8/6 - Rest. Wanted to run but got shot down by the wife! Ha!
8/7 - 6.0 miles. 1:00:xx. 1300'v. Stagecoach Mountain - Stagecoach. Hard effort climbing up to The Beach with trekking poles and back to the house. Then, dropped them off at the house and ran another 3 miles down to the fire station and back on dirt trail. Pushed the effort the whole way.
8/8 - 7.3 miles. 1:12:xx. 500'v. Stagecoach. Easy paced evening run from dusk til dark on the road down to the lake and a couple miles of trail.
8/9 - 6.76 miles. :52:45. 500'v. Stagecoach. Quick run down to Elk Run Trail and a few 7 minute miles on dirt before climbing back to the house.
8/10 - Rest.
8/11 - 13.55 miles. 3:34:08. 2910'v. Black Mountain Trail to East Fork Trail just nouth of Round Lake. Woke up at 4 a.m. and got to the trail head at Sheriff Reservoir just before 6 a.m. Looked like it might rain so I waited a few minutes in my truck before deciding to just go for it. The run started out great and I felt great climbing up into the mountains at dawn. It was a little bit cloudy but I really didn't think the rain would come. I ran a couple hours up trail and found a nice spot next to a creek to eat some food (a clementine, some bread with Pocket Fuel peanut butter on it and a Salt Stick tablet). I sat on a rock, admiring my surroundings and suddenly realized that I should just turn around and spend a little time at home with Katy. I missed her very much. I packed up and started back when I felt a drop or two of rain. I looked northwest and saw rain and suddenly felt a little panicked to get back since I was now climbing back up to some exposed areas. It eventually began raining steadily on me as I hiked up the rocky trail but it wasn't a complete deluge. I got pretty wet but after a half hour or so it let up and I started back down towards Sheriff under clearing skies. I had fun and made it back home by 11 a.m. I walked around the neighborhood with Katy for about 45 minutes then spent a little while clearing some branches from a couple of trees we had cut down earlier in the week. That afternoon, I drove up to Clark to meet up with Jonny B, Christian, Paul and Brady and a couple of other people, at a favorite camping spot out on Greenville Mine Road to watch a meteor shower that evening. I ended up deciding to treat it all as a training day and stayed on my feet (and even did some late night hiking with the dogs) most of the night. The sky was clear and we saw some really amazing meteors! I fell asleep in my sleeping bag staring at the stars after a great 20-hour day.
8/12 - Rest.?
Uh-oh. DNF'ed another training run! I haven't quite mastered the long, wilderness training run but I'm still happy with the time I've been getting on my feet and the quality of my shorter runs. It's just logistically difficult to run in the mountains for several hours and I just don't like spending that much time away from my wife during her pregnancy. Anyway, it's almost taper time so my plan from here until September 14th is to run hard this week, finishing with the Continental Divide Trail Run next Sunday, August 19th (my sister Sommai's birthday!), where I'd like to got under 2 hours and 20 minutes. After that, I will just put in 3 weeks of easy running and get plenty of rest leading up to race day. Simple.
Showing posts with label ultramarathon training. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ultramarathon training. Show all posts
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Weekly Summary: July 30 - August 5
7/30 - Rest.
7/31 - 6.17 miles. 1:05:33. 400'v. Stagecoach. An easy and much need run to decompress after a full day of moving equipment to the new shop. Over the past 2 weeks Bob and I have been relocating the business, which is no small feat. Today, in particular, was a hot day and we began moving the larger shop equipment. This run felt like one of my longest this year as I was on my feet the entire work day. Route was from the house, down to the lakeshore and about half a mile of trail before turning around and running back uphill to the house.
8/1 - Rest. Completely whooped after another day of moving.
8/2 - 6.27 miles. :56:39. 400'v. Stagecoach. Almost the same route as Tuesday but with a little more pep in the legs.
8/3 - 4.41 miles. :45:02. 400'v. Stagecoach. Waited until the sun went down so that I could run in the dark and practice running with the headlamp on. I ran about 1.5 miles on the road and then cut through the sagebrush to get down to Elk Run Trail next to the lake. My depth perception was playing tricks on me on the trails. It's a strange feeling running on trails in the dark. Even with a headlamp, your vision is so limited that you have to slow down and be careful of your footing, even on a wide trail like the one by the lake. From past experience, it's even stranger in the woods, when the trail is rockier and every sound coming from the darkness is like something stalking you. Funny thing this evening was that I didn't make a wrong turn until I got back on the roads. I should do a few more night runs before RRR.
8/4 - 17.45 miles. 3:48:14. 2750'v. Sarvis Creek Trail. Attempted to run Sarvis Creek from end to end and back and failed miserably. About 45 minutes before my run, I took a 2.7 fl.oz. dose of Vespa CV-25, an amino acid supplement that is supposed to help athletes metabolize body fat. For fueling, I carried 1.8oz. packet of Pocket Fuel Almond Butter, a couple Clif Shot gels, three SaltStick capsules and a clementine. I also carried a 20 oz. water bottle and a SteriPen Adventurer to purify water that I would be refilling from creeks and streams. There were several groups of hikers on the early portion of the trail, which was nice to see, and I hiked and ran the first 800' climb in the first couple miles. I reached the wooden bridge crossing the creek (around 3 miles) in about a half-hour and felt really good as I continued another mile up trail on the portion I had run a couple months ago. I noticed alot of cow piles on the trail (this area is Wilderness Area but apparently Open Range for ranchers, also) and it made me nervous about getting water from the creek but I figured that's why I have a water purifier. Around the 6 mile mark, I had run through a couple of open meadows and it was getting close to noon and warming up pretty good. I finally stopped at the creek for a few minutes to refill my bottle and then continued back on the trail. About a mile later, I ran into 3 people who had come in on horseback from the Buffalo Park end of the trail and were having a little lunch. I surprised them by coming down the trail solo and I stopped to talk for a couple minutes. They were visitors from Arizona and said it had taken them 2 hours to ride to that point. By now, I was sure that I wouldn't make it to Buffalo Park but I continued on, waded through Sarvis Creek and started a climb for another mile until I reached 9000' elevation before deciding to turn around. Originally, I had thought the trail was about 8 miles end to end but I pulled out my map, determined my location and figured that it was actually 12-13 miles. I definitely didn't have enough food to make the trip so I turned and ran the downhill through some pine trees until I hit a creek crossing where I stopped to refill my water bottle again. Here, I saw the threesome again, this time on horses, and yeilded the trail to let them pass. At the creek crossing, I filled my bottle up, yet again, and stopped to take a couple photos. I ran the next 3 miles at an easy pace on some technical single track, mostly because I was feeling the heat and lacked energy, despite eating all my Pocket Fuel, the clementine, one gel and all my SaltSticks. I passed a family I saw earlier with about 4 miles to go and looked forward to the bridge where I would dip into the creek again, refill and cool off. In the last few miles, I was thankful to be in the trees and hiked the short climb from the bridge and ran the last 2 mile downhill portion feeling pretty drained. Once I made it back to my truck, I pounded a warm Gatorade and ate a banana, and while tired, didn't feel exceptionally bad. I drove about 15 minutes to get back home and shortly thereafter my stomach turned and I promptly vomitted before I could get in the shower. Demoralized, I climbed into bed and napped for an hour or so before I finally felt a little better and was able to eat dinner.
8/5 - 2 miles. Walked with Katy. Man, it's hot. Legs felt a little stiff.
Weekly mileage: 36 miles.
Moving the shop was a real pain early in the week, rough on my back and made it tough to even want to run in the evening. I decided to do the night run on Friday to 1) reaquaint myself with running in the dark and 2) run on somewhat tired legs before my Saturday long run. I'm not sure what caused my problems on Saturday. It could have been the heat, the Vespa (first time I've tried this product), accumulated fatigue, contaminated water or any combination these things. From my Wilderness First Responder training, I'm inclined to rule out water contamination since I did purify my water and it usually takes at least a few days for waterborne illness to show up. It's also possible that I didn't stay hydrated enough for the weather as I held back on drinking early in the run. I'll try the Vespa again on next week's long run to see what happens.
7/31 - 6.17 miles. 1:05:33. 400'v. Stagecoach. An easy and much need run to decompress after a full day of moving equipment to the new shop. Over the past 2 weeks Bob and I have been relocating the business, which is no small feat. Today, in particular, was a hot day and we began moving the larger shop equipment. This run felt like one of my longest this year as I was on my feet the entire work day. Route was from the house, down to the lakeshore and about half a mile of trail before turning around and running back uphill to the house.
8/1 - Rest. Completely whooped after another day of moving.
8/2 - 6.27 miles. :56:39. 400'v. Stagecoach. Almost the same route as Tuesday but with a little more pep in the legs.
8/3 - 4.41 miles. :45:02. 400'v. Stagecoach. Waited until the sun went down so that I could run in the dark and practice running with the headlamp on. I ran about 1.5 miles on the road and then cut through the sagebrush to get down to Elk Run Trail next to the lake. My depth perception was playing tricks on me on the trails. It's a strange feeling running on trails in the dark. Even with a headlamp, your vision is so limited that you have to slow down and be careful of your footing, even on a wide trail like the one by the lake. From past experience, it's even stranger in the woods, when the trail is rockier and every sound coming from the darkness is like something stalking you. Funny thing this evening was that I didn't make a wrong turn until I got back on the roads. I should do a few more night runs before RRR.
8/4 - 17.45 miles. 3:48:14. 2750'v. Sarvis Creek Trail. Attempted to run Sarvis Creek from end to end and back and failed miserably. About 45 minutes before my run, I took a 2.7 fl.oz. dose of Vespa CV-25, an amino acid supplement that is supposed to help athletes metabolize body fat. For fueling, I carried 1.8oz. packet of Pocket Fuel Almond Butter, a couple Clif Shot gels, three SaltStick capsules and a clementine. I also carried a 20 oz. water bottle and a SteriPen Adventurer to purify water that I would be refilling from creeks and streams. There were several groups of hikers on the early portion of the trail, which was nice to see, and I hiked and ran the first 800' climb in the first couple miles. I reached the wooden bridge crossing the creek (around 3 miles) in about a half-hour and felt really good as I continued another mile up trail on the portion I had run a couple months ago. I noticed alot of cow piles on the trail (this area is Wilderness Area but apparently Open Range for ranchers, also) and it made me nervous about getting water from the creek but I figured that's why I have a water purifier. Around the 6 mile mark, I had run through a couple of open meadows and it was getting close to noon and warming up pretty good. I finally stopped at the creek for a few minutes to refill my bottle and then continued back on the trail. About a mile later, I ran into 3 people who had come in on horseback from the Buffalo Park end of the trail and were having a little lunch. I surprised them by coming down the trail solo and I stopped to talk for a couple minutes. They were visitors from Arizona and said it had taken them 2 hours to ride to that point. By now, I was sure that I wouldn't make it to Buffalo Park but I continued on, waded through Sarvis Creek and started a climb for another mile until I reached 9000' elevation before deciding to turn around. Originally, I had thought the trail was about 8 miles end to end but I pulled out my map, determined my location and figured that it was actually 12-13 miles. I definitely didn't have enough food to make the trip so I turned and ran the downhill through some pine trees until I hit a creek crossing where I stopped to refill my water bottle again. Here, I saw the threesome again, this time on horses, and yeilded the trail to let them pass. At the creek crossing, I filled my bottle up, yet again, and stopped to take a couple photos. I ran the next 3 miles at an easy pace on some technical single track, mostly because I was feeling the heat and lacked energy, despite eating all my Pocket Fuel, the clementine, one gel and all my SaltSticks. I passed a family I saw earlier with about 4 miles to go and looked forward to the bridge where I would dip into the creek again, refill and cool off. In the last few miles, I was thankful to be in the trees and hiked the short climb from the bridge and ran the last 2 mile downhill portion feeling pretty drained. Once I made it back to my truck, I pounded a warm Gatorade and ate a banana, and while tired, didn't feel exceptionally bad. I drove about 15 minutes to get back home and shortly thereafter my stomach turned and I promptly vomitted before I could get in the shower. Demoralized, I climbed into bed and napped for an hour or so before I finally felt a little better and was able to eat dinner.
8/5 - 2 miles. Walked with Katy. Man, it's hot. Legs felt a little stiff.
Weekly mileage: 36 miles.
Moving the shop was a real pain early in the week, rough on my back and made it tough to even want to run in the evening. I decided to do the night run on Friday to 1) reaquaint myself with running in the dark and 2) run on somewhat tired legs before my Saturday long run. I'm not sure what caused my problems on Saturday. It could have been the heat, the Vespa (first time I've tried this product), accumulated fatigue, contaminated water or any combination these things. From my Wilderness First Responder training, I'm inclined to rule out water contamination since I did purify my water and it usually takes at least a few days for waterborne illness to show up. It's also possible that I didn't stay hydrated enough for the weather as I held back on drinking early in the run. I'll try the Vespa again on next week's long run to see what happens.
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Fortnight Summary: July 8 - July 22
7/8 - 10.6 miles. 3:07:25. 2650'v. Lower Bear Creek Trail. Easy with Richard.
7/9 - Rest.
7/10 - 4.3 miles. :49:33. Stagecoach.
7/11- 3.59 miles. :36:17. Stagecoach.
7/12 - 2.30 miles. :26:42. Stagecoach.
7/13 - Rest.
7/14 - Rest. Travel to Leadville. Set up camp, eat and relax.
7/15 - Leadville Silver Rush 50 Mile. 47.5 miles. 9:49:56. 7,382'v.
7/16 - Rest. Despite feeling completely thrashed after the race yesterday, I felt pretty good when I woke up the next morning. My legs didn't start feeling sore until around noon the next day and then pretty rough in the afternoon. Slept OK that night but could feel my legs. Took an extra round of Juice Plus and drank alot of juice and berries for anti-oxidants.
7/17 - Rest. Pretty sore, primarily in the quadraceps but not so much anywhere else. A little soreness on top of my left foot. Slept like a champ.
7/18 - 3.42 miles. :39:08. Stagecoach. Easy road run felt awesome. Legs really weren't sore today at all. Just fatigued a bit but the run seemed to help shake out the cobwebs.
7/19 - 4.39 miles. :45:05. Stagecoach. Ran a few easy miles after starting out a little quick. Legs feel pretty good at the beginning of the run but after a while they felt a little dead. Walked a little, too.
7/20 - Rest.
7/21 - Spring Creek Memorial Trail Run. 9 miles. 1:17:24. My third year running this race and I just love it. This year, the field was much smaller and alot of fast people didn't show up so it was anybody's race up front. Local Austrian-stud-speedster, Harald Niedl, who always seems to finish in the top five of whatever race he's in, finally scored a win in 1:11. Followed by high school stand-out runner, Chris Zirkle. I was feeling good and went out fast at the start, running in 4th, but knew the pace was too hot for me and even asked if anyone wanted to pass as we rolled down the first hill, across the first bridge and onto the gradually uphill rocky trail. Several people passed me before we made the climb up to the actual Spring Creek trailhead. I eased into a strong powerhike once we turned off the single track and started up Elevator Shaft, a steep drainage that course follows for a few hundred vertical feet. I opted not to pass immediately and stayed behind a few people to keep my breathing and heart rate down and felt really good the entire climb through the ferns and aspens. There were several trees downed along the course but even the tallest ones didn't really impede my ascent as I began to alternate running into my climb. I passed about 4 runners on the climb and soon caught site of Walter McGill as we made a gradual descent through the trees on a somewhat rocky trail. I could see Kelly Heany about 15 yards in front of Walter. About a mile later, we all emerged from the forest together and turned on a dirt road to leave the Tatanka Ridge property. We lamented running the dirt road up to Dry Lake as our least favorite part of the race. Having done this race a couple of times now, I know that the 3/4 mile dirt road climb can be really tough. It's a grind and there is one spot where you can't see around the corner but it looks like you are at the top and then you go a little farther and see the road just keeps going up. By this time another runner had caught us, so the four of us relaxed a bit and we talked a little bit as we ran. A few minutes later, we finally reached the Dry Lake parking lot and I sped up to be the first one on Spring Creek Trail. I was feeling really good as we started the 4.5 mile descent to the finish and I love to run this trail downhill. It's just a blast. There are 13 bridges that you cross as the dirt trail snakes it's way through aspen and pine trees, rocks, logs, ferns and water. There are a few small ascents along the way but overall the trail drops a couple thousand feet over those 4.5 miles. It's sublime. The rest of the way down the trail, I just tried to maintain a fast but in control cadence. In last year's race, I ran the down hill too hard and the last mile or so really hurt. I wanted to avoid that this year and be able to run strong at the end and enjoy the experience. Cruising over the final miles of the course, I just felt rock solid and kept wondering if I should push harder or maintain. I found myself wishing someone was close enough behind me to scare me into running faster. In the end, I'm amazed at how my legs have recovered from Silver Rush because I felt I could have run faster. My legs just felt that solid. In hindsight, I wish I had worn a watch for this race. I ran by feel today and even when I was going hard I was pretty much in control. If I had worn a watch, I would've set split-time goals for the ascent and descent and pushed harder to make those goals. If I had pushed a little harder at any time during the race I'd be able to claim a PR for the course instead of finishing five seconds slower than last year! Oh well, I finished sixth. Top ten three years in a row! Woo-hoo!
7/22 - Rest. Ahh. Feels good to stay home and relax.
The last couple weeks have been pretty solid. I had a nice taper going into Silver Rush and the legs felt good and delivered on race day. I knew I was capable of posting a sub-10 finish and I ran a smart enough race to make it happen, even if I had a rough spot at the end. I think my troubles really stemmed more from the nutrition end and not fitness because I still had leg strength but was just feeling lousy in my stomach and head. Between the altitude and heat, I was lacking adequate electrolyte intake because I kept watering down my Gatorade over the last 2.5 hours. The nausea was a real eye-opener though. In a way, I'm glad I experienced that so that I know what will happen if I fall behind on fueling. Lesson learned there.
Recovery after the 50 was also the best it's ever been. I was feeling it Monday and Tuesday, after the race, but ran easy on Wednesday and Thursday, without any discomfort. Friday off seemed like enough rest to run hard at Spring Creek and I'm just a little sore (mostly hamstrings) and fatigued today (Sunday). With less than two months until Run Rabbit Run, I will keep up with my 3 scheduled maintenance runs during the week and long runs on the weekend. I'm hoping to work out a 40-mile wilderness run with Richard Williams in mid-August, that will be my last long run before RRR. The only race I might do in August is Continental Divide but as much as I like that race, I'm not 100% sure that will register.
7/9 - Rest.
7/10 - 4.3 miles. :49:33. Stagecoach.
7/11- 3.59 miles. :36:17. Stagecoach.
7/12 - 2.30 miles. :26:42. Stagecoach.
7/13 - Rest.
7/14 - Rest. Travel to Leadville. Set up camp, eat and relax.
7/15 - Leadville Silver Rush 50 Mile. 47.5 miles. 9:49:56. 7,382'v.
7/16 - Rest. Despite feeling completely thrashed after the race yesterday, I felt pretty good when I woke up the next morning. My legs didn't start feeling sore until around noon the next day and then pretty rough in the afternoon. Slept OK that night but could feel my legs. Took an extra round of Juice Plus and drank alot of juice and berries for anti-oxidants.
7/17 - Rest. Pretty sore, primarily in the quadraceps but not so much anywhere else. A little soreness on top of my left foot. Slept like a champ.
7/18 - 3.42 miles. :39:08. Stagecoach. Easy road run felt awesome. Legs really weren't sore today at all. Just fatigued a bit but the run seemed to help shake out the cobwebs.
7/19 - 4.39 miles. :45:05. Stagecoach. Ran a few easy miles after starting out a little quick. Legs feel pretty good at the beginning of the run but after a while they felt a little dead. Walked a little, too.
7/20 - Rest.
7/21 - Spring Creek Memorial Trail Run. 9 miles. 1:17:24. My third year running this race and I just love it. This year, the field was much smaller and alot of fast people didn't show up so it was anybody's race up front. Local Austrian-stud-speedster, Harald Niedl, who always seems to finish in the top five of whatever race he's in, finally scored a win in 1:11. Followed by high school stand-out runner, Chris Zirkle. I was feeling good and went out fast at the start, running in 4th, but knew the pace was too hot for me and even asked if anyone wanted to pass as we rolled down the first hill, across the first bridge and onto the gradually uphill rocky trail. Several people passed me before we made the climb up to the actual Spring Creek trailhead. I eased into a strong powerhike once we turned off the single track and started up Elevator Shaft, a steep drainage that course follows for a few hundred vertical feet. I opted not to pass immediately and stayed behind a few people to keep my breathing and heart rate down and felt really good the entire climb through the ferns and aspens. There were several trees downed along the course but even the tallest ones didn't really impede my ascent as I began to alternate running into my climb. I passed about 4 runners on the climb and soon caught site of Walter McGill as we made a gradual descent through the trees on a somewhat rocky trail. I could see Kelly Heany about 15 yards in front of Walter. About a mile later, we all emerged from the forest together and turned on a dirt road to leave the Tatanka Ridge property. We lamented running the dirt road up to Dry Lake as our least favorite part of the race. Having done this race a couple of times now, I know that the 3/4 mile dirt road climb can be really tough. It's a grind and there is one spot where you can't see around the corner but it looks like you are at the top and then you go a little farther and see the road just keeps going up. By this time another runner had caught us, so the four of us relaxed a bit and we talked a little bit as we ran. A few minutes later, we finally reached the Dry Lake parking lot and I sped up to be the first one on Spring Creek Trail. I was feeling really good as we started the 4.5 mile descent to the finish and I love to run this trail downhill. It's just a blast. There are 13 bridges that you cross as the dirt trail snakes it's way through aspen and pine trees, rocks, logs, ferns and water. There are a few small ascents along the way but overall the trail drops a couple thousand feet over those 4.5 miles. It's sublime. The rest of the way down the trail, I just tried to maintain a fast but in control cadence. In last year's race, I ran the down hill too hard and the last mile or so really hurt. I wanted to avoid that this year and be able to run strong at the end and enjoy the experience. Cruising over the final miles of the course, I just felt rock solid and kept wondering if I should push harder or maintain. I found myself wishing someone was close enough behind me to scare me into running faster. In the end, I'm amazed at how my legs have recovered from Silver Rush because I felt I could have run faster. My legs just felt that solid. In hindsight, I wish I had worn a watch for this race. I ran by feel today and even when I was going hard I was pretty much in control. If I had worn a watch, I would've set split-time goals for the ascent and descent and pushed harder to make those goals. If I had pushed a little harder at any time during the race I'd be able to claim a PR for the course instead of finishing five seconds slower than last year! Oh well, I finished sixth. Top ten three years in a row! Woo-hoo!
7/22 - Rest. Ahh. Feels good to stay home and relax.
The last couple weeks have been pretty solid. I had a nice taper going into Silver Rush and the legs felt good and delivered on race day. I knew I was capable of posting a sub-10 finish and I ran a smart enough race to make it happen, even if I had a rough spot at the end. I think my troubles really stemmed more from the nutrition end and not fitness because I still had leg strength but was just feeling lousy in my stomach and head. Between the altitude and heat, I was lacking adequate electrolyte intake because I kept watering down my Gatorade over the last 2.5 hours. The nausea was a real eye-opener though. In a way, I'm glad I experienced that so that I know what will happen if I fall behind on fueling. Lesson learned there.
Recovery after the 50 was also the best it's ever been. I was feeling it Monday and Tuesday, after the race, but ran easy on Wednesday and Thursday, without any discomfort. Friday off seemed like enough rest to run hard at Spring Creek and I'm just a little sore (mostly hamstrings) and fatigued today (Sunday). With less than two months until Run Rabbit Run, I will keep up with my 3 scheduled maintenance runs during the week and long runs on the weekend. I'm hoping to work out a 40-mile wilderness run with Richard Williams in mid-August, that will be my last long run before RRR. The only race I might do in August is Continental Divide but as much as I like that race, I'm not 100% sure that will register.
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Weekly Summary: July 4 - July 8
7/4 - 9.06 miles. 2:04:15. 1800'v. Black Mountain Trail. Headed up to Sheriff Reservoir just outside of Phippsburg to check out a new trail and was blown away by the scenery. Once I located the trail (after a few minutes of bushwacking around the res) I found a nice, runnable track on a gradual ascent that traversed a hillside packed with skunk cabbage and wildflowers that went on for nearly a MILE. It was incredible. Once I hit the ridgeline, the trail continued to snake uphill along a massive cliff line with an expansive view of the Flat Tops to my right. The trail continued into the trees for a little while before cresting the mountain and offering panoramic views of more mountains, including Pyramid Peak, and a few big alpine meadows. I found an old trail marker for Baldy Trail (FS 1200, which doesn't appear on any of the maps I own) and ran from cairn to cairn for about a half mile through a meadow until I picked up the trail again and found a tiny pond. If I weren't tapering for my next race, I would've loved to continue exploring. The return trip offered up the same spectacular views and I had to pause for a while to take it all in. Although I only ventured a couple of miles on the trail, I can't wait to go back and explore it further.
7/5 - 3.51 miles. :34:22. Stagecoach. Easy effort from the house down the trail to the fire station and back.
7/6 - 7.51 miles. 1:24:49. Emerald Mountain. From JDs house downtown, I cruised over to Howelsen Hill and jumped on the Emerald Mountain Loop. From there, I climbed up to Lupine, then Larry's, MGM and Blair Witch before descending on Blackmere Drive to Lupine to Blackmere and down to Howelsen Lodge to refill my water bottle. Wicked single track!
7/7 - Rest.
7/8 - 10.61 miles. 3:07:25. 2650'v. Lower Bear Creek Trail. Hooked up with running buddy Richard for an easy effort 10 miler on this trail by the Strawberry Park Hot Springs. I had never been on this trail and rarely run with other people so I was stoked to get on the trail with Rich. We maintained a fairly even pace on the ascent, hiking most of the uphills. The trail started out nice and smooth and easy to run for the first 3 miles before it got rockier on the last 2 up to Summit Park. There were some nice views from the top so we scrambled around on the rocky high point for a few minutes before the return trip. The return trip went by quickly and I felt great when we wrapped it up.
Weekly mileage: 30.69 miles.
In tapering mode for the Silver Rush 50 (which is only 46 miles) so I'm easing up on how hard I run while still getting in some quality runs. Got to go out for over 2 hours on the Fourth and go in 3 hours today. I'll rest tomorrow and run very lightly the middle of the week before taking a couple days off before the race. Overall, I'm feeling really good and with a week of rest on my legs, I think I can finish the race in under 10 hours.
7/5 - 3.51 miles. :34:22. Stagecoach. Easy effort from the house down the trail to the fire station and back.
7/6 - 7.51 miles. 1:24:49. Emerald Mountain. From JDs house downtown, I cruised over to Howelsen Hill and jumped on the Emerald Mountain Loop. From there, I climbed up to Lupine, then Larry's, MGM and Blair Witch before descending on Blackmere Drive to Lupine to Blackmere and down to Howelsen Lodge to refill my water bottle. Wicked single track!
7/7 - Rest.
7/8 - 10.61 miles. 3:07:25. 2650'v. Lower Bear Creek Trail. Hooked up with running buddy Richard for an easy effort 10 miler on this trail by the Strawberry Park Hot Springs. I had never been on this trail and rarely run with other people so I was stoked to get on the trail with Rich. We maintained a fairly even pace on the ascent, hiking most of the uphills. The trail started out nice and smooth and easy to run for the first 3 miles before it got rockier on the last 2 up to Summit Park. There were some nice views from the top so we scrambled around on the rocky high point for a few minutes before the return trip. The return trip went by quickly and I felt great when we wrapped it up.
Weekly mileage: 30.69 miles.
In tapering mode for the Silver Rush 50 (which is only 46 miles) so I'm easing up on how hard I run while still getting in some quality runs. Got to go out for over 2 hours on the Fourth and go in 3 hours today. I'll rest tomorrow and run very lightly the middle of the week before taking a couple days off before the race. Overall, I'm feeling really good and with a week of rest on my legs, I think I can finish the race in under 10 hours.
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
11 day Summary: June 23 - July 3
6/23 - ~12 miles. Alameda, Ca. Ran from Alameda over to Bay Farm Island and back to Sommai's house. Just a nice, slow, long run along the bay shorline. Felt incredible to run long at sea level and I would have been up to keep going and going if not for aggravating the sore spot on my right forefoot, again. I was wearing the La Sportiva Vertical Ks and decided to not wear them any more after that run. The lack of a rock plate in the sole just doesn't work for me. Sick run, anyway. The highlight was running by the rasta who asked, "How far is it?" I just replied, "I don't even know."
6/24 - Off. Flew back to Colorado
6/25 - Off.
6/26 - Off.
6/27 - Off.
6/28 - 3.59 miles. :41:25.
6/29 - 6 miles.
6/30 - Rest.
7/1 - 12 miles. 2,540'v. 2:47:12. Mandall Pass Trail. An awesome high-altitude ascent/descent on somewhat techy single track up to Mandall Pass in the Flat Tops Wilderness Area. 1:27:04 on the run up to the pass and :59:45 for the descent (2:26:49 round trip). The trail was dry but there were numerous water crossings and lingering snow near the pass summit at just over 11,000'. At the top of the pass, I hiked higher up onto the Flat Tops and checked out the vistas for a few minutes before beginning the return trip. I carried two 21 oz. water bottles and several gels, a couple clementines, a banana and a cashews/dried blueberries, anticipating a longer run (it was my first time on this trail and I didn't know the exact mileage.) but did the run on 3 gels and both water bottles. I also carried a SteriPen to treat my water if I was going to drink from streams. Overall, a fantastic run and, as far as I know, a Fastest Known Time for ascending and descending the trail.
7/2 - 4 miles. Stagecoach. Relaxed run down to the fire house and up to the dirt road to South Shore before turning around and running some trail back to the house. Broke in the new Montrail Rogue Racers and they are crazy comfortable.
7/3 - 6 or 7 miles. Spring Creek Trail. Nice after work run from JDs house to the trail and out a couple miles on a lollipop loop. Added the "Elevator Shaft" ascent into the run for a steep hike. Legs felt great on this run and so did the Rogue Racers. I'm looking forward to seeing how the shoes perform in Leadville in a couple weeks.
Last 11 days mileage: ~44 miles.
It took a few days after returning from California to get back into the swing of things. I gained quite a few extra pounds while I was in vacation/wedding mode but I've already forgiven myself for all the delicious food I ate while we there. Now that I've gotten a few miles in my legs, I'm starting to feel my form returning and I'm getting a little hungrier to race again. Which is good considering I haven't really been thinking about this race much in the last month and fell off my running schedule for several weeks. The idea for the next week is to just keep the running light and taper a bit leading up to the Leadville Silver Rush 50 on July 15th.
6/24 - Off. Flew back to Colorado
6/25 - Off.
6/26 - Off.
6/27 - Off.
6/28 - 3.59 miles. :41:25.
6/29 - 6 miles.
6/30 - Rest.
7/1 - 12 miles. 2,540'v. 2:47:12. Mandall Pass Trail. An awesome high-altitude ascent/descent on somewhat techy single track up to Mandall Pass in the Flat Tops Wilderness Area. 1:27:04 on the run up to the pass and :59:45 for the descent (2:26:49 round trip). The trail was dry but there were numerous water crossings and lingering snow near the pass summit at just over 11,000'. At the top of the pass, I hiked higher up onto the Flat Tops and checked out the vistas for a few minutes before beginning the return trip. I carried two 21 oz. water bottles and several gels, a couple clementines, a banana and a cashews/dried blueberries, anticipating a longer run (it was my first time on this trail and I didn't know the exact mileage.) but did the run on 3 gels and both water bottles. I also carried a SteriPen to treat my water if I was going to drink from streams. Overall, a fantastic run and, as far as I know, a Fastest Known Time for ascending and descending the trail.
7/2 - 4 miles. Stagecoach. Relaxed run down to the fire house and up to the dirt road to South Shore before turning around and running some trail back to the house. Broke in the new Montrail Rogue Racers and they are crazy comfortable.
7/3 - 6 or 7 miles. Spring Creek Trail. Nice after work run from JDs house to the trail and out a couple miles on a lollipop loop. Added the "Elevator Shaft" ascent into the run for a steep hike. Legs felt great on this run and so did the Rogue Racers. I'm looking forward to seeing how the shoes perform in Leadville in a couple weeks.
Last 11 days mileage: ~44 miles.
It took a few days after returning from California to get back into the swing of things. I gained quite a few extra pounds while I was in vacation/wedding mode but I've already forgiven myself for all the delicious food I ate while we there. Now that I've gotten a few miles in my legs, I'm starting to feel my form returning and I'm getting a little hungrier to race again. Which is good considering I haven't really been thinking about this race much in the last month and fell off my running schedule for several weeks. The idea for the next week is to just keep the running light and taper a bit leading up to the Leadville Silver Rush 50 on July 15th.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Weekly Summary: Jun 9 - Jun 17
6/9 - 3.76 miles. 1:13:34. Stagecoach Mountain. Up to The Beach and back.
6/10 - Off.
6/11 - 5.46 miles. :49:33. Stagecoach.
6/12 - 5.29 miles. :46:38. Stagecoach.
6/13 - Off.
6/14- 7.37 miles. 1:01:28. Stagecoach. My best run in the last couple of weeks since stepping on that damn rock in my La Sportiva Vertical Ks, which have no rock plate. I wore my heavy ass Salomon XAs since they are like light hikers with a ton of underfoot protection. I ran from the house down to Elk Run Trail by the lake and ran the south shore for a few miles. The highlight was watching a bald eagle launch from the sage brush just 50 feet from me and glide out over the lake. Just beautiful.
6/15 - 3.61 miles. :38:39. Mad Creek Trail. Easy running out to the barn and back.
6/16 - 20.54 miles. 4:30:59. 3500'++. Thunderhead Hiking Trail - Chisolm Trail - Storm Peak Challenge - Mountain View Trail - Fish Creek Falls Trail - Fish Creek Falls Blvd. I ran the hellaciously tough first 20 miles of the Run Rabbit Run 100 course this morning. Five gnarly miles to the top of Storm Peak had me regretting not bringing my trekking poles and deciding that I will absolutely be starting the race with them. My split to Storm Summit was a humbling 1:33:14 for 5.28 miles! After a five minute break to eat, I started down Mountain View Trail where I found a few downed trees, another trail runner and a sweet, painful blister on the top of my left foot. That slowed me down a bit so my split time to the Fish Creek Falls Trail junction was 1:16 for 6.38 miles. Another quick break to eat again and adjust my shoes and I was off for the 3000', 5.5 mile descent on Fish Creek. I started seeing people hiking the trail when I hit the second falls and by the time I got to the first falls I determined that I had seen about 30 people. That leg took 1:06. By the time I hit the trail head, I drank all the water in my hydration bladder and my water bottle so I filled up the water bottle for the last 3 miles on the road back to downtown. It was really warming up by then and it only took those 3 miles to drain the whole bottle.
6/17 - Off.
Last week, I took more time off to let my foot heal since the point tenderness in my forefoot was still lingering. Fortunately, it's been feeling better and my motivation returned so I was able to ramp the mileage back up this week and get in what will probably be my last long run before next month's Leadville Silver Rush 50. And a challenging long run it was: 4 and half hours to do 20 miles! So much more technical trail than I remembered from those trails in the past. Run Rabbit Run is going to be no joke. However, focusing on the immediate future, we're leaving for the Bay Area on Monday and I'm looking forward to spending the next week at sea level for some mellow runs and a great time with family as Katy and I have our wedding at the Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park.
6/10 - Off.
6/11 - 5.46 miles. :49:33. Stagecoach.
6/12 - 5.29 miles. :46:38. Stagecoach.
6/13 - Off.
6/14- 7.37 miles. 1:01:28. Stagecoach. My best run in the last couple of weeks since stepping on that damn rock in my La Sportiva Vertical Ks, which have no rock plate. I wore my heavy ass Salomon XAs since they are like light hikers with a ton of underfoot protection. I ran from the house down to Elk Run Trail by the lake and ran the south shore for a few miles. The highlight was watching a bald eagle launch from the sage brush just 50 feet from me and glide out over the lake. Just beautiful.
6/15 - 3.61 miles. :38:39. Mad Creek Trail. Easy running out to the barn and back.
6/16 - 20.54 miles. 4:30:59. 3500'++. Thunderhead Hiking Trail - Chisolm Trail - Storm Peak Challenge - Mountain View Trail - Fish Creek Falls Trail - Fish Creek Falls Blvd. I ran the hellaciously tough first 20 miles of the Run Rabbit Run 100 course this morning. Five gnarly miles to the top of Storm Peak had me regretting not bringing my trekking poles and deciding that I will absolutely be starting the race with them. My split to Storm Summit was a humbling 1:33:14 for 5.28 miles! After a five minute break to eat, I started down Mountain View Trail where I found a few downed trees, another trail runner and a sweet, painful blister on the top of my left foot. That slowed me down a bit so my split time to the Fish Creek Falls Trail junction was 1:16 for 6.38 miles. Another quick break to eat again and adjust my shoes and I was off for the 3000', 5.5 mile descent on Fish Creek. I started seeing people hiking the trail when I hit the second falls and by the time I got to the first falls I determined that I had seen about 30 people. That leg took 1:06. By the time I hit the trail head, I drank all the water in my hydration bladder and my water bottle so I filled up the water bottle for the last 3 miles on the road back to downtown. It was really warming up by then and it only took those 3 miles to drain the whole bottle.
6/17 - Off.
Last week, I took more time off to let my foot heal since the point tenderness in my forefoot was still lingering. Fortunately, it's been feeling better and my motivation returned so I was able to ramp the mileage back up this week and get in what will probably be my last long run before next month's Leadville Silver Rush 50. And a challenging long run it was: 4 and half hours to do 20 miles! So much more technical trail than I remembered from those trails in the past. Run Rabbit Run is going to be no joke. However, focusing on the immediate future, we're leaving for the Bay Area on Monday and I'm looking forward to spending the next week at sea level for some mellow runs and a great time with family as Katy and I have our wedding at the Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park.
Monday, May 28, 2012
Weekly Summary: May 21 - May 28
5/21 - Rest.
5/22 - 6 miles. 1000'. Steamboat Ski Area. Ran 10 minutes to warm up from The Lodge thru the base area and up Right of Way to Thunderhead. From there, I did 5-minute hill intervals on Why Not Road up to Vagabond saddle (where the tepee is in the winter) before turning around and continuing intervals all the back to The Lodge. Pretty hard effort both uphill and down for my first "speed work" session of the year. My aerobic base is in good order after a solid winter/early spring of gradual build ups so I figure it is time to start adding some anerobic workouts.
5/23 - 7 miles. 700'. Spring Creek Trail. Nice and easy steady state recovery run in some cool, wet weather on Spring Creek. Kept the effort on the flats and downhills at 8 min/mile and did all the climbs without any hard breathing.
5/24 - 7 miles. 400'. Stagecoach. A couple downhill miles warming up at 8:30 min/mile, then 3 miles steady at 7:00 min/mile on Elk Run Trail next to the lake. Uphill back to the house at 8-9:30 min/mile. Solid effort.
5/25 - Rest.
5/26 - 2.5 hours. 3000'. Howelsen Hill, Emerald Mountain - Larry's - Quarry Mountain Trail - Ridge Trail (out) - Ridge Trail - Lane of Pain -Little Moab-Blackmere Drive-Howlesen Base area -roads (in). Tough, hilly run from downtown over Emerald Mountain on several trails and out towards Cow Creek on the Ridge Trail. Many, many healthy climbs this day, starting with Howelsen Hill face. Ridiculous climbing at some points. Ran some good wooded single track on the ascent up Emerald with a couple of open meadows on the way. Once on top of Emerald there are several brutally steep climbs afterward before finally hitting a couple miles of meandering downhill on the way out to Cow Creek. It was warm and I went through a lot of water. Long, long downhill from the top of Emerald via Lane of Pain, Little Moab and Blackmere Drive.
5/27 - 6 miles. Stagecoach. Route County Road 18. - Easy effort across the dam and down the road for a few miles. Super windy day and a little chilly.
5/28 - 12 miles. 1980'v. "Mad Creek" (Swamp Park) Trail. Six miles of gradual uphill on Mad Creek until I reached it's junction with Red Dirt. Along the way, I crossed the creek a couple of times, spotted a deer and power hiked most of the ascent with trekking poles. About 1:15 to the turnaround 6.2 miles up trail. I ran just about every step downhill except for the most technical footing parts. The trail is almost entirely in the woods with only a few small meadows and follows the creek the whole way and, aside from about a dozen really technical sections, is really smooth track. Very easy to run on.
8 day total: 50 miles. 6080'v.
A decent amount of miles and vertical this week made for some good running. Almost all of it on trails, which makes me even happier. Just more or less trying to mix it up and make sure my runs are fun and challenging with a little rest and easy recovery runs thrown in.
5/22 - 6 miles. 1000'. Steamboat Ski Area. Ran 10 minutes to warm up from The Lodge thru the base area and up Right of Way to Thunderhead. From there, I did 5-minute hill intervals on Why Not Road up to Vagabond saddle (where the tepee is in the winter) before turning around and continuing intervals all the back to The Lodge. Pretty hard effort both uphill and down for my first "speed work" session of the year. My aerobic base is in good order after a solid winter/early spring of gradual build ups so I figure it is time to start adding some anerobic workouts.
5/23 - 7 miles. 700'. Spring Creek Trail. Nice and easy steady state recovery run in some cool, wet weather on Spring Creek. Kept the effort on the flats and downhills at 8 min/mile and did all the climbs without any hard breathing.
5/24 - 7 miles. 400'. Stagecoach. A couple downhill miles warming up at 8:30 min/mile, then 3 miles steady at 7:00 min/mile on Elk Run Trail next to the lake. Uphill back to the house at 8-9:30 min/mile. Solid effort.
5/25 - Rest.
5/26 - 2.5 hours. 3000'. Howelsen Hill, Emerald Mountain - Larry's - Quarry Mountain Trail - Ridge Trail (out) - Ridge Trail - Lane of Pain -Little Moab-Blackmere Drive-Howlesen Base area -roads (in). Tough, hilly run from downtown over Emerald Mountain on several trails and out towards Cow Creek on the Ridge Trail. Many, many healthy climbs this day, starting with Howelsen Hill face. Ridiculous climbing at some points. Ran some good wooded single track on the ascent up Emerald with a couple of open meadows on the way. Once on top of Emerald there are several brutally steep climbs afterward before finally hitting a couple miles of meandering downhill on the way out to Cow Creek. It was warm and I went through a lot of water. Long, long downhill from the top of Emerald via Lane of Pain, Little Moab and Blackmere Drive.
5/27 - 6 miles. Stagecoach. Route County Road 18. - Easy effort across the dam and down the road for a few miles. Super windy day and a little chilly.
5/28 - 12 miles. 1980'v. "Mad Creek" (Swamp Park) Trail. Six miles of gradual uphill on Mad Creek until I reached it's junction with Red Dirt. Along the way, I crossed the creek a couple of times, spotted a deer and power hiked most of the ascent with trekking poles. About 1:15 to the turnaround 6.2 miles up trail. I ran just about every step downhill except for the most technical footing parts. The trail is almost entirely in the woods with only a few small meadows and follows the creek the whole way and, aside from about a dozen really technical sections, is really smooth track. Very easy to run on.
8 day total: 50 miles. 6080'v.
A decent amount of miles and vertical this week made for some good running. Almost all of it on trails, which makes me even happier. Just more or less trying to mix it up and make sure my runs are fun and challenging with a little rest and easy recovery runs thrown in.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Desert RATS 25 miler Race Report
Ironically, it took not going for a run today to allow me the time to write a race report for last Saturday's outing, which turned out quite well. I headed down to the Grand Junction area on late Friday afternoon with Aaron Baker, who was cool enough to invite me to stay at his parent's house for the weekend. The drive down was stunning as we paralleled the Colorado River and Aaron's company was hilarious, as usual. We fueled up on some delicious Mexican food courtesy of Los Jilberto's and I got a great night sleep in a comfortable bed, rather than sleeping in my truck.
I woke up around 4:30 a.m., early enough to get to the race start area, check in and then run a couple miles on the course to warm up. I returned to the start area, grabbed my vest and water bottles, took a few pictures and jumped into the last quarter of the pack of about 200 runners (both 25 and 50 mile racers). The first mile was on a wide gravel road and I slowly worked my way to mid-pack before the course turned onto single track. I kept the pace very manageable but still found myself moving faster than the people I was running with, so I picked my way past small groups when the trail was wide enough. After passing one small group, I heard someone whine, "Let people know what side you're passing on!" Gee, I thought this was a race. "Right on." I replied. The climb continued on for about a mile before we hit an awesome rolling, technical, slick rock section that went on for 3-4 miles. After cresting the ridge, the views of canyons and the Colorado River below were spectacular. I was still able to pass every now and then but I noticed myself being overly cautious about passing when OW! I rolled my right ankle and heard it make a popping sound. The pain was immediate and I started to consider dropping from the race before I even hit the first aid station. Damn. Not an auspicious beginning. I slowed a bit but kept moving and reassessing whether or not my ankle was OK to continue and finish. As I ran into the first aid station, I decided to keep going and see how things would play out. On the next climb, I felt like the pain would be manageable and was determined to finish. After that, I would only experience an occasional sharp pain when I ran downhill. I decided to just stick to my original plan and run slow, hike all the hills, take some pictures, enjoy the views and concentrate on staying hydrated and nourished.
From there, my run played out really well and I felt good the rest of the morning (with the exception of my ankle and, later, my tender feet). I had started eating gels after the first half hour and continued eating one every 45 minutes as well as drinking water quite often and eating something quickly at each aid station (chips, a banana, M&Ms, etc.). As a result, my energy levels never decreased and I didn't get tired during the race. I maintained a moderate pace that was still fast enough for me to keep catching small groups of runners, pass them, then keep working away until I got to the next group. The beautiful desert rock kept me inspired the entire time. Around the 10 mile mark, I hiked, then ran, for a couple miles with a guy named Rob (Ganger) from the Denver suburb of Englewood and struck up a conversation. It turns out that he will be running all of the ultra-trail races that I'm doing this summer. I enjoyed his company and the pace he was running so it was a pleasant to continue with him for half an hour or so. He was doing the 50 miler, so his pace was a little slower and I passed him in the late teen miles and pressed on by myself. Around the 20 mile mark, I hit another aid station, where I had my water bottle filled for the third time and also had my electrolyte bottle filled. The morning had been pretty cool but it was starting to warm into the high 70s/low 80s, which felt quite warm to me. After that, the course began it's last major climb, about 800 feet back to the top of the Mack Ridge. I was still feeling so good that I reeled in at least 6 more runners before hitting the top. It was clear to me that staying fueled early was really paying dividends at this point in the race. Everyone I passed looked so fatigued and was really struggling. One guy pleaded, "I'm a road runner!" as he slowly hiked up the rocky trail. I couldn't help but feel like I knew something that my contemporaries were not privy to, so I just kept the tempo even. The only issues I had at this point were that my feet were feeling pretty tender from miles of rocky trail that I wasn't quite accustomed to after running on dirt roads and snow all winter. The final descent, perhaps a mile and a half or so and very technical and steep was a little painful and I was glad to get back to the last mile of gravel road as it was just slightly less rough on my feet. As I neared the finish, I didn't really charge to the end like I usually do, but rather casually jogged it in, wondering if I should do the 3 extra miles I had planned on doing before the race started. I did about a half mile and decided I just wanted to stop, relax and enjoy the scene at the start/finish area. I milled about, ate some post-race food and talked it up with some of the other runners. When I saw Rob going back out on his second lap, I ran out to wish him luck and told him I'd be looking for him at a future race. I stayed around for another half hour or so, took some more pictures then decided it was getting too hot out for me and it was time to head out and begin my recovery.
In all, it was another wonderful celebration of running and worth the time and energy to come and run in another beautiful Colorado location. I ended up with a 28.29 mile/5:04:30 total effort and race result of 25.5 miles/4000+' in 4 hours, 22 minutes. In the following days, my quadraceps were very sore but I've recovered nicely and went for a hike/run last night for about 45 minutes. Since Quad Rock is in only 3 weeks, my plan from here is to get some decent 2-3 hour runs in the next two weekends and keep my weekday maintenance runs very modest or just rest altogether. At this point in my training, most of my fitness base is already set, so I don't have anything to gain by running hard, especially so close to doing a 50 miler. Looking ahead, I think Quad Rock is going to be a really tough race, with alot of elevation change (+/- 11,000') and, probably, high temperatures, so it could turn into a death march if I'm not careful!
I woke up around 4:30 a.m., early enough to get to the race start area, check in and then run a couple miles on the course to warm up. I returned to the start area, grabbed my vest and water bottles, took a few pictures and jumped into the last quarter of the pack of about 200 runners (both 25 and 50 mile racers). The first mile was on a wide gravel road and I slowly worked my way to mid-pack before the course turned onto single track. I kept the pace very manageable but still found myself moving faster than the people I was running with, so I picked my way past small groups when the trail was wide enough. After passing one small group, I heard someone whine, "Let people know what side you're passing on!" Gee, I thought this was a race. "Right on." I replied. The climb continued on for about a mile before we hit an awesome rolling, technical, slick rock section that went on for 3-4 miles. After cresting the ridge, the views of canyons and the Colorado River below were spectacular. I was still able to pass every now and then but I noticed myself being overly cautious about passing when OW! I rolled my right ankle and heard it make a popping sound. The pain was immediate and I started to consider dropping from the race before I even hit the first aid station. Damn. Not an auspicious beginning. I slowed a bit but kept moving and reassessing whether or not my ankle was OK to continue and finish. As I ran into the first aid station, I decided to keep going and see how things would play out. On the next climb, I felt like the pain would be manageable and was determined to finish. After that, I would only experience an occasional sharp pain when I ran downhill. I decided to just stick to my original plan and run slow, hike all the hills, take some pictures, enjoy the views and concentrate on staying hydrated and nourished.
From there, my run played out really well and I felt good the rest of the morning (with the exception of my ankle and, later, my tender feet). I had started eating gels after the first half hour and continued eating one every 45 minutes as well as drinking water quite often and eating something quickly at each aid station (chips, a banana, M&Ms, etc.). As a result, my energy levels never decreased and I didn't get tired during the race. I maintained a moderate pace that was still fast enough for me to keep catching small groups of runners, pass them, then keep working away until I got to the next group. The beautiful desert rock kept me inspired the entire time. Around the 10 mile mark, I hiked, then ran, for a couple miles with a guy named Rob (Ganger) from the Denver suburb of Englewood and struck up a conversation. It turns out that he will be running all of the ultra-trail races that I'm doing this summer. I enjoyed his company and the pace he was running so it was a pleasant to continue with him for half an hour or so. He was doing the 50 miler, so his pace was a little slower and I passed him in the late teen miles and pressed on by myself. Around the 20 mile mark, I hit another aid station, where I had my water bottle filled for the third time and also had my electrolyte bottle filled. The morning had been pretty cool but it was starting to warm into the high 70s/low 80s, which felt quite warm to me. After that, the course began it's last major climb, about 800 feet back to the top of the Mack Ridge. I was still feeling so good that I reeled in at least 6 more runners before hitting the top. It was clear to me that staying fueled early was really paying dividends at this point in the race. Everyone I passed looked so fatigued and was really struggling. One guy pleaded, "I'm a road runner!" as he slowly hiked up the rocky trail. I couldn't help but feel like I knew something that my contemporaries were not privy to, so I just kept the tempo even. The only issues I had at this point were that my feet were feeling pretty tender from miles of rocky trail that I wasn't quite accustomed to after running on dirt roads and snow all winter. The final descent, perhaps a mile and a half or so and very technical and steep was a little painful and I was glad to get back to the last mile of gravel road as it was just slightly less rough on my feet. As I neared the finish, I didn't really charge to the end like I usually do, but rather casually jogged it in, wondering if I should do the 3 extra miles I had planned on doing before the race started. I did about a half mile and decided I just wanted to stop, relax and enjoy the scene at the start/finish area. I milled about, ate some post-race food and talked it up with some of the other runners. When I saw Rob going back out on his second lap, I ran out to wish him luck and told him I'd be looking for him at a future race. I stayed around for another half hour or so, took some more pictures then decided it was getting too hot out for me and it was time to head out and begin my recovery.
In all, it was another wonderful celebration of running and worth the time and energy to come and run in another beautiful Colorado location. I ended up with a 28.29 mile/5:04:30 total effort and race result of 25.5 miles/4000+' in 4 hours, 22 minutes. In the following days, my quadraceps were very sore but I've recovered nicely and went for a hike/run last night for about 45 minutes. Since Quad Rock is in only 3 weeks, my plan from here is to get some decent 2-3 hour runs in the next two weekends and keep my weekday maintenance runs very modest or just rest altogether. At this point in my training, most of my fitness base is already set, so I don't have anything to gain by running hard, especially so close to doing a 50 miler. Looking ahead, I think Quad Rock is going to be a really tough race, with alot of elevation change (+/- 11,000') and, probably, high temperatures, so it could turn into a death march if I'm not careful!
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Weekly Summary: Apr. 9 - Apr. 15
4/9 - Rest.
4/10 - 6.84 miles. :56:29. Stagecoach. PM. Little after-work rally.
4/11 - 4.96 miles. :45:32. Stagecoach. PM.
4/12 - Rest.
4/13 - Rest.
4/14 - 11.18 miles. 1:37:01. Stagecoach. AM. Colder and cloudy morning after a little snow last night. Ran down to the south shore of the reservoir before jumping on Elk Run Trail. Then, ran out to CR 14, got a little hill workout and turned around and worked my way back home. Did some pretty uptempo running at times but cut back on the distance so that I might go a little farther tomorrow when the trails finally open up. Running is sometimes my chance to be alone and introspective and think about what's important to me and the things in my life that deserve contemplation. Lately, things have been getting interesting and today, I needed to run more for mental health than physical. While I ran this morning, I couldn't help but wonder if I was a runner because I want to run from the demons of my past. Certainly, when I'm on the trail or road, I feel like I'm putting my problems behind me, but, in truth, I'm only putting them off. Hopefully, the time I use to sort them out translates into action.
4/15 - 11+ miles. 1:47:11. 1000'+. Spring Creek Trail. PM. Four minutes warming up on the way to the trail head then a steady effort to within a mile of Dry Lake. Then, quick 4.9 mile effort back down to the trail head and easy again for a .7 mile cool down. Super glad to be running on single track again and Spring Creek is some of the best. I got to experience all four seasons in under two hours as I started out in some cool, semi-cloudy weather and ran through a couple of snow squalls and finished in the sun. The trail was in perfect shape. Tacky dirt and rocks, mostly, a little mud and a few puddles and two short snow sections between the last couple bridges. I love running in the mountains.
Total: 34 miles.
Well, I blew it this week...sort of. For over a month now, I've been planning on going to Fruita this weekend to run a 25 mile race, only to find out on Thursday that the race is actually NEXT week. What a bonehead! Anyway, I turned this week into a tapering week, took a little more rest and reduced my mileage so that I might run a little harder next weekend instead of just doing a training run. Then, it's another easy week followed by a 3-week build up culminating at the Quad Rock 50 in Ft. Collins.
4/10 - 6.84 miles. :56:29. Stagecoach. PM. Little after-work rally.
4/11 - 4.96 miles. :45:32. Stagecoach. PM.
4/12 - Rest.
4/13 - Rest.
4/14 - 11.18 miles. 1:37:01. Stagecoach. AM. Colder and cloudy morning after a little snow last night. Ran down to the south shore of the reservoir before jumping on Elk Run Trail. Then, ran out to CR 14, got a little hill workout and turned around and worked my way back home. Did some pretty uptempo running at times but cut back on the distance so that I might go a little farther tomorrow when the trails finally open up. Running is sometimes my chance to be alone and introspective and think about what's important to me and the things in my life that deserve contemplation. Lately, things have been getting interesting and today, I needed to run more for mental health than physical. While I ran this morning, I couldn't help but wonder if I was a runner because I want to run from the demons of my past. Certainly, when I'm on the trail or road, I feel like I'm putting my problems behind me, but, in truth, I'm only putting them off. Hopefully, the time I use to sort them out translates into action.
4/15 - 11+ miles. 1:47:11. 1000'+. Spring Creek Trail. PM. Four minutes warming up on the way to the trail head then a steady effort to within a mile of Dry Lake. Then, quick 4.9 mile effort back down to the trail head and easy again for a .7 mile cool down. Super glad to be running on single track again and Spring Creek is some of the best. I got to experience all four seasons in under two hours as I started out in some cool, semi-cloudy weather and ran through a couple of snow squalls and finished in the sun. The trail was in perfect shape. Tacky dirt and rocks, mostly, a little mud and a few puddles and two short snow sections between the last couple bridges. I love running in the mountains.
Total: 34 miles.
Well, I blew it this week...sort of. For over a month now, I've been planning on going to Fruita this weekend to run a 25 mile race, only to find out on Thursday that the race is actually NEXT week. What a bonehead! Anyway, I turned this week into a tapering week, took a little more rest and reduced my mileage so that I might run a little harder next weekend instead of just doing a training run. Then, it's another easy week followed by a 3-week build up culminating at the Quad Rock 50 in Ft. Collins.
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Week.ly Summary: Apr 2 - Apr 8
4/2 - Off.
4/3 - 7.00 miles. :57:47. Stagecoach. PM. Down to Elk Run Trail on the south shore of the lake. Up tempo running on the rolling, gravel trail.
4/4 - 5.01 miles. :47:14. Howelsen Hill. PM. Short but hard effort run on the quickly-drying trails on Howelsen. I got reminded how steep trails can get especially compared to the flat roads I've been running this winter.
4/5 - 5.67 miles. :57:11. Stagecoach. PM. Easy out and back on trails and dirt roads around Stagecoach. Then did another mile of slow running in Vibram Five Fingers.
4/6 - Rest.
4/7 - 18.33 miles. 3:00:05. Stagecoach. AM. Long lollipop loop run around the lake from the house. Fueled my run with ClifBloks and gels, taking one gel every hour and Bloks every half an hour, roughly. One 22 oz. bottle of water, one 18 oz. bottle of Gatorade. Cold morning had me starting out with a vest over my long sleeve shirt but I warmed up enough to take off the vest, my beanie and gloves by the time I hit the lake (4 miles). The run around the lake was primarily on nice, wide dirt trail, with a couple miles of dirt road and I took an even, comfortable, cruising pace. Felt strong right up to the end. I'm looking forward to getting 31 miles in the desert next weekend.
4/8 - 5.74 miles. 1:13:19. Spring Creek Trail. PM. Early afternoon trail run with Benihana.Great run for me and the dog, I had great tacky footing and he got to wade in the creek several times, which is pretty important if you're a Husky. Easy running on the warm up and cool down miles with only about 1.5 miles of uptempo running in the middle. Beautiful spring day. A little barefoot running in the grass afterwards.
Weekly Total: 41.75 miles
Another solid week. I'm stoked to be: healthy, getting quality miles, plenty of rest, eating well, in love and generally, very happy. I'm really looking forward to heading to Fruita next Friday, not just to go running in the desert but also to just be around other runners and attend my first Desert RATS Trail Running Festival. I guess the race is also known as the Spring Desert Ultra or Fruita 50, if you're doing the big boys' run. Even though I'm only doing the 25 mile race but technically running an ultra that day (with my 6 bonus training miles), I guess I can call the race by that name, too. And even though it is just a training run for me, it's exciting to have the trail running season underway. Next weekend, local trails will also be opening up and, thanks in no small part to our dry winter, be very runnable, at least up to 8,500'. That gives me a full 4 months of running on trails in preparation for RRR. I can't help but think that in that time I might be able to get into good enough shape to run in the front of the Tortoise pack and finish around 24 hours. For my first 100-miler, I really shouldn't be thinking about that, I should just focus on finishing.
4/3 - 7.00 miles. :57:47. Stagecoach. PM. Down to Elk Run Trail on the south shore of the lake. Up tempo running on the rolling, gravel trail.
4/4 - 5.01 miles. :47:14. Howelsen Hill. PM. Short but hard effort run on the quickly-drying trails on Howelsen. I got reminded how steep trails can get especially compared to the flat roads I've been running this winter.
4/5 - 5.67 miles. :57:11. Stagecoach. PM. Easy out and back on trails and dirt roads around Stagecoach. Then did another mile of slow running in Vibram Five Fingers.
4/6 - Rest.
4/7 - 18.33 miles. 3:00:05. Stagecoach. AM. Long lollipop loop run around the lake from the house. Fueled my run with ClifBloks and gels, taking one gel every hour and Bloks every half an hour, roughly. One 22 oz. bottle of water, one 18 oz. bottle of Gatorade. Cold morning had me starting out with a vest over my long sleeve shirt but I warmed up enough to take off the vest, my beanie and gloves by the time I hit the lake (4 miles). The run around the lake was primarily on nice, wide dirt trail, with a couple miles of dirt road and I took an even, comfortable, cruising pace. Felt strong right up to the end. I'm looking forward to getting 31 miles in the desert next weekend.
4/8 - 5.74 miles. 1:13:19. Spring Creek Trail. PM. Early afternoon trail run with Benihana.Great run for me and the dog, I had great tacky footing and he got to wade in the creek several times, which is pretty important if you're a Husky. Easy running on the warm up and cool down miles with only about 1.5 miles of uptempo running in the middle. Beautiful spring day. A little barefoot running in the grass afterwards.
Weekly Total: 41.75 miles
Another solid week. I'm stoked to be: healthy, getting quality miles, plenty of rest, eating well, in love and generally, very happy. I'm really looking forward to heading to Fruita next Friday, not just to go running in the desert but also to just be around other runners and attend my first Desert RATS Trail Running Festival. I guess the race is also known as the Spring Desert Ultra or Fruita 50, if you're doing the big boys' run. Even though I'm only doing the 25 mile race but technically running an ultra that day (with my 6 bonus training miles), I guess I can call the race by that name, too. And even though it is just a training run for me, it's exciting to have the trail running season underway. Next weekend, local trails will also be opening up and, thanks in no small part to our dry winter, be very runnable, at least up to 8,500'. That gives me a full 4 months of running on trails in preparation for RRR. I can't help but think that in that time I might be able to get into good enough shape to run in the front of the Tortoise pack and finish around 24 hours. For my first 100-miler, I really shouldn't be thinking about that, I should just focus on finishing.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Weekly Summary: Mar 26 - Apr 1
3/26 - Rest.
3/27 - 7.18 miles. 1:07.12. Stagecoach. PM.
3/28 - 2.80 miles. 1000'v. 1:00:38. Stagecoach. PM. Snow run up Stagecoach Mountain with Benihana as a farewell to winter. Super punchy and actually pretty brutal conditions. Thrashed my shins up pretty good punching through the spring snow. Which, although deep in spots, won't be around much longer. It's amazing how fast it's all melted. I think it only took a little over a week. If it weren't for snowmaking, I don't think there would be any snow below the gondola. In my few years here, I've certainly never seen anything like it and from what I've gathered, you'd have to go back quite a few years (like a hundred) to find a winter so dry. I'm all good with it as a trail runner but I don't want to see the forests burn this summer because we have no water.
3/29 - Rest.
3/30 - Rest.
3/31 - 12.83 miles. Stagecoach. PM. My GPS battery died about a mile into my run so I had the opportunity to run for a couple of hours by feel instead of checking my pace/distance/time constantly. I found it rather liberating. I ate two Clif Shot gels and a clementine and drank almost a full 21 oz. bottle of water and a little more than half a bottle of Gatorade. It was a fairly warm day, probably in the 60s, and mostly sunny and breezy as I ran on dirt trails and roads around a quickly thawing Stagecoach Reservoir.
4/1 - 14.05 miles. 2:08:31. Stagecoach. AM. Ran the same route as yesterday to measure the loop. Then did a little over a mile on the road and some trail wearing the Vibram Five Fingers. Ate two gels and a clementine (again) and drank about 3/4 of my water bottle and half a bottle of Gatorade.
Weekly Mileage: 36.86
Took an extra day off, did a snow run this week and did back to back long runs on the weekend. Felt good to mix it up and spend a little more time at home. I like that. Looking forward to the Desert RATS race in Fruita in a couple of weeks. It'll be a nice quick getaway and cool running in the desert. I need to make sure I figure out what food I'm going to carry. I'll need to carry 6-8 gels also and two water bottles, one with water and one Gatorade. I'll refill at every aid station. I probably won't carry water on my back unless it's really warm. I'm not going to set a time oriented goal, but rather just run an even, conservative, comfortable pace.
After that, I should be able to start logging a ton of trail mileage through the rest of April and early May in preparation for Quad Rock. I have a feeling it's going to be pretty warm in Fort Collins in mid-May.
Also, I officially registered to run the Silver Rush 50 miler in Leadville in July. It'll be a tune up race for Run Rabbit Run and I think it's far enough out from RRR that I can actually race it. The course is at high altitude (10,000 - 12,000') but is on alot of runnable roads so a smart race could result in a PR. I would be really happy if that PR were under 10-hours. After that, I think I will pass on a couple of races (probably still run Continental Divide) in August in favor of a couple long runs in the Flat Tops and the Zirkels and then start my taper the last week of the month.
3/27 - 7.18 miles. 1:07.12. Stagecoach. PM.
3/28 - 2.80 miles. 1000'v. 1:00:38. Stagecoach. PM. Snow run up Stagecoach Mountain with Benihana as a farewell to winter. Super punchy and actually pretty brutal conditions. Thrashed my shins up pretty good punching through the spring snow. Which, although deep in spots, won't be around much longer. It's amazing how fast it's all melted. I think it only took a little over a week. If it weren't for snowmaking, I don't think there would be any snow below the gondola. In my few years here, I've certainly never seen anything like it and from what I've gathered, you'd have to go back quite a few years (like a hundred) to find a winter so dry. I'm all good with it as a trail runner but I don't want to see the forests burn this summer because we have no water.
3/29 - Rest.
3/30 - Rest.
3/31 - 12.83 miles. Stagecoach. PM. My GPS battery died about a mile into my run so I had the opportunity to run for a couple of hours by feel instead of checking my pace/distance/time constantly. I found it rather liberating. I ate two Clif Shot gels and a clementine and drank almost a full 21 oz. bottle of water and a little more than half a bottle of Gatorade. It was a fairly warm day, probably in the 60s, and mostly sunny and breezy as I ran on dirt trails and roads around a quickly thawing Stagecoach Reservoir.
4/1 - 14.05 miles. 2:08:31. Stagecoach. AM. Ran the same route as yesterday to measure the loop. Then did a little over a mile on the road and some trail wearing the Vibram Five Fingers. Ate two gels and a clementine (again) and drank about 3/4 of my water bottle and half a bottle of Gatorade.
Weekly Mileage: 36.86
Took an extra day off, did a snow run this week and did back to back long runs on the weekend. Felt good to mix it up and spend a little more time at home. I like that. Looking forward to the Desert RATS race in Fruita in a couple of weeks. It'll be a nice quick getaway and cool running in the desert. I need to make sure I figure out what food I'm going to carry. I'll need to carry 6-8 gels also and two water bottles, one with water and one Gatorade. I'll refill at every aid station. I probably won't carry water on my back unless it's really warm. I'm not going to set a time oriented goal, but rather just run an even, conservative, comfortable pace.
After that, I should be able to start logging a ton of trail mileage through the rest of April and early May in preparation for Quad Rock. I have a feeling it's going to be pretty warm in Fort Collins in mid-May.
Also, I officially registered to run the Silver Rush 50 miler in Leadville in July. It'll be a tune up race for Run Rabbit Run and I think it's far enough out from RRR that I can actually race it. The course is at high altitude (10,000 - 12,000') but is on alot of runnable roads so a smart race could result in a PR. I would be really happy if that PR were under 10-hours. After that, I think I will pass on a couple of races (probably still run Continental Divide) in August in favor of a couple long runs in the Flat Tops and the Zirkels and then start my taper the last week of the month.
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Weekly Summary: Mar 19 - Mar 25
3/19 - Rest.
3/20 - 6.12 miles. :54:41. ~500'v. Stagecoach. PM. After work run on the first day of Spring. Yee haw! I'm stoked spring is here and can't wait for the trails to open up. That's still a month away but I'm already jonsing to run up some mountains. Today's run, on the other hand, was a relatively stale hilly 6 miler on dirt road out towards Lynx Pass. Somewhat muddy but mostly soft moist dirt. I felt so full the entire time I thought I might vomit. Before I left the shop, Bob said we'd better finish his birthday cake (from Friday) that was in the fridge and I ate a pretty big piece(s). Uh. I've got a mean sweet tooth. Anyway, couldn't shake the cake for the whole run despite trying to run fast. I drank a measly two sips of Gatorade during this one. Still, it was a beautiful sunny day in the 40s following a little bit of snow last night.
3/21 - ~5 miles. Stagecoach. PM. Super-slow cruiser run. Going to try and make my Wednesday runs at 10-15 min/mile pace as I think this will be (roughly) my "all day" pace.
3/22 - 7.31 miles. 1:11:51. Stagecoach. PM. Ran down to South Shore from the house on dirt road and trails. Can't believe how quickly everything is thawing out. I'm pretty sure I will be able to run almost any trail under 9000' by mid-April without seeing much snow (if any). Today was still mostly muddy with a little bit of snow here and there. So stoked to know that trail season is so close! Trying to figure out what shoe I want to use for ultras this year. I'm leaning toward La Sportiva's Vertical Ks, Hoka One One's Stinson B Evo and Salomon's Sense. Each shoe has a 4mm heel-toe drop, so they are all pretty minimal. The Sportivas and Hokas are light but also cushioned while the Sense is just incredibly light.
3/23 - Rest.
3/24 - 14.30 miles. 2:23:56. 1100'v. Stagecoach. PM. Just realized I was supposed to run 16 miles today. Oops. Anyway, it was a nice run around the lake on mostly wet trail or dirt road this afternoon. I saw Adam Sando, who had been fishing (of course), about 4 miles into my run and stopped to catch up with him for a few minutes. Good talk. Continued from there on the closed dirt road along the northern shore, crossed the dam, then ran some soggy trail for a couple of miles before getting back on dirt road for the last 4 miles. It was a satisfying effort and I stayed well hydrated and fueled for the entire run. Some minor soreness in the feet at the end but nothing unusual.
3/25 - 6.66 miles. 1:21:49. Stagecoach. AM. I parked at the south shore local's spot and ran across the dam and down the dirt road to Sarvis Creek with Benihana. Nice and casual run by the river at the dog's pace. A little walking here and there.
Weekly mileage: 39.33
A good reduced mileage week with a lot of easy running and I kind of felt like I needed it to recover from my last 3-week build up. After a day and a half off from running I'm hoping to start my next cycle feeling fresh. My next 3-week cycle ends with 31 miles of running in the desert down in Fruita, Colorado at the Desert Rats Trail Running Festival so I'm pretty excited about getting the season started. This first race is a training run so I won't be running my fastest, just trying to get some quality miles in under race circumstances as well as dialing in my nutrition schedule and gear.
3/20 - 6.12 miles. :54:41. ~500'v. Stagecoach. PM. After work run on the first day of Spring. Yee haw! I'm stoked spring is here and can't wait for the trails to open up. That's still a month away but I'm already jonsing to run up some mountains. Today's run, on the other hand, was a relatively stale hilly 6 miler on dirt road out towards Lynx Pass. Somewhat muddy but mostly soft moist dirt. I felt so full the entire time I thought I might vomit. Before I left the shop, Bob said we'd better finish his birthday cake (from Friday) that was in the fridge and I ate a pretty big piece(s). Uh. I've got a mean sweet tooth. Anyway, couldn't shake the cake for the whole run despite trying to run fast. I drank a measly two sips of Gatorade during this one. Still, it was a beautiful sunny day in the 40s following a little bit of snow last night.
3/21 - ~5 miles. Stagecoach. PM. Super-slow cruiser run. Going to try and make my Wednesday runs at 10-15 min/mile pace as I think this will be (roughly) my "all day" pace.
3/22 - 7.31 miles. 1:11:51. Stagecoach. PM. Ran down to South Shore from the house on dirt road and trails. Can't believe how quickly everything is thawing out. I'm pretty sure I will be able to run almost any trail under 9000' by mid-April without seeing much snow (if any). Today was still mostly muddy with a little bit of snow here and there. So stoked to know that trail season is so close! Trying to figure out what shoe I want to use for ultras this year. I'm leaning toward La Sportiva's Vertical Ks, Hoka One One's Stinson B Evo and Salomon's Sense. Each shoe has a 4mm heel-toe drop, so they are all pretty minimal. The Sportivas and Hokas are light but also cushioned while the Sense is just incredibly light.
3/23 - Rest.
3/24 - 14.30 miles. 2:23:56. 1100'v. Stagecoach. PM. Just realized I was supposed to run 16 miles today. Oops. Anyway, it was a nice run around the lake on mostly wet trail or dirt road this afternoon. I saw Adam Sando, who had been fishing (of course), about 4 miles into my run and stopped to catch up with him for a few minutes. Good talk. Continued from there on the closed dirt road along the northern shore, crossed the dam, then ran some soggy trail for a couple of miles before getting back on dirt road for the last 4 miles. It was a satisfying effort and I stayed well hydrated and fueled for the entire run. Some minor soreness in the feet at the end but nothing unusual.
3/25 - 6.66 miles. 1:21:49. Stagecoach. AM. I parked at the south shore local's spot and ran across the dam and down the dirt road to Sarvis Creek with Benihana. Nice and casual run by the river at the dog's pace. A little walking here and there.
Weekly mileage: 39.33
A good reduced mileage week with a lot of easy running and I kind of felt like I needed it to recover from my last 3-week build up. After a day and a half off from running I'm hoping to start my next cycle feeling fresh. My next 3-week cycle ends with 31 miles of running in the desert down in Fruita, Colorado at the Desert Rats Trail Running Festival so I'm pretty excited about getting the season started. This first race is a training run so I won't be running my fastest, just trying to get some quality miles in under race circumstances as well as dialing in my nutrition schedule and gear.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Weekly Summary: Mar 12 - Mar 18
3/12 - Rest.
3/13 - 7.0 miles. 1:00:04. ~450'v. Stagecoach. PM. First after work run this year that started and ended before the sun went down. After a little more than a mile of warming up, I pushed it a little hard for the next 6 miles and felt great. Especially solid effort on the last hill at the end of the run. My route went from the house down to the far end of the South Shore neighborhood and back to the house, primarily on dirt roads with a little asphalt in the beginning and end of the run.
3/14 - 4.71 miles. :58:09. Burns. PM. Katy and I drove down just north of Burns to run some dry trails. It was fun and great to be running on dirt again. We took it easy but ran some pretty hilly terrain so the effort and time on feet was more like a full 5+ miler. I wish I had brought my altimeter so that I could've calculated the altitude change, as there was certainly a few hundred feet of ups and downs. Just a little scouting mission to see if I want to come back down there this weekend to do my long run on trails and dirt roads.
3/15 - 7.59 miles. 1:03:29. Stagecoach. PM. Half-mile warm up before running 6.5 miles up-tempo on a really hilly route (CR 16 to CR 14 going towards Oak Creek and back). Finished 7 miles in :56:37 before cooling down and worked pretty hard on the uphills to keep the overall pace around 8:00/mile. I was glad to have some cows keep me company as I ran by them while they grazed. I'm thinking my full on race pace for 10K is probably around 7:15-7:30/mile these days.
3/16 - Rest.
3/17 - 24.01 miles. 3:52:37. 1,810'v. Stagecoach. AM. Decided against driving to Burns to do my long run and, instead, ran from the house out towards Lynx Pass (same as last weekend) on a county dirt road. The morning was a little on the cool side (high 30s/low 40s) and a bit cloudy but the sun eventually came out a couple hours later when I was turning around. I had the dirt road almost entirely to myself the entire time (saw one biker, one skunk, a couple of vehicles and some folks saddling up some horses) and it was sufficiently dry or muddy or frozen or rocky enough to keep it interesting. I ended up turning around after the Morrison Divide (Muddy Slide) trailhead where the road is no longer maintained in the winter. This run felt incredible and I have to credit my friend and nutritionist, Bronwyn Rittner (and my fiance, Katy, whose daily diet is impeccable and keeps me on track) for making me realize the importance of eating on a regular schedule while going on a long run and how beneficial it is to an endurance athlete. Since I started running ultras, I always knew that it was necessary to eat and drink to fuel the body for the work of going further but today's run was the first time I actually told myself, "OK, eat a gel every 45-55 minutes, sip some water every 20 minutes or so, eat more food (I made my own mix of cashews, pistachios, chocolate chips and raisins, and carried it in a small 4 oz. container) at least once an hour and drink some electrolyte replenishment (I just went with Gatorade and carried about 15 oz. in a bottle) whenever necessary." The difference it made could not have been more obvious. At no time during my run did I feel tired or a lack energy. In fact, I took a split time every 6 miles (1:02:56, :57:37, :57:41, :54:22) and ran a negative split for the second half (granted, the return was mostly downhill) and the last 6 miles nearly 9 minutes faster than the first 6 (also granted, I ran the first couple miles slow in order to warm up). I still contended with a little soreness in my core muscles toward the end, which I think is understandable over 24 miles, but really had no other physical problems and, mentally, I think I could have gone several more miles. (Of course, I don't want to imply that running this distance was effortless. As I sit here and write, my legs are getting tighter, my hamstrings and glutes are getting sore and it's getting hard to walk the first few steps every time I get up!) I cooled down over a half mile to keep my legs moving for 4:00:07 and then immediately started replenishing electrolytes and ate a small meal within an hour of finishing because it helps the body to recover faster (it's actually recommended to eat within 45 minutes to allow best/quickest absorbtion of nutrients) . Bronwyn has let me borrow her copy of "Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook" by Nancy Clark, MS, RD, which I've found very useful and informative.
3/18 - 5.40 miles. :48:55. ~400'v. Stagecoach. PM. Easy five miler around the neighborhood and back to the house with the usual hills that entails. Windy and high clouds as some weather is supposed to move in tonight and hit us with some rain and/or snow.
Weekly Total: 49.20 miles.
Finally got the mileage I was shooting for thanks to some nice weather, the time change and the discipline to go out and make it happen. Numbers aside though, the biggest breakthrough of the week (and possibly of all the endurance training I've ever done) had to do with nutrition. For the first time, since I ran my first marathon in 1992, I had a long run where I never once felt tired, physically drained or mentally fatigued and it was, quite simply and honestly, because I took the time to eat and drink on a regular schedule while I kept moving. In a six, eight or even ten mile race this isn't much of a consideration, you just need to stay hydrated, mostly. As the distance and time increase beyond that, however, it matters very much. In my past ultras and long runs, I have refueled, but never with the consistency that those activities actually require. In the past, I would go until I felt tired or hungry, then push through it for a while and eventually, eat or drink something and, sometimes, bounce back to keep going. Or, more often, just keep pushing through and finish tired, hungry, exhausted, sore and generally lucky to be alive. Finally, after years of struggling through events, I've realized that there is no reason to bonk and that "hitting the wall" is actually avoidable. To me, this is nothing short of a breakthrough and makes me look forward to really pushing my endurance to a new level.
3/13 - 7.0 miles. 1:00:04. ~450'v. Stagecoach. PM. First after work run this year that started and ended before the sun went down. After a little more than a mile of warming up, I pushed it a little hard for the next 6 miles and felt great. Especially solid effort on the last hill at the end of the run. My route went from the house down to the far end of the South Shore neighborhood and back to the house, primarily on dirt roads with a little asphalt in the beginning and end of the run.
3/14 - 4.71 miles. :58:09. Burns. PM. Katy and I drove down just north of Burns to run some dry trails. It was fun and great to be running on dirt again. We took it easy but ran some pretty hilly terrain so the effort and time on feet was more like a full 5+ miler. I wish I had brought my altimeter so that I could've calculated the altitude change, as there was certainly a few hundred feet of ups and downs. Just a little scouting mission to see if I want to come back down there this weekend to do my long run on trails and dirt roads.
3/15 - 7.59 miles. 1:03:29. Stagecoach. PM. Half-mile warm up before running 6.5 miles up-tempo on a really hilly route (CR 16 to CR 14 going towards Oak Creek and back). Finished 7 miles in :56:37 before cooling down and worked pretty hard on the uphills to keep the overall pace around 8:00/mile. I was glad to have some cows keep me company as I ran by them while they grazed. I'm thinking my full on race pace for 10K is probably around 7:15-7:30/mile these days.
3/16 - Rest.
3/17 - 24.01 miles. 3:52:37. 1,810'v. Stagecoach. AM. Decided against driving to Burns to do my long run and, instead, ran from the house out towards Lynx Pass (same as last weekend) on a county dirt road. The morning was a little on the cool side (high 30s/low 40s) and a bit cloudy but the sun eventually came out a couple hours later when I was turning around. I had the dirt road almost entirely to myself the entire time (saw one biker, one skunk, a couple of vehicles and some folks saddling up some horses) and it was sufficiently dry or muddy or frozen or rocky enough to keep it interesting. I ended up turning around after the Morrison Divide (Muddy Slide) trailhead where the road is no longer maintained in the winter. This run felt incredible and I have to credit my friend and nutritionist, Bronwyn Rittner (and my fiance, Katy, whose daily diet is impeccable and keeps me on track) for making me realize the importance of eating on a regular schedule while going on a long run and how beneficial it is to an endurance athlete. Since I started running ultras, I always knew that it was necessary to eat and drink to fuel the body for the work of going further but today's run was the first time I actually told myself, "OK, eat a gel every 45-55 minutes, sip some water every 20 minutes or so, eat more food (I made my own mix of cashews, pistachios, chocolate chips and raisins, and carried it in a small 4 oz. container) at least once an hour and drink some electrolyte replenishment (I just went with Gatorade and carried about 15 oz. in a bottle) whenever necessary." The difference it made could not have been more obvious. At no time during my run did I feel tired or a lack energy. In fact, I took a split time every 6 miles (1:02:56, :57:37, :57:41, :54:22) and ran a negative split for the second half (granted, the return was mostly downhill) and the last 6 miles nearly 9 minutes faster than the first 6 (also granted, I ran the first couple miles slow in order to warm up). I still contended with a little soreness in my core muscles toward the end, which I think is understandable over 24 miles, but really had no other physical problems and, mentally, I think I could have gone several more miles. (Of course, I don't want to imply that running this distance was effortless. As I sit here and write, my legs are getting tighter, my hamstrings and glutes are getting sore and it's getting hard to walk the first few steps every time I get up!) I cooled down over a half mile to keep my legs moving for 4:00:07 and then immediately started replenishing electrolytes and ate a small meal within an hour of finishing because it helps the body to recover faster (it's actually recommended to eat within 45 minutes to allow best/quickest absorbtion of nutrients) . Bronwyn has let me borrow her copy of "Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook" by Nancy Clark, MS, RD, which I've found very useful and informative.
3/18 - 5.40 miles. :48:55. ~400'v. Stagecoach. PM. Easy five miler around the neighborhood and back to the house with the usual hills that entails. Windy and high clouds as some weather is supposed to move in tonight and hit us with some rain and/or snow.
Weekly Total: 49.20 miles.
Finally got the mileage I was shooting for thanks to some nice weather, the time change and the discipline to go out and make it happen. Numbers aside though, the biggest breakthrough of the week (and possibly of all the endurance training I've ever done) had to do with nutrition. For the first time, since I ran my first marathon in 1992, I had a long run where I never once felt tired, physically drained or mentally fatigued and it was, quite simply and honestly, because I took the time to eat and drink on a regular schedule while I kept moving. In a six, eight or even ten mile race this isn't much of a consideration, you just need to stay hydrated, mostly. As the distance and time increase beyond that, however, it matters very much. In my past ultras and long runs, I have refueled, but never with the consistency that those activities actually require. In the past, I would go until I felt tired or hungry, then push through it for a while and eventually, eat or drink something and, sometimes, bounce back to keep going. Or, more often, just keep pushing through and finish tired, hungry, exhausted, sore and generally lucky to be alive. Finally, after years of struggling through events, I've realized that there is no reason to bonk and that "hitting the wall" is actually avoidable. To me, this is nothing short of a breakthrough and makes me look forward to really pushing my endurance to a new level.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Weekly Summary: Mar 5 - Mar 11
3/5 - Rest. Snowshoe with Benihana. 2.04 miles. 1:13:51. I want to make sure I'm doing something active on Mondays so I can add it as a running day in a few weeks.
3/6 - 7.11 miles. 1:04:24. Steamboat. Yampa River Core Trail. Downtown to Casey's Pond and back. Tried to run fast but didn't have the wheels today. Then, on my way back to town I see Katy ahead of me on the trail and I try to catch her. It took at least a mile before I finally did but it was fun surprising her. Enjoyed the rest of the run with her.
3/7 - 5.84 miles. :51:18. Steamboat. From JDs house, I ran by the high school then up the hill and past the middle school and to the turn off for Buff Pass Road before turning around. First mile easy, second mile around 8:30 pace, third and fourth around 7:00 and last mile back down to 9:00. Chased local high school speedster Charles Rhode for a while. That kid is fast! And I'm getting old!
3/8 - 6.33 miles. 1:00:31. Steamboat. PM. Ran up a snow-packed Spring Creek Trail until it got too punchy to run anymore. An inner right quadracep/groin pain irritated me for most of the run so I almost cut it down to 5 miles but it subsided enough for me to finish with 6.
3/9 - Rest. Soaked at the Old Town Hot Springs for a little while with JD.
3/10 - Rest. Still a bit of lingering pain so I decided to skip my run. I did get to support Katy as she ran a fast 5 miles for the Creekside team doing the Steamboat Pentathlon. I really enjoyed spectating the event and getting the opportunity to talk with participants and other spectators alike. The pentathlon is a really unique event that starts with running up Howelsen Hill to your skis or snowboard and downhilling back to the transition area. A 2.5 mile snowshoe run is next followed by a 4 mile skate ski. Then, an 11 mile bike ride and, finally, a 5 mile road run. It was a beautiful day and there were a few hundred people in attendance.
3/11 - 17.35 mile. 2:50:18. 1530'v. Stagecoach. AM. Mid morning run 8.5 miles out and back on the dirt road to Lynx Pass from the house. It's been getting into the 40s for the last few days so the road has been getting really muddy in the afternoons, thus the morning start when things were still slightly frozen. It was a great run with hardly any vehicle traffic to contend with and beautiful blue skies. I took a quick detour up Silver Creek Trail to check conditions, take a piss and eat a clementine, but it's still completely snowed in for a few more weeks. I turned around another mile up the road and laughed as I noticed that I had been enjoying a tailwind on the way out. No wonder it seemed so easy! I went a little further and saw Katy's car as she had driven out to check on me so we chatted a little as I ran. She headed home and I spent the next 1:15 working my way back down the road as it warmed up and it got muddier. It was mostly downhill with the exception of a 250' climb about 2 miles from the end and another 200' as I finished.
Weekly Totals: 36.63 miles.
Some good runs this week despite coming up short on total mileage again. Assuming it doesn't snow much in the coming weeks and barring injuries, I should be able to get 45-48 miles/week. Next weekend, I have a 24 mile long run to complete. Now that I've gotten into some longer runs, I'm also having opportunities to work out what I should be eating before, during and after these efforts. I got to sit down with Bronwyn and discuss my diet and several suggestions from her to ensure that I am replenishing not only electrolytes after my long run, but also making sure that I eating a protein/carbohydrate/vegetable meal within 45 minutes of finishing to hasten recovery.
3/6 - 7.11 miles. 1:04:24. Steamboat. Yampa River Core Trail. Downtown to Casey's Pond and back. Tried to run fast but didn't have the wheels today. Then, on my way back to town I see Katy ahead of me on the trail and I try to catch her. It took at least a mile before I finally did but it was fun surprising her. Enjoyed the rest of the run with her.
3/7 - 5.84 miles. :51:18. Steamboat. From JDs house, I ran by the high school then up the hill and past the middle school and to the turn off for Buff Pass Road before turning around. First mile easy, second mile around 8:30 pace, third and fourth around 7:00 and last mile back down to 9:00. Chased local high school speedster Charles Rhode for a while. That kid is fast! And I'm getting old!
3/8 - 6.33 miles. 1:00:31. Steamboat. PM. Ran up a snow-packed Spring Creek Trail until it got too punchy to run anymore. An inner right quadracep/groin pain irritated me for most of the run so I almost cut it down to 5 miles but it subsided enough for me to finish with 6.
3/9 - Rest. Soaked at the Old Town Hot Springs for a little while with JD.
3/10 - Rest. Still a bit of lingering pain so I decided to skip my run. I did get to support Katy as she ran a fast 5 miles for the Creekside team doing the Steamboat Pentathlon. I really enjoyed spectating the event and getting the opportunity to talk with participants and other spectators alike. The pentathlon is a really unique event that starts with running up Howelsen Hill to your skis or snowboard and downhilling back to the transition area. A 2.5 mile snowshoe run is next followed by a 4 mile skate ski. Then, an 11 mile bike ride and, finally, a 5 mile road run. It was a beautiful day and there were a few hundred people in attendance.
3/11 - 17.35 mile. 2:50:18. 1530'v. Stagecoach. AM. Mid morning run 8.5 miles out and back on the dirt road to Lynx Pass from the house. It's been getting into the 40s for the last few days so the road has been getting really muddy in the afternoons, thus the morning start when things were still slightly frozen. It was a great run with hardly any vehicle traffic to contend with and beautiful blue skies. I took a quick detour up Silver Creek Trail to check conditions, take a piss and eat a clementine, but it's still completely snowed in for a few more weeks. I turned around another mile up the road and laughed as I noticed that I had been enjoying a tailwind on the way out. No wonder it seemed so easy! I went a little further and saw Katy's car as she had driven out to check on me so we chatted a little as I ran. She headed home and I spent the next 1:15 working my way back down the road as it warmed up and it got muddier. It was mostly downhill with the exception of a 250' climb about 2 miles from the end and another 200' as I finished.
Weekly Totals: 36.63 miles.
Some good runs this week despite coming up short on total mileage again. Assuming it doesn't snow much in the coming weeks and barring injuries, I should be able to get 45-48 miles/week. Next weekend, I have a 24 mile long run to complete. Now that I've gotten into some longer runs, I'm also having opportunities to work out what I should be eating before, during and after these efforts. I got to sit down with Bronwyn and discuss my diet and several suggestions from her to ensure that I am replenishing not only electrolytes after my long run, but also making sure that I eating a protein/carbohydrate/vegetable meal within 45 minutes of finishing to hasten recovery.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Weekly Summary: Feb 27 - Mar 4
2/27 - Rest.
2/28 - 5.78 miles. 1:04:21. ~600'v. Steamboat. PM. It snowed very hard all day long but I was able to take advantage of a mid-afternoon window of moderate snow to run Spring Creek Trail from JDs house downtown. It started out only snowing lightly for the first half hour. I was even warm and took of my beanie for a little while at the beginning of the run. I passed a group of older folks skiing down the trail as I ran up and one of the concerned older ladies says to me, "Where's your hat?" How thoughtful. I assured her it was in my pocket and I was going to be alright. Later, the trail was snowshoe packed but I still ended up breaking some trail on the final climb up the ridge and I continued until I got stopped by a fairly deep snowdrift. I turned around and started back down and it started snowing harder. I cruised the 2.5 miles back to the trail head then ran the road up to Butcherknife Canyon trail before running through some alleys on the way back to JDs. It was cool spending most of the run in the woods and then coming out and running by the cute, little mountain houses in Old Town. Snowy run, for sure.
2/29 - 2.16 miles. 1:17:15. ~400'v. Stagecoach. PM. Snowshoe with Benny. Made a .5 mile lap through the open space but it was a bit windy so we headed up the mountain. Broke a trail up and, then, downhill in some pretty deep snow. I didn't feel like running when I got home so this was my alternative. Slow and steady.
3/1 - 6.66 miles. :57:43. Steamboat. Yampa River Core Trail. PM. After work run from downtown to Casey's Pond and back on the Core Trail. A little cement and alot of ice and snow just before it got dark and started snowing again. Another burly drive home afterwards.
3/2 - Rest.
3/3 - Snowboarding. 2:43:00. -16,360'v. Steamboat Ski Area. AM. I was supposed to do a 21-mile long run today but, instead, Katy scored me a ski pass and with all the new snow this week, had to settle for the Best Day of riding this year. Solo shred morning session. Tons of powder and plenty deep as it continued to snow. Ridiculously good runs through the trees on the skier's left of Concentration. Later, I ran into Ian Wilson, in town from Ft. Collins, and took him and couple of his friends down Broadway Trees where I had found untracked lines earlier. My last run, I dropped the rope next to the Gondola and rode some out of bounds terrain before finishing up. I even got to "hollywood" under the Gondy as I rode out on Lower Valley View. It was hard to leave when I did but I wanted to meet up with some friends and watch "A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas."
3/4 - 20.69 miles. 4:06:28. 1,800'v. Stagecoach. late AM start. From the house, I ran some hilly, snow covered dirt road for 5 miles until I got to the end of the road in the South Shore neighborhood. That's when the fun started. From there, I pulled out my hiking poles (yep, I ran with poles in anticipation of dealing with over a foot of snow that fell during the week) and started post holing thigh deep snow. At first, I decided to follow a track that led across the lake but I was not only punching through super deep snow but also stepping into 3 inches of water every time I took a step. My gaiters and Gore-Tex shoes kept my feet from getting totally soaked but I was sure that my feet were already wet. I decided to not trudge through the water and turned around making my way back up to the shoreline and punched out a new trail for the next .5 mile until I got to the dam. I looked down at my GPS to check my pace, which had slowed to a laughable 30-45 min/mile. Once I crossed the dam, I took off my gaiters and stowed them in my Nathan vest. I kept the walking sticks out, sipped some water and felt pretty good, ready to run some snowmobile packed trail down towards Sarvis Creek. This was the best part of the run. The snow was decently packed so I could maintain a run and the sun came out as I ran in a small, narrow valley next to the Yampa River. I passed a couple of snowshoers and couple people out fishing. It was really beautiful. I turned around when my GPS read 9 miles and cruised back up the road. Right before I got back to the dam, I stepped through a cattle guard and put a nice knot on my left shin. Ouch! Took it easy for a minute and ate a Clif Bar. From the dam, I stayed on the road that goes around the north shore of the reservoir. Fortunately, the plow had made one pass on the road so it was easy to run. After a couple more miles, I got onto CR 14 and ran on the shoulder of the road which was just wet asphalt, so I was finally able to get some traction and I ran a decent pace to the turn off that goes back up to the house. The next 2 miles were pretty uneventful except seeing the sled dogs hanging out by the reservoir. It made me think of local musher, Tom Thurston, who is running his dogs in the Iditarod right now. As I made the last hill before the house, I was starting to struggle a bit so I pulled out the sticks to lean on a little bit and decided to run another mile and half up the road before turning around a calling it a day. I took a few big gulps of water and worked one more long uphill then turned around pushed myself to finish strong. I was definitely tired and a little sore by the end of the run but felt really good about breaking the 20 mile and 4 hour marks.
Weekly Totals: 35.29 miles. 6:24:00 running/snowshoe. 2:43:00 snowboarding. 19,160'v.
Again, I didn't get the mileage I was supposed to get according to my training schedule but I'm getting the long runs done, getting plenty of time on my feet, spending some time outside and I'm shredding some serious snow. All good things and it's always good to mix it up to avoid overtraining. It's exciting to be able to run 20 miles again especially so early in the year and feeling strong enough to improve.
2/28 - 5.78 miles. 1:04:21. ~600'v. Steamboat. PM. It snowed very hard all day long but I was able to take advantage of a mid-afternoon window of moderate snow to run Spring Creek Trail from JDs house downtown. It started out only snowing lightly for the first half hour. I was even warm and took of my beanie for a little while at the beginning of the run. I passed a group of older folks skiing down the trail as I ran up and one of the concerned older ladies says to me, "Where's your hat?" How thoughtful. I assured her it was in my pocket and I was going to be alright. Later, the trail was snowshoe packed but I still ended up breaking some trail on the final climb up the ridge and I continued until I got stopped by a fairly deep snowdrift. I turned around and started back down and it started snowing harder. I cruised the 2.5 miles back to the trail head then ran the road up to Butcherknife Canyon trail before running through some alleys on the way back to JDs. It was cool spending most of the run in the woods and then coming out and running by the cute, little mountain houses in Old Town. Snowy run, for sure.
2/29 - 2.16 miles. 1:17:15. ~400'v. Stagecoach. PM. Snowshoe with Benny. Made a .5 mile lap through the open space but it was a bit windy so we headed up the mountain. Broke a trail up and, then, downhill in some pretty deep snow. I didn't feel like running when I got home so this was my alternative. Slow and steady.
3/1 - 6.66 miles. :57:43. Steamboat. Yampa River Core Trail. PM. After work run from downtown to Casey's Pond and back on the Core Trail. A little cement and alot of ice and snow just before it got dark and started snowing again. Another burly drive home afterwards.
3/2 - Rest.
3/3 - Snowboarding. 2:43:00. -16,360'v. Steamboat Ski Area. AM. I was supposed to do a 21-mile long run today but, instead, Katy scored me a ski pass and with all the new snow this week, had to settle for the Best Day of riding this year. Solo shred morning session. Tons of powder and plenty deep as it continued to snow. Ridiculously good runs through the trees on the skier's left of Concentration. Later, I ran into Ian Wilson, in town from Ft. Collins, and took him and couple of his friends down Broadway Trees where I had found untracked lines earlier. My last run, I dropped the rope next to the Gondola and rode some out of bounds terrain before finishing up. I even got to "hollywood" under the Gondy as I rode out on Lower Valley View. It was hard to leave when I did but I wanted to meet up with some friends and watch "A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas."
3/4 - 20.69 miles. 4:06:28. 1,800'v. Stagecoach. late AM start. From the house, I ran some hilly, snow covered dirt road for 5 miles until I got to the end of the road in the South Shore neighborhood. That's when the fun started. From there, I pulled out my hiking poles (yep, I ran with poles in anticipation of dealing with over a foot of snow that fell during the week) and started post holing thigh deep snow. At first, I decided to follow a track that led across the lake but I was not only punching through super deep snow but also stepping into 3 inches of water every time I took a step. My gaiters and Gore-Tex shoes kept my feet from getting totally soaked but I was sure that my feet were already wet. I decided to not trudge through the water and turned around making my way back up to the shoreline and punched out a new trail for the next .5 mile until I got to the dam. I looked down at my GPS to check my pace, which had slowed to a laughable 30-45 min/mile. Once I crossed the dam, I took off my gaiters and stowed them in my Nathan vest. I kept the walking sticks out, sipped some water and felt pretty good, ready to run some snowmobile packed trail down towards Sarvis Creek. This was the best part of the run. The snow was decently packed so I could maintain a run and the sun came out as I ran in a small, narrow valley next to the Yampa River. I passed a couple of snowshoers and couple people out fishing. It was really beautiful. I turned around when my GPS read 9 miles and cruised back up the road. Right before I got back to the dam, I stepped through a cattle guard and put a nice knot on my left shin. Ouch! Took it easy for a minute and ate a Clif Bar. From the dam, I stayed on the road that goes around the north shore of the reservoir. Fortunately, the plow had made one pass on the road so it was easy to run. After a couple more miles, I got onto CR 14 and ran on the shoulder of the road which was just wet asphalt, so I was finally able to get some traction and I ran a decent pace to the turn off that goes back up to the house. The next 2 miles were pretty uneventful except seeing the sled dogs hanging out by the reservoir. It made me think of local musher, Tom Thurston, who is running his dogs in the Iditarod right now. As I made the last hill before the house, I was starting to struggle a bit so I pulled out the sticks to lean on a little bit and decided to run another mile and half up the road before turning around a calling it a day. I took a few big gulps of water and worked one more long uphill then turned around pushed myself to finish strong. I was definitely tired and a little sore by the end of the run but felt really good about breaking the 20 mile and 4 hour marks.
Weekly Totals: 35.29 miles. 6:24:00 running/snowshoe. 2:43:00 snowboarding. 19,160'v.
Again, I didn't get the mileage I was supposed to get according to my training schedule but I'm getting the long runs done, getting plenty of time on my feet, spending some time outside and I'm shredding some serious snow. All good things and it's always good to mix it up to avoid overtraining. It's exciting to be able to run 20 miles again especially so early in the year and feeling strong enough to improve.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Weekly Summary: Feb. 20 - 27
2/20 - Splitboarding. 3.45 miles. 2:04:43. 1340'v. Stagecoach. PM. Off work early today + 1 foot of fresh powder at home = splitboard session. Supposed to be a rest day but when it snows, it snows. And, for me, that means do whatever I can to surf the white wave. I enlisted the company of faithful companion Benihana and up Stagecoach Mt. we went to ride the newly fallen snow. Skinned up to The Beach down 3rd, 2nd and 1st Pitch, then hiked back up to the top of 1st Pitch for one more ride all the way back to the house. I would have been up for a couple more laps but us "old" guys need to learn to take it easy sometimes. Meanwhile, Steamboat got crushed...27" of snow in 24 hours, 34" in 36 hours.
2/21 - Snowboarding. ~3:00:00. Steamboat Ski Area. No running. Winter is finally back. It took its sweet time, but I knew it had to happen eventually. It snowed all night and continued through the day. A gnarly drive to work but there wasn't any, so I called up JD and he was able to score me a medallion so I could go ride with him, Chris and, later, Derek, on the Mountain ("mountain, mountain"). Knee deep to waist deep snow depending on where we were but mostly, just sick conditions. I just wished I had waxed my snowboard because I was a little slow on the flatter sections. Run of the day definitely went to No Name Chutes but, really, it was all good. Steep, deep and fresh. It's supposed to continue snowing through the week so I might not be getting much mileage in the way of running but hopefully I will get in some of the best riding of the year. Ah, life in a ski town does not suck.
2/22 - Snowshoe. ~:45:00. >1 mile. Stagecoach. PM. Just a fun walk in the deep snow with my girl. Katy made a cool figure-8 route and I had a great time following her around. Actually, this was the first time I've really snowshoed and I thought it was a blast. Later that evening the wind picked up and erased all of our tracks. Bummer.
2/23 - 6.0 miles. :57:12. Steamboat. PM. Brrr. Cold day. Katy says it was "cold like back East." I'm thinking the humidity was higher than usual and there was a biting wind that lasted most of the day. It warmed up a little as I ran from downtown, past the high school and then up and down the hill by the middle school before going out to Buff Pass Road and back. Overall, a nice mellow run. Glad to get some mileage this week, I wasn't sure that was going to happen with the weather.
2/24 - 14.05 miles. 2:21:48. 1320'v. Stagecoach. PM. Sunny and somewhat mild this afternoon as I ran on snow, dirt roads and a little asphalt. Decided to do my long run today since I'm going to splitboard Stagecoach Mtn. tomorrow. I wore a Nathan vest I'm trying out for racing this summer and it felt pretty comfortable. In it, I carried a small bag of cashews, a tangerine, an electrolyte tablet, a water bottle (for a few miles, I hand carried it the rest of the way) and my gaiters, once I took them off about 4 miles into the run. I ate a few cashews just after the 5 mile mark and drank water most of the run. In the last 3 miles or so, I dropped the tablet into my water bottle so I could finish my run and cool down while replenishing electrolytes. The run went well, for the most part, although I did feel like I had a couple of rough patches but nothing too bad. The best part of the run was seeing Katy pass me in her car as she was getting home from work! It definitely made the last few miles easier.
2/25 - Splitboarding. 2:33:00. 1820'v. Stagecoach. AM. Skinned up to within a couple hundred feet of the summit of Stagecoach Mtn. with my neighbor, Robert, for a nice morning session. Very relaxed pace, stopping along the way to take a few photos and to talk. For me, there are few things better than to walk right out my front door, start climbing a mountain and ride down. The snow was quite good. A little settled but still soft and deep, making for good speed and turns. The terrain was rolling and smooth all the way to the bottom of the mountain. A beautiful, sunny and breezy morning. I think the wind is supposed to pick up tonight and it's supposed to snow again.
2/26 - 7.87 miles. 1:06:19. 880'v. Stagecoach. AM. One mile warm-up for 10 minutes followed by 6 miles of tempo (8:28,7:41,8:01,7:34,7:35,7:35) and .8 mile cool down on some pretty icy roads (with a little bit of dirt). A good run with some pretty modest splits but fun for me. Spent quite a few steps telling myself, "Don't slip. Don't fall. Don't bust your ass." Stopped to talk to my friend Dave Demos for a couple of minutes as he was driving home and then again at the port-o-potty at the trail head by the reservoir. Sunny but a damn cold wind kept it really chilly.
Weekly Totals: 28.92 miles running/snowshoe. 2200++'v. (4:25:xx running, 7:34:00 splitboarding/snowboarding)
I got a chance to mix it up a little this week thanks to the return of winter. Mother Nature timed it perfectly and I got to take advantage of a low mileage week and get out and ride some powder, even if it meant skipping a couple runs. It also helped that we were slow at work so I could move my training schedule around a little bit (it didn't help financially). Next week, I'll be back to bumping up the mileage with a 21 mile long run on Saturday, so hopefully (for me) the weather will cooperate. However, if we are back to a normal cycle in terms of snowfall, we could still see alot of it through March and April. I think that as long as I keep hitting my long runs, I can keep sacrificing a few shorter runs here and there.
2/21 - Snowboarding. ~3:00:00. Steamboat Ski Area. No running. Winter is finally back. It took its sweet time, but I knew it had to happen eventually. It snowed all night and continued through the day. A gnarly drive to work but there wasn't any, so I called up JD and he was able to score me a medallion so I could go ride with him, Chris and, later, Derek, on the Mountain ("mountain, mountain"). Knee deep to waist deep snow depending on where we were but mostly, just sick conditions. I just wished I had waxed my snowboard because I was a little slow on the flatter sections. Run of the day definitely went to No Name Chutes but, really, it was all good. Steep, deep and fresh. It's supposed to continue snowing through the week so I might not be getting much mileage in the way of running but hopefully I will get in some of the best riding of the year. Ah, life in a ski town does not suck.
2/22 - Snowshoe. ~:45:00. >1 mile. Stagecoach. PM. Just a fun walk in the deep snow with my girl. Katy made a cool figure-8 route and I had a great time following her around. Actually, this was the first time I've really snowshoed and I thought it was a blast. Later that evening the wind picked up and erased all of our tracks. Bummer.
2/23 - 6.0 miles. :57:12. Steamboat. PM. Brrr. Cold day. Katy says it was "cold like back East." I'm thinking the humidity was higher than usual and there was a biting wind that lasted most of the day. It warmed up a little as I ran from downtown, past the high school and then up and down the hill by the middle school before going out to Buff Pass Road and back. Overall, a nice mellow run. Glad to get some mileage this week, I wasn't sure that was going to happen with the weather.
2/24 - 14.05 miles. 2:21:48. 1320'v. Stagecoach. PM. Sunny and somewhat mild this afternoon as I ran on snow, dirt roads and a little asphalt. Decided to do my long run today since I'm going to splitboard Stagecoach Mtn. tomorrow. I wore a Nathan vest I'm trying out for racing this summer and it felt pretty comfortable. In it, I carried a small bag of cashews, a tangerine, an electrolyte tablet, a water bottle (for a few miles, I hand carried it the rest of the way) and my gaiters, once I took them off about 4 miles into the run. I ate a few cashews just after the 5 mile mark and drank water most of the run. In the last 3 miles or so, I dropped the tablet into my water bottle so I could finish my run and cool down while replenishing electrolytes. The run went well, for the most part, although I did feel like I had a couple of rough patches but nothing too bad. The best part of the run was seeing Katy pass me in her car as she was getting home from work! It definitely made the last few miles easier.
2/25 - Splitboarding. 2:33:00. 1820'v. Stagecoach. AM. Skinned up to within a couple hundred feet of the summit of Stagecoach Mtn. with my neighbor, Robert, for a nice morning session. Very relaxed pace, stopping along the way to take a few photos and to talk. For me, there are few things better than to walk right out my front door, start climbing a mountain and ride down. The snow was quite good. A little settled but still soft and deep, making for good speed and turns. The terrain was rolling and smooth all the way to the bottom of the mountain. A beautiful, sunny and breezy morning. I think the wind is supposed to pick up tonight and it's supposed to snow again.
2/26 - 7.87 miles. 1:06:19. 880'v. Stagecoach. AM. One mile warm-up for 10 minutes followed by 6 miles of tempo (8:28,7:41,8:01,7:34,7:35,7:35) and .8 mile cool down on some pretty icy roads (with a little bit of dirt). A good run with some pretty modest splits but fun for me. Spent quite a few steps telling myself, "Don't slip. Don't fall. Don't bust your ass." Stopped to talk to my friend Dave Demos for a couple of minutes as he was driving home and then again at the port-o-potty at the trail head by the reservoir. Sunny but a damn cold wind kept it really chilly.
Weekly Totals: 28.92 miles running/snowshoe. 2200++'v. (4:25:xx running, 7:34:00 splitboarding/snowboarding)
I got a chance to mix it up a little this week thanks to the return of winter. Mother Nature timed it perfectly and I got to take advantage of a low mileage week and get out and ride some powder, even if it meant skipping a couple runs. It also helped that we were slow at work so I could move my training schedule around a little bit (it didn't help financially). Next week, I'll be back to bumping up the mileage with a 21 mile long run on Saturday, so hopefully (for me) the weather will cooperate. However, if we are back to a normal cycle in terms of snowfall, we could still see alot of it through March and April. I think that as long as I keep hitting my long runs, I can keep sacrificing a few shorter runs here and there.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Weekly Summary: Feb 13 - Feb 19
2/13 - Rest.
2/14 - 5.03 miles. :54:05. 360'v. Stagecoach. PM. Katy and I both got off work early enough to run an out and back on the road from the house down to CR 14.
2/15 - 5.20 miles. :54:38. 360'v. Stagecoach. PM. Another roadie with the lovely Kate. Felt tired.
2/16 - 3.88 miles. 1:15:04. 1220'v. Stagecoach. PM. I opted to hike/run/trudge up Stagecoach Mtn. to "The Beach" in knee deep snow with Benihana rather than dodge headlights on the county road. Solid effort and very slow going ascent from the top of Second Pitch to The Beach as we broke trail. It's been snowing again and I'm not snowboarding! WTF?!!
2/17 - Rest.
2/18 - 17.98 miles. 3:29:18. 1650'v. Steamboat. AM. Started my long run with an easy 2.30 mile, :29:20, warm up before doing a Running Series race, Love the Run Your With, a 6.85 mile, 1:17:21 snow run on Emerald Mountain. The entire course was super tough with loosely packed and punchy snow that made it very appropriate to wear snow shoes, which I didn't. The ascent was grueling at some points and I redlined my effort the entire time. Tough, tough, tough. I was relieved for the downhill but the footing remained difficult as I seemed to punch through the snow every 50 steps or so. Really hard to establish any kind of rhythm. I ran the majority of the downhill with a guy named Tom and we finished the race together, just happy to be done. At least, he was. I still had 9 more miles to do, so I ate another Honey Stinger and ran to the Core Trail from Howelsen Hill to Rotary Park. On my return to town, I crossed over to River Road and made my way back to Howelsen to refill my water bottle at Olympian Hall. I still had a couple more miles to go so I jumped back on the Core Trail and ran towards the library where I saw Mina, my friend Jonny's mother-in-law, jogging down the trail. We jogged and chatted our way down to Stockbridge and back to Howelsen. I felt good for the most part during my run(s) but my legs are definitely feeling it this evening. Whooped.
2/19 - 10.01 miles. 1:38:59. 980'v. Stagecoach. AM. I didn't think it was particularly cold when I left on my run but the wind chilled me right to the bone every time I was running into it. I stayed warm enough but really should have worn a windbreaker instead of fleece. I stayed on the roads for this effort since I was sufficiently over running in the snow after yesterday's race. Still had some slight lingering soreness in my left quadracep from yesterday but, otherwise, I felt good on this outing.
Week Totals: 42.10 miles. 8:12:04. 4570'v.
A good week. Still coming up a little short on mileage but getting more than adequate time on my feet. Such is running in the mountains in the mid-winter, when even an easy 4 mile "run" can take well over an hour. I was a little worried about going long this weekend and actually getting the mileage required by my training schedule but I think it helped to include a fun (but challenging) race into the mix. One of the participants in the race was Allen Belshaw, an accomplished local ultrarunner who has twice won the Squaw Peak 50 and Desert RATS 50 and has victories at the Plain 100 (self supported 100 miler) and Laramie 100. I introduced myself after the race and while we talked he told me that it was a good training idea for me to race before finishing my long run. "Put down some calories and keep running," he said. "If you go sit down now, you'll never want to get back up." I guess I felt a little inspired by his advice and it really motivated me to go out and get the remainder of my distance for the day.
I feel like my diet is staying on track although I probably ate way too much Valentine's chocolate this week.
Next week will be another reduced mileage and recovery week which is good since I'm finding it harder to get miles in accumulating snow. Hopefully, when March arrives, the weather will be more agreeable for running. Of course, as I type this, I see that it is starting to snow. Oh, boy. Maybe I'll just have to go snowboarding!
2/14 - 5.03 miles. :54:05. 360'v. Stagecoach. PM. Katy and I both got off work early enough to run an out and back on the road from the house down to CR 14.
2/15 - 5.20 miles. :54:38. 360'v. Stagecoach. PM. Another roadie with the lovely Kate. Felt tired.
2/16 - 3.88 miles. 1:15:04. 1220'v. Stagecoach. PM. I opted to hike/run/trudge up Stagecoach Mtn. to "The Beach" in knee deep snow with Benihana rather than dodge headlights on the county road. Solid effort and very slow going ascent from the top of Second Pitch to The Beach as we broke trail. It's been snowing again and I'm not snowboarding! WTF?!!
2/17 - Rest.
2/18 - 17.98 miles. 3:29:18. 1650'v. Steamboat. AM. Started my long run with an easy 2.30 mile, :29:20, warm up before doing a Running Series race, Love the Run Your With, a 6.85 mile, 1:17:21 snow run on Emerald Mountain. The entire course was super tough with loosely packed and punchy snow that made it very appropriate to wear snow shoes, which I didn't. The ascent was grueling at some points and I redlined my effort the entire time. Tough, tough, tough. I was relieved for the downhill but the footing remained difficult as I seemed to punch through the snow every 50 steps or so. Really hard to establish any kind of rhythm. I ran the majority of the downhill with a guy named Tom and we finished the race together, just happy to be done. At least, he was. I still had 9 more miles to do, so I ate another Honey Stinger and ran to the Core Trail from Howelsen Hill to Rotary Park. On my return to town, I crossed over to River Road and made my way back to Howelsen to refill my water bottle at Olympian Hall. I still had a couple more miles to go so I jumped back on the Core Trail and ran towards the library where I saw Mina, my friend Jonny's mother-in-law, jogging down the trail. We jogged and chatted our way down to Stockbridge and back to Howelsen. I felt good for the most part during my run(s) but my legs are definitely feeling it this evening. Whooped.
2/19 - 10.01 miles. 1:38:59. 980'v. Stagecoach. AM. I didn't think it was particularly cold when I left on my run but the wind chilled me right to the bone every time I was running into it. I stayed warm enough but really should have worn a windbreaker instead of fleece. I stayed on the roads for this effort since I was sufficiently over running in the snow after yesterday's race. Still had some slight lingering soreness in my left quadracep from yesterday but, otherwise, I felt good on this outing.
Week Totals: 42.10 miles. 8:12:04. 4570'v.
A good week. Still coming up a little short on mileage but getting more than adequate time on my feet. Such is running in the mountains in the mid-winter, when even an easy 4 mile "run" can take well over an hour. I was a little worried about going long this weekend and actually getting the mileage required by my training schedule but I think it helped to include a fun (but challenging) race into the mix. One of the participants in the race was Allen Belshaw, an accomplished local ultrarunner who has twice won the Squaw Peak 50 and Desert RATS 50 and has victories at the Plain 100 (self supported 100 miler) and Laramie 100. I introduced myself after the race and while we talked he told me that it was a good training idea for me to race before finishing my long run. "Put down some calories and keep running," he said. "If you go sit down now, you'll never want to get back up." I guess I felt a little inspired by his advice and it really motivated me to go out and get the remainder of my distance for the day.
I feel like my diet is staying on track although I probably ate way too much Valentine's chocolate this week.
Next week will be another reduced mileage and recovery week which is good since I'm finding it harder to get miles in accumulating snow. Hopefully, when March arrives, the weather will be more agreeable for running. Of course, as I type this, I see that it is starting to snow. Oh, boy. Maybe I'll just have to go snowboarding!
Monday, February 13, 2012
Weekly Summary: Feb. 6 - Feb. 12
2/6 - Rest.
2/7 - 6.09 miles. 1:15:58. - 4.12 miles. :36:37. Steamboat. Noon. Lunch road and trail run from 4th street around the middle school and back. PM. 1.97 miles. :39:20. Stagecoach. After work, did a couple miles with the dogs at an easy pace.
2/8 - 3.7 miles. :35:14. Steamboat. Noon. Lunch road and trail run from 4th street but ran the reverse of yesterday's route and used the trail a bit more. Didn't run in the evening so I could spend some time with my beautiful future wife and my dogs.
2/9 - 6.08 miles. 1:29:02. ~750'v. Stagecoach. PM. - ~.5 mile, ~:20:00, 400'v. hike with the dogs. Let them pull me up the hill then I ran behind them on the way down the hill. They're so fun! Followed by a 5.58 mile, ~350'v. 1:09:02 snow run/trudge in 2-5" of new powder. Those hills were tough. Didn't get seven miles for the day but the time on my feet more than made up for it.
2/10 - Rest.
2/11 - 11.48 miles. 3:46:33. ~1200'v. Stagecoach. AM. After a couple of days of snow, I wanted to have some fun instead of the usual Saturday long run so I broke out the splitboard and made a one-mile touring loop in the open space by the house. It took a little longer than a half hour to put in the initial trail. I did two more laps in the same track then, on the 4th one, I started a new track about half way through the loop so I could break into some virgin snow again. After 4.32 miles in 2:03:42, my legs were feeling pretty heavy, so I figured it was time to go run a few miles. It was a beautiful, sunny day and a warm one, as well. I changed into a pair of shorts and a long sleeved shirt and looked, I'm sure, completely out of place as I ran on snow covered roads around Stagecoach (6.46 miles, 1:15:52). After that, I took the dogs for a walk as I cooled down (.57 miles, :18:59). Quite a bit short on overall mileage but I got a great "time on feet" workout.
2/12 - 8.01 miles. 1:26:xx. ~500'v. Stagecoach. AM. Ran the first couple road miles with Katy before I jumped on the snowpacked and groomed trail. That didn't do much for traction though, the snow was loose enough to slow me down to 11-minute miles as I ran along the south shoreline to where the boat ramp would be.
Week: 35.56 miles. ~3000'v. 8 hours, 21 minutes!
Came up quite a few miles short of 42 for the week but with 8 hours on my feet, I'd say that was pretty worthy for almost 40 kilometers! Alot of slow running, trudging and splitboard touring should be good for my leg strength and endurance, if not for a fast leg turnover. No matter, speed work (which I do plan on doing this spring/early summer) is not essential for ultramarathon success (re: finishing!) and it's always worth skipping a few miles if I'm spending that time with the ones I love.
2/7 - 6.09 miles. 1:15:58. - 4.12 miles. :36:37. Steamboat. Noon. Lunch road and trail run from 4th street around the middle school and back. PM. 1.97 miles. :39:20. Stagecoach. After work, did a couple miles with the dogs at an easy pace.
2/8 - 3.7 miles. :35:14. Steamboat. Noon. Lunch road and trail run from 4th street but ran the reverse of yesterday's route and used the trail a bit more. Didn't run in the evening so I could spend some time with my beautiful future wife and my dogs.
2/9 - 6.08 miles. 1:29:02. ~750'v. Stagecoach. PM. - ~.5 mile, ~:20:00, 400'v. hike with the dogs. Let them pull me up the hill then I ran behind them on the way down the hill. They're so fun! Followed by a 5.58 mile, ~350'v. 1:09:02 snow run/trudge in 2-5" of new powder. Those hills were tough. Didn't get seven miles for the day but the time on my feet more than made up for it.
2/10 - Rest.
2/11 - 11.48 miles. 3:46:33. ~1200'v. Stagecoach. AM. After a couple of days of snow, I wanted to have some fun instead of the usual Saturday long run so I broke out the splitboard and made a one-mile touring loop in the open space by the house. It took a little longer than a half hour to put in the initial trail. I did two more laps in the same track then, on the 4th one, I started a new track about half way through the loop so I could break into some virgin snow again. After 4.32 miles in 2:03:42, my legs were feeling pretty heavy, so I figured it was time to go run a few miles. It was a beautiful, sunny day and a warm one, as well. I changed into a pair of shorts and a long sleeved shirt and looked, I'm sure, completely out of place as I ran on snow covered roads around Stagecoach (6.46 miles, 1:15:52). After that, I took the dogs for a walk as I cooled down (.57 miles, :18:59). Quite a bit short on overall mileage but I got a great "time on feet" workout.
2/12 - 8.01 miles. 1:26:xx. ~500'v. Stagecoach. AM. Ran the first couple road miles with Katy before I jumped on the snowpacked and groomed trail. That didn't do much for traction though, the snow was loose enough to slow me down to 11-minute miles as I ran along the south shoreline to where the boat ramp would be.
Week: 35.56 miles. ~3000'v. 8 hours, 21 minutes!
Came up quite a few miles short of 42 for the week but with 8 hours on my feet, I'd say that was pretty worthy for almost 40 kilometers! Alot of slow running, trudging and splitboard touring should be good for my leg strength and endurance, if not for a fast leg turnover. No matter, speed work (which I do plan on doing this spring/early summer) is not essential for ultramarathon success (re: finishing!) and it's always worth skipping a few miles if I'm spending that time with the ones I love.
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Weekly Summary: Jan 30 - Feb 5
1/30 - Rest. After Saturday's long run and my hike/run yesterday, I was grateful for a day to chill. Legs felt heavy all day until the evening when they finally started to bounce back.
1/31 - 7.01 miles. 1:02:49. ~700'v. Spring Creek Trail. Noon. Fantastic midday run in the sun. Unbelievably warm (high 30s/low 40s) and my legs felt so good I had to push the pace almost the entire run on snow packed trail (with even a few spots of dirt). It's so crazy to see dirt and grass here in January/February. Oh well, the trail was sick. Good footing, for the most part. There were a few slick spots and I could've worn MicroSpikes for this one but managed just fine without. I feel like I turned a corner in my fitness, also. I boogied up the top of the ridge above Spring Creek, almost effortlessly, at a pace that would've normally would've had me pretty winded. At the turnaround, I was geeked for the downhill and clipped off 6:40-7:17/miles for the entire descent back into town. Jazzed.
2/1 - ~5 miles. Steamboat. Noon. Ran the road loop through Old Town to the middle school and onto the Butcherknife Canyon Trail and back to JDs house. Then, went snowboarding on the mountain for a few hours with my man, Dizzle. Fastest I've gone on a snowboard all year! Capped it off with a couple of beers at Gondola Pub and Grill. Nice one.
2/2 - 7.46 miles. 1:22:46. Stagecoach. PM. Took the dogs on a half mile hike up the hillside before going for my run. Then, I enjoyed an afternoon run from the house down to the south shore of the reservoir before doing a couple of tough, snowy trail miles along the the shoreline. The weather began to deteriorate as I left the house and it got colder and windier. I punched through some deep snow to get from the trail back up to CR 16 and headed back home.
2/3 - Rest. Took Benny and Nanuk on a nice, mellow hike up the mountain and my legs felt good. I considered going for a short run but thought better of it.
2/4 - 16.12 miles. 2:43:26. 1400'v. Stagecoach. AM. Today's long run fully kicked my ass. Fully. One of the things I love about running is that it teaches humility and I got a good lesson today. It's funny that people who know I run a lot will assume that it comes easily and do not understand that even though I enjoy running, it is still work. Today, it was very hard work! It was a clear but cold morning and I waited until about 9:30 a.m., when it finally warmed up into the teens, to leave the house. I ran icy, hilly dirt roads for the first 4 miles and opted to wear running gaiters and MicroSpikes because, despite any new snowfall this week, I would be running a few miles on the trail next to the reservoir, which was still snow packed. The footing wasn't that bad but it made me work and I noted that my pace slowed about 45 seconds to a minute per mile once I hit the trail. I stayed on the trail for a couple miles and arrived at the dam right at the 10 kilometer mark. I crossed the dam and ran a couple more miles of dirt/ice/slush/snow road out toward Sarvis Creek. By the turn around, I was fading a bit energy-wise, and I knew it was mostly an uphill run back home, so I thought things might get tough towards the end. Around the 10 mile mark, I ate a Honey Stinger gel. Once I got back on the dirt road, my feet felt a little heavy but I sucked it up and maintained a decent pace. With about 2.5 miles to go, I hit a steady 200' climb that slowly took the wind out of my sails. By the top of the hill, I felt like I was crawling. I was also dealing with some chafing issues and a tender spot on my left foot from my crampons. Fortunately, I had a mile of gradual downhill after that, which allowed me to regroup a little before I hit a final 100' climb in the last quarter mile. I tried to cool down with a few minutes of walking but it took me a good 20 minutes to finally come down after that effort. Tough one.
2/5 - 7.46 miles. 1:13:33. ~400'v. Stagecoach. AM. Ran 4 road miles with Katy before doing 3 more by myself. Nice and mellow paced effort under sunny skies.
Weekly Total: 43.05 miles.
A good week of running with the total mileage increased into the 40s. The next two weeks I will be keeping my weekday mileage the same as this week, with an 18 mile long run on Saturday. I feel like my training has been going very well for the past 8 weeks, in terms of workouts, but I really think one of the contributing factors has been because I am focusing not just on running, but also, on nutrition. In the past, I've never had difficulty motivating myself to run or workout because it's something I enjoy doing but I have never been one to take my nutrition very seriously. As I get older and learn more, I am realizing that this is an area that I should have been paying much more attention to all along. As Americans, we live in a country with a bountiful food supply, but, truthfully, little of what we choose to eat is actually good for us. By this, I mean that what we eat should not just keep us from starving, it should enrich our lives and health. If you eat what is good for you, regardless of your athletic involvement, your body will fight off illness better and you will not gain and carry around excessive weight. As an athlete, eating right plays a tremendous role in muscle performance, growth and recovery. Specifically, I'm talking about managing oxidative stress, which is, in laymen's terms, the body's ability to remove toxins from it's cells. The best way to do this is simple: eat foods rich in antioxidants, ie. fruits and vegetables.
For athletes, nutrition is important because we put ever increasing stress on our muscles as we intensify our training regimen. Without ridding ourselves of the toxins that build up in our muscles they cannot properly recover and grow and we cannot reach our greatest performance potential. In the past two years, I have been able to maintain a fairly consistent running schedule but not without dealing with plenty of aches and pains, soreness, illness and injury. In that time, however, I have become very aware of how my body reacts to the stress I put it under when I go for a particularly hard or long run and how long it takes to recover from said activities. In the past couple of months, Katy has really been helping me watch what I eat and making a concerted effort to make sure that includes much more fruit and vegetables (and less sugar). As a supplement, I've also been taking a product called JuicePlus, which is simply capsulized fruits and vegetables. The result has been noticably faster muscle fatigue recovery and an increase in my energy levels. I've started working with a nutritionist, Bronwyn Rittner, to help me monitor what I'm eating and, more importantly, how it affects me, as my training and racing schedule gets tougher throughout the year. My goal simply being to get the most out of my natural ability and to be happy in the knowledge that I'm doing the right things to facilitate a healthy lifestyle.
1/31 - 7.01 miles. 1:02:49. ~700'v. Spring Creek Trail. Noon. Fantastic midday run in the sun. Unbelievably warm (high 30s/low 40s) and my legs felt so good I had to push the pace almost the entire run on snow packed trail (with even a few spots of dirt). It's so crazy to see dirt and grass here in January/February. Oh well, the trail was sick. Good footing, for the most part. There were a few slick spots and I could've worn MicroSpikes for this one but managed just fine without. I feel like I turned a corner in my fitness, also. I boogied up the top of the ridge above Spring Creek, almost effortlessly, at a pace that would've normally would've had me pretty winded. At the turnaround, I was geeked for the downhill and clipped off 6:40-7:17/miles for the entire descent back into town. Jazzed.
2/1 - ~5 miles. Steamboat. Noon. Ran the road loop through Old Town to the middle school and onto the Butcherknife Canyon Trail and back to JDs house. Then, went snowboarding on the mountain for a few hours with my man, Dizzle. Fastest I've gone on a snowboard all year! Capped it off with a couple of beers at Gondola Pub and Grill. Nice one.
2/2 - 7.46 miles. 1:22:46. Stagecoach. PM. Took the dogs on a half mile hike up the hillside before going for my run. Then, I enjoyed an afternoon run from the house down to the south shore of the reservoir before doing a couple of tough, snowy trail miles along the the shoreline. The weather began to deteriorate as I left the house and it got colder and windier. I punched through some deep snow to get from the trail back up to CR 16 and headed back home.
2/3 - Rest. Took Benny and Nanuk on a nice, mellow hike up the mountain and my legs felt good. I considered going for a short run but thought better of it.
2/4 - 16.12 miles. 2:43:26. 1400'v. Stagecoach. AM. Today's long run fully kicked my ass. Fully. One of the things I love about running is that it teaches humility and I got a good lesson today. It's funny that people who know I run a lot will assume that it comes easily and do not understand that even though I enjoy running, it is still work. Today, it was very hard work! It was a clear but cold morning and I waited until about 9:30 a.m., when it finally warmed up into the teens, to leave the house. I ran icy, hilly dirt roads for the first 4 miles and opted to wear running gaiters and MicroSpikes because, despite any new snowfall this week, I would be running a few miles on the trail next to the reservoir, which was still snow packed. The footing wasn't that bad but it made me work and I noted that my pace slowed about 45 seconds to a minute per mile once I hit the trail. I stayed on the trail for a couple miles and arrived at the dam right at the 10 kilometer mark. I crossed the dam and ran a couple more miles of dirt/ice/slush/snow road out toward Sarvis Creek. By the turn around, I was fading a bit energy-wise, and I knew it was mostly an uphill run back home, so I thought things might get tough towards the end. Around the 10 mile mark, I ate a Honey Stinger gel. Once I got back on the dirt road, my feet felt a little heavy but I sucked it up and maintained a decent pace. With about 2.5 miles to go, I hit a steady 200' climb that slowly took the wind out of my sails. By the top of the hill, I felt like I was crawling. I was also dealing with some chafing issues and a tender spot on my left foot from my crampons. Fortunately, I had a mile of gradual downhill after that, which allowed me to regroup a little before I hit a final 100' climb in the last quarter mile. I tried to cool down with a few minutes of walking but it took me a good 20 minutes to finally come down after that effort. Tough one.
2/5 - 7.46 miles. 1:13:33. ~400'v. Stagecoach. AM. Ran 4 road miles with Katy before doing 3 more by myself. Nice and mellow paced effort under sunny skies.
Weekly Total: 43.05 miles.
A good week of running with the total mileage increased into the 40s. The next two weeks I will be keeping my weekday mileage the same as this week, with an 18 mile long run on Saturday. I feel like my training has been going very well for the past 8 weeks, in terms of workouts, but I really think one of the contributing factors has been because I am focusing not just on running, but also, on nutrition. In the past, I've never had difficulty motivating myself to run or workout because it's something I enjoy doing but I have never been one to take my nutrition very seriously. As I get older and learn more, I am realizing that this is an area that I should have been paying much more attention to all along. As Americans, we live in a country with a bountiful food supply, but, truthfully, little of what we choose to eat is actually good for us. By this, I mean that what we eat should not just keep us from starving, it should enrich our lives and health. If you eat what is good for you, regardless of your athletic involvement, your body will fight off illness better and you will not gain and carry around excessive weight. As an athlete, eating right plays a tremendous role in muscle performance, growth and recovery. Specifically, I'm talking about managing oxidative stress, which is, in laymen's terms, the body's ability to remove toxins from it's cells. The best way to do this is simple: eat foods rich in antioxidants, ie. fruits and vegetables.
For athletes, nutrition is important because we put ever increasing stress on our muscles as we intensify our training regimen. Without ridding ourselves of the toxins that build up in our muscles they cannot properly recover and grow and we cannot reach our greatest performance potential. In the past two years, I have been able to maintain a fairly consistent running schedule but not without dealing with plenty of aches and pains, soreness, illness and injury. In that time, however, I have become very aware of how my body reacts to the stress I put it under when I go for a particularly hard or long run and how long it takes to recover from said activities. In the past couple of months, Katy has really been helping me watch what I eat and making a concerted effort to make sure that includes much more fruit and vegetables (and less sugar). As a supplement, I've also been taking a product called JuicePlus, which is simply capsulized fruits and vegetables. The result has been noticably faster muscle fatigue recovery and an increase in my energy levels. I've started working with a nutritionist, Bronwyn Rittner, to help me monitor what I'm eating and, more importantly, how it affects me, as my training and racing schedule gets tougher throughout the year. My goal simply being to get the most out of my natural ability and to be happy in the knowledge that I'm doing the right things to facilitate a healthy lifestyle.
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