Peter Maksimow wrapped up winning the Pikes Peak Winter Series with another overall win, this time in the 20k race with a 3:27 cushion over 2nd place in 1:15:39. Peter won the series by an awesome 11:55, taking 1st place in all 4 races. Perhaps part of is incentive to do so well was his newest sponsor being a local brewery, The Black Fox Brewing Company. Not sure how many free pints he gets for the series title but I hope they hook him up! Dwight Shuler was 17th OA at the Mount Mitchell Challenge which again lived up to it's name, with epic cold and blustery race day conditions. DeWayne Satterfield grabbed 2nd OA at Mount Cheaha 50k and Eric Charette was 6th OA in 4:54:05. Lainie Callahan was the 2nd female at the Pony Express 50 mile in 7:44. Brendon Mahoney won the Seqouoia 10k trail race Saturday in 44:48, barely missing the course record.
Amy Lane kept up her winning ways in snowshoe racing. On Sunday she won the Moody Springs 5.7 miler in a time of 1:06. At the New England 10 Mile Road Championships (DH Jones 10 Miler) in Amherst, MA we had Jim Johnson in 20th overall – 54:48 (5:28 pace), Kevin Tilton in 59th overall – 57:45 (5:47 pace), and Todd Walker placing 154th overall – 1:04:15 (6:26 pace). Joe Gray was 5th OA at the 2010 Yeti World Snowshoe Invitational with a time of 51:37.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Weekend Results
Friday, February 26, 2010
This Weekend's Starting Line (updated 2/26)
The Mount Mitchell 40 mile Challenge is this Saturday morning and like last year it will live up to it's name. This time instead of a potential surprising weather change mid-race, there is already deep snow and ice covered trails coupled with blow downs everywhere from recent storms. The course is shortened this year to 35 miles to avoid some of the impassable trails by taking the road up to the summit but it will be a tough struggle nonetheless. Dwight Shuler will brave the conditions and see how well his Kahtoola Microspikes work on the snow covered trail section of the course.
Joe Gray will be at the World Snowshoe Invite this Saturday at Grouse Mountain just outside Vancouver, near the Olympic Games. He will be racing the 10k distance. Eric Charette and DeWayne Satterfield will be racing the point to point course of Mount Cheaha 50k billed as "the race to the top of Alabama". Lainie Callahan will be racing the Pony Express 50 mile at Cameron Park Lake in Cameron Park, California. The course is 50 Miles of groomed horse trail on a 1.25 mile loop-repeated 40 times around the lake.
Kevin Tilton and Jim Johnson will be at the USATF-New England 10 Mile Road Championships (Jones 10 Miler) out in Amherst, MA on Sunday. Peter Maksimow will try to wrap up the Pikes Peak Series overall win this Saturday at the 4th and final race a 20k distance. Amy Lane is back on the snowshoes this time at the Moody Spring snowshoe race this weekend in Hawley, MA.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Weekend Results
Amy Lane (pictured) won the Moby Dick 7.3 mile Snowshoe Race in 1:16:21 on Saturday and then went on to win the Halocksville Orchard 3.7 Mile Snowshoe race on Sunday in 28:14. Not to be out done, Jim Johnson had a double victory this weekend as well. On Saturday Jim won the Horsehill 7k Snowshoe Race in 27:07, then on Sunday he won the Halocksville Orchard 3.7 miler in 22:24. Jim's triple racing plans for the weekend were cut short due to a lack of snow for the Moonlight Snowshoe Race Saturday night.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
2010 Black Warrior 25km
Moulton, AL
February 20, 2010
Saturday was the 5th Annual running of the Black Warrior Trail Runs. Held near Moulton, Alabama in the Bankhead National Forest, the courses for 50km and 25km are mostly single-track trails over rolling terrain. The trails are frequently used by horses and when combined with a wet January, the course typically 'features' shoe-sucking mud with unstable footing. The lead in to both distances includes an immediate mile long climb on a gravel road, ascending up 275' before cresting out and continuing on for another mile and half. Then the single track section begins with the 25km running just the Key Mill (Orange Blaze) 10 mile loop before returning to the trail head and running the gravel road back to the finish.
This year I was running the 25km distance as a final tune up for next weekend's goal race at Mount Cheaha 50km. Cheaha is part of the Ultra Cup so the competition is sure to be top notch. Last year at Black Warrior I managed a 4:15 and 4th overall place in the 50km under similar conditions. In 2009 most of the top-tier competition ran in the longer distance, with the top 8 finishing under 4:30 and top 14 under 5 hours. This year that trend did not hold true as the top runners were all doing the same thing as me; using it as a final hard run before an upcoming race. That just meant better competition to help push me to run my best.
The temperatures in the low-lying Brushy Lake Recreational Area were frigid at 27 degrees. As runners lined up on a very small bridge at the starting line, we shivered mightily, but within the first mile I was already pushing my arm sleeves down around my forearms. It was a very fast start, with the 25km runners shooting up and aggressively starting the climb from the gun. Hills are strength so I was out quickly too, moving into 2nd before the top of the 5% grade climb, holding a low 7 pace. The lead runner was nearly out of site already and would go on to shatter the course record.
Here is the course elevation profile.
As the gravel road flattened, I locked into a six minute pace for the next mile and a half to the Key Mill trail head. As I entered the forest, Tim Vinson from Huntsville had caught up to me and we ran together for the fist half of the loop until the FSR 262 road crossing. This section of trail was fairly fast with just a few places with standing water. The most difficult part was that with each step in the mud, I was unsure if I would sink in, possibly losing a shoe and/or not being able to push off for my next stride, or if the cooler temperatures of the morning had harden the mud and a possible ankle twist might happen. This uncertainty continued for the rest of the day as each muddy section was unpredictable.
I was wearing the inov-8 Roclite 305 for this race. I mostly chose this shoe because it wears fast both on the roads and on the trails and with this race being a mixture of both it seemed smart. In hindsight, I wish that I had worn my Roclite 295's. Both shoes work well in mud with the spaced out tread pattern, but the 295's seem to hold slightly less water when they are wet and muddy. I knew how muddy this course would be and my current 305's were about at the end of their life and I really did not want to trash a fresh pair of 295's on this short distance race. SO in the end, I felt like I labored just a little more with heavy feet than I had to. Maybe I should followed suit with DeWayne Satterfield and tried the inov-8 X-Talon 212's?
Running with Tim, I was probably more aggressive early on than I had planned to be. I had laid out an approach where I would run between 7:30 and 8:00 minute miles for the technical portions and try to hold this pace. As we crossed Forest Service Road 262 and continued on the Orange Loop, we were tracking at 30 to 60 seconds faster than this pace, with 9 miles to go. Tim stopped to grab a drink from the aid station, while I continued through since I was carrying my Ultimate Direction hand bottle. I used to small gap to ease back on the pace but as soon as he caught up, we were right back to low seven minute pace.
Being good friends with Tim, we did talk along the way, despite it being very short sentences given the pace. At one point I mentioned that I was not trying to avoid the mud, I was just afraid to lose a shoe. Ironically, at about the 7-mile mark, Tim lost a shoe in the mud and fell back. Looking at my splits, I slowed slightly, but it was only a matter of minutes until he caught back up. As we ran through a fairly technical section with deep hoof imprints in the mud, I tweaked my left ankle. This injury goes back to when I was a kid and severely sprained my ankle when jumping off a 10' platform into the snow. Ever since then, when I step on uneven ground with my heel low and my forefoot pushes straight up to my ankle, I nearly buckle in pain. Tim saw me take a few steps forward gingerly and asked if I was ok. My standard response was that it was fine, but really I was just trying to not admit that this was the beginning of the end for me in this race. Once it happens, my ankle/foot won't solidly plant and I would go on to tweak it several more times during the rest of the race.
Just before the aid station, I let Tim pass through and the younger kid that had caught up to us soon passed by. We all made the left at the 50k/25k split but it wasn't long before they pulled away as I had to ease up on the pace. Before the 10-mile mark, Rob Youngren had caught up easily with my pace now in the low 8's. He was feeling spry and sped by. Rob and I are very good friends, as we train together often and drove over to the race on this morning with his wife Kathy. We go back and forth on races; sometimes he takes me, sometimes I take him. He was clearly feeling better and it would be his day. So within 2 miles I had dropped from 2nd into 5th overall.
The final section of the Key Mill loop back to the gravel road is about a 300' climb over the next 3 miles, but the climb seems to never end. While it is nothing that requires walking, it is just roller coaster hills that continue to climb. I took the hill section at about 9 minute miles on average while struggling with my left ankle issues. The pain had migrated up my leg to my hip and made lifting my leg difficult and I had literally no push off. I could tell that my form was awful but I was still having a decent day and pushed through it.
Coming through the last aid station, I had just over 2.5 miles to go on the gravel road back to the finish line. After the hard right turn, I spotted a runner behind me, still down in the woods. I guessed that they were about 2 minutes back approximately so as I ran along I figured that if I could hold seven-minute pace, he would have to run a low 6 in order to make up the difference and catch me. I was struggling with tired legs from the distance, but split the first three half-mile sections on the road at 3:33, 3:26 and 3:21.
The last mile has the significant drop back to the start and then back to the park for the finish. It was painful even to run downhill but I managed to run a 6:30 final mile, while trying to catch a few glimpses behind me to make sure that I wasn't going to have to withstand any last sections surges. My finishing time was 1:51:41 for an average of 7:12 pace and a 5th overall placement. I have not seen the final results yet but I was able to hold off the next runner by at least several minutes.
The hardware for the top 5 overall finishers is pretty nice.
I learned a few valuable lessons with this race. No matter how many times I compete, it is nice to come away with a few things for next time.
1. Be sure to select footwear best for the course as it can make a big difference.
2. Do not let others dictate the pace.
3. Striding out to the front is futile if it means not being able to hold the pace late in the race.
4. It is possible to overcome mistakes and still finish strong.
5. I am able to deal with pain when the unexpected happens.
Now time to get a little healthy this week and prepare for Mountain Cheaha 50k next weekend.
Sean Andrish is VHTRC's Male Runner of the Year
Sean was voted as Male Runner of the Year for the third time by the membership of the Virginia Happy Trails Running Club. Photos of the club's award ceremony and descriptions of Sean's race results, as well as the other nominees, can be found here. Congrats to Sean!
Thursday, February 18, 2010
This Weekend's Starting Line
Eric Charette will be racing in Moulton, AL at the Black Warrior 25k in prep for the Mount Cheaha 50k the following weekend. Amy Lane will be back snowshoe racing in the WMAC Moby Dick 6.7 mile race in Lanesborough, MA. Jim Johnson is going for a trifecta this weekend with 3 races on tap. First up the Horse Hill 7k Snowshoe Race in Merrimack, NH on Saturday morning (snow pending, if not enough snow this becomes a trail race), then that night he will race the Moonlight Snowshoe Race a 5k course in Madbury, NW (headlamps needed) and on Sunday the Hallocksville Orchard 3.8 mile snow shoe race in Hawley, MA. Cristina Luis will be racing in her first Orienteering national ranking meet of the year, the Sycamore Scramble in Raleigh, NC. It's three races, a middle distance, a sprint on Saturday, then a classic distance on Sunday. Good luck everyone.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
DWD - Green Swamp Race Report
DWD Green Swamp race 2010 had a variety of challenging trail races going on. They had a 50M/50k ultra marathon, a 26.2/13.1, and a 50 mile relay team race. With all the different races, it was important to keep a close eye on your signage as they all weaved in and out of one another. At packet pickup everyone was buzzing about the wet course conditions. I asked Race director Randy “The Head Goat” what he thought he slyly smiled and said “It’s Bloody Muddy!”
The course would take us through swamps, cypress forest and down the beautiful Florida trail. The Florida trail is one of eight National Scenic Trails in the United States. It is a hiking only trail that travels more than 1500 miles across the state of Florida with 1100 miles of that being continuous. The trail was established in the Ocala National Forest in 1966 with much work done by Jim Kern from Miami.
I ran the 50 mile race which started at 5:30am with a temperature of 40. The days forecasted highs were in the mid 40’s. It was dark and we headed off into a relatively dry 5 mile loop. This consisted of some wide trail, single track and sandy footing. I ran a little quicker knowing I would have to walk some of the flooded areas later on. During this leg we heard an owl “Hooting”. I was running with local runner Paul Carrington. He told me this was a Hoot Owl. The owls hoot kind of sounds like it’s saying “Who cooks for you” We could hear two of them talking back in forth between one another. Hoot Owls are home bodies that generally never travel more than a few miles from their birth place. They prefer living in swamp lands.
The second leg was a little wetter but still easy to run. This leg had some open wet fields and woodsy areas. This is where I first noticed the giant 100 year plus oak trees. They had huge trunks with gnarly outstretched limbs. The canopy for one tree would outstretch 150 feet. The trees were draped in Spanish moss that swayed in the wind giving them a bit of an eerie feeling early in the morning.
I arrived at aid station 10.3 thinking they may have exaggerated the muddiness of the course. Here the volunteers told us that it was 4 miles to the next aid station and we would have a river crossing. We ran about ½ mile down a soft sandy road then hit some harder packed trail. We were on this for a very short time when the whole trail turned to water for the next 3 miles. It was cold, knee deep, mucky dark water. I tried not the think about this looking like a perfect spot to see alligators. The vegetation around us was thick. I wore my Flyroc 284’s and they drained quickly and stayed light with the wet muddy conditions. I felt great and was really enjoying the challenge.
I arrived to a very cheery group at the next aid station. It was a remote area. Volunteers had to travel through some tough areas to set up aid for us. We passed this nice crew twice and enjoyed there laughter at our mud soaked bodies. The next stop would be the Decider point.
Decider point was also a relay team exchange point. The adrenaline filled teams cheering added a lot of exciting energy to this aid station. Last year you left this aid station and went under the bridge through the Withlacoochee River. This year the water was up 70 feet. So we went over the bridge and then we turned into the woods. For the next 11 miles we traveled through pine tree trails, open fields, and wet single track areas with plenty of twist and turns. This went by quickly and we were back to Decider point with 17 miles left in the race.
A good portion of the last 17 miles of the race was on the Florida trail. Here I saw Armadillo, Cypress forest, Pines, Cabbage Palms and plenty of lush Florida vegetation. One of my favorite changes made to the course was in the last 3 miles. DWD took us off the Florida trail through the thick of the forest. We just followed orange ribbons that were tied to trees, cypress stumps, poison ivy, bones and whatever the “Head Goat” found along the way. Your tired mind was well worked watching for direction in this thick area. This was where the most spectacular Cypress Tree forest was. Cypress trees grow in very wet areas, so to adapt, their roots produce these smooth unusual “knees” that protrude above the soil ranging from a few inches to 6 feet. This was a really cool place and I felt lucky to see this natural environment. It was tough to run because the vegetation was so thick and muddy. Since it was close to the end of the race you didn’t mind a little walking break to take in the unusual sites of nature.
The finish line was good to see. A great picnic style dinner was set up. DWD puts on a great adventure style race that ensures you never get bored. Green Swamp is one of my favorites and I look forward to coming back next year to see my many new and old friends.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Weekend Results (updated 2/17)
Thursday, February 11, 2010
YO Alligator Jumpers...I'm preparing for Green Swamp 50 mile race at Pasco Cunty Withlacoochee River in Dade City Florida. Randy "The Head Goat" is race director of a series of Dances wth Dirt Races. This is the first of four for the year. I did all four of DWD races last year. Randy has established his reputation as a race director that enjoys sending us through plenty of stupid spots. At Gnaw Bone race in Indiana we started the race on a 5 mile uphill through calf deep shoe sucking mud! At Hell Michigan the mud was so deep (it was above my waist, and I'm 5'8') we had to use a rope to get from one side of the mud river to the other. After a quick rinse going upstream about 1/4 mile down the middle of a chest deep river we had to crawl up a 15 foot sticky black mud hill. Florida has been getting pounded with rain so as far as Green Swamp goes...The "dirt crew" said they had to tweak the course a little this year...if they didn't we would need a snorkel...and one of those shark cages! I will double knot on my Flyroc 284's and watch for alligators. I don't know what to expect of the Green Swamp course this year...but I'm sure it will be interesting!
This Weekend's Starting Line
I think I'll keep with Dwight's post title from last week as it sounds better. First up we have Peter Maksimow trying to extend his lead in the Pikes Peak Winter Series with the 3rd of 4 races in the series this weekend. Peter won the first two races and will tackle the long course (10 miler) along the Santa Fe Trail this Saturday. Michele Hartwig will be traveling down to Florida from the chilly Midwest to try and repeat as champion at the Green Swamp 50 mile race. This race is part of the Dances with Dirt Ultra Series.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Weekend Race Results
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
This Weekend's Starting Line
This year's racing season is hardly started but we have a few runners testing their early season form this weekend. Mark Lundblad, our 'Director Sportif', is hoping the epic weather will pass by Saturday before the start of his Uwharrie 40 mile trail race, in central NC. He got shut out of his last ultra attempt because of bad weather. Lets hope this one brings better luck. Also on Saturday, Yassine Diboun will be on the left coast's beautiful San Juan Islands competing in the Orcas Island 50k. I've been there and it would be an awesome venue for an all day run!
Sunday's lineup has Chris Reed burning off pre-football party calories at the Superbowl 10k road race in PA. And, Amber Moran is taking it across the pond to mix it up with the Brits at the Chichester 10k in England. Good luck everyone!
Patagonia Race Training
T minus 10 days till day one of the hardest race any of us have ever encountered. We promised each other, that after today we are tapering. No more 15 mile runs or 45 mile bike rides. Only smaller workouts, lots of sleep and lots of good food until we begin the most amazing suffer-fest of them all.
Our morning started at 7 am with a wake up call from Daniel. After rolling out of bed, filling up our water bottles with accelerate and Nuun, and stuffing our Ibex jerseys with raw rev bars, Gu and chomps, we were out the door and onto our bikes. It was a beautiful morning to be riding up into the mountains. It has been raining here for the past couple of weeks so all of the flora and fauna are at there best. I love California when its like this. At the top of our first 10 mile climb we ran into some local riders. Dan, being the friendly guy that he is, asked them where they were riding. They told us and then asked us the same. Dan spouted out our route and they returned with "uh, that's ballsy", which turned into the quote of the day. k
For a good portion of the ride it was hard not to talk and day dream about our upcoming Patagonia Race. However, as yogis we of course make a consiouse effort to be in the present moment, with the help of the beautiful green, lush Santa Barbara mountains, amazing single track descents, grueling up hill climbs and amazing sights from the top of the mountain- it wasn't hard to get back to reality. The ride, one of Daniel's favorites, was very much like a bike leg in an adventure race. There were never ending hill climbs, countless river crossings, Jason's shock blew out causing him to crash on the technical downhill, we stopped for some very scary, exposed acro play and Dan broke his chain. All of this and more is what we expect to happen when we race, making today a very successful training day! 45 miles and very tired lactic acid filled legs later, we arrived at Daniels house. After a recovery aloe vera smoothie and a hot shower, (two luxories we will not be experiencing during our race) Jason and I went out to walk the boardwalk and eat an amazing meal. A few hours later we returned to our race staging headquarters (aka Daniels house) to widdle away at our "to do" list. Us YogaSlackers love lists, with out lists and google docs I don't know where we would be right now. It is now 8:30pm and I feel like it is midnight, tomorrow is another full day starting with a 6:30am mysore yoga practice and then it is off to the ocean for some kayak rescue and dry suit practice. I have no doubt that it will be comical.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Craftsbury Ski Marathon
I have always been of the opinion that as athletes, we should constantly try new things, push the boundaries, get outside our comfort zones, and have fun! This couldn’t be more true than when I decided to sign up for the Craftsbury Ski Marathon. Cross country skiing is a wonderful cross training for running, and a way to enjoy the winter months. I had been a cross country ski racer (in a former life), but hadn’t ever raced longer than 15k, and hadn’t put on a race number in about a decade. What better way to challenge myself? Of course, Mother Nature decided I needed an extra challenge – from the time I decided to do this race to the race date, there was only one day with enough snow in a 1-hour radius of my house to ski on – so my training consisted of running and some weights (although I’m sure I got some cross training strength from my constant snow dances!). Photo by Jim Rodriques/NENSA The course was rolling, and went through a mixture of fields and wooded trails. We happily cruised along, staying clear of the pile-ups that were prevalent with 100 people starting together, and only two tracks to ski in. My hands were numb, despite the thick gloves I had on – it took about 4k to warm them up. Photo by Jim Rodriques/NENSA After the wax job, my sister and I headed out for the second loop. It had warmed up to about -1 at this point, but it felt warmer except for my feet which turned numb as we waxed. I was pleasantly surprised, as we pulled into an aid station, that the volunteers had heated up the drinks – and decided that warm HEED was the best thing to drink. They even had heated energy gels, but I passed on that for another 4k.
A ski marathon is actually a 50k race – and this particular race was the classical technique (which is ‘striding’). The Craftsbury Ski Marathon is one of the bigger ski marathons in the nation, and was serving as the Masters National Championship race this year, so it drew in a highly competitive crowd which included several current and former US Ski Team Members and Olympians.
Due to the snow conditions, the race was altered to 4 laps around a 12.5k circuit, rather than the two large 25k loops that were planned. That meant that the 600-700 racers were all packed onto one small loop, which made things a bit chaotic.
I showed up at 7:30 to pick up my race number, and was instantly frozen, even with so many layers I could barely move. The outside temperature was approximately -8 degrees (wind chill put it below -20). I moved quickly from the car to the registration area, and then jumped on the bus to be transported to the start/finish area. A quick run into the warming yurt, which was a balmy 20-degrees and did little to warm me, and I was applying layers and layers of kick wax to my skis – hoping the temperature would somehow rise up.
It warmed up to -4 (wind chill of -14) at the start, and my sister and I, decked out in more layers than we typically wear unless planning to be stationary, lined up behind the majority of the field. My sister and I had decided to do this together, but we were treating it as a training day – a way to get in a long ski, get to catch up, and have some aid along the way. My only rough goal was to try to ski the 50k faster than I could run it (which should be logical, right?). The cowbell rang, signaling the start, and we were off.
After about 4k into the loop, we passed through the start/finish area, and then started the ‘downhill’ section of the course. I could already tell that the hills would be in poor shape by the end of the race, since patches of ice were already beginning to show. We survived the downhill and started the long, gradual climb back up to the touring center. I tried to kick, and tried to kick, and realized that the 10 layers of carefully applied wax were already gone – it was like I was trying to ski on ice. I tried to ‘muscle through it’ for a few kilometers, but eventually my sister and I pulled over for a quick rewax of the skis.
At some point in the first lap, I noticed that my foot felt loose in my boot, and looked down to see that my boot zipper had broken, so my foot didn’t have the stability of the boot outer to control it. There is nothing to be done about this mid-race, so I just had to accept that downhills would be trickier for me, and my control with steep uphills would also be compromised.
The new wax lasted for most of the rest of the first lap, but coming into the lap zone, we peeled off to where my sister’s wax area was to melt some binder wax into my bases to hold the kick wax better. It was frustrating to pull off a race course momentarily and watch skiers going by, but knew that in the long run it was needed to be sure that I could actually use my skis (otherwise it was going to be a long day!).
I was pleased with my new wax, and my sister and I set off to cruise the lap, trying to catch a few of the folks who got by us during our waxing. We stopped at the aid stations, had warm drinks and gels, and were able to enjoy the second lap. I was happy to be able to feel all of my appendages and to not have any aches and pains. The third lap was equally enjoyable, as we enjoyed the warm treats along the way, the waxing held up (I did switch skis at one point to use up any available wax on the skis), and we were able to chat about upcoming races. I was starting to think ‘this isn’t so hard!’. It had nearly broken into positive temperatures, and the sun warmed us on the open fields.
The fourth lap proved to be as difficult as the first. My wax was starting to wear off, and the aches and pains of not doing any true ski training for this, were starting to pop up. My back hurt, my hands were cramping, my elbows shot pain with every pole plant, and I was starting to get cold. To make matters worse, the course was starting to deteriorate a bit – with ice patches cropping up on all the downhills. I realized that similar to running an ultra, I had hit the time in the race where I start to question why I do this, and if it was worth the pain. Luckily I had my sister with me, so she provided conversation to distract me, and kept me moving forward. I started counting down the remaining kilometers in the race with each marker that I passed. We did stop for another rewax after the downhill, so that I could stride it out through the finish.
Luckily, we were headed up the last hill before I knew it, and headed through the finish lane (not the lap lane!) at last. I provided a bit of excitement for the volunteers as I ‘sprinted’ with my sister for the finish line. She was kind and let me have the win. It had warmed up to 2 degrees by the time we finished, but considering the temperatures we started in it felt downright warm. I think we both paid that evening and the next day for the long ski – aches and pains have been creeping in every time I move, from muscles that don’t get used during running. I feel as gimpy as when I finished my first running ultra.
I learned (or remembered) a lot about ultras (running and skiing) during this event, and was glad for the experience. First, there is no better training for what you are planning to do than actually doing it – my sore body is directly related to the fact that I had only skied about 4 times this year, and never got to classical ski. Second, it was a great reminder that fueling was key – I took the time to take in gels, HEED, and granola bars during the race, and my energy level was even throughout the race. Third, in an ultra event, you always have to expect the unexpected – whether it be wax not working, equipment breaking, extreme weather conditions – and then do your best to deal with them during the race, but not let them defeat you. Fourth, you always have to deal with a bit of pain – everyone is going to ache a bit, have muscle cramps, feel uncomfortable, but that’s part of the experience and part of the sport to overcome adversity. Lastly, I was way down on the results, but for me, to finish is to win – and it is important to not compare yourself to others, only judge yourself on what you know you can achieve and how you personally exceed your expectations. I am proud to have finished my first ever ski marathon.
The volunteers at Craftsbury were amazing, and should be commended for their effort. Even with about 2 inches of rain a few days before the race, they pulled off a course that held up amazingly with hundreds of skiers going over it many times. The volunteers also stood out in the incredible cold for hours – a feat I might not be capable of doing.
My quest to finish a skiing marathon, snow shoe marathon, and running marathon this year is now 1/3 complete. And the bottom line I determined – apparently I am faster at running a 50k than skiing – but I know that I could ski significantly faster if Murphy’s Law wasn’t conspiring against me! Keeps me hungry for next time…
Monday, February 1, 2010
31 Day Challenge - Complete!
I started 2010 with an ambitious goal: to do some kind of orienteering training every single day in January. It wasn't my idea, I blatantly stole it from others who had attempted to do it in the past. And I stole the name, too - the 31 Day Challenge. Before I get into the details of the Challenge I feel that, as Team Inov-8 USA's only orienteer, t I owe a bit of an explanation of orienteering!
Most of you have probably heard of orienteering, and many of you have probably actually gone out and done it. But to many people the term conjures up an image of taking compass bearings and pace counting in Boy Scouts or in the military. I can assure you that I have no interest in such activities, and that competitive orienteering is the adrenaline junkie's answer to 'just running'. Orienteering is essentially a maprunning race. We use a detailed topographic map made specifically for the sport and run through the forest (or desert or swamps), through streams, up hills, across steep slopes... you get the idea. The map has a series of 'controls' (checkpoints) that you must visit in order - but it's up to you to get there as fast as possible, navigating cleanly on your own. It's true cross country running, except you have to find your own way! You can see more examples of maps in my map archive.
Now, back to that 31 Day Challenge...
The idea was to get out on a map - any map, not necessarily an orienteering map - every day. It didn't have to be long, but I had to navigate every single day. That can be pretty tough in Tucson, where I usually only orienteer on the weekends, so it took a little bit of creativity. But I also got in a lot of training that I wouldn't have done otherwise. It was such an awesome month!
According to my records, I ran (or skied) 37 distinct orienteering sessions for a total of over 27 hours of orienteering. I found approximately 365 controls, either real or map only, and used 21 different maps.
Five of the sessions were in Massachusetts and involved snow, and two of those involved skiing. Two maps were actually aerials from Google Maps and one was a street map with a line drawn on it. One was a ski trails map and one was the map of my front yard in Sudbury. The rest were real O maps, 10 in Tucson, 3 in MA, 2 in California, and 1 in Phoenix. I wore a headlamp for two sessions. I was attacked by a dog once.
I learned a few things. For one, getting on a map every day was easier than I thought it would be. Not easy, but I didn't have to go crazy. Of course, it helped tremendously that for two weeks I had orienteering guests in my house and I took leave from work... But the rest of the time I was generally able to get in some productive sessions around town despite work. I also feel that getting in map time each day gave me better "map feel". I believe that a little bit of O frequently is better than a lot every once in a while.
Snow Shoe Time!!
For a few years now I have been wanting to try out some snow shoe racing. I have seen a few races and finally this year I said I would find the time to get out to a mountain and race in one. It was on my bucket list! I ended up heading down to the Mt. Hood area for an 8k debut in snow shoeing, which also served as a National Championship Qualifier. Before the race I was confident I could handle the weather being that I had been training in snowy, icy conditions in Norway for the past few weeks. What I found out was that training and racing in horrible conditions are two different stories. Once the snow starting coming down I could barely see where I was running and managed to head in the wrong direction at one point due to the snow covering up the course markers. 
In the end I was able to find my way through the deep snow with only a few minor scratches and bruises! Racing in the snow reminded me alot of mountain running uphill in that it takes ALOT longer to run a mile. I felt like I ran 15k, so needless to say the finish line was reached with a sigh of relief. I found that the 230's worked perfect for the snow shoes. The 230's don't soak up so much water so my foot was fairly dry. The light weight of the 230 also helped a great deal, especially after the 1st lap when your feet start weighing down on you and causing you running gait to quickly fade. Now that I have one in the bag, I definitely plan on checking some more races out in the near future!
Snowshoe Results for Weekend of 1/31/10
Some impressive performances yesterday at the Sidehiller Snowshoe Race (USSSA National Qualifier) in Center Sandwich, NH. We had 3 Team Inov-8 athletes qualify for Nationals in March. On the 5.2 mile course, Kevin Tilton took the overall win in 31:08, in 3rd place not too far behind was Jim Johnson in 31:25, and Ben Nephew grabbed 6th place OA in 32:32. Great job guys.
