Mammoth training camp starts one week from today. I normally leave a few days early to check out the trails and get settled. This year I'm leaving on Sunday morning, same as the team. Good friend Jim Poettgen is celebrating a big birthday and I'd like to stick around RSM long enough to wish him well before making the drive to the mountains.
My goal is to be on the road by 4 am, then watch the sunrise over the Mojave Desert. A tall black coffee, Springsteen on the stereo, a car full of books and running shoes. I can do it in less than five hours if the speed is good and the California Highway Patrol is sleeping late. The key is getting in front of all the motorhomes and big rigs and never stopping for a nature break.
I bought my books for the trip the other day. A new Mark Greaney Gray Man installment and some Carl Hiassen. Two different kinds of writing, but both very effective. If I run out of things to read once I'm in Mammoth there's always the local bookstore — though the number of new books for sale is few these days, replaced by an increasing stock of puzzles and legos, which seems to be the fate of bookstores everywhere.
I have no plans to do any writing while I'm up there, of which I'm glad. The "m" is not working well on my keyboard, a sure sign that maybe I've been writing a little too much. These past couple weeks to clear the head have been a treasure. There's so much crazy shit going on in our country right now, a slow breaking down of democratic institutions and rise of totalitarianism I never could have believed would happen in my lifetime. Not having to read the news or spend hours researching has allowed me to shut out that noise for the time being. Here's hoping the peace and solitude of Mammoth brings another week of the same.
I should beat the team to Mammoth by four or five hours on Sunday. Long enough for a short run on the Rock Trail. I used to do it top to bottom without really working too hard. Now it's a slog to go halfway. All good. Better than nothing. We'll do a scavenger hunt to introduce them to altitude, then I'll toddle off to Roberto's for Mexican food, letting them get back to their condos to figure out who gets which bedroom.
The week will go fast. Double workouts every day for the team, a run or hike of my own in between. Long nights reading on the back porch. All I ask is for a week without forest fires. A couple afternoon thunderstorms would be nice. If it sounds boring, it's meant to.