Friday, December 31, 2010

Ode To A Mitten

Oh Mitten, I am so glad I found you. You keep my digits warm in the cold wind, in the driving snow, and even after I fell and submerged my hand in a puddle as I tried to protect myself from the pavement.

The 180's Ultralite CRG is awesome. I purchased these about a month ago for around $25 and I couldn't be happier. I've tried gloves, but they just don't do the trick. My fingers get cold and I end up pulling them into the palm in a feeble attempt to keep them warm. I tried thicker gloves, but they are just too bulky and, sometimes, too much after an hour or so. Sometimes you just need a good mitten.

And so, after a quick search on the interwebs, I tracked down the 180's Ultralite CRG running mitten. The mitten material is wind and water resistant. I have found it to block even the most ferocious cold winds. And I already mentioned how I submerged my hand on a fall within the first two miles of a 7 mile run and still arrived home with warm fingers.

On the thumb and back of the hand of this cleverly designed mitten is a terry cloth fabric that the manufacturer describes as perfect for wiping off your sweat. We all know, though, that it's really for wiping your freezing snot before icicles form from your nostrils.

Best of all, the CRG in the model name of this 180's mitten stands for Convertible Running Glove. The hood on this mitten can retract back into a small pocked on the back of the hand to reveal a more conventional glove. What a perfect design! After I've warmed up a bit, but it's still too cold to go au naturale, I roll back the mitten and run hand-in-glove.


So, as I contemplate running in the cold, I've lost one more excuse to bag it and head for the treadmill. I no longer suffer from uncomfortably cold fingers. My Mittens protect me.

-jea

Monday, December 13, 2010

New shoes and new achilles problem

Went to the Run Flagstaff store this weekend to buy some new road running shoes.  While there and talking with local elite runner Chris Gomez, he suggested I also try a lightweight, ultra minimal trail shoe.  So I tried on the New Balance 101 which is basically no support but includes a rock plate in the foot bed for those pointy suckers that get you on the trail.

Joined NATRA on Saturday for the first run in them on the Huckaby Trail in Sedona.  What a great day for running as temps were in the mid to upper 40s at the beginning and probably approaching 60 at the end of the run.  The Huckaby Trail is a short trail with lots of steep ups and downs.  It also has amazing views of the red rock scenery in Sedona.

So I finish the run and notice I have a slight pain in my achilles area.  Nothing big, but definitely noticeable.  Not sure if its from the terrain change or new shoes yet.

Monday December 13

Put the New Balance shoes back on this morning, everything feeling great, and went for a run.  Was planning on an hour (new thing to run on time instead of mileage, getting ready for TRR).  Felt great for the first hour and decided to take Mike's advice and do another ten minutes if feeling good.  Within about five minutes started to feel that achilles acting up so cut it short and ran home.  Well its pretty sore this afternoon, so may take tomorrow off and go back to my Brooks Cascadia to see if it settles down.  Uggh, was really starting to feel good about the base training.

maw

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Flagstaff Slop


A few inches of snow, warm temperatures, plus Flagstaff trail and you get slop. Soft mud that just opens up and takes you in. As you take a stride the mud flings from the bottom of you shoes and lands on the back of your leg. Flecks of dirt everywhere... on my shirt, my face, my watch. I misjudged conditions today and ended up running a very sloppy six miles. I swear the trails on the other side of the mountain behind my house were nearly dry just a couple of days ago. Yeah, I'm on the north side, but I thought by now they'd be pretty dry; maybe just a few puddles to negotiate. Instead, my favorite trail was mostly muddy.... some snow, a little ice, but mostly muddy. It's funny because when I first felt the mud I tried to look for grassy patches, you know, just get around it as best I could. But soon I just accepted it. I'm gonna get dirty, really dirty. Then I look over to my running partner to see how muddy is he getting. 

I ran with my dog, Aspen, today and his normally white undercarriage was stained dark brown. The picture doesn't do it justice. He was just a muddy, happy dog.... until I had to spray him with the hose. Aspen seemed to take particular joy running through the muddiest spots. At one point, when I stopped to try to get my sensitive GPS watch working right after a mud splatter, Aspen ran over and jumped on me with his mud-caked paws as if to say, "Come on, this is fun!" He was right. It was fun. But I'll be looking for some dry trail until we either get more snow, or this trail dries out a bit more.

On a training note, Mark and I met with our Team Run Flagstaff coach, Mike Smith, to talk a little about our preparation for TransRockies. Mike's an all around great guy, elite runner, and 2009 TransRockies winner so he's the perfect guy to help us through the process. He also does online coaching at RunSmartProject.com so check him out. Anyway, Mike helped break down our preparation into several areas. We've got to contend with the mileage, of course, but he also talked about the mental component of TRR, the altitude, recovery needs, terrain and several other areas. Given that we live at 7000 feet and have experience running trails, Mark and I are at an advantage with some things, but we're able to identify other issues that will need more attention. We also talked about the two major phases of our training: now through May and then June through August. Now is just about building aerobic fitness: increasing our weekly mileage and the time on our feet. The second phase will be about prepping our muscles for the adaptations needed for steep uphills and downhills, long miles, and quick recoveries. We'll be working to replicate race conditions so our bodies will be prepared for what's to come. Sound fun? Yeah, I'm not sure about it either. We've got a lot of time, though, and we've got Mike to guide us through it.


-jea

Thursday, December 2, 2010

"Your Registration Is Complete"

Yeehaw! We're registered! There's no turning back now! Shit, there's no turning back now. It's all good. We've got 9 months to get ready. I'm a bit nervous now, but totally psyched. The Flagstaff runners that have done TRR are excited for us and I already am feeling the support. Now on to the training plan. Run, run, run. In the mountains, on the trails. It's the official start.

I've been perusing the interwebs, searching for some ultra training advice and checking out the blogs of past TRR participants. Figuring out how to train properly in the first challenge (after deciding to sign up). I've recently read some of ultra-running he-man Geoff Roe's thoughts on training for ultras.... little to no speedwork, mostly endurance and strength training. That makes sense to me, but it's daunting. Endurance training means lots of miles and, aside from worrying about injury, I'm concerned about time. With work, kids, and other interests, I'll have to get creative about getting in more miles. I already struggle just to get my usual 25 to 30, especially as the days get shorter, colder, and snowier. Training will just have to become a bigger priority as the weeks and months go by, and as the need to build mileage increases. Until then, the search for the perfect training plan continues....   -jea

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

It's Official

Well Joel and I officially registered for the 2011 Transrockies Run last night. No backing out now. We still have time for fun before the serious training starts. Joel and I agreed to start our training now and build up very slowly. Hopefully this allows us to avoid any potential injuries that go with long distance training.

We will start with a base of around 30 miles a week and build to a peak of 70+ miles by July before we taper our training for the race.

Our peak training weeks will consist of 3 consecutive long days of 18, 20, and 22 miles. We are hoping to do these long runs in the San Juan mountains of Southwest Colorado, this will enable us to run at 10,000 feet or higher which is comparable to the Transrockies stages.

Let the fun begin.

mw