TEAM INOV-8 USA: September 2008

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Davis Victorious In Yan Teopa 10 Mile Trail Run

Wynn Davis took first place honors this past weekend at the
In Yan Teopa 10 Mile Trail Run in Frontenac State Park, Lake City, Minnesota. A very speedy 1:04 finishing time. Below is Wynn's report from the race. Congrats!

IN YAN TEOPA 10mile Trail Race: Race Report

In Yan Teopa (def: Rock with Opening). Another beautiful day landed on the weekend of the In Yan Teopa 10mile trail race on Mount Frontenac state park, overlooking Lake Pepin just south of Red Wing, MN. The fall colors were not nearly as vibrant this year due to the Indian summer we are having. However, some of the sumacs were a visceral red, which is always stunning. The race was the pen-ultimate of the MN trail race series. I really like this park and was happy to be back running it again. Last year I volunteered, but got to cheer on runners as they took on the purgatory of rolling hills and the elevator shaft climb to the top of the bluff. The trail consists of rolling XC-ski trail and single-track that traverses up, down and around the bluff. I was speculating whether or not I should do the race a day before because I had done a swift speed workout on Tuesday and was ready to do my tempo run on Thurs, but decided it would be much more fun to bag the Thursday workout and hop into the race. I wanted to mimic the race similar to the workout. I ran a conservative 1st half and then ramped it up a bit more the second half all without completely burying myself. I felt quite comfortable the whole race and never felt anaerobic except for a brief moment up the elevator shaft climbs. John Storkamp and I were running through one of the open sections and a nice 6 point buck ran parallel to us for quite some time before flanking across the trail and off to the woods to attend to his own business. At about the half-way mark both John and I began to make the steep ascents to the top of the bluff. I felt confident in my fitness and hill work, so I made a move on the first climb and didn’t look back. Both John and I noted after the race, the tingling black spots we saw on the last steep ascent. The race had another good turnout as new people seem to discover how excellent of a spot this location is and how well the race is directed. I finished in a time of 1:04 for the win. John came in a few minutes later running a strong race. This year John crushed his own course record at the brutal Arrowhead 135mile race, and a strong 6:15 at the Fall 50mile last year.

Aliza Lapierre Takes Women's Overall Title at Vermont 50 Mile

Aliza Lapierre won yet another ultra race over the weekend, this time at the Vermont 50 mile with a time of 7:53. Looked like a muddy day out there. She wore the women's Roclite 282 for this race. Great job Aliza! (see her race report below)

Having kicked off my season in March my energy and speed has been dwindling. Despite this, I could not pass up the opportunity to participate in the Vermont 50, a great course and wonderful people.

Days before the race I started thinking about my race strategy and told myself I would not go out hard. Like always within the first two miles the pack broke. Yet again I had to decide whether to stick with the back end of the lead pack, run by myself or slow to wait for the second pack. Predictably I decided to hang off the back of the front pack. Within the first five miles I started catching mountain bikers and this part always motivates me and brings another aspect to the race. By mile seven I was joined by two fellow Vermonter runners and we played leap frog for the next twenty plus miles. We shared good conversation and were awed the beautiful stonewalls that line many of the dirt roads. After reaching the top of a long climb I remember looking at my watch and realizing that we were on pace to run just under seven hours. At this point I decided to slightly scale back my pace. The three of us arrived at the fifth aid station and I continued on my way thinking that the boys would catch me shortly. I was now a lone runner with a several mountain bikers and it stayed this way for the remainder of the race. Since I was now alone I tried to maintain a decent pace and tried to stay focused on the technical single track. I also knew that my parents expected me to arrive at the sixth aid station by 11:00 so this motivated me to get there so my mother would not worry. This was the first ultra they had ever attended because the idea makes them uneasy. As promised, my parents were eagerly awaiting my arrival and once I pulled in I swapped my hat for a visor and took off running again. The next ten miles I was still alone, but now and then would catch mountain bikers on climbs to then have them whiz by me on the downhills. Despite the clouds I enjoyed the scenery and tried to stay cognizant of my pace during my highs and lows.

After about seven hours of running I climb a long driveway that lead to the final aid station and I was once again greeted by my parents. I did not stop and my mom chased me to tell me that the rumor was that the finish line was actually over five miles away not four as stated. Mentally I was already frustrated as my watch had me at 48 miles already. I have never tracked my distance in a race before and have yet to determine whether it was beneficial or not. With a slightly different course this year it felt longer, maybe it was or maybe it was the continuous ascending and descending. Either way everyone had to run the same course so it didn’t really matter.

As I plugged away at the last four or five miles things got sloppy as the entire trail was covered with deep soupy mud. There was no skirting around it. Finally I could hear the sound of music and could start to smell the BBQ. I crossed the finish line with a time of 7:53. It is hard to explain to others that despite winning I was not overly pleased with my race. In the end I realized I was not smart about eating properly and pacing and I hope to learn from this.
As always the course, participants and volunteers were great.

Inov-8 Athlete Profile Interview: DeWayne Satterfield

In this addition of Inov-8 Athlete Profile I had the pleasure of heading south to catch up with perennial ultra runner DeWayne Satterfield. DeWayne is one of the stalwarts of ultrarunning and his consistent performances over the years have put the deep south on the map in regard to contenders and trails alike. DeWayne was kind enough to take time to answer some of my questions about his notable racing career, trails/races in the south, and some of his most memorable experiences within the ultra community.

Inov-8 Athlete Profile Interview: DeWayne Satterfield
Interviewed by: Wynn Davis

1.Can you tell us a little bit about how your running career began?

I tell people that being raised by my grandparents in a rural farming community started my running career. The whole rural lifestyle is an ultra. Seriously though, I was a miler in high school and continued through the progression of 10Ks into marathons. Back in the late 80s, a friend and solid ultrarunner, Dink Taylor, convinced me to try a 50 mile road race in nearby Birmingham. I told him “no way”, but finally relented and surprised myself by running 6:36 and placing 3rd overall. Needless to say I was hooked…not just because of any small success, but I loved the ultra community.

2.Residing in Huntsville, Alabama (Tide country) can you recommend the wandering trail runner any particular trails, races and/or parks that you prefer?

I recommend the Mountain Mist trails covering Monte Sano Mountain. There is nice launching point at the Monte Sano State Park atop the mountain. There are also several “land trust” areas surrounding the mountain providing over 60 miles of gnarly trails. All of this is less than a five mile drive from downtown Huntsville. As far as racing…you can’t beat the Mountain Mist 50K…31 miles of rocky single track of which the terrain unfortunately/fortunately gets tougher as the race progresses. The Mount Cheaha 50K is another must do in Alabama. Held in February, the point to point race climbs to the top of Mount Cheaha providing beautiful scenic views when the weather permits! Also the Twisted Ankle Trail Marathon in Summerville, GA during May is an incredible race…lots of nasty hills and warm southern heat and humidity…what could be better?

3.Can you tell us a little bit about your profession as a Software Engineer in a way that computer/technology illiterate folks like me could understand?
My degrees are in mathematics, but I call myself a software engineer. I specialize in something called “real-time” programming supporting military applications. In essence I develop mathematical algorithms and try to program them in such a way that they are extremely fast and efficient. I work for a small company of which the president is a marathon runner….so they are very understanding with my training, racing, etc.

4.This year you ran yet another impressive race at the legendary Mt. Mist 50km race placing 3rd overall; a race which has been dubbed as one of the toughest 50km’s in the country. Even more impressive are your 9 victories at this race. Can you describe the atmosphere of this race course and is there any particular race that was most memorable that you could share with us?

The toughness of Mountain Mist comes from the footing. Obviously we do not have altitude or massive climbs, but the constant “double-fist” sized rocks wreak havoc on weary ankles. I live within one mile of the “worst” sections, so a great deal of my training is on the course. I attribute being able to “hold together” during this section to my practically living on the course. A couple of races that stand out are the year Courtney Campbell entered (he once held about every trail ultra course record on the east coast). He blasted from the start leaving us so far behind, that I thought the race was over by the first checkpoint at 10K. Luckily, for me, the nastiest sections lie in the second half of the race. I managed to pass him at the bottom of a rocky decent called “McKay’s Hollow” about 3 miles from the finish. I then was able to put a couple of minutes on him on the climb out. We both were under my previous course record. I am fond of the overall win after I turned 40 a few years ago. Also, most people will notice the world class Dave Mackey holds the course record. What some people may not realize is the year before he set the record, he ran Mountain Mist, leading through 25 miles before crashing so bad that he walked the last 10K. When I passed him he simply said, “my quads are gone…I can barely bend my legs.” He came back the next year with renewed vigor and perhaps some course knowledge and shattered the record. Finally I guess I am most proud of my consistency. I have completed all 14 years of the race and have always been in the top five. Of course my age is now becoming a factor in that I don’t feel the zip I once did!

5.You mentioned that last year’s Vol-State 500km road race, a race that takes runner point-to-point across the state of Tennessee was very memorable for you. Can you describe to us a little bit about this hearty endeavor? Was there any point along the way in which you felt like the race would never end? How did you stay mentally strong in the race?

The Vol-State 500km is difficult to describe. It is more like a survival adventure rather than a running event. I have had success there because I never think about the whole distance. I just concentrate on getting to the next map point or next town. Trying to think about the entire distance is just too overwhelming. The beginning of the second day is the worst (at least for me)…your body is beat-up from the first day, my stomach still hasn’t settled into the lifestyle, and there is so far to go that it seems impossible. However if you can get the mind through this low point, it then becomes a game of energy maintenance and injury prevention. I am lucky in that other than extreme fatigue and a few stomach issues, I do not have other physical things that demand attention…like blisters, ankle or knee issues (at least so far). It really is one of my all time favorite races. I tell people if you remain calm and just take one step at a time, you can finish this race. Plus my daughter like to help during the race…it is one of the few races where the family is constantly involved.

6.This November Alabama will be showcasing their inaugural 100mile trail race called the Pinhoti Trail 100m along the rugged ridgelines of the Talladega National Forest. Can you give us any insight regarding the race and/or the course itself?

The Pinhoti Trail 100 should be a hearty challenge. Eighty-eight miles of the course are single track…50km of the course is the Mount Cheaha 50K race course, which is even tougher than Mountain Mist. The RD, Todd Henderson, is really putting a great deal of time into the race, asking questions, and trying to ensure it will be a great event. We completed a night time training run on the course a couple of weeks ago and I think this race is destined to be a classic.

7.What are your strengths and what are your weaknesses?

I think my strength is my consistency. I had a fair share of wins and of course losses, but I enjoy the journey either way. I have won at least one ultra per year for the last 15 years…a streak that gets harder with my age! Although I’m not as adept as I once was, I love running rocks! My weaknesses are too numerous to mention, but I will say that for the longer events my stomach has been my detriment way too often.

8.Can you tell us a little bit about your training philosophy and any favorite workouts?

My philosophy is simple and is derived from my grandfather’s numerous quips…”work hard and be nice; there is enough meanness in the world without adding to it”. Seriously though, I maintain a consistent mileage base pretty much year round…I know its boring, but it works for me. When I want to “point” to an event, I will add track workouts (800s and miles usually), a tempo run once a week, and back to back long runs a couple of times per month. I also like vanilla ice cream and plain potato chips…like I said I am boring. My favorite workout: I like to run with people on long runs, but on one or two long runs leading to an event, I prefer to go solo, letting the mind go…pushing when I want, backing off when I want, etc.

9.Who would you consider some of your greatest competitors over the years?

Courtney Campbell, as stated previously…also Eric Clifton back when he was an east coaster. Ian Torrence and Hal Korner came out to Mountain Mist a few years ago…that was a blast. Of late, Eric Grossman and Dave Mackey, but Mackey is a class by himself. Dink Taylor and I train a good bit together and are always banging heads (in a good way).

10.Is there a particular Inov-8 should you gravitate towards?

The roclite 305s have been my favorite for a while…I have also been wearing the roclite 295s with reckless abandon…they both completely satisfy my running style.

11.What do you know now that you wish you would have known when you first started running?

Everyone has a window of ability. You can train hard to be at the top of that window (and on special occasions reach beyond)…or you can ease around and linger near the bottom of your window. When someone else’s window stretches far beyond your own that is ok…it is just the nature of life. What you can control however, is how far you are willing to rise in your own abilities….and don’t forget to be nice .

Thanks for everything! Inov-8 Rocks!

Who's Racing this Weekend (Friday)

The Grindstone 100 is finally here and we have 3 very bold but more than capable Inov-8 ultra runners who will be tackling this new 100 miler. Race director Clark Zealand has come up with one of the toughest 100 mile courses on the East coast if not in the US, with over 23k of elevation gain and loss. This promises to be a doozy. Best of luck to Rebekah Trittipoe, Sean Andrish and Jenny Anderson. The Grindstone will start this Friday at 6pm just a few miles outside of Staunton, VA in the George Washington National Forest.

Rebekah Trittipoe - Grindstone 100

Sean Andrish - Grindstone 100

Jenny Anderson - Grindstone 100

Monday, September 29, 2008

Yoga Journal Paul life of a Slacker

Friday, September 26, 2008

Long Trail Update

No news from JB since the first update, but Andrew Thompson had this to say in an e-mail to the Internet Ultra List a few days ago...

"Writing to you from the VT border in Lyme, NH. I have not heard from Jonboy
since he cast off at 4:40 am Sunday. But as the nature of the Alpine-style
unsupported record would have it, 'no news is good news.' he is out there
alone with only the provisions on his back to take home the entire distance
of 275 miles. This night he would have stayed at Glen Ellen Lodge, a
primitive shelter at mile 113.2, southbound. Our plans have him hiking 7
days. As he hikes his load will lighten, as most of his pack weight is fuel.
He carries an alcohol stove, a sleep pad, a bag, a headlamp, food, and
clothing. If he has come through with these early miles, I have no doubt he
will go the distance. I'll post again as soon as I hear from the boy.
Sincerely,

Traildog"

We'll post more as soon as we hear anything new.

Who's Racing This Weekend

Good luck to Kevin Sullivan and Aliza Lapierre as they take on another ultra race at the beautiful Vermont 50 mile this Sunday.

Aliza Lapierre - Vermont 50
Kevin Sullivan - Vermont 50

Emma Garrard first at Emerald Bay Trail Run

I placed 6th overall and first female at the Emerald Bay Trail Run held on the epic Rubicon Trail last Sunday.

Everyone should run, or race, on this trail before they die. It's popular but for a good reason. 7.5 miles along the shoreline of Lake Tahoe, hilly, but not too hilly for Tahoe standards. This was the first time Big Blue held the race and finished on Lester Beach, but it should be here to stay. Read my race review in the Sierra Sun here.

One more week until until XTERRA USA Champs with a killer line up on the women's side so I will have my work cut out for me!

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Team Checkpoint Zero / Inov-8 set to start the Adventure Xstream Expedition Race

Tomorrow team Checkpoint Zero / Inov-8 will be starting the Adventure Xstream Expedition race in Moab Utah. This will be the second time the team has competed in this 3 day race and all the members are excited to get started, especially after the long drive out from Georgia! The action can be followed live via satellite tracking on Checkpoint Tracker. Swing on by and drop us a note in the shout box!

Ben Nephew's Escarpment Trail Race Report

Congratulations to Team Inov-8's Ben Nephew as he regained his crown as champion of the Escarpment Trail 30k race in the Catskill Mountains. Ben has been the winner 8 of the last 9 years at this race. This year's race proved to be no picnic as runners faced brutal weather conditions including a hail storm coupled with gnarly terrain. Read more...

Escarpment 2008 7/27/08

2008 was a very interesting year at the Escarpment 30k trail race. Most people don’t associate sudden, severe weather with the elevations seen in the Catskill mountains (2000-4000ft). Well, for some, the Escarpment this year was a harsh learning experience, it just depended on your pace, but I’m getting about 3 hours ahead of myself.
After getting beaten for the first time in 8 years last year, I wasn’t as excited for this year’s race. I definitely wanted to win, but with my streak over, it was different. The RD, Dick Vincent had told me that Nate Harkins, last year’s winner, was injured and would not be running. He then added that there were several other contenders that should run well, but neglected to give me names. Thanks, Dick. Although I like to have that type of info, it doesn’t actually help much at Escarpment, where running your own race is always the best plan. My training had been going well, with the exception that my mileage has been on the low side. With Escarpment being one of my longer races, I was a little worried how the last hour would go.
When I got to the start, I spotted Greg Hammett, who is one of the best trail runners in New England, and has recently been improving at the longer distances. This would be his first Escarpment, but I was sure he would run well based on his experience. The temperature at the start was in the low 60’s, good for racing, and I didn’t think the trail would be too wet………until I went for my warmup. It must have rained very, very hard the night before the race, because there was a small pond about 100 meters into the race. There was no way to get around the water, so our shoes were going to be soaked for the entire race. I’ve never seen the trail that wet at the start, and I began to think that I might not be running a fast time.
While I usually start off pretty hard, I made sure to set a hard pace this year in the hopes that Greg might not be willing to risk going out too hard in his first Escarpment. I quickly built up a 10 second lead, and as the trail wound up Windham peak, I appeared to be all alone. My split at the top of Windham was relatively slow, which was not surprising considering my shoes were soaked most of the water up the climb. On the initial descent, I tried to run fast without risking a fall, which was difficult. The entire first half of the trail was extremely overgrown. There were several times that I could not see my feet beneath the undergrowth. There were plenty of rocks and roots under the foliage, but I could only hope that I was lifting my feet over everything. The rocks I could see were quite slick, and some the recent storms had eroded sections of trail. My Mudroc 280’s kept me from going down on several occasions.
I thought I was going pretty good until I heard Greg reeling me in on that first downhill. At that point, it was clear that I was not going to have a quiet, solo run to the finish. During the middle miles, I was sure that he was closing on me, and then, he would seem to just disappear. At one point, I convinced myself that I was just hearing things, and then realized that he was right behind me when I heard cheering at an aid station. I’m not sure what was going on, but I was definitely getting paranoid.
After Blackhead, the trail conditions improved greatly in terms of being able to see the trail, but the downhills were still wet and slick. Even in dry weather, you have to focus intently on your foot placements for mile after mile. In wet weather, the required focus becomes exhausting. However, you don’t have to concentrate on the trail, if you don’t mind falling all the time! I couldn’t shake Greg, but thought that if I could get to the last few miles with a decent lead, I would be able to hold on for the win due to my familiarity with the trail. It is very easy to miss turns over the last three miles, and he would have to be running much faster than me to catch up despite missing turns.
Although I felt as if I was running a decent time, I knew my splits were well off my best times. Towards the end, I thought I’d be able to break 3 hours until the lights went out. It had been pretty dark due to cloud cover most of the race, but during the last couple miles, someone cut the power. It looked like it was about 9pm, and I had trouble seeing more than a few feet in front of me. This was a bit worrisome on a section lined with steep cliffs. I stopped worrying about the time, and just focused on finding the trail and not falling off the side of the mountain. Despite running the race 9 times, I was surprised to see the finish appear out of the blackness. It ended up being a pleasant surprise, as I managed to a run a 2:59:48. Greg came in about 2.5 minutes later, and I’m sure he was much closer than that for all but the last couple miles. There were only three of us to run under 3:10.
I was thinking that conditions were pretty tough as I sat down to eat lunch with my family, but it was much worse for most of the field. Somewhere around a half hour in back of me, a storm caught up with the rest of the runners. It started with some rain, and then heavy rain, and then thunder and lightening, and then pounding hail! Steep uphills turned into instant waterfalls. As people crested the peaks along the course, one women had a close call with some lightening, and promptly dropped out. A couple of others were pulled from the trail suffering from hypothermia, there was a broken, or badly sprained ankle, and once individual sliced his head on a rock and proceeded to pass out at the finish. Given the conditions, I’m sure there were several other minor injuries, and some runners wrote the RD to declare that they were horrified during the race, and would never be returning to the Escarpment. So, it appears I missed all the fun!

Monday, September 22, 2008

Day One on the Long Trail

We got an update from JB this morning before he set out on Day Two of his hike down the Long Trail. Here it is...

If you don't have QuickTime installed, you can click the "read more" link to read the text.

Hey guys, its JB calling from the trail...

Day one was a great day, got my miles in, started at 4:40 am and finished at 8 pm. Andrew and I camped out on the Canadian border on Saturday night. Good time. Feeling good the feet are holding up. It's nice out here it's really nice, a lot of colors, and the miles are long and tough just as I expected. Today I'm going for another 38 looking good looking good so far. Staying at White Face Mountain right now which is 3700 ft and I'm at 900 feet and I still have to drop down across the river. Got a long day ahead of me, so, I'm signing out.

Friday, September 19, 2008

Good luck on the Long Trail, Jonathan!

On Sunday, team member Jonathan Basham will set out on a 272.9 mile hike down the Long Trail in beautiful, back country Vermont in hopes of breaking the unsupported speed record. Basham, who “always wanted to see the autumn foliage in New England,” wants to go after the unsupported Long Trail record this September because it will prepare him to capture the supported speed record in 2009. He will begin at the northern terminus (the Canadian border) and hike southbound for seven days.

If Basham can keep to his itinerary (below), he will overthrow Demetri Coupounas current unsupported speed record of 12 days, 19 hours, and 53 minutes. He will also best Jennifer Phar's current self-supported record of 7 days, 15 hours, and 40 minutes.

JB’s Long Trail Itinerary

Sept 21- Day 1: Canadian Border > Corliss Camp Shelter 38.3 miles
Sept. 22- Day 2: Corliss Camp Shelter > Puffer Shelter 38.1 miles
Sept. 23-Day 3: Puffer Shelter > Glen Ellen Lodge 36.8 miles
Sept. 24-Day 4: Glen Ellen Lodge > Wetmore Gap 42.1 miles
Sept. 25-Day 5: Wetmore Gap > Lula Tye Shelter 43.5 miles
Sept. 26-Day 6: Lula Tye Shelter > Kid Gore Shelter 45.4 miles
Sept. 27-Day 7: Kid Gore Shelter > VT/Mass Border 28.5 miles

JB will keep his cell phone on him throughout the hike and provide daily updates on his progress. Tune in throughout the week for more!

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Who's Racing This Weekend

Scott Dunlap will be racing at the Skyline to the Sea 50k. "The popular Skyline to the Sea Trail runs from the crest of the Santa Cruz Mountains at Saratoga Gap through Big Basin Redwoods State Park, the oldest park in California (est. 1902), and ends at the Pacific Ocean at Waddell Beach. It travels through tall redwoods and high chaparral along the way." Good luck Scott!

Scott Dunlap - Skyline to the Sea Trail Run

Monday, September 15, 2008

Anne Lundblad Wins Bays Mountain Trail Race

On a warm and humid morning Anne Lundblad took the women's overall title and set a new CR at the Bays Mountain Trail Race in Kingsport, TN. A scenic 15 mile layout at Bay's Mountain Park nature preserve provided the perfect venue for a great trail race in the Northeast Tennessee mountains. The course was a nice mix of hills and some fast downhill sections on single track, double track and gravel road. A well directed race with something for everyone who enjoys trail running.

Type rest of the post here

Dunlap Wins Redwood Park 50k

We had a hot day at the Redwood Park 50k near Oakland, CA (100+ degrees), and I pulled through to finish first. RocLite 315's and the Debris Gaiters were perfect for getting through the bedrock, sand, and loose dirt. Read the full post here!

- SD

Ben Nephew's Skyline Race Report

Take a gander at Ben's rip roarin' run at Skyline Trail Race! Read more.

SKYLINE 7.2m TRAIL RACE 2008 7/13/08

The Skyline trail in Blue Hills state park is only a few miles south of Boston, which may be why so many people are surprised at ho w rugged the trail is. The climbs in the state park are in no way mountainous, but longer and higher compared to everything within 30 miles of Boston. There are sections on some of the trails where you are climbing hand over foot. The Skyline trail is the most technical and direct route up all the major hills in the park. On good sections of the trail, the rocks are jagged, and the roots are piled on top of one another. On bad sections, there are 3-4 ft ledges where you land on those jagged rocks, and the rocks are extremely loose. In order to control the number of injuries sustained during the race, the course actually runs on a jeep road for 2 miles in the middle of the course to give runners a break from Skyline trail. After the start, you run for about 1.6 miles on the Skyline, then 2 miles on undulating carriage road, and then the final 3.6 is all back on the Skyline. Overall, due to the challenging footing, the race is both mentally and physically exhausting.
On race day, as I pulled into the parking lot with my wife and son Gavin, I knew it was going to be a tough race. Greg Hammett was running, and had brought his friend, Josh Ferenc, who won 7 Sisters earlier this year. I used to try and tell myself that Josh couldn’t run technical trails, but I couldn’t fool myself any longer after his win at 7 Sisters. My race plan beforehand was to run hard from the gun. I wanted to get a good hill workout in, and try to work on running uphill well even when exhausted. I was actually more excited for my wife, Steph, as she was finally back to racing trails.
Josh and Greg assumed the lead spots at the start, and the pace seemed reasonable as we made our way to the first climb, which is about 400ft and quite steep. As soon as we turned left up the hill, those just two took off. Despite my desire to run hard early, they dropped me very quickly. I’ve seen several other runners go out hard at Skyline, but this was far beyond that. They had about 15 seconds on me by the top of that first climb, and my legs already felt dead. The next downhill is very technical, with steep slopes of loose talus, and I actually caught Josh as he was trying to stay upright and keep his ankles intact. As soon as the trail became a bit more runable, he was gone. Although I gave chase, I kept thinking that the pace was way too fast, at least for Greg and me. I was hoping that it might be too ambitious for Josh, but a part of me knew that my best bet for catching him was for him to miss a turn.
As I started the carriage road section, I couldn’t see either Josh or Greg, which was pretty discouraging. I thought I was in decent shape, and to be that far back 1.6 miles into the race was sad. Despite the aggressive pace on the steep hills, my legs felt OK on the carriage road, and I settled into a solid pace. After running about a mile, I spotted Greg, and he looked like he was struggling. I passed him shortly before turning back onto the Skyline trail, and tried to push the start of the next climb. This climb is particularly cruel. It starts with about a quarter mile of steep single track, and then, when your legs are about done, you have to climb a rough stone staircase another 100 ft. to the top of the hill. I put some time on Greg, but there was no sign of Josh.
My only realistic hope of catching him was to try and make up time on the technical downhills, which is not the safest thing to do. There are few places on the Skyline trail where falling is not painful. The other factor that makes the Skyline race difficult is the increasing summer heat. It wasn’t an incredibly warm day, but when you loose any evaporative cooling while climbing up rock ledges, your core temperature goes through the roof. By the top of the last few hills, I could feel my heartbeat in my brain.
I never did see Josh, and no, he didn’t miss any turns. The course was unusually well-marked this year, unfortunately! I ran well over the last few miles to finish 25 seconds off my course record in 1:03:24. Josh ran 59:11, and Greg ran 1:05:53. Josh became the first runner to run under 60 minutes in the 20 year history of the Skyline race. As far as I know, only Greg, myself, Josh, and Kevin McGovern have run under 1:05. Although I lost the course record, I was satisfied with my run. Even if I had run a perfect race, I don’t think I could have done better than a 1:01, so I wasn’t too upset about the loss. Greg said that when Josh flew by him on the carriage trail, it looked like he was running 5:00 mile pace.
After I finished, I brought Gavin up the course to watch his mom finish. Steph had a great race, and finished as the 5th female. As she ran toward us, Gavin started calling for her and clapping his hands. When she didn’t stop as she ran to finish, he then got very sad, and began to cry. I took him over the finish area, we both got cookies, and everybody was happy.

AR Navigation Supplies takes 2nd place at Presidio 2008 Long Course

Team AR Navigation Supplies to 2nd place to a flying Steve Gregg by less than a minute at the 2008 Presidio National Orienteering Day event this past weekend. Thanks to INOV-8 and Brunton for providing the best gear for the event and helping us post our highest place finish at an orienteering event in 2008.

Full results can be found at the following link.

http://baoc.org/wiki/Results/2008/Presidio

Inov-8 Athlete Profile Interview: Kevin Tilton

In this addition of Inov-8 Athlete Profile I was able to catch-up with one of America's top mountain runners, Kevin Tilton of Conway, New Hampshire. Kevin has run solid races from east to west and has been a member of the U.S. Mountain Running Team. Kevin was kind enough to take time to answer some of my questions.

Inov-8 Athlete Profile Interview: Kevin Tilton
Interviewed by: Wynn Davis

1.Can you tell us a little bit about how your running career began?
I ran my first 5k road race at the age of 13 at the New Hampshire International Speedway. I was a big time NASCAR fan and thought it would be cool to run a race on a race track. I think I ran /walked it in around 25:00. From there I decided to join the track and cross country teams when I got to high school.

2. Living in North Conway, NH, can you recommend a wandering trail runner any particular trails or state parks that stick out in your mind?
It’s hard to limit it to just one! One of my favorites it the Rob Brook Trail off of the Kancamagus Highway. It’s a 13-mile loop that has fire road, single track, old railroad bed, stream crossings, and even a beaver dam crossing. I’ve also seen numerous bear and moose on this run.

3. The state of New Hampshire is small, but I hear it has some pretty rugged and epic trails. Despite maybe the lack of altitude, does the terrain suffice well enough for a serious Mountain Runner? I think the terrain here is as good if not better than other places for mountain running. There are some steep rocky trails, steep roads, and great up and down trails. There is a lot of variety for a mountain runner to train for different disciplines. The lack of altitude is only a problem when you race at really high altitude. I’ve been able to race up to 10,000 ft competitively despite the fact that my doorstep is at 600ft!

4. Can you tell us a little bit about your profession as a Land Survey Technician? As a land survey tech I measure property lines, perform topographic surveys, and create maps among many other tasks. There is a lot of hiking and walking involved. It is also a great way to explore your local area and learn the history. I have found many new trails while I’ve been working too!

5. What are your strengths and what are your weaknesses? I think my strengths are my ability to stay injury free by running a lot of trails, having the ability to switch disciplines without a lot of prep work (road, trail, mountain), and just having the ability to race in nasty conditions that many others don’t like. One of my weaknesses is a lack of leg speed. I’ve run a 15:16 5k but many of the guys I compete against in the mountains have run much faster.

6. Can you tell us what your training philosophy is and what some of your favorite workouts include? I just try to get out the door one or twice everyday and get in as many miles as I can handle. I tend to run easy when I feel like garbage and run fast when I feel good. I also use hard races as my workouts.

7. in 2005 you had an epic battle against some of America’s best Mountain Runners at the Cranmore Hill climb race. It seemed as though you and fellow teammate Paul Low were testing each other’s limits finishing a close 2nd and 3rd respectively. Can you tell us your thoughts on this race?

Cranmore in 2005 was a little bit of a surprise. I don’t consider myself a very good downhill runner, but I just put it on the line that day and tried to stick with Paul for as long as possible. Paul is a great downhill runner and smoked me on the last lap. I ran well enough to make my first US Mountain Running Team though.

8.In 2006 you were part of the talented U.S. Mountain Running team that competed for the World Championships in Bursa, Turkey. Can you describe your experience of this trip and how your race went?

The trip to Bursa was pretty cool. It was my first time in a country that is not perceived as “friendly to Americans.” This misconception was totally bogus. The Turkish people were some of the most friendly and hospitable people I’ve ever met. Rickey Gates and I had to hitch hike after the Trophy race to get back to our hotel. We were completely spent and started walking. A nice family that was driving by picked us up despite the fact that we smelled and were barely wearing any clothes. It was the first and only time I have ever hitch hiked!

The race itself didn’t go as well as I had hoped. I finished 86th out of about 130. I was shooting for a top 30 or higher. It was disappointing, but I learned a lot about what it takes to compete at that level.

9. Now that you have competed against European runners, are there any differences you see in their training, approaches, etc.. in regard to the U.S.? It’s hard to say. A lot of the Europeans train similar to us, they just have more numbers. Mountain running is definitely growing in popularity in the U.S. though, and is drawing more competitive runners. This year’s U.S. team looks to be one of the strongest ever.

10. You have had a strong year of racing at various trail distances this year including a 1st place finish at the Merrimack River 16km race and another solid finish at Mt. Washington. Can you describe some of the highlights of your race or trail experience this year? Merrimack River was definitely a high point. I ran a 2-minute PR and felt pretty good the whole way. Mt. Washington was a decent race, but I was shooting for a top 4 finish and a PR. I felt that I was in shape to do it, but things didn’t come together on race day.

11. What do you know now that you wish you would have known when you first started running? Running easy on easy days is not a bad thing. I used to run way too hard on my easy days and wasn’t properly recovered for my workouts, plus I used to get injured more often.

12. Is there a particular INOV-8 shoe that you gravitate toward and why? I really like the roclite 295. The roclite 305 has great cushioning. The f-lite 230 is a great racing flat. I use the mudclaw 340 O+ a lot in the winter to run on packed trails.

13. Finally, what are your goals for the future? I definitively want to get back to the World Mountain Running Trophy and place in the top 10. It’s a lofty goal, but that’s what goals are for.

Thanks Kevin!

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Roclite 295's and Mudsoc

I just want to write a quick note to say how much I enjoyed the 295's with the Mudsoc's at last week's Wasatch 100 Miler. The shoes and socks were perfect for the race and I finished without a single blister. Furthermore, I had no foot or ankle pain and even over the last 10 gnarly miles the 295's were great.

Thank you, Inov-8, for an outstanding shoe/sock combination!

AJW

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Gregor's Vipassana Voyage

Gregor's Vipassana Voyage

An old yoga journal article

Tarves & Mielke Win The La Sportiva Mountain Cup!

Team Inov-8's brother and sister duo, Shiloh Mielke and Meadow Tarves won this year's La Sportiva Mountain Cup Series. They made the trip out to Vail, Co to try to secure their first place series overall standing by racing in the final event, The La Sportiva Vail Trophy Challenge Race. The 7.2 mile race had over 3k of vertical gain. Shiloh finished 3rd OA and sister Meadow was 5th woman making the trip well worth their efforts with both winning $5,000 in prize money. Congratulations to both!

La Sportiva Mountain Cup Finale Attracts Competitive Field
Vail, CO – The final event in the
La Sportiva Mountain Cup
Series, the La Sportiva Vail
Trophy Challenge Race, was
held Sunday, August 31 in the
midst of a beautiful and sunny
Labor Day weekend in the
Rockies.
Series overall leaders
Shiloh Mielke and his older
sister Meadow Tarves made the
trip to Colorado from North
Carolina in the hopes of keeping their lead and winning $5,000 each in prize money. Before the race
Tarves said, “We both just bought houses and the money will really help!”
Close in the standings were Bernie Boettcher, just two points back from Mielke and Laura
Haefeli, nine points back from Tarves. Both of these masters runners (age 40 and over) opted to race in
the “open” category hoping to pick up the extra prize money doled out for the open winners. The total
purse for the series winners would be $25,000 – top three open men and women - $5,000, $2,500, $1,500;
top three masters men and women - $2,000, $1,000, $500.
Also making the trip to Colorado was Tom
Borschel from Idaho Falls, ID, vying for a top
finish in the veterans (over 50) division. Borschel
ended up with a ninth-place finish overall timed in
1:06:58 to win the veterans’ category.
Although the series attracted runners from
more than 15 states, only three states were
represented in the finale. No surprise was Colorado
boasting the most runners in the Trophy Challenge.
In the masters’ category Simon Gutierrez
was hoping to seal a victory on the men’s side and
Lisa Goldsmith on the women’s side. Andy Ames
hoped to have a finish that would elevate him to
second place while Suzan Nuzum hoped for the
same on the women’s side. The third place position would certainly be up for grabs with many
athletes in contention.
The Trophy Challenge started at the bottom of Vail Mountain at Golden Peak Children’s Center
at 8,150 feet above sea level and climbed toWildwood, the highest point of the resort at 10,874 feet. The
majority of the climb occurred over the first 5.6 miles of the race. The final 1.6-mile section ran across the
ridgeline and downhill to finish at Eagles Nest at 10,300 feet. The
vertical gain was 3,000 feet in 7.2 miles. The course was entirely
single track terrain, after a brief start on a wide gravel path. The
route included deep forest as well as some open and expansive
meadows, and finished above tree line with gorgeous vistas to the
north and south. There were aid stations at miles 2, 4, and 5.6 as
well as the start and finish line. Gatorade Endurance formula was
provided at the aid stations as well as water.
Borschel receives prize
Tarves #42
First into view at the finish line was 2007 Teva U.S. Mountain Running
Team member and former University of Colorado Buffalo cross country and
track standout, Payton Batliner, 24, who posted a time of 55:27, just over one
minute ahead of 42-year-oldGutierrez, Alamosa, CO, a seven-time mountain
running team member. In third place was Shiloh Mielke, 28, Weaverville, NC,
who races for Innov 8 and was a member of the ’05 and ’06 mountain team, in
58:02. La Sportiva Team member Bernie Boettcher, 45, Silt, CO, finished fourth
in just under one hour with Andy Ames, 45, Boulder, CO, a member of the ’04
mountain team who
also runs for Fleet Feet
Sports, rounding out
the top five in 1:00:26.
With his
seventh place finish
overall, Boettcher’s La
Sportiva teammate
Michael Selig, 30,
Lakewood, CO, earned third place in the series
behind Mielke and Boettcher. Batliner earned
enough points to take fourth in the series.
On the women’s
side, Brandy Erholtz, 30,
Bailey, CO, a member of
the 2008 Teva U.S.
Mountain Running Team who (like Gutierrez) will compete in Switzerland at the
World Mountain Running Trophy Race on September 14, led the way from start to
finish posting a time of 1:06:41 and appears to have moved into the third place open
series slot. La Sportiva Team member and ’97 and ’06 Teva U.S. Mountain Running
Team member Lisa Goldsmith, 43, Nederland, CO, finished in second with a time of
1:07:15, to clinch the masters’ series title. Laura Haefeli, 40, Del Norte, CO, who
also runs for La Sportiva and is a four-time member of the Teva U.S. Mountain
Running Team (leading the U.S. women to a gold-medal finish in ’07 with a bronze
individual medal), finished in 1:10:21. Anita Ortiz, 44, Eagle, CO, another La
Sportiva Team member (and a five-time member of the Teva U.S. Mountain Running
Team) was fourth in 1:11:38, while Meadow Tarves, 30, Arden, NC, finished in fifth place timed in
1:16:00. Tarves will happily enjoy her $5,000 first place series prize!

Checkpoint Zero / Inov-8 Tames The BEAR

Checkpoint Zero / Inov-8 took on The BEAR (Beach Extreme Adventure Race) 12 hour race held near Jacksonville Florida and learned a few lessons along the way.

We hadn't originally planned on racing The BEAR, but when the opportunity to purchase a used C-1 in Orlando presented itself, we needed a good excuse to make a road trip out of the weekend. We checked race schedules and this race was a perfect fit.

Since the main goal of the weekend was to pick up a new canoe, we didn't bring any of our usual race boats and instead opted to borrow a very fast wooden racing canoe from a friend who lived in the area. We checked with the race director to see if the boat would be ok, and got the thumbs up. This small fact may not seem significant, but as the tale unfolds, it was nearly our undoing.

The race started with a short run to collect some information posted on an information board in the Bayard Conservation Area. After writing down the clue and making it back to the main TA, it was off to the canoe leg of the race. We put into the nearby St. John's river, and noticed the water was somewhat rougher than what we had hoped for, but we managed to keep our boat upright for the 10 km paddle to the only paddle checkpoint.

As soon as we turned around, we were hit by a series of waves and were swamped. Our attempts to empty the boat and continue onward were squashed when the wind continued to pickup and the waves got even bigger. As we floated in the river and watched the rest of the race pass us by, we decided we'd just swim to shore and portage back to the TA. This turned into the longest portage I've ever done, over 7 miles in the hot baking sun.

Against all odds, and to the surprise of many racers and officials, we did make it to the TA, hopped on our bikes, and continued the race. The bike loop was short and relatively uneventful compared to our so called paddle. We made our final transition to another trekking section and collected the remaining checkpoints. During the last 2 sections we saw a lot of teams still on the course, but didn't have any idea how we were placed. To our surprise, we crossed the finish line and were told that only one team had crossed before us, but they weren't in our category. We had won!

Races like this one just go to show, in adventure racing, don't ever give up, you never know what can happen.

Who's Racing This Weekend

Three tough races and three tough Inov-8 athletes will be toeing the line this weekend. Wynn Davis will be defending his title at Superior Sawtooth 100 mile in Minnesota. Andy-Jones Wilkins will try to add to his impressive resume of stellar 100 mile races as he tackles The Wasatch 100 from Layton, Utah to The Homestead in Midway, Utah. Kelli Lusk will be in her element of mountain running at the 17.1 mile Imogene Pass Run from Ouray, Co to Telluride, Co.

Wynn Davis - Superior Sawtooth 100
Andy-Jones Wilkins - Wasatch 100
Kelli Lusk - Imogene Pass Run

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