Mentally getting into the game

'Cause sometimes you feel tired,
feel weak, and when you feel weak, you feel like you wanna just give up.
But you gotta search within you, you gotta find that inner strength
and just pull that shit out of you and get that motivation to not give up
and not be a quitter, no matter how bad you wanna just fall flat on your face and collapse

-Till I Collapse by Eminem

The Good Week

I think that it is safe to say that I am confident in the rest of the year's races and runs. Two weeks since Mt Si and my workouts do have more quality and are alot smarter for sure. I am feeling better overall, but then compared to how I felt before 04/13, anything was an improvement.

The run that I had this weekend with the Balanced Athlete group proved how good things are going.

This long run was a bit different. It was close to 10 miles, but with a twist. Instead of just running 10 total, we ran for about two miles to get to the Ice Centre - the starting spot for the Kent Christmas Rush 5k/10k. Seems that in Kent, the markings for that race are still up on the street and Eric decided to have us do 1 mile intervals with a 1 mile recovery jog on the 10k course. So we would run the even number miles at race pace.

Now, I hadn't run "race pace" in ages since I don't have a pace set in mind for the races I run in. So I figured to make these runs tempo runs that would take me to what felt like I was near red-lining, but not keeling over like last time when I ran head-to-head with Reuben and being left in the dust after a quarter mile.

I was so shocked! Here are my splits for the interval times:

Mile 2 = 8:19
Mile 4 = 8:13
Mile 6 = 7:30!!!!!

Yeah, I focused alot on the last one and did my best to maintain effort. Seems that I found my groove after mile 5.

After we finished up, we had breakfast at Wild Wheat and then I was finally fitted for some new shoes (ran another mile in testing out the footwear). I have to give props to both Asics and Mizuno. They really improved their designs from the previous year and the pains and aches that I was expecting from the newer models didn't happen thanks to modifications in the shoe design and materials used. I decided to go with the Asics Gel-Kayano 14's. It's like running on clouds. My old Mizuno Wave Inspire 3's are now retired to short runs for now until they completely go. Looking forward to trying on the Brooks Cascadia 3's. Figured the Asics can be used on roads and some relatively compacted trails and the Cascadia can be used on trails like Cascade Crest and trail runs on Tiger.

Checking the calendar for the next few weeks, I'm smiling and hopeful for a repeat of the good week again.

YAYZ!!!! Oregon 100!!!!!

Thanks to ultrarunner/Marathon Maniac/awesome-babe Olga, a new 100 miler that will be coming up in 2009 might be the one to shoot for with this 100 mile ultrarunning virgin. Cleverly called Hundred in the Hood, it adds the total of 100 milers in the Pacific Northwest to 4...well, 5.

- North Bend-2-Vantage (aka NB2V) in North Bend, WA (May 24th-25th).
- Cascade Crest 100 in Easton, WA (Aug 23rd-24th)
- Plain 100 in Plain, WA (Sept 13th-14th)
- Bear 100 in Preston, ID (yeah, Napoleon Dynamite country!) (Sept 26th-27th...a Friday start, Saturday finish)

NB2V is a little bit different in that it's over 100 miles (108 miles), there's no cost - so it's put on in true Fat Ass fashion, and no cost = no awards/finishers bling/aid/support/etc. You want support, you have to bring your own. The Plain 100 is similar with one difference, you are actually PAYING to be self-sufficient on a 100 mile course and you only have one point to actually refuel your bottles/hydration packs/etc. If you want water on the course, better have a water filter to drink from the streams.

Hmm...with as many 100 milers in the NW now after the Oregon 100 gets off the ground next year, a person could do a true NorthWest Grand Slam by completing all 5 runs in a year. Although if the Bear 100 schedule overlaps with the Oregon 100 schedule...that would make for a very unusual race weekend where you would run on Friday, finish on Saturday, try and haul ass one state over, and then run another 100 miles within appropriate cutoffs. Although, that would also make for a very interesting story for the runner. :-)

In any case, in 2009 - I am determined to do my first 100 miler and finish it!

Goal Revisions

Looking at my previous posts on my 2008 goals and my Mt Si Race Report, I have made some adjustments to what I hope to do for the rest of the year.

First thing, the 2008 miles for 2008 - forget it. I can probably get close or hit 2000+ miles for 2009 or 2010. But I'm not going to kill myself for a mileage goal for the year.

The sub-4 hour (well, the goal to hit close to a 3:30) - I'll just let nature take its course. It's better for me to build a really good base for 2008 that I can take with me into 2009 and beyond.

So far, this is what my training & recovery time has been since Mt Si:

- Week 1 -

Monday (04/14) - Cycled to Kent (~8 mile) in the morning for my commute. Strength training (heavy weights) and core work during lunch.
Tuesday (04/15) - 2 miles on treadmill in 23 min in the morning. 30 minutes of skipping rope during lunch.
Wednesday (04/16) - Repeat of Monday
Thursday (04/17) - Woke up later than expected to do AM workout. Did 32 minutes of cardio on elliptical machine at work during lunch.
Friday (04/18) - Woke up too late to ride to Kent. Strength Training and Core during lunch.
Saturday (04/19) - Rest (did some errands)
Sunday (04/20) - 10 mile long run in 1:45:44 with Balanced Athlete group, did 1 mile hard sprint/tempo run at mile 6.

- Week 2 -

Monday (04/21) - Cycled to Tukwila (~13 mile) in the morning for my commute. Strength training (heavy weights) and core work during lunch.
Tuesday (04/22) - 4.5 mile run in 40:33 during lunch.

The cycling mileage does not take into account the 1.25 mile ride from the King Street train station to my office in the morning, the 1.25 mile return trip, the 2+ mile commute I normally do from the Auburn train station to home and the 2+ mile commute to the Auburn train station when I don't ride to Kent or Tukwila.

This is what my weekly schedule seems to be morphing to:

Monday - AM Cycling, Strength Training & Core during lunch
Tuesday - AM Running and X-Training during lunch, Running during lunch, or X-Training during lunch
Wednesday - Repeat Monday
Thursday - Repeat Tuesday
Friday - Repeat Monday
Saturday - OFF
Sunday - Long Run

Hopefully if the weather can get better in the mornings, some of the cycling days will be replaced with running days...except for the month of May. May is Bike to Work Month and I'm dead set on trying to hit 500+ miles this year in mileage. I was REALLY close in 2006, but got sick the last three days of May and missed my goal by 3 rides. Ain't gonna happen this time!

Da Tub

Well Nic, you wanted to see it? (pics courtesy of Barefoot Jon - Marathon Maniac #209)

Recovery and Portable Ice Baths

Thanks for the encouraging comments post-Mt Si. I'm doing my best to recover at the moment and build myself back up into better fighting form for the Redmond Watershed Preserve 12-hr run on May 17th (Ugh, wish the Cascade Running Club would get an AthletesLounge.com or Active.com account for payments! Even Paypal would be better than mailing in the app!)

Anyhoo, as I said - so far, so good. Quads are not as sore, but my feet are still doing that knuckle-joint cracking sound, but that'll pass like it always does. I am more stoked on the next event and the training I'm going to stick to like glue.

King Arthur made a comment in my last entry regarding the ice bath I brought to the race, so I figure to let everyone in on the weird logic that filled my head for this idea.

After my experience at Mt Si in 2006, ice baths were one thing that would have been great to have. The Snoqualmie River is nearby, but not in a good way as everyone knows. Running that last mile to the finish, you see the pretty water looking all calm and cold...and you know that you just can't stop and jump in since you got a mile left to the finish line! After my first and so far only successful 50 miler, I was hyper-sore for 5 days straight and walked like a croquet hoop. It wasn't until after crossing the finish line at the Tacoma City Marathon in my pacing duties that I understood why ice baths worked so well. I jumped into the tub and soaked up the chill like nobody's business and I was fine in under 48 hrs.

Then seeing several pictures of various folks dipping in lakes, rivers, buckets, and storage containers - I figured that having something deep (and long) enough to soak in for races that were sans-ice baths but really need it...it just made sense. Most of us are able to get through a marathon or a 50k without having to jump into any kind of body of water, unless there is a need to recover quickly (e.g. MultiDay/Back-to-Back races).

So the question was, how big of a container? I needed to get a good size storage container. The largest size I found for cheap was a 45 gal container with little wheels. It was big enough to sit in, but your legs couldn't stick straight out (you are mildly bent at the knees.) But it was a trade off. Any longer and I wouldn't be able to put it in my minivan without removing more seats!

Now that I had my bathtub container, I had under-estimated the amount of water I needed at Mt Si. I only brought 4 gallons of water and purchased 5 bags of ice from the local QFC. Thankfully, I was able to use the school's water via the custodian's closet that was open and I filled the tub up (well, OVERFILLED) with another 15+ more gallons. Ten would have been plenty.

Note to Shawn: I'm taking the tub with me for NB2V. I'm sure that after a 108 mile slog, people will look forward to jumping into an ice bath at the finish in Vantage. :-)

Mt Si Ultra Race Report (aka Sucking Wind)

I'm not kicking myself nearly as much as I did yesterday, but it still is a letdown.

So what the hell happened?

The short story: I DNF'ed at mile 30 after having 27 miles of great running.

The long story: After weeks of bad mileage (0 miles to 25 miles per week) and trying to recover from a very stubborn chest cold, I still had a small bit of hope that I would be able to finish the Mt Si 50 Mile Ultra. I had a sound strategy for the event itself, from what would be in my drop bags, to the pace I was going to run & run/walk at. I even setup an icebath tub in my car for afterwards to help me recover.

This was the second time I did this 50 mile run. The first time was a year ago and I finished in 10:37. I wasn't planning on beating my PR, but just to finish.

We started out at 5am and due to my familiarity with the course, I helped a few early start newbies to where we needed to turn off at in the darkness. As the sun rose, the glory of nature really showed itself. It was a great day for a run of any kind. It was a great day to be outdoors.

I hit the first aid station/dropbag #1 point @ mile 5.7 and drank up some Pepsi and GU2O. I also slammed an Espresso Love GU and then headed to the next point about 4 miles away. Time - 1:04:51

As I kept going, I conversed with a few of the early starters to let them know when to expect the next aid station (which was the turnaround point). However, the race turned me into a liar. The spot where the aid station was supposed to be wasn't there! I look into the distance and see a runner coming towards me. I run towards him and he said that they were late and they were over a quarter mile from where they should be. Figures I would be getting some kind of extra credit miles. I got some water from the guys and walked them to the spot they should have been. So what should have been 9.9 miles into the run became 10.5 before I turned around. Time - 52:24/1:57:16

Since the course is designed as an out-n-back, I was able to return to my dropbag and get my bottles to continue on the course. The weather was nicely warming up as the morning progressed, so off went the gloves and long-sleeve. Slammed another GU along with some potatoes and thanked the volunteers. 14 miles and so far, so good. Time - 41:26/2:38:42

As I left the aid station, Eric Sachs showed up soon after and decided to push me for about 0.5 miles...literally. We all had a good laugh. Once back on the road for that brief mile, I stopped along the side to shake out the gravel that ended up in my shoes. I didn't wear gaiters this time, but I was thrilled to see that I didn't get any blisters in the places I did last year. I waived at all the relay runners and non-early starters as they came in the other direction. I soon headed back up the stairs to get back on the trail and to get to the next aid station. 20 miles into it, still feeling good and not feeling any signs of the chest cold, I was in good spirits. I loaded up at the aid station since it was going to be 9 miles to the next full station and about 5 miles to the unmanned aid station of just water and bananas. Time - 1:13:49/3:52:31

As the sun continued to shine down, I drank a bit more than usual, but I was still feeling well. After an botched hi-five to the Deputy who was controlling traffic, I got to the unmanned aid station at mile 25 and drank some more before heading up the 4 miles to my second drop bag. Time - 49:38/4:42:09

I checked my watch and realized that I was actually doing BETTER than last year so far. Not having soles covered in large blisters does make for speedier times on the course. As I ascended the mild 2% incline that lead up to the next aid station, I started to slow down WAY TOO MUCH about mile 27. It was like someone let the air out of the tires. I trudged my way up to the aid station and sat down. It was the longest 4 miles I ever had to do (or it felt like it anyway). Time - 1:01:41/5:43:51

I got some serious help from Jim Kirby (9 time winner of the race) who was volunteering this year due to injuries and I drank up some chicken soup from my dropbag along with a Starbucks DoubleShot and some water and Gatorade. After a 10+ minute sit, I got up and slowly shuffled my feet in a lame walk to get things moving again. I moved along for at best a quarter mile and then collapsed to the ground on my hands and knees. I just didn't have the endurance to keep going. I sat there on the ground for awhile, hoping that my composure would come back and I could continue. But after awhile, I realized that there was no way that I could push on for 20 more miles, even if the last 15 would be downhill. I just wasn't in enough shape to do it. So, eating some serious humble pie, I waived the white flag as I returned to the previous aid station to indicate my drop and begged for a ride back to the start where my icebath would be.

Due to the time I arrived, I had the chance to see the front of the pack finishers. They were all sympathetic and encouraging. Sometimes, it's just not your day in a race is what they pretty much said. But they did also say that having bad training weeks doesn't help either. Eric said that it was better to drop than to be in an ambulance. A VERY GOOD POINT. I had alot of time to soak in the icebath and think of everything. Although I lost out in getting a 50 mile finish this time, for the time I was out there - it was a good run and a gorgeous day to do it. Plus, the people there also made me understand why I do what I do. As I always say, ultrarunners are indeed salt of the earth people. Another thing learned, NEVER HALF-ASS YOUR TRAINING. I made a vow now never to do what I did and take better care of myself.

I have the Redmond Watershed Preserve 12-hr run in 5 weeks and I'm going to make sure I'm definately ready to stick that one out as long as possible and redeem myself.