Grouse Grind Updates

I've done the Grind twice more since my last serious attempt - both times with co-workers, and neither attempts to set personal bests. On today's Grind, clouds covered the top of the mountain, so I decided to snap a few pics with my phone's camera.

First, the latest handiwork of the crew currently upgrading the trail: A bench, no less than two minutes in.

As we got futher up, we could see the clouds slowly creeping upwards through the trees - the pictures doesn't really do the scenery justice.

Latest addition to the top, for keeping cool. I think I might have appreciated it more if I wasn't already cold...

The top of the grouse grind: for some, A saturday morning hang out spot.

I thought it might be interesting to see how my heart rate on more relaxed attempts compare with one where I'm trying to set a good time.

June 24th - The sharp drops show breaks we took - the first two well defined ones indicate longer breaks at the 1st and 2nd quarter. The later breaks were much shorter and much more frequent, thanks to the insects that seemed insistent on turning us into dinner if we stayed still for too long.

June 26th - I took an easier start to the grind for today's hike before to stepping it up a bit. In addition, I took a few breaks, which I don't normally allow when trying to set a personal best (slow and steady usually produced my best times). In the end, I was pretty happy with my time - despite the lower intensity and the breaks, I was only 3 minutes off my PB for this season.