Monday, December 22, 2014

Virgil Crest 50 Miler

Sat. September 20, 2014
Virgil Crest Ultras
50 miles
~12,000' elevation gain
8 hours 1 minutes
1st Place Overall


This race is awesome!  Ian, the race director is a great guy, the course is epic, and it is just a down to earth low-key kind of event.  The course was changed again this year and the result was more elevation gain in an already huge elevation course.  My Garmin still counted it as about 10k in gain, which is what it was given last year, but Ian claimed the elevation to be closer to 12k.  Either way, it is hilly!  In terms of the changes I missed running up the Finger Lakes trail from the base of Greek Peak, but I did like the revamped Alpine Loop.  There was also a lot of runnable terrain from the top of Greek Peak to the turnaround and back.



Racing

After looking at the Ultrasignup list of racers I knew I had a good shot of winner this race if I had a great day, but you never know what will happen out there.  However, I still wanted to follow my own race plan.  At the start I dropped in to my pace and let people go out in front of me.  It is a long race and I didn't want to blow my shot at a win by getting wrapped up in a race with runners that may not be able to keep a strong pace for a full 50 miles.

At the start line
  The darkness started to creep away as I made the first aid station at 6.3 miles.  I was running just over 9 minute pace and was sitting at about 10th place.  I knew I was a few minutes back and felt really good about how I felt and where I was in the pack.  I was basically running by myself and seeing other folks every once in awhile.  There is some climbing at this point, but it is pretty easy going with fresh legs.

I am about a quarter of a mile from the next aid station when all of a sudden I see a group of 5 running back down the hill towards me?!  They say they haven't seen any markers in awhile and think they must be off trail.  We were on the Finger Lakes Trail (white blazes) and this is where I ran last year. I say I think this is it, we go forward, don't see any blazers after a bit, turn around, then another guy coming up on us yells, 'no this is it, keep going forward'.  So we go a ways, then hit the course markings all of a sudden.  I noticed that they went both left and right, so I knew we were off the trail for a bit, but we were back on course now.  I also noticed on my watch that we must have missed the aid station.  Little did we know the course this year went a couple hundred yards to the left to hit a road access point for the aid station.  We missed where the trail turned of the Finger Lakes trail, as did everyone except one racer until the volunteers went down course and remarked this section.  We popped out of the woods tot he one pavement section that is downhill for over a mile to the base of Greek Peak.  I told everyone there what had happened since they were all first timers and didn't realize what had happened and that we had missed the aid.  I was now in the lead group and was hoping that we would not be disqualified since all of the lead runners went the same way, and missed aid!!  Now that I was up in the lead group my race strategy changed a bit to stay with the front of the race.  We were going a bit faster than I wanted to go on the downhill (about 6:30's) and when we started the first alpine climb one racer, Silas, started to pick up the pace and pull away from the others.  Alright, here we go I thought!  I stuck to his heels and continued to climb up the ski slopes.  I just told myself that I was a stronger runner and was able to keep any pace he threw out AND I could keep a high intensity for the ENTIRE race.  Well, we will see!
Starting to climb after Hurt Locker


Silas and I came in to the Hurt Locker together and were in need of some hydration and calories.  Having missed the last aid we were a bit behind for sure.  Hillary was there and happy to see me since she didn't really know what was going on at that point.  She told me that Ian was pretty sure he knew what happened and we were good to go, which was a good feeling.  Silas and I hiked up the ski slopes again while rehydrating and eating.  The Nuun had never tasted so good!!  At the top of the climb Silas was just in front of me and almost went off course since his head was down.  I knew he was feeling it and decided it was time to  start pushing again now that I was able to take some nutrition on.  We were still really close coming into the Crux Aid, but with Hillary on my side I was in, refueled, and out in about 15 seconds while Silas geared up.  


Leaving The Crux

I put my head down and just tried to keep a strong pace without over doing it,  This was the first time I had pushed so hard so early in the race and I was not sure if I was going to be able to hold it all together for the duration.  I came in to the turnaround, grabbed more Nuun and calories, then took off to complete the final 25 miles.  I saw Silas in less that 2 minutes, so I knew I had about 4 minutes at the most on him.  Then the adrenaline really kicked in as I started to pass racers that were still on their way out to the turnaround and my pace picked up.  There was a lot of downhill and I was feeling great.  I averaged about 8 minute miles for the next 9 miles and stretched my lead to about 16 minutes with 16 miles to go.  


The second round of the alpine loop actually went pretty well for me as I increased my lead to 30 minutes in the 5.7 mile section running up and down Greek Peak.  Just like last year the last 10 miles of this course was really hard for me.  I was starting to lose my intensity and was just trying to hang on for a strong finish.  Running back up the road seemed to take forever and I was happy to get back in the woods.  The relentless up and down sections certainly didn't help my pace any.  I was happy to hit Hope Lake and make the final turn towards the finish.  My first win!  I kept my lead to 31 minutes and it appeared that Ian and the race directors were pretty impressed with the time for this new, tough course.  I guess I was hitting the aid station much earlier than they were expecting the lead to reach them.  It was an awesome day and a great way to finish the season!!!
Crossing the Finish Line

Week 38 2014 Recap

September 15 - 21

Taper week and the Virgil Crest 50 miler ... 1st place!!!!

Summary of Week 38:
M    OFF
T     OFF
W    4.6 mile Castleton XC trails run, flat easy
Th   4.6 mile trail run
F     OFF
S     Virgil Crest 50 - 1st place
S     OFF


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     59.2 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     10,600 feet 
Total run time:                     9 hours 23 mins

Week 37 2014 Recap

September 8 - 14

One week until Virgil Crest and I am feeling pretty good!  A pretty easy week, but Sunday's run took a bit more of a toll on the body than I would have wanted.  I was running all of the small trails on Bird mountain that I usually pass over and they were wicked steep!  My legs were a bit sore the next day after the effort, but I am still feeling strong.

Summary of Week 37:
M    OFF
T     2.9 mile Harvest Moon Hike (1200')
W    OFF
Th   7.4 mile trail/dirt road run
F     OFF
S     10.6 mile hilly trail/dirt road run (1370')
S     6.3 mile Bird Mountain Hill Fest (2230')


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     27.2 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     5,694 feet 
Total run time:                     5 hours 0 mins

Week 36 2014 Recap

September 1 - 7

Now that I am back on the school schedule budgeting my time has been easier and thus my runs end up being more consistent.  A good mix this week and finally a strong, speedier run to end the week.

Summary of Week 36:
M    9.7 mile hilly trail run circuits near the house (1700')
T     OFF
W    4.0 mile road run with Hillary
Th   OFF
F      6.2 mile trail/dirt road run
S     12.4 mile nighttime Pond Hill loop run (speedy and strong)
S     OFF


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     32.3 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     4,265 feet 
Total run time:                     4 hours 53 mins

Week 35 2014 Recap

August 25 - 31

My long run felt pretty good this week, and I was plenty spry for an afternoon hike with a bunch of folks up Herrick mountain shortly after the run.  A lot of off days, but the runs were quality.

Summary of Week 35:
M    OFF
T     OFF
W    7.8 mile Griffin Hill Loop
Th   7.3 mile steep trail run Bird Mountain circumnavigation
F     OFF 
S     28.9 mile trail/dirt road run (~4k'); afternnoon 1,300' hike with friends
S     OFF


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     44.0 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     8,592 feet 
Total run time:                     7 hours 58 mins

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Week 33 2014 Recap

August 18 - August 24

I am back on a more normal schedule this week and built up to a big effort on Sunday.  MY FIRST GOOD RUN SINCE THE VT100!  It was a slower pace, but the terrain is big and the trail is slow going, so I was happy with this run.  I got some time on the trail, ate well, and felt strong at the end.  Finally, feeling like I might be able to race come September!  Now I need some consistency in my runs.

Summary of Week 33:
M    16.3 mile dirt road/trail run in Castleton
T     OFF
W    5.5 mile rail trail easy run
Th   OFF
F     7.2 mile dirt road run, better effort 
S     OFF
S     19.2 mile STEEP trail run, Pico Mtn and Killington X2 (5,461)


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     48.1 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     7,512 feet 
Total run time:                     9 hours 14 mins

Week 32 2014 Recap

August 11 - August 17

After my sub-par 12 mile run last week I decided to take some time off this week, to give my body a little extra time to grab some energy and allow my digestive issues to work themselves out.  Three weeks after the VT100 and I am certainly not recovered yet in more ways than one.  I decided to follow this up with a bigger run to see if the rest during the week did anything.  Overall, I felt pretty good for the first half on Sat, but the end was a bit of a slog and I was feeling pretty sapped.  I am starting to eat a bit on my runs again.

Summary of Week 32:
M    OFF
T     OFF
W    OFF
Th   OFF
F     OFF
S     15.1 mile trail run, Okemo Mountain Yo-yo, STEEP (4,128' elevation gain)
S     OFF


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     15.1 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     4,128 feet 
Total run time:                     3 hours 12 mins

Week 31 2014 Recap

August 4 - August 10

Piling three days in a row at the end of the week was still really tough for me.  Fridays run went well, Sat was okay, and Sun felt like more of a marathon than 12 miles.  Still having some digestive issues.  I had to stop to vomit three times on the run.  I think there might still be some of the 30 GU packets in my stomach from the VT100.  I am staying optimistic, but currently do not feel awesome.

Summary of Week 31:
M    OFF
T     6.2 miles dirt road/trail run decent effort
W    OFF
Th   OFF
F     6.7 mile hilly road run in Barre VT
S     6.5 mile trail run on Quarry Rd, Waterville, ME
S     12.2 mile dirt road/trail run, Pong Hill Loop (1520' elevation gain)


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     31.7 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     3,182 feet 
Total run time:                     5 hours 2 mins

Week 30 2014 Recap

July 28 - August 3

After a few runs this week I was feeling like I might recover in enough time to give the Virgil Crest 50 miler a go during the 3rd week of September, so I decided to sign up for the race and continue my training for another month and a half.  I put in a faster effort on Thursday on a dirt road run that actually felt really good at 7:13 pace for almost 8 miles.  I like to get some of these tempo runs in from time to time so that I can keep up my speed a bit and not get bogged down in just longer mileage.  Still having some digestive issues and am not ready to put any GU in my stomach.  I usually have an iron stomach, so this is a new one for me.  I was pretty spent by the weekend after all of the hills on Friday.  Still low on energy from VT100.

Summary of Week 30:
M    6.2 mile road/trail run easier with 775' elevation gain
T     OFF
W    OFF
Th   7.7 mile dirt road run, Griffin Hill Loop at 7:13 pace
F     8.0 mile STEEP hill trail run up and around Bird Mtn (2153' elevation gain)
S     OFF
S     OFF


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     21.9 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     3,265 feet 
Total run time:                     3 hours 28 mins

Week 29 2014 Recap

July 21 - July 27

The VT100 really put my body into the hurtbox.  I think the last 12 miles or so played a big role in extending my recovery time.  Some digestive issues this week and just overall had a tired body.  The soreness went away over the first couple days of the week and I felt ready for something on Sat.  Hillary, the dogs and I hit up the Long Trail for a hike, run out to Griffith Lake.  A nice long, slow run that actually felt pretty good, but was minimal effort.

Summary of Week 29:
M    OFF
T     OFF
W    OFF
Th   OFF
F     OFF
S     12.9 mile trail run/hike on the Long Trail to Griffith Lake, slow, 1700' elevation gain
S     OFF


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     12.9 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     17,009 feet 
Total run time:                     3 hours 10 mins

Week 28 2014 Recap

July 14 - July 20

Workouts leading up to race day for the VT100.

Summary of Week 28:
M    OFF
T     5.0 mile flat trail run on east shore of Lake George while camping
W    OFF
Th   4.8 mile dirt road run, out and back on Birdseye Rd.
F     OFF, work until 5p, then off to the VT100
S     100 miles, VT100
S     OFF, sore, slow stagger


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     109.8 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     15,300 feet 
Total run time:                     18 hours 55 mins

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Vermont 100 Race Report 2014

Vermont 100 - 100 miles 
14,000' of elevation gain 
July 19, 2014
17 hrs 24 mins
8th place overall

The Short
This race was my first attempt at a run over 50 miles.  My goal was to finish under 24 hours, I really wanted to finish under 20 hours and if I had a great day I thought I was capable of finishing under 18 hours.  The weather was perfect, my crew (Hillary, Rock, Annette and my mom) was great, the aid stations were abundant, and my body held up better than expected to finish in about 17 and a half hours.

The Course
The course is about 70% on dirt or jeep roads with the rest on trails.  I would say the majority is really dirt roads.  It is continuously either up or down with very few flat sections as you can see from the profile below, but it is extremely runnable.  Some of the steeper hills on the roads I hiked and there were a couple surprisingly steep hills on the trails albeit they were all relatively short.

Course profile from the VT100 Blog website
Preparation
Gathering my gear together the week before the race
Hmm ... which Salomon's to wear today?
The 3-4 days leading up to the race I spent time formulating my nutrition plan.  I dorked out making spreadsheets of aid stations and mileages along with projected times for all stations based on a range of average paces.  This is important because it allows me to see the amount of time between manned, unmanned, and crew accessible aid stations.  Unmanned stations had water and Gatorade in large jugs.  Manned stations had food and multiple liquids.  None of the food was very portable beyond the station (i.e. no GU or packaged bars, etc.).  Crew accessible stations were the same as the manned stations just with lots of people and my crew with whatever I needed!  I decided that with my projected pace I would be able to run all day with just one 20 oz Amphipod handheld bottle.  At each crew station I would pocket enough Nuun tablets to add one to my bottle at every aid station encountered before the next crew station and top off with water at the manned and unmanned stations.  I also picked up 4 GU Vanilla Bean packs at each crew station and put them in my handheld.  The final thing I carried was about 6 SaltStick pills, just in case!  If it was hotter or sunnier out I would have likely needed two bottles for a couple sections of the race.
PB and raw honey on english muffins and granola bars periodically from my crew and a lot of PB&J squares from the aid stations.  I decided to race in my Salomon Speedcross 3's.  Great on trails and they also surprisingly perform well on the dirt roads too even with the cleat-like pattern.

Race Eve
Hillary and I set up camp on Friday evening at the start/finish area at Silver Hill Farm.  I slept on a foam pad followed by a dog bed followed by a sleeping bag for a pretty plush bed!  I stopped in to register early in the day and weighed in at 149.2 lbs.  I haven't weighed myself in about 5 years and it seemed a tad low, but I was hoping it was a sign that I was fit for the race.  Hillary attended the prerace meeting at 4p while I finished up summer registration for students at Castleton and then I ate two full plates of food at the pre-race dinner.  Ear plugs in and off to sleep around 8:45pm.

And we're off ...
At 2:45a the alarm went off and I felt pretty well rested considering it was an early wakeup and the night before a big race.  Dark and dewy.  I put down a bagel, a couple granola bars, a GU, and a bottle of Nuun in the hour before the race.  At five minutes to go folks started putting down their coffees and making their way over to the start line.  I went a couple rows back so as to not get wrapped up in too fast of a start pace.  We were off and running downhill before going into the woods for a bit.  I just tried to not pay attention to anyone around me and run comfortably.
 I paid a lot of attention to my heart rate for the first half of the race.  If my heart rate elevated close to 150 bpm I would start to slow down on the hills and if it still crept up I would start to power walk at about 152 bpm.  I was also very conscious of not running too hard on the downhills early on.  I knew that my quads would be the first thing to hurt me at the later stages of the race and where I would do the most damage would be if I started pounding downhills with long strides.  For the first 5-7 miles I was still pretty grouped up with people and sat back at about 35-40th place (not that I knew it then, but I knew I was well back).  My plan was to stay more consistent than most folks through the race and not blow it early on.  I was hoping to slowly pass folks throughout the day as I ran my own race.


From 10-25 miles I ran off and on with Amy Rusiecki (the new RD) and a fellow runner of hers Jayson.  They had similar goals of finishing in the 18+ hour range if they had a good day.  They had both run the race before and after talking to them it really made me think about my early energy expenditure and how it would affect my performance later on.  I vowed to stay in a comfortable pace range and pull myself back on the hills if my heart rate increased too much.  At mile 15.4 was the first recorded time check and unknown to me I was in 27th place overall at this point.  At 22.5 miles (still in 27th place) we came to the first crew accessible aid station at Pretty House and it was great to see Hillary and people in general.  I came into this station having run with Harris from Pennsylvania for a little bit and felt really fresh.  Hillary filled me up with GUs and Nuun tabs then I was off.  At all aid stations, especially crew accessible ones, I was very conscious of not spending too much time there.  There are a total of 29 aid stations along the course, so if you even spend just two minutes at each one that adds almost a full hour to your overall time!!  I was pleased to see at the end of the race my Garmin 310XT showed that I had only spent a total of 20 minutes not moving throughout the entire day.  Less than a minute average per aid station.  A bit longer at the crew stations and much shorter at the others.

Another crew station at 30.1 miles at Stage Rd. (24th place) where I felt like I was still just on a Sunday stroll.  No too long after we went on some climbing in the woods and I ran into a strung out group of about 5 people.  I passed most of them while hiking up some steep hills and then teamed up with Ben Pangie for a few miles once it leveled out and ran downhill.  It felt good to catch a big group and move up to 19th overall in just 3 miles, but after leaving Ben folks were a bit more spaced out.  It was motivating to see people in the distance and I would slowly make up time on them.  Over the next 13 miles I would pass another 6 racers one at a time and move into 13th overall.  This included passing Kathleen who was the first place female.  I don't think she walked a hill until after mile 80 in the race!


Into Camp 10 Bear at mile 47.6 (13th overall) is a crew station with the first medical weight-in/check.  I was UP about 3.5 lbs from my starting weight!  The doctor said I was taking in too much electrolyte and asked what my consumption rate was.  Uhhh ... I think I said something like 400 mg/hour, which was probably a bit low.  He said I was retaining too much water and needed to cut my salt intake a bit, since this is no good for my kidney and liver.  He let me continue after a minute or two of instruction.  I thought about my last 20 miles.  I was coming into the manned and unmanned aid with about a quarter of my bottle still filled.  I would add a Nuun tab and top off with water.  Then again the same thing probably for 3-4 consecutive aid station.  My drink was much more salt concentrated than normal!  Dang, Nuun is perfect!  One tab per 20 oz is what I should be taking or else I am over doing it.  I restocked from Hillary, took a refill of just water, and was off.

Beyond 50
I was starting to break into uncharted territory.  I saw a sign that said '50.2 miles, 49.8 to go', well that makes me feel good!  I couldn't think of the race in terms of total time remaining, instead I said to myself, 'I feel way better than I do at the end of a 50 mile race, so my pacing must be close to good for 100 miles!'  I could feel that my pace was starting to slow down a little bit at this point, but I still caught racers as I approached the crew aid at 59.1 miles at Seven Seas (10th place overall).  I saw my mom here for the first time, gave her a hug, assured her that I was surprisingly feeling really good, took on some aid and took off.  I was again using 1 Nuun per 20 ozs.  I think I told Hillary here that my legs were starting to get a little bit tired.  I would pass another racer at the aid station at Margaritaville at mile 62.5.

Mile 65ish ...
Then the course became pretty lonely and I could feel the relentlessness of the dirt roads.  I was wishing at times for some steep uphills, so that I could walk up them.  Then other times I wanted downhills to speed up my overall pace and get to the next aid station.  I moved up one more place to 8th with about 7 miles to go to Camp 10 Bear for the second time which is at mile 70.5. I just kept wishing Camp 10 Bear was around the corner to see my crew and pick up a pacer (Rock!) to run with.  Coming downhill in the distance I could see streams of racers coming down the hill from Camp 10 Bear to the road I was on.  The course makes a 23 mile loop coming back to Camp 10 Bear for a second time.  Spirits were instantly lifted!  Dang these folks are 23 miles behind me and I only have 30 more to go!  Cars lined the entire uphill to the station.  Congrats from the racers and the enormous amount of crew folks that lined the road.  I ran the whole hill as the endorphins pumped.  My whole crew was there!  Rock was ready to run, but first another medical weigh-in.  I handed off my bottle to Hillary to get reloaded as I went to the scale.  149.5 lbs!  Perfect, see ya!
I think I started to hit the wall around mile 70!?

Rock and I were off and I was starting to hike slightly longer sections of uphill at this point.  Still I wouldn't let myself go for more than a couple minutes walking even if I was on a hill.  I would talk to Rock and pick out a landmark to start running again.  Rock was great!  We spent 7 miles mostly talking.  I was rejuvenated, but was starting to have small highs and lows.  It was apparent when I went from talkative to a listener whether I was at a high or low.

At mile 77.4, Spirit of '76, I picked up Hillary for 11.6 miles.  I came off the aid station high and hit my lowest point of the race for much of this section, sorry Hillary!  I just kept moving, didn't talk much, but still would demand of myself to run all flats and not so steep hills, although my overall pace was slowing.  Running zombie man.  Never once did I consider stopping, I had experienced lower lows (i.e. Bryce Canyon 50 at 9,500' post fever at mile 42 during a 1200' climb ...) and knew if I kept moving it would pass.  Unfortunately for Hillary it didn't pass until I hit my next crew aid station high at mile 89.0.  Hillary did a great job dealing with me.  She made me eat some food
even though I was trying to negotiate with her.  I ran with some PB&J sandwich square in my mouth with a mad face on for a couple minutes before swallowing it all down.  I didn't feel like I was sick, I could still put down food, but my stomach wasn't perfect and I could feel pains from time to time.  During this time Kathleen (the top female) passed me on a hill.  It was the first time I had been passed since the start of the race.  Would others be right behind her?  I could tell she was suffering on the hills, but I was definitely slowing down.  I thought I was in the top 10 and I didn't want to blow it.  I was becoming increasingly aware of my emotional/mental state and after picking up Rock for the second time things started to change.


11 miles to go
I looked at my watch.  I figured my last section was approaching 13-15 minute mile pace.  This would put me right near, possibly over 18 hours.  No, I can do better than that!  I told Rock that if I could push and ride this high I could put this race under 18 hours.  My mind needed some kind of external motivator to make my body crack back to reality.  We ran a greater percentage of the hills, we hit some trails and pushed up then strided out the downhills.  My quads ached!!  Downhill hurt, but I told myself it wasn't for too much longer, I could deal.  On some of the uphill trail sections that we ran I could here Rock breathing and not talking as much ... I smiled, I was racing again!

At mile 95.9 I thanked Rock, because I am sure he felt like he didn't do anything to help, but what he and Hillary did for me was incredible.  Just having them there was helping me move forward.  I should also not skip over the work of Annette!  I won't get in to it, but she was the one that pulled the right moves to get herself and Rock to mile 70 just a couple minutes before I arrived and quickly took over Hillary's role at the aid stations while Hillary served as a pacer.  Thank you!  Hillary joined in the fun as it was turning dark. 4 miles to go!  Headlamped up we ran some more dirt roads as I kept my spirits and pace as high as I could muster.  We saw a headlamp ahead of us as we approached the 2 mile mark and we entered the woods for a 1.5 mile climb on the trails before descending to the finish.  As we approached the light, Kathleen called out, 'Who is there?', nervously.  I knew she was wondering if it was the second place female, so I called out 'a 100 mile male".  I could sense her relief as she said 'Oh okay, good job.'  We continued to push, running all of the steep hills that never seemed to end.  We hit the 0.5 miles to go sign and then bam, 'Wait is that it, is that the finish?'.  Hillary said, 'Yeah!'  I was done running, it felt a bit weird to stop.  Man what a great 11 mile high to end on!  We put over 4 minutes on Kathleen in the final two miles.


We walked back to the main tent and I sat in a chair.  I felt great for about 10 minutes, then I was wondering if I was going to throw up or not?  I went outside and laid in the grass for a minute and it passed.  As I walked back into the tent I started to shiver and I spent the next hour and a half wrapped up in blankets with my sweatshirt on laying on a cot.  I was reassured by all of this.  I think I was able to push my body to a new limit during this race and it made me smile.  The end of the race really did in my quads and my body as a whole was ready to shut down once my brain told the rest of me we were done.  I ate very little and Hillary helped me limp to the car then to the tent.  After 28 GUs your stomach feels a little funky.  Well I guess I should never stop too long during one of these races, I go from feeling pretty tired to immobile pretty quickly!







Sunday, July 13, 2014

Week 27 2014 Recap

July 7 - July 13

One week to go!  I am feeling good this week as I lowered my mileage and got a few faster paced runs in this past week.  This next week I will be up at Lake George camping Sunday night until Wednesday.  Then back to home until Friday evening when we head down to check-in and camp out the night before the race.  
The start is at 4am and there will be runner tracking available at http://www.barttiming.com/summer/results14/vt100-splits-14.htm
Hillary will attempt to update the Twitter feed as reception allows from the crew allowable aid stations (http://www.vermont100.com/aid_stations.html)

Summary of Week 27:
M    OFF; mowed lawn, hauled wood for 3 hours
T     OFF
W    7.4 mile trail run around and up Bird Mtn (~1600' gain)
Th   6.4 mile trail run Black Mtn TH to Red Rock Pt Lake George
F     6.4 mile trail run Red Rock Pt Lake George to Black Mtn TH
S     OFF
S     11.0 mile trail/dirt road run with Hillary (~1400' gain)


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     30.9 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     5,173 feet 
Total run time:                     5 hours 33 mins

Sunday, July 6, 2014

Week 26 2014 Recap

June 30 - July 6

I am now tapering for the upcoming VT100, which is less than two weeks away.  I am getting more comfortable with the heat, but I am going to have to really pay attention to hydrating with enormous amounts of water/Nuun for race day.  I am noticing while lifting wood rounds and wheel barrowing them out of the woods I need to stop and take in a quart at least each hour.  Even with that I am probably not taking on enough on the hottest and most humid days.
Overall my body feels really good to go.  Now I have to just hope I have done enough, continue to taper down, and hope I can hold out for 100 miles!

Summary of Week 26:
M    6.0 mile Castleton Rail trail progressive tempo run
T     OFF; haul wood for 3 hours
W    OFF
Th   7.1 mile Herrick Hill climb trail run (1221' gain)
F     12.2 mile dirt road/trail run (1580' gain)
S     OFF
S     10.7 mile trail run, VASA Loop (1692' gain); haul wood 2.5 hours


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     36.0 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     4,608 feet 
Total run time:                    5 hours 41 mins 

Sunday, June 29, 2014

Week 25 2014 Recap

June 23 - June 29

Summary of Week 25:
M    OFF
T     OFF
W    20.2 mile trail run, technical Lake George (3,644' gain)
Th   OFF
F     28.8 mile trail, dirt, pavement run Castleton-Middletown-East Poultney (4,061' gain)
S     OFF
S     4.6 mile trail run in Pittsfield (900' gain)


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     53.6 miles 
Total run elevation gain:     8,165 feet 
Total run time:                    10 hours 40 mins 

Week 24 2014 Recap

June 16 - June 22

Summary of Week 24:
M    7.2 mile hike in Zion, Angels Landing and Emerald Pools
T     OFF
W    OFF
Th   3.4 mile trail run back up Bird Mtn (1,388' gain)
F     7.4 mile trail run around Bird Mountain (1,500' gain)
S     OFF
S     22.1 mile dirt/pavement run in Castleton (2,050' gain)


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     32.9 miles (40.1 miles hiking/running)
Total run elevation gain:     4,938 feet (6,638' total)
Total run time:                    5 hours 52 mins (9 hours 50 min total) 

Week 23 2014 Recap

June 9 - June 15
Hillary and I spent the week in the desert southwest!  Grand Canyon, Buckskin Gulch, Zion, Bryce, Brian's Head, Cedar Break ...
We hiked or backpacked every day of the trip leading up to (and after) the Bryce 50 mile Ultra race that I completed near the end of our trip.  I was pretty sick with a fever for 2 days leading up to the race which added to the effects of altitude for a really tough run.  Oh and the intense sunlight that I had forgotten about since moving away from Colorado.  As you can see I did not properly taper for the race, but instead I was most concerned about having a great trip and keeping my total miles up in preparation for the VT100.  All in all a great trip, but not the best race.  It felt good to get back to the thick, moist air of the east!

Summary of Week 23:
M    6.9 mile backpack up 4,300' in the Grand Canyon
T     12.0 mile hike up and back Buckskin Gulch Slot Canyon Utah (flat)
W    7.0 mile river hike up and back Zion Narrows (flat)
Th   2.6 mile hike in Bryce Canyon (Queens Garden and Bristlecone Loop)
F     3.5 mile hike in Red Canyon Utah
S     50.0 mile Bryce Canyon Ultra Race (~10,000' gain)
S     5.1 mile Taylor Creek hike in northern Zion


Weekly Totals:
Run distance:                     50.0 miles (87.1 miles hiking/running)
Total run elevation gain:     10,000 feet (15,500' total)
Total run time:                    10 hours 31 mins (31 hours 7 min total) 










I just started ultra running in 2013. I have done a couple Ironman triathlons then I did not train much for about 3 years. On July 27, 2013, after a long bike ride with some friends I got the itch and signed up for the Virgil Crest 50 mile ultra. I was able to place second overall and tie the previous course record. My longest week included a 27 mile run and a weekly total of 50 miles. I am curious what I can do with adequate training ...

I attempt to take advantage of each season and cross train as much as possible to prepare for my upcoming 2014 ultra running races. Below you will find excerpts from my training days and races. You can search the blog for individual race reports or other key words on the bottom right-hand side. I work full-time as a professor at Castleton State College, so I utilize weekends for longer workouts and do what I can during the week.

Let me know if you want to go for a run!