I'm not really sure how to start. I've typed and re-typed this sentence a few times now hoping that my emotions would guide me to describe what I am feeling. Thankful, may be the best word to use. Disappointed, would be the other.
Going into the race I felt adequately prepared. I would have preferred to have had two more 100 mile training weeks prior to the race. This didn't happen. Such is life!
My job as a teacher takes over my life towards the end of the summer and thoughts of kids consume my mind for the next 10 months. Plain disappeared almost completely from my dreams and focus after pacing Jenny at the Cascade Crest 100 two weeks ago. I knew that I had a race to prepare for mentally and hoped that not thinking about it would be beneficial.
I took a personal day on Friday and drove up with Jessica and the kids, minus Loralie. We rented a cottage for the weekend so the family could enjoy their stay while I was out in the woods "finding myself." What was I doing here in Plain again anyway?
After lunch at the Mountain High Burger with Michelle, Eric and Steve I arrived at the briefing right on time. As Tom talked about the course and Chris mentioned some things I looked around the room and checked out the other runners. They looked tough. I wondered how much they trained, what kind of fueling strategy they use, and if they have doubts about finishing. I admit, I had doubts, but perhaps an equal amount of confidence as well.
I was able to hit the sack by 8 p.m. and woke up briefly around 10:30 as the kids were taking showers after enjoying a fire that Jessica made outside with wood collected up near Deep Creek.
4 a.m. came about when expected. I showered, made my final packing adjustments to make sure I had everything and kissed Jessica good bye. As I walked over to the lodge for breakfast I was content with where I was. Perhaps a bit scared of what lie ahead. Maybe even more fearful of another year of falling short.
The 30ish runners gathered outside on the steps of the Thousand Trails lodge minutes before the start. Tim Denhoff read the poem he wrote a few years back about the Plain 100 and then we were on our way.
I felt good heading up the road. We positioned ourselves mid-pack by chance and moved forward into the early morning darkness. All systems felt good. We reached Maverick Saddle in 1:36 (mile 7), which was about 12 minutes faster than Eric and Steve did it during training. It came naturally so we kept things going.
We quickly filled up bottles at the Mad River and headed towards Hi Yu. The climb up Hi Yu went well. We both felt good and were moving steadily. We were eating on the 1/2 hour and taking a Gu and salt on the hour. We passed by Lost Lake around 2:48 without a stop. One of the things we talked about was not spending a lot of time hanging around. Normally, I would have stopped to eat at Lost Lake, but not today. Today, we needed to keep moving.
Next stop, Mad River. When we hit the river we filled up our bottles again and headed towards Klone Peak. This is a nice runnable section in the midst of beautiful meadows and goes right by Two Little Lakes, and yes, that is the name of the lakes. At this section last year I was already struggling. Not this year though. I felt good and we were making good time.
I was looking forward to the out and back up to Klone Peak to see who was right in front of us and who was right behind us. Just before reaching the climb we saw Shawn come back down and head back onto the trail. We made our way up and another runner was soon coming down. As we were headed down there were probably 6 others heading up not too far behind.
The climbing was over for awhile and now was the descent to the Entiat River. We would see the SAR around mile 27ish and then Tom down by the river. The sun was out, but the temperature was moderate and felt good. We had plenty of water and every time we hit a creek we doused ourselves to keep cool. Steve had made us a sheet with some times from our training run projected out through the finish. We were right on schedule and moving good.
We made it to Fox Creek in about 8 1/2 hours. We filled our bottles and bladders and headed towards Signal Peak at 8:36. I believe Steve had us reaching Tyee Ridge in 3 1/2 hours. We hoped it would go better, but this is where things started to fall apart a bit. The climbing was not easy. Eric was moving better than I was, but neither of us was feeling great. About an hour into the climb we found ourselves taking more breaks. 2+ hours into the climb we were stopping every 10 minutes or so and resting. Both of our heart rates were spiking and we were doing our best to keep them stable.
About 2/3rds of the way up I felt better, but still not climbing fast. We continued to take breaks and finally reached Tyee Ridge around mile 39 in 12:03, which was still ahead of our schedule for a 19 hour first loop. Unfortunately, the climbing was not over. Eric was struggling at this point on our way to the Billy Creek trail. I tried to get him to eat, but nothing seemed to work. We moved slowly stopping for breaks when necessary. We also ran into Tony C. at this point and he was sounding confident and looking good.
It felt like Billy Creek was further than expected, but I had only run this section once before. We hit the turn onto Billy Creek trail and headed towards the next SAR section along the road. One of our smaller goals was to make it to this point in the day light. We were back on schedule and running good again. We saw the road and the SAR vehicle and passed by them in the day light just as we had hoped. Shortly after, the forest got dark and the headlamps went on.
Beyond this point until we got to Maverick Saddle we were on new territory and weren't sure exactly what to expect. When we made the turn onto the Mad River trail we were greeted by a gnarly, rocky downhill that slowed us in our tracks. The river was rushing below and there seemed to be a nice drop off that we didn't really feel like tumbling down so we stepped gingerly along this portion of the trail.
When we reached Cougar Creek we filled our bottles again and headed on. I was having a bit of a down section here and wasn't all that confident. Eric kept creeping further and further ahead and would stop and wait on occasion. The Mad River trail had a drop on one side and the river was rushing below. Coupled with being fatigued and getting sleepy I wasn't really a happy camper. I just wanted to get off that stupid trail and back onto a nice comfy road that would take me to Deep Creek.
Finally, we reached Maverick Saddle and headed down the road. We were still on schedule and moved well all the way to Deep Creek. When we arrived I changed my clothes and shoes before re-fueling with a nice coke, grilled cheese sandwich and some soup. Jessica and Michelle helped fill my pack and after 25 minutes we were on loop 2.
The first 3 miles on the loop we were both moving well and stayed on schedule. Somewhere along the way I began to have doubts. My energy level dropped and my legs got heavy. Somehow fueling didn't sound good to me either. Looking back now, I think fueling is where I dropped the ball.
We hooked up with a couple other runners and made our way towards Chikamin Tie still about 15 miles out. I'm not sure when, but I told Eric he might have to leave me at some point, but he chose not to. I hoped I would come back to life, but never did. Once again, fueling might have helped.
We made the turn towards Chikamin and had about 3:45 to go about 8.7 miles in order to make the cutoff. The other 3 were confident and I drug behind knowing that my run was over. At this point, it was easier to go to Chikamin at mile 75ish than turn around and head back. There was quite a bit of climbing ahead and I was crawling along at a pitiful rate.
A few miles into the section my stomach got queasy on me and I had to lay down several times in order to try and settle it. I took some tums and ate a bagel and a bag of chips to get some calories in me, but going up hill was not my friend. By this time Eric's feet were toast.
When day light broke Eric decided to go ahead to Chikamin and let them know that I was on my way. We had about 1:45 until the cutoff and I bet we had only traveled 3 miles in the past two hours. Once Eric left me I crept on. I really had no idea how long it would take and I knew that I should take in more calories, but in my mind it was my legs that were toast and calories weren't going to help that.
All throughout the race I had been praying and giving thanks. After a couple hours of being alone and wanting so desperately to be finished my prayer changed to frustration. I was confused about how I should feel at this point. I was tired and barely moving, but my mind was sharp and I knew the reality. I knew I was on the right trail, but thoughts of missing a turn tried to creep in and confuse me. I was running along trail that was vaguely familiar, but looked very different when seen in slow motion.
I gazed down at the forest below me hoping to see some wildlife. On occasion I thought I heard voices and would stop dead in my tracks to listen realizing that there was no one around. I moved forward wondering what if I was on the wrong trail and so far off that search and rescue couldn't find me. I thought it would be kind of cool to make the news at night with the headline, "Teacher lost somewhere in the mountains near Leavenworth while trying to complete a 100 mile race." At least I had food and water. I could survive for another day out here. Maybe I should just lie down on the trail and go to sleep.
Step by step I was getting closer all the while begging God to get me off this forsaken mountain. Probably not very nice of me to use such a tone with God. I know He understands though.
As I walked I prayed for a sign to let me know that I was on the right path. I knew that I was going in the right direction because of my location on the mountain, but I searched for reassurance. I knew it was well past the cutoff point and even moving so slowly I had to be getting close. On the sheet of paper that had times listed there were 2 times for Chikamin Tie. Once you reached the Chikamin Tie trail it looked like there was another 2 miles to the SAR check point where I would catch my ride out of there.
Sure enough, I came to the frickin tree and there was the sign. Chikamin Tie trail 1561. I had mixed emotions. I now knew that I was on the right trail, but I also knew I had at least another 2 miles to go to the SAR checkpoint. At my pace that could take over an hour. I actually went the other direction for a few minutes thinking I could find the road and hike up the road. The forest was making me a bit crazy.
I decided to pull up my big boy pants and get on the right trail and put myself out of my misery. For the next hour I cursed at many things. Squirrels were making me mad, but I was too tired to pick up rocks to throw at them. The birds chirping are lucky that I wasn't packing the heat. I pity the bear that would dare mess with me at that point. Most of all, I was disappointed that I was in the predicament I was in. I was mad at myself for being this far behind and not being able to make the cutoff.
After what seemed like an eternity and hearing sounds of voices and a radio playing at intermittent points up the trail I was so far done it was no longer funny. I expected to come out to the SAR checkpoint around every corner and around every corner there was another corner. I was too tired to cry, but I knew I was getting close.
Finally, there it was. I could see the rocky parking area and Tom and Chris the race directors in the car. Chris got out and greeted me with a hug and Tom told me jokingly that they were going to be nice and extend the cutoff so I could continue on knowing full well that there was no chance of that happening. As I rode down the mountain I asked questions of the status of other runners and I wondered if I would come back next year. I was tired. I was glad to be done. I wanted to see my family and I wanted to go home.
I think the hardest part about not reaching my goal is trying to explain my fate to others. To many, simply attempting such a feat seems ludicrous. To others, it is inspiring, and to some, perhaps it is a selfish quest for glory. I think it may be all these things to different degrees. As I self reflected after the race I could not help but to feel a bit empty. I walked away short of reaching the ultimate goal of finishing.
In the past few years I have had a chance to reflect on the gift that we are given and the abilities that we have to use our body for sport. Many of us take this for granted, including myself. What running gives me more than anything is hope. The hope that there is always a goal to be achieved, always new friends to meet, and always someone out there that may need our inspiration in order to change their own life. I look forward to continuing to pursue the sport that has changed my life and the ability to attempt a race as difficult as Plain.
Looking at the results now, I think, maybe, finishing isn't all there is. I recall a post many years ago when I wrote about suffering and used the following quote from the book of Romans. "...we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character: and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us..." (Romans 5:3-5). I pray in the coming year that the suffering will continue to lead me to persevere, to build my character and that the Lord will fill me with hope.
Hunter S. Thompson said, "Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming 'WOW' what a ride!" The Plain 100 continues to be quite a ride and I look forward to the journey that will leads me to the finish line in 2010.
Happy Running!
Monday, September 14, 2009
Monday, August 03, 2009
Training...
I started off the week with a 20 mile bike ride back home from school and 3.5 miles in the heat on Monday. Eric and I had planned a night time 12 summits run on Tiger Mt., which consists of 34 miles and 10,500 feet of elevation gain. We were successful in our attempt on Tuesday night.
We started around 8:30 p.m. and Steve Stoyles joined us for the first half of the run before heading home to get some sleep before work in the morning. Eric and I headed back to our car on the other side of the mountain. The highlight of the night, or the early morning, was when we came up the road towards East Tiger and I noticed two shiny objects in the forest where the trail comes out onto the road. I asked Eric if those were two eyes staring at us, or reflectors on a post. He thought they were reflectors on a post. I wasn't so sure. Being the genius that I am, I decided to throw a rock at it. When the shiny objects moved we knew it was an animal. Eric started making noise while I picked up an even bigger rock. The animal scampered slowly and we gradually inched closer to it to try and get a look at it. Eric was sure it was just a deer, but I didn't get a good look at it. All I know was that I came out of my funk pretty quickly and scampered up East Tiger a little faster looking over my shoulder.
Wednesday morning after our run we went home to record setting heat. It was about 103-105 degrees in Bonney Lake. I took a nap downstairs with two fans blowing on me and when I woke up and stepped outside the heat was stifling. I spent the rest of the day trying to drink enough fluids to bring me back to life. Thursday was a little cooler, but I made it out for an 8 mile run with a 99 degree temp at the start and 95 degrees at the finish.
Friday, Jenny, Michelle, Eric, Steve and I headed back up to the White River 50 miler course and ran the 15 mile loop up to Ranger Creek, one of our favorite loops. Saturday, I ran 13 miles with my wife in the morning and the rode my bike another 6 miles as she finished up her 20 miler. I was too tired to finish up the 20 miles with her on foot.
Yesterday was the Thorpe Mt. Fat Ass on the last 1/3 of the CC100 course. I was tired all the way through and it ended up being a 20 mile hike with a 7 mile run. The course consists of some good climbing and we managed to get in some good heat training as well. After finishing the run with Jenny we soaked in the creek and waited for Steve and Eric to come back and pick us up. The day capped another 100 mile week and it sure felt like it.
This week we are running loop 1 on the Plain 100 course and I'll shoot for another 100 mile week.
Happy Running!
We started around 8:30 p.m. and Steve Stoyles joined us for the first half of the run before heading home to get some sleep before work in the morning. Eric and I headed back to our car on the other side of the mountain. The highlight of the night, or the early morning, was when we came up the road towards East Tiger and I noticed two shiny objects in the forest where the trail comes out onto the road. I asked Eric if those were two eyes staring at us, or reflectors on a post. He thought they were reflectors on a post. I wasn't so sure. Being the genius that I am, I decided to throw a rock at it. When the shiny objects moved we knew it was an animal. Eric started making noise while I picked up an even bigger rock. The animal scampered slowly and we gradually inched closer to it to try and get a look at it. Eric was sure it was just a deer, but I didn't get a good look at it. All I know was that I came out of my funk pretty quickly and scampered up East Tiger a little faster looking over my shoulder.
Wednesday morning after our run we went home to record setting heat. It was about 103-105 degrees in Bonney Lake. I took a nap downstairs with two fans blowing on me and when I woke up and stepped outside the heat was stifling. I spent the rest of the day trying to drink enough fluids to bring me back to life. Thursday was a little cooler, but I made it out for an 8 mile run with a 99 degree temp at the start and 95 degrees at the finish.
Friday, Jenny, Michelle, Eric, Steve and I headed back up to the White River 50 miler course and ran the 15 mile loop up to Ranger Creek, one of our favorite loops. Saturday, I ran 13 miles with my wife in the morning and the rode my bike another 6 miles as she finished up her 20 miler. I was too tired to finish up the 20 miles with her on foot.
Yesterday was the Thorpe Mt. Fat Ass on the last 1/3 of the CC100 course. I was tired all the way through and it ended up being a 20 mile hike with a 7 mile run. The course consists of some good climbing and we managed to get in some good heat training as well. After finishing the run with Jenny we soaked in the creek and waited for Steve and Eric to come back and pick us up. The day capped another 100 mile week and it sure felt like it.
This week we are running loop 1 on the Plain 100 course and I'll shoot for another 100 mile week.
Happy Running!
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
White River 50 Miler
After last weeks 40 miler on loop 2 of the Plain 100 course I was a bit doubtful of my chances of finishing the Plain 100 in September. I was dragging behind Eric, Steve and Joe Lee from Oregon and definitely the slowest of the group. I had picked up the pace from miles 33-38 and was able to catch back up, but doing so left my reserves empty and I ended up stopping at mile 40 rather than running the last 7 miles back to our car.
A bit of reflection led to my decision to continue my quest for Plain. In order to get ready for Plain I decided that I am going to need 5-100 mile weeks of training as well as some night running and a loop 1 finish on the Plain course, which we have planned for August 7th.
Last week was week 1 of my 100 mile weeks and it was successful. I had the White River 50 miler on Saturday, but I knew I needed the mileage in addition to the 50 mile finish to get off to a good start in my training for Plain. I ran 12 miles on Monday, 6 on Tuesday, 12 on Wednesday, 15 on Thursday and took Friday off to rest a bit before the race.
On race day, my plan was to run with Jenny, take it easy and work on fueling, pacing and the hope that I would run the entire race feeling "good." We took the early start at 5:30 and got into a good rhythm. All systems felt good and it was nice to take it easy, especially since my legs had some decent mileage on them already. The first climb was good and I always love to get along the ridges and check out the great views. Jenny and I stuck together as planned and worked on a run/walk schedule as we climbed up to Ranger Creek. We made it to Ranger Creek in a little over 3 hours.
My fueling was going well as I was trying to take a GU every hour and nibble on cashews, jerky, gummi bears and m&m's every 20-30 minutes. The climb to Corral Pass was beautifully covered with wild flowers and great views of Mt. Rainier. This section we also got a chance to see all the runners as they passed either going towards Corral Pass, or coming back, or both.
It was nice to get in some good downhill running after getting back to Ranger Creek and heading back towards the start area, which is also a bit past the halfway point of the race. My goal was to get us there in under 7 hours so we had a chance at a 13 hour finish. We came in at 6:50 and were out of there at 7 hours. It was noticeably hotter and we had a big climb ahead of us. I was actually looking forward to the climb and just hiking up the hill with my head down and my legs moving forward.
The climb to Fawn Ridge was good and I led the way with Jenny right behind me. After Fawn Ridge, I ran the next section to Suntop with another gal and then rested at the aid station waiting for Jenny. It was nice to sit down for a few minutes and cool down before the big downhill on the road. Jenny came in a few minutes later and didn't take long at the aid station. We ran the road section at a good pace and the finish was 6.6 miles away when we reached Skookum Flats.
I had already warned Jenny that Skookum Flats is the longest 6 mile section on earth and as we ran, hiked and walked along this was confirmed. I felt good the entire race and my fueling was right on. The last couple miles though I just wanted to be done. I was toasted and tired and ready to sit down and eat some real food. Jenny and I muttered along waiting desperately for a sign of the finish around every corner. Finally, after what seemed like hours and hours we made it out of the woods and onto the road for the last .4 miles from the finish. We crossed the line in 13:26just under the 14 hour cutoff.
We ate some food, soaked in the river and headed for home. The next day my legs felt pretty good and I was walking up and down stairs without any difficulty. Later that evening I went out and ran 5 miles with my wife to finish off my 100 mile week. On to week 2...
Happy Running!
A bit of reflection led to my decision to continue my quest for Plain. In order to get ready for Plain I decided that I am going to need 5-100 mile weeks of training as well as some night running and a loop 1 finish on the Plain course, which we have planned for August 7th.
Last week was week 1 of my 100 mile weeks and it was successful. I had the White River 50 miler on Saturday, but I knew I needed the mileage in addition to the 50 mile finish to get off to a good start in my training for Plain. I ran 12 miles on Monday, 6 on Tuesday, 12 on Wednesday, 15 on Thursday and took Friday off to rest a bit before the race.
On race day, my plan was to run with Jenny, take it easy and work on fueling, pacing and the hope that I would run the entire race feeling "good." We took the early start at 5:30 and got into a good rhythm. All systems felt good and it was nice to take it easy, especially since my legs had some decent mileage on them already. The first climb was good and I always love to get along the ridges and check out the great views. Jenny and I stuck together as planned and worked on a run/walk schedule as we climbed up to Ranger Creek. We made it to Ranger Creek in a little over 3 hours.
My fueling was going well as I was trying to take a GU every hour and nibble on cashews, jerky, gummi bears and m&m's every 20-30 minutes. The climb to Corral Pass was beautifully covered with wild flowers and great views of Mt. Rainier. This section we also got a chance to see all the runners as they passed either going towards Corral Pass, or coming back, or both.
It was nice to get in some good downhill running after getting back to Ranger Creek and heading back towards the start area, which is also a bit past the halfway point of the race. My goal was to get us there in under 7 hours so we had a chance at a 13 hour finish. We came in at 6:50 and were out of there at 7 hours. It was noticeably hotter and we had a big climb ahead of us. I was actually looking forward to the climb and just hiking up the hill with my head down and my legs moving forward.
The climb to Fawn Ridge was good and I led the way with Jenny right behind me. After Fawn Ridge, I ran the next section to Suntop with another gal and then rested at the aid station waiting for Jenny. It was nice to sit down for a few minutes and cool down before the big downhill on the road. Jenny came in a few minutes later and didn't take long at the aid station. We ran the road section at a good pace and the finish was 6.6 miles away when we reached Skookum Flats.
I had already warned Jenny that Skookum Flats is the longest 6 mile section on earth and as we ran, hiked and walked along this was confirmed. I felt good the entire race and my fueling was right on. The last couple miles though I just wanted to be done. I was toasted and tired and ready to sit down and eat some real food. Jenny and I muttered along waiting desperately for a sign of the finish around every corner. Finally, after what seemed like hours and hours we made it out of the woods and onto the road for the last .4 miles from the finish. We crossed the line in 13:26just under the 14 hour cutoff.
We ate some food, soaked in the river and headed for home. The next day my legs felt pretty good and I was walking up and down stairs without any difficulty. Later that evening I went out and ran 5 miles with my wife to finish off my 100 mile week. On to week 2...
Happy Running!
Monday, May 25, 2009
Disappearance...
I click on my blog from time to time and remember all the good times I spent writing about myself and reading about others typical days, not so great times, good races, bad races, great adventures and just about everything one could imagine. I enjoyed those times. I remember sitting and reading for hours and hours at a time and being caught up to date with everyone on my bloglist. I would comment on every single post. Sometimes to gain a comment in return, but mostly to let that person know that they were important to me and I appreciated them sharing their thoughts no matter how ordinary they might seem.
It seems strange now that when I click on my blog the motivation to write is not there. I click on my bloglines and see the number of unread posts appear to go up exponentially. I read one or two and get sidetracked. I'm not sure why.
Life is changing and in the midst of it all I find myself changing as well. Career has taken hold, family is in the forefront and I find myself returning to church on a regular basis. Running occupies my mind and the pr's of the past seem far away, but the desire to return to the front of the pack is strong, but not always as strong as family these days. I suppose it's a good thing. I know it's a good thing.
I would like to say that I will be by to catch up soon, and I hope that I am, but I'm not so sure I can make a promise. I can promise you that I wonder what you are up to and from time to time I have others fill me in. I think about you often, scattered at times, and contemplate trying to delve back in, but I cannot. There will be a season soon when my creative juices start flowing and my time frees up enough to catch up with long lost friends. I assure you that you are not forgotten.
It seems strange now that when I click on my blog the motivation to write is not there. I click on my bloglines and see the number of unread posts appear to go up exponentially. I read one or two and get sidetracked. I'm not sure why.
Life is changing and in the midst of it all I find myself changing as well. Career has taken hold, family is in the forefront and I find myself returning to church on a regular basis. Running occupies my mind and the pr's of the past seem far away, but the desire to return to the front of the pack is strong, but not always as strong as family these days. I suppose it's a good thing. I know it's a good thing.
I would like to say that I will be by to catch up soon, and I hope that I am, but I'm not so sure I can make a promise. I can promise you that I wonder what you are up to and from time to time I have others fill me in. I think about you often, scattered at times, and contemplate trying to delve back in, but I cannot. There will be a season soon when my creative juices start flowing and my time frees up enough to catch up with long lost friends. I assure you that you are not forgotten.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Tiger Mountain Adventure
There is no doubt that my body is working at a less than optimal level right now, but I'm faced with one of those injuries that makes me unsure if I should run or rest. I'm not one who feels the need to run through injuries. I prefer to rest and heal. Typically, I am healthy and therefore do not feel pressured to try and force things. Especially since my next goal race is about 5 months away.
With that being said, I had planned a 12 Summits (32-34 miles with 10,000+ feet of elevation gain) run with Eric, Steve and Jenny yesterday so I thought I'd give it a shot and bail somewhere along the way if I felt I was doing any further damage to myself. There were rumors of snow, and lots of it about 1/3rd of the way into the out and back. We were uncertain if we would make the entire planned trip right from the start and ready to improvise if necessary.
The initial climb of around 2,000 feet is a brutal one and I could feel the burn and exertion in my shin area right from the start. Part of the way up I could feel myself compensating and putting more pressure on my right leg, which was making the climb a bit more difficult. During the few runs I did this past week my shin did not seem to bother me too much as I was running and felt better after being warmed up. After about 30 minutes, the shin pain subsided enough that I was no longer putting a disproportionate amount of weight on my right leg. The shin discomfort was noticeable, but not debilitating.
We reached the first peak (T3) and there was no view in sight. It was foggy and windy the higher we went and there was more and more snow on the trail. The climbs to T2 and T1 are relatively quick and easy. Jenny was being careful with her ankle that was injured back in January, but trail conditions were pretty good thus far. After taking a respite in the Hikers Hut, and heading out onto the bootleg trail, we could tell that things were about to get more difficult.
Up to this point we were making pretty good time. The snow along this trail was not super deep, but it was icy and our feet were beginning to sink in more than before. The trail was slow going and the snow continued to deepen as we went. Before we knew it we were post holing in 1-2 feet of snow and paying close attention in order to stay on the trail. When we reached the Christmas tree we had a brief conversation about whether we wanted to continue on, or take an alternate route. We agreed we would head towards East Tiger and revise if we needed to.
The story from there was deep snow. As we got closer to East Tiger the depth of the snow was in the neighborhood of 2-3 feet. At one point, my right leg sank past my knee and when I put my left hand down it sank all the way so my head was resting on the snow. I laid there for a minute a bit nostalgic about my younger years and romping around in the snow. I love the snow and it was a humorous, but physically demanding task to trudge through it on this day.
When we hit the road to East Tiger we had a running joke that the road should be clear due to recent rainfall and a few days of warmer temperatures. Of course that was not the case. I think the snow was even deeper. I decided to lay down on the snow as we were heading up and then Jenny joined in on the fun. Eric caught it on video, but the pictures and video do not do the snow justice.
We reached East Tiger and then made our descent toward Middle Tiger searching for a break in the snow. We "ran" on the road for about a mile or two before reaching some exit options that would take us back towards T3 rather than continuing on to Middle and South Tiger. After much post holing and stumbling on the way down our feet were frozen. When we finally hit dirt it felt odd to run. My entire body was stiff and my legs hurt. At that point I was ready to wrap things up and head back to the car. Of course the car was about 7-8 miles away still.
I'm not sure of all the trails we took to get back, but the story on the way back was branches strewn across the trail. We spent a lot of time moving them off the trail, which meant things were slow going, still. There were a few sections of clear trail where we were able to run unobstructed, but they were few and far between. We got to see some new trails and enjoy 6+ hours in the forest with friends. We only covered about 15 miles, but we all agreed it felt closer to 30. My shin held up alright, but I'll probably take a rest day today just to make sure.
One revelation I had while out there was how much I miss the trails. I miss being able to run and feel like I am floating along the dirt with my feet barely touching down. I miss being alone in the woods where it is me against nature and where I have some alone time to talk to God and thank Him for all the beauty that surrounds me. I miss taking the time to be thankful for the trees, rivers, streams, rocks and trails that most of us take for granted while we live out our day to day existence within a concrete jungle not remembering what is truly important to us. For me it's God, family, friends, health and the ability to explore and be one with nature.
He is risen! Happy Easter!
With that being said, I had planned a 12 Summits (32-34 miles with 10,000+ feet of elevation gain) run with Eric, Steve and Jenny yesterday so I thought I'd give it a shot and bail somewhere along the way if I felt I was doing any further damage to myself. There were rumors of snow, and lots of it about 1/3rd of the way into the out and back. We were uncertain if we would make the entire planned trip right from the start and ready to improvise if necessary.
The initial climb of around 2,000 feet is a brutal one and I could feel the burn and exertion in my shin area right from the start. Part of the way up I could feel myself compensating and putting more pressure on my right leg, which was making the climb a bit more difficult. During the few runs I did this past week my shin did not seem to bother me too much as I was running and felt better after being warmed up. After about 30 minutes, the shin pain subsided enough that I was no longer putting a disproportionate amount of weight on my right leg. The shin discomfort was noticeable, but not debilitating.
We reached the first peak (T3) and there was no view in sight. It was foggy and windy the higher we went and there was more and more snow on the trail. The climbs to T2 and T1 are relatively quick and easy. Jenny was being careful with her ankle that was injured back in January, but trail conditions were pretty good thus far. After taking a respite in the Hikers Hut, and heading out onto the bootleg trail, we could tell that things were about to get more difficult.
Up to this point we were making pretty good time. The snow along this trail was not super deep, but it was icy and our feet were beginning to sink in more than before. The trail was slow going and the snow continued to deepen as we went. Before we knew it we were post holing in 1-2 feet of snow and paying close attention in order to stay on the trail. When we reached the Christmas tree we had a brief conversation about whether we wanted to continue on, or take an alternate route. We agreed we would head towards East Tiger and revise if we needed to.
The story from there was deep snow. As we got closer to East Tiger the depth of the snow was in the neighborhood of 2-3 feet. At one point, my right leg sank past my knee and when I put my left hand down it sank all the way so my head was resting on the snow. I laid there for a minute a bit nostalgic about my younger years and romping around in the snow. I love the snow and it was a humorous, but physically demanding task to trudge through it on this day.
When we hit the road to East Tiger we had a running joke that the road should be clear due to recent rainfall and a few days of warmer temperatures. Of course that was not the case. I think the snow was even deeper. I decided to lay down on the snow as we were heading up and then Jenny joined in on the fun. Eric caught it on video, but the pictures and video do not do the snow justice.
We reached East Tiger and then made our descent toward Middle Tiger searching for a break in the snow. We "ran" on the road for about a mile or two before reaching some exit options that would take us back towards T3 rather than continuing on to Middle and South Tiger. After much post holing and stumbling on the way down our feet were frozen. When we finally hit dirt it felt odd to run. My entire body was stiff and my legs hurt. At that point I was ready to wrap things up and head back to the car. Of course the car was about 7-8 miles away still.
I'm not sure of all the trails we took to get back, but the story on the way back was branches strewn across the trail. We spent a lot of time moving them off the trail, which meant things were slow going, still. There were a few sections of clear trail where we were able to run unobstructed, but they were few and far between. We got to see some new trails and enjoy 6+ hours in the forest with friends. We only covered about 15 miles, but we all agreed it felt closer to 30. My shin held up alright, but I'll probably take a rest day today just to make sure.
One revelation I had while out there was how much I miss the trails. I miss being able to run and feel like I am floating along the dirt with my feet barely touching down. I miss being alone in the woods where it is me against nature and where I have some alone time to talk to God and thank Him for all the beauty that surrounds me. I miss taking the time to be thankful for the trees, rivers, streams, rocks and trails that most of us take for granted while we live out our day to day existence within a concrete jungle not remembering what is truly important to us. For me it's God, family, friends, health and the ability to explore and be one with nature.
He is risen! Happy Easter!
Sunday, April 05, 2009
Moving Forward...With a Limp
The depression from falling short at the last race was short lived and I was ready to move ahead rather quickly. The short of it was that I was upset about my performance. No need to dwell, or beat myself up about it for a prolonged period of time. I have a beautiful wife, loving and wonderful children, a good job and nothing really to complain about. I lead a pretty darn good life.
I used the week following the race to relax and not have to worry about a running schedule. My legs felt pretty good and I have been formulating the plan for the next goal race. Fortunately, I will not have to go this alone. I will let my coach do a lot of the weekly schedule work and I will do my best to follow orders, which I am not always good at. Paul is flexible and I do my best to get the majority of the workouts in as written. I appreciate the fact that he is willing to add in a race as a training run and work it into my schedule with the end goal in mind.
This past week I was back to the schedule with the emphasis moving back to the trails. The difficult part about this is that the trails aren't exactly convenient. I had a few speed work days that were supposed to be on the trails and back to back mid-long runs, but I was also heading out of town to the beach to relax over spring break. I decided the sand is soft like trails, not nearly as technical, but it would have to do.
I love running on the sand. I headed out on Wednesday with a 6 x 1 mile workout at 6:30 pace on tap. I knew that on the sand there was no way I would be able to hit the splits so I focused on running hard for 6:30 rather than a mile. Another factor blowing me right in the face was the brutal wind. No problem, I'll alternate directions and the wind and the sand would make me tougher in the long run. The run went well and I managed 9 miles in 1:12 with the faster stuff mixed in.
After the run I spotted Jessica and the kids splashing about despite the cold weather and less than clear water. The waves were crashing along the shore and the kids would wade out up to their knees and then run back to the shore as the water came towards them. Tyler was enjoying the game as Jessica and I looked on. We could see an impending wave coming and Tyler was a bit far out. We yelled at him to run back towards us along with the other kids. He almost made it, but the water was moving a bit too fast. Emily got to him just in time, but he took a tumble and brought down Emily with him. Both of them were covered with water and sand, but no major damage was done. Jessica was right there as well to scoop Tyler up and we all headed back to the house only a few blocks away.
The best thing about being at the beach is spending the time with family and relaxing in a way that is difficult to do at home. The girls spent a lot of time in the hot tub, Tyler watched Winnie the Pooh and Rudolph about a dozen times and Jessica and I were able to sleep in and forget about work, bills and all other worries for a few days.
I headed back to the sand again Friday and was forced to run in deeper sand due to the high tide. On the way back I ran on the roads and once again faced the strong winds while trying to mix in some faster shorter bursts along the way.
Saturday my motivation level was low. Eventually, I managed to get out the door for a walk/run with Jessica. The walking was fine, but I noticed a bit of soreness in my left calf. When we began to run I was definitely doing so with a limp. We alternated the run/walk, but after about 3 miles it was all walking and more painful at that. I managed to limp the 3 miles back home and the ache in the left calf was more noticeable as we went.
It's really a minor thing to complain about. The kids are upstairs hanging out with their friends, the sun is out, Jessica will be home soon and there is nothing major pending on the schedule. I lead a pretty good life.
Happy Living!
I used the week following the race to relax and not have to worry about a running schedule. My legs felt pretty good and I have been formulating the plan for the next goal race. Fortunately, I will not have to go this alone. I will let my coach do a lot of the weekly schedule work and I will do my best to follow orders, which I am not always good at. Paul is flexible and I do my best to get the majority of the workouts in as written. I appreciate the fact that he is willing to add in a race as a training run and work it into my schedule with the end goal in mind.
This past week I was back to the schedule with the emphasis moving back to the trails. The difficult part about this is that the trails aren't exactly convenient. I had a few speed work days that were supposed to be on the trails and back to back mid-long runs, but I was also heading out of town to the beach to relax over spring break. I decided the sand is soft like trails, not nearly as technical, but it would have to do.
I love running on the sand. I headed out on Wednesday with a 6 x 1 mile workout at 6:30 pace on tap. I knew that on the sand there was no way I would be able to hit the splits so I focused on running hard for 6:30 rather than a mile. Another factor blowing me right in the face was the brutal wind. No problem, I'll alternate directions and the wind and the sand would make me tougher in the long run. The run went well and I managed 9 miles in 1:12 with the faster stuff mixed in.
After the run I spotted Jessica and the kids splashing about despite the cold weather and less than clear water. The waves were crashing along the shore and the kids would wade out up to their knees and then run back to the shore as the water came towards them. Tyler was enjoying the game as Jessica and I looked on. We could see an impending wave coming and Tyler was a bit far out. We yelled at him to run back towards us along with the other kids. He almost made it, but the water was moving a bit too fast. Emily got to him just in time, but he took a tumble and brought down Emily with him. Both of them were covered with water and sand, but no major damage was done. Jessica was right there as well to scoop Tyler up and we all headed back to the house only a few blocks away.
The best thing about being at the beach is spending the time with family and relaxing in a way that is difficult to do at home. The girls spent a lot of time in the hot tub, Tyler watched Winnie the Pooh and Rudolph about a dozen times and Jessica and I were able to sleep in and forget about work, bills and all other worries for a few days.
I headed back to the sand again Friday and was forced to run in deeper sand due to the high tide. On the way back I ran on the roads and once again faced the strong winds while trying to mix in some faster shorter bursts along the way.
Saturday my motivation level was low. Eventually, I managed to get out the door for a walk/run with Jessica. The walking was fine, but I noticed a bit of soreness in my left calf. When we began to run I was definitely doing so with a limp. We alternated the run/walk, but after about 3 miles it was all walking and more painful at that. I managed to limp the 3 miles back home and the ache in the left calf was more noticeable as we went.
It's really a minor thing to complain about. The kids are upstairs hanging out with their friends, the sun is out, Jessica will be home soon and there is nothing major pending on the schedule. I lead a pretty good life.
Happy Living!
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Pacific Rim 24 Hour- Race Report
Before the 9 a.m. start I was positive. I believed that my training would pay off, my fueling plan, walk strategy and positive outlook would carry me through for 24 hours, 100+ miles and to the land of redemption that I have been seeking for years.
I would love to be reporting back to all of you right now that my race was a success, but once again it was not. It was not the race I was hoping for and it was not the race I had trained for.
Perhaps I was not as prepared as I thought. Perhaps I should have run more miles beforehand and stretched a few of my long runs out to 50+ miles. Perhaps I did not take enough salt, or my water to salt ratio was off. Perhaps the Ensure made my stomach queasy, or maybe it was the slice of pizza. Perhaps I just gave up!
Typically after a race "failure" I seek answers. I beat myself up and wonder what I did wrong. I don't think that a race that is a "failure" makes me a failure, so please don't misunderstand the criticism of myself.
The first few hours of the race Steve and I ran steady and smart. We stuck to my plan of run 2 miles and walk 2 minutes. I took 2-GU's per hour and about a 1/2 bottle of Ensure Plus as well as a salt cap every hour. The only thing that threw us off schedule was a multitude of bathroom breaks that should have been figured in to my calculations. We adjusted and came in with 23 miles in the first 4 hours. The plan called for 24.
Hours 4-6 we continued with our 2 mile run, 2 minute walk strategy and stayed consistent on the fueling as well. After 6 hours we were at 34 miles and feeling good. Everything was going as planned.
I had a down point during hour 7, but came out of it after a few miles with a little bit more walking. We adjusted our walking strategy and began walking for a shorter period every mile rather than every 2 miles. Things were going good and after 8 hours we had 42 miles and in relation to other runners were mid pack. We set our sights on getting in 50 miles by the 10 hour mark.
We had 3 walking points each lap at this point. There are 3 "hills" on the course that are really only hills during a 24 hour race. We walked for a short period at each hill and ran the rest of the way. At 10 hours we hit our mark of 50 miles and I was feeling positive that we would reach 100, but it was still a long ways to go. Perhaps this is where I made the biggest mistake of focusing on the end goal rather than a couple hours at a time.
After 50 miles I don't remember any positive points. I had another very low point where my stomach was feeling queasy and my shins were really hurting. I started to walk more and then would come out of the funk, but after another hour or so it seemed as if I was right back in the funk.
Mentally, I was going downhill. I really started to focus on reaching 100 miles and calculating how many miles I would have to do per hour in order to make it. I figured it was about 3.5 miles per hour. It all sounded so simple, but believe me it is not that easy.
We hit 100k and were with Michelle, Jenny and Abi at this point. This is where I went into the endless trench where I walked with my head down, everything was tense, my shins were killing me and my attitude was diminishing quickly. I tried to keep track of the laps, but when I switched to a new page on the lap counting sheet I moved to another slot and I started looking at someone else's miles who happened to be about 3 miles ahead of me. When I thought I was on mile 67 I really was only on mile 64. When I came around to what I thought was mile 69 only to discover it was only mile 66 I got down and never came out.
I had been primarily walking for over an hour at this point and when I attempted to run it was slow and painful. I left for mile 67 and my walk was a slow shuffle at best and the demons were taking over. I started to feel sorry for myself and the pain intensified in my shins. I just wanted to lay down for a bit and elevate my legs. I walked into the trailer and despite prods and attempts I didn't come out until about 7 a.m.
During the night it felt good to lay and rest. However, I knew that the pain felt after the race was going to be much greater than the pain in my legs at that moment. The pain of not reaching my goal would eat at me for weeks and months to come and yet it was not enough to get me out of that trailer.
When I came out in the morning to check out how the race was developing I saw Joe Lee walking after 115 miles. He asked if I wanted to walk a few laps and I decided to do so. In my Birkenstocks, I completed 3 more miles to finish off with 70 miles.
The end was bittersweet. The success of others was inspiring to see and yet I wished I was one of them. I wished that I was tough enough to have gutted it out during the night. I used to be that person and now I wonder where he went. Where did the determination go? Where did the power of positive thinking go? Where did my grit and guts go?
For now, those are the questions I seek to answer.
I would love to be reporting back to all of you right now that my race was a success, but once again it was not. It was not the race I was hoping for and it was not the race I had trained for.
Perhaps I was not as prepared as I thought. Perhaps I should have run more miles beforehand and stretched a few of my long runs out to 50+ miles. Perhaps I did not take enough salt, or my water to salt ratio was off. Perhaps the Ensure made my stomach queasy, or maybe it was the slice of pizza. Perhaps I just gave up!
Typically after a race "failure" I seek answers. I beat myself up and wonder what I did wrong. I don't think that a race that is a "failure" makes me a failure, so please don't misunderstand the criticism of myself.
The first few hours of the race Steve and I ran steady and smart. We stuck to my plan of run 2 miles and walk 2 minutes. I took 2-GU's per hour and about a 1/2 bottle of Ensure Plus as well as a salt cap every hour. The only thing that threw us off schedule was a multitude of bathroom breaks that should have been figured in to my calculations. We adjusted and came in with 23 miles in the first 4 hours. The plan called for 24.
Hours 4-6 we continued with our 2 mile run, 2 minute walk strategy and stayed consistent on the fueling as well. After 6 hours we were at 34 miles and feeling good. Everything was going as planned.
I had a down point during hour 7, but came out of it after a few miles with a little bit more walking. We adjusted our walking strategy and began walking for a shorter period every mile rather than every 2 miles. Things were going good and after 8 hours we had 42 miles and in relation to other runners were mid pack. We set our sights on getting in 50 miles by the 10 hour mark.
We had 3 walking points each lap at this point. There are 3 "hills" on the course that are really only hills during a 24 hour race. We walked for a short period at each hill and ran the rest of the way. At 10 hours we hit our mark of 50 miles and I was feeling positive that we would reach 100, but it was still a long ways to go. Perhaps this is where I made the biggest mistake of focusing on the end goal rather than a couple hours at a time.
After 50 miles I don't remember any positive points. I had another very low point where my stomach was feeling queasy and my shins were really hurting. I started to walk more and then would come out of the funk, but after another hour or so it seemed as if I was right back in the funk.
Mentally, I was going downhill. I really started to focus on reaching 100 miles and calculating how many miles I would have to do per hour in order to make it. I figured it was about 3.5 miles per hour. It all sounded so simple, but believe me it is not that easy.
We hit 100k and were with Michelle, Jenny and Abi at this point. This is where I went into the endless trench where I walked with my head down, everything was tense, my shins were killing me and my attitude was diminishing quickly. I tried to keep track of the laps, but when I switched to a new page on the lap counting sheet I moved to another slot and I started looking at someone else's miles who happened to be about 3 miles ahead of me. When I thought I was on mile 67 I really was only on mile 64. When I came around to what I thought was mile 69 only to discover it was only mile 66 I got down and never came out.
I had been primarily walking for over an hour at this point and when I attempted to run it was slow and painful. I left for mile 67 and my walk was a slow shuffle at best and the demons were taking over. I started to feel sorry for myself and the pain intensified in my shins. I just wanted to lay down for a bit and elevate my legs. I walked into the trailer and despite prods and attempts I didn't come out until about 7 a.m.
During the night it felt good to lay and rest. However, I knew that the pain felt after the race was going to be much greater than the pain in my legs at that moment. The pain of not reaching my goal would eat at me for weeks and months to come and yet it was not enough to get me out of that trailer.
When I came out in the morning to check out how the race was developing I saw Joe Lee walking after 115 miles. He asked if I wanted to walk a few laps and I decided to do so. In my Birkenstocks, I completed 3 more miles to finish off with 70 miles.
The end was bittersweet. The success of others was inspiring to see and yet I wished I was one of them. I wished that I was tough enough to have gutted it out during the night. I used to be that person and now I wonder where he went. Where did the determination go? Where did the power of positive thinking go? Where did my grit and guts go?
For now, those are the questions I seek to answer.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
