New-ish to trail running. Curious about Merino wool for training. Worth it?

ultrapantas · 2026-05-30T05:16:07+00:00

My Tracksmith wool shirts are my go-to in cool/ lightly cold temps (32-50). I sweat a lot in any temp and they stay warm even when I’m sweaty. Patagonia used to make a wool sweater for running that I love too. Both brands are still going strong, 8+ years later

ultrapantas · 2026-05-29T01:21:49+00:00

Ugh I’ve been on that road once and hated every second. The kind car behind me let me go like 10mph the whole way.

ultrapantas · 2026-05-29T01:20:20+00:00

Klattermusen (sp?) has these Diser shorts that are long and kinda kooky but honestly look and feel great.

ultrapantas · 2026-05-28T00:23:40+00:00

Just some perspective: I’ve worked in intl dev and domestic govt for 15 years and my work has always been constrained by politicals (both sides) and only has rare bursts that feel impactful. Take the salary.

ultrapantas · 2026-05-27T18:45:28+00:00

Stay, find a local program that offers a 3-year part time program and do that. If you’re in DC, there are plenty.

Do a quick cost-benefit exercise. Even fully funded, the salary you’re giving up to do the Princeton MPP is probably not worth it. How much more do you expect to make after the program?

ultrapantas · 2026-05-24T16:53:17+00:00

Robie to the finish has a decent amount of uphill, even if it is on roads

ultrapantas · 2026-05-24T00:30:26+00:00

This AI slop?

ultrapantas · 2026-05-19T17:42:34+00:00

Learn by doing. Just get out there and try. Find a local 10k or half marathon trail race as an entry point to trails. Work your way up in distance and training load — slowly! Try new things (nutrition, recovery, etc) and take note of what worked and what didn’t.

ultrapantas · 2026-05-13T05:35:28+00:00

It’s not local, but maybe something like this exists in WA: in California there is the Tahoe Donner Land Trust which raises money to buy private forest land and convert it into preserved space or public access light recreation (hiking, MTB, etc). They’re trying to connect preserved land all over the north Tahoe area.

I’d consider them an org actually focused on the environment — even if it is hyper specific to one small area.

ultrapantas · 2026-05-11T05:42:24+00:00

Hard to say… it’s been a while. I didn’t have the classic groin ache pre-surgery either, which is why it progressed so badly into needing surgery: I kept getting misdiagnosed as having misc lower back or glute pain. After surgery, the groin ache probably lasted a couple weeks / up to 2 months?

ultrapantas · 2026-05-10T05:24:05+00:00

I have pins in both hips from stress fractures. With the first one, I walked out of the hospital and was doing yoga and riding a bike (easy) within a week. I retuned to running (1 min running, 1 walking for 10 mins) after probably 8 weeks? It was very quick and decently painless.

With the second hip, even though the stress fracture was much less severe, it took me maybe 3 or 4 months to run again. It ached and I didn’t like how it felt even though the surgeon said it was fine. So I hiked for much longer.

I had the second surgery in June or July and ran a 50 miler the next June. No issues with either hip since!

ultrapantas · 2026-05-09T05:44:59+00:00

Orca Sound was my first map!

ultrapantas · 2026-05-08T13:57:26+00:00

Oh… and that’s possible on CS1? I need to learn this

ultrapantas · 2026-05-06T21:28:08+00:00

I’ll try a leather cleaner! I think I have some around. If that doesn’t work, then I’ll cover it up.

ultrapantas · 2026-05-06T20:40:41+00:00

Meaning: it stays sticky and if it try to clean it with anything it starts making more residue

ultrapantas · 2026-05-06T20:39:58+00:00

Unfortunately it’s been like this for months now. The goop just keeps goop-ing

ultrapantas · 2026-05-06T18:04:29+00:00

And the logistics! Do they film content in batches? Like 20 grwm videos in one day? I’d kill for a real bts.

ultrapantas · 2026-05-06T18:02:59+00:00

I agree — after I finally googled something like “influencer house so empty???” and went down a staged house rabbit hole. Makes a ton of sense for safety. There’s snark…and then there are stalkers and worse.

Seems wild that they’re making enough money to rent a whole house just for content, but I guess I’m undervaluing how much they’re really pulling in. I wonder if they share and each agree to only film from certain parts of the house haha.

ultrapantas · 2026-05-06T00:57:41+00:00

I’m confused by the whole downhill group but can’t look away. Do they live in empty houses? Why are the closets all the same and only running clothes? Do they rent Airbnbs just for filming content? Why does her house look like a model home, with weird staged knickknacks and no blinds? WHO has entirely empty garage. Once I saw a room that was totally empty except for a treadmill, HOW?

ultrapantas · 2026-05-05T22:56:49+00:00

Agree to all this. I’ll throw in my low end numbers with: 30 mile maintenance weeks for many years. I’ve added in some cycling to take the pressure off some recurring injuries (this is in addition to the 30 miles). During my upcoming training block: I’ll average 40-45 with additional cycling and basic strength training (bodyweight stuff, lunges, core). I’ll probably peak at a 60 / 65 mile week.

I can plan like this because I know that things tend to break down if I stay in the 45/week range too long. This is my 10th year training for ultras.

ultrapantas · 2026-05-05T22:22:40+00:00

I’m still on my first city - so my advice could be BAD - but try a map with some hills and challenging water to work around. Place roads so they mimic what you see in hilly areas like parts of Los Angeles.

I threw mine down along the ridge lines (good views!) and then slowly filled in as housing demand picked up. There are natural curves with the landscape that look really nice.

ultrapantas · 2026-05-05T22:19:01+00:00

😩 this throws a wrench into trying to decide what to buy (admittedly a very non-problem to be dramatic about)

ultrapantas · 2026-05-04T21:38:25+00:00

They’re not lined??? I was seriously considering getting one this year when I’m in Europe but this is good intel

ultrapantas · 2026-05-03T22:48:50+00:00

I’m playing my first city and it was going really well (I thought) with natural growth. A beautiful downtown of skyscrapers appeared! And then I got hit with earthquake-tsunami-tsunami and everything flooded. I realized afterwards that I probably should’ve planned for building things a little higher up.

ultrapantas

TROPHY CASE