10/6 West Wendover Gambling Trip

Introduction

The casinos in Wendover sent me some more free goodies this past month: $10 in free play, 2-for-1 buffet, 2 night *free* stay in a hotel (week night) - how could I turn it down.  Also I was itching to do some more exploring in the mountains to the north of Wendover, which I have documented here.

I made the trip, leaving at about 9AM Sunday morning after quickly throwing together a change of clothes, my running gear and of course some cash.

Sunday 10/5

I got there a bit after the 11AM kickoffs, which was fine by me.  I didn't have any inklings on wagers for the 11AM games anyways.  Given that it was 6x comps, I went up to my favorite machine and threw in a $20.  This was consequently the machine that sucked $100 out of my wallet last time I was there.  This time Fu Dao Le was kind to me and soon I was up a few bucks:

$27 win

  

It turns out also that my boss / manager was in Wendover, so we were playing phone tag trying to figure out when and where to meet.  I caught him in the middle of golfing though so I hit up the buffet.  I had a 2-for-1 coupon, so I wound up eating for about $10.

After eating, I gambled a bit more in Montego Bay and soon I was up about $60:

Another bonus win on Super Red Phoenix

Hot bonus round on Rise of Ra

Hot bonus round on Rise of Ra

After an hour or two, I walked over to the Peppermill (once I parked in West Wendover, I never moved my car again until it was time to go).  It is a half mile walk each way and it was just a nice day to stretch my legs:

Montego Bay in the morning.

I gambled there and all my good luck -- turned into bad.  Within 15 - 20 minutes I had lost my $60 that I had won at Montego Bay and then some.  I tried all my favorite games and it was a money pit.  Also some guy walked up to the Super Red Phoenix next to me, bet $2.50 and won $143...  ugh.

I did put a bet on the over for the Broncos / Cardinals game, which I won!

I got a call from my manager who was ready to meet me, so I hoofed it over to the Nugget.  I hadn't been in there in a while and sadly little has changed.  They really need a make-over.  I wound up gambling a bit in there but my luck continued to be sour.  I did hang around with my manager and his mother and followed them around gambling and such.

After an hour or so, it was time for me to check in and so I got my room and hit the pool.  I expected the pool to be awful -- as in cold.  But it was actually REALLY nice.  It was warm and despite it only being in the low 70's I was perfectly warm.

I wound up eating for free for dinner, having earned enough comps.  

I also put down $20 on the Bengals / Patriots game.  I figured the Patriots were in a slump and the Bengals were quietly becoming one of the NFL's top teams.  Boy I got that wrong.  It was super hard to watch.

I pretty much used the last of what I was willing to wager on the trip that night and was still having minimal luck.  With a sinking heart, I went to bed fairly early.

Monday 10/6

First thing in the morning was I threw on my running shoes and ran through the Leppy Hills.  You can read about it here  Really a nice run -- I love exploring new areas and this fit the bill.

After cleaning up and sucking down a ton of water, I waddled over to the Montego Bay buffet.  For those keeping score at home, I pretty much ate 3 buffets for $25.  I could've gotten $9 knocked off the price of this one had I used my comps, but I'll save it for next time. 

I ate pretty well, but being this was my 3rd buffet in 24 hours I was pretty full.  I did manage to suck down no less than 5 Pepsi's though.  I couldn't get enough of them:

I was done gambling and it was hard to look at my favorite machines and not dump in the last of my dollars, but I was already feeling pretty crappy about losing the night before (I think I was down about $140).

I wound up lounging by the pool for another hour or so before packing it in.  I left around 3 and was home before 5.  I did see a moron who had taken their truck out in the salt flats out 15 miles outside of Wendover.  He was in the center median and had probably tried to cross it.  With the heavy rains of late, he sank clear up to the top of his wheel wells.  If I wasn't traveling at 83 mph I would've snapped a picture.  He was getting dragged out of the quicksand by a tow truck.

Despite losing, it was a good trip.  I wish I could've come home with a positive cash flow, but it was great to eat and get in a nice run.

West Wendover 14 mile run - Leppy Hills and Pilot Peak

Pilot Peak as I crest a hill.

Introduction

With the cool weather we've been enjoying and the fact that I was comped two nights hotel stay for the West Wendover Casinos, I opted to do another morning run.  Initially my goal was to start heading up Leppy Hills north of West Wendover and hook east around the backside of the mountains and come out on the Utah side along Aria Blvd.  

Unfortunately, before I left for the trip I really hadn't studied the topography as much as I would like to have and there is a very real chance of getting lost out there.  Just a reminder for those not familiar with the area: there is NOTHING out there. No one. No water, no bathrooms, no cell phone connection (except in limited spots, I did manage to get a weak signal at one point) and no people.  You are quite literally on your own out there.

You can also read a bit more about Pilot Peek on Wikipedia. It has some historical importance, which I didn't know at the time I was running.

The Run

First off, if you want to see the first couple of miles I would recommend you look at my previous post, located here. I've captured it plenty of times and I don't need to post redundant pictures.

Secondly, this route is TOUGH.  I took off from Montego Bay and enjoyed the downhill for about .5 mile before the ascent up into to the mountains.  I was running at about 4347 feet and by mile 3.5 I was sitting at 5701.  The next 3 miles drops you down to 5100 and then you have to go all the way back up to 5700.  My legs felt like jello.

My run was about 13 - 14 miles long.  I had paused my Garmin at one point to take a rock out of my shoe and .5 miles later I remembered to restart it, so I definitely went further than 13 miles.  Here is the Garmin capture:

I followed the dirt road out of town and even had a guy from the ATV rental place pass me by on his way to (presumably) work.  I am sure he doesn't get many visitors out there and one would guess even less on foot.

I had loaded up my fuelbelt with 28 ounces of Powerade.  I figured I wouldn't need that much, but brought it anyway.  I am glad I did, because I went through every drop and could've used much more.  While the air temperature wasn't too bad, the sun was blazing.

After passing the ATV rental spot, I didn't see another sign of anything living for a good hour.

Just about to the summit

Leppy Peak to the left

First glimpse of Pilot Peak

Leppy Peak

About .5 mile past Leppy Peak

The Turn Around Point

After about 6 miles I ran into the Leppy Valley and was treated to some glorious views.  I really wanted to go further but given the rising temperature, my dwindling supply of Powerade and the fact that I told people if I wasn't back in town by noon to call for help, forced me to turn back.  I am glad I did because I used every drop of water I had.  

Granted, I could've refilled at the Leppy Hills Park but that is only a mile from the town itself, so it wouldn't have done any good.

View of Pilot Peak

View of Pilot Peak

View of Pilot Peak with Leppy Reservoir to the left

The salt flats east of Pilot Peak

Volcano Peak in the distance

The Return Back

After taking in the scenery I debated on going to Leppy Reservoir. I felt I could make it, but knowing I have a marathon in 2 weeks and was already hovering around 7 miles, I wisely chose to back off and return back. If I make another trip up here, I may drive to get a bit closer as well as pack more fluids.  I couldn't believe how fast I went through them.

I wound up falling once.  It was sort of a bad one too.  I misstepped into a crevice and went sprawling.  Not good when I have 5 miles to go and at least 3 back to the ATV rental place.  My phone and room key went flying, but luckily no damage done other than a sore shoulder, which went away.

I also had a brief scare.  On the way back the trail forked.  I wondered which was to go.  Luckily, there are telephone wires (or electricity poles) out there that lead back into town, so I knew that so long as those were in site I'd be fine.  I opted for the trail that went left but it thinned down and I saw a wreck of a car in the weeds that I hadn't seen before on the way out, so I knew I had chosen wrong.  I caught across the field and found the right trail that was wide enough for a car to go on and I remembered many of the places I had had to jump before.  

All in all, my trip was close to 2.5 hours.  I know pretty slow, but given that I climbed up to 5700 from 4300 I'll take credit where credit is due.

Finally here is a video I took looking at the entire valley:

This week in running Sept 28 - Oct 4 - New PR!

Day	Mileage / Workout	Comments
Sunday	21.5	Awesome long run, chronicled here
Monday	4	Easy recovery run
Tuesday	7	Nice pace throughout despite still being drained from Sunday's run
Wednesday	7	Easy all the way
Thursday	13	Felt good. Loped through 13 miles to rack up the mileage!
Friday	4	Easy - more of a slog than anything
Saturday	14	Awesome day - sunny, chilly - perfect for an easy 9:25-ish pace per mile long run.
Total miles for the week: 70.5 - YTD: 1363.5

Exciting News

Well, I did take the plunge earlier this week.  Perhaps I was still running off the endorphins I had from Sunday's run, but I did sign up for the South Jordan Marathon, which will be two weeks from today.  So I'll be going 26.2 for what I think will be my 13th marathon.  While I would rather do another destination marathon, I had a coupon for 10% off and this one is about 5 miles down the road, if that. Total cost: $90 (about $3.75 a mile).

Week's Summary

Wow, an incredible week of running to say the least.  I may not be fast anymore, but I can still slug out the miles.  First off, I did PR in terms of distance.  I think my total distance from before was about 64 miles in a 7 day span, with maybe 72 in 8 days.  I nailed 70.5.  I figured I'd have a shot with it being I was doing two long runs in the span of 7 days.

I find that if I really rack up the miles, in about a week or two I get a huge training boost.  This should bode well for my marathon.

Also, at work we have a pedometer challenge.  It is team based, so the more steps you take, the more points you get. Well guess you who's team is first -- by a lot?

Other than my calf occasionally throwing fits, my body has held up nicely.  My right achilles has been flaring up too, but not to the point where it is bad.  Also with the increased mileage, I've noticed that I have a smidge of plantar fascitiis in the morning.  Need to get the orthotics out.

I would love to honestly be able to do 70 miles a week but there's no way my body could do this week and week out.  I think 50 is doable for routine miles, but with each additional mile the chances of injury get larger.

Solid week though.

Picture of the Week

Here is a picture I took near the closing end of Tuesday's run.  You can see the snow up in Little Cottonwood / Alta / Lone Peak if you look at it close enough.  Did I say, I love the bike trail?

Route of my 14 mile run on Saturday

21 Mile run a Success Plus first snow!

21+ Mile Training Run

First off, this was a HUGE success.  2 weeks ago I did 16 miles and felt pretty good at the end.  I decided to really ramp up the distance and go for 20.  If I got out to about 9 miles and had questions, it was acceptable to turn around and come back, but I was really hoping to hit 20.

I started from my house at about 8:30AM and forgot of all things to turn on my Garmin!  Luckily I know it is about .33 miles to the park, where I discovered I hadn't turned it on.  

We had had rain yesterday and this morning it was cool and there was a few sprinkles in the air, but nothing major.  Undeterred and enjoying the cool air, I maintained a 9:30 pace.  I could really feel the fast 9 miles I had done yesterday and there was some initial doubt as to whether this would get grueling by mile 10.

The weather lightened up significantly and I was carrying enough fluid and gels to go 20+ miles.  I sucked down a Tri-berry Gu at mile 5 (while witnessing some derelicts stealing toilet paper out of the public restroom) and ate another Orange Gu at mile 10, near California Avenue, my turn around point.  

I was feeling outstanding throughout the run at this point but I was wondering when I was going to hit "the wall" where everything falls apart.

I hit a banana / strawberry gel at mile 15.5 and that managed to hold me until the finish despite being pretty hungry (Life Cereal and an iced tea got me started)

Normally miles 16+ are a death march, but I was still knocking back 9:45 miles and I even wound up going an additional mile, just because I could.

When I finished My Garmin read 20.78 miles, but it read 9.96 at California Avenue, the turn around point, so I know I ran 20 from the park and back.  I wonder if the Garmin gets "lazy" when the battery starts to run low (I desperately need a new battery).  I then ran another .5 miles south and then back to the park.  If you include the .33 mile from my house to the park, I ran close to 21.66 miles (although I walked back to the house after my run).

To be honest, I could've run a lot longer today.  I guess some days the Running Gods smile down upon you.

What does this mean?

Well, I hate to judge on any one run, but it does mean I could use the South Jordan full as a training run for Vegas.  Also, on my run as the endorphins kicked in, I began dreaming about destination races.  Montana keeps calling my name.  Guess I'll have to check my bank statement and see if I can make it happen.

Also, I had ZERO problems with any of my injuries and other than tiredness and chafing in the usual spots (I always forget lube on my chest), I feel good.

First Snow

Looks like the mountains got the first snow of the year.  I had heard a rumor they were going to get hit last night, but honestly I didn't think it was going to happen.  Looks like winter is just around the corner (I don't mind winter that much actually).

Looking at Alta Canyon near my house

This week in running Sept 21 - Sept 27

Day	Mileage / Workout	Comments
Sunday	5	Run through the streets of Ely Nevada
Monday	Off	Much needed rest day! Walked 3 miles
Tuesday	5	Finally ran with someone, easy miles
Wednesday	9	Logging some easy miles on the bike trail
Thursday	7	Another fairly easy run. Still felt beat up from half.
Friday	Off	Walked about 5 miles. Got rained on, hard.
Saturday	9	Wanted to go long, but weather wasn't cooperating.  Great effort though.
Total miles for the week: 35 - YTD: 1293

Summary

Let's just say this past weekend I had a blast.  You know you've done it right when you go to work on Monday and feel like you have a dozen stories to tell and you can't wait to post them all to your blog. It also meant that it was extremely hard to focus at work all week. I think I now know what it feels like to have ADHD.

I also didn't get much of a chance to take a deep breath and relax.  I had an Illinois running friend come into town on Monday and spend a few nights with me.  Three big things on this:

1) It was the first time I've not run solo in a very long time. Brought back a lot of memories of running with the Health Bridge Road Runners and doing my Sunday morning marathon runs with them. Also caught up on news and how everyone is doing.

2) It was the first person from Illinois I've seen in over 2.5 years, excluding family.

3) How cool is it that I get to live in a city / area that people actually want  to visit? I've got world-class hiking and scenery practically in my backyard.

Either way, I did manage to get in a solid week of training and I am happy to report my right knee is cooperating with me.  My left calf, though, still can be touch and go.  I've found a "sweet spot" while using a foam roller on it and I think I've identified the ouchie part.  Hopefully it doesn't get out of hand.

Where's your long run dude?

I woke up Saturday with ALL intentions of going 18 - 20 miles.  However, mother nature had other plans.  We had wicked thunderstorms off and on through out the night and just as I was thinking about getting out of bed, I heard the house being pelted with raindrops.  I watched cartoons for a while hoping it would blow over, but sadly it didn't.

I checked weather.com and they predicted storms all day.

Regardless, I threw on a wind breaker (which I later ditched in the bushes) and logged a nice 9 mile run.  Not many brave souls on the bike trail this morning but still more than I thought.

About 2 - 3 miles into my 9 mile run it started to really come down I get drenched.  I was wearing my short-shorts sans undies.  Umm.... let's just say it was very revealing...

Also there were two full marathons this weekend (Layton and Huntsville) so I imagine many of the folks that were running them were in the rain.  Keep in mind I survived the 2013 Ogden Marathon in worse weather, so it is doable and at least the weather was cool and not hot (we had low 90's all week).

Tomorrow's weather looks like rain, but I am hoping I can get away with my long run and not get electrocuted.  I can do rain, I don't do lightning.

Raining in Murray Utah

Upcoming Races

As much as I want to knock off another state (Montana and New Mexico are on my list) the timing and money situation is a little tighter.  Also given the fact that Ely set me back a fair amount of money as well as Vegas coming up in less than 60 days, I'll probably stick with local races.

I am very seriously thinking of doing the South Jordan full marathon in about 3 weeks, which is about 5 miles south of my house.  We'll see how this weekend's long run goes and if my calf behaves.  It looks like I can register a few days before the event without too much of a penalty.  I'll use the race as a long training run and practice session for Vegas.  I've done their half before and for a relatively small race (about 500 - 600 for the half and full together) they really do a good job.  Not sure it is a "destination" race for you out of towners but you do start high and get a net decline down in terms of elevation.

I have an Arizona full marathon penciled in for February, as we are looking at visiting family and friends down there for Super Bowl weekend.  This didn't go over too well with Shari ("you'll be tired and cranky after the run") but it would nice to knock Arizona off my list.

Destination Run

Flirting with heading west again next weekend, so there may be an opportunity for another desert run.  Stayed tuned.  

The Trip from Ely to Salt Lake City with a Stop in West Wendover

Introduction

On Sunday morning, I woke up feeling really good and went for my morning run.  Shari was just getting up as I came back to the hotel.  

The plan was to clean up, load our stuff in the car and make the trip back to Wendover and get there sometime before noon.  That way we could take advantage of the breakfast items on the buffet, gamble for a few hours and then head home from there (a nice way to break up a 3.5 hour trip).

Leaving Ely

I am pretty quick at packing and getting ready so by the time I was done showering and cleaning up, Shari was still in the process of getting ready.  To kill time, I went down to the casino and figured I'd put in $20 into Fu Dao Le.  

I hate to say it, but that $20 lasted all of about 5 minutes (if that).  Reluctant to go back, I popped another $20 in and scored a large bonus round.  Yeah me!

My final cash out

After collecting my money, I went back to the room and Shari was still busy packing and getting ready (women!).  I was watching TV when all of the sudden, the TV popped and the screen went black.  There was an awful smell of "electronics" that emanated from it as well.  I quickly unplugged the TV as it was clearly dead.  I reported this to the front desk...

A few minutes later without any distractions, we loaded up the car, took some final pictures of ourselves in the lobby and headed out to West Wendover.

What a treat.  Since we had driven at night, we missed a lot of the beautiful scenery.  Many might call the area boring, but I would consider it anything but.  The area around Ely was desert vegetation / scrub with a passage of mountains to either side.  It was flat and straight away driving until the junction to Wendover.  The fall flowers were up with plenty of yellows and burnt reds.

Upon hitting the Wendover junction the road gets a bit more turn filled with some elevation climbs and descents.  You are also surrounded by brown mountains that are much closer than what they were in Ely.  It was pretty desolate and in one section I took my car up to 100mph.  

As we got closer to West Wendover we could see the Bonneville salt flats.  If I wasn't in a hurry, I definitely would've pulled over and gotten a few shots.  But I suspect I'll be returning through there sooner or later.

West Wendover

We arrived just before noon and went into Montego Bay.  For a day with 7X comps, I expected it to be packed.  I didn't think it was that bad and after a brief wait in line, I printed out my free play coupon and 2-for-1 buffet pass.

Shari and I got in a good buffet, and looking back at it, it was only my 3rd "real" meal all weekend.  For the two of us, we ate for just under $20.  I love their desserts and made good on this piece of cake:

I largely had all of my money from the get-go.  I was probably up about $50 - $100 and being it was 7X day, I went to one of the only Fu Dao Le machines and popped a $100 into it.  With my luck, I figured I'd get something good as I've seen people winning big on it.  Since I had put so much into it, I was betting a bit more aggressively than I have in the past, a lot of 88 cents to $2 bets.  

I hate to say it, but I basically got NOTHING for it.  I was extremely frustrated.  No bonus rounds, no wild bonus game, nothing.  While I did earn some half way decent comps, it was one of the more disappointing runs I've had.  Fu Dao Le can certainly be generous and other times I've seen it go through some extremely long cold spells.

Frustrated and tempted to just go home at that point, Shari suggested we check out the Peppermill, as she seems to have good luck there.  Somewhat reluctantly, I agreed and we made the 1 minute drive.

Shari had been itching to play Rise of Ra so I gave her a $20.  Turns out she wound up making back the $100 I had lost at the Montego Bay (and then some).  I had been on tilt prior to that and it was good see get some of our money back.   I went over to the Fu Dao Le that was next to it and stuck in a $20 and got a bonus round and made a profit on it.  

Happy to be leaving on an upswing,  we took off.  I would've liked to have stayed longer, but we had company coming in from out of town and Shari was insisting we had to clean and get a few groceries.

Conclusion

This whole trip was super exciting and I am so glad I went.  I got a chance to run a race, eat plenty of food and see a lot of things I've never seen before.  Hence, I've added about half a dozen new post as a result.  

In addition, I got to check off a bunch of cities on my "must-see in Nevada list"  I definitely want to go back to visit the Great Basin National Park, the Lehman Caves and hike Mt Wheeler.  So I don't think this will be the last time I head out that way.

Gambling wise, if I had won that stupid football bet (like I should've), I would've made a profit on the trip.  I left with about $300 and came home with a little more than $250.

Either way, I still came home with my wallet not empty and lots of life-time memories.

Goal accomplished!

Saturday in Ely Nevada

Ely downtown at dusk

Introduction

Saturday was going to be a busy day.  I've itemized everything I did below:

• Ran the Take It to the Lake Half Marathon
• Explored Cave Lake State Park
• Quickly grabbed a bite to eat
• Headed on over to the Northern Nevada Railroad for a nearly two hour train ride.
• Before a storm arrived, drove out to see the Ward Charcoal Ovens.

After the ovens, we headed back to the hotel.  To say the least, I needed a break!

Evening in Ely

We arrived back at the hotel just after 5 and I wasn't quite ready to hit dinner.  Itching to take advantage of the pool, I quickly changed into my bathing suit and hit the whirlpool.  It really helped me recover and I wound up meeting a guy from Casper.  We exchanged stories about Wyoming and I explained I had run the Casper Marathon.  Pretty cool to get travel tips from him, should I opt to run that one again.

Pool at the Prospector Hotel and Casino

After cleaning up we headed to the downtown area, which was about a 2 mile drive from the hotel.  Easy parking too -- I just pulled right up to the outside of the Jailhouse Motel and Casino on the main road and I was in the heart of the downtown area.

I had gotten some dining tips from people at the race and we did a bit of exploring before settling in on one:

1) Jailhouse Motel had a nice restaurant and the people at the race said that was reputed to be the best

2) A restaurant at the Ramada

3) The lady working the spa at Montego Bay told me that Hotel Nevada's cafe had good food.

We sauntered into the jailhouse and looked over the menu.  It was a bit on the pricey side and the theme of the restaurant was that you were served in cells -- probably from the original jailhouse.  I saw something that struck my fancy but I wanted to check out the Hotel Nevada.

Jailhouse Motel and Casino

We walked across the street and the Hotel Nevada's cafe was bustling and the food was affordable.  I saw something on the menu I wanted more (I had a major hankering for fries) and so we jumped into the cafe.  I ordered the salmon dinner and Shari ordered a pizza.  

The food was good and I really appreciated the large portions.  This was also my first meal of the day (more or less) so I was ravenous.  I wound up eating most of Shari's pizza.  The pizza won't win any awards any time soon, but it was good.

Dinner at Hotel Nevada

After eating, we decided to gamble.  I found an Invaders from Planet Moolah, one of my all-time favorites.  I plunked a $20 in, and got a really nice bonus round netting a profit.  I spied a Fu Dao Le and dropped another $20 in there and quickly turned another profit.  I was on a roll!  I even won at Multi-Strike video poker.  The casino was the only one in town with live gaming (including pot limit Texas Hold'em) and their selection of slot machines ranged from older to new.  I was really impressed with their selection and it wasn't terribly busy either.

A nice $50 win

We also checked out a lot of the memorabilia on the walls.  The Hotel Nevada dates back to 1929 and was once the tallest building in Nevada.  There are pictures of famous people who have stayed there on the walls throughout the hotel as well as western artifacts on display:

After stuffing my wallet with my newly made dollars we headed on over to the Jailhouse.  I want to say this motel had a good selection of machines, but they were mostly older ones.  I found a Mr Cashman and plopped a $20 in there.  I thought I was finally going to get skunked when I hit a jackpot and won $40.  

I headed back on over to the Hotel Nevada but my luck had gone south and I wound up losing about $20. 

Shari wanted to check out the final casino in town, the Ramada, so we went over there.  I wound up gambling there for about 30 minutes.  I think I left with a $4 profit (literally).  It was a tiny casino though and they didn't have any of my favorite machines.  One of the weird things was that the hotel's pool was located just below the slot machines.  So while you were playing, you could watch the kids screaming and swimming.

At that point, I could hardly see straight on account I was exhausted, so we drove back to the hotel.  I spotted this car in the parking lot:

 

I wound up meeting the guy who owned it in the morning.  Turns out he was a CSULB graduate (like myself -- although he graduated about 15 years prior to me).  That little gem runs about $150K and he was planning on racing it in the desert race in the morning -- at a speed of over 200 mph.  In fact, the entire town was littered with muscle cars, Porsche's, Corvette's and race cars.  Just outside of town, a highway gets shut down for a race where contestants get nearly a 100 mile stretch of open road to race on. Sort of like a Cannon Ball run, but all legal.

I hit the sheets just after 10pm.  I wound up sleeping extremely well and woke up really refreshed on Sunday morning.  You know you've lived to the max when that happens.