i survived, again

I survived Dances With Dirt. It was more fun this year, but more painful than last year. More to follow, but for now I am resting and mending. Will definitely need to train better if I do this next year...

catching up

I made it out for a run yesterday and was joined by my friend Brooke. We hadn't run since... November's 15k Trail Run?! So we had some catching up to do. We didn't have a specific distance in mind, I think we were thinking at least 5 miles, so we set out on the trails that were frozen and slippery in some spots.

We talked on everything from the economy to what's been going on with each of our lives, which seemed closely tied to the economy... 2009 will be a tough year for all, but we'll make it through. And I think we both generally decided that whether we run any big races this year or not, we'll be training as if we will be running them - after all we still need a goal.

The run seemed to end quickly (though our speed over the slippery terrain was no land speed record). We reached 5 miles and felt pretty good. I'm sure we still have more we could talk about, but it will have to wait for another run :)

I'm planning on getting out for another run today - it's snowing out right now and it's always fun to run when it's snowing...

Race Report: DINO Trail Run #6

Just a mere 5 days to go... I am not feeling prepared for this half. I can run it, sure, but I doubt that I'll be setting any PR's (which I really need). At least that is how I am feeling after my run on Saturday. It was the DINO Series Race #6 at SouthWestway Park.

It all began great. I met up with Brooke, whom I haven't been able to run with all summer. Our last run together was the Geist Half Marathon in May, so we had a lot to catch up on. I am pretty sure we did not have enough time during the drive there and back and all throughout the race. So, we'll need to try to get runs scheduled more often than every 5 months...

We began at what I considered a very easy pace of 9:00/miles, but around mile 2 or so, it seemed to get much harder... sure there was a huge hill, but even that shouldn't have been that big of a deal, but it definitely was work to get up it and left me feeling tired. The course itself was beautiful. Nice paths to run along and with just the one big hill, a somewhat challenging course, but not the toughest I've run on. In all fairness, I have only run trails once since the Dances With Dirt Race back in May, so I wasn't necessarily prepared for the race in terms of dealing with the terrain, but the distance wasn't a big deal.

Brooke and I kept up a conversation most of the time. John had started out with us, but he maintained the 9:00/mile pace and we didn't see him after mile 2 or so until the end of the race. We touched on quite a few topics, but it still seemed like we ran out of time to talk. It was a beautiful day out - sunny, blue skies and cool in the morning. A great day for a trail run.

We finished in a respectable 1:31 (John finished in 1:24) - so it wasn't a bad run, just not the pace I thought I'd be running - especially this close the the half marathon. I keep trying to tell myself that it is a different kind of running than a road race, so I guess we'll have to see in 5 days if I am right...

Scheduling Snafu(s)

The name of the game is flexibility. Stuff happens - it's all part of Life. So as I have been trying to pull together a training schedule and stick to it the last 4 or 5 weeks, I have shifted days around and, unfortunately, have missed a day or two.

Am I worried? No.

Do I wish I didn't have to keep shuffling my time around? Sure, but I'm thankful I at least have that as an option.

So, the plan this weekend was to run 10k. The schedule actually had me in a 10k race - and there even was one, but I opted out of doing that race and decided just running 10k would be a good thing. As I was checking my upcoming planned races, I realized that the D.IN.O fall trail race series is beginning next weekend. What a great idea it would be to run my 10k on trails!

Honestly, I was happy to run anything as long as I got my mileage in at a good pace. I had it all planned to run on Saturday, but Life threw another curve ball at us.

Steph woke up horribly dizzy - more so than she had a previous mornings (we thought it was just sinus drainage or something connected to fluid in the inner ear). It was going away, so an appointment was scheduled with an ENT for Monday, but here it was Saturday and it was bad. So it was off to the Medcheck where she was diagnosed with "positional vertigo". So, with some medication, it was relieved slightly, but with a wonderful drowsy affect. The rest of Saturday was a wash, but not a waste. Unfortunately, I am still not getting ANYTHING done around the house that is on my list! I am threatening to take vacation to have actual free time to get stuff done... time is running out...

Today I finally got out for my run around 11am. I headed right for Fort Harrision State Park and ran the trails. I hadn't run the trails there since April, so it was great to get back to them. I didn't set any records on this run, but felt good when I was finished.

Later on today I was mentioning to Steph that next weekend was a trail run race that I was planning on doing. Unfortunately for me, she has an appointment that morning that has been scheduled for a month and a half... oops, guess I lose on this one. Looks like I'll have to miss this race... oh well, there be plenty more. Life goes on and so do I. I'll be back at it tomorrow morning if all goes well.

Happy Running...

Race Report: Dances With Dirt 100k Team Relay

It was a cool, crisp, foggy morning. We loaded up the van and headed to the start/finish area. We arrive to a sea of vehicles with people milling about, getting ready for the long day. We walked over to the start line and sized up the other teams. We saw a few serious teams, and quite a few not as serious teams wearing some interesting costumes.

It was finally time for the start. Our first team member headed out - a quick 2.5 mile loop with incredible hills. He returned well ahead of the majority of the other runners. Then our second runner headed out on the second leg - a 2.75 mile loop with more hills and plenty of water. She gets back and our third runner heads out for a 6.5 mile point to point leg. The rest of us clambered into the van and headed to the next exchange point where I would be the next runner.

Leg 4 Description: "Shoot Me Now (They shoot horses don’t they?) – 3.2 Miles – Follow Blue - Nature Center to Hoosiers Nest – Reverse of Stairway to Heaven (Leg 13), you go … down a ton of steps to shatter your quads, a quick view of the lake then bushwhack up and down a serious hill to a mucked up horse trail filled with horse remnants, muddy hoof prints and several creek crossings (rivers if it rains). You will leave this trail onto a poorly maintained trail that goes … straight up! At the top you will roll along up and down through some nice pines but tricky footing to the exchange. If you end up lame, the team might have to put you down!"

My adrenaline level was at a high point when it was my turn to run. As he description says, I took off going down a trail that led right to a set of steps that seemed to keep going down. When I got to the bottom I ran along the edge of a beautiful lake only to head back into the woods for rolling hills. I didn't keep track of my pace during this run, but I felt good until I hit my second hill that seemed to go straight up. It was then I decided to walk up it -- a strategy I thought would prove to keep me from fading too much at the end. I soon learned that no trail run I had done to date had come close to preparing me for this race. At the end of my leg, I ran from the woods out into an open field where I became slightly disoriented from the change in scenery and had to focus on where I needed to go. I made the exchange and then headed over to the van to change my socks and dry out my shoes.

We ran two more legs from this exchange point and then it was time to head to the next exchange where we ran two more legs. It was once again time for my second run.

Leg 9 Description: "Gnaw Boned – 3.1 Miles - Follow White - North Gate To Opry – 1.5 miles of good trail then right into a bushwhack. Some of it’s very runnable and all of it is beautiful, some hills. You will run along a thorny ridge before plunging down to the highway and the exchange to the left. May of may not be a river to cross at the exchange"

This started out as a great trail run - just as described - beautiful, some hills. Then it turned into the woods where it had me going through briers down a hill and then onto a trail with rolling hills until it turned once again into the woods where it headed straight down a hill through more briers (and with runners coming up the hill on a different leg of the race) only to kick me out onto the road side about a 1/ mile form the exchange point. I turn on the speed and head to the exchange point. A runner heading out on the next leg shouts out to me as I approach the exchange: "it's not that deep". I wasn't sure exactly what he meant, but soon saw what he was talking about. The exchange had me crossing a river that didn't quite come up to my waste, but nonetheless had me going through it and up the other side of the bank to tag my team member. He, unfortunately, had to start his leg going through it, while I was lucky enough to finish on it. It actually felt pretty good.

We end up at a couple of more exchange points and run our other legs and then end up back at an exchange point we had been earlier in the day -- in fact the one where I started out on my first leg, but this time I was running a 6.2 mile point to point leg back to the start/finish.

Leg 14 Description: "Boned Again – 6.2 Miles - Follow Blue – Billy’s 2, down the road behind the Dance Barn. The reverse of Leg 3, start with ½ mile of road then left on to funky horse trails all the way to “The Plunge”, deadly downhill and finish in the field a ¼ mile behind the Dance Barn."

I was still pretty anxious to run my final leg - and all of a sudden they call out "legal cheat!" Which allowed the remainder of us still waiting for our runner to tag us to go ahead and leave now so we could finish up the relay around 6:00 pm. So I take off, this time armed with my GPS so I could track my pace and distance. I look down once I started and saw a 6:34/mile pace... what? I couldn't possibly have done that... I calmed down and settled into a rhythm - about a 8:30/mile. The other thing? I was running on road. I was getting comfortable with this thought until about 1.5 miles into my run it headed onto a trail, but it was an well maintained trail, so it wasn't bad. But that didn't last long... after two miles, I was once again going through briers, but my legs no longer felt the scratches I was on a mission to finish. After surviving the briers, I was back on a trail - a horse trail. It looked familiar... in fact it was the horse trail John and I had ended up on when we over shot our turn around point a few weeks back when we tried to run the first leg. Unfortunately it didn't help me much to be on familiar ground because it had rained two days prior to the race, there was almost nothing but mud on the trail. It was next to impossible to actually run through most of it, and I had to walk through these patches so I could keep my footing. One runner had lost his shoe to the mud just as I was passing him. I was actually catching up to some of the other runners when we were going through the mud. We finally got past the "bad spots" and turn onto a quasi-logging road filled with ruts and roots. I followed this out of the woods make a turn and find myself looking down a 250' drop down to a field. At this point my calves are balling up into knots, but I take off down the hill and get to the bottom pretty quickly and felt a surge of energy as I ran across the field. I caught up with the last two runners I had been following and pass them on the road and then turn back into the field to the exchange zone to finish my final leg. As I approached the end my calves were on the verge of seizing up. I finally made it and it was all I could do to not just fall down -- 12.5 miles completed and it felt like a lot more.

It was tough, at times painful, but wow it was sure fun. I think I would do it again, but I would definitely train more and differently.

Dances With Dirt Photos

Here are just a few photos... plenty more and the race report will follow soon...

The Schwag

Umm, Slight disclaimer...

Cool Nike Race shirts

Team Shirts

Team "We've Got The Runs" (L-R): Ben, John, Dave, Paula and Jason

DINO Trail Run #1

We were told it was the coldest and snowiest DINO Trail Run in their history... I believe it, though the snow wasn't terrible and it wasn't that cold (just a mere 22 degrees with a nice breeze to keep it comfortable). I did find the race to feel longer than 15k, though I did not see anything that said it was long. My pace was the incredibly slow pace of 11:18/mile. That is the slowest I have ever run a race in all races I have ever run... an new PR!!!

While I said the snow was not bad, it did make for a tough run and to add to it there was mud that was the whole width of the trail and then some - and not just in one place, but many. And as the race progressed (it was a 5k loop that we ran 3 times) the conditions seemed to get worse - muddier because of all the people, but also because the sun came out and started to melt the snow.

After the first loop I was ready to call it quits, but I was running with my friend John and he kept me honest and moving. So we continued on. The cold never bothered me, in fact I got just a little warm towards the end, but never uncomfortable. I have never felt like I worked more for a race than I did after finishing this one - only my marathons made me feel worse.

I am taking tomorrow off, then it is back to the gym for some lunch time runs on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. I'll need to review my training schedule to see what next weekend will bring - I am hoping for a step back week...

My wear test for the shoes New Balance sent me ended today. Seemed like a fine pair of shoes. I ran in them on the treadmill, outside even casually a few times (they instructed me to wear them in all aspects including casual if possible). I guess I'll see if they send any more goodies my way...

That is all for now. Hope everyone's weekend runs weren't too cold or snowy... spring is just around the corner...

race report

Yes. You read it correctly.

I said RACE REPORT.

I actually ran this weekend.

I will actually blog about some running.

It had been one day shy of two weeks since I had run. Oh boy did it feel like it too. Actually it felt like it more this morning than yesterday. My legs were tight when I woke up - most likely from running up and down all the hills from yesterday's race.

Okay. The race report:

It was the last DINO trail run for the year and it was held at Fort Harrison State Park (my "home turf" of sorts). I had not been trail running in three weeks (the last time was Sunday morning of the day when Steph's water broke) and had only run two other time since Lilli was born.

I didn't know for sure if I would run the race or not until that morning. It all hinged on Lilli cooperating with her schedule (i.e. sleeping between feedings). Thankfully she did pretty well and I was able to get ready and go. Steph didn't want to deny my need for running and was happy to let me get out - she knows it makes me happy.

I showed up at the state park and saw a vast sea of cars everywhere - probably the most I had ever seen at a trail race. I was determined to run the 15k even without running for almost two weeks. Probably not the best idea, but I wanted to see if my legs could handle it.

I met up with Brooke just before the race started and ran with her for the first half. We were keeping a pace right around 8:30/mile even with some pretty challenging hills. But after the turn around point, I felt I was losing steam. I was feeling it and wondered if the 5k wasn't a better idea - oh well - too late. I pushed on and kept focused on the person in front. I actually ended up running with a guy named Josh who was a first time trail runner. We talked a little bit and eventually he headed out past me around mile 6. By this point I was on more familiar ground with the trail since I had run this trail throughout the summer, but my knee was feeling the pounding of the downhill running. When I hit the road, I felt a sense of ease and picked up my pace, only to slow down a bit on the way up the sledding hill. Back down the hill my knee protested a bit, but I pushed on with the finish in site.

I finished in 1:21:58 - about a 8:48/mile pace which I was pretty happy with given my running over the last few weeks. So I am hoping for a more regular routine, but we will have to see. Maybe I'll try to run the Drumstick Dash on Thanksgiving morning, but again, it will depend on how my running goes. More to follow... until then Happy Running...

recovery run with nature

Trying to stick to a schedule and get serious about my running again, I got home early enough to go for a run. In my infinite wisdom I decided that it made logical sense to do my recovery run on a trail -- it is softer, I generally run slower because of the terrain and it was also cooler in the woods...

I just did three miles, but it was a nice change of pace from road running. I think I'll be doing this more often for recovery runs. I am going to try to squeeze in a couple more mid-week runs and then figure out what to do for my weekend run. There is a 5k race at the state park by me that I might do because this is a step back week for me, but we'll see.

where the wild things run

Another week has passed and not much running happened again. It was a busy week at work. I found myself having to do a week's worth of work in the first two days for out of town meetings I had on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. The meetings were fine, just made for long days. The first two were both up in Michigan, but I chose to return each day as I had to get a few things done at the office afterwards. By the end of Friday I was spent.

On Saturday I slept in and didn't wake until the starting of the Mini-Marathon. It was a tough time just watching it and the 35,000+ runners and walkers on TV. I wanted to be there running it as I have the past 6 years -- but I know I would not have run my best race. Even if I had trained for it and run it, I was so tired that it would have been painful.

Saturday night, after a little yard work including mowing the yard, I indulge in some margaritas - it was Cinco De Mayo after all! They were a little heavy on the Tequila though, but they were tasty...

On Sunday I did get out for a run. I decided it was time to get back to the trails so I headed over to Fort Harrison State Park to check out the trails. With 7 trails to choose from, there was plenty of distance to run. I started out on the Fall Creek Trail, which runs along the banks of the Fall Creek. It was a nice fairly wide path that I found out the hard way has a set of stairs that are killer. I was breathing heavy by the time I got through those. The trail then curved around, crossing the paved Harrison Trace Trail that I usually run when I am there, and I picked up the Camp Creek Trail which circled back around to the Fall Creek Trailhead. I then ran on part of the paved Harrison Trace Trail to the Lawrence Creek Trail. Wow! This trail seemed like it started going straight up for what seemed like a half mile. It was most likely less, but I did have to stop at the top to catch my breath... the margaritas were catching up with me. I was dehydrated and just felt exhausted. I continued on, circling around back to the trailhead and then hopped back on the paved trail heading back towards my truck.

The times I was out in the sun, I could tell it was getting warm out, but amongst the trees it was cool and just so scenic. I have fallen in love with this park all over again!

I was surprised to see so many people on the trail walking their dogs... I did see one other runner, but she was running with her dog. I got a few weird looks, but people were courteous. The next time I go, I may try to get out a little earlier.

Overall, it was a great run. It certainly kicked my ass. I have a lot of work to do to get back to a decent base before marathon training begins. And my destination marathon is changing for this fall, but more to follow on this at a later date.

Until then, Happy Running to all!

trail run race report

So the question is: Was it a big mistake to do a trail run with my knee periodically "acting up"?

Answer: NO

In fact, it seems to be just what I needed. My knee did not hurt one bit during the run, not after, and not even the next day! I am not sure why, perhaps the ultra-soft ground on which I ran? Seems somewhat logical, but at any rate, it was a great decision.

The weather had forecasted rain and thunderstorms for most of the day, but when I woke up it had not rained yet and it was a cool, crisp 55 degrees. I got ready and picked up Brooke and we headed up to Mounds State Park in Anderson, IN. We arrived in plenty of time to get registered and still have time to relax, do some light stretching and get ready for the 5k race.

When we lined up for the race, we started in an open field that was an out and back configuration which then went right into the woods and onto a well maintained path. The first mile was not bad, some minor hills, but nothing compared to my first trail run last year. Our pace was a little faster than what I thought it would be, but it seemed okay at the time. It seemed mile 2 took a little longer to get to and our pace settled to a more comfortable pace for the terrain.

We had been warned that at mile 3 there would be a set of stairs to climb to get to the finish and to make sure we had some energy left... at each stair we came across on the course I wondered if they would be worse than these (because they did not seem all that bad).

Well, they didn't disappoint. These stairs took every ounce of strength I had left to get up to the top and be able to run to the finish. I was spent. I was very glad I did not choose to do the 15k run - especially since it began raining just as we started our climb at mile 3. I finished in 26:54 - 55th out of 117 - not bad. Roughly 8:41/mile pace...

This was a great end to my step-back week and I am looking forward to this week where I will start building my mileage again. With a cold spell coming in on Wednesday, I will be sure to get out tonight and/or Tuesday for a run. Hope everyone's weekend was a good one.

Happy running to all!