To run faster you'd have to train faster but cautiously so you don't get injured. I started getting faster in the summer of 2003 when I stopped doing long runs. There is nothing wrong with long runs as long as half of the runs simulate a real race with gel early on, with very short stops for water and running at race pace or faster. I haven't found a group that does it that. Susan's Runner's World schedule has marathon pace runs going up to 18 miles.
If you get too many long slow runs in and relatively few miles at tempo or 5k pace, your mind will think running at marathon pace is uncomfortable and you will slow down.
You could say my marathons are my long runs. In 2001, I ran 16 marathons and these long runs did not help with speed. I remembered being more tired from running 5 hours than running a marathon in under 4 hours. Susan will tell you that my legs are less beat up post-marathon now that they were back in 2001.
There is usually a 4 month gap between my last spring marathon and the next fall marathon. I run the fall marathon much faster than the spring one even though my last "long run" was 4 months previous. The speed/endurance came from a lot of fast short runs.
In the 2005 summer session I focused for hard 2 mile runs.
In 2006, I added 4 mile runs.
This year, I hope to train up to 6 to 10 miles by meeting up with a faster group after warming up with a slower group. My last 2 miles of a run are always the fastest. The mind will remember to tell your legs to run at that speed.
This is why when you are tapering you should focus on running at or faster marathon pace for a shorter duration with plenty of recovery. If you run at an easy pace during a taper, it will be much harder for your mind to tell you legs to go faster.
I struggled this spring to get my speed back because my mind got used to running 12 minute miles in 365 miles of ultra running. It's coming back but I am still slower than last fall.
After age 40, you'd have to think about cutting back on mileage, the number of intervals, longer recoveries and taking more days off to cross-train. The 5k to marathon charts underestimate the 5k times. Dropping some body fat will help reduce the load on the muscles, connective tissue and joints.
1997
Chicago 502
1998
Anchorage 502 - Team In Training
Chicago 451
1999
Disney 445
Boston 516 - entry from sponsor
Dublin 436 - Team In Training
Jax 426
2000
Disney 438
Austin 433
VirginiaBeach 426
Paris 436 - Team Diabetes
SanFran 448
CorningNY 447
MarineCorp 453
Jax 445
2001
Clearwater 501
Austin 502
NapaValley 522
VirginiaBeach 512
Rome 512 - Team Diabetes
Boston 502 - bandit
Cincinnati 527
SanDiego 524
Chicago 432
Tahoe 525
Columbus 433
Dublin 451 - Team Diabetes
Bethesda,MD 434
Richmond 444
Tampa 454
Jax 536
2002
Houston 516
Ogden,UT 440
Palos Verdes,CA 440
GreenBay,WI 516
Logan,UT 422
Chicago 445
MarineCorp 433
Jax 416
2003
Disney 429
HuntingtonBeach,CA 455
Ogden,UT 443
Logan,UT 400
Chicago 414 - expresso and beer
MarineCorp 404
NewYork 422
Jax 342
2004
Disney 331
Miami 352
Clearwater 408
New Jersey 328
Ogden,UT 343
Erie 359
Chicago 344
MarineCorp 413
JFK 50 Miler 1005
2005
New Jersey 422
Ottawa 411
Sacramento 344
Chicago 343
MarineCorp 355
JFK 50 Miler 910
Jax 340
2006
Disney 342
RockyRac 100 miler DNF @80miles 1635
Tampa 402
New Jersey 354
Ave of the Giants 412
Self-Transcendence 334
Logan,UT 337
Steamtown 328
Chicago 327
Philly 357 - Endurance 50 - 3 in 3 days.
NJ 409
New York 335
JFK 50 Miler 840 - beat Dave finally!
Vegas 419 - paced Jeri in for her PR
Jax 337
Luna50k 505
2007
Disney 358 - official time 3:59:59
RockyRac 100miler 2236
IronHorse100miler 1952 - my first win!
Atlanta 408
Sunrise 170 miler DNF @65miles 1524
BigSur 351
Old Dominion 100 miler 2243 - 5th place
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Review of Run Less, Run Faster
from Business Week - May 21, 2007
My recommendation for most busy, injury-prone, type A runners is to emphasize quality of training over quantity. This conclusion comes after consulting with experts and fellow runners and going by my own 35 years of experience as a competitive runner. (For what it's worth, I ran a half-marathon last month at age 49 in 1 hour, 23 minutes.)
What's wrong with quantity? Because running, say, three tough workouts a week and resting or going easy on other days will give you better results, in less time and more safely, than slogging through lots of mileage at a mediocre pace. Cutting back on mileage will also free up time for the strengthening and stretching exercises you know you need but have been ignoring. True, high-quality workouts are a strain on the body—by design, they break down muscle fibers so they rebuild themselves stronger. But done right, such programs aren't much riskier than the ultracautious approach of going both short and slow.
A new book that takes this position is Runner's World: Run Less, Run Faster by Bill Pierce, Scott Murr, and Ray Moss, a team of health and exercise experts at Furman University in South Carolina. The Furman program involves only three days of running per week, plus two or three days of cross-training. Even marathoners in the program do just 35 miles in their longest week.
Sound wimpy? It isn't. Each running session is intense. There is a speed day with roughly 5 kilometers' worth of intervals on the track (for example, 10 fast laps with short rests in between), a run at a tempo just slightly slower than your 5K race pace, and a long run at a healthy clip. The twice-or-thrice-a-week cross-training, such as swimming or biking, is supposed to be done hard, too, so you get a genuine cardiovascular and muscular workout while giving your legs a chance to recover from the pounding.
If you line up exercise regimens in terms of their stress on the body, Furman is roughly in the middle. The approach espoused by Jeff Galloway, a former Olympian, occupies the ultrasafe end of the spectrum. Like Furman's, his acolytes run just three times a week. But Galloway controversially recommends taking walk breaks, not only during training, but in races as well. He says walking rejuvenates the legs so you can finish strong and beat people who don't take breaks. "The intensity [of the Furman approach] is too great for most of today's runners," Galloway says in an e-mail.
TROPHY GRABBERS
Of course, some serious working adults somehow manage to do heavy mileage at high quality and not break down. Those are the ones up there on the stage grabbing the trophies while you clutch your finisher's medal.
Even older runners can thrive on enormous amounts of mileage if they build up to it gradually, says Kevin Beck, a coach for DistanceCoach.com. Pete Pfitzinger, the two-time U.S. Olympic marathoner and exercise physiologist who operates DistanceCoach.com out of his home in New Zealand, says in an e-mail that Furman's low-mileage approach sounds overly risk-averse for most runners. "I would only recommend it to those runners who have a history of injury when running more than [Furman] recommends," he says. Furman's Pierce disputes that but agrees that runners who manage to avoid injury could "most likely" run faster by running more miles.
Whether you fall in with Galloway, Furman, Pfitzinger, or some other training program, you'll have to confront some hard truths: You don't get fast by running slowly. You can't run at all if you get injured. And you can't do a 90-minute run if all you have to spare is 45.
For me, at least, the best compromise is fewer running workouts but better ones: zippy, hard-charging miles that make me feel like a sprinter, not a slogger. That gets me home sooner, with my sadly aging human infrastructure intact to run another day.
My recommendation for most busy, injury-prone, type A runners is to emphasize quality of training over quantity. This conclusion comes after consulting with experts and fellow runners and going by my own 35 years of experience as a competitive runner. (For what it's worth, I ran a half-marathon last month at age 49 in 1 hour, 23 minutes.)
What's wrong with quantity? Because running, say, three tough workouts a week and resting or going easy on other days will give you better results, in less time and more safely, than slogging through lots of mileage at a mediocre pace. Cutting back on mileage will also free up time for the strengthening and stretching exercises you know you need but have been ignoring. True, high-quality workouts are a strain on the body—by design, they break down muscle fibers so they rebuild themselves stronger. But done right, such programs aren't much riskier than the ultracautious approach of going both short and slow.
A new book that takes this position is Runner's World: Run Less, Run Faster by Bill Pierce, Scott Murr, and Ray Moss, a team of health and exercise experts at Furman University in South Carolina. The Furman program involves only three days of running per week, plus two or three days of cross-training. Even marathoners in the program do just 35 miles in their longest week.
Sound wimpy? It isn't. Each running session is intense. There is a speed day with roughly 5 kilometers' worth of intervals on the track (for example, 10 fast laps with short rests in between), a run at a tempo just slightly slower than your 5K race pace, and a long run at a healthy clip. The twice-or-thrice-a-week cross-training, such as swimming or biking, is supposed to be done hard, too, so you get a genuine cardiovascular and muscular workout while giving your legs a chance to recover from the pounding.
If you line up exercise regimens in terms of their stress on the body, Furman is roughly in the middle. The approach espoused by Jeff Galloway, a former Olympian, occupies the ultrasafe end of the spectrum. Like Furman's, his acolytes run just three times a week. But Galloway controversially recommends taking walk breaks, not only during training, but in races as well. He says walking rejuvenates the legs so you can finish strong and beat people who don't take breaks. "The intensity [of the Furman approach] is too great for most of today's runners," Galloway says in an e-mail.
TROPHY GRABBERS
Of course, some serious working adults somehow manage to do heavy mileage at high quality and not break down. Those are the ones up there on the stage grabbing the trophies while you clutch your finisher's medal.
Even older runners can thrive on enormous amounts of mileage if they build up to it gradually, says Kevin Beck, a coach for DistanceCoach.com. Pete Pfitzinger, the two-time U.S. Olympic marathoner and exercise physiologist who operates DistanceCoach.com out of his home in New Zealand, says in an e-mail that Furman's low-mileage approach sounds overly risk-averse for most runners. "I would only recommend it to those runners who have a history of injury when running more than [Furman] recommends," he says. Furman's Pierce disputes that but agrees that runners who manage to avoid injury could "most likely" run faster by running more miles.
Whether you fall in with Galloway, Furman, Pfitzinger, or some other training program, you'll have to confront some hard truths: You don't get fast by running slowly. You can't run at all if you get injured. And you can't do a 90-minute run if all you have to spare is 45.
For me, at least, the best compromise is fewer running workouts but better ones: zippy, hard-charging miles that make me feel like a sprinter, not a slogger. That gets me home sooner, with my sadly aging human infrastructure intact to run another day.
More on the importance of speedwork
from a training Boston marathon training manual - Bill Rodgers and Billy Squires for John Hancock's marathon group.
Two points underlined in the manual:
a) intensity of training pace, not duration of the training run, is a more important factor in developing fitness for the marathon. The best predictor of marathon pace is the average speed of 6-10 mile training runs.
b) as the intensity is increased, you must also couple the increased intensity with appropriate rest and proper nutrition. Rest is a critical element in training.
from Tim Noakes --The Lore of Running ( I have his 900+ page book if anyone wants to borrow it)
When evaluating the training patterns of 88 runners in the 1982 Glasgow Marathon, Grant and colleagues found that that average distance run in training was 37 miles per week for the 12 weeks prior to the race, and this ranged from 15 to 64 miles. This study also debunked two important myths.
Firstly, there is no relationship between weekly training distance and marathon time (as shown by Franklin and others)(2).
Secondly, despite their apparent inadequate training, the runners did not slow down dramatically after hitting their predicted ‘collapse point’ at about 17 mile. Thus, they could find no evidence to support the collapse-point theory proposed by Ken Young(3). This theory holds that runners who do not train more than 63 miles per week ‘collapse’, and are reduced to a ‘shuffle’ when they race more than three times their average daily training distance for the last eight weeks before the marathon.
For the first six to eight years of my running career, I trained exclusively by running long, slow distances. However, I now firmly believe that this training approach, which emphasises distance training to the virtual exclusion of speedwork, although very safe, is not the best way to train for any distance, including ultra-marathons. I endorse Roger Bannister’s view that high mileage distance training increases the athlete’s speed of recovery from effort, but does not increase racing speed. The athlete must achieve a balance by doing just the right amount of speed training.
Two points underlined in the manual:
a) intensity of training pace, not duration of the training run, is a more important factor in developing fitness for the marathon. The best predictor of marathon pace is the average speed of 6-10 mile training runs.
b) as the intensity is increased, you must also couple the increased intensity with appropriate rest and proper nutrition. Rest is a critical element in training.
from Tim Noakes --The Lore of Running ( I have his 900+ page book if anyone wants to borrow it)
When evaluating the training patterns of 88 runners in the 1982 Glasgow Marathon, Grant and colleagues found that that average distance run in training was 37 miles per week for the 12 weeks prior to the race, and this ranged from 15 to 64 miles. This study also debunked two important myths.
Firstly, there is no relationship between weekly training distance and marathon time (as shown by Franklin and others)(2).
Secondly, despite their apparent inadequate training, the runners did not slow down dramatically after hitting their predicted ‘collapse point’ at about 17 mile. Thus, they could find no evidence to support the collapse-point theory proposed by Ken Young(3). This theory holds that runners who do not train more than 63 miles per week ‘collapse’, and are reduced to a ‘shuffle’ when they race more than three times their average daily training distance for the last eight weeks before the marathon.
For the first six to eight years of my running career, I trained exclusively by running long, slow distances. However, I now firmly believe that this training approach, which emphasises distance training to the virtual exclusion of speedwork, although very safe, is not the best way to train for any distance, including ultra-marathons. I endorse Roger Bannister’s view that high mileage distance training increases the athlete’s speed of recovery from effort, but does not increase racing speed. The athlete must achieve a balance by doing just the right amount of speed training.
Benefits of intense interval training
from June 2005 issue of the Journal of Applied Physiology
Sprinting for endurance - Very intense exercise, as little as 12 minutes total over a two-week period, can double endurance capacity.
Sixteen physically active college students ages 21 to 27 took part in the study. Eight were tested two weeks apart with no training in between. The other eight performed "sprint interval training" - they did four to seven 30-second sprints on a stationary bicycle, resting four minutes between each sprint. A researcher encouraged them verbally to pedal as hard as possible. They performed six of these sessions over two weeks.
The results were surprising. The average improvement in cycle endurance, measured by time to fatigue, was about 100 percent (from 26 minutes at the beginning of training to 51 minutes at the end). The group that did not train showed no improvement.
This kind of training, at least in its most demanding form, may not be for everyone. "We're not suggesting that totally sedentary people jump on a bicycle and start pedaling their hearts out," said Martin J. Gibala, the senior author of the paper, "and we're not suggesting that people do only six minutes of exercise per week. But interval training is not just for elite athletes. Studies have shown that the elderly, and even people with coronary artery disease, can benefit from a properly supervised interval training program."
Dr. Gibala, who is a professor in the kinesiology department at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, suggested that even people whose only exercise is walking might improve their endurance by simply walking a bit faster for alternating intervals of time. "The main message," he said, "is that people can get away with less exercise time if they are willing to trade duration for intensity."
Sprinting for endurance - Very intense exercise, as little as 12 minutes total over a two-week period, can double endurance capacity.
Sixteen physically active college students ages 21 to 27 took part in the study. Eight were tested two weeks apart with no training in between. The other eight performed "sprint interval training" - they did four to seven 30-second sprints on a stationary bicycle, resting four minutes between each sprint. A researcher encouraged them verbally to pedal as hard as possible. They performed six of these sessions over two weeks.
The results were surprising. The average improvement in cycle endurance, measured by time to fatigue, was about 100 percent (from 26 minutes at the beginning of training to 51 minutes at the end). The group that did not train showed no improvement.
This kind of training, at least in its most demanding form, may not be for everyone. "We're not suggesting that totally sedentary people jump on a bicycle and start pedaling their hearts out," said Martin J. Gibala, the senior author of the paper, "and we're not suggesting that people do only six minutes of exercise per week. But interval training is not just for elite athletes. Studies have shown that the elderly, and even people with coronary artery disease, can benefit from a properly supervised interval training program."
Dr. Gibala, who is a professor in the kinesiology department at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, suggested that even people whose only exercise is walking might improve their endurance by simply walking a bit faster for alternating intervals of time. "The main message," he said, "is that people can get away with less exercise time if they are willing to trade duration for intensity."
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Fatigue - it's mostly in your head
Ultra runners will ingest only about 75% of the calories that they burn. The other 25% comes mostly from body fat. Is race nutrition really about keeping the brain happy rather than fueling the muscles?
from the Times 5/23/2006
A spate of recent studies has contributed to growing support for the notion that the origins and controls of fatigue lie partly, if not mostly, within the brain and the central nervous system. The new research puts fresh weight to the hoary coaching cliché: you only think you’re tired.
From the time of Hippocrates, the limits of human exertion were thought to reside in the muscles themselves, a hypothesis that was established in 1922 with the Nobel Prize-winning work of Dr. A.V. Hill. The theory went like this: working muscles, pushed to their limit, accumulated lactic acid. When concentrations of lactic acid reached a certain level, so the argument went, the muscles could no longer function. Muscles contained an ‘‘automatic brake,’’ Hill wrote, ‘‘carefully adjusted by nature.’’
Researchers, however, have long noted a link between neurological disorders and athletic potential. In the late 1800’s, the pioneering French doctor Philippe Tissié observed that phobias and epilepsy could be beneficial for athletic training. A few decades later, the German surgeon August Bier measured the spontaneous long jump of a mentally disturbed patient, noting that it compared favorably to the existing world record. These types of exertions seemed to defy the notion of built-in muscular limits and, Bier noted, were made possible by ‘‘powerful mental stimuli and the simultaneous elimination of inhibitions.’’
Questions about the muscle-centered model came up again in 1989 when Canadian researchers published the results of an experiment called Operation Everest II, in which athletes did heavy exercise in altitude chambers. The athletes reached exhaustion despite the fact that their lactic-acid concentrations remained comfortably low. Fatigue, it seemed, might be caused by something else.
In 1999, three physiologists from the University of Cape Town Medical School in South Africa took the next step. They worked a group of cyclists to exhaustion during a 62-mile laboratory ride and measured, via electrodes, the percentage of leg muscles they were using at the fatigue limit. If standard theories were true, they reasoned, the body should recruit more muscle fibers as it approached exhaustion — a natural compensation for tired, weakening muscles.
Instead, the researchers observed the opposite result. As the riders approached complete fatigue, the percentage of active muscle fibers decreased, until they were using only about 30 percent. Even as the athletes felt they were giving their all, the reality was that more of their muscles were at rest. Was the brain purposely holding back the body?
‘‘It was as if the brain was playing a trick on the body, to save it,’’ says Timothy Noakes, head of the Cape Town group. ‘‘Which makes a lot of sense, if you think about it. In fatigue, it only feels like we’re going to die. The actual physiological risks that fatigue represents are essentially trivial.’’
From this, Noakes and his colleagues concluded that A.V. Hill had been right about the automatic brake, but wrong about its location. They postulated the existence of what they called a central governor: a neural system that monitors carbohydrate stores, the levels of glucose and oxygen in the blood, the rates of heat gain and loss, and work rates. The governor’s job is to hold our bodies safely back from the brink of collapse by creating painful sensations that we interpret as unendurable muscle fatigue.
Fatigue, the researchers argue, is less an objective event than a subjective emotion — the brain’s clever, self-interested attempt to scare you into stopping. The way past fatigue, then, is to return the favor: to fool the brain by lying to it, distracting it or even provoking it. (That said, mental gamesmanship can never overcome a basic lack of fitness. As Noakes says, the body always holds veto power.)
‘‘Athletes and coaches already do a lot of this instinctively,’’ Noakes says. ‘‘What is a coach, after all, but a technique for overcoming the governor?’’
The governor theory is far from conclusive, but some scientists are focusing on a walnut-size area in the front portion of the brain called the anterior cingulate cortex. This has been linked to a host of core functions, including handling pain, creating emotion and playing a key role in what’s known loosely as willpower. Sir Francis Crick, the co-discoverer of DNA, thought the anterior cingulate cortex to be the seat of the soul. In the sports world, perhaps no soul relies on it more than Jure Robic’s.
Some people ‘‘have the ability to reprocess the pain signal,’’ says Daniel Galper, a senior researcher in the psychiatry department at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. ‘‘It’s not that they don’t feel the pain; they just shift their brain dynamics and alter their perception of reality so the pain matters less. It’s basically a purposeful hallucination.’’
Noakes and his colleagues speculate that the central governor theory holds the potential to explain not just feats of stamina but also their opposite: chronic fatigue syndrome (a malfunctioning, overactive governor, in this view). Moreover, the governor theory makes evolutionary sense. Animals whose brains safeguarded an emergency stash of physical reserves might well have survived at a higher rate than animals that could drain their fuel tanks at will.
The theory would also seem to explain a sports landscape in which ultra-endurance events have gone from being considered medically hazardous to something perilously close to routine. The Ironman triathlon in Hawaii — a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and marathon-length run — was the ne plus ultra in endurance in the 1980’s, but has now been topped by the Ultraman, which is more than twice as long. Once obscure, the genre known as adventure racing, which includes 500-plus-mile wilderness races like Primal Quest, has grown to more than 400 events each year. Ultramarathoners, defined as those who participate in running events exceeding the official marathon distance of 26.2 miles, now number some 15,000 in the United States alone. The underlying physics have not changed, but rather our sense of possibility. Athletic culture, like Robic, has discovered a way to tweak its collective governor.
When we try understanding Robic’s relationship to severe pain, however, our interest tends to be more visceral. Namely, how does it feel?
‘‘I feel like if I go on, I will die,’’ he says, struggling for words. ‘‘It is everything at the same moment, piled up over and over. Head, muscles, bones. Nobody can understand. You cannot
imagine it until you feel it.’’
A few moments later, he says: ‘‘The pain doesn’t exist for me. I know it is there because I feel it, but I don’t pay attention to it. I sometimes see myself from the other view, looking down at me riding the bike. It is strange, but it happens like that.’’ Robic veers like this when he discusses pain. He talks of incomprehensible suffering one moment and of dreamlike anesthesia the next. If pain is in fact both signal and emotion, perhaps that makes sense. Perhaps the closer we get to its dual nature, the more elusive any single truth becomes, and the better we understand what Emily Dickinson meant when she wrote that ‘‘pain has an element of blank.’’
from the Times 5/23/2006
A spate of recent studies has contributed to growing support for the notion that the origins and controls of fatigue lie partly, if not mostly, within the brain and the central nervous system. The new research puts fresh weight to the hoary coaching cliché: you only think you’re tired.
From the time of Hippocrates, the limits of human exertion were thought to reside in the muscles themselves, a hypothesis that was established in 1922 with the Nobel Prize-winning work of Dr. A.V. Hill. The theory went like this: working muscles, pushed to their limit, accumulated lactic acid. When concentrations of lactic acid reached a certain level, so the argument went, the muscles could no longer function. Muscles contained an ‘‘automatic brake,’’ Hill wrote, ‘‘carefully adjusted by nature.’’
Researchers, however, have long noted a link between neurological disorders and athletic potential. In the late 1800’s, the pioneering French doctor Philippe Tissié observed that phobias and epilepsy could be beneficial for athletic training. A few decades later, the German surgeon August Bier measured the spontaneous long jump of a mentally disturbed patient, noting that it compared favorably to the existing world record. These types of exertions seemed to defy the notion of built-in muscular limits and, Bier noted, were made possible by ‘‘powerful mental stimuli and the simultaneous elimination of inhibitions.’’
Questions about the muscle-centered model came up again in 1989 when Canadian researchers published the results of an experiment called Operation Everest II, in which athletes did heavy exercise in altitude chambers. The athletes reached exhaustion despite the fact that their lactic-acid concentrations remained comfortably low. Fatigue, it seemed, might be caused by something else.
In 1999, three physiologists from the University of Cape Town Medical School in South Africa took the next step. They worked a group of cyclists to exhaustion during a 62-mile laboratory ride and measured, via electrodes, the percentage of leg muscles they were using at the fatigue limit. If standard theories were true, they reasoned, the body should recruit more muscle fibers as it approached exhaustion — a natural compensation for tired, weakening muscles.
Instead, the researchers observed the opposite result. As the riders approached complete fatigue, the percentage of active muscle fibers decreased, until they were using only about 30 percent. Even as the athletes felt they were giving their all, the reality was that more of their muscles were at rest. Was the brain purposely holding back the body?
‘‘It was as if the brain was playing a trick on the body, to save it,’’ says Timothy Noakes, head of the Cape Town group. ‘‘Which makes a lot of sense, if you think about it. In fatigue, it only feels like we’re going to die. The actual physiological risks that fatigue represents are essentially trivial.’’
From this, Noakes and his colleagues concluded that A.V. Hill had been right about the automatic brake, but wrong about its location. They postulated the existence of what they called a central governor: a neural system that monitors carbohydrate stores, the levels of glucose and oxygen in the blood, the rates of heat gain and loss, and work rates. The governor’s job is to hold our bodies safely back from the brink of collapse by creating painful sensations that we interpret as unendurable muscle fatigue.
Fatigue, the researchers argue, is less an objective event than a subjective emotion — the brain’s clever, self-interested attempt to scare you into stopping. The way past fatigue, then, is to return the favor: to fool the brain by lying to it, distracting it or even provoking it. (That said, mental gamesmanship can never overcome a basic lack of fitness. As Noakes says, the body always holds veto power.)
‘‘Athletes and coaches already do a lot of this instinctively,’’ Noakes says. ‘‘What is a coach, after all, but a technique for overcoming the governor?’’
The governor theory is far from conclusive, but some scientists are focusing on a walnut-size area in the front portion of the brain called the anterior cingulate cortex. This has been linked to a host of core functions, including handling pain, creating emotion and playing a key role in what’s known loosely as willpower. Sir Francis Crick, the co-discoverer of DNA, thought the anterior cingulate cortex to be the seat of the soul. In the sports world, perhaps no soul relies on it more than Jure Robic’s.
Some people ‘‘have the ability to reprocess the pain signal,’’ says Daniel Galper, a senior researcher in the psychiatry department at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. ‘‘It’s not that they don’t feel the pain; they just shift their brain dynamics and alter their perception of reality so the pain matters less. It’s basically a purposeful hallucination.’’
Noakes and his colleagues speculate that the central governor theory holds the potential to explain not just feats of stamina but also their opposite: chronic fatigue syndrome (a malfunctioning, overactive governor, in this view). Moreover, the governor theory makes evolutionary sense. Animals whose brains safeguarded an emergency stash of physical reserves might well have survived at a higher rate than animals that could drain their fuel tanks at will.
The theory would also seem to explain a sports landscape in which ultra-endurance events have gone from being considered medically hazardous to something perilously close to routine. The Ironman triathlon in Hawaii — a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and marathon-length run — was the ne plus ultra in endurance in the 1980’s, but has now been topped by the Ultraman, which is more than twice as long. Once obscure, the genre known as adventure racing, which includes 500-plus-mile wilderness races like Primal Quest, has grown to more than 400 events each year. Ultramarathoners, defined as those who participate in running events exceeding the official marathon distance of 26.2 miles, now number some 15,000 in the United States alone. The underlying physics have not changed, but rather our sense of possibility. Athletic culture, like Robic, has discovered a way to tweak its collective governor.
When we try understanding Robic’s relationship to severe pain, however, our interest tends to be more visceral. Namely, how does it feel?
‘‘I feel like if I go on, I will die,’’ he says, struggling for words. ‘‘It is everything at the same moment, piled up over and over. Head, muscles, bones. Nobody can understand. You cannot
imagine it until you feel it.’’
A few moments later, he says: ‘‘The pain doesn’t exist for me. I know it is there because I feel it, but I don’t pay attention to it. I sometimes see myself from the other view, looking down at me riding the bike. It is strange, but it happens like that.’’ Robic veers like this when he discusses pain. He talks of incomprehensible suffering one moment and of dreamlike anesthesia the next. If pain is in fact both signal and emotion, perhaps that makes sense. Perhaps the closer we get to its dual nature, the more elusive any single truth becomes, and the better we understand what Emily Dickinson meant when she wrote that ‘‘pain has an element of blank.’’
Kouros's training and nutrition
Kouros, who currently holds 154 world records, including 12, 24, and 48 hours, six days, 11 days, and 100 miles to 1,000 miles. When Kouros set his 24-hour record of 303 kilometers, he averaged a 7:26 mile, with a sub-three-hour marathon split.
He tries to do most of his quality work on the track but never runs more than 12 kilometers per workout, typically doing 6 x 2k, 2 x 6k, or 3 x 4k and sometimes, when it is particularly hot, only running 6k total. He doesn’t do any weight training and basically uses his races as his long runs. Indeed, very long runs.
During a six-day race from Sydney to Melbourne, Kouros’ intake was monitored and described in the Lore of Running. He was said to have managed to take in 15,000 calories the first day, 12,000 the next, and 7,000 the third day. During the Phidippides run that traced the Athenian messenger’s route from Athens to Sparta (and back) for a total of 300 miles, Kouros consumed half of his calories as Greek sweets, eating every 20 minutes, and enjoying baklava, fresh creamy custard, and honey cookies. He says he doesn’t eat too much fat, using mostly carbohydrates and only loses weight in races if he wants to, even gaining weight in some.
source: Running Times
He tries to do most of his quality work on the track but never runs more than 12 kilometers per workout, typically doing 6 x 2k, 2 x 6k, or 3 x 4k and sometimes, when it is particularly hot, only running 6k total. He doesn’t do any weight training and basically uses his races as his long runs. Indeed, very long runs.
During a six-day race from Sydney to Melbourne, Kouros’ intake was monitored and described in the Lore of Running. He was said to have managed to take in 15,000 calories the first day, 12,000 the next, and 7,000 the third day. During the Phidippides run that traced the Athenian messenger’s route from Athens to Sparta (and back) for a total of 300 miles, Kouros consumed half of his calories as Greek sweets, eating every 20 minutes, and enjoying baklava, fresh creamy custard, and honey cookies. He says he doesn’t eat too much fat, using mostly carbohydrates and only loses weight in races if he wants to, even gaining weight in some.
source: Running Times
Race Nutrition
Running ultra races well is less an issue of fatigue and more about managing nutrition and avoiding blisters. I think the wall/bonking is entirely nutritional. Indirectly, it could be about going out too fast - when you didn't take in enough calories or you couldn't absorb enough calories to sustain a fast pace.
I use regular gels for the first 50 miles and switch over to caffeinated gels, Ensure Plus and Red Bull for the last half of the race. I take electrolyte tablets as needed. If I can find Endurance Gatorade, I will use it during daylight.
Taste shouldn't matter unless you avoid taking sufficient amounts. I rather take the "medicine" that sits well in my stomach and fuels me throughout the race, than take something that tastes good but backs up my gut over time.
The morning of the race, I eat a progressive breakfast based on the timeline for digestion. Solids first, then liquid proteins/fats, then gels, then gatorade. In 5ks, I eat my donuts early and save highly sugared coffee for last :). In training, I look for high glycemic foods - potatoes, popsicles, french bread. My latest is Rice Krispies Treats.
My appetite for gels and gatorade diminishes after 50 miles. The stomach complains (there's a book about the GI system having it's own brain) when breakfast, lunch and dinner is skipped. I crave salty foods and Coke. I haven't tried Mountain Dew yet.
I have read that gels and Gatorade make the stomach more acidic which could explain nausea?
The fat and protein in Ensure probably helps to simulate a real meal. The aid stations in some races will have a tasty buffet of pizza, macaroni and cheese and chicken noodle soup.
I am trying to come up with a nutrition plan for the 48 hour run in Dallas. Does anyone have experience with Heed Perpetuem or InfinitNutruition?
Heed Perpetuem uses a calcium-enhanced soy protein isolate and a de-oiled "super lecithin" as fat. It uses maltodextrin for carbs.
InfinitNutrition allows you to customize your energy drink - you can vary levels of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, caffeine and electrolytes. There are template formulations for various sports and endurance distances. It also uses maltodextrin. The protein comes from whey. I am not sure if a milk protein will sit well. I guess I can maximize the amino acids and minimize the whey protein.
InfinitNutrition has interesting things to say about competitor products. Gatorade could cause cramping from large amounts of fructose and a high osmolality (absorption shutdown). Gatorade Endurance is better. Cytomax has a high osmolality issue. InfinitNutrition likes Hammer as 2nd best to its own product. http://www.infinitnutrition.us/information/productcomparison.asp
The problem with trying something new is that there are so few opportunities to test it. For example, you don't know where the hotspots are for blisters in a particular pair of shoes/sock/lacing tightness until 30-40 miles. Will I save time by stopping to stretch, for how long, how long is too long?
I'll report back when I try one of the 2 energy drinks at the North Face Endurance Challenge 50 miler in DC August 4th.
I use regular gels for the first 50 miles and switch over to caffeinated gels, Ensure Plus and Red Bull for the last half of the race. I take electrolyte tablets as needed. If I can find Endurance Gatorade, I will use it during daylight.
Taste shouldn't matter unless you avoid taking sufficient amounts. I rather take the "medicine" that sits well in my stomach and fuels me throughout the race, than take something that tastes good but backs up my gut over time.
The morning of the race, I eat a progressive breakfast based on the timeline for digestion. Solids first, then liquid proteins/fats, then gels, then gatorade. In 5ks, I eat my donuts early and save highly sugared coffee for last :). In training, I look for high glycemic foods - potatoes, popsicles, french bread. My latest is Rice Krispies Treats.
My appetite for gels and gatorade diminishes after 50 miles. The stomach complains (there's a book about the GI system having it's own brain) when breakfast, lunch and dinner is skipped. I crave salty foods and Coke. I haven't tried Mountain Dew yet.
I have read that gels and Gatorade make the stomach more acidic which could explain nausea?
The fat and protein in Ensure probably helps to simulate a real meal. The aid stations in some races will have a tasty buffet of pizza, macaroni and cheese and chicken noodle soup.
I am trying to come up with a nutrition plan for the 48 hour run in Dallas. Does anyone have experience with Heed Perpetuem or InfinitNutruition?
Heed Perpetuem uses a calcium-enhanced soy protein isolate and a de-oiled "super lecithin" as fat. It uses maltodextrin for carbs.
InfinitNutrition allows you to customize your energy drink - you can vary levels of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, caffeine and electrolytes. There are template formulations for various sports and endurance distances. It also uses maltodextrin. The protein comes from whey. I am not sure if a milk protein will sit well. I guess I can maximize the amino acids and minimize the whey protein.
InfinitNutrition has interesting things to say about competitor products. Gatorade could cause cramping from large amounts of fructose and a high osmolality (absorption shutdown). Gatorade Endurance is better. Cytomax has a high osmolality issue. InfinitNutrition likes Hammer as 2nd best to its own product. http://www.infinitnutrition.us/information/productcomparison.asp
The problem with trying something new is that there are so few opportunities to test it. For example, you don't know where the hotspots are for blisters in a particular pair of shoes/sock/lacing tightness until 30-40 miles. Will I save time by stopping to stretch, for how long, how long is too long?
I'll report back when I try one of the 2 energy drinks at the North Face Endurance Challenge 50 miler in DC August 4th.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Body Fat
I got measured by Florida Hospital using calibers for bodyfat. I came in at 15.6%. It's in the same ballpark as my bodyfat scale which indicated 16.0% this morning.
The range for athletes is 14-20% for women and 6-13% for men. Elite male runners at about 5% bodyfat. Elite females have 15%.
Am I obese? No. But I do carry excess body fat. Abdominal fat is unhealthy. Runners World had an article that said if you lose 10 lbs, you can run 20 seconds a mile fast. Just what I need to be qualify for Boston.
My goal is 10%. I need to lose about 10 lbs of fat without losing muscle mass.
An aside - from a small sample, it seems that men carry their fat in the gut while women carry the fat in their thighs.
The range for athletes is 14-20% for women and 6-13% for men. Elite male runners at about 5% bodyfat. Elite females have 15%.
Am I obese? No. But I do carry excess body fat. Abdominal fat is unhealthy. Runners World had an article that said if you lose 10 lbs, you can run 20 seconds a mile fast. Just what I need to be qualify for Boston.
My goal is 10%. I need to lose about 10 lbs of fat without losing muscle mass.
An aside - from a small sample, it seems that men carry their fat in the gut while women carry the fat in their thighs.
Pain and Discomfort
Discomfort is ok. Pain is no good.
from the Times 6/17/2007
Contrary to the old saw, pain kills. A body in pain produces high levels of hormones that cause stress to the heart and lungs. Pain can cause blood pressure to spike, leading to heart attacks and strokes. Pain can also consume so much of the body’s energy that the immune system degrades. Severe chronic pain sometimes leads to suicide. Men, especially, will simply tough it out, reasoning that pain is better than addiction
High-dose prescription opioids can be safer than taking high doses of aspirin, Tylenol or Advil, which cause organ damage in high doses, regardless of how those doses are administered. (Every year, an estimated 5,000 to 6,000 Americans die from gastrointestinal bleeding associated with drugs like ibuprofen or aspirin, according to a paper published in The American Journal of Gastroenterology.)
from the Times 6/17/2007
Contrary to the old saw, pain kills. A body in pain produces high levels of hormones that cause stress to the heart and lungs. Pain can cause blood pressure to spike, leading to heart attacks and strokes. Pain can also consume so much of the body’s energy that the immune system degrades. Severe chronic pain sometimes leads to suicide. Men, especially, will simply tough it out, reasoning that pain is better than addiction
High-dose prescription opioids can be safer than taking high doses of aspirin, Tylenol or Advil, which cause organ damage in high doses, regardless of how those doses are administered. (Every year, an estimated 5,000 to 6,000 Americans die from gastrointestinal bleeding associated with drugs like ibuprofen or aspirin, according to a paper published in The American Journal of Gastroenterology.)
Friday, June 15, 2007
Old Dominion Memorial 100 Miler (May 26th 2007)
Woodstock, VA.,
Temps 64 to 90 degrees.Elevation Gain 14,000 feet
The weekend kicked off to a frustrating start at the airport. TSA required new biometrics to use the express lanes. I had applied moisturizer to my index fingers all week. It turned out that TSA required prints from the other 8 fingers. It took a couple dozen attempts to capture enough partial fingerprints. Had I known I would have worn gloves for a several days prior to keep my prints intact. I will be using the iris scan for authentication but should keep at least one finger "fingerprint ready".
I went to Avis to pick up my rental car for the drive out to Woodstock, VA. The warning lights for ABS and ESP came on. I decided to switch cars as brakes and stability control are useful features. As I exited with the 2nd car, the guard said have a nice weekend and one second later said WAIT. I heard a hissing noise; I had driven over spikes. I u-turned back to Avis Preferred with a flat tire. The gate wasn't working and provided no clue that the spikes were up. I filled out an incident report and finally drove off in a Chevy Equinox.
I was late for lunch, got tied up in Friday afternoon Memorial Day traffic but made it to the race briefing at 4:50pm, 10 minutes early. The race director from IronHorse and his wife were familiar faces. There were a good number of law enforcement and former Marines among the runners.
Sat. 5am. The course consisted of two repetitions of 50 miles -- out and back. My goal was to run a sub-24 and place in the top 10.
At mile 7.5, there is a 1,200 feet climb over 2.5 miles. I was doing a 5 minute run/1 minute walk.
The mountains were pretty -- we were out in the country - among cows and horses. There was horse poop and a dead snake on the road, Gun fire echoed in the valley. There was a nice firework display for the holiday. The runners were friendly and the volunteers were helpful. There were long stretches where there was no one around. The course was asphalt and dirt roads. Small rocks would get in my shoes. When a truck drove passed, it would kicked up a lot of dust.
I reached the 25 mile turnaround in 4:45 and hoped to finish the first 50 in 10 hours but temps were rising. I was hoping for a negative split. I tested my spray mister - it seemed to work when there was a breeze. I don't know how much actual cooling it provided and whether it was worth the extra weight. Temps stayed above 85 degrees between noon and 7pm. There was little shade or cloud cover.
It reached 90 degrees around 2:30pm. I ending up walking for a couple of hours. My legs were caked in salt; I tasted salt from my lips when I took a sip of gatorade. If there wasn't any Succeed electrolyte tablets at the aid stations, I was prepared to lick my sunscreen coated arms. I carried only one tablet for every 6 miles and had dropped some. I started taking 2 tablets in the heat.
The last 2 aid stations back to the start were 6 miles apart. I was dehydrated, had a headache, stopped urinating, and felt nauseated. I carried one water bottle but it wasn't enough. I spotted a random runner getting into her car and asked for water. She gave me an electrolyte drink called Heed. She drove by later and offered ice water from an ice bucket. I wasn't sure how clean it was but drank it anyway. It was too hot to eat solid food. I had a few chips, pretzels and chicken noodle soup twice. Still with all the gatorade I drank, I figured I was able to replace half the calories burned.
I was trying to decide if I should quit at the 50 mile mark and receive just a medal. Since I quit due to heat in the 170 miler in April, I decided to tough it out, and finish the 100 to prove that I can get through the heat. Also, I am still trying to decide if I should put in an application for the 2008 Badwater 135 miler in Death Valley.
Back at the start, I switched watches and put hydropel on a developing blister. The Garmin GPS batteries are good for about 10 hours; I had borrowed a second Garmin GPS for the last 50 miles.
As I headed back out, I asked the 100 mile runners coming in, if they were going to quit at 50. Almost all of them said there were quitting due to the heat. One guy said he had nothing to prove. I think the more seasoned ultra runners knew when to quit. The "kids" and first-timers stayed in.
I would like to run a hot race someday where I would run 50 miles, relax in a hotel for 10 hours, and finish the 100 miler and still make the 30 hour cutoff. It would probably be more enjoyable than suffering in the heat.
I was passed by at least six runners speed walking up the mountain. I am not a fast walker. Fortunately, I still had good leg speed to pass them on the downhills and flats.
Because my liver enyzmes were elevated 3 days after the 170 miler DNF -- I decided to hold off on using Advil or Tylenol or carbo-loading with wine. I waited till mile 58 before taking 1000mg Tylenol and a total of 1600 mg Advil spread over 8 hours. I also started taking caffeine as well. The last 40 miles felt effortless. I ran the last 25 mile return leg faster than the 1st 25 mile return leg. Lower temps helped.
I kept looking behind me to see if any runners were catching up to me on the hills. I knew I had to run part of the steep hills to match the speed of power walkers. I alternated a couple of seconds ofrunning with a couple seconds of running -- maintaining a 17 minute mile. There was lightning and thunder but not close by.
At mile 90, I reached the peak (1850ft) and started the descent. It was too steep to run down -- I ran with poor form, leaning back. I ended up with a heel blister and 2 damaged toenails that will pop off. It didn't help that those 2 toenails haven't fully grown back from the last 100 in Feb. I felt my shins (tibialis anterior) being torn up on the downhill. I ran faster once I got to a flat section.
Somewhere around mile 96, I noticed that my map was missing from my pocket. I wasn't worried, I thought I knew where to go. With 1.5 miles to go, I knew I had missed my turn in the city. I eventually took a right turn hoping that city streets were set up in a grid pattern and it would lead back to the Reservior Rd I-81 exit. No restaurants or gas stations were open at 3am. I was out of water, didn't carry cash or a cell phone. I heading south following the sound of Interstate 81. Eventually, I came across Reservior Rd and ended up running only an extra 0.75 miles. Although the GPS watch was already on low battery warning, it did not occur to me at the time, that I could use my watch to retrace my path back to start (:
I finished in 22 hrs 43 minutes -- my slowest 100 miler of three. I finished 7 minutes slower than Rocky Raccoon. But this race has 9000 feet more elevation gain and was 37 degrees hotter although Rocky Raccoon is on trails. So I guess I had a good race.
Before I got lost, I had thought about running an extra 12 miles but the thought left me when I finished. I think I could have done better if I did more stairclimbing on the Stepmill machine at the Y. I want to try pre-taping my feet on my next ultra.
I had planned to visit some friends for breakfast before dropping off the car at Avis. But since I only got an hour sleep in the car and given how I went through 3 Avis vehicles on Friday, I thought it would be wiser to return the car. I napped the rest of the day. On Monday I met up with some runners from the Reston group. You know you are a ultra runner when you can spend half an hour talking about feet and taking off your socks to compare blisters!!
I ended up placing 5th. There were 32 runners registered for the 100. Keith Knipling won the race. He came in 3rd in last week's Massanutten,VA 100 miler. He is planning to run the "old" Old Dominion 100 this weekend. That's 3 100 milers in 3 weekends!
Temps 64 to 90 degrees.Elevation Gain 14,000 feet
The weekend kicked off to a frustrating start at the airport. TSA required new biometrics to use the express lanes. I had applied moisturizer to my index fingers all week. It turned out that TSA required prints from the other 8 fingers. It took a couple dozen attempts to capture enough partial fingerprints. Had I known I would have worn gloves for a several days prior to keep my prints intact. I will be using the iris scan for authentication but should keep at least one finger "fingerprint ready".
I went to Avis to pick up my rental car for the drive out to Woodstock, VA. The warning lights for ABS and ESP came on. I decided to switch cars as brakes and stability control are useful features. As I exited with the 2nd car, the guard said have a nice weekend and one second later said WAIT. I heard a hissing noise; I had driven over spikes. I u-turned back to Avis Preferred with a flat tire. The gate wasn't working and provided no clue that the spikes were up. I filled out an incident report and finally drove off in a Chevy Equinox.
I was late for lunch, got tied up in Friday afternoon Memorial Day traffic but made it to the race briefing at 4:50pm, 10 minutes early. The race director from IronHorse and his wife were familiar faces. There were a good number of law enforcement and former Marines among the runners.
Sat. 5am. The course consisted of two repetitions of 50 miles -- out and back. My goal was to run a sub-24 and place in the top 10.
At mile 7.5, there is a 1,200 feet climb over 2.5 miles. I was doing a 5 minute run/1 minute walk.
The mountains were pretty -- we were out in the country - among cows and horses. There was horse poop and a dead snake on the road, Gun fire echoed in the valley. There was a nice firework display for the holiday. The runners were friendly and the volunteers were helpful. There were long stretches where there was no one around. The course was asphalt and dirt roads. Small rocks would get in my shoes. When a truck drove passed, it would kicked up a lot of dust.
I reached the 25 mile turnaround in 4:45 and hoped to finish the first 50 in 10 hours but temps were rising. I was hoping for a negative split. I tested my spray mister - it seemed to work when there was a breeze. I don't know how much actual cooling it provided and whether it was worth the extra weight. Temps stayed above 85 degrees between noon and 7pm. There was little shade or cloud cover.
It reached 90 degrees around 2:30pm. I ending up walking for a couple of hours. My legs were caked in salt; I tasted salt from my lips when I took a sip of gatorade. If there wasn't any Succeed electrolyte tablets at the aid stations, I was prepared to lick my sunscreen coated arms. I carried only one tablet for every 6 miles and had dropped some. I started taking 2 tablets in the heat.
The last 2 aid stations back to the start were 6 miles apart. I was dehydrated, had a headache, stopped urinating, and felt nauseated. I carried one water bottle but it wasn't enough. I spotted a random runner getting into her car and asked for water. She gave me an electrolyte drink called Heed. She drove by later and offered ice water from an ice bucket. I wasn't sure how clean it was but drank it anyway. It was too hot to eat solid food. I had a few chips, pretzels and chicken noodle soup twice. Still with all the gatorade I drank, I figured I was able to replace half the calories burned.
I was trying to decide if I should quit at the 50 mile mark and receive just a medal. Since I quit due to heat in the 170 miler in April, I decided to tough it out, and finish the 100 to prove that I can get through the heat. Also, I am still trying to decide if I should put in an application for the 2008 Badwater 135 miler in Death Valley.
Back at the start, I switched watches and put hydropel on a developing blister. The Garmin GPS batteries are good for about 10 hours; I had borrowed a second Garmin GPS for the last 50 miles.
As I headed back out, I asked the 100 mile runners coming in, if they were going to quit at 50. Almost all of them said there were quitting due to the heat. One guy said he had nothing to prove. I think the more seasoned ultra runners knew when to quit. The "kids" and first-timers stayed in.
I would like to run a hot race someday where I would run 50 miles, relax in a hotel for 10 hours, and finish the 100 miler and still make the 30 hour cutoff. It would probably be more enjoyable than suffering in the heat.
I was passed by at least six runners speed walking up the mountain. I am not a fast walker. Fortunately, I still had good leg speed to pass them on the downhills and flats.
Because my liver enyzmes were elevated 3 days after the 170 miler DNF -- I decided to hold off on using Advil or Tylenol or carbo-loading with wine. I waited till mile 58 before taking 1000mg Tylenol and a total of 1600 mg Advil spread over 8 hours. I also started taking caffeine as well. The last 40 miles felt effortless. I ran the last 25 mile return leg faster than the 1st 25 mile return leg. Lower temps helped.
I kept looking behind me to see if any runners were catching up to me on the hills. I knew I had to run part of the steep hills to match the speed of power walkers. I alternated a couple of seconds ofrunning with a couple seconds of running -- maintaining a 17 minute mile. There was lightning and thunder but not close by.
At mile 90, I reached the peak (1850ft) and started the descent. It was too steep to run down -- I ran with poor form, leaning back. I ended up with a heel blister and 2 damaged toenails that will pop off. It didn't help that those 2 toenails haven't fully grown back from the last 100 in Feb. I felt my shins (tibialis anterior) being torn up on the downhill. I ran faster once I got to a flat section.
Somewhere around mile 96, I noticed that my map was missing from my pocket. I wasn't worried, I thought I knew where to go. With 1.5 miles to go, I knew I had missed my turn in the city. I eventually took a right turn hoping that city streets were set up in a grid pattern and it would lead back to the Reservior Rd I-81 exit. No restaurants or gas stations were open at 3am. I was out of water, didn't carry cash or a cell phone. I heading south following the sound of Interstate 81. Eventually, I came across Reservior Rd and ended up running only an extra 0.75 miles. Although the GPS watch was already on low battery warning, it did not occur to me at the time, that I could use my watch to retrace my path back to start (:
I finished in 22 hrs 43 minutes -- my slowest 100 miler of three. I finished 7 minutes slower than Rocky Raccoon. But this race has 9000 feet more elevation gain and was 37 degrees hotter although Rocky Raccoon is on trails. So I guess I had a good race.
Before I got lost, I had thought about running an extra 12 miles but the thought left me when I finished. I think I could have done better if I did more stairclimbing on the Stepmill machine at the Y. I want to try pre-taping my feet on my next ultra.
I had planned to visit some friends for breakfast before dropping off the car at Avis. But since I only got an hour sleep in the car and given how I went through 3 Avis vehicles on Friday, I thought it would be wiser to return the car. I napped the rest of the day. On Monday I met up with some runners from the Reston group. You know you are a ultra runner when you can spend half an hour talking about feet and taking off your socks to compare blisters!!
I ended up placing 5th. There were 32 runners registered for the 100. Keith Knipling won the race. He came in 3rd in last week's Massanutten,VA 100 miler. He is planning to run the "old" Old Dominion 100 this weekend. That's 3 100 milers in 3 weekends!
Big Sur Marathon (Apr 29, 2007)
Big Sur, CA to Monterey, CA
Temps 49 to 52.
I picked up my packet in Monterey on Friday and decided to take the scenic route down along the coast on Route 1 to San Luis Obispo. I traveled with my former roommate Erin. Leaving Monterey, we drove along course in reverse. Every downhill we drove would be uphill in the marathon. It was mostly rolling hills and a couple of huge hills. Driving along cliffs on the "ragged edge of the Western world" with 20mph hairpin turns was sometimes nauseating and sometimes scary. Traffic was light for Friday afternoon. People who needed to get somewhere quickly took the 70mph highways inland. We stopped for dinner at Morro Bay hoping to catch the sunset. Unfortunately, it disappeared behind the clouds. We took a picture of what we thought was the Morro Rock - a volcanic plug. It wasn't - it was just another 200 feet high rock sticking out in the ocean.
Saturday morning, at the hotel in San Luis Obispo, I realized I didn't pack running socks for the marathon. I was too busy making sure I packed my running shoes after using them at last Thursday's night track workout. I overlooked the Injinji socks. I was able to get a hold of Kelli who was staying across from the Expo and she got me a pair and left it the concierge's desk at the Marriott. We didn't think we could get back to Monterey before the expo closed. Wine took a higher priority.
I carbo-loaded at 8 wineries in Paso Robles. Is wine really a carbohydrate? We ended up buying 19 bottles of wine and got 4 free wineglasses that were included in the tasting fees.One leaded crystal glass had a California warning about birth defects, cancer, or other reproductive harm. Wine contributed just over one-third of the cost of this trip! Erin wanted to go the Firestone winery -- which I never heard of. Apparently, Andrew Firestone was on the Bachelor reality show. Andrew Firestone introduced himself to us but did not try to sell us any wines. I tried unsuccessfully to get Erin to get a picture taken with him or to offer her cell #. At the Adelphia winery, the server was pouring wine into a wine glass as big as my head for a couple next to us. It was a $300 wineglass; a great gift for someone who has everything. I got my picture taken raising the humongous wineglass. This is the essence of carbo-loading. After tasting more than 40 different wines and eating fettuccini alfredo for a late lunch, I was ready to race. Besides, I was getting a headache and couldn't handle any more wineries (: In 2005, I had leg cramps from wine-carbo-loaded in Napa the day before the Sacramento marathon. I ran a 3:44; only a minute slower than Chicago the following week.
On Sunday, I rode the bus shuttle to the starting point at Big Sur. I was worried about riding in a large vehicle on a narrow road on the outer edge of cliffs. It was fogged in and dark so I couldn't see anything that would make me nervous. I saw our Orlando runners at the staging area. I did a 1.5 mile warmup and carefully peed in the bushes among poision oak trees. I spotted Tracey by her curly hair, right after the start. We ran together for about 8 miles. It was nice that she started out slow which kept me from tightening up on the downhills in the first 2 miles. There was a distinct smell of marijuana around mile 2. She went ahead at mile 8 as she is stronger on the hills than I am. She had run a 3:20 in Chicago. I caught up with Tracey around mile 17, sooner than I expected; she was having some muscle and digestive issues. Her goal was to enjoy the sights while still breaking 4 hours. She made it under 4 hours by 14 seconds.
I saw our Orlando relay team at the 2nd exchange point. I couldn't figure out who was running. Mary Jane and Nina was standing around. Jennifer and Dana was running. Karla was walking on the course. I called Jennifer on Monday; she said they ran together. I don't get it but I'm sure they had a lot of fun.
It was a beautiful, scenic course. I stopped to take some pictures along the way including one of the guy playing piano. I spotted Dean Karnazes around mile 21. He was recognizable by his curly hair and calves. Dean's talk on Saturday conflicted with my winetasting so I hoped to catch up with him at the start. I heard that it was oversubscribed. I thought he ran a 3:19 last year and didn't expect to see him on the course. He actually ran a 3:33 last year. He was doing an easy run as he had a 199 mile Providian Relay coming up next week. He is planning on running the relay as part of a 2 person team. I believed he said he ran to the start at Big Sur (52 mile roundtrip?) - it would explain why he was wearing a camel-bak. I was well ahead of pace for breaking 4 hours so I chatted with Dean till mile 26 and at his urging, I kicked it at a 6:19 pace with an overall marathon pace of 8:50 min/mile. This was a pretty leisurely run for both of us -- going at a recoverable marathon a day race pace. Dean said running a 3:15 beats up his legs. I think pushing a sub 3:30 beats up my legs.
The weather was great -- it was foggy and there was a cooling headwind. Temps were 49 to 52 degrees. It would have been prettier with the sun out but I rather run in cloudy, cooler weather. Having seen the course, I knew what to expect. There was only 2 hills of significance - one at mile 10 and other one at mile 22. The elevation gain is over 1000 feet but because it was a major road -- the grade is pretty gradual compared to some trail runs. The course has a net drop of 275 feet. It was a great course for negative splits because the majority of the uphills were in the first half. I hit the halfway mark at 1:57 and ran the 2nd half in 1:54. (3:51:31) I ran this course 17 minutes faster than the Georgia marathon last month where it was 30 degrees hotter.
I learned that the reason I slow down in the last 3 to 6 miles of a marathon is because of the increasing daytime heat. At Big Sur, the temps stayed around 50 degrees - I actually ran faster than average pace in the last 6 miles with the exception of a big hill and waiting for Dean at a port-a-let. Weather may be a good reason to run the middle miles hard before the heat sets in. Other important factors in predicting finish times are - fitness - how fast you can run a 10k. There is also body weight and consuming adequate calories while racing. Long slow distance runs doesn't matter once you have done a few marathons.
I met Vickie Adams, who is a major contributor on Dean's blog, at the finish. She suggested that I could be a pacer at Badwater to test my tolerance for heat. Can a pacer get a pacer to keep me, the pacer, cool?I agree with her that rolling hill courses are easier on the legs. I think you can run faster on a flat course but it beats up the legs more. I am in the lottery for St. George. Dean had said that St. George has some hills that could work against at PR.
On the plane ride back Sunday, I found it amusing that the woman next to me was putting on makeup using a built-in webcam on her laptop to create a mirror. Killer software app!Next stop: Old Dominion 100 in Woodstock VA over Memorial Day. 14,000 feet elevation but on paved and dirt roads. In 5 months, I will have run 480 race miles (5 ultras + 3 marathons + 1 5k) and 216 training miles in 5 months (about 30 miles a week) and learned something at each race. I look forward to getting some needed rest in the summer:)
Temps 49 to 52.
I picked up my packet in Monterey on Friday and decided to take the scenic route down along the coast on Route 1 to San Luis Obispo. I traveled with my former roommate Erin. Leaving Monterey, we drove along course in reverse. Every downhill we drove would be uphill in the marathon. It was mostly rolling hills and a couple of huge hills. Driving along cliffs on the "ragged edge of the Western world" with 20mph hairpin turns was sometimes nauseating and sometimes scary. Traffic was light for Friday afternoon. People who needed to get somewhere quickly took the 70mph highways inland. We stopped for dinner at Morro Bay hoping to catch the sunset. Unfortunately, it disappeared behind the clouds. We took a picture of what we thought was the Morro Rock - a volcanic plug. It wasn't - it was just another 200 feet high rock sticking out in the ocean.
Saturday morning, at the hotel in San Luis Obispo, I realized I didn't pack running socks for the marathon. I was too busy making sure I packed my running shoes after using them at last Thursday's night track workout. I overlooked the Injinji socks. I was able to get a hold of Kelli who was staying across from the Expo and she got me a pair and left it the concierge's desk at the Marriott. We didn't think we could get back to Monterey before the expo closed. Wine took a higher priority.
I carbo-loaded at 8 wineries in Paso Robles. Is wine really a carbohydrate? We ended up buying 19 bottles of wine and got 4 free wineglasses that were included in the tasting fees.One leaded crystal glass had a California warning about birth defects, cancer, or other reproductive harm. Wine contributed just over one-third of the cost of this trip! Erin wanted to go the Firestone winery -- which I never heard of. Apparently, Andrew Firestone was on the Bachelor reality show. Andrew Firestone introduced himself to us but did not try to sell us any wines. I tried unsuccessfully to get Erin to get a picture taken with him or to offer her cell #. At the Adelphia winery, the server was pouring wine into a wine glass as big as my head for a couple next to us. It was a $300 wineglass; a great gift for someone who has everything. I got my picture taken raising the humongous wineglass. This is the essence of carbo-loading. After tasting more than 40 different wines and eating fettuccini alfredo for a late lunch, I was ready to race. Besides, I was getting a headache and couldn't handle any more wineries (: In 2005, I had leg cramps from wine-carbo-loaded in Napa the day before the Sacramento marathon. I ran a 3:44; only a minute slower than Chicago the following week.
On Sunday, I rode the bus shuttle to the starting point at Big Sur. I was worried about riding in a large vehicle on a narrow road on the outer edge of cliffs. It was fogged in and dark so I couldn't see anything that would make me nervous. I saw our Orlando runners at the staging area. I did a 1.5 mile warmup and carefully peed in the bushes among poision oak trees. I spotted Tracey by her curly hair, right after the start. We ran together for about 8 miles. It was nice that she started out slow which kept me from tightening up on the downhills in the first 2 miles. There was a distinct smell of marijuana around mile 2. She went ahead at mile 8 as she is stronger on the hills than I am. She had run a 3:20 in Chicago. I caught up with Tracey around mile 17, sooner than I expected; she was having some muscle and digestive issues. Her goal was to enjoy the sights while still breaking 4 hours. She made it under 4 hours by 14 seconds.
I saw our Orlando relay team at the 2nd exchange point. I couldn't figure out who was running. Mary Jane and Nina was standing around. Jennifer and Dana was running. Karla was walking on the course. I called Jennifer on Monday; she said they ran together. I don't get it but I'm sure they had a lot of fun.
It was a beautiful, scenic course. I stopped to take some pictures along the way including one of the guy playing piano. I spotted Dean Karnazes around mile 21. He was recognizable by his curly hair and calves. Dean's talk on Saturday conflicted with my winetasting so I hoped to catch up with him at the start. I heard that it was oversubscribed. I thought he ran a 3:19 last year and didn't expect to see him on the course. He actually ran a 3:33 last year. He was doing an easy run as he had a 199 mile Providian Relay coming up next week. He is planning on running the relay as part of a 2 person team. I believed he said he ran to the start at Big Sur (52 mile roundtrip?) - it would explain why he was wearing a camel-bak. I was well ahead of pace for breaking 4 hours so I chatted with Dean till mile 26 and at his urging, I kicked it at a 6:19 pace with an overall marathon pace of 8:50 min/mile. This was a pretty leisurely run for both of us -- going at a recoverable marathon a day race pace. Dean said running a 3:15 beats up his legs. I think pushing a sub 3:30 beats up my legs.
The weather was great -- it was foggy and there was a cooling headwind. Temps were 49 to 52 degrees. It would have been prettier with the sun out but I rather run in cloudy, cooler weather. Having seen the course, I knew what to expect. There was only 2 hills of significance - one at mile 10 and other one at mile 22. The elevation gain is over 1000 feet but because it was a major road -- the grade is pretty gradual compared to some trail runs. The course has a net drop of 275 feet. It was a great course for negative splits because the majority of the uphills were in the first half. I hit the halfway mark at 1:57 and ran the 2nd half in 1:54. (3:51:31) I ran this course 17 minutes faster than the Georgia marathon last month where it was 30 degrees hotter.
I learned that the reason I slow down in the last 3 to 6 miles of a marathon is because of the increasing daytime heat. At Big Sur, the temps stayed around 50 degrees - I actually ran faster than average pace in the last 6 miles with the exception of a big hill and waiting for Dean at a port-a-let. Weather may be a good reason to run the middle miles hard before the heat sets in. Other important factors in predicting finish times are - fitness - how fast you can run a 10k. There is also body weight and consuming adequate calories while racing. Long slow distance runs doesn't matter once you have done a few marathons.
I met Vickie Adams, who is a major contributor on Dean's blog, at the finish. She suggested that I could be a pacer at Badwater to test my tolerance for heat. Can a pacer get a pacer to keep me, the pacer, cool?I agree with her that rolling hill courses are easier on the legs. I think you can run faster on a flat course but it beats up the legs more. I am in the lottery for St. George. Dean had said that St. George has some hills that could work against at PR.
On the plane ride back Sunday, I found it amusing that the woman next to me was putting on makeup using a built-in webcam on her laptop to create a mirror. Killer software app!Next stop: Old Dominion 100 in Woodstock VA over Memorial Day. 14,000 feet elevation but on paved and dirt roads. In 5 months, I will have run 480 race miles (5 ultras + 3 marathons + 1 5k) and 216 training miles in 5 months (about 30 miles a week) and learned something at each race. I look forward to getting some needed rest in the summer:)
Sunrise to Sunset Relay 170 Miler Solo Division (Apr 13, 2007)
Jensen Beach, FL to Fort Myers, FL
I started the 170 mile solo run at 12:01am Friday at Jensen Beach. Air temp 77 degrees and somewhat humid.
The first 50 miles were on the road. At first I asked my support vehicle (my roommate Melissa & her boyfriend Rob) to drive one mile ahead and wait. At one point, they drove one mile ahead but past the exchange point; I only carried a map of the current leg (36 legs). I had no idea if I should go straight or turn right. It took a while to get them on the walkie talkies even though the radios are supposed to have a 5 mile range. I regret not carrying my cell phone then. There were plenty of police on patrol; it was not comforting - it was likely that we were in a high crime area.
When we got on to rural roads, I suggested that instead of going 0.3 miles ahead -- that they should wait until my reflective vest was no longer visible and then begin driving ahead until they couldn't see light from my headlamp or flashlight. I would have the reassurance of either my car's headlights or taillights. In straight sections they drove about a half of a mile at a time.
By 5am, traffic was picking up. It's interesting how many cars drive on the shoulder until they noticed my reflective vest. The large trucks generated a refreshing wind as they blew past at highway speeds 6 feet away. It was disappointing when they tried to stay away from the shoulder. I'd have to step onto the road to catch the turbulent wake. It wasn't wise but it felt good.
There were a hit-and-run incident with one of the relay teams. A pacer on a bike was hit by the right mirror of a truck who's driver was focused on passing another vehicle. The cylist was ok and the police found the driver and arrested him. I also heard there was an incident with another pickup truck driver who directed road rage against a runner.
Dogs were of concern. I had my doggie mace ready. Fortunately the dogs were fenced in or chained up. There were many flattened animals on the road including turtles and long snakes. I think the owners kept the dogs from running loose on high-speed traffic roads.
I ran the 1st 50 miles in 10 hours. At that point I was optimistic that I could finish the 170 mile run by noon the next day.
The next 50 miles were on Lake Okeechobee's dike system. There was no shade and it was sunny.
It went downhill from there.
10am sunny and 81 degrees
11am sunny and 86 degrees
12pm sunny and 88 degrees
1pm sunny and 90 degrees
2pm sunny and 91 degrees
3pm sunny and 91 degrees
4pm sunny and 91 degrees
I tried placing a ziploc bag of ice on top of my head under a running cap but the cap wasn't deep enough. It did not occur to me to just soak the cap in ice water and let the wind create evaporative cooling. I also forgot I had packed an oversized sombrero sun hat.
I covered only 15 miles on the Okeechobee trail in 5 1/2 hours and slowed down to a 24 minute per mile pace. I decided to quit the race at 3:25pm and head back to Orlando. I did not think I cover another 105 miles by the 5pm cutoff the next day. Melissa said the forecast was for hotter temps the next day. The new mental math would forecast a finish around 6pm. It turned out to be about 5 degrees cooler with some cloud cover. If I brought my laptop - it would show an average pace of 14:12 min miles over 65 miles; my goal average pace was 14:28 min miles for the entire course. I didn't know I was ahead of pace.
The original plan was to run the first 120 miles in 24 hours and walk the last 50 miles in 17 hours. I did not plan to slow down to a 24 min mile in 91 degree heat.
I had considered starting at 8pm but Melissa was already taking Fri and Sat off and Rob took Friday. I couldn't ask them to leave work early on Thursday. Although we arrived at the start line at 11pm, I insisted that we start on 12:01 Friday so that it felt like I would be running for a day and a half instead of running Thurs-Sat (2 days). Foolish decision!
In making the decision to DNF, I failed to consider alternatives and failed to ask these questions:
a) to the race director - what is the real time cutoff for medals? Given the heat -- a lot of teams came in later than 3pm to 5pm and several dropped out.
b) to Melissa and Rob - how late can you finish? factoring in poor sleep and having to work on Sunday. Or do you mind if I did not finish, I just want to see how far I can go by Sat 5pm?
c) to Cathy who I had committed to giving a ride back to Orlando: what is the latest time from finish line? I ended up driving 415 miles to pick up Cathy on Saturday.
All creative thinking goes out the window after being awake 33 hours with a 2 hour nap before the race.
My thinking has always been rigid regarding time goals. I quit my first Rocky Raccoon 100 at 80 miles because I fell behind a 12 minute mile goal pace. This DNF decision was consistent with RR100 but I regret this decision.
Additionally, I took the Sat. 5pm cutoff time to be like a typical 30 hour hard cutoff for an ultra where there is no finisher medal, no support, no listing in the official race results.
The alternative was to pick up the pace. But the radiant heat from the sun was too much. There was no medical support. Heat would be less of an issue for the average relay team runner who would run 5 miles 3 times in 24 hours. Although I lost only 3 lbs, was still peeing regularly and my body temp was normal, I didn't want to risk collapsing on the trail miles away from help. Vehicle access points were miles apart. At this point, I decided there no way I am going to apply for Badwater 135 mile desert run since I can't take the heat.
In hindsight I missed something critical. I had a separate cooler for wet towels and ice water to spray down. I also packed a gallon size garden sprayer. Rob was on a bike with a backpack to provide support for the 50 miles on the Okeechobee trail. He could have carried the gallon size sprayer in his backpack and sprayed me down every tenth of a mile. There was a decent breeze that would have provided adequate evaporative cooling. Since I don't sweat much, the breeze wasn't very useful but I think an ice-cold spray would have gotten me through the 8 hours of above 85 degree heat. I recalled Dean's advice to stay wet and had only watched the Badwater video on Tuesday where the pacers were spraying down the runners. We passed a water truck watering a field and joked that it would be nice if it followed us. The only thing the driver said was that he was driving 2.5mph. Why did he mention that? Assuming he wasn't spraying pesticides, we should have just walked in the downstream of the mist! I had most of my supplies in the back of the SUV and completely forgot about the extra cooler and sprayer in the right rear passenger seat. Big oops!
My strategy was to deal with one leg at a time. Nutrition had to be geared toward the varying mileage of the legs. I wrote a checklist on post-its attached to a Google map of each leg. Besides nutrition, the list on some post-its included sunscreen, bug spray, recharging batteries, switching out the GPS watch, etc. At home, while cleaning out the car, I found a loose post-it note that said - "MISTER, wet towels, ice on cap" . I had apparently removed it from the Okeechobee map. While the other maps only contained one leg - this one page Army Corp map contained 9 legs and was covered with 11 post-its. I removed that critical post-it containing a reminder to use the spray mister, in order to look at the map. Also, had I known the exchange points were not really checkpoints for solo runners, I would have my support vehicle stop and do the next checklist every 5 miles; the mister reminder would be repeated on 10 pages. Too late now!
The towns surrounding Lake Okeechobee are pretty depressed. There was a construction detour on the dike that put us into the town of Pahokee. I wouldn't want to be running there alone at night or among the alligators both sides of the dike. One of the teams advised Melissa not to drive alone to the last 2 exchange points on the lake at night. When she went to buy some ice, she was followed around by the store clerk. I guess they thought she might be a shoplifter.
I didn't have an appetite and eat only a couple of chips and a half slice of pizza. My body was too busy trying to cool off. I had to rely on my fat stores and the calories from the drinks. I weighted in Sat. morning down 3.6 lbs from Thursday morning. A good start to trying to qualify for Boston this fall :) I packed 30000 calories for the run and consumed about 4500 calories over 65 miles. I gave a large bag of kettle chips (2800 calories - no trans fats) to a homeless guy who pestered me for money while I was filling up at a gas station.
Congratulations to Mike who wisely gave himself 65 hours and completed the 170 mile run with just a 1/2 hour to spare at 4:30pm. Dante who started 6 hours before I did, finished in 61 hours on Sunday morning.
I am grateful to Melissa and Rob for patiently driving the support vehicle for 22 hours.
So, maybe I will attempt this Relay again in the Solo division next year! Temps were 10 degrees above average on Friday and 4 degrees on Saturday. On Monday noon, it was 25 degrees cooler than it was 72 hours earlier. I could start at 8pm and remember to use the mister. George, the brother of one of the race directors, offered to crew, if I ever decide to do the Badwater 135 in Death Valley.
Yes, this a long writeup for just 65 miles, just two-fifths of the race. Maybe there would have been other showstoppers had I continued. Among our relay teams from Orlando - one DNF, one finished early and one finished at 7:30pm. I had a massage on Monday and there was only a couple of minor tight spots. Running 65 miles at an easy pace on a flat course really doesn't beat up the body - except for 2 damaged toenails. I had a more painful massage after running the Georgia marathon 2 weeks ago on rolling hills.
I started the 170 mile solo run at 12:01am Friday at Jensen Beach. Air temp 77 degrees and somewhat humid.
The first 50 miles were on the road. At first I asked my support vehicle (my roommate Melissa & her boyfriend Rob) to drive one mile ahead and wait. At one point, they drove one mile ahead but past the exchange point; I only carried a map of the current leg (36 legs). I had no idea if I should go straight or turn right. It took a while to get them on the walkie talkies even though the radios are supposed to have a 5 mile range. I regret not carrying my cell phone then. There were plenty of police on patrol; it was not comforting - it was likely that we were in a high crime area.
When we got on to rural roads, I suggested that instead of going 0.3 miles ahead -- that they should wait until my reflective vest was no longer visible and then begin driving ahead until they couldn't see light from my headlamp or flashlight. I would have the reassurance of either my car's headlights or taillights. In straight sections they drove about a half of a mile at a time.
By 5am, traffic was picking up. It's interesting how many cars drive on the shoulder until they noticed my reflective vest. The large trucks generated a refreshing wind as they blew past at highway speeds 6 feet away. It was disappointing when they tried to stay away from the shoulder. I'd have to step onto the road to catch the turbulent wake. It wasn't wise but it felt good.
There were a hit-and-run incident with one of the relay teams. A pacer on a bike was hit by the right mirror of a truck who's driver was focused on passing another vehicle. The cylist was ok and the police found the driver and arrested him. I also heard there was an incident with another pickup truck driver who directed road rage against a runner.
Dogs were of concern. I had my doggie mace ready. Fortunately the dogs were fenced in or chained up. There were many flattened animals on the road including turtles and long snakes. I think the owners kept the dogs from running loose on high-speed traffic roads.
I ran the 1st 50 miles in 10 hours. At that point I was optimistic that I could finish the 170 mile run by noon the next day.
The next 50 miles were on Lake Okeechobee's dike system. There was no shade and it was sunny.
It went downhill from there.
10am sunny and 81 degrees
11am sunny and 86 degrees
12pm sunny and 88 degrees
1pm sunny and 90 degrees
2pm sunny and 91 degrees
3pm sunny and 91 degrees
4pm sunny and 91 degrees
I tried placing a ziploc bag of ice on top of my head under a running cap but the cap wasn't deep enough. It did not occur to me to just soak the cap in ice water and let the wind create evaporative cooling. I also forgot I had packed an oversized sombrero sun hat.
I covered only 15 miles on the Okeechobee trail in 5 1/2 hours and slowed down to a 24 minute per mile pace. I decided to quit the race at 3:25pm and head back to Orlando. I did not think I cover another 105 miles by the 5pm cutoff the next day. Melissa said the forecast was for hotter temps the next day. The new mental math would forecast a finish around 6pm. It turned out to be about 5 degrees cooler with some cloud cover. If I brought my laptop - it would show an average pace of 14:12 min miles over 65 miles; my goal average pace was 14:28 min miles for the entire course. I didn't know I was ahead of pace.
The original plan was to run the first 120 miles in 24 hours and walk the last 50 miles in 17 hours. I did not plan to slow down to a 24 min mile in 91 degree heat.
I had considered starting at 8pm but Melissa was already taking Fri and Sat off and Rob took Friday. I couldn't ask them to leave work early on Thursday. Although we arrived at the start line at 11pm, I insisted that we start on 12:01 Friday so that it felt like I would be running for a day and a half instead of running Thurs-Sat (2 days). Foolish decision!
In making the decision to DNF, I failed to consider alternatives and failed to ask these questions:
a) to the race director - what is the real time cutoff for medals? Given the heat -- a lot of teams came in later than 3pm to 5pm and several dropped out.
b) to Melissa and Rob - how late can you finish? factoring in poor sleep and having to work on Sunday. Or do you mind if I did not finish, I just want to see how far I can go by Sat 5pm?
c) to Cathy who I had committed to giving a ride back to Orlando: what is the latest time from finish line? I ended up driving 415 miles to pick up Cathy on Saturday.
All creative thinking goes out the window after being awake 33 hours with a 2 hour nap before the race.
My thinking has always been rigid regarding time goals. I quit my first Rocky Raccoon 100 at 80 miles because I fell behind a 12 minute mile goal pace. This DNF decision was consistent with RR100 but I regret this decision.
Additionally, I took the Sat. 5pm cutoff time to be like a typical 30 hour hard cutoff for an ultra where there is no finisher medal, no support, no listing in the official race results.
The alternative was to pick up the pace. But the radiant heat from the sun was too much. There was no medical support. Heat would be less of an issue for the average relay team runner who would run 5 miles 3 times in 24 hours. Although I lost only 3 lbs, was still peeing regularly and my body temp was normal, I didn't want to risk collapsing on the trail miles away from help. Vehicle access points were miles apart. At this point, I decided there no way I am going to apply for Badwater 135 mile desert run since I can't take the heat.
In hindsight I missed something critical. I had a separate cooler for wet towels and ice water to spray down. I also packed a gallon size garden sprayer. Rob was on a bike with a backpack to provide support for the 50 miles on the Okeechobee trail. He could have carried the gallon size sprayer in his backpack and sprayed me down every tenth of a mile. There was a decent breeze that would have provided adequate evaporative cooling. Since I don't sweat much, the breeze wasn't very useful but I think an ice-cold spray would have gotten me through the 8 hours of above 85 degree heat. I recalled Dean's advice to stay wet and had only watched the Badwater video on Tuesday where the pacers were spraying down the runners. We passed a water truck watering a field and joked that it would be nice if it followed us. The only thing the driver said was that he was driving 2.5mph. Why did he mention that? Assuming he wasn't spraying pesticides, we should have just walked in the downstream of the mist! I had most of my supplies in the back of the SUV and completely forgot about the extra cooler and sprayer in the right rear passenger seat. Big oops!
My strategy was to deal with one leg at a time. Nutrition had to be geared toward the varying mileage of the legs. I wrote a checklist on post-its attached to a Google map of each leg. Besides nutrition, the list on some post-its included sunscreen, bug spray, recharging batteries, switching out the GPS watch, etc. At home, while cleaning out the car, I found a loose post-it note that said - "MISTER, wet towels, ice on cap" . I had apparently removed it from the Okeechobee map. While the other maps only contained one leg - this one page Army Corp map contained 9 legs and was covered with 11 post-its. I removed that critical post-it containing a reminder to use the spray mister, in order to look at the map. Also, had I known the exchange points were not really checkpoints for solo runners, I would have my support vehicle stop and do the next checklist every 5 miles; the mister reminder would be repeated on 10 pages. Too late now!
The towns surrounding Lake Okeechobee are pretty depressed. There was a construction detour on the dike that put us into the town of Pahokee. I wouldn't want to be running there alone at night or among the alligators both sides of the dike. One of the teams advised Melissa not to drive alone to the last 2 exchange points on the lake at night. When she went to buy some ice, she was followed around by the store clerk. I guess they thought she might be a shoplifter.
I didn't have an appetite and eat only a couple of chips and a half slice of pizza. My body was too busy trying to cool off. I had to rely on my fat stores and the calories from the drinks. I weighted in Sat. morning down 3.6 lbs from Thursday morning. A good start to trying to qualify for Boston this fall :) I packed 30000 calories for the run and consumed about 4500 calories over 65 miles. I gave a large bag of kettle chips (2800 calories - no trans fats) to a homeless guy who pestered me for money while I was filling up at a gas station.
Congratulations to Mike who wisely gave himself 65 hours and completed the 170 mile run with just a 1/2 hour to spare at 4:30pm. Dante who started 6 hours before I did, finished in 61 hours on Sunday morning.
I am grateful to Melissa and Rob for patiently driving the support vehicle for 22 hours.
So, maybe I will attempt this Relay again in the Solo division next year! Temps were 10 degrees above average on Friday and 4 degrees on Saturday. On Monday noon, it was 25 degrees cooler than it was 72 hours earlier. I could start at 8pm and remember to use the mister. George, the brother of one of the race directors, offered to crew, if I ever decide to do the Badwater 135 in Death Valley.
Yes, this a long writeup for just 65 miles, just two-fifths of the race. Maybe there would have been other showstoppers had I continued. Among our relay teams from Orlando - one DNF, one finished early and one finished at 7:30pm. I had a massage on Monday and there was only a couple of minor tight spots. Running 65 miles at an easy pace on a flat course really doesn't beat up the body - except for 2 damaged toenails. I had a more painful massage after running the Georgia marathon 2 weeks ago on rolling hills.
ING Georgia Mar 25, 2007
Atlanta traffic is worse than LA. My blood pressure was 136/99 at Emory Hospital. I had a cardiac CT scan done -- it was a promotion for the marathon. I received a zero calcium score. It means the Spinach and Bacon Panini at Einsteins and the Dunkin Donuts did not make any lasting impressions despite some family history and borderline cholesterol.
I stayed with 2 sets of friends who I haven't seen for at least 3 years. One friend is working a DoD contract on a military base where he last visited as an anti-war (Vietnam) protester and was overcome by tear gas.
The Georgia marathon in Atlanta was all rolling hills. The only person I spotted was Joan from the Saturday group. I paced behind my friend's wife, who is a coach for an Atlanta running group until I lost her at a water stop at mile 17. She hoped to break 4 hours but did not expect much with the hills and the heat. The temp rose to 81 by the time I finished. It was 91 on the drive back.
The race directors will give ING a bad rep -- because they did not have fluids at one water stop and didn't have any electrolyte drinks available at most aid stations. I was counting on getting some calories from Powerade/Gatorade.
I took it easy and just ran the last 0.2 hard. I finished in 4:08. I got no blisters using the Injinji toe socks!
I signed up for the 5k program in hopes of getting some speed back in my legs.
I stayed with 2 sets of friends who I haven't seen for at least 3 years. One friend is working a DoD contract on a military base where he last visited as an anti-war (Vietnam) protester and was overcome by tear gas.
The Georgia marathon in Atlanta was all rolling hills. The only person I spotted was Joan from the Saturday group. I paced behind my friend's wife, who is a coach for an Atlanta running group until I lost her at a water stop at mile 17. She hoped to break 4 hours but did not expect much with the hills and the heat. The temp rose to 81 by the time I finished. It was 91 on the drive back.
The race directors will give ING a bad rep -- because they did not have fluids at one water stop and didn't have any electrolyte drinks available at most aid stations. I was counting on getting some calories from Powerade/Gatorade.
I took it easy and just ran the last 0.2 hard. I finished in 4:08. I got no blisters using the Injinji toe socks!
I signed up for the 5k program in hopes of getting some speed back in my legs.
Iron Horse 100 Miler (Feb 17, 2007)
Orange Park, FL
Temps 32 to 58. winds gust to 23mph
I signed up for a 100 miler in Jacksonville for Sat and
the Tampa marathon on
Sunday 6am. Erin offered to rent/pilot a plane so I could
catch some sleep between races. But I'd figured I would be too
wound up to sleep on a plane.
Going into the Iron Horse 100 miler my left achilles was
still inflamed and left quad still tender from
the Rocky Raccoon 100 two weeks ago.
Since it still hurts after 2 weeks, I can declare it
a "running injury" as opposed to 2-3 days of normal soreness.
I was prepared to drop out -- the race director would give
medals to those who DNF their goal distance
but completed 50k, 50 miles or 100k.
I cut a notch in my left shoe to reduce the irritation
on the Achilles tendon.
I took one Advil and one electrolyte tablet
at every aid station which were 6.25 miles apart.
It was pretty much the maximum daily intake.
Advil can be a factor in hyponatremia.
The quad pain went away after warming up
but the left heel pain came and went with the
Advil levels.
I tried staying off my heels; I tried visualizing
the Chi(pose) method of running. It takes too
much effort to change running form mid-race.
I started out with run 4 min / walk 1 min.
I think I was last (maybe 35-50 runners)
since there was no flashlight beams behind me.
The course was an out and back (12.5 miles out)
repeated 4 times. At mile 37.5
I found out that I was in 2nd place and the lead was about
6 miles ahead of me.
The guys at the aid station said the lead guy was running
strong and looked like he was hardly making a effort.
I figured most runners start out too fast and
will fade in the last 50 miles.
All I had to do was hold a 12 minute mile.
I wasn't running hard because I had a marathon
coming up in a few hours.
I got some effortless speed by increasing the run portion.
I went from 4/1 to 5/1 to 6/1 to 7/1 to 8/1.
Then my legs got tighter, I went to 5 min run 30 secs walk.
The 10 hour battery on the Garmin 205 finally gave out
at 16 hours even though the GPS was off -- the bird
chime for the run/walks used up the power.
I finally caught up the leader at mile 59; he was walking.
I hit the wall at 60 and started feeling real hungry.
As I approached the aid station at 62.5; he ran past
me during one of my walk breaks.
One tough dude.
I filled up on solid food at the aid station.
I took the lead at mile 64.
I decided if I win this race, I would skip the marathon.
(there were only 7 competitors in the 100 miler, the rest
were running the 50 miler or 100k).
After 9 years of running, I have yet to win any awards.
By mile 87.5, I learned that I had a comfortable lead.
I wanted to break 20 hours but only had an 2 hrs 20
minutes to do so. I kicked it in at a 10:38 pace
and go in at 19 hrs 52 minutes.
I got 2 belt buckles: one for finishing under 24 hours
and one for winning the race.
My 25 mile splits were: 4:50, 4:55, 5:05, 5:02.
Average mile pace 11:55.
I had time to put in another 20 miles but passed
on the opportunity as my legs were beat up on the kick.
One of the volunteers recognized me from the JFK50
and Rocky Raccoon. He finished 21 seconds behind
me at JFK but he finished almost 3 hours ahead of me at Rocky
Raccoon. Fortunately, he didn't enter this race :)
I have blood blisters on my right toe and a water one on
my left toe. I should have stopped to address the developing blisters
but I was trying to catch the lead guy.
At mile 75 I changed socks but I made the mistake of
tying my shoelaces even tighter which caused rubbing
on the top of the toes.
I headed back to Orlando at 2:15am. The I-4 ramp off 95 was closed
but the Navigation system immediately told me to take next
turn and directed me to a different entrance to I-4. Yeah.
The volunteers and the race director are friendly and supportive.
There are some hills and some traffic to cross.but I would definitely recommend this course to anyone for their first 50 miler.
I feel pretty stiff today; a lot of it is from working to beat
20 hours. I get a whole month off to heal up before ING Atlanta.
Temps 32 to 58. winds gust to 23mph
I signed up for a 100 miler in Jacksonville for Sat and
the Tampa marathon on
Sunday 6am. Erin offered to rent/pilot a plane so I could
catch some sleep between races. But I'd figured I would be too
wound up to sleep on a plane.
Going into the Iron Horse 100 miler my left achilles was
still inflamed and left quad still tender from
the Rocky Raccoon 100 two weeks ago.
Since it still hurts after 2 weeks, I can declare it
a "running injury" as opposed to 2-3 days of normal soreness.
I was prepared to drop out -- the race director would give
medals to those who DNF their goal distance
but completed 50k, 50 miles or 100k.
I cut a notch in my left shoe to reduce the irritation
on the Achilles tendon.
I took one Advil and one electrolyte tablet
at every aid station which were 6.25 miles apart.
It was pretty much the maximum daily intake.
Advil can be a factor in hyponatremia.
The quad pain went away after warming up
but the left heel pain came and went with the
Advil levels.
I tried staying off my heels; I tried visualizing
the Chi(pose) method of running. It takes too
much effort to change running form mid-race.
I started out with run 4 min / walk 1 min.
I think I was last (maybe 35-50 runners)
since there was no flashlight beams behind me.
The course was an out and back (12.5 miles out)
repeated 4 times. At mile 37.5
I found out that I was in 2nd place and the lead was about
6 miles ahead of me.
The guys at the aid station said the lead guy was running
strong and looked like he was hardly making a effort.
I figured most runners start out too fast and
will fade in the last 50 miles.
All I had to do was hold a 12 minute mile.
I wasn't running hard because I had a marathon
coming up in a few hours.
I got some effortless speed by increasing the run portion.
I went from 4/1 to 5/1 to 6/1 to 7/1 to 8/1.
Then my legs got tighter, I went to 5 min run 30 secs walk.
The 10 hour battery on the Garmin 205 finally gave out
at 16 hours even though the GPS was off -- the bird
chime for the run/walks used up the power.
I finally caught up the leader at mile 59; he was walking.
I hit the wall at 60 and started feeling real hungry.
As I approached the aid station at 62.5; he ran past
me during one of my walk breaks.
One tough dude.
I filled up on solid food at the aid station.
I took the lead at mile 64.
I decided if I win this race, I would skip the marathon.
(there were only 7 competitors in the 100 miler, the rest
were running the 50 miler or 100k).
After 9 years of running, I have yet to win any awards.
By mile 87.5, I learned that I had a comfortable lead.
I wanted to break 20 hours but only had an 2 hrs 20
minutes to do so. I kicked it in at a 10:38 pace
and go in at 19 hrs 52 minutes.
I got 2 belt buckles: one for finishing under 24 hours
and one for winning the race.
My 25 mile splits were: 4:50, 4:55, 5:05, 5:02.
Average mile pace 11:55.
I had time to put in another 20 miles but passed
on the opportunity as my legs were beat up on the kick.
One of the volunteers recognized me from the JFK50
and Rocky Raccoon. He finished 21 seconds behind
me at JFK but he finished almost 3 hours ahead of me at Rocky
Raccoon. Fortunately, he didn't enter this race :)
I have blood blisters on my right toe and a water one on
my left toe. I should have stopped to address the developing blisters
but I was trying to catch the lead guy.
At mile 75 I changed socks but I made the mistake of
tying my shoelaces even tighter which caused rubbing
on the top of the toes.
I headed back to Orlando at 2:15am. The I-4 ramp off 95 was closed
but the Navigation system immediately told me to take next
turn and directed me to a different entrance to I-4. Yeah.
The volunteers and the race director are friendly and supportive.
There are some hills and some traffic to cross.but I would definitely recommend this course to anyone for their first 50 miler.
I feel pretty stiff today; a lot of it is from working to beat
20 hours. I get a whole month off to heal up before ING Atlanta.
Rocky Raccoon 100 Miler (Feb 3, 2007)
Huntsville, Texas
Temps 26 to 53
The strategy for this year was to take it
easy and walk the hills (5500 feet elevation gain).
I burned out my quads last year in the first
loop of five 20.15 mile loops by running up the hills.
Besides, I am tapering for the "reverse Goofy"
in 2 weeks - which involves a 100 miler at 6am Saturday in Jax followed by
a marathon at 6am Sunday in Tampa.
I am more worried about the logistics/sleep than the running.
I hit the wall at mile 38 just as I did at the JFK50.
I switched from gels and Ensure Plus to solid food at the aid station--
including pizza, macaroni & cheese, spaghetti
(I spit out the beef meatballs), chicken noodle soup, ramen noodles and
potato soup. No donuts were offered.
The 100 dollar entry fee is a bargain for 30 meals
for up to 30 hours; it costs $100 for the Disney marathon.
The volunteers were great and some of them
remembered me from last year. I saw a few runners
I knew from the Reston group. One guy said he had tried
to keep up with me the last 25 miles at the JFK50.
I guess the bright orange singlets stood out well.
I picked up my cell phone after mile 60 but I decided
I should concentrate on running in the dark instead.
Maybe if I had a Bluetooth headset...
Last year I quit at mile 80.6 -- the end of loop 4,
because I was running too slow according to my plan.
This year, I actually arrived at the 80.6 five minutes
later. I planned on finishing my first 100 miler since I did not book
a hotel room for Saturday night.
Maybe I was running slower because I am a few lbs heavier
than this time last year.
I gained 11 lbs in the past 3 months --- too many healthy carbs -
oatmeal, whole grains, high fiber bread and beans,
It had rained during the week and sections of the course
were flooded or quite muddy. Fortunately, my trail shoes had a Goretex liner--
so stepping in water felt wet but it did not soak through.
I ran extra mileage navigating around the flooded
areas.
I had a gash on my leg from walking through thorny bushes
to pee. I decided to go on the trail when no one is
nearby. With the chicken noodle soup, ramen noodles and
Coke -- I went quite frequently. Dehydration was not an
issue this year.
Ultra runners like trail races because the varying terrain gives
their muscles a rest. I think the varying terrain ensures
that all your muscles get beat up eventually.
I could still feel my bruised toe from my first 50 in 2004.
I didn't fall and roll this year but I tripped over tree roots
at least a dozen times.
I have one purple toenail and one red toenail from stubbing
my foot against roots.
First my left achilles hurt, then the left heel, then the
left inner quad tightened up.
I must of pulled something while breaking one of many
falls.
It feel better to shuffle on my toes than to walk --
so I did that in the last 30 miles.
Other than that, I felt better than I did last year.
I had a limited range of motion of my left leg but I wasn't sore.
At 4am, I got sleepy and had 2nd thoughts about attempting a 48 hour race.
One baby step at time: 26.2 -> 50 -> 80 -> 100 -> 126? -> 165?
It was so cold that the batteries drained down quickly.
Fortunately I brought 4 flashlights; 2 of them still worked.
The flashlights worked when I got home; it could be the metal
contracts at cold temperatures and did not make good contat.
I got lost in the woods last year -- I wanted to make sure
I didn't miss the same turn this year --- the newer 3W LED
lights helped. One guy complained that my lights were shining
into his eyes. Oh well.
It was so cold that each time I drank a can of Red Bull,
I shivered vigorously for 5 minutes. I brought 6 cans
and drank only 2. Maybe I should have added more layers sooner?
The drop bags at the 2nd/4th aid station was not due to be
transported back to the finish area until 11am. I wanted an early
flight so I picked up my drop bag (backpack) at mile 93 and carried to the
finish.
My lap times were 3:50, 3:55, 4:00, 4:55, 5:56I finished in 22 hours 36 min, 40th place out of 242 starters.
30% failed to finish.
I received a sub 24 hour Texas belt buckle;
Breaking 24 hours is considered an accomplishment in the
ultra world.
There were fewer spectators at 4am --- but those that were
camped out -- did cheer. Some runners still have another 20
mile loop to finish when I was done. The course closed at 30 hours.
I planned to sleep in the car until daylight before catching an
early flight. But it was too cold. I didn't think to pack a CO detector
so I ran the engine for 5 minutes and turned it off to take
a nap. After 10 minutes, the cold woke up me up.
I repeated this till 6am and decided to pack and try to get on
the 8:45 flight. I got on but had no time to change or wash up.
It was too cold to change in the car. But I did switch out the muddy
trail shoes and gators and put on a pair of sweats.
Today, my left achilles is still swollen -- I should ice it.
But other than that I am walking fine and feel better than I have
in some marathons. I could have done better but I'm not sure
if I want to do another bruising trail run.
I'll take asphalt any day!
Temps 26 to 53
The strategy for this year was to take it
easy and walk the hills (5500 feet elevation gain).
I burned out my quads last year in the first
loop of five 20.15 mile loops by running up the hills.
Besides, I am tapering for the "reverse Goofy"
in 2 weeks - which involves a 100 miler at 6am Saturday in Jax followed by
a marathon at 6am Sunday in Tampa.
I am more worried about the logistics/sleep than the running.
I hit the wall at mile 38 just as I did at the JFK50.
I switched from gels and Ensure Plus to solid food at the aid station--
including pizza, macaroni & cheese, spaghetti
(I spit out the beef meatballs), chicken noodle soup, ramen noodles and
potato soup. No donuts were offered.
The 100 dollar entry fee is a bargain for 30 meals
for up to 30 hours; it costs $100 for the Disney marathon.
The volunteers were great and some of them
remembered me from last year. I saw a few runners
I knew from the Reston group. One guy said he had tried
to keep up with me the last 25 miles at the JFK50.
I guess the bright orange singlets stood out well.
I picked up my cell phone after mile 60 but I decided
I should concentrate on running in the dark instead.
Maybe if I had a Bluetooth headset...
Last year I quit at mile 80.6 -- the end of loop 4,
because I was running too slow according to my plan.
This year, I actually arrived at the 80.6 five minutes
later. I planned on finishing my first 100 miler since I did not book
a hotel room for Saturday night.
Maybe I was running slower because I am a few lbs heavier
than this time last year.
I gained 11 lbs in the past 3 months --- too many healthy carbs -
oatmeal, whole grains, high fiber bread and beans,
It had rained during the week and sections of the course
were flooded or quite muddy. Fortunately, my trail shoes had a Goretex liner--
so stepping in water felt wet but it did not soak through.
I ran extra mileage navigating around the flooded
areas.
I had a gash on my leg from walking through thorny bushes
to pee. I decided to go on the trail when no one is
nearby. With the chicken noodle soup, ramen noodles and
Coke -- I went quite frequently. Dehydration was not an
issue this year.
Ultra runners like trail races because the varying terrain gives
their muscles a rest. I think the varying terrain ensures
that all your muscles get beat up eventually.
I could still feel my bruised toe from my first 50 in 2004.
I didn't fall and roll this year but I tripped over tree roots
at least a dozen times.
I have one purple toenail and one red toenail from stubbing
my foot against roots.
First my left achilles hurt, then the left heel, then the
left inner quad tightened up.
I must of pulled something while breaking one of many
falls.
It feel better to shuffle on my toes than to walk --
so I did that in the last 30 miles.
Other than that, I felt better than I did last year.
I had a limited range of motion of my left leg but I wasn't sore.
At 4am, I got sleepy and had 2nd thoughts about attempting a 48 hour race.
One baby step at time: 26.2 -> 50 -> 80 -> 100 -> 126? -> 165?
It was so cold that the batteries drained down quickly.
Fortunately I brought 4 flashlights; 2 of them still worked.
The flashlights worked when I got home; it could be the metal
contracts at cold temperatures and did not make good contat.
I got lost in the woods last year -- I wanted to make sure
I didn't miss the same turn this year --- the newer 3W LED
lights helped. One guy complained that my lights were shining
into his eyes. Oh well.
It was so cold that each time I drank a can of Red Bull,
I shivered vigorously for 5 minutes. I brought 6 cans
and drank only 2. Maybe I should have added more layers sooner?
The drop bags at the 2nd/4th aid station was not due to be
transported back to the finish area until 11am. I wanted an early
flight so I picked up my drop bag (backpack) at mile 93 and carried to the
finish.
My lap times were 3:50, 3:55, 4:00, 4:55, 5:56I finished in 22 hours 36 min, 40th place out of 242 starters.
30% failed to finish.
I received a sub 24 hour Texas belt buckle;
Breaking 24 hours is considered an accomplishment in the
ultra world.
There were fewer spectators at 4am --- but those that were
camped out -- did cheer. Some runners still have another 20
mile loop to finish when I was done. The course closed at 30 hours.
I planned to sleep in the car until daylight before catching an
early flight. But it was too cold. I didn't think to pack a CO detector
so I ran the engine for 5 minutes and turned it off to take
a nap. After 10 minutes, the cold woke up me up.
I repeated this till 6am and decided to pack and try to get on
the 8:45 flight. I got on but had no time to change or wash up.
It was too cold to change in the car. But I did switch out the muddy
trail shoes and gators and put on a pair of sweats.
Today, my left achilles is still swollen -- I should ice it.
But other than that I am walking fine and feel better than I have
in some marathons. I could have done better but I'm not sure
if I want to do another bruising trail run.
I'll take asphalt any day!
Disney Marathon Jan 7, 2007
Temps 72 to 75.
I left 20 minutes earlier than last year and exited I-4 at 4am. There was no bumper to bumper traffic and I created a second lane into the Epcot parking lot. I guess there were first timers that didn't know that Disney parks 2 lanes at a time.
I saw Nina, Jen and Karla at the staging area as well as Jeri and Amber from Saturday's group. Where was everyone else?
I was in the first corral but there wasn't much room to warm up. There was wet grass to run on but runners were in the way heading toward the bushes to take pottie break. I think there was more paved areas to warm up in previous Disneys.
I had a tight left hip flexor from track on Tuesday so I took 3 Advil at the water stop and felt no pain for the next 20 miles. I was running 10:10 miles for the 1st 5 miles.
I caught up with our Sunday runners around mile 10; I thought about cruising with them but didn't see anyone I could torture and push to a PR -- so I moved along.
There was a bunch of spectators that yelled out - some whom I recognized, many that I did not. My number was on my right hip; sometimes the cheering came from the left.
The heat not as bad as last week at the 50k. There was more cloud cover than I expected. I didn't have the heat exhaustion that I suffered last week and ran about 26 seconds faster per mile.
I tried some new gadgets for keeping cool but they didn't seem to work in humid weather so I left them with Diana at the mile 17 aid station and picked up a pre-arranged bag of potato chips.
I ran shirtless for the first time in a race; I think that helped somewhat.
I got to the half at 2:02 and decided to take it easy but still break 4 hrs. ( I ran this one in 3:42 last year) I was ahead of schedule at mile 26 so I stood still for a while and kicked it in at a 6:15 pace. My chip time was 3:58:52 (9:06 average pace). My clock time turned out to be 3:59:59. I couldn't have timed it better if I tried!
I thought about waiting at the finish or running back on the course but it was too hot so I decided to go home.
It took 20 minutes for find my silver/gray Highlander hybrid. I noted the letter E sign but forgot the number. There was a bunch of Highlanders and a lot of silver/gray SUVs in the parking lot.
While I was waiting for the fire department to finish up fighting a multi-car fire at the airport parking garage in White Plains, I chatted with a TNT runner who ran the 1/2 and trained in Connectiut. She actually preferred running in the heat over 40 degree weather. I mentioned that the faster you run, the more body heat you generate, the greater need for cooler temperatures. She wants to break 4:30 in her next marathon.
There is no real soreness other than what was ache-y before the race. I guess getting a deep tissue massage 21 hours before a race was not a great idea.
Did anyone have a great race or a peak experience? I thought Jeri did well with the Goofy - 4:46 finish on Sunday. She was busy throwing up when I called her Sunday afternoon -- so I need to call her tonight to see if she had a great race (and if the vomiting was unrelated).
I left 20 minutes earlier than last year and exited I-4 at 4am. There was no bumper to bumper traffic and I created a second lane into the Epcot parking lot. I guess there were first timers that didn't know that Disney parks 2 lanes at a time.
I saw Nina, Jen and Karla at the staging area as well as Jeri and Amber from Saturday's group. Where was everyone else?
I was in the first corral but there wasn't much room to warm up. There was wet grass to run on but runners were in the way heading toward the bushes to take pottie break. I think there was more paved areas to warm up in previous Disneys.
I had a tight left hip flexor from track on Tuesday so I took 3 Advil at the water stop and felt no pain for the next 20 miles. I was running 10:10 miles for the 1st 5 miles.
I caught up with our Sunday runners around mile 10; I thought about cruising with them but didn't see anyone I could torture and push to a PR -- so I moved along.
There was a bunch of spectators that yelled out - some whom I recognized, many that I did not. My number was on my right hip; sometimes the cheering came from the left.
The heat not as bad as last week at the 50k. There was more cloud cover than I expected. I didn't have the heat exhaustion that I suffered last week and ran about 26 seconds faster per mile.
I tried some new gadgets for keeping cool but they didn't seem to work in humid weather so I left them with Diana at the mile 17 aid station and picked up a pre-arranged bag of potato chips.
I ran shirtless for the first time in a race; I think that helped somewhat.
I got to the half at 2:02 and decided to take it easy but still break 4 hrs. ( I ran this one in 3:42 last year) I was ahead of schedule at mile 26 so I stood still for a while and kicked it in at a 6:15 pace. My chip time was 3:58:52 (9:06 average pace). My clock time turned out to be 3:59:59. I couldn't have timed it better if I tried!
I thought about waiting at the finish or running back on the course but it was too hot so I decided to go home.
It took 20 minutes for find my silver/gray Highlander hybrid. I noted the letter E sign but forgot the number. There was a bunch of Highlanders and a lot of silver/gray SUVs in the parking lot.
While I was waiting for the fire department to finish up fighting a multi-car fire at the airport parking garage in White Plains, I chatted with a TNT runner who ran the 1/2 and trained in Connectiut. She actually preferred running in the heat over 40 degree weather. I mentioned that the faster you run, the more body heat you generate, the greater need for cooler temperatures. She wants to break 4:30 in her next marathon.
There is no real soreness other than what was ache-y before the race. I guess getting a deep tissue massage 21 hours before a race was not a great idea.
Did anyone have a great race or a peak experience? I thought Jeri did well with the Goofy - 4:46 finish on Sunday. She was busy throwing up when I called her Sunday afternoon -- so I need to call her tonight to see if she had a great race (and if the vomiting was unrelated).
Luna Chicks 50k Dec 31, 2006
There are few marathons over the holidays so I signed up for a 50k in New Port Richey. There wasn't much info on the website other than the starting times and directions. Started out at 4:30am, the navigation system on my hybrid delivered me to the right place. It was a small race. Jim Sullivan came running in before we started at 7am. He was running the 50 miler. The course is a 3 loops and flat but somewhat sandy in places and largely unshaded. Temps rose from 71 to 81 degrees at noon. It was hot and humid.
I did a run/walk for the first half; it was to be an easy race with Disney coming up next weekend. Then I learned that the frontrunner had dropped out because his heart was racing. I was in 2nd place at the half. I decided to run the last 16 without walking.
Unfortunately, I was getting the chills after mile 21. It was a sign of heat exhaustion. My pace dropped to 11 minute miles. I got passed by a guy who said heat was no problem for him. As I don't sweat much -- I tried drinking ice water. In hindsight, I should have continued the run/walks and taken a minute to down large amounts of ice cold water.
At mile 30, I saw someone gaining on me, so I tried running 10:30s but did not hold it. It was "just" a woman, who would get first place. Turns out the results would be reported as "overall", so I came in 4th overall, 3rd for men. Had I known, maybe I could have suffered and kept up her in the last 2 miles.
5:05 for 32 miles which is a 9:32 pace. With the heat, it is one of my toughest races. I'd do the race again (there is 5k, 1/2, 50k and 50 miler). The organizers are nice and the runners were friendly. I'd probably run the 50 miler with the 5am start.
The current forecast for Disney is 59 to 83 degrees!
I did a run/walk for the first half; it was to be an easy race with Disney coming up next weekend. Then I learned that the frontrunner had dropped out because his heart was racing. I was in 2nd place at the half. I decided to run the last 16 without walking.
Unfortunately, I was getting the chills after mile 21. It was a sign of heat exhaustion. My pace dropped to 11 minute miles. I got passed by a guy who said heat was no problem for him. As I don't sweat much -- I tried drinking ice water. In hindsight, I should have continued the run/walks and taken a minute to down large amounts of ice cold water.
At mile 30, I saw someone gaining on me, so I tried running 10:30s but did not hold it. It was "just" a woman, who would get first place. Turns out the results would be reported as "overall", so I came in 4th overall, 3rd for men. Had I known, maybe I could have suffered and kept up her in the last 2 miles.
5:05 for 32 miles which is a 9:32 pace. With the heat, it is one of my toughest races. I'd do the race again (there is 5k, 1/2, 50k and 50 miler). The organizers are nice and the runners were friendly. I'd probably run the 50 miler with the 5am start.
The current forecast for Disney is 59 to 83 degrees!
Jacksonville Marathon Dec 17, 2006
Jax - 61 degrees to 75 degrees sunny.
Sat.
I stayed up all night Friday for work and went to the airport to catch the 8:25am back to Orlando. I had changed the ticket from the 1:45p to the 8:25am; it cost $115. The flight was delayed; there were 2 flat tires and no spares to be found. The tires arrived from Atlanta --- I don't think they had a right tire irons. We ended up on the 1:45p -- the same flight I had reticketed on Friday. I missed a ride from the airport and a birthday lunch with my roommate. I got home at 5pm and missed the runners dinner in Jacksonville (:
Sun.
My shins cramped the first 6 miles despite a 1.5 mile warmup. I haven't used the balance board machine since August and need to start again. Also a blister developed on a new pair of shoes. I think sometimes the socks just bunch up if the insole is grippy. Ist half 1:49. Too slow for a PR. I took it easy and finished in 3:37. I told Jeri I was going to suffer but there was no point. Betsy, Laura Tolley and Melissa were up there and did not have good races. It was hot. I upped my sodium intake and had no problems with dehyration or cramping.
At packet pickup, I heard that Christine Merriam with have 16 marathons for the season. I have only 15 ... I need 2 more!!!
Sat.
I stayed up all night Friday for work and went to the airport to catch the 8:25am back to Orlando. I had changed the ticket from the 1:45p to the 8:25am; it cost $115. The flight was delayed; there were 2 flat tires and no spares to be found. The tires arrived from Atlanta --- I don't think they had a right tire irons. We ended up on the 1:45p -- the same flight I had reticketed on Friday. I missed a ride from the airport and a birthday lunch with my roommate. I got home at 5pm and missed the runners dinner in Jacksonville (:
Sun.
My shins cramped the first 6 miles despite a 1.5 mile warmup. I haven't used the balance board machine since August and need to start again. Also a blister developed on a new pair of shoes. I think sometimes the socks just bunch up if the insole is grippy. Ist half 1:49. Too slow for a PR. I took it easy and finished in 3:37. I told Jeri I was going to suffer but there was no point. Betsy, Laura Tolley and Melissa were up there and did not have good races. It was hot. I upped my sodium intake and had no problems with dehyration or cramping.
At packet pickup, I heard that Christine Merriam with have 16 marathons for the season. I have only 15 ... I need 2 more!!!
Las Vagas Marathon Dec.10, 2006
Friday, at the expo, Ella, who used to run with our group 3 years ago,came up to me at the Big Sur booth, as I was trying to decide if I should sign up and get 20 dollars off the entry fee. I could not remember Ella's name until she wrote down her email address; I forgot her sister Theresa's name too! Ella moved back home to Kentucky and then moved out to Las Vegas. What are the odds of meeting?
On Saturday I ran the Great Santa Run 5k. It was a fundraiser for kids. Santa outfits were included with the registration fee. A Guinness record was attempted for the largest Santa gathering (4,600).The Santa suit was available in only one size, XXL, so I had to holdup my Santa pants to get some stride length to kick at the finish. It was pretty warm in the Santa suit. There was no water on the course and the 5k leaders ran into the one mile walkers who were still staged at the finish area. The announcements were unclear so some of the one milers started with the5k runners. Robin Leach made an appearance and Roy Horn who got bit by his tiger 3 years ago -- did the one mile walk.
Sun - "New" Vegas Marathon: temps 51 to 55, cloudy. Winds 19 mph gust to28mph.I'm not sure if race organizers should be touting the "new" word as in this case, it meant inexperienced. There were no directions in the race packet. The Blue Man group kicked off the start -- there were no large video screens -- so you could not see much. The view of the fireworks were obscured.
At mile 3, I lost 10 dollars in the dollar slots. My right knee still not recovered from bouncing off the rocks in the 50 miler and my calfs were tight.At mile 6, I played the other 16 dollars (a dollar per mile) and left the casino with 23 dollars. The machines simulated the sound of coins dropping into a bucket but all I got was a bar coded receipt. (I had a net loss of 3 dollars from the race). It took some time to find the dollar slots, make the spins, find a machine to exchange the receipt for cash and get a couple of pictures taken.
It was nice to run back into the race with a handful of cash.Things were looking up; the 10 minute casino walk break helped loosen up my calfs. But by this time I was running behind the 4:30 pace group.Just before the 1/2 I spotted Jeri who's goal was to break 4:30. The mile markers were anywhere between 1/2 a mile and 1.5 miles apart; it was hard to tell what the split times were. The mile markers happened to be wherever the volunteers decided to set up a water stop. I think I was halfway at 2:09.
I decided to run Jeri in, as this is my "fun run" before Jax next weekend. I would stick with her no matter how many times she told me to leave her alone and go on ahead. I told her I would push her after mile 20. I ran slightly behind her till mile 20and was almost always ahead of her after 20 mile, trying to pull her along. Her facial expressions increasingly of fatigue; she was just trying to get to the next mile. She was not a happy camper.
Jeri started taking unscheduled walk breaks after mile 23. I gave her encouraging words -- you're doing great but it's going to suck for the next 3 miles; it won't get better by walking; you may as well get to the finish sooner than later. No walk breaks over 30 seconds! As long as she had no cramps (and signs of heat stress), I kept pushing. She did not have her chrono running (I think by choice). She didn't ask and I didn't tell her -- her run portions were at a 9 minute pace. She was on pace for a 4:15, I did not want her to settle for a 4:30.Even with the 3 bathroom breaks and leisurely water stops, she was running most miles in the 9:30-9:40 pace.
She came in at 4:16, a 16 minute PR! I am proud of her for pushing pass her fatigue. She did all the hard work but I felt like one of Lance Armstrong's pacers who took some credit for bring him under 3hours in New York.
It was the first time I finished a marathon with someone instead of kicking it in. (except for the Dean Karnazes races). Since running for time wasn't a goal, I enjoyed the race despite disorganization and headwinds.At the finish, there was no food; the half marathoners have consumed it all. It was a nice long run (4:19 with 2 casino breaks - I didn't spot the beer stop). I jogged back to the hotel to check out before noon. I was fine the next day and am ready to run another one.
On Saturday I ran the Great Santa Run 5k. It was a fundraiser for kids. Santa outfits were included with the registration fee. A Guinness record was attempted for the largest Santa gathering (4,600).The Santa suit was available in only one size, XXL, so I had to holdup my Santa pants to get some stride length to kick at the finish. It was pretty warm in the Santa suit. There was no water on the course and the 5k leaders ran into the one mile walkers who were still staged at the finish area. The announcements were unclear so some of the one milers started with the5k runners. Robin Leach made an appearance and Roy Horn who got bit by his tiger 3 years ago -- did the one mile walk.
Sun - "New" Vegas Marathon: temps 51 to 55, cloudy. Winds 19 mph gust to28mph.I'm not sure if race organizers should be touting the "new" word as in this case, it meant inexperienced. There were no directions in the race packet. The Blue Man group kicked off the start -- there were no large video screens -- so you could not see much. The view of the fireworks were obscured.
At mile 3, I lost 10 dollars in the dollar slots. My right knee still not recovered from bouncing off the rocks in the 50 miler and my calfs were tight.At mile 6, I played the other 16 dollars (a dollar per mile) and left the casino with 23 dollars. The machines simulated the sound of coins dropping into a bucket but all I got was a bar coded receipt. (I had a net loss of 3 dollars from the race). It took some time to find the dollar slots, make the spins, find a machine to exchange the receipt for cash and get a couple of pictures taken.
It was nice to run back into the race with a handful of cash.Things were looking up; the 10 minute casino walk break helped loosen up my calfs. But by this time I was running behind the 4:30 pace group.Just before the 1/2 I spotted Jeri who's goal was to break 4:30. The mile markers were anywhere between 1/2 a mile and 1.5 miles apart; it was hard to tell what the split times were. The mile markers happened to be wherever the volunteers decided to set up a water stop. I think I was halfway at 2:09.
I decided to run Jeri in, as this is my "fun run" before Jax next weekend. I would stick with her no matter how many times she told me to leave her alone and go on ahead. I told her I would push her after mile 20. I ran slightly behind her till mile 20and was almost always ahead of her after 20 mile, trying to pull her along. Her facial expressions increasingly of fatigue; she was just trying to get to the next mile. She was not a happy camper.
Jeri started taking unscheduled walk breaks after mile 23. I gave her encouraging words -- you're doing great but it's going to suck for the next 3 miles; it won't get better by walking; you may as well get to the finish sooner than later. No walk breaks over 30 seconds! As long as she had no cramps (and signs of heat stress), I kept pushing. She did not have her chrono running (I think by choice). She didn't ask and I didn't tell her -- her run portions were at a 9 minute pace. She was on pace for a 4:15, I did not want her to settle for a 4:30.Even with the 3 bathroom breaks and leisurely water stops, she was running most miles in the 9:30-9:40 pace.
She came in at 4:16, a 16 minute PR! I am proud of her for pushing pass her fatigue. She did all the hard work but I felt like one of Lance Armstrong's pacers who took some credit for bring him under 3hours in New York.
It was the first time I finished a marathon with someone instead of kicking it in. (except for the Dean Karnazes races). Since running for time wasn't a goal, I enjoyed the race despite disorganization and headwinds.At the finish, there was no food; the half marathoners have consumed it all. It was a nice long run (4:19 with 2 casino breaks - I didn't spot the beer stop). I jogged back to the hotel to check out before noon. I was fine the next day and am ready to run another one.
JFK50 Nov 18 2006
My roommate had a sore throat Wed and was congested Thursday. I developed a sore throat starting Thursday and didn't get a cold till Sunday. Funny how that worked out.
The 50.2 miler was held on Saturday. My strategy this year was to walk down steep hills to save the quads and run up all hills unless it was the same speed as walking.
I hit the wall at about the same place as last year - mile 26 and 37. I was lightheaded at 26 and felt a body/mind disconnect at 37. I was able to keep running but it felt too out-of-control (like being on laughing gas at the dentist) - so I walked. I think the problem was taking 8 double caffeinated gels. Too much caffeine caused my blood sugar to drop. Fortunately, the aid station had potato chips, soup and peanut butter/jelly sandwiches. I avoided the sweets and stopped GU and Gatorade all together. I lost about 10 minutes dealing with the wall; my marathon time within the ultra was 3:53.
I finished in 8:40; last year it was 9:13, and 10:05 the year before. I am making progress. I beat Dave, Jr from the Reston group. I had passed Dave at 28 and lost motivation but kept going anyway.
I had a massage yesterday; my calves are sore. Running a technical course full of rocks and leaves takes longer to recover than running 3 marathons on asphalt.
The 50.2 miler was held on Saturday. My strategy this year was to walk down steep hills to save the quads and run up all hills unless it was the same speed as walking.
I hit the wall at about the same place as last year - mile 26 and 37. I was lightheaded at 26 and felt a body/mind disconnect at 37. I was able to keep running but it felt too out-of-control (like being on laughing gas at the dentist) - so I walked. I think the problem was taking 8 double caffeinated gels. Too much caffeine caused my blood sugar to drop. Fortunately, the aid station had potato chips, soup and peanut butter/jelly sandwiches. I avoided the sweets and stopped GU and Gatorade all together. I lost about 10 minutes dealing with the wall; my marathon time within the ultra was 3:53.
I finished in 8:40; last year it was 9:13, and 10:05 the year before. I am making progress. I beat Dave, Jr from the Reston group. I had passed Dave at 28 and lost motivation but kept going anyway.
I had a massage yesterday; my calves are sore. Running a technical course full of rocks and leaves takes longer to recover than running 3 marathons on asphalt.
Endurance 50 - Marathon 48, 49, 50 (Nov. 3 to Nov. 5, 2007)
Running Philly, NJ and New York gave me a 3-day endorphin rush/runners high. Thank you Dean for coming up with the 50 in 50 in 50 idea and for inviting the public to join him. This was a truely unique opportunity.
I have even greater respect for Dean after he ran 3:00 in New York after a 49 marathon warmup. I thought he was being conservative when I caught up with him in Chicago; he was recovering from a cold.
I signed on for 3 marathons in 3 days for several reasons - some trivial: a) I couldn't get the time off to do 5 in 5. b) I wanted to out-do the Goofy Challenge (only a half and full in 2 days). c) there was someone from our Orlando Track Shack group that got recognition for the most marathons in 2005; I wanted to make sure I got it this year. What better way than to knock out 3 in a weekend - I'll have 13 marathons + 2 ultras for 2006. d) I wanted to see what was I left for New York after running a marathon Friday and Saturday.
In Philly Friday, we ran as a group finishing in 3:57. I have been running for time for the last 4 years -- I have forgotten how much fun is it to run in a group or to start in the back of the pack and talk your way up. Dean is an excellent pacer; I think he was trying to hold his heartrate to about 108 to optimize recovery. My heartrate from sitting around after a couple cups of coffee is 108. Several years ago when I wore a heart rate monitor in a marathon, my heart rate hovered 185-192.
We were led by a roving police escort through downtown Philly in mid-day traffic. Very cool. We had our own private marathon of 50 runners. I normally take a walk break through water stops so it was a first for me to pretty much run 26.2 continuously while grabbing water from a moving sag wagon. When conversation slowed, some guys started rapping. It was lot of fun. My right hamstring felt inflamed but other than that it was a leisurely marathon.
Joe Kulak, a top ultramarathoner, joined us in Philly. I look forward to seeing him at Umstead 100. I chatted with David Sylvester who was on a bike; after losing a friend on 9/11, he is biked as the first African American across 2 continents while raising money for scholarships.
Sat morning New Jersey: my left pinkie toe ached --- loosening the shoelaces helped. We finished in 4:09. Dean had 250 runners to meet and greet so the pace was slower. The group spread out; we kept running ahead of the police escort and had to stop to wait for the main group to catch up. We spent a lot of time chatting. Sponsored athletes from Northface joined us for the run -- including top ultramarathoners and a mountain climber. Sam Thompson who did 51 in 50 in the summer was also present. My left ITB was getting tight; I didn't enjoy the last 6 miles.
After the race, I made a mad dash to Manhattan to pick up the New York marathon race packet before the expo closed at 5. Logistically there was no good opportunity to pick up to the race packet Thurs or Friday. I was more nervous about finding parking and traffic than running the race itself. Fortunately, my brother knew the shortcuts as the tunnels were backed up for 40 minutes. I stopped by the Paragon booth where they were still waiting for Dean to arrive and sign books.
Carbo-loading was done with a fine bottle of Italian wine and pasta with Italian bacon.
Sun morning. New York -I had expected some struggle on day 3. At the pre-race massage in Staten Island, the massage therapist confirmed that my left quads/ITB was tight along with the calves.
Surprising, once over the Verrazano Bridge, I start moving well (7:40 on mile 2). A friend from work offered support on First Ave in Harlem. She had a Dunkin donut and coffee waiting for me at mile 19. I had to pick up the pace on the downhills -- nudging runners out of the way, so the coffee wouldn't get cold and my friend wouldn't have the donut for herself. I finished in 3:35 with an even split.
Without the bridges and hills (800ft of elevation gain), and extra effort weaving through the crowds -- I think I could have run a PR. (3:27 Chicago). I think the 52.4 mile warmup from Friday and Saturday actually helped improve my speed slightly. I was already warmed up for Sunday. While I normally train only 6 miles a week, now I understand why hard-core runners train 70 mile weeks to get faster. On the other hand, I am extremely well rested between race weekends.
It was a very pleasant surprise that marathon 3 was no physical challenge at all. Maybe the endorphins were in overdrive. Day 2 was the hardest; there was a lot of stop and go and the time pounding the pavement was the greatest.
I asked Dean several times what I should expect for day 2 and day 3. He said some runners kept up and some didn't. And he had no prediction for me or himself for New York.
"I believe that our limitations are usually just by our mind and that our bodies can actually go much farther," - DK.
At the post-race gathering at the Northface store, "Coach" Dean said that he was proud of my New York run and the 3 in 3. It affirms his motto of "pushing preconceived notions of what is possible".
This triple is good prep for the JFK 50 miler a week from Saturday. Bekkie Wright, who cartwheeled across the NJ finish line, and ran 6 in 6 days, will be running it.
Monday - Recovery from 3 marathons is easier than recovering from just one marathon. In the walking downstairs with ease test, recovery that normally takes 3 days took only one day. The body seems to get used it; and perhaps it gets into hyper-recovery mode. One thing I started to do post-marathon is: soaking my legs in a trash can filled with cold water while wearing a fleece jacket and cap.
In listening to Koop, Dean's trainer from Carmichael (Lance's trainer), it seems that Dean is not breaking down as the medical experts in the mainstream media predicted. I think both Dean and Sam Thompson said in their blogs that, they found it easier and they were running faster as the body adapted to a marathon every day. My physical therapist had suggested years ago I give up marathons and take up tennis because of a skeletal issue that causes poor biomechanics.
Lesson learned: find a medical specialist who tells you what you want to hear!
I asked Dean to dedicate one of the copies of his book to a school teacher I had dated; Unfortunately, the many weekends spent racing out of town this fall was a factor in the breakup. This multi-day event has helped me refocus.
My enthusiasm this weekend spread to my family and friends and brought us a little closer. I was a little surprised and am appreciative of their support and encouragement.
It's pretty amazing; Dean reached a lot of people. Strangers started talking about him when they saw I was wearing the Endurance 50 shirt. I think he inspired a lot of ordinary folks to get out there.
50 days on the road in 50 different states can be tiring and there isn't much time to catch the sights. Traveling is a endurance event in itself. I hope Dean's family and the support crew had a blast.
I look forward to another opportunity to join Dean on an adventure. Dean's passion is contagious.
I have even greater respect for Dean after he ran 3:00 in New York after a 49 marathon warmup. I thought he was being conservative when I caught up with him in Chicago; he was recovering from a cold.
I signed on for 3 marathons in 3 days for several reasons - some trivial: a) I couldn't get the time off to do 5 in 5. b) I wanted to out-do the Goofy Challenge (only a half and full in 2 days). c) there was someone from our Orlando Track Shack group that got recognition for the most marathons in 2005; I wanted to make sure I got it this year. What better way than to knock out 3 in a weekend - I'll have 13 marathons + 2 ultras for 2006. d) I wanted to see what was I left for New York after running a marathon Friday and Saturday.
In Philly Friday, we ran as a group finishing in 3:57. I have been running for time for the last 4 years -- I have forgotten how much fun is it to run in a group or to start in the back of the pack and talk your way up. Dean is an excellent pacer; I think he was trying to hold his heartrate to about 108 to optimize recovery. My heartrate from sitting around after a couple cups of coffee is 108. Several years ago when I wore a heart rate monitor in a marathon, my heart rate hovered 185-192.
We were led by a roving police escort through downtown Philly in mid-day traffic. Very cool. We had our own private marathon of 50 runners. I normally take a walk break through water stops so it was a first for me to pretty much run 26.2 continuously while grabbing water from a moving sag wagon. When conversation slowed, some guys started rapping. It was lot of fun. My right hamstring felt inflamed but other than that it was a leisurely marathon.
Joe Kulak, a top ultramarathoner, joined us in Philly. I look forward to seeing him at Umstead 100. I chatted with David Sylvester who was on a bike; after losing a friend on 9/11, he is biked as the first African American across 2 continents while raising money for scholarships.
Sat morning New Jersey: my left pinkie toe ached --- loosening the shoelaces helped. We finished in 4:09. Dean had 250 runners to meet and greet so the pace was slower. The group spread out; we kept running ahead of the police escort and had to stop to wait for the main group to catch up. We spent a lot of time chatting. Sponsored athletes from Northface joined us for the run -- including top ultramarathoners and a mountain climber. Sam Thompson who did 51 in 50 in the summer was also present. My left ITB was getting tight; I didn't enjoy the last 6 miles.
After the race, I made a mad dash to Manhattan to pick up the New York marathon race packet before the expo closed at 5. Logistically there was no good opportunity to pick up to the race packet Thurs or Friday. I was more nervous about finding parking and traffic than running the race itself. Fortunately, my brother knew the shortcuts as the tunnels were backed up for 40 minutes. I stopped by the Paragon booth where they were still waiting for Dean to arrive and sign books.
Carbo-loading was done with a fine bottle of Italian wine and pasta with Italian bacon.
Sun morning. New York -I had expected some struggle on day 3. At the pre-race massage in Staten Island, the massage therapist confirmed that my left quads/ITB was tight along with the calves.
Surprising, once over the Verrazano Bridge, I start moving well (7:40 on mile 2). A friend from work offered support on First Ave in Harlem. She had a Dunkin donut and coffee waiting for me at mile 19. I had to pick up the pace on the downhills -- nudging runners out of the way, so the coffee wouldn't get cold and my friend wouldn't have the donut for herself. I finished in 3:35 with an even split.
Without the bridges and hills (800ft of elevation gain), and extra effort weaving through the crowds -- I think I could have run a PR. (3:27 Chicago). I think the 52.4 mile warmup from Friday and Saturday actually helped improve my speed slightly. I was already warmed up for Sunday. While I normally train only 6 miles a week, now I understand why hard-core runners train 70 mile weeks to get faster. On the other hand, I am extremely well rested between race weekends.
It was a very pleasant surprise that marathon 3 was no physical challenge at all. Maybe the endorphins were in overdrive. Day 2 was the hardest; there was a lot of stop and go and the time pounding the pavement was the greatest.
I asked Dean several times what I should expect for day 2 and day 3. He said some runners kept up and some didn't. And he had no prediction for me or himself for New York.
"I believe that our limitations are usually just by our mind and that our bodies can actually go much farther," - DK.
At the post-race gathering at the Northface store, "Coach" Dean said that he was proud of my New York run and the 3 in 3. It affirms his motto of "pushing preconceived notions of what is possible".
This triple is good prep for the JFK 50 miler a week from Saturday. Bekkie Wright, who cartwheeled across the NJ finish line, and ran 6 in 6 days, will be running it.
Monday - Recovery from 3 marathons is easier than recovering from just one marathon. In the walking downstairs with ease test, recovery that normally takes 3 days took only one day. The body seems to get used it; and perhaps it gets into hyper-recovery mode. One thing I started to do post-marathon is: soaking my legs in a trash can filled with cold water while wearing a fleece jacket and cap.
In listening to Koop, Dean's trainer from Carmichael (Lance's trainer), it seems that Dean is not breaking down as the medical experts in the mainstream media predicted. I think both Dean and Sam Thompson said in their blogs that, they found it easier and they were running faster as the body adapted to a marathon every day. My physical therapist had suggested years ago I give up marathons and take up tennis because of a skeletal issue that causes poor biomechanics.
Lesson learned: find a medical specialist who tells you what you want to hear!
I asked Dean to dedicate one of the copies of his book to a school teacher I had dated; Unfortunately, the many weekends spent racing out of town this fall was a factor in the breakup. This multi-day event has helped me refocus.
My enthusiasm this weekend spread to my family and friends and brought us a little closer. I was a little surprised and am appreciative of their support and encouragement.
It's pretty amazing; Dean reached a lot of people. Strangers started talking about him when they saw I was wearing the Endurance 50 shirt. I think he inspired a lot of ordinary folks to get out there.
50 days on the road in 50 different states can be tiring and there isn't much time to catch the sights. Traveling is a endurance event in itself. I hope Dean's family and the support crew had a blast.
I look forward to another opportunity to join Dean on an adventure. Dean's passion is contagious.
Chicago Marathon, Oct 22, 2006
I doubled-checked to see that my shorts were on right this morning. First, I realized both my legs were using the same shorts leg. I think I should go back to my old shorts.
The forecast kept changing -- clear, cold, wind, rain, snow. It turned out to be great running conditions -- temps 40 to start, 42 at the finish. However the winds were 19mph gusting to 24 mph. There was a head wind at the end of the race.
I started out slow but my calves didn't seem to loosen up. I could tell which muscles would complain later on. I haven't recovered from the corporate 5k last week in White Plains. I was in sad shape per Stephanie's massage a week ago.
I was in the Preferred II Corral (3:55 and faster). While it was crowded, there wasn't much weaving required. When Amy caught up to me at mile 6 -- I decided to try harder.
From looking at the 5k splits I think she was following me. I finally loosened up at the half.
The strategy was to run fast when you can because sooner or later the hips/quads will tighten up and there is nothing you can do.
Could it be all mental? (since I can run a 6:33 pace for the last .22 miles) Has anyone tried stretching in a race? Do you have a net gain in time?
At mile 16, I caught up to Dean Karnazes. His blog said he had deep dish pizza and baklava during the race. He was running by himself -- I asked him where his entourage was.
I introduced myself and said I'd see him in Philly and NJ. He finished a minute behind me.
My left hip tightened after mile 20. My goal was 3:25. That wasn't going to happen. So I suffered for the last 5 minutes to a get token PR of 3:27:32.
It was a 16 minute course PR. Chicago is faster than the downhill course in Steamtown.
Chicago reports 5k splits. So I actually got some PRs within PRs. As you know it takes me about 10-12 miles to warm up.
PR 1/2 marathon (in the 2nd half) 1:42:42
PR 15k 1:11:08 (6 minutes faster than Arnold Palmer 15k)
10k time 46:49 (35 seconds from PR)
5k time 23:17 (85 seconds from PR)
There were some good runs today from the Track Shack group. JP 2:54, Tracey 3:20, Amy 3:36.
On to the triple marathon with Dean in 10 days.
The forecast kept changing -- clear, cold, wind, rain, snow. It turned out to be great running conditions -- temps 40 to start, 42 at the finish. However the winds were 19mph gusting to 24 mph. There was a head wind at the end of the race.
I started out slow but my calves didn't seem to loosen up. I could tell which muscles would complain later on. I haven't recovered from the corporate 5k last week in White Plains. I was in sad shape per Stephanie's massage a week ago.
I was in the Preferred II Corral (3:55 and faster). While it was crowded, there wasn't much weaving required. When Amy caught up to me at mile 6 -- I decided to try harder.
From looking at the 5k splits I think she was following me. I finally loosened up at the half.
The strategy was to run fast when you can because sooner or later the hips/quads will tighten up and there is nothing you can do.
Could it be all mental? (since I can run a 6:33 pace for the last .22 miles) Has anyone tried stretching in a race? Do you have a net gain in time?
At mile 16, I caught up to Dean Karnazes. His blog said he had deep dish pizza and baklava during the race. He was running by himself -- I asked him where his entourage was.
I introduced myself and said I'd see him in Philly and NJ. He finished a minute behind me.
My left hip tightened after mile 20. My goal was 3:25. That wasn't going to happen. So I suffered for the last 5 minutes to a get token PR of 3:27:32.
It was a 16 minute course PR. Chicago is faster than the downhill course in Steamtown.
Chicago reports 5k splits. So I actually got some PRs within PRs. As you know it takes me about 10-12 miles to warm up.
PR 1/2 marathon (in the 2nd half) 1:42:42
PR 15k 1:11:08 (6 minutes faster than Arnold Palmer 15k)
10k time 46:49 (35 seconds from PR)
5k time 23:17 (85 seconds from PR)
There were some good runs today from the Track Shack group. JP 2:54, Tracey 3:20, Amy 3:36.
On to the triple marathon with Dean in 10 days.
Steamtown Marathon Oct 8, 2006
Scranton, PA
Sugu's flight was late so I checked out Ikea - which is just outside the perimeter of Newark. They have neat furniture and lamps but nothing I could easily transport. Ikea hired the reggae band 'Verdict' to play in the cafeteria; Lunch was very pleasant.
I am not impressed with Scranton. A mall security guard sped over to ask if we needed help have finding my car. Maybe they were profiling. (We did walk through the mall and not buy anything). A gas station had a sign to asking customers to ring the buzzer to get into the convenience store after 10:30pm. The area looked pretty shady. I moved my car in front of a security camera at the hotel. On the way back, the engine light came on, and the car lost power and hesitated. After 20 miles or so, the the light reset itself and the car drove normally. I think the car got a bad tank of ghetto gas. (back in the 80s in New York, gas was often diluted with water )
I had lower back pain that morning and my soleus was sore all week - so I didn't know what to expect for the race. The weather was decent starting out at 43 and finishing at 61. It was sunny but there was a nice breeze. It wasn't all downhill -- it was rolling hills which were not shown on the course map. The first 4 miles were unpleasant -- too steep to run down and the road was crowned. After getting to the half in 1:44 -- I decided to bank time for the hills at the end. I saved up 4 minutes. My left hip was tight -- from a tight lower back.
My soleus went into spasms whenever I tried to pick up speed. So I took it easy - I even skipped the usual sprint at the end. I finished in 3:28, a 35 second PR (from 4/2004 Jersey). Even thought it is touted as a fast course, I'm not sure, with all its rolling hills, whether it is faster than Chicago or Jax.
I think I am doing better on 42 minutes of training a week this season than the 30 minutes of training last season. Though it is hard to say how much of it is just weight loss.
We saw an operating steam locomotive at the Steamtown Historic Site. Pity the guy who has to shovel coal.
Sugu's flight was late so I checked out Ikea - which is just outside the perimeter of Newark. They have neat furniture and lamps but nothing I could easily transport. Ikea hired the reggae band 'Verdict' to play in the cafeteria; Lunch was very pleasant.
I am not impressed with Scranton. A mall security guard sped over to ask if we needed help have finding my car. Maybe they were profiling. (We did walk through the mall and not buy anything). A gas station had a sign to asking customers to ring the buzzer to get into the convenience store after 10:30pm. The area looked pretty shady. I moved my car in front of a security camera at the hotel. On the way back, the engine light came on, and the car lost power and hesitated. After 20 miles or so, the the light reset itself and the car drove normally. I think the car got a bad tank of ghetto gas. (back in the 80s in New York, gas was often diluted with water )
I had lower back pain that morning and my soleus was sore all week - so I didn't know what to expect for the race. The weather was decent starting out at 43 and finishing at 61. It was sunny but there was a nice breeze. It wasn't all downhill -- it was rolling hills which were not shown on the course map. The first 4 miles were unpleasant -- too steep to run down and the road was crowned. After getting to the half in 1:44 -- I decided to bank time for the hills at the end. I saved up 4 minutes. My left hip was tight -- from a tight lower back.
My soleus went into spasms whenever I tried to pick up speed. So I took it easy - I even skipped the usual sprint at the end. I finished in 3:28, a 35 second PR (from 4/2004 Jersey). Even thought it is touted as a fast course, I'm not sure, with all its rolling hills, whether it is faster than Chicago or Jax.
I think I am doing better on 42 minutes of training a week this season than the 30 minutes of training last season. Though it is hard to say how much of it is just weight loss.
We saw an operating steam locomotive at the Steamtown Historic Site. Pity the guy who has to shovel coal.
Top of Utah Marathon Sep 23, 2006
We (my ex-roommate Melissa and driver) arrived Friday morning in Salt Lake after a big breakfast on Delta.
We got a tour of the Mormon complex given by "sister" volunteers who are on a 2 year mission. There are no male guides. One was from San Diego and wants to run a marathon. They believe in one true prophet (and everyone else is wrong). The devout seemed to be happy. I asked about the posthumous "conversion/baptism" of non-believers (including Jews in the Holocaust). They consider it an option.
Then, off to the cooper mines, per George's suggestion. With 8 inches of snow, Kennecott's have been turning visitors away all day but it warmed up enough when we got there at 3pm. Interesting tour -- something boys would enjoy - big dump trucks but no blasts were set off that day.
Next stop, Antelope Island, which sits out the Great Salt Lake. Very quiet and beautiful light reflected through the clouds from the setting sun.
Appleby's was packed and I didn't get to eat my sausage and peppers for the pre-race meal.
Sat -- 26 degrees at the start. I got lazy and didn't warm up properly. My calves cramped on the downhill for the first 8 miles -- I did not bank enough minutes on the downhill to make up for the flat section. I noticed my shorts were on backwards when I try to put my ear wamers in my pocket. At mile 10, I got a blister because I didn't tie my shoelace tight enough.
My first half was 1:45. After dropping to 9 minute miles at mile 18, I gave up
the pursuit of a 3:30 and took it easy. The other Marty thought it was due to lack of oxygen which caused lactic acid buildup. I think my quads/hips got tight from pounding 1100 feet downhill.
I finished in 3:37. I was hoping for 3:30. I did have a good kick at the end (under a 5:00 mile pace) which just means my legs weren't really tired!
A quick shower and off to a hike in search some fall foilage at Adam's Canyon. It was a 1.75 mile hike with a 1300 feet climb to a 40 foot waterfall. Breathing was labored because we were at 4750 feet. We made it half-way before turning back to catch the flight back to Orlando. Apparently, some reviewers on Web observed gopher and rattlesnakes on the trail. Yikes!
The return flight on Saturday was late and there was no ice cream just a brownie (:
We got a tour of the Mormon complex given by "sister" volunteers who are on a 2 year mission. There are no male guides. One was from San Diego and wants to run a marathon. They believe in one true prophet (and everyone else is wrong). The devout seemed to be happy. I asked about the posthumous "conversion/baptism" of non-believers (including Jews in the Holocaust). They consider it an option.
Then, off to the cooper mines, per George's suggestion. With 8 inches of snow, Kennecott's have been turning visitors away all day but it warmed up enough when we got there at 3pm. Interesting tour -- something boys would enjoy - big dump trucks but no blasts were set off that day.
Next stop, Antelope Island, which sits out the Great Salt Lake. Very quiet and beautiful light reflected through the clouds from the setting sun.
Appleby's was packed and I didn't get to eat my sausage and peppers for the pre-race meal.
Sat -- 26 degrees at the start. I got lazy and didn't warm up properly. My calves cramped on the downhill for the first 8 miles -- I did not bank enough minutes on the downhill to make up for the flat section. I noticed my shorts were on backwards when I try to put my ear wamers in my pocket. At mile 10, I got a blister because I didn't tie my shoelace tight enough.
My first half was 1:45. After dropping to 9 minute miles at mile 18, I gave up
the pursuit of a 3:30 and took it easy. The other Marty thought it was due to lack of oxygen which caused lactic acid buildup. I think my quads/hips got tight from pounding 1100 feet downhill.
I finished in 3:37. I was hoping for 3:30. I did have a good kick at the end (under a 5:00 mile pace) which just means my legs weren't really tired!
A quick shower and off to a hike in search some fall foilage at Adam's Canyon. It was a 1.75 mile hike with a 1300 feet climb to a 40 foot waterfall. Breathing was labored because we were at 4750 feet. We made it half-way before turning back to catch the flight back to Orlando. Apparently, some reviewers on Web observed gopher and rattlesnakes on the trail. Yikes!
The return flight on Saturday was late and there was no ice cream just a brownie (:
Self Transcendence Marathon Aug 25, 2006
It had a hippie feel --- lots of runners from Europe (they didn't speak English and they had body odor) The men stayed separate from the women - even in the port-a-potty lines.
It was a late start (7:30). It was quiet for 5 minutes -- I guess that was the meditation part. Then there was a couple of muffled words and the guru said let's go.
The forecast was for 20% chance of rain and mid-60s. It was muggy.
There wasn't much talking on the course -- though it was pouring rain half the time. I only got 2 blisters from the soaked shoes --- both in the Achilles. My left quad tightened around mile 21 --probably from last week's 5k. But the double-caffeinated gels kept me buzzed and pretty much on pace. There were 9, not quite 3 mile loops -- I was lapped twice by the lead runers. There was a mile marker for each mile but you have to remember which loop you were on.
I ran this pre-race season marathon in 3:34 (1:47:17/1:46:56 split). The 4 mile training runs, smaller meals and ice cream have paid off!
I ran directly from the finish to the car to standby on the noon flight. It was full (though there were seats when I called the day before). It took 8 hours to get back to Orlando. This coolmax stuff doesn't seem to dry out. Not anticipating a heavy rain -- I did not bring a change of clothes. I did have enough reading material and TIVO on the Treo to pass the time.
I had a massage this morning -- it wasn't too bad -- I have been tighter from the Tuesday/Thursday workouts. I ran a couple of 7:35 miles this morning.
Who's up for Big Sur? I think the race usually fills up by September.
It was a late start (7:30). It was quiet for 5 minutes -- I guess that was the meditation part. Then there was a couple of muffled words and the guru said let's go.
The forecast was for 20% chance of rain and mid-60s. It was muggy.
There wasn't much talking on the course -- though it was pouring rain half the time. I only got 2 blisters from the soaked shoes --- both in the Achilles. My left quad tightened around mile 21 --probably from last week's 5k. But the double-caffeinated gels kept me buzzed and pretty much on pace. There were 9, not quite 3 mile loops -- I was lapped twice by the lead runers. There was a mile marker for each mile but you have to remember which loop you were on.
I ran this pre-race season marathon in 3:34 (1:47:17/1:46:56 split). The 4 mile training runs, smaller meals and ice cream have paid off!
I ran directly from the finish to the car to standby on the noon flight. It was full (though there were seats when I called the day before). It took 8 hours to get back to Orlando. This coolmax stuff doesn't seem to dry out. Not anticipating a heavy rain -- I did not bring a change of clothes. I did have enough reading material and TIVO on the Treo to pass the time.
I had a massage this morning -- it wasn't too bad -- I have been tighter from the Tuesday/Thursday workouts. I ran a couple of 7:35 miles this morning.
Who's up for Big Sur? I think the race usually fills up by September.
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Marine Corp Marathon Oct 30, 2005
MCM was split in two waves (8:15am, 8:45am start). But people with similiar numbers were running at various speeds - not just the VIPs. It was a mess. It was the first time, I've ran in a crowd that sped up and slowed down going straight. I spent a lot of energy weaving and nudging the slower runners/walkers out of the way.
Even though the baggage check was suppose to be next to the start line, according to the program -- the closest one was 1/2 mile away.
Temps ranged from 53 to 65. But it was pretty warm because the sun was out and much of the course was not shaded;
There was no room to do my 1-2 mile warm up; so my shins cramped first 10 miles. I averaged a 9:30 pace on the first 1/2. I decided to use the 2nd half to train my next marathon -- averaging a 8:28 pace. (2:04/1:51 split)
I finally mastered the 14th Bridge at mile 20, holding a 8:31 pace. but failed to conquer the 35 foot climb at mile 26. (It took 2mins to run the last .2 miles)
My brother-in-law said he would never do this one again --mostly from the frustration of weaving through the crowd of runners. There were only 19,000 runners but the roads were not opened up.
Jax, anybody?
Even though the baggage check was suppose to be next to the start line, according to the program -- the closest one was 1/2 mile away.
Temps ranged from 53 to 65. But it was pretty warm because the sun was out and much of the course was not shaded;
There was no room to do my 1-2 mile warm up; so my shins cramped first 10 miles. I averaged a 9:30 pace on the first 1/2. I decided to use the 2nd half to train my next marathon -- averaging a 8:28 pace. (2:04/1:51 split)
I finally mastered the 14th Bridge at mile 20, holding a 8:31 pace. but failed to conquer the 35 foot climb at mile 26. (It took 2mins to run the last .2 miles)
My brother-in-law said he would never do this one again --mostly from the frustration of weaving through the crowd of runners. There were only 19,000 runners but the roads were not opened up.
Jax, anybody?
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Chicago Marathon Oct 12, 2003
At the Team tent race morning, I was discussing race strategy with Marty. I had just run a 4:00 PR 3 weeks before at Logan, UT. Plan A - go for another PR goal of 3:45. Plan B - I would search out the Starbucks indicated on the course route map. I happen to have received a Starbucks gift card for Christmas.
By mile 7, it didn't look like I could run a 3:45PR so I decided to take it easy. It was took much energy to weave and it was hot. I figure I'd finished in 5 hours.
There were 8 Starbucks on the map. I found 7 and stopped at 4 Starbucks for expresso. I never found the 8th one at mile 25. But I found a beer stop at mile 23; it was staffed by drinkers with a running problem. I finished in 4:14 only 14 minutes slower than my PR; I blame it on the persons making the expressos. Still, it was my 2nd fastest time in 44 marathons and a course PR.
I took 23 walk breaks consisting of 17 water stops 4 visits to Starbucks for a single shots of expresso 1 beer stop 1 ad hoc bathroom stop between 2 dumpsters.
It was warm; it got up to 71 degrees. A teacher from Ohio died at the finish line (3:40) -- cause unknown and there were another person with aneurysm and many heatstroke victims.
There were 32000 finishers --- it took a lot of zig zagging to pass some of them. I thought I hurt my right Achilles tendon but it may just the shoe rubbing because I felt ok walking barefoot.
By mile 7, it didn't look like I could run a 3:45PR so I decided to take it easy. It was took much energy to weave and it was hot. I figure I'd finished in 5 hours.
There were 8 Starbucks on the map. I found 7 and stopped at 4 Starbucks for expresso. I never found the 8th one at mile 25. But I found a beer stop at mile 23; it was staffed by drinkers with a running problem. I finished in 4:14 only 14 minutes slower than my PR; I blame it on the persons making the expressos. Still, it was my 2nd fastest time in 44 marathons and a course PR.
I took 23 walk breaks consisting of 17 water stops 4 visits to Starbucks for a single shots of expresso 1 beer stop 1 ad hoc bathroom stop between 2 dumpsters.
It was warm; it got up to 71 degrees. A teacher from Ohio died at the finish line (3:40) -- cause unknown and there were another person with aneurysm and many heatstroke victims.
There were 32000 finishers --- it took a lot of zig zagging to pass some of them. I thought I hurt my right Achilles tendon but it may just the shoe rubbing because I felt ok walking barefoot.
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