Bedrock Runs

Old Dominion 100 Preview

2011-06-01T09:58:00.003-04:00

I am heading up to Virginia this weekend to run the Old Dominion 100. This is a race that has been on my radar a while but I never ran it since I usually do Massanutten in May. This year I had a conflict Massanutten weekend and so Old Dominion made perfect sense. This race is a classic - the second oldest 100 mile run out there. This is the 33rd running of the race. I have heard that there are close to 70 entries this year which is great news. This race had less than 20 entries in recent years. The continued increase in popularity of ultra running has led to more races being created and also saving races like OD from eminent extinction. The field is certainly impressive this year with names like Gorman, Andrish and Peele set to toe the line. Neal Gorman has a good discussion on the field over on his blog. It's hard to tell who is running for sure since there is not an entrants list published - another old school feature I like.

Old Dominion still send out the runner pamphlet like all races used to do. It gives all historical finishing times, a course description and a brief rundown of every OD race to date. I have enjoyed reading through that the last several weeks. One trend is weather - heat is almost always a factor. The first weekend in June is typically the first really warm weekend of the year in the Woodstock area and runners in past years have battled searing heat many times. In looking at the forecast the last few days, it has moved around a good bit. Good news is the forecast is now for a high in the mid-80s (earlier it was mid-90s) and the bad news is that 86 degrees is still very warm especially when you add in 60% humidity. Nonetheless, the forecast looks to be clear at this point. Although, some light rain might be appreciated Saturday afternoon.

My plan for the race is quite simple. Start when the RD says "Go" and just keep one foot in front of the other thereafter until I arrive back at the Fairgrounds. Seriously, I plan to try and take advantage of cooler temps and flatter terrain and then give myself a "break" during the hotter parts of the day and steeper terrain. Time goal, not really. The cutoff of 28 hours is lower than my 100 mile PR (31:33 - MMT 2008) so a finish is a new PR. I have certain times that I want to make it to but having never run the course before, it makes no sense to pout some arbitrary goal out there. If I enjoy the race, have some fun and get it done in one piece it will be a successful race for me.

Keep your fingers crossed for the weather and for me to run a smart race. Full report will come early next week.

Where oh where has Bedrock been?

2011-05-18T14:42:00.002-04:00

Almost six months since the last post - pathetic. Been really busy with a new job, lots of running, crazy travel and life in general. I have run two races this year, the Uwharrie 40 and the Black Mountain Marathon. Uwharrie was a nice event but I didn't really like the trail - no views and full of sloppy mud. Doubt I will go back. Planned on doing the full 40 at Mitchell but forgot my yaktrax like a bonehead so opted for the shorter race. Turns out I didn't really need the yak trax - figures.

Next up for me is the Old Dominion 100 in a couple of weeks. This will be my first time with this race and I hope to have a good time. This is a classic 100 and the is the second oldest next to Western States. I love the Massanutten Mountains and it will be interesting to run there without stepping over Volkswagen sized rocks. I am planning on doing the Speedgoat 50K which is put on by Karl and Scott. Scott runs the Wasatch Speedgoats team so I am hoping I can get out there and experience the toughest 50K around. If I survive that, I will venture back to South Carolina for the Laurel Valley Whitewater Run. This year I am planning on a double since that effort would set up nicely for my next race - the Bear 100 in September. That is a tough but very scenic run in Utah and Idaho - two places I have never been. Goal for this race will be to get it done in one piece.

For now, the training is going well and I can't wait for Old Dominion. More frequent updates going forward. Get out there and run.

2011

2010-12-14T16:50:00.003-05:00

I have been thinking about 2011 a lot the last couple of weeks. There are a lot of things I hope to accomplish running wise and it is very motivating to start putting plans in place. I did not get selected in the Massanutten lottery but am high enough on the wait list that I will likely get the opportunity to run the race. I also entered the lottery for Hardrock and much of my race schedule will hinge on the outcome of that. For instance, should I get into Hardrock, I will likely not do Massanutten and run the San Juan Solstice 50M in Colorado in mid June instead. If I don't get into Hardrock, I will likely do Leadville. Point beinh, the focus of 2011 will be completing a "western" 100 mile race. I have some tweaks to my training that I expect will help me improve my running. For now, it's time to go for a run.

Update

2010-11-17T14:53:00.002-05:00

Hope everyone is enjoying fall. I have been pretty "under the radar" since Grindstone. Partly, I wanted to take a bit of a break but it also has been very busy at work and with life in general. I have enjoyed running nonchalantly for the last month or so but am anxious to start training for races in 2011. For the remainder of 2010, I am going to hit the trails as often as possible and continue building up my base for next year. No races left other than running in a pace group for the Thunder Road Marathon in Charlotte. For 2011, I have three races identified so far, the Tanahwa Marathon/50K in January and the Uwharrie 40 and Mount Mitchell Challenge 40, both in February.

Not sure what the full plan is for 2011. I am going to enter the lottery for Hardrock again and that result will set the tone for the year. I will sign up for Massanutten again in a couple of weeks and have identified Leadville as my Hardrock "back-up". I'll likely do a "year in review" post in a couple of weeks. Have fun and keep your eyes down and toes up!

Grinding My Stones at the Grindstone 100

2010-10-19T08:58:00.002-04:00

What an awesome (and tough) race! I am finally getting some time to write a report on my experience at Grindstone three weeks ago! It was a wonderful event although I suffered mightily. However, despite the race not going as planned/hoped, in the end I still learned some valuable lessons and got my fourth 100 mile finish.

Grindstone is relatively new with the 2010 running being only the third year. The race is somewhat unique in that it begins on Friday evening, ensuring every runner gets at least one night in the mountains. While initially I viewed this as an advantage since it would make you go out slow, upon running the race I think, at least for me, it makes it harder. You see, one is not really fresh when the race begins. Even if you "sleep in" as I did, you are still up and around for the better part of the day up until showtime. For me, I will need to better plan for this in future years. In addition, being an out-and-back course has some advantages and disadvantages. Having never run an out-and-back 100 before, I wasn't sure what to expect. In the end, I like the out-and-back set up because it makes drop bags and aid station strategy much easier (at least at this race). Lastly, Grindstone climbs a lot (over 23,000 feet) and the terrain is varied between gentle trail to gnarly rocky single track. Many sections are too steep to run down efficiently so your strategy is ever evolving throughout the race. As I have thought about Grindstone the last couple of weeks, there really isn't a lot to tel but here is an account anyway.

The weather was perfect at the start and promised to be great throughout the entire weekend. A slight chance of rain never materialized and the skies were clear illuminating many stars in the evenings. The first couple of sections went really well (don't they always) and I got to run with several folks including Jay Finkle, Liz Bauer and Scott Brockmeier. I often run with Jay some at races and it was good to catch up with what has been going on with him. He has run Grindstone before and shared some very helpful tips with me early on. Liz really helped me on my climbs. Being a nurse, she advised that I keep cranking to avoid a heart rate spike. Good advice and I also enjoyed hearing about Hardrock and other races she has run in. She was having a great race and after we summited Elliot Knob, she was gone on the downhill. I was enjoying the night time running and doing a good job of keeping my heart rate down below 140. Several runners I came across were having stomach problems and seeing them puke all over the trail was motivation to keep things slow and steady.

Soon, I was at about the 14 mile aid station and I filled up on calories and got ready for the brutal "five pillars of death" tiered climb in the next section. The quickest way to get it over with was to get moving. The next check point would be a crew access and I would get a long sleeve shirt and restock with gels there. I stumbled a bit on this section as the switchbacks were tough to run in the dark but still made good time. I was starting to get a little cold so I was thrilled to get to Dowells Draft and see John to resupply and get some hot soup in me. I stayed here for about 10 minutes to recover a bit. I was shocked to see a couple of runners already dropping. One of them was having a low point and I encouraged him to leave with me and see if he could get things back on track. He declined and I am not sure what happened to him. I made my way out of there and headed to Lookout Mountain. This was a long 8+ mile section but I made pretty good time. It was weird, I was in this section completely alone almost he whole time until I met up with Scott Brockmeier. I felt sleepiness start to come a bit and found running behind him helped me stay motivated to run. I have never had sleepiness problems in races before but was battling it big time. I bid Scott goodbye and ended up stopping at the base of a suspension bridge for a quick 20 minute nap. This really helped refresh me. However, turns out I was only half a mile from the aid station so I decided to make the stop at North River Gap quick. This was a crew access point but I missed John due to my nap.

Next up was a tough 7+ mile climb up The Wild Oak Trail to Little Bald Knob. This would prove to be a tremendously difficult section for me as the sleep bug got me twice in this section alone. I started out making good progress up the steep climb. Once the grade got a little easier, I was able to mix in some running. I had just drank a Red Bull at the aid station so my energy level was good so I did my best to try and make good time. Man, it was tough going. I was eating a gel every 30 minutes to try and keep it together. Finally, I fell and realized that I was falling asleep while power hiking. So, I stopped, set my watch and slept for about 30 minutes. I got up in a panic when my watch went off but did feel better. I knew I was behind where I wanted to be but I was pushing as good as I could manage. I took one more 20 minute nap on the way and eventually started to see the top. Near the top of the climb, the front runners met me on their return trip. The leader and eventual winner, Brian Schmidt looked fresh as a daisy. Finally, I topped out and now had a nice downhill to run to the aid station. The upside of being slow was I got a glorious sunrise up on Little Bald Knob (would have been much better at Reddish Knob). When I got to the aid station, I ate a breakfast burrito, drank a Red Bull and took some soup to go. I also dropped my waist pack and it felt great to run without it for a stretch.

The energy was starting to come back and I made great time to Reddish Knob and passed three or four folks. The view was incredible and hard not to stick around and enjoy. The sun was up, you could hear the birds and it was a beautiful morning in the mountains of Virginia. Soon I was on the downhill road towards the turnaround and knew I would have my pacer (John) soon. I also saw my friend and team mate, Steve Pero who was going to pace a friend on his. Coming off an impressive run at The Bear 100 the weekend before, this was an amazing feat. Steve helped his runner post a 27 hour time! So, John and I moseyed down to Gnashing Knob where I ate some more soup and then we got on our way. We made great time on the road, running all the downhills and power walking the climbs. I was feeling much better and having John was a nice motivator. We pushed through Reddish Knob again and made our way back to Little Bald. John noticed I was limping a bit and I told him that my left knee was a little stiff. I was still able to make decent time.

We stayed at Little Bald too long but I wanted to really fuel up because I knew the next section, though downhill this time, would take a while. We got to work and really made great time climbing back up to the junction with The Wild Oak Trail. John cracked the whip and we began to run down the trail. we would run for good stretched and then walk a bit to let me recover some. I was still keeping my heart rate down but also focusing on maintaining a good pace. I got lazy in some spots but John was good about getting me to push. We passed a couple of folks and I avoided a complete bonk as we arrived at the aid station. I was pretty tired so took some time to eat and drink a lot. My knee was getting tighter and tighter but I was still able to run the downhills. We were about 2/3 through and started the next section towards Lookout Mountain. On the way, I showed John my napping spot near the bridge. We moved as best we could but I could tell I was getting really tired. Heck, I was almost 70 miles in. We met with some other runners and eventually made the Lookout Mountain aid station. They had fantastic barbecue sandwiches and I ate three of them. I sat for a bit here to try and stretch out my knee. We needed to make sure we got to Dowells Draft before dark since John's headlamp was there.

We got going and I was really struggling here. I was able to maintain a decent pace but knew that an epic struggle was brewing. We caught and passed a couple of folks here who were struggling as well. I had a couple of good stretched where I was able to run really well but would then struggle to recover. Oh well. We finally got to Dowell's and I wanted to just get what I needed and then move on. Chafing was bothering me a bit so I took a container of Vaseline with me. We had 20 miles left and one of the hardest sections staring us in the face. This was where the race really began to come apart for me. I noticed that downhills were becoming more painful to run with my knee. I was still able to do it but at a miserable pace. I also was fighting the sleepiness again and was stumbling all over the place. Soon, we got to the top of the ridge and it was really cold. John did not have any gloves and had to run to stay warm. I tried to run but was stumbling everywhere so it was hard to make any sort of decent pace. We finally got to the aid station and I was exhausted, cold and hungry. We stayed over an hour! I took a 20 minute nap by the fire, drank about 6 cups of soup and about 7 or 8 cups of Mountain Dew. I was hoping this would give me a lift for the final 14 or so miles. It didn't.

We left the aid station and I could feel the energy leaving me as we moved away. I knew that it was going to be slow but that I would make the cutoff if I just kept moving. I was a little dejected as I had hoped to be close to finishing at this point. I figured the struggle would be a good lesson so I lumbered on. The trail was very rocky once we started the 4 mile climb. I must have kicked every rock on the trail and almost fell a dozen times. I was longing for the gravel road so that I could run the downhill. Well, we got there and it was too steep for me to run. It just hurt. This course was sinister! We got to the trail and made decent progress to the last jeep road/trail to the final aid station.

This last stretch went on forever. John and I both had changed batteries in our headlamps and mine was flashing again. I was hoping that I would make the aid station before it died. We finally got to the aid station and I was able to change the batteries and warm up a bit by the fire. We fueled up and then headed out. I thought the last section went on forever. It was nothing compared to this one. I walked/limped every step. I thought how appropriate the race name was since I was really "grinding my stones" to get this finish. I never got too dejected because it was all I had. I have never felt so depleted. I was eating gels and getting nothing. My body was just done. We could see the sun peeking through the clouds and soon heard the camp. It seemed like a dozen people passed us. I didn't care as there was no chase to be given. We got to the last stretch and had an awful little decent to get down (with the help of a tree) just before the dam. From there it was a short 7 minute walk to the finish. I crossed in 37 hours and change.

I was spent. Clark and Horton gave me big congratulations and I was so glad to be done. After cleaning up and eating breakfast, John and I headed home. Before we left, Horton commented how proud he was of my effort. He knew this was a tough struggle for me to stay "out there" so much longer than expected. That really meant a lot and was just what I needed to here.

So what went wrong? I was in great shape and trained like a madman for this race. In the end, nothing went wrong. Grindstone is just hard. Fatigue certainly set in earlier than I expected and I did have some minor foot issues along with the knee. However, these are to be expected in 100 mile runs. Part of it is just experience. I am still somewhat of a novice as this was my fifth 100 mile attempt and fourth finish. At some point in the future (perhaps at Hardrock?), I will look back on these struggle and it will be a motivator for me to keep pushing. I can't say enough good things about this race as it is very well organized and is a beautiful location. Camp Shenandoah is a wonderful venue to host a race and you can tell great care and effort is taken by the race organizers to ensure a quality event. Will I be back? Absolutely...maybe not for a year or two but certainly at some point.

Grindstone 100 - Preview

2010-09-29T08:54:00.004-04:00

I am really excited... like pinging off the walls excited. This weekend I am running the Grindstone 100 up in Virginia. For those of you other than the 5 people that regularly read this blog, the only other 100 mile race that I have done is the Massanutten 100, also in Virginia. I am 3 for 4 there with my only DNF coming last year. I am excited for several reasons. First, because Grindstone will be a new experience for me. A 100 mile race that is very different than Massanutten (out-and-back vs. loop, not as many rocks, more climb and descent, etc.). I am also excited because my training has gone very well and I am ready to toe the line. While I am generally excited before all of my races, this excitement is on a different level.

Some details about Grindstone. It's an out and back course totaling a little over 100 miles (believe me that extra 1.8 miles does matter ;-)). It features more than 23,000 feet of elevation gain and and equal amount of descent. Basically, there is no flat sections on the course. It has a good mix of trail, jeep road and even a little asphalt. It is a race where I believe it definitely pays to go out very conservatively.

There are many tales from runners (front, mid and back of the pack) who ran the first 30 or 40 miles too hard only to suffer mightily at the end. In many cases it ruined a solid race. I want to be careful not to do that. I plan to wear my heart rate monitor for at least the first half of the race and keep it under 135 bpm. Even if that means walking more than I want. It will be hard because I will no doubt be towards the "end of the line", but worth it if I am able to pass people later and feed of that energy to the finish. Seems so easy as I write this.

The weather looks to be nice with highs in the mid 60s to low 70s and lows in the 40s. No doubt it will be cooler at the higher elevations. Hopefully, the rain is behind us. I feel really good. I feel fit and am anxious to run - a good sign. As I have never run Grindstone before, my primary goal is to finish within the 38 hour time limit. As a stretch goal, I would like to reach the turnaround point between 13 and 14 hours. That would give me a fighting chance of getting done in 30 hours. I have no idea how realistic that is. It seems to be based on previous year splits but who knows. My plan is to just focus on my race and have fun. That's it. No need to put pressure on myself. If I have a special day and run a great time, wonderful. If I struggle and barely make it in under the cutoffs, hey it's another 100 mile finish. Now, I have analyzed a lot of race data to get a sense of where I need lights, long sleeves, etc. But have not obsessed over the predicted times for each section. It just seems pointless to do so.

My good friend John is going up with me to help out and pace me the last 40 to 50 miles. He knows me well and will be a good motivator for me to stay focused. He also will be a big help in helping me stay positive and not letting the "demons" get the best of me. There should be online tracking either on the race website or on the race blog. They have had this both previous years, so I expect they will do so this year. My number is 79. Lastly, I am sure many folks will have updates via twitter. There are some fast runners on the entry list, so there could be a really good race upfront. So, think about me out on the trails this weekend and hopefully I can keep it together and have a really good time. Report to come next week.

Ready to Roll!

2010-09-20T09:54:00.003-04:00

Well, I am officially tapering for Grindstone now. I am excited that the training is over since that means the race is near. However, I find myself already yearning for rugged mountain runs - hopefully a good sign. I have had a very solid final stretch of training. I did about 40 miles at the Massanutten Ring. I pulled the plug due to some issues I was having and was unsure how to deal with them. So, I took the safe course - SMART! I still got a very quality run in on a near perfect day for running in the mountains. The week before the Ring, I got a very solid 37 - 40 mile run from Crowders Mountain to Browns Mountain in Kings Mountain State Park and back. This run was a lot of fun as it had good climbs and descents followed by long stretches of rolling trails that you could really open up on. The only downside was the 5 or 7 yellow jacket bites I got in the last 3 miles of the run - good motivation to keep the legs turning over.

The Ring had lots of rugged trails and a good bit of climbing. I really noticed the benefits of my frequent runs up in Montreat all summer. Speaking of which, I did one last jaunt up there this past week and logged about 23 miles or so. I did the 7 Sisters route (sixth time this summer) and covered the ~16 miles in 3:22. Not a bad time considering my heart rate averaged just 137 for the entire run. This run has some tough climbs but also some of the most spectacular views around. After that, I ran some of the other trails around Montreat including Rocky Head (very tough climb up), Rainbow Road, Greybeard and the Gate Trail. It was a beautiful day with temperatures in the upper 60s (50s on the higher ridges) and I felt great.

I remarked to one of my running buddies that I have no excuses for a less than superb run at Grindstone (not that there are ever excuses). The only reasons to not run well are either an injury or just wimping out. Hopefully, I will have neither. Not really sure what my expectations are other than finish since I haven't run the course before. But, I will likely come up with some silly time goal that I will post with my race preview. For now, its lots of easy runs and a little bit of speed work until the big day, I mean night!

Training Update

2010-08-27T15:35:00.002-04:00

Training has been going really well since Laurel Valley. I was recovered enough that I got a 18 mile trail run in on the Thursday post-race. It is a loop course near my house and I was able to negative split three loops - a first for me. The heat was pretty oppressive but fortunately, this late in the summer I am pretty used to it. I did a 35 mile or so run this week over at Crowder's Mountain State Park. I ran a good route that has a good mix of rugged sections mixed in with flatter terrain that you can test the legs on. I forgot to replenish gels and realized that I only had two. So, I attempted to replace calories with mini-Snickers and Milky Way bars. Worked okay but definitely took longer to process. Also, I didn't bring enough so I got pretty bonky especially towards the end of the run. A bonehead move on my part but it is not all bad to push 5 or so miles with no calories. Chalk it up to good training for a race when your stomach is shut down.

Grindstone is fast approaching and I have about three more hard, 6 hour+ runs planned. Including a doozie up in the Virginia mountains. I have a tone of fun training and just hope it all comes together in October. Grindstone is a tough course and I have to really toughen up myself if I am going to make it through the race. Leadville was a great race last weekend. I hate it that Anton had to drop out. But, reading his report, he definitely did the right thing (as if he had a choice). My friend Mike Mason ran an impressive 24:20 there despite running more than 10 miles off course! Apparently the course markings for the mountain bike race were still up and several folks got fooled by the turn. Leadville is a race I had hoped to do this year but the schedule just didn't work out. It had a huge field of runners and it sounds like everything went off without a hitch for the most part - save for the mismarked turn. Anyway, UTMB is this weekend over in France and it will be fun to watch how things unfold. My money is on Geoff Roes. The guy doesn't lose 100s and as AJW said, "...is the best closer in the business..." Still, there is a very stacked field and you just never know what can happen over the course of 100 miles. Fellow Speedgoats Scott Mason and Cory Johnson are running as is the King Speedgoat.

Hope everyone has a great weekend on the trails.

Fun Times at Laurel Valley

2010-08-17T09:11:00.005-04:00

This was my fourth running of the Laurel Valley Whitewater Run. It has become a tradition for me to mark the end of summer by participating in this run. After four runnings, I finally feel like I "know" the course. This is a very difficult race with no access so you must carry everything you eat and drink from the many streams along the course. This makes the race much tougher mentally for me because it is harder to "break" it up into sections. Not to mention, I (and most others) generally battle some unforseen circumstance each time I venture down to Rocky Bottom. My friend John and I traveled down to the race and once again stayed with Byron Backer the night before the race. This year we opted for the pre-race dinner at "The Rock" so that we could mingle with some other folks. We met up with Christian, Wayne, Will brown and of course Claude, our esteemed RD. Weather is always a factor at Laurel Valley and it was expected to be muggy but cooler with a good chance of rain. Another departure from previous years was we would drive to the start rather than drop our car at the finish race morning. Byron's wife Irene would shuttle us back to start after the race.

Bedrock at The Rock (site of pre race dinner)

After a good nights rest, Byron, John and I headed to Rocky Bottom to begin the days journey. I saw several familiar friends at the start including Bill Keane, Mark Long, Fred Dummar and met David King from NC. David is good friend's with a training buddy of mine and it was great to finally meet him. Withe the ceremonial blast of a 45-70 Trapdoor (rifle used by 7th Cavalry at Little Big Horn), we were off. The temperature was cooler but it was incredibly muggy and foggy in the morning air. I felt good though and maintained a solid effort despite the humid conditions. The plan was to be at the Horsepasture River by 11:00 AM. I knew that it was about 3 hours from there and that would give me a shot at a sub-8 hour time. I wasn't too concerned with time since this was a training run for Grindstone in October but if I had a good day, might as well go for it. In the last several weeks, I have done several runs in the mountains of 4+ hours with 4,000+ of climb. So, my legs were not fresh but it would be interesting to see how I held up.

John was having a great run and took off to really put some time down. That was fine with me as I was enjoying running and plus being solo would better enable me to run my "own" race. When the big climbs hit, I really felt it. My legs were really working hard - harder then they should have been so early. My heart rate was racing so much that I had to walk some of the flats just to recover. It was humid but it was still surprising. Oh well. Climbing out of the Toxaway water spot, I just got worked badly. Was it tired legs? Humidity? Didn't matter why, but I was getting punched around by the course already. I made it to Horsepasture around 11:30, so I knew that sub-8 was gone. I debated getting in the water there to cool off but then the rain started and I didn't need to. It felt really good and was fun to run in the rain, splashing in the puddles and just having a good time. I wasn't worried about my time and just focused on working the climbs and then running a good effort on the downhills.

Soon the rain stopped and it began to warm up again but not near as bad as earlier. I began dipping my hat in the many puddles and creeks to cool my head off. Soon, I was at Thompson's, the last major water source. I got there about 1:45 or so. I usually make it here in under 2 hours but lallygagging in the rain cost me some time. I got in the water for about 5 minutes while I refilled my bottles. I bid goodbye to Andrew, who I had been running with since Horsepasture. I saw my friend Brian Beduhn and it was good to catch up a bit with him. I figured this last section would take about 1:30 or so if I could maintain a good pace. I ran when I felt like it but mostly walked. It was hard to stay motivated to really push since I knew there was no PR to be had and that I would get my 2nd best time even if I walked it in.

I pretended like it was the end of a 100 mile run and practiced the run/walk mix and before long I was at the final 1,400 foot climb that is the last mile of the course. I made my way up and before long was on the road to the picnic area and crossed in around 9:20. Felt great to be done and cap off four consecutive weeks of 75 miles. John and Christian both had great races and it was great to see them rewarded for their strong efforts. I felt fine with how I did and found some weaknesses that have to be addressed before Grindstone.

First, I need to continue working on the climbing. I don't think it was just tired legs or humidity that adversely impacted my climbing efforts. So, I need to keep up with the hilly runs, repeats, etc. Second,I need to toughen up mentally. I am disappointed that I got this "walk it in" attitude toward the end. That cost me going sub-9. Maybe not, but I definitely didn't "finish strong". Still, a fun time on a great course. Hard to believe that 2011 will be 5 years! Congratulations to everyone who finished and special thanks to the sweep runners who make it possible to even have this event.

Training Update and Laurel Valley Preview

2010-08-09T14:21:00.003-04:00

Training has been terrific the last couple of weeks. I have made a couple of trips up to Black Mountain to run and hope to do so at least every couple;e of weeks to get ready for Grindstone. Last week I had an awesome run up to the summit of Graybeard Mountain (about 5600 feet) - a pretty tall peak for the east coast. Lots and lots of climbing mixed in with some awesome ridge running. The heat has been oppressive the last couple of weeks but I am managing. Temperatures aren't that bad but the humidity is brutal. Anyone who says they "love heat and humidity" is full of it!

Speaking of heat and humidity, I have the Laurel Valley Whitewater Run this weekend. This will be my fourth consecutive run here and I just love this event. Totally old school ultra running with just you and the trail. Read my accounts from the suffering in 2007, a solid run in 2008 and pure survival on little training in 2009. I feel good for the most part this year and have had some solid runs recently. The forecast callas for temperatures in the lower 90s, which would be terrific if it holds. For the most part, this is a training run, but I would love to break 8 hours. We will have to see what happens. It will no doubt be an adventure as Laurel Valley always is. I can't wait.

Updated Plans

2010-07-21T11:42:00.003-04:00

Been a while since I posted. Summer has been mostly uneventful with training. I ran the Grandfather Mountain Marathon a couple of weeks back and did okay. I was pretty busy the week leading up to the race and was pretty tired. I didn't sleep very well the night before or in the days leading up to the race. Next up is the Laurel Valley Whitewater Run on August 14. This will be my fourth year and I am hoping to run my best time there. I am also doing the The Ring on September 4. This is a circumnavigation of the 71 mile Massanutten Trail (a good part of the MMT 100 course) and has been on my "to do" list for a while. Hopefully it will be a good training run for the next adventure: Grindstone 100. I have wanted to do this race the last couple of years but have always had a conflict. I am really looking forward to it and will jump right in to the training in the next couple of weeks. Lots of elevation gain in this one, so lots of rugged hill training. Otherwise, things are great. More to come soon.

Update

2010-06-02T15:34:00.003-04:00

So it's been two weeks since Massanutten and I am already looking forward to the 2011 race. I suppose that is a good sign. My ankle is much better. Not 100% just yet but getting stronger everyday. Ran an uneventful 8 miles today and it felt great. I am really looking forward to hitting the trails soon but will probably hold off another couple of weeks just to be safe. I also need to start planning the rest of my racing year. It looks like Leadville is going to be out - just too much going on in August to make the trip west. I have the Grandfather Mountain Marathon next month and hope to run well there. If I don't do Leadville, I will definitely go back to the Laurel Valley Whitewater Run in August. Then, I am looking at possibly doing the Pinhoti 100 in November. I really want to do another 100-mile run this year and that one might be the ticket. Other options include the Syllamo 100 in October or perhaps the Bear 100 in September.

In other news, my friend Matt Kirk just set the speed record for the South Beyond 6000 (SB6K). He finished last week in 4 days, 14 hours and 36 minutes!. Awesome job Matt! You can read all about his journey here.

Massanutten Rocks! - 2010 Report

2010-05-19T09:29:00.009-04:00

YES! Redemption is a sweet, sweet thing. I successfully finished the Massanutten 100 last weekend for the third time - avenging the DNF from last year. After the DNF last year, I have focused my training toward getting to write this report. While the result was what I hoped, I DID take longer and hurt more than I expected. Here's the story.

The race moved to a new venue this year, which was good for a variety if reasons including easier logistics for crews since the start/finish would now be in the "middle" of the course rather than on the north end. This cut the driving almost in half and no runner was ever more than a 30 or 40 minute drive from the start finish. This necessitated running the course in a different order and adding a new section. The majority of the course was the same but seemed very different. My friend Rich (of 2009 AT thru hiking fame) agreed to go along and crew me during the race. He has been having some knee pain so would not be able to pace so I got Jim Nagle from Maryland who was interested in running part of the MMT course.

The race started at 5:00 AM on Saturday and off we went up the 3 mile road section before tackling Short Mountain. I was looking forward to running Short Mountain in daytime. It was humid and the forecast called for temps in the upper 70s. I made great progress over Short Mountain and was having a ball running it. After checking in with Rich at Edinburgh Gap and switching to my two bottle belt, I was off to cover the section to Woodstock Tower - another section I had yet to run in the daytime. I cranked up the iPod and was making really good progress running along with Mark Radan. We ran some together back in 2008 and it was good to share the trail with him. He dropped me when I took a pit stop. I made a quick stop to refill at Woodstock Tower and then took off for Powells Fort - one of my favorite sections. I ran this section well and was feeling good, although I realized I might be pushing a little hard. When I got to Powells Fort, I really fueled up (the next section to Elizabeth Furnace is over 7 miles) and then walked most of the road to take it easy and enjoy the lyrics of Johnny Cash.

I made really good time on the climb up the trail and was ready to jam when the downhill came. I took a gel, popped an S-Cap and then let it rip. It felt good to stretch out the legs and was enjoying the run immensely. Then, disaster struck! Boom! Out of nowhere, I hit a rock and rolled my left ankle severely. A water bottle flew down the trail along with my sunglasses and half my dignity. I got up, spit a mouthful of dirt out of mouth and and pieced myself back together. Ouch! I walked a bit and the ankle felt a little better so I started to run. Abut 15 minutes later, BAM!, I rolled it again and this time did a really nice "Petey" slide. I started limping along and several runners asked if I was okay. I said I would be fine, just had to gather myself. I was a little worried because here I am at mile 30 and my ankle is already killing me and this is Massanutten - the rocks will be harder later. I made it into Elizabeth Furnace and surveyed things. Ankle hurt but not so bad that I couldn't continue. I ate some pretzels and grabbed two new bottles and took off. The climb is a doozy and I used to hate it because in prior MMT's you were only 5 miles from the finish and in much worse shape. I made it up okay and was able to run to Shawl Gap. The ankle was swelling up in my shoe but this was actually making it feel better.

I rested a bit at Shawl and drank and Ensure. I wouldn't see Rich again until Habron Gap (mile 53). Ed C. was here and reminded me to take it easy on the road that climbs to Veach Gap (about 3 miles away) since it kicked us in the rear last year. I did just that and was really feeling good when I got to Veach Gap (mile 40). I ate some fruit and drank some ginger ale. The next section was 9 miles without aid so I really fueled up well and drank a lot. It was definitely warm at this point. I really did not like this next section to the Indian Grave Trail head. It just went on and on and I was getting a little antsy. I couldn't really run the really technical downhill sections because I was worried about my ankle. Oh well, I made decent time and covered the section in about 3 hours. I fueled up again at Indian Grave and then headed out for the 4 mile road section to Habron Gap (mile 53). I despised this section on the road. Normally it hasn't bothered me but it really did this year. I ran in the sun and then walked the shady sections. This helped pass the time and soon I was there.

It was a little after 6:00 PM and I was over halfway done (at least in mileage) but the real work was ahead. The next section to Camp Roosevelt was 9.5 miles without aid and was my undoing last year. I really wanted to run this well. I drank and Ensure and ate some food and hydrated well before leaving around 6:15. I left the iPod with Rich because the battery was dead. I really wanted it for this section but just put my head down and got to work on the climb. I made great time and caught Mario who was puking his guts out and having a tough day. He would normally be hours ahead of me but was feeling rough. He told me to keep going so I just motored on. When I topped out on the climb, all the calories kicked in and I felt the best I had in the whole race (except for the ankle). I tried to push, not too hard but wanted to take advantage of the good feeling and get as far along before nightfall. Eventually I caught up to Mark Radan who was having some serious cramping issues. We went the rest of the way to Camp Roosevelt and arrived around 9:00 PM! I ran this section faster than the Veach to Indian Grave section.

I felt good but my ankle was not very happy. I fueled up well, grabbed my "bigger" headlamp and picked up Jim as my pacer. We were off to Gap Creek and the first section really was awful. I had a hard time getting a rhythm with my ankle and the crappy footing I a trend that unfortunately would continue). Also, I noticed lots of rocks and grit in my shoe (particularly the left one) and would have to look at that when we got to Gap Creek (mile ~68). We lumbered along and finally got to the aid station. When I looked at my show, my ankle was HUGE! There was no way I could take off that shoe - I would never get it back on. So, blisters were surely in my future. I ate some soup and tater tots, and drank some Coke. Then we jetted out. I wanted to get Kerns Mountain over with.

We made good time up Jawbone but I was wiped so I sat on a log at the top and ate two gels. The leader and eventual winner came up shortly thereafter. He was on his way to the finish and was about 30 miles ahead of me! It was a little before midnight and we started over Kerns. This was waaaay worse than going over Short Mountain. First off, the footing is a lot worse and the flat sections are even hard to run. I got a little mental here and was frustrated because it was taking so long. I also knew that any time goals I had were gone. But, I was determined to finish this thing even if it was after the cutoff. Pretty soon the trail made that big sweeping left turn and I knew we were done with Kerns. Thanks goodness. We got some water at the unmanned water stop and started down the 2.5 mile road section to the Visitors Center aid station. I already had a big blister forming on my left foot. The trip over Kerns had trashed my feet. It would get worse.

It was uneventful going down the road section and soon we saw Rich at the Visitors Center aid station (mile ~77). I took a longish stop here and ate a grilled cheese, some soup and drank a Red Bull. I was getting sleepy which normally isn't a problem for me in races. It was starting to rain a bit so I grabbed some gloves and a jacket. I knew it would be chilly on Bird Knob especially if it was windy. We maintained a brisk 40 minute mile pace up to Bird Knob. I had to stop and rest a lot due to my foot and until the Red Bull kicked in some. We walked a lot, more than I should have but finally got to Bird Knob (mile 80). It was a little before 6:00 AM and I put the head lamp away, ate some corn chowder and took off for the next section. We ran every step to the purple trail turn and then made good time on the ~1/2 mile climb to the top. We ran pretty well down the purple trail but walked some too. The blister on my foot just wouldn't let me run for very long. I did my best to just put it out of my mind. We got to the pink trail turn and kept on motoring. I had to stop a couple of times to rest my foot. My ankle was really hurting now. I ran a good bit of the pink trail but had to mix in a lot of walking. I knew I would finish and well under the cutoff now. I was never really worried, but it is a nice feeling when you realize that your race won't be a total disaster. The last mile or so to the Picnic Area aid station (mile ~86) took forever. We finally made it in and I sat down to eat - I was starving. I ate about 7 pieces of bacon, no joke. Soon, we left and had about 1.5 miles to meet Rich at the crew access point at 211 East. Here I shed my night clothes, dropped my headlamp and took tow final Aleeve for my ankle. It was about 8:30 AM and I told Rich to head to the finish and get some sleep. I expected to be there by 1:00. Ha! That certainly didn't happen.

Jim and I headed for Gap Creek (mile ~95) and I was excited to be done with this race. We made good time at first and then slowed to crawl in the really rocky sections. I did the best I could but every foot strike was excruciating. Several folks passed us including Larry Hall, a fellow WSGMRT teammate. Also, Rob Apple caught me right as we got to the junction of the Scothorn Gap Trail. We moved along ever so slowly. Once we got to the gravel road section it was still hard for me to run. I did my best and soon we were at Gap Creek. I told Jim that I was going to grab the gels and S!-Caps from my drop bag, refill bottles and then go. He stayed back to fuel up some but eventually caught up on the climb up Jawbone. It was weird, I could climb okay with the blister and ankle but descending was really tough. The section down to Moreland Gap was purely hellish. After the first couple of switchbacks it is hard to make any decent time on fresh feet. I must have looked ridiculous in my state. It took over an hour to get to the road! Pretty weak but it was all I had. At this point, I was totally spent.

We were now about 3.5 miles from the finish on mostly downhill road and then a short section on trail. We ran and walked some and were passed by lots of folks including Beth Hall (Larry's wife), also a fellow WSGMRT teammate. I didn't care. The running pace I could maintain was not much faster than walking. Soon we saw Rich at the trail turn and I felt good because the end was near. The trail was mostly a climb and I made decent time. Soon I crested the last rise and trotted in to the finish in 34:16. I was elated and in agony at the same time. The volunteers got me some ice for my ankle and I was amazed at how swollen it was.

This was the most rewarding MMT finish I have to date. The first one was a death march the entire second half of the race. The second was much faster and I felt good most of the race. This one though, tested me in a different way. I had to deal with the ankle and later blister issues and getting rid of them was not an option. I could only deal with it the best way I could. Battling through that gives me a different level of confidence. I love this race for the challenge, the beauty and the organization. Will I be back again? Absolutely. As long as I am able and have the opportunity, mid May means Massanutten to me.

Below are pictures of the damage:

And me getting it done, ever so slowly.

MMT Preview!

2010-05-13T14:21:00.003-04:00

Well, IT is finally here - Massanutten. With out a date my favorite 100 mile race (actually it is the only one I have done). Still, it is a great race and one I have been looking forward to since last year's pathetic "effort". Anyways, I am in good shape physically and feel very confident. I have been running well and have been hitting the gym regularly this year. I have done lots of quality runs, tons of strength training, lots of core work and shed a few layers of padding. Also, getting humbled last year was probably a good thing for me. It was certainly a motivator during training this year. on my last long run with my buddy Mike, he remarked that my issues are not physical this year but watch out for the mental doldrums. I think I will be good here because of last year. The course will be run in a different direction this year which introduces an unknown element to the race. I "know" the course but not in this year's "order". Just will focus and keep one foot in front of the other. Run when I can and take it easy when I have to. Sounds so simple here but at 2:00 AM, it seems a bit harder!

I feel really good and have never been so excited to run. Heading up tomorrow with my friend Rich who is going to crew for me. Also, a VHTRC member named Jim is going to pace me. I am ready to go and hope to run a PR for the course but a finish will also be just fine. If all goes well, it should be a special day/night. Then again, if all doesn't go well it will still be a special time. I can't lose, right? There will be updates on the VHTRC website and I am bib number 16 if anyone wants to follow along. Wish me luck and hopefully I will have a joyous report to write next week. Good luck to everyone else who is racing this weekend.

TAPER!

2010-04-28T11:09:00.003-04:00

Honestly...I hate tapering. On the one hand, it IS nice to be able to "kick back" (at least relatively speaking) but I am also one that likes to be doing something (i.e., training, etc.). In the last month I have logged several back-to-back efforts as part of my training for Massanutten. I did a rugged 16-mile run on the AT and then about 40 miles on rugged trails where the Bel Monte races are run the next day. I have done an 18 mile run on trails (in 85 degree heat) followed up by 20 miles on roads the next day. I have also done a 12 mile run on greenway trails and then 27 the next day (a 14 mile road run followed by a 1:45 half marathon). The final piece of this was a rugged 42 mile run on trails (took about 8 hours with close to 6K of climb), then 12 miles on roads the next day, then 4 miles in heat the following day. This was capped by a beastly 16 mile run with about 5K of climb on TOUGH trails. Yeah, 75 miles in 4 days is a good volume for me. In fact, I only have done one run over 3 hours the last month that was not part of a back-to-back - a 20 mile trail run done mid-week.

I have done the hill repeats, the speed work and the tempo/recovery runs. I AM READY! I have done a lot more weight lifting this time so my weight is not as low as I would like. However, I have lost about 25 pounds of fat and put on 10 pounds of muscle. With my big frame, I think a stronger me is a better running me - at least for a mountain 100 mile. So, I am shutting it down and will do no runs longer than 8 miles from now until Massanutten - in 17 days! I feel good, in fact I would say I have never been stronger or fitter physically. A complete 180 degrees from a year ago. Mentally, I just need to stay confident and remember that I have done pretty much everything I could to prepare. Well, its time for one of those 6-8 mile runs.

Bel Monte 50 Mile Preview

2010-03-25T08:34:00.002-04:00

The Bel Monte 50 Mile is this weekend - a big test of "where I am at" for Massanutten in May. I feel pretty good although Bel Monte can be tough if you are feeling great! Gill and Frannie do a great job with this and all the races they put on. Bel Monte fits perfectly into the training regimen for Massanutten so there is a lot of similarity between the entrants lists. I plan to use the run as a dress rehearsal for the second half of Massanutten so I am going into the race on tired legs. Frankly, I am a little bit beat up but that is okay because I will certainly be "a little bit beat up" halfway through Massanutten. The weather forecast calls for sunny skies with a high in the upper 50s - perfect! Also, reports from the trail indicate that the course is in great shape and all the snow and a good bit of the water has dissipated.

My plan for Bel Monte is pretty simple. Go out easy, eat, drink, run when I feel good , walk when I don't. Hopefully that will translate to a decent time or at least a fun time. The good news is that anything that is "broken" can be fixed in time for Massanutten. I am really looking forward to the run. With the Myrtle Beach marathon getting cancelled last month and the trail conditions in the NC mountains, I am a bit starved for both a hard effort and quality time in the mountains. Bel Monte will absolutely deliver on both. A number of friends are headed to the race also. From Charlotte, Mike Mason and Mo Idlibi are heading up. Don't tell Mason but I have him picked to win the sucker for the second time. Also, fellow Wasatch Speed Goat Mountain Racing teammates Steve and Deb Pero are trekking down from NH for the run. Talk about folks that will love the weather forecast.

Well, that's about it. Look for a report as well as reviews of Greenlayer (make our team uniforms) and Drymax socks in the next week or so.

LaSportiva Wildcat Review

2010-03-22T13:04:00.007-04:00

LaSportiva has become one of the most dynamic running-related company's out there in recent years. They provide tremendous support to the trail running community through their Mountain Running site, sponsoring the LaSportiva Mountain Cup as well as providing support to a number of trail races throughout the United States. The company has done a lot in terms of product development to create some of the better trail running shoes out there. I started wearing LaSportiva two years ago with the discontinued "Raceblade", which was a great shoe for me on shorter (>50 mile), less rugged trail runs. Last year I began wearing the Fireblade , which quickly became my "go to" shoe. I liked the mix of good stability for rocky terrain combined with the lighter construction for better draining and less weight. I still really like the Fireblade a lot and continue to wear it. However, one of LaSportiva's newest shoes - the Wildcat has impressed me as well.

The Wildcat is similar to the Fireblade in terms of stability - in fact I think it may be a bit more stable. It also has a very grippy sole, which is great for wet and/or muddy surfaces. One big bonus is the additional cushion that the Wildcat boasts. It is one of the most cushioned trail shoes I have worn. Yet, it actually weighs less (about 1/2 oz. less) than the Fireblade. When comparing the two shoes, the Wildcat has more mesh construction which not only reduces weight but also promotes draining. I have worn the Wildcats in a variety of conditions: from a muddy trail half-marathon (actually wore them out of the box and set a PR!) to very rocky mountainous trails. I even took them for a spin on a 5 mile stretch of asphalt. In the mud, the shoe really gripped well and provided lots of stability on slick descents when others around me were "slip slidin' away". The shoe proves to be very versatile and performs well on all of these surfaces. I have yet to get a blister or even a hot spot in the Wildcats. My longest run to date in them is about 35 miles. However, I will be using them in a rugged 50 mile trail race this weekend. Like all LaSportiva's I have had, they are very well made and have held up very nicely after about 250 miles or so.

The only downside I can find is the sizing. I ordered the same size I usually get with Fireblades (corresponds to a US Men's 12.5) and they are a little snug. I wouldn't use the current pair for a 100 miler since there is less "give" in the toe box. I usually size up 1/2 a size for trail shoes but maybe size up a full size for the Wildcats. Pretty simple solution. Give the Wildcats a try. They are a great shoe from a terrific company. You can buy them at Backcountry at this link.

YES, I am Alive!!

2010-03-17T20:36:00.002-04:00

Just been incredibly busy. Training has been going really well. Have had several nice runs out at Crowder's the last couple of months. The Myrtle Beach Marathon got cancelled due to snow (4 inches at the beach was actually really cool). The amount of snow up near Asheville has made running up there pretty treacherous so Crowder's Mountain has been my playground. Got lots of awesome new gear through the Wasatch Speed Goat Mountain Racing Team that I can't wait to test out. Have a beast of a weekend coming up with a 4 hour training run followed by the Bel Monte Endurance Run (50 Mile) the next day. Weather is getting nicer and Massanutten is only two months away. I have several posts coming on various gear I have been using. More to come in the next week.

Update

2010-01-27T10:11:00.002-05:00

Well, training in 2010 is going great so far! I have been running mostly roads (yuck) since I have a road marathon coming up in a few weeks. This past Saturday, I ran the Charlotte Running Company Trail Run (13 miles). I hoped to run roughly 9:00 per mile pace on the trails and have fun. I ended up running much faster and finished in 1:38. Pretty fast for me and good enough for 15th place overall. The race was at the National Whitewater Training Center outside of Charlotte and was a great event, especially for a first time event. I have been taking it pretty easy this week and will do one more big week before Myrtle Beach on Feb 13. Work is going well and the travel is starting to crank back up. Good news, I will get to run in some interesting places. Bad news, harder to get your butt in gear when you are out on the road. Speaking of which, I gotta motor to go catch a flight.

Motivation

2010-01-05T10:36:00.003-05:00

My buddy Mike Mason sent this picture to me as motivation for my 2010 running plans. The picture is of yours truly as I remove my number during Massanutten when I decided to drop out last year at mile 38. It will definitely be motivating to me. Whether I get the urge to slack off of training or want to grab the ice cream after dinner, a quick glance of this photo and I will get refocused on the task at hand. Everything training wise during the next five months will be geared towards Massanutten so this picture is very appropriate. It amazes me how a photo, quote or simple memory can get ones frame of mind in the right place. This photo will definitely serve me well over the coming months. I might even hang a copy on the bathroom mirror like Rocky Balboa did with the Drago picture in Rocky IV. Cheesy I know, but hey, whatever works.

Happy 2010!

2010-01-04T19:56:00.002-05:00

I took a bit of time off around the holidays and to get refocused for this year. 2009 was a terrible year for me running wise, including my first DNF at Massanutten and several other races that I should have not run. However, it was a good learning experience and the new job has settled down to a more manageable schedule for me (or maybe I have just gotten used to it). Last year I only finished two ultras: Laurel Valley and Mountain Masochist. I did make it to 38 miles at Massanutten and got three marathon finishes (Black Mountain, Grandfather Mountain and Thunder Road). With the lack of training (my TOTAL mileage for 2009 was less than 800!), this is actually not too bad.

I have gotten some good momentum going the last several weeks and have a nice base built. For the first half of the year, I have three focus events. First is the Myrtle Beach Marathon on February 13 where I want to run a PR of 3:25. I ran this event back in 2007 and it really set the year in motion. Next is the Bel Monte 50 Mile on March 27. This is a beast of a trail run and is as close to a half-Massanutten as anything. I want to go sub 11 hours here. THE race for 2010 is Massanutten once again where I want to better my 2007 time of 31:34. I have some aggressive goals but am psyched about training with a purpose again. Oh yeah, I entered the Hardrock lottery and will enter that this summer if I get in. If not, I will likely be in Leadville in August. More to come and I promise, more frequent updates.

Mountain Masochist Report

2009-11-11T14:36:00.002-05:00

What fantastic weather we had for the 27th running of this event. I, unfortunately was not in my best shape and suffered for most of the day. I still got it done and ran really well at the end - just too much damage was done the previous 10 hours. Still, with an 11:38 it was not even my worst time here. For starting basically "off the couch", I suppose that is not so bad. I got to run with a lot of good folks including Rebecca Phalen, Ed Marsh, Ashley Funderburk, John Teed, Melinda Yelton and DC Lucchesi. I wasn't with DC or Melinda long as they ran great races. DC posted a 9:37 and Melinda got 10th female! I also spent a good amount of time towards the end with Tom Green - the only person to start all 27 editions of this race.

I really did have a good time even though the ego took a hit with my performance. The road trip up with John was a blast with a stop at Lexington BBQ and lots of old school country music and southern rock blaring the whole way. The trip up is usually as much fun as the run. The trip back however, is no fun at all. Now, I have to decide if I am still game for Hellgate...

Mountain Masochist Preview

2009-11-05T21:52:00.001-05:00

Tomorrow I head up to Virginia to run the Mountain Masochist Trail Run. This will be my third start and I am really excited because the temperature looks to be near perfect. Lows in the 40s with highs in the 60s and sunny! It will be cooler at the higher elevations but looks to be a fabulous day in the mountains. Many of my running friends from all over will be there so it will no doubt be a fun time all the way around. I have no real goal for the race other than to do my best. Hopefully that will mean a PR for the course but who knows. With Hellgate looming in just over a month, this is going to be more of a training run. Sure a 50 mile one, but a training run nonetheless. I will post a report as soon as I can. Wish me luck.

Quick Post

2009-10-26T09:09:00.003-04:00

Red Rocks was incredible. I ran about a 12 mile or so Loop inside the park and had to hustle a bit to finish up before it got too dark. It was amazing scenery and pretty cool how it is so close to "The Strip". I took it really easy and was please that the temps were pretty mild. Maybe they always are in Vegas in October. I did notice how dry the air was. Given I live in NC, where it can be pretty humid it was a nice change. Other than this, I spent the rest of the time in Vegas at a conference and caught the redeye back to Charlotte. I plan to visit Red Rocks again (hopefully for a longer trek) next time I am out that way.

After I got back to town, I hit Crowder's for a about a 3 hour run with a good bit of climbing. It was great to be out there again after a few months. There was a lot of cloud cover so I didn't even drink the two bottles I had with me. Felt really good and manage a sub-8 pace on the road back to the Linwood parking area.

Had a couple of good runs last week - sandwiching some tempo pace stuff into a couple of 10 to 15 mile runs. Felt nice to stretch the legs out but I am not where I hoped to be for Masochist. Oh well, I have run the race twice before and know what to expect. With Hellgate looming, Masochist will be an ideal training run. More to come.

I am alive!!!

2009-10-13T19:04:00.002-04:00

Just been extremely busy so I haven't been able to update much the last several weeks. Work travel has been crazy and my running has taken a bit of a backseat. I am still getting quality miles in just not as often as I would like. I am headed to Las Vegas tomorrow for a work conference that I am speaking at. I am not a gambler so I plan to check out Red Rocks Canyon during my free time. Looks like some nice trails only 15 miles or so from "the Strip". Will be nice to hit some trails in a different locale. Mountain Masochist and Hellgate are fast approaching so I will need several quality outings to ensure I am prepared. Good news is the work travel is abating some. I will update after my trip.

Laurel Valley Report

2009-08-10T13:46:00.003-04:00

I had another great time at Laurel Valley this year. Time, as in fun, not performance. For those unfamiliar with Laurel Valley it is a run of about 35 miles along the Foothills Trail in the South Carolina upstate. The run is self-supported as access is basically nil from Rocky Bottom where the race starts to the Upper Whitewater Falls parking area (where the race ends). While the run is very scenic, the self-supported nature does add a bit of intrigue to the run. No biggie though, just grab some of whatever you like to eat, a couple of water bottles and throw it in a pack and get going. Don't forget the iodine tablets to treat the water and a little dose of humility. If you forget the latter, the trail will provide it for you.

Two years ago, when I first ran LV, I got my a$$ handed to me. Yeah, it was over 100 degrees but I was still unprepared for what was ahead of me. I got some lovely blisters on my heels as a souvenir. Remember this lovely picture?

Last year I ran great and had an absolute blast, running much faster than 2007. Cooler temps helped as did being in really good shape. What would 2009 hold? Well, I ran slower than last year, but faster than 2007. About what I expected. I am not in as good of shape as last year, but one thing that matters at LV is experience and I had two of these under my belt.

The temperature was certainly warmer than last year but the humidity was what I really noticed. I made great time early. In fact, my buddy John and I were really cruising the first three hours or so. I knew I couldn't hold the pace and let John go ahead. He went on to post his fastest time on the course. I got to Toxaway a bit before 9:00 and was really wiped - not a good sign at LV. I took it easy on the next sections walking all the hills and running easy on the flats and downhills. When I got to the Horsepasture River (about 2/3 home), I did something I have never done in my previous two runs - got in the water. Man was it great! I spent a solid 25 minutes in the water there and it made a big difference. I left around 11:45 and figured I was about 3:30 from the finish. Last year, it took me about 3:15 from this point to finish.

As the temperature rose, my spirits tanked. I was drinking well and eating a gel about every 30 minutes. I was also taking two S! Caps every hour (about 700 mg sodium). My legs were just dead. I moved along as best I could and eventually ran out of water. Bill Keane, a grizzled veteran of this race and many throughout the southeast gave me some of his water to try and lift my spirits. Bill is 64 years young and is still cranking these things out. Awesome! I felt better running than walking which was weird given the situation. Eventually I got to Thompson River, which is about 5 or 6 miles from the finish and the last major water stop. Guess what, I got in the water again for about 20 minutes and it felt great. A couple of folks joined me and it was really hard to get out. I left just before 2:00 and decided I would walk every step in. My race was shot and it would be nice to know how long it would take walking every step. I ran really well last year and covered this in about 1:25.

It was very uneventful the rest of the way. After all, I was walking! I crossed the falls and had the final doozy of a climb between me and the finish. Last year, I did the final climb (about .8 miles) in around 18 minutes. I would need to do it in about 25 minutes this year to break 10 hours. So, I took it easy and made my way up. Then I ran the last 1/4 mile or so in to post a 9:56. Not my best but not my worst. I had a lot of fun and really took it easy so I am not sore at all as I type this. What a great event! They even had ice cream at the finish - thanks Mike Day!

It's funny, Mark Long and I remarked as we were sitting in Thompson River, why we come back every year. The answer is actually pretty easy - we're stupid and never learn!! Seriously, LV is as pure a run as you can get. If you are looking for fancy aid stations, nice awards and to be pampered - go find a local road 10K or even a marathon. If you are looking for a scenic trail and a great group of folks to share it with and nothing more than maybe LV is for you. There actually was a shirt this year but finishing this race is the best award I get all year. Now, with three LV finishes, one that starts with a 10 (10:24 in 2007), one with a 9 (9:56 this year) and one with an 8 (8:06 last year), I need one that starts with a 7. Guess where I'll be the second weekend in August 2010?

Laurel Valley Preview

2009-08-04T21:34:00.002-04:00

Every year, when the mercury really inches northward I know that Laurel Valley is around the corner. Hard to believe that it is already August this year! It has really been an up and down year for me both in terms of running and life in general. However, things are definitely back on track and I am very excited about running Laurel Valley for the third time. With a race in SC in August, temperature is a big factor and it looks like this will be a warmer year than last. No worry though, I am looking forward to really enjoying the scenery along the way and will just give it my best effort. If that is 8 hours or 10 hours, I am fine either way. As I have written in years past, Laurel Valley is a pure race with no fuss about shirts, awards or even aid stations. There are none of these! All you have to worry about is one foot in front of the other and treating your water so as to avoid guardia. This minimalist approach is a great mental test 9at least for me) as it helps you learn to rely on yourself more than most races. I am just psyched to be on some nice trails as it has been a while. Look for a report early next week.

Grandfather Mountain Report

2009-07-28T21:57:00.002-04:00

I ran the Grandfather Mountain Marathon back on July 11 for the first time. Have been traveling for work and on vacation since then so the report is a little overdue. What a great time! The race is very well organized yet low key so that it is a lot of fun. I saw many familiar faces including Tom O'Donnell, Leon Harmon, Mark Long, Joey Anderson, Julia Engel, Ashley Funderburk and Byron Backer. My family went along for the weekend and enjoyed Grandfather Mountain park while I ran. It was a beautiful day and finishing at the Highland Games was really cool. I took it pretty easy, keeping my heart rate under 150. I managed to run around 4:33, which I was pleased with considering I took it so easy. I will definitely be back for this one.

I have the Laurel Valley Whitewater Run next weekend so I have been attempting to acclimate to the heat. More to come on that race. It feels good to finally be getting back in decent shape once again.

Happy Fourth of July!

2009-07-04T09:58:00.002-04:00

I love the Fourth of July. I am a patriotic person for sure but this holiday brings so many fond memories of my childhood. I am trying to pass many of those same memories on to my own kids. No matter what ones political and/or social views are, it is important to reflect on our independence as a country and pay homage to those who fought so hard to establish the good ol' USA. Hope everyone has a good day.

On the running front, things are going very well. I have the Grandfather Mountain Marathon next weekend. I have always wanted to do this race and am excited to finally be in it. Hopefully it will be a nice training run. More to come soon.

Back on Track

2009-05-28T10:42:00.002-04:00

Well, I have finished "licking my wounds" from the pathetic DNF at Massanutten and am now gearing up for training in full force. I don't want to ever be as out of shape as I clearly was going into MMT ever again. That said, the DNF is a great motivator to get myself back in gear. I am still putting together my fall schedule but I just signed up for Mountain Masochist. I have run the race twice and have always had a terrible effort there - 11:40 in 2006 and 11:15 in 2007. Both times I ran the GEER 100K about five weeks prior but so have many others. In any case, I want to run the race really well this year.

I am really excited about ramping up the training again. I really missed running on a regular basis earlier in the year when I was surrounded by the "dark clouds". I am also doing the Laurel Valley Whitewater Run again this year. I love this race as it some of the most beautiful trail around and a great group of folks show up every year for it. Not sure what else I am planning but will update as plans firm up. Thanks to everyone for the supportive comments regarding my DNF at Massanutten.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T, the key to DNFing MMT...

2009-05-18T14:07:00.002-04:00

Respect. Seven simple letters that speak volumes. I didn't have enough of it for the MMT course - going into the race under trained. If you have looked at the results from Massanutten, you know that either I was confused and thought it was a 40 mile race or the race did not go as planned. Either way, I suffered my first DNF ever this weekend at my favorite race. What happened? It is pretty simple, the heat wore my under trained body out. I had hoped to get my third MMT buckle, but that will have to wait until next year.

I went into the race under trained but felt that mentally I could get there. There is a saying in ultrarunning: "Ultrarunning is 90% mental, the other half is physical". When it came to the "second half" I was waaaay short. I still had a great time up at the race and chalk this up as a great learning experience. The first DNF was bound to happen eventually and in some ways, I am glad to have the first one over with. Here is the brief (remember I only did ~40 miles) story.

I started out running fine but noticed it was very humid. Many of us remarked before the start how much warmer it felt compared to previous years. I got up the road and up to Buzzards Rock with no issues. I was drinking often and hitting a gel every 30 minutes. I was soaked to the bone in sweat due to the humidity. I came into the first aid station feeling good and kept on truckin' after refilling my bottles. Felt good all the way to Veach Gap, where I stopped for a pancake and sausage and again refilled the bottles. I also drank two cups of water here.

The section to Milford Gap was uneventful and I tried to take it really easy since there was plenty of time. Plus there was a 4 mile road section coming up where I could make up time if I needed to. I was taking an S! Cap every 45 minutes or so and things were going well. On the way to Habron Gap, I was running good and having lots of fun. I had to stop and pee a couple of times which was a good sign in terms of hydration. I did get passed by some folks but I was still moving along at a good pace. I was very focused on running my own race.

When I got to the road section to Habron Gap, I turned on the Ipod and cruised along the road. I ran the early couple of miles a little too hard and had to back off some towards the end because I ran out of water. Still, I got into Habron Gap later than I wanted but was not concerned. I sat and rested for a few minutes and then got moving. I drank a Boost, restocked on gels and S! Caps, downed a couple of cups of water and headed to Camp Roosevelt.

I deliberately took it very easy on the climb here trying to not wear myself out. Was moving along okay when WHAM!, the heat just zapped me. I had to stop and rest a few times but still was able to keep moving. When I would run, I started to get dizzy - not lightheaded but room-spinning dizzy. When this would happen, I stopped and rested. I have had heat exhaustion before, and knew this was an early sign. I normally do okay in the heat and humidity but being under trained, I obviously was more vulnerable. Lots of folks went by and all asked how I was doing. Eventually, I came around a bit and started to move pretty well. I was able to run some downhill sections pretty well but then the dizziness came back. Also, I started to shiver some (think teeth chattering). This was a BIG concern, since it was likely close to 80 degrees. From there, I basically "death marched" to Camp Roosevelt where I hoped to recover.

The volunteers were great, stuffing my bandanna with ice and making sure I had plenty of fluids. I picked up an extra bottle at Habron Gap and drank all three on the way to Camp Roosevelt. In fact, I was empty for the last 15 minutes or so. I stayed at Camp Roosevelt for about 30 minutes, then refilled and decided I would see how I felt at Gap Creek. I was worried that if the dizziness didn't go away, my race was done. I started out to Gap Creek and soon a wonderful thunderstorm started - it felt fantastic and really cooled me off. I actually made decent time on the climb up and then started to run down at a good clip. But, the dizziness was there still. I had to stop and get it under control. I was continuing to eat and drink, and take S! Caps regularly.

To add to the frustration, I slipped and somehow wrenched my back. Now not only did I get dizzy when I ran, but my back seized up as well. Finally I got to the aid station around 4:00 p.m.! I was almost at the next aid station at this time last year. I had an hour to get things under control and get moving. I stretched the back, lied down, sat up, did everything but just couldn't get it right. So, I dropped out when the 5:00 p.m. cutoff came. I hated to do it but it was definitely the right decision. If I had continued, maybe I would have finished or maybe I would have gotten hurt much worse. Who knows. I am actually proud that I was smart enough to pull the plug. Folks often say DNF is an acronym for "Did Nothing Foolish" and well as "Did Not Finish".

I learned that a course like Massanutten deserves much more respect than to go into it under trained. That is a lesson that I will not soon forget. Congratulations to everyone who started, especially the finishers. Massanutten is a tough race and finishing it is quite an accomplishment.

Massanutten Preview

2009-05-14T15:39:00.003-04:00

I can't believe Massanutten is already here! This is one of my favorite races and I am glad to have completed it twice. In fact, this is the only 100 mile race I have run (due to my DNS at Umstead this year). My training has been very lackluster but I am still very excited. I may not be 100% physically ready but I have plenty of mental fortitude that should help a good bit. Plus, I am a big believer in experience and having some familiarity with the course will be key to my success. The weather looks to be a little volatile - some rain, possible t-storms and warm temps during the day. I have heard that the course is already a little sloppy in places but hopefully things won't deteriorate too bad. The course drains very well and should be fairly dry as long as a ton of rain does not fall right before the race.

My plan for the race is to really take it easy early on. I am going to really try and get ahead on fluids and calories in the early stages. Easier said than done but hopefully I can pull that off. The toughest sections for me are later in the race when I tend to get really lazy during a couple of long 8 mile sections. I would like to really cover these sections better this year. Keeping myself in check early will be a key to this happening. In terms of a goal, I really don't have one as I just want to get the finish. But, I would certainly like to be closer to my time last year (31:34) rather than my 2007 time (35:02).

I feel very blessed to be able to even contemplate something as demanding as a 100-mile run. I am really looking forward to enjoying my time in the beautiful Massanutten mountains of Virginia. You can follow myself and other participants on the VHTRC's MMT page here.

Speaking of other participants, check out the entrants list as it is a very competitive field including the likes of Meltzer (my pick to win), Walker, Sproston, Kulak, Casseday, Mongold, Knipling and on and on... Look for a report from me early next week. Best of luck to everyone who is running/racing this weekend.

Update

2009-05-08T15:13:00.003-04:00

Wow, things have been very busy the last few weeks. The new job is going great but I have been extremely busy. I am having a lot of fun again with work, which is a nice change. Running is going reasonably well. Massanutten looms next weekend and I am very excited to run this year. Despite not being in ideal shape. I love the course and am hoping for a fun time this year. I will do a more in depth preview next week. I recently saw "Running the Sahara" and thought the movie was very well done. It had just the right balance of drama and intrigue. No matter how tough one is or how elite an athlete, you have to be impressed with 111 days of running without a day off! Add in the variety of conditions from sandstorms, searing heat and even freezing temps, and it is quite epic. Look for more on Massanutten next week.

In the Loop

2009-04-05T18:59:00.002-04:00

Well, I have left BofA altogether. I have signed on with a smaller private investment bank named Loop Capital Markets LLC. Loop started as a municipal bond shop about 12 years ago and has diversified into corporate finance so that about 50% of revenues are from the municipal side. Smaller firms like Loop are poised to capitalize on the current environment as the big banks are shedding jobs and delve further into making money at a client's expense. I like Loop because they are client focused and if telling a client that the best thing to do is nothing, that is okay. At BofA one would be chastised to no end for not "putting the firm first".

It may sound hypocritical coming from a banker (especially to some anonymous "fans") but I truly believe that clients interests should be absolutely a top priority, not lining your pockets with fees from structures that make no sense. So, I am excited about this opportunity. Loop wants to expand its presence in the southeast and I am "getting in on the ground floor". I have long sought something more entrepreneurial in nature and now I have it. I will update the blog as things progress.

Running is going very well but it was wise to bag Umstead. I could have definitely finished but it would not have been pretty. Lastly, the weather has been fabulous in NC this weekend. I always love this time of year.

Update

2009-03-27T22:08:00.003-04:00

So, my "explanation" post is long overdue. Here's the deal. I got whacked by BofA (or Merrill) on February 26 after 10 years. it was not a surprise but still a disruption. I got a new gig at the bank within 5 days. In this economy/job market, I feel fortunate to have it. My work life as been prety hellish since January. I worked hard in 2008 and exceeded all of my performance targets and got $0 for incentive compensation. This makes up a major portion of my total pay so a zero is a big pay cut. There has been a lot of to do lately about bonuses. Sure, there are certainly abuses at all companies, but for many jobs like mine, folks should get paid if the bring the revenues in the door. Obviously, I am biased. Then a month later, I am gone. Oh well, it is in the past and in hindsight, probably a blessing. In talking with my former co-workers, Merrill is doing a great job of blowing things up and flushing morale down the toilet.

The Mount Mitchell Challenge/Black Mountain Marathon on February 28 was a nice release after such a rough week. The weather was tough and I was ill prepared for the wet and cold conditions. I was one of many who were sent down the mountain at the marathon turn around due to the Park Service closing the summit. It was a smart choice as many folks had hypothermic conditions. I likely would have too had I continued to the top. Still, it was a fun day and I got a nice solid training run in.

My good friend Rich Daileader started his AT trek northbound on March 1. His plan is to average around 15 miles a day and finish up sometime in late July/mid August. I hope to join him for a couple of days in April or June.

Running is going pretty well and I am anxious to get cranking with the race schedule.

Up for the Challenge!

2009-02-27T22:33:00.003-05:00

It has been a loooong time since I have posted. I have had a lot going on in my life outside of running that has been a major distraction. Training has fallen off severely. I will write a post over the weekend giving more details. Tomorrow I am running in the Mount Mitchell Challenge 40 Mile. Am I ready? Not hardly but I am well rested and have lots of frustrations to take out on the trail. I have always wanted to do this race and am excited to do it this year. I am not worried about time but want to have a good time and just enjoy the day in the mountains. Speaking of which, the day will start early as I am leaving at 4:00 AM for the ~2 hour drive to the start in Black Mountain. So I am off to bed. Look for a report and more details about what has been going on (hint: I work in financial services) of late over the weekend. Peace.

GEER 2009 - Buy 50K Get 50K Free!!!

2009-01-17T18:31:00.002-05:00

I have written many times about how much I enjoy the Great Eastern Endurance Run. It was my first trail ultra back in 2006. I talked with Gill, the RD for the event this week and he informed me of a special for early registrants for GEER this year. The first 100 entrants in the 100K will pay only half of the entry fee! That's right - 50% of the cost. Trust me when I tell you that the event is worth every penny of its full fare, so it is an absolute steal at $62.50! I have run the race three times and think it is one of best coordinated events I have participated in. It is not for the meek as it features rugged terrain, lots of climbing and descent and unpredictable weather. This is balanced out by an excellent venue, great aid stations and enthusiastic volunteers. Gill and Francesca do a great job of planning the event complete with several training runs beginning in July. Entry opens on February 2, so there is plenty of time to get this on your 2009 race schedule. You can sign up for the event here. Feel free to post a comment with any questions about the race.

Sign up soon so you can grab one of the half priced spots - they will surely go quickly. Get signed up and then get out there and run!

Umstead Training

2009-01-13T15:34:00.005-05:00

So, I have been thinking about my training plan for Umstead a lot the past few days. With the current state of the banking sector, this is at least a positive topic. I am not too worried about the 100 mile distance at Umstead (I know that sounds ridiculous) as I have completed the distance twice and "know" what I need to do to complete it. The terrain is not technical and the weather is usually moderate. I have had few nutrition issues in races and have a good idea of what works best for me. My biggest concern is the repetitive loops that I will run (8 to be exact) to complete the 100 miles. I paced my friend John Straub last year, running his final two loops with him. He suggested breaking the race up into "day" and "night". In his experience, the loops started to really wear on him after about the fifth loop (62.5 miles) and is just before it starts to get dark. It sounds like a good approach and worked great for him last year as he ran sub-21.

I have been base building the last month or so while battling some plantar fascitis pain but am overall pleased with my progress so far. The extra pounds from the holidays are starting to drop off and my endurance is starting to get pretty good. Two key areas for me to work on are speed/intervals and practice running loops. During training I am a big proponent of at least one speed workout per week. Not all out sprints but some 400M, 800M and even 1200M repeats at or above threshold heart rate. This worked great for me during the season last year and I will incorporate it again. Besides helping you run, well, faster it also breaks up the "monotony" of the training cycle. I don't do speed workouts during recovery weeks.

Round and Round

Other than an 1980s metal hit by Ratt, round and round is what I will be doing at Umstead and running all those loops is a big concern for me. One of the reasons I love running in the mountains is all the scenery and generally point-to-point or single loop nature of the courses. I want to get myself "mentally trained" for it so I have started doing this at least once a week. For example, today I ran 5 miles at lunch on the indoor track at the YMCA. You have to run 9 laps to cover a mile so I did 45 laps today in a little over 40 minutes. Not killing it by any stretch but it was a comfortable pace. I figure getting past the "boredom" of loops will only occur through practice. I plan to do at least one run per week that incorporates multiple loops and every other week it will be my long run.

I don't need to run technical trails for Umstead but will need the practice for Massanutten, which is about six weeks later. I am running a very hilly and technical 50K next weekend and the Mount Mitchell Challenge 40 Mile in late February. My final "long" run will be on the weekend of March 14 or March 21 and the plan is to do a loop 40 to 50 mile run. I will likely measure a 10 to 12 mile loop and use that as a final practice for Umstead.

Other aspects of training include the following:

Weight train twice per week - one workout will coincide with a recovery run day and a more rigorous workout on a "rest" day.

Core (ab crunches, sit-ups, push ups, etc.) every day - easy to do at night after dinner and will be very important for overall fitness. I slacked here a lot during the late fall.

Run 5 to 6 times per week - these are the types of runs I will typically do:

1 long run (typically 2 to 3 hours or so) every other week as a loop run,

1 speed workout (standard repeats of 400M, 800M, etc.),

2 - 3 recovery runs (45 minutes to 1h 30m) - one of these will be the "loop" run,

1 tempo/cruise run (1 - 2 hours) - this will include a warm-up, then a segment at marathon pace and then a cool down

The running part is evolving but this is what it will mostly look like. I will follow a 4-week cycle of build, build, peak, rest. All runs will occur every week (except no speed during rest) but will vary in length and intensity. Also, in about a month, I will incorporate some hill repeats into my training schedule. For now, I want to work on getting my speed and leg turnover back up. Also, I will often include some speed intervals inside some long runs to assist with this. Say the long run is 15 miles, 2 miles warm-up, 3 miles at 10K pace, 1 mile recovery pace, 3 miles 10K, 1 mile recovery, 2 miles marathon pace, 3 miles cool down. This has worked very well in the past for me.

I feel good going into the training and am excited to get the blood flowing again. I hope to run really well at Umstead and set a solid 100-mile PR for myself. Plus a hard effort there is a great excuse for a slow run at Massanutten. Just kidding. I will continue to update as things progress. Now, I've gotta go run some more.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-05T16:19:00.002-05:00

Well, 2009 is here - amazing how quickly 2008 went by. I am not a big New Year's person so my "celebration" is at best mundane and most likely boring to most. I did manage to see the "ball drop" though. Any way, now that 2009 is here, I am back into training mode big time. I actually have been for the last several weeks but now, with a little holiday trimming around the waistline, my regimen will be more consistent. I got in a nice trail run out at Crowder's Mountain yesterday of about 3 hours. After running mostly on gravel/dirt roads down in Georgia the last week, the trails were nice.

The Umstead 100 looms large the first weekend in April. So, my training will focus largely on getting ready for that. That means a lot of flatter, fast workouts and less of the rocky, rooty terrain with lots of climb. However, Massanutten is on the horizon so I will need to mix in some runs to gear up for that as well. I will put more detail to my training plan in the next few days. Hope everyone enjoyed Christmas and New Year's.

Massanutten 2009 - I am in!

2008-12-10T13:27:00.003-05:00

Well, the Massanutten lottery was held yesterday and I was lucky to get chosen for the 2009 field. Actually, the lottery the VHTRC employs is pretty interesting. All applicants sign up online between December 1 and 8 where they are assigned a random number between 0 and 999. This number is the key to getting selected. The lottery was based on yesterday's closing value of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The final three digits of the Dow close (including decimal places) are the "starting point" of the lottery and the direction of the market (up or down) determines which "direction" the lottery moves in selecting entrants. My random number was 914 and the final three digits of yesterday's close was 133. Once the selection reaches 0, it starts with 999 and continues to move down. No preference is given to anyone for the selection but there is preference given on the wait list. Regardless, I am in.

Personally, I think all past champions should get automatic entry along with folks going for a 10th finish. It is ludicrous to me that past champions Todd Walker, Ian Torrence and Marti Kovener are on a waiting list, although they do have the highest priority. But then again, I think first come first served is just as fair. Last year, there was a ridiculous amount of whining from folks who did not get in when all you had to do was get in front of a computer that morning. Heck, I was literally at a cruising altitude of 33,000 feet above sea level on an airplane and I made arrangements for someone to sign me up. I find it pretty funny that several of the folks that complained didn't even sign up this year. Maybe the lottery is fairer. No matter what process is used, everyone is not going to be satisfied.

I am really excited to run MMT again in 2009 and several fellow Goats are in as well including Brennen, Steve and Amy with Deb and Mike Mason high up on the waiting list. In addition, my buddies John and DC from Charlotte are also in. The original plan back in 2007 was for the three of us to run MMT together as our first 100. However, DC injured his knee so John and I ran the entire race together. Glad these guys are giving it a go again. Look forward to kicking some rocks again come mid-May!

Turkey Running

2008-12-01T14:23:00.003-05:00

Whoa, two posts in one day...

On Saturday, Mike Mason and I met in Black Mountain and drove to Bent Creek for Adam Hill's Bent Creek Gobbler run. The run consists of two loops that make a figure eight. Both loops are about 16 mile and Mason and I opted for just one loop. He is running a 40 mile race this week and I just wanted a nice solid run. I got to see several old running friends including Rick Gray, Nick Whited and Annette Bednosky. I also met several new folks, many of which I felt like I already knew including Matt Kirk, Ed Marsh and Doug Blackford. In short the run was a blast! Temperatures were in the upper 30s and with overcast skies, rain was a bit of a concern but it stayed at bay. The loop started with a fire road that climbed and descended for about 7 miles. I ran most of this alone until Rick and Annette caught up to me. I ran with them for about two miles and then stopped to take a gel and water the plants. I caught back up as they were turning on to the Shut-In trail. The Shut-In trail is amazing as it undulates sharply up and down (mostly up!) but the trail is a joy to run. Annette finally left Rick and I as she got her legs back and we never saw her again until the finish. We had a good time chatting as we meandered through the woods on the trail. Jason caught Rick and I and as he passed, I followed (Rick stopped to take a pit stop). I didn't know the course very well and he was moving at a bout the pace I wanted to.

We were treated to some great trail with some wonderful rolling sections that were a joy to push hard on the ups and then blast the downs. We were on the Shut-In for about 7 miles and I hated for it to end. The final 2 miles were all downhill on a gentle dirt road. It was fun to open up the legs and hammer in to the finish. the temperature was dropping pretty quickly as we socialized afterwards and soon Mike and I headed back to Black Mountain. After a good lunch with some yummy broccoli soup, I rolled back to Charlotte. What a great run and a wonderful way to burn off some Thanksgiving calories.

2008 Year in Review

2008-12-01T13:44:00.003-05:00

Hard to believe that another year is pretty much in the books. I always enjoy to reflect back on the years events and "remember" the lessons learned and celebrate the successes one last time before shutting the door on the year. My focus this year was simple - to improve my general trail running ability and run better at Massanutten. I am still relatively new to trail ultrarunning having started back in August 2006 but I still feel like I should be improving, and I am.

My first race of the year was a road marathon in February. I trained hard through January focusing on speed and tempo workouts. I have never run a fast marathon (and with a PR of 3:33 most would argue I still haven't) and wanted to see how much I could improve over my PR (was 3:48). I was pleased but the biggest win for me was finding how the speed/tempo workouts really helped augment my training. I now include some form of speed/tempo work in my training every week except for during recovery/rest weeks.

I ran a less than stellar 50 mile race at the Bel Monte Endurance Run in March. I tweaked my ankle pretty bad in the run but even without that, I just didn't have it. The course was rugged and I chalked up the death march to a 12:20 finish as mental training for Massanutten. Fortunately, the ankle healed completely within a couple of weeks.

Massanutten loomed large in May and I went in to the race physically and mentally ready. The course conditions were sloppy and wet but I battled through it and ended up improving my time by 3.5 hours, clocking a 31:34! I kind of imploded a little bit at the end due to some IT band issues but was thrilled with the result. I definitely can run the course faster, I just need to keep coming back and applying the previous years lessons.

I next ran the Laurel Valley Run in August. Laurel Valley is a run of about 35 miles with about 8,000 feet of gain on the very scenic Foothills Trail. LV is tough because it is unsupported and in South Carolina in August! You carry all of your calories and drink from the many streams on the course. The temperature and humidity can be brutal but we were treated to highs in the mid-80s this year so the event was much more enjoyable. I ran a solid race in 8:06, which was a significant improvement over the prior year. The temps helped but mostly it was I was able to run every downhill and had a solid climbing pace on the uphills - an area that has plagued me before.

My last race was the GEER 100K up in Virginia. I should have only run the 50K but was too stubborn to drop down. The course was very wet and I was definitely under prepared. My quads were shot at 25 miles. I lumbered on a finished about an hour slower than usual. It was a lot of fun nonetheless. I had a heel injury for all of October and most of November but have managed to heal up and have clocked in a couple of 30 to 40 mile weeks. I will close out the year as a pace group leader for the Thunder Road marathon in Charlotte. I am running the 4 hour group and am using it as a nice medium long training run.

I am excited for what 2009 brings for my running. I am psyched to be part of the Wasatch Speedgoat Mountain Racing Team for next year. My schedule is still taking shape with definite plans for the Mount Mitchell Challenge 40 Miler and the Umstead 100. I also entered the Massanutten 100 lottery this morning and will know about that in a couple of weeks. I hope to do a western race next year and have my sights set on Tahoe Rim, Leadville or Cascade Crest. Although, the "Hundred in the Hood" out in Oregon looks pretty appealing also. Any readers who have a suggestion are free to add them in the comments section. I also hope to volunteer at Hardrock. This is a race I want to do someday and it is about time I got out that way and check things out.

Overall 2008 has been a good year for me running wise. Other than the heel injury, I had no big problems and I finished every race I started. I am having tons of fun with trail ultras and hope to continue with this sport well into "old" age. I am excited for 2009 and hope that everyoine has a good December.

Bedrock is a Speedgoat!!!

2008-11-20T21:36:00.005-05:00

Today I got the official word that I am part of the Wasatch Speedgoat Mountain Racing Team (WSGMRT) for the 2009 season. Needless to say, I am really psyched with the news. This team was started up earlier this year by Scott Mason and Tim Barnes. The initial team included a very diverse group of trail runners from around the U.S. I knew a few of the folks such as Bryon Powell, Brennen Wysong, Steve Pero and Tim Long and they have raved about the team so far. Scott mentioned they were expanding the team in 2009 and asked if I wanted in. The team remains very diverse and I feel very honored to have been included. As I have written recently, I have had a rough couple of months running wise with the heel injury. This is just the kind of news I need to get my butt back in gear. Not only am I close to 100% injury free, I am also mentally pumped for 2009. I will post more details as they become available and will update the sidebar as sponsors are finalized. Lots and lots of scrapes for this news!!

2008-11-17T21:08:00.002-05:00

This past weekend I had to attend a client board retreat up at the Biltmore in Asheville so I took the opportunity to hit the trails in the area. I emailed with Adam Hill who gave me several good options to consider on Saturday and we planned to meet up on Sunday morning to run on the trails at Warren Wilson College. This was literally on my way home Sunday so how could I pass it up. Last Tuesday, was my first run of any consequence since the GEER 100K in late September. My left heel has been giving me fits with some sort of injury but has been on the mend the last couple of weeks. I have definitely lost some fitness and put on a few pounds but was psyched to run in the mountains again.

On Saturday afternoon I logged a very solid two hour run on the Mountains to Sea trail. I accessed the trail just off the Blue Ridge Parkway and had a blast running the trail. Adam later informed me that where I started was about mile 25 or so of the Pitchell Challenge - one of the excellent fun runs that he puts on each year. The weather was near perfect with temps in the upper 40s/low 50s and a slight constant breeze. I was amazed at how much dexterity I had lost on the trails, then again they were ankle deep with leaves. Despits a couple of minor falls, I managed a prety good pace and really worked hard on the hills. As twilight ensued, I had to really hoof it to get back before darkness fell. I then got back to the Inn and got cleaned up for a dinner with the board.

My heel was a little tender on Sunday morning but nothing a little stretching couldn't fix (I iced it on Saturday evening as well). I met up with Adam at the trailhead and the temps were just above freezing with light snow falling. My legs definitely felt the run from the day before but I was psyched once again to enjoy the trails. Adam is a much faster runner than I am and even though we moved at a snails pace at times, he never complained and just enjoyed the day. We talked the whole time about our kids, great runs and boneheaded mistakes (like running 30 miles on 1 gel a 20 oz. of water - something we have both done). We both remarked how we enjoy running in inclement weather. Especially on trails. I absolutely loved this run. We saw several folks on the trail out hiking with their dogs and enjoying the beautiful day. Despite the cooler temps, we were comfortable in shorts and short sleeve shirts. Man, I have really missed running in the woods.

After the run, we chatted briefly and then headed our separate ways. He had to get home to the family and I had a Denny's Grand Slam with my name on it! I am excited for Adam's next fun run - the Bent Creek Gobbler 50K, which is the Saturday after Thanksgiving. I am not in ideal shape but I am sure it will be a fun time. Hopefully, we will have a bit of winter weather to enjoy.

These runs were a blast despite "hurting" more than normal. The bright side of the hurting is that it serves as a great motivator to get my butt out the door. I hope the heel stays cooperative because I am really glad to back out there shuffling, hopefully some real running will come once I get back in decent shape.

I AM NOT DEAD

2008-11-14T15:03:00.002-05:00

I am still here just haven't had a alot to update lately. Since GEER, I have been nursing a nagging heel injury that resulted in 0 miles in October. In fact, my first run of any substance since GEER was earlier this week! Good news is that it felt great. The heel is still a little tender but 10X better than it was a month ago. I have a work conference this weekend in Asheville and am psyched to hit the trails while I am up there. I am planning on running in a low key 50K on the weekend after Thanksgiving if all is well. I am getting really excited for 2009 and am putting the finishing touches on my schedule. I plan to do several races that are new to me and also plan to do some races that don't involve gnarly mountain trails. While I love the mountain single track, I want to challenge myself to run faster on some easier terrain. I will several newsworthy items that are "in process" that I hope to share in the coming weeks. Look for an update post on my mountain trip early next week.

GEER 100K

2008-10-07T14:38:00.002-04:00

I ran the GEER 100K on September 27th. This was my third time running in this fabulous event in the Blue Ridge Mountains outside of Charlottesville. On the way, I picked up Kevin in Staunton who was coming out to help out as well. Kevin is a very fast runner (2:20 marathon) and is a freelance writer, contributing often to Running Times. Needless to say, we had a lot in common. I also met Jay Perry, who is a client of Gill's from Mississippi. He, his wife and three boys drove 13 hours for the 50K - now that is dedication! I met up with Sniper and after the briefing, we all headed back to Waynesboro to grab some dinner and make final preparations. I was only using one drop bag (I would see it three times), so my preparations were fairly quick and easy. The rain was coming down in monsoon-like sheets all night and we knew the trail would likely be very slick for the race. Slept okay but 3:30 came much quicker than I hoped. Still pouring in the morning and thunder and lightning was thrown in as a bonus!

At 6:00 AM, we were off and on our adventure. Sniper had Grindstone looming so he was running as the sweep so I wouldn't see much of him today. I made good time on the first mile climb that literally goes straight up the mountain. It was very foggy and misty so a headlamp was a necessity. Once on the ridge, Jay and I ran together. He was running the 50K so I tried to set a good pace for him to follow. We had a good time chatting and cruising the trail. Unfortunately, there were no views due to the fog. Jay moved on ahead and I ran solo for most of this until I caught up with Ragan Petrie. I met hear at Laurel Valley this year and it was good to visit with her again. The visit was short as she soon blasted down the trail on the way to a top-3 women's finish in the 50K. Soon I was headed on the long road portion all the way down to the Priest Mountain Vista aid station (@ 15 miles). Once at the bottom, I said hello to Jeff Wilbur and then headed back up. Things were pretty uneventful and soon I got to the next trail section and made my way back to Camp Marty (mile 23).

I felt pretty good but my stomach was a little irritated. I made my way up the long climb up to the Bald Mountain Jeep Road and finally got to the aid station (mile 25.4). I was pretty wiped out so I rested for a bit. I ate a couple of grilled cheese and some soup and my stomach started to feel better. My only concern was my legs were pretty tired and the real "fun" had yet to begin. I ran very well down the Kennedy Ridge Trail and was soon at the aid station (mile 31.2). Half way home mileage wise but probably about 70% of the work remained. I ran most of the rolling gravel road the next 3 miles and checked into Stony Run (mile 34.2). One of the hardest climbs of the race follows so I sat and rested a bit and chatted with Gill. My stomach was unhappy again and I ate a few crackers and drank some ginger ale. I found some motivation and got going to get the climb over with. Soon I caught up with Erika from Florida who was running her first 100K. She had a very solid hiking pace going so I tagged along and let her pull me up the climb.

We got separated when I started running when the trail leveled out and soon I arrived back at Bald Mountain aid station (mile 40.7). I was pretty spent so I again rested a few minutes and filled up on the calories. From this point on, my stomach felt great. The next section is 100% runnable so I soon took off and made my way down to the valley floor. I was making really good time until I twisted my knee when going under a blow down. It really hurt and I walked/hobbled for about 15 minutes. After stretching and walking some, it started to feel better and I was able to resume running. At this point, I knew that I would likely run slower than last year and that was a little discouraging but I kept forging on. I passed a runner about 1 mile from the aid station and that motivated me to go into the Turkey Pen aid station (mile 47.7) with high spirits. I filled my bottles, ate some potatoes and headed off on another 3+ mile road section. I ran most of it but wanted to save energy for another tough climb that loomed ahead. I got to Kennedy Ridge (mile 50) and headed up the climb. I pushed pretty hard and made it to the top in about 52 minutes (a PR for me on the climb). I then ran the jeep road as best I could. It was really foggy and the light reflected back at me which was a major pain. I actually made better time power walking so that is what I did.

Finally, I was at Bald Mountain aid station for the final time (mile 56.5). I learned that the last runner was about 30 minutes ahead so I knew I wasn't catching them. I headed off and picked my way down the very technical Torrey Ridge trail. We climbed it earlier in the day and I swear the descent at night is harder. I got to Camp Marty (mile 58) around 9:20 or so. I knew I was about an hour from the finish so I headed off immediately. I didn't see or hear a single person the whole way. I did take a nice face plant as I was coming off the trail. It was pretty funny actually and I got a nice mouth full of dirt. I crossed the finish in 16:29, about an hour slower than last year. However, it was good for 16th place overall. Of the 71 starters in the 100K, only 29 finished! Just finishing appears to have been an accomplishment this year.

Although I ran a much slower time, I had a good race overall. I was definitely under trained for this race as my longest run since Laurel Valley (early August) was only 21 miles. In hindsight, I should have run the 50K since I was better trained for that distance. It took about 5 days for the soreness to fully subside (compared to only 3 after Massanutten). This validated my thought about being under trained. Oh well, I still had a great time. I plan to take a little break from running now and will not do another ultra until 2009. I will start my training back up again in November and am actually looking forward to the down time.

GEER Preview

2008-09-24T23:14:00.003-04:00

This weekend I will running the Great Eastern Endurance Run 100K for the third straight year. GEER was my first trail ultra two years ago and I am really looking forward to enjoying the course once again. Gill, Frannie and Marty do a great job with this race (and all the races they direct) including awesome aid stations, great volunteers and just a fun all around experience. I am feeling pretty fit even though my training has been somewhat minimal. I have had a couple of nagging "mini-injuries" the last couple of weeks but feel pretty good going into the race. The course has a good bit of climb and descent with some pretty technical sections. There is also some road and jeep trail so one gets good diversity of running surfaces throughout the race. The weather looks to be great temperature wise (high in 70s and lower on the ridges) but it is likely we will have some rain during the race.

I plan to go pretty minimal here with only one drop bag and relying largely on aid station fare for calories (especially during the first half of the race). Plan to wear the Streaks again since they worked so well at Massanutten and Laurel Valley. I am really looking forward to sharing some of my favorite trails with some of my favorite people. Most of the CRC/Bad to the Bone team will be there so it will be cool to see all of them. I am not really worried about my time, okay that is a lie. While I would like to run faster than last year, we will see how the day goes. I have learned that I perform better when I just run and let the cards fall where they may. Hopefully, they will fall on the good side of 15 hours ;-).

There are several good races this weekend including the Bear 100 in Utah/Idaho and the Vermont 50 in, well, Vermont. Both of these are races I want to do someday. I have running friends doing both so it will be good to hear first hand how they both go. Good luck to everyone who is racing this weekend. If you are not running this weekend, check back next week for a GEER report to vicariously through.

Catching Up

2008-09-03T15:33:00.002-04:00

Wow, it has been a few weeks since I posted. Amazing how fast time goes by sometimes. I have been running a good bit focusing mostly on medium distance (2 to 3 hours) runs at a quicker pace. On my long runs I have been mixing in much more tempo pace segments to break the monotony and have really enjoyed it. The last few days I have been nursing a sore foot. Not sure what is wrong but I think it stems from stepping on a rock last week. No big deal. I am really excited for the GEER 100K in three weeks. While my training has been a bit unconventional, it will be interesting to see how things go. Hopefully, I can imporve over last years time.

My buddy Mike Mason finished Ultra Trail Tour de Mount Blanc last weekend in 31:19 to grab 106th place out of over 2,000 starters. He said the race is purely epic and extremely rewarding. Mike is writing a report and I will post it to the blog once he completes it.

It never ceases to amaze me how popular ultrarunning has become. You will recall how quickly this year's Massanutten filled - less than 2 hours. The registration for the Umstead 100 opened up today at 12:00 PM (ET) and filled 200 spots in 19 minutes! They reserve 50 or so spots for mail-in entries and do maintain a wait list. But, most folks that weren't at a computer during lunch today are out of luck. I was fortunate enough to get in at 12:09. This brings up the controversial question of what is a fair way of selecting entrants for a race. I argue that first come, first serve is just as fair as a lottery system. I knew I was going to be flying at 30,000 feet when Massanutten entry opened last year so I had someone sign up for me. For Umstead this year, I made sure I was ready to go right when entry opened. An interesting debate but many think lotteries are a fairer way to go. I just don't see the logic behind how "chance" is any fairer than someone making entry a priority and taking the steps necessary to get in.

Lovin' Laurel Valley

2008-08-11T09:53:00.003-04:00

The Laurel Valley Whitewater Run was as close to ideal as it likely gets for me. The weather featured relatively low humidity and high temperatures in the 80s. My hope was that these factors combined with some course knowledge gained last year would allow for a good improvement in my time. The wild card was my running fitness. While I felt good, I had not been training very hard. However, I had been fairly consistent with tempo workouts so perhaps that would be enough. Plan was to go very light this year, taking just enough gel and shot blocks to get me through the day. I hoped to improve my time by 30 minutes to an hour.

Upon arriving in the Traveler's Rest area on Friday afternoon, John, Mo and I went to Walmart to pick up some last minute supplies. We then caught up with several folks at the Pizza Inn for our pre race dinner. Those in attendance including us were Byron Backer (who was putting us all up), Christian Griffith, Jim Musselman, Larry Lyda and Mike O'Melia. I knew of Larry and Mike from the ultralist so it was great to finally meet them in person. After dinner we headed to Byron's house to make our last minute preparations and then turn in for the night. We had less people at the house this year so I was able to sleep in a bed, which was great. We had to get up at 3:30 to drop cars and shuttle to the finish. Byron arranged to rides for us all - talk about a full service host.

We cut it close on time but made the start by about 5 minutes. One problem immediately surfaced - it was really dark and I didn't have a light! Oh well, that meant I would have to latch on to someone with a light for 30 minutes until dawn and hold back a bit. Actually, not a bad plan. I got separated from John and Mo early but we soon caught up with each other and made our way towards the first water spot. We were making great progress and I relayed my goals to John. Last year I ran a miserable 10:26 here and hoped to break 10 hours this year and maybe have an outside shot at going under 9. My plan was to be at the Horsepasture River by 12:00 so that I would have four hours to get in under 10 hours. I did not have more aggressive goals because I was unsure how my fitness was. I had only run over 15 miles once since Massanutten in May and most of my training had been on roads. John has battled Achilles problems all summer so we agreed to just run by feel and see how it goes.

We continued to make great progress and were really having fun pushing the pace on the downhills. The weather really helped us make good time as did the clearing of many blowdowns along the trail. I can only think of a few spots where we had to deal with blowdowns this year. We got to the Toxaway River bridge in great time and spirits and John remarked that we would hit Horsepasture way before 12:00. I still wasn't convinced but continued to move along. I was eating gels and shot blocks and drinking Nuun (adding it once the water purified). I did feel like I was a little behind on water some so I drank an extra bottle at Toxaway. I also noticed that I likely did not have enough gels (only had nine). I bought some pretzels at Walmart but mistakenly forgot to put them in my waist pack. Oh well, too late to worry about it now.

I lost John and Mo for a bit when I stepped off the trail to take a pit stop. The next section was awesome - all rolling hills and I ran every step trying to catch them. This was where I got three yellow jacket stings. I finally caught up only because John had fallen and was walking it off. Eventually we arrived at the Horsepasture River at 10:50! I was over an hour ahead of plan and feeling great. From here it was between 3 and 4 hours to the finish - closer to 4 for me. We planned to get in the water here but the levels were pretty low so we just filled up. John urged me to push ahead and go for a great time but I was reluctant. I figured sub-10 was in the bag so there was no hurry. I decided to start walking up the trail and said I would meet him at Thompson's where I planned to get in the water if the levels were better. Thompson's is about 4 miles from the finish but I didn't realize this at this point - I thought it was closer to 7.

I caught up to Jim Musselman, Andrew Hacket and Jason Barringer. I moved past them on one of the downhill sections but soon Andrew and Jason caught up and we ran together for a while. In fact, Jim would also catch up and pass me to finish about 5 minutes ahead. Jason commented that we had a great chance of breaking 8 hours. What!!!! I said how is that possible and he told me the finish was only 4 miles from Thompson's. He would know as this was his sixth time here. We battled the yellow jackets off and on (I got stung two more times) and soon were at Thompson's. He said he was just going to top off his bottles a push to the end and go for sub-8. I decided I would go with him and see if I could do it too. We got to Thompson's around 12:40 so to break 8 hours I needed to cover 4 miles in 1:20. Seemed doable. Only problem was I only had 1 gel left for food and I was starving. So, I ate it and took off.

Jason and Jim had left before me (and Andrew before them). Tom Gabell also passed by as we arrived into Thompson's. I continued to move forward and played leapfrog with Jason and Andrew for a bit until they finally pulled away for good. I started to really bonk and was hitting a low point big time. I decided to get in the water for a bit to see if this would help revive me some and stayed for about 10 minutes. It helped some but the bonk was still there. I just decided to keep pushing as best I could. Soon Mo and Jim caught up and passed me. I soon realized that sub-8 was not going to happen but I could probably get in under 8:15 if I could make good progress up the last beast of a climb.

I pushed and I pushed and was surprised to be at the top quicker than expected. As I came down the paved bike path I could see another runner about 50 yards ahead. I kicked up the pace to a full sprint and was getting very close when the "crowd" told him to hurry up. He picked it up as well and we ended up crossing together in 8:06. I ended up covering the stretch from Horsepasture in 3:16, which is much better than I expected. I was tired after that last hard effort but it was a good kind of tired. I drank several cups of sports drink and water and then relaxed at the finish and cheered in the other finishers for a couple of hours. Mo ran an 8:01 and John did 8:28 basically off the couch. If fully trained he would have been a good hour faster.

This race went very well for me despite two dumb mistakes - no light and not enough food. I thought about putting a small flashlight in my waist pack but decided against it. Probably didn't impact my time much but who knows. Going too light on nutrition was really dumb as the late stage bonk definitely hurt my time. Perhaps the soak in the water was unnecessary and a waste of time. I am splitting hairs here but I always try to garner some lessons from every race. I blew away even my most aggressive goal and felt terrific at the end. I used Desitin on my feet and again had no blisters or any foot problems. The Nuun worked very well and I plan to use it in all races going forward.

Thanks to Claude for putting on such a great race and to Byron for his hospitality. Also, congratulations to John Teague for getting his tenth finish at Laurel Valley. Man, what a race!

Laurel Valley Preview

2008-08-08T13:40:00.004-04:00

Never say never. After my suffer fest at Laurel Valley last year I uttered those infamous post race lines of "I will never do that again". Ha! How many of us have done that before? After my blisters healed and I recovered, I realized how much I enjoyed the trails and the overall low-key nature of the event. The RD has done a lot to promote running throughout the Carolina's for a long time and puts on great events. So here I sit, a mere 90 minutes from heading down towards Greenville, SC for the Laurel Valley Whitewater Run.

I am traveling down there with running buds John and Mo and we will meet up with several other folks for a pre-race meal. Byron Backer is letting us all crash on his floor tonight and tomorrow we are up early to drop cars and then start promptly at 6:00 AM. The good news is the temperatures look to be much lower than last year with highs expected in the upper-80s. Much better than the triple digits we endured last year. Even the humidity looks to be relatively mundane between 50% and 60%. I feel pretty fit but will not treat this as a race but rather a leisurely training run. Definitely part of the race plan this year is several cool dips in mountain streams. I neglected to do this last year and paid the price.

I will post a full race report early next week. By the way, Karl continues to make progress south on the AT. he is off to a great start on his quest to traverse the trail in 47 days. You can follow along here.

K. Skaggs Rips Hardrock!

2008-07-14T15:13:00.004-04:00

This past weekend there was a little race out in Silverton, CO. Kyle Skaggs set a new course record at Hardrock by running 23:23! Diana Finkel won the women's race in 31:09. Both Kyle and Diana led from the start and never looked back. This is the first time in 15 runnings that anyone has broken 24 hours. When you consider the previous record for the clockwise direction was held by Karl Meltzer, who pretty much dominates mountain 100-mile races, this is a remarkable task. Kyle's time was more than 3 hours faster than Meltzer's previous record of 27:06 and over 6 hours ahead of the next finisher. Meltzer is still the man in my book, but Kyle went a long way towards making his mark. There already is discussion about this being performance of the year.

Absolutely!! I don't know Kyle, heck I have never even met him, but hear is a great all around guy who doesn't flaunt his ego around. This is also a very Meltzer-esque quality. At Massanutten last year, he talked with front to back of the packers alike. I have heard the same about Kyle at Wasatch last year. To me, it is great when we have displays of talent such as this and even better when it comes from "real" folks who don't talk themselves up constantly.

It always amazes me how many mid and even back of the packers push how great their accomplishments are. Just trying to throw their own log on the fire I suppose. They look really silly when someone like Kyle throws a freaking forest of logs on the fire with a performance like this. Anyway, congratulations to Kyle and all the finishers.

JFK is Dead!

2008-07-02T18:24:00.003-04:00

Okay, I admit that is not a very politically correct title for a post. The JFK 50 opened up for registration yesterday. So, I headed to the website to register only to find the entry fee is $135! I thought it was a joke but then no matter how many times I hit the refresh button, the numbers stayed the same. This is a a ludicrous entry fee for a 50 mile race. Massanutten is only $5 more an 55.8 miles longer. I have not run JFK before but from what I have heard, the aid stations are decent at best. Through chatter with some VHTRC folks, it appears the entry fee has doubled over the last five years. I am not sure why the race costs so much more this year, maybe it is a way of stemming demand. I also noticed that entry is limited to only 1,000. The last two years have seen JFK record over 1,000 finishers so I am not sure where the new limit comes in either. Regardless, I am out as there is no way I am paying that much for a 50 miler. So, now I am looking at a replacement 50 for the fall. Maybe Stone Cat in November or Vermont in September? I am open to any suggestions.

No Finishers at Western States

2008-06-26T08:25:00.002-04:00

In fact, no starters. The race has been cancelled this year due to the forest fires in the surrounding area. There are over 800 forest fires in California with more than 300 in northern CA alone. A couple of fires have the potential of reaching key location on the race course by the weekend - in particular, the Westville Fire has the potential of reaching the Foresthill Divide Road and the Peavine Fire could reach Last Chance and Mosquito Ridge Road. This would put runners, crews, volunteers and spectators at risk. In addition, given all the smoke and pollutants in the air, the air quality has deteriorated significantly. This prompted Placer County Pollution Control District officials to issue a warning advising individuals to reduce exposure to unhealthy air and avoid vigorous outdoor activities. I'd say a 100 mile trail run qualifies as vigorous outdoor activity.

The cancellation of Western States is unfortunate given the competitive field that was slated to participate this year. In addition, it negates any Grand Slam or Last Great Race efforts. However, this is definitely the right call by the Race Committee. The safety and well being of folks has to be the #1 priority. I am sure the Committee agonized with this decision but in the end had to go with a no risk option. You can read the full text of the official announcement here. Both Karl Meltzer and Andy Jones-Wilkins have written on their blogs about the decision. Bottom line is the Committee made the right call and we should all move on. One thing I am curious about is the entry fees are non-refundable and at $300 a pop, that is a decent amount of cash (about $120,000). The race no doubt has incurred expenses that cannot be recouped but it seems like they could donate at least a portion of the money to help with efforts to battle the fires or to assist in rejuvenating burned areas after the fire. Just a thought.

Change of Plans and Western States Preview

2008-06-24T14:40:00.002-04:00

In looking at my race plans for the remainder of 2008, I have decided to forgo another 100 mile race this year. Instead, I have decided to run the JFK 50 and go for a 50 mile PR. To date, most of the ultras I have completed have been on very rocky trails with significant elevation change. While I love this sort of technical terrain, I am curious to see how I fare at some races with more gentler terrain. My physical fitness and mental toughness are at all time highs and I want to really try and race an ultra to see what I can do. Plus, my plans for 2009 include a 100 mile race on gentler terrain so JFK seems like a logical choice. JFK is the oldest (correct me if I am wrong) ultramarathon and will be celebrating its 46th year in 2008. It is definitely a race that I want to do at some point so I figure why not now. I still plan to do Annette's New River 50K in October and may do some other 50Ks in the fall as well. I am still kicking around Hellgate but may defer that to another year.

Western States is this weekend and as many have written, looks to be one of the most competitive fields ever. Karl Meltzer has done a great preview on his blog so I won't bore you with a detailed prediction. I agree with most on the men's side and see the podium as follows:

1. Tony Krupicka
2. Hal Koerner
3. Brian Morrison

Tony has shown he can dominate the 100 mile distance and while I don't think he will "dominate" per se, he does get the top spot. I think Koerner runs another great race and likely leads midway, but ultimately grabs the bridesmaid spot. Morrison had States won two years ago but collapsed on the track and was DQ'd when his crew helped him across the line so that he could get medical attention. last year he DNFd so if anyone has "unfinished business" it is him. Maybe I am sentimental but I think he grabs a podium spot. I also like Andy Jones-Wilkins for another top-10 finish and the masters course record. He will have a battle with the likes of Meltzer and Jorge Pacheco. Again, maybe I am too sentimental but I see AJW's experience ruling the day.

The women's race is equally as stacked with speedsters. It is hard to bet against Nikki Kimball with her repeated success in Auburn. I think Meltzer nailed the order on this one.

1. Nikki Kimball
2. Kami Semick
3. Jenn Shelton

Actually, I hope I am wrong on both the men's and women's picks (sorry Tony and Nikki) because all of these picks are fairly obvious. With such deep fields in both races, it would be cool to see some surprises. You can follow along on the webcast here. Regardless of the outcome, it is surely to be a heck of a race.

Summer is Here

2008-06-06T21:59:00.003-04:00

WOW, IS IT HOT!!!!!! The mercury has really risen this week as we have had three consecutive days of 95+ degree temperatures. There is no respite for at least another five days as the first big heat wave of 2008 settles over the southeast. Folks running Old Dominion this weekend are in for a treat as they will no doubt face high in the upper 90s with humidity near 80%! Great heat training for those running Western States or Badwater. I am running neither so it just plain sucks right now. I have managed to get in three quality runs the last two days after being sidelined with a head cold Monday through Wednesday. I am planning on a couple of longish runs over the weekend. On Sunday, I plan to get out in the heat and do 1 to 2 hours in the afternoon. Once I get used to running in the heat, I really don't mind it. Hopefully, I will "get used to it" soon. For now, I will back of the pace 10% or so and hydrate, hydrate, hydrate...

Back on Track

2008-06-02T12:20:00.005-04:00

Well, the post-MMT happies have finally worn off and it is now time to resume a regular running routine. I took some time off to recover well and really give my IT band time to get in a better mood. Good news is all seems to be okay at this point. I have been running some and managed about 15 miles the week after MMT with another 10 or so walking and biking. I got in about 30 miles last week mostly recovery runs with nothing longer than 7 miles. However, I did do a 4.5 mile quasi-tempo run on Thursday night and managed to run it in about 33:10 (7:28 pace). Not rocket speed but was able to get good leg turnover early and motored pretty well up the many short hills. It was a great "test run" on the IT band as I expected any lingering issues would definitely surface during the effort. Nope, got nothing and credit the fast healing to heat, massage and frequent stretching. I am pretty excited about recovering so quickly from MMT - all leg and foot soreness was gone by the Wednesday following the race with only some tightness in the IT band remaining until early last week.

Although I have some races tentatively scheduled for the remainder of 2008, my schedule is pretty open with only Laurel Valley as a definite at this point. I plan to do Hellgate in December and want to do another 100 miler in the fall. Grindstone is a possibility but I have a big conflict that may make that race a no go. I am also looking at the Bear 100, Superior Sawtooth 100 and the Pinhoti 100. Bear would be great but with escalating airfares and near $4.00 gas, may be a stretch on the running budget. Superior looks really interesting and is often compared to MMT. Pinhoti is a new race this year but looks to be run on some pretty amazing trails. I am open to any suggestions from readers for both 100 mile and other distances.

I really get excited this time of year as the "peak" of ultra season comes upon us. Western States, Hardrock, Badwater and Leadville (to name a few) are all upon us in the next couple of months. Plus Vermont and Wasatch round out the Grand Slam and of course Mount Blanc over in France in August. Will be fun to watch. Post your race suggestions to the comments field.

Massanutten 2008

2008-05-22T08:52:00.004-04:00

Massanutten, THE race for me in the first half of 2008. I had been anxiously awaiting a return to Front Royal since the day after the race last year. Much of my training and other races were used as "experience" for this years race. After entering in December, I was ready to begin focusing on training hard for the big day. I will spare you the details but the training was as much mental as it was physical. Much of my issues last year were created in my head so that I was already defeated when the physical issues surfaced late in the race. Last year, I felt as if I "grew up" at Massanutten, at least a bit. With the augmented training and another year of running ultras, I had grown even more. This year was all about a new experience for me. After all, I had more course knowledge, was in better shape and was so excited for the race that I felt I could improve significantly over last year.

We rented a great house in Front Royal with Mike Mason and his family and Todd Walker. We also had crews, pacers and other friends staying with us so we had a great group at the house. I arrived Thursday afternoon and fell in love with the Gooney Lodge the moment we arrived. On Friday, Mike and I hiked up to Buzzard Rock to check out the course and noticed how wet it was. No surprise as it pured rain on Thursday evening. We also stopped by Kerry Owen's house and talked with her, Mike Bur and Rich Limacher. Although I am a member of the VHTRC, living in Charlotte, NC does not afford a lot of opportunity to hang out with other members, so I enjoyed this immensely. We had a great dinner at the house Friday night and the rest of the crew arrived that afternoon. Before I knew it, the alarm was going off signaling 3:45 AM - time to ROCK!

The weather seemed almost perfect - cool with a light breeze. With the shout of "Get out of here", we headed down the road and I settled in to a good pace with Joe Clapper. I had no business running at his pace but I felt okay and figured I would hang while I could. I started with an empty water bottle (advice given by another VHTRC member) so I stopped briefly at AS 1 to fill up. Before long I caught back up to Joe and talked with him a bit while we ran. I really enjoyed the conversation and before long, Brennen Wysong and CJ Blagg joined in. I was definitely moving faster than expected to be running with this group, but I felt good and figured there is plenty of time to slow down in the next section. I shared about one mile with Amy Sproston, chatting about her recent trip to Bolivia. She went on to win the women's race.

I arrived at Shawl Gap about 25 minutes ahead of schedule, filled up and headed out. Joe, CJ and company left me in the dust on the way into Shawl Gap and I didn't see them again until Bird Knob (them descending, me ascending). I cranked up the tunes and just ran, arriving at Veach Gap. I declined the pancakes but did say hi to Bur, whom I had met the day before. The next sections were uneventful and I just kept plodding along and leapfrogged a bit with a group of three other guys. Stopped briefly at Milford to fuel up good and clean my sunglasses and then it was off to Habron. The leapfrog game continued all the way into Habron Gap. I felt terrific and was well ahead of my 2007 split. The first ( and most difficult in my opinion) climb loomed on the way to Camp Roosevelt. I ate a lot at Habron and took it really easy on the climb up to let the calories process. Soon, I was headed down again and was amazed how great I was feeling. It was still early but I was very syked. At Camp Roosevelt, I sat down for a couple of minutes and drank a couple of extra cups of Gatorade and ate some banana then headed to Gap I.

The climb on the way to Gap I wore on me a bit but I had a ton of fun running the downhill despite the trail being sloppy. All of sudden I heard the infamous rattlesnake of MMT 2008 and saw him off to the left of the trail. He didn't seem to feel like talking so I headed off and made my way to Gap I. There were several muddy and wet spots on the course up to this point and my shoes (Montrail Streaks) were draining great. I hoped this would continue. I got to Gap I around 1:45, ahead of schedule and way ahead of 2007. I didn't stay long because I wanted Kern's Mountain to be over. After climbing Jawbone, I made the left onto Kern's and picked my way through the boulders and started running the ridge line. I slowed down a bit here so I was passed by some folks but soon got re energized and caught back up. Eventually, I latched on to a train with Sniper, Mark and Rande and followed them all the way to the water drop at Crisman Hollow Road. I filled up, jumped into the big mud puddle (fun fun fun!) and started the final 5K to 211 East.

Descended Waterfall and passed the turnoff to go to Gap II and climbed up and over to the jeep road. Sniper and Co. (sans Rande who passed me before Waterfall) caught up on the jeep road and we ran into 211 East together. I said hello to Dr. Horton and Bryon Powell who both offered encouraging words. My family arrived about 5 minutes after I left but I am glad Rich got me out of there. I felt great going up to Bird Knob but took it easy on the climbs. Several runners passed me as they descended including Joe, CJ, Brennen and Amy from the early morning section of the race. One I got to the top I started running and ran most of the "ant hill road" in to the aid station. It was pretty windy so I downed some soup, filled my bottles and headed off. I wanted to run this section well and that is what I did, ran and ran and ran. It felt so much better to stretch the legs out after the climb. I passed several folks on their way up including Sherpa John, Jeff McGonnell, John Straub, Ed C., Gary Knipling and many others. Gary remarked how much better I looked compared to last year. I thanked him and made my way down and in to 211 East II.

Rich was ready to roll so we headed off. I didn't need to turn my headlamp on until the final 45 minutes of this section. The moonlight was magnificent. We moved a bit slow but managed good progress and arrived at Gap II (no snake this time) where I planned to fuel up really well. After a full quesadilla and a grilled cheese we headed off to tackle Jawbone the second time. I labored pretty hard on the climb but was able to move on the descent in to Moreland pretty well. I decided to eat some soup and drink some Coke here to prepare for the long section over Short Mountain that was upon us. I filled up my hydration bladder and pulled up my arm sleeves and started off. It was raining off and on and the wind was gusting but it wasn't too bad. Mark was still with us and we climbed up and were soon on the ridge. The Short Mountain section is just hard. It is over 8 miles long and you are out there for a long time. We made decent progress but I was stumbling and Mark was having trouble staying awake. We stopped for a bit to get our heads straight and then started up again. Sniper and his pacer soon passed us around the halfway point. I was anxious to get to the switchbacks to run and stretch the legs. Before long we were there and I ran as hard as a I could and was soon at the Edinburgh aid station right at 2:00 AM. By comparison, last year I arrived just before 6:00 AM. I ate some more soup and drank some ginger ale. Also, I brushed my teeth and bid goodbye to Rich. I thanked him for all of his help and me and my new pacer (Rebecca Phalen) headed off to Woodstock Tower.

This is another 8+ mile section that just goes on and on. I knew (from Sniper last year) that there were three signs and that the mileage on the first two was inaccurate but the third was pretty close. I was struggling big time and not eating for some reason. I couldn't figure out what the issue was but I had no energy and could not make any decent progress (how about not eating you moron...). Rebecca was great at motivating me to keep moving. I felt sick and she urged me to start eating clif blocks, which went down okay. I also wasn't drinking enough. This is also where my IT band started bothering me a good bit. I noticed some tightness while on Short Mountain but it went away when I ran. This time, running was excruciating, particularly downhill. Not a good sign. I could power walk though, so that is what I did. We got passed a lot but there was nothing I could do about it. In the 3:40 or so (I know, pathetic) it took me for this section I only drank 20 ounces of Gatorade and ate 2 gels and a pack of clif blocks. No wonder I had no energy. Kind of a boneheaded mistake for me to make. We limped in to Woodstock Tower just before 6:00 AM. I was still way ahead of last year but wanted to keep moving. If this turned into a death march, I wanted something in the bank. I ate some grilled cheese, crackers and Doritos and we headed off.

We ran in decent spurts on this next section but still got passed by one runner. Not that it mattered. Although I wasn't moving as fast as I wanted, I WAS giving it all I had. Soon we got to Powell's Fort and we decided to work on my leg some. I ate some sausage and pancakes and drank some Coke and water. Rebecca is a physical therapist so she massaged my leg and rubbed some mineral ice into it to loosen it up. Afterwards, we got up and headed off. We ran a good bit of the road as the rain started coming down and soon were at the trail. She did a terrific job of motivating me to "run to the next streamer" or "run to the bend in the road". The trail was wet and sloppy and we climbed over several blow downs. My IT band was still bothering me but I could still power walk. The biggest issue was the loss of mobility in the right leg. I could push through the pain but could not physically lift my leg enough to run the downhills. We tried fashioning an IT band strap out of my bandanna but I couldn't get it to provide any relief. Oh well. Soon we were at the last aid station. I still had a full bottle so I said "16 in, 16 out" to the cheers of all the aid station workers. Only 5 miles to go but at my pace it would probably take 2 hours.

We motored on and climbed up and up and up to the top. I had lost a good bit of dexterity and almost fell back several times. I lost focus here some and was so frustrated I was almost in tears. Rebecca kept up the positive talk and got me back on track. Soon we headed down and I power walked/ran as best as I could. We got to the gravel road and then the paved road and then, at last, the bridal trail to the finish. Finally, I went across in 31:34 - a 3:30 improvement over last year!

I was elated that I was done. I thought I would have run a better time, particularly as well as I was moving earlier. But, these things are not easy and there is always an unexpected twist. A 3:30 improvement to me is a great accomplishment. I gave it everything I had and didn't waste time in the aid stations this time, so I consider it a resounding success. After some pictures, high fives, hugs and a tasty cheeseburger (thanks Quatro and Tom Corris), it was time to get cleaned up and climb in the car for the ride back to Charlotte. MMT 2008 was over - hard to believe.

This race is in my blood for some reason. I just love everything about it. The VHTRC does a great job and my wife commented how friendly everyone was. Thank you to RD Stan, all the volunteers, aid station workers and everyone who made the run possible. I can't thank my pacers Rich and Rebecca enough for keeping me focused and moving forward.

Massanutten, I just love it and for me...MASSANUTTEN ROCKS!!!

Rocks Await!

2008-05-10T21:12:00.003-04:00

Well, IT is here!!! A week from now (literally) I will be out on the Massanutten course somewhere, hopefully feeling strong:-). Massanutten (or simply MMT) has been at the center of my training (and life according to my family) since January. It was my first 100 mile race last year and I got a huge boost in mental confidence through "debuting" on such a rugged course. Although I was successful (click here for the 2007 report), I made a lot of mistakes that cost me hours of additional time on the course. So, in a sense, I have some "unfinished business" this year. I have made tremendous improvements in my running and whole approach to races over the last 12 months. I will spare you all the details but one area that has vastly improved is aid station efficiency. The Bedrock that lolly gags in and out of aid stations and "holds court" for a spell is a thing of the past. This is one area that cost me dearly last year. I do give myself a bit of a break since I have only been at this ultra thing for not even two years. However, I HAVE made tremendous improvement here and hope that it transcends to a better MMT in 2008. Since MMT last year, I have completed three tough trail races (2 were significantly harder than the other one) and was much more efficient in the aid stations by getting what I needed and then hitting the road. I have the capability, just have to put it to use.

My fitness (both physically and mentally) are significantly better. Some of that likely comes from the experience of another year but a significant piece is from some alterations to my training since January. There is absolutely no doubt - MMT is my focus race this year. MMT is to Bedrock what Western States is to guys like AJW and LB. For those that know me well, I am a bit of a research freak. However, I have not obsessed about the details as much this year. While educating yourself about the course and getting some advice from past participants is no doubt important, agonizing over multiple year split times and a host of other "things" is totally unproductive. I feel much more relaxed as the "rock concert" looms.

A good friend of mine that is also running MMT joked with me the other day, that the race is "all he seems to think about". I remarked that it is okay because in 10 days there is no reason to "think" about MMT any longer as it will be a memory (hopefully a "pleasant" one). I know it will be a ton of fun and the VHTRC does such a great job with this race that all you really have to worry about is the running (and walking). It is amazing how "easy" things look on paper or as you verbalize them. In the end, the experience is what matters. I will no doubt get an experience this year. With my training, mental resolve and better attitude going in, the experience should be an epic one at that. Stay tuned for a link to where you can track my progress next weekend. Peace.

Hooky Run

2008-04-30T14:37:00.005-04:00

Back in March this training run was put on the calendar as a great final "push" before tapering for Massanutten. The last couple of months I have been running in the afternoons but wanted to dedicate a full day to this run so I decided to take a Friday off - hence the "hooky run". A running buddy of mine had to bail out at the last minute so I went up knowing that I would be running most of the day solo. I run alone in many races so this was no big deal.

I had been corresponding with Adam Hill who lives in the area I was running and puts on several tough organized training runs throughout the year. Basically I told Adam what I wanted to do in terms of distance, elevation gain and time on my feet and he "designed" an appropriate route for me. I have emailed with him several times over the last year but had never actually met him before. So, off I went to the Kitsuma trail head (about 1:45 from Charlotte) on Friday morning to meet up with Adam and his friend Paul. They both would run some of the early portions of the run with me. We met up around 7:00 AM and after discussing the map/route a bit, we were off. The planned route went on the Kitsuma Trail over Kitsuma peak and down to the picnic area. It then followed asphalt for about 3 miles past Andrews Geyser and up across the train tracks to the Heartbreak Ridge trail (name much deserved). Heartbreak Ridge spilled onto the Toll Road that you take out of Montreat up towards Mt. Mitchell. At that point, you could go right and head towards to Blue Ridge Parkway ("BRP") on the way to the Mitchell summit or go left and head down the Toll Road into Ridgecrest or Montreat and back to Kitsuma. If I followed the route I could get between 30 and 40 miles in. I hoped to get at least 5,500 feet of climb and about 7 to 8 hours on my feet. I planned to take a fairly easy pace hopefully simulating the late stages of a 100 mile race.

The Kitsuma trail is a great stretch of trail that very quickly climbs up over the Kitsuma peak and then blasts its way down into the valley. We ran along and Adam pointed out several wildflowers. We all remarked how "early" they seemed to be out this year. Adam and Paul are much faster runners than I am and I explained that I was purposefully taking it slow and they were fine with that. We had a great time talking and just enjoying the trail. About 3 miles in, Adam had to bid us farewell and after thanking him for all of his help, Paul and I continued on. In the event of any difficulty, Adam gave me his cell phone number (remember this for later). Paul and I made our way to the picnic area where I used the restroom and we headed up the asphalt road. Although it was road, this section was very peaceful as several folks said hello to us and we did not come upon a single car inn the 3 mile jaunt. Paul pointed out a cabin he and his family have rented during trout fishing trips. The cabin had a pretty cool history as it was built by a "train baron" who placed it such that he could see the trains traversing the mountains and ridge lines around him. Before long, we made our way up the steep trail and got on Heartbreak Ridge.

We climbed several (I think eight or nine) switchbacks up the trail taking notice of many fallen trees. We both remarked how it would be an amazing sight to see and hear such large trees come crashing down. I could tell I was holding Paul back so I eventually advised him to go on and enjoy his run as I was going to be taking it easy for a good while. With that, he was off but I would see him again. I absolutely loved the Heartbreak Ridge section as the trail was challenging and the views were absolutely spectacular. There were many occasions where I was unable to pass up stopping and taking in the unadulterated beauty around me. I placed a call to my buddy who was at the office to "rub it in" a bit but kept on moving. I felt great and was eating about 2 gels and 3 shot blocks every hour. I had plenty of water but knew it would be a little tight getting to the first water source. I noticed lots of dogwoods and mountain laurel along the trail and it was gorgeous! I was careful to follow the yellow blazes and took note of the landmarks Adam advised me of in his excellent directions. Before long, I arrived at the Toll Road and noticed the campers and bear cabin on my right as I intersected with the road. I decided to turn right and do an out and back up to the BRP but would not go to the Mitchell summit. I figured I would have an opportunity to "add on" mileage if I wanted to down lower on the Toll Road (boy was I right). I was amazed how peaceful it was as the silence was broken by the occasional car as I approached the BRP. I made my way back down the Toll Road and before long was right back at the Heartbreak Ridge intersection. I reviewed the map once more and then headed on my way.

For those that have not run on the Toll Road, it is a very rocky and technical stretch of "road". Actually, it is very MMT-esque in certain spots (especially higher up). It is all runnable but you really have to watch your footing in several stretches. Fortunately, it was fairly dry so the rocks were not slick. I can imagine how difficult it would be during the Mitchell Challenge in February when it is coated in ice. Eventually I came to a fork - on the left, a white gate and on the right the road appeared to circle around. I took the left and went around the gate. Now the real "fun" would begin as I was about to get 6 or 7 bonus miles and about 2,200 feet of bonus elevation gain. Not to mention a nice lesson in rationing water...

This section was very steep and mostly downhill. It was great technical running and I was having a lot of fun. The trail was totally exposed but offered incredible panoramic views to the east and south. I continued my way down but did find it curious that some of the landmarks weren't showing up. I rationalized that I unknowingly missed them since I had not run this section before. After about an hour or so, the trail leveled out and presented me with another fork. To the left it went steeply up through private land while to the right, the trail went down into the woods (although I did see old ribbons on the trail). Straight ahead was a rolling "double track" section. I went straight but after about a mile, the trail ended at a waterfall. I was certain Adam would have mentioned a waterfall so I headed back to the fork and took the "right" fork and followed the old ribbons. Eventually the trail turned into a deer path and soon I was in knee deep leaves when the trail just stopped. Uh oh! I called Adam and left a message and then called Mason at work since I knew he has run this route several times before. Mason's immediate reply was: "I have always wondered where the trail behind that white gate went"... My mistake was all the way back at the white gate on the Toll Road. Ugggh! I passed the gate about an hour ago and had about 5 ounces of water left...

I got right to work and climbed and climbed and climbed and then, climbed some more. The sun was beating down on the exposed trail and I noticed a dark cloud forming. Fortunately, the cloud didn't materialize but my cell phone did start acting weird. I couldn't get the screen to work and it would only answer on speakerphone. Oh well, onward and upward - literally. I admit I was a little scared due to the water situation. I have never been "off course" or gotten lost before so I suppose I was due. I started thinking of contingencies but soon I saw the white gate. Wow, I made pretty good time on the arduous climb back up. Might as well have been the pearly gates to heaven because I was psyched to see it. Now I know where I was and this gave me some unexpected rejuvenation. Another call to Mason and I learned that water was not far away. Adam returned my call and made sure I was back on track. I told him that given the bonus miles, I might bail out at Montreat but would decide later. Soon I was at "Earl's Cabin" and filled up my bottle, hydration pack and doused my head in the cold clear mountain water. It felt great.

I started running and really cranking out a good pace. I looked at my watch and it said I had already been 29 miles and climbed 7,300 feet! Wow! Soon I saw the green bear cabin and decided to call Adam and get directions on how to bail early. At Sourwallow Gap I headed into Montreat and met Adam and Paul. My watch showed a final distance of about 33 miles and I had been going for about 7 hours. I still had tons of energy but it was smart to cut it short.

Adam and Paul had all kinds of snacks for me including a Clif bar, cookies, trail mix, sports drink and even a beer. I devoured the Clif bar, cookies and most of the trail mix. I also drank most of the sports drink but passed on the brew. I had only met these guys this morning but they treated me like a lifelong friend. We talked about my run some and then headed to Paul's house so he could take me to get my car. He offered me more food and a shower if I wanted to clean up. I decide to just go to the car and head home but was very appreciative of his hospitality. Before Adam left he told me I had a "gift" at my car. When Paul and I arrived, Adam had left me a really cool pint glass on my hood. What a great gesture. After thanking Paul, I made my way back to Charlotte.

This was a fantastic training run and an incredible set of trails I got to run on (even the bonus section which I have dubbed the "Bedrock Spur"). I got a huge boost of confidence going into MMT with this run (and the Crowders Run the weekend before). I got another rugged run in the Streaks (they worked great), got to test out some more race day gear and discovered some wonderful trails to train on. I even got a "finisher's award" - the pint glass :-) Most importantly though, I made two new good friends in Adam and Paul. These guys are two of the most genuine and "real" people I have met who just love being out in the woods pushing the limits. After all, isn't that what the "it" in trail running is all about? Running with friends in the woods and enjoying the nature around us.

Now I am officially tapering for Massanutten and feel really great going into the race. Stay tuned for a few more posts about my preparation and of course a race preview in a couple of weeks. Peace to all.

Crowders Mountain Training Run

2008-04-19T21:21:00.002-04:00

I had one of my best training runs ever today at Crowders Mountain State Park. With Massanutten looming in just four weeks, I only have a few opportunities to get good quality long efforts in before my taper. Mason and I have a great day planned for next week up in and around the Black Mountain/Mount Mitchell area. Our friend Adam Hill is planning a route for us that I am sure will be phenomenal. I wanted to get a really solid workout on some technical trails with some good elevation change. My plan was to use today's run and next weeks run as "test runs" for MMT. Today I tested out the Montrail Streaks, which are what I plan to use at MMT. I will give a full review in a separate post but suffice it to say, I really like these shoes. I also tested out a new waist belt from Nathan that worked like a charm. All in all, today's run was fantastic. Over the course of about 5 hours, I got 28ish miles in and close to 6,000 feet of elevation gain. Crowders has several options for loops and I combined several sections to create the hilliest run I could. Some keys about this run:

Nutrition worked great, ate a GU every 45 minutes and some shot blocks on the hour (I also ate two peanut butter sandwiches and drank a 20oz. Gatorade on the way).
Hydration - drank GU2O for the first 2 hours and then switched over to water
Had no ankle or foot issues throughout the entire run
Finally think I have managed to get 100% comfortable "picking lines" to run on technical terrain rather than trying to "hop" from rock to rock in a timid fashion. I am certain that running with confidence and committing 100% to the "line" played a big role in my not only not rolling the ankle but also staying upright all day.
The weather was a hodge podge, warm at first and then windy and cool as the showers moved in during the last 2 hours of the run.
I had a ton of FUN today working the hills and running in the rain. What a blast!

I have really noticed that my climbing has gotten A LOT better. There is a ~2 mile climb that used to take me about 40 minutes (when training for GEER back in the fall) that I did today in 30 minutes! I also came back down about 3 or 4 minutes faster for a round trip improvement of almost 15 minutes. This is a big boost for me going into MMT. I was so jacked after the run that I started calling folks to tell them about it, which is something I rarely do. Hopefully next week will go as well as today did. I will write more about the Streaks in the next couple of days.

Alexander Supertramp

2008-04-15T15:49:00.003-04:00

I saw the movie Into The Wild this past weekend and thought it was a great story. I started reading the book a couple of years ago but got sidetracked and never finished it. Alexander Supertramp is the name moniker adopted by Chris McCandless during his journey across America and to the Alaskan wilderness. The story certainly has adventure at its heart but it also unmasks many of the pitfalls in our society today including the obsession of most folks with materialism, status and bank account balances. One of the best lines in the movie is when Alex notes how amazed he is at just how bad people generally treat each other every day. Think about it. How often do you get angry over such minuscule details such as someone driving too slow, talking too loud or looking too different? I now I do far too often.

My rant does have some running content. As I watched the movie I was reminded of several parallels with ultra running and trail running in particular. See, I admittedly used to be obsessed with materialism and even owned a Rolex at one point (I know, ludicrous). Discovering trail running (through ultras) in 2006 introduced me to a purer form of myself. Over the last two years, I have developed much more appreciation for the "simpler" things in life such as my family and frolics through the woods testing my endurance. Tony Krupicka is often noted for his "minimalist" approach to life and how running through the woods exposes his own "primal existence". I can certainly identify with that, at least on some level.

Anyway, my training is going very well as I have about two more solid weeks before tapering for Massanutten. I feel very good both physically and mentally and am starting to get details such as crew and pacers all worked out. A couple of epic training runs await including a beast of a day next week with Mason. Details/report to follow afterwards. Definitely check out Into The Wild either in print or on the screen and see if you can unleash your own Alexander Supertramp from within.

Pacing

2008-04-07T14:06:00.002-04:00

I drove up to the Umstead 100 this weekend to volunteer as a pacer. This is the first time I have done pacing duty and ended up running with my friend John Straub. I really liked the whole pacing thing - helping someone finish their race, previewing a race course, etc. What I found I enjoyed the most was the camaraderie with the runner and learning things that will help my own race efforts.

John ran a great race. When I arrived, I soon found that he was on loop 6 (75 miles) rather than loop 5 (62.5 miles) as expected. We got right to work once he was ready and I would run with him for both of his final two loops. He said he felt okay but that his stomach was not cooperating - gels were intolerable so he was relying on Boost, PBJ and shot blocks. As this was a loop course he had several landmarks that he was using to mix up the run/walk combination. A very good idea and one that can be applied in point-to-point races as well. We kept the pace up and I did my best to push him as much as I could and it seemed like we were passing someone every 10 minutes or so. We checked into the aid station and after a quick stop headed out to the "sawtooth" section of undulating ups and downs. We power walked the uphills and bombed the downhills. Soon we were at the turnoff and a bit later back at the start/finish. John took some Tylenol and I grabbed some more gel and changed out of my long sleeve shirt.

We walked the first mile to let John recover some and then began to pick up the pace. John did not know it, but when we left on loop 7 he was in 20th place and we passed a lot of people on the last loop. Many of these were folks a lap or two behind us but I was sure he had picked up several spots. More importantly, he wanted to break 23 hours and it was only 12:00AM so I knew his goal would be met. I did not share any of this with him until much later and focused on pushing him to keep going. Even when we walked, it was at a good clip and when running, I could tell he was really giving it his all. Before long, we were back at the aid station and I decided to carry his drop bag with me so he wouldn't have to worry about waiting around for it.

Shortly after leaving, John "lost" all the calories he had just ingested but with less than 5 miles to go we were not worried. I adopted a "nobody gets by" approach at this point, John just didn't know it yet. I would really push the walk up the hills and John was right there. I would hammer the downhills and he was right there. We topped off at the last water stop and about 1.5 miles from the finish my watch read 2:22 AM so I spilled the beans:

Me: "John, what was your time goal again?
John: "Sub-23 hours.:
Me: "Do you think you can run 1.5 miles in 38 minutes?"
John: "Um, yeah, why do you ask?"
Me: "Cool, because that is what you need to break 21 hours!"

John was siked and I was glad I didn't say anything until now. We declared that the new goal was 20:45 and took off. We passed Jaret and got to the turnoff an my watch read 2:32, so the goal was again changed. I told John to GO! and he did in an effort to get in at 20:40. His final time was 20:40:56. Upon finishing, I strolled over to the leader board.

Me: "Um, John you are top 10 overall."
John: "No way."

It WAS true, John was 8th male and 10th overall. What a great race for him and a great experience for me. While I take no credit for John's result, I do think my presence helped keep him focused and made time go by more quickly. I think there are some key things every pacer should do when jumping in to run.

-Asses the "status" of your runner - hydration, stomach, fatigue, etc.
-Be assertive but remember "who" is boss - the runner.
-Subtly find ways to push them and keep them motivated and encouraged.
-Ask often about electrolytes, pain, feet, etc. as they are likely to forget things late in the race.
-During rough patches, let them recover but keep them focused on hydration/calories.
-Be prepared to run in silence or to talk your head off - whatever the runner prefers.
-Have fun and stay in good spirits yourself.

Not exhaustive but this also would serve anyone well to do this in your own races. I look forward to hopefully pacing more in the future.

LaSportiva Raceblades Review

2008-04-01T16:15:00.004-04:00

There has been a good bit of press recently on LaSportiva. They have really stepped up with sponsorship for a number of well known ultra veterans including Karl Meltzer, Mark Tanaka and Emily Baer. They have sponosored a mountian running team for several years and have had several notable athletes excel at many distances on trails. Their shoes have gotten a lot of press over the last couple of years as the "minimalist" approach to shoes has caught on. I tried some Inov-8 shoes last year and really liked the flexibility but the shoes were just a bit too narrow for me. I also am a big guy at 6'2" and 183 lbs so I have to be a little careful not to use "too little" shoe. With all of that qualification, here are my thoughts on the Raceblade.

I really like the whole set-up of this shoe. It has a very flexible sole and a real "grippy" outsole. I also like the extra protection around the toebox and the general lower profile of the shoe. Even the "Ferrari-esque" color scheme is tolerable. Perhaps my favorite feature is the connected tongue of the shoe. The shoe goes on kind of like a wetsuit booty and fits nice and snug around your foot. Although I haven't run on dusty trails with them, I expect that this will help to keep small rocks and dust out. I tested the shoes a couple of weeks ago while down in Georgia with my family during my kids spring break. I ran some fun trails in and around the Okefenokee Swamp Recreation area. They were flat as a pancake but with a lot of rain in the days before, they were muddy and slick in several spots. I managed to put about 40 miles on the shoes over 4 days and had no issues with them at all. I even ran about 4 miles on asphalt with them and they worked great. The shoes drained very well and did not give me any blisters. The question remaining was how will they work on technical trails and should I use them in a 100 miler?

I ran the Bel Monte 50 Mile in these shoes and the course was a beast (as my previous post says). Lots of rocky trails and a good number of water crossings. I had no issues whatsoever in the shoes including no blister or toenail problems. I did turn my ankle several times but blame my lack of recent rocky trail running for that and not the shoes. Again, the shoes drained very well after several ankle deep water crossings. In short, I really like these shoes a lot and think they are an excellent choice for me. However, I only expect to wear them during the first half of Massanutten. These shoes would be great for someone who is very good at picking lines through very technical terrain, which I am not. I tend to just hop from rock to rock in the really gnarly sections and think a more substantive shoes (i.e., Montrail Vitesse or Vasque Mercury) is more appropriate for this. Particularly in the later stages of Massanuteen when I am fatigued and the rocks grow in size. For me, this shoe is ideal for up to 50 miles or perhaps a 100K distance or a 100 on gentler terrain than MMT. I have not tried the Fireblade but Karl Meltzer seemed to really dig it during the Coyote Two Moon.

I may try the Fireblade later in the season and if so, will post a review. With MMT only a month and a half away, I am hesitant to try something new at this point. LaSportiva shoes are definitely worth checking out.

%@#*&% - A Bel Monte 50M Report

2008-03-28T15:35:00.002-04:00

One word sums it all up - TOUGH!! This was the 4th annual Bel Monte Endurance Run and the inaugural year of the 50 mile distance. I ran the 50K last year which I appropriately dubbed the "Bel Monster". Well, this year the Bel Monster returned in all her glory and did not disappoint. This is probably the worst race I have ever had in terms of finish time yet one of the most rewarding efforts I have managed since getting into ultra running.

A group of us from Charlotte drove up early on Friday and helped out some with the pre race set-up activities. We all remarked how wonderful the weather was and how great it was to not be in a corporate office on such a fabulous day. The starting temp was expected to be in the low 30s but if it was below 40 I would be surprised. The sky was dark but clear and we started what would be a beautiful day of running in the mountains. I started out hard, probably too hard but I wanted to try and cover the first couple of sections in a quick time, which I did. Unfortunately, I did twist my ankle pretty badly on the descent down Kennedy Ridge but I still managed to get there ahead of schedule. The temps warmed up pretty quickly as I headed down the road towards the next aid station but I was still making good time and the level surface helped to stretch out my ankle a bit.

I felt great as I left to go down toward the Torrey Furnace. This was my favorite section of the course as it was entirely single track and had a fun downhill to the furnace. Unfortunately again, I rolled my ankle severely as I neared the bottom. It really hurt but I took it easy and got to the climb back up. The laws of gravity are unfortunate sometimes in that what goes down must eventually go up:-). My ankle was throbbing but I got some Advil and that really helped. I felt very good otherwise. The next section was a long out and back along the Mill Creek trail with several ankle deep water crossings. The cool water felt good and I continued to make decent time. At this point I knew running a good time was out the window so I just focused on moving forward and figured this would be an excellent training run for Massanutten (after all that was why I entered this in the first place). At the end of the trail there is a lovely series of switchbacks that just suck the life out of you. I was pretty pleased with my effort here and with the plunge back down as I managed to make it without rolling the ankle.

After finishing the Mill Creek section again we spilled out onto the road section from earlier in the day and I decided to try and push as hard as I could manage. I knew I had a beast of a climb next and the most technical section of the race in the final 13 miles so if I was to make up some time, this was my chance. I passed about 11 people in this 3 mile section. Although 4 or 5 would later re-pass me on a downhill, running the road section fast was definitely a good idea. Next up was the climb back up Kennedy Ridge. I hoped to make good time here and wanted to get to the jeep road up top it in less than an hour and I did, 56 minutes to be exact. I then ran most of the way to the final aid station and...you guessed it, rolled my ankle yet again about 50 yards from the station.

I filled up and headed out hoping to make decent time on the last section. Very soon you face a very technical ridgeline section that rolls up and down. I just did not have the confidence to run the downhills on it so I ran the flats and tried to run some of the uphills. I know this is kind of weak and whiney but I figured better safe than sorry. This kept me moving and before too long I was at the one mile plunge down to the road to the finish. I power walked/stumbled down and then ran the final road/trail section into the finish to cross the line in 12:20. I had hoped to break 11 hours but most folks ran about 60 to 90 minutes slower than expected. Considering Mike Mason, the overall winner ran close to 9 hours and fast guys like Greg Loomis barely broke 10 hours, this was definitely a beast of a course. In fact, very early on they extended the final cutoff to 12:30 from 12 hours. As slow as I was, I was pretty much mid-pack. Of the 100 or so that started, only 60 finished!

I was pretty dejected after the race and even into this week but I am over it know. My focus is Massanutten and getting prepared for it and this race went a long way to do that. In fact, I would argue that this 50 miles is harder than either half of Massanutten. Also, not to make excuses but I have not run much on technical trails yet this year so that is a likely reason for the lack of confidence and the ankle rolls.

What a beautiful day in the mountains and I had a blast seeing folks on the course. I also ran in the LaSportiva Raceblades, which worked great. I will post a brief review of the shoes shortly.

Thanks to Gill, Francesca, Marty, Sniper and all the other volunteers who put together such a fantastic race. The aid stations were well stocked and the course was very tough but also very scenic and enjoyable. Definitely a race I will return to.

Bel Monte Preview

2008-03-19T08:49:00.002-04:00

Well it's finally here - the first ultra of the season. The Bel Monte Endurance Run 50 Miler. After an extended break at the end of 2007, I focused my training on setting a marathon PR which I successfully did at Myrtle Beach in February. My fitness level and mental confidence are both in a good place for this point in my season. Despite some difficult work and general life issues, I have been able to channel much of my energy into training and Bel Monte will be an excellent opportunity for me to assess where I stand. The course will be a beast as the 50 mile option is new and features about 12,000 feet of climb and an abundance of rocky trails. The 50K option is no walk in the park with over 7,000 feet of climb. Both attributes are key for my training for Massanutten, which is my focus race for the first half of 2008.

Last year, I ran the 50K at Bel Monte and the race was dubbed the "Bel Monster" due to the multitude of difficulty I faced, most of which was self inflicted. I have learned a lot since then and hopefully will not make the same sophomoric mistakes. But, should I do so, hopefully I can overcome them much more effectively. I will also be wearing the LaSportiva Raceblades that I have been running in lately. I love the feel of these shoes and am curious how they will feel after running a technical course for an extended period of time. I will include a report on the shoes after the race along with my usual report.

Goal time? I don't really have one (at least that I will admit to). I hope to run well and think that I can post a pretty nice time if all goes to plan. As for predictions, I think Mason is the obvious choice for the win. He is in shape and will be on fresh legs. He grabbed third at GEER 100K only 3 weeks after taking top 5 at Wasatch and we will cover much of the same course. The weather looks to be ideal as long as the wet stuff stays away. Stay tuned for the report.

Also, the Coyote Two Moon is cranking up this Friday. This is a new race that "replaced" the Coyote Four Play run put on by Chris Scott of C4P fame. Coyote Two Moon looks to be a heck of a course with a 100K and 100 mile option. Interestingly, it features a staggered start so that everyone finishes within a four hour window. The faster you are, the later you start. Some notable names are running including Meltzer, AJW, Koerner and Ishikawa. On the ladies side, not a lot of household names but Betsy Nye looks to have a good shot. That is who Meltzer is picking so who am I to disagree. The men's race will be interesting. Meltzer is definitely fresh and is a mountain specialist and I don't expect Koerner or AJW to run hard after Cool and with States beckoning. The wild cards are Ishikawa or Justin Angle. At the end, I think Meltzer grabs it. Will be fun to watch.

Catching Up

2008-03-13T09:00:00.004-04:00

Things have been pretty hectic the last several weeks but training continues to go very well. Since Myrtle Beach I have gotten in two long runs (one 22 miler and one 34 miler) and a good bit of up tempo/speedy stuff. My next race is the Bel Monte 50 miler on March 22 and I feel pretty strong coming into it. Interestingly, I have run almost 100 miles more in 2008 than I did at the same time last year. Plus the majority of these "extra" miles are at a much quicker pace. I expect this added base building will serve me well at Massanutten. My left knee is a little achey (perhaps too much last week) so I am taking a bit more time off this week than planned. I am not really planning on tapering for Bel Monte since it is primarily a training run for Massanutten. Also, I have not written much about the vegetarian thing much but that is going very well. I still eat meat about once a month but am limiting that to seafood. I have not eaten any red meat since Thanksgiving with the exception of a cheeseburger after Myrtle Beach. I will write a preview of Bel Monte next week.

There have been a lot of great ultra performances the last few weeks. Anne Lundblad ran a very fast 5:38 at the Mt. Mitchell Challenge breaking Annette's course record (5:50). Annette herself ran an impressive 3:54 at the Black Mountain Marathon to take the women's top spot. By the way, both of these women are 41 years young! Who says speed goes away with age?! Annette followed up the marathon win with a 4:36 at the Way Too Cool 50K last weekend for 13th woman. Pretty impressive considering she is coming off injury. These two women should be an inspiration to us all.

There have been many impressive male performances as well including Michael Wardian's 2:55 at the Camusett 50K in New York setting a US 50K Road Championship record. Andy Jones-Wilkins also ran a 3:31 at Camusett and 6 days later cranked out a 4:04 at Way Too Cool. And, he is running the Coyote Two Moon 100 next weekend. With these strong performances look for a strong race at Western States by AJW, perhaps the masters course record. Speaking of Way Too Cool, the Oregonians dominated taking 10 of the top 25 spots including the male and women's winners. Sussanah Beck of Eugene broke Anne Trason's record by 4 minutes running a 3:55 en route to the women's title and 25th overall. Other strong OR performances were turned in by Todd Braje (overall winner in 3:32) Hal Koerner, Jeff Browning and Ian Torrence to name a few. In fact, Browning and Torrence had quite a battle down the last stretch.

This year is showing signs of being a tremendous year of performances and Meltzer, K. Skaggs, Tony K. and Jurek haven't even really raced yet. Although Tony K. and K. Skaggs did tie for the win at the Moab Red Hot 50K. As a humble mid pack runner, I am tremendously inspired to see these top athletes run so strong. Seeing performances like Anne and Annette at the Mount Mitchell races and the success of Jeff Browning (a self-proclaimed former mid-pack runner), gives credence to the "best performances are yet to come" argument.

Myrtle Beach Marathon

2008-02-20T15:01:00.002-05:00

I had a feeling that a good race was likely in order when the accordion player started cranking out Stairway to Heaven and Bob Marley's Is This Love in succession. More on that later.

Myrtle Beach is the last marathon I ran before getting into ultras in 2006. I have been eyeing it over the last year as a possible spot to go for a marathon PR. My previous marathon performances have been lackluster at best with most in the 3:50s and one just inside 3:48. Therefore, I figured with the improvements I have achieved in both physical and mental fitness that I had a significantly better marathon time in me. So I signed up and figured I woould focus my early season trainning on speed and tempo style workouts to try and get some better leg turnover. I really wanted to run a time in the low 3:30s and hopefully give myself a shot at breaking 3:30. As my previous posts have indicated, I have been in a bit of a funk since mid-January and my training has not gone as well as I would have hoped. I have gotten some good quality workouts in but the focus just has not been there. I resolved that I would go to Myrtle Beach and give it my best and hopefully give myself a chance to break 3:45 or possibly even 3:40.

My friend Don and I drove down from Charlotte on Friday afternoon and had a mostly uneventful trip save for a few missed turns and a minor traffic delay. We got to the packet pick-up and were amazed at the volume of folks around. One thing I do enjoy about races is the pre-race buzz that is in the air and with 10,000 entrants for the various events, the Myrtle Beach expo was humming. I ran into fellow NC ultrarunner Joey Anderson who was doing his second marathon in as many weeks and still has the Mt. Mitchell Challenge this weekend. Talk about endurance. Don and I grabbed our stuff and milled around the expo hall for a bit but soon left to grab some dinner and get to the hotel.

We settled in at Villa Romana for diner and the food was excellent. The entertainment was an accordion player who was just annoying enough to keep the conversation flowing. He serenaded the dining room with an eclectic mix that included a score from Phantom of the Opera, several 1970s classic rock songs, a bit of reggae and even a rendition of Frank Sinatra's New York, New York (at least that is what it sounded like to me). We were also treated to learning all about the insurance business and getting a full rundown of the latest white supremist issues as the tables on either side of us engaged in a spirited discussion. After our fill of declaration pages, deductibles and racial epiteths, we headed to the hotel to crash.

Morning came and the weather was perfect as we jumped on the shuttle bus to the start. Temperatures were in the low 40s and it looked to be a fabulous day for running. At 6:30 we were off and I quickly weaved my way through, stopping to run with Joey and his friend (and cancer survivor) Karla. What an inspiration Karla should be to all of us. My plan was to run a steady 1:53 first half and negative split the second 13.1 to get in under 3:45. I settled into a comfortable pace and soon relaized I was clicking off 8:00 miles, which is pretty quick for me. I tried to settle down and back off to 8:30 pace but by mile 11 realized that I had likley gone out too fast. I didn't feel bad and in fact, felt great. However, I was concerned that I was going to run the first half more than 5 minutes faster than planned.

As I approached the halfway mark a voice called out that they recognized me from a marathon two years ago. Turns out this was Robert who ran with my 4 hour pace group at the Thunder Road marathon in 2006 and was hoping to break 3:30 today. As we crossed the halfway mark I lamented that 1:47 was much faster than I wanted to run but figured any "damage" was done. I felt great and was just worried about the miles yet to come. We decided to wotk together and switch off pacesetting each mile. We managed to bang down several sub-8:00 miles up through the mile 20 point where I backed off a bit to preserve my legs for a strong finish. I was a little behind on fluids so I drank several cups and downed another gel and got back to work. I ate a gel every hour and also at miles 20 and 23. I was drinking sportsdrink and water at each aid station stop and took an S-Cap at the start and again at mile 20.

I settled in for the final 10K and slowed a bit through mile 22 and then tried to push to the finish. The race was going incredibly well and I knew that breaking 3:30 was an outside shot. All day I kept waiting for the inevitable "blow-up" but it never came. Around mile 24 I coould feel the fatigue coming in but I labored on and crossed in 3:33! That is a new marathon PR for me by almost 15 minutes. The last time I ran Myrtle Beach I ran a 3:57 fighting a head cold the whole way. Suffice it to say that this year was a bit more successful. I was pumped as the result was way beyond my expectations. Working with Robert definitely helped me to push a bit more in the second half and allowed for a second half split of 1:46. While I was very surprised with my time, I was even more surprised that I could have ran a bit harder earlier and not blown up at the end. No need to psychoanalyze since I am extremely pleased with the result. I ran a little slower in the final 10K because I knew sub-3:40 was in the bag as long as I ran smart. Anything better was gravy.

After the race, I ran into Mark Long who ran a strong 3:25 ahead of Mt. Mitchell this weekend and Boston in April. After getting a shuttle back to the hotel, Don and I made the jaunt back to Charlotte. The weather was perfect all day and the course had good spectators along the main corridors of the course. Hopefully, this PR will set the stage for a successful 2008 for me.

Myrtle Beach Marathon Preview

2008-02-14T22:35:00.002-05:00

I am headed down to Myrtle Beach, SC tomorrow to run the marathon on Saturday. This was orignially billed as a PR attempt but my training has not been as great as I would have liked. All the stuff going on has been a bit of a distraction and I am just not sure what kind of legs I have. I know that I will run a smart race as I have "matured" immensely as a runner since my last run there in 2006 (before I caught the ultra bug). The weather looks to be fantastic and hopefully the wind will stay at bay or at least behind us. Hopefully all will come together and I will have a great day and get that PR. If not, if I can run a smart race and get some good training in as I transition to my ultra season, it will be a successful trip. Stay tuned for a report later this weekend.

Baby Steps

2008-02-07T21:53:00.000-05:00

My "funk" has gotten some better over the last week or so. I have gotten some quality runs in including a couple of speedwork sessions and have been pleased overall. Perhaps a little time "away" was helpful. I have the Myrtle Beach marathon next weekend where I hoped to run a PR. I still hope to PR but have tempered my expectations a bit as I am not where I feel I should be in my training. That said, with a solid week this week and next who knows... I haven't tried to run a good marathon time since starting ultras so it will be interesting to see how I do. As with all races, as long as I have fun and perhpas learn something, the race will be a success.

Work is still work and while all of the life situations are not great, I have a better perspective from which to sort things out now. I talked with a running mentor of mine this week about a lot of the "stuff" and his thoughts and comments were very helpful. He has dealt with the whole "corporate thing" before so he understands that aspect of life. I have found that just laying it out to folks helps to some extent. I am really looking forward to getting cranked up for the Bel Monte 50 miler in March. I am sure that will be a tough yet very rewarding race. it will also be very good training for my favorite "rock concert" in May known as Massanutten.

These are all baby steps but at least it is a start.

Dark Days

2008-01-28T12:55:00.001-05:00

Many of us have heard of the "dark moments" term often used to describe difficult times in a race. How we handle those moments often means the difference between success and failure. I am in the midst of some serious "dark days" right now. I will spare all the details but suffice it to say, I am under immense pressure due the current market environment and how financial institutions are "performing". Some very difficult decisions are going to have to be made as a result. Aside from the overall funk I am in, I am also not motivated to train. Running provides such a much needed release for me and it is difficult to cope with all of this without it. I wish it were as easy as lacing up the shoes and heading to the trails, but I just don't have the motivation. Hopefully it will pass. I have always wondered if I don't suffer from depression from time to time. While I have never been diagnosed, it sure feels like it right now.

My situation is not all bad, I have a healthy body and the ability to pursue my adventure interests. Things could certainly be worse on the job front - I could be in the position of not having one. All of that said does bring perspective but doesn't makes things easier. Hopefully, I will push through all of this soon but until then I would appreciate your prayers and/or thoughts.

Knocking Some Rust Off

2007-12-29T16:31:00.001-05:00

Today I officially ended my break from running and over the next couple of weeks, will get geared back up for the early races in 2008. While the break has been very good both mentally and physically, I was psyched to get back out there. I did my best to stay in shape by riding the bike, training on the elliptical machine and doing slow easy runs. However, I definitely lost a good bit of speed (not that there was that much to begin with) and some overall fitness but overall felt okay today.

Mike and I ran in the trails at Kings Mountain State Park which is about 45 minutes from Charlotte on the NC/SC border. It is adjacent to Crowders Mountain State Park, where I did a good bit of training for MMT this year. I have been to the park before but never to run. I really liked the trails and found it an ideal place for both tempo runs or easy recovery pace runs. While there are no big climbs, there are several rolling sections (especially on the back side) that give you a nice break from flat terrain. There are a couple of spots that would be good for mini hill repeats as well. I had limited time this morning so I only did one loop plus an add on section up to Brown Mountain. It is listed as about 17 miles but I think there was at least one extra mile tucked in there somewhere.

I really noticed some fatigue in my legs (especially hips and quads) after about 2 hours. That is not surprising to me since I have not been running lately and did give a decent effort early on. I also bonked somewhat after about 2.5 hours, likely due to being a bit behind on calories. The weather was surprisingly humid which made the 50 degree temps feel much warmer - 30 minutes into the run and I was already drenched. I managed to roll my left ankle a couple of times which felt wonderful. :-) Towards the end of the season this year I had overcome my seemingly chronic ankle-rolling ways but a month away from the trails provided a window for them to creep back in. I iced it for a bit this afternoon and it feels okay now.

I would be lying if I said the loss of speed and some fitness didn't bother me but a wise man once said that the first run after a meaningful break should be difficult, otherwise you didn't take a long enough break. Mike made a good point in that my endurance seemed fine and the fitness will come back before I know it. I hope to run on these trails much more this year and could even envision putting on a race there someday. 2008 is a year that I have big expectations of myself (preview to follow soon) and am excited about taking the first steps today. Hope everyone has a Happy New Year!

New River Trail 50K

2007-12-20T21:30:00.000-05:00

I wanted to post some information about a new 50K trail race planned for 2008 - the New River Trail 50K. The inaugural event will take place on October 11, 2008 in Fries, VA, which is about 13 miles from Galax, VA near the NC/VA border. This region has some fantastic trails and natural areas and will no doubt make a great locale for a trail race. The race is being organized by ultra runner extraordinaire Annette Bednosky. Annette needs no introduction but for those whose head has been underground for the last few years, she is an accomplished ultra running veteran with wins at several races including Western States, Rattlesnake and most recently, Hellgate. If her RD ability is half of her running prowess, we are all in for one heck of treat come October.

Proceeds from the race will go to The National Committee for the New River (NCNR) an organization that protects, restores and educates about one of the oldest rivers in the world. The New River's watershed includes North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia and the NCNR does work in all three states. Entrants will also have the opportunity to make a contribution to NCNR's Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Program. This option will be included on the registration form at active.com (link included on the race website).

Annette is striving to have this be a "green" race, using local, recyclable items and products from companies with "green" practices as much as possible. In the spirit of being green, minimal disposable materials will be used and those that must be disposable will be recyclable. Finally, she is striving to have 75% of the goods used for aid station supplies and runner giveaways come from local manufacturers and/or growers. Way to go Annette! This is a great way to support the local economy and help out Mama Earth at the same time! This is something we should all do more of. I know what my plans for October 11th are and encourage readers to visit the race website to learn more and sign up through the online registration link. You can also contact Annette through the website with any questions that you have.

Best of luck to Annette with the New River Trail 50K. This is sure to be the first year of a great event. Be sure to check out the website and learn more about the race and the causes it supports.

Random Blabble

2007-12-11T10:24:00.001-05:00

This time of year is one of my favorites, a time that I look forward to throughout the year. It is ironic, given how much I enjoy running, that I get so much enjoyment from a time when I do hardly any running at all. Perhaps it is the joy that the little boy in me gets from the Christmas season. I think a big part is that I don't have a schedule to follow - training or otherwise, which provides a much need mental break for me.

At the same time, I am anxious about the coming year and the goals I am already setting for myself in my mind. January is going to be a painful month with lots of track and tempo runs as I get ready for the Myrtle Beach Marathon. I haven't tried to race a marathon since I started ultras (not that my previous performances were races per se) and am curious as to what kind of time I can put up. I am hoping for something in the 3:30 range. While this is very slow for many of my blog readers, it would be a huge improvement for me and would be a terrific way to start off the year. I am not going to obsess about the time in training (yeah right) and will be satisfied as long as I give my best effort (and don't wimp out).

One thing I have learned from running ultras and the people I have met is that success can measured differently in each race. Those that can adapt as conditions change (including just having a bad day) are stronger both mentally and physically since they can "find the other gear" or be smart enough to even shut it down. As I look ahead to 2008, I want to continue to develop as a runner and improve my "running IQ" by continuing to run smart races that are within myself and maybe a couple that are on the fray.

The BIG goal for year will once again involve the 100 mile distance. I am going back to Massanutten to try and improve on the 35:02 I posted this year. It was my first 100 and that is a TOUGH course, but I still left a lot out there. I learned some very valuable lessons during the race that I have applied to shorter races but am anxious to see how I can improve. I also plan to adjust my training some to better prepare me. I am also going to try another 100 miler this summer - hopefully Cascade Crest in August. I want to try the longer distance multiple times in a year and also want to experience a race "out west" and Cascade Crest allows for both of these.

Stay tuned for a 2008 preview of sorts where I will provide more details about my goals for 2008. For now, I plan to enjoy a little time off from running so I will go into 2008 with a renewed focus and lots of energy for the miles that lay ahead.

Madness - MMT fills in 45 minutes!

2007-12-05T10:59:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, entry opened for the Massanutten Mountain Trails 100 (MMT) mile race. I ran it this year as my first 100 and really hoped to run again in 2008 to try and improve on my performance. This past weekend the Western States 100 (the most popular 100 miler in the US) lottery was held and had a record number of entrants. How quick would MMT fill this year? Last year it filled in two weeks but only offered a print and mail application. This year entry was online only.

Enter a big wrinkle - I had to travel for work on Tuesday and would have no computer access when entry opened. I knew a buddy of mine would be fully engaged when entry opened so I asked him to enter for me. Good thing too as the race filled in about 45 minutes! Fortunately the race maintains a waiting list so many folks will likely get in through this avenue. I am amazed at how quickly ultra running is growing and how quickly races are filling up. I think it is a phase that will abate in a couple of years but who knows.

A lot of people were upset by the entry procedures and many didn't get in for a variety of reasons. Many want a fairer entry process. I submit that the current procedure (first come, first served) is the fairest. Although I was out-of-pocket all day, I improvised to ensure that I got in the race. I just don't agre with the notion that certain people had an advantage for getting in the race. Afterall, I was on a plane at 33,000 feet when the race filled.

There has been a lot of discussion lately about special consideration for top runners at races. I agree that a certain amount of spots should be reserved for top runners so that the competition level is maximized. Remember all the excitement this summer surrounding Jurek vs. Meltzer at Hardrock? How great would it be to see a battle between Meltzer, Krupicka and Skaggs (to name a few) on a tough course? It is not aboout catering to elite runners but 100% about maximizing the top competition at races. Perhaps even creating prize money for the top finishers. Some may argue that this will make the races more "high maintenance" and require corporate sponsorship, etc. Well folks, if the sport continues to grow the way it has the last several years then these will become realities eventually. Mind you I am a mid pack (at best) runner so I don't have a dog in the top competition/prize money fight.

Vegetarian Bedrock?

2007-11-29T14:15:00.000-05:00

Over the last few weeks I have done a good bit of reading about vegetarian diets. In doing so, I made a number of observations, none of which are very surprising. First, there are a number of "reasons" for choosing a vegetarian diet including improving health, protecting animals and supporting environmental causes. In addition, there is the whole "fad following" concept that is probably the worst reason of all. Second, there are a lot of "famous" people who have adopted various forms of a vegetarian diet including Paul McCartney, Tony LaRussa, Clint Eastwood and athletes Carl Lewis and Amby Burfoot to name a few. Other than Lewis and Burfoot both being athletes, each of these people are very different (other than being famous) yet all adhere to vegetarian diets. It is well noted in the ultra running community that Scott Jurek has achieved great athletic success while following a strict vegan diet. Rather than "follow a fad" or copy a celebrity, I would need to delve into this further to see if vegetarianism (or some form of it) was for me.

I don't think it is realistic for me to completely cut meat at this point but think I can gradually lower my intake over time. The thought being that a more gradual approach will likely be more sustainable in the long run. I began my little experiment after turkey day and have been amazed at the results so far. My two biggest concerns were feeling hungry and lacking energy, neither of which has occurred. In fact, I don't feel as "weighed" down after I eat and my energy level has remained normal. Perhaps the biggest surprise is that I haven't really missed meat all that much. In a nutshell, I just feel better.

I have started reading a book called Vegetarian Sports Nutrition by Enette Larson-Meyer, PhD(foreword written by Scott Jurek) that has been very interesting. One critical point made in the book is the need for variety in your diet. I have noticed that I have fallen into a soup and salad "trap" of sorts this week since those are easy options. For this to be sustainable in the long run, I will need to get smarter about varying my diet (that is true for non-vegetarians as well) so that I don't "burn out". I am looking forward to exploring new recipes and food combinations in a quest to capture the benefits while pleasing my palate. As an athlete a big key will be getting adequate protein to aid in recovery and to promote an overall balanced diet. Stay tuned for updates on this and as always, I would appreciate any advice or tips from others. Below are some links to sites that I came upon during my research.

http://www.goveg.com/

http://www.vegetariantimes.com/

http://www.theveggietable.com/

http://www.kidshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/nutrition/vegetarian.html

2007 Ultra Season Review

2007-11-19T15:58:00.000-05:00

With the completion of Mountain Masochist on November 3rd, my 2007 ultra season is complete. This past year has been my first full year of ultras since "discovering" the sport last summer. It has been a tremendous year of "firsts" and I am very pleased with both my development as a runner and the improved fitness I have achieved. In short, 2007 was comprised of 7 ultra races, each of which played an integral part in my continued development as a runner. The focus for 2007 was the Massanutten 100 (MMT), my first crack at running a 100 mile race. Below are some notable highlights of my 2007 season.

January - completed the Frosty 50K and improved my PR at the distance by more than 30 minutes. Also used the race as a speed workout as I prepared for MMT.

February - completed Horton's Holiday Lake 50K and for the first time, ran strong at the end of a race rather than totally falling apart.

March - ran the Bel Monte 50K and completely fell apart. First there was an electrolyte issue and then dehydration. Managed to finish but ran significantly slower than I hoped.

May - completed the Massanutten 100, by far the hardest physical feat I have ever undertaken. The course was brutally challenging but crossing the finish line was surreal.

I took a much needed 6 week break from running during the second half of May and June. My body and mind needed the break and I was able to resume training in July with renewed energy and determination.

August - completed the Laurel Valley Trail Run, my first "unsupported" race and a huge mental toughness test. This was one of the more scenic courses I have run but the view was costly - 100+ degree temps!

September - ran the GEER 100K as a "comparison" to last year (this was my first trail ultra in 2006). In my opinion this was my best performance of the year. Although my time was roughly the same as 2006, the course was about 90 minutes slower (evidenced by comparative mid pack times). Also, I put together a "complete" race and felt strong from start to finish.

November - ran Mountain Masochist for the second time and was able to run 20 minutes faster than in 2006 despite not running near as hard. This was my 10th ultra race in less than 18 months.

My race times are still not where I want them to be but I am having a ton of fun and realize that improving my performance is going to take some time. I learned a tremendous amount during the year as I gained something from every race that I did. In a nutshell, I feel as though I became a much smarter and confident runner throughout the year. Two things I really hope to improve on next year are leg turnover and toughness. The first will require a little alteration to my training methods. The second will get better with time. I just need to learn to "suck it up" more during the "dark spots" in races. Much easier said than done. Overall, I am really excited about 2008 and hope to reap many benefits from all that was learned throughout 2007.

25 Years of Masochism

2007-11-14T10:08:00.000-05:00

The Mountain Masochist Trail Run ("MMTR") is a legendary if not infamous race in Virginia that celebrated its 25th birthday this year. The race is known for its challenging yet runnable course, scenic fall colors and energetic race director. David Horton (Mr. Energy himself) thinks so much of the runners, that he provides some extra distance (he does this in all his races) to ensure you get plenty of time in the woods. The race is a bit of a homecoming of sorts as it attracts a national field and the pre and post race festivities provide and excellent venue to visit with old friends and meet some new ones.

I signed up fr the race in May as I knew that it would fill quickly with the whole 25th anniversary and all. This would also be Horton's final year as the RD of MMTR as he passed the reigns to Clark Zealand after this year. This made me particularly glad that I was running in the race this year. Although I am still relatively new to the sport, I still have a tremendous appreciation for what Horton has done to promote ultrarunning.

I really had no business running MMTR this year. After all, I was pleased with my effort at GEER 5 weeks earlier and had only logged about 40 miles TOTAL since that time. My original intention for running this year was to go back so a friend of mine could avenge a DNF from last year. However, he was injured and not running. So why run the race? Well, despite my lackluster training I felt that I could still improve on my time last year. Check the results and you will see that rocket speed was not necessary to improve over 2006. So off I headed up to Lynchburg for my second helping of Horton Masochism.

Given my training (or lack thereof) I simply wanted to run a smart race, have fun and hopefully improve over last year. The only section I wanted to run hard was the "loop" where I struggled immensely last year. Once again, John Teed and I would run most of the race together since neither of us were really concerned with posting a great time. We decided to run the opening road section harder then normal to try and bank some cushion on the cutoff and this seemed to work well for us. We were both happy to get that section over with and hit the trails. The weather was perfect, much better than last year and as the sun rose, you could tell it was going to be a beautiful day. The first half of the race was pretty uneventful as we tried to power walk the hills as best we could and really run the flat and downhill sections. We ran a bit with Sophie Speidel before she left us in the dust. Sophie was very helpful to me during a "dark moment" at Massanutten this year and it was great to run a bit with her.

John and I remarked how much more we liked the course this year. Last year's race was a comedy of errors from the time we left Charlotte so it was no wonder we weren't thrilled with the course. The fall colors were close to peak and sections of the course were bathed in bright reds, yellows and orange. The crystal blue sky made for an excellent backdrop as well. We rolled into the AS 10 and Long Mountain Wayside right where wanted to and quickly filled up, got a few things from our drop bags and headed out. John had to head back to retrieve something and I headed on. I would run mostly alone the rest of the day until John caught back up with about 2 miles to go. I settled in to Buck Mountain and made much better time this year. I was amazed at how relaxed I was ad how much I was enjoying the race. before long, I came upon the Loop, which I wanted to run really well. Last year I was in death march mode here and it took me over 1:30 to complete the section. This year I ran very focused but did not push the pace too hard. I covered the loop in just over 1 hour and felt great leaving there. I continued to make steady progress and arrived at Salt Log Gap just as the sun was starting to really heat up. I took it easy on the climb to Forest Valley because I knew the next section was a beast.

Upon leaving the aid station I reflected on how bad I felt at this point in 2006, where I was worried that I might not make it in under the cutoff. This year I knew that I could walk it in and make it with time to spare. I still moved purposefully and tried to march up the steep climbs and pound the downhills. Finally I came upon the final aid station and moved through to get going to the finish - I could smell the barn! After a mile or so of a pathetic shuffle, John caught back up with me and we ran in together to the finish. I did improve over last year by about 20 minutes or so but did not "kill myself" to do so. I really had a lot of fun this year and think running more relaxed was a huge benefit.

After the finish, John and I met up with Jeff McGonnell who finished about 10 minutes before us and watched as the other finishers came in. We saw Tom Green complete his 25th Masochist - the only person to do so and watched our buddy John Teague come in. We then headed back to Lynchburg and headed to the post race dinner. MMTR is the only 50 mile race I have run and I have now completed it twice. Last year it was my third ultra ever and this year it marked my 10th ultra. I am amazed at how much I have learned over the last year and the many friends I have met on the trail. But then again, that is one of the things that makes this sport so addictive.

Thank you to David Horton for his 25 years as RD and thanks to Nancy, his wife for putting up with it. I know we are in good and able hands with Clark Zealand as the new RD. Thanks to all the volunteers and aid station workers, you guys did a great job.

Mountain Masochist Preview

2007-11-02T10:08:00.000-04:00

Today I am heading up to Virginia to run in the Mountain Masochist 50 mile trail run. This is a storied race that is celebrating 25 years in 2007. Since GEER, I have taken a bit of a break and focused most of my efforts on tempo/speed workouts. The weather is set to be near perfect which will be a welcome change from the bone shivering cold of last year. I had a tough time last year battling nausea the final 10 miles to finish in the back of the pack. Then again it was only my third ultra and I am a much fitter and smarter runner this year (hopefully). My only goal this year is to improve over last year and enjoy the time on the trails. I will post a report next week.

Back in the Routine

2007-10-10T10:26:00.000-04:00

After taking all of last week off, I am getting back into a regular running routine. I generally take at least a week off after peak races and my travel schedule last week wasn't conducive to regular workouts anyway. The rest, albeit a short one did me a lot of good both physically and mentally. I am easing back into weights and running this week and with Masochist only 3 weeks from this Saturday, my training will be somewhat measured. I am curious if any readers out there have any tips for "training" for races that follow closely to a peak effort. I do want to improve on last years time at Masochist but realize that my legs will likely not be 100%. However, I am much fitter now than last fall and think I can improve over last year despite not being 100%. My plan is to do two tempo/speed runs, two recovery runs and one medium long (2-3 hours) run each week. Now, if only the weather would become more October-like rather than July-like.

GEER 100K - Perfect Weather, Tough Trails and Legs Late

2007-10-02T16:11:00.000-04:00

The GEER 100K was the site of my first trail ultra back in 2006 and I was anxious to use this year's event as a measure of my improvement since then. The course was changed significantly this year incorporating more single track trail and about 16,000 feet of elevation gain and about 15,000 feet of descent. I feel I have learned a lot over the last year and with finishes at Massanutten and Laurel Valley, I felt very confident both physically and mentally going into the race.

I have really tried to focus my recent training on developing my climbing skills with hill repeats and improving leg turnover with more speed/tempo workouts. An added benefit of the speed work has been the improvement in overall fitness and running form. I knew these aspects of my training would be very important to run well at GEER. I also hoped to be much more efficient in the aid stations as this has been a pariah of mine in past races. I went in to the race READY - I felt as good as I ever have from a confidence standpoint.

The weather was near perfect as the RD sent us off into the early morning towards the first big climb of the day. The first 25ish miles would be shared with 50K runners so it was important to keep that in mind as folks flew by early. My plan was pretty simple - run conservatively for 35 to 40 miles and then pick things up after this point. I am tired of going out too hard only to blow up halfway through. I am also tired of being sooooo slow, and wanted to have legs to really run late.

I settled in early and made good time through the early sections, which were a combination of single track trail, gravel road and a short stint on the Blue Ridge Parkway. I felt really good when I got in to the 25 mile checkpoint and quickly got what I needed and headed out. At this point the 50K runners were headed back so the runners were much more spread out. I continued to run easy down the Kennedy Ridge trail as the toughest climb of the day was looming. Ironically, the climb up Kennedy Ridge would be our final climb of the day so I tried to memorize landmarks. Upon reaching the bottom, I slammed a Balanced protein drink, filled my bottle and headed out. A short gravel road section took us to the climb up the Stony Run trail (miles 32 to ~40). This would be the hardest climb of the day but also the climb that I covered the fastest.

I "attacked" the climb (at least to the extent a mid-pack runner attacks anything) as I wanted to get it over with. I knew that after the mile 40 aid station, we had a nice 7 mile section that was completely runnable that I really wanted to cover fast. I made it up the climb in about 2 hours, which was really quick for me (perhaps too quick?). I got what I needed from the aid station and headed out to run the 7 mile section along Mill Creek. This was my favorite part of the race. We started out with about a 1 mile section down several switchbacks and then covered about 5 miles along the valley floor. The last section is about 1 mile along a forest service road to the aid station. In the two previous races that I have run on this section of trail, I have bonked badly here. I was determined to hammer this sections as best I could and ended up running the whole way, covering the section in 65 minutes. Really fast for me.

Next I took it easy on a 3 mile gravel road section to "save up" for the last big climb up Kennedy Ridge. I was pretty spent though as the hard efforts up Stony Run and down Mill Creek had taken a big toll. Not to mention I was at the 50 mile point and had yet to sit down all day. I put my head down and moved up Kennedy Ridge but knew that I was really slowing down. I just couldn't get the leg turnover I needed to make good time up the climb. I did my best to run the flats and covered the jeep road heading to the aid station well. I made it about 54 miles or so before I turned my headlamp on.

At the 56 mile aid station I grabbed some broth, filled my bottles and took off to get this thing done. I ran all of the jeep road but took it easy on a really rocky (think Short Mountain at MMT) section and then trotted into the last aid station with 5 miles to go. I checked in and out and took off for the finish. I have never had the legs or mental resolve to do this in previous races and I have to admit that it felt GRRRREAAAT (think Tony the Tiger). I ran about 95% of the way in only walking a couple of hills. In fact, I only stopped once to take my final gel with about 3 miles to go. I cranked the final half mile on the road and finished in 15:48, about what I ran last year. I picked up 6 places over the last 12 miles including 3 spots in the last 3 miles. The best part was passing someone about 200 yards from the finish!

Although I ran well all day, I really hoped to post a faster time since I thought my training had prepared me to do so. However, I gave it everything I had and did not waste any time during the race. The truth is, I am just not a fast runner and have to accept that I have a lot more to learn and develop before I will be. That is okay though since I am having lots of fun in the sport as I continue to learn. I try to give myself a break and remember that I have only been at this ultra thing for 15 months. In fact, 24 months ago I was 30 lbs. heavier and was struggling with road marathons much less trail ultras. The RD said the course was about 1.5 to 2 hours slower than last year and comparing times with last year generally supports this. So overall I am pleased with my effort.

I was very efficient in the aid stations, never spending more than 5 or 6 minutes and didn't sit in a chair throughout the whole race. Nutrition and hydration worked the best it ever has. Water/E-caps and a combination of gels and solid foods for the first 40 miles. Then I switched to a sports drink/water mix and ate gels and shot blocks (no solid food at all) for the final 22 miles. Throughout the race I drank a Balanced protein drink every 2 - 3 hours and ate some crystallized ginger about every 2 hours. No foot issues (only one small blister) and my Montrail Continental Divides worked perfectly.

This race was very well done. The course markings were as good as I have ever seen and the aid stations were well stocked with good food and enthusiastic volunteers. At the finish we had warm showers, hot lasagna and the most comfortable chair (wooden bench) my posterior has ever sat on. Definitely one to put on your list of races to do.

GEER Preview

2007-09-27T10:16:00.000-04:00

I will be running the Great Eastern Endurance Run (GEER) 100K this coming Saturday. The race is located just outside Charlottesville and was the location of my first trail ultra. My running has improved immensely over the last year and I am anxious to see how I do relative to last year. I have really put a lot of work into my training and expect it will pay off on Saturday. The course has had some significant changes all of which make the race more challenging. However, the scenery of the Blue Ridge Mountains will make it all worthwhile. The weather outlook calls for temps in the 70s with clear skies. Hopefully the forecast will hold.

One of my goals for this race is to really focus on holding back early so that I can run stronger during the last 20 miles. I want to continue to move purposefully but not open things up too much early on. Another key goal is to be much more efficient in the aid stations, getting what I need and then moving on. I think a key component of this is to avoid any extended breaks at the aid stations. If I need a rest, get through the aid station and rest further down the trail. In my opinion, aid station efficiency and having legs late in the race are two ways to significantly improve ones race times - particular in longer races such as 100K or 100 mile events. Regardless of how the chips fall, I am expecting a fun time on the trails in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. Will post a report next week.

Crowder's Mountain Training Run

2007-09-08T16:11:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I headed over to Crowder's Mountain for a 6 hour training run. This run was important for a number of reasons. First, it would be my final "long" run before the GEER 100K on September 29. Second, it would give me a sense of how much my climbing has improved over the last 8 weeks. Finally, I hoped to test my leg turnover on technical terrain in the latter half of the run. Both climbing and leg turnover late in the race would be critical to my success at GEER.

The weather was warmer than I hoped for but wasn't totally unbearable. I hoped to cover about 31 miles but would start with two 14 mile loops. If all went well, I would add on @3 miles before covering the final 2.5 miles of the second loop. If I had about an hour left at this point, I would add the 3 miles. I would make one stop at my car after the first 14 miles and had two water spots along the route. There were two "goals" for the run. First, I wanted to go out easy and cover the first "half" in just over 3 hours. By doing so, I would hopefully save my legs and be able to push the second half of the run, hopefully breaking 3 hours for the second half. Leg turnover would be critical in achieving this goal. My second goal was to climb strong on the hills and run all but the steepest sections even if it was more of a trot at times.

The hardest climb would be at the beginning of each loop and it went well both times. It was about 2 miles to the top and I was up in around 30 minutes and down in around 20 minutes both times. After the climb, I had a 5 mile out and back that also covered a big climb at the halfway point followed by a nice 2 mile downhill section. This would allow me to not push too hard on the climb and make it up on the downhill. I covered the first 14 miles in about 2:50 (@ 3:10 for 15.5 miles) and felt really good. I quickly refilled my pack and bottle, replenished my gels and shot blocks and was off for the second loop.

I again took the first climb relatively easy but was actually 4 minutes faster up and ~6 minutes faster down. On the next round of the 5 mile out and back, I pushed the pace some(heart rate up to about 160, 164 on uphill sections). After the second climb, I cranked the downhill section (heart rate up to 166) to do a bit of threshold training and to test the quads. I covered the two miles in a little over 15 minutes, which is pretty quick for me. When I arrived at about 2.5 miles to go, my time was about 4:55 so I added the "extra" three miles and decided to push as hard as I could. The hope was to cover the last five miles in under an hour. My legs were pretty tired but it was worth a shot.

The "extra" three miles included the two mile downhill section but added a steep one mile climb on a gravel road. Before getting to the downhill section I had to go up to the Crowder's summit one more time. I ran the gravel section and pushed the stair steps to the summit as fast as I ever have. I pushed the downhill section and again covered it pretty quickly in about 16 minutes. I was pretty wiped but made my way up the steep climb, running all but the steepest sections. My legs were screaming the whole way but I covered the climb in about 12 minutes, leaving me only 17 minutes to break 6 hours for the day - no way that was happening. I stuffed my watch in my pocket and decided to run the last section as best as I could. I opened up and ran as hard as my body would let me, never once looking at my heart rate or time. When I got back, my time was 6:06, I had covered the second 15.5 miles in 2:56 and the last 2 .5 mile section in 23 minutes! These are fantastic times for me.

This was one of my best training runs ever and I accomplished both of my primary goals. I am particularly excited about covering the second half ~14 minutes faster. Also, to see the benefit of holding back early so you can turn it on later is a huge mental lift as well. Hydration and nutrition (gels, shot blocks and e-caps) all went exceptionally well. I also used this run to "test" out the gear I would use during the race and everything went off without a hitch. My confidence level is pretty high as GEER approaches. Hopefully, the race will go as well as the training run yesterday.

September Arrives - Football and Cooler Temps

2007-09-06T15:12:00.000-04:00

Flipping the calendar from August to September always gets me excited. This generally signifies the arrival of football season and a reprieve from the summer heat. In North Carolina, the landscape will soon become picturesque with fall color.

This year September means my training for the GEER 100K (September 29th) is coming to a close. In fact, this week is my last big push with next week being a "mini push" of sorts before I taper for two weeks. Total mileage for this week will top out around 70 with another 50 or so next week. My training has gone very well as I have focused largely on leg turnover and improving my climbing. These are two areas that have limited my performance in some previous races and I wanted to really make a concerted effort to improve these areas. Hill repeats are hard in Charlotte as the longest climb can be covered in about 15 minutes. It is not realistic for me to get to the mountains mid week for repeats so I have had to improvise - treadmill!

I am not a treadmill fan by any means, but my climbing has definitely improved with the addition of 3 x 30 minute repeats on the treadmill at 12 to 14 incline. I usually alternate running and walking every 10 minutes with a 10 minute "recovery" on 0 incline at ~8:00 pace in between the repeats. The results have been good so far but the real test will be in three weeks. I have also done a good bit of tempo and threshold training to improve leg turnover and have incorporated segments of these into my long runs. The improvements from both of these workouts as boosted my mental confidence, which is also a very good thing.

Tomorrow I am headed to the mountains to do about 6 hours on technical mountain trails as my final long run before GEER. Hopefully, the weather will be cooler and my legs will stay strong. Last but not least, my friends Mike Mason and Brennen Wyssong are both running the Wasatch Front 100 this weekend in Utah. This is a tough race that I hope to do someday. Both Mike and Brennen ran very strong at Massanutten this year and I am sure both will do great out west. Good luck guys.

Blisters on blisters

2007-08-19T20:44:00.000-04:00

I know this picture is disgusting but I put it up anyways. In my Laurel Valley report I noted how bad the blisters were on my heels at the end of the run. Well, this picture is three days after the run. Actually, the picture doesn't really do them justice. They are all healed now. Lesson learned - Vaseline is your friend!

Hot! Hot! Hot! at Laurel Valley

2007-08-14T16:57:00.000-04:00

Laurel Valley is an infamous trail run put on by the Runners From Hell running club each August. This year, it felt like the venue was moved to Hell rather than the usual location in the upper northwest region of South Carolina as it has been noted that this was the hottest year ever. This race is unique in that it is purely about the run as Claude (the RD) provides no wicking t-shirts, goodie bags or even aid stations (the remoteness of the race precludes aid stations). The low-key nature of this race is a nice "break" from typical races and allows new generations of ultra runners to get a glimpse of the way the sport used to be (all about the running). You carry everything you need to sustain you on your journey including food, water purification (you drink from the many streams along the course), electrolyte tablets and last but certainly not least, a heaping dose of mental resolve and a dash of stupidity. So what do you get for completing this race? Well, you get a t-shirt and some Coke and pretzels at the finish. You can also order a handmade wooden plaque but have to pay extra for it. What this race lacks in swag is more than made up for in scenic trails that challenge a runners limits forcing you to look deep within yourself for strength on multiple occasions. For me, I gained a new form of mental toughness and confidence that can only be developed by going through such an adventure.

On Friday evening John, Mason and I met up with Byron Backer, Mark Long, Jim Musselman, Stephen Morris and Mohammed Idibi at a local pizza place to fuel up. Afterwards we all headed to Byron's house as he was kind enough to let us all crash there. We spent the rest of the evening reminiscing and talking about past and future races and finalizing our preparations. Everyone turned in early as we had to be on our way before 4:00 AM to drop off cars at the finish and make our way to the start. Once there I talked with several others including Jeff McGonnell, John Teague and Bill Keane about the course. Although it was my first year, I was given a waiver on sweeping since I had sufficient experience with some tough races (the finish at MMT being the crown jewel). Nonetheless I wanted to be certain to show proper respect to a course I had little knowledge of. Key was to stay hydrated, eat properly and follow white blazes. How hard can that be?

We took off promptly at 6:30 AM and I ran most of the first 2 hours or so with John Teed. We pushed a little hard early to try and take advantage of the cooler temps and downhill terrain. Within an hour I began to feel a blister on my right heel. It didn't hurt too bad and there was nothing I could do about it anyways so I just pressed on. All went fine until I got off course and lost John for the remainder of the run. I rumbled around on the wrong side of some whitewater falls for about 25 minutes or so until I finally saw a backpacker on a trail above me and realized where to go. Next I realized that I was getting low on water so I tried to slow the pace. This wasn't too hard as I had to go under a number of fallen trees and had some nice climbs to conquer. Eventually I got to a water source, filled up and went along my way. Several runners passed me in the next hour including Richard Schick who was going for his 10th finish. He looked strong and had a good race on a tough day. I continued to make decent progress but was beginning to feel the effects of pushing too hard early and knew I was behind on fluids. I was eating well and taking an S! Cap (341 mg sodium) every 45 minutes.

My blister had stopped hurting and at my next water stop I found out why, my right sock was red on the heel from where the blister had popped. It looked unsightly but again there was nothing I could do so I kept going. Eventually as I was heading down some stairs I rolled my right ankle, which I had injured during a run up Mt. Mitchell last month. It hurt but was fine until I rolled it again as Mark Long and Richard Sexton were passing me. Mark asked if I was okay and I said I was fine and he moved on. He and Richard also had a good race. Fortunately I had no more problems with the ankle and ran alone for most of the next couple of hours until I met up with Bill Keane, Leon Harmon and Lynn DiFiore as I was getting water. The views to this point had been spectacular with several suspension bridges and waterfalls. I ran with them for awhile and we got off course again briefly but soon found our way back. We continued on but I was really starting to struggle in the heat. I was amazed at how strong Bill and Leon were despite the temps. I took it as proof of the benefit of experience. I hooked up with Lynn and we ran most of the rest of the race together. Eventually we caught up with Bill, Leon and Tyler Peek. Brian Beduhn also caught up with us. Bill, Leon and Brian ran ahead while Tyler, Lynn and I got some more water. At one point we encountered some backpackers who were really cheering folks on. That was a big help for me as I was pretty low on energy at that point.

When we got to the biggest river crossing on the course, the Horsepasture River, Lynn stopped to get in the water for a bit. I should have stopped but ran on to try and make up some time. We continued to leapfrog with Tyler for a bit until he finally left us for good. At this point I was having to stop and rest for a couple of minutes in an effort to cool down. Why I never got in the water baffles me. I knew that any hope of a good time was long gone but I didn't really care since I was using this as a good training run for the GEER 100K in September. I justified that the extra time on my feet would serve me well. Whatever; the things you say to yourself during these runs never ceases to amaze me.

I enjoyed talking with Lynn who now lives in Colorado and volunteered at Hardrock this year. She lives near the course and it was nice to get a first hand account of the scenery there. Eventually, we made it to an intersection in the trail that gave us an indication of what we had left (probably about 4 miles or so on mostly flat trail). We slogged our way through until we saw the sign indicating it was 1.7 miles to the parking area. Lynn mentioned that it was farther. It felt like it was 10 miles as opposed to the 1.7 posted on the sign. Once we crossed the final bridge oer the Whitewater Falls, I was in awe of the beauty of that section. Next up was a scramble over some boulders and then several switchbacks up to the stairs that take you to the top. All told, you gain about 1,000 feet in elevation over the last mile of the course! I had to stop and rest a couple of times on the climb as I was whipped. Lynn ran on as I sat down and wheezed while I searched for energy. Finally I reached the top and ran down the asphalt walkway to the finish in 10:26.

After the finish when I took off my shoes I had some of the worst heel blisters I have ever seen. Others commented that they were the worst they had ever seen. Three days later and they still look like something out of a horror film. This was a very tough race, one that I underestimated but I learned a lot as a result of the experience. That alone makes it worthwhile. In my opinion this race is harder than Horton's Mountain Masochist which is 20 miles farther. Although very difficult, the experience makes me a better runner (a reward much better than any medal or finisher's award) and Coke and pretzels have never tasted so good.

Laurel Valley Preview

2007-08-10T10:09:00.000-04:00

This afternoon I am headed down to South Carolina for the Laurel Valley 35 mile trail run. This is a unique race in that it is totally self-supported. Each runner must carry everything he/she will need and get water from the many water sources along the way. As such, a certain amount of strategy must be employed as you decide what to carry. I am going with a "packing light" strategy and will carry just enough gels, pretzels and S! Caps to get me through about 8 hours. I also will go with two handhelds and a smaller bottle, using iodine to treat the water. This race is a very low-key event, known for the incredible scenery along the way including suspension bridges and waterfalls.

Mason, John and I are headed down together today. John and I plan to run most of the race together. Mason is going for the win so we will likely come in about 2 hours after him. The temperature has been very warm this week (Charlotte topped out at 104 yesterday - the hottest ever) but it is supposed to cool down (to the upper 90s) tomorrow. As with all of my ultra races, I am looking to have a fun day with friends on the trail and enjoy the scenery. I plan to use this race as a long training run for the GEER 100K (my focus race for the fall), which is a little over a month away.

Hopefully, all will go well with the race and perhaps we will get a bit of respite from the heat. Then again, it IS August and it IS South Carolina. When you look at the list of those who have run this race, the list includes a number of well-known veteran ultrarunners throughout the Southeast. I am certain there will be many points of suffering in the searing heat tomorrow, but at least I will be in good company. A few pictures of the course have been included and I will post a report next week.

Back to the Mountains - Day 2

2007-07-23T21:00:00.000-04:00

I had so much fun going up Mt. Mitchell that I decided to check out another "local" trail on Thursday morning. Brian suggested I check out the Kitsuma trail in Ridgecrest, which is literally just off 1-40. I headed over early Thursday morning and was surprised that the gate was open at 6:00 AM. I had a headlamp since I expected it would be dark under the canopy. I knew little about this trail but read that there were some nice switchbacks as you climb to the top. The weather was again near perfect and I decided to take it very easy since a) I was running on unknown terrain and b) I was a little tired from the day before.

I had a lot of fun on this trail and figure it was about a 10 mile loop, with the last portion on an asphalt road. At a picnic area there is a turn and I went left and ended up on the road. Perhaps if you go right you can stay on the trail. Trail was pretty well maintained and is no doubt very popular. Definitely one to consider if you are in the Asheville area.

Back to the Mountains - Virgin Trip up Mt. Mitchell

2007-07-23T20:38:00.000-04:00

After taking a much deserved 4 week break from running (not one step run at all) after successfully completing my first 100 miler, it was about time I hit the mountains again. I eased back into running a month ago and focused most of my efforts on speed/tempo workouts and medium (90 minute to 2 hour) distance runs. Total weekly mileage has averaged around 30 to 35 miles with peak weeks over 40 mpw.

I had to be in Asheville last week for a conference so I decided to take advantage of my luck and attempt a run up Mount Mitchell. I have long wanted to do this run since Mitchell is a noted landmark in NC and also the highest mountain east of the Mississippi River. I checked in with my pal Mike Mason who had recently run the 40 mile Mt. Mitchell Challenge course for advice on a good route. I decided to start from the mile 352 marker on the Blue Ridge Parkway. This would give me a good 3 mile warm-up and cool down run on relatively flat terrain. It would also make my total distance around 16 miles, which I hoped to cover in 3 hours at a moderately easy pace.

The weather was near perfect, about 64 at 8:00 AM but a bit breezy. My route took me up the BRP for 3 miles and onto SR 128 for about 1/3 mile. I then veered onto the Buncombe Horse Trail for about 3.5 miles or so and up the Mt. Mitchell trail for 1.5 miles to the summit. I would then retrace my steps for a total of 16 miles or so. I made good time and felt strong all the way to the Mitchell trail. All along I could smell the evergreens as I was covered by a good canopy most of the way on the horse trail. Unfortunately there was a lot of cloud cover so I missed a lot of scenic views on the way up.

While the Mitchell trail was much more difficult with a lot of steep climbs, I still made good time and was even able to run some of the shorter climbs (something new for me). Unfortunately the summit was closed as they are replacing the observation deck and there was a large log blocking the way so I had to go down the Balsam trail to the parking area. On the way I rolled my ankle pretty badly but was able to keep going after a decent break. My total time up was 1:42, a little slower than I hoped but I hadn't really pushed very hard. I also had stopped to take a couple of pictures and the little break after rolling the ankle. I figure this ate up maybe five minutes total.

I chatted with the rangers at the snack bar for a bit and then headed back. Moved purposefully but cautiously down the Mitchell trail and made it without incident. I then ran all the way back on the horse trail except for stopping to take one picture. I pushed pretty hard here in an effort to make up some time. When I got to SR 128 I ran all the way back to my car. I was fairly tired but couldn't justify walking on pavement. The down trip only took me 1:09, which surprised me as I thought I would be closer to 1:20. Total time was 2:51 and most importantly I had a blast. I will definitely be back for this and may consider the race in February.

Welcome to Bedrock Runs

2007-06-06T14:11:00.000-04:00

Seemed like it was about time for me to create a blog to share my running and life adventures. Since beginning ultrarunning in July 2006 I have completed 7 ultras including my first 100 miler on May 20. I have posted all of my reports from these previous races below. Hopefully everyone will enjoy.

Massanutten Mountain Trails 100 Report - First 100 Miler May 19-20, 2007

2007-06-06T13:58:00.001-04:00

Growing Up at Massanutten:
A First Time 100-Mile Adventure

Late Fall 2006 – Two of my good friends and I decide that we want to go for a 100-mile finish in 2007. After a bit of research we decide that Massanutten is the place to try this. Many would say: “What are you thinking?” or “That is not a good idea” while others would say: “That was my first 100” or “Just keep moving and you will be fine”. That last quote turned out to be quite prophetic…

I am a bit of a “research freak” as those who know me well can attest to. Everything from buying a car to planning a vacation, I get somewhat “consumed” by the details. So as I decided to embark on my first 100 mile attempt at Massanutten one of my first tasks was to print off every piece of information I could find about the race and create a binder that I read and re-read about 20 times since signing up in December. Did it help? In a word, yes. Although it may appear somewhat obsessive, it enabled me to have a little more confidence come race day and at Massanutten, any shred of confidence you can have will be your friend.

Newbie Goes the Distance
To some extent, I am a bit of a “newbie” to ultra running having run my first ultra in late July 2006 (Big Butt 50K in SC). However, since that first race in July, I have managed to complete three more 50K’s (Frosty 50K, Holiday Lake and Bel Monte), GEER 100K and Mountain Masochist. Though relatively new to the sport, I felt that I had learned a lot and was ready to attempt what I viewed as the ultimate challenge. John and DC, two of my friends who were planning to run this with me were more experienced endurance athletes so I knew I had my work cut out as far as training goes. Unfortunately, DC would get injured in March and be unable to run with John and I. Being the trooper that he is, he agreed to make the trip and crew us for the entire race.

I am not going to bore everyone with all of the aspects of my training but will share a “mistake” that I made. Although unavoidable, not making any of the training runs on the course was a mistake on my part. This would have benefited me (although it may well have scared me away) by preparing me for the unrelenting nature of the course.

I am amazed at how quickly the months flew by and before I knew it, we were on the way up to Front Royal on May 18. As we drove up the weather continued to get worse as the dark clouds in the distance never got further away. Weather was bit of concern for me as it can be so unpredictable in Virginia this time of year. I figured it would be very humid during the day and cooler at night so I prepared accordingly.

We arrived at the Ranch, attended the briefing and socialized with some other runners. The weather report at the briefing was not promising – thunderstorms possible from midnight to 9:00 AM. Couple this with the rainstorm commencing outside and it looked like we were in for a muddy, slippery and wet couple of days. We grabbed a bite to eat in town, attended to a couple of last minute details and then headed back to the Super 8 to finalize our preparations. We talked a good bit with other runners including David Snipes, Mohammed Idibi and Brian Beduhn. Mo and Brian were also from North Carolina and would also be going for their first 100 mile finish. Eventually, we crashed and before long it was time to head to the start. John and I caught a ride with Mo and Brian so DC could sleep in a bit since he had a long day and night and following day ahead of him.

Let’s ROCK!!!
The weather turned out to be perfect for running. The high would be about 68 on Saturday and warmer on Sunday but no rain!! I was not near as nervous as I usually am before the start of a race. Perhaps because I couldn’t comprehend the enormity of what I what I was about to undertake. Perhaps because I truly had no other goal than to finish. Sure, I had certain times where I wanted to be at various points in the race but truly, 35:59 was the goal and anything under it was gravy.

I don’t really recall the start other than everyone started running at precisely 5:00 AM. John and I settled into a steady pace and planned to run the entire race together. We figured (hoped) that ones low point would be overcome by the other energy and so forth. Either way, at this point all we had to do was run.

The first several miles went by uneventfully as we were trying to take it easy on the climbs but really hit the flats and downhills. Our thought was to try and “put some in the tank” so that we would have a bit of cushion later. This proved to be a very good idea for us and it felt good to really run some early on. I was amazed at the shear beauty of the views along the course, particularly at sunrise. Seeing the sun come up along the ridgeline confirmed that I made the right choice in choosing MMT as my first 100 miler.

Habron Gap (24.4 miles) to Camp Roosevelt (33.3 miles)
We would not see DC until AS 5 (Habron Gap) at mile 24. We knew there was a big climb after this AS and planned to spend some time at this AS to really fuel up and hydrate well. I also grabbed my sunglasses and Ipod and we were off towards Camp Roosevelt. As we climbed, a variety of music filled my hears: punk rock from my skateboarding days including the Dead Kennedy’s and Sex Pistols, other alternative bands including Flogging Molly and Primus and even a little ska which reminded me of my college days. The music really helped in this section. In my opinion, this is the hardest climb of the race. It IS the first major one, it is in the heat of the day and it just seems to go on forever. I have wavered on which was the hardest climb (they all seem hard) but I really think this was the toughest. We made pretty good time though and really had a lot of fun on the downhills after the climb. We began holding back some since we knew we had a long way to go. This was the only portion of the race where my stomach started giving me a little grief. As for hydration/nutrition, I had a simple plan: 2 GU gels per hour and 30 oz. of diluted Clif drink per hour. I maintained this (avoiding solid foods) through mile 58 and then planned to switch to water and E-caps with some solid food mixed in.

I wasn’t sure what the problem was but I decided to visit the toilets at Camp Roosevelt and hydrate really well. I also put some Icy Hot on my legs as they were starting to ache just a bit.

Beware of the GRIM SWEEPER
One odd occurrence in the early part of the race was my fear of the cutoffs. I had read that Bill Van Antwerp (aka Van Animal and Grim Sweeper) was responsible for warning/pulling runners who were close to or over the time cutoff. I had read that when you see him at an aid station, beware and get going. While we were at Camp Roosevelt, the Van Animal showed up and put me in a panic even though it turns out I was over 3 hours ahead of the cutoff. This “Mania” of mine would stay with me all the way to Bird Knob. Not sure why I couldn’t shake it but it had to be incredibly annoying to John since he had to listen to all this crap.

Camp Roosevelt (33.3 miles) to 211 East (48.0 miles)
I left Camp Roosevelt feeling like a new man and although we spent a long time at the AS, I was glad that I did. John and I began running with David Snipes in this section and would do so through 211 East. On the way to Gap Creek, Sniper showed us where we would rejoin this trail later after leaving 211 East for the second time. We noticed the trail was pretty muddy here and expected it to be much harder when we cam back in a few hours. Eventually we came to the Gap Creek/Jawbone AS (38.9 miles). We noticed that Jay Finkle was dropping due to injuring his back in a fall. It was unfortunate because Jay looked to be having a strong race. I also had DC call my wife Joy to let her know that I was ding okay since the website update likely had not begun yet. I also went ahead and took a couple of Tylenol both for a headache and for some minor pain in my quads. Eventually, we began to make our way towards 211 East.

On the way we came across Gary Knipling, a VHTRC legend of sorts. I had emailed with Gary but had never met him and it was great to finally meet him as we started up Kern’s Mountain. I was feeling pretty low at this point and it was all I could do to keep moving. I recall thinking, how can I feel this bad with not even half of the race complete? I managed to just put my head down and kept pushing on to one of the “highlights” of the race – Waterfall Mountain. The good news was it was a downhill, the bad news was it was a STEEP downhill. So steep, you couldn’t walk but were forced to run. My quads screamed at me as I made my way down but eventually we made it to the gravel road and headed to 211 East. At his point we were passed by a couple of runners including Mike Mason and Brennen Wysong. I have gotten to know Mike since his move to Charlotte and he would go on to a strong 10th place finish. The notable thing about his performance was that he has been somewhat consumed by his new job so his training has been on the light side. Brennen’s report from 2006 was one of my favorites and it was good to see him have such a strong race. We rolled into 211 east and met up with DC a little before 6:00 PM.

I met Sophie face to face finally and she offered me a fruit cup and tons of encouragement. While I was still worried about cutoffs she assured me I could walk it in and break 36 hours. After a bit of rest, John and I headed out to Bird Knob.

211 East (48 miles) to Bird Knob to 211 East (58 miles)
This 10 mile section was really tough for me. The first 2 miles or so (and last 2 miles or so) is runnable as is the fire road into the aid station. Progress was soooo slow for me in this section. I think it seemed so much harder due to the other runners coming back by you. Faces I recognized were Byron Backer, Ed C. and near the top, Brian Beduhn. John went on ahead as he was making much better progress than I and eventually we met up at the top of Bird Knob. I had some very tasty soup and some Gatorade, then topped off my bottles and we headed back. We had our flashlights with us (we grabbed these instead of our headlamps) for the trip down. This proved to be a big mistake as we were unable to run the last section since we could not see clearly enough. We probably cost ourselves a good 15 minutes or so here but we got back to 211 East where we would pick up Eva Rosvold, my pacer. I changed my contacts, grabbed a long sleeve short and my headlamp here and switched over to water and e-caps for hydration. We spent a long time at this aid station but it was probably necessary looking back.

Midnight in the Garden of ROCKS! – 211 East to Edinburg Gap (75.9 miles)
The nighttime portion was here and for the next several hours, we would traverse the course by the light of headlamps with glow sticks as our beacons. The trip to Gap Creek II was pretty laborious given all the mud and the funk I was in. We definitely walked more than we ran, costing us precious time we could have used later. I tried to remember that these things are supposed to be hard and that I was in unchartered territory. Nevertheless, I was getting tired and decided that I would drink a cup of Coke at each aid station to try and give me a boost. Eventually we rolled into Gap Creek II where again, we spent a ton of time in the aid station. I ate some quesadillas and drank some water, filled up and then we were on our way. I forgot to drink the Coke but the next aid station was only a couple of miles away.

We began the climb up Jawbone again and new that we would go straight at the top rather than bear left towards Kern’s like we did earlier in the day. We again met up with Gary Knipling and ran with him some as we headed to Moreland Gap. My feet were bothering me a bit as were John’s so we again made an extended stop. I cleaned off my feet, powdered them (thanks for Zeasorb Mo) and changed my socks. It felt so much better but I could not pull myself from the chair. We sat for probably 30 or 40 minutes here. Part of me was “scared” because I knew that Short Mountain loomed. I did drink a cup of Coke to try and wake up and eventually we started on our way a little after 2:00 AM.

The section over Short Mountain had been on my mind all day. This was the one section that I thought I would need my Ipod. However, after about two hours earlier in the day, the Ipod became an annoyance and I never used it again n the race. I knew this would be a tough section because: a) it was at night, b) I had almost 70 miles on my legs and c) this is MMT where every section is tough.

We started to make pretty decent time and lugged away over the rocks. The sky was clear at first but then we did start to get a little rain. Mercifully it did not last long. For a good hour or so we were part of a “train” comprised of about 10 runners/pacers, including Hans Dieter-Weisshaar. It was fun talking with him about his many races (he is scheduled to run his 100th 100 miler at Hardrock this year). He had a tough day but went on to an emotional finish in spite of a severe list to his right side. In this section I became very discouraged as we were moving at a snails pace. Eventually, Hans and others passed us and went on. John latched on and followed them all the way to Edinburg Gap. Eva was a bit of a saviour here. She had me sit down, eat a gel, take an E-cap, drink some water and just RELAX a bit. I guess I was being a bit hard on myself. I also changed the batteries in my headlamp and we soon began moving again. Eva was using her pacing duty as a nighttime training “run” for her upcoming 100 mile run at Bighorn.

Soon enough we could see daylight coming up and I did get some sense of renewal. It was hard to believe that I had been going for over 24 hours and still had a marathon to go. I ate some of the yummy potato soup at Edinburg and drank a couple of cups of Coke. I kept my long sleeve shirt as I was a little chilled. My spirits were high for a bit until I realized we had another 8+ mile section to conquer.

Edinburg Gap (75.9 miles) to Woodstock Tower (84.1 miles)
This was another tough section for me. It was hard for me to find the strength or willingness to run much at this point. It was starting to get warm and I knew that Eva would need to leave soon since it was taking us much longer than I expected. She hung in there and said that she wanted to try and make the finish with us. I didn’t think this section would ever end but finally (exactly 3 hours after starting it) the aid station came into view and we trotted into the aid station. I was becoming a little concerned about the cutoffs and it had nothing to do with the Van Animal being there. I knew that we had to start moving quicker since we burned up so much time on the last four sections. I dropped my long sleeve shirt, filled my bottles and dropped my hydration pack and we were off. To my surprise, Eva came trotting down behind John and I. She decided to get a ride back to 211 but then realized that DC would not be able to get to Powell’s Fort in time if he took her so she ran this next section with us.

Woodstock Tower (84.1 miles) to Powell’s Fort (89.3 miles)
This was the section where I gave the most pathetic effort. It was extremely runnable and I walked almost all of it. I also complained a lot. One thing I learned is that I get very grumpy after about 24 hours. I was convinced that I was a wimp, a wuss and a pathetic mass of nuttin’ (pun intended). Eva finally told me to shut the %&*$ up and quit complaining. She said: “how can you be a wimp when you have gone over 85 miles?” “I suppose you are a wuss because you didn’t break 24 hours?” This made me realize how ridiculous I was being and from that point on, I quit complaining. John ran on ahead to get a blister looked at and eventually Eva and I joined him. I drank some ginger ale and ate bacon and sausage with a pancake wrapped around it. We bid Eva goodbye and thanked her for everything and John and I headed for Elizabeth’s Furnace.

Powell’s Fort (89.3 miles) to Elizabeth’s Furnace (96.8 miles)
PANIC! That pretty much sums up how we approached this section. I finally realized it hurt to walk as much as it did to run, so might as well run. Also, resting at aid stations wasn’t helping either so might as well keep on going. We ran the entire road section here as hard as we could, trying to make-up some time. The climb was pretty tough but we were rewarded by a long downhill that we could “attack” (to the extent we can attack anything at this point). I had stated earlier that I would like to hit the last aid station by 2:00 PM. In order to do so, we would have to run every flat or downhill and march strongly up every climb. We did just that and passed several people in this section. As we passed more people, our confidence grew and we ran even harder. We came into the aid station at 1:57 PM which was “Freaky Fast” for us and we were thrilled. Even the Van Animal said he was impressed by our effort in this section. At this point I could “smell the hay in the barn” and knew I would finish.

Elizabeth’s Furnace (96.8 miles) to Garden of Eden (AKA Finish)
We still had a doozy of a climb out of Elizabeth’s Furnace (remember what I said about an unrelenting course). It seemed like it would never end. I even tried cussing at the rocks but that didn’t help either. We finally made it over and started the descent, which we were able to trot fairly well. I thought that once we hit the road it was about .25 miles to the finish. Turns out I was wrong but so was the guy that told us 1.5 miles. We were trying to break 35 hours but held back because we couldn’t do 1.5 miles in 10 minutes. Shame on us, if we had kept running at our pace we would’ve broken 35 hours. But, alas who cares. Being a first 100, any finish is a PR. As we rounded the corner and the ranch came into view, John and I did our best to pick up the pace. It was amazing hearing our names called out and surreal when it was all over. I have never been so happy at the finish of any previous race.

Lessons Learned
The title of this report denotes “growing up”, well that is what I did as a runner at this race. I learned the importance of staying positive and the delicate balance of confidence and cockiness. The confidence boost one gets from finishing this race cannot be explained. Even though I was way in the back of the pack, I feel like I could accomplish just about anything. Although I still have been running ultras for less than a year, with a finish at MMT I feel like I have graduated from the “newbie” school. Another critical lesson is to limit the amount that you listen to others to just the basics. Every race is unique for everyone that runs it and what works for Person A could be disastrous for Person B. Also, if someone ever tells you that there are no more rocks after Woodstock Tower, they are LYING!!

Looking back, I really didn’t have any problems at MMT except for the minor stomach issue early on. Hydration and nutrition worked very well, shoes worked great and my feet held up pretty well. Part of me wishes I had a “problem” to blame my tough spots on. The bottom line is MMT is just HARD! It tests you beyond any limits you deem possible and then tests you even more. Glow sticks really are that high up further down the trail. The rocks are literally everywhere.

True Friendship
I have NO doubt that I would not have been able to finish without the help of others, particularly DC. The original plan was for him to run with John and me but due to his injury that was not possible. Rather than sulking about it, he charged up there with us and stayed up both days to crew us and think about all the details we were incapable of. He even washed off my nasty and rank feet at Moreland Gap, talk about a true friend. In Peter Bakwin’s Double Hardrock report (which I re-read for inspiration a couple of days before MMT) he talks about feeling supported during his impressive run. I would say with DC there, I definitely felt supported.

Why This Report?
I remember last summer after running my first ultra, I stumbled upon the VHTRC website and found the MMT reports. Most notably I read reports from Sophie Speidel in 2005 (my initial inspiration for running MMT), Ed C in 2005 and 2006, Brennen Wysong in 2006 and Jamey Groff in 2006. All of these reports (except Ed C’s in 2006) were first time 100-mile attempts at MMT. Hopefully, my report will serve a similar purpose for someone else who is looking for such a challenge.

Thank You
The first thank you goes to God for giving me a healthy body and the strength to undertake such a challenge. The VHTRC and all of the volunteers did a fantastic job in not only putting on a great race but sticking around to cheer us stragglers on at the finish. Russell Gill for all of his help in getting me trained and in the proper mindset before this race. He has been with me since I started doing ultras and is a huge factor in my success. Thanks to Eva Rosvold for agreeing to pace me and putting up with me for 13 hours. All of the veterans of this race that helped in my preparation and answering my many questions about this race including David Snipes, Mike Mason, Sophie Speidel, Anstr Davidson, Ed C., Jeff Washburn, Joey Anderson and others that I am forgetting. To John Teed for undertaking this adventure with me, hopefully he will want to do it again next year. And thanks to DC again for being our crew chief and number one cheerleader out there.

After I finished, several people have remarked “welcome to the club” as a form of congratulations on my finish. Well, what a club it is and I am proud to say that MASSANUTTEN ROCKS!!!

Bel Monte Endurance Run 50K Report - March 24, 2007

2007-06-06T13:56:00.000-04:00

Bel Monte Endurance Run 50K
The “Bel Monster”
March 24, 2007

So far, 2007 has been very “lucky” for me with regard to race conditions. The Frosty 50K in January had temperatures in the 60s and Holiday Lake in February was cold but dry. The Bel Monte 50K has been cold on both of its prior runnings with significant snow accumulation last year. My “lucky” streak continued, at least as far as the weather was concerned…

I arrived in Waynesboro late Friday afternoon and learned that the weather forecast was warm (70s) but we would likely have rain to deal with. My plan was to treat this race as another training run as I prepare for Massanutten in May and the only time goal I had was to break 7 hours. Most of the course would be familiar from the GEER 100K but many sections were run from the opposite direction. I knew there would be plenty of rocky climbs and descents which I will no doubt see plenty of in May. The race started at daylight with partly cloudy skies and we were off on the first section of single track. About 5 minutes into the race I heard Gill exclaim “Bedford, slow down!” over the megaphone (I have had a tendency to go out too fast). I heeded his advice and kept moving at a reasonable pace and was soon across the Parkway an onto the White Rock Falls trail. This is one of my favorite parts of the course. The trails are technical and the waterfalls are incredible. There was also a 25K race and those runners were with us for the first 7.5 miles.

The climb up the Torrey Ridge trail was much easier for me than it was at GEER, although at GEER we were at mile 25 rather than 5! As I neared the top, the front runners of the 25K were coming back so it was a little tricky on the narrower sections. Eventually I arrived at Camp Marty and got in and out pretty quickly since I was feeling great. The next section is a great section that includes a long descent down a jeep road and then the Kennedy Ridge Trail. Kennedy Ridge was one of the harder climbs at GEER but the views are spectacular. It was nice to go down this section for a change. About halfway down I took a stumble and rolled my left ankle pretty severely. The runner behind me said it rotated a full 90 degrees the wrong way. I have had some trouble with this ankle before and had to stop and walk for a bit to ease the throbbing. My plan was to see how it felt at the next aid station (@ 13 miles). I planned to drop if it did not improve because it was too early in the race and I did not want to risk a more severe injury. However, at the next aid station it was feeling better and we had a nice 3.5 mile section of rolling gravel road for me to work out the kinks on.

The other issue was my stomach was acting up a bit but I was not really sure why. Turns out I was taking in way too much sodium. What I thought was an E-cap every hour was actually an S! Cap which has 3X the sodium. In addition, I drank Clif drink the first hour and was eating two gels every hour. I did not realize it but it the high sodium (and resulting stomach discomfort) was causing me to drink less and get behind on fluids.

The run on the road helped and I continued on. Even with the injury I was still ahead of my goal but had the most difficult section of the race ahead of me. We had a nice runnable section through the woods that leads to a long 1.2 mile climb back up to Camp Marty. This was about a 6 mile section that would be an enormous struggle for me. I walked a bit early to give my ankle a break but started running after about 15 minutes. My ankle was pretty swollen now and I could not run for more than 10 minutes at a time and then I would have to walk. I started to feel a few raindrops and tried to soak my foot at each stream crossing. After about an hour, some runners came upon me (including Vicki Kendall) and offered me some ibuprofen or Tylenol. I took two of each and hoped they would take effect soon. The warmer temperatures were giving me my first taste of the heat in 2007 and I was amazed at how fatigued I was. Throughout the day my heart rate seemed to consistently be about 5 bpm above normal. Perhaps it was the heat or injury or both. Maybe I was just a wuss today. Who knows, but regardless I was getting tired.

When we got to the switchbacks, the “drugs” took effect and I was able to move more quickly. I have found that I am a much stronger climber now than I was even two months ago. No doubt the hill repeats and weight training are at least partially responsible. I got behind a mountain biker and tried to stay with him and passed at least 5 or 6 people on the way up. I got to the top at 12:30 PM, giving me 1.5 hours to go 8 miles to break 7 hours. It was almost all downhill but very technical and exposed to the midday sun. In hindsight, I should have stayed longer at Camp Marty and drank and drank and drank some more. Instead, I filled up both bottles and headed off. I was behind on fluids at this point and had not urinated in over an hour. This combined with the exposed ridgeline, tender ankle and technical terrain did not make a fast pace possible. John Straub was at Camp Marty and was pretty dehydrated and we would spend a lot of the next two hours together.

I ran out of water about halfway to the next aid station and was having difficulty navigating the rocks with my ankle soreness. I was able to move but frustrated that I was not able to run faster on such flat (although technical) terrain. I made the best of it and John and I leapfrogged one another. He was in pretty bad shape dehydration wise and stayed at the last aid station for a good bit to rehydrate. I drank four cups of water and filled both bottles (even though it was only 2.7 miles to the finish). I tried to put the hammer down and ran the entire way. I ended up drinking both bottles before the finish. My time was 7:35.

I was pretty discouraged initially with such a poor performance less than 2 months before Massanutten. However, in the coming days I realized that even with all of the “issues” I was still only 30 minutes behind plan. After all, you have to have “bad” races in order to have “good” races. One thing I have learned is that success in ultras is dependent on how you react to problems that arise.

The race was won by Sean Andrish who blazed the course, beating the record by 18 minutes! The race was very well organized and one that I look forward to running again next year.

Holiday Lake 50K++ Report - February 10, 2007

2007-06-06T13:55:00.000-04:00

Holiday Lake 50K++
February 10, 2007

Since becoming involved with ultrarunning last summer I have learned a lot, albeit some lessons have come the “hard way”. One of my original goals for 2007 was to complete the LUS and perhaps the “Horton Slam”. Almost immediately after registering for Holiday Lake I learned that I would not be able to make Promised Land in April so the LUS in 2007 was out the window. I decided that although the LUS was not in the cards that this would still be a good race for me to do. After all I enjoyed MMTR last year and Holiday Lake fit in well with my training schedule for Massanutten in May.

The Holiday Lake Center folks did a terrific job with the prerace dinner on Friday night. All of the volunteers made it very easy to get in out with your packet as well as sign up for lodging. We were all encouraged to try and donate to the Holiday Lake Center for the new men’s bathroom building. When I put some money in the box, it was overflowing. Hopefully, the Holiday Lake folks got a meaningful donation from all of us. After dinner I got organized for the morning and crashed in the bunkhouse.

It was very cold at the start. Depending on who you asked the starting temperature was somewhere between 8 and 15 degrees. As the course consists of two loops, I decided to use my car as a midway aid station. This would allow me to refill bottles, etc. very quickly. I was going to try and only consume gels and liquids for calories in the race to see how I reacted to it. My only time goal was to break six hours and more importantly to feel good at the end.

The first few miles were a little slow as a conga line formed right as we got on the trail. This was a year where the course was mostly dry which undoubtedly led to faster times. Eventually we spread out and I went to work trying to run steady easy miles. I was cold and often found myself picking up the pace just to stay warm. I moved along uneventfully and met several folks along the way. I took it easy on the downhill after AS 4 since I would have to go right back up after the turn around. I followed this advice and moved along reaching the turn at around 2:48, a bit faster than planned. I refilled my bottles, replenished my gels and headed out. So far the gels were working great but the shot blocks had become “shot rocks”. The second loop was definitely more difficult but I continued to make good time. I leapfrogged with a couple of runners on the way to AS 6 and we seemed to motivate each other.

Between AS 6 and 8 I began to feel a little tired but kept pushing on. As I came into AS 8 I knew I had around 9 miles to go and that 6 hours was definitely still possible. I had lost a good bit of my cushion at this point but I was still passing others and feeling okay. The remainder of the race was uneventful and the weather felt almost perfect for a run through the woods. As I came down the staircase and crossed the dam, the photographer said it was about 2 miles to go. I knew I had one more little climb up to the road at the end so I turned up the pace a bit. For the first time, I really had legs at the end (maybe I am finally learning. I came into the finish at 5:55 and felt the better than I ever have after an ultra finish. I shook David’s hand and congratulated other finishers while I stretched.

Overall, this was a very nice experience. I believe close to 250 starters were on hand despite the cold at the start. Thanks to David and all of the volunteers and the Holiday Lake Center staff for putting on such a nice event.

Salem Lakeshore Frosty 50K Report - January 6, 2007

2007-06-06T13:52:00.001-04:00

Salem Lakeshore Frosty 50K
January 6, 2007

My first experience with the Frosty 50K was iwhile I was training for my first marathon. I lived in Winston Salem to attend MBA school at Wake Forest and did the majority of my training around Salem Lake. My final “long” run of 20 miles occurred on the same day as the 2002 Frosty 50K. I remember as I ran through the 2 inches of snow that these people must be crazy for running five 10K’s….

Now I am about to begin my first Frosty 50K and fourth ultramarathon. This was the year of the “Not So Frosty” Frosty 50K as temperatures at the start were in the high 50s and expected to be close to 70 by the afternoon. Nonetheless, the weather was beautiful for running and the warmer temps were a bit of a respite “normal” January weather. Since July 2006, I had completed three ultras, all at different distances and therefore all PRs! My 2007 plans call for my first attempt at 100 miles at Massanutten in May so I had a deliberate race schedule geared to get me ready for the big day. My only hope with the Frosty 50K was to beat my previous 50K time of 5:34. Although my running was a little lackluster coming off the holidays, I still felt like I could do it. I drove up that morning with my friend John Teague and thought this would be a great way to start off 2007. John had major knee surgery in 2006 and this was his second ultra in his “comeback” (first being Masochist in November). At the start I saw familiar faces Mark Long, Eric Grossman, Joey Anderson and Byron Backer. I also was introduced to Jay Finkle, whose name I knew from many of the VA and NC races.

With the temps expected to be warmer later, my strategy was to push the pace early and build a cushion so that I could “take it easy” when things heated up. I recalled this strategy worked for many at the 2006 Western States. While our conditions would be nowhere near as brutal, the concept still seemed to make sense. The course is a double out and back and was slightly altered due to high water levels which resulted in a one mile out and back on the road (yuck!) at the start of each loop. I started out strong and moved ahead at a steady pace. On the return from the road out and back, I heard words of encouragement from many of my race friends. I felt good and my heart rate was in check as we headed into the trails. I recalled how bad one particular hill was here back when I was training for that first marathon and was amazed how miniscule it was. Given the course of GEER and Masochist as well as the regular hill repeats, I definitely felt how much stronger I was. I continued on and enjoyed recalling various sections of the trail. I ran mostly alone at this point but kept Jay Finkle in sight. I heard him say he wanted to run a 4:30 and I hoped to run around 2:20 for the first loop. I passed through the first two aid stations and was soon on the first back portion. I could feel the temperatures climbing and my heart rate was at about 75% of max and I felt good. I came to the end of the first loop in 2:17 but was feeling a bit fatigued. The faster pace coupled with the extra holiday baggage were taking its toll. At this point I knew the PR was likely in the bag and felt like I could probably break 5 hours so off I went.

I continued to move well although I did slow the pace some so that I would have something left at the end. Around mile 20 or so, I felt my Achilles tightening up and my leg was really throbbing. At his point I had only stopped briefly at the aid stations and had done no walking. I decided to stop and stretch my calf and Achilles really good. This loosened it up well and I started off again. I had to walk briefly for about 10 minutes about 3 miles later but then had no more problems. Given the time I had taken I knew that braking 5 hours would be tight. I pushed as hard as I could and hit the tape at 5:02, an improvement in my 50K PR of 32 minutes! While I didn’t break 5 hours, I was very happy with my result

I had a lot of fun at this race and would like to try it under normal (cold) conditions to see how I fare. Maybe next year.

Mountain Masochist 50+ Mile - November 4, 2006

2007-06-06T13:49:00.000-04:00

Mountain Masochist “50 Mile” Trail Run (“MMTR”)
November 4, 2006

Since starting my ultrarunning “career” in June of this year, I heard from countless others that this was a must do race at some point. MMTR was to be my third ultra race. In July, I ran a small 50K near my home in Charlotte and I completed the GEER 100K in September. I was a little concerned about being a “newbie” and running this so close to GEER, but several of my running friends were doing MMTR (including one who was going for, and got his 15th finish) so I decided to tag along and see what “Horton miles” were really about. I had no illusions about trying to go for a fast time as I literally wanted to make the cutoffs, which as it turns out, is no small feat. My buddies and I drove up to Lynchburg and went to the pre race dinner and briefing. In the morning, we boarded the bus in frigid temps and made the trip up to the race start. Brrrrr, it was cold and I was anxious to start just to warm-up. Soon enough, we were off on the road portion, which took us the first 6 miles or so and then we hit the first trail section. My plan was to run a smart race. Meaning, I wanted to really take it easy on the first half so that I would have something left in the tank for the climbs on the second half. I focused on maintaining a steady pace, hydration and my caloric intake. I moved along uneventfully and walked most of the hills but ran the flats and downhills and soon was at the midway point.

David Snipes, whom I met at GEER warned me about hanging at the aid stations too long. So far, I was in and out of each station in about 1 minute and was about 40 minutes ahead of the cutoff. I grabbed a couple of items from my drop bag, filled up and was off for the climb up Buck Mountain. This climb went well as my friend, John Teed and I made good time. Eventually we began to hear the famous Rocky music that I had read about in previous race reports. A few miles later came “the Loop”, a nice single track section of the course. Along the way, it was suggested that you run the first 2 miles or so on the green moss as I would have plenty of time to walk later. I followed this strategy and made good time around the loop. Upon exiting, I was greeted with a warm cup of chicken soup and a 45 minute cushion.

The next section was fairly uneventful and I made my way to Salt Log Gap. I ate some food (the brownies were awesome) and drank some Coke and headed off. I had lost a little cushion but was still comfortable. This is when things got fun. About 5 minutes after leaving Salt Log Gap, I suddenly projectile vomited three times in succession. Having never dealt with this before, I just kept moving. That seemed to be the theme for the day – just keep moving. I continued to drink water but had no appetite for anything. Soon enough I was at Forest Valley and had lost even more time. My watch read 3:05 and I simply filled my bottles and pressed on. The next couple of climbs were pretty tough for me as the vomiting continued. I took a gel to try and keep something down and that worked somewhat. All told, I vomited about 9 times. It was very odd as I was drinking, taking S! caps, eating and urinating regularly. I continued to drink water and just kept moving. I knew it was going to be close because I could feel my energy dropping and my stomach was pretty much empty.

I came upon a woman named Mical from MD and we began to leapfrog one another as we made our way to the final aid station. Once there, I saw that I had enough time to make the cutoff as long as I kept moving. This section was nice as it was extremely runable and I began to feel better, leapfrogging with Mical. We eventually came upon the group carrying the injured woman on the stretcher. They indicated they had enough help so we pressed on. Finally, we got to the “1 Mile to Go” sign. Apparently, this is the only measured mile on the course. I decided to go as hard as I could and hammered (at least what felt like hammering) the pace to the finish. I crossed the finish line to a handshake from David Horton in 11:48. I covered the last mile in 7:30, fast for me. I was pumped as I reunited with my friends who finished about 15 to 20 minutes ahead of me. I was glad that I finished but also happy that I ran a smart race. I had no problems during the race, save for the brief vomiting episode that I will chalk up to experience.

David Horton and all the volunteers did an excellent job and I look forward to the 25th edition in 2007.

Great Eastern Endurance Run 100K Report - Sept. 23, 2006

2007-06-06T13:43:00.000-04:00

Great Eastern Endurance Run 100K
September 23, 2006

I ran in the 4th annual Great Eastern Endurance Run 100K on September 23, 2006. I am a newcomer to ultras and not only was this my first attempt at the 100K distance but it was also my first race in mountainous terrain and only my second ultra race.

Pre-Race

I drove up from Charlotte early on Friday to help Gill, Frannie and Marty with pre-race preparations. Gill had been working with me since May as I transitioned from marathons to ultras. I mainly assisted Marty in ensuring the course was marked, which gave me an opportunity to see some of the back part of the course that I had not seen. In August, I ran about a 20 mile section centered around Sherando Lake as a training run. After finishing up, I got weighed, picked up my packet and headed to Waynesboro for the night.

Race Day

Start to Camp Marty #1 (0 to 11.1 miles)
I got to start/finish about 30 minutes early, checked in and sipped my sports drink before the start. I had planned to meet up with David Snipes to run some of the first section with. I had never met him and only knew to look for bib number 5. I did not see him so at 6:00 a.m., I was off to begin my adventure. Being a newcomer to ultras, this was definitely unchartered territory. Although I had gotten advice from various people (Gill, Frannie, Mike Mason, and Mark Long among others) on what to expect, I knew that there was a lot that I would have to “figure out” on my own. I didn’t really have a time goal …okay I really wanted to break 15 hours. Mostly I wanted to finish strong and in somewhat decent shape.

The first 8 miles of the course takes you down the Blue Ridge Parkway for 2 miles and then down a semi-paved/gravel mountain road for 6 miles to aid station 2 (Annette’s Dinette). This section was all downhill and it was hard to avoid running fast but I did my best to hold back since the real fun would soon begin. Not to mention, we get to run back up this section to finish the race. The weather was ideal – cool with a slight breeze. It was a little humid but overall it felt great. My plan was to drink only water while on course and drink sports drink at the aid stations. So I drank a cup of sports drink and ate a handful of pretzels and checked out of Annette’s Dinette. Aid Station 3 (“Camp Marty”) is only 3.1 miles away and I made my way there pretty quickly. I stopped here to shake a pebble out of my shoes. I also saw Gill for the first time who wished me luck as I left and headed into the first climb of the day.

Camp Marty #1 to Suzi’s Oasis (Mile 11.1 to 16.3)
The next section is almost entirely on trails and climbs up over a ridgeline and heads down into the Sherando Lake Recreation Area. At the next aid station, the 50K runners split from the 100K and head back home. I knew that this first climb was going to be a bit of a wake up call to me as I would see “what I had” for the day. I adopted a strategy of only running the small uphills and all the downhills and flat sections. On bigger climbs I ran the first bit and then switched to a power walk. This would prove to be a good strategy for me. During this section, the terrain got pretty rocky and I was amazed that I was still able to cover the ground at a decent clip. I stumbled a few times but never went down completely. The views looking down at the lake wee breathtaking in the early morning. I finally encountered David Snipes (aka “Sniper”) during this section, who was having a very rough race early on. I came into aid station 4 (Suzi’s Oasis) and checked my time. I was amazed that I was on a 14 hour pace but it was still very early. Sniper said he was going to stay a while to try and settle his stomach. I retrieved the contents of my drop bag, ate some food, filled my pack and I was off. I was looking forward to the next section since it was part of my training run in August.

Suzi’s Oasis to Jennifer’s Refuge # 1 (Mile 16.3 to 28.3)
After leaving Suzi’s Oasis, you have a rolling 5.5 mile run on nice trail to the Slacks Overlook aid station. The first 2.5 miles is on very good singletrack with good footing the whole way. Eventually you bear right onto the Slacks trail, which has many more roots and rocks and also has more elevation change. This section went very well for me and I ran the entire time with two women (Eva and Melissa) who were experienced trail runners. After reaching Slacks Overlook, I saw Gill again and soon made my way across the parkway onto the White Rock Falls trail. This section is very scenic and you can hear the waterfalls the whole time. In fact, Eva and I submerged our hats in the water of one of the falls before heading back up. Eventually you come out on to the parkway and head up for about 1.5 miles back to the Slacks Overlook. I munched on a bit of food and headed out for the climb up to Jennifer’s Refuge, where I would be weighed for the first time. The climb up to Jennifer’s Refuge was pretty taxing for me at times, particularly the rocky sections. I found that footing was more of an issue for me than the climbs up to this point but overall I was feeling very good. The weather was starting to get a bit warmer so I made sure to keep drinking often and taking my S! Caps. The last section to Jennifer’s Refuge is a very runable jeep road that I was able to make good time on and soon enough I was at the aid station.

Jennifer’s Refuge #1 to Bart’s Springfield (Mile 28.3 to 36.3)
Upon entering the aid station, I found that my weight had not budged – a good sign. I popped a couple of Aleve since my ankle was a little sore from rolling it several times on the climb up. I stayed at this aid station about 7 or 8 minutes and ate a good bit of food and had the volunteer make me a turkey sandwich to go. I knew I had a long descent of 6 miles down to the next aid station so I was off. The footing on this section was great at first as we were on the same jeep road that brought us to the aid station. Eventually, however, it turned very rocky and muddy in some spots. Eric Grossman, the eventual winner with a new course record passed me heading back up and said he was having a tough race. Obviously, he turned things around. I was running almost all of this section as it was all downhill but I was frustrated because it was taking so long. I soon realized that even though I was running, I was only managing a pace of less than 4 mph. At one point I lost it and began shouting and throwing rocks. Eventually, I calmed down after my temper tantrum and continued to push along. I finally saw a woman on the trail who informed that the aid station was just around the corner. I entered the aid station pretty frustrated and was told that the mileage was wrong, that it had been an 8 mile section. This made me feel much better so I filled up and headed out. The toughest climb of the day was soon to come and I needed to get going.

Bart’s Springfield to Jennifer’s Refuge #2 (Mile 36.3 to 45.3)
The first 3 miles are on a paved mountain road and take you to aid station 9 (Willville). I ran this entire section (even the uphills) since I was pretty pumped from the news that my trek from Jennifer’s Refuge had not been so abhorrent. I pulled into Willville and stayed longer than I wanted. I decided to rest in a chair for about 15 minutes. After all, I had been at this for 9 hours and had not been off my feet yet. I also ate several potatoes and some gummi bears. Potatoes were kind of my staple for the day as I always had a craving for them at each aid station. Soon, I headed out and began the grueling climb back to Jennifer’s Refuge. The climb covers 6 miles and rises about 3,000 feet in elevation. In previous years, this section was run downhill but the RD switched directions this year so that runners would not have to climb the road (where I had my tantrum) in the direct sun. Either way, you are in for a tough climb. I soon realized that I was going to have to walk most of this as there were not many flat or downhill sections. If I had a low point in the race, this was it. I began to feel the fatigue and grew concerned that my fingers were swelling. I also realized that I wasn’t peeing as often so I took a couple of S! Caps and kept drinking as I continued on my death march. I was passed by a couple of runners and soon began a leapfrog game with a couple of Marines. This leapfrog would continue all the way back to aid station 12. The progress was slow but it was progress. Eventually, I came back out onto the jeep road that leads back to Jennifer’s Refuge and the footing improved. I started to run again and it felt good to stretch out my legs and soon I was at Jennifer’s Refuge #2. Interestingly, I saw a dead rattlesnake in the road about 200 yards from the aid station. This is really the only “wildlife” I noticed during the day other than the dogs and cows on the first descent.

Jennifer’s Refuge #2 to Camp Marty #2 (Mile 45.3 to 50.8
I got weighed again and my weight was still the same. I was relieved because I felt like I had gained weight. I retrieved my headlamp from my drop bag and ate a grilled cheese. Suddenly I saw a familiar face – Sniper! He had recovered and was in good spirits. He went on the finish the race about 30 minutes ahead of me. My stomach wasn’t feeling terrific and Sniper suggested I try peppermint candy and it worked like a charm. I learned a lot from him during this race (seeing him recover, etc.) even though we only ran together a short bit. Pack and bottle filled, I headed out down a steep descent towards Camp Marty about 5.5 miles away. I felt very confident since I knew I could walk the whole way if necessary and still make the cutoff. Once the terrain leveled out, it turned very rocky and I rolled my ankle several times and had to walk. This was very frustrating since it was so flat. I did my best to mix in some running as often as possible. There were several creek crossings and the water felt good on my feet. I came upon a volunteer who was hanging glow sticks as darkness was looming. Before too long, I recognized the trail and could hear music so I knew I was at Camp Marty. At this point I knew the 15 hour goal was shot but I was feeling good and could break 16 hours if I hustled. I ate a good bit at Camp Marty and Marty played the Notre Dame fight song for me to motivate me. It worked and I took off, anxious to get to the finish.

Camp Marty #2 to Finish (Mile 50.8 to 61.9)
I left Camp Marty with a full pack and bottle. I also, had plenty of gels and clif blocks so I knew I could skip the final two aid stations. This would allow me to get moving on the long 6 mile climb up the road to the parkway. Shortly after leaving Camp Marty, I saw Gill for the last time before the finish. With his words of encouragement, I picked it up and ran the next 3 miles to Annette’s Dinette #2. When I got to the highway, I turned on my headlamp and reached aid station #12 around 7:50 p.m. I yelled out my number and kept on trucking up the road. I knew I would have to walk most of this and figured if I could reach the parkway by 9:30 p.m. I would be able to break 16 hours with no problem. The climb was pretty arduous and took forever. I power walked most of it and ran even the shortest flat or downhill section. I could see headlamp lights behind me and this motivated me to keep pushing. I could see that the parkway was getting closer to me (it ran parallel and slightly “above” this road) so I knew I was getting closer to the turnoff. I came upon Chris and Darla from Bend, OR and walked with them for a while. I enjoyed hearing about the races they had run and enjoyed the company. Darla was having some knee pain so I headed on and said I would see them at the finish. Eventually, I was on the parkway and saw that it was 9:22 p.m. and that I would definitely break 16 hours. I started running and stopped for some walk breaks every now and then as my feet were starting to hurt a bit. Soon I could see the lights and kicked in for the last 100 yards. I crossed the finish line at 9:42 p.m. for a time of 15 hours and 42 minutes. I was elated. Frannie and Sniper greeted me and gave me my finisher’s shirt. Gill came over shortly and offered congratulations.

Epilogue
What a great race! The volunteers were terrific and the course provides spectacular views. The whole event is organized exceptionally well from check-in to food at the finish. The course is very challenging and one must be well trained to succeed at this event. Thanks to the coaching work of Gill and advice of others, I accomplished this goal without making any major mistakes. I would recommend this event to anyone, whether a newbie (like me) or an elite runner.

Big Butt 50K Report - First Ultra July 21, 2006

2007-06-06T13:42:00.001-04:00

Big Butt 50K
July 22, 2006
“A Newbie’s Perspective”

I participated in the Big Butt 50K on July 22, 2006. This was my first “official” ultra as I had ran further than the traditional marathon distance previously but only on training runs. This would be my first “taste” of an ultramarathon and hopefully would serve as a springboard of sorts for future races. My previous running experience included several marathons and I initially approached this race as a “marathon plus 5 miles”. However, as my training progressed I realized I should be more methodical with regard to hydration, run/walk strategy, etc. Particularly if I had an interest any running longer distance races. I was confident that I was well trained for the race and my only real concern was the heat (after all this was South Carolina in July).

I rose at 4:00 a.m. on race day to begin my preparations for the race. Since I live in Charlotte, I wanted to leave by 5:00 a.m. so that I could arrive at the start (RD Claude Sinclair’s house) by 5:30 a.m. As I looked out the window and saw the sheets of rain and rolling thunder that persisted, I shrugged my shoulders. All of my previous marathons have had terrible weather with the exception of Myrtle Beach this past February, which started out with rain but cleared by the start. This must be a pattern as this is just what happened for Big Butt. In addition, the temperature was much cooler than in previous years although the humidity was still high. As we lined up, I heeded the advice of a veteran of the race and plugged my ears for the powder musket start. However, Claude departed from the tradition and simply shouted GO! and off we went.

My plan was to try and run a 10 minute mile pace, which would allow me to finish in just over 5 hours. I knew this might be a bit aggressive but as long as I finished strong and felt good I would be pleased. I wasn’t too worried about a time since this being my first 50K, as long as I finished was guaranteed a PR. I started out running with Tyler Peek from Durham. I recognized his name from other ultra race reports around NC that I had read about. Tyler mentioned that he had taken a hiatus from running a few years back and had not run this race in a while. However, since he was experienced I figured it would serve me well to run with him some. The race was going great as I felt really good and the humidity was not impacting me as much as I expected. I knew that this would likely change so I stuck with the plan to hold back as much as I could. We encountered several aid stations and got water or Gatorade as needed. The aid stations were great as there was never more than 3 miles between the “roving” stations. Had the heat been worse, this would have been especially beneficial. Even without the heat, the frequent stations seemed to make the miles go by more quickly. I stayed with Tyler until about mile 7 or so when I stopped to refill my water bottles and empty my bladder. I met Eliza Weston at this station, who was another name that I recalled seeing on past race results/reports around NC and SC.

I continued to feel good and pressed on. At mile 11, I saw Leon Harmon who I knew previously through a recent financing we worked on together. The humidity stayed high but the sun still remained behind the clouds and I was about 3 minutes ahead of schedule. As I reached the next aid station at mile 13, the volunteer informed me that it would be a loop and I would see him again at mile 20. I decided to slow my pace a little to build some reserves. A small pack of runners including Bill Keane and Andrea Stewart caught up with me around mile 15 and I ran with them for the next couple of miles. My strategy was to run halfway up the hills and walk the rest and resume running the flats and downhills. I was happy with my hydration level and had consistently been taking 1GU and 2 shot bloks each half hour along with electrolyte tablets each hour. Around mile 17 I settled in to running alone again, but noticed that my stomach was starting to turn a bit. By the next aid station, I was having some problems in that I had no appetite. This had never happened to me before and I expected this was due to eating too many sweet tasting foods (i.e., gels) and not enough salty stuff. I was not eating pretzels, etc. since I was using the sodium tablets. At the aid station, the volunteer suggested some Coke, so I drank it and grabbed a cup to go and continued on. My stomach problems would continue off and on until around mile 25. At mile 23, I got some more Coke and some goldfish from Leon Harmon. This started to settle my stomach and I was able to pick my pace up some but still had to walk a good bit. Around mile 24, Mark Long caught up with me. I mentioned it was my first ultra and explained the stomach problem. He slowed and walked with me a bit to talk me through my tough spot. He offered some peanut butter crackers and reminded me that there were only 7 miles to go. As he started running again, I began my run/walk combination and started to feel better. At the 26.2 mark the aid station volunteer said I looked strong coming up the hill and this further boosted my confidence. At his point I knew I would finish strong although I would not hit the 10 minute pace average. My legs were surprisingly strong and I still felt well hydrated. As I approached the final aid station at mile 28, I got stung by some sort of fly on my finger. It wasn’t a big deal but the swelling caused my finger to rub against a seam on my water bottle sleeve. I got some ibuprofen from the volunteer and topped off my water bottles for the last time and headed out. I knew if I ran strong, I could still finish under 5:40. Around mile 30 I noticed that another runner was coming up about 200 yards behind me. His yellow shirt was easy for me to see and I resolved that I was not going to let him pass me so I pushed harder. I continued to look behind and although he was gaining on me, I was close enough to the finish that I knew he would not catch me.

As I turned into Claude’s driveway, I pressed on and finished in 5:34:30.

After the race I collected my finisher’s plaque, rinsed off and changed clothes and socialized for a while. I thanked Mark Long, Tyler Peek and others for their support and encouragement and talked with some veterans about other races and distances I should try. Two things were very clear: 1) I found myself “addicted” to this stuff and looked forward to future races and 2) the people I met are some of the most down to earth folks I have encountered.

This race is very low key and well organized. I would say that it is a great race for a first ultra but definitely prepare for heat as my conditions were atypical. I feel fortunate that I didn’t have to battle the heat this year but will have to eventually as I will definitely be back!