The Road to Elbrus Starts Here

Running in Elbrus Race Yet Again?

Elbrus Race 2018? Skyrunning? For Real?

Well I just had a really dumb idea.

I received a Facebook Notice from the logistics company behind Elbrus Race. I hadn’t even considered it. Wowsers. If I train hard for only 6 weeks, can I get back to what I had achieved in 2013 [fifth place] and exceed it, even by a small margin? [Elbrus Race 2013 – my journal on Amazon]

I haven’t run in months.

My duties as a NICA Certified Level Three High School Mountain Bike Coach have taken quite a leap up from last year. I’ve had to train hard to keep up with my more advanced racing group, which is much much faster than last year by a large margin. I’ve been riding 60+ mile weeks, a mix of indoor trainer rides, with outdoor MTB rides. Much of that is faster and more technical than I am really up for, so I’m injured a lot. Like right now most of the scabs and bruises on my legs and elbows are pretty much healed. I twisted my ankle pretty badly in a race last Saturday, Aug 4th. Enough I couldn’t bear weight or push off with my toes for several days.

[more skyrunning tagged articles here]

I decided to do this little test. Could I go up Giddy-Up and Green Monster and descend in one go?

If the answer is no, then good enough. I would have no real chance to get in enough serious training to make it happen. I would let it go for next year. I still might have to if it turns out I can’t work, and coach, and train and stay fit and unbroken enough.

Then again, there are also several major logistics hoops to jump through:

• Can I pull off a Russian Visa in the time given?
• Can I make it work even though they’ve closed the Seattle Visa Center, where I usually go?
• If I have to use the Mail-In service?
• Can I get flights that line up with the start and finish times of the Elbrus Package associated with the race?
• Can I skip one High School Race this year?
• Or do I need to figure a way to fly around it?