Author: Jenny Willden

Mild weather and a lack of valley snow have made for a bizarre winter so far, but luckily there’s still an abundance in our mountains and plenty of time to enjoy it. Flip through this issue for ideas and fascinating winter reads on avoiding death and danger in avalanche country, ice climbing and skiing adventures in Montana, and the year’s best skiing and snowboarding gear. Not a snowsports fan? Coming in March, our annual guide to races and events—The Keeper—returns with more event listings, training tips, and gear picks than ever before. Race directors: add your events online at sportsguidemag.com…

‘Tis the season of Santa shuffles, powder turns, and doubling your caloric intake from pie consumption alone. Along with the added treats is the extra responsibility of finding gifts for everyone on your list. Thankfully—if your friends and family are as outdoorsy as you are—we’ve basically done the shopping for you by picking the best gifts at every price for our Holiday Gift Guide. This beauty features picks for campers, cyclists, kids, runners, and more. Flip to page 12 to find the perfect present…or a little something for yourself. Just giving gift cards this year? Plan your winter with our…

Run, eat donuts, run! One of our favorite Salt Lake 5Ks, The Donut Dash, is back and the weather is going to be perfect! A few years ago we did this race in the snowstorm of all storms, so 60 degrees and sunny is a real treat! If you haven’t signed up yet, you still can! Just click HERE to register and use code DD14OSG to get $10 off!  The premise is simple, run half of the 5K, stop to eat donuts (for which you receive deductions on your time) and then keep running to the finish in Memory Grove. Costumes…

The New York City Marathon is this Sunday, November 2, 2014! Since the Big Apple is a bit far from Utah, it’s tough for us to take a bite of the action. Luckily, you can catch it all LIVE on TV and your mobile device.  Over 50,000 people will be running, including racing legends like Boston Marathon winner, Meb Keflezighi, and Kenyans Geoffrey Mutai and Wilson Kipsang, who claim this is their year to break the course record. Here are the details on how to watch it from the marathon’s website: In the NYC metro area: Watch the live broadcast on ABC7 from 9:00…

[dropcap style=”square”]U[/dropcap]nseasonably warm weather this autumn has made for gorgeous racing conditions, but soon enough we’ll rake up the brilliantly colored leaves and a layer of white will blanket our city’s landscape. While you wait—with glee or dread—for the snow’s imminent arrival, brush up on what’s new for the season at Utah resorts, learn how to protect yourself from snowsport injuries, and find four fantastic peaks to climb this fall. Need extra motivation to get your ski gear out of storage? We’re giving away eight tickets to screenings of Warren Miller’s latest ski movie, No Turning Back, and it’s guaranteed…

Old-school sneakers have been seen on fashion runways and this growing trend is exploding in the running world, and the movement’s pace isn’t set to slow anytime soon. Popular brands continue re-releasing old favorites and designing new ones for the coming seasons, and we’re seeing sneakers on the feet of people everywhere. We checked out a few of the latest styles and handpicked a few of our favorites for casual wear. Whether you like ’em bright or prefer to blend in, there’s a stylish sneaker for you! WOMEN’S Brooks Vanguard Women’s Confession: I’m obsessed with these shoes. Originally released in 1976, the Vanguard…

Autumn is my favorite time of year to race in Utah. Temperatures are ripe for a PR, the changing leaves are downright inspiring, and the busyness of summer has finally slowed. If you’re looking for a few great races to fill your fall calendar, go no further. Here’s our top five run—and even a bike—races for fall. 1. Tour de Donut-  September 27, American Fork, UT. One of my top five races from last year, this event is traditionally held in July, but the heat of asphalt bike riding midday in July was too much for participants to bear…so they moved it to…

I recently received a variety of Power Crunch bars to review and was so excited by the flavor offerings…especially when I saw a chocolate bar! The Choklat bars, as Power Crunch calls them, are the only protein-packed milk and dark chocolate bars on the market. A devoted dark chocolate fan, I loved the dark bar best and enjoyed that I could get 5 grams of protein in my daily dose of heart-health chocolate. If you avoid gluten, you’ll be happy to hear this bar is gluten-free! Besides their truly yummy taste is the hydrolyzed whey protein contained in every bar. What…

Expedition Island—the place where John Wesley Powell began his famous exploration of the Green and Colorado Rivers in 18710—was the site of a different adventure for me this August, the Run with the Horses 10K and Marathon event. This race day takes place primarily in Wyoming’s high desert trail with the promise of seeing Sweetwater County’s gorgeous wild horse herds along the course. The morning of the race I awake far too early and arrive on the island at 6:00 a.m. (Are you as surprised as I am to learn there is an island in Wyoming?!) While waiting to start I encounter the breeds of…

Jenny Willden had the opportunity to run the new North Face Endurance Challenge 10K course in Park City at Park City Mountain Resort with North Face athlete and famed ultrarunner, Dean Karnazes, and other media member. Here’s an amazing video showing this preview with information about the race itself. Sign up here for the first ever Park City North Face Endurance Challenge. Choose from 50K, marathon, half marathon, 10K, 5K, and kids’ races.