Treadmill Incline Workout

Tonight I did one of my brother's signature incline workouts on the treadmill. I walked 3.3 miles at 15% incline and 3.5 speed for 30 min then 2 miles at 11% incline and 4 speed for another 30 min. A couple days ago Tom Jennings graciously switched me from the 50K to the 100K at Oil Creek. I wanted to get a 50 mile qualifier in, so I can enter the MMT lottery this December. I can't wait for the challenge!

Towpath 20

This morning, my friend Marc and I met bright and early at 7 AM at the Boston Store to go for a 20 mile run on the Towpath. He's training for the Columbus Marathon in October and I'm getting ready for YUT-C, Akron half, and Oil Creek.

It was nice and cool when we started and never got very hot during our run. First we ran North to mile marker 21. We then came back to the Boston Store and headed South to mile marker 31. Marc had been getting some good training in and I've been slacking a bit so I was unsure how my body would handle the distance and pace.

I felt pretty good for the first half. My calves got a little tight before the turnaround. We both needed to use the restroom, but decided not to stop since we knew it would be hard to start back up again and get in a rhythm.

As each mile passed on the way back, I progressively felt worse and worse. Near mile marker 29, we got some water at an aid station for the Buckeye Half going on this morning.

As we got to Lock 29, I told Marc that I was going to stop to get a drink of water. I split off the Towpath, but thought about this decision quickly. I knew I would go slow if I didn't have someone to push me and my muscles would tighten up if I stopped. So, I quickly turned back onto the Towpath and sprinted back up with Marc.

We finished the day's run in 2:30 (7:30/mile). I was spent! Afterward, we went to Fischer's for an omlette and a beer!

YUT-C Loop

Jamie and I drove to Mill Creek Park this morning and ran a big YUT-C loop around all three lakes for 12 miles. The humid air made us both pretty tired. On our way back, we did a stream crossing by the dam at Pioneer Pavilion.

Pine Lane to Boston Store

Jamie and I drove over to Pine Lane tonight for an 8 mile run to Boston Store. Same old story, hot and humid out! I wore a bandanna to catch the sweat. On our way to Pine Lane, we saw Jim Christ running in the opposite direction. Once we got to the Boston Store, we were about to leave and Kellie Truesdell came out of the restroom. She was running Pine Lane also so we all ran together. Kellie stayed with us for about a mile and then took off. She was moving at a good pace and Jamie and I were content with taking it easy in the heat, so we walked most of the hills back to our car. Below is a butterfly we saw before our run.

3 Musicks and a Bellinger

Tonight Jamie, Brian and I planned on meeting at Happy Days at 6:30 for a run. Jamie is on break right now from grad school at Pitt and visiting for awhile in Warren. When I got to the parking lot, I saw Dan Bellinger would be joining us also.

We headed out on the main trail and turned left to go around the ledges. After a mile or so, Brian bolted off trail and into the woods. We did some off-piste running for awhile and ended up back on the trails on the other side of the ledges. We kept up a quick pace despite the high humidity and ended up with 4 miles. We were all drenched in sweat, but it felt great to get a good workout in.

Afterwards, Brian, Jamie, and I met our parents at the Winking Lizard in Peninsula for dinner on the patio.

BR 100 - Happy Days Aid Station

This evening Brian and I drove over to Cuyahoga Falls to park his car at the Burning River 100 mile race finish line. Tonight he was going to be pacing Mike Keller from Happy Days to the finish or a few miles over 50K.

We got to Happy Days around 7 and saw a lot of familiar faces since this was a NEO Trail sponsored aid station. This always seems to be a favorite stop for runners at 64 miles in. There was plenty of good food and music playing.

Mike showed up a little after 11 looking pretty tired. He took his shoes off and we helped him put Dr. Sholl's inserts in. Mike relaxed for a bit, then Brian and him were off.

All of us broke down the aid station as the midnight cutoff time for Happy Days approached. Jim Harris went out to sweep the course with Rich Vrbonic, who had been sweeping most the day. I got changed into running clothes and caught up with them to get some miles in.

We ran with a girl named Jennifer from Canada from the Pine Grove trail to Kendall Lake. She was in great spirits and had a good attitude. When we ran into Brian at Kendall Lake, I knew Mike wasn't doing well. Jim and Rich stayed with Mike and I kept running with Jennifer. She told me about HURT 100 in Hawaii which sounded extremely difficult. She also said there was another runner with them from Canada who was trying to beat her own record of the most 100s in a year. This year she was going for 30!!!

After a few miles, Brian ran up behind us. He was running to the Pine Hallow aid station to let them know Mike was done. So I joined him and both of us ran quickly to the aid station. They were surprised to see two runners running up the hill at them, but soon figured out we were pacers.

Brian and I rode with Gailanne (also from Canada) to pick up Mike. We talked shortly to Mike and Jim, then Brian and I headed back to Happy Days where my car was parked.

It was 2 AM when we got back to my and around 4 by the time I hit the sack. I had a fun time helping at the aid station and running in the wee hours of the morning in the Cuyahoga Valley. Congrats to all the participants of the Burning River 100 this year!