Grand Canyon- Double Crossing aka “Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim”- BPL Group Run

I planned on stashing micro spikes near the tonto trail junction somewhere. At least I would have them for the return. Not reaching north rim because of ice is a bummer, but if i get delayed coming back and have to negotiate the ice, cold, dark and exhaustion without micro spikes. Seems dicey.

I don't know, if snow is fairly certain at both rims I'll just carry. My poorly planned cold weather clothing is probably a better place to try and save weight. Well that and the fat ass IMAX camera man I now have to carry.

Due to the weather forecast Moma has vetoed camping out. (Probably best if I ever want her to join me on another trip!) I booked a room at the Holiday Inn just outside the Park but I still have campsite 160 booked and ready for use by whoever needs it.

So my plan is to fly into Phoenix Thursday and make it up to Flagstaff Thursday night. We will be at the Park about noon on Friday.

It's getting real close, at least we shouldn't have to worry about overheating.

With snow on both rims possibly accumulating from Friday on, I'll carry the spikes just in case. I'm comfortable with the full weight of my kit…I don't believe the extra weight of spikes (vs. having peace of mind) is going to affect me in any appreciable way (I'm not trying to set a record) so I'm not worried about carrying vs. stashing anything.

Hope you fellow campers are ready for the icebox.
Adan and I will have a 6 man tent. I'll also be bringing a 12' Kelty tarp with poles for a cooking area. If the skies do let loose, hopefully it's snow and not cold rain so we can at least chill and keep a good fire going. That, or a 20+ person hotel bar hostile takeover might be fun….

Wednesday morning forecast for Saturday "down in the canyon",
where most of the run will take place.

Saturday: Showers likely, mainly before 11am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 61. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

We can do this.

"Saturday: Showers likely, mainly before 11am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 61. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

We can do this."

Given the profile of the run, this could be close to ideal running temperatures for most of the mileage, 40-60 degrees. Even if there is a few inches of snow on the rims it is going to be a great adventure.

Craig what campsite are you ?

Man….cramming all this stuff into my little Nathan pack is going to be tough. I'm going to spend tonight getting it dialed and likely adding a few bungees on the outside to add some capacity to it.

I'm bringing a ton of gear with me just to have good options…..but I'll most likely be carrying:

NF Triumph pullover
Golite Reed pants
R1 hoody or NanoPuff
Emergency blanket
Firestarting stuff
tiny knife
LOADS of food

I'm excited…and a tad nervous.

In other news…..Rae Lakes Loop. June 16. Put it on your calendar.

Preparation is done. The time is here. The weather is making this thing even more uncertain, more exciting. The level of stoke is all-time. Waiting is unbearable.

Several years ago I was there on a hike in April and our last day was rainy. At the bottom sometimes the precipitation can evaporate to not much while it is steadily raining on the way up and that may turn to snow towards the top. That is what happened to us from hiking the bottom to top (30's and snowing fairly heavy). I got cold at the top while waiting for my friends and I was soaked from pushing too hard and wearing a silnylon top ; ). I had to keep moving and head for my car, push off at least 6 inches of snow and get inside.

Have a great trip!

Mike: have you ever used screw shoes on dry ground? In my experience, they are phenomenal on snow/ice, but fall out after running an hour so on dry/rocky ground. Perhaps the rubber in your outsole holds better than my Inov8s, or perhaps you use epoxy, but my experience is that they were completely annoying and fall out on dry ground.

I just got back from REI, where I picked up a BD Bbee pack as well as Yaktrax Pro's. I'm not positive if I'll use either of these, but I want options for the extremely variable conditions.

my stripped down Bbee only weighs 3 oz more than my stripped down Nathan HPL 20,
and has over twice the room.

and as slow as I run it does not bounce around much.

Im ready too! Just waitin on you fools ta get here. BTW, i found some awesome new brownies at the market, 400-420 calories per tiny brownie! I got 4 for me! Ill show ya where they be at the market when you guys get here if you want some extra calories ina tiny package. They arnt healthy workout brownies, theyre real, so they actually taste good! (i normally pass on "power-bar" and gels type things as they taste like ca-ca. I figure, if im already torturing myself on 30+ mile runs, why eat gross food on top of it all, thats just adding insult to injury, IMO) Anyway, im just talkin to kill time. ….see ya guys soon. :)

Torrey: Are those brownies $17 a pop with Grand Canyon prices? I'm all for not relying solely on gels…

Only 2 dolla' and 15 cents per brownie! :)

just about packed.

5.50 lb – max starting pack weight, but probably less, I'll be wearing some of it.

includes :

1.90 lb – extra clothing (full shell, nano, midweight LS, knit hat, gloves)
0.66 lb – pack, BD Bbee
0.74 lb – misl. (headlamp, spare bottle, first aid, salt pills, Nuun, etc.)
2.20 lb – food, 4,500 calories total
perpetuem – 3,600 calories
16 vanilla oreo cookies – 900 calories

no micro spikes for me.
still trying to decide about a camera

Art: bring the cam and just waterproof it! I'm bringing a cheapo Canon point and shoot instead of my LX3, but I want SOME decent shots from that day.

Torey: Am I correct in assuming that when it rains in the canyon, the rain is pretty short lived? I'm pretty sure I've never seen a full day of drizzle or solid rain in all of my time spent in AZ/NM…

Eric- I've had really good luck w/ mine, put them in late October and haven't had a single one pull out- while a fair amount of running was ice/snow, more of it was on rock/gravel/mud. It could be a function of the material of the sole????? I'm using 1/2" screws on mine.

Those brownies sound good :)

Mike

@ ERIC-ya, it usually just rains a few minutes to half an hour and moves on. I was just looking at WeatherUnderground, and it still says chance of rain, but for hourly on Saturday it says—0600 Fog and 10% chance of precipitation, 01100 Clouds and 10% chance of rain, 1400 20% chance of rain, 1800 back to 10% chance….So, hopefully thatll mean maybe light showers. And dont forget, like Art said–were not gonna be at either rim for long, once youre down, itll just be cooler with little chance of the rain gettin to us along the bottom.

I should have posted this 2-3 days ago, but have been rushing around like crazy for work and coaching (my team made State and then came in first, so I'm prep'ing for Nationals).

DON'T trim your toenails the night before. Do it several days in advance, ideally a week. So the newly exposed skin toughens up a bit. At this point, do only very minor trimming. And don't be afraid to use an emory board or your wife's nail buffing board. You want to avoid have sharp corners against any other toe.

See you guys soon.

On Food: Mike and I are planning on a Trader Joe's run in PHX Friday morning for wraps, deli sandwichs and other yuppie groceries. I'll look for brownies. And beer.

I hear from the hippie dog mushers that there's a particular brownie recipe that really helps keep your appetite up. Something about "the munchies"? -grin-

speaking of foot care, if the conditions are indeed very wet- I think I'll throw in my Hydropel, have had really good luck using it hiking in wet conditions, should work for running as well

^ I think I've heard of the brownies before :)

I have no clue what 99% of this gear is you guys are talking about! lol…Im gonna just wear some clothes…and if its cold, i'll wear more clothes, and ima bring my pack and some bottles. …Pfff..you rich people- with your fancy packs, space gel thingys and clothing with unpronounceable names. :) btw, my toenails are always run-ready! And PINK! ha (i had to google "nano-puff" …had no clue..thought maybe you were bringing teeny tiny marshmallows)

Teeny tiny marshmallows?

Yeah, Im bringing those too.

Save some of them teeny tiny marshmallows for me too! and some of them brownies too Dave! Oh and mike, maybe i can get a bit of the hydropel from you, ive been wanting to try some of that stuff.

"I have no clue what 99% of this gear is you guys are talking about!"

Torrey,
You have no idea what you have yourself into with this bunch. By the time they are done with your gear you will be missing your shoe tongue and shoestrings, and that's just off your shoes. Looking forward to meeting you.

Bah! now i hafta google hydropel! Looking forward to meeting all you too! I have to work tomorrow, but i have Friday-Saturday-Sunday off