Posting my diet

I'm going to try to daily post what I eat so I can police myself. Time for me to lose a few pounds. I'm not going to count calories.

Yesterday June 27th
pork tenderloin and egg biscuit
mcdonalds club sandwich
10 pizza flavored combos
1 piece of long john fish
1 piece of long john chicken
Short intense weight workout
2 pickup trucks of wood

Today June 28th
two packs of oatmeal with a 1/2 cup of raisins
mcdonalds small fry
mcdonalds grilled chicken club (has cheese and bacon on it)
1 and 1/4 large cup of sweet tea

played tennis for nearly 2 hours.

10 days till Terrapin Mountain

I've only had one race on my mind for the last 4 months. The Terrapin Mountain 50k. This is the race that showed me what it was like to run a long distance race in the mountains. I thought I would never finish but I managed to pull it out at the end. There was a point at about 25 miles that I thought I couldn't run another step but after some food and some walking, I took off again.
This time I'm going to attack some instead of conserving throughout the race. I'm not afraid of the course or the distance. I will respect the mountains as you always must respect any distance you run, even 1 mile.

I was looking at last year's race times and it takes about an hour from the start to the top of the first climb. Most of this time will be spent climbing. I hope to run a little more of that this year than last. After that it will be a game of survival. Up and down the other mountains in the area several times. Since Jan 1, I've run 315 miles and many of those miles were up and down hills. I feel very ready.

I am really looking forward to seeing my dad complete the half. It will be hard for him but he will get through it just fine I believe.

Life after 50, miles that is...

Well, since the 50 miler several things have happened. I did not want to run whatsoever after the race and I think I ate all I wanted for the next week. Then two weeks later I did something dumb. I tried to run the Roanoke Half Marathon at an all out pace. Roughly 7:30 per mile. I was pacing my friend Lee so he could get in NYC Marathon. It worked well for me till about mile 7 and then the bottom dropped out. It was hard to jog and even hard to walk. I was wearing my shirt from the 50 miler and some folks were looking at me like what's this guy's deal? He's wearing a 50 miler shirt and he's walking at mile 10 of this race? Anyway it was another two weeks at least before I thought about running. Lee finished with a good qualifying time. All together I didn't run but about 10 times between early November and Christmas I think. Of course deer season became the priority in November and December.

Then after Christmas, I started to pick up running again. I was ready to get back at it. After all that time off, I feel really strong. In every run I do, I feel good and strong. I'm still not any faster. I lost weight up until Christmas and then when I started running, I started gaining weight back. (big sigh). I'm still where I was but that is frustrating. All the snow and cold in January has put a damper on my training but I am hoping it will lead to a slow start that builds into something good. I'm already signed up for the Terrapin Mountain 50k on March 27th. I've run one 20 miler and several 10 and under runs. I need to get back into the middle distances of 10-15 miles. I'm also looking forward to the Great Greenbrier River Race in late April. I hope to do it with my family.

I finished last year with about 1300 miles running, almost 1000 biking, and almost 10 swimming. As far as Ultras go, I hope to do Terrapin 50k in March. I will try to do one in the summer, either a 40 miler or 50 miler and then do Mountain Massochist again in November. After Massochist last year it wasn't if I was going to do it again but how many times. As always, my favorite thing though would be to get my kids involved in running somehow. I try to involve them but I have to be patient.

The 50+ Mile Mountain Masochist Trail Run

I apologize for this report being so long but hey, it was a 50+ mile race. There were good moments and bad and to get the full effect, you have to read it all.

To start my MMTR weekend, I traveled to the race with my friend Kenny and his wife Manon. We arrived at the Kirkley hotel in Lynchburg Va and was treated to a very nice pasta dinner. After the dinner the usual pre race talk was given with some acknowledgement given to some of the favorites for the race. The Iron Horse award was explained as well. This is an award given to the male and female that can bench a certain amount of weight the most number of times right after they finish the race.

Dinner ended fairly late and we were off to the room. I'm guessing we got to sleep around 10-11pm. I wore my ipod so I could listen to a podcast about ultra running so I could go to sleep. I went to sleep quickly and slept well until time to get up, 3:15am. I was up quickly, showered, and in my clothes. We were to leave at 4am. I ate two Clif Shot bars which are like a big oatmeal raisin cookie. After about a 45 minute car ride out in the country to the James River Visitor Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway, we were there. It was cold and dark! I'm guessing around 30F. I had on extra clothes to keep me warm but mainly I sat in the warm car while we waited for the 5:30am start. There were some huge spotlights running off of generators set up to sort of light up the area. Very soon it was time to get started.

The MMTR proved to me that running is about 70% mental and 30% physical. I ran almost 400 miles over the past 10 weeks with nearly 90% of it involving climbs and descents. I ran two runs over 30 miles that went fairly well. I felt I was very much ready. What I was not ready for was the pace of the MMTR. I started the race running along with Kenny. I had decided to run with him and take it easy at the start. I had been told by at least two MMTR veterans to take it easy in the beginning.

It was going to be a beautiful day. There we were about 266 runners, running on the Blue Ridge Parkway at 5:30am in the dark and cold. This road was very flat, I knew it would be the last flat spot I'd see for the day except for the finish line. I was just cruising along with Kenny and in a few miles almost all the runners except for a few were out of sight. I'm sure I was in the last 5 runners. I was not wearing a watch and I was saving the batteries in the GPS for later in the race. My overall pace to Cashaw Creek was 13:20 (261/266). That was pretty darn slow for 5.7 miles on a fairly flat road. I actually think it was about 7 miles. I really thought I was going faster.

I then hit the trail and started into the mountains. The trail was nice here and I kept running even up the hills. The running seemed easy. I could see runners in front of me and I may have passed a few. I was listening to my J Vernon McGee (a preacher) as he went over the book of James Chapter 2-4. I went quickly through the Peavine Mountain Aid Station 3 (AS 3) and began the steeper climb on up the mountain. I was still running well with no problems. The running was easy all the way to Aid Station 4 (11 miles). My overall pace was 13:34 (254/265). Not very good but I was still running very easily. Oh and if you notice as we go through this that the number of overall runners I'm quoting is changing that's because runners were being cut and dropping out all along the way.

At AS 4, this is where my race changed for the worse. This was the first aid station where crew could meet us. Kenny's wife Manon was there with a smiling face and said, "Where's my husband?" I said jokingly "Oh behind me somewhere." She then said "You've got to get a move on! You're only ten minutes from cutoff!" I said "What!? What time is it?" "8:05" she said. I said "No way!" She said "Yeah!" I didn't want to believe it. I grabbed a few snacks from my bag, filled my bottle with some water which just diluted the gatorade I had left in there. I took off up the trail.

I started running faster than before. I was starting to panic a little. "Only 10 minutes to cutoff" I kept thinking, "how am I going to overcome that in the next 40 miles of mountainous terrain?" I started asking other runners as I passed them, "Are we ok? Are we going to finish?" Some had not run the race before and some said, "Yeah we're ok, we just have to keep this pace up and not quit you will gain some time along the way as the cutoffs get easier." I started to calm down a little. At AS 5 (14.9 miles), I was 15 min ahead of cutoff and had dropped my overall pace to 13:13. I said Hello to Manon and grabbed a few things. This section includes some good runable trail and I was going along very well.

Then just before mile 17 the course threw a long steep uphill at us up a nice gravel road. This was a challenge to run on but I ran slowly up most of it. I was still doing ok but I was starting to feel that there were chinks in my armor. My stomach was not feeling the best. I felt kind of sloshy and like my stomach just wasn't "working" for me. It seemed it was working against me. I hit AS 6 (17 miles) and was back to 10 minutes from cutoff. I had really been looking forward to this spot because it marked the beginning of a long downhill that when finished would put me only about 5 miles from my family waiting for me at AS 10 (Mile 27). This is where my body decided to start giving me trouble.

I started down the long hill and should have been running fast and strong. I started cramping in both legs and my stomach felt like a blob of concrete. In all my training I never felt like this. I think now that it was my nerves. Remember the 70% mental statement I made earlier. I was so overwhelmed that I was so near cutoff. So far the course really had not been that hard. I think it was just the strain of the time and what I thought was coming in the last part of the course. I didn't see how I could make it.

About a mile or two before AS 8, I was running along the Lynchburg Reservoir and the running should have been easy but I felt really bad. I was altering my stride so I wouldn't cramp and my stomach was like mud. It's hard to describe how my stomach felt. It pretty much stayed that way all day. I didn't want to throw up but it just felt like anything I put in my stomach just sat there and did nothing. I would get energy from my stomach in small waves as I would later on find out.

I limped into AS 8 (22 Miles) and Manon gave me the news that Kenny wasn't doing well. I was bewildered. Here I was about 22 miles into the 50 mile race of my dreams and I felt like it was over. I was still only about 10 minutes or less ahead of cutoff and I was about to start a steep uphill climb. As I left that AS I felt woozy and almost and I mean almost turned around and went back to the AS for a minute to see if I would feel better. I decided though to push on. If I felt worse I could always just limp back downhill to this AS and drop out. I started out up a steep hill I had to make it to my family.

This was the beginning of the really big climb of the race. My family was less then 5 miles away. I started feeling slightly better as I climbed. It seemed for some reason that throughout the race walking the climbs would sometimes make me feel better and sometimes make me feel worse. I haven't said much about eating but I was eating a little bit here and there. Sometimes I would eat AS food sometimes some of my own GU and Clif Shot Bloks. I preferred my own food. The other food seemed to cause my stomach to feel poorly. As I walked up the steep, steep road, my nemesis appeared. The sun came out in full force. The temperature had been below about 55 to this point but now it was starting to climb and I was out in the sun. I got up to the flat portion just before AS 10 and even though I knew my family was close I was suffering. The road was flat and I should have been running but I was hot, queasy, and cramping.

Mom, Dad, and Erin at AS 10

Em and Madison at AS 10

Then I saw something that I didn't want to see. It was Kenny out in front of me standing in the road. He had been cut at AS 6 and had been brought to AS 10. He was standing there saying "You've got to get a move on buddy you're almost at cutoff!" I said "I know but I'm suffering from everything" I said. Cramps, bad stomach, and heat, I had it all. He told me my family was to the right at AS 10. I came into the AS and felt terrible. Here's the video of me arriving at AS 10.

I had so looked forward to this moment of meeting my family at this point. Here I was, I felt terrible and I was 10 minutes from cutoff. My family included my wife, sister-in-law, daughters, Mom and Dad. I had wanted to greet them all and say a few things to them but all I could do was moan and say what I wanted and what I didn't want. I wanted my sunglasses and the two-way radio and something to eat. I couldn't figure out what to try to eat though. I had told them I wanted real food. I didn't want anything my wife had made for me. She had blueberry bread, brownies, and chicken noodle soup. I wanted to eat it but I just felt like I couldn't. They finally got me to take a breakfast wrap from Burger King.

I was sort of out of it so I said "Dad, just take me to the start of the trail I can't even see where it starts for the parked cars". I was almost disoriented and delirious. Note I said almost. My dad walked me to the start of the trail and I started out up the steep Buck Mountain Road. I walked at a decent pace. I didn't want to let them down. If nothing else I'd make it to the next AS and get cut off. "At least I tried I thought." I started taking small nibbles of the BK wrap and kept walking all the while the road was too steep to run for the most part. Over the next mile or so, I ate most of the wrap and threw the last bit away. I may have eaten a GU or something else as well.

This is where my first uplifting moment of the race occurred. There was an older gentlemen obviously struggling up the trail in front of me, walking slower than me, which is really slow. As I passed him he said "We're out, you know", I said "What?". He said "We'll never make the next cutoff." I didn't want to hear it. I said "I don't know about that." He said "Yeah I left the last AS right at cutoff and I haven't been able to run at all." That's when I reached into my pocket and pulled out a piece of paper with the cutoff times for the Aid Stations. I looked up the cutoff time for Buck Mountain. It was less than 3 miles to the Buck Mountain AS and I knew we'd already covered about half of that. I looked at the paper. They had given us a whole hour to make that climb! We were doing fine! I said to the guy "We are still in this race, don't give up!”

All of the sudden I just up and started running up the steep road. It started to ease up a little and I kept running. Soon I heard music blaring from the AS on the ridgeline. I ran some more. I hit the AS and the guy said we had 16 minutes before cutoff! I couldn't believe it. I was back in this thing. My back was still to the wall but there was still a chance. I had to keep going. I looked down the trail and knew it was downhill all the way to the next AS. I took off at my fastest pace yet. I hollered over the radio to my family "I'm 16 minutes ahead of cutoff! Woooo hooooo!" Here I am at AS 12. I look slightly better.

I came rolling into AS 12 (229/244) and there was my family ready with my stuff (32.1 miles). At this point I was sassy! My wife asked, "Do you need anything else?" I said "Yeah I need you to get back in that car and get up the road cause I'm going to beat you to the next AS!" Alas, I was not. It was straight uphill, this was one of the steepest sections of the race and it did not let up for at least a mile or more. My Dad was in the car way ahead of me and he radioed back that the hill went up for a long ways. I didn't care. By this time, there was no hill too big. I walked this whole section until I got to the top where my family was parked. My girls had made posters for me that talked about "The Climb" and saying rocket man can do it. My triathlon wet suit has a rocket man on it so I got that nick name.

I decided to change shoes. I'm not sure if this was a good move or not. I lost valuable time but my feet felt better. I cramped up my right side all the way from my foot to my armpit when I tried to take my sock off at the car. After putting weight on that side, the cramp went away. You have to realize that at this point in the race my body was in such a state that any abnormal move resulted in pain. The act of walking was barely painful and running was mildly painful but any other movements were unbearable.

I got the socks and shoes on and they felt good but I lost time. I hit the next AS known as the beginning of "The Loop" (33.6) with about 9 min to spare. The AS worker said "You've only got about 9 min to cutoff" and I said "I've been hearing it all day" as I ran onto the 'loop' trail. The Loop is sort of an infamous part of this race. It’s a 5-mile rocky mountainous loop around one of the high peaks of the area. This trail was very nice at first and you could really run fast but I ran as best I could. Then the trail began to get rocky and turn up the hill. I had been munching on another one of those BK breakfast wraps and my energy was waning. This was a long tough climb. It was rocky and tricky, jumping from rock to rock. This was another low point in my race. I was near the highest point in the race elevation wise but mentally I was at a low. I just didn't see how I would pick through those rocks and get back to the AS in time. I thought once again the race was over for me.

My GPS had not worked much in the last 10 miles but it started working now. I told it to find the end of the loop and it did. It said I had less than a mile to go. I had less than 10 minutes to get there. I went by the AS and they said "You're 5 minutes from cutoff." I just went on. I told my family on the radio we'd have to be quick as I let them have my Camel Bak water pack and took my water bottle back. My dad was there to meet me with the bottle and take my pack. Audrey had some food ready and I was gone. I suppose that the breakfast wrap I just ate was starting to kick in and for some reason I was running well but I didn't feel all that great.

Then somewhere in this section leading up to the AS at 41.5 miles, I started to feel better and was passing a few other runners. One guy was struggling and asked if I had any GU. I had plenty so I told him to keep up with me and I'd give him one. I gave him one and he started dropping back. I kept up the running and was starting to panic a little about not making it to the next AS in time. The dirt road went downhill for a ways and then turned up. I couldn't get my family on the radio and I knew I only had a few tenths of a mile to go. Finally they answered and they said they just got there. Then I saw Kenny up ahead.

This was my moment of truth in the race. Kenny said "I don't know if they're going to let you through this AS, you're 3 minutes behind." I just kind of put my head down and ran a little harder up the hill. I actually was feeling really good all of a sudden. Ironically, it may have been the thought that it was over that relaxed me. There must be something to being relaxed while running. I got to the aid station and I went to Audrey as if nothing was happening. I had decided I was just going to go on and not let them pull me if I could, not even give them the chance. The AS worker came over and said, "You're past cutoff." He said "You can go on but they are really strict at the next AS." So I kind of gave this really disappointed look to everyone. That's when something happened that I can't explain. It was a moment of magic for me in the race. The AS worker said something like "Yea it's 1.5 miles to the next AS and it's all uphill and the cutoff there is about 15 minutes from now."

What went through my head next was incredible. I thought, I can do that! I could see the road I had to go up and it was steep and rough. I can do it I thought or I'll get cut trying. Kenny read my mind and said "Get rid of anything you don't need! Empty your pockets!" I threw off my radio, my ipod, most things in my pockets and I turned and sprinted like I was in a 100 yd dash to the road and started up it. I was running with such purpose it was incredible, it was steep and rocky but it didn't matter to me.

Within just a few minutes I passed one runner and he said "Wow Go get ‘em man". It was sort of like there was nothing to lose now, the pressure was off. I think I passed one or two more runners in the next few minutes and then I saw it. I saw the table of the AS (43 miles) on the right. I didn't want to look at the guy as I went by but he said out loud "Number 47, You're good". By the way, I was number 47. As I kept running into the woods I could not believe it, I had made it! I was still in this thing. I would later figure out this section had an average grade of almost 9%. Note that Sandstone Mountain on I-64 is about a 7% grade.

I hit the GPS for the point I had dubbed the "last mountain" I had to climb. It said I had less than a mile to go to that. I couldn't believe that either. I knew that once I got there it was mostly downhill to the finish. I also started to notice that as I was occasionally passing a runner here and there, I never saw them again. I was definitely at the spot where the cutting was happening. I worked my way up the steep trail that wound around and got to the top and looked out. I could see the valley below where I was headed. I headed out the ridge that lead down that way. A little later on, there was one more notable mountain I had forgot about known as Elk Pond Mountain and it discouraged me a little bit to be climbing again. I said to a few guys that were with me,” Where did this come from.?"

I finally made it up that mountain and from there on it was level to downhill running. I knew I could do it I just couldn't slow down. Slowing down at this point would put me past the cutoff at the final AS before the finish and that would be heartbreaking. I heard one of the runners say we had to be there at 4:45pm. Right now it was about 4:20pm and I heard him say, "We're going to be close." Well I wasn't going to let that happen so I passed them and went on. After an eternity, I saw the last AS (221/225) at 4:40pm. The guy there was very encouraging and said "You can make it in time to the finish if you just keep up a good pace and it's all downhill. It's 3.9 miles," he said. Well to be honest it was a lot of flat logging road that zigzagged down the mountain so it wasn't true downhill. I ran the first mile at an 11:30/mile pace. The second at an 11:00/mile pace.

Finally after what seemed like an eternity again, the road went on a dive downhill. It was so hard to hold back and not keep falling forward. Every step hurt as I bounded down the hill. I ran this mile at about a 10:00/mile pace. If you're keeping track that's about 32 minutes gone from the 50-minute cushion I had to get to the finish. Soon I saw what I was looking for, not the finish line but the line on the road, the magical line on the road that I knew would be there. The line that said 1 mile to go! I ran a little more and saw my Dad sitting in his car on the hard top road. As I ran by he said "about a mile or so to go and you got 15 minutes." I said, "no it's less than a mile!" This is when I knew, sigh, I knew I had done it. I knew unless there was some huge time difference between the race clock and my GPS I had it in the bag. It was level to downhill pavement running.

Soon I saw Kenny and Manon. They had come out to meet me and started running with me. They had stuck with me through the whole race. This is when the feeling really started to set in. I was going to make it. It was close. This huge, huge smile came over my face. It was an uncontrollable smile.

I ran past Kenny and Manon, my Dad started running with me and he said "I thought I'd run a little bit with you". I laughed and sped up until he stopped running with me. I was now at the finish line. I crossed; shook Clark Zealand's hand (race director) and this huge wave of relaxation followed by intense pain came over me. I was excruciatingly exhausted. I wobbled around and tried to keep walking. I couldn't hold a straight line. My official time was 11:52:50. A pace of 14:15/mile if you say it is a 50-mile race. It's actually a little longer so my pace was a little faster than that. I was 221st out of 226 official finishers. There were roughly 270 starters.

My family brought me clothes, soup, food, and a chair. I drank 2 cans of soup in less than 5 minutes. I was starving. I sat down but then when it was time to get up I was woozy. I had my Dad hold onto me while I stood there. I felt really rough. My leg muscles were a burning cramping mess. As I ate and drank I started to get a little better but I really couldn't respond to anyone real coherently. After about almost an hour of eating and drinking, by now I was in the car heading home, I started to feel better. It would take 4 days to get over the soreness. This was a forced smile.

I feel as though I trained very well for the race. Next time however, I will train at a slightly faster pace. The most important thing I need to do next though is start the race faster! Not a lot faster but faster. I will attempt to run the first half of the race faster. The first half is not all that bad and I can recover on the long steep walks in the second half of the race. This will keep me from getting so nervous about getting cut and keep my stomach in good shape. I realize if I go to fast I could fall apart but I think this is what I need to do.

If you are interested, here is the "flyover" of the race course. It takes about 5 minutes to watch.

http://therunscout.com/2009/08/mountain-masochist/

To conclude I'd like to say that foremost the Lord was responsible for my ability to train and finish this race. My wife was incredible with her support and baking skills. The rest of my family being there meant so much. Even though I never said much and when I did it was grouchy, I really appreciated them being there. I also would not have finished I think without them there. It was partly smart planning on my part to not have them show up until halfway. That forced me to keep going. Also, their help was critical in me finishing in time. I was able to restock more quickly by having them and the two-way radios to tell them what I wanted. This was an amazing experience and I encourage anyone that has finished a couple road marathons and maybe a trail 50k to consider it. You have to love running in the mountains and be prepared for hill after hill both up and down. For me, it was all about that mile and a half up that steep rocky road. It was about knowing that even after 41.5 miles, I realized I had the kick left in me to make the climb.

I'm now an Ultra Marathoner

Well my first ultra went really well. Kenny and I ran most of it together. I doubted myself just before the halfway point. Can I really finish this? The legs were starting to ache a little and there was still a little under 20 miles to go. I started taking a rolaid about every hour and i had one ibuprofen about mile 20. By mile 22 or so it was hammer down. I was eating a moderate amount at each aid station, every 4 miles or so. I did really well until about mile 30 where I knew I was going to finish but I started to fatigue. My last my mile as my fastest at just under a 10 min/mile pace. I finished just under 6 1/2 hours (12 min/mile). Looking back I don't think I ate quite enough at each aid station especially toward the end. You just want it to be over and you don't want to stop. It is harder to restart than keep going. When I finished I really didn't feel much different than when I run 20+ miles. I rested well ahead of the race.

Yes I've already signed up for another ultra, Terrapin Mtn (March 28). Holiday Lake was fairly flat. The Terrapin Mountain race course rises (and falls) 7000 feet over 31 miles. I'm guessing it will be tougher but I'll just go a little slower. Training has been going well. 120+ miles in the last 3 weeks. This week will start the taper and ends with a 5k in Lewisburg. I've had a lot of time to think running all these miles. I am curious, once 50Ks become like 5Ks what do you do? I don't see myself as one of these people who are going to climb Mt Everest or something crazy like that. I'm just not sure where all this is leading. I want to focus my efforts on my kids now that they are old enough to do bigger stuff with Dad but most of the time they don't share my interest so I have to be careful. Here's hoping one day I run a marathon with one of my daughters....

Getting ready for an Ultra

After I ran my first marathon in November 2006, I thought "I'll never do this again". I even told people I saw while running it "Don't ever do this!" Well I ended up running a total of three marathons within a year.

My friend Kenny has gone from overweight slug to ultra marathon runner (distances greater than 26.2 miles) in the space of a few years. Watching him evolve over the last few years, I realized that 26.2 miles is tough but there may be more out there than just a marathon. In the last year, I have fallen in love with trail running. Road running now seems to be something I only would want to do for shorter distances (13.1 or less). So I did it, I signed up for an ultra marathon. A 33.26 mile ultra marathon trail race. The Holiday Lake 50k++ near Appomattox Va. Am I ready for this? I think so. I had to break a running rule doing it though and hopefully got away with it.

http://extremeultrarunning.com/2009_holidaylake/2009_HL_application.pdf

The rule is the 10% rule. Never increase your weekly/monthly mileage by 10%. I had run a little over 100 miles in november and just a few more in December. January I cranked it up to 183 miles. I broke the rule. At one point I almost thought I had broke myself. I had little aches and pains all up and down the legs and I was worn out. I didn't want to run but I pushed on. Now that it is February I feel like I'm done. I'm resting and doing easy short runs. Nine days to go until the race. I'm still a little tired but I'm getting fresher by the day. The last long run I did was a 23 miler and near the end I was feeling great and ready for more. I'm ready and I can't wait.

Running with the hound

I was running an easy 5 miler a few evenings ago and went by this house where the dogs are usually tied up. This time though there was a bassett hound like dog that came running at me barking. I picked up a wad of rocks to protect myself and he stopped and started wagging his tail. I knew then that he was friendly. I kept running and he started running alongside of me barking and jumping up at me wanting to play. I figured he would not follow me far but soon we were out of sight of his house and trotting down the road. His little short legs were working back and forth and his big ears flopping around. He settled into a nice pace running beside me and stopped bothering me. He was along for the ride.

After going more than a quarter mile or so, it was time for me to turn around. I turned around and he was right on my heels occasionally hitting my legs. I was tired and this annoyed me somewhat so I just thought to myself, let's put the hammer down and see what he does now. So I increased my pace from a easy jog to more of a moderate run. I didn't say anything, I just sneakily did it. He immediately noticed the change and it was getting hard for him to keep up. He barked and jumped at me even more now. I got the feeling he was saying slow down! slow down! The faster I ran the more urgently he barked and jumped up at me. He ran pretty good for a feller with short legs. Finally, I got tired of him jumping up and hitting me so I stopped and told him to get on home and kinda chased him up the road. He was a good boy and ignored me from then on. I waddled on home another 5 miles on the Garmin.

Well obviously I didn't blog any since March. There really wasn't much to say about this past year. Hmm.....maybe I could find a few things to talk about.

• My 61 year old Dad did 4 multisport events, three of them proper triathlons without having ever done one before. He also did some running road races.
• Let's see, my friend R ran his first race (Captain Thurmond's Challenge) and did really well while learning painfully about the art of pacing. He has also dived into the world of longer distances and is hooked.
• Over the past year my friend B has gone from barely being able to run 3 miles to doing 10+ mile runs and taken up kayaking.
• My friend KW ran 3 ultra marathons this year! A couple 50k races and a 50 miler! The bad part is that he has talked me into running a 50k in February!
  
• My friend S ran well in multiple races and organized one of her own. She even took up cycling.
• My friend KH started running seriously and ran his first 5k in October. He also learned a hard lesson about who you should not pace off of in your first race (the college girls cross country team).
• My buddy KA was the 4th fastest cyclist in a 10 mile race with way over a hundred contestants and missed being first by mere seconds and really helped us to a 3rd place male teams finish.
• My daughters ran a couple fun run races and had a really good time. All in all I'd say it was a pretty good year.

High Rocks Celtic Knot 5k

As I ran up the hill through the graveyard I could hear the young woman's footsteps behind me. She was catching me. The rhythm of her foot strikes was much faster than mine. She had been steadily gaining on me for the last half mile. When we started up the hill, I was maybe 30 yards in front of her. As we were running up the hardest part of the hill, she was going gaining fast. I tried to hold her off but she went by me quickly. She was the third person to pass me. I said "Good Job", she said nothing. Two other runners had passed me early on in the race. I was doing good I thought, I was just amazed that she had passed me on that hill...

(The race is over time to cheese for the camera)

I had so many friends at this race it wasn't funny. My friends Kenny and Manon, K1 and his daughter, K2, Sandy, and Dad.

(Kenny and Mark "It's just a 5k")

The Celtic Rock 5k took place in downtown Lewisburg. It was to benefit a girls school in Pocahontas County. http://highrocks.org/ It consists of a very twisty course that starts on Church Street. The course is rolling with numerous turns. The pinnacle of the race is about a half mile climb up to the top of the Civil War Cemetery. This takes place about 2 miles into the race. After the hill you wind down a grassy slope and through a parking lot before arriving back on Church Street for the flat straight finish.

(Go Sandy Go!)

A few things to point out, is that the high rocks girls put on the race and post cheerful signs all along the course. They also cheer the runners on. They had ample refreshments after the race. The course was a little short coming in at 2.9 miles and there was some difficulty following the course near the end. Erica, the race director is very responsive and plans to address these issues next year.

(Look at this smile caused by running)

Since I knew so many people at this race, you start to think about the story behind the runners. It really is not just people running in a race. They are there for a reason. Some are trying to turn over a new leaf, others to lose weight, showing others the joy of running, and some to achieve new records. Each person is out there working for goals whether they are obvious or hidden.

(Slow and Steady)

It was a fun race and we had good weather. I ended up running the 2.9 miles in 20:42 which is pretty good for me considering there was a significant hill in it. I was hoping for a top 10 finish and I made it by placing 7th out of 30 runners. The usual suspects beat me, Todd, Bruce, Michael... These are guys I see in all the local races. I'm getting a little better each year though...

(This is what it is all about right here)
Thanks to K2 and Bill for the video.

Running for President

On the morning of Super Tuesday a few weeks ago, Erin was in the car with her mommy going to school. They were listening to the radio. Erin said "Mommy wow those people must really be in shape if they are going to run in all those states today!" She literally thought they were going to physically run in all those states that day. Coincidentally, she and her sister had been on a run with dad a couple days before. She is also saying that she wants her cb/radio handle to be "runner" or "runner up" now.

A January Update

So what's been going on? Well, deer season sort of took over most of December then there was the Christmas festivities. I began lifting weights before Christmas and have continued to do so till now. I've put on about 4 pounds since early December so I hope that is from the weight lifting and not anything else? My running has been cut in half. I'm getting in 2 or maybe 3 quality runs a week. Last weekend I ran 20 with my buddy Lee. It was a beautiful run from Lewisburg out into the countryside. I ran my mouth the entire time and it went by fast. We ran slow doing it in about 3:33. Afterwards I had the usual completely consuming lactic acid burning pain. But after about 30 minutes it was gone and I got back to normal. I spent the rest of the day shopping Lowes/WalMart and then coming home to finish my inside steps.

This week I ran twice. Once around the Hinton loop in about 33 minutes (4.3 miles) and once to Talcott from PS and back (11.25 @ 8:04 pace). I'm not necessarily getting any faster right now but I seem to be recovering from my runs very quickly. Probably due to the fact I'm resting several days in between! My plan right now is to keep with the weight lifting, and try to do a long slow run every other weekend. In this case, long would be more than say 12 miles. I hope to do long runs till March and then focus on getting faster with track work once a week. I'm not going to run a spring marathon and one of my favorite races, the Blacksburg 10 miler doesn't look like it's going to happen. So blah on that. I am really looking forward to my two team events tentatively scheduled for April and July (Greenbrier River Race, and Scenic Mountain Tri).

We are in the midst of winter now but running sort of combats the weather in a way. You pick the days that are somewhat nice and you run and you feel better.

1000 Miles This Year!

("Thank ya, Thank ya very much")

I just returned from a little 3.8 mile run at my house and without even realizing it, I crossed the 1000 mile mark for the year today. That is my first time crossing this mark. After 2 years of non-consistent running followed by 3 years of consistent running, I made it to this point. So far this year my monthly totals look like this

Mistletoe Half Marathon, Winston-Salem NC

Well it was time to return to the great state of NC. I got my 5k Personal Record (PR) there last year in November. We went down for a weekend visit to see my cousin, Christi and her husband. They were nice enough to let us invade their house. My cousin's husband, Brian, had trained hard this fall for many weeks getting ready for this race. As an Reserve Army grunt, he's gone from running 5 milers up to 13 milers now. I'm sure PT tests will be like eating cake to him now. He had worked his way all the way up to a practice 13 mile run. He learned the meaning of nutrition, hydration, and injury along the way.
Saturday December 1st, hey we're in the south why is it in the upper 20's this morning? It was cold! I thought it was perfect though. I knew once I got started I would be fine. I was planning on a 7:37 pace so I could finish in 1:40:00.
First was the fun run. Madison signed up for the fun run. About 8:00 we were hanging around the start line. Madison was to cool to stand with her family so she was standing with a group of kids on the other side of the street. They were late starting the race so I was getting nervous about making it to my 8:15 start about a 1/4 mile away. I was preparing myself to go to the starting line when someone said okay let's have the fun run. A pack of kids lined up, I searched the pack to see Madison, she wasn't there! I ran across the street and over the hill on a soccer field, with that same bunch of kids, she was having her picture taken with them. There she was right in the middle of them. They all had on some sort colored shirt while she had on a gray sweatshirt and stuck out like a sore thumb. I said Madison get up here the race is starting! About that time the fun run started. Parents were standing there looking at me like I was crazy one of them said, "Aw that's just the fun run" I said I know she's supposed to be in it! Madison get up here! I yelled.

So she broke rank in the middle of the picture taking and came up the steps. The other kids were already out of sight down the road. Apparently, the kids she was with were running the 5k! As she took off running she almost broke into tears but her GoGo stepped in and started running with her. She was mad now and took off flying. I think the run was about 1 mile. I would later find out that she came in 5th and that she passed a bunch of kids. I know she gave them almost a 2 minute head start! She did good but it was quite funny after it was over.
GoGo was there to run the 5k so he had to stop running with Madison about half way she was wearing him out! He ran the 5k one second slower than his best at 35:53 for an 11:33 pace. I think he enjoyed this race in particular.

I didn't get to see her finish as I had to hustle to my start. Brian, Christi and I went to the starting line. We were pretty far in the back. Christi was there to wish us well and take our extra clothes. The Star Spangled Banner was sang, I didn't care for the style, sort of a bluesy interpretation and then bang the pistol fired. I didn't even have my sweatshirt off so I yanked it off and gave it to Christi. I was in my light, short sleeved Hokies shirt and some brown running shorts. I ran past Brian and said "Don't go out too fast!" Check out Dr. Frankenstein and Igor in the picture below("Yeeesss Master!").

The pack was pretty crowded here and I was in the back. Fortunately there was a sidewalk and I boogied past a bunch of runners. About mile one the pack began to thin out. The first mile was a little slow but it was still in the high 7's/mile for pace. I ran with an intensity that I'd never run with before for such a long run. Usually I hold back on anything longer than 10 miles. This time I was not holding back. I was going for it. I also wore my heart rate monitor this race. It was reading in the high 160's. My max heart rate is somewhere in the high 170's so I was working at about 90% of my capacity right from the start. The course featured a couple out and backs and on one of them I passed Brian going the other way. I said Go Hokies! He was wearing his Hokie shirt too. He looked good and like he was focused.
I ran very strong throughout the race. I carried a Gatorade bottle for the first half of the race and sipped on it. I had a gu pack at the start, about mile 6 and about mile 9. The course was beautiful mostly through nice residential areas and even a couple fancy shmancy mansions. About mile 11, it seemed like I was beginning to tire out but I rallied and actually ran the last two miles at a faster pace than any of the other miles. I crossed the line in 1:40:17 and I was very happy. Brian finished strong with a time of 1:58:01 and I think he is very pleased with his 9:01 average pace. Great job Brian! He was exhausted but in good spirits.
Statistics of my run.
Time 1:40:17
Pace 7:39
102 out of 602
15 out of 45 in Males 30-34
Average Heart rate 169
Fastest Mile 7:19 (Mile 12)

I got to tell you the post race party for this race is great. There was excellent child care setup and Madison had a blast. They had those blow up slides and jump houses as well as craft tables. They gave the parents bracelets for checking kids in and out. Audrey chose to keep Erin back at the house because her asthma had acted up the night before and I missed them being there. For food they had Papa Johns, Krispy Kremes, Chik Fil A sandwiches, as well as fruit and nuts. The whole family was permitted to eat as well. A great deal for $25. All in all it was an excellent race and I hope to be back next year. It's a great time of the year to run, the course was great, and the party was great too!

A week off

This week was deer season. This is a week where running fades from the brain. Eating and drinking just about fade from the brain for that matter. I ran about 16 last Sunday which includes about 3 miles of running through the woods looking for deer. A new perk I have from being able to run. I can run through the woods and cover miles of terrain to see where the game is hanging out at. Most of the time, they will stand there long enough to see what in the world is running through the woods. I hunted quite hard till Wednesday at noon when I was able to get this nice 8pt!
I'm preparing for the Mistletoe Run for Youth in Winston Salem NC on Dec. 1st. I'm going to go all out on this one. I haven't run a half for 2 years now. Back then 13.1 miles was a new distance for me. I still respect this distance but I am going to try and push myself to a new limit. I may have made a mistake by taking this week off. I feel kinda fat and sluggish. I was able to squeeze in one mile today and that's all. With the rain coming, it may be hard for me to get in a quality run till about Wednesday so that is worrying me a little as well. I will try to run in the rain but I'll have to see how bad it is. My best pace for a half is 7:55/mile. I will be trying for at least a 7:50/mile. I'd like to get a time of 1:40 for the race. I think most of my family will be there to watch as well. My cousin's husband is running this. It was his idea. He is a fairly new long distance runner and is doing great. I can't wait to do this one.

Lessons Learned from MCM 2007

If you're just now tuning in for my Marine Corp Marathon posting please see the posting below this one.

Let's see what did I learn from marathon number 3?

Things I learned in general.

1. Figure out someway to not have to "go" during the race! Bathroom breaks and water stops destroy my time!

2. I need to find someway to fight off cramps late in the race. I don't know if this means having someone meet me with a gatorade or what? Should I look into salt tablets?

3. Carrying your own fluids and food is a good idea especially for the first part of the race. It would actually be good to have someone restock your pack about half way through because stopping at water stations in the last half of a race can tend to slow you way down since it is hard to restart. Next time I may try stopping at a station and refilling my gatorade bottle with gatorade and my water with water although I think that would really really slow me down.

4. I really like sport beans and they do boost your energy some.

5. Wearing your name or something recognizable on your shirt like "Hokies" gives the fans something to cheer for and gives you a boost as well.

Things specific to the MCM

1. MCM is fairly crowded. Don't look to run a personal record (pr) here unless you've really trained hard for it.

2. Be prepared for quite a walk getting to and from this marathon.

3. If you are going to have someone meet you during the race. You'll just about have to map out the exact spot because the crowds are tremendous and it is nearly impossible to find someone even within a certain block.

4. Miles 18-21 and 23-26.2 are hard. There's not much crowd support and/or it's a lot of uphill.

5. I will do MCM again! But not next year. It is a great time.

The 2007 Marine Corp Marathon