First 14′ers

2 down, 52 to go.

I summited my first 14,000+ peaks today, making a training run out of the Grays/Torreys combination. They are two of the easiest to hike. Running them was tough. I had to switch to hiking once I got above 13k and started to get a little light-headed.

I started at the Bakerville exit (9,780′), which is 3 miles and 1,500′ below the actual trailhead. I topped out on Grays (14,270′) in 2:11, then made my way over to Torreys (14,267′). To truly ‘bag’ a 14′er in style, it is thought that you should gain at least 3,000′ for each summit, rather than traversing from one to another like I did today. No worries, I’ll be doing this route again and will hit Torreys first next time.

It was an awesome run, if a bit crowded. Glad to see people out enjoying the mountains, though.

My run/hike totaled 14.9 miles and 5,100′ of climbing in 4:22. A little slower than I would have liked, but considering all the traffic on the trail, lots of snow on the Grays traverse, and the 18 miles I put in yesterday, not bad.

Grays Peak straight ahead

Torreys Peak on the right

Up the big pile o’ rock

Nice view of Torreys from the Grays trail

The trailhead is near the stand of pines just above center

Grays Peak summit

Crazy to be looking ‘down’ on some very big mountains

Part-way up Torreys, looking back at Grays

Looking down from the top of Torreys at the freeway exit where I started

Nice way to ruin a great view

Big-time rush hour traffic on the descent

Vacations Suck

I can’t wait to get back to my cubicle.

Jessica and her ‘callipitter’ that I brought back from my run

Race Report: Sage Burner 50K

Sweet logo

I found out about the Sage Burner 50K by scouring some trail racing calendars looking for something to do in June. This seemed like a perfect fit. Reasonably close to home, and at 31 miles a chance to try a ‘sprint’ distance ultramarathon. The plan was to give this a real race effort vs. the training/practice I have been doing at the other recent events I’ve done.

I had some reservations about making the trip down for a first year race like this one. The course map revealed a vast spiderweb of trails with names like tail pipe, top-of-the-world, dirty sock, enchanted forest, skull pass, sea of sage, and rattlesnake that would be used in the Hartman Rocks Recreation Area near Gunnison, CO. I was worried about how they could ever mark a course like that well enough to keep everyone on track. It seemed like a tall order, and I really didn’t want to run around lost all day.

I signed up several weeks in advance, and made all of the necessary arrangements. Then some stuff came up on the Monday before the race weekend that looked like it would make the trip a no-go. That was fine, sometimes life happens when you have other plans… As a result, I put some extra effort into my training during the week - thinking that I wouldn’t be racing. I ran hard on Tuesday, Wednesday, and again on Friday morning - and then things worked out on Friday afternoon so I would be able to go to the race after all. My son Malcolm and I packed up the car in about 30 minutes and were on the road at 7:30 Friday evening. We hit the Gunnison KOA and had the tent set up just before midnight.

Four hours later we were awakened by the sound of 1,000,000,000,001 birds competing against one another to see who could chirp the loudest before dawn.

We broke camp and drove the short distance to the race start. I tested the climbing prowess of my Pontiac Vibe by driving up the steep dirt road called ‘Kill Hill’ to scope out the lay of the land. We found some course markers and it looked like everything was ready to go. I was looking forward to getting started!

View from the start, looking away from the course

As I was jogging around to loosen up a little, I bumped into Dave from Boulder whom I had met in Fruita. It was nice to see him there and we wished each other good luck. It was Dave’s first attempt at a race this long. He did great!  Check out his report here.

I did my best to get Malcolm set up for the time he would have to spend waitng for me - talk about an ultramarathon! He would have to spend all morning on his own. I made sure he had the keys to the car, my cell phone, water, food, chair, etc., etc. He was a super good sport about it and I was very happy that he wanted to make the trip with me. He has already said he wants to go back and run the 25K next year.

Being a first year race, the numbers were fairly small (66 total between the 25K and 50K), but the talent and ability of those I was standing next to at the start was immediately obvious. I recognized a few from other races I have done and knew they were very fast and strong. I felt quite humbled by the prospect of being there to try and ‘race’, but that’s the next step I’m taking in my evolution as an ultrarunner. I no longer have the ever present fear of not being able to finish an ultra like I had last season. I have been training super consistently and am very well coached. I’m thin on raw talent and speed, but am trying to make up for that with good technique, efficiency, proper fueling, hard work, strength, and my ability to quickly recover. Time to start pushing it a little bit, take my lumps, then take what I learn and keep trying to improve.

Typical terrain

It wasn’t really that cold, but I was shivering violently while the last minute instructions were given and couldn’t wait to just start running and warm up. The route quickly funneled into singletrack and started climbing. I felt terriible. My legs were like cement and I was gasping for air. The altitude was only 8,000’, and I usually don’t have any problems, but I sure was breathing unusually hard. I was starting too fast, and I knew it. I just hoped I could hang on for a while and settle down. Being mixed in with the 25K runners was a bit of a challenge, they are running half the distance so can afford to push it a little harder. It is a fairly common practice to start all of the distances together, and dealing with it is something I need to get better at. On a very long, rocky, singletrack climb I found myself leading a train of about a dozen runners. I was digging a whole lot deeper than I wanted to, pushing my heart rate to 170 and beyond, but didn’t want to give up my spot and then have to try and work my way through the traffic again (optimistically thinking I would feel better on the descent).

My legs and lungs were downright angry, and I finally had to relinquish my position and start letting people go by after we reached the top. I was in trouble and was having a tough time imagining how I would continue in the state I was in. I hadn’t even made it to the first aid station! Sure, I had gone out too hard - but something more than that was going on. Maybe all of the hard running I had done during the week? Lack of sleep? Terrible diet? The ice bath I took yesterday? Whatever it was, it wasn’t fun. I tried to knock away the negative thoughts and resolved that I would keep going the best that I could, and that I wouldn’t let my frustration get the better of me. I would also make an extra effort to be gracious to the volunteers, and be friendly to those around me on the trail. The beauty with ultrarunning is that having a bad race automatically qualifies as good training. So many things can go wrong, and you can’t really simulate them all in a training situation. Dealing with bad times during a race is an aquired skill that takes practice and experience to develop. If today was one of those days, I was cool with that. My challenge would be to see if I could deal with my issues and pull out of the funk, or have the fortitude (nice word for a mile-wide stubborn streak) to just keep dealing with it to the end.

Coming into aid station #1 I had my first encounter with ‘bike guy’. He was a spectator and/or volunteer that was leapfrogging the runners and would show up at trail intersections and aid stations during the first half of the race. This dude was the Tony Robbins of race spectating. Most people will give you a clap and a cheerful “looking good!”, or “keep it up!”. Not bike guy. He got close to you and in the most sincere voice would say “Man, you are running SO smooth. YOU are going to kill this thing. You are 70% done with this climb. Focus. Stay STRONG. You can DO IT!”, and in 5 seconds would have you believing that you were the best runner he had ever laid eyes on. It was amazing - at one point he even put his hand on my waist pack and gave me a small push up a hill like I was racing the Tour de France or something. Thanks bike guy! I couldn’t help but feel better after our meetings.

Shortly after the 2nd aid station around mile 10, the course split and the 25K runners headed off towards the finsh line. I was hours from the finish, in no man’s land, and still struggling. I finally backed off quite a bit and spent about 30 minutes letting everything settle down and trying to get my act together. I was tired, and my legs were sooo achy! Just before the halfway point we ran down a steeper slope for a while followed by a steep climb that I chose to hike up. It was only 5 minutes or so, but that little hiking break was what finally put me on the road to recovery. I started feeling more like myself and got stronger with each passing mile. Ok, the 2 ½ hours of sucky running was over - time to wind it up and get going!

I felt like I had a new lease on life and wasted no time making the best of it. A runner that had been locked at ¼ mile in front of me for the last hour started getting closer and closer as I ran strongly up the hills. The climbs in this section were perfect for me. Not too steep, and very long. I passed him as he took a walk break and we chatted for a moment, but I was feeling too good to linger. I set my sights on the next runner way off in the distance. It took me a good mile and a half to catch him on a long doubletrack section, but I was able to do it without increasing my effort level at all by running smartly and using some techniques Coach Karl has had me practicing. This was fun!

I got one more as we hit the 20 mile aid station. I had only been filling a bottle at the stations and was totally self sufficient with gels, so my quick stop put me ahead. I put on my iPod for the first time and rocked out as I cruised the trails through the sagebrush, over piles of boulders, and down a nice little canyon. I kept increasing the intensity bit by bit and seemed to be holding up well.

Coming down the canyon I encountered a couple of guys with shovels working on the trail. I didn’t think much of it as we exchanged greetings and I continued. Rounding a bend I was soon immersed in a huge crowd of people all working as a team on repairing erosion damage to the trail. They paused while I went through and gave me a huge cheer as I dodged wheelbarrows, rakes, picks, and shovels. Kids were clapping, dogs were barking, they made me feel like a superstar! What a fantastic group! I waved and thanked them profusely for the cheers and for the great work they were doing on the trails. The first Saturday in June is designated as National Trails Day and they were out in force to take care of their little slice of heaven. I’ll be putting in some time doing the same thing this summer.

After a short stretch of pavement, the course switchbacked up a very steep sun-baked hill. I ran up for a few minutes until it became pointless for me to continue, then shifted into a fast hike. I caught up with another runner who was obviously suffering from some painful leg cramps (I’ve felt your pain, brother). I offered him some salt caps, but he had just taken some so I wished him luck and continued on.

I rolled strong over the summit with nobody in sight ahead or behind and fought some wind that had steadily been picking up for the last little while. Soon I made a turn and was cruising down nice singletrack into the final aid station at mile 26. Just another fill of the bottle and I set off to regain all of the elevation I had just lost. The grade was uncomfortable for trying to run fast, but the worst part was looking way out to the horizon line and knowing there wasn’t going to be any relief until you made it all the way to the top. In reality it was a little over a mile, but it felt like 10.

I kicked up the pace even higher after the last aid station and was going for broke. My heart rate for that split averaged 167 which is really high for me that late in a race. Usually my legs are too tired to drive my HR up to that range. They were definitely tired and hurting, but I was pouring it on with all I had. I passed two more runners in this stretch for a total of six since the halfway point, and came within 4 seconds of another at the line. My 5:14 was good for 8th place out of 35 finishers.

Almost done!

The original goal was to break 5 hours, and I was slightly disappointed to miss it by so much, but I was very happy to have pulled out of my problems and put together a strong last half. It was only my second 50K, so I’ll have plenty of chances to improve later on.

Malcolm survived his time waiting for me and we hit Taco Bell for some much needed grub. He had lived on 3 Clif bars while I was running and was eager to get his hands on some tacos! We drove down to the very full and fast running Gunnison River where I waded in thigh deep to cool off the legs. Man, that was some COLD water! I can take a 15 minute ice bath no problem, but could only stand about 90 seconds of the river. It was so painful! After that we raced a few hundred yards back to the car. Me with frozen legs, sandals, and 31 miles of fatigue. Malcolm hopping on one leg to even the score. It was close, but he got me in the final sprint.

C-O-L-D!

Time was killed walking through the shops of Gunnison, spotting a shirt that we just have to get for my horse-loving daughter.

We spent the afternoon hanging out at the park and enjoyed talking with Dave while we waited for the awards ceremony and finisher shirts to be handed out. I badly wished we had more time to spend in the area. A trip out to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison was seriously tugging at my mind.

The Gunnison River drops an average of 43 feet per mile through the entire canyon, making it one of the steepest mountain descents in North America. In comparison, the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon drops an average of 7.5 feet per mile.

We would have to settle for the incredibly scenic drive home over the Continental Divide and through South Park. We stopped on Monarch Pass to strech our legs and take in the view. Then went to Pizza Hut for another ‘recovery’ meal. It was a great time and I was sad to see it end. It won’t be long before Malcolm is waiting on his dad again - after he’s beaten him to the finish line!

Misc Thoughts -

The course:

Hartman Rocks has been a long time host to mountain bike races, and is a great playground for trail oriented activities. One really cool thing is the 50K race was a single giant loop, which is a rare treat for a trail ultra. It was neat to always have new territory ahead. While it wasn’t extreme in nature, I did underestimate the difficulty by a long shot. Especially the first half which was full of very rocky ascents and descents. There was 5,200’ of climbing which was about double what I anticipated. Ha, this is Colorado after all… The course markings were very well done. A combination of signs and ribbons were used to keep you on the right track. According to one of the RDs at the awards ceremony, much of the course design/marking credit goes to Dave Weins - the 5 time Leadville 100 (MTB) race winner and course record holder. Thanks, Dave!

The event:

For a first year event, this was very nicely done. I’m totally happy to have made the last-minute trip down and participated. The entry fees went to a good cause (various Western State College groups), and we were more than happy to pump some funds into the Gunnison economy. Although I only took water, the aid stations looked well stocked and were perfectly spaced. The volunteers were great and very helpful. This race will definitely grow as word of the quality spreads. Nice work, everyone!

Splits:

AS 1 - 4.8mi - 45:40

AS 2 - 10.5mi - 58:12 - 1:43

AS 3 - 15mi - 48:08 - 2:32

AS 4 - 16.5mi - 22:31 - 2:54

AS 5 - 21.3mi - 51:32 - 3:46

AS 6 - 26mi - 49:00 - 4:35

Finish - 39:54 - 5:14

Ralph knew what he was talkin’ about…

“That which we persist in doing becomes easier, not that the task itself has become easier, but that our ability to perform it has improved.”

–Ralph Waldo Emerson

He must have been a runner.

The plan of doing the Jemez 50 as a training run with minimal recovery needed afterward worked out well. 4 Personal Records in a span of 8 days sums it up for me. It’s not like I even feel that good. Still a few tweaks and nagging things that need to heal up before I can truly say that, but I’m feeling stronger by the day.

Last Wednesday I did a TT on a climb I’ve been working on for a few months. I took 2.5 minutes off my best time only a week and a half after Jemez.

3/20 - 38:04
3/26 - 34:02
4/09 - 34:51

5/28 - 31:17

My long term goal has been to break 30:00. I’m going to have to rethink that ’cause 30’s going down in flames!

Tuesday I ran 3 laps on a challenging 2.7 mile course with some good hills including a half mile grinder. The first two loops I went steady, then started harder on the third to see how it would go. Felt strong so I kept it up. I definitely worked hard, but I wasn’t gasping and staggering like I have been doing on my previous attempts. I ran smart and managed my effort on the hills. Broke 20:00 for the first time, taking 26 seconds off my record.

1/8 - 21:23
2/27 - 20:20
5/6 - 20:19

6/3 - 19:53

Wednesday was a tempo run, and I ran my fastest-ever split on a particular ~1 mile section of trail that I use for my last repeat.

Today was an easy run. Slightly rolling dirt path and a bit of wind blowing. I try to keep my heart rate under 140 on my easy days. When I first started running a year and a half ago, that would put me at an 11:30 pace for a 4 miler. Last winter I was around 10:15. A month ago it was 9:17. Today my HR averaged 139 and my pace was 8:47. For 8 miles on the same course. Felt like I could go forever.

Working with Karl has been the best thing I could have done at this stage of my running. I’ve learned so much, and am really starting to see great improvement. His plan for me has been spot-on. It’s been a lot of hard work on my part, too. I think I’ve hit every single workout since we began in the middle of February.

The best thing about it is I feel like I’m barely even scratching the surface. It’s going to be a fun summer!

Team Gear

After a lot of hard work by the chief goat, our team gear was delivered this week. Great shirts, a pack, and tons of supplies from Nathan. Awesome!

Thanks, Scott!!!

I broke my shirt in nice and proper with a 2.5 hour run in the mountains. It was great! I’m so lucky to be able to run on trails like this.

Sweet Colorado singletrack

Race Report: Jemez Mountain Trail Runs 50 mile

This is going to be a by-the-numbers race report, because that’s the kind of race it was for me. I had a plan and stuck to it really well. I ended up staying maybe a little too far on the conservative side, which resulted in a slower time than I guessed I would finish in, but I wouldn’t change a thing.

My mileage has been hovering in the mid-50 range for the past several weeks. Not a huge number, but very consistent - and it includes a lot of trail work and focus on climbing. I raced a 50 miler exactly a month ago, and I was probably not 100% recovered going into Jemez because of keeping the training load fairly high, but it was close enough. Especially since I was just using this mostly for training.

My nutrition plan was simple. Take a gel every 25 minutes, a salt cap every 50, and stay on top of my hydration level. The gel only approach has been working great. At my last race I did every 30 minutes, and it was a little too long - so a minor tweak this time around. I loaded my waist pack with 16 gels, and put 14 more in a drop bag for the Pajarito Canyon aid station at mile 28. The only downside is what to do with all of the wrappers, they add up quickly! Putting them in my shorts pocket is no good because after a while they ooze through the fabric and then my shorts are sticking to my thigh - yuck. I’ve tried putting them in one of the pockets of my pack, which worked well, but I hated to give up that storage space. I thought for a while and came up with my first ultra-running mod. I pinned socks on the back of my pack to hold the gel wrappers. The stretchy fabric was perfect for being able to shove the empty packets into and then holding on to them so they wouldn’t bounce out. It worked great!

I took Friday off of work and made the 6 hour drive to Los Alamos getting there in time to attend the pre-race briefing and dinner. The high school cafeteria was packed! The race director mentioned that the race had filled, and the Forest Service granted additional spots, and they had quickly filled as well. I think they said there were 400 runners in total (for the 50 mile, 50k, and half marathon). It was great to get a slideshow preview of the course and hear about the trail conditions. A few inches of snow on the peaks, and lots of fallen trees to climb/jump over. It was evident that there had been a TON of work put into this event.

It was great to meet and get a hug from my new Speedgoat teammate, Olga. And get some last minute words of advice and encouragment from the desert-tanned and very fit looking Coach Karl. It was obvious he’s been getting in the miles and was set for a nice little ‘training run’ of his own. I was excited and ready to take on the challenge.

With a 05:00 start time, the 03:30 wake up call came pretty early. I was already awake, and ready to get going. I made my way to the start, which I had scoped out the night before, and scored a sweet parking spot. In an effort to eliminate the bad blistering I endured at Fruita, I coated my feet in Vaseline and then put on a very thin pair of socks under a thick pair of Smartwools. I grabbed a bite to eat and hung out talking to Mike who I had run with at the Bear 100 last year. One thing I loved about this race is that even though there were 3 distances being offered, the start times were each 1 hour apart. Nice! The 50 milers were the first to go. They announced there were 130 starters and then spun us in a 180 to get us pointed in the correct direction - oops! Off into the darkness we went.

My plan was to take it really easy at the beginning, and generally easy for the whole first 35 miles. Then run it in from there with whatever I had left. Taking it really easy at the start was… really easy. Because I felt blah. I don’t know if it was the lack of sleep, tired legs, or what, but my body didn’t want to move very quickly. That was ok. It didn’t bother me a bit, and I just settled in to a comfortable pace and didn’t get concerned at all when people would pass me.

The first 6 miles were gently rolling and I was able to turn my headlamp off after 30 minutes or so. The trail went thorugh some dry stream beds and some fun contours on the hillside that had me smiling. At around mile 4 I noticed a guy with purple gaiters go running by. Hey, I recognize those! It was Kirk Apt, a very accomplished ultra runner who had come flying by me with half a mile to go at the Fruita 50 miler last month. He ran a very smart race there, with just a 15 minute positive split - compared to my dismal 1 hour. I knew he would be a ‘good wheel to follow’ (in cycling lingo), but resisted the urge to speed up and stay with him. I was going to be running my own race today. It was just as well, I passed him about a mile later while he was adjusting his pack. That was a good lesson to me - breaking out of your own rhythm to run someone else’s pace is rarely a good idea in these events. There are always nature calls to answer, things to adjust, aid station stops, etc. that will make lead changes frequent. If someone is really stronger than you, there isn’t a whole lot you can do about it. You have to run your own race, manage the course, and let it take care of doing the sorting out.

I reached the first aid station (Mitchell Trailhead @ mile 4.9) in 57 minutes. Wow, I really was taking it easy. Karl later told me their lead group reached this point in 32 minutes or something crazy like that. They were hauling! We had climbed a little over 900′ to that point. I topped off my bottle and was on my way in about 30 seconds.

Next up was a 1,500′ climb over 2.2 miles to the next aid station on Guaje Ridge. I was still going really slow, but starting to feel better and better. As soon as the climb got really steep, I could feel blisters forming on the soles of my feet - not again!! My feet were sliding all over inside my shoes. I pulled off the trail and completely retied them, making them snug. That felt so much better that I did it again in another half of a mile. I cranked them down so much that the eyelets were nearly touching! I couldn’t believe it. My feet aren’t that narrow, and I was wearing two pairs of socks! It was time well spent, and although it was touch-and-go at times, I never developed any real blisters.

I arrived at the Guaje Ridge aid station at mile 7.1 in 42 minutes, 1:39 elapsed. Topped off the water bottle again and got ready for the first real descent. Over 1,000′ down into Guaje Canyon. This was a really cool trail. Very narrow, and lots of short switchbacks pasted on to the hillside. It seemed like you would run straight for about 25 feet, then crank a 180 around a hairpin switchback, then repeat over and over. I was now totally warmed up and feeling fine.

There was a gentle climb up the lush canyon bottom where we hopped a small stream several times. It was very pretty in this area, and the running was great. I passed the time chatting with some other runners for a mile or two. Soon we came to a ladder next to a waterfall. I can’t say that I had ever climbed a ladder during a run before. It was a cool addition and the first of many obstacles we would face during the day.

Up you go

Photo credit: Olga Varlamova

Soon we arrived at the Caballo Base aid station (:45 split/2:25 elapsed) and a sign indicating we were facing an 1,800′ climb in 2 miles. I was second in line with a group of 4 or 5 that included Kirk, who had caught back up, and we headed up at a very consistent pace. After a few minutes Nate flew by, then shortly after that was Karl (Kyle had already finished the out-and-back by the time we started). It was only the second time I’ve seen Karl run in person, he levitated down the trail - very cool. As we got closer to the top, there was a steady stream of runners coming down the trail at us. I kept track of the count just for fun. There were also many downed trees laying over the trail that we had to climb over. The volunteers did an outstanding job in clearing much of the trail, but this section was just a little too remote for them this early in the year. They even used llamas to pack water and supplies to the top of the mountain for a small aid station there. As if a 20% slope wasn’t enough to keep us occupied, we were also going through several inches of new snow which made traction a little scarce at times. The trail leveled off for the last little bit to the turnaround at the top of Caballo Mountain which I hit in 56th place (mile 12.1 - :49 split / 3:14 elapsed).

Run to the tree and turn around

Photo credit: Olga Varlamova

Now it was time to have a little fun. I ran fairly casually for the first part of the descent and soon caught up with another runner. She offered to let me by, but I told her I was fine - unless I came rolling by… It was steep! After a minute or two, more runners started to stack up behind us so she stepped aside on a switchback. Now I was leading a train of 5-6 people, time to quit sandbagging and RUN. I was on the very edge of control for much of the descent, leaping logs in full flight, landing on snowy switchbacks, carving the corners, dodging a few rocks and all the time thinking that if I eat it there are going to be about a dozen trail shoe footprints going right up my back. That was fun!

Another quick water stop at the Caballo Base AS, then we continued the climb up the canyon. It was starting to get hot here, and several people were really struggling. I felt pretty good and passed several others. The rolling trail got steeper and steeper as we gained 1,000′ going up the headwall of the canyon finally reaching a nice runnable section with some amazing views into the vast Valle Grande Caldera.

Before I knew it, I was rolling into the Pipeline aid station (mile 17 - 4:24 elapsed). This was a large aid station with many people milling around. True to form, I grabbed some water and was out of there. My energy level was staying just about right so far. Sticking with the plan… A volunteer directed me to two orange flags spaced about 15 feet apart on the edge of a cliff overlooking the caldera. It looked like a launching pad for hang gliders! Unfortunately, I didn’t go very fast on this part. I wasn’t wearing any gaiters over my shoes and the dirt was soft and deep. I was being careful not to load my shoes up with rocks and junk. After the really steep descent it was pretty nice running for the next few miles across the bottom of the caldera. I wish I could have felt a little better to take advantage of it, but I was starting to struggle just a tiny bit. My legs ached something fierce. In fact, they had been waking me up at night for the week before the race because they would just ache so much. I ran the best I could and knew that things would be better if I just pushed through. I hit the Valle Grande aid station (mile 21 - :44 split / 5:08 elapsed), grabbed water and a couple of cookies, then headed through the grass for the cross-country section of the course.

Follow the flags through the grass

Photo Credit: Bill Geist

The grass was a kind of clumpy, making running a little bit difficult, but the view was outstanding and I was starting to feel a lot better. We climbed gradually through the grass and everyone seemed to slow down quite a bit. Most people were looking very worn out. Soon, we came to a large talus slope full of furniture-sized boulders. I had a blast hopping up and over the rocks. I passed several more people in this section.

Two markers are easy to spot, look really close to find the third

Photo Credit: Jeff O’Reilly

Wobbly legs + wobbly rocks made for a good challenge. This section was a new addition to the course this year. I loved it. I made it through unscathed and started up the very steep hillside through the trees. This climb was so steep in places that I was actually grabbing on to trees and using them to haul myself up. I was barely moving, but I was still passing people! I think I ended up passing around 15 or so from just before the boulders to the top of the peak. It was a 7 mile stretch between aid stations here, so I made sure to keep hydrated and fueled for the long haul. We crested Cerro Grande, which was the 2nd of 3 10k+ foot peaks of the day, and headed into a long, long, descent down Cañon de Valle. The trail was steep, snowy, and muddy at first. Soon it gave way to a gentle downhill grade and some really nice running. I held a good steady pace for several miles on this trail.

Sweet trail in the CdV

Photo Credit: Olga Varlamova

After descending the canyon, the course swung north and made its way over to the Pajarito Canyon aid station (mile 28 - 1:57 split / 7:06 elapsed). We were more or less on the way back to Los Alamos now. All of the aid stations were great, the volunteers and spectators were top notch and their support and assistance was very much appreciated. Pajarito was cool because it was one of the more easily accessible spots on the course, so there was a lot of people there. It was a blast to come running in feeling strong with all the cheering and cowbells ringing. They were scoping out our race numbers with binoculars so they could have our drop bags ready to hand to us as soon as we rolled in. What great service! This would be my longest stop of the day at about 2-3 minutes. I spent time reloading my pack with gels and having fun trading smart remarks with the volunteers. They couldn’t believe how fresh I looked.

Now I was in a bit of no-man’s land, going it alone for a while. The trail headed back up another canyon that would take us to the base of Pajarito Ski Resort. It got a little warm in this section, but I was drinking enough and generally doing alright. I caught up to a couple of guys and not much was said as we all plugged away on the incline. I was last (3rd) in line about a mile from the ski resort when I thought I heard a stick crack behind me. Feeling a little tired, I just shrugged it off and kept going. A minute later I heard it again. This time I turned around to see Kirk right there. Where had he come from!?! There hadn’t been anyone behind me for miles it seemed, then poof, there he was. Uh-oh, I thought, he’s gonna take us to school now. This time I sped up a little to keep pace and the 4 of us hit the Pajarito Base aid station together (mile 32 - 1:07 / split 8:14). I didn’t know it at the time, but Kyle Skaggs had already finished the race at this point! He ran a very strong 8:08 to take a minute of his own course record - and the course was longer and more difficult this year. Great performance!

I was first out of the aid station and started to push the pace just a little bit. Kirk came cruising by me and I couldn’t keep up, he looked like he was really in his element now. I did what I could and tried to keep a steady pace going. There were some very steep snowy sections of trail that wound through the trees before we ended up on one of the ski runs and just headed straight for the top. I was beginning to feel the effort of the day, and started to feel tired for the first time. I was glad to top out on the climb, then had to hustle out of there as a hail storm was whipping things up. Thankfully it didn’t get too bad.

Reaching the top of Pajarito, feeling a little beat at this point

Photo Credit: Jim Stein

The course came around some trees and then pointed straight down a double black diamond run. I was glad to still have some quads left, I was going to need them! It was really really steep for a while, then mellowed out to just really steep. I soon caught sight of the ski lodge at the bottom and knew that would be my next stop. I reached the ski lodge aid station (mile 36 - 1:10 split / 9:25 elapsed) and looked at my watch for the first time all day. 9:25! No wonder I was just now getting tired, I really had been taking my time. In planning for the race, I had loosely estimated 8 1/2 hours to get to this point (I also forgot to factor in the 2 additional miles and 3rd 10k’ peak). Oh, well. Just a good training run in the mountains.

Now it was time to run it in with whatever I had left. I put my iPod on for the first time all day, slammed a gel, and started running. Next stop, finish line!

I ran all the way to the next aid station (Pipeline - :39 split / 10:04 elapsed) which was all uphill, and kept right on going. I had enough water to get to the next one. There were two more hills coming out of Pipeline that caught me a little bit off guard. They looked pretty intimidating, but went by pretty fast. After that, it was back on singletrack through the forest and down, down, down. This part of the course was really cool, there were sections that felt and looked like Oregon - then you’d round a corner and be in the middle of a desert. A very fast bottle fill at the Guaje Ridge AS and I kept right on going, jamming to the tunes and feeling a little tired - but good.

The Rendija Canyon aid station (:55 split / 11:39 elapsed) came at 2 miles to go. I stopped for another bottle fill, but should have just kept on going. I thought it was very strange now that I was ‘racing’, I saw basically no one. I think I only passed 2 or 3 people in the last 15 miles of the race. Ocassionaly I would glance back and see nothing but empty trail. I kept a strong pace up the little canyon that led to the final climb before the finish. As I was negotiating the final steep section of trail, I looked back and there was Kirk. Only 20 yards behind me! For about the fifth time today, he had materialized from out of nowhere right on my heels. I had visions of me eating his dust at the Fruita finish line and kicked it in with all I had for the last 1/3 mile. It was enough, and I came across the line in 12:04, 26th place. It was great to finally meet Kirk and talk about our races. I’ve learned a lot of good things by watching how he approaches racing. I felt very satisfied with the day. When Karl asked how it went, my one word answer was ‘textbook’. I was hoping to have finished a little faster, but wouldn’t go back and change anything. It turned out just right. Moving up 30 spots after mile 12 was a good outcome. Karl had a good training day of his own, cruising to a second place 8:58 - nice!

I can’t say enough good about the race and the organization. The guys and gals down in Los Alamos really know how to do it right! The hand crafted pottery and commemorative poster were excellent finishers awards. The volunteers were outstanding, and the trails spectacular. Hanging out with Karl, Kirk, Kyle, Olga, and Roch in the beautiful evening weather was a perfect ending to a nearly perfect day. This race had me smiling for many days afterwards, I kept wishing I was back in Los Alamos. I loved it!

Pottery

Poster

Click here for more reports and photos.

Back from Jemez

Mile 35. Top of Pajarito Ski Resort. Los Alamos is waaaay down there…

Photo credit: Jim Stein

A+

Outstanding day. Awesome, hard course. Had a blast. Took it pretty easy and am feeling great. My hotel room was on the third floor and I had no trouble at all carrying my bags up/down the stairs. Recovery will be very quick. This race deserves a full write up, so I’m going to take my time and work on one over the next few days.

Next up - Jemez 50 Miler

But first, a look back at what I learned at Fruita. Most of this text comes from an email exchange with my friend Kirk. I owe a big thanks to him for getting me to do some more critical thinking about my run in the desert.

1st half of the race -

I give myself pretty high marks here. One of my biggest downfalls in the past has been going out too hard. After running with both Kirk and Sandy at different points in the first 25 miles, I pulled back and forced myself to stay at my own pace even though I wanted to continue with them. That is a major step for me. I was hopeful I would be able to pick up the pace later, but willing to live with it if it just wasn’t happening.

The only regret I have from the first 25 is not being faster while holding back - if that makes any sense. I was hoping to hit the turnaround at 4:20 or so. Instead it was 4:34. I felt pretty comfortable, it just seemed like the clock was running faster than I was. I look forward to the day when I can run somewhat comfortably and still hit the times I’m looking for!

calories -

This is the first ultra that I’ve done using only gels for fuel. I have been training that way, and felt confident in that approach. My mistake was in the frequency. I religiously took one every 30 minutes on the dot. 30-45 or even 60 minutes works fine for me in training. Not so much in the race. Halfway through the race I could feel that 30 minutes was stretching it. That’s around 200-220 calories an hour. I need to revise that to every 20-25 minutes to keep things running smoothly in a ultra-length race. I had only carried enough gels to support the every 30 minute approach and I don’t really care for the Hammer gels offered by the race.

I probably should have ‘grazed’ a bit at Crossroads and Moore Fun aid stations, but just wasn’t interested. Minimizing AS time is great, but not at the expense of feeling good. Still trying to find a balance there.

hydration -

Low marks. Especially for the second half of the race. I’m not sure why I struggle to drink enough, but it has dogged me through several races. I’ll be dehydrated, yet running along with two full bottles in my pack… I think a single bottle waist pack plus a handheld will be probably be the best combo for me. At least carrying the bottle in my hand makes me think about drinking more often. I was down 7 pounds the next morning, even after eating and drinking lots the night before while driving home after the race.

salt -

One S!cap on the hour. Like the calories, okay for training, probably not enough for trying to race an ultra. I should probably take one every 40 minutes +/-. Had slight hints of hamstring cramps once in a while, but fared much better than I have in most other races. My ziplock bag ended up splitting at the seam and I dropped a few caps without knowing it. I ended up short and took my last one with about 3 hours to go. I grabbed a couple of Endurolytes at Crossroads, but they’re no match for an S!cap IMO.

feet -

This was my number 1 performance killer. I don’t want to be whiny about it - I’ve run with blisters plenty of times. They suck, but can be endured for the most part. I ended up with 6 total, plus a detached toenail. 5 blisters and the toenail would have been fine. The one blister (right in the center of my left forefoot) was off the charts. There was some sort of fissure that formed in the crease of my foot there that felt like raw nerve endings were exposed. A much more intense sensation than just the normal skin friction and hot spot feeling. Even after 10 days I was still walking with a limp.

For my training runs I was gritting my teeth for the first couple of miles, waiting until it gets slightly more tolerable. I just looked at my logs, and the Cascadia 3’s I have been using this year are the 9th different make/model of trail shoe that I’ve tried in the 1.5 years I’ve been running. I really thought I had finally found my shoe - and still have hope that I did. They worked perfectly at the Psycho Wyco 50k and Salida, my feet were 100% in both races. I think the difference is that these shoes are just slightly roomy for me and I was wearing thicker socks in the earlier events. For Fruita I went with a very thin Smartwool and I think it ultimately let my foot slide around way too much despite me trying to account for it with my laces. I had thicker socks in my drop bag @ 25, but didn’t even think about them in my attempt to reload with gels and get out of there.

I’ve also been dealing with a foot injury left over from my 100 miler last year. Normal running doesn’t bother it at all, but when I step on a rock or uneven surface with the outside of my right foot it sends a lightning bolt of pain just below my ankle. It dissipates after a few steps, but takes its toll after a while on a course like Fruita - where I nailed it about 500 times.

pushing too hard when feeling good -

I definitely fell victim to this, as I’m prone to do. I have the running-while-feeling-bad part down cold. It’s running-smart-while-feeling-good that is the challenge. Actually, I had run the kind of race up to 35 coming back through Troy Built that I thought I could start winding it up steadily and keep building the pace all the way to the finish. I think the blister and foot issues that I had been dealing with for 25 miles by that point ultimately shut me down. Living with the pain and discomfort is one thing, but the way it caused me to alter my stride and the way I subsequently ran with tons of tension in my body and my torso sort of twisted away from center is what hurt me the most. By the flat section after Crossroads where I should have been cruising, I was running with a stiff and jagged gait just trying to escape the pain. Stopping to address the blister didn’t have much appeal. The damage was done, and with the location on my foot - there wasn’t much to do about it anyway.

The way I’ve recovered leg-wise, and how I’ve felt in training after Fruita have given me confidence that my training was good and I’m on the right track as far as that goes. I still have days that aren’t great, but for the most part have bounced back quickly.

Now the Jemez plan:

Go easy for 35 miles, then run strong from there to the finish. That’s it in a nutshell.

steady…

Success will be measured in how well I execute my plan, and how well I implement the things I have learned in my previous races, plus following the instructions from Coach Karl. Finish time and placing are not even on the radar. This is practice, and I’m actually looking forward to it. I want to approach it by giving myself enough slack as far as ‘racing’ goes that I can really concentrate on how to run a good race. Just showing up and running as fast as you can for as long as you can doesn’t work very well in these kinds of events. I know that for a fact…

Before I can start worrying more about speed, I need to get the basics down a lot better. I’m making good improvement in that area, and am hoping to have things pretty well dialed in after this race.

steady…

I’m looking at this as a chance for a Leadville dress rehearsal. Run well within my limits and stay on top of the critical areas of fuel, hydration, electrolytes, and foot care. I want to start picking up speed with 15 miles to go and finish strong, but still relatively fresh.

It will be critical for me to keep things under control pace-wise so my recovery period after the race stays short and I am able to quickly resume training towards my bigger goals in the summer. Training is on the upswing lately and I don’t want to derail that with an extended recovery, or forced layoff.

GO!!!

photo credits: Steve Pero

Thankfully my blister is healed. Karl gave me the heads-up on some stuff called Aquaphor. It’s kind of like Vaseline, only more oriented towards actually healing the affected area. 3x/day for 3 days and I was set free from the pain - yes! That stuff rocks!

I’m going with my trusty 2 bottle Nathan pack. I still think a handheld + a single bottle pack may be the best combo for me, but I haven’t been training that way so don’t want to go to it just yet. I will try very hard to stay hydrated. I think my overall slower pace and approach to this race will be a big help in that area. I will also take a little more time at the aid stations and try to consume some additional fluids there.

Stay tuned to hear how all of this works out!

Wasatch Speed Goat Mountain Racing Team

Last month I became a member of the newly-formed Wasatch Speed Goat Mountain Racing Team. The team came about from an idea Scott Mason had to put together a nationwide, grassroots running team consisting of readers of his website that are dedicated to the sport of trail running. Scott, and co-director Tim, have lined up a great group of sponsors and the team is starting to roll.

What kind of runners make up the team? Olga said it best …this is a team for regular folks, mid-pack (ok, there are some at the front, some aspire to be at the front and some used to be there) … The important part - we get to be who we are! The exciting engaging communicating eyes-popped-hooray trail mountain ultra junkies! … the camaraderie is amazing! Look out for us at the races and say hi, we are YOU!

I am definitely in the aspiring to be at the front of the middle, or back of the front category. I’m in awe of my teammates’ accomplishments and hope to learn as much as I can from them. Having only been running for a year and a half, I’m very lucky to be part of such an amazing group! There are 17 runners in total, with representation from California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Wisconsin, Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, New York, and New Hampshire. The ‘goats are everywhere!

Take a look at the team results and schedule. That is one serious list of races! I’m very happy to be part of the team and am looking forward to meeting everyone as we race together. It’s a great bunch of guys and gals - hats off to Scott and Tim for putting it together, and to our sponsors for lending their support!

Nice Day at the ‘Office’!

So I end up working all day Sunday. EMERGENCY mode. LOTS of stress. Things breaking. I get home and here’s an email from Karl inviting me to check out his day at the office:

Ummm, yeah. I think I like his office better…