Chris Smith

Visiting Yosemite Valley with Kids

This summer we spent a few days in Yosemite Valley. It was our second trip to the park, but the first in the middle of summer. This year the park did away with the reservation system instituted for COVID, which made park mornings resemble the 1889 Oklahoma Land Rush except instead of claiming homesteads peopleContinue reading “Visiting Yosemite Valley with Kids”

Going Full Clark Griswold

For Thanksgiving the six of us plus Michelle’s parents drove up from Austin to the YMCA of the Rockies Snow Mountain Ranch in Granby, Colorado, where we met my parents. For extra room, we rented a Ford Transit 15-person van in Austin. As we were going over Berthound Pass and taking in the winter wonderlandContinue reading “Going Full Clark Griswold”

Coros Pace 2 GPS Watch

Finally, someone made a simple, cheap GPS watch with good battery life.

Western States 100

This summer I managed to finish the 100-mile Western States Endurance Run in 29:43:16, less than 17 minutes before the 30-hour mandatory cutoff. Clearly, a close run thing. Here are my thoughts on the race and advice for those who get a chance to run in the future.

BTSR: A West Texas Gem

West Texas is my favorite part of the state. The crown jewels of Texas backcountry adventure, Big Bend and Guadalupe Mountains National Parks, are favorites of mine (and everyone else). Recently, I had the chance to explore a third, less popular but no less spectacular corner of West Texas: the Buffalo Trail Scout Ranch inContinue reading “BTSR: A West Texas Gem”

One Last Ride

I first saw a Western States 100 buckle on a phone while drinking beer at a bar with John at a law firm happy hour back in 2015. Of course I wanted one and thought it a simple as signing up and running the race. Thus began my dabbling in the world of ultramarathons. AsContinue reading “One Last Ride”

Guide Gear 18′ Teepee: Good Huge Tent

For car camping, we have had the REI Base Camp 6 tent for fourteen years. The current iteration is $470. It is bombproof and has survived storms with winds over 40 knots. Even after a decade of use, the only problem is that the plastic windows on the rain fly are shot, but this isContinue reading “Guide Gear 18′ Teepee: Good Huge Tent”

Dealing with Crowds

Nobody goes there anymore, it’s too crowded – Yogi Berra The huge post-COVID increase in crowds is evident to everyone who spends time outdoors. My hometown of Austin is in the process of being overrun by crowds of new people. Gone are the days of being able to just show up at Barton Springs PoolContinue reading “Dealing with Crowds”

The Best Type of Fun

While watching my nephew’s YouTube report of his family’s vacation to a resort in the Bahamas my wife Michelle asked me “why don’t we do vacations like that?” I had to tell her it was because we only do Type II fun. I did not come up with the fun classification system, but I loveContinue reading “The Best Type of Fun”

An Underrated Classic

In the age of watches that can play music, send messages, and do all sorts of other fancy things, I am a still big fan of the Timex Ironman Classic. The Timex has been around pretty much unchanged since the 1990s. It costs $35 dollars and is basically indestructible, small, light, and runs for yearsContinue reading “An Underrated Classic”