Foggy Morning Run

I went for a run this morning around my neighborhood in Uniontown.  I'v run this route a couple times before shown below, but today I added an extra out and back.  I felt great during the run and enjoyed the foggy morning.  It seemed to let my mind wander, making the run go by pretty fast.  I like running on trails the most, but it's nice to mix it up with some roads.  I especially like these country roads because they're long, straight stretches that make it easy to rack up the mileage, but also have some rolling hills to keep it interesting.  I read this article on Trail Runner Magazine about top trail runners mixing in road workouts and have found it does help.

Buckeye Trail Group Run

This morning I got to Boston Store for a 7 o'clock group run.  We headed out north on the Buckeye Trail towards Brecksville.  The trails were a little sloppy, but not too bad.  There were 10-12 of us in the group.  We had a great time!  I'm always amazed how fast the miles fly by with a group.  When we got near the Brecksville horse stables, we headed back and jumped on the Towpath for the final few miles.  We finished with about 17 for the day.

Headlamp Season & 2016 Goal

I drove over to Pine Lane tonight and went for a run to Boston Store and back for 8 miles. I started at 7 o'clock so the sun had set quite a bit before.  The moon was pretty full and lit up the trails nicely, but I still needed a headlamp for extra light.  I've had a lot of motivation lately, despite the decreasing temperatures and sunlight. I attribute this solely to a race I recently signed up for and my number one goal for 2016: the Burning River 100.

I signed up for it on October 30th, four days after returning from our honeymoon.  I've been thinking about running a 100 miler for quite awhile now, even dismissing the idea all together several times.  I was never confident I could get in the training needed or that I ever wanted to do one in my lifetime.  However, I've come to the conclusion that it is something that is at the very top of my running goal to-do list.  I feel confident, more than ever, that I have the motivation to get in the training I need.  There's been many times I've signed up for a race and not trained nearly enough.  The furthest I've gone is 100K.  I was decently trained for that, but feel that is about the absolute furthest I can go by just "winging it".  Pure grit has gotten me to the finish line many times.  Never having DNF'd a race is a chip I always carry on my shoulder when quitting sounds tempting.  However, I don't think grit alone, or that chip on my shoulder, can get me to the finish at Cuyahoga Falls.  This has provided me all the motivation I need.

I'm looking forward to the months ahead, continuing to build my base and staying healthy through the winter.  Something I've gained through the years is strength and the knowledge of how not to injure myself.  I'm not afraid anymore to drop my mileage for a week if something is bothering me, even slightly.  I'm more aware now of pain vs. soreness.

Anyway, I plan to make more regular posts now about my training.  Looking forward to the trial of miles :)

Pine Lane to Snowville Rd

This morning I drove over to Pine Lane for a long run. We've been having some great Ohio fall weather, so I've been trying to take advantage of it. I got to the trail head at 9:30. On the way, I had an apple for breakfast and for the run I brought a gel pack. I took the Buckeye Trail to Snowville Rd. and back for 18 miles. The Towpath Marathon was going on today so around mile 4 I had to weasel my way into the race and exit quickly. There were a lot of barriers setup with people running in both directions as well as finishing, so it was little crazy around Boston Store. I was glad to leave that madness and continue my quiet run through the woods towards Blue Hen Falls. I felt great for most the run. The cool temperature and the colorful leaves made the miles go by a lot quicker. This gave me 37 miles for the week. I'm trying to get a more consistent routine in running-wise so this was a solid week.

2015 Canton Football Hall Of Fame Marathon

Another marathon in the books!  Number 7.

Today I ran the Canton Football HOF Marathon in 3:43:50.  We had great weather with clear blue skies and temps in the 40s.  I only looked at the course map the night before the race, but didn't spend too much time looking at it since I'm not familiar with Canton.  The course was really enjoyable.  It went through several neighborhoods, downtown Canton, by the McKinley memorial and by Perry High School.  So there was a lot of variety and everything was new to me anyways!  I liked the sections in the neighborhood in the second half of the race.  It went up and down each parallel street.  It seemed to make the distance go by faster since you could split up these sections up in your mind and could also see runners ahead of you at each turn.

I intentionally took the first half slower so I could have a stronger second half.  I wanted to run the first 13.1 in 1:45 and hit that almost on the nose, coming through at 1:46.  In the second half, I didn't really "hit the wall" until mile 22 or 23.  My pace started to really slow down in the last 5K.  I made it a game to pick people off from 18-22.  I also tried to stay ahead of the 3:35 pacer as long as possible and even try to catch the 3:30 pacer.  However a little before mile 20 at Perry HS, I could hear the paper that the pacer was carrying flapping in the wind and soon enough he was next to me.  I tried to hang with him for as long as I could, but he went further and further out of sight.

The race finished in Fawcett Stadium on the field which was cool.  They had Subway sandwiches, bananas and water afterward.  The medal is in the shape of the stadium and actually has a battery and button on the back to make the stadium lights turn on and flash!  We also got a nice fleece blanket with the race logo on it.

All in all, I had a great time.  As much as I've grown to like trails and ultras, the feeling I still get after a road marathon never gets old.

2014 Speedgoat 50K

Remember that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other. 

– Abraham Lincoln

The idea of doing the Speedgoat 50K started back at Slim Pickins last November.  This event is held every year, usually at Laurel Highlands, and brings together the finest members of the NEO Trail Club.  I had the itching to do another challenging race out West and Kimba suggested the Speedgoat 50K.  I never heard of it, but it sounded interesting, especially since Karl Meltzer was the race director.  Karl has completed 89 Ultramarathons and holds the record for the most 100 mile victories (35), so you figure he's going to put on a hell of a race.  The Speedgoat is advertised as the Toughest 50K in the U.S.  It has 11,000 feet of vertical climb at elevation.  The profile chart is below.

I thought this sounded like an interesting race and figured it would be a good chance to explore Utah, so I signed up for it as soon as registration opened on January 5th.

In the months leading up to the race, life got in the way of training and I found many excuses to skip runs quite often.  I got a new job, it was too humid outside, I was too tired, blah, blah, blah...

Anyway flash forward 6 months.  Kelly and I arrived in Snowbird Friday night before the race.  We got a bite to eat at the restaurant in the ski resort we were staying at.  It had big glass windows and a nice view of the mountains.  Usually such a view would be relaxing, but the night before this race it was just intimidating.  I couldn't believe how big the hills (I mean mountains) were and pointed out a guy hiking up there to Kelly.  He looked like an ant and really gave perspective to how big this mountain actually was.  All I could think of was my lack of training and how hard this was going to be.  I was also thinking about how I've never DNF'd a race.  I was not about to give in to the course, but knew this would test that streak. 


Race Day
The race was set to begin at 6:30am.  Morning came fast and before I knew it, we were walking down the path to the start line in darkness.  As we got closer, you could see a line of cars pulling in for the race.  I got checked in well before the start time.  We sat and talked to a couple other runners while we waited for the fun to begin.
  
It was cool to be around so many great runners and feel the excitement and nervous vibe in the air. 

We were given a few instructions about the course.  It was also mentioned that 4 or 5 moose were sighted on the other side of the ridge.

Just as quickly as the race had begun, everyone started walking.  The course climbed up and up and up until mile 8 for the first aid station.  There was a mix of different terrain including snow and rock piles as we got higher.  There were also wild flowers out at different points.

The first climb

Some sections were snow covered and a little icy

Almost at the 8.4 mile aid station

I got to the first aid station and was excited to see Kelly had taken the gondola up Hidden Peak at 11,000 ft to cheer me on.  It definitely helped boost my moral!  Somewhere along the first 8 miles, my Camelback water bladder mouthpiece fell off on the trail and water started pouring out.  So for the rest of the race, I had to tuck the tube upwards and always be careful so I didn't lose all my water.  A few times it slipped out and water came pouring out.

The climb up to the first aid station

As I was heading down the other side of Hidden Peak, I saw Karl standing there with a group of people.  I yelled over at him, "You're a sick sick man!" and he replied, "That's only the beginning.  It's about to get a lot worse!"

And worse it got.  Following the aid station, the course went downhill for a couple miles.  This was a nice break from the constant uphill climb, but soon enough another hill brought us back up to 9500'.

Next up was one of the worst, or most fun, parts of the race depending on how you look at it.  At the time it was definitely not fun.  The downhill descent from around mile 11 to 14 dropped a couple thousand feet.  My quads were feeling pretty tired at this point.  The trail was a mess of scattered rocks of all shapes and sizes.  It was like running downhill through a dried up river bed.  I had to watch and plan every step because one wrong step would mean a twisted ankle.  And with over half the race left, that would be the end of my day and hopes of finishing.

I somehow made it down this stretch only turning my ankle 2 or 3 times and able to pop out of it enough each time to avoid any serious damage.  The next mile or so was an out and back to the Pacific Mine Aid Station.  This section was a pretty exposed dry trail with some dust kicking up.  The cool morning start to the day gave way at this point to a clear sky with direct sunlight beating overhead.  The temperature was definitely rising.  My face was getting saltier and I was sweating less and less.

A few more climbs and downhills followed ending up at Larry's Hole Aid Station.  You came to this aid station twice, once at mile 11 and again 20 miles into the race.  The first time through I saw the leader, Sage Canaday.  I told him good job and wished him luck.  He was cruising.

My second time through the aid station, I fueled up for the big climb ahead on Mt. Baldy.  There's a 2 PM cutoff here around mile 20 and another two miles later a little after 3PM.  I made the first cutoff with plenty of time to spare.  I can't remember exactly, but I think I had over an hour to make the next cutoff.  Anyway, I thought I had plenty of time... 

Wrong.  I can certainly say this was the toughest part of the race.  It was the definitive make or break moment and I'm quite sure Karl designed it as such.  There was a point on the trail where it turned (either left or right) and the trail took a drastic change in grade.  It was at this point you could literally hear the runners give a groan, and a few swear words.  It was almost funny.  Almost.  It made me think of the last climb of McDonald's cross country course in high school that required you to go on all fours.  Except this was 20 miles into a race, not 3, and 11,000 ft' higher than Ohio.  There was a guy standing there giving motivation.  It was almost like it was planned.  Like Karl had some sign of sympathy for the runners who made it this far, like when the Grinch's' heart grew three sizes that day.

The climb up Mt Baldy

My pace slowed down considerably and the cutoff time was getting closer and closer.  Many runners passed me on this climb.  My legs were shot and I had no energy and ran out of water.  I was counting out every 10 steps and then literally laying on trail resting.  The view was beautiful, the hill not so much.  Somehow I eventually made it to the top.  This middle-aged guy reached the top around the same time.  I talked with him briefly and he told me we only have about 15 minutes till the cutoff!  I had no idea I was cutting it this close.  I instantly stopped reveling in the accomplishment of scaling the last climb and pushed it down the other side of the mountain.  I made it to the dirt road, looked at my cell phone time and saw I would make it!  I got to the aid station with about 5 minutes to spare.  The volunteers there would not let me lollygag (and I'm glad they didn't).  I was shoving anything and everything on the table that I could get my hands on into my mouth.  Salt tablets, pretzels, bananas, M&Ms.  And at the same time, a guy was squeezing cold water from a sponge over my head.  This felt great because I was pretty hot and parched at this point.  He did that about three times.  I felt revived and like I was brought back to life.  After a few more snacks and drinks, I was on my way to finish this damn race.

This aid station is called the "Tunnel" because right after it, you go through the Peruvian Tunnel which is used to connect ski areas in the winter (see skier's video of the tunnel to the right). The tunnel was nice and cool, especially since my shirt and hair were soaked. When I got in the tunnel, I let out a loud yell or cheer, or some kind of noise.  It all hit me how much effort and determination it required to get to this point.  This was one of my proudest moments in running and the closet I've ever come to a cutoff.  I still had 8 miles left in the race, but there were no more cutoffs.  Inside I knew that I would finish now, it was just a matter of when.

The rest of the race still had some climbs including a 1500' ascent back up to the Hidden Peak Aid Station at 11,000' (the same one as the first aid station in the race at mile 8) and an eventual 3500' descent back to the finish.

I met this guy named Troy, a Native American from Salt Lake City, and ran and talk to him throughout the race.  We pushed and motivated each other along.  The course eventually winded down this dirt road for about 2 or 3 miles to the finish.  Troy had more energy than me so he went ahead and ran this.  I mostly walked this part and ran when I could.  Slowly, but surely, I made it to the finish and a rush of emotions came flooding in.  I finished in 12:48:55.  The finish line balloons were taken down by now, but the people left watching clapped and cheered and made a human tunnel to run through. 

Troy and me

Karl and me

Here's a link to a video I made recapping the race.  And another made by Trail Runner Magazine recapping the race.  Thanks to Karl and all the volunteers who made this such a great event!

Firestone Hill Repeats

I ran over to Firestone Metro Park this morning to do a few hill repeats on the hill that runs alongside S. Main St.  Before I left, I mapped out the hill and found it is about .2 mile long and about 550 ft of elevation gain.  I had it in my head to do 10 loops of the route below.  This would give me 5500 ft of elevation gain and a total of 8 miles which includes the distance back to my apartment.

 

I forced myself not to go too hard up the hill early on.  I've done a hill workout here before when training for Pikes Peak, so I knew my legs would feel like jelly if I pushed it too hard.  I signed up for the Speedgoat 50K in July, so this will be great training for the climbs out there.

I clicked off each loop one by one, repeating the number I was on during each loop  When I got to 5, I felt good physically and also mentally because I would be counting down now.  

It was cold and windy out, but it's funny how 25-30 degrees doesn't feel so bad after the winter we've had.  

The loops got a little tougher at the end, but I still felt strong as I finished the 10th one.

I kicked my training into gear this past week and ended up with 30 miles.  I've been running sporadically the past couple months - enough to keep my base.  The Speedgoat is July 19th, so in my head I told myself I have 3 solid months of training left (even though it's a little more) and I think that gave me the bump to start running consistently now.  I had forgotten how good the feeling is to get runs in regularly and am always amazed how little fitness you usually lose.  I also got a membership at the Kent Rec Center and have been swimming laps there one or two times a week.

Hill at Firestone Metro Park (photo taken Feb 2013 - grass was showing today!)