On The Run

2010-04-10T14:59:00.003-05:00

Did a warm up mile to the trails, then an hour on the trails, and a mile back home. I felt pretty sluggish, but I was able to run up and down the hills for an hour with walking. I wasn't tired enough at the end, I slacked off a bit.

7 miles running on trails
3 miles walking on trails and roads

2010-04-09T18:04:00.002-05:00

Jill and I did a 14 mile bike ride yesterday, out to the Little Walnut picnic area which is part of the Gila National Forest. There is a nice system of trails in this area, small but nice. We followed the ride there with a 2 or so mile walk on the trails, then road back. The ride was much easier than we were expecting. We both get pretty intimated with hills while biking, but they weren't so bad. We are going to try to spend more time on the bikes.

Today I ran about 3 miles on trails, the first mile was at an easy pace, then the last 2 were a pretty good effort with a nice 4 minute hill climb effort near the end. I'm trying to hit as many hills as I can. I'm determined to turn myself into a mountain runner.

2010-04-07T15:20:00.002-05:00

I woke up early this morning and ran over to Boston Hill, the plan was to try to run whatever I could remember of the 6.5 mile loop we ran Monday, but I knew it wouldn't be much. I did a 1 mile warm up run on the road to get to the trail, it's a very slow first mile with a big hill in the way. Then I ran on the trails for an hour. My plan was to run for one hour on the trails then another cool down mile back home, but after the hour on the trails was up I wasn't back at the trail head, and I didn't really know where it was. It was another 20 minutes of running until I found it, then ran the mile on the road back home. in all, I'll use the accountants principle of conservatism and call it 8 miles. I ran with pretty good effort and didn't hit any of the really steep trails we ran on Monday, but it was still consistently hilly throughout. I'm trying to work on increasing my uphill speed, which means running all hills. I've been encouraged as to how my body has reacted with the increased mileage. I feel slow on the up hills, but as soon as it flattens I'm able to recover and continue at a good pace.

2010-04-06T12:37:00.003-05:00

I went out with Tony and Jim yesterday for a tour of the 6.5 mile loop which will be the home of the new half-marathon in the Boston Hill area just south of downtown Silver City this year. It's a great area for trail running. It's a small area, but is packed with an intricate trail system. Boston Hill is an old mining area that was purchased by the city and is being turned into a great open space area. As the name indicates, it's up on a hill, with great views of the city and surrounding desert, forest, and mountains. It's got some really nice technical single track and plenty of hills to climb and bomb down. I've been running much more consistently lately, but my mileage is still pretty low so I was hoping that Tony and Jim would take it easy...No chance. I got worked hard. I was sucking wind after the first mile. and that was the easy part. They were keeping a really nice pace. I was able to keep up on the flats and down hills but they would pull away on the ups. Whenever I got to far back they would stop and wait for me so I didn't miss any key turns. We were bombing down the rocky hills at break-neck pace. It was a great run, and a lot of fun to be out on the trails with some other good runners. Also a good indicator of how out of shape I am :) We finished the 6.5 mile loop in 1:05 Which is only 10 minute pace, but there was a lot of hill climbing in there. I look forward to running in Boston Hill a lot this spring and in to the summer and Hopefully I'll be ready to run a good race for the 1/2 in July. There were to many turns for me to remember them all, but Jim (the rd) is working on a map of the course. The trail head is only 1/2 mile from our place, so it's a really convenient place to train. and with technical trails, and plentiful hills, what more do you need?

I've put in a good amount of miles this past 5 or so days, not because I was trying to, but because it just sort of happend. Thursday was an 18.3 mile hike with full pack with Jill, Friday was a 2 mile run on trails, then 8 or so miles with tony on trails, followed by us getting lost for 4 hours and bushwacking up and down a mountain. Sunday was a 9 mile hike with Gary. Yesterday was 3 miles running on trails, then 3 miles walking, then the 6.5 mile run. Today was 2 miles running on trails, which 2 or more to go later on today with Jill. That's 51 miles in 5 days. More miles than I've put done in that short of a time in more than a year. But my body feels really good and I'm looking forward to getting back to some more consistent training...and blogging.

Lower Little Creek Loop, Gila National Forest

2010-03-15T17:27:00.003-05:00

I want to write this post with complete directions as to how to complete this loop, because it wasn't easy finding directions online.

Jill and I drove into the Gila Saturday night and camped about 5 miles from the Cliff Dwellings visitor center, about an hour drive north of Silver City. We woke up Saturday morning to hike the Lower Little Creek Loop, which is an 18.3 mile loop starting and ending at woody's corral about .5 miles from the visitors center. We planed on doing it as a day hike but we took full packs in case we decided to spend the night on the trail, and because we wanted to get in some training with full packs. We started off a little before 9am giving us about 10.5 hours of daylight, which is about how much we thought we would need. The hike starts at the corral on millers spring trail (also called granny mountain trail) and goes up hill and through switch backs past an open meadow with some nice views of the Gila Corridor below. After 3.3 miles you come to the junction of the ring canyon trail, if you do the whole loop this is where you will come out, turning left to get back to the corral, but at this point you want to continue straight. You will then start descending for about a mile until you reach Little Creek. This is a good place to fill up water. The creek was very clear and flowing pretty good when we went through, do to the large amount of snow in this part of New Mexico this winter, but it was still easily passable in early March. This is also a great place to set up camp for the night. A nice open area dotted with large junipers. After crossing the creek you turn right (you will see a sign that says 'Granite peak 11 miles' that's where you want to go) and head up little creek. In the guide book we were going off of, it said this would be the last chance for water on the trail, so we filled up 5 bottles and a bladder, which turns out was completely unnecessary, but better safe than sorry. after following the creek for less than a 1/2 mile, we crossed over the creek again (following the trail) which surprised us because it didn't say anything about that in our guide book. the trail then turns towards the left and away from the creek a bit. One mile after this creek crossing we came to a sign junction. Turning right will take you back the Millers spring trail, and then back to woody's corral, making the hike 11 miles, instead of 18. to do the whole loop continue straight. The trail disappears at times during the next 3.5 miles, but look around, and when in doubt continue straight. You should never go more than a few minutes without seeing the trails. 3.5 miles after the first (and after two additional large creek crossing that we weren't anticipating) you come to another sign, going straight will take you to granite peak, turning right will take you to the ring canyon trail, which is where you want to go. at this point the hike is about halfway done. After turning right you head up a pretty steep stretch of about a mile (the only real difficult part of the hike) to the top of the ridge, where you turn right onto the ring canyon trail. then it flattens out a bit but continues to climb. This part of the hike offers wide open views of the Gila and mountains beyond. We had to walk through a few patches of snow, but nothing to bad considering there are still plenty of areas with snow in the mountains. You will be on ring canyon trail for about 6 miles before turning left back onto miller spring trail, and from there it is 3.3 miles back to the trail head.

It's a really nice hike with great views. It's a long day hike but it isn't too difficult. It starts and ends at 5600 feet and reaches it's highest point on the Ring Canyon trail at 7100 feet. We were surprised by all the water crossing but we did it in early march, so there was a lot of run off. We had two stops of about 25 minutes a piece, one for water, and one for lunch, and we probably spent 10-15 minutes wondering around when we lost the trail but start to finish it only took 8.5 hours which is much faster than we thought we would do it. our average speed was probably 25 minutes/mile and we were in no hurry. This was also to first real test for my sandals. I did the whole hike in them with no discomfort, and no blisters.

2010-03-08T21:11:00.002-05:00

I think it's time for a bi annual blog update :)

I'm in Silver City, New Mexico these days living in a tipi with my girlfriend, Jill. It's a nice little town on the edge of the Gila National forest, tons of good trails. There's a great trail that runs from the property where we are staying into town, it's about 1.5 miles. Jill and I have been running on that recently. My milage is low, about 10-15 mile a week, but I plan to start running a little more, and maybe do a race or two this year. I'm currently running (and hiking) in a pair of teva sandals, hoping they will prevent blisters. I have sweaty feet, and the mosture and friction inside my shoes creates blisters, so I'm switching to sandals to try and get it worked out. I plan to cover a lot of miles in these bad boys, but more on those plans later... I'll try to keep my blog updated more frequently as my running increases.

2009-08-09T10:47:00.002-05:00

I planned on doing a 2 mile warm up then the tabata workout I read about in trail running, and know about from crossfit, but the 2 miler turned into a little more than a warm up and the tabata kicked my butt!!

2 miles in vibrams, 7:07, 6:49

the tabata workout consists of 20 seconds of sprinting 10 seconds rest, repeated for 4 minutes, a total of 8 20 second sprints. Try it, it's tough. real tough. But according to a study which I can't site off the top of my head it produces tremendous results in a short amount of time (the study was 6 weeks), increasing both aerobic and anerobic capacity.

2009-08-07T19:29:00.001-05:00

6.25 miles, 7:04 pace, vibrams

Ran a 10k plus a little today on the dirt track in vibrams, felt strong, working on speeding up my cadence.

Elkhorn 50 mile Race Report (kind of)

2009-08-07T19:23:00.003-05:00

Well I started the Elkhorn 50 miler in the Elkhorn mountains outside of Helena, Montana. The first 15 miles went very well I was running strong, going faster than I should have been for a 50 miler with 12,000 feet of gain, but all was going well. Then I took a wrong turn, before I knew it was wondering through cow pastures, jumping over fences, climbing under fences, walking up on an empty cabin in the middle of the woods, getting starred down by large angry cows that were standing in between myself and the road I though I need to go down, climbing hills to get a better look around, then wading through a forest of lodge pole pines and jumping over dead trees while being shot at (only partially joking here) until I final found my way back to the start/finish after 3 hours of wandering off course. An adventure for sure!

Not a big deal though. I realized at about mile 10 that a hilly 50 miler isn't the best training for the flat 100 miler I have coming up anyway.

Spanish Peaks Hiking Report

2009-07-19T21:36:00.017-05:00

Sometimes it's the path of mistake and uncertainty that turns out the best. The plan was for Jill and I to go on a two day, 23 mile backpacking loop in the Spanish Peaks, about 45 minutes south of Bozeman. Jill found the hike in a book, we had the directions printed out and hit the trail early Saturday morning. about 45 minutes into our hike we came to a junction which the directions sited as being mile 3, our first clue something was wrong, we surely hadn't already gone 2 miles, but we took the trail to the left, leaving the green Meadows dotted with yellow and purple flowers and were swallowed up by the green forest.

We came to the next junction at 4.5 miles marked with signs indicating the which trail the different paths lead to, but none of them lead to the trail we were supposed to be on, again we chose the path to the left, staying on the same 407 Spanish Peaks trail. We left the flat forest floor and began a climb that would weave in an out of the forest, past lakes and streams for another 4+. With the change in elevation came the change in trail surfaces, from mostly dirt single track to mostly rock single track. Not really notable aside from the fact that I was wearing my VFF's. The plan was to start in VFF's and switch to my cross country flats when my feet start to hurt, but upon arriving at the trailhead I realized I forgot my flats, and I surely wasn't going to wear my hiking boots, so it was VFF's or nothing.

About 4 miles into the climb we reach the next trail junction. By this time we were certain we weren't going to complete our predetermined look, but the mountains were beautiful, and we decided to follow the trail where it leads us. Neither one of us had been in the Spanish Peaks before and didn't know what to expect. With it's green Meadows and tall grey jagged peaks, we both agreed it reminded us of Glacier National Park. The thing I love about hiking in the mountains that I can't get while hiking or running in the forests of the Midwest is the uncertainty of the views that lay ahead. You never know when you're going to pop out into a break in the trees and be greeted with a sprawling view of the mountains and valleys as far as the eye can see, and once you get above tree line, every climb is made with anticipation of what lies beyond.

We again decided to take the trail to the left, which from looking at it seemed to lead over a mountain pass but wasn't clear where it went from there. As I reached eye level to the top of the climb I caught a reflection of the sun in the ground above me. As I took a couple more steps, gaining a couple feet in elevation I could see an alpine lake about 10 feet in front. It was pretty cool to just walk up a mountain and be greeted by a pristine lake with no forewarning.

The lake was just sitting on a break of two mountains about about 7000-8000 feet in elevation the pass was about 100 yards long, and was we followed the trail to the other side of the lake and got our first glimpse of what was beyond, we found our selves staring down into a lush green valley, equipped with a fast network of streams green grass and wildflowers making up the colors of the rainbow. It was such a vast contrast to what we had experienced the last 4+ miles of our hike. We went from rocky mountains to lush green valley in the time it took to butt slide down a 100 yard snowfield.

We followed the trail throughout the valley about a mile before deciding that there could be no better place than this to camp for the night. So we set up our tent, the only residents in the mountain enclosed valley. Well...there was one other resident. A very curious deer that kept making wide circles around our camp site, always coming back within 20 or so feet of us before eating some grass and making another loop. This went on for a couple hours before he finally went to bed for the night.

the next day we made our way out of the valley, climbing up the fallen rock to the side of the snowfield we had sled down, past the lake, down the mountains, through the woods, into the Meadows and back to civilization. Another successful Montana summer weekend.

2009-07-17T19:14:00.002-05:00

3.1 miles, 9:04 pace, roads barefoot.

Not only do I have to worry about the sprinkler systems when I run on the sidewalks around my place, but now I have to deal with the tiny pellets of fertilizer the lawn care companies leave scattered all over the sidewalk. Landminds to tender bare feet. Nice little run today. the feet felt good. Achilles still sore when I start but loosens up after a few minutes.

Jill and I will be going on a two day 20 mile backpacking trip this weekend. Hopefully I'll have some pictures to post.

2009-07-16T23:17:00.003-05:00

8.2 miles total RHR:54

4.7 miles, to and from work (took a detour which added a few tenths) VFFs

3.5, trails, XC flats

put in some slow miles today. my legs are a bit weary. I think I'm at the point where I've gone from no training to a moderate amount in a short time, and the training I've done in the past two weeks hasn't had enough time to set in a make me stronger yet, so I'm running out of steam. I should start benefiting from my increased training in the next couple weeks and hopefully things will start continue to progress.

2009-07-15T07:59:00.005-05:00

10.6 miles, roads, 6 miles barefoot, 4.6 miles VFFs, RHR: 56

I'm starting to try a new variation of training. Multiple runs per day of short distance. I'm doing this for a few reasons, 1.) it fits nicely into my schedule. I can run before work, run to work, run home from work, then run in the evening. 2.) I'm hoping that forcing the body to get up and go multiple times a day will improve my recovery time when I increase the mileage further. 3.) I'm hoping the short runs will help me transition into barefoot running more safely, allowing me to perfect my form and toughen my soles, instead of trying to go too far too fast. 4.) I'm always looking to change things up and see what works and what doesn't. So I'm going to try to get in at least three runs per day 2 or 3 times a week for a little while and see what happens.

I had a pretty good day of Barefoot running today. 6 miles total, which is the most I've ever run barefoot in a day. On my runs to and from work I noticed a significant reduction in discomfort from last week when running the same path. There were only a few spots that are still a little shaky. my final barefoot run this evening was a little rough, my soles were a bit sore, but it's nice to no the limits, and I still haven't developed any blisters or any other foot damage.

I've been having trouble with the nutrition side of things as I start to increase my miles. Since I haven't been doing much running for a while, I've been eating less and I need to consciously work increase my caloric intake to make up for the extra calories burned.

I've got some tired muscles from my increased mileage but my body feels good. my only ailments are my left achillies which gets sore after I get back from runs, and needs to be stretched and warmed up before the run, then it feels fine, and the balls of my feet which are a bit brusied from barefoot, but are getting stronger.

3.1 miles, 8:49 pace, roads, VFFs

2.2 miles, 10:33 pace, roads, barefoot, run to work.

2.2 miles, 10:40 pace, roads, barefoot, run home from work.

3.1 miles, 8:42 pace, roads, first half VFFs, second half barefoot.

Things to watch: sore left achillies

2009-07-14T23:14:00.003-05:00

(monday)

8.2 miles, 8:24 pace, track and road, VFF's RHR: 55

I got in 8.2 miles today, not exactly what I had planed but it will do. My original plan was to run 10 miles on the track after work...well, my real original plan was to get up and run before work, then run after work, but that didn't happen. So I went to the track around 6:30 and ran four miles but stopped because I ate too much before I went running and the food was sloshing in my stomach. I let it settle for a couple hours then went back out on the roads for 4.2 more miles. Decent daily mileage overall. All in VFF's

things to watch: sore left Achilles

2009-07-12T22:20:00.002-05:00

3 miles, 22:48, VFF's, dirt track

Back on the track for 3 miles to finish out my first week of training at 40 miles.

mile 1: 8:13
mile 2: 7:57
mile 3: 6:37

Weekly total: 40 miles

2009-07-12T10:28:00.003-05:00

Ran 10 miles this morning on a dirt track, in my XC racing flats. I love running in the wilderness as much as the next trail runner, but unlike many trail runners I also enjoy going round and round on a 400 meter track. It makes me feel like I have total control over my pace, and I like knowing exactly how fast I'm going, and seeing how much harder I can push myself. I would say it comes from my roots of running track in high school, but I never ran track in high school, so I don't know where it comes from.

I was pleased with my time on the track today. I started of slowly the first mile, then kept a pretty good pace through the next 4 miles, then reigned it back in so I could finish the 10 mile run, then let it fly the last mile. I was happy an surprised that I was able to bust our the last mile in 6:39. This was an excellent workout conisdering my lack of training over the last 6+ months.

splits:

mile 1: 8:43
mile 2: 8:11
mile 3: 8:08
mile 4: 7:52
mile 5: 7:34
mile 6: 8:26
mile 7: 8:24
mile 8: 8:21
mile 9: 8:26
mile 10: 6:39

Total time: 1:20:49
overall pace: 8:05
dirt track, XC flats

2009-07-11T10:37:00.002-05:00

7 miles, 8:30 pace, roads, VFF's

felt good, bottoms of feet a bit sore, but no blisters. Felt better than yesterday, probably because I had more sleep.

2009-07-10T09:09:00.001-05:00

7.5 miles, VFF's, road, 8:56 pace

I am in Billings today for work, it's a little over 2 hours east of where I live in Bozeman. Billings is the antithesis of Western Montana, Big city, no mountains, both things I would rather avoid. They do of the Rimrocks, which in essence is a rim of rock that goes along the city, other than that it's got nothing for me. I got out for a 7.5 mile run this morning in my Vibrams. It was the longest continual run I've done in months, I felt good, though i was definitely getting tight at the end.

2009-07-08T20:44:00.002-05:00

3 miles, 30 minutes, barefoot

nice and easy. tender feet, but no blisters...yet. I'm learning to relax more which helps ease the pain of stepping on tiny things on the sidewalk, relaxed feet are more absorbent than stiff feet.

2009-07-07T22:46:00.002-05:00

This afternoon my feet were still tender from my barefoot run to work so I decided to start my run home with my homemade huarache running sandals . These are nice sandals to walk around in but I had never tried running in them, after a few minutes a realized that A.) they were heavy (heavier than anything i've run in in a long time anyway) This is because I used the bottom of an old rubber boot to create my sandals, and B.) they were effecting my foot strike, and causing some foreign stretching in my Achilles, so I ditched the sandals and went barefoot, instantly I felt better. The feet were still tender but I'm learning more and more how to lessen the impact of those tiny pebbles and debris.

A few hours later I went back out for another short run, I started in my VFF's because of tender feet but ditched them for bare feet after about 3/4 mile. I am really starting to realize the difference between minimalist footwear, like the VFF's and barefoot, there's a big difference! VFF's are great for improving running form, but nothing is as good for your form as running in bare feet. With VFF's you're still blocking a lot of the feedback your bare soles get from the ground. You're still able to be a little sloppy with foot placement and dragging your feet off the ground. If you really want to perfect your form, eliminate blisters and injury skip the VFF's and go barefoot. build up short and slow until you reteach your feet how to run. That being said I'm still going to wear my VFF's because I need to step up my training and put in the miles, and right now I can't put in the miles I need to get ready for a 100 miler with bare feet alone. If you need to wear something on your feet VFF's are the way to go!

so I ended up running another 3+ miles bringing my daily total to 7.5 miles. All around 10 minute pace, due to being barefoot and generally just taking it easy. This week I'm not focusing on speed. I'm just putting in some miles to remind my body what it's like to run consistent mileage, something I haven't done in a long time!

2009-07-07T09:01:00.001-05:00

I ran to work this morning barefoot. it's about 2.2 miles. The pace was slow (about 10:30) due to teeny tiny pebbles on the sidewalks which can be a pain to a tender foot. I've come a long way in my minimalist running. My lower legs and feet muscle are strong enough to handle barefooting for long distances, but the soles of my feet are still tender, so that's what I'm working on now. I'd like to be able to run a marathon barefoot sometime in the near future.

2009-07-06T20:32:00.003-05:00

My official training plan started today for Pony Express. I'm not one for following plans, but I am one for creating them anyway. It's not really a plan yet, as much as it is a vague outline. The only thing I have planned so far is starting at a 40 mile week and adding 5-10 miles per week to peak at 80 miles for a few weeks. the structure of those miles is to be determined, I'll take suggestions. I plan to do some track speed work (because for some reason I'm convinced speed work translates into strong 100 milers) a lot of barefoot road running, mountain running in my XC flats, some biking, and other odds and ends. The barefoot running is going to be my key for toughening up my feet in hopes of avoiding the bruised soles I've received in all my other attempts of 100 miles. I plan to run the race in my XC flats, the same shoes I ran Old Gabe 50k in. I love those shoes, very minimalist, 6 0z each, no support no heel raise, just a little bit of rubber and a mesh upper, perfect! Right now I'd like to think I'll be aiming for a sub 24 hour finish, but I'll judge those chances when the time comes.

Today I ran 3.3 miles barefoot on smooth cement sidewalk at 8 minute pace (some at 9 minute pace, some at 7 minute pace)

Friday morning I ran 4 miles in my VFF's at 8:30 pace on roads, and a gravel path around a lake in Helena. Friday afternoon Jill, Liz and I hiked into the Bob Marshall wilderness and camped at an alpine like at a decent elevation, 7,000 or 8,000 feet, the hike is 6 miles in, but we did at least 7 due to navigational blunders. The lake was beautiful, and COLD! The snow all around the lake was fair warning of the frigid temps but we jumped in anyway. We hiked out Saturday morning, no wrong turns, for 6 more miles. Hopefully I'll get some pictures from Jill to add here later.

Pony Express 100

2009-07-02T13:04:00.003-05:00

If there's one thing I know about myself, it's that if I'm not working towards something I won't work at all. So I've come up with my latest race goal: the Pony Express Trail 100 in Utah. This is a very low key run, no entry fee, no aid, no markings, no cuttoffs just a dirt road, a hand full of runners and the Utah desert. My girlfriend, Jill will be crewing for me, and there may be another runner from the Midwest that joins me in the fun, although I will keep his name concealed for now. The race is October 16, so I've got 3 1/2 months to get ready, plenty of time. It's one of those "easy" 100 milers with only 7000 feet of gain, run on a dirt road, 50 miles out, 50 miles back, in the middle of nowhere. anybody else wanna come??

Check it out here: Ponyexpress100.org

2009-07-01T00:37:00.002-05:00

I still haven't run since my race on Saturday, but I feel good. I wasn't very sore at all due to the slow pace. The only thing I sustained, besides very tired muscles, were a few nasty blisters on my toes which have kept me to a walk for the last few days, but that's a small price to pay. I'll take the tape of my feet tomorrow and see how they look and hopefully go for a stroll.

Old Gabe 50k Race report

2009-06-27T23:13:00.003-05:00

(My return to the ultra scene)

Endurance fades, but experience lasts. I pulled into the parking lot got my bag and started walking to packet pickup. I passed a woman sitting on the tailgate of her truck, shoes and socks off, applying body-glide, I had never been here before but it instantly felt like home. I hadn't run a race since the Tecumseh Trail marathon in December, so was excited to get back into the racing scene. But I also hadn't been training since December, with a long run of 5 miles (once a couple months ago) a hike/run of 8 miles (last week) and a couple hikes of 9 miles (a few weeks ago) I didn't have many expectations. It may not be the smartest move to have made my first race in 6 months a 50K with around 12,000 feet of elevations gain, mile for mile it has a similar elevation gain to hardrock, but how can you resist a race that calls it's self "one of the most difficult 50k's in the country" when it's 15 minutes from your front door?

I started out in the back of the pack. I thought I was last but I was actually second to last. The first 4 miles is a climb from the middle cottonwood trail head (start/finish) to the south Bostwick at Saddle Pass. It starts out as a slight incline for 1.5 miles (this portion of the course is the out and back that leads to the different trails we would be running, so we covered that 1.5 miles 4 times throughout the day. At Saddle you descend down the pass and onto the next aid station another four miles away (the distance between aid stations is approximated, the first "half" of the race is actually a mile or two longer than the second "half") in late summer the first mile down from Truman Gulch would be a steep descent, but still definitely runnable. But in late June in Montana at 8,000 feet snowfields still remain. It had been really cold the night before and the snow was extremely hard making it very treacherous to run down. I fell a couple times before deciding to go out of the way and find more solid ground on the side of the snowfield. Once you get past the snowfield the trail turned into a creek and made the rest of the decent very muddy. Once you get past that, the next 3 miles to Truman Gulch is a nice downhill stretch. Then it's back the same trails from Truman Gulch, over Saddle Pass, back to Middle cottonwood. As I was making the climb back up the snowfield at Saddle Pass I had decided that I would bag it at the Start finish and drop to the 25K. But I was breaking one of the golden rules of Ultrarunning: making a decision on an up hill. I started running downhill my energy came back and I was feeling pretty good. Early on I was running up all kinds of debts: Energy, hydration and electrolytes. so around mile 12 I rededicated myself to keeping on the nutrition maintenance side of things.

at the half way point at Middle Cotton would I was feeling pretty good. I knew the second half of the race, Middle Cottonwood to Sypes Canyon and back would be a little bit shorter, and 2,000 feet less elevation gain than the first half. I reached the halfway point right around 6 hours (the cutoff was 12 hours) so I knew I had to keep my pacing going if I wanted to finish. Middle Cottonwood to Sypes canyon is 4 miles up then 4 miles down (roughly). I like that about mountain ultras, there may be quite a bit more elevation, but there are stretch of consistency, and your not going up then down small hills over and over which can break up your rhythm. The second half of the race was pretty routine. I felt good from mile 12 to the finish. I made good time on the second half and stayed well within the cuttoffs. At this point I was still in the back of the pack but there were two people very close to me. As we reached the final two miles we were all right together. about two miles from the finish there was some snow and downed trees from a avalanche that happened in the winter, it went right over the trail so we had to climb over it. the guy that was right with me knew the course so when I started to take one route around the trees, and he took another, he neglected to mention that I was going the wrong way, by the time I got back on the trail he was gone. At that time I decided I was going run as fast as I had to to catch up and pass him before we finished, which I did. It was cool to be at the very back of the pack but still be with two other runners that were pushing me to the finish, we were fighting to first, second and third...to last. But i'd rather be the last finisher than the first to DNF. I won the battle and crossed the line in 11:00:16, despite my best effort to come in under 11 hours in the last 1.5 miles.

That's quite a long time for a 50K, but to put things in perspective the winner finished just under 6 hours, which was only the 4th time in the history of the race that anyone has finished under 6 hours. The second placed guy finished in over 7 hours. Old Gabe consists of rugged tough trails, lung busting elevation gain, panoramic views, and beautiful wild flowers, just some of the constant reminders I get of why I picked up and moved 1700 miles away to serve with Americorps and live at the poverty level. Old Gabe was a wonderful reminder of why I love ultrarunning, and I look forward to stepping up my training and getting back in the game.

2009-06-18T21:49:00.003-05:00

I hiked/ran up to Mt. Baldy then ran back down. Total time was 1:57 total distance is around 8 miles. It's about a 3000 foot gain in 4 miles.

From bottom to "m" (2 miles) : 20:38
M to first peak : 22:56
first peak to Mt. Baldy: 32:00
Mt. Baldy to M: 23:32
M to bottom (2 miles) :11:49

Mt. Baldy is part of the Bridger Mountain range, which is a few mile north of downtown Bozeman. The Bridgers contain 8 peaks the highest being Sacagawea peak at 9665 feet. The range spans 20 miles and has trails all the way from one side to the other, including other trails that go troughout the range. It's a trail runners dream to have something like that in your back yard. I plan on getting to know it very well this summer.

I felt much better about todays trip up this trail than the one I did last week. I felt stronger, and had a lot more confidence on the down hill sections, although I did take a pretty hard spill on the last two mile section while running around a 6 minute pace. But I executed a nice tuck and roll and came away with only a few flesh wounds. I'm looking forward to Old Gabe 50k next weekend. It might be more than I can handle right now, but it will be fun, plus there's a 12 hour cut off.

2009-06-14T20:42:00.003-05:00

Just got back from Glacier. The weather was beautiful, as was the park. It was the first time I'd ever been there. It's a great place for backcountry hiking and camping. I plan to take another trip back this summer when snow is totally melted for a longer trip. We got there friday night and camped at a regular campsite. Saturday we hiked 6 miles into Cracker lake and spent the night there. It was the best backcountry campsite I've ever stayed at. The lake was fed 100% by snow melt which flowed infrom two streams on either side of the lake. It was a crazy aqua blue color. Hopefully I'll be able to put some pictures up later. Sunday we hiked out and headed home. I don't do any running but it was a nice steady hike both days with good sized pack.

2009-06-12T13:09:00.002-05:00

I ran 2.5 miles yesterday and 2 miles today all in Vibrams. Yesterdays run was a mix of road and sidewalk, while today was a dirt track. Both runs were at around 8 minute mile pace. My calves are sore, mostly I think from the run up Mt. Helena on Wednesday, but my quads feel good as does the rest of the body. I feel optimistic about my upcoming ultra training. I feel fresh, not to be mistaken for in shape or trained, but fresh and new. I don't think it will help me much in my up coming race, but after that I think things will start to roll along.

I'm going to Glacier National Park this weekend for some hiking and camping, and hopefully I'll do some running also. My camera doesn't really work anymore, but I'm sure someone else will take pictures, so hopefully I can post some of them.

2009-06-10T21:28:00.002-05:00

Today I did a short bike ride around town about four miles, then a 3.2 mile run up then down Mt. Helena, 22:30 up 11:50 down. Then a 2.5 mile road run in my Vibrams at about a 9 minute pace.

2009-06-10T12:42:00.002-05:00

Hello.

I would start by saying that I'm going to get back on top of this whole blogging thing, but I've said that before and it didn't happen, so who knows. I have a race coming up in a few weeks, Old Gabe 50k. I haven't been doing any running, only some hiking and biking, but I'm going to start the race anyway. I think I'm going to start some training now in order to get in shape for some later summer ultras. I ran/hiked up and down mt. Baldy yesterday, about 4 miles, then ran about 3.5 miles barefoot (my first completely barefoot run.) Then biked around town about 15 miles. I just moved from Livingston to Bozeman, which has a pretty good bike route system. I went on a 4 day 3 night 30 mile solo backpacking trip in yellowstone a couple weeks ago, which was a blast. The weather is finally good for the most part now, and there is so much stuff to do outdoors. I love it.

I think I will post more soon and frequently, but no promises.

2009-04-12T20:56:00.007-05:00

Luc said he want to see some more pictures, so I took a camera on the regular afternoon jaunt to Sacagawea park. I did a quick overnight camping trip in the backcountry of Yellowstone yesterday, but I didn't think I brought my camera, so I don't have any pictures of that. As it turned out, my camera was in my pack the whole time :) Spring is slowly coming to Montana! But the snow isn't done quite yet.

2009-03-10T20:20:00.004-05:00

As most of you know I'm in Montana now doing a year of Service with Americorps working with Big Brothers Big Sisters in Livingston, Montana. We are getting ready for our largest annual fundraiser Bowl For Kids' Sake, which is this Saturday. We get 15%+ of our annual revenue from this event. I've started a fundraising page and would love it if you would consider making a contribution. Help me raise more money than some of my co-workers!

Firstgiving.com/joshdillingham

also check out the new BBBS of Park County website I've been creating.

more running stories later.

2009-03-05T20:22:00.009-05:00

Oh yeah, I have a blog....that I'm supposed to write in.

We'll it's March so I think I'll strat doing some running now. I've been doing some snowshoweing, hiking and exploring around the area which has been really great, but I really haven't been running, which hasn't really bothered me much, but I think I'll start running a little more now. I still won't be able to get on the trails to run for a while because of snow but I'll run around the streets for now. I went out this evening in the vibrams and ran down to the river to make sure the mountains were still there...they are.

Here are some pictures from some of my recent explorations:

2009-01-18T22:02:00.010-05:00

Eliza and I went on a nice hike this afternoon. I'll let the pictures say the rest. Just another day in Montana...

2009-01-12T22:16:00.003-05:00

5.5 miles 7:50 pace

Snow and ice are covering most of the roads to the trail heads around here this time of year, so I'll have to wait for the weekends to go down to Yellowstone and do some snowshoeing on trails. For now the roads will do for my running. You don't have to step off the city sidewalks to see some great views of the Absaroka/Baretooth range or the Yellowstone river. I'll bring my camera and snap some shots from my normal run around town. I tired out a 5.5 mile loop around town today that will probably become my normal run, I might stretch it to 6 miles. It runs for a small stretch in Sacajawea park, right along the Yellowstone river with great views of the mountains in the background. I'll be in Helena for the next few days, hopefully I'll find somewhere to run there.

2009-01-10T18:32:00.011-05:00

I went into Yellowstone today with Chuck to check out some of the wildlife. Chuck has lived here in Montana for about 4 years, and knows just about anything about the park, especially the wildlife, He was a fantastic guide. We saw tons of elk and bison, which move down closer to the road in the winter because of all the snow up in the higher elevations. We also saw some wolves, which follow the elk down low as their food source. It is an overcast day here, so the pictures aren't great, but I can asure you the scenery is! It's a real winter wonderland this time of year.

2008 Tecumseh Trail Marathon Race Report

2008-12-07T17:36:00.002-05:00

Well, I'm still having trouble getting back on the blogger wagon, but hopefully I'll come around. I actually have a race report to post! A big deal considering I haven't run a race since spring!

This was my third year at Tecumseh. It's a really nice trail marathon in Bloomington, Indiana. The race is put on by DINO ("Do Indiana Outdoors," our something like that), a local outdoors group that does a lot of different events on the trails in the area. This course is about as close as a marathon can get to being an ultra. I've found that an average time for me at Tecumseh is about the same as a fast time for a flat trail 50k. It consists of 3500 feet of gain, and varys from mostly single track, to stretches of gravel and dirt roads. The organization and aid stations are well run, with great volunteers. The shirts are hit or miss, mostly miss, but it's fun seeing what kind of weird thing they're going to give us. This year it was a white sweatshirt with a giant brown rectangle in the middle. I think it was some sort of abstract forest scene. It is very grainy and hard to make out. It looks like a still frame from a video camera you would see on the news with the caption: "Big foot spotted last night at local metro park, neigbor says family dog is missing."

I went out on Friday night and stayed in a cabin with Marla, Ellen, Brian, Don, Bob, Matt, and other members of the Buffalo group from IL. I've hardly been running at all so my plan was to take it really easy and make sure I was still capable of finishing a challenging trail race comfortably. Mission accomplished. I strated off in the back of the pack, lightly jogging at a 15:00 minute pace for the first few miles. I was in 100 mile mode for the first 10 miles until I realized the race was almost half way over and I should probably pick it up. I came to the halfway point on pace for a 6 hour finish and gradually picked up the pace and ran some of the hills. It was a really big field as far as trail races go, with over 6oo runners. This made it difficult to pass on the single track with so many people in front of you. At times, on the uphills, I felt like I was standing in line at wal-mart on black friday. Towards the end things thinned out pretty well and I was able to go at my own pace, still slow and comfortable. I felt very even through the race, and never had to slow down due to physical limitations. I ended up finishing in 5:25 and felt pretty good about that.

2008-11-11T22:29:00.002-05:00

Running Form

This is a pretty good video about running economy. It's a video for Newton shoes, but mostly it just talks about running form. These are the changes I have been able to incorporate into my running over the last year, becoming a mid-foot/forefoot striker, wearing a minimalist shoe and having better running posture. It can be a long process depending on where you're coming from, but I think it has helped my running a lot.

2008-11-10T20:42:00.002-05:00

We reached double digits for the first time in the One More Mile Challenge today. It is day 10. I think this next week is when things will really start to get interesting. Running 10+ miles every day of the week won't be an easy task with everyday obligations getting in the way. We still have 8 in the game (Ed dropped at 5 to tapper for Pinhoti, which I am still waiting to hear how he did!!)

I think this challenge has really helped my running so far. I didn't feel so great the first 6 days. despite the fact that we were running short mileage, I hadn't been running consistently and I just felt out of wack. The past four days have been much better and I've found a pretty good groove. I hope I am just hitting my stride and not my peak.

I had a couple good runs in mt. Airy this weekend. My run today was split into two parts. I ran 6 in the morning (5 miles running at right under 8:00 pace, and one mile walk.) then I went back to the rec after work and ran 4 more miles at about 7:45 pace. My legs felt stiff after this mornings run, but they loosened up once I started running tonight.

Tomorrow will be a tough one for me. The rec center will be closed so I will be forced to get in my 11 miles out in the cold and dark, either early in the morning or at night.

Don't forget we're still looking for extra donations to go to NAMI (National Alliance of Mental Illness) and the charity chosen by the winner of the challenge. If you feel like making a contribution to our pot let Mike or I know. Here is the link to the One More Mile Challenge blog
One...More...Mile! Challenge Feel free to follow along and offer words of encouragment in the comment section.

2008-11-06T08:41:00.000-05:00

2008-11-05T19:51:00.005-05:00

Day 5 of the One More Mile! Challenge and it looks like we will have our first casualty. It's a technicality, really, Ed is running the Pinhoti 100 miler on Saturday so he is shutting things down until then. Still 8 runners in the hunt and no sign of any of them breaking. It's been a while since I've run 5 day in a row. Even at these low mileages my legs are feeling a bit fatigued. On to 6 miles tomorrow.

Vote For KIMBA!!! Kim has been selected as one of 10 finalists for the EverymanTri.com Best Endurance Blog of the year. please go here and vote for her blog "TALES OF THE TRAIL GODDESS" And if you haven't seen Kim's blog, well....CHECK IT OUT! :)

Also, if you subscribe to Marathon and Beyond Magazine be sure to flip to page 126 of the new November/December issue. They used the picture from my blog heading (which I took at the top of Klone peak during the Plain 100 in the Cascade Mountains of Central Washington) in their article "How to Host a Hundred." and if you don't subscribe to Marathon and Beyond, go ahead and do that now! Here.

2008-11-03T00:51:00.002-05:00

I did some calculations for the one more mile! challenge.

Completing the first week would mean we each ran 28 miles that week

Completing the second week would mean we each ran 77 miles that week

Completing the third week would mean we each ran 126 miles that week

Reaching 31 days would mean we would have to run 196 miles in those seven days!

Woah that all adds up quick!

Mike and I have pledged additional money if anyone is able to make it to 31 days. Feel free to do the same! It would give us motivation to keep going, and we could give quite a bit more money to charity! C'mon! anybody?? Just leave a comment on my blog and I'll let Mike know.

2008-11-02T22:07:00.002-05:00

We are headed into day three of the One More Mile! Challenge. So far all 9 runners are still in the game. I think it will be after day 7 that we see some started to drop off, hopefully I'm not the first! But I wouldn't rule it out. These first few days are no problem, as all of us just use mileage that we would normally have run, but after the first week it will start to become an effort specifically focused on the challenge, to make sure you get in enough miles everyday, with no days off or short runs. It should be fun to see how it all turns out!! Stay tuned.

Heading West

2008-10-28T22:14:00.008-05:00

After I graduate in December, I will be moving to Livingston, Montana to do a year of service with Americorps, working for Big Brothers Big Sisters. I will be working in their offices in Livingston developing and implementing a marketing and public relations plan for BBBS. Livingston is located in south-west Montana, 20 miles east of Bozeman and 50 miles north of Yellowstone National Park. Livingston is a small town of about 8,000, and was named the 6th best outdoor town in the country by MSN. It was the location for the movie "A River Runs Through It." The area is sure to be a trail runners paradise with mountains in every direction. It sits at 4,500 feet in elevation. I can't wait to get out there and start exploring! It's going to be a great year. You should all come visit!

Top 10 Outdoor Towns
Via Magazine Article - about Livingston's extensive art scene

2008-10-28T11:16:00.002-05:00

I ran 5.5 miles Saturday on the large loop of the Stone Steps course, at a hard pace, which only equaled 9:30 per mile, but it's hilly :)

I did some 800, 400, and 200 repeats yesterday.

I meant to do a 10 miler on Sunday but never got around it it. I hope to do 15 this weekend which will be my longest run in a while.

2008-10-20T19:44:00.004-05:00

3 miles, 6:50 pace, track
1 mile cool down, 9:45

I ran three miles at a comfortably fast pace tonight just to get the legs turning over. I'm going to be doing low mileage with more speed as training for Tecumseh. Not because I think it will help my time, but just because I don't feel like running a lot of miles.

On a side note, don't forget about the One More Mile Challenge which starts November 1st. Sign up now!!

One More Mile Challenge

2008-10-19T19:24:00.004-05:00

It was a record breaking day at Mt. Airy Forest today. The trails were dry, clear and fast. The weather at the start was in the high 30's and by the time the runners crossed the finish it was in the 50's. A little chilly for the volunteers at the oval, but perfect for the runners. Jay Smithberger bested his own course record from on year ago by 12 minutes with a time of 4:19:33, after battling it out most of the day with second place finisher Zach Mitchell from Danville, IN, who went on the finish in 4:26. The female course record, which was set by Kim Martin last year, and thought to be unbeatable by RD Dave Corfman (Who would like to tell everyone willing to listen that he got into Western States next year :) was crushed by 17 minutes by Alice Essinger, who became the first woman to run sub 5 hours on the Stone Steps course with a time of 4:55.

2008-10-18T18:30:00.002-05:00

I met Dave, Dave, and Andy at Mt. Airy this afternoon to help mark the course for the Stone Steps 50k tomorrow. I marked the 5 mile loop with orange flags, remembering all the places I have gotten lost on that loop in the past. Also, keeping in mind Marla's uncanny ability to get lost during races. Let's just say if you get lost out there tomorrow on the large loop, it will be quite an accomplishment. The trails are in great shape, probably the best I have ever seen them. Dave and Dave even had leaf blowers out to blow the leaves off the trails. Not a single down tree on the large loop, I don't think there are any on the small loop either. The weather is going to be nice. A great day for a race, indeed. I'll be volunteering at the oval.

2008-10-15T19:35:00.002-05:00

6 miles, hilly roads

4 miles at 7:30 pace
2 miles at 10:30 pace

Monday: 3 miles at 7:00 pace, track

I'd like to get my 5k time to 18:36 (6:00 pace) by the end of the year.

I think I'll start blogging again. Did ya miss me?

2008-09-01T14:53:00.002-05:00

I went to Daniel Boone National Forest this weekend with the intentions of hiking the 65 mile Red Bird Crest trail. I got off course somewhere along the way and ended up hitch-hiking back to my car. I think I made it about 40 miles. It was an experience. Hiking with a big pack is hard work!

2008-08-24T13:22:00.002-05:00

I volunteered at the Germantown 50k, up near Dayton, yesterday. I was at the 1,2,7 aid station, with Bob. it was the first and last stop for the runners. I think there were about 60 runners. It was a very hot day, in the mid 90's. A lot of the runners were having issues with the heat. I have run this race twice before but they totally changed to course this year. It used to be one loop run 4 times, now it is one big loop with some repeating sections. I ran 8+ miles on the course, it's got some nice trails. Many runners complimented the course.

2008-08-19T20:30:00.005-05:00

5 miles, Vibrams, indoor track, 7:35 overall pace

7:58
7:48
7:37
7:45
6:45

(The numbers might not match up exactly, but the final time is correct and all lap times are within seconds of being correct. while trying to check my splits on my watch, I accidentally erased them, that's how long it's been since I've done a track run worth timing, lol)

I went to the rec after work today for a run on the indoor track. I wanted to get in some medium paced running, as my last few days have been all slow stuff. I eased into it and speed up as I went along, focusing on leg turnover (which stayed above 90 rpm throughout) and foot placement. I felt good near the end, and ran the last 1/2 mile pretty hard, with a 40 second final 200, which isn't so easy with out shoes on, on and indoor track.

I also got some new shoes! I ordered them yesterday and they got here today, that was fast! Saucony Kilkenny XC. They were recommended on the barefoot running email list as I good forefoot running shoe, and they were really cheap as far as running shoes go ($50) so I figured I'd try them out. They are very light, about 6 ounce, just about the same weight as my Vibrams, and have a very low heel, the two things I want in a shoe. I think I'm going to try them out on the trails tomorrow.

Pictures:

2008-08-18T21:34:00.002-05:00

I'm going to start raising my mileage once again, hopefully that will mean getting back into normal blogger mode, but who knows? I will be around 40 miles this week, as long as I can keep the blisters on my feet under control. I'm thinking about doing the Germantown 50K this weekend, it would be a slow jog/walk, just to amend the fact that I haven't done an ultra in 3 months!!

I ran 5.5 miles today on hilly roads, just under 9 minute pace (as well as 5.5 on the same roads yesterday, and 5.5 at Mt. Airy on Saturday)

2008-08-14T21:40:00.003-05:00

One...More...Mile! Challenge

Check out this new race being put on by Mike. It starts November 1st. Anyone can join. It's not a normal race, as in, there is no official location, you can participate from anywhere in the world. I'm the first entrant, wohoo!

2008-08-03T14:55:00.002-05:00

It's been a while since I've blogged. I've been running/biking/kayaking, but no high mileage.

I visited my parents this weekend, and ran in the Grant County Fair mile race. the RD said it was actually 1500 meters. This was the first time I had ever run a race less than a marathon so I didn't really know what to do. I started out too slow. I tucked in behind the lead female, as my goal was not to get chicked. Half way through, I realized her pace was too slow and the race was already half over, so I picked it up. There was a group of 5 up ahead of me towards the end, I could have caught them and finish 3rd if I hadn't of gone so slow in the beginning, but I ran out of room. I finished first in my age group and 8/41 overall, in a time of 5:08, which would have been around 5:28 had the race been a full mile. I think I could have run 4:55 if I had better pacing.

Congrats to all those that ran Burning River this weekend! I enjoyed tracking your progress online!

2008-07-20T22:19:00.002-05:00

I went down to my parents house today and took the bike so I could get a ride in. They live on a farm in Kentucky, which means plenty of back country roads with little traffic. This ride was infinitely better than my ride on the crowded streets yesterday. There is some really nice countryside and very hilly terrain to keep the quads burning and the heart rate up. I biked 14 miles in 1:09.

When I got home I went to the track and ran three miles. My quads were dead from the short bike ride, and the first 3/4 mile was a real challenge. I loosened up a bit after that and things went relatively smooth.
7:56, 7:51, 7:35 Total time: 23:23

2008-07-19T17:18:00.002-05:00

I rode the bike 16 miles today, 1:08. It was a test ride, as I had hoped I would be able to ride back and forth to work every now and then instead of driving, but I don't think that's going to happen. The ride is ok, not too strenuous, but the traffic is the problem. It wasn't too bad today because it's a Saturday, but I did have a couple drives get pretty close while passing, and one women tried to run me off the road, I wish I would have thought to kick her side window in... With week day traffic I think things would be much to hectic for me to feel comfortable.

2008-07-17T20:17:00.003-05:00

45 minutes, around 4 miles, FP trails, Sinisters, easy pace

Bunnies, Birds and Butterflies. That's what I saw on the trails during my run at French Park tonight. The thermometer on my car said 94, but it was cooler in the woods, and the heat doesn't bother me much anyway. I was just looking for a short easy run, with lots of hills. With doing most of my running on the track lately I haven't been giving my quads much of a work out.

After my run I jumped on the bike and rode for about 35 minutes, 8-8.5 miles on the roads.

2008-07-16T21:19:00.002-05:00

3 miles, easy pace, track, sinisters
8:27, 8:27, 8:24

I did some lake kayaking tonight. 54 minutes at a pretty hard pace. Last week this same route took me 58 minutes. I used a longer paddle stroke which made the boat track better but it also used a little more arm strength.

After that I went to the track for a short, easy run. I mostly just wanted to get my muscles warmed up so I could get in a good stretch. I am really inflexible, and am going to try and work on that a bit. I've worked on stretch in the past, but I usually get sidetracked and stop doing it after awhile.

There were a couple young kids walking around the track while I was running. they would watch me as I ran by. As they walked by while I was stretching one of the kids asked with a certain amount of excitement in his voice "are you a tri-athlete?"
"No, I'm just a runner." I said.
"Oh." He replied with disappointment in his voice.
Gee, I guess tri-athletes get all the glory. Can't us runners get any respect? lol.

2008-07-15T22:21:00.002-05:00

5 miles, track, relaxed pace, sinisters, 7:55 overall pace

7:48, 7:55, 7:59, 7:58, 7:56

I ran 5 miles tonight on the track at a fairly relaxed pace. My calves got pretty tired after the third mile but I felt good. I haven't been running much lately. It's a combination of being busy doing other things and not having a specific race to train for. I plan to pick it up a bit in the weeks to come as I start training for my fall marathon (Boston qualifier), although I still haven't picked one yet. The nice thing about not running much is that when I do run I feel really, really good, that is until I get tired because I'm out of shape.

2008-07-11T22:31:00.001-05:00

10k, roads, 50min

Ran 10k at an easy pace with a couple friends tonight. My legs were still tired and tight from the hard 5k on Wednesday.

2008-07-10T22:01:00.001-05:00

I Kayaked for an hour on Winton Lake today after work. My skills are improving. It's still difficult to keep it in a straight line, but I'm getting better. My rowing efficiency is also improving. I was able to paddle for the full hour without taking any breaks, which is something I couldn't do before.

2008-07-09T19:45:00.003-05:00

5K, track, vibrams, 20:22

7:04, 6:28, 6:13, 00:36

I went to the track today with the thought of running 5 miles at a moderate pace. As soon as I started I could tell that my legs felt pretty good so I just ran what felt good. I came to the end of the first mile at 7:04, it was one of the smoothest, easiest miles I have ever run. After that I decided to run a 5k and see what my time would be. I'd never run the 5k distance for time before. With the new goal in mind I picked up the pace and ran the second mile in 6:28. I was feeling it after that mile, but continued to pick up the pace. I was really gassed 1200 meters into the 3rd mile but I was able to stay on track. I ran the 3rd mile in 6:13 and the final .1 in 36 seconds. I had to lie down on the grass for a few seconds after that. Running a 5k at race pace after not doing any consistent speed work or training for a few months can make you pretty tired. I think I could have done it quite a bit faster if I were wearing shoes. I could feel some real hot spots forming on the balls of my feet after the fast paced running in Vibrams on the rubberized track. With some training and proper pacing I would guess I could go sub 20 pretty easily, but that's on a track, roads are another story.

2008-07-07T22:44:00.003-05:00

I've been back from vacation for a while now, just haven't gotten around to posting anything. Here is an awesome photo album Marla put together of her pictures and some of mine: Yellowstone/Grand Tetons
We did some hiking, running, camping, rafting and site seeing. It was a great time.

16 mile hike, 8 mile hike, 8 mile run, 3.8 mile hike (up a mountain)

I had a 6 hour race on Saturday. It went OK. I had some pain in my knee after 4 hours so I stopped with 22 miles. It feels fine know.

I bought a kayak on Saturday, and have been kayaking the past couple days on a lake, tons of fun.

2008-06-24T21:50:00.003-05:00

I'm leaving for vacation in the morning and won't have time to post my Mohican volunteer race report before then, so until I return to write my report, I'll leave you with a link to Ed's report (any race report with a large picture of myself in the middle of it gets a special mention ;)

Ed's Mohican Report

2008-06-18T21:39:00.004-05:00

5 miles, track, 6:55 pace, sinsiters, tempo
7:04, 6:58, 6:55, 6:56, 6:46

5 miles on the track tonight at tempo pace. My quads were very sluggish at the start. The first 1/2 mile was really slow which is why my first mile time was so slow. I felt better after that but the run was still a struggle. My goal was to run 5 mile below a 7 minute pace. I didn't think I'd be able to do it while running the first 3 miles but after that I was able to maintain the pace. this is still a bit slower than my pre injury speed but I'm getting there. My hip soreness was gone which was nice. I took the morning off to let it heal.

I'm looking forward to pacing Kimba this weekend at Mo!!

2008-06-17T21:03:00.001-05:00

AM: 5 miles, track, Vibrams, easy 9:30 pace
PM: 2 miles, track, Vibrams, easy 9:30 pace

Two easy runs today. My hip was sore this morning. Still sore in the evening but not as much.

2008-06-16T19:31:00.002-05:00

AM: 4 miles, repeats

1 mile warm up: 9:05
100m walk
1 mile repeat: 6:29
400m walk
1 mile repeat: 6:25
400m walk
1 mile repeat: 6:19

I did a few mile repeats this morning. I felt pretty good. I look to build on this so I can soon be doing my mile repeats at sub 6 pace. I was planning on doing a 1 mile cool down, but ran out of time and had to get ready for work.

PM: 1 hour, FP trails, 5 miles (guess) Easy

After work I went for an easy 1 hour run on the trails of French Park. I didn't find any caution tape this time, the course is officially clear! This was a very easy paced run, hiked a few hills and jogged everything else lightly. My left hip was a little achy, but just a slight twinge. It was hot today, so I was running shirtless in a pair of very short running shorts. Towards the end of my run, I ran past a husband and wife with their dogs down by the creek. One of the dogs started running towards me. I slowed a little but wasn't too worried as she looked pretty friendly. It turned out the dog was on a chain and could reach me anyway. The women said "oh, don't worry she wont hurt you. But those sexy shorts might get you somewhere!" A bit unaware of what, exactly, she meant by that, I just laughed and continued on my way, slightly worried that she might start chasing me down the trail...the women, not the dog.

2008-06-15T01:16:00.000-05:00

5.5 miles, hilly roads, sinisters, 8:26 pace

It was hot, I felt pretty good.

2008-06-13T19:21:00.002-05:00

30 minutes, French park trails, 3 miles+, sinisters
3 miles, track, Vibrams, 8:18, 7:57, 7:40

More caution tape!! Jon, Brian and I are either really bad course sweepers, or Adam is a very cautious RD. I went to FP again tonight for a short run on the wet trails. It had just rained/was raining so I had the park to myself. Someone had to go out and knock all the water of the trees, ya know?

I didn't want to do all my running in shoes today, so after 30 minutes on the trails I went over to the track for 3 more miles in the Vibrams. My running is feeling great right now, not a single ache or pain. It was raining pretty hard during my track run. Running in the rain with the Vibrams on feels nice.

After I finished my run and was stretching on the side of the track a guy walking on the track stopped and asked me about the Vibrams I explained how they strengthen your lower legs and teach you to run with a forefoot strike. Then he asked me how far I run. "100 MILES?" he said, then slowly backed away and started walking again. That's OK, I probably wouldn't believe it either if I hadn't done it myself.

2008-06-12T21:54:00.002-05:00

1 hour, trails, 6 miles?

I went over to French Park again tonight after work. I really like running here. It's quite a roller coaster. many small hills to climb and descend. There aren't many miles of trail in the park, but there are many small trails. In order to stay on the trails in the woods you have to keep running up and down hills. I still don't know my way around, I just wander until I feel like stopping. I found more caution tape from the race today, I'm pretty good at going off course. This is the longest run I've done in a few weeks. My quads felt very sluggish on the first couple climbs, but after that I felt strong and ran all up hills. I wore shoes for this run (sinisters.) I love the Vibrams but I feel much more comfortable on trails with a thick piece of rubber between me and the roots. I'd like to get a pair of super light, low profile racing flats to use on the trails. The sinisters are light and low profile, but it's still more shoe than I want.

2008-06-11T21:00:00.002-05:00

Tuesday: 3 miles, track, Vibrams, 7:46, 7:11, 6:57
Wednesday: 3 miles, track, Vibrams, 9:39, 9:41, 9:35

Just a few miles on the track Tuesday and Wednesday. I ran at a moderate pace on Tuesday and an easy pace tonight, just keeping everything loose. My calves were a bit sore. I want to start running more miles but I don't think my calves are strong enough yet for 40+ mile weeks with a forefoot strike, and I'm not going back to heel striking, so I'll just take it slow. Everything seems to be progressing well.

2008-06-09T20:48:00.002-05:00

AM: 3 miles, track, Vibrams 7:58, 7:54, 7:50
PM: lets call it 3 miles, Trails, Vibrams, 32:13

I ran three miles on the track this morning. I was pretty tired overall, my calves were a little sore from yesterday, but it still felt pretty good, no pains.

After work I went back to French Park. My plan was to retrace the 3.4 mile course that yesterdays race followed. Well, everything went as planned for the first 1/4 mile. I got off course quickly and never really figured it out after that. It's a small park so you can't really get too lost, but there are many small trails and turns that can get you off track. I think I did end up running most of the course, just not necessarily in the right order. Hey Brian, If you read this I just want to let you know that we missed some caution tape, lol. Don't worry I took care of it. At least that was on section of trail where I didn't get lost! This was the first time I have ever worn the Vibrams on trails. It was fun. You can really feel the trail, which means you can really feel all the rocks a twigs you step on! I don't think I'll be doing any long distance trail running without shoes for a while, but I'll wear them on some short trail runs. French Park is a great place to run. It's so close to my apartment, I don't know why I had never run there before.

I can't remember the last time I ran twice in one day, granted it was only 6 miles, but it was still nice.

2008-06-08T12:43:00.002-05:00

This morning I went to French Park for the French Park Creek Crossing Trail Race which is a race put on by Bob Ronker's running spot. Adam organizes this race series which consists of 4 trail races around Cincinnati. I didn't really feel like racing it, because I knew I'd be really slow, So I went to see if he needed anyone to help sweep the course. As it turned out Brian and John were already on trail sweeping duty so I tagged along with them. It consisted of some running some walking when we caught up to the last place runner, then some waiting while we waited for the last place runner to get a head start on us so we could run again. It was a 3.4 mile race, and a fun time. Brian will be at Mohican this year pacing Adam on his first 100 miler. Brian and John were going to run another loop after the race and asked me if I would like to join. I was tempted because the knee felt good but I decided not to. I'm still a bit weary of the trail when it comes to my knee. Running 10 miles on the trail is how I hurt it the last time.

A few hours later I went to the track for a couple more miles. I ran two miles in 8:07, 7:57. It was hot! Especially on the black surface of the track. My legs felt really god again. No knee pain.

2008-06-07T20:46:00.001-05:00

3 miles, track, vibrams
9:28, 9:02, 8:58

I ran 3 easy miles today on the track. The knee felt great, but the rest of my body was pretty tired from working late the night before.

2008-06-05T23:32:00.002-05:00

Wednesday

2 miles, around 9 minute pace. Easy miles, my calves were pretty sore from they day before, I decided to wear shoes. Slight knee tightness at the beginning of the run.

Thursday

4 miles, 8:59, 8:58, 8:55, 8:52, 4bps. More easy miles. My calves were still sore but I was still able to run in the Vibrams. Knee felt good

2008-06-03T22:18:00.002-05:00

4 miles, indoor track, Vibrams
7:50, 7:41, 7:37, 6:37

I had a great run on the track today. 4 continuous miles with zero knee issues :) first time in a little while I can say that. Hopefully now I can start getting back in shape!

2008-06-02T23:05:00.003-05:00

3 miles, 24:15
8:27, 8:12, 7:34

I was planning on doing a run right after work but got side tracked. Then when I read Burners post about his 4am run, I figured the least I could do was go out for a midnight run. Didn't feel any pain in my knee the whole run, only a very slight discomfort the first 100 meters. The best I've felt since my knee started bothering me. My calves are definitely getting used to the sans-shoe running.

2008-06-01T13:44:00.002-05:00

as predicted, things have gotten better in the past 4 days, funny how that works.

I ran 2.5 miles on Thursday. I felt discomfort in my knee when I started to run but it wasn't pain so I decided to test it out. I sped up gradually each lap. The faster I went the less it hurt, after the first mile it stopped hurting completely and didn't bother me the rest of the run.

I ran 3 miles on Friday with similar results. This time the knee only bothered me for the first 800m then not again for the rest of the run.

1 mile on Saturday. I felt more severe pain at the start of my run and had to walk after about 100 meters, then after 20 meters I tried to run again, the pain was gone and didn't hurt the rest of the run.

I ran 3 miles today (Sunday.) I started out with the same pain from Saturday, but this time it went away within 100 meters, without having to walk. Again, it didn't bother me the rest of the run.

I'm still not sure what the problem is it seems to go away with a short warm up. I am keeping my runs very short for a couple reasons. First, I don't want to take a chance at running long and making my knee worse until I can run 100% pain free from start to finish. Second, I am doing all of my running in my Vibrams, so it will take some time to build up enough strength in my lower legs and make my feet tough enough to withstand a long run with no shoes.

2008-05-28T21:35:00.001-05:00

I jogged 800m very slowly but my knee started to hurt so I slowed to a walk. The walking was comfortable. Still no running, but I think things are going to get better, and I'll be running again soon.

2008-05-26T10:10:00.002-05:00

I walked 3 miles around the track yesterday in Vibrams with no pain. I walked a mile today with no pain, then jogged slowly for 400 meters but I felt some discomfort in my knee so I stopped before the pain started.

2008-05-22T21:55:00.002-05:00

I started to go for a run today, but my knee was bothering me in the first 400m so I stopped. Not sure what's up with it, but I'll give it another shot tomorrow. I think I'm going to stop wearing shoes...

2008-05-20T14:21:00.002-05:00

3 miles, track
8:14, 8:04, 7:54

Like I mentioned in my last post, my knee started to hurt at the end of my run on Sunday. On Sunday night and Monday my knee would lock in random positions and there was some acute pain at times. The pain went away yesterday evening. I didn't want to do anything too strenuous today, in fear that I would make it worse, but it was feeling better so I wanted to try and run on it. I did feel some discomfort, but it wasn't nearly as bad as Sunday and it didn't prohibit me from running. It was more a feeling of unstableness than pain. Last time I went to the sports doc for knee pain (my other knee) He told me it was probably caused by weak quads, so I also did some leg presses and extensions. Hopefully this wont turn into another injury.

2008-05-18T19:22:00.002-05:00

10 miles, trails, 1:52

I ran 10 miles with Adam this afternoon out at Mt. Airy. He was running 30 and called me to see if I would come run a couple loops with him. It went pretty well, but my left knee started hurting the last 2 miles.

2008-05-17T23:13:00.002-05:00

34:02, roads, approx. 4 miles, approx. 8:00 pace

I moved up to a 4 mile run tonight. I went to a friends house and we ran around the neighbor hood. I don't know exact distance or pace but I think it was around 4 miles. I felt good. It was nice to have someone to run with.

2008-05-16T21:21:00.002-05:00

2 miles, track

7:14
6:33

It was perfect weather for a run tonight. Still taking it easy, only a 2 mile run. I was pushing a decent amount on the second mile, which tells me I'm definitely out of shape, but I already knew that. More importantly I feel healthy, and feel like I'm ready to start real training very soon.

2008-05-15T19:35:00.002-05:00

2 miles, track, 7:56, 7:37

It was raining big ol' fat rain drops tonight and the wind was howling. I had my eyes closed most of the time and I think I was drooling. The run felt good. My calves are a little sore from the fore-foot landing, but they will get stronger. My leg continues to improve.

2008-05-14T21:32:00.002-05:00

2 miles, track

7:43
7:04

Two days in a row, wohoo! the leg felt a little sore when I woke up this morning but it loosened up pretty quick. I felt really good running tonight. Probably the best I've felt since LCFB in February. I thought about running further, but I figure I've gone months with hardly any miles so a little more time with low mileage to make sure I've got the problem fixed wont hurt me. My fore-foot strike is coming along nicely, it feels natural. It will take a little while for my calves to strengthen enough to be able to make the full switch, but I'm on the right track. I just hope I feel this good in the morning. Three runs in row? that would be something else.

2008-05-13T18:48:00.002-05:00

2 miles, track, 8:51, 7:51

My leg was pretty sore on Monday after my 5 mile run on Sunday so I'm going to have to take things slower than planned, but at least I am running! I'm going to run low slow mileage until I can run consecutive days without pain in my leg, then I will commence some real training.

2008-05-11T18:10:00.002-05:00

5.55 miles, 9:28 pace

Did 5.5 easy miles today on some hilly roads. It felt pretty good. The tendons in my leg are still a little sore, but I think I'm finally ready to get back to daily training. I'm going to take it slow this week and see how it goes before starting any kind of training program. I can't wait to get back in racing shape! I still have big plans for this year.

2008-05-07T09:24:00.002-05:00

I'm feeling pretty good today. My calves are still sore, but I'm able to walk normal. The marathon didn't make my leg injury much worse so I should be able to start an actual training routine by the end of the week! No more races until I get back in shape!

Flying Pig Marathon Race Report

2008-05-04T13:30:00.003-05:00

I'll begin by saying that I was in no shape to run a marathon today, but it went OK for a while. I didn't start off that fast, but faster than I should have for zero training (haven't run since McNaughton.) I blew up big time after mile 19 and walked most of the way in. Regardless, it was a great run!

The 2006 Flying pig was my first race and this year was pig number 3. I really enjoy this marathon. It's my hometown course, and the fans and entertainment are a lot of fun. Going into the race I knew I wasn't trained so I decided on a finishing goal of 3:59. The plan was to run 9:30's for the first half and 8:50's the second half...yeah right. I started off running most of my miles up until mile 19 around 8:45-9:00 but times varied widely with the crowds early on, and the hills in miles 6-9. At mile 10 I was already feeling pretty bad. My leg injury was starting to hurt a little and my legs were already pretty tired. I ran the first 17 miles with a fore-foot strike, to avoid the pain in my leg, but after mile 17 my calves were too tight and tired so I had to switch back to heal striking. My leg didn't bother me too much during the run, although it's pretty sore now.

Right in the middle of mile 19 and 20 I knew I was finished. At first I started walking with the idea that I would start running again as the 4 hour pace group approached. About 5 minutes later I watched the balloons come, and then go. I really didn't care about 4 hours anymore, not enough to start running again, lol. I alternated between half mile walking and half mile slow jog until mile 25 where I jogged it in. My final time was 4:25:29, I made sure it was faster than my first pig (4:26.) I'm not bummed about my finishing time. I didn't train and the Pig bit me in the ass. That's how it goes. I had a great time out on the course, and can't wait until next year!

2008-04-30T15:29:00.000-05:00

2008-04-29T20:03:00.001-05:00

Bike: 10 miles, 50 minutes

I went for a short bike ride tonight. This was the first time I've ridden on the road, it wasn't bad, I didn't get run over by any cars.

2008-04-27T19:43:00.005-05:00

Bike: 14 miles, 58 minutes

Went for another bike ride in the evening on the little Miami bike path. It's a 72 mile path that connects Springfield to Milford. in the last mile of my run I saw a deer on the bike path. At first I slowed down as I approached because I didn't know if she would get sacred. she looked at me but didn't seem to mind my presents. As I got closer she took off, running down the trail. I figured she wanted to play so I chased after her. after about 5 seconds she stopped running. there are wooded areas on both sides of the bike path. First, Ms. Deer, who was just a youngin, maybe three feet tall, looked right, then she looked left, where there was a 5 foot wooden fence. I figured she would scurry off into the woods on the right, but standing on the left side of the path, from a standstill, she cleared the five foot fence in a single bound, it was badass.

Here's a picture of one of the pizzas I made this weekend. It took me four attempts but I finally got the crust right, it was gooood.

2008-04-27T15:32:00.002-05:00

Bike: 15.5 miles, 1:12

My leg was pretty sore this morning, so running still isn't a good idea just yet. I went out this morning and bought an ankle brace. The tendons in my leg are irritated when I move my foot in certain directions, so the brace stabilizes it and reduces the pain. The brace kept my leg from bothering me on my bike ride today. I went to the bike path around Lunken airport. It's a 5+ mile paved bike path, I did three loops. It was a beautiful day. I'm getting better with maneuvering the bike in and out of traffic, another thing I was much better with at the age of 6.

2008-04-26T21:36:00.003-05:00

according to Kim and Rob, my old brittle bones just can't stand running anymore, so I decided to go for a bike ride after my run. I rode for 52 minutes and 10 miles. I bought this bike last year because I eventually plan on doing an iron man. This was the first time I've ridden it since the week I bought it. I just never got around to riding it, I would always run instead.

So I took it to Mt. Airy Forest today and went for a ride on the roads, which I had never seen most of because I'm always running on the trails. It was fun! You can cover so much distance on a bike in such a short amount of time, it's amazing! Bikes are much more complicated now than they used to be, or maybe I was just that much smart when I was 6 years old than I am now.

I still haven't totally figured out the gear switching thing. there are four different levers. I know, for the most part, which levers shift up and which sift down, but it seems like they shift differently every time I flip the lever. And sometimes it's really jerky when I switch gears, my bike wasn't cheap (at least for me) , so it shouldn't be an issue of quality.

Nonetheless, I did enjoy my ride. It was fun to feel the wind rushing by as I pedaled down a hill. I hit 25 mph once, that was my limit. I don't mind going 25 mph in a car, but when there's nothing between you and all the many things you can run into or stumble over, it's different. Hopefully I'll start riding it more often.

2008-04-26T14:22:00.002-05:00

5.5 miles, 9:10 pace, hilly roads

This was my first run since McNaughton, two weeks ago. I had mixed results. I could feel the tendons in my leg from the start, they started bothering me after 2 miles. At 3 miles I switched to a fore-foot landing, instead of heal-striking, that made the pain go away. I've been wanting to become a fore-foot striker for about a year now, but it takes a lot of time and practice to build up the strength in the lower legs to be able to do it permanently. So my injury isn't gone, but it's much better, and hopefully it wont be too sore tomorrow, and I can start normal training again. I was going to run the John Bryan 50k tomorrow, but after my run today I've decided that wouldn't be a good idea (I knew before this run that it wouldn't be a good idea, but now I know it would be a REALLY bad idea, lol.)

2008-04-23T20:49:00.002-05:00

Still having some issues with my right leg/foot. It's getting better each day, but not quite good enough to run on yet. I could run on it if I really wanted to, but not without fear of injuring it more. I'm hoping by this weekend I'll be able to start running again, just in time to taper for the Flying Pig :)

2008-04-20T16:34:00.002-05:00

I've been dealing with some strained tendons in my right leg, just above my foot, from the race last weekend. Everything else feels good, I probably would have been able to start running again on Tuesday if it weren't for this minor problem. I can now walk without a limp and with little pain. I hope to start running again tomorrow or Tuesday.