Words and doodles about running and adventure.
In hindsight, when my wife called to check in when I was gone longer than expected on my morning run, instead of, “I’m fine, just taking a little longer than expected,” I might more accurately have stated, “I’m lost.” In my defense, at the time I thought I had been lost (past tense), but was […]
“If you want to know the story of a place, walk it. For to walk is to apply the rigor of process to place.” Craig Mod Friesland, a northern province of The Netherlands, is rich with a history told by trails. The most famous is the Elfsteden Route (Eleven Cities Route), an historic skating route [ ]
No Old Tom Backyard for me this year, but I’m excited to be helping out and relive some memories vicariously through friends who will be running loops this year. If you’re a past participant, or lining up for your first backyard, head over to Big Sky for a poster to commemorate that time you signed [ ]
On Thursday summer nights, a group of runners gather to chase the trails. The Birds Hill Trail Series, hosted by Joel Toews, offers up a great change of pace for the running routine midweek race (taper?), in the evening (it’ll be how hot? what do I eat??) and short-ish distances (meaning, everyone starts off [ ]
Garmin didn’t come to me asking for ideas on gathering real-time running data to help runners achieve their goals, but if they had, this is one (among other) (and for skiing) of the ideas I would have offered. Runners these days put a lot of stock into the numbers, with heart rate monitors, Grade Adjusted [ ]
I ve started referring to adventures into the unknown as experiments , because it can turn a failure into a success, because learning is the goal. And if learning was the goal, our winter trip to Mantario was a big success. (Seems like adventure and challenge are common themes on Mantario trails, regardless of the season.) This [ ]
April 18. Those were the first words out of his mouth, as I happened across him on the trail. Didn t even lift his head as he trudged through another frigid puddle. When I prodded him to expound, he started ranting about how nobody should be planning events in February, clearly bothered by the 2026 edition [ ]
Growing up, my dad had a Fisherman s Excuse Mug . I think we bought it for him for Father s Day or something. It detailed all the reasons why the fish didn t bite on a given day. Weather, wrong bait, etc. And I thought this was hilarious. It s been a warm week, and as I looked at [ ]
As I drove home after 2025 s 50km Actif Epica, I looked out over the frozen fields to the south, curious about the southern half of the route. In 2026, my curiosity was satiated, as I took on the full loop. Setting out from St. Pierre in thick morning fog which hung around for nearly the [ ]
Home to countless adventures over the years both mundane and extraordinary, the ski trails at Quarry Oaks (maintained by Sandilands Ski Club) hold many memories. One of my first memories involves getting lost in a blizzard with Justin at night on the Farm Trail. Then there were the Friday nights during COVID we spent hours [ ]
Here’s a poster for everyone who has conquered the Suffer on Centennial 25K, or is gearing up for the challenge in spring! Available at a Big Sky Run Co near you soon. Note: some of you have asked about a Suffer 50K poster. With the course changing for 2026, we’re going do some some R D [ ]