). My sauce was a little watery so I turned the heat up to high, removed the lid, and cooked for 30 more minutes uncovered. Stir occasionally. If the sauce is too thick, add water. Add more salt and pepper if desired for taste.

That's it! Pretty simple, pretty easy. Gluten free, soy free, lots of fiber and taste! Enjoy!

This picture is what it looked like at the start of cooking.