Marathon DNS Blues, Peak Bagging & Spartan FTW!

Runners Knee
Well since my last post I have been nursing a pretty bad case of runners knee AKA Patellafemoral Pain syndrome. After the Bobby Bell 5 miler my left knee felt worse than after the punishing downhills of Killington last month. I had tried all sorts of stretching, NSAIDS, heating, and icing with little luck. Further, I have spent probably over $100 in gimmicky knee braces from sporting goods stores. The ultimate healing method was....REST! Since I'm not a doctor and not educated in any sort of medicine/therapy, i will never suggest how to fix an injury in any other way aside from good old fashioned rest. Sometimes resting can come at a painful price but it is necessary. That being said I was able to run a somewhat quick four miler today at a 7:00mi. pace and 0 pain thanks (maybe) to one of the above mentioned knee braces.

Bay State Marathon
Bay State Marathon was today. I wasn't there. I didn't start, yeah, D.N.S. It's a disappointing process to look forward to something (that would likely have been a good race by the numbers) and not be able to start due to a nagging injury. Alisha and I went to the expo at Lowell High School to pick up  my bib and race packet anyways. I had never been to a marathon expo, and had high hopes that all wasn't lost with my $60something registration fee. Well Bay State Marathon isn't as big as I had expected (It gets a lot of focus from Runners World as one of the fastest in the country due to cool climate and flat terrain). I have read about the large expos for Boston, Chicago, NYC etc. and just expected more. Had I known it would be a small gathering of vendors I may have just not shown up. While I was there the thought of volunteering crossed my mind but over the last couple of weeks I have been pretty bummed out about the whole knee that I thought better of doing something else. That something else came in the form of a trip to the Portsmouth, NH dog park.

Mount Tecumseh
By yesterday morning my left knee had been painless for about 3 days. I wanted to do something physical, and anything more than a light job was out of the question. I decided Friday night, despite the rainy forecast, to tackle another 4000 footer. At short notice a Solo ascent was my only option. Luckily for me Brodie the dog had a clear schedule too. We made the 109mi trip up to Waterville Valley Ski Area and arrived around 10AM. Mount Tecumseh's trail head was pretty hard to find and my TOMTOM doesn't speak "Appalachian Mountain Club". We drove around for about 45 minutes trying to find the trail head. I was so frustrated about not being able to find it I almost decided to tackle another nearby peak (Osceola or Tripyramid), which would have been a poor decision since I hadn't even glanced at a map for either of them. The hike was a fairly short 5.1 mile round trip, and I only saw 4 other parties all headed for the summit while Brodie (Trailname "Wonder Dog") and I were on our descent. Brodie, like most of us would prefer to walk downhill rather than up, and on two occasions I had to carry him because his speed was less than impressive.  We Summited around 12:20 in complete cloud coverage (seems like the clouds know when I want to hike). We were able to enjoy the view a couple of times when the sun poked out. Brodie enjoyed his home made cookies, for lunch and I ate my Clif Shot Blocks, originally purchased for today's marathon.

The Foggy View from 4003'

 

I decided on Tecumseh, since it is the smallest of NH's 4000' peaks and seemed like an easy day trip. I definitely didn't want to have to turn around and add to my growing list of DNF/DNS!  We came down in just over an hour because Wonder Dog's four legs and incredible agility proved superior to mine on the downhill. I guess I deserved to look like a fool running behind him dragging me since I carried him a half mile or so. We met a few people and stopped to chat, Brodie also Befriended a GIANT dog, that scared the shit out of both of us, but turned out to be an incredibly well behaved pooch with her owner in tow.

 

Big Girl!

 



Running behind Wonder Dog

 

So my weekend was pretty eventful. I'm grateful the weather was nice and I was able to accomplish SOMETHING, at least something worth writing about!

 

 

SPARTAN FTW!

I was going to write about my opinions on the "Outside magazine" article by Scott Keneally. The article really speaks for itself and contains a lot of little known information about the competition between Spartan Race and Tough Mudder. Matt Davis from www.mattbdavisruns.com interviewed both Joe Dessena (of Spartan Race) and Matt Johnson (Tough Mudder) in the same show, and TM had very little to say about the article. It exposed some of the business practices used by Tough Mudder to bully other OCR (Obstacle course races). It also tells the story of  Billy Wilson (the originator of OCR) who started his Tough Guy Challenge in the mid eighties. I am not in a position to trash any of these companies for business practices or stolen concepts. The Harvard Business School CEO of Tough Mudder seems an awful lot like another young entrepreneur in the social networking (coughFacebook!cough).  I can only tell you from a competitor standpoint how I think these companies compare. Spartan Race is where the competition is at. Spartan has harder courses, and organizes their events much more thoughtfully. For example Spartan times their course and won't try to tell you it isn't a race. TM has no competitive agenda, with the exception of World's Toughest Mudder (once a year). When I say Spartan is more organized the best example would be how Tough Mudder sends waves of 600 runners at a time, and you pay for it while waiting in LONG lines at obstacles over the 10ish miles. I ran a Spartan Beast course twice, and was on the mountain for nearly half of a full day, and didn't have to wait even one time over the course of 30+ miles. Event prices are about the same and both companies donate a considerable amount to charity, although TM leaves fundraising to the member AFTER he or she has paid the $200ish event fee. I won't say I will never do another Tough Mudder or shun anyone who does. I do think that Spartan has more value and is a tougher challenge.

 

Brodes on the Summit, his first 4000 footer

Tecumseh Peak after He conquered it.

 

Until next time.



 



26th Bobby Bell 5 Mile Road Race

Bobby Bell 5 Miler
Today was the Bobby Bell 5 mile road race. It went well with a few hiccups (on my part). I THOUGHT the start was at 10:30AM so I started stretching/sprinting at 10:00. I later found out the start would be at 11:00 so I went home for some Dr. Pepper and pretzel rods. The start was at the Lasting Room restaurant/bar about 100 yards from my front door. Convenient right? So the Goal was a 32:10 finish. I stuck with the goal time even after noting the vertical profile (conveniently posted above the urinal in the Lasting Room). The course has a fair amount of hills but nothing I Was worried about, except the LONG steep downhill at the beginning of mile 4.

The Legendary Rick Bayko referred to this as my "Game Face"...I agree

 

The race started on time which is always nice, (especially when there are banks along the route telling you the time).  The course followed Washington st. to the RT 495 intersection and returned on rt 97, turned onto Essex st. and onto Washington (right in front of my home). At the gun I tried to stick with the (eventual) winners and did for the first two miles or so. 

The start was just under the MBTA Haverhill Station.

At or around the halfway mark My "Ultra Beast Left Knee" started to swell and hurt pretty bad. Around Mile three I thought about asking one of Haverhill's finest to give me a ride of shame but I figured I was still holding the planned 6:30 pace. Along the steep downhill Rick from Yankee Runner was calling out split times. This was good for me reminding me that the pain will be over in just a few minutes. The final stretch down Washington FELT fast but I'm pretty sure it was to the tune of 6:50mi.
Video of Finish

With the pain of the last half of the race I was not expecting to come very close to the goal 32:10 but was pleasantly surprised when I crossed the mat at 32:45. After crossing the mat I promptly found a place where i can vomit and not be seen. I thought around the corner near the railroad bridge would be my best bet. Well, that's where the race director was sending everyone for the after party...So I had a few witnesses to the vomit.

No more tummy contents.

 

So I was 10th place overall (before gender grading 14th after). I guess this was good enough for a few awards. Alisha and I waited at the after party and enjoyed free food and booze (Bud Light and pesto Ziti).

Feelin' better!

Free Booze!

The gender based scoring is a really cool concept and it allows women to be awarded for their talents as they deserve. The longer Ultra distances (over 26.2 miles) women tend to finish stronger, my theory is they have a much stronger pain tolerance and long distance running is all about endurance. To me...Endurance= how long you can handle pain, Girls 1 Boys 0. Needless to say I am happy to relinquish a few places to some badass women!

 

 

I have never won anything aside from "finisher awards" but today was a lucky day and i managed to place in two categories. Haverhill residents (3rd) and 20-39 year old opens (9th). While this is not a podium finish or anything like that I was pretty pumped to get a couple cool pint glasses!



AWARDS!

The race was a great experience and I had an awesome time! I'm feeling a little bit nervous about Bay State since as we speak my left knee is still pretty swollen. I will start but don't want to jeopardize my health. I am hoping that the slower marathon pace will help keeping the pain at bay. Until then...



Recovered!

Tomorrow is back to work for me. I'm sort of looking forward to it, you know, holding people hostage to my "mud run" stories, and getting back into regular business. Thanks to the photo below I decided to "Bic" my head....NOTE THE MALE PATTERN BALDNESS.

looking Fierce...and OLD!



I guess that's how it goes. Luckily Not feeling that way! here are some other pictures I downloaded from Nu Vision of the past weekend.

Laugh Out Loud.

The Start!

Yeah..They glow in the dark!

Last fire jump before the finish.

A lot of the Facebook Ultra Beast page is buzzing with recent activity from other people. Some are still hurting, some are racing 50 milers as I write this. I find myself somewhere in between. While I have been taking it easy I feel like a big part of recovery is just dealing with the aches and pains of yesterday. My next endeavor is the Bobby bell 5 Mile road race in lovely Haverhill, MA. This race will actually go right past my front door...Literally. After that will be the Bay State Marathon, which claims to be one of the "fastest in the country". And lastly I am on the fence for the Spartan Race Fenway park Time trial.

 

Bobby Bell

Today I wanted to give myself a "test" at the shorter distance of 5 miles. While it isn't my specialty I really like these shorter fast races. After an hour or so on the mountain bike (9+miles) I set out to see where I'm at for this distance. Fueled on energy drinks, coffee, and a bean burritos (smothered in siracha chili sauce of course) I took off on a somewhat flat, somewhat fast run. I ran at around 80-85% and was able to clock around a 33:30 5 miles averaging around 6:45 per mile. I was pretty satisfied with these results and I am setting my goal time 32:10 for the Bobby Bell. I think I can handle it on a days rest. This race is also being sponsored by the BEST RUNNING SHOP IN THE GREATER BOSTON AREA.

RICK BAYKO'S YANKEE RUNNER

 

Bay State Marathon

Bay state takes place in Lowell, MA. It's not exactly on my doorstep like the Bobby Bell but it's still pretty local. Bay State claims to be the best road race to a BQ (Boston Marathon Qualification).  Since B.A.A. (Boston Athletic Association) has raised the bar for a 29 year old male I would need to run a 3:05 (7:0X minute mile). Needless to say this will NOT happen for me. My first marathon was a disappointment at 3:50(something). I bonked super hard and walked my last six miles. The course was very hilly at 600+ vertical gain and 80+ degrees however I can't blame a slow time on those factors. I simply didn't plan my nutrition well, and my race plan was non existent. This time I will plan better and try to force myself to consume calories, in the form of my beloved clif shot blocks. Goal time >3:35 8:20 mile. The handy Runners world APP seems to think (in it's incredible algorithmic wisdom) I can run a 3:16 or so, I'm leaving the bar a little lower.

 

Fenway

Spartan Race HQ announced this time trial a while ago. I was NOT interested, until realizing that I was world ranked in the top 100 (according to Spartan Race) on points after only 2 races (Amesbury Sprint and Vermont World Championship Ultra Beast). The marketing genius behind making me feel like I am a remotely decent athlete/runner/obstacle racer is incredible.. I am, looking for reasons NOT to run this time trial. Please comment below if you find one for me. Sadly it took the Ultra Beast to open my eyes to slowing the hell down on obstacles. Until the UB I had always Burpee'd on the log lillypad and wall traverse. Neither of these proved a problem when I was in energy conservation mode as opposed to speed mode (Amesbury). With that being noted I feel like I can do well and really rack up some points for 2013 (genius I tell you!). Because I Will (if I am afforded more leave from my new USCG job) being applying for the Ultra Beast AGAIN!

Spartan World Rankings (I think I have dropped a few spots since this screenshot but I'm satisfied with it!)

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! (ULTRA BEAST RACE REPORT)

"I started a blog for f****s sake!"
The above quote went through my head with every thought of dropping out of the Ultra Beast this weekend.

I started to really get an awful case of "naysayers disease" when a random back pain started on Wednesday (and kept nagging through Friday night). Fearing the unknown, anxiety took over for my entire drive to Outback Pizza in Killington, VT. While enroute I periodically checked the Ultra's facebook page to make sure I didn't miss anything. The first post I saw was from Matt Davis asking if anyone had extra glow sticks. I had brought more than enough so I offered mine and we met up at packet pick-up. Matt was really appreciative of my over preparedness, and I certainly wasn't against building a few alliances against the mammoth ski mountain about a mile from Outback.
Check out Matts Podcast
On Friday night I didn't expect to be able to sleep much with the race just a few short hours away. I also didn't expect to cough, sneeze and sniffle all night either (Another reason to doubt my ability to complete the whole course).

Race Day
I woke up at 4:15 AM and headed up to Killington. I kept wondering "why do I feel like such crap?" I probably had about 14 cough drops out of nerves and kept drinking fluids to maintain hydration. By the time I had parked my truck I had psyched myself out so bad that I sat contemplating whether or not to even get out of the truck and face the windy 40something degree morning air, BUT I had to piss so I gathered my shit, realizing I had left a few important items at home and headed for the base lodge. In the staging area I signed the Ultra Beast board and shuffled through my drop bin looking for more excuses NOT to toe the line. I found none so I spent the next hour telling myself "I will do one loop and see how I feel." A few familiar faces showed up and pre-race small talk took over.

The Start
I lined up towards the rear since I didn't plan on having an incredibly fast first "Beast" loop and was feeling a little better. The race started uphill (weird) and after 2 insignificant obstacles went into the woods where a few hundred people bottlenecked onto singletrack. George Craft and I felt it would be better to bushwhack than let people in front of us set a slow pace. We weaved in and out of bushes and trees just parallel to the single file line forming on the trail. I tried to run/jog conservatively keeping in mind that I will be on the mountain all day. My slow and sickly pace seemed to be faster than what a lot of others were doing.
Found this video of the start. I'm the fool in the white shirt and Lime green CamelBak

BEAST Lap 1
This first lap had many high and low points. The thought of dropping out after one lap was looming over my head as I coughed  up mucous and cursed myself for even starting. I noticed a very large, and very clean (lack of mud and water on clothing) crowd running downhill seemingly very lost somewhere around the middle of lap one (7mi.). Later we would find out that a wrong turn was made and blame is now cast in many different directions from a few of those in that group. The morning was extremely foggy making it easy to miss a course marker. Some of these racers were able to work through the SNAFU and eventually finish the race, while others came back for another shot the next day. I was pretty satisfied with my first lap time, I managed to get only 60 total punishment burpees (failure to complete and obstacle) which is just 2 of the obstacles (Tyrolean Traverse and Spear throw). I normally rush through obstacles and get punished for failure, however during the ultra I knew I would be on the course for well over 10 hours so I took each obstacle slowly and carefully (a technique I will be using from this point forward). I can't remember the split times but my first lap was at or around 4hr30min which would have been a pretty competitive time in the open/elite regular Beast (single lap). Although I was very conservative on the first lap I knew I wouldn't match it on the second.
PIT STOP
Knowing my first split was pretty decent was all I needed to get pumped up to get back on the mountain for round two. I had seen that there were still a lot of people out on the course who hadn't reached the drop bag area yet, so I tried to be quick. I replaced my calf sleeves with longer (and dryer) compression socks re-stocked the camelbak with a little more than what I had consumed on the first lap (1 gallon of electrolyte enhanced water, 2 gu's, 4 packs of clif blocks, 1 clif bar). I tried to force two or three pretzel rods down but nausea took over so off i went. I spent about 20-25 minutes in the drop zone forcing nutrition on myself and decided that an upbeat facebook status would really help the morale.
"LAP TWO...F******G BRING IT." 1:10pm Facebook status
LAP 2 ULTRA BEAST
Jumping back on the course felt good, especially in dry socks. I spent a long time not seeing any more green armbands (designator for ultra beast participants) and worked through the first few miles alone periodically chatting it up with some Beast runners from later heats who tapped my mind for information. I was asked some of the following questions:
-"How F***ing long is this hill?"
-"Am I almost done?"
-"Is there more barbed wire?"
-"Twice!? are you nuts!?"
-"is there more water?"
It was around mile 4 of lap two when I happened upon Todd Gothberg, who seemed to be the only person willing to entertain a conversation for the next ten miles. Todd and I helped each other out from that point until the finish line. We talked about family, fundraising our amateur athletic careers etc. Later on I would find out Todd had completed 39 marathons, and was a quadruple Ironman, which puts my mediocre resume' to shame. It was when I found out his career revolved mostly around motivational speaking that I decided "I need to stick with this dude." Motivation would really come in handy around nightfall when my left leg would no longer bend without excruciating pain. Todd lost his headlamp at some point, so with my illumination and his motivation we set out to become Ultra Beast finishers. The last 2 miles or so was a dangerous muddy and rocky descent. Lucky for me I treated it like a water slide and babied my left knee the whole way by essentially crab walking to the final flat section of the course. With the finish line in sight we each failed our spear throw (I am yet to stick a spear since Amesbury 2011). The last 30 burpees were the easiest of all and we finished the race in 11 hours and 36 minutes. While I didn't win a dime or a season pass, I felt like I had conquered the course. The Michael Phelps(esque) dual medals (standard Spartan medal for the Beast and a giant glow in the dark Ultra Beast medal) was enough prize for me.
"Dear Killington,
I WIN. That is all"  Facebook status at 9:03 pm
What's next?
The race for which I started this blog is now over. I finished. I hope next year those who were removed from the course for not meeting time/gear requirements or dropped out for whatever reason (there are MANY good reasons for dropping out of a 10+hour race) get a shot at redemption. I would like to thank the EMT that allowed me to continue after noticing that I was "swaying" around mile 8 of the first lap, I appreciated your concern and judgement after I tried to joke "I always walk like that". Thanks to:
Mom and Dad-for taking my hypothermic, sick and muddy ass into your home Saturday night.
Alisha and Ms. Jeanne-for standing in the rain to watch me finish(if i did finish) and coordinating my ride home.
Todd Gothberg-who kept me talking and drinking/eating.
All the volunteers-I hope you enjoyed the race and got a chance to run the course.
Chris Davis-Congrats YOU DID IT!
The Facebook group "Spartan VT Ultra Beast"- You guys really helped each other prepare.
USCG STA. Merrimack- for fillin in while I'm on leave. Listening to me babble about this had to be annoying...it doesn't end here...sorry.
BEYOND...
I guess beyond begins now, I'm taking a few days off but I will be back on the trails soon, There are a few other races coming up I will likely write about (Bobby Bell Road race and Bay State Marathon). Please keep an eye out for my fundraising page link to show up on my blog. Until next time...

Burpees in the Rain

380 started 150 finished

Headed To VT!

Today I'm squeezing a quick post in during a duty night. I have less than 48 hours until I take to Killington for the Ultra Beast. It's been a while since my last entry (over 20 days), and I figured I would share a few of the many thoughts running through my head. Preparation is over. There is nothing I can do physically to improve performance for Saturday except eat/drink intelligently. My final two "long" workouts included hiking "Lions Head" to the summit of Mount Washington and descending with a modest sized pack (Sept. 9th) and a seemingly short 12 mile trail run. It's nice that a 12 miler in the woods feels short and doesn't leave me sore and tired. I dropped the 20 mile trail runs the week before Mt. Washington with the intention of tapering off mileage. I won't really know if I had trained properly until Saturday night but I'm trusting in my training for a couple of reasons. First, and most obvious reason, I don't have a choice but to trust it. Secondly I feel like I put forth a solid amount of effort and utilized my time to balance a Hal Higdon marathon workout schedule and strength training (clearly a weakness of mine at a whopping 144lbs). I doubt many people have this type of racing (at this distance) down to the same science Hal Higdon has for the marathon. I see no reason to worry that I am not prepared or have not put in enough effort.

The Unknown
Spartan HQ has made sure that we have stayed in the dark on MANY things including course distances and obstacle specifics. The punishment for failure at any obstacle is 30 full burpees. The assumption is there will be 50+ obstacles therefore the potential for a lot of time/energy robbing burpees. Mandatory gear has been made pretty clear since the race is unsupported (See my previous post to see my self aid station inventory.) One thing that I do know is that I have a very easily to identify bin, thanks to my inner dweeb.

Custom.

The Race Plan

My plan is pretty simple. Finish. I would really like to finish before 7:00pm which may sound like it will be easy, however that leaves 11 hours to cover a lot of ground. I averaged 16:XX minute miles for the SPRINT (3 mile) distance. Killington is steeper, longer and may have MUCH more challenging obstacles so a 20min. mile would be terrific in my opinion for this race. As an avid long distance runner I throw around terms like "negative split"...this time I would be silly to even think about that given the variables and the fact that a single Beast can gas out some of the best athletes. The first lap I will be carrying 100oz. of NUUN enhanced water (NUUN is flavor tab added to water that has electrolytes and caffeine), 8 servings of Clif shot blocks (clean carb source that taste like gummy bears) 2 servings of GU, and one clif bar. I know I will be forcing a lot of this stuff down but to sustain a potential 12 hour race it needs to happen.  Depending on how I feel at the drop station (halfway) I will repack as i feel is necessary.

 

Concerns

I expected myself to be much more nervous for this event. I was even nervous when my application came back "accepted". As I have grown to know my competitors (comrades would be more fitting with this outstanding group of individuals) my tension has eased. Sharing gear and training advice will prove very valuable. I also feel a little less stressed because I have no similar experience to compare this to. I run local 5ks with a lot of anxiety because I want that "PR" but with the Ultra Beast there is nothing to compare this event to. I will DEFINITELY "PR" for a marathon distance obstacle race. All I have to do is finish. While finishing is a major accomplishment, it doesn't seem super daunting since I have nearly ALL DAY to do it.

 

DNF

These are three very scary letters for anyone who has worked hard for something. My thoughts:
DNS<DNF

Did Not Start will always be worse than Did Not Finish! ( I stole this from somebody...sorry)

 

GO TIME

Everybody has a different style of getting them through the low morale points of a race. It changes for me depending on the goal. "I deserve to be here" is what I will be using to kick myself in the ass repeatedly. I know that I will be alongside some of the "greatest athletes in the world" according to Spartan Races Facebook page. This may be extremely discouraging for a mediocre road/trail runner like myself, so telling myself that I have proven enough to Spartan HQ that I deserve to be there should prove effective during the guaranteed lows. I expect to hurt, I expect high and low moments, I expect to finish.

BIB#69972

Standing at the top of a Mountain seemed a good way to close this out!



Days Off are for the WEAK!

So I took a day off today. I can't remember my last day of inactivity but I feel good about a little rest. I spent time with my Four legged friend Brodie. I'M convinced he is a Jack Russel/Italian Greyhound mix with only the best of each side. I slept late 0830 (8:30AM), and played with the pooch for a while. Although today was a day "off" from physical preparation I still did a little shopping for the "drop bag" which will be my ONLY acceptable aid station during the Ultra Beast. I also picked up a nice pack for one of my last workouts prior to the Ultra Beast (Mt. Washington Day Hike).
Brodie's facebook...yeah it is real...

Drop Bag
So below is a list of items (not all inclusive since I have a 20 ga. tote to fill up...and i will) that i will leave at the Start/Finish line (halfway for us Ultra Beasters)
-Camelbak Octane XCT (modified for 2 bladders)
-NUUN electrolyte Tabs
-Pedialyte (orange for smaller bladder)
-Ibuprofen (unflavored)
-Mint Chocalate Chip CLIF bars (X4)
-Clif Shot Blocks (X12 servings)
-Spring water (2 gallons to refill larger bladder)
-4 GU pouches (theseare a last resort sugarbomb Espresso love/vanilla bean)
-First Aid kit (Blood happens...be prepared)
-headlamp 9it was hintedthat this would be required gear otherwise glow sticks)
-A change of clothes and a "real" meal will be added but I don't intend to add them until later for obvious reasons.

So far.....

Training
I have been pretty satisfied with the training I have been able to accomplish. I am lucky to get a few days off at a time so I CAN dedicate a half day to training. Three weeks in a row I have been able to run the CRUCIBLE course 20.xx miles on trails that have no shortage of hills. The fact i havebeen able to run a single 20 mile workout on back to back to back weeks may explain my boisterous confidence on facebook and in general. the Hal Higdon marathon plan (one of the most followed marathon training plans I know of) requires athletes to reach this 20 mile distance only one time about 2-3 weeks prior to a ROAD marathon. In the spirit of being "SPARTAN" I will use this singular workout as my meat and potatoes until the Ultra Beast. During these trail runs I have noticed that mean people don't hang out on marked trails. I am yet to run/walk past another person in the woods without some sort of friendly salutations being exchanged. This is not the norm while ducking cars in downtown Haverhill and dodging mirrors (most of the time). 20 miles ion a training setting usually takes 3-3:20 to complete (this is a huge block of time and I understand that people with "grown up" jobs and other obligations usually can't afford). I am hesitant to take Brodie since he is a "street pup" meaning he will not pass up any; trash, food, pitbulls(prevelant around these parts) or curious smells, therefore making him "difficult" to walk/jog/run with. His company would be much appreciated when I encounter SNAKES (my arch nemesis) I know...Snakes are not that bad...but they scare ME! This most recent adventure I decided to take my IPOD...While I don't listen to music while working out (exception: books on tape), I brought it to take afew pictures of the trail I am most fond of as of recently.

Kenoza lake

 

Turn Around Point I circle this bench three times in a 20mi run.

Turning right at this ridge trail climbs about 30' but will avoid knee deep puddles after A rainy day.

 

There is a spike in elevation (60-70' est) this is the top looking down, the photo may not do it justice but I call it "Tower of Tears" in three laps you climb it six times.

 

"The Witches Staircase" It's funny how nature can make something seemingly man made.

 

Days off..

While days off are important I feel lazy on days like today (10 pullups and couch commando). The word "overtraining" comes to mind every time I head out feeling tired/sore/achey from the previous day. By no means do I think that pushing through pain is a good/safe idea, however knowing your body is very important if you plan on going beyond that point. While I have much to learn on that topic I feel like I can at the very least avoid disaster (in the form of injury).  The Hard and seemingly endless training has been agreat confidence booster. I will not win the Ultra Beast...But I WILL finish and that is a victory in my book!

 

Mount Washington

Next weekend a few friends and I will be tackling the highest peak in the Northeast. This will be a walk/hike but I will be counting it as valuable training. It's hard to admit as an endurance runner that i WILL be walking a lot (if not MOST) of the Ultra Beast, therefore a hike with a moderately heavy pack over 6,000' will be beneficial. Until next time! 

 

(spell check didnt work for me tonight...go ahead and correct my spelling/grammar...)



Amesbury Sprint ....Ouch...

Hello, I'm back for another round of UB & Beyond. This entry is following a 20 Mile trail run on a loop named "THE CRUCIBLE" (I thought it sounded cool, and got the name from the USMC basic training obstacle course). I set out today partially to ease the frustrations of a disappointing finish in the Spartan Sprint this weekend. The trail was a really nice refuge from the sun, AND rain. In a little over three hours the weather changed from downpour to sunburn pretty quickly. The trails were actually very crowded for a Wednesday morning during a rainstorm, but MUCH weirder shit happens in Haverhill so no huge surprises there. Twelve Muddy miles (2 laps) was the goal but goals change quickly cause I'm generally a moody person. After the first two i figured I would keep going since I haven't gone beyond 20 miles in a month or two. I sought out as much elevation gain as possible and sadly 630ish feet was all Kenoza Lake had to offer. The hills are steep enough however, to get a repeat or two before carrying on. What kind of Sicko does hill intervals on a long run?...This Guy! 

THE CRUCIBLE

So Today I wore the "new to me yet so last year" Brooks Pure Grit's. It's a semi minimalist trail shoe that I recently decided would be my "go to" for trail racing. I like that they have a modest heel stack height, paper thin mesh upper, flexibility, and most importantly protection from my sloppy gait. I find anything beyond 12 miles causes me to run like an unsure baby just learning to walk (stomping around and what not). The Brooks took good care of me in the Spartan Sprint this weekend, if only I could have changed out the dude wearing them.

Brooks Pure Grit $60.00 at EMS!

AMESBURY SPARTAN SPRINT 8-12-12

So Now that I am done voluntarily advertising for Brooks Running (As if anyone reads this shit), I'll tell all about the killer 22nd place performance on Monday. I decided after Tough Mudder Vermont I won't be entering any obstacle/adventure races unless to be competitive. This comes after standing in long lines of beer runners in Tough Mudder, Rugged Maniac,  & Spartan Races.  I hope it doesn't sound arrogant, because I understand that not everyone has a competitive drive, and paying customers are just that... paying customers. I signed up in November for the Sunday "Elite Heat".  This Heat is the first group to toe the line so the course is completely clear. The Spartan Sprint may not be suited to my longer distance style, but I wanted to really do well to prove to myself that I deserve a shot at the Ultra in September. While waiting in the gates to take off I had the pleasure of meeting a fellow "Ultra Beaster" George, who like me wanted to be in the 40-45minute range. I promised to bullshit with him after and we took off running. The first 300ish yards were a relatively steep uphill. I really like to climb and have this terrific habit of burning myself out trying to gain position on starts like this one. At the Tough Mudder in May, I decided I was superman and climbed the first black diamond hill fast enough to wait 4 or 5 minutes, dying mind you, for Randall and Matt who were (at the time) 2nd and 3rd for the heat with nobody in sight. I have since learned that this does me NO good whatsoever, so I was Conservative for this race. I decided that the "follow the leader" approach would do me well at conserving energy and keeping the leaders within sight. One of the first obstacles were "over-under walls". Pushing shoulder to shoulder with the front of the pack, I caught my right shoulder on one of the "under walls" causing a fist sized bleeding scrape. "Great! first half mile and I'm already bleeding!" The next obstacle was weighted pulleys strung across the trees, in last years event my entire body weight wasn't enough to lift the weight off the ground so I was expecting to do my 30 burpees and move on. For whatever reason, I had no trouble this year and carried on with same pack. I lost the most time at an obstacle that was a lilly pad of logs about 5' apart stuck into the ground. The objective was to balance from log to log for about 75 yards. I fell off the first log and started my 30 burpees and watched the leaders disappear. The same thing would happen at the "wall traverse" (i made it the whole way and got overexcited and missed the bell at the end) and the "spear throw". After a total of 90 Burpees, a barbed wire cut (yeah another wound) and vomiting the contents of my stomach around the halfway point I crossed the line in 51:20 good enough for 22nd MALE (I got what's called "Spartan Chick'd, in the Barbed Wire by the eventual women's winner, and I have no shame in regards to it, especially after watching her DESTROY the tractor tire flip!)overall and 7th for 25-29 year olds.

Sad Face after a discouraging Finish

Yep.

ALL WAS NOT LOST...

Even though I wasn't happy about my lackluster performance I had a great time. I got to meet some awesome people, including a group of guys who jokingly made barf sounds when I caught back up and passed them...apparently they had witnessed my momentary step off the trail, and were extremely encouraging even as i was opening the gap between us. "We're gonna try and get you a trophy!" said one of them . At the start Chris Davis, the man who WAS 650+lbs before Joe Dessena and Spartan HQ got him into shape, gave a quick motivating speech about his battle with weight loss. Alisha was at the event and she spent the following hour or so trying to convince me i had done well.  On top of her encouraging words she also served as a taxi driver, event photographer and my personal bag drop, luxuries that surely only I had!

BACK TO WORK!

My response to this rough day at the sports park was to, on the next day, put on my 20lb weighted vest and crank the incline up on the treadmill  (on duty at work I usually can't stray far from the station so being a mouse on a wheel it is) and jog uphill for an hour. The rise/run calculation told me I had climbed in excess of 2,300'. Getting smoked in a game of volleyball on Tuesday would be my only workout, keeping in mind that I had planned to "go long" today. That's it for now.

I probably gained 4-5 spots on the final downhill this was the last Obstacle before the Finish

"Mr. Grumpypants"

Thanks for your help Alisha! here's a $6 Beer for your troubles!