Well, I wanted a challenge to get myself motivated, I got what I asked for. I was really not sure how this race would go. I was averaging 31km per week for the last 2 months, pathetic. Mentally, I was ready to go. Physically, I still felt great dispite my lack of training, but I was worried about how my legs would react to 100 miles with so little training.
On Friday, carpooled down to Titusville Pennsylvania with Chris, Steve and Chris' wife Kim who drove. I was up too late getting stuff ready and only slept 4hrs Thursday night. I figured I'd sleep in the car, but we chatted most of the way so I nodded off for maybe half an hour. Got to Titusville early afternoon and headed over to check out Titusville Middle School. This is the start/finish, also serves as aid station 4 and this is where we'll be coming back that night to pickup our race kits and have pre-race pasta dinner.
We hit a grocery store where I grabbed some breakfast for the morning and food for the race, then they dropped me at my motel, they were staying at a hotel just south of town. My motel was the Caboose Motel, which isn't a motel at all, it's about 20 cabooses lined up in 2 rows of 10 and my room is a caboose! You walk up some steps to the end of your caboose, then go in and it just looks like a long, thin motel room. I flopped on the bed and went right to sleep for an hour. After my nap, they picked me up and we headed to the pre-race dinner and kit pick-up.
Back at my caboose by 7:30pm or so, then brilliantly decided to relax and flip channels for a few hours before I got ready. Idiot. After I got my clothes, food and drop bags ready, I was in bed at 11pm. Where the hell did the last 3 and a half hours go? Oh well, I didn't need to get up until 3am...
Race Day:
Up at 3am, another night with 4hrs sleep. Nice. Had coffee (disgusting, apparently cabooses have horrible coffee), a muffin, banana, Mr. Noodles and part of a cinnimon bun. Kim and the 2 goofs were supposed to pick me up at 4:25am, but didn't get me until 4:35. Only 10 minutes later but race starts at 5am, so I was contemplating whether to start walking when they showed up. Titusville Middle School was only a few blocks away, so we were there quick. I handed in my drop bags, taped up my shins (I'm scared to run without kineso tape after last year's shin trouble), gave Chris some tape to help his ailing shin and we were good to go. We got up to walk to the starting line, as we approached people were running away from it! We looked at each other and said "I guess it started!" We were off!
The Course:
Out of the two 100 mile races I've done, this course definietly ranks in the top 2. Great scenery, lots of historical crap to do with oil everywhere. Very hilly, total elevation change is over 17,000 feet. Doing HURT first put this in perspective though (26,000 feet there).
The course is basically a short run along a bike path for just over a mile, then a huge loop on trails from the north end of Oil Creek State Park to the south end and back, then to the bike path and back to the start finish, the entire loop totals 50km. You do this loop 3 times, then loop 4 is the 'heading home loop' and is only 7.7 miles to bring the total to 100 miles. Each 50km loop has 4 aid stations: Aid Station 1 is just under 8 miles from the start, then Aid Station 2 is at the bottom of the park (about halfway through the loop), then Aid Station 3 is on the way back and then the start/finish is Aid Station 4. There are also numerous un-manned water stops along the way.
LOOP 1:
The 100 mile runners were off at 5am, the 100km runners would be behind us at 6am and the 50k people at at 7am. The start is dark for 2 hrs so we've all got our lights out. Except for Steve, he just had some dinky kids flashlight or something because he thought it would be light out by 5:05. The start is along a mind-numbing paved bike path for just over a mile, then we cross a road and head off into the trails (this spot would turn out to be VERY important later). For the first while it's just a long line of crazy people along thin trails, there's nowhere to pass and it's too dark and hilly to try. After we get to Aid Station 1, it started to thin out. I'm still clueless at pacing, I prefer to go out harder and then hang on as I fade. I was still running with Chris and Steve, they told me our pace was too fast. I broke away after awhile, but took my time at Aid Station 2 and waited for them to show up. I got a few extra minutes rest doing this, then we headed out together, now going north on our way back.
I started to go ahead again, I was just running at a pace that felt natural. I ended up running beside a guy and chatting about other races, turns out he is the race director for McNaughton, a race that I've been thinking about for next year (150 miles!). Soon Chris and Steve caught up, they must have been moving. We ran together for a bit, but Chris was starting to have shin and ankle issues so he started to drop back. He gradually dropped back, but little did we know we wouldn't be running with him again. Steve and I ran together to Aid Station 3, then headed on our way toward the start/finish Aid Station 4…at least that's what we thought.
Two Idiots in the Woods:
Near the end of the loop, we headed across a bridge and a volunteer took down our bib numbers and said it's just over a mile to the start/finish. We ran across the bridge, then turned left and headed up a bike path and turned onto the marked trails. We had estimated it would take us 7hrs to finish loop 1, but now we were just over that. We were gunning it up and down hills thinking the start/finish Aid Station 4 must be soon. Whenever we hit a downhill, I'd think this must be it and I'd pick up the pace with Steve doing the same, we were running our asses off and not getting anywhere. We revised our loop estimate to be 7.5hrs.... then 8hrs.... then WTF? What the hell was going on here? We came to a bridge and a kid on the bridge said "Only 600 yards to go!" I assumed he meant 600 yards until we're out of the woods and near the school and start/finish. Then Steve noticed we were running past these 'walk of fame' stars with past runners' names on them, the same stars we'd run past at about 7am that morning. Did they move them? Then we saw the most beautiful and ugly site....Aid Station 1.
I Wanted a Challenge, Be Careful What You Wish For:
The Aid Station workers were as confused as we were in trying to figure out what just happened. Now that it's over, I'll tell you what the hell happened: When we crossed the bridge and the girl told us it's just over a mile to the start/finish, we were engaged in a deep conversation bitching about our ex-wives, didn't even look at the sign telling us to turn right and we turned left instead, starting the loop again without checking in at the start finish! Steve looked like he was about to shit his pants, he was pissed. My first thought was 'Are we done? Did we come all this way and train all this time (well not really) just to be forced to quit because of a stupid mistake so early in the race?'. I though about the time, we'd have to move but we had to try.
I had one of the voluteers get me a map so we could figure out where we were and what we had to do next, Steve was too flustered to understand what they were telling us, he just wanted to get going. They showed us a paved bike path on the other side of the aid station that headed back to the school, so that was our only choice.
It was now 1:30pm, this friggin loop has taken us 8.5hrs and it's not over. So far, we went approx 6 miles the wrong way, now we were running along this 4 mile paved bike path to get back on track. It sucked running so far in trail shoes on the hard flat asphalt. The entire run had a slight uphill, made you feel more tired than you should. Steve was having some doubts, I tried to convince him by imagining how great it would be if we could pull this off. I told him if we finish, it will be 110 miles (177km), it will be the longest run of our lives! That was enough to keep me going. We plodded along this stupid path for an hour. Eventually, the path comes out at the bridge, and we see where we went wrong. The good news is, the path we're already on is the same friggin mind-numbing path that goes back to the start/finish, so we passed by the exact spot where we went the wrong way thus re-entering the course exactly where we left it. Going by the rules, this keeps everything on the up and up. Steve said he didn't give a fuck.
We finally got back to the start/finish Aid Station 4 at 2:30pm, loop 1 took 9.5 hrs. Oops.
LOOP 2:
Steve and I started off loop 2 at 2:45pm, it was now very hot running along the mind-numbing bike path to get to the trail. Chris had come and gone a long time ago and was way ahead of us on loop 2. When we got to Aid Station 1, they gave us a big cheer, 'You made it back!' I heard some one shout. It was now 4:30pm, 3 hours after we accidentally showed up earlier. We then climbed the huge hill leading out of AS1, but now Steve wasn't feeling so well. We had really zapped ourselves earlier running so hard to an imaginary start/finish, then run hard again to get back on track. The heat was getting to him, he was retaining WAY to much water. He showed me his hands and they had ballooned up from the water retention, looked like clown hands! If his hands get that big, I wonder what that does to his penis? I gave him some salt pills, this seemed to bring the bloating down, he was now capable of dialing a phone again. He told me to run ahead, but I said I'd stick with him as it would be nice to stay together for the long night run. It was at this point that he mentioned the dreaded letters DNF, he was thinking about dropping. Once these thoughts cross you mind, it's hard to get back. He stuck it out until the bottom of the park at Aid Station 2. He just wasn't feeling great and the loss of 2.5hrs had thrown him off. I asked him if he was sure, but he was. It was just about to get dark, this meant I'd have to run through the night alone. Steve hitched a ride with a bunch of other DNFs in an ambulance back to the school.
Here I Go, Again On My Own…
I grabbed my lights and headed up the hill out of AS3 at 6:50pm (13hrs 50min now). Heading north on the way back was a few miles longer than the way there, plus there's a bunch of muddy spots that I had to creep around the edges of to avoid soaked feet. It got dark at 7pm, so this also slowed thing down. The first few miles are actually fairly smooth and good for running, but I was tired and sore so wasn't moving very quickly. By the time I got back to the start finish Aid Station number 4, it was almost midnight. Loop 2 took me 9hrs, yikes. Doing the math, I should be even more tired on the next loop, so I figured 10 to 10.5hrs. 10.5hrs would bring me back to the start finish at around 10:30am, leaving me 2.5hrs before the 32hr cutoff to do the final loop 4 which is 7.7 miles (assuming I'm not too exhausted). I had been told loop 4 takes approx 2.5hrs, so this would be cutting it close!
When I got to AS4 just before midnight (almost 19hrs in), Chris, Steve and Kim were all there. I was happy see Chris was there, I wasn't sure if he pulled out after he dropped back earlier, but he gutted it out and was finished loop 2. Chris was now keeled over puking in the chair beside me, awesome. He was trying to aim it on a 1 foot wide strip of grass, but he was failing miserably and it was getting everywhere. Paramedics came over to assess him, they asked if he'd had anything to drink, I said "Well yeah, he's hammered!". He had already been vomiting on the course previously, so he was in rough shape. Ankle and shin problems didn't help, but the stomach issues were his demise. He was considering going back out, but wisely didn't. Steve was great, he was making sure I was ok and he and Kim were getting me whatever I needed. I was feeling pretty good, now 116km done including our little side-trip. I was so stiff I could barely move when I stood up, but I knew I'd loosen up once I started moving. I had some food and coffee, then headed out for loop 3, while the 3 of them went to a hotel for the night. Bastards!
LOOP 3:
Steve walked me out of the aid station with lots of encouragement, he was pulling for me. We guessed I should be back from this loop at 10 or 1030am, he said he'd be there at 10am and run the final 7 mile loop 4 with me. I headed out at 12:10am (19hrs 10min). I was feeling pretty good once I loosened up, but I couldn't move very quickly. Instead of trying to move fast, I changed my stride and took short quick steps and kept a steady pace. Eventually, this was a little TOO steady, I kept nodding off! The 4hrs of sleep each of the last 2 nights was finally catching up with me. At first I would just lose focus a little and my eyes would drift shut, but then it got worse. Numerous times I'd start to drift off and wander off the trail, this was actually getting dangerous. I was very happy to see Aid Station 1! I had a large coffee and a handful of chocolate covered expresso beans. I also put some beans in a cup to bring so I could pop them along the way.
The caffine woke me up, I was more alert on the run to Aid Station 2. I passed by 2 girls I knew, when they asked how I was doing I said ok but told them I got lost earlier. They said 'We know, we heard all about it, you're famous now!'. Great, word of my detour had spread, now I'd really have to finish! I was keeping the same slow steady pace, it felt great. Problem is, I didn't realize how slow and steady it was, I came into Aid Station 2 at 4:30am (23hrs 30min). This meant I took 4hrs 20min to get here (loop 1 it took 3hrs 15min, loop 2 took 3hrs 30min). I was almost an hour slower than on the last loop. Not a big deal, I'd still have plenty of time to make my way back, as long I'm back by 10:30 or 11am, I've have 2hrs to run the final 7 mile loop. I was still tired so I threw back a Starbucks Double Expresso (we'd grabbed these at the store earlier, they come in a can, fantastic), also had a regular coffee and more expresso beans. That should keep me awake! Then, as I was sitting there enjoying some soup, I overheard someone talking about cutoff times at the aid stations….
Panic Mode!
Cutoff times? What the hell were they talking about? They told me the cutoff time at the final Aid Station 4 is 10:32am. Oh shit. I didn't hear what the cutoff time was at Aid Station 3, I was busy getting my shit together to get the hell out of there. The way back always seemed to take longer than expected, wasn't sure why. I darted out of there at 4:40am and headed up the steep hill to the top of the ridge. I was freaking out a little, I thought they said the cutoff at AS3 is 7 or 730am, I wasn't sure. When I got to the top of the ridge, I took off like a madman. The trail between AS2 and AS3 has lots of smooth rolling spots, I broke into a fast run and just kept going. It was a mix of the adrenaline, double expresso, the energy I'd saved running like a turtle on the last leg and most of all PANIC, but I kept up a road racing pace, definitly under 5min kms. Slight uphills which we walked earlier, I would run right over them. Muddy bogs, I sprinted right though them without braking stride. People who were plodding along would hear me coming , step aside and cheer me on as I flew past! I had anticipated wiping out for sure at some point as this was all in the dark, but I managed to remain upright. This was actually fun, I suddenly had so much energy! I got to the Aid Station 3 and asked them what the cutoff time is, they said 7:55am. I checked my watch, it was only 6:45am! This leg only took me 2hrs 05min, earlier loops were 3hrs! Ok, so I completely over estimated the cutoff time, but this was great, I have more time now. I kept up a respectable pace between AS3 and AS4, definitly quicker than the last loop. When I got near AS4, my feet were throbbing, I couldn't wait to get off of them. The asphalt bike path for a mile at the end was not helping.
As I approached the start/finish Aid Station 4, I realized I was way earlier than expected. I wasn't sure if they'd be there to greet me and if Steve would be there to run with me for loop 4. I figured if they're not there yet, I'll take my time at the aid station, then just go. We had guessed 10 to 10.5hrs, I arrived at 9:17am, did the loop in 9hrs 07min! I'll have to use panic mode more often! As I approached the aid station, I was happy to see Steve, Chris and Kim all there waiting, thank goodness they showed up early, just in case.
LOOP 4:
So now I'm sitting there having some food and more coffee, giving my throbbing feet a break. Because of my detour, I've now run 103 miles, but it's not official unless I get off my ass and run another 7 mile loop! Arg… Steve was pumped, he was so happy and excited for me he wanted to get going (a good nights sleep in a bed will have that effect!). He was jumping up and down "Lets go, lets go!". I loaded up on food, slowly stood up, stiff as a board. It's now 9:30am (28hrs 30min, should have been done by now!), so I've got 3.5hrs for this mini-loop, no problem. This loop would just be some good conversation and a fun light run, mentally I was already done. Steve and I headed out walking and eating while I loosened up, but I was feeling pretty good so we broke into a run. I told Steve I wasn't planning to take forever and walk, I was going to run this loop out as much as possible. One refreshing part of this loop was we'd be on some new trails we hadn't run on the other loops, but what we didn't know was this would include the biggest hill on the course! The hill was actually fine, the descent after the hill did a number on my quads. The temperature was climbing now too, but I knew it was almost over so it didn't matter.
After that we ran across the bridge, then back to the friggin mind-numbing bike path for the final time! I was trying to run on the grass at the sides of the path where I could, the asphalt was really causing my feet to throb. We did a walk/run the rest of the way along the path. After the path, we rounded the corner to the school and saw the finish line! We ran at a decent pace, but with 100 yards left I told Steve I'm gonna go, then I broke into a full out sprint to the finish, with what was left of the crowd cheering me on! What a feeling, it's these moments we run for. Last 7.7 mile loop took 2hrs 09min, total run time officially 30hrs 39min 18sec. The race director Tom gave me my finisher's buckle, I told him I'd done 110 miles and explained what happened. He apologized but I said no, it was completely our fault, the course was actuially marked VERY well (ok, that one sign could have been bigger maybe). He did say I had the best finish of anyone!
So That Was My Weekend…
So without the detour, I should have finished more like 28hrs, possibly under. Didn't matter, I was the only one to run 110 miles (as far as I know) the longest run of my life (so far!). I was also the only Canadian finisher, although I think only 6 showed up, a few more were entered but didn't show. Although Steve and Chris DNFed, this was probably a good thing as they're both off to the Grand Canyon in 2 weeks for Rim to Rim to Rim, better to DNF here than there. Chris ran 2 loops (100km), Steve ran 1.5 loops (73km), plus our detour (16km), plus he came out for loop 4 (12km), so his total was just over 100km also. That's plenty of running on a hilly course 2 weeks before R2R2R. The winner finished in 18hrs! He's from Boulder Colorado. I think all runners from Colorado or BC should be banned, it's like steroids! Good for him though...
Steve, Chris and Kim were great, so supportive. Steve and I had lots of great conversations to make the hours go by, that was great as I'm used to running alone. What's next for me? No idea. This gives me enough points to qualify for Ultra Trail de Mont Blanc in France next year (well it's in France, Switzerland and Italy). I've never run at altitude, so this intreagues me. Also considering Canadian Death Race, McNaughton 150, and I'll throw my name in the lottery for Western States. I'm more than pleased with my performance on 31km per week. Obviously I carried over training from earlier in the summer, but I was far from peak form for this. This is very encouraging. I'll decide on a big race for next year, then train properly this time!
As usual, I didn't take pics, here's a link to one from the website:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/leeann-charlie/6228329908/in/set-72157627732053805
Here's the results page. 114 starters, 57 finishers and 57 DNFs. I came in 43rd, without the detour would have been 31st:
http://smileymiles.com/2011/RES%2011%20OIL%20CREEK%20ULTRA%20100%20MILE%20OA.HTM
Take Care,
Morgan
Friday, October 14, 2011
Monday, October 3, 2011
I May Be In Deep Sh....
So training hasn't been quite up to snuff. If fact I'm WAY undertrained and the race is in 5 days. Just haven't been able to fit runs in, something always comes up (insert excuse here). Here's my weekly mileage getting ready for HURT 100 compared to Oil Creek 100 leading up to each race:
Week #: HURT - Oil Creek
Week 9: 81 - 11
Week 8: 70 - 76
Week 7: 92 - 13
Week 6: 90 - 35
Week 5: 119 - 32
Week 4: 10 - 47
Week 3: 110 - 40
Week 2: 30 - 27
Total: 602 - 281
So in the last 8 weeks, I've averaged 31km per week. Yikes. Getting ready for HURT, I averaged 75km per week, not to mention all the stairs and way more strength training. 75km per week is low by most standards, 31km per week is just stupid. Oh well, doing things the easy way just wouldn't be me. I really have no idea how this is going to go. Granted I did run races every few weeks in the summer, and I felt fine after 120km at DG two months ago, but I haven't done much since. I did do a 50km race in week 8, hence the only week with decent numbers. I really should get a treadmill so I can run when I have the kids.
My 9yr old son joined the cross country team last week, so we can get some little runs in here and there together now. They have a loop they do, he said most kids struggled with 1 loop, he did 5! The coach made him stop and take a drink after loop 4, only a few older kids ran farther. The coach told all of the other teachers about it, so proud!
Back to my impending torture, I'll be hitching a ride down with some other runners, got a hotel near the start (5am). Not sure what time we'll be back Sunday, hopefully in time for some Thanksgiving turkey! I'll just be happy to finish this one. Mentally, I'm ready to push through the expected pain and exhaustion, my biggest worry is injuring myself because my legs aren't used to the mileage. I figure if I can finish this with such crappy-ass training, it'll be a big confidence booster for future races, where I'll train properly and try to do well instead of just finish. We'll see!
Mo
Week #: HURT - Oil Creek
Week 9: 81 - 11
Week 8: 70 - 76
Week 7: 92 - 13
Week 6: 90 - 35
Week 5: 119 - 32
Week 4: 10 - 47
Week 3: 110 - 40
Week 2: 30 - 27
Total: 602 - 281
So in the last 8 weeks, I've averaged 31km per week. Yikes. Getting ready for HURT, I averaged 75km per week, not to mention all the stairs and way more strength training. 75km per week is low by most standards, 31km per week is just stupid. Oh well, doing things the easy way just wouldn't be me. I really have no idea how this is going to go. Granted I did run races every few weeks in the summer, and I felt fine after 120km at DG two months ago, but I haven't done much since. I did do a 50km race in week 8, hence the only week with decent numbers. I really should get a treadmill so I can run when I have the kids.
My 9yr old son joined the cross country team last week, so we can get some little runs in here and there together now. They have a loop they do, he said most kids struggled with 1 loop, he did 5! The coach made him stop and take a drink after loop 4, only a few older kids ran farther. The coach told all of the other teachers about it, so proud!
Back to my impending torture, I'll be hitching a ride down with some other runners, got a hotel near the start (5am). Not sure what time we'll be back Sunday, hopefully in time for some Thanksgiving turkey! I'll just be happy to finish this one. Mentally, I'm ready to push through the expected pain and exhaustion, my biggest worry is injuring myself because my legs aren't used to the mileage. I figure if I can finish this with such crappy-ass training, it'll be a big confidence booster for future races, where I'll train properly and try to do well instead of just finish. We'll see!
Mo
Monday, August 8, 2011
And the Winner is......
Oil Creek!
Grindstone was just too far to go in a weekend, plus the 5pm start time is real turn off. I've heard the course at Oil Creek is great, so here we go! I also emailed the organizers at Ultra Trail de Mont Blanc to ask why there are so few qualifing courses, they said they're adding races to the list all the time so I can send them the race details for Oil Creek if I'd like to request it to be added. UTMB is still a bit of a dream, just thought I'd check though.
Haven't posted in awhile, did 2 races since last post so here are quick descriptions:
The Limberlost Challenge 56km - July 16th, 2011:
I was excited to do this race, heard good things about it when I missed it last year. It's a 14km loop done 4 times, pretty hilly trial and a slow course. I camped in Algonquin just under an hour's drive from the start. This is the first time I've camped before a race, I really prefer to get ready at home or in a hotel room. I was planning to take it easy the day before, wound up kayaking for almost 4hrs! Didn't use my legs, still used too much energy though.
It got pretty hot for this race, I stopped to dunk my head in the lake a few times. I can still feel I'm not up to the level I want to be, pretty sloggish near the end. Finished in 7hrs 23min, not bad but a bit slower than I'd like.
Course was beautiful, rolling soft trails around some lakes, great scenery. They're now trying to gauge intrest to see if people would want to do a longer race here next year, sounds good to me.
Dirty Girls 24hrs - Aug 6th, 2011:
Last year, this was my first race ever running at night, did 130km so I was hoping to beat that this year. The night before the race, I waited way too long to get ready and got less than 4hrs sleep. Not a good idea before a 24hr race. Race starts at 8am, so I got there 30min before to set up my chair, drop bag and cooler. It's a 10km loop in the woods, so I'd pass by my stuff every loop and grab whatever I needed.
Race started out well, despite some afternoon heat and humidity, I'd run 100km by midnight. The next loop was slower, I wasn't feeling well and was very light-headed. On top of this, the worst part was my burning ass. All day I'd keep 1 bottle of water handy just to soak my head and neck when I got hot, this cooled my off but I didn't realize it also ran down and kept my shorts drenched all day. I now had horrible chafing in bad private places that was making it excruitating to run. After the next loop which was a little slower, it was now 230am and I'd been running for 18.5hrs, I decided I was just going to get to 120km. Most runners at this event stop at 120km, that's the distance you need to earn a buckle award. I didn't want to stop until at least 130km (same as last year), but my ass was killing me and getting worse. So I now had 5.5hrs to get 10 more kms. I sat in my chair and nodded off for 45 minutes. When I woke up and started to go again, my legs felt GREAT after the rest, but my chafing was worse than ever so I just grinded out a horrible 10k and them went to sleep in my car until the 8am finish! Vaseline really doesn't work well, time to try so alternatives...
Had a great time, I really like this race and plan to be back. I think my official time was just over 21.5hrs.
Only 2 months to Oil Creek, time to step up the training for a montha and a half or so! Might do Iroquois Trail Test 50km in 2 weeks, not sure yet. If not, Oil Creek will be my next race.
Take care,
Mo
Grindstone was just too far to go in a weekend, plus the 5pm start time is real turn off. I've heard the course at Oil Creek is great, so here we go! I also emailed the organizers at Ultra Trail de Mont Blanc to ask why there are so few qualifing courses, they said they're adding races to the list all the time so I can send them the race details for Oil Creek if I'd like to request it to be added. UTMB is still a bit of a dream, just thought I'd check though.
Haven't posted in awhile, did 2 races since last post so here are quick descriptions:
The Limberlost Challenge 56km - July 16th, 2011:
I was excited to do this race, heard good things about it when I missed it last year. It's a 14km loop done 4 times, pretty hilly trial and a slow course. I camped in Algonquin just under an hour's drive from the start. This is the first time I've camped before a race, I really prefer to get ready at home or in a hotel room. I was planning to take it easy the day before, wound up kayaking for almost 4hrs! Didn't use my legs, still used too much energy though.
It got pretty hot for this race, I stopped to dunk my head in the lake a few times. I can still feel I'm not up to the level I want to be, pretty sloggish near the end. Finished in 7hrs 23min, not bad but a bit slower than I'd like.
Course was beautiful, rolling soft trails around some lakes, great scenery. They're now trying to gauge intrest to see if people would want to do a longer race here next year, sounds good to me.
Dirty Girls 24hrs - Aug 6th, 2011:
Last year, this was my first race ever running at night, did 130km so I was hoping to beat that this year. The night before the race, I waited way too long to get ready and got less than 4hrs sleep. Not a good idea before a 24hr race. Race starts at 8am, so I got there 30min before to set up my chair, drop bag and cooler. It's a 10km loop in the woods, so I'd pass by my stuff every loop and grab whatever I needed.
Race started out well, despite some afternoon heat and humidity, I'd run 100km by midnight. The next loop was slower, I wasn't feeling well and was very light-headed. On top of this, the worst part was my burning ass. All day I'd keep 1 bottle of water handy just to soak my head and neck when I got hot, this cooled my off but I didn't realize it also ran down and kept my shorts drenched all day. I now had horrible chafing in bad private places that was making it excruitating to run. After the next loop which was a little slower, it was now 230am and I'd been running for 18.5hrs, I decided I was just going to get to 120km. Most runners at this event stop at 120km, that's the distance you need to earn a buckle award. I didn't want to stop until at least 130km (same as last year), but my ass was killing me and getting worse. So I now had 5.5hrs to get 10 more kms. I sat in my chair and nodded off for 45 minutes. When I woke up and started to go again, my legs felt GREAT after the rest, but my chafing was worse than ever so I just grinded out a horrible 10k and them went to sleep in my car until the 8am finish! Vaseline really doesn't work well, time to try so alternatives...
Had a great time, I really like this race and plan to be back. I think my official time was just over 21.5hrs.
Only 2 months to Oil Creek, time to step up the training for a montha and a half or so! Might do Iroquois Trail Test 50km in 2 weeks, not sure yet. If not, Oil Creek will be my next race.
Take care,
Mo
Monday, July 11, 2011
It's Go Time!
Ok, officially back in training. For what you say? Still not sure. I'm tinkering with the idea of doing UTMB next August, it's a 100 miler around Mont Blanc going through France, Switzerland and Germany. I need 5 qualifying points on 2011 in order to register. Doing HURT gave me 4 points, so I just need one more but it's surprisingly hard to find a race around here that qualifies. If I'd planned this better I could have found one earlier, but that's just not like me to plan ahead! I'm waiting for an email back from the organizers regarding a question I had about the qualifying races. Anyhoo, I'm trying to decide between two 100 mile races on Oct 9th this year. One is a qualifier for UTMB, the other isn't. There are pros and cons to both, but soon one of them will be full so I'd better decide soon.
Grindstone 100: In the hills of Virginia, very hilly course, almost as much elevation as HURT.
Pros: Very hilly, I love this shit; qualifier for UTMB; such a challenging course and being a qualifier will both keep me motivated.
Cons: Very hilly, only 3 months to get ready; 10hr drive, so an extra day off work Thursday and still cramming for time, drive back will suck on Sunday after the race, need to be back for Thanksgiving on Monday; start time is 5pm Friday night, so it's basically running through 2 nights and 1 day; double the price of Oil Creek, plus one of the requirements is I have to volunteer at another race for 8hrs as part of the registration.
Oil Creek 100: Located in Pennsylvania, hilly tough course but not nearly as hilly as Grindstone.
Pros: Hilly but not too hilly, so will be tough but no madness; only 3.5hr drive, so could leave Friday morning and drive back Sunday afternoon no problem; starts Saturday morning instead of Friday night.
Cons: Not a qualifier for UTMB; will struggle for motivation with it not being a qualifier and not being the same challenge as Grindstone (yes I'm an idiot, it is still a hilly 100 mile race).
I'm leaning toward Oil Creek, but it will sell out soon so I'd better make up my mind. Either way, training starts today!
Here's where I currently am: I ran Creemore Vertical Challenge 50km the weekend before last. I'm still knowhere near the shape I was in last year at this time, I finished about half and hour longer at 5hrs 37min. I didn't feel too bad, at least I felt better than I did at Niagara 50km 2 weeks before that, so I'm getting better. Training has been poor, but that all changes today. This weekend I'm doing Limberlost 56km, I missed the inaugural event last year so I'm really looking forward to it. 3 weeks after that, I'm doing Dirty Girls 24hrs again, I had a blast doing it last year.
In order to get my mileage up, I got a membership at a gym next to my office. It has a gym and a pool, but I really only wanted it for the showers so I could run at lunch without stinking the office up. I've started using it a few times a week. I work at the office almost exclusively now, so the gym is necessary to get runs in like I used to on lunches working from home. My workouts with weights and using stationary bike has been pretty much non existent, so that changes now too. I've got kids 50% of the time, so those mornings are now for stationary bike or weights, not just sleeping in. This means I have my kids every other weekend, so I'll plan around that as I can't run long those weekends. Still playing soccer once a week, although sometimes it conflicts with my son's games and I'd rather watch him than play myself.
Bought new trail shoes last week, same Montrail Mountain Masochists that I wore for HURT. I'd better wear these in quick before the 24hr race in 5 weeks. Got up and ran trails this morning, then went out at lunch for another run. I haven't tracked my mileage since HURT in January. Prior to that, I'd tracked every single run since I started running in October of 2007. Suppose I should start again to stay on top of things.
Well, I'll decide in the next while which race to do. Until then, I'll keep training with that date in mind, it's less than 3 months already!
Mo
Grindstone 100: In the hills of Virginia, very hilly course, almost as much elevation as HURT.
Pros: Very hilly, I love this shit; qualifier for UTMB; such a challenging course and being a qualifier will both keep me motivated.
Cons: Very hilly, only 3 months to get ready; 10hr drive, so an extra day off work Thursday and still cramming for time, drive back will suck on Sunday after the race, need to be back for Thanksgiving on Monday; start time is 5pm Friday night, so it's basically running through 2 nights and 1 day; double the price of Oil Creek, plus one of the requirements is I have to volunteer at another race for 8hrs as part of the registration.
Oil Creek 100: Located in Pennsylvania, hilly tough course but not nearly as hilly as Grindstone.
Pros: Hilly but not too hilly, so will be tough but no madness; only 3.5hr drive, so could leave Friday morning and drive back Sunday afternoon no problem; starts Saturday morning instead of Friday night.
Cons: Not a qualifier for UTMB; will struggle for motivation with it not being a qualifier and not being the same challenge as Grindstone (yes I'm an idiot, it is still a hilly 100 mile race).
I'm leaning toward Oil Creek, but it will sell out soon so I'd better make up my mind. Either way, training starts today!
Here's where I currently am: I ran Creemore Vertical Challenge 50km the weekend before last. I'm still knowhere near the shape I was in last year at this time, I finished about half and hour longer at 5hrs 37min. I didn't feel too bad, at least I felt better than I did at Niagara 50km 2 weeks before that, so I'm getting better. Training has been poor, but that all changes today. This weekend I'm doing Limberlost 56km, I missed the inaugural event last year so I'm really looking forward to it. 3 weeks after that, I'm doing Dirty Girls 24hrs again, I had a blast doing it last year.
In order to get my mileage up, I got a membership at a gym next to my office. It has a gym and a pool, but I really only wanted it for the showers so I could run at lunch without stinking the office up. I've started using it a few times a week. I work at the office almost exclusively now, so the gym is necessary to get runs in like I used to on lunches working from home. My workouts with weights and using stationary bike has been pretty much non existent, so that changes now too. I've got kids 50% of the time, so those mornings are now for stationary bike or weights, not just sleeping in. This means I have my kids every other weekend, so I'll plan around that as I can't run long those weekends. Still playing soccer once a week, although sometimes it conflicts with my son's games and I'd rather watch him than play myself.
Bought new trail shoes last week, same Montrail Mountain Masochists that I wore for HURT. I'd better wear these in quick before the 24hr race in 5 weeks. Got up and ran trails this morning, then went out at lunch for another run. I haven't tracked my mileage since HURT in January. Prior to that, I'd tracked every single run since I started running in October of 2007. Suppose I should start again to stay on top of things.
Well, I'll decide in the next while which race to do. Until then, I'll keep training with that date in mind, it's less than 3 months already!
Mo
Friday, June 24, 2011
Training for ????
Ok, so I've been sitting on my ass a little. Eh, I earned it. After HURT, my plan was to basically take a little break then maintain my fitness level going into 2011. Oops, my bad. I sat around for a month after, then I started to run a little but it was like 10k per week. I had some personal things to take care of which I promised myself I'd do when I got back from HURT, which I did. It was hard to focus on running so I've pretty much taken it easy the last few months. I did run Pick Your Poison 50k in April, but I was way undertrained and out of shape by that point. I had originally planned to run 100 miles at Sulpher Springs at the end of May, but in April I knew I was nowhere near ready for it. I changed plans and was going to do switch to the 50 miler, but I still hadn't trained properly and having someone watch the kids that weekend turned out to be complicated, so I just pulled out. I then ran Niagara 50k in June, my lack of fitness compared to a year ago was evident. Here's a quick summary of the races:
Pick Your Poison:
This was on April 30th. I really hadn't been training and I signed up 3 days before the race. I didn't even look at the race details, turns out it's at Horseshoe Valley and has lots of hills! I'm fine with hills still, at least I've retained that from HURT training. Great course, I really liked it. Brutal time for 50k, finishing 6hrs 11min, but with those hills and no training I couldn't expect much else. I had fun anyway!
Niagara 50k:
This was just last weekend, June 18th. I did NOT enjoy it! This is the flattest race I've done since I did it last year! I should really stick to the hills. Still haven't been training properly or often enough, it showed. I wanted to use this race to gauge where I'm at. I did, and I suck. I finished 10 minutes slower than last year, and last year I had horrible calf cramps and had to walk a bunch near the end! I didn't feel really fatigued this time, but my leg muscles had no energy. This is due to my lack of training, but I also think I didn't eat enough. I ran the first 25k without stopping at any aid stations, I just drank my eload and ate my gels. Usually I load up on chips and bananas, so this was a bit of an experiment. A miserably FAILED experiment. At 25k, I ate 2 orange slices, then another 2 at anout 40k. Guess I really didn't think that one through. I think my legs were just starving. Final time was 4h 56min, crap for a flat smooth course. And to think when I qualified for Boston, it was 8k shorter but I did it in 3h 13min! Not quite there now...
Next ???:
So, here we are. I was planning to enter some bigger races this year, but I waited too long to figure out what the hell I wanted to do and races sold out. I was hoping to do the Canadian Death Race, but I missed registration by a few months. Not sure what's next for me, I'm looking at 100 miler around October. Summer is too soon to get myself in proper shape. I don't want to plan for one in September, as last year I'd signed up and paid for Haliburton 100 but had to pull out when both of my kids had their soccer final fall on the same date as the race! I'm not even going to attempt one in Sept this time, so that leaves October. Next weekend I'm doing Creemore 50k (NOT flat), then 2 weeks later Limberlost 56k, then 3 weeks later Dirty Girls 24hr. Last year I did 130km at Dirty Girls, I'd like to beat that this time, but I've got some serious training to do. Maybe something else near the end of August or early Sept, otherwise just long training runs then.
Time to Get Stupid:
Traning still isn't easy. I'm currently separated and splitting time with kids 50/50, so when I'm with my munchkins I can't run, nor do I want to! This means I can only do long runs every other weekend, and weekdays are all over the place. I've thought about buying a treadmill, but I hate them. I've only used a treadmill twice, but both times I was waiting for it to end. My other problem is I used to work from home a few times a week while traning for HURT so I could run at lunch, but since then my position has changed and I now rarely work from home. I'm now considering getting a gym membership near the office, just so I'll have a place to shower, then I can squeeze in 5k runs at lunch. I used to workout or run 2 to 3 times daily, right now I'm lucky to get that in a week.
So here's the stupid plan (barring any unforseen circumstances!). I'll need to settle on a race soon for October, commiting to that will really get me motivated. For now I'll train with the assumption I'm doing one in Oct. I'm going to attempt to get at least 1 or 2 workouts in per day going forward. This means some early mornings and late nights. I'll need to run my ass off when I don't have kids (this means a mix of hills, stairs, tempo runs...not just long slow runs like I've been doing lately). I play soccer once a week, so that helps too. When I have the kids, it's back to the weights and my old friend, the exercise bike. I've currently got a little more around the midsection and a little less muscle than last year, that needs to change fast.
We'll see how it goes. I definitely don't have nearly as much time to train as I did last year. Working from home used to give me more time in the morning, more time in the evening, and lunch to go for runs. Splitting time with kids now takes away time also. I'll do what I can. I've already signed up for Dirty Girls 24hr in just over a month, so let's get to it!
Mo
Pick Your Poison:
This was on April 30th. I really hadn't been training and I signed up 3 days before the race. I didn't even look at the race details, turns out it's at Horseshoe Valley and has lots of hills! I'm fine with hills still, at least I've retained that from HURT training. Great course, I really liked it. Brutal time for 50k, finishing 6hrs 11min, but with those hills and no training I couldn't expect much else. I had fun anyway!
Niagara 50k:
This was just last weekend, June 18th. I did NOT enjoy it! This is the flattest race I've done since I did it last year! I should really stick to the hills. Still haven't been training properly or often enough, it showed. I wanted to use this race to gauge where I'm at. I did, and I suck. I finished 10 minutes slower than last year, and last year I had horrible calf cramps and had to walk a bunch near the end! I didn't feel really fatigued this time, but my leg muscles had no energy. This is due to my lack of training, but I also think I didn't eat enough. I ran the first 25k without stopping at any aid stations, I just drank my eload and ate my gels. Usually I load up on chips and bananas, so this was a bit of an experiment. A miserably FAILED experiment. At 25k, I ate 2 orange slices, then another 2 at anout 40k. Guess I really didn't think that one through. I think my legs were just starving. Final time was 4h 56min, crap for a flat smooth course. And to think when I qualified for Boston, it was 8k shorter but I did it in 3h 13min! Not quite there now...
Next ???:
So, here we are. I was planning to enter some bigger races this year, but I waited too long to figure out what the hell I wanted to do and races sold out. I was hoping to do the Canadian Death Race, but I missed registration by a few months. Not sure what's next for me, I'm looking at 100 miler around October. Summer is too soon to get myself in proper shape. I don't want to plan for one in September, as last year I'd signed up and paid for Haliburton 100 but had to pull out when both of my kids had their soccer final fall on the same date as the race! I'm not even going to attempt one in Sept this time, so that leaves October. Next weekend I'm doing Creemore 50k (NOT flat), then 2 weeks later Limberlost 56k, then 3 weeks later Dirty Girls 24hr. Last year I did 130km at Dirty Girls, I'd like to beat that this time, but I've got some serious training to do. Maybe something else near the end of August or early Sept, otherwise just long training runs then.
Time to Get Stupid:
Traning still isn't easy. I'm currently separated and splitting time with kids 50/50, so when I'm with my munchkins I can't run, nor do I want to! This means I can only do long runs every other weekend, and weekdays are all over the place. I've thought about buying a treadmill, but I hate them. I've only used a treadmill twice, but both times I was waiting for it to end. My other problem is I used to work from home a few times a week while traning for HURT so I could run at lunch, but since then my position has changed and I now rarely work from home. I'm now considering getting a gym membership near the office, just so I'll have a place to shower, then I can squeeze in 5k runs at lunch. I used to workout or run 2 to 3 times daily, right now I'm lucky to get that in a week.
So here's the stupid plan (barring any unforseen circumstances!). I'll need to settle on a race soon for October, commiting to that will really get me motivated. For now I'll train with the assumption I'm doing one in Oct. I'm going to attempt to get at least 1 or 2 workouts in per day going forward. This means some early mornings and late nights. I'll need to run my ass off when I don't have kids (this means a mix of hills, stairs, tempo runs...not just long slow runs like I've been doing lately). I play soccer once a week, so that helps too. When I have the kids, it's back to the weights and my old friend, the exercise bike. I've currently got a little more around the midsection and a little less muscle than last year, that needs to change fast.
We'll see how it goes. I definitely don't have nearly as much time to train as I did last year. Working from home used to give me more time in the morning, more time in the evening, and lunch to go for runs. Splitting time with kids now takes away time also. I'll do what I can. I've already signed up for Dirty Girls 24hr in just over a month, so let's get to it!
Mo
Monday, January 31, 2011
H.U.R.T. 100!!!
So it's now 2 weeks after HURT, I can wear shoes again instead of sandals, blisters are much better now!
Here's the story from Hawaii:
I left for Hawaii on Tues Jan 11th, right before all of the snow hit! Perfect timing. I went by myself, stayed at a hotel in Waikiki. Hotel was not ideal, had no tub! I asked to switch rooms but would have to be a suite to get a tub so I stayed put. The race takes place in the hills just north of Waikiki, so it was only about a 15min drive to get there, well it would have been if I didn't get lost each time. I paid an extra $20 per night for a kitchenette, figuring I'd cook some of my own food during the week and for the race. Well, the only thing I really used was the toaster, I could have kept a regular room and bought a very nice toaster instead! Due to my shin problems duting training, I've been wearing kinesio tape on my shins. This is fine at home in pants, but I was getting some funny looks at the beach and walking around in shorts with the tape on! No way I was taking it off at this point.
It poured rain Tues night and Wed morning, there were even flood warnings for some areas of Oahu and one neighbourhood was flooded leaving people homeless. I went to check out the course on Wed afternoon after the rain let up. It wasn't too bad so I put on my gear and went for a short run to get a feel for it. Yikes. The first hill right at the beginning is covered in thick roots and takes about 25min to climb.
Thursday more flood warnings, I drove up the north shore, it was clear up there. The weather cleared up for Friday and the weekend, so on race day the course wasn't too bad. Friday I just relaxed and tried not to walk around too much. Fri afternoon was meeting and kit pickup. Finally got to see some familiar faces! Monica invited me to join them for dinner, there's a place she always goes to for pasta on Friday night before the race. A few other Canadians joined us; Rob, Tammy and Jennifer Anne. Then there was Monica and Phil, along with a friend of theirs Don Fallis who's place they stay at in Hawaii. So of the 7 of us at the table, 3 people have done Badwater (Monica, Rob and Don). Don's wife actually made a docmentary about his Badwater experience which was entered in the New York International Independent Film Festival.
After dinner I went back to the hotel to get everything ready for the morning. I put things off way too long, should have been more organized and done it in the afternoon. I stayed up late and only got 5hrs sleep. I had 3 drop bags each with a few shirts (sleeveless, tshirts and longsleeves), then packs of eload powder, powerbar gels, clif shots, salt n vinegar chips, granola bars, beef jerky, boxes of vanilla covered raisins, even a can of ravioli. I'd also made pb and j with banana wraps. Turns out the food at the race was fantastic and had a huge variety, I barely touched my own food, what a waste!
For hydration, I bought a new belt a week before the race which took some getting used to. My current Nathan belt has 2 bottles 10oz each, not enough, so I bought some other Nathan Elite belt, holds 2 bottles 22oz each, plus has ample pocket space. I still wasn't sure if this would be enough so I packed a handheld in my dropbag, I could get it after a loop if I needed it. I also had my Nathan hydration pack in one of my drop bags in case I needed it, but I was drinking Eload and I only put water in the pack so I didn't use it. I brought tons of single packs of Eload to put in each drop bag, along with a pair of scissors and funnel in each bag to speed things up. People would usually do it for me at each station anyway while I sat on my ass.
During the race, I had a gel at least every hour, salt pill and electrolyte pill every hour. Food was awesome, a lot of it was prepared in little baggies so you could grab it and go. The aid station at Jackass Ginger had a chef running it, outstanding. They even had things like steak for dinner, but I couldn't stomach it. The little bags of potatoes hit the spot, I could carry them along and eat later. A race this long was all new to me, I wasn't sure what I'd be able to eat.
For lighting, I had a Petzl Myo on my head, Petzl Tikka 2 on my belt and a flashlight in my hand. Can't have too much light! At night when I turned the lights off to pee, it was pitch black in the trees, NO light was getting through from the moon.
Ok, on to RACE DAY!
Up at 345am, had coffee, toast with pb and J, a banana and a Mr. Noodles. Put double kinesio tape on my shins to make sure it would last for 36 hours! Out the door just after 5am, at the course by 530. Jennifer Anne was parking at the same time, so we walked together up to the Nature Center where the start is. I handed in my drop bags, had a gel and salt pill, then got ready to start. At the start, we all line up across a bridge, then they blow a conch at 6am to signal the start, and we were off!
It's dark out for the first hour, so we had to have our lights out already. The beginning is just a slow march as the crowd makes a few climbing turns and then starts up Hogback, a very long and root-filled climb. After 25min it levels out, then heads across an up and down trail until we come to another steep, rocky climb. This part is repeated near the end of the loop. If you were finishing a loop, you'd turn left and enjoy a slight downhill, but we're at the beginning so we turn right up the steep rocky climb. I was running behind Monica and Phil at this point, with Monica shouting instuctions and tips back to me the whole time. After climbing for another 20 minutes or so, we come to a road crossing where you run along the road for about 300 metres or so. The smooth and level road felt totally weird after the climbing, even moreso on later loops. At this point I couldn't help but to pick up the pace, I was trying to restrain myself from breaking away but when we got to the road I couldn't help it, it felt way too unatural to be running so slow while I'm full of energy. I pushed ahead on my own, but being only an hour into the race there were still many runners around.
After the road crossing, it's a bunch more up and downs (more ups) until we get to the Pauoa flats. This is a flat section in the middle of a very dark treed area, but HUGE roots covered the ground as far as you could see. I hated this part more than any other part of the course. There was a 3 way intersection in the middle, so we'd have to pass though this area 2 times per loop.
After the flats, we start to desend down many, many, many switchbacks until we get to Manoa Falls, then it's just some more up and downs for until we finally get to the first aid station, Paradise Park. This leg took me just over 2hrs, it wouldn't be so quick on later loops. I filled my bottles with Eload, grabbed a bit of food and I was off. I always take too long at aid stations, I was trying to keep it short for now, later I was so tired I didn't care so much. I left my lights here in my drop bag for later.
The trail from the intersection in the Pauoa flats to the aid station is an out and back, so we then head back up the many switchbacks, this part takes 45 minutes or so, very slow. Once we reach the dreaded flats with the roots from hell, we turn right at the intersection and soon break out of the woods and climb up to the top of a ridge. This part is way up and at one point it's only a few feet wide. A fall to either side would be hundreds of feet down. Once we reach the tip of the ridge, there's a very steep root filled drop down into a valley. There's a few tricky rocks to climb down that have ropes to assist, then it's many switchbacks again as we decend down to the bottom and reach a river. We then run along the river until we come to a crossing. The crossing has rocks to hop across with a rope to hold onto, then right across the river is Jackass Ginger aid station. This one had the best food, I always looked forward to arriving here. The aid station volunteers would shout out your number as you approached, so by the time you get there your bag is waiting and a chair to sit on if you wish. There was a huge array of food to choose from, too many choices in fact!
This was again an out and back, so we now had to head back to the Pauoa flats by climbing back up to the top of the ridge, which takes about 30 minutes of climbing. The climb to the ridge is one of the only areas fully exposed to the sun and wind, most of the course is in dense trees.
After we get back to the hell-root flats, there's a bit of a climb and then it's almost all down hill for the next hour and 45min or so back to the start at the Nature Center. There's still a few climbs, but mo more major climbs, until you start another loop of course! Someone told me before the race that if you do your first loop in under 6hrs, you're going too fast and will be in trouble later. Loop 1 took me 5hrs 30min, but I was feeling good at this point.
At the start finish I grabbed some food and chatted with last year's winner and course record holder, Gary Robbins. Very nice guy. He stayed for all 36hrs on crutches to cheer everyone on, awesome.
I still felt great on loop 2. When I got to the first aid station at Paradise Park, I had to grab my lights from my bag as I wouldn't be back here until after dark. My pockets were too full to fit my Myo in, so I had to wear it on my head at 1:45pm! This means it would be on my head for the next 17hrs or so, left a mark on my forehead after the race. Near the end of loop 2 it was mid afternoon and the heat was really getting to people. The temperature wasn't too scorching, but the humidity was 92%, so this is when a lot of people decided to drop. Climbing the ridge on the last leg was brutal, it was under direct sun and very hot. I found out later Monica and Phil decided to pull out early in loop 2. Monica was only there to try and get Phil to the finish, but early in loop 2 they decided it wasn't goping to happen and instead they headed back to their hotel to make the most of the weekend! This was an ongoing joke for the next 2 days, especially at the awards banquet.
Near the end of loop 2, I caught up to Charlotte and ran with her a bit. She had a sinus infection and couldn't breathe on the climbs, but she really flies on the downhills. The technical spots where I'd slow down to avoid death, she would scamper down without slowing down using super quick feet. We ran into the start finish together. Gary shouted out 'Great job Charlotte!', I just looked at him. He came right over and apologized, he couldn't remember my name! Again, very nice guy. I think he felt bad, he remembered me after that! Loop 2 took 6hrs 01min, still going faster than I'd planned but was feeling good.
It got dark early in loop 3, good thing I'd grabbed my headlamp at 1:45pm, I didn't get to Paradise Park aid station until 8pm, way after dark. Near the end of this loop I was starting to tire a little, had to search for some motivation to keep plodding on in the dark over the roots and rocks. I brought my Ipod along on loop 3, but I found myself barely using it. Somehow I find it better to hear my feet when climbing up and down technical and rocky areas. Seems all the rocks were slippery, didn't matter where they were. Mainly because they were covered with muddy footprints from other runners. I was starting to sit down and take too long at aid stations. Earlier I was stopping for 5 minutes, now each stop was getting a little longer. The climb back up to the ridge from Jackass Ginger felt like forever. There's a bench at the top, so for the next few loops I would motivate myself to climb the hill by allowing a 30 second sit down on the bench at the top and I'd have a drink. So if I climb this steep hill for half an hour, then I get to sit down for 30 seconds and take a sip of a drink? Deal! Silly, but it worked. I'd actually count out 30 seconds and dangle my legs to get blood flowing, then I'm off again.
I finished loop 3 in 7hrs 39min, much slower in the dark and getting tired. The start/finish aid station after loop 3 was my longest stop of the race, maybe 20 minutes. I was still wearing my original tank top, but after sitting for a bit I was very cold so I put on a long sleeve. During this stop, Ultraslacker had sent Gary a message (he was tweeting thoughout the race) to ask how I was doing, I believe he reported that I looked like s**t, or something along those lines.
The 20 minute stop actually reinvigorated me, I felt great starting loop 4. So great in fact, that I sped out of the station and proceeded to turn left instead of right, then ran up the wrong hill! A runner heading the other way stopped me a few minutes in as I approached him from the wrong direction. Thanks goodness he was there AND that he said something, otherwise it might be awhile before I realized my error. I thanked him and took off back down the hill returning to the start/finish. I was pissed at myself for this, plus I was feeling great so I sprinted along and started to run up the correct hill, I only lost about 5 minutes or so. I also took a wrong turn elsewhere on loop 2, another 5 minutes or so there.
I felt good on loop 4, but had slowed down quite a bit and most of it was still in the dark. My biggest blunder of the race came at the river crossing on the first stage of loop 4. Previously, I'd been skipping across the rocks because I didn't like where the rope was positioned to hold onto. Apparently, my legs didn't have the same 'pop' as they did earlier in the race and I missed a rock and went right in the river. Up until this point, I'd been pretty much blister free, but that changed quickly.
Near midway through loop 4 way my low point. Feet were killing me, I was so tired of scampering up and down things in the dark, and the stress of time cutoffs approaching had me a little down in the dumps. Plus I was doing this whole thing alone, I didn't have a pacer and never really ran with anyone more than a little while earlier in the race. I needed some motivation. That wasn't hard, I hadn't really had to play my 'motivation card' yet, I'd been fine up to now. I thought about how many people were following my times online (I'd emailed the link to EVERYONE, family, friends, co-workers, clients). I thought about how much training and late night runs I'd done, runs in the snow, how many times I couldn't do something with my kids because I was training. I didn't even consider quitting, but I was worried that if I didn't make more of an effort, I wouldn't make the time cutoffs and then all of the training would have been for nothing. I didn't do all this and come here to get pulled. The thing that kept me going more than anything was my 8 yr old son, he was so excited for me to be in the race and I didn't want to dissappoint him, that was by far my biggest motivator. The morning I left for the airport, I found a note he'd stayed up late in his room writing for me to bring which I kept in my drop bag, here it is letter for letter including spelling mistakes!
Doned give up!
Do your best.
Stay safe.
Remeber family.
Good luck.
You can do this!
Go Dad Go!
We are chreeing for You.
Remember Schicks Never give up!
I will miss you love James.
Go Dad Go! (in giant letters)
So, obviously I couldn't let the little guy down and that's what pushed me through the rest of the race. The sun came up near the end 4, it was a relief that I didn't have to run in the dark anymore. I was hoping to finish loop 4 well ahead of the cutoff, but it was very slow taking me 8hrs 30min. I got back to the start at 940am, which is 1hr 20min ahead of the 11am cutoff.
By the time I left the start/finish aid station to begin loop 5, I'd left myself just over 8hrs to finish the final loop. I'd have to go faster than loop 4's 8h 30min, but this was in the light and the fact that I just had to push through 1 more loop to finish would give me motivation. I knew that I was going to finish at this point, as long as maintained a half decent pace. My feet were extremely sore from the blisters at this point, that was slowing me down more than sore muscles and fatigue. At the aid stations on loop 5, Phil would drive out to each and be waiting there to help me with whatever I needed and get me out of there quickly. I was starting to get really stiff when I sat down at each station, but I'd loosen up once I was back on my feet for a few minutes. It was nice to know that each time I pushed through some crappy part of the course that I didn't like, it was the last time and I wouldn't have to do it again.
At the final aid station, I made the mistake of eating a bunch of food, but pretty much forgetting to drink. I'd run hard on the first 2 legs to give myself plenty of time on the final leg, but I was thirsty after not drinking at the aid station and went through my 2 bottles too fast. I was worried about cramping up so I used thee last of my drink to help me swallow a bunch of salt pills, electrolyte pills and gels. I had way more than I should have, but I was ready to do anything to get myself to the finish. At this point I was getting light headed and tired; and my feet were throbbing. I was feeling great knowing I was going to finish soon, but I was exhausted and it felt like forever. I then started to get paranoid that I'd roll an ankle or injure myself with only a few miles to go, so I started being tentative and going way to slow over obstacles. I knew I had time so I was fine with this. Once I could hear the people at the finish and I picked up my pace, I was so excited to know I was almost there. Then finally, I can out of the trees and crossed the bridge to a crowd cheering me on, and I was done! I'd finished my first 100 miler! Not just any 100 miler but one of the toughest there is! I was extatic, people were congratulating me as someone told me it's not official until I kiss the sign that reads 'We wouldn't want it to be easy'. After that I plopped into a chair and didn't move for about an hour. I didn't even eat, I was so thirsty I just kept having water and ice cubes. Monica took care of me after that, she getting me whatever I needed and even packing up my dirty clothes for me, I was useless.
So I'd finished in 35hrs 17min 20sec. There were 111 starters, 32 finishers and I came in 24th. This was obviously the toughest thing I've ever done, maybe ever will, but I'm already looking at what to do next!
When I got back and landed in Toronto, a friend picked me up at the airport. About an hour later, I got a call from my uncle who was at the airport with a bunch of other relatives to greet me but I'd missed them! They had signs, ballons, all wearing Hawaiian leis, and a trophy that said HURT 100 on it! I can't believe I missed them! Last week my work even had a party for me. The company's owner was so impressed that he announced he would pay for a flight to my next big race, anywhere in the world! I told him I have a 5k coming up in Australia...
Thanks to everyone who supported me and helped me along the way. Special thanks to Monica and Phil for all their help; to Charlotte for her tips, advise and encouragement; to Charlotte's boyfriend Chris for helping me at all the aid stations; and to Jennifer Anne for helping at the start finish aid station, I can't even count how many times she ran to my bag to grab things for me. Thanks also to Kinga and John Turner for the tips and advise leading up to my first 100 miler! And thanks to everyone elso who supported and encouraged me, all the attention was a little overwhelming!
Here's a few pics:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kailuamac/ ... 858574494/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kailuamac/ ... 736956641/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kailuamac/ ... 862645064/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kailuamac/ ... 861447938/
Not sure what's next for me. I'll stil post every little while, not as often until I'm training for a serious race again, but I'll still post some stuff. Eventually I'll even get some friggin pics on here!
Morgan
Here's the story from Hawaii:
I left for Hawaii on Tues Jan 11th, right before all of the snow hit! Perfect timing. I went by myself, stayed at a hotel in Waikiki. Hotel was not ideal, had no tub! I asked to switch rooms but would have to be a suite to get a tub so I stayed put. The race takes place in the hills just north of Waikiki, so it was only about a 15min drive to get there, well it would have been if I didn't get lost each time. I paid an extra $20 per night for a kitchenette, figuring I'd cook some of my own food during the week and for the race. Well, the only thing I really used was the toaster, I could have kept a regular room and bought a very nice toaster instead! Due to my shin problems duting training, I've been wearing kinesio tape on my shins. This is fine at home in pants, but I was getting some funny looks at the beach and walking around in shorts with the tape on! No way I was taking it off at this point.
It poured rain Tues night and Wed morning, there were even flood warnings for some areas of Oahu and one neighbourhood was flooded leaving people homeless. I went to check out the course on Wed afternoon after the rain let up. It wasn't too bad so I put on my gear and went for a short run to get a feel for it. Yikes. The first hill right at the beginning is covered in thick roots and takes about 25min to climb.
Thursday more flood warnings, I drove up the north shore, it was clear up there. The weather cleared up for Friday and the weekend, so on race day the course wasn't too bad. Friday I just relaxed and tried not to walk around too much. Fri afternoon was meeting and kit pickup. Finally got to see some familiar faces! Monica invited me to join them for dinner, there's a place she always goes to for pasta on Friday night before the race. A few other Canadians joined us; Rob, Tammy and Jennifer Anne. Then there was Monica and Phil, along with a friend of theirs Don Fallis who's place they stay at in Hawaii. So of the 7 of us at the table, 3 people have done Badwater (Monica, Rob and Don). Don's wife actually made a docmentary about his Badwater experience which was entered in the New York International Independent Film Festival.
After dinner I went back to the hotel to get everything ready for the morning. I put things off way too long, should have been more organized and done it in the afternoon. I stayed up late and only got 5hrs sleep. I had 3 drop bags each with a few shirts (sleeveless, tshirts and longsleeves), then packs of eload powder, powerbar gels, clif shots, salt n vinegar chips, granola bars, beef jerky, boxes of vanilla covered raisins, even a can of ravioli. I'd also made pb and j with banana wraps. Turns out the food at the race was fantastic and had a huge variety, I barely touched my own food, what a waste!
For hydration, I bought a new belt a week before the race which took some getting used to. My current Nathan belt has 2 bottles 10oz each, not enough, so I bought some other Nathan Elite belt, holds 2 bottles 22oz each, plus has ample pocket space. I still wasn't sure if this would be enough so I packed a handheld in my dropbag, I could get it after a loop if I needed it. I also had my Nathan hydration pack in one of my drop bags in case I needed it, but I was drinking Eload and I only put water in the pack so I didn't use it. I brought tons of single packs of Eload to put in each drop bag, along with a pair of scissors and funnel in each bag to speed things up. People would usually do it for me at each station anyway while I sat on my ass.
During the race, I had a gel at least every hour, salt pill and electrolyte pill every hour. Food was awesome, a lot of it was prepared in little baggies so you could grab it and go. The aid station at Jackass Ginger had a chef running it, outstanding. They even had things like steak for dinner, but I couldn't stomach it. The little bags of potatoes hit the spot, I could carry them along and eat later. A race this long was all new to me, I wasn't sure what I'd be able to eat.
For lighting, I had a Petzl Myo on my head, Petzl Tikka 2 on my belt and a flashlight in my hand. Can't have too much light! At night when I turned the lights off to pee, it was pitch black in the trees, NO light was getting through from the moon.
Ok, on to RACE DAY!
Up at 345am, had coffee, toast with pb and J, a banana and a Mr. Noodles. Put double kinesio tape on my shins to make sure it would last for 36 hours! Out the door just after 5am, at the course by 530. Jennifer Anne was parking at the same time, so we walked together up to the Nature Center where the start is. I handed in my drop bags, had a gel and salt pill, then got ready to start. At the start, we all line up across a bridge, then they blow a conch at 6am to signal the start, and we were off!
It's dark out for the first hour, so we had to have our lights out already. The beginning is just a slow march as the crowd makes a few climbing turns and then starts up Hogback, a very long and root-filled climb. After 25min it levels out, then heads across an up and down trail until we come to another steep, rocky climb. This part is repeated near the end of the loop. If you were finishing a loop, you'd turn left and enjoy a slight downhill, but we're at the beginning so we turn right up the steep rocky climb. I was running behind Monica and Phil at this point, with Monica shouting instuctions and tips back to me the whole time. After climbing for another 20 minutes or so, we come to a road crossing where you run along the road for about 300 metres or so. The smooth and level road felt totally weird after the climbing, even moreso on later loops. At this point I couldn't help but to pick up the pace, I was trying to restrain myself from breaking away but when we got to the road I couldn't help it, it felt way too unatural to be running so slow while I'm full of energy. I pushed ahead on my own, but being only an hour into the race there were still many runners around.
After the road crossing, it's a bunch more up and downs (more ups) until we get to the Pauoa flats. This is a flat section in the middle of a very dark treed area, but HUGE roots covered the ground as far as you could see. I hated this part more than any other part of the course. There was a 3 way intersection in the middle, so we'd have to pass though this area 2 times per loop.
After the flats, we start to desend down many, many, many switchbacks until we get to Manoa Falls, then it's just some more up and downs for until we finally get to the first aid station, Paradise Park. This leg took me just over 2hrs, it wouldn't be so quick on later loops. I filled my bottles with Eload, grabbed a bit of food and I was off. I always take too long at aid stations, I was trying to keep it short for now, later I was so tired I didn't care so much. I left my lights here in my drop bag for later.
The trail from the intersection in the Pauoa flats to the aid station is an out and back, so we then head back up the many switchbacks, this part takes 45 minutes or so, very slow. Once we reach the dreaded flats with the roots from hell, we turn right at the intersection and soon break out of the woods and climb up to the top of a ridge. This part is way up and at one point it's only a few feet wide. A fall to either side would be hundreds of feet down. Once we reach the tip of the ridge, there's a very steep root filled drop down into a valley. There's a few tricky rocks to climb down that have ropes to assist, then it's many switchbacks again as we decend down to the bottom and reach a river. We then run along the river until we come to a crossing. The crossing has rocks to hop across with a rope to hold onto, then right across the river is Jackass Ginger aid station. This one had the best food, I always looked forward to arriving here. The aid station volunteers would shout out your number as you approached, so by the time you get there your bag is waiting and a chair to sit on if you wish. There was a huge array of food to choose from, too many choices in fact!
This was again an out and back, so we now had to head back to the Pauoa flats by climbing back up to the top of the ridge, which takes about 30 minutes of climbing. The climb to the ridge is one of the only areas fully exposed to the sun and wind, most of the course is in dense trees.
After we get back to the hell-root flats, there's a bit of a climb and then it's almost all down hill for the next hour and 45min or so back to the start at the Nature Center. There's still a few climbs, but mo more major climbs, until you start another loop of course! Someone told me before the race that if you do your first loop in under 6hrs, you're going too fast and will be in trouble later. Loop 1 took me 5hrs 30min, but I was feeling good at this point.
At the start finish I grabbed some food and chatted with last year's winner and course record holder, Gary Robbins. Very nice guy. He stayed for all 36hrs on crutches to cheer everyone on, awesome.
I still felt great on loop 2. When I got to the first aid station at Paradise Park, I had to grab my lights from my bag as I wouldn't be back here until after dark. My pockets were too full to fit my Myo in, so I had to wear it on my head at 1:45pm! This means it would be on my head for the next 17hrs or so, left a mark on my forehead after the race. Near the end of loop 2 it was mid afternoon and the heat was really getting to people. The temperature wasn't too scorching, but the humidity was 92%, so this is when a lot of people decided to drop. Climbing the ridge on the last leg was brutal, it was under direct sun and very hot. I found out later Monica and Phil decided to pull out early in loop 2. Monica was only there to try and get Phil to the finish, but early in loop 2 they decided it wasn't goping to happen and instead they headed back to their hotel to make the most of the weekend! This was an ongoing joke for the next 2 days, especially at the awards banquet.
Near the end of loop 2, I caught up to Charlotte and ran with her a bit. She had a sinus infection and couldn't breathe on the climbs, but she really flies on the downhills. The technical spots where I'd slow down to avoid death, she would scamper down without slowing down using super quick feet. We ran into the start finish together. Gary shouted out 'Great job Charlotte!', I just looked at him. He came right over and apologized, he couldn't remember my name! Again, very nice guy. I think he felt bad, he remembered me after that! Loop 2 took 6hrs 01min, still going faster than I'd planned but was feeling good.
It got dark early in loop 3, good thing I'd grabbed my headlamp at 1:45pm, I didn't get to Paradise Park aid station until 8pm, way after dark. Near the end of this loop I was starting to tire a little, had to search for some motivation to keep plodding on in the dark over the roots and rocks. I brought my Ipod along on loop 3, but I found myself barely using it. Somehow I find it better to hear my feet when climbing up and down technical and rocky areas. Seems all the rocks were slippery, didn't matter where they were. Mainly because they were covered with muddy footprints from other runners. I was starting to sit down and take too long at aid stations. Earlier I was stopping for 5 minutes, now each stop was getting a little longer. The climb back up to the ridge from Jackass Ginger felt like forever. There's a bench at the top, so for the next few loops I would motivate myself to climb the hill by allowing a 30 second sit down on the bench at the top and I'd have a drink. So if I climb this steep hill for half an hour, then I get to sit down for 30 seconds and take a sip of a drink? Deal! Silly, but it worked. I'd actually count out 30 seconds and dangle my legs to get blood flowing, then I'm off again.
I finished loop 3 in 7hrs 39min, much slower in the dark and getting tired. The start/finish aid station after loop 3 was my longest stop of the race, maybe 20 minutes. I was still wearing my original tank top, but after sitting for a bit I was very cold so I put on a long sleeve. During this stop, Ultraslacker had sent Gary a message (he was tweeting thoughout the race) to ask how I was doing, I believe he reported that I looked like s**t, or something along those lines.
The 20 minute stop actually reinvigorated me, I felt great starting loop 4. So great in fact, that I sped out of the station and proceeded to turn left instead of right, then ran up the wrong hill! A runner heading the other way stopped me a few minutes in as I approached him from the wrong direction. Thanks goodness he was there AND that he said something, otherwise it might be awhile before I realized my error. I thanked him and took off back down the hill returning to the start/finish. I was pissed at myself for this, plus I was feeling great so I sprinted along and started to run up the correct hill, I only lost about 5 minutes or so. I also took a wrong turn elsewhere on loop 2, another 5 minutes or so there.
I felt good on loop 4, but had slowed down quite a bit and most of it was still in the dark. My biggest blunder of the race came at the river crossing on the first stage of loop 4. Previously, I'd been skipping across the rocks because I didn't like where the rope was positioned to hold onto. Apparently, my legs didn't have the same 'pop' as they did earlier in the race and I missed a rock and went right in the river. Up until this point, I'd been pretty much blister free, but that changed quickly.
Near midway through loop 4 way my low point. Feet were killing me, I was so tired of scampering up and down things in the dark, and the stress of time cutoffs approaching had me a little down in the dumps. Plus I was doing this whole thing alone, I didn't have a pacer and never really ran with anyone more than a little while earlier in the race. I needed some motivation. That wasn't hard, I hadn't really had to play my 'motivation card' yet, I'd been fine up to now. I thought about how many people were following my times online (I'd emailed the link to EVERYONE, family, friends, co-workers, clients). I thought about how much training and late night runs I'd done, runs in the snow, how many times I couldn't do something with my kids because I was training. I didn't even consider quitting, but I was worried that if I didn't make more of an effort, I wouldn't make the time cutoffs and then all of the training would have been for nothing. I didn't do all this and come here to get pulled. The thing that kept me going more than anything was my 8 yr old son, he was so excited for me to be in the race and I didn't want to dissappoint him, that was by far my biggest motivator. The morning I left for the airport, I found a note he'd stayed up late in his room writing for me to bring which I kept in my drop bag, here it is letter for letter including spelling mistakes!
Doned give up!
Do your best.
Stay safe.
Remeber family.
Good luck.
You can do this!
Go Dad Go!
We are chreeing for You.
Remember Schicks Never give up!
I will miss you love James.
Go Dad Go! (in giant letters)
So, obviously I couldn't let the little guy down and that's what pushed me through the rest of the race. The sun came up near the end 4, it was a relief that I didn't have to run in the dark anymore. I was hoping to finish loop 4 well ahead of the cutoff, but it was very slow taking me 8hrs 30min. I got back to the start at 940am, which is 1hr 20min ahead of the 11am cutoff.
By the time I left the start/finish aid station to begin loop 5, I'd left myself just over 8hrs to finish the final loop. I'd have to go faster than loop 4's 8h 30min, but this was in the light and the fact that I just had to push through 1 more loop to finish would give me motivation. I knew that I was going to finish at this point, as long as maintained a half decent pace. My feet were extremely sore from the blisters at this point, that was slowing me down more than sore muscles and fatigue. At the aid stations on loop 5, Phil would drive out to each and be waiting there to help me with whatever I needed and get me out of there quickly. I was starting to get really stiff when I sat down at each station, but I'd loosen up once I was back on my feet for a few minutes. It was nice to know that each time I pushed through some crappy part of the course that I didn't like, it was the last time and I wouldn't have to do it again.
At the final aid station, I made the mistake of eating a bunch of food, but pretty much forgetting to drink. I'd run hard on the first 2 legs to give myself plenty of time on the final leg, but I was thirsty after not drinking at the aid station and went through my 2 bottles too fast. I was worried about cramping up so I used thee last of my drink to help me swallow a bunch of salt pills, electrolyte pills and gels. I had way more than I should have, but I was ready to do anything to get myself to the finish. At this point I was getting light headed and tired; and my feet were throbbing. I was feeling great knowing I was going to finish soon, but I was exhausted and it felt like forever. I then started to get paranoid that I'd roll an ankle or injure myself with only a few miles to go, so I started being tentative and going way to slow over obstacles. I knew I had time so I was fine with this. Once I could hear the people at the finish and I picked up my pace, I was so excited to know I was almost there. Then finally, I can out of the trees and crossed the bridge to a crowd cheering me on, and I was done! I'd finished my first 100 miler! Not just any 100 miler but one of the toughest there is! I was extatic, people were congratulating me as someone told me it's not official until I kiss the sign that reads 'We wouldn't want it to be easy'. After that I plopped into a chair and didn't move for about an hour. I didn't even eat, I was so thirsty I just kept having water and ice cubes. Monica took care of me after that, she getting me whatever I needed and even packing up my dirty clothes for me, I was useless.
So I'd finished in 35hrs 17min 20sec. There were 111 starters, 32 finishers and I came in 24th. This was obviously the toughest thing I've ever done, maybe ever will, but I'm already looking at what to do next!
When I got back and landed in Toronto, a friend picked me up at the airport. About an hour later, I got a call from my uncle who was at the airport with a bunch of other relatives to greet me but I'd missed them! They had signs, ballons, all wearing Hawaiian leis, and a trophy that said HURT 100 on it! I can't believe I missed them! Last week my work even had a party for me. The company's owner was so impressed that he announced he would pay for a flight to my next big race, anywhere in the world! I told him I have a 5k coming up in Australia...
Thanks to everyone who supported me and helped me along the way. Special thanks to Monica and Phil for all their help; to Charlotte for her tips, advise and encouragement; to Charlotte's boyfriend Chris for helping me at all the aid stations; and to Jennifer Anne for helping at the start finish aid station, I can't even count how many times she ran to my bag to grab things for me. Thanks also to Kinga and John Turner for the tips and advise leading up to my first 100 miler! And thanks to everyone elso who supported and encouraged me, all the attention was a little overwhelming!
Here's a few pics:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kailuamac/ ... 858574494/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kailuamac/ ... 736956641/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kailuamac/ ... 862645064/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kailuamac/ ... 861447938/
Not sure what's next for me. I'll stil post every little while, not as often until I'm training for a serious race again, but I'll still post some stuff. Eventually I'll even get some friggin pics on here!
Morgan
Sunday, January 9, 2011
End of Training
Well, that's it! I leave for Hawaii in 2 days, I'm as ready as I can be. I happy with how training went, considering my shin trouble right in the middle of it. Many areas could have been better, mileage was never as high as it should be, but I did all I could with my schedule. I tried to make up for lack of mileage with lots of stair climbing when my shin was bad. I started slacking in my non-running workouts near the end, but mentally I'd had enough and I knew I was almost done. I'll work up the same training later, but after HURT it won't as intense for awhile, I'll relax for a bit. I need to focus on some non-running issues which I've been putting off, it's time to get stuff done around here.
I've done all I could to get my body ready, but at the same time I've been preparing mentally. I'm not even thinking about quitting or not finishing, even though I know the odds are against me and there are others who don't think I can do it. I'm always thinking positive, and I'm already visualizing myself crossing the finish line.
For some extra motivation, I sent a message to the webiste of Dean Karnazes 'Ultramarathon Man'. Reading Dean's book 'Confessions of an All Night Runner' just over 2 yrs ago is what got me into running. Dean's accomplished running feats that are unbelievable (like running 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days!). He's always been an inspiration. Not sure what made me do it but on a whim I sent a message to his site with a brief history of my running and telling him about how I'm in a little over my head with HURT, and I asked for any words of encouragement he might have. I didn't know if he would even get it, but I was shocked when he promptly sent me an email with some great advise and encouraging words. This was a little surreal for me, I've got his book on the shelf in front of me and pictures of him on my wall and I'm reading an email from him! Very nice of him to take the time. I emailed him back to thank him and he sent me another message telling me to let him know how it goes. So not only is everyone I know going to be waiting to hear how I do, but now Karno too! There's no way I can wuss out now...
I'll also send an email to lots of people with a link to the race tracker so I'll keep in mind how many people are watching the results in case I ever feel like giving up.
So I've got all the motivation I can muster, I've got my body as ready as I could, and I've spoken to many people who've done HURT before to get as much info and as many tips as possible. I guess I'm as ready as can be! I bought all my Powerbar gels and Eload drink powder last week, along with a new belt which holds 2 bottles 22 ounces each. I've got lots of salt pills and I also bought a bottle of electrolyte pills this week. Also grabbed a brighter flashlight and a clip to mount my 2nd headlamp to my belt, should be plenty of light. I'm still not sure what I'm doing for food or if I'll just eat what's available at the aid stations.
I may post a little more while I'm there, but if not then my next post will be after the race!
I've done all I could to get my body ready, but at the same time I've been preparing mentally. I'm not even thinking about quitting or not finishing, even though I know the odds are against me and there are others who don't think I can do it. I'm always thinking positive, and I'm already visualizing myself crossing the finish line.
For some extra motivation, I sent a message to the webiste of Dean Karnazes 'Ultramarathon Man'. Reading Dean's book 'Confessions of an All Night Runner' just over 2 yrs ago is what got me into running. Dean's accomplished running feats that are unbelievable (like running 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days!). He's always been an inspiration. Not sure what made me do it but on a whim I sent a message to his site with a brief history of my running and telling him about how I'm in a little over my head with HURT, and I asked for any words of encouragement he might have. I didn't know if he would even get it, but I was shocked when he promptly sent me an email with some great advise and encouraging words. This was a little surreal for me, I've got his book on the shelf in front of me and pictures of him on my wall and I'm reading an email from him! Very nice of him to take the time. I emailed him back to thank him and he sent me another message telling me to let him know how it goes. So not only is everyone I know going to be waiting to hear how I do, but now Karno too! There's no way I can wuss out now...
I'll also send an email to lots of people with a link to the race tracker so I'll keep in mind how many people are watching the results in case I ever feel like giving up.
So I've got all the motivation I can muster, I've got my body as ready as I could, and I've spoken to many people who've done HURT before to get as much info and as many tips as possible. I guess I'm as ready as can be! I bought all my Powerbar gels and Eload drink powder last week, along with a new belt which holds 2 bottles 22 ounces each. I've got lots of salt pills and I also bought a bottle of electrolyte pills this week. Also grabbed a brighter flashlight and a clip to mount my 2nd headlamp to my belt, should be plenty of light. I'm still not sure what I'm doing for food or if I'll just eat what's available at the aid stations.
I may post a little more while I'm there, but if not then my next post will be after the race!
Week in Review: Jan 3rd - Jan 9th (1 Week to HURT)
1 week left! Yikes! I'm posting this Sunday night, a week from now I'll still be out running, or lying at the bottom of a cliff somewhere. Mileage is low as planned now, but I actually ended up running even less than I'd planned this week. I'm not going to worry about it at this point. Still slacking in my non-running workouts, but again I'm not going to worry about it. I'm basically done training now. I'll do dome short runs in Hawaii to stay loose, but that's all she wrote.
Mon - 1hr ebike, core workout
Tues - 10k trail
Wed - 30min ebike
Thurs - 6k trail, 20 min stairs
Fri - off
Sat - off
Sun - 10k trail
Total: 26km trail
On Thurs, I had to rush out to run and I couldn't find my kinesio tape, so I ran for the first time without taping my shins in over a month. I had minor pain starting after 2km, so instead of my usual 10k I stopped at 'The Steps' and climbed up and down them for 20 minutes, then ran back home so it came to a little 6km plus 20 minutes on the stairs. That's not good, I'd been pain free for awhile in the shins.
Mon - 1hr ebike, core workout
Tues - 10k trail
Wed - 30min ebike
Thurs - 6k trail, 20 min stairs
Fri - off
Sat - off
Sun - 10k trail
Total: 26km trail
On Thurs, I had to rush out to run and I couldn't find my kinesio tape, so I ran for the first time without taping my shins in over a month. I had minor pain starting after 2km, so instead of my usual 10k I stopped at 'The Steps' and climbed up and down them for 20 minutes, then ran back home so it came to a little 6km plus 20 minutes on the stairs. That's not good, I'd been pain free for awhile in the shins.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Week in Review: Dec 27th - Jan 2nd (2 Weeks to HURT)
Not a bad week running, but I've been slacking big time with my workouts. Better than slacking in the running department I guess. I was supposed to do 60km the previous Sunday, but I did it Tuesday of this week instead so numbers are high, but not when you average it out with the week before.
Mon - off
Tues - 60k trail
Wed - off
Thurs - off
Fri - 10k trial
Sat - off
Sun - 40k trail
Total: 110km trail
On Tuesday I went back out to Sulpher for 60km. Felt good, shin hasn't been bothering me. I could feel it near the end, but not pain. I ran into Monica Scholz and Phil out on the trail, she mentioned they were having another fun run on Sat at 9am if I want to come out. Sat was Jan 1st, so they made it 9am instead of the usual 40k at 6am. I had the kids so wasn't able to anyway. There'll be another in Feb I'll go to if I can still walk!
Sunday was back to Sulpher again for another 40km, at least I'm really getting used to the course. I'll probably do the 100 miler here at the end of May, but not sure yet.
Mon - off
Tues - 60k trail
Wed - off
Thurs - off
Fri - 10k trial
Sat - off
Sun - 40k trail
Total: 110km trail
On Tuesday I went back out to Sulpher for 60km. Felt good, shin hasn't been bothering me. I could feel it near the end, but not pain. I ran into Monica Scholz and Phil out on the trail, she mentioned they were having another fun run on Sat at 9am if I want to come out. Sat was Jan 1st, so they made it 9am instead of the usual 40k at 6am. I had the kids so wasn't able to anyway. There'll be another in Feb I'll go to if I can still walk!
Sunday was back to Sulpher again for another 40km, at least I'm really getting used to the course. I'll probably do the 100 miler here at the end of May, but not sure yet.
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