It seems when runners talk about the Bruiser race at Bradbury, they all groan at the mention of the O-trail and with good reason as the last 2.4 miles of the bruiser are surely the most difficult. Even when training on the course it is not uncommon to hear them say, we ran the Bruiser -- less the O trail.
Yes this trail is intimidating and can be very confusing because of the crazy switch backs and the rough terrain. Add to this 9 miles of Bradbury trail racing before entering it, then fatigue also plays a factor in ones perception of the difficulty.
The O trail is surely the toughest part of the race for me so I decided to do some O trail repeats to work on balance, core, foot placement and familiarize with the trail. I would have liked to run it four times but my time window was too short so I did three.
This really is a great trail to run and surely keeps one on their toes. I find it is much more enjoyable when running it fresh. My thought was to run the first lap as a warmup, the second at race pace and the third as a cooldown.
This type of terrain has more to do with becoming comfortable and settling in than actual time or heart rate, so I left the watch and monitor in the truck. Of course I am too much of a stickler with stats to just run blind so I did document the time when I hit the trail and when I returned.
It was raining and that became a pleasure as it kept the body heat down and filled the two stream crossings which somehow makes the run more tranquil than dry rock beds. I also tend to get less sweat in the face and eyes.
I started the first loop pretty conservative but before I knew it, I was popping out of the woods onto the main trail and one lap was over. Lap two, I pushed the pace more and worked on foot placement and things went real well. It was on this lap that I got a glimpse of a female runner with a red shirt on.
She appeared for only a split second and I had no way of knowing if she was behind me or ahead of me. That is one of the cool things about the O, there were people in there but we may never cross paths.
Lap three ended up feeling just as strong and fast as lap two, coming out of the trail, I wished I had enough time for one more lap, but I didn't. Had a great kick and then walked but to my truck with a very satisfied feeling. I think the race in a couple weeks will go quite well.
Warm up jog from the parking lot, three loops of the O and then 1/4 back to start
estimated mileage 7.5 and estimated time 1:42:00 This puts my average O trail loops at about 33-34 minutes.
My intent was to turn "oh no, O trail" into "oh Yeah O trail" I think I did that.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
The Cheering Crowd
The deafening sound of the enormous crowd cheering me on is amazing even if it is just my imagination.
I am planning a race pace run this afternoon and it seems to me that if I use a positive approach, there is no way it will be a bad run. You see my plan is to write about the run first and then allow it to unfold properly when I arrive.
The first thing I notice as I drive through the gate at Bradbury, is how full the parking lot is. Usually it is fairly full of bikers, but this is different, these are spectators cars and they are everywhere.
A tall lanky man with a yellow vest is frantically waving an orange flag, he motions for me to stop and it appears he is going to send me back out as the lot is so full. Immediately upon opening the window a smile spreads across his face.
"Hey, I know you" he says with a hint of excitement. "You better get going, the run is about to start."
He ushers me out of my truck and motions to another volunteer to park it for me. What great service! I wonder to myself if all the yearly pass holders get this type of special treatment.
As I head toward the trail, the crowd spreads like a wave of water in front of me creating a wall of people on both side and a walkway to the start. It is a little intimidating to say the least and I find myself wondering if they have mistaken me for someone important.
Surely some celebrity was scheduled to show up here, perhaps training for the Bruiser now that the Bradbury series is so popular.....or maybe the Bradbury Big Bad Ultra. I know I should set the people strait and fess up to being just an everyday runner out for some training, but the electricity of the crowd somehow made me feel special and basking in the attention just seemed right at the moment.
I could hear comments in the crowd saying things like, have a good run, good luck, knock em dead out there......I reach the edge of the woods and wave in all directions as I hit start on my watch and head up the trail. The loud cheering started fading away as I ran deeper into the woods until the silence of the single track finally engulfed me completely.
I had no definite plans other than shoot for a race pace type run that would continue until I felt tired and ready to stop running. The woods were tranquil and it was amazing to notice some leaves had started changing color already and due to some heavy rains lately, there were even some random leaves on the trail.
Images of fall running filtered through my brain as I seemingly floated along with miles just clicking by like a second hand on a watch. I felt rested and calm, only pleasant thoughts and cool images were present and my brain felt like it was laying in a hammock on a warm fall day just swinging slightly in the light breeze.
I was lost in thought for hours or maybe even days when suddenly the single track opened up and I was back where I started. The crowds were gone now and I assumed they had responsibilities and just couldn't hang around for days waiting for me to finally emerge.
It was fine with me though as I really didn't need a cheering crowd to make me feel good after a wonderful relaxing run like this one. I shut down my watch as I slowed to a walk and headed back to the parking lot. It was almost empty and the few people who were there didn't even look up as I walked by. I suspected perhaps they were having their own dream.
This was such a great run........I can't wait to get there.
Monday, August 13, 2012
Running Tired
Saturday morning 5 AM I was up bright eyed and bushy tailed, totally ready for a good 10 mile race pace run at Bradbury (bruiser less O) I had my running clothes and and was about to head out the door.
I like doing Saturday morning early because of my tight schedule and the fact that I am completely fresh before the weekend duties wear me down. Planning a race pace run means I wanted to be very fresh.
I literally was walking out the door when our home phone rang.....it never rings that early and even though anyone wanting me that early in the morning would have called on my cell, I decided to grab the phone before it woke up the house hold.
It ended up being a work crew in Bar Harbor with problems at the site. They tried my cell and couldn't get through. I checked my cell and it was totally dead.....that never happens. Anyway, I had to spearhead the resolution process and could not be away from the phone as there was a chance I may have to head down east.
So, the run was aborted and I went up to the rental house to start phase two of my day a bit early. The plan for the day was filling the block foundation full of cement. This meant carrying 80 lb bags of cement, mixing and shoveling into its proper place.
I spent most of the day on this project and then ended up getting the call at 3:00 to go in. 6 hours later I am back home and just plain beat from the day. The plan was to get up Sunday morning at 5am and try again.
Sunday morning came early and my body felt the affects of yesterdays physical work and the lack of sleep. I suspected there would no race pace running this day.
I figured it would be more of a running tired kind of training run and I was right. The legs felt heavy and slow, the whole body just seemed to be in slow motion. Honestly, I almost quit and headed back but I decided to just practice the forward motion thing as training for the 50K and 50 miler.
It did get progressively better as the miles fell behind me and I was able to finish the 10 mile run in more of an average pace rather than a snails crawl. It was only 10 miles, but it felt more like 20 when I finished.
It wasn't a great run, it wasn't all that much fun but at the same time I was glad I finished it and had the miles behind me .....I left with a somewhat satisfied feeling and it was still early enough for me to get some other things done.
It really sucks when you can hardly schedule in a measly 10 mile run on the weekends. Sleep is a bit over rated so perhaps I should start getting up in the middle of the night to get my runs in......or even better, maybe I can run while I am sleeping.
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Bradbury Mountain Breaker Race Report
In the hours before the start of the Breaker, I found myself quite calm and really not worried about the race at all. Partly because the only real goal I put on myself was to beat my best here which was a 1:47:30 for the 9 miles. Quite frankly, the running shape I am in this year gave me a bit of confidence as I easily beat that time during workout runs on the mountain.
Everything leading up to the breaker was destined to put a negative affect on my race, including the hot humid forecast. If ever I needed a list of excuses for a poor performance, the days leading up to this race easily provided them for me.
As it turns out, I didn't need any excuses .....if only I could put them in a "bad race excuse bank" for later use. Now, I could rationalize and speculate how much better I might have done under perfect circumstances, but let's face it, there never is perfect and there are always things getting in the way.
My biggest worry going into the Breaker race was the volume of fluids I lost during the Beach to Beacon the day before. Even though I ran rather than race, I still sweat immensely and it would be difficult to rehydrate in one day.
My plan for the race was to push the pace a bit on the first lap and as long as I made time goal of at least 48 minutes, I could take it easy on the second if I needed to as I would have almost an hour to complete it and still PR.
In practice, I split my first lap into three segments and timed them. I figured this would work better than using heart rate as a guide to my progress because the humididty and the tiredness from yesterday would surely affect my heart rate.
I figured each split to be at the end of a climb. First one at the beginning of the South trail, second at the top of the summit trail and the third right before the decent on the switchback trail.
Here are my goal splits for the first lap and the actual beside them;
1. 18-19 minutes ........actual 17:30
2. 28-29 minutes ........actual 27:27
3. 43-44 minutes ........actual 41:28
Finish of the first lap 45:46, well under my 48 minute goal even though I power walked half of the Summit trail. I spent about a minute at the aid station to take in fluids, suck down a gel, dump some water over my head and then was off.
The second lap was taxing because of the temps but I actually felt in complete control and had no worries about my finish. I enjoyed passing many runners on the inclines and never felt even a hint of a bonk coming. I did power walk the stone step section of the Summit trail this time around even though I felt I could run it. At the time My glasses were fogged up and I worried more about tripping than anything else.
One thing I like about this race is that you can actually start your finish about a mile early as it is all down hill. Once I hit this section, there was no stopping me, I threw caution out the window and let gravity take over. I had a strong finish, a good kick and a great race.
It's a good thing I ran this race more by feel because the Garmen completely messed up half way through the second lap and the heart rate was all over the place. I suspect both problems were related to the heat and the steady stream of sweat pouring off me.
Stats:
Garmen lost signal at 7.76 miles into the race
pace........av-max (heart rate)
10:40.....145-163
9:09.....153-169
11:09.....150-207 (summit)
10:06.....152-178
12:09.....149-240 (lost 1 minute at aid station)
11:49.....152-192
11:18.....150-200
(lost signal with appr 1.5 miles left)
8th mile .....estimate pretty darn fast
9th mile......estimate whicked fast with hell of a kick
9 miles @ 1:34:34 (10:31 pace)
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Am I An Addict?
I Am An Addict
This is a first for me. I am about to admit, in writing that I have an addiction. Yes that's right, I am an addict. Many people in the last three years told me I had a problem. I didn't listen. I thought they were crazy. There is no way I could be put in the same category as an addict. I say that word and cringe inside. How could somebody call me that! Here is what woke me up.
I thought long and hard about the definition of addict. My vision was simple, a person living on the streets full of mind altering substances. So far from reality that they didn't know where they were, never mind who they were. I could see their dirty clothes and desperate eyes. Their whole existence depended on their next high. When not high on their addition they thought about it until they could accomplish that high again. I decided to form a list to use as a guide line to PROVE I was not an addict.
AN ADDICT:
1 .Uses their high to "feel" good.
2. Tries to hide their love for the high.
3. Comes up with creative ways to obtain their high.
4. Thinks about the high until it comes, then may experience pain and even swear not to do it again, until the next time.
5. Allows the high to take control of their life to the point that their life evolves around it.
6. Will not admit how much they crave the high
7. Will plan ahead and fantasize about the high.
8. Overdoes it to the point that they can't function properly.
9. Finds some comfort surrounding themselves with "like" Addicts.
10. Takes their craving everywhere they go --- there is no vacation from it.
After reading these points, I realized that I was in fact an addict, it was so hard to believe! You see, I am a runner. I run 4-5 days a week, many times 6 or even twice a day. I often get up at 5:00 Am to get my run in. I fantasize about my runs and my races. I plan way in advance for my high. I could run in the afternoon, experience severe pain and limp as I go to bed at night. Get up in the morning all lame and limping to the door. I would start running in serious pain and still continue. At the end of a run I am usually so exhausted that I can't breathe.
When I run races, It is normal to ask myself why I am putting my body through this as I run. But I don't stop I keep striving for that high. I run in the winter, I run in the rain, I run on vacation. I ran a Marathon. In preparation I would run on the weekends for 3 and 4 hrs straight. During the race I had numerous physical problems.
My leg muscles cramped so bad that I could hardly walk. I still continued. At one point I think I was hallucinating, yup, I still kept going. I didn't stop until I got my high. After 26.2 miles, I finally stopped running, then could hardly stand up. The next day my muscles were so bad I struggled to get out of bed, and could not walk down stairs. Two days later, I went for a run. I kept running…. Then I ran a 50K……and now am training to run a 50 miler.
I have running buddies and all we talk about is running. I belong to a track club and run practice on a track. What do we talk about at track? Running! I looked at the 10 items listed and I qualified for all of them…………………. I am surely an addict!!
This is a first for me. I am about to admit, in writing that I have an addiction. Yes that's right, I am an addict. Many people in the last three years told me I had a problem. I didn't listen. I thought they were crazy. There is no way I could be put in the same category as an addict. I say that word and cringe inside. How could somebody call me that! Here is what woke me up.
I thought long and hard about the definition of addict. My vision was simple, a person living on the streets full of mind altering substances. So far from reality that they didn't know where they were, never mind who they were. I could see their dirty clothes and desperate eyes. Their whole existence depended on their next high. When not high on their addition they thought about it until they could accomplish that high again. I decided to form a list to use as a guide line to PROVE I was not an addict.
AN ADDICT:
1 .Uses their high to "feel" good.
2. Tries to hide their love for the high.
3. Comes up with creative ways to obtain their high.
4. Thinks about the high until it comes, then may experience pain and even swear not to do it again, until the next time.
5. Allows the high to take control of their life to the point that their life evolves around it.
6. Will not admit how much they crave the high
7. Will plan ahead and fantasize about the high.
8. Overdoes it to the point that they can't function properly.
9. Finds some comfort surrounding themselves with "like" Addicts.
10. Takes their craving everywhere they go --- there is no vacation from it.
After reading these points, I realized that I was in fact an addict, it was so hard to believe! You see, I am a runner. I run 4-5 days a week, many times 6 or even twice a day. I often get up at 5:00 Am to get my run in. I fantasize about my runs and my races. I plan way in advance for my high. I could run in the afternoon, experience severe pain and limp as I go to bed at night. Get up in the morning all lame and limping to the door. I would start running in serious pain and still continue. At the end of a run I am usually so exhausted that I can't breathe.
When I run races, It is normal to ask myself why I am putting my body through this as I run. But I don't stop I keep striving for that high. I run in the winter, I run in the rain, I run on vacation. I ran a Marathon. In preparation I would run on the weekends for 3 and 4 hrs straight. During the race I had numerous physical problems.
My leg muscles cramped so bad that I could hardly walk. I still continued. At one point I think I was hallucinating, yup, I still kept going. I didn't stop until I got my high. After 26.2 miles, I finally stopped running, then could hardly stand up. The next day my muscles were so bad I struggled to get out of bed, and could not walk down stairs. Two days later, I went for a run. I kept running…. Then I ran a 50K……and now am training to run a 50 miler.
I have running buddies and all we talk about is running. I belong to a track club and run practice on a track. What do we talk about at track? Running! I looked at the 10 items listed and I qualified for all of them…………………. I am surely an addict!!
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Monday, July 30, 2012
Perfect Day At Peaks
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As usual, my plans changed this weekend. I was set to race the Peaks 5 miler and felt with certainty that a PR was not unreachable but at least I felt 37 minutes would be a reasonable time either way.
My new last minute plan was to pace and run with my oldest daughter (who lives on Peaks) as this would be her first ever race and even though she had been running some this summer, had not really trained and not actually run more than 3.5 miles at one time.
We had a great time and she did so well. Not only did she finish strong, but she also ran all the hills ( the largest one on the island she usually walks) She was surprised to see how well they planned this course as they somehow managed to incorporate every hill they could find on the island and actually ended up being a figure eight, which allowed us to pass a bunch of faster and slower runners through the race.
after the finish we enjoyed the free beer and then I ran the 1.5 miles back to her house. It felt strange to cooldown at a faster pace than I raced at the same time it felt good to run at my own comfortable pace.
After returning to her place, we enjoyed more beer then took the ferry back and hit the restaurant at the dock (can't remember the name) we enjoyed more beer along with flat bread pizza. In the end I found that I didn't run hard enough to counteract all the beer calories.......
It was a great day and a great memory.
Sunday.....sat around and didn't even get in a run
Monday, July 23, 2012
Losing Focus
How is it I can lose focus on my training yet have a great training week? My whole plan this week kind of fell apart and I ended up just filling in the gaps. Here is an overview.
Monday: Day off......only a little swimming to loosen up the muscles
Tuesday: Got out of work late, was planning to run the Breaker course. Met up with Val (who planned on running where the bikers were not) I on the other hand had planned the mountain side and was running there no matter what. Problem was I was starting so late and had a schedule to meet.
Ran the first half and then two miles of the second half. Ran the whole 6.5 including the summit trail (though not extremely fast) Felt great about this run even though it was cut short
6.5 miles ( breaker course) 1:21:10 (12:29 p)
Wednesday: Was supposed to be long run but was not...Day off (2.5 mile walk with the wife)
Thursday: Was supposed to be a day off with the wife but she got tied up and I ended up at Bradbury for a nice run with no Garmen or watch of any kind Ran the BL loop plus a bunch of exploratory loops on Tyron and snowmobile trial on return. This was a great run and it felt so good not to worry about mileage or time. Ran into Linda when I was finishing...she looked strong and was already 5 miles into her run.
Appr.....9.5 miles....approx 1:55:00
Friday: Ran 4 road miles with the wife ( she is training for BtoB) I called it easy miles for me but it was race pace for her. Then cooldown swimming laps.
4 miles 48:21 (12:30 P)
Friday night ......Red sox game....they lost but it was still fun
Saturday: trail run at Winchester with my son. This was a great run even though it was a bit hot out. The terrain is very similar to a mix of Brad mountain and Brad east
6.5 miles 1:02:12 (9:35p)
Sunday: 5 mile road loop with the wife ....nice early morning run
58:02 (12:00 P) Then a 2 mile cooldown walk and laps in the pool.
Total miles 31.3
Monday: Day off......only a little swimming to loosen up the muscles
Tuesday: Got out of work late, was planning to run the Breaker course. Met up with Val (who planned on running where the bikers were not) I on the other hand had planned the mountain side and was running there no matter what. Problem was I was starting so late and had a schedule to meet.
Ran the first half and then two miles of the second half. Ran the whole 6.5 including the summit trail (though not extremely fast) Felt great about this run even though it was cut short
6.5 miles ( breaker course) 1:21:10 (12:29 p)
Wednesday: Was supposed to be long run but was not...Day off (2.5 mile walk with the wife)
Thursday: Was supposed to be a day off with the wife but she got tied up and I ended up at Bradbury for a nice run with no Garmen or watch of any kind Ran the BL loop plus a bunch of exploratory loops on Tyron and snowmobile trial on return. This was a great run and it felt so good not to worry about mileage or time. Ran into Linda when I was finishing...she looked strong and was already 5 miles into her run.
Appr.....9.5 miles....approx 1:55:00
Friday: Ran 4 road miles with the wife ( she is training for BtoB) I called it easy miles for me but it was race pace for her. Then cooldown swimming laps.
4 miles 48:21 (12:30 P)
Friday night ......Red sox game....they lost but it was still fun
Saturday: trail run at Winchester with my son. This was a great run even though it was a bit hot out. The terrain is very similar to a mix of Brad mountain and Brad east
6.5 miles 1:02:12 (9:35p)
Sunday: 5 mile road loop with the wife ....nice early morning run
58:02 (12:00 P) Then a 2 mile cooldown walk and laps in the pool.
Total miles 31.3
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Scuffle Race Report
There have been five total Scuffle races and I have somehow managed to be one of the very few to run all five ( I think only 3 or 4 completed all 5). The weather ranged from pouring rain to the most current 80 degrees ......my two best times were in the two worse and opposite conditions. I have to say I much more prefer the pouring rain for this type of race and terrain.
I like it when I have a good race report and this one definitely went quite well, not only did I PR by a substantial amount, but I actually ran a smidgen conservative in the middle miles because of the weather. Who knows what I might have done on a misty or fall like day.
Another surprise was that the deer flies seemed to have taken a day off as I don't remember being bothered by them. When I ran earlier in the week, I couldn't run fast enough to keep them off me.
Could I have run that much faster?? or perhaps other peoples sweat was more attrctive than mine?
I may be a bit bias, but I would sign up for any race sight unseen that was put on by Ian and Ryan. Two guys that really care and have an attitude that spills over to the volunteers and the racers. When most race directors speak of bandits in a race, they seem more concerned about the financial side of the problem. These two guys are more worried about how it affects the racers, the results and the commitment they make to the park.
I decided to start fairly close to the front to try and not get too bottled up in the first mile. of course this means running a little faster than I should in the first half mile so I don't cause a slow down for the runners behind me. Even so, I had a lot of people passing for at least a half mile. At about 3/4 mile I slowed a bit and settled into what seemed like a good pace for me and felt it was about right because not many runners were passing me at this point.
As I literally bound up the first rooty hill and turned up the snowmobile trail (passing at least three runners), I knew it was going to be a pretty good day. The long washed out snowmobile trail hill was slightly taxing and I was glad to turn onto the single track for easier running.
Even though my mile pace was slower on the single track, I enjoy that style or running much more.
I found myself picking off runners one by one, though I got picked off by a few runners too, two of which I am positive I picked back off.
Once I hit the end of the park and turned left for the 2.5 mile home stretch, I was only passed by one runner and I ended up out kicking this runner by 9 seconds......so felt pretty good about the last 2 miles.
When running a practice session last Tuesday, I pushed a solid race pace and was surprised by the easy feeling on the hills. This had me stoked for the race and felt the hills would surely be my friend today. Contrary to my belief, the long hill in mile four for some reason seemed extra long and a bit tiring. I suspect this was my slowest mile.
After feeling the effects of mile four, I hoped I recouped enough on the long down hill of mile five to master the last hill in mile six which usually has most runners complaining. I don't know if it was the conditioning/ training or the fact that I knew the end and a PR was close, but the last hill was really not an issue, at the top I started my speedup and eventual kick to victory......and it was sweet.
For some reason, this race and this distance seem perfect for me because reguardless of my finishing time, I loved all five Scuffles. Looking at my finishing times, I think I have reversed the trend. I did however miss racing through the mud.
2008.......57:17
2009.....100:29
2010.....102:10
2011.....103:21
2012.......55:11
I like it when I have a good race report and this one definitely went quite well, not only did I PR by a substantial amount, but I actually ran a smidgen conservative in the middle miles because of the weather. Who knows what I might have done on a misty or fall like day.
Another surprise was that the deer flies seemed to have taken a day off as I don't remember being bothered by them. When I ran earlier in the week, I couldn't run fast enough to keep them off me.
Could I have run that much faster?? or perhaps other peoples sweat was more attrctive than mine?
I may be a bit bias, but I would sign up for any race sight unseen that was put on by Ian and Ryan. Two guys that really care and have an attitude that spills over to the volunteers and the racers. When most race directors speak of bandits in a race, they seem more concerned about the financial side of the problem. These two guys are more worried about how it affects the racers, the results and the commitment they make to the park.
I decided to start fairly close to the front to try and not get too bottled up in the first mile. of course this means running a little faster than I should in the first half mile so I don't cause a slow down for the runners behind me. Even so, I had a lot of people passing for at least a half mile. At about 3/4 mile I slowed a bit and settled into what seemed like a good pace for me and felt it was about right because not many runners were passing me at this point.
As I literally bound up the first rooty hill and turned up the snowmobile trail (passing at least three runners), I knew it was going to be a pretty good day. The long washed out snowmobile trail hill was slightly taxing and I was glad to turn onto the single track for easier running.
Even though my mile pace was slower on the single track, I enjoy that style or running much more.
I found myself picking off runners one by one, though I got picked off by a few runners too, two of which I am positive I picked back off.
Once I hit the end of the park and turned left for the 2.5 mile home stretch, I was only passed by one runner and I ended up out kicking this runner by 9 seconds......so felt pretty good about the last 2 miles.
When running a practice session last Tuesday, I pushed a solid race pace and was surprised by the easy feeling on the hills. This had me stoked for the race and felt the hills would surely be my friend today. Contrary to my belief, the long hill in mile four for some reason seemed extra long and a bit tiring. I suspect this was my slowest mile.
After feeling the effects of mile four, I hoped I recouped enough on the long down hill of mile five to master the last hill in mile six which usually has most runners complaining. I don't know if it was the conditioning/ training or the fact that I knew the end and a PR was close, but the last hill was really not an issue, at the top I started my speedup and eventual kick to victory......and it was sweet.
For some reason, this race and this distance seem perfect for me because reguardless of my finishing time, I loved all five Scuffles. Looking at my finishing times, I think I have reversed the trend. I did however miss racing through the mud.
2008.......57:17
2009.....100:29
2010.....102:10
2011.....103:21
2012.......55:11
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
L L Bean 10K Race
When I first signed up for this race, my intent was to get into super fantastic shape and PR this course. A PR here would not be anywhere close to my 10K PR at B to B in 2003 (as it was a full 4 minutes slower than B to B) but for some reason, this course is difficult for me. I don't know if it is the terrain or just the fact that it is usually early in my training for the year.
As race day crept closer, I realized I was probably not in the shape I wanted to be in as far as speed work goes so a PR would most likely not be reachable. I did a couple race pace type runs in the preceding weeks and felt I could at least beat 50 minutes and possible get down to 48:30 or so if things went extremely well. Beating my PR of 48:08 seemed more like a foolish dream with only a week to go before the race.
The thing I did have going for me was that I have been running the trails pretty heavy and I suspected my strong point would be the hills. This would work well because I think it is the hills on this course that drain a lot of the runners.
This course has a full mile of downhill and flat running in the beginning and this tends to suck people up into a much too fast pace for their training. Once they hit the hill in mile two, reality sets in. It kind of reminds me of the start at Mnt Washington where you run a nice downhill for about a quarter of a mile, passing spectators and feeling real good ........but it doesn't last long as the incline suddenly slaps you across the face and life changes as you know it.
This didn't happen to me as I embraced and actually attacked the hill. By the time I finished mile three, I had run one of my fastest miles in a long time. I felt strong and was sure the hill in mile five was going to be no problem.
My worst mile of the race was four and I am not sure what happened. It is a slow consistent incline that leads up to the dreaded hill in mile five, but I felt fine and was certain I was maintaining pace or at least it felt like I was. Instead I slowed down. I should have paid more attention here but I guess because I felt ok and the hill was coming, I didn't even keep track of my pace.
I didn't attack the mile five hill but I did push myself to work it in good shape. I ran it 3 seconds faster than mile four. Mile six was mine to conquer as I had energy and drive. It was my best mile as I passed so many runners, I felt strong and dropped a full minute off miles four and five .......it feels so good to pass runners late in a race.
The last .2 miles were awesome though I was pretty spent as I tried with all my effort to PR, I knew I was close and the last .2 would make or break it. I gave it all I had and crossed the finish line with my watch reading 48:12 .......a little disappointing to be so close to my 48:08 PR but at the same time exciting to be that close. I kept thinking that I had many chances to make up that 4 seconds especially in mile four.
I went home feeling relatively happy with my race as I had merely hoped for sub 50 minutes and ended up running a very strong race. I was a bit surprised when I checked out the results later to See my time at 47:59 ......I had forgotten about chip timing.
For all intents and purposes, I am calling this race a PR as it is official time but my race in 2006 was not chip timing and it is any ones guess as to how close I was to the start line that day. Today I was 13 seconds back and I was positioned about a quarter of the way from the start line. I figure the fact that I am 6 years older surely has to trump the 13 seconds.....doesn't it?
Anyway, regardless of the results, I had a great race, I felt strong and in complete control.
Stats:
327 th place (out of 1600)
48:13 gun time 47:59 chip time (7:44 pace)
15 out of 59 in my age group
Splits:
7:24
7:33 (hill)
7:19
8:36
8:33(hill)
7:31
6:12
As race day crept closer, I realized I was probably not in the shape I wanted to be in as far as speed work goes so a PR would most likely not be reachable. I did a couple race pace type runs in the preceding weeks and felt I could at least beat 50 minutes and possible get down to 48:30 or so if things went extremely well. Beating my PR of 48:08 seemed more like a foolish dream with only a week to go before the race.
The thing I did have going for me was that I have been running the trails pretty heavy and I suspected my strong point would be the hills. This would work well because I think it is the hills on this course that drain a lot of the runners.
This course has a full mile of downhill and flat running in the beginning and this tends to suck people up into a much too fast pace for their training. Once they hit the hill in mile two, reality sets in. It kind of reminds me of the start at Mnt Washington where you run a nice downhill for about a quarter of a mile, passing spectators and feeling real good ........but it doesn't last long as the incline suddenly slaps you across the face and life changes as you know it.
This didn't happen to me as I embraced and actually attacked the hill. By the time I finished mile three, I had run one of my fastest miles in a long time. I felt strong and was sure the hill in mile five was going to be no problem.
My worst mile of the race was four and I am not sure what happened. It is a slow consistent incline that leads up to the dreaded hill in mile five, but I felt fine and was certain I was maintaining pace or at least it felt like I was. Instead I slowed down. I should have paid more attention here but I guess because I felt ok and the hill was coming, I didn't even keep track of my pace.
I didn't attack the mile five hill but I did push myself to work it in good shape. I ran it 3 seconds faster than mile four. Mile six was mine to conquer as I had energy and drive. It was my best mile as I passed so many runners, I felt strong and dropped a full minute off miles four and five .......it feels so good to pass runners late in a race.
The last .2 miles were awesome though I was pretty spent as I tried with all my effort to PR, I knew I was close and the last .2 would make or break it. I gave it all I had and crossed the finish line with my watch reading 48:12 .......a little disappointing to be so close to my 48:08 PR but at the same time exciting to be that close. I kept thinking that I had many chances to make up that 4 seconds especially in mile four.
I went home feeling relatively happy with my race as I had merely hoped for sub 50 minutes and ended up running a very strong race. I was a bit surprised when I checked out the results later to See my time at 47:59 ......I had forgotten about chip timing.
For all intents and purposes, I am calling this race a PR as it is official time but my race in 2006 was not chip timing and it is any ones guess as to how close I was to the start line that day. Today I was 13 seconds back and I was positioned about a quarter of the way from the start line. I figure the fact that I am 6 years older surely has to trump the 13 seconds.....doesn't it?
Anyway, regardless of the results, I had a great race, I felt strong and in complete control.
Stats:
327 th place (out of 1600)
48:13 gun time 47:59 chip time (7:44 pace)
15 out of 59 in my age group
Splits:
7:24
7:33 (hill)
7:19
8:36
8:33(hill)
7:31
6:12
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