2013 Cayuga Trails 50-Mile Race Report

2013 Cayuga Trails 50-Mile Race Report

(It is all about the pie)

Blueberry Crumb! (Post-race)

This was the inaugural running of the Cayuga Trails 50-Mile run. The race is located just south of Ithaca, NY and starts/finishes in the Robert H. Treman State Park.  There are several waterfalls in the area and the course boasts of seeing 24 of them on each of two laps.  We had passed through Ithaca a couple of years ago and when JP told me about this race last January, it seemed like a good one to run since I had been wanting to try a race with some climbs.  Be very careful of what you ask for...

I had completed the Laurel Highlands Ultra the last two years w/o crew and this year we decided to make a mini vacation out of this event.  I was looking forward to having my family chase me around the course and appearing at random aid stations for support.  We drove up friday in the rain, which guaranteed to make the waterfalls full.  Two years ago, there was barely a trickle of water on Buttermilk Falls, not so this year...

2011

2013

Saturday morning's weather was humid but cool.  There was a slight chance of rain and the day was looking to be good for running.

Checking in at the starting line. (Mile 0)

The energy at the starting area before a race is always fun to experience and before long, Ian (the race director) blew the horn and we were off!

The course elevation profile resembled a saw blade, with 4 major climbs/descents per lap.  There were two laps to make up the 50-mile course.  The first leg of the course climbed up to the Old Mill Aid station following the Gorge Trail.  This trail was appropriately named since it traveled UP the gorge past several cascades and water falls!  It was very beautiful and the group slowed several times along the way in order to soak in the views!  The course through some of this area followed stone steps and pathways, and with the water/mist from the falls and the rain, it was a bit dicey. No major incidents however and after a quick in/out of the aid station, on to the next section.

This section contained a little more climbing and then a lot of descent back down to the valley below.  The trail conditions were very nice, a couple of stream crossings, some gravel (wet gravel/mud) roads, and some beautiful single-track through the woods.  There were several steep downhills and I was being very cautious with my knee, hoping that things would hold together.  The downhills are much worse than the up...

The Underpass aid station is a nice location on the course since the out-and-back 2-lap nature of the course will have us passing through 4 times during the day.  I had left a drop bag here for supplies for later in the day and started to prepare myself for the "Creek Crossing" and "Steep Hill".  Yes, the course description had those exact words.  The creek crossing was mid-thigh on me and the water was nice and cool.  The climb out on the muddy bank was going to be 'interesting' later in the day.  The steep hill was that:  STEEP!   There were switchbacks but they did little to minimize the angle.  This was 'only' 1/3 of a mile, but gained ~700ft.  I knew this would not be so fun the second time through.  The course continued to meander towards Buttermilk Falls through some nice meadows, mud bogs, and single track.  We had almost every type of trail condition imaginable which helped to keep your mind occupied and focused.  The temperature was cool, but very humid, I was feeling good, and was moving along well.

My crew was going to meet me at Buttermilk Falls aid station and I was looking forward to seeing them.

Coming into the Aid Station (Mile 12.4)

 I stopped to tell Denise how beautiful the course was and she told me to "shut up and get outta here!"  Later she told me that I was the first person who had actually stopped to talk there...  People must have been in a hurry or something...

Climbing back out the other side of the falls. I am in the group in the middle of the photo.

We have now covered the second tooth of the saw and need to retrace our route back to Underpass Aid Station.  As I was running back along the edge of the meadow I realized (too late) that I was probably going too fast for my own good.  But I was feeling fine and decided to keep going while my knee felt ok.  I knew that there would be a price to pay but...

I made it back to Underpass and then my crew surprised me at the campground road crossing!  They snapped a couple of pictures, shouted some words of encouragement, and I kept running.

Nice single-track (Approx Mile 18.5)

Even the crew had to go off-road!

2/3 of the Best support crew ever!

 Getting back up the hill from Underpass to the Old Mill Aid Station I felt was the hardest section of the course.  The hill seemed to keep going up and up and up. Sure the trail was nice, but it was a tough 3.8 miles.

Old Mill Aid Station (Mile 21.9)

The other 1/3 of my support crew!

Have I mentioned how nice the trail was?

 Made it back to the start/finish line to complete lap #1.  At 5:17 for the first lap, I was keeping my typical pace for running here in the CVNP, but we do not have the same elevation changes!  I knew that it was time to "Pay the Piper."  I grabbed my normal watch from Denise and left my garmin with her since I knew the battery would not last...  Besides I had data from lap #1, so I did not need it for lap #2...right?

The race director had set up several "preems" for the race: prizes for the fastest section time, best blisters, best negative split, etc.  One set of prizes was pies!  He would place flags throughout the course with a picture of a pie on it.  If you found the flag and took it to the aid station,  you could collect your pie at the end.  Well, I like pie, and this was a great incentive for me to be alert!  As I left the start area for lap #2, Ian shouted, "I am taking the pie flags out on the course!"  Game on...

I started climbing back up through the gorge towards the aid station and there were several people hiking and taking in the sights of the water falls. I was going up some stairs and looked up to say hello to a group and caught my foot on a rock step.  Down I went but caught myself in a perfect plank pose!  That was close...

As I entered the aid station at Old Mill, I looked down to make sure I did not trip on a root and noticed a pie picture right next to the aid station marker...could it be???  I grabbed the card and asked "Is this a pie flag?"  "Yes" was the response and I let out a whoop and said "Mission accomplished!"  No one knew what I was supposed to do with the flag so I stuffed it into my water bottle holder and started off down the trail towards Underpass.

I was going along down the trail and noticed that things did not look familiar to me.  I also realized that I had not seen any trail markers in a while... Hmm... Of course I realized this after I had been going downhill for a while...  Wishing that I still had my garmin with me, I backtracked and found the trail marker for the turn...it was right in plain sight.  I must have looked to the left at the wrong time and missed it.  Oh well, nothing that I can do except laugh it off and keep moving.  I have a pie waiting for me!

Back through Underpass and up the STEEP HILL again. Yes, it did seem to grow higher the second time. I timed my ascent...20 minutes...argh...  But there is always a top to a hill and on to the mud bogs.  There was a 30% chance of rain in the forecast and we got all of it!  It had been drizzling earlier and by now it was raining a bit and it kept the muddy sections from drying out ...  I eventually made it back to Buttermilk falls where my crew was patiently waiting for me.  Another quick stop and back up the stairs to the top of the falls.

Back into Buttermilk aid station second time. (Mile 37.4)

 The final time across the cold stream crossing felt good on my beat-up legs.  My crew was waiting for me at the aid station this time instead of at the end of the campground road.  I raided my drop bag one last time and handed the bag to Denise.  They sent me on my way for the last 6.9 miles. Oh, and that one last nasty hill...

Underpass the last time! (Mile 43.1)

I managed to catch up with a couple of guys on this climb.  We were all regretting our earlier pacing mistakes and then realized that a 12 hour finish was within reach.  That got us motivated to keep moving but shortly after, I just crashed... I slowed to walk up a steep section but could not start running down the other side...crash and burn... I kept walking and knew that the top of the climb would eventually arrive, and with it, the last aid station.

Met my crew again and realized that I needed to run a 35-minute 5K in order to make a 12-hour finish.  35 minute 5K...easy right?  Down-hill, on wet stone steps, after 47 miles.... This is going to be close...

I started down and was trying every trick I knew to keep moving.  Look at the pretty water falls, watch the trail, drink, look at the ferns, count the people taking pictures,  just...keep...moving...  I finally got down to the road and had to only run across the grassy field to the finish line.  I realized that I probably did not make the 12 hours but I will finish!  I could see the clock at 12:04 and then saw Gina and Abby waiting for me.  I thought they were going to get a photo but Gina said, "Come on, we are running in with you!" 

A great finish to a great day!

Finishing with my girls!(Mile 50)

Denise took the girls back to the hotel to clean up while I changed clothes and ate some real food.  Denise  came back and we waited for the awards to be presented.   The winning times were amazing!  I could only dream of being able to move that fast.

Finally the moment that I had waited for...the pies!!  I chose a Blueberry Crumb pie and was so happy to have completed the race, and I won a pie!

Next year?  We will see.  This is an awesome course and it would be good to try and run it a lot smarter to see how I fare.  Next year's field will be even faster since it will be the USATF 50-Mile Championship.  It was pretty cool to be on the same course as the fast people and see just how well they move...it was a blur as they ran by.

I always have a "Lessons learned" section:

1. Pacing.  Don't be stupid.  (I seem to always need to relearn this one)
2. Walking breaks are not just for 100-milers...
3. Do not get caught up in other people's races.  The Male 60+ age group had quite a battle going. (Yes I was in the middle of it and they all kicked my butt!)  I had no business being a part of that...
4. Gu can be your friend.  Do not be afraid to use it.  I was always trying to eat solid food, but forgot that Gu can kick you out of a low patch pretty fast.

My stats for the race from the race web site.

The Question

This was to be a big training weekend as I prepare for the Inaugural Cayuga Trails 50-mile race.  I took Friday off from work and planned to run 30 miles in the CVNP. However life got in the way and I completed 10 miles Friday afternoon and planned the 30 mile run for Saturday.

Friday’s run went well except for the fact that I fell not once, but twice, within 10 minutes of each other!  I usually will stumble or trip at least once per run, but rarely go down. Both falls drew blood and afterwards, my daughter gave me a rap name of “‘lil tumbler”.  The trails were in great shape and the weather nearly perfect.

I planned the following route for Saturday’s run:  Start at Boston Store and run out and back to Snowville road on the Buckeye Trail. Then take the Brandywine Falls loop for another 5, then out and back on the Buckeye Trail to Pine Lane for ~8.5 more.  Then out and back towards Snowville again until I hit 3.75 miles.  This would give a bit of a cushion for the 30 total miles.  Note: Having my garmin available was real nice for this…

My goals for the day were simple:  Remain upright ( especially after Fridays fall-fest) and cover the distance.

Weather again was perfect and I started on the trail.  As I descended from the parking area at Blue Hen Falls, I said “Hi” to a dad and his two small children as they were hiking up the hill back to their car. As I passed, the daughter said to her dad, “Daddy, why is that man running?”  I laughed to myself and then thought of my two standard answers: “Running is cheaper than therapy” and “It feels so good when I stop”.  However, I then thought to myself, “Why AM  I running?”  I figured I had 30 miles to come up with an answer and it would keep my mind occupied as I ran.

Here are 4 of the reasons:

•  The Challenge
• The Conditioning
• The Camaraderie
• The Contentment

The Challenge:

I have always liked to push myself a bit to see how far I can go and what I can withstand.  Riding my bicycle across America and completing the Lake Placid Ironman triathlon are two examples of this. Ultra Trail running has its challenges with the trail, weather, bugs, nutrition, etc. that make each event different.  It is not a matter of ‘if’ something will go wrong, but “when” something will go wrong.  How well I deal with these problems is the ‘fun’ part.  Life is this way too…   An example was at 14 miles I started feeling really bad. Usually I have a bad zone between 25-30 miles but this was early. I realized that the nice weather had tricked me into thinking that I was not sweating. I was sweating but it was evaporating fast.  The white power on my arms and white streaks in my blue shirt were evidence of this. I started drinking more water and eventually pulled out of my funk.

The Conditioning:

I do not want to get fat!  Too many obese people causing too many health issues…most of which can be avoided.  The other part of conditioning for me is ‘fear’.  Fear of failure.  If I sign up for an event, I want to complete it well. I know that I will not win anything, but I do want to complete the event with a  respectable effort.  If I sign up and then show up without adequate preparation, that is just foolish…

The Camaraderie:

This one is strange for me since I am an introvert at heart.  However, The trail running community in NE Ohio is amazing.  There are some really great people and it is enjoyable to share the trails and have that common bond of being trail runners.  I do not run with people often, but it is nice to have company once in a while.  I usually find myself alone during my race events, so training alone gives me practice. (See conditioning above)  If I always relied on a group to keep me going and I found myself alone during a race, what would happen?  So much of distance running is mental, we need to know how to ‘just keep going.’

The Contentment:

Being on the trail, in the woods, listening to the wood-peckers pounding and the birds calling, it is so good.  Being on the trails, with the snow or rain falling, or the mud sucking the shoes off of your feet is also good.  I am thankful that I have the ability to do these crazy things and I have to keep reminding myself of this every time I start to feel bad during a run. (See mental above)

There were lots of other thoughts swirling through my head during the 30 miles, but they will stay there for now.

It was a good weekend of training.  10 miles Friday, 30.5 miles Saturday, 6 mile hike with Denise Sunday!  Confidence is building for June 8.

The neighbor...

There has been a very large buck, or two, or three, in the woods next to our house.  He has taken a liking to my landscaping and I have posted some photos and this video on facebook.  I wanted to post the video here so that my non-facebook friends can see him.

This video is of the big buck and his "little" brother.  They came down from the woods into our neighbor's yard.

He is a magnificent animal, too bad he likes my hostas...

25 years sure went by fast

It is hard to believe that 25-years ago tomorrow I started my bicycle ride across the United States! I had wanted to do this trip since I read a newspaper story in 1980 about a man who completed a similar tour. I had always enjoyed camping and I enjoyed bicycling.  Why not combine the two together and see the country?

So I did...

I kept a journal during the 46-day trip and I hope to post its contents here as soon as I can completed the editing. (come on Jerry, it has been 25-years! You are not finished yet?)

I think that it is safe to say that this trip changed my life in the sense that it opened my eyes and made me realize that there was (is) a whole world out there waiting to be explored and experienced.

Brookville Star Article the week after I left for the West Coast
(Click for a larger view)

2012 Laurel Highlands Ultra Race Report

This year marked the 33 running of the Laurel Highlands Ultra.  The race is a point-to-point course that follows the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail from Ohiopyle, PA to just south of Seward, PA.  I completed this race last year when the course was extended 7 miles due to a detour caused by bridge repairs.  This year the route was back to the original 70.5 mile distance.

My training this spring went well.  I did not get a lot of long long runs completed, but I had been running faster this year than I have in years past.  I was thinking that a midnight finish would be a good goal for the  event (18.5 hours) and seemed reasonable.  As always, the main goal for me and ultras is to (1) finish, and (2) stay out of the medical tent!

Once again this year, I drove out Friday afternoon to Johnstown for the pre-race meal/meeting and then slept in my car at the finish line Friday night.  The shuttle bus left the finish line Saturday at 3:30am and we headed off towards Ohiopyle.  I rode the bus with Paul L. and it was nice to catch up with him a bit.  The starting area was pretty full with people since the race had sold out with 130 people registered.

Pre-race, I was a bit worried, ok, a LOT worried about my right calf.  One week prior to the race I re-injured it during a run and could not run on it for several days.  I was worried that I would start the first climb out of Ohiopyle and not be able to go any farther, making for a very short and disappointing day.  Race day I took a short run from the rest room to the starting area and felt the calf twinge a bit.  I took an ibuprofen tablet and prayed for the best.

5:30am we started out from the parking area towards the trail-head.  Calf felt ok and it felt good to be moving. The weather was cool but was forecasted to be mid-80s with some humidity.  I was not worried about the heat since the trail is mostly in the woods and shaded.  (I should have been worried)   The first few climbs felt good and I was trying to be patient and go real slow for the first 10 miles.  I went much too fast last year and paid for it later.  Paul caught up with me and we ran together for a few miles.  He was handling the downhill parts much faster than me and he pulled away.  We each said "See you later" and continued on our way.  The big climb towards mile post 8 seemed bigger than last year but before I knew it, I was at the first aid station!  It was good to see Slim and Kimba there helping the runners and I got in and out quickly.

The LHHT trail contains a wide variety of conditions, with the common denominator being rocks!  They are everywhere.  Sometimes large, sometimes small, but they are everywhere.  Not MMT-like, but you have to keep vigilant or you will trip. (Disclaimer: I have not been on the MMT course, but I have seem photos... :) )  The mountain laurel was in bloom and was nice to run through.  However, the fragrance was almost overpowering at times...

The temperature kept climbing along with the trail.  Eventually we reached the Seven Springs Ski resort, which is the highest point of the trail, 26 miles from the starting line.  One other intersting thing about the LHHT is that there are mile posts that you can use to keep splits and to know how far you have gone and have to go.  This both a blessing and a curse... Sometimes you could swear the posts move farther away...

I spent a lot of the day playing "ultra tag" with people.  "Brian" told me about this phrase.  Ultra tag is where you seem to always leap-frog people as the day goes on.  It seemed that a lot of people around me, and myself included, were having stomach issues.  This is typical in ultras where after a while nothing tastes or sounds good.  When you did eat some food, it would just sit in your gut and you wished it was out...  Just like a car needs gasoline to run, our bodies need food/calories to run.  I typically have a bad patch from miles 28-34 and this race was no different.  I forced a couple of gels down and that started the recovery.  It was taking a long time however to get back to feeling good again.  The whole day ended up being this way.  I would force some food down at the aid station, feel good for about 45 minutes, and then start to crash again.  Force more food down and start to slowly recover.

I eventually realized that I should try to eat more frequently and used my watch alarm to prompt me to eat every 12 minutes or so, even if it was only 2-3 pretzel nubs or a bite of a power bar, but eat something!  It only took me 50 miles to figure this out...  It seemed to help since my mood seemed to stabilize but my lack of big training runs was starting to become painfully obvious.

However, the scenery of the course, the aid station volunteers, and my fellow runners helped to distract me and keep me moving.  I caught up with two ladies after the mile 57 aid station and they had a tremendous 16 min/mile power-walking pace going.  I tried to keep up with them the best that I could.  When we approached the gas line road that lead to the 62 mile aid station I ran ahead a bit.

I was looking forward to this aid station all day. Last year they served soup and grilled-cheese sandwiches which tasted so so so good!  This year's menu consisted of potato soup with grilled-cheese sandwiches.  I sat in the chair by the fire, (two big no-nos for ultras "beware the chair") and enjoyed a bowl of soup.  I don't know why, but that soup tasted so good again this year.  Probably the same reason peanut butter and jelly sandwiches taste better at the top of a mountain than at the kitchen table...

I had little less than 2 hours to complete the remaining 8 miles and I knew that my midnight finish was not going to happen this year. I was ok with that and just was happy with what had happened.  I left the aid station and the two ladies were just behind me. I heard them talking about wanting a sub-20 hour finish and I realized that I might be able to salvage a sub-19 hour finish!  Game on!  My glycogen-depleted math skills said that if I could keep a 16 minute/mile pace, I would be real close.  I started running the best that I could and the first mile was 15:30.  great!  Next mile, 16:50.  Ok, there was a climb that slowed me down. Next mile, 20:30!!  Oops, wrong way... Next mile, 19:50...sigh... Don't give up! 

The last 3 miles are downhill, and a pretty good grade downhill to boot.  I heard voices behind me and was NOT going to get passed again here like I did last year and I started to run again, downhill, on a rocky course, in the dark...  Tripped once, twice, three times within a minute and decide that primary goal #2 is more important than a time goal.  It turned out that the voices I heard were in FRONT of me and I was the one doing the passing.

Shortly afterwards, two other people came flying by me like I was standing still...actually I was since I stopped to let them get by...  I could hear the crowd at the finish line and ran the last (short) mile in 8:30...

I finished the race in 19 hours 11 minutes and 23 seconds.  I was the 49th out of 85 finishers.  Oh yeah, Paul finished just ahead of me at 18:58!  I was less than a mile behind him!!!

It was a great day even if I did not make my time goal!  Good experiences on an awesome course with some of the best people around!  It does not get much better...

See you next year...

No-shirt 50K or whatever FA

Today was the Annual "No-shirt 50K or whatever FA" organized by Roy and Shannon. Started at Station Road in the CVNP and followed the Buckeye Trail to Pine Lane and return for an out-and-back. Winter arrived (finally) here friday and we have a nice covering of snow. The temperature this morning was 16 degrees with a wind chill of 2. brrrr!

13 people started at 8am towards Ottawa Point on the Buckeye Trail. It did not take more than 50 yds for us to get off-trail since the snow all looks the same! We really had to pay attention to the blue blazes! Roy yelled from behind, "Follow the blue blazes, not each other!" Pretty funny.

The snow conditions were actually pretty good. Fluffy, light, and not too slippery. However, it covered everything, logs, holes, rocks, and mud. The ground was not frozen since it has been so wet and warm this winter and the mud was still lurking beneath the clean snow. I am so glad that I have my Brooks Gore-tex trail shoes to keep my feet (mostly) dry!

I knew that I did not have 50K in my legs today and had decided to turn around at Columbia Road. I started back when I met the others. Roy said that I was the leader. I replied, "No, I am the first wimp!" As I ran under the power lines and cell tower near Snowville Road, I noticed that someone had made an awesome snow-angel! It was nearly perfect and brought a huge smile to my frozen face. This section along the ridge-line was the coldest part of the day.

I made it back to my car after 18.4 miles of snowy trail. Changed into some dry clothes and made it home to a hot shower!

Thanks to Roy and Shannon and everyone involved in organizing this fun event!

ahhh. That was nice!

It has been a long while since I have posted anything and I have to say it has been a nice break. Not much to post: Work was crazy busy and we just completed the project last week. It will be nice to think that this project should provide a million or two of increased sales. However I still get miffed about why we had to do this project in the first place...sigh...

Started running again this week after I was 'persuaded' by my family to register for the Winter Run for Regis in January. I have been running a couple of times a week over the summer, nothing structured, nothing long; just some "Sanity" runs. I have to admit that it feels good to have an event on the horizon to get me out the door.

The weather has been fantastic this week! It will change, but it has been a glorious fall week. Denise and I went out this morning for a fall hike and enjoyed the colors and the smells of autumn. We then took the girls out this afternoon to Bedford Reservation to look at the Gorge Overlook. Not peak colors yet, but nice nonetheless.

Cross country has been going well for Abby. She PR'd again this week at Stow and the conference Championship race is this weekend. It is safe to say that her freshman year has exceed expectations and she has had a blast too!

Life is pretty good, and I am very very grateful...

Fence project completed.

After a huge couple of week's worth of work, the fence is complete. Denise and the girls were a huge help and took lots of photos along the way. We compiled a slide-show for our enjoyment and maybe you will enjoy it too.





I am actually thinking about running again... It has been a nice break since Laurel and it is time to plan for a fall event. Many choices: Yut-c 50K, Run with Scissors, Wild Bill's FA. Hmmm, what to do? what to do? what to do?

Real Power Tools

So, now that my Laurel Highlands race has been completed, what is next? Well, Denise and I have been discussing the idea of a wooden fence for the backyard ever since we moved in here almost 9 years ago! The time has arrived...

I plotted out where we thought we wanted the fence to go and calculated the amount of materials we would need. 285 feet of fence, 40 posts, and around 610 pickets... I also got a quote for someone to install the fence for me... Needless to say, I am doing this myself and saving some serious money.

Anyways, with 40 holes to dig, I was NOT going to attempt that by hand, so I went to the Solon Hardware Rental Counter and asked what kind of tools I could use. They recommended the Toro Dingo with a 12" auger attachment. This was an awesome piece of equipment to say the least! Here is a picture of me just after I unloaded the machine and was headed into the woods to dig a practice hole.



There was a certain technique involved to get the holes straight, and I got pretty good at it after 30 holes. The back section of our property has several small trees with some beech trees mixed in. Lots and lots of roots to work through. I was able to dig a bit and then have to clean the roots from the auger, or worse, cut the roots out of the way. That was not too fun but a saw-saw, shovel, pick, and spud-bar helped a lot.

Here is another in-action photo as I was in the 'easy' grassy part near the end.



40 holes in 6 hours! I had estimated that I would use as much of the 24-hour rental time as I could in order to get all of the holes completed. I was very pleasantly surprised with how well the dingo performed.

This last photo is of me as I moved the dingo back to start the first 'real' hole. It shows the pile of lumber that is soon to become a nice red-cedar picket fence!


Tomorrow is the hole inspection. That's right, Twinsburg requires that the post holes be inspected before you set the posts... Then I get to do a little concrete mixing for the poles. This will be time-consuming since getting the poles set straight and level is crucial for a good-looking fence. I will start in the back for practice...

More updates later as the project progresses. I am enjoying the opportunity to use some other muscles for a change instead of just running.

2011 Laurel Highlands Race Report

Pre-race:

I drove down to Johnstown, PA Friday afternoon and arrived at the pasta dinner at 5:45pm. I checked in and received my bib number and shirt. The race directors started covering the necessary information while we were eating our meal. The course description was a bit confusing and I stopped listening around halfway through. My biggest fear was getting lost during this race and the description was doing nothing to reduce this fear.

Eventually, the meeting was over and I drove back up to the finish line where I found a parking place and proceeded to get my stuff ready for the early 3:30am departure. I had decided to sleep in my car and catch the shuttle bus to the starting line. I was by myself for this race, no crew or pacer, and I wanted to keep it simple. I fell asleep fairly fast and only woke up to close my window when a brief rainstorm passed by.

I woke up before my alarm went off and got ready for the day. The bus departed on time for the trip to the start at Ohiopyle. While I was waiting for the start, it felt like I had sandpaper in my left sock. I removed my shoe and leftover grit from my last muddy trail run was still in my shoe… Not a good thing… I was starting to panic a bit but then used my extra water to wash my foot off, re-lubed with Vaseline, and hoped for the best. My right foot felt fine. First lesson: Make sure your shoes and socks are clean!!!

The race director prayed a short prayer and then said “10 seconds to the start”… then a simple “Go” and we were off.

Race:

The trail is simply beautiful! Yes, the first 12 miles are tough with the rocks and climbs, but overall, it is an amazing trail. There were several maze-like sections through large rocks, similar to the Ledges area in the CVNP. The mountain laurel was blooming, but I think that we were a bit late for peak. There were several sections of the trail that went through what seemed like an endless sea of ferns. Very nice to see and they did not completely cover the trail like people said they have in years past.

The trail was marked with yellow blazes on trees and rocks where appropriate. As I mentioned earlier, my biggest fear was getting lost. This fear was unfounded. There was only one section that went through a grove of hemlock trees. The trail was almost non-existent since the needles made the ground all look the same. The blazes were on the trees, but with some blow-downs mixed in, it was a challenge. I was glad that I hit this section before nightfall.

The detour was not real fun since we had to leave the trail and go on the roads around the closed bridge. The sun was out, it was hot, but I could see storm clouds coming our way. I have never wished for rain during a run until now… It did start to rain as I neared the end of the detour and it indeed felt very nice to cool off a bit.

The soft trail felt so good again under my feet. Despite my best efforts at blister prevention, I could feel some hot spots forming. I stopped at the 44-mile aid station and applied more Vaseline to my left heel in an effort to slow down the formation of the blister. I knew that I would not stop it and would just have to manage. My right foot decided to also join the “blister party” and I knew that it was going to be an interesting night.

I still felt pretty good mentally and my legs felt good too so I kept running. It was getting dark so I turned on my headlamp and kept going through the ferns. I looked ahead and I saw something in the trail. I first thought it was a possum, but it was larger. Raccoon? Wrong color. Wow it was a porcupine! It was trying to run down the trail away from me as fast as its little stubby legs would go. I was running slowly behind it clapping my hands and making all kinds of noise in an effort to “encourage” it to move off of the trail. It finally turned left into the ferns and then stopped about 1 foot off of the trail.

I thought that was weird. Why would it stop? I could see the top of the porcupine sticking up over the ferns. It was not far enough off of the trail for me to pass safely. I did NOT want to get stuck by quills. I was shouting and making all sorts of noise…not a movement! I grabbed a rock and tossed it at the porcupine and nothing!!! I slowly moved closer to it and peered around and it was a stupid tree stump!!! Boy did I feel silly. I immediately recalled a hallucination story I heard a guy tell during Burning River about, of all things, a porcupine that blocked his path. I knew that I was NOT hallucinating but was just happy that the critter had moved on… I was laughing at myself pretty hard as I started running down the trail again.

Not 10 yards later, my “friend” was back to running down the trail away me again! It tried to climb a tree and got up around 3-feet before it peered around and saw me coming at it. Its eyes got big and it dropped back to the ground and kept going! By now I was laughing and screaming, “Just go right or go left! Get outta the way!!!” Eventually, it went right and climbed up a tree around 10 feet off of the trail. Finally, I could pass by.

The night was quiet with a clear sky and near-full moon. The fireflies were out and it was a very peaceful time. I did not see nor hear anyone for most of the night except for the aid stations.

My feet were becoming more and more uncomfortable and I knew that I would make the cutoffs for a finish, barring an injury. It was now just matter of if I would make 21 or 22 hours. I was able to run the flats and power hike the uphills, but the downhills just killed me. My pace was getting slower and slower but I tried to keep positive and keep moving.

The last two aid stations had soup! Boy did that ever taste good and helped to lift my mood. It was tempting to stay a bit longer and enjoy the food, but I wanted to get to the finish line. I still did not see anyone on the trail until mile 75, when a group of 3 passed me on the 3-mile downhill section… I tried to hang with them but my feet did not want any of it…

I could hear and see lights of the finish line ahead and I crossed the line after completing the 77 miles in 21 hours and 28 minutes.

The race director handed me my finisher’s award, which is a wooden replica of the trail mileposts. There was a 77 etched in the front. We will receive a plate with our name and finishing time engraved on it to complete the trophy! Pretty cool! The best part is that the 77-mile is a limited edition, 2010 and 2011, since the race will revert back to the 70.5 mile distance next year!

More soup at the finish line! I also had a bowl of beans and rice, which also tasted really good. I chatted with Jim for while and felt my exercise-induced coma approaching. I said goodnight and headed to my car. Changed clothes and tried to wash the worst of the grim off of me and quickly fell asleep. I woke up at 5:40am and they were tearing down the finish area. Fell back asleep and woke up again at 7am. I was the only one left in the parking lot…

Lessons learned:

1) Go a little easier at the start. I knew better and thought that I was going pretty conservatively. I backed off a bit once I realized what I had done but…

2) Blisters. Wash my shoes completely before a race.

3) This is “only” a 77-mile race. Treat it like a 100-mile race. It will punish you if you don’t… trust me…

I am pretty pleased with how things went since it could have been a lot worse. I hope to find out next year how it can be better!

Laurel Highlands pre-race prep complete

I just finished packing my drop bag and gear for the Laurel Highlands Trail Ultra. I will leave tomorrow afternoon to drive down to the finish line, take the shuttle bus at 3:30am saturday morning to the starting line, and then at 5:30am, start running back to my car!

This is my extra incentive to complete the race: My ride home is at the finish line... :)

Weather looks like it could be rainy, but hey, it is not like I did not do any training this spring in the rain... I knew those runs would come in handy.

Taper is going well since I am about to jump out of my skin. I like this feeling of excitement, fear, and anticipation of a wonderful experience on a fantastic trail...at least everyone says that the trail is fantastic. I...can't...wait!!!!

Race report will appear next week...

"I like the mud, really I do!"

I keep say that to myself thinking that I might actually start to believe it! It is almost working which is good, because I really don't have much of a choice. It has been really really rainy this spring, but, everything is really really green!

The past couple of weeks have gone well, training-wise. I had a great run last weekend in the mud to break in my new shoes. At one point near the goat farm, I ran out of my left shoe! I stood there for a moment and then started to laugh to myself.

Yesterday I ventured back down to the CVNP and participated in the "No Frills, Just Hills" FA run at Kendall Hills. A 2-mile loop around Kendall Lake that went up and down the hills. The idea is to see how many laps you can complete in 6 hours. I decided to just go down and complete 10 laps. I started early since I had a long "to-do" list for the day. Lots of wet grass that quickly turned to muddy grass. The section of the trail that ventured into the woods was also muddy. The only non-muddy part was the parking lot at Kendall Lake! It was nice to catch up with some old friends and meet some new ones too! All in all, a very fun run!

Today I was able to do some heat-training since summer has decided to arrive. Hot, sweaty 8 miles on the trails here near home. The turkeys were out gobbling like crazy and box turtle blocked my way on a bridge, well, actually he didn't block my way, but it was pretty cool to see.

My training for Laurel is now complete and taper begins tomorrow. I need to get my pace chart created and get my drop bag(s) planned. The mental game really begins now...

Oh yeah, here is what I found yesterday morning before I left for my 20-mile run:


Gina had left a note for me before she went to bed Friday night! Needless to say it was a awesome way to start my day. She is leaving tomorrow afternoon for a three-week trip to Italy! She is very excited to say the least and it is going to be very very quiet around here...

Another good week in the mud

Another rainy week here in NE Ohio which meant the trails were M-U-D-D-Y!!! I ventured into the CVNP again yesterday and parked at Snowville road. My plan was to run the BT50K course for a nice long run. I started off towards Oak Grove and quickly found myself in the mud. There was no place to hide or ways to avoid it. It was pretty sloppy. I was running with my new Nathan hydration vest since I plan on using it for the Laurel Highlands race. As I left the car, I placed my key in my pocket on my running shorts since I had already put the pack on my back and was too lazy to undo everything and put the key in a pouch.

As I was sloshing my way through the muddy trails I was trying to enjoy the sunny morning. It was nice to hear the birds singing and to see blue sky for a change. I soon found myself at Ottawa point and reached around behind me to make sure my key was still there in my pocket... it was not! I almost panicked, ok I did panic for a short moment. I checked again and sure enough, no key. I thought maybe the key fell out when I put it in my pocket and it is on the pavement near my car. Sure, that is what happened... I continued on towards Oak Grove and I checked the pocket again, and found a hole...bummer... That key is surely lost somewhere in the 4 miles between Snowville road and Ottawa point. I turned around and started heading back, with my eyes scanning the trail fruitlessly for a key. I knew that chances were very very slim for finding it but I had to at least try. I saw a couple of runners and asked them to keep an eye out for a key, thinking, maybe, maybe we would get lucky. Got back to my car to check the parking lot and then retraced my trail back towards Ottawa point for a bit, just to see... nothing...

I called Denise to explain my situation and as I ran on towards Boston Store, she brought down an extra key and left it at the car. I was now able to run again w/o trying to look for a key... I made it to Boston Store and then on to Pine Lane. The trail from Boston to Pine lane was not as muddy as I thought it would be. The section from Snowville to Boston however more than made up for it.

Ended the day with close to 30 miles of sloppy running and ran another 15 today on pavement... Denise ran with me for 10 miles so that meant no mud! (which suited me just fine!) Another solid week of training in the books and one week closer to race day. My confidence is building and I am starting to form my race-day plan.

I will take a recovery-week this week, giving me time to get Mother's Day activities planned, and then start the last build period. Taper will start May 30!

Wet Feet

Another good weekend of running! I ventured into the CVNP for a very muddy 24 miles. I felt pretty good during the entire time and just tried to keep moving. It was much easier to just plow down the middle of the trail rather than try to find an easier path around the edges. There was not an easier path...

Sunday I went back to South Chagrin Reservation and ran another 16 miles on the muddy bridle trails. I headed downhill from Harper Ridge towards Richmond road. This section of the trail is pretty grassy, but was very wet and soggy. I was a muddy mess when I arrived back at my car to refill my water bottles.

A Land Rover SUV (redundant, I know) pulled into the parking space next to my car. "Barbie and Ken" along with their little "foo-foo" white dog which was smaller than our cat, climbed out. These two people were immaculately coiffed and stared at me and my mud-covered shoes and legs with an incredulous look... It was priceless as I nodded my head and asked "Hey, How are you doing?"

I grabbed a banana, closed the trunk, and headed back out onto the trail towards Miles Road. This section has three stream crossings and I have in the past used rocks, or fallen trees to avoid getting wet. I admit, I am a bit of a wuss when it comes to wet feet. Today, I decided that since I was already muddy and my feet were already wet, what harm could a little water do? So when the stream crossings arrived, I simply went straight through them. Big fun! I felt like a kid again. AND, it washed some of the mud off of my shoes. Sure, I had some squishy shoes for a couple of minutes, but they drained pretty fast and my feet really were not any wetter than they already were. It was also a lot easier to run through the water rather than trying to pick a path around it.

My new race plan: Flow with the trail, don't fight it. It is much more fun!

A win!

The weather forecast for the weekend said rain/snow mix and mid thirties for the temperature. I needed to get a long run in and decided that 40 and dark was better than mid-30s and wet. So I started running friday night after work and completed the Inaugural Twinsburg Marathon! I won the race outright for my first win ever! Of course, I was the only one running, but that is a minor point...

Getting the run out of the way friday evening allowed me to nearly complete the bathroom remodel project yesterday! Denise and Abby cleaned the excess grout from the tile friday, allowing me to set the granite vanity and reset the toilet. I added all of the necessary caulking around the tub and back-splash, and this afternoon I remounted the mirror and replaced the light fixture. Project is now complete! I will post some before and after pictures later this week.

My training for the Laurel Highlands race is going ok. My mileage is not as high as I would like since I have not been getting all of my mid-week runs completed. This crazy thing called "life" keeps getting in the way. However, I have had some great weekend runs and those are the ones that really matter. Friday night's marathon was a good confidence booster and mental test. The next two months is when the real training starts; the prior work has been 'training to train'.

I will start heading to the CVNP for some hills and start to get my nutrition plan in place. The aid stations are farther apart at Laurel and I will need to carry more stuff with me. Choosing the right food(s) and packing it for easy access will be important.

"Goosed" on the "Fool's" Course

First of all, I want to wish everyone running the Fool's 50K tomorrow a safe and fun run! I ventured out this morning and ran one lap of the course and threw on an extra loop of the Boston Run for a nice 18-19ish miles.

I was happy that it was cold this morning since the trail was nice and frozen. There were lots of shoe/boot prints in the frozen mud and tomorrow's cold temps should provide a fast course. I started at Happy Days and eventually made my way over to Ledges and Pine Grove. Nice quiet morning with the sun shining strong. I crossed over to Kendall Lake and was running across the dam when I noticed two canadian geese on the trail ahead of me. I started making noise in an effort to get them to wander over to the side of the trail. One goose cooperated, the other one however wanted to be difficult. It started hissing and spread its wings and started to charge at me! The goose made a lunge at me but missed as I ran by it. I had a couple of chuckles as I started up the hill on the Salt Run Trail.

As I passed by the short-loop connector, my right foot caught a root and I started to fall. I almost caught myself but started down. As I felt the gravel start to embed into my gloved hand, things started to move in slow motion. I realized that I really need to learn how to tuck and roll when I fall. I then relaxed my arms and started to roll onto my right shoulder. That worked and I found myself flat on my back with my waist propped up on my water bottles. The slow-motion mode stopped as I wondered "How did I get here?" I picked myself up and brushed off the dirt and had another laugh to myself...

The rest of the run was uneventful. Nice morning, great route, good hills! It does not get much better than the CVNP on an early saturday morning!

Watching the snow melt,,,

The past couple of weeks has provided a wild mix of weather here in NE Ohio. My training through the week has been pretty spotty, but I have managed to get my long runs in on the weekends. Last weekend I went 10 saturday and 20 sunday. Yesterday I managed 12 miles in the slush and another 20 miles today.

Yesterday was sunny and mid-40s. The snow was literally melting as I ran laps on the Old Hickory Trail. My foot-prints became larger and larger as the snow melted and by the last lap, the trail surface was visible. I decided early on in the run to simply run through any water/slush/snow/whatever since it would be impossible to stay out of it. My feet were cold and wet for most of the day, but it was very very fun to splash around through the muck.

Today's run provided a good mental challenge and victory since I was letting the gray sky and the thought of running another 20 miles around Twinsburg get me down. I realized that I should stop thinking about the entire distance; break it into manageable chunks, just like an ultra! Also, I need to get my attitude adjusted back and be thankful that I am able to run, yet alone be able to run long... I finished the day tired, but with a smile on my face.

Laurel Highlands is coming up fast! With the winter that we have had, I am sure that race day will be hot and humid! But you know what? I am ready to sweat...

Boot Camp: Day #1

I needed a boost, or a swift kick in the pants, in order to start to get some strength back into my core and upper body. Denise found a 'deal' on Living Social for a boot camp package. Today was my first day...

I used muscles that I forgot that I had...

It was a lot of fun and as someone in the class commented, "The hardest 45-minutes of the day!" I will go again Thursday and then start a Tue-Thur set for the remaining sessions. I think that it will be a good thing. I expect to be a bit sore tomorrow and really sore on Wednesday... The ole 48-hour DOMS will be in full force!

Had a good week of running. 42.5 miles total. Yesterday's 20-miles in Bedford Reservation went well. I managed to finish just before the snow/sleet/freezing rain started! I saw my friend Andy on the trail near the end of my run and it was good to catch up a bit with him. Last week's warmer weather was great change and it allowed almost all of the snow to melt from the trails. I am getting anxious for spring even though I know that there is a lot of winter left.

Busy Beavers

Completed a good week with a total of 35 miles! Yesterday's 12.5 miles were tough on the snowy trails. I was going to do a few laps of the Old Hickory trail but there was only one other set of tracks through the snow. (Probably mine from last week!) I was not looking forward to 4 laps of this until I completed my first lap and saw the Twinsburg Hiking club gathered at the top of the hill. Great! They would pack down the snow for me! I completed a loop down in the park and then headed back up to Old Hickory. Yes indeed, the snow was knocked down, but packed? Not really... It was like mashed potatoes and each footstep was more of a foot-slip! I just kept moving the best that I could and ended up with a great 2.5 hours on the trails. Slow moving, but moving...

Today's 8 miles went much better! The snow had a chance to solidify overnight and the Old Hickory trail was in much better shape. Still a bit sloppy in places but over-all pretty good. I will take it.

As I left our garage at the start of my run, a hawk let out a screech that nearly made me jump out of my skin. It was about 20 feet up in the tree next to the house... Good thing I was not a mouse! Down by the creek, the local beaver family had chewed through a tree last night and it had fallen across the trail. It was pretty neat to see the pile of wood-chips at the base of the tree and to see the tracks of the beavers as they removed branches and pulled them down to the creek. They were pretty busy...

Looks like another week of winter weather ahead. Snow early in the week and then cold for the weekend. At least the snow should be hard for the weekend long run...

Spring is coming...right?

Not the sharpest tool in the shed...

Last friday I was feeling a cold coming on and decided saturday morning that I would skip my planned run for the day since I was feeling pretty crappy. I thought that common sense should prevail for a change and I would rest in an effort to reduce the effects of the cold. Then my friend Paul called and asked "Do you want to run this afternoon?" Of course, I said "Yes!" So much for common sense...

We left from Shelter House in South Chagrin metro park and headed towards the Polo Fields. The snow was anywhere from 6-12 inches deep and there was 'mostly' a path formed in the snow from hikers, XC skiers, and show-shoes. The temperature was warm enough to keep the snow soft, but the wind kept the chill factor low. It was a slow go but a great chance to catch up with Paul and enjoy the day. I was feeling pretty beat but started to feel a bit better after an hour of slogging. We managed to get 1.5 hours of movement in. (It was sort-of running, but movement may be a better description.) A stop at Caribou for coffee on the way home and it was a good day!

I crashed early saturday evening and woke up at 10:30pm in a crazy wet sweat! My shirt was totally soaked through but I felt much better... I am feeling better each day and now, I just need to rid of this lingering cough. I hate being sick, but now maybe I am done with the colds for the winter??

I am now off a week for my Laurel Highlands training, but at this early stage, one week is not really going to matter much. I have to always keep the big picture in mind. Don't worry about numbers on a printout or schedule, those are just guidelines. Listen to your body and keep healthy.

I need to keep working on that "keep healthy" part...