What a weekend!

Joel and I are now in the final stages of training, which is also the most difficult.
This past weekend we spent running 3 consecutive long runs.  In the Transrockies circle this is known as the back to back to back.

We started with a trip to the Grand Canyon for a midnight full moon run from the rim down the S. Kaibab trail to the Colorado River, and back.  The moon could not have been any brighter.  We started down the trail at 1230 without our headlamps on and with our packs full of water and GU.  The descent was not as fast as we had planned due to the lack of shadows and having to be very careful of our footing.  We stopped a few times to take in the view as you could see the entire canyon lit up by the moon.  We reached the river at 215 am, refilled our water, and fueled up.  Temps were good, probably in the high 40s on the rim and close to 70 at the river.  Now the hard part begins.  Up we go.  I find it easiest to break the trail up into 4 sections.  The river to the Tipoff, the Tipoff to Skeleton Pt, Skeleton Pt to Cedar Ridge, and Cedar Ridge to the rim.  Each section has its fairly difficult ascents, especially from the river to the Tipoff and the brutal switchbacks, just before you get to Skeleton Pt.  We ascended slowly but steadily, running everything that was runnable.  As we neared the rim the first mule train was coming down so we took a refreshing break to let them pass before moving on.  Just as we reached the last set of switchbacks before the rim, the first hikers bus had arrived and a steady stream of headlamps came at us like Christmas lights.  At this point daylight was coming quickly.  We arrived at the rim at 445 am, jumped into Joel's van, and slept for a couple of hours.  Ahhh that sleeping bag felt good.  What a great start to a difficult weekend.

Day 2 we decided to let off of the hills and just go for a long run on the forest roads.  I knew this would be the toughest day for me as running 20 miles on a flat road would be more mentally taxing then physical.  Starting from Joel's house we proceeded out to the forest, starting on forest road 518, this was a gradual uphill for the first 8 miles or so.  Luckily there was cloud cover that kept it cool.  We passed a few places in the forest that a tornado had ripped through last fall.  It looked like someone had taken a huge lawn mower and cut the trees off about 15 feet from the ground.  Crazy the destruction.  We proceeded to forest road 171, then 222, and back to Joel's house.  Coming in at 20 miles and just over 3 hours, it was a relief to get this run out of the way and have plenty of time to recover for the final day.

Day 3 we met at the bottom of Snowbowl Road, where we would shuttle to the starting point of the Weatherford trailhead.  Another morning of cloud cover and everything was still wet from the rain the night before.  Heading up the Weatherford the first 1.5 miles or so is just a continuous grind, climbing 700+ feet.  My legs were on fire and the lungs were working overtime.  We help on though and were able to make it to the Kachina trail junction on the run.  Feeling good about this considering we had already run 35+ miles and climbed over 6500 feet the previous 2 days.  About a mile up the Kachina trail I was feeling my first stomach issue of the long training.  This would be something to work through considering we still had 14 miles to run and the possibility of this is great in the race.  Focusing on an awesome run across the Kachina trail through wet ferns, and lush forest, I kept concentrating on the run and not what was going on with my stomach.  We saw a herd of elk and a few deer along the way.  We arrived at the Snowbowl ski area about 1.5 hours into the run.  Knowing it was downhill back to the truck was a relief.  We were now going to explore the new Arizona trail.  Descending from Snowbowl, we ran through meadows, passing the protesters camped out, who are opposed to snowmaking.  We proceeded on the Arizona trail south, the new trail is amazing, smooth, and a fairly gradual descent.  We arrived at the small section of the trail that was not finished and proceeded to go cross country, following the marking flags of where the trail will be.  After about .75 miles we arrived at the other end of the trail which was also in primo condition.  Down we went through the forest.  We opened up at about 7800 feet, where the sun was out and it was getting warm.  We were making good time, and still running solid.  We arrived back at the truck in just under 3 hours.  No worse for the wear but still mentally and physically fatigued.

We accomplished a weekend where we would become better team mates and friends, working together to push forward, and overcome adversity when things got tough.  Our communication is great, and out team work is getting even better.  I feel that we are very close in our understanding of our abilities and where we will be in this race.  Our totals for the week were 51+ miles, 10.5 hours on feet, and over 8500+ feet of elevation gain.  This week focuses on turnover, and then one more very difficult week of training before tapering.  We are ready now but will be even more ready when race time comes.

mw

In The Thick Of It

Mark and I are in the middle of the toughest part of our training at this point. All the miles we've put in over the last several months are really paying off now, so we can focus on the key workouts. I ran nearly 70 miles last week and this week looks to be a bit more. A typical week consists of one interval workout, usually with hills, and two or three days of long runs. In between those are easy miles, just to keep the legs going. Today Mike tortured us on the dreadmill with hill repeats at 13 and 15 percent grade. I hate the treadmill, but I think it allows for consistency in elevation gain and in pace, which offers a quick measure of where we're at physically.

Overall, things are going very well. I ran the Kona Marathon a couple of weeks ago as a training run and was able to keep extremely even splits over the 26 miles. It's a very hot and humid race and my goal was mainly to feel good at the end. I really hadn't trained to race it. I finished in 3:45 and was happy with my performance. Even better, I was able to start running two days later and even finished a 23 mile long run with significant elevation gain just a week after the race. It really has amazed me what I can get my body to do. I never thought I was capable of running this much over such challenging terrain, but I think the fact that I started months ago and just kept slowly increasing the effort has allowed me to get where I'm at.

Not surprisingly, my body has been more tired recently and I'm becoming more aware of the importance of rest and nutrition. I've been able to squeeze in a few naps occasionally, but I'm probably not getting enough sleep overall. I'm not a big eater either, but I'm burning a shitload of calories. So I have to also get better at refueling properly. Randi, my wife, has been so supportive through all of this, but this month the burden on her has really increased now that I'm on the trail many more hours or having to spend time resting. I couldn't do this without her.

jea

And that's a stage

Joel and I embarked on a long run yesterday that will resemble one of the 3 longer stages of TR.  It began with a few sprinkles in the morning, we were hoping to avoid any severe storms while exposed as they were forecast.  We started a loop that would in the end be 23 miles and close to 5 hours of running.  Starting at the Schultz Tank trailhead at 8000 feet, then up the Weatherford trail to Doyle Saddle at 10800.  We continued up to the top near Humphreys Peak, topping out at 12012 feet and just under 10 miles before descending the next 13 miles back to start.

We encountered a lot of traffic on the Humphreys trail with the holiday weekend in full force.  We ended up making a pit stop at Snowbowl's Agassiz lodge to refill our water.  Once we were hydrated we motored down the Kachina trail which was a long homestretch back to start.  Refueling at the car with a recovery drink and thinking about the day, we realized we are ready for this 6 day adventure and just need to fine tune a few things.

Things stay on the crazy side this week with long back to back runs this weekend and a hill workout on Wednesday.  Only 6 more weeks and the race is on.

mw

Getting Serious?

A lot of training, racing, and fun has occurred since my last post.  I entered 2 races, the first one was a 10K which I ran easy the first half and then put the gas on in the second half, and still knocked 2 minutes off of last years time.  I also entered a 15K and knocked 10 minutes off of last years time and was still recovering from a Grand Canyon run I did a few days before.  The fitness is paying off in many ways.

Weekly mileage is now creeping up into the mid 60s, with a variety of running including fartlek, threshold, and long runs.

I did a long back to back last week with no problems which means I am almost there.  This week Joel and I are finally on the same schedule so are planning a bunch of runs together.  We started with an awesome run this morning up Schultz Creek trail with Aaron, Eric, and Scott.  Tomorrow we are doing a trail fartlek, followed by a real easy 6 mile run with NATRA on Saturday, and then the biggy of the week is a 20 mile long loop over the San Francisco peaks, starting at 8000 feet, climbing to close to 12000 and then back to start.  This should be in the neighborhood of a 4 to 5 hour run and test our endurance.  Joel and I are coming together in our training both physically and mentally, which will make for an awesome week at TR.

I also took a trip to southwest Colorado to get some sustained running in above 10000 feet.  Based just out of Silverton, I ran an 8 mile easy run with 1500 feet of climbing, and then a 10 miler the next day with close to 3000 feet of climbing, its a whole different game when you are climbing above 11000 feet.

The vistas in that area are incredible and rejuvenated my running for the homestretch of training.

My oldest son went with me and allowed us some fun times, hiking, rock climbing, sitting in the hot springs, and the daily waffle cone.

I usually update Mike about my weekly progress, this last week I was at 61 miles and 9 hours of running, to which he replied "Great, now we can get started for real".  Yikes!  Except for the occasional solo long run, the training has been fun and I feel that I will be more than prepared for a great race.

mw

Long, Long, Long Weekend

In more support of the notion that I finally have a handle on my knee problems, I finished my first back to back to back long run weekend. I started off with a very early 12 mile warm up on Friday so that I could get to work on time. Then Mark and I ran 15 pretty hard trail miles on Saturday. We ran into some friends at the top of Elden and shared some awesome miles before heading back to the trailhead. I followed that up with another 15 miles on Sunday, though those were much easier miles than our Saturday run.

I've been feeling pretty good, generally, and had no trouble psyching myself up for the weekend. I was looking forward to it. This weekend was about just experiencing what it's like to run on tired legs. I've got harder weekends ahead of me, but this was my first touch. In addition to the massage, stretching, and strengthening, I've really been focusing on how lucky I am to have this opportunity.... the power of positive thinking I guess. I'm just out there enjoying myself, soaking it all in.

Next up, I leave for Hawaii at the end of this week. In addition to simply enjoying my time in paradise, I've got my trail runs planned out. I'm also signed up for the Kona Marathon which happens to be taking place the last weekend of my vacation. How can I not run it? We'll see how I feel, though. I may drop to the half if it's not feeling right. I'll be in Hawaii for vacation and my first priority is relaxation. But then again, running is relaxing..... Aloha!

jea

It's About Time...

This post has been a long time coming. Every time I thought about sitting to write about my training, I just wanted to avoid the topic. My last post, back on April 9th, indicated that everything was going great, but that I was starting to experience some kind of knee problem. Well, I've basically spent the last month and half working it out. I've sought advice from peers and professionals, researched the interwebs, rested the knee for days, stretched, strengthened, and massaged. In the weeks that I've been trying to figure this out, I've come to the conclusion, with the help of my massage therapist, that I've got a joint problem, specifically at the Proximal Tibia-Fibular Joint.

But let's get back to early April....  I backed off my training right before the Sycamore Canyon 30K and wasn't really sure how that race was going to go. In fact, in the week leading up to the race Mark was suggesting that perhaps we don't even bother doing it. I had been looking forward to it all along and ultimately we decided to make a weekend out of it and race the 30K. It was a great weekend. I wasn't my strongest, but I felt like it really couldn't have gone much better for me. The knee wasn't a factor at all, and I started to get some of my confidence back. Mark and I had a great road trip. We stayed at my sister's place by the beach, enjoyed the race along the coastal hills of Malibu, and relaxed for a few days.

I had a little boost in my confidence after the 30K, but it quickly became apparent that I hadn't really fixed anything with my knee. I just rested it. The pressure I felt in the joint and the occasional pain continued. In light of the problem, I also started to question what to do next with my training. If I just upped my mileage again I feared that I would be right back where I was at the beginning of April. I knew I needed to make some kind of change.

I thought about seeing a doctor, maybe a physical therapist. I also continued to seek out articles on the web. After reading some stuff by John Ball, a chiropractor that marathon sensation Ryan Hall uses, I had a realization that I need to try to improve how I stretch and roll out my muscles. Ball talked about how some athletes are afraid to cause themselves pain at home, then they come into the office and expect him to do it. I took that as a prompt to get in there and do some deep tissue massage. One evening, I rolled the shit out of my leg. I felt a painful knot in my thigh, just to the outside and above my knee. So, I massaged that out with my thumbs. The next morning my whole thigh felt kind of bruised. But as the day wore on, I also felt a noticeable difference in my knee... less pressure and no pain. I went for a run that afternoon and felt really good. I got pretty excited at the prospect that I may have found something that could improve my condition.

At that point I decided I needed to find a local sports massage therapist and, after talking to some running friends, found Geoffrey Bishop. Geoffrey specializes in athletes and has worked with lots of elite runners. As we've worked together over the weeks, we pinpointed my problem to the tibia-fibular joint. I now feel like I've got a plan to help manage my problem. I regularly do some core strengthening, targeted stretching, and massage. I finally feel like I've got some direction in dealing with my knee. And this has freed me up to refocus on my TR training, too. I'm back to a regular training program and have steadily increased the frequency of my runs, and my mileage.

It probably doesn't come across in this post, but I've really felt like I've been on a roller coaster these past 6 weeks. I've done a lot of thinking about what I want out of this and how I'm going to get there. I've never lost sight of the fact that I will run TRR. That's never been in doubt. But I'm listening to my body more and relying less on rigidly sticking to some training plan. I'm trying to have more fun with this process because it's not just about running TransRockies, it's about getting there. I want to enjoy this part of it and not constantly stress over my weekly mileage. I love to run and I love to run on trails. If I'm just focused on the race, I'll miss all that I'm running by right now.

-jea

Training Phase Two

Seems like phase 1 of training is long gone and the 30K seems like ages ago.  I am now in week 3 of my training with coach Mike Smith.  I am continuing with a lot of base training with workouts thrown in a couple of days a week.  Mike says we will get to specific TRR type of training in June.

So far everything feels great and even better than during the base training.  I am running about the same time and mileage that I was running at the end of the base training.  I am also adding some workouts to help with turnover.  Not being a runner until recently I am learning everything about it from cadence, pacing, and economy.

Mike wants me to have more than just two gears.  Right now its slow and fast.  He wants me to be able to understand where I am at with my body and how long I can hold a gear before I need to change.  This will be beneficial if we get to a stage where we have the opportunity to be successful and I can hold a higher level for a sustained period of time.

I am really having fun with this part of the training as it is something new and I enjoy the learning process.   I can already feel my body adapting to multiple gears and its becoming automatic now when running a tempo run, or intervals.

I am headed to Alaska for a week and am looking forward to some epic runs while there.  I am grateful to have a coach like Mike guiding me towards TRR.

maw