Trail Musings

Fresh Air

2011-02-28T17:44:00.000-08:00

Today was the first day I ran outside in about two months. For the past two months I have done nearly all of my running in the local gym on the treadmill. Today where I live the temps hit about 50 degrees and after a strong steady rain throughout the morning the sun peaked out slightly before more clouds rolled back in. The rain had stopped and I ventured back outside to reaquaint myself with the roads that I have not seen since December. I'll be glad when all the snow is gone.

I enjoyed my time on the treadmill this winter. I was able to focus on my speed a little bit over. The treadmill was helpful in taking me faster than I would normally go on my own. Ocassionally I would venture down into the 6 minute/mile range. It felt good and was a small confidence boast to go faster than I have gone before (and not flying off the back of the treadmill is a big plus, too!).

It was so nice to get back out into the fresh air today, even if I had to dodge some traffic and run through unavoidable puddles that were deeper and bigger than usual from the rain and snow. It felt good. I ventured out Rte. 191 and climbed what I call Jadwin Hill (it is next to Jadwin Dam). My previous PR from my front door to the turnaround spot was 28:30 (or close to that). Today I PR'd and hit the turnaround in 27:42! I felt good and I thought "Cool, the treadmill paid off." I'm looking forward to getting back into a solid training routine. I have been out of sorts since Oil Creek and now it is time get back at it.

As usual, I have to give God the glory for the ability and even the opportunity to run. I'm thankful I get to do this regularly.

Finding the Will to Finish: Beast of Burden Race Report

2011-02-15T10:34:00.000-08:00

General Observation: These were the hardest race conditions I’ve faced and one of the hardest races I’ve ever completed. The mental struggles to continue when I was falling apart almost overtook me many times. I owe this finish to many people: my remarkable wife Alice, most awesome crew/pacer Carl, the aid-station volunteers at the turn-around, and above all Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who gives us strength through all of our most trying and unconceivable challenges!

Pre-Race: To save typing, my training leading up to this event was blogged below on February 9th.

Travel/Pre-Race Prep: I picked up Carl Albright, who co-RDs the Viaduct Trail Ultramarathon with me around 5:30 pm Friday night, and we ate dinner at his house (thanks Chris!) before heading out for the 5+ hour drive up to just outside of Buffalo where we were staying with Carl’s in-laws. The trip was very nice, traffic was light and the conversation was great. I talked so much I think I was starting to get hoarse. We arrived shortly after 11:00 pm, visited for a short while and hit the sack for some very solid sleep. I was up at 6:15 am, showered and enjoyed some awesome pancakes that our host was gracious enough to get up and prepare for us.

When I got up, the first thing I noticed was that it was snowing, quite hard, there was at least 2 inches of accumulation. Par for the course, I suppose, but I was getting apprehensive knowing it was going to be a difficult day. As we started driving to the start, I was relatively focused, but my car was sliding all over the place and my nerves were firing trying to get in race mode but also trying not to wreck the car. We got to the start, got my chip, bib, goodie bag and it seemed chaotic to get everything ready while listening to pre-race instructions. RD Sam Pasceri introduced the guest of honor, Valmir Nunes, who traveled all the way from Brazil and currently is the Badwater course record holder. Also in attendance was last year’s winner Richard Cook, whom I’ve had the pleasure of running my last few ultras with. I really enjoy observing and talking with these experienced runners, and try to learn as much from them as I can.

Before I knew it the time had come and we were on our way!

Race: The course is held along the towpath of the Erie canal and consists of four 12.5 mile out and back loops. I started out running in Drymax socks and Inov-8 Roclite 305s, a long sleeve compression shirt, cotton t-shirt, tech jacket and tech beanie. As soon as we got onto the towpath, I knew it was going to be a long day. The path had been slightly packed down from a couple of snowmobiles, but the wind, which would gust at 30+ mph at times, was drifting closed the packed down portions and we had to break a new path pretty much the whole first 6.5 miles to the first aid station. The snow was deep enough in spots to go over the top of our shoes, luckily my gaitors kept a good portion of it from packing inside my shoes, but I had wet feet within a couple of miles. Drymax socks are great, but in these conditions I don’t think anything would keep the dampness at bay. As I was running the first loop, I could feel my quads and ankles fatigue from the effort they were putting forth. I moved through the first aid station quickly just getting some water and a handful of skittles. The next portion of the out and back was packed a little more and I was able to find a better rhythm and run steady. As I was running, I took note of landmarks for later in the race when I would be needing to know where I was in relation to aid stations, and there were many bridges that crossed over the canal that we ran under. This knowledge works against me later in the race, I’ll get to that.

I reached the turn-around aid station feeling pretty good, and had worked up a sweat, so I ditched the cotton shirt for a tech shirt and swapped hats. I headed back out and was immediately hit with the strong headwind that cooled me down with all the sweat I generated earlier. I put my head down and pushed the best I could. I passed through the midway aid station, grabbed some more skittles and HEED, and tried to get the headwind half lap done as quickly as I could. I caught up with Richard Cook, ran a short while with him and passed him. Trying to get the lap done, instead of assessing the conditions and responding accordingly took more energy out of me than I should have been exerting, and when I came back to the start/finish line at 25 miles, I was definitely feeling the miles.

Carl was waiting for me, helped me get what I needed and encouraged me to pace myself and not fight the course. I think he could see that I was pushing my limits very early in the race. I tried to put his advice into action, and ran with Richard for a good portion of the next 6.5 miles. When I passed him, I commented about going out too hard, and he said, “I’m going to try and stay steady with the wind at my back and just do what I can coming back into the headwind.” Very sound advice and I repeated it to myself throughout the remainder of the race. Every time I was struggling, I would assess my effort and make sure I was staying relaxed and steady. I hit the turn-around, feeling like my legs were coming back to me and headed back into the wind with a little bit of confidence.

That was short lived and after I passed the midway aid station into the drifted “snowier” part of the course, I started struggling again. One nice thing was the wind seemed to have died down and there was a small path of packed snow to follow. A neat conversation happened right before the sun was setting. I came upon some young kids who were sleigh riding along the towpath and the following transpired with a young seven or eight year old boy.

Boy: “Hey are you running that race?”
Me: “Yeah” (expecting some smart remark)
Boy: “Cool. Pace yourself ok?”
Me: “Thanks”

More sound advice. The sun set and I was hurting. Not even halfway and my feet were sore, my quads aching and overall just felt blah. This was just the right time for a call from my wife (I had my cell phone with me). We talked as I was about a mile and a half from the start/finish line. I expressed my discomfort, and told her I didn’t know if I could do another 50 miles. She encouraged me to forget about my time or placement, slow it down and just concentrate on finishing. She didn’t want me to hurt myself, but she also didn’t want to have me come home without giving it my all. She knew how miserable I would be if I DNFd. She also knew I had the desire in me somewhere and said just what I needed to hear to boost my morale…I really love that woman!

I got to the start/finish and Carl was suited up and ready to pace me for the critical third loop. We spoke on the drive up about the importance of the third loop (thanks Dan Rose for some sound pre-race advice!), if I got through that, I would most likely finish. I changed into my La Sportiva Wildcats, dry socks, baby powdered my white, shriveled, painful feet, drank an Ensure, ate a pudding cup, drank some Mtn. Dew and we headed back out.

At this point, I felt pretty good. I was full of calories, warm, had relatively dry feet and some good company to run with. We were running a steady pace, with minimal walk breaks, and during this stretch I got a call from my good friend Chris Freet, offering very nice words of encouragement, and one more call from Alice to say good night. Carl and I got to the turn-around and things were looking pretty good. I drank another Ensure, some broth, ate some Hammer gel and we headed out for the return loop. I don’t know what it was about that return loop, but every time, it just seemed to zap my energy reserves. Carl kept talking to me, and reminding me to eat, take an endurolyte, drink, and offer other suggestions, but my brain was shutting down…hopefully I wasn’t too rude, but I just couldn’t find the energy to communicate.

When we stopped at the mid-way aid station, Valmir Nunes was sitting in a chair, on his last loop and he looked beat. I’m sure he was still in better shape than me, but he just looked exhausted and though he really doesn’t speak English, he uttered a very emphatic “Wow!” that was what he thought of this course. As Carl and I approached the start/finish line, I perked up a bit, hoping to capture some of the energy the final lap would hold for me, mentally at least.

I bid farewell to Carl, thanked him for getting me through the third lap and headed back out one more time. I initially was moving pretty good, but after about three miles the wheels came off. It had started snowing again, and the wind had picked up, again. The nice packed down path was drifting shut and I was out of positive thoughts. I kept plugging forward and remembered to keep eating either some energy bar or Hammer Gel, which were Carl’s last words when I left him (keep eating, keep taking endurolytes, keep drinking), but I was walking way more than I would have liked. I also started nodding off various points too, while walking. I would just feel myself start stumbling, then realize that my head dropped and was fighting to keep my eyes open. The real battle to finish was beginning with about twenty miles to go.

I kept telling myself to make it to the midway aid station, and I could sit down and regroup. I passed some other runners headed the other direction and asked one of them how far away I was, and he said, “probably about 30-40 minutes” I felt utterly devastated, I thought it was right around the bend, he could tell by the look on my face, patted my back and said to fight through it. Luckily it ended up being only about 15 minutes and I sat down and tried to figure out what I was going to do. I was spent and mentally couldn’t imagine how I was going to pull it back together again. I talked with another 100 miler, Bob, and the aid station volunteers and forced myself to get going again, but in a very short timeframe, I was nodding off again and looking for each and every bridge that I had landmarked earlier in the day. At one point I started having a weird hallucination that the towpath cut off to the right, which would have took me straight down into the canal. I even saw footprints, and figured it must be correct, but as I followed them, my feet sunk into the deeper snow, and thankfully it woke me up enough to realize my mistake! I also kept seeing the bridge I was looking for on the horizon, but would go and go and never find it…mentally I was just not with it.

Finally I found the bridge I was looking for (Pee road, not it’s real name, but some crafty vandals worked the sign to say that) and knew I was less than 2 miles from the turn around. It was then that I had to go to the bathroom, and though I had toilet paper with me, I didn’t think I had the energy for a trail side deposit, so I mustered all the energy I could to get to the aid station in time. Finally I made it to the cross-over bridge and one of the volunteers cheered me in saying “I can’t believe you’re still running” I let her know why I was running and demanded to know where the bathroom was.

After I took care of business, the volunteers were all over me, and I told them I didn’t know if I could go on. It was as close as I came to quitting, I really was out of options. They didn’t want to hear it. The girls sat me down, got me some soup and catered to my every need. Their encouragement and pep talk was amazing, they deserve so much of my appreciation for this finish, thank you 10x over for your support. As I was leaving (around 6:00 am) they said I looked way better then when I came in, and that I had it in the bag.

I got back on the course, passed Laurie Colon lead woman coming in, and encouraged her along. She was running an amazing race, very inspirational to watch as the day went on. In the last 45 minutes of darkness before sunrise, I was once again fighting sleep and stumbling all over the place, but mentally, I was coming out of the valley. I knew that with the sun, I would have renewed strength and I could finish. My muscle pain was on the back burner and I started moving faster than before. Laurie caught up with me just before the midway aid station, and I could tell she was hurting. She was grunting a lot and not talking, but had a look of fierce determination on her face. It was something to see, and she got me thinking that my struggles can’t be all that bad, look at how hard she is working, all I’m doing is fighting off sleep!

I left the aid station ahead of Laurie, and with the help of gel and adrenaline, I was running again! I tried to smile as much as I could and just enjoy this crazy type of sport I love so much. I passed another female 100 miler and she told me Carl was waiting for me. I thought she meant at the finish line, but nope, just a half mile up the course, here was Carl in jeans, flannel shirt and running shoes coming to pace me some more! Unreal that guy, I am so thankful to have had him along for this trip. We had some miles to go, but he was ready to run it on in with me…and run we did. There were a few walk breaks, but overall I ran most of the last six miles. With Carl by my side we crossed the finish line running strong for a time of 23:36:46. Sam announced that I was fourth overall, which amazes me with the amount of down time I lost on the last 25 mile lap.

Lessons learned from this race: Training in winter to prepare for a winter 100 miler is not an easy task, nor should it be taken lightly. I had a good base, but ultimately was under-trained for the expectations I had going into it. The weather conditions and course conditions compounded the lack of mileage I should have put in during January, and though I’m very happy with my result, I could have prepared better.

Be sure to thank the volunteers, crew and pacers. This should go without saying right? But without the support I had gotten throughout the race, usually when I needed it the most, from Alice, from Carl, and from the turn-around aid station volunteers, the likelihood of me not finishing was very high. Give credit and appreciation to those who are there to make your day a success, don’t ever take that for granted.

Kudos to Sam Pasceri for a very challenging race, that tested my resolve and pushed me to a higher level, both mentally and physically.

And most of all to God be the Glory, for it is He who makes all of this possible.

Thanks for taking the time to read this.

David Kennedy

Beast of Burden: Pre-Race Thoughts

2011-02-09T11:38:00.000-08:00

Before I even finished Oil Creek in October, I knew that I would be traveling up to Lockport, New York to run Sam Pasceri’s Beast of Burden winter 100 miler. Sam started this race in 2010 to challenge ultrarunners with some extreme weather conditions and offer a 100 mile race (as well as 24 hour option) on the east coast when things are quiet. Lockport is located northeast of Buffalo and the course is four 12.5 mile out and back loops along the Erie Canal towpath, which at this point of the year is jam-packed with snow to run on.

After recovering from Oil Creek, I worked my way back into my usual training routine, and was logging consistent miles during the cold mornings of December. During this time I felt like I was falling short of what I should be doing for some reason, and was getting apprehensive, thinking I was behind the eight ball for where I should be. Then I tallied up December’s mileage and saw that it was my second highest mileage month for 2010 and subsequently the second highest mileage month for my running career. That gave me a shot of confidence, which I used to run a solid 50k effort January 8th at the Watchung Winter Ultra in New Jersey. The course conditions were snowy, icy and very difficult, yet I felt very happy with the effort I put forth and the race that I ran.

After Watchung however, winter really set in here in northeast Pennsylvania, and the brutal temperatures chipped away at my motivation, and the less I ran the more miserable I became. I couldn’t seem to get myself in a steady groove and lost all the confidence I had just weeks earlier. I put in shorter runs, ran on the treadmill more than I ever wanted to and just felt inadequate in my preparation for the Beast which was closer than just on the horizon. I seem to have come out of my slump recently and put up a moderate effort the last week and a half, and am just trying to put the low weeks behind me and focus on the positives that I do have.

Which are: 1. I’m healthy and not injured. There are no lingering pains or tweaks that have me worried, and since I have been running at least 3-4 days per week, I’m sure my level of fitness is still there to a large extent. 2. I’m well rested. Not exactly something I’m going to brag about, since it’s basically laziness that has me well rested, but I guess it’s better than being burned out. 3. I am coming into this race with knowledge and experience of having ran a successful 100 just a few months ago and also that it has become my favorite distance to run. Since I started running ultras almost four years ago, I have a good handle on what my body needs and likes nutrition wise, and I feel that I’ve learned a lot about what I need to do mentally to overcome the many battles we face over the course of 100 miles…I just have to remember to put these tools to use.

All in all it’s going to be a fun ride in sub-freezing conditions and I thank God for the health and talent He’s given me to go out there and do it again.

David Kennedy

Bring on the "Beast"!

2011-02-09T09:56:00.000-08:00

This is just a short little post. Hopefully if Dave has any extra time he can give us a little pre-race post. However, this Saturday our one and only Dave Kennedy will be traveling to Lockport, NY to run the Beast of Burden Winter 100 miler. Dave has been training hard and has not really taken a whole lot of time off since finishing 11th overall at the Oil Creek 100 miler last October. His base fitness is great and he is one of those guys who has that mental toughness that I think is beyond what one can train and learn. I think people like Dave are born with that mental edge that the rest of us wish we had.

Nevertheless, keep Dave in your thoughts and prayers this weekend as he seeks to use his gifts and abilities to not only have fun and seek a challenge, but as he seeks to bring glory to God as well.

Go get 'em, brother!

A New Respect for the Treadmill

2011-01-21T05:44:00.000-08:00

Admittedly in the past I would avoid treadmill running at all costs. When I began to run I would occasionally run 30 minutes or so on our treadmill in the basement...but it faced a cinder-block wall and those 30 minutes felt more like 3 hours. Even last winter I ran outside all winter long. Every mile from December 1 till the first sign of spring was run outside in the cold, in the snow, etc.

But this year was different. I think that it had something to do with the change of seasons, the decrease in sunlight, so on and so forth, but everything felt off. I had a mixed November and even dealt with some aches and pains. And throughout December I struggled to get on track. I had no desire to go out in the cold. So I joined a gym.

In last December I joined the local gym and since then nearly all of my miles have been on the treadmill, including runs of 15 miles. And I must admit, I am growing to like the treadmill more and more. The following are some reasons why I like the treadmill:

1. I can run in shorts and a short sleeve shirt, enough said

2. I can actually see me pace and change it accordingly. I have since run my first miles at a sub 7 minute pace

3. I think the treadmill is beneficial in that it forces your legs to maintain a certain rhythm and cadence. Leg turnover is a good thing and hopefully it will help me improve when I hit the road/trails later on

4. You can do speed work, hills, etc. all at the same place

Needless to say, I have a new found respect for the treadmill. How about you? How often do you run on the treadmill? What kind of workouts do you like on the treadmill? Feel free to share with the rest of us.

Watchung 50k 2011 Race Report

2011-01-12T05:46:00.000-08:00

My experience at Watchung this year can be summarized in a word: deja-vu.

The day begin bright and early when Dave picked me up around 4:30 in the morning. The race didn't begin until 8am but with the recent snowy weather and the possibility of more to come we wanted to have ample travel time so we would be late. After picking me up we proceeded to meet up with our new friend, Amy. This was going to be her first ultra. Amy has run a few marathons ad is running Boston in April. The drive to the Watchung Reservation at Mountainside, New Jersey was uneventful and the roads were pleasantly clear. We chatted and discussed the trail (it happens to be one of our favorites). Amy brought us cinnamon crunch bagels from Panera Bread...yummy! WE ate those on the way to the race. It was an enjoyable ride and I was feeling pretty good and not to sleepy. I think Imanaged about 5 hours of sleep in my own bed the night before.

We arrived at the race site around 7:15 or so. Th parking lot was already quite full but we managed to get an excellent parking spot very close to the start/finish line. The weather was actually pretty decent this year. Last year it was sunny but frigid, not going over 20 degrees for the day. This year was cloudy with a few flurries but the temp warmed up to around 30 degrees. I brought a lot of gear to choose from but went with two long sleeve tech shirts, compression shorts, calf sleeves and loose fitting running pants. I also used a fleece beanie and fleece gloves. It turned out to be perfect. I was never too hot nor was I too cold at any one point throughout the race. For shoe choice I went with my blue Montrail Streaks which I also put 3/8 inch hexhead sheet metal screws for added traction on the trail. And as it tuned out I would need it for this day.

The Watchung 50k consists of three 10+ mile loops o the Sierra Trail totaling 31.2 miles (according to some one's Garmin). Last year my splits were approximately as follows: 1:40, 1:40, 1:57 for a total time of 5:17 which was good enough for 8th place overall. My goal this year was to be close to or possibly under 5 hours. But that was not to be this day. I knew the reality of this about a mile into the first loop. There were bout 132 starters and the trail immediately goes into single track and the conga line that formed reminded me of the conga line I saw on the AT section at the JFK 50 miler last year. It was slow going for sure. Also, I was in the middle of a large group of about 20 runners and the entire group went off course about a half mile into the race. The rest of the loop was rather fun and uneventful. But when I looked at my watch after the first loop and it read 2:02 I immediately knew that 5 hours was not going to happen for me this day. The second loop was again uneventful and it seemed to click by. Again I was a little surprised to see the time of my second loop was again nearly identical to my first loop. Again it was around 2:02. Then, just like last year, I bonked again on the third loop. RD Rick McNulty told me I was around 9th or 10th when I started my final loop. I was passed by a few people and walked more than I wanted to on this loop. The third loop took me around 2:23 to finish. I ended up finishing 15th out of 52 finishers with a time of 6:27--that is 1 hour and 10 minutes slower than last year--yikes!

Dave had a great day. He ran the 50k in 6:00 and finished 8th overall. He passed me early on the second loop looking fresh as a daisy and that was the last time I saw him until the finish line. His training is spot on for Beast of Burden Winter 100 miler next month. He's going to do great. Amy did not have such luck this day. She completed two loops but did not make the time cutoff and was not allowed to run the third and final loop. She would have finished if she was allowed to continue.

The trail this year was brutal compared to the trail last year. Last year there was some snow and a little ice. But this year due to recent weather, there was snow ad ice the entire loop. My calves felt like I was running in sand the next day. Rick and Jennifer McNulty put on anther quality race and the trail, despite it's brutal conditions (exemplified in the finishing rate) was fun. Thank you to all the volunteers and anyone else who heled make this day happen.

And of course, thank you to God for the ability and opportunity to use the gifts He has given. To Him be the glory.

Watchung Winter Ultra Preview

2011-01-07T06:34:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow Chris and I will be headed to Mountainside, NJ to run the Watchung Winter 50k (there is a marathon distance option as well). This is the third year NJ Trail Series directors Rick and Jennifer McNulty have put on this race, and it will be my third year running it as well. The course consists of three 10.xx mile loops on single and double track trail, with a couple of very short road sections and crossings. The first year I ran the race a major snowstorm began during the last loop and made for an interesting drive home to say the least. Last year was sunny, but very cold and the trail was frozen stiff with many rough spots where horses had punched up the mud in earlier warmer weather. This year will hold true to the winter theme as we are currently getting snow which will linger through the night and have easily over 3 inches of fresh powder for us to plow through.

The race began and is advertised as FA style, low key, no awards, t-shirts, bring your own supplies type of fun run. There ends up being a plentiful goodie table offered at the start/finish line with donations from the runners, and even though Rick and Jennifer had to charge a nominal fee to cover permit and insurance fees this year and we will be chip timed, the atmosphere will still be grass roots "run cause you love it" not cause you want to show off. That's my kind of race, plus the actual course ranks in my top five favorite courses if not in the top two.

My approach to this year's event is a little different to the previous two...as in I'm actually in great shape for it. I've trained steadily through December and want to not only use Watchung as a tune-up race for Beast of Burden, but also to post a personal best on the course. Last year I PRd the course by 45 minutes, but was still recovering from an eardrum injury and was not in the best shape to run hard. The snow is going to slow me down some, but it will be a great workout and definitely tons of fun!

Training Update…Plus Winter Conditioning

2010-12-14T12:01:00.000-08:00

It’s been a while since I’ve posted, so I guess it wouldn’t hurt to write about what I’ve been up to since the Oil Creek race. I took a couple of easy weeks following OC100 to let everything heal up and though I recovered very well, there was some lingering pain in my right shin and right knee that held on for almost a month. My motivation wasn’t the best either, so I ended up with minimal mileage and many rest days through the weeks before Thanksgiving. I usually take an “off-season” this time of year, and although I have not been diagnosed by any professional, I am quite sure I suffer from seasonal affective disorder (SAD). Late fall, when daylight savings time ends, is a difficult time for me emotionally, and combine that with the colder weather and I have a hard time finding any ambition at all, much less for running very early in the morning.

I registered for my next goal race (Beast of Burden-Winter, 2-12-11) on November 1st and tried to use that as a kick in the pants to get training again, but it wasn’t until the week of Thanksgiving that I felt the urge to train hard again. Since then I’ve had some very good runs and decent mileage. I’m trying to mimic my Oil Creek training of at least one to two long runs of 18+ miles per week and keep the bulk of my remaining runs in the 12-15 mile range. But as winter approaches the challenge remains to get up and go out in the sub twenty-degree weather each morning.

Running in the cold is my second least favorite weather extreme, with only cold rain ranking higher…so why did I choose Beast of Burden (BOB) as my next race?? My answer is for the challenge. Just like many ultrarunners can attest to, once you’ve tasted a little bit of the extreme, you want more. I conquered my sub 24 hour 100 mile goal, now I want to do more, and run the most challenging races I can. I can’t afford to go out west just yet and tackle those challenging races, so I’ll take on what I can get to here on the east coast and if the weather adds to it, well bring it on!!

BOB is advertised as a challenging winter event held northeast of Buffalo, NY and just southeast of Lake Erie in the heart of winter. I’ve run in some really cold weather before, even ran a 50k on rail-trail with significant snow, so I’m excited to attempt a 100 miler in upstate NY where it could combine snow and cold in abundance.

My goal for the remainder of this training regime is to continue to spend as much time running in the cold, dark mornings of northeast PA as I can and hope I can adjust to cold, harsh wind and running in snow and sleet. It’s hard to fool the brain into thinking that stinging fingers and exposed skin being on the verge of frost-bite is nothing to be afraid of…but tomorrow morning’s forecast is for 11 degrees with windchill of –5 and I’ve only got less than 59 days to prepare. So I remind my brain that on the inside everything’s warm and toasty and try to ignore the nerves that are telling me that it’s too cold to be outside, we’ve got a race to get ready for and it’s time to run. This is fun right??

Happy running, enjoy winter the best way we know how!

David Kennedy

Dealing with Uncertainty

2010-12-10T07:30:00.000-08:00

The last 4-5 weeks have been interesting to say the least. I began building my mileage back up by having a 40 mile week then I followed that up with a 60 mile week only to be derailed with muscle pain for about a week. Then I managed another 40 mile week and the week after that I was derailed again. Since then I have struggled with getting back on track (aka-motivation).

But there is now another issue in the mix. For about the last two weeks or so I have been feeling what I could describe as a "fluttering" sensation in my chest on almost a daily basis. When I would feel this I would check my pulse and I could feel that my heartbeat was irregular. I had no pain so I didn't think much of it. But it seemed to be persistent and almost daily. This past Monday I went out for a 7 mile run and I felt the fluttering during the run for the first time. I also noticed that on my last two runs my heart rate was higher than usual for the flat route I was running.

I finally went to the doctor this week and my irregular heartbeat was confirmed. She told me that I had and ectopic heartbeat and that it was most likely benign. However, I am still going to an EKG on Monday and some blood work just to be safe. She said that due to my good health it is probably nothing to worry about, but we need to check it out anyway.

I know that irregular heartbeats are not uncommon. Sometimes extra coffee/caffeine or stress can induce an irregular heartbeat, however I am not stressed more than usual and my coffee consumption has not increased.

I was also informed recently about a local runner, who is 45 years old, that ran a marathon about 2 weeks ago. During her training she had some chest tightness. After the marathon she went to the doctor to discover she had a artery that was 95% blocked!

Needless to say, I have been reminded that the things we enjoy in life can be taken from us. Now, most likely my running is not over (I hope not anyway). But just because we run more than the average bear, we still need to: (1) be thankful for every opportunity that we get to use our gifts and abilities, (2) not take things for granted (like our body God gave us) and (3) make sure we are regularly having checkups with the doctor.

Finding Motivation

2010-12-03T11:37:00.000-08:00

Well...today marks the fifth day in a row in which I have not gone out for a run. My legs feel great. These are unplanned rest days. I have a 50k in about 35 days and I want to run and do well, but right now I do not have the motivation to get out there and get going.

I have thought about the possible reasons why and here are a few:

1. The daylight change--I'm used to getting up early and running in the dark, but now my runs end in the dark as well. During the spring and summer my runs end with at least glimpses of the sunrise. Now it is a world of total darkness (except for the headlamp).

2. The temperature change--Living in northeast PA the winters are longer and colder and I think over the last 5-7 years I am growing weary of the winter months. I just am not feeling up to wearing all of those layers that are necessary this time of year.

3. Burnout (?)--Last year I logged 1,400+ miles, this year I am at 2,400+ miles. Maybe my mind and body need a longer break than what I gave it after the Oil Creek 100.

Whatever the reason is I know I am not through with running. But this is the first time I have dealt with a lack of motivation in my short running career. This leads me to ask the following question for you running veterans out there: How do you stay motivated day in and day out? What do you do to combat loss of motivation?

Please share your tricks and ideas with us.

What Was, Is, And Is To Come

2010-11-24T13:52:00.000-08:00

Recently I was reflecting on my short running adventure. I really got into running early in 2009. I started running about six months prior to that merely to get in better shape and lose some weight. To date I have lost 50 pounds from running and cleaning up my diet. My first trail run was 9 miler in April of 2009. Then I didn't race again until September 2009 when I ran the North Face Endurance Challenge half marathon in DC, in which I placed 13th overall. My friend Paul finished in 8th place. Then in October of 2009 I ran my first ultra (yes I skipped the marathon distance and have not run one as of yet). My friend Dave and I ran the Mountain Madness 50k and we both placed in the top ten with me being merely seconds ahead of Dave. Then, almost a year ago to the day, I ran the JFK 50 miler, my first 50 miler. I started logging my mileage in late March of 2009 and by the end of the year I was at 1,400+ miles.

I feel like in 2010, even though race wise it was a mixed year, I really started hitting my stride so to speak. 2010 began with a top ten finish at the Watchung Winter Ultra 50k, even though I bonked badly on the third loop thanks ot a lack of training prior to the event. Then my next race was not until June. It was the Laurel Highlands 77 miler. I felt like I was well trained but going out to hard on the early climbs in the high humidity led to a drop at mile 31...my first DNF. Then In August I ran the Mahlon Mayhem 75k (46.5 miles). This was my best race to date. I ran strong and won, beating the second place finisher by 32 minutes. Then it was the focus race of 2010, the Oil Creek 100 miler. Again I felt like I was well trained for this race. My weekly mileage peaked at 102 miles and my monthly mileage peaked at around 312 miles. But, it was not to be as I dropped at mile 76. Even though it was a mixed year I feel like I learned much during my two DNF's. I probably learned more in those races than in the two others from this year. Also, as I type this today my yearly mileage so far for 2010 is at 2,400+.

This is also the time of year when runners start to formulate their schedule for the next year. Perhaps many are hoping to win a lottery spot in some of the big races like Western States, Hardrock or Miwok. Whatever race one decides on, there are so many options out there. As of now I plane on running four race in 2011. They are:

1. Watchung Winter Ultra 50k - January: This is a great loop course that is close to home for me. It is also a nice way to stay motivated through the cold days. Lat year I ran a 5:17, I would like to get under 5 this year.

2. North Face Enurance Challenge 50 miler, Bear Mt., NY - May: This will be my focus race for the first half of the year. From what I hear this is a difficult course but it is close to home and I would like to run sub 10 hours at this point. I'll reassess that as it gets closer.

3. Mahlon Mayhem 75k - August: A loop course which I love and a well run race. This will be primarily long training run but I'll see if I can improve on last year's 7:32:05.

4. Grindstone 100 miler - October: This will be the focus race for the second half of the year. It will be my second attempt at the mile distance. This course is a 50 mile out and back style course with 23,000 feet of total climbing. It should be tough.

As I look back over this time I am so grateful. I am grateful for the ability and opportunity to run. I love the long runs. I oftne find myself doing a lot of praying while running. I thank God every time I head out the door. Not only has running been a tool for getting physically healthy, it has also been a tool that has brought some good friends into my life. Thank you God for this gift and these great friends.

Feeling Bummed at the Moment

2010-11-17T17:33:00.000-08:00

Well after a few weeks of rest following Oil Creek 100 I began to run again in preparation for Watchung Winter 50k which is the first Saturday in January. My first week back I got out for five runs and total a nice and easy 40 miles week. The legs were feeling pretty good so then the following week I ran another five times for a total of 60 miles, with my longest being 16.2 miles.

Even though it wasn't the highest mileage week I ever had, it was a good week. Each run was strong and comfortable. Then on Sunday, which is usually my rest day, I felt some slight pain in my left leg. The pain progressed and when I woke up Monday I felt an acute pain. The pain is located about 6 inches below the pelvic bone on the outer portion of my quad. My first thought was ITB, but there is no pain in the outer part of my knee or any other area of my leg. The pain is strong and has affected my gait even when I walk. There is no bruising on the skin either. I'm not sure of it is the ITB or muscular. But here I am on Wednesday night and the pain is not much better.

To top it off I'm visiting my parents in York. I'm in town for a conference and that means that the trails of Lake Williams are a 10 minute drive away but I'm here and unable to visit one of my most favorite places to run. Currently it even hurts to walk. If it doesn't start feeling any better soon I have to visit a doctor to check it out more. As of now I'm praying that it is something minor that will just run its course. Watchung is about 51 days away and I was hoping to improve on my 5:17 time from last year. Oh well, time will tell I guess. Whatever it is I know that God has a plan and my best interest in mind.

A Goal - The West Rim Trail

2010-10-29T11:11:00.000-07:00

Bryon Powell over at IRunFar.com asks a good question today: If money was not an issue, what would be your dream adventure/quest? The question comes from Kilian Jornet's Kilian's Quest odyssey. Kilian's latest accomplishment was the fastest known ascent of Mount Kilimanjaro. As I thought about this question I couldn't really think of a huge quest. But something did pop into my mind.

About ten years ago I went on a backpacking trip with my friend Ken. I was about 35 pounds heavier then but I thought I was in decent shape. Ken and I decided to hike the West Rim Trail in what is known as the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon. The trail is a point to point trail that is slightly under 50k in length. It took Ken and I about two and a half days to cover the distance. By the time we reached the north terminus (we started at the south terminus) we were moving like old men and Ken had thrown his back out. On the initial climb I almost passed out...so much for being in shape, ha.

Aside from that experience the trail itself is beautiful and offers some spectacular views of the canyon and Pine Creek below. I would love to get back to the WRT and run it this time. This would be most likely be a self supported run. When Ken and I hiked in the late spring water was scarce. There is an access point around midway on the trail, but that is it.

I wouldn't say I have unfinished business with this trail, but I would like to redeem myself from the first experience. I have a preliminary plan in mind and I think a 2011 run at it may be in order. If anyone wants to come along for a nice training run just let me know, feel free to leave leave a comment below.

Here's a picture of the PA Grand Canyon.

To God be the glory!

"Running His Heart Out"

2010-10-27T17:47:00.000-07:00

Dave was recently interviewed by our local newspaper, The Wayne Independent, regarding his Oil Creek 100 mile finish. Here's a link to the article.

Way to go Dave!

Dave with His Oil Creek 100 Buckle

2010-10-20T07:35:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of pictures of Dave from Oil Creek 100. I wanted to get more picture but I forget the camera at certain times. But at least I got Dave at the finish.

Here is Dave with RD Tom Jennings after just crossing the finish line in 22 hours 5 minutes! Way to go Dave!

Here is Dave posing with his first 100 mile buckle and the OC100 finisher bumper sticker.

Here is a close up of the buckle...very nice!

A hearty congratulations to my brother Dave for a great year and a great race at the Oil Creek 100 miler.

Oil Creek 100 Mile Race Report

2010-10-19T12:55:00.000-07:00

Training: After recovering from Laurel Highlands, my main training goal was not much different from what I normally do, that is run as much as time allows, for as hard as I feel on any given day. Each week I tried to get out for at least one run of at least 18 miles or more, and as I focused in on the hundred-mile distance, I shot for two long runs per week. My average mileage for the 16 weeks leading up to the race was 55.11 miles/week, and only two of those weeks lacked my eighteen plus mile long run. I topped out with a 102 mile week and also had a 95 mile week as well. There was a couple of low weeks (9 and 18 miles) needed rest though hard to accept mentally sometimes.

Pre-Race: Chris picked me up at my house at 9:30 Friday morning, and we were on the road for Titusville around 10:00. “Rosie” the friendly Garmin predicted our trip to take around 5 hours, and after a stop at Subway for lunch and a couple of rest stops we rolled into town shortly after 4:00 pm. We checked into the Comfort Inn, were pleasantly surprised when they told us continental breakfast would be served at 3:00 am (how many hotels cater to us ultramarathoners? This was a first for me), and headed to the pre-race registration and pasta dinner.

The pasta dinner and pre-race meeting were pretty standard, though worth mentioning is the amount of involvement the entire community of Titusville has for this event, in only it’s second year! The city manager welcomed us, and had a letter in our race pack saying how the town and local businesses are very happy we are there, the school district superintendent welcomed us and informed us she would be at Aid-Station 4 (race headquarters) all weekend volunteering…again how cool is that?! Also worth mentioning was the number of door prizes that were given away, the race committee definitely did some leg work to get the runners some schwag for attending their race.

Lights out around 9:00 pm, and I slept as well as I ever had the night before a race. I brought my own pillow from home, and I think it might have made the difference, for I got at least 5 solid hours. We were up at 3:00, hit up the continental breakfast, which had a waffle maker (awesome) and lots of muffins and danishes. We checked out a little after 4:00 and headed to the middle school to check in and get race ready. The time went by nicely and before we knew it we were lined up and off.

Race: The race is composed of three 50k loops, mostly single track with a 1.25 mile out and back on asphalt bike path, and several short sections of dirt road connecting trail to aid stations. After completing the three loops, we would run a 7 mile “headed home” loop, crossing a swinging bridge and going up a half mile “Hill of Truth” at mile 97. In the first loop however, the asphalt bike path section is extended to 3.5 miles to allow the runners to spread out before hitting the trail. I ran with Chris for probably a mile or so before slowing to a walk to take a drink (so I wouldn’t splash HEED all over myself). I ran the rest of the asphalt loop by myself and tagged along with another runner once we got onto the trail. I started out with only my Black Diamond headlamp around my waist since it’d only be a couple of hours max before the sun would be up. It was sufficient, since we all were taking our time, and I noticed the trail wasn’t significantly rocky. It wasn’t too long and we were headed into AS#1, which was really lit up with Christmas decorations, along with Christmas music to guide us in.

I didn’t really need anything at that point, just filled my water bottle, and grabbed a handful of Pringles and headed back out. As soon as we left the AS, we started a steep switchback climb that in the dark seemed like it was going to be the “tough” hill of the day, in retrospect, and seeing it in daylight, it was not all that bad. Once I got up the hill I started cruising along and quickly caught the tail end of an 8-10 person conga-line and just ran at their pace. I noticed Chris two people ahead of me and as we came to a water-only station with portable toilet, which he stopped to use, I was able to get ahead of a lot of the line and had some room to run the pace I wanted.

Sunrise came, and with the daylight I ran a little harder, still walking most of the inclines and as I pulled over to urinate, Chris and a bunch of runners passed. I should mention that the temperature was chilly, probably around 40, which for me means cold hands and stinging fingers even with gloves…this made fumbling with my drawstring and adjusting my handheld more of a chore than it should have been and I definitely lost more than a minute getting myself comfortable. Soon we passed the replica oil derricks and got onto a dirt road, which led us into AS#2. I dropped my headlamp into my drop bag, refilled my Amphipod with a couple of energy bars I pre-cut, filled up with Strawberry HEED, grabbed some Pringles (notice a pattern?) and a couple of pretzels and headed out. My fueling goals for the race were HEED, and eat something every half hour (hopefully at least 100 calories), I had Hammer Gel and a mixture of pre-halved Cliff Bars and Snickers Marathon bars in my pack at all times, and planned to eat the rest of my calories at the aid stations.

I could see Chris a little ways ahead of me, but there were some decent hills to climb as we got back up onto the trail and soon he was out of sight. I worked my way up them and soon hooked up with Donna Utakis, who was running a pace that was very comfortable to me. We chatted, I knew of Donna from race results, primarily the success she’s had in many previous Laurel Highlands races, and we discussed the usual, races done, goals for the day etc. It was a nice pace and I felt I was running and walking the right amount for that point in the race. Towards the end of the section between AS#2 and AS#3 there was a stretch of trail that was getting the spring/water runoff from the park, and it was soft and slightly muddy, after the 100k and 50k runners went through it would get sloppier for sure.

We rolled into AS#3, I ate a cookie, grabbed a handful of Pringles and a couple of pretzel rods and started walking back to the trail. We had to go up a flight of stairs then up a decent hill, around a short jog then up a significant hill. No switchback, pretty steep…in my opinion it was the hardest hill on the course. Once we got up that hill it was rolling hills, more up than down, but nothing too substantial. Climbing is one of my strengths, so at this point I passed Donna and would only see her once on the out & back portion of the bike path. I caught up to another runner Brian who was in his second attempt at the 100 mile distance, he DNF’d last year after two loops. We stuck together for the remainder of this loop. Eventually we came around to where the trail descends to where the Drake Well museum is located, and we had to complete a one mile loop around the perimeter before heading back onto the bike path back to the Titusville middle school for AS#4.

As we got onto the bike path, I was feeling tightness in both my knees and also my quads. Enough tightness that I started thinking it was going to be a long day, most likely I took the descent too hard, I should have known better that downhill’s are my weakness and should have went a little easier. I was a little concerned since it was so early, but just rolled with it and looked forward to getting loop one finished. I passed Chris as he was heading back out for his second loop and he said he was doing good.

I got in and out of AS#4 pretty quickly, and with the sun shining, the temp. was warming up perfectly for me. I still had on my long sleeve tech shirt and a cotton t-shirt, but was only sweating a little. I got back onto the trail solo, and really couldn’t see anyone around me, so I focused on my running, my breathing, kept my heart-rate in check and just ran…and it felt good. Soon I realized my knee and quad pain disappeared, and I was feeling very good. I was keen to the fact that I couldn’t get careless and go too hard, still walked the steep uphills, took the downhills easy, but the level and gradual uphills I ran steady and strong. I hardly remember going through AS#1 or up the switchback, and soon I was running with a girl that sat at our table for the pre-race dinner. Her name was Rachel and I think she said this was her first attempt at the 100-mile distance! She was a strong downhill runner, so we leapfrogged between the downhills and I would catch her on the uphills. We didn’t talk much, but I think we fed off chasing each other down.

Again before I knew it we were in and out of AS#2 and up the hills. Rachel got a little ways ahead of me for awhile, but eventually I caught her again on some climbs and passed her. I put some distance on her, but had to stop at a bathroom for a few minutes, then she caught back up to me on the descents into AS#3. I was still feeling very good, and ran the descents harder than I should have, which prompted my left knee to start aching again. As I came into AS#3 I saw Chris who said he was having stomach issues again, similar to Laurel Highlands. He said his energy levels were low and climbing the hills were very slow for him. He headed out, I grabbed yep some Pringles and a couple of pretzels and quickly caught up with him on the first hill. We walked together and I tried to encourage him to push through it, hopefully his stomach would come around, and then so would his race.

I left him on the second big hill, ran with Rachel a little while then passed her for the final time on a smaller hill. Rachel would go on to win first female overall and new CR of 23:42:51, Donna who I ran the first loop with was second only 6 minutes 1 second behind Rachel. I was again running very strong, and with minimal downhills at this point, I kept a steady pace, and really felt like I was going to have a phenomenal day. I descended to the Drake Well Museum, ran the one mile loop, walked briefly with several 50k runners finishing their race and headed into AS#4 feeling great.

I spent a little extra time at the middle school, getting what I needed for the night portion of the run, drinking a can of generic Ensure, and ribbing one of the older volunteers who seemed like he wanted to joke around. I headed back out with sun starting to set and passed Chris who said he was going to sit down, try to regroup and see if he could get his stomach back. I also saw Donna who was very encouraging to me, telling me that “You Rock”, which was nice of her to say. At this point I had my headlamps, but since I was feeling strong, and had 62 miles down, I decided to “race the sun” and see if I couldn’t get to AS#1 before needing them. It was around 5:45 pm, and I had 7.1 miles, so I cranked it up a notch and ran hard. It felt wonderful, the trail was perfect, I was landing smoothly and everything felt glorious. I sang some David Crowder and made it to the aid station just as the sun sank for the evening.

At the AS, I sat down for only the second time of the day, probably for less than a minute and mentally got ready for the night. I felt ready. I had run some night trail training runs, and felt confident in my ability to stay strong and finish the race in good spirits. At the middle school I grabbed my cell phone, and whether you’re a critic of phone calls during races or not, once I got service, I called my wife and luckily got to talk to her for a minute and say goodnight to my almost 3 year old daughter. Even though I was out doing something I really loved, I still missed my family and talking to them as night fell, helped me out mentally especially for finishing out that third loop. Shortly after hanging up though, I tripped and fell for the first time of the day, not a hard fall, but enough to remind me to stay focused on the task at hand.

I came into AS#2 around 8:30, still in the clothes that I started out in, and though I put on a knit beanie and gloves, I was still sweating a little, so the cold wasn’t affecting me at all…the volunteers told a different story, they were very cold. I drank an Ensure, refilled my pack with gels and energy bars, grabbed some Pringles, a boiled potato and got out of there before I cooled down. I headed into the hills, walking a little more than before, but still feeling relatively good. The section between AS#2 and AS#3 is 8.9 miles (longest stretch of the course) and it seemed to go on forever. I don’t know if I was starting to head into a valley, or just got lonely, but I thought my pace was trailing off significantly. Looking back I think I was doing just fine considering it was dark and I was over 80 miles into the race, but the mind was tired and my stomach was getting tired of any food, not nauseous, just not hungry.

I don’t remember when I made it to the dirt road to head to AS#3, but as I was running a volunteer was running towards me, trying to warm up, and he paced me in. That was pretty cool, like I said I was getting lonesome on the trails. At the aid station, nothing looked good, so I took some Ritz crackers and got out of there as quickly as I could. I had the big hills ahead of me, and I wanted to get them done ASAP, so I just put my head down and hiked them as best I could. I don’t remember a lot of details from this last section other than once I got to where the “headed home” loop joined in, I remember thinking, “good grief I still have to come back and do this descent one more time!” One tell tale sign of me bonking is dreading any part of a race, and I knew I needed some more calories. I forced an energy bar, and got down to the Drake Museum one mile loop, and on the bike path forced a gel. I got back to the middle school and it was then, at just before 1:00 Sunday morning I started feeling the cold.

I wasn’t looking forward to the last 7 mile loop, I knew some of the hills that were ahead of me, and also knew that the “Hill of Truth” was still to come. I left tired and shortly down the bike path realized I still had my compression long sleeve wrapped around my waist. I stopped, put it on and continued. As I got on the trail and warmed up again, I started to perk up. I told myself, “this is it, last time, let’s go finish this race!!” I started mixing in some easy running and soon caught up to another runner who was walking painfully. I could have easily passed him and probably finished a little faster, but at that point, I was ready to talk to someone, anyone, so I tagged along with him for a couple of miles. We crossed the swinging bridge and tackled the “Hill of Truth” together. It was a tough hill, don’t get me wrong, and at mile 97, it seemed kind of cruel to make us climb it, but overall it was no big deal. At the top, I passed the runner and headed into the descent…my quads were mad at this point and I was grunting going downhill, but I made good time and was soon on the bike path headed to the finish line.

The last half mile is a blur in my mind. I remember the AS#4 volunteers cheering as I made the turn to the finish, I gave them the ole “Maopolski” fist pump and charged it on in. My finishing time was 22:05:18 according to the race officials (I thought the clock read 22:06, but my right eye was awfully blurry, and who am I to argue with the race officials) My placing was 11th out of 63 finishers (around 135 started). Chris was there to see me in, he dropped at mile 76 due to body temperature issues. Thanks for seeing me in brother! I got my buckle and bumper sticker from RD Tom and thanked him for a great race, ate some soup, showered and quickly stiffened up for a painful nap on the gym floor.

Post-Race: I still cannot find a single thing to criticize about this race. Tom Jennings and his crew of volunteers have an awesome course that they should be very proud of. The aid stations were well stocked and the volunteers were great. I wouldn’t suggest that they change a thing.

Lessons learned from this race: Whenever I run a race I try to pluck something that I can do to make the next race better. Ultra-races are always unique to the distance, terrain, organization, etc. but the constant will always be how we adapt to run them. I feel this race was one of my strongest, if not the strongest. I trained and ran it very much the way I intended to, even when I was hurting early on, I tried to stay positive and work through it. I think I learned that downhills are always going to be my weakness and though I can train downhills more and strengthen my quads, I have to remember to go easy on the early downhills and save strength for later in the race. I did pretty good with that in this race, but there’s always room for improvement.

Thanks for taking the time to read my report. To God be the Glory.

God Bless,
David Kennedy

My Oil Creek 100 DNF

2010-10-18T05:27:00.000-07:00

I'll keep this report short. Overall, even though I DNF'd, the race and the experience was awesome. First there's the trail. I thought the trail was very runnable and it was extremely beautiful. The weather was great, too. When we started at 5am on Saturday the temp was around 40 degrees. After the sun rose the temp climbed to the upper fifties, it may have even reached 60. The sky was clear and sunny all day long. There was also a nice breeze blowing throughout the day.

When we began the race I went out easy and tucked into a line of about 5 other runners which included Donna Utakis (who won the inaugural Grindstone 100 miler). We all were at the same pace and we were cruising along nicely in the dark. I was feeling good, walking all the inclines and my legs were feeling good. In fact, the first loop was rather uneventful. I ran the first 50k loop in 5:50 and was mentally and physically in a good place.

Then I got to mile 45 and that's when things began to change. My stomach began to bloat and I would get nauseous off and on. I found myself walking a bit more between miles 45 and 62. My legs were feeling good and and I could run my legs continued to feel good, but my stomach was not cooperating. I walked to in hopes that it would subside and I could continue on. But when I drink or forced a Hammer Gel it only made it worse. This caused my nutrition to get out of whack. The calories I needed to continue on were not there during this time. However, my legs still felt good.

When I returned to the main aid station the second time (mile 62) at the start/finish area I sat for a while (the first time since starting the race). I drank some Pepsi and a cup of chicken broth because that was all my stomach could handle. At this point I was feeling really bad. I wrestled heavily with even going back out for the third loop. But after a few minutes I put on my headlamp and gloves and walked back out to start the third loop. I walked the bike path to the trail, then I walked the big incline that immediately appears on the trail. Then after about 4 miles of walking my stomach started to feel better. Oh yeah, I though, I can continue on! Game on! The sun was setting over the ridge and the trail was just as beautiful as when I first began at 5am. I was still walking the inclines and running everything else. things were going well again. I was in a "valley" but I stuck with it until it turned around. I'm proud of myself for that. It only took my 20 miles to get through it ;-)

Once the sun went down the temperature began to drop quickly. Before I knew it, I was freezing. I had on my running hat, a long sleeve tech shirt and the cotton gloves I had when I started the race. I also had on my Zensah calf sleeves. But I found that after a few miles in the dark my hands were going numb and I was very cold. After walking an incline I began to run again but something was different. Now when I ran I felt even colder. The cold night air just went right through me. I thought I just needed to tough it out and run until my body warms up, but it didn't work. I found myself walking again. Eventually I made to the Petroleum Center/aid station 2, which is the turn around point on the trail. I refilled my water bottle, drank more Pepsi and sipped chicken broth. I also had my drop bag here. This is were I made my biggest mistake of the race. I did not have any of my cold weather gear in this drop bag. My jacket, heavier shirt, beanie, etc. were all in the start/finish area drop bag....and I left that aid station without them. I did have another short sleeve tech shirt and I quickly put that on over top of my long sleeve tech shirt but it didn't help me at all. I stood by the camp fire at the aid station while sipping my broth and I began to warm up again. But once I turned to continue the next 17 miles back to the start/finish area I began to shiver pretty strongly. I knew I could have continued on, my legs were feeling good overall. But with all the blood going to my stomach to help there, the rest of my body was left to fend for itself and thus all the shivering in the cold. It was at this point I dropped from the race. The volunteers were awesome. They could see my shivering and put me in a van and turned on the heater. I sat there out of the night air but I was still shivering strongly.

Eventually they took me back to the local middle school which served as the start finish area. I quickly grabbed my shower supplies and warm clothes and cleaned up and got dressed, but for the next few hours I was still chilled to the bone. I hung around the middle school wearing a fleece pullover, jacket, beanie, gloves and jeans but it took hours before I finally felt warm again. In hindsight I think I made the right choice. It was difficult of course, but I think my system might have gotten worse if I would have continued on.

I went farther than I have to date, even though I didn't finish. The experience was still a good one and I learned a lot once again. This year was a mixed one for me running wise. I had one top ten finish at a 50k and I won a 75k but on my longer running attempts I suffered two DNF's. I'm going to take a couple weeks off from running before getting back into training. Watchung Winter 50k is coming up in January and that will be my next race.

One final note, the people of Titusville, PA are amazing. The whole community backs this race and supports it in many ways. The local hotel were Dave and I stayed moved up their free breakfast from 6am to 3am to accommodate the runners (and it was a good spread, too). The local superintendent of the school district volunteered at the start/finish aid station, wearing her snowmobile suit of course :-) It was great to see such support. And race directer Tom Jennings is a super guy. He did an amazing job organizing this fantastic race.

I'm grateful to God for the oppotunity and ability to even be out there giving it a go.

The Oil Creek 100 Miler is Fast Approaching

2010-10-09T06:56:00.000-07:00

This time next week, Lord willing, I'll be in the midst of my first attempt at the 100 mile distance. On this coming Friday Dave and I will be off to the "other corner" of our great state of Pennsylvania to compete in the Oil Creek 100 miler. For Dave, the veteran among us, it will be his 10th ultra and second or third 100. For me it will be my sixth ultra and my first attempt the 100 miles. The anticipation is beginning to build and I'm trying hard to both embrace it while at the same time curb it to some degree. After all, I need to focus on my family and work and a few other things between now and then. Also, I don't want to make the same mistake I did back in June for the Laurel Highlands ultra. I hyped it up so much in my mind and when it came time to start the race my race plan just blew up and subsequently I blew up along with it. I am trying to maintain a similar mindset I had prior to the Mahlon Mayhem 75k in which I ran in August. I put no pressure on myself, I just wanted to finish and enjoy the day and run well for as long as I could. Essentially, that is my plan for Oil Creek. Here are the things I am keeping in mind (you'll notice how simple they are):

1. No time goal, just finish the race--Having never run a 100 miler before I really don't know what to expect. I have read reports of others and I know it will involve much weeping and gnashing of teeth. This is what I can expect. I would love to go sub 24 hours...but I have never gone this distance before and the course is difficult the whole way (+17,000' of climbing).

2. Keep eating and drinking--I usually do not eat enough and I drink too much that my stomach gets a little nauseous. I want to hopefully find the balance out there on the trails.

3. Keep it positive as much as possible--At Laurel I went into a mental "valley" and did get back out. I could have walked more, ate more, etc. and pushed through it. That is a lesson I hope to carry over here.

My training has gone very well. My legs are feeling great and I'm enjoying the extra sleep during the taper now. My highest month was September in which I logged 312 miles. My weekly mileage also peaked out at 102 miles. During that week and that month my legs held up surprisingly well. I'm grateful for where my fitness is at the moment.

On another note, I'm also excited to get to Titusville and possibly meet some of the other runners who will be racing. Here are a few of the more well known runners who will be there: Glen Redpath (Montrail Ultra Cup champion), Nick Pedatella, Jimmy Dean Freeman, just to name a few.

All in all, I know it will be a great experience and I just want to honor God with the gifts and abilities He has given me.

Bryon Powell's at it Again...

2010-10-05T07:41:00.002-07:00

I don't know how he does it but Bryon Powell is having yet another free contest over at IRunFar.com. Just click this link and go over and check it our for yourself. This time he is giving away some cool/cold weather running gear. So hop on over and enter! And be sure to tell him "thank you" for the great work that he does for the sport of trail and untra running.

Feelin' Ripped Off....Well, A Little Bit

2010-09-27T13:17:00.000-07:00

I have been feeling a little bit ripped off lately. It seems that I am always hearing of the dreaded black toenails that appear to accompany the endurance runner. Well, I do not and have not experienced any black toenails yet. It's not that I want to, mind you, but I thought it was something that would happen eventually. I mean, after all, I'm not looking to make my own toenail necklace or anything crazy like that. I just thought it was like some sort of rite of passage for the ultra runner.

My good friend Dave, who blogs here with me, has experienced his fair share of black toenails. In the past year we have run the same races, run nearly the same mileage and the same terrain but I have not had any black toenails. My total mileage for this year so far is only a few miles shy of 2100. Surely one black toenail would appear...or so I thought. I even thought about posting a picture of my toes for this post, but I decided against it because you wouldn't see anything anyway...there is nothing to see. Maybe someday I'll become a true ultra runner. Until then I'm feeling ripped off. Maybe I'll get one after the Oil Creek 100 miler in 18 days. I guess only time will tell.

Do any of you have any black toenail stories to share? Are any of you in the same boat with me? Please share with us.

Posted by Chris

Settling In...

2010-09-22T07:20:00.000-07:00

With about three and a half weeks to go till Oil Creek, the time has come to start winding down and mentally preparing for the race. As I go over in my head the previous months of training, I can only hope that I did enough to prepare for a solid effort. Many runners double guess themselves and question if they did enough, and I'm no different. In fact I probably am my own worst enemy at succumbing to the guilt trips of how many rest days I took (especially the unplanned ones, which were plenty) and why I didn't put more emphasis on pushing through the early morning temptation of going back to sleep.

Overall I feel great, my body is pain-free and when I do go out for any distance, I'm responding as well as I could hope for...even my pace has been picking up though I seem to be putting the same effort in. I would like to have gotten a few more runs in the 25+ range, but it's too late to try to make that up now. The biggest hurdle for me in these remaining days is going to be to stay calm and try to be confident in the fact that I am healthy, I put in a few good weeks, and just get excited for race day.

I truly love ultra running and all the challenges it bring with it. The physical challenge, the pain, the mental struggles, the strategy of eating enough calories and not upsetting the stomach, the camaraderie, the satisfaction of completing the great distances, running from sunset till and through the night, racing the sun...and on and on. I try to remember all of this (as does my wife) when I get down on myself; no matter how unprepared I think I am, I am extremely grateful to be able to do something I love.

Praise be to God for this gift of endurance He has bestowed upon me. The miles may humble my body, but the glory goes to the Creator.

David Kennedy

Night Trail Run and Montrail Mountain Masochist Review

2010-09-03T11:12:00.000-07:00

Ok so saying it was “night” trail run is not correct, it was 4:00 am, but the point is it was dark, pitch dark with no street lights even where I parked. I wanted to get out on the trails and run some in the dark to: 1. Train for night trail running which I’ll be doing at Oil Creek and 2. Test out my headlamp set-up to see if I needed to tweak it for the race. The park I chose was a local state park that normally is closed at dark, but it’s not patrolled that I know of, so I just handwrote a note that said what time I left, what time I should be done, and what I was doing, and added please don’t tow my car, call the cops, or send a search party, should someone stumble upon my car. The trails are single track, kind of technical in spots, with some rolling hills, but nothing that needs “hands on knees” hiking to climb over.

The light set-up I used was my father’s day gift Black Diamond headlamp, which I used around my waist, and my old standby Energizer cheapo head lamp on my head (not a knock to Energizer, it’s really a decent lamp). After having to walk the last five miles of Laurel Highlands due to non-sufficient lighting for seeing rocks, this dual light system worked very well. I wasn’t cruising along as fast as I would have in the daylight, but I moved at a steady easy pace, and in the 65+ mile range of when I’ll be in the dark at Oil Creek, I doubt I’ll be going much faster. All in all I am very satisfied with the run (8.6 miles), didn’t fall once, nor stumble.

I also broke in my new pair of Montrail Mountain Masochists, which I had won through the Montrail Ultra Cup prediction contest, put on by Bryon Powell and irunfar.com (thanks again Bryon!!). I am a shoe buying minimalist, not that I don’t like new shoes, just that I’m too cheap to keep updating them at the expert recommendation timeframe. So I only had two pairs of trail shoes before scoring the Montrails: Inov-8 Roclite 305, and LaSportiva Wildcats. Each of those are nice shoes for their own reasons, but I favor the Wildcats for their overall feel and upper meshing, especially the tongue meshing to keep debris out.

The Montrail Mountain Masochists could easily become my new favorite of the three. They felt lighter than both other pairs, they were very responsive to when I stepped/slid off the edge of rocks, and I had no rolled ankles, though I landed funny on many rocks this morning. The other feature I really like is the added toe protection. The Mountain Masochist has a thicker wrap around of rubber over the nose, which should help with stubbed toes…my biggest nemesis late in the race when my feet don’t lift high enough. My criticisms of the MMs: 1. The tongue is not sewn or meshed over to try and keep stones and other debris out as well as the Wildcats. This can be solved by wearing gaiters and I’ll probably end up doing so. 2. The grip didn’t seem to be anything to brag about, but I did give them praise for being light, and for better grip you sacrifice the lighter weight, so I guess it goes hand in hand.

I haven’t decided which trail shoe to use yet for Oil Creek. I want to do a shoe change during a run sometime with the Mountain Masochist and Wildcats and hopefully that will decide a winner.

Enjoy the last remaining days of summer…the mornings here in northeast PA are already beginning to get chilly enough for me to think about wearing gloves, snow running is just around the corner. Blah!!

David Kennedy

Odds and Ends

2010-08-20T05:08:00.000-07:00

It’s been awhile since I’ve contributed and though not much has changed with my strategy of training for Oil Creek, I have tried a few things out nutritionally that are worth mentioning.

The first thing I started experimenting with shortly after recovering from Laurel Highlands is chia seed. Anyone who has read Born to Run will be familiar with this product as the Tarahumara runners use it almost exclusively as their fuel and hydration choice. My interest in it did not spark after reading the book, but rather after reading a small review of it in Trail Runner magazine. The author stated that he noticed an energy boost after two hours into a very long run, and said that since chia takes longer to digest, if it is consumed before the run, then when glycogen levels start waning later in the run, then the chia will be digested and give a late surge of energy. Plus since chia retains water, it is supposed to help hydrate the body longer and also chia provides natural anti-inflammatory characteristics.

I’ve been using it on all of my long runs of 18 miles plus, and though I can’t pinpoint whether it’s the chia working, or else that I’m in better physical shape than I was before, but I’m noticing my recovery from long runs to be incredible. I have done some back to back long runs of three hours plus, and am rarely stiff or sore later in the day. There is some initial discomfort when I first leave for the run after downing a cup of water with one tablespoon of chia, but was warned by other runners who use it, that chia can cause bloating due to it’s absorptive ability to water. The bloated feeling I’ve gotten used to, and with the added benefit of speedy recovery, I give chia a “thumbs up”.

The second fueling change I’ve made was to incorporate Hammer Nutrition’s HEED into my normal Gatorade hydration routine. The Oil Creek 100 will be using HEED on course and, before now I’ve never even tasted it, so I decided I’d better get my stomach accustomed to it before race day. I bought the mandarin orange flavor and have used it on several long runs, and agree with many that it’s quite different tasting than Gatorade, even if Gatorade is cut with water. At first I didn’t care for the watery taste and each time I took a sip, I was wondering if I might be better off planning on just using water at Oil Creek. But by the end of the first trial I started to appreciate the “non-sugary” aftertaste that HEED has. I could definitely see my stomach handling HEED much better during the late stages of a 50+ mile race than Gatorade. As my stomach starts shutting down in the longer races, the sour aftertaste Gatorade leaves in my mouth makes it the first thing I stop using, I usually switch to water…maybe HEED will prolong that switch, time will tell.

The third tidbit I’ll mention is that the Viaduct Trail Ultramarathon which I co-RD with Carl Albright in northeastern Pennsylvania successfully concluded two weekends ago. This was the third “official” running of it, and once again we were blessed with enthusiastic runners and beautiful weather. Bill Cuthbert laid down a smoking fast time and led from start to finish to set a new course record in 16:44:25. This was his rookie hundred miler, and I (along with others) was skeptical whether he’d hold his blazing fast pace he started out with. He proved me wrong, and I suspect this CR could stand for quite awhile. Monica Scholz was the women’s winner in 21:58:04, also a new CR. Next year’s race is going to have a new date of July 9-10, to accommodate some conflicts I’ve had with work the past two years. Registration opens in December, the price is as good as any ultrarunner can ask for (it’s FREE!), so think about coming up and joining us for a grass roots, low key hundred that I promise you’ll enjoy.

David Kennedy

Mahlon Mayhem Follow-up

2010-08-19T06:51:00.000-07:00

I forgot to add this into my race report for those who were curious or those who just like to know this sort of thing. Here is the list of gear that I wore during the race:

shoes - Montrail Streaks (fell in love with them during this run!)
socks - Wigwam Ultimax Tailwind Pro (a thinner sock, but once again not a single blister or hot spot)
shorts - Adidas w/ pockets for carrying gels, endurolytes, etc.
compression shorts - starter brand from walmart for $10, they work great, no chaffing at all
shirt - North Face flight series top, thin and extremely comfortable
hat - GoLite
nutrition - Hammer HEED (strawberry and melon flavor), Hammer Gels (vanilla flavor), Hammer Endurolytes, a few fig newtons, orange slices and a few small pretzel sticks
bottle - Ultimate Direction 20oz. handheld

I didn't run for three days after the race and my legs were feeling pretty good. On Wednesday I went out for a short 5 miler at a comfortable 8:30 pace. This morning I went out and felt good from the start so I just sort went with how I was feeling and I did an 8.2 miler at 7:49 pace. I think my legs are recovered already. I still take it easy the next couple of days but next week will be a regular volume training week since Oil Creek 100 miler is only 58 days away!!

Happy Running :-)

Mahlon Mayhem Race Report

2010-08-16T07:17:00.000-07:00

I'm still an inexperienced ultra runner. The Mahlon Mayhem was only my fifth ultra thus far. But it happened to be my best one yet. It all began back in June when I DNF'd at Laurel Highlands (along with half the field). I was coming off of the best three months of training to date and to DNF at mile 31 was very disappointing to say the least. Upon returning home I began to think about my training, the upcoming Fall 100 miler that Dave and I are registered for and the fact that I was feeling good soon after Laurel Highlands I figured "Why not find a race midway between now and Oil Creek in October?" So then I found Mahlon Mayhem on the ultra running calender. The timing was right, the 75k distance seemed right, the price was reasonable and the distance was close which meant no hotel and a decent night sleep in my own bed. So I registered for the event.

Coming into race week I oddly enough felt very little pressure. The week before Laurel Highlands was put myself under a lot of pressure--thinking about time, etc. I did not want that to happen again. I made my pre-race goal merely to finish the race. I have not been over the 50k distance since JFK 50 back in November 2009...I needed to break that barrier. I wanted to focus on nutrition as well during this race. Very simple and attainable goals. This led to a pre=race week that was surprisingly relaxing and pressure free.

On Friday night before the race I went to bed around 9pm. I fell asleep but never fell into a deep REM sleep. I woke up a few times but was able to fall back to sleep. I had my alarm set for 3am but I woke around 2:30am, so I forced myself to stay in bed until the alarm sounded. After a quick shower I dressed in my race gear, with the exception of my shoes. Then I toasted a plain bagel I had purchased on Friday from Dunkin Donuts and grabbed my coffee and supplies and out the door I went. I left the house just after 3:30am. The ride to Oak Ridge, NJ was uneventful, however I was surprised at how good I was feeling. I was relaxed and pleased with how awake I was feeling. I arrived at the Mahlon Dickerson Reservation at 5am on the nose. I proceeded to check in and receive my bib number and schwag. Then I drove the half mile to the parking area and put my shoes on and proceeded to catch the shuttle back to the start area. Upon arriving at the start area I found a place for my supplies and chair and then I noticed something was missing...I left my bib on the passenger seat of my car. So back to the shuttle and back to the parking area I went. I still had about 15 minutes to mill about before the race began. I was ready to get out on the trail.

Finally after a few words from race director Rick McNulty the race was on. I purposefully tucked in behind a group of 3 runners who were running what felt like a comfortable pace and I was merely content to just stay steady. I don;t know how fast we were going (I don't own a Garmin) but the pace was comfortable. The first loop was rather uneventful. I followed the group of 3 over the rocky but runnable terrain then we eventually emptied out onto a grave rail trail section. I had to stop briefly here to get a stone out of my shoe but I quickly resumed a comfortable pace. The rail trail sectioned signaled the turn around on the lollipop shaped course. Coming off the rail trail you proceed to "climb" up and over the highest point in Morris County (which is only around 1400 feet). The trail had some small rollers but there were no big climbs on the course. After cresting the climb over the highest point the trail became smooth and well groomed. this allowed for some fun descending on the way down. For me it was one of the highlights of the course. I like letting gravity do its work on descents. After some more rocky but runnable trail with a couple small rollers thrown in the mix I exited the trail and crossed a baseball field to the picnic area that acted as the start/finish area. I handed my bottle to a volunteer who quickly refilled it with some strawberry flavored HEED, I grabbed couple fig newtons, a few small pretzel sticks and a vanilla Hammer Gel. I put the gel in my pocket and headed back out for lap 2. Lap two was pretty uneventful. I was feeling good and enjoying the trail. I ran this lap with a man named Julian who was from NJ. It was his first ultra and he was entered in the 50k. After coming into the start/finish area the second time I followed the same routine, more HEED, fig newtons and another gel. Then RD Rick McNulty dropped a bomb on me. He told me that Byron Lane was in the race and he was running in second place, I was in first place. "Oh no," I thought. I expected Byron to pass me at any point over the next four loops. He has a strong running resume and is sponsored by Hammer Nutrition. With all of this flooding my mind I turned and headed out trying to keep my basic goals in focus.

The third loops was also pretty uneventful. I was still feeling good, drinking well, eating well and enjoying the trail. On the first three loops I ran all the climbs, including the "big" one. When I came back into the start/finish area I was pleasantly surprised again. Not only was I still in the lead, but my splits for the first three loops were almost identical. I was running a steady and consistent race. My splits were as follows for the first three loops:

1 - 1:09:22
2 - 2:19:12
3 - 3:29:05

Each of the first three loops were around 1h 10m each. This spurred me on and built my confidence up as I was still feeling good.

Then on the fourth loop I was in for yet another surprise. I was running alone on a section of trail fairly early in the loop when I heard some rusting in the brush off to my left. I didn't think much of it. I have run up on deer many times before. I know that even small squirrels can make quite a bit of noise in the brush. Then I rounded a bend on my left and caught something out of the corner of my eye and it made me jump mid gait. There in a tree right next to the trail, about 8 feet off the ground was a small black bear! It was the first one I had ever seen on the wild. It appeared to be all alone and I guess it heard me coming and clamored up the tree for safety. I just continued on, said a prayer for the safety of all the runners, and hoped that would be the last bear I saw on the trail.

I was still feeling pretty good on the fourth loop. I did start to rely more on gels than solid food at this point. I was also taking one Endurolyte tablet at each each station through the entire race. I had no cramping issues at all. However, I did walk the "big" hill on the fourth loop but I still cruised down the descent on the other side. I finished the fourth (the 50k split) of six loops in 4:43:45. I was still in the lead and since I couldn't remember what Byron Lane looked like I had no idea how far in front I was. I still expected him to pass me at any moment.

As I started the fifth loop I began to feel bloated. I was drinking quite a bit and in hindsight perhaps it may have been too much. The last two loops I was drinking nearly two 20 oz. bottles of HEED per loop. I was also still taking gels at the aid stations. Not knowing how far out in front I was, I told my self to just keep running. I walked the "big" climb again and cruised down the backside. Finishing the fifth loop I knew that at least I was going to finish. I was definitely pleased with that realization. I finished this loop in 6:08:37.

By now the 25k and the majority of 50k participants had finished so the trail was less crowded. I was beginning to feel fatigued but kept cruising along. At the halfway aid station I took my last Hammer Gel, refilled my bottle and continued back. I could really feel the excitement mounting as I knew I only had about three and a half miles to go until the finish. After I came off of the rail trail section I passed another runner heading out to the rail trail section. this runner gave me a smile and said, "Hey, great race." It was then I realized that who this runner was...it was Byron Lane! Had a decent lead on him but was unsure of the exact time. After reaching the "big" climb for the final time I took my final walk break. As I walked I talked with another runner who was running the 100k. When I crested the hill and started cruising down the groomed backside I knew I had it wrapped up. I literally felt the goosebumps on my arms when I realized what was happening. I finished the last trail section and crossed the baseball field and came into the finish area with a time of 7:32:05 and the winner of the Mahlon Mayhem 75k!

I could not believe (and still it seems surreal) that I won. I hung around the finish area for a while, eating, drinking fluids and recovering. I had met all of my goals and more. Byron finished the 75k in second place with a time of 8:04:14. He wasn't done though, he continued on to finish and win the 100k!! Byron Lane is not only a super nice guy, he is also a tremendous runner whom I greatly respect.

All in all, i loved this race. the trail had some rocky sections, smooth sections, flat sections, rolling sections, and even some groomed sections. I also personally like loop courses. We ran in the shade all day. the temperature was also perfect. It was in the low 60's when we began. If it did hit 80 degrees you couldn't tell because of the shade and low humidity. I had no overheating issues like I did during Laurel Highlands. Rick and Jennifer McNulty put on another top quality race. I'll definitely be back again.

Ultra's are a funny thing. Sometimes everything seems to be off and you DNF, while other times everything oes right and you win. I guess that's how life is sometimes. Either way, I love to run ultras and I'm thankful for the ability and opportunity to do so.

One more thing, throughout the entire run I had a song playing over and over in my mind. The song was Jeremy Camp's "There Will Be a Day". Here it is for your listening pleasure.

To God be the glory.

One Week Until the "Mayhem"

2010-08-06T07:55:00.000-07:00

Next Saturday, August 14th, is the Mahlon Mayhem event held at the Mahlon Reservation in New Jersey. The event is part of the NJ Trail Series which is a host of trail races/ultras put on by race director Rick McNulty and his wife Jennifer.
This particular race consists of a 12.5k out and back course which takes the runner over the highest point in Morris County NJ. There are four distances to choose from. There is a 25k, 50k, 75k and 100k. I have signed up for the 75k (I think it is around 46.5 miles or so).

I signed up for this race shortly after my DNF at Laurel Highlands in June. I felt pretty good overall, my training was steady and I wanted to do something longer also as part of the preparation for the Oil Creek 100 in October. So I decided to sign up for the 75k. The race location is close enough that I can sleep in my own bed, leave early and arrive at the start in time and be home at a fairly decent hour.

There is also another "mental" reason of sorts for entering this race. I realized that I have not gone beyond the 50k distance since the JFK 50 miler last November! I have had a few 30+ mile training runs and ran a 50k in January. When I DNF'd at Laurel I dropped at the 31 mile mark. So then, I need (and want) to run beyond the 50k mark to break what maybe a mental barrier. Physically I know I can do it.

My overall goal next Saturday is to merely finish. I want to go out easy and smooth, focus on nutrition and hydration and overall enjoy the long run as much as possible. I hope the humidity stays away, too. Regardless, I am excited and looking forward to another great experience out in the trails.

Also, good luck to all the runners participating in the Viaduct Trail 100 tomorrow here in northeast PA. I will be there volunteering for a few hours in the early part of the race on Saturday. My good friend Dave is the co-race director along with Carl Albright. Please pray for them as well as the runners who are participating.

Rain, Rain,...

2010-07-14T08:08:00.001-07:00

When I woke up at 4:45 this morning and crawled out of bed and made my way to the coffee pot I heard a familiar noise...the sound of a strong steady rain beating against the window. I filled my coffee cup and sat down at the kitchen table in the peace and quiet of the morning and read from my Bible (this is my usual morning routine). When I was finished with my routine I had a choice to make--To run or not to run, that is the question. I decided to run anyway. I just resigned myself to the fact that I would be wet. I would just have to deal with it.

I put on my running attire and out the door I went...in the steady strong rain. It was gray and obviously not as bright, but it was beautiful in a different sort of way. I felt more alone this morning. Usually I see at least one or two other runners and a few walkers toward the end of my run but that was not the case today.

That got me thinking a little bit. It was actually enjoyable to run in the warm summer rain. The temperature was a warm 70 degrees so getting cold was not an issue. Running through deep puddles made me feel like a kid again. Why don't more adults get out and enjoy the rain? Instead, many runners turn indoors and either take a rest day, jump on the treadmill or elliptical machine or even do another indoor exercise. This is good but I think at least one thing to consider after all if a person is training for a marathon, ultra or even a 5k it may rain on the scheduled race day. So why not practice for it. We can see the rain as an opportunity, not an excuse. Instead of saying "I have to run in the rain today," why not say,"I get to run in the rain today!" I know that some of the passing vehicles most likely thought, "Who is this crazy guy running in the rain?" But oh well, it was fun. I actually am looking forward to the next rain-soaked adventure :-)

Recovery Complete

2010-06-28T12:24:00.000-07:00

It’s been more than two weeks since Laurel Highlands and I feel rested and fully recovered from the race. There is no lull in motivation though, since next on the schedule for me is Oil Creek 100 miler in less than four months. I got out for five runs last week and had no problems other than struggling to get up early enough to get a quality run in, but that’s what tapering/recovering will do…contribute to getting used to more than 5 hours sleep. I’m happy to write that the calf/achilles pain that I had been dealing with the week of and during the race are gone with no lingering pain at all.

I’m feeling a sense of quiet contentedness in my most recent runs. It could be that we’re now into the heart of summer, my favorite season. I love being able to go out for a run at 4:00 in the morning with just shorts and a tank top. It could also be some confidence gained from running a solid race, a direct result from better training and following a good race plan. I’m looking forward to jumping back into heavy training, and experimenting with some other forms of fueling, as well as setting my sights on a sub 24 hour 100 mile race.

Hope everyone is taking pleasure from the hot weather, enjoy it because before we know it, we’ll be breaking out the tights and dodging the snow plows.

David Kennedy

Close Up with the Shuman Point Hiking Trail

2010-06-23T06:43:00.000-07:00

Because of my schedule I usually have Mondays off because I work Sundays. In light of this I decided to make a change in my running schedule. I would usually do my long runs on Saturdays but I will do my long runs on Mondays. My daughters are in summer camp so I can drop them off and drive to Shuman Point and run loops until my heart is content. This time I decided to take my wife's camera along. I only carried it for one loop (out of fear I would trip over a rock or root and smash it) but I think I caught some decent shots to share.

First, a little bit about Shuman Point. It is a short looping trail that is full of rocks and roots. The rocks are fist sized and up, and they are everywhere. The terrain is very runnable but the rocks and roots make it a challenge. The trail map claims the trail is a 3 mile loop. My friend Brad clocked it with his Garmin and according to that it is only 2.75 miles per loop. Now I count it as 2.75 miles rather than 3. The trail runs right up against Lake Wallenpaupack which is a huge lake here in north east PA. It can make for some nice scenery when you're not focused on the rocks. Also, there are two climbs on this loop. The first one is fairly gradual and not too difficult. The second one consists of three short and steep climbs with some gradual climbing in between. The elevation is not much at all but it is still a quad burner that will also get the heart rate up. Adding to the challenge of the climb is more rocks and roots and difficult footing. The loop finishes with a nice rocky descent back into the parking lot.

Finally, here are some photos of the trail itself:

Here is a shot of Lake Wallenpaupack from the trail.

Did I mention there were roots on this trail?

Here are some shots of the second uphill section.

Still climbing.

And of course, here's the obligatory self-portrait.

This trail is a gem and is only about 10 minutes from my house.

Laurel Highlands Race Report-Part 2

2010-06-16T09:09:00.000-07:00

As previously written, after leaving the Seven Springs Resort aid station (mile 26), I was feeling strong and ran a good pace. After a couple of miles of easy trail, which I seemed to glide through, I turned a corner and came upon a good climb, which I could see Chris working up. I had mixed feelings upon seeing him, he should have been a good bit ahead of me, either I was pushing too hard or he was struggling. I caught up with him and could see he was fading. He said his stomach was bloated and the heat was getting to him, he felt drained. I walked with him for a brief minute and encouraged him to walk through it and hopefully his stomach would come around. I was worried with the look on his face that the negative thoughts were creeping in, and told him to keep the mental edge, things will turn around. Not wanting to lose my momentum I pushed on over the hill.

I cruised into the next checkpoint at mile 32.3 still feeling very good. I spent an extra minute here drinking some Coke and filling a baggie with PB filled pretzels (I had used up all my solid food). My calf was still tight, but the ibuprofen was still working some, since the pain seemed very minimal at this point. The sun was shining strong with no hint of showers anytime soon, and the heat at this point was getting stifling. I kept a steady pace on the level sections, but there were several large climbs that really took my energy to get through. On one of them I felt very fatigued and started to think about how much I still had to go, over half the race still lay ahead of me. I recognized the negative thoughts that I was having and realized I hadn’t had any calories in over 45 minutes and was probably bonking due to the hills. I forced a gel and some pretzels in hoping to reverse the bad mojo. Soon I came out to where the course was to be detoured onto a gravel road, then asphalt road, over the Turnpike, back to gravel road and back to the trail-head.

There was a volunteer with water at the beginning of the road section. I thought the road was only 6.5 miles long, he said no it’s about 8 miles. It was 12:30 pm and the heat was at its peak, but I was actually looking forward to some road running and my feet were ready for a break from the trail rocks. I alternated running and walking on this section, it was downhill on the gravel road to the asphalt, then uphill to cross the Turnpike and all uphill (it seemed) back to the trail…but barely any shade. I felt like I was in an oven, but tried not to think about it, and just keep pushing on. I passed many runners on this road section, many commented on the heat and by the time we got to the aid station, everyone I talked to as I passed them were out of water, some several miles out. Dark clouds were rolling in and I thought, “finally here’s the thunderstorm that’s been brewing all day.” But the clouds rolled on past and decided to save their rain for someone else, because within a half-hour the sun was shining again.

I got to the mile 44 aid station, which had our first drop bag, and switched out my empty Hammer Gel flask for a full one and grabbed my headlamp. I put my lamp in the first drop bag instead of the second, just because you never know how an ultra would play out…no biggie, I’m used to having it on for almost all of my training runs. I got back onto the trail and with 33 miles left to go, knew I would finish and was looking forward to counting the miles down instead of up. I cruised through the next 4 or 5 miles alone, alternating walking breaks more frequently, before catching up to another runner who happened to be named Dave, and we ran somewhat together for a good bit, not talking a ton, but appreciating the company nonetheless. We eventually chatted some climbing a hill and he told me he’d never ran more than 50k before. He looked very fresh and was very encouraging to me. As we got close to the aid station, I was running low on water, and Dave said “Don’t worry about it I have a full bottle, we’re fine” Ultrarunners are truly a different breed of competitors, yes we’re racing each other, but in the type of heat and humidity we were encountering, to have another runner reassure me he’d share what he had was heartening to say the least.

We finally got to the mile 52 aid station that had a party like atmosphere with many crews hanging out and cheering runners in. It was also where relay runners swapped out. The volunteers here were excellent, they really made the extra effort to talk to me, hear what I wanted and cater to my every need. I honestly felt like an elite there with two volunteers standing with me until I left. At this point they told me that at least 20 runners had dropped and they were expecting many more before the end of the night. I thought about Chris and as I got back on the trail said a quick prayer for him, hoping he was still fighting through the course.

The distance from this aid station to the next checkpoint was 12 miles and with the heat being what it was I knew I’d have to conserve water. The trail was fairly run-able, but it wove through thick ferns and mountain laurel (which were in full bloom and very pretty). This made steady running difficult because you couldn’t see the ground and what rocks needed dodging. I was walking more at this point and was definitely feeling the miles. At one point I came upon the lead woman as we were climbing a long grade. I asked how she was doing; she was crying and said her knees hurt really bad. We had 20 miles to go at this point and I encouraged her to stick with it. Though it was still a long ways, after struggling through 57 miles in the heat it would be a shame to throw in the towel now. She asked how close the next female was as I was catching up to her…I responded that she was the first non-relay woman I’ve seen all day. That seemed to sit very well with her and I left her hoping she’d find another wind and push to the end. A few miles later, I was passed again by Dave, who I wouldn’t see again till the end, and also by Alex Barth who I passed out on the road section. He took a 20 minute break and cooled down and was now flying. I encouraged him on and said I was glad he was still in it.

I kept running, but eventually I was down to two sips of water in my bottle with two miles left to the aid station. I put my head down and tried to run as much as I could to close the distance, but soon I was out of water and struggling. Finally I hit the mile 64 checkpoint and was feeling a little woozy and disoriented. The volunteers could see it in me, and encourage me to sit down awhile, but I didn’t want to stop, nor sit down…I was afraid of getting tight and having to try and find a rhythm again. I ate some potatoes, and took a cup of cantaloupe with me and headed back on the trail again. I was now racing the sun with 13 miles to go, but unfortunately starting to hit my lowest point in the race. More clouds came through and the wind started blowing, and again I thought here comes the rain. At this point though I wasn’t overheated and really didn’t want to get soaked, but there was only a very brief shower that barely wet my arms down. Eventually the trail came out onto a gravel road that was mostly uphill and took us to the final aid station. I tried to jog as much as I could but I was mostly walking at this point.

About a half mile up the road you could see the aid station, but it was like a mirage, that never seemed to get closer. I eventually got to it and again was a little disoriented and had trouble arranging my thoughts to talk to the volunteers. It was 8:10 pm at this point and I realized I hadn’t urinated since at least 4:00, so while I still had daylight, I wanted to check things out and make sure I wasn’t having any bad stuff going on with my renal system. Luckily, my urine was clearer than before and it helped ease my mind that other than muscle pain, and some bad thigh chafing, I was ok and should be good to go to the end. I spent longer than I should have chatting with the volunteers, and it was here that I asked if they knew which runners dropped. They confirmed that Chris did in fact drop out…my heart dropped. I knew how hard he trained and how excited he was for this race. I really felt for him and left the aid station with a heavy heart.

I knew I had less than 30 minutes before dark and 6 miles left to go, so I really tried to jog as much as I could. My feet weren’t lifting very high though and I continuously stubbed my toes and had to take walk breaks. With about 4.5 miles to go I turned on my headlamp and prepared myself to march it on in. My original goal of 16 hours was probably not going to happen, so I just focused on getting to the finish. I quickly found out that my lone headlamp was not sufficient to run trails at night. I could see the rocks (most of them) but couldn’t judge how far up they stuck out of the ground. I stubbed my toes even more so than before (several times severely) and fell down once. I landed easily enough not to hurt myself, but when I was on the ground realized how badly my quads and lower right leg hurt, and had to really work to upright myself again. I knew I was going to have to walk it in from there.

At two miles out the trail starts descending and it was steep in many places and very rocky with the erosion of the trail. This was incredibly hard to navigate. I stubbed toes, stumbled, and was in constant pain. When I reached the one mile to go point a relay runner caught up with me and walked by my side. I think his name was Brian, and I am extremely grateful for his help in that last mile. Chatting with him helped increase my walk pace and the extra light benefited both of us. Before long we heard the finish line and saw the lights. I told Brian to go ahead and finish strong for his team, and ran what little bit of energy I had left on in to the finish. Chris was there, cheering me in, what a great friend to show such excitement for me after having his first DNF. I sincerely appreciate his encouragement and genuine friendship for being there for me at the end. Thanks Brother!!

We hung out at the finish line for a short time, grabbed some soda and soup. I was able to congratulate and thank some of the runners that I ran with, especially Dave Wank who was a huge boost for me during the 44-55 mile range when I needed to stay focused. I also got to see Callie, the first place female finisher, and congratulate her for pushing through her struggles and finish strong.

My official time was 17 hours 5 minutes 9 seconds. I placed 6th out of 58 finishers. 50% of the field dropped out of the race. That confirms the conditions of the day…the heat and jungle-like humidity were brutal.

My lessons learned from this race are twofold. First I need to find a better way to light up the trail for future races that go on into the night. Jeff Simpkins from Canada gave me some ideas to think about the next morning at the hotel, and I plan on investing in another light I can wear around my waist. Second, I’m very pleased with my fueling schedule. I feel like I had constant calorie intake and aside from a few low moments, didn’t bonk at any point in the race. This may also be a contributor to my recovery-I’m healing relatively fast and should be back to running very soon.

Thanks to all who were a part of this race, the RD and volunteers did a phenomenal job!!

Laurel Highlands Race Report-Part 1

2010-06-15T12:12:00.000-07:00

Since Chris and I planned this event together, some of my report will repeat what he already said, but to be thorough, I’m going to replay my weekend as I experienced it.

My training for this 77 mile race started in February. My goal was consistent mileage through the cold months, and come mid March, start cranking up the mileage with as many longer runs as I could motivate myself for. I wanted to run three hard weeks followed by a cut back week, through the end of May and give myself at least a ten day taper. I hoped to have many 70 mile weeks and a couple 80 mile weeks, that’s about as high as my family schedule allows for.

That was the goal, reality is a different story…I struggled with an infected foot (from a blister), stomach virus and at least two weeks where my motivation was on vacation. So my overall mileage did not match my intentions, but I still felt like the weeks where I did put in the effort had me in the best shape in my running career.

This race had been on my “To Do” list since I started running ultras, but when I got married on June 9th in 2007, I had a hard time convincing my wife (and a guilty conscience) about putting my running goals above celebrating our anniversary. Thanks go to Chris joining me in running these races, and having several days between race day and anniversary day, and with the help of extra vacation time, I got the ok to go (Thanks Alice, you are the best!)

Friday morning arrived and I picked up Chris at 9:45 am at his house to begin the five hour trip to Johnstown. The ride was fairly uneventful, and pretty easy. We arrived at the hotel around 4:00 and got our drop bags together and stretched our legs before heading to the pre-race dinner. My nerves were firing, mostly just excitement, but a little anxiety mixed in, I was worried that I might be unprepared. I should mention that one week prior my achilles on my right leg flared up for no reason that I could pinpoint. I babied it, and it was pain free for three days prior to the race, but it weighed on my mind…would it hold up for the duration?

The pre-race dinner was nice. Chris and I sat with a group of runners that traveled down from Canada, and a couple of fellows from Maryland. We all shared what races we’ve done and those that knew the course told us what they thought. After getting some instructions from the RD, and checking out a map of the detoured section, Chris and I left to go scout out the finish line parking area where we’d need to catch the bus at 3:30 am. After driving for at least 30 minutes and realizing that my internal GPS took us on 56 east instead of 56 west we found it and headed back to the hotel to try and get some rest. Note to self, check the map immediately when things don’t seem right, instead of just thinking, “oh it must be just ahead…”

At 9:00 pm it was lights out, and though it seemed that I wasn’t going to sleep much at all, I did catch a solid 4 hours of rest if not more, typical nights rest for me during heavy training. Soon we were up and on our way to the start. One note of interest as we left the hotel, we immediately felt the temperature and humidity…it was going to be a hot one if we didn’t get a thunderstorm to cool things off. A bank clock said it was 65 degrees as we drove through town. We loaded onto the bus and sat right ahead of Richard Cook, winner of Oil Creek 100 last October and Beast of Burden in February. The bus ride was long and noisy, and we were both happy to get off and line up. After a bathroom visit and check in with the officials, we lined up and were off.

The course took us on a short road stretch to the trailhead and immediately we were climbing a significant hill. I knew this was coming from looking at the elevation profile, and mentally was prepared for it, but the humidity I did not expect. Within a mile my shirt was soaked with sweat and my heart rate was up. I like hot weather, and think I’m a good warm weather runner, so I just kept saying to myself to take it easy, don’t push it, keep drinking, and when my heart rate got up, walked a bit to slow it down again. There was a lead pack of at least 30 runners I was with (relay runners mixed in), and soon I was the last one in the line. After the first large climb I couldn’t even see the lead pack, again I just tried to stay smooth and not think about where everyone else was.

The trail was nice, about what I expected, rocks mixed in, typical single track. I went through the first aid station at mile 11.6 fairly quick, just filling my bottles and grabbing some cantaloupe and PB filled pretzels. I wore my short sleeved UnderArmour shirt from JFK, and with the amount I was sweating, I soon felt some chaffing around my nipples, as well as my thighs. I got concerned, usually I don’t chafe real bad, and hardly ever around my nipples, so at the second aid station at mile 19.3 I was relieved when they had Vaseline and was able to address that. Shortly before coming into that aid station though, I felt my right calf starting to get tight and hurt some, same area that the achilles was flaring the week before. It wasn’t severe, so I just stopped thinking about it and hoped it would loosen up as time went on.

I continued on, passed a couple of runners, was passed by many others, but overall was feeling really good. My fueling and electrolyte goal was to take a SaltStick tab every half hour, eat something every half hour and drink at least a full mouthful of fluid every ten minutes. One year ago I DNF’d at a 100k because I got competitive and forgot to keep drinking…I wanted to make sure that didn’t happen again. With the schedule I had, it seemed I was either eating, drinking or taking an electrolyte tab. This was helpful in keeping my mind occupied.

Coming into the Seven Springs resort area, my calf was still hurting, no worse than before, but no better either. But as I got closer to the checkpoint I noticed that I wasn’t getting passed and I was actually passing some other runners. Everyone was commenting on the heat and saying it was going to be a long day. At the checkpoint the volunteers had ibuprofen and I took one, hoping it might tame the calf down, but after taking it decided not to take anymore for the rest of the race. I didn’t want to chance any bad reactions with dehydration and NSAIDs and also was worried it might upset my stomach which was doing very well up to this point. The lone ibuprofen did seem to help some though because leaving that aid station, I felt great and started running strong, but within reason. Again I kept repeating, “run your race, long ways to go, after 50 miles is when you need the strength…”

I’ll finish the report tomorrow…but as a preview, the thunderstorms never came, and the heat never diminished.

Laurel Highlands--DNF!

2010-06-14T08:05:00.000-07:00

Well, where do I begin? Let's just say that I made many mistakes early. Combine those mistakes with the heat and humidity and....voila! My first DNF.

I couldn't fall asleep the night before the race. I usually have a problem sleeping away from my own bed, but the night before the race was one of the worst I can remember. We had to get up at 2am to eat, get ready and go the the finish area and catch the bus to the starting line that was scheduled to leave at 3:30am. The last time I looked at the clock it was 11pm. I don't know when I fell asleep but I know I had less than 3 hours.

I went out too hard. I knew the big hills were in the first 10 miles, and I hiked them as I had planned, but I still went out too hard. When you combine that with the heat and the steep descents as well, my legs were shot.

My stomach also acted up early. The aid stations used Gatorade, which can work for me if it is watered down enough. The Gatorade at the aid stations was either extremely concentrated or they just didn't hear me when I asked for a 50/50 water/Gatorade mix. I got bloated and nauseous it I started to go into a "mental valley".

By the time I made it into the checkpoint 2 aid station I started to feel light-headed, dizzy and even more nauseous. I grabbed a cup of coke and sat int he grass to sip it and try to recoup. I felt ok after a two or three minutes but when I stood up the light-headedness returned and that was when I decided to call it a day.

The trail itself was beautiful. Even though it was rocky and hilly it was very runnable, I just didn't follow my own race plan. I was not able to get back mentally. Now I deal with all the questions and "what if's", etc. But I know that there are many other races, and sometimes things work and other times they don't. I will be back at some point for another go. Now I'll take it easy for a few weeks then it will be time to start training for Oil Creek 100 in October. I know the weather will be cooler then :-) Hopefully I will learn from these mistakes.

Laurel Highlands had a 50% finisher rate this year. For the men, only 47% finished. It was brutal out there. Dave did awesome but I'll let him share his experiences in his upcoming race report.

The Competition at Laurel Highlands

2010-06-09T06:25:00.000-07:00

As of June 7 there are 122 people to participate in the 77 mile Laurel Highlands ultra. As I looked over the names there were two of them that stood our at me.

The first was Richard Cook. Richard was the winner of last Fall's inaugural Oil Creek 100 miler. This past winter he also gutted it out in the elements to win the Beast of Burden 100 miler. He brings a lot of running experience and can easily pull off a victory here. Here's his running resume according to ultrasignup.com --click here.

The second person that stood out to me was Alex Barth. I don't know much about the guy, but I have seen his name more than a few times in Ultrarunning Magazine. Also, Alex has churned out some fast 50k times for more than a few victories. Click here to see his running resume according to ultrasignup.com.

I'm sure there are others that I just have no knowledge of, but as far as I can tell, these two gentlemen will be in the running. Here's hoping I can keep up :-) !

The Plan for Laurel Highlands

2010-06-07T06:41:00.000-07:00

In less than 5 days now I will be attempting my longest run to date--77 miles of trail in the Laurel Highlands Ultra marathon. Coming into race day I am feeling good and fairly confident. I am surrounded by a great group of friends (who happen to be runners) and they are very encouraging. I just wanted to take a moment and share my plans/strategy for the race.

The race begins next the the 23 foot waterfall on the Youghageny River known as Ohiopyle Falls (I have seen many kayakers huck themselves over this same waterfall many years ago). From there the runners will spend pretty much the first 9-10 miles climbing up onto a ridge, then it appears that the trail consists of ridge running pretty much to the end. From what I understand the terrain is technical in places, but the last 15 miles or so is very runnable. This year 6.5 miles were added to the race because the bridge spanning the PA Turnpike is closed. This means that the race has been re-routed for safe passage around the Turnpike. I do not know what the terrain/elevation will be like around the re-route, so this is a bit of unknown coming into the race. Here is an elevation chart of the original 70.5 Laurel Highlands Trail (taken from the races website).

My plan is to go out steady and easy for the first ten miles. After a brief email correspondence with with Bryon Powell (who blogs at iRunfar.com)
and placed 2nd at this race in 2007 with a 12:50, my plans were confirmed. Bryon suggested taking it easy early in light of the (1) steep climbing in the first 10 miles, and (2)the very runnable miles in the later stage of the race. Fresh legs later are a must. I don;t want to go out to easy that I lose a lot of time but I want to be smart and leave something for the 20 miles at the end. Bryon also pointed out the there is a technical/rocky stretch in the middle miles of the race.

As for nutrition, I plan on keeping it simple. I will be carrying my Amphipod Airflow Endurance Pack from the beginning. I plan to carry my Hammer Endurolytes (electrolyte tabs), two Clif Bars (cut into 1/4 size pieces), two gel flasks (filled with Hammer Gel--Montana Huckleberry flavor) and a few Gin-Gin's in case I need them later (for nausea). Also, I will be carrying two Ultimate Direction 20 oz. hand-held water bottles in which I am planning on using a 50/50 mix of water and Gatorade throughout the day. My plan is to drink early and often. For the first hour I will only drink from the bottles. Then at the hour mark I will take 2 Endurolytes and one gel. Then 30 minutes later I will take a piece of Clif Bar. Then I will repeat this throughout the race. This will give me around 200 calories per hour at minimum. I also see what is "looking good" to me at the aid stations. The aid stations are fairly far apart for this race, so carrying food and plenty of water is a must.

As for the important gear, I will be wearing Montrail Streaks with Drymax Socks. Also I will be wearing my new Go-Lite visor (since my dog recently ate my Teva visor which I loved).

With each moment the anticipation builds. I'm ready and looking forward to the challenge. Ultimately, my goal is always to finish in the allotted time. However, I would like to be sub 15 hours, and I would really like to be sub 14 hours....perhaps that is a little ambitious, but in a few days we will find out :-)

Ecclesiastes 9:10a - Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all of your might.

A Comparison Between JFK Training and Laurel Highlands Training

2010-06-01T16:28:00.000-07:00

Now that I'm in the taper phase of the training for the Laurel Highlands ultra I had an opportunity to look back over 2009's training log. In my last post I shared my total mileage from the last three months of training (March-240.0, April-260.1, May-285.2). So I decided to do a comparison between the three months prior to last year's JFK.

In August 2009 I ran 215.2 miles. In September I ran 191.4. And in October I ran 189.5 miles. I need to also take into account that I ran the North Face Endurance Challenge trail half in DC in September. I also ran Mountain Madness 50k in October. I did a taper for both of these which would account for the decreases mileage.

What I really found interesting was the amount of long runs. In preparation for JFK I ran between 15-19 miles 1x, 20-29 miles 5x and 30+ miles 2x. In the three months prior to Laurel I ran 15-19 miles 12x, 20-29 miles 3x and 30+ miles 2x.

Another comparison involves the amount of weekly miles. In the three months prior to JFK I ran 60-69 miles 2x, 70-79 miles 1x and 80+ miles 0x. Leading up to Laurel I ran 60-69 miles 7x, 70-79 miles 0x and 80+ miles 2x.

My training is a step up from my JFK training a year ago. I feel good about where I am at and hopefully it is enough to carry me through.

Laurel Highlands Ultra Training Update

2010-05-31T05:46:00.000-07:00

Well, I am now about 12 days away from toeing the line at the Laurel Highlands Ultra. I have now entered to tapering phase of training. As I briefly look back over the last three months I am overall pretty pleased with how things progressed. My overall mileage for the last three months is as follows:

March - 240.0

April - 260.1

May - 285.2

I am happy with how things progressed overall, especially since in late February had was hit with Achilles tendinitis which, thankfully, has not come back at all since I had a deep tissue massage and began using a foam roller.

One area in which I could have done better with was the long run. During this time I had around 12 runs in the 15-19 mile range, around 4 runs in the 20-29 mile range and 2 runs of 30 or more miles. Overall I feel like my fitness is great though. I am also pleased with my consistency. I fell like, especially in May, that I was pretty consistent with my runs which is a good thing.

Looking back even a little further, despite the Achilles issue in February which caused me to log 0 miles over a ten day stretch, I managed to squeeze in 160 for that month. And in the cold and snow of January I was able to squeeze in 200 miles, which included the Watchung Winter Ultra 50k (placing in the top ten with a 5:17 finish).

Now it is time to rest the legs, do some shorter runs and hope and pray that I am ready. I feel ready and pretty confident as of right now. I want to honor God with my running and I hope I can do that. Either way it will be a fun and learning experience.

The Barefoot Trend Continues to Grow

2010-05-21T06:30:00.000-07:00

It seems lately that barefoot "shoes" and barefoot running are everywhere. Is it a fad or is it something that is going to stick around for a while? It seems that the blogs, news reports and articles are continually streaming, all touting the importance of barefoot or minimalist running. Much thanks to Christopher McDougall's book Born to Run, I think the barefoot running underground is gaining more and more in popularity. I have even bought into the craze (sadly yes, I have succumbed) and back in December of 2009 purchased a pair of New Balance MT 100's. I think I only have out about 36 miles on them since. They are comfortable but they have become my "around town" sneakers. I think I'll stick to my neutral cushioned running shoes for a while longer.

Weekly Long Run

2010-05-15T12:57:00.000-07:00

Today was one of those days. The weather was near perfect for a long run. The temperature was 56 degrees at the start of my run with clear skies and a slight breeze. It rose to 60 degrees by the time I was finished. Some clouds rolled in but they were spotty at best through out the run. As I said...near perfect.

I knew I was going to go fairly long today and initially I was thinking something in the 25 mile range. But I decided to just see how I felt and take it from there.
With the Laurel Highlands Ultra coming up in four weeks I needed to figure out how to hold my stuff during the run. Dave recently picked up an Amphipod Airflow Endurance Pack. It sounds cool (and it is) but it is a fanny pack. I ordered one after seeing his and today was the first day I tried it out. It was awesome! The pack fits flat on the small of your back but it is big enough to hold what I consider to be a substantial amount of food and other items. I used mine to hold my Clif Bar, Hammer Gel flask, house key, $3, Endurolytes and a few Gin-Gin's just in case. With all of this I still had plenty of room to spare. As for the pack itself, it is very comfortable. The adjustable waist straps are stretchy and the fit is extremely comfortable. I also did not experience any issues with the pack moving or bouncing. It fit snug but never did I feel that it was constricting. I was very pleased overall.

One positive thing that I experienced today dealt with my nutrition. I am still young when it comes to ultra running so I still have quite a bit to learn and nutrition for racing is one of those areas. I usually feel nausea when on long runs. Today I felt nothing. It was great. I took a Banana Nut Bread flavor Clif Bar and cut it into four pieces (about 60 calories each) and placed them in a baggie. I also filled my gel flask with four Hammer Gels, mountain huckleberry flavor. I also used both of my Ultimate Direction hand held 20 oz. bottles filled with a 50/50 mix of water and Lime Gatorade.

My plan was to take 2 Hammer Endurolyte electrolyte tabs every hour, along with 1 gel and 1 piece of the Clif Bar. The Clif Bar was 240 calories, the gels were about 360 calories and the total amount of Gatorade calories came to approximately 250. This was a total of 850 calories for the run. The Clif Bar worked great because I could slowly chew it and it would dissolve fairly quickly and easily in my mouth. I think this was actually key because then my stomach didn't have to spend so much energy on digesting it thus saving me from any nausea. I had energy throughout the run and felt great. Instead of doing 25 miles, I ended up doing a 30 miler at 8:36 pace. this was just what I needed mentally and physically four weeks away from Laurel.

Hopefully I can continue to feel this good until Laurel.

MMMM....Calories

2010-05-11T10:49:00.000-07:00

I'm still learning a lot about what it means to be an endurance athlete. I think I just realized something pretty important. I need to eat more food (yeah!). As I'm training for the Laurel Highlands Ultra I have been having some really good weeks and months (for me anyway, just don't compare me to Tony Krupicka). In March I totalled 240 miles and in April I hit 260 miles.

As I was thinking about training and fueling, etc., I realized that perhaps I was not eating enough food. I run mostly in the early morning hours, usually before most people are even awake. And, for example, this morning I ran 16.8 miles before eating anything. Now, if we conservatively estimate about 100 hours burned per mile of running that equates to approximately 1,680 calories burned even before breakfast. So now I have to not only eat my regular food for the day but I need to make up for this deficit somehow.

Then I thought about an article I read somewhere about Lance Armstrong. Apparently Lance would eat around 3,000 calories on a regular day. But during heavy training he would increase his caloric intake to about 6,000 calories a day with somewhere around 60-70% of those calories coming from carbs (I'm sure the good ones). Now, I'm no Lance Armstrong but I decided to eat more food, clean food, and see what happens.

Now I'm not a fast guy. My training runs are usually in the 8:20-8:40 min. per mile pace range. But Sunday morning I ran a 7 miler at 7:42 pace and I felt really good. Saturday I ran a 15.6 mile trail run in the 8:40 pace range and felt like I could go more (but time constraints forced me to stop). And my 16.8 miler this morning was at 7:53 pace and my legs felt great.

So I'm concluding that I needed to up my caloric intake in order to give my body the fuel it needed for recovery and energy. I hope I continue to feel this good a month from now when I toe the line at Laurel.

What have any of you learned about your nutritional needs during training? Please share it with us.

Stomach Training?

2010-05-05T06:16:00.000-07:00

So there I was, having a good training month, steadier than any other year as far as miles go…just got in a very good 50k training run with Chris (see Progress posted on 4-21) and out of nowhere I catch a stomach bug. Now I’m not a big guy, probably wouldn’t win many fights (unless it were against preschoolers, and even then…shrugs shoulders), but I consider myself pretty tough when dealing with pain tolerance and discomfort. This particular virus though had a plan, a determination to kick my butt. I’ll spare you, the public, the intimate details of how the butt kicking occurred, but let me say this, I was not feeling like I was so tough, nor was I able to think about running for about a week.

Now that I’m recovered and back out running, I’ve been thinking about how many ultra-runners experience upset stomachs, nauseous and other chaotic digestive events during races. I have experienced bloating, heartburn, and side stitches from drinking too much at aid stations, but nothing extreme yet. How would I fare if I had to deal with an upset stomach 70 miles into a hundred miler? Can you train for something like that? I’m not sure if anyone would want to subject themselves to that, not me after enduring what I did last week. Many of us have seen the movie "Running on the Sun" and how Gabriel Flores vomits while walking and immediately seems to perk up, start running and feel better. I’ve read how Nikki Kimball advises others with upset stomachs to “make sure you throw up before coming into an aid station”…you don’t want to go fuel up and then vomit it a mile down the road and lose all the calories you just consumed. Apparently there are ways of getting used to dealing with this issue. For now I am ok with going into a race under-trained in “how to deal with stomach revulsion”.

Enjoy the late spring weather, and hope everyone’s training is going well. Summer race season is here and I’m hearing the clock ticking for Laurel Highlands…a little louder each day.

David Kennedy

Slowly Going the Way of the Lottery

2010-05-03T06:16:00.000-07:00

It seems that occasionally the ultra blogs are buzzing with discussions about the "big" races and the lottery entry system for said races. Many people discuss whether the lottery system is fair, the best possible solution, etc. I'm not going to really comment on that in this post. However, I think I do favor a kind of first-come/first-serve system of some sort.

Yesterday I somehow ended up on the JFK 50 mile website, only to discover that the lottery "bug" has now finally bitten the JFK 50. I found this on the home page regarding the entry procedure for 2010's race:

July 10, open entries to general field. Any entry (not meeting July 1 requirements) post-marked prior to July 10 will be rejected. On July 20th, from all entries received in the July 10-20 time-frame, entries will be pulled "lottery style" until the general field is filled. Entries and entry fees of all those not gaining entrance to the general field will be returned.

With the change in entry procedures (i.e., check it out in detail) all I can say is that I'm glad I got the chance to run it last year. Good luck to anyone trying to get in from here on out.

Do any readers have any thoughts on the slow growth of the lottery system entry procedure? At least interest in ultras is growing.

Peace.

Progress

2010-04-21T08:13:00.000-07:00

This past Monday Dave and I joined up for a 31 mile training run on the local O & W Rail Trail. We did an out and back style 50k from Hancock, NY to Orson, PA and back. I was wondering how my legs would hold up due to a recent increase in volume (for me anyway) and the simple fact that I ran a 16 miler two days before our planned training run.

Monday morning I woke up to find out that my two daughters, Emma and Ana, were both sick. Uh oh! What now? Dave used a vacation day for this scheduled long run if I have to bail I will feel so bad. Also, I cannot ignore my daughters. Thankfully my awesome wife, Stacey came to the rescue and used some of her sick time to stay home with the girls. She did not complain one bit about it either. She's the best! (Thanks, sweetie!)

Dave and I got to the starting point a little past 10am. By the time we started it was about 10:25am. The rail trail in this section is flat, of course it's an old graded rail system, but it is not necessarily easy. The Viaduct Trail ultra is held on the same system a few miles away and one of the complaints I have heard from a few runners is about the rocks. There are many fist sized rocks that litter the trail. So the trail is fairly well groomed in some sections, but the rocks are fairly constant. There are also some little hills, not many, but a couple, that break up the run slightly. Trestles use to span these spots at one point in time. We also encountered a position that at first glance appeared to be a small lake, but it was actually a huge puddle that required us to do some slight bushwhacking to get around.

All in all the day was near perfect. The temperature was in the low 50's, the sky was partly sunny and there was even a slight breeze blowing. Overall on the run I felt pretty good. I have to admit that Dave was pushing the pace the entire way. I think he was feeling some nostalgia since Boston was happening at the same time and he ran it last year (qualifying again for this year with another sub 3:10 finish).

We arrived at the turnaround in 2:16 and we kind of dawdled a bit before pulling out for the back portion. We left after a five minute pit stop bringing our time to
2:21. The way back was fairly quiet with a little less chatting. Again Dave was pushing the pace. We began thinking that we may end up with a negative split if we could keep it up.

We finally arrived at the end of the line and finished in 4:30:26--a negative split for a 50k. We were both spent but feeling good about the pace (8:43) and how we felt. We were tired but not hurting. It was one of those training runs that builds confidence. The training is paying off. All of those early morning runs are paying off. The cleaner diet is paying off. Etc., etc.

Tuesday I felt good. My legs could feel the effort from Monday but there was no pain and overall I was pleasantly surprised with how good I felt. I still need to work on nutrition for the long runs though. I used 5 Hammer gels (Montana huckleberry flavor...yum!), and two 100 calorie Cliff bars. I think the Cliff bars, although small, may be just too solid to digest well during long runs (at least for me). I got out for a relaxed 7 miles this morning and again was pleased with how good my legs felt. My fitness is increasing and I hope it continues for another 51 days leading into Laurel Highlands.

Peace

Another iRunfar.com Giveaway

2010-04-17T07:35:00.000-07:00

Bryon Powell and his crew run arguably the best running related website around. It also seems lately that Bryon has been giving away many different pairs of trail running shoes. All you have to do to enter is post your name and hometown in the comment section and presto...you're in! How easy is that?!

This time Bryon and crew are giving away two pair of Vasque Mindbenders. There is also a very thorough review of the Mindbender as well. So head over to iRunfar.com and register today. And be sure to tell Bryon and crew "thank you" for all the freebies.

Peace

Motivation: When You're High, You're High...

2010-04-08T11:01:00.000-07:00

We runners sure can be hard on ourselves. As stated in my previous post, my running is primarily done early in the morning, which often can make it difficult to get the runs in that I intend to when work is busy, family commitments keep me up late and other general stress in life make me want to sleep in rather than get up and run in the dark. So why, when we miss runs do we become so critical of ourselves? I am in good running shape most of the time. At the drop of a dime I think I could strap on my shoes and put in 30 miles, maybe not in top race form, but complete the distance nonetheless. But when I have a low miles week, I begin to doubt everything. A couple of weeks ago I experienced this. I ended up only running one day, total of 13 miles. The previous week I put in 76 miles, 64 miles the week before that. But after that 13 mile, one day of running, week, I had beat myself down to the point of not feeling worthy of a ¼ mile kids fun run, much less thinking of lining up for Laurel Highlands in June.

I can’t explain it, and maybe I’m an extreme type of person that is just too hard on myself. Then there are the weeks when everything lines up. Waking up is easy (sometimes I even beat my alarm out of bed), the miles are pleasure filled and the muscles welcome the challenge. These are the weeks that I feel like I could challenge Hal at Western States and have him pull over and say, “go ahead you got me” (if Hal reads this, that’s not an official challenge, I’m sure I’d need a head start to ever lead you). These are the days when you remember why you continue to run, why we continue to push the limits, why when we feel like we’re wasting our time we carry on until the motivation comes back.

Currently I’m in the middle of what are my “monster” months of training for Laurel Highlands 77 mile ultra. My body feels like it’s on top of it’s game, and maybe my occasional low week is it’s way of holding my mind back…the same mind that never wants to slow down. I’ll keep praying that the highs keep coming and the lows are short lived and easy on those that have to live with me. And should Hal show up next to me someday on the starting line, I’ll run him hard…probably only for a ¼ mile kids fun run.

David Kennedy

Laurel Highlands Ultra - An Early Preview

2010-04-02T06:12:00.000-07:00

I know this is still early, after all, we still have 70 days to go until we toe the line of the Laurel Highlands Ultra in Ohiopyle, PA. But as I was looking up course information in an attempt get as familiar with the course as possible I stumbled upon this neat little video. It shows some nice footage of the trail. It definitely looks runnable and fairly well groomed in the video, but in reality I know the trail is 70.5 (77 miles this year due to re-routing around a bridge the DCNR has condemned) miles long and the video shows only a small portion of the trail. However, the trail still looks nice and the views spectacular.

On another note, the race begins next to "the Yough", a premier whitewater river in Pennsylvania. It has been a few years since I have been there but it has been a river I kayaked numerous times in the past. It will be different to get back there for a different reason now. Overall, I'm excited for the race. The training to this point is going well and I hope it will continue to go well. All in all it will be a great time no matter what happens.

Thoughts from the Morning Run # 2 - Fear

2010-03-31T09:46:00.000-07:00

I still a rookie when it comes to the ultra running scene. I don't have everything "dialed in" yet as they say in the "biz". To date I have only run three ultras (two 50k's and one 50 miler). I have grown to enjoy running quite a bit, you may say I even love to run now. But there was something looming over me recently. That thing looming over me was/is the 100 miler.

As Dave and I were talking a while back about what 2010 would bring he shared that he definitely wanted to do another 100 miler this year. I was still fairly fresh off of my 8:51:11 at JFK and I said, "Yeah, count me in." We looked at Virgil Crest, then we looked at Oil Creek, and ultimately we agreed on Oil Creek for 2010. Playing into the decision was the fact that Dave gets to run Oil Creek for free because he is a co-race director along with Carl Albright of the Viaduct Trail 100 (Lucky RD's). Oil Creek has three options-100 miles, 100k and 50k (the 50k is already sold out by the way). When Dave emailed me two weeks ago and told me that registration was now open that's when it set in. What is it? It is FEAR. All of a sudden questions flooded my mind: Can I do this? Can I train enough without my family or job suffering? What if I have to DNF? Maybe I could do the 100k or 50k instead? Etc., etc., etc.

Then I made the move despite my fear and trepidation and I signed up for my first attempt at the 100 mile distance.

As I was out on my early morning run the other day I began to play this whole scenario around on my mind. Where did this come from? Was it just from the "unknown"? Why was I so afraid? Than I realized and remembered that fear can be a debilitating thing in all areas of life. As a pastor I often talk about how fear can negatively affect our walk with Jesus. The apostle Paul even wrote: "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline." But here I was allowing fear to possibly keep me from even attempting my first 100 miler.

Fear can be healthy sometimes. For example, it is a healthy fear that keeps us from jumping out of an airplane without a parachute (some people may say it is a healthy fear that keeps us from doing ultras, lol). But more often than not fear is something that keeps us planted, ultimately doing nothing, accomplishing nothing, being nothing.

This leads me to a question: How has fear ever affected your life or one of your goals? How have you overcome/dealt with fear?

Please feel free to share your experiences, they don't have to be running related.

2010-03-31T09:43:00.000-07:00

God and Sports: An Interview with Ryan Hall

2010-03-24T09:46:00.001-07:00

Dave found this Running Times magazine interview with Ryan Hall. I think it is a good interview. As a follower of Christ, I can identify with many of Ryan's points.

What about you? How do you see God and sports intersecting?

Morning Solitude

2010-03-23T12:59:00.000-07:00

I am a morning runner. Not just a break of dawn morning runner, an always running in the dark, getting started when most are in the deepest of sleep runner. Usually I head out the door between 3:30 and 4:00 am, earlier if I’m running long, a little later if I run a short day (usually between 6 and 8 miles). I became an early riser after my daughter was born, because finding the time to run after coming home from work was a battle that I never wanted to start. Running is a very important part of my life, but God and family trump even the only hobby I allow to consume my spare time. So I fully committed to doing almost all of my training on a schedule that gets me home before my wife and daughter wake up for the day.

After adjusting my body to functioning on less sleep, I’ve found that there are tons of advantages of running so early. The peacefulness of the world is incredible; very little traffic, no construction noise, even most dogs are sleeping at the times I’m running by. When I do encounter cars, I usually hear them coming well in advance and see their lights so I am able to get off the road on the opposite side. When I do encounter wild animals and most dogs, they’re as surprised to see me as I am them and so far no incidents have occurred…skunks still make me nervous though. Winter is even more amazingly quiet, and if it weren’t for the cold, it might be my favorite time to run. I often wonder what the snow plow drivers think of me running in the snow at that time of morning? Or the newspaper delivery person whom I feel a silent friendship with…

The sights can be pretty astounding as well. I live outside of town and on clear nights the stars are quite remarkable. Just last week I saw a shooting star that was so bright it lit up the whole sky. I was actually looking in the opposite direction but caught the end of it burning up. It was so bright for a second I thought a plane had caught fire or exploded. I’ve surprised many a deer slumbering in nearby fields, possums and skunks scurrying along the ditches, occasionally a fat porcupine, and plenty of cows and horses looking over fences.

I run with a headlamp, but after a couple of years of nocturnal running, my eyes have grown accustomed to the dark, and I’ve learned my routes so well that I usually only turn it on when I have a car interrupt my journey. As the days grow longer, many of my runs end with the sun rising, which to anyone who has run through the night knows, a sunrise can renew a tired body back to life. Finishing a run with a great sunrise seems like a perfect way to start the day, and the only way to accomplish that is starting your run very early in the solitude of morning.

David Kennedy

Looking Back: 365 Days of Running

2010-03-20T06:01:00.000-07:00

I have only been running for about two years now. For the first year I never logged any of my miles. Most of my runs were in the 2-4 mile range with the occasional 5 miler thrown in for fun.

Then a year ago Runner's World sent me one of those nifty little training logs...so I began to track my mileage. My first week was the week of March 23-29. I ran four times that week (5, 5.2, 6.8, 9 = 26). Well, today's run marks the end of the year according to my training log. This week consisted of the following runs: 13.2,11.2, 11.2, 9.2 and 21.4 = 66.2. What a difference a year makes.

My total mileage according to the log dating from March 23, 2009 to March 21, 2010 accumulates to 1,958. Being only 42 miles away from the 2,000 mark of course I think about missed days and weeks due to injury or just plain laziness. Nevertheless, I am very happy and grateful for the last 365 days. It is interesting to see how we progress in life, whether it is running or our walk with God or whatever it is. Growth is a key. Here's looking to more growth over the next 365 days.

Introducing Myself

2010-03-18T05:34:00.000-07:00

Hello, my name is David Kennedy. I’d like to thank Chris very much for inviting me to occasionally chime in on Trail Musings with my thoughts and ideas about running and the lives it encompasses. I’m currently 30 years old, married for almost three years to my wife Alice and we have a two-year-old daughter, Julia and four cats as well. I have never really thought about blogging before, mostly because I wouldn’t expect anyone to be all that interested in my life, although when running is involved, I am never at a loss for words, so I was quick to jump at the chance to share some of my opinions, even if they may be unorthodox to seasoned runners.

I began running in late summer of 2003 when I was 24, out of college and needed a more productive hobby than being lazy and not liking life. My cousin talked me into racing a 5k with him and I had about six weeks to prepare from no running to finishing without passing out. Now at the time I had no knowledge of organized training for a running event. I absent-mindedly worked up to being able to slowly jog the distance and come race day (with the help of adrenaline and flat out fear) blasted a 22:20. I immediately was hooked on running and a little over a year later was toeing the line for the Steamtown marathon. Again my preparation was minimal and with only the help of some online forums and Marathon Training for Dummies (not a bad book by the way), I pulled a 3:48:00. Now I was hooked on endurance running with a vengeance and continued to run two marathons per year all while secretly trying to work towards qualifying for Boston. It took seven marathons to do that and in May of 2008 I finally had the perfect day at the Pocono “Run for the Red” marathon and ran a 3:06:19. In 2009 I ran the Boston marathon and had another great day with a 3:09:21. These are some highlights I’ll never forget, but during this Boston quest, another running passion was grabbing hold; running fast is fine, but running far was where my heart was heading.

I began running with a friend (Carl) in 2007 who also had aspirations for ultra-running and together we started making some “home-made” events to test our limits, while trying to save money and possibly our dignity while dipping our toes and learning what not to do. After several 50ks and a homemade 68.5 mile Rail-Trail endurance run, Carl and I headed down to Delaware for our first 100 miler in September 2008. What a life changing experience that was. I finished in 24 hrs 52 min. and Carl finished in 29 hrs 21 min. A month prior to that Carl and I organized a free 100 miler on the Rail-Trail of Northeast PA, the Viaduct Trail Ultramarathon, which is growing into a great event with some world class athletes participating. Since running Delaware, I haven’t had the chance to run another 100 miler, but have ran other 50ks, and also the JFK 50 miler last fall with Chris.

So there’s my running resume. Like I mentioned in the first paragraph, I follow an unorthodox system of training, non-traditional methods of shoe philosophy, and have been questioned and at times ridiculed by “students” of the sport who have grown up with coaching from cross-country through college and beyond. I love listening to advice and tips, but when it boils down to following a pre-laid out training plan, I get bored, and I’m afraid if running gets boring, I’ll quit doing it…therefore I choose to follow the Dave Kennedy training plan that has worked since I started prepping for the first race in 2003. That is run as far as I have time for and as hard as I feel like on any given day. It’s worked so far, and I’ve yet to grow tired of the sport that still excites me each time I lace up my shoes and head out the door.

I’m looking forward to sharing my thoughts, ideas and passions with those of you reading, and invite comments and questions…let’s share what’s working and not working with each other.

Making Some Changes

2010-03-17T06:36:00.000-07:00

We have made some changes around here. First, this blog is no longer chrisfreet.blogspot.com, now it is trailmusings.blogspot.com. It is no longer just me behind the wheel, but I have invited my good friend and running/ultra running veteran David Kennedy to join me. So this is now a team blog. Soon Dave will post about his experiences and fill you in about himself. My hope is that this will all work to make this blog better and more informative and enjoyable for the readers.

Dave brings a lot more experience to the table. He has run Boston as well as 100 milers. He also is planning on conducting an experiment with running shoes, but I'll let him tell you about that.

So, let's welcome Dave aboard here at Trail Musings and here's to hopefully better things to come.

Speed Work: Yes or No?

2010-03-15T16:57:00.000-07:00

Recently I was asked by another runner how to get faster. First, let me say that I have only been running for two years and I have only been running any distances for about a year. I have always been athletic but I was never into distance running (let alone ultra running). I am not fast but I like to think that I am consistent. And to be totally honest...I don't do speed work.

I know runners who often go to the track for speed work. For some it is like a religious thing. They never miss it. I have never done a track workout. I live in a hilly region in northeast Pennsylvania. As a matter of fact, I live near the top of a hill. Every day that I run I leave my house and I have to head down hill nearly a mile. Even if I go up the hill it is about a half mile before the road flattens out. Either way I go I always have the nearly mile long hill at the end of every workout. Also, it is difficult not to run hills (some large, others merely rollers) around here. I think that running all of these hills has actually helped strengthen my legs as well as increase my speed. Occasionally I will include some fartlek work during a run, but even this is pretty rare for me.

Perhaps my friend Dave is also an example here. Dave also lives and trains in the same area. Last year he qualified for Boston at a local marathon. He trained hard, but he also dealt with some motivation issues during that time. He got back out on the hills and trained hard, without any speed work. The time came for Boston and he BQ'd for Boston at Boston. Was it the hills?

this leads me to a question: What do you do to help increase your pace/speed? Share it with us and maybe we can learn something from one another.

Shuman Point in the Rain

2010-03-13T16:48:00.000-08:00

This morning my friend Brad and I decided to go out for a run on Shuman Point. Shuman Point is a small park that is right on the banks of Lake Wallenpaupack. It is a fairly technical run actually with many rocks, roots and two fairly short climbs that are just steep enough to make your quads burn. According to the map of the park that is posted at the trail head it consists of a 3 mile loop. According to Brad's Garmin it was only a 2.75 loop. Nevertheless it is a nice trail run.

Brad had never been on the trail before. Friday night I told him that there were no creeks, and with the high temps we had all week and the rain recently that the snow should almost be gone...boy was I wrong.

The first 0.75 miles or so was as if we were running through a creek bed. I had run SP trail numerous times and I had never seen it like it was this morning. We managed to slog through two loops before jumping out onto the road. The sections without the snow or water were great though. I cannot wait to get back out on the trails on a regular basis. Also, we were rewarded with some beautiful views of Lake Wallenpaupack.

Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!

2010-03-06T05:57:00.000-08:00

The following is one of my favorite quotes. It's from Sharon Barbano who is a cross country runner. Here's the quote:

"When I hit the trails every morning, the first words in my head are, "Thank you, thank you, thank you.' I'm just so appreciative to have the ability to run."

Those words summarize my feelings this morning. I have always known and realize that things can be here one minute and gone the next. That's a reality this side of heaven. So when two weeks ago I "went down" with achilles tendinitis I was facing that reality. My mind began to wander I I starting thinking, "What if this is serious? What if I am unable to do ultras anymore?" I know that is the extreme but those thoughts crossed my mind.

But then I receieved an email from my good friend Dave last Monday. His wife has been dealing with ITB issues and a PT named Kevin Bandru (who has worked on runners like Matt Byrne) was coming to work on his wife's leg and maybe I could show up too. So I called Kevin and he said sure and I was scheduled to meet with him Friday morning. I have never had a deep tissue sports massage before and prior to the appointment Dave warned me, "Be prepared to cry." He wasn't kidding, I grimaced the whole 50 minutes he massaged my right calf/achilles. Kevin also gave me a foam roller, which I'm convinced is a torture device. Needless to say, I woke up this morning, had some coffe, read my Bible, then went out and churned out a comfortable 12.2 miles! My achilles was achey but it was pain free. I did not have to alter my gait at all either. I used the foam roller and stretched after the run and I must admit, I'm feeling pretty good.

To top it off, the morning was simply beuatiful! The sunrising over the hills, the birds chirping and singing, the clear blue skies....spring is so close!! I even left my jacket at home and was not cold even though the bank sign said it was 22 degrees at the start.

So, today and everyday I agree with the quote from Sharon Barbano, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" I'm so grateful to get back out and run. I'm so grateful to enjoy this God-given ability and opportunity. I'm grateful that I can share this with friends. there is so much more to be thankful for.

To God be the glory.

Say Hello to My Little Friend...

2010-03-04T19:59:00.001-08:00

Well, the three ladies in my house are about to get another companion. Her name is JellyBean, we will call her Bean for short. We are adopting her through a shelter in Sussex, NJ and we can pick her up in about two weeks.

Bean is a Boxador (Boxer/Lab mix) and she is a puppy. Here is a recent picture:

My family is very excited for JellyBean to join us. Emma, my five year old, started walking to NJ today after school to pick up Bean. I think she inherited my patience, or lack there of. Truth be told, I think I am more excited than anyone else in the family (but don't get me wrong, they are very excited). I love the company of a dog at your feet, going on hikes, the wagging tail greeting you at the door....every day, no matter what happened that day.

I have had puppies before but this time it will have a different perspective to it. I will get to watch my two girls grow up with Bean together.

And I told Stacey we weren't going to have any more children...go figure.

Please Pray for Chile

2010-03-02T10:38:00.000-08:00

I just want to share a quote from Free Methodist missionary to Chile, Beth Gomez. This was taken from Bishop David Roller's blog. It gives a glimpse of what is happening within Chile following the devastating 8.8 earthquake the other day. Here's Beth Gomez's quote:

"Please keep the people informed. We have pastors and lots of other people living in tents or worse because their homes have been destroyed. Some people are completely out of touch with family members. Others, as you know, have passed away. Lots of people are without water and any kind of food. Supt. Sergio said he saw many are without clothing. What little people do have, others are stealing.Parts of Chile got hit with a 1-2 punch; earthquake and then tsunami. The few minutes that we had enough electricity to watch news last night, we heard that there is so much lawlessness now that some people say it is worse than the earthquake itself. We saw men guarding their homes with guns - in other videos neighbors were forming "armies" using rakes and hoes, brooms, whatever they had to try and protect their areas from the lawless. There is story after story to be told. It may be far away but it is very real. Please help the people see that and encourage them to keep praying!"

Please keep praying for Chile, and let us not forget to continue to pray fervently for Haiti also. They are not "out of the woods" yet. God is good and He will use these events to somehow expand His kingdom. Let's do what we can to help.

To God be the glory!

Achilles Update

2010-03-01T06:09:00.000-08:00

Well, after eight days of rest, ice and elavation my right achilles was feeling pretty good. Actually, it was nearly pain free, it just felt a little tight. So I decided to give it a little test run.

I love near the top of a mile long hill, so I left my house and went downhill to Main street. Halfway down the hill I could tell that my achilles on my right leg was not quite right. I proceeded to do two one mile loops on flat Main Street. During this time the achilles felt sore and would slightly fade, and then feel sore again. So after these two laps I decided to head back up Ridge Street toward home. I made it about halfway before I had a shooting pain in my achilles. So I stopped and walked the final 0.3 miles to my house. I ended up doing 3.3 miles at a comfortable pace but even though it was feeling good prior to the run it apparently is not ready to handle running yet.

I have to admit I am pretty frustrated. I have never been in a situation like this before and it's tough. I really want to get out there and run, especially with Laurel Highlands a little over three months away.

Join me in praying for healing for my achilles and if anyone has any suggestions I'm all ears. Maybe after another week well see how we stand. It looks like I'll be joining a gym so I can ride a bike and maintain at least a base level of fitness.

Happy Birthday Ana!

2010-02-25T17:46:00.001-08:00

Today my little girl, Ana, turns two years old. My how time flies. Here are some pictures of her and her sister, Emma, enjoying birthday cupcakes.

Happy birthday, Ana! We love you and are so blessed that God gave you to us!

Gear Review -> North Face Voza shoe

2010-02-25T05:51:00.000-08:00

With my current pair of shoes (Adidas Response Cushion 17's) nearing the 500 mile mark I figured it was time to look for another pair of shoes to train in. As I was checking around on Backcountry.com's website I saw they had the North Face Voza's on sale for 50% off at a sale price of $47. I checked out the info and it said the Voza's were a hybrid shoe. It could be used on the roads and on the trails. The shoes had some mild lugs on the forefoot and the heal was designed like that of a road shoe. It was also advertised as a neutral shoe with decent cushioning. With the description, price and the fact that NF shoes work for Dean and Hal, I figured why not? So I ordered a pair.

When they arrived I noticed they were fairly light, around 10.5 oz. or so. I put them on and immediately something felt off. First, in the right shoe along a seem in the forefoot there was some extra fabric that I could feel against the top of my foot just before my toes. Immediately I thought, "That's a blister waiting to happen." Secondly, they ran big. I am used to running in a more narrow shoe, like my Adidas'. The Adidas have a narrower feel in the mid foot with ample room in the toe box. The Voza's were wider in the mid foot and the toe box was too roomy. I knew that if I wore them on any downhills that my feet would slip forward too much. I did take them out for two runs, one 6 miler and one 12 miler, and they felt ok but not great.

Needless to say, I am very grateful for the fantastic customer service at Backcountry.com because I sent them back. Backcountry.com accepts returns with no questions asked. they have the best customer service I have ever encountered. I ended up ordering another pair of Adidas Response Cushion 17's and they came in two days with free shipping from Shoesontheweb.com. I guess if it's not broke then why try to fix it. My Achilles is feeling much better today and I am looking forward to getting back out there soon. We are having a blizzard here anyway, so all I can say is...come on spring!!

February....the month that is, was and could have been

2010-02-23T16:48:00.000-08:00

February was shaping up to be a great month running wise. Coming off of a decent January in which I placed 8th overall at a 50k and logged 201.6 miles I was feeling pretty good. The momentum carried me into February and I was already starting to focus in on training for Laurel Higlands (to be held June 12 this year).

My mileage for February was coming along nicely. My training for february went as follows: week one - 60.2; week two - 61.8; week three - 42.6 (total = 164.6). I was well on my way to having back to back 200 mile months for the first time. But as it turns out this was not to be. Now I sit here with achilles tendonitis in my right achilles. It is getting better but I want to make sure it is adequately rested before I build up the mileage again.

So then, February 2010 is what it is...and for me it is now over. It could have been a milestone month for me. But now it has already gone before we even turn the page of the calendar. I am looking forward to March and the coming spring, shorts and my visor instead of long pants and a knit hat. I am praying for a full and quick recovery and look forward to getting back out in the roads and trails.

Derailed...

2010-02-23T04:04:00.000-08:00

So far the winter training gearing up for the Laurel Highlands Ultra has been going well...that is until last week. Let's just say that the 'Freet-train' (as some of my friends have started calling me) has derailed.

Last Wednesday I started feeling slight discomfort in my right Achilles area, but it was nothing major and it would go away. Because it would go away I didn't think much of it. then it was there again in Thursday's run and yet again on Friday's run. This week was a cutback week for me anyway. On Saturday I had plans to run with my friend Paul. We hadn't run together since prior to running JFK together. i was looking forward to the run--a 12 miler on a flat road along the Delaware River. It was my longest run of the week since it was a cutback week. But on Saturday I really felt sore in my right Achilles. It didn't alter my stride but the soreness did not go away. I felt it all day Saturday and Sunday. Even walking in it would bring soreness. I checked the symptoms I was feeling with sites online and it appears that I have Achilles tendinitis in my right ankle.

On Monday it felt better but was still sore. Today it feels even better. But I know I have to give it adequate rest. I'm glad this happened now and not closer to Laurel Highlands.

IT is also a reminder to me that the things we love to do can be taken away from us in an instant. I'm not trying to sound like "Debbie downer" but that is the reality. That reality should hopefully lead us to enjoy the things of life. Everything in this world is only temporary, including running. But I hope to enjoy it as long as I possibly can. The only thing that is eternal is God himself. this is just a reminder to me about that truth. So, here's hoping for a quick recovery to get back out on the roads/trails soon.

To God be the glory.

Amazing Grace

2010-02-20T13:28:00.000-08:00

Friday morning was not one of my better mornings. Any one with little children can understand this. Getting them ready as well as yourself can be a challenge when they are little. Maybe it could be an Olympic sport. On this particular morning we were pressed for time (as we usually are) and I as I was putting on Ana's coat (my almost 2 year old) I smelled something. I asked her if she had a dirty diaper and she confirmed it. Why does it seem to always happen when we are heading out the door?

Anyway, I resigned myself to the fact that Emma would be late for kindergarten for the first time this year. Which is amazing because we live a mile from the school. I signed her in at 8:31 a.m., one minute tardy. But here's the point of this post. In the apparent craziness of the morning I found myself yelling at Emma. And throughout the day I was feeling really guilty about the way I treated her. She had a "green" day at school and appeared fine, but inside I was not fine. At the end of the day when we got home I knelt down with her and told her I was sorry for yelling at her like I did that morning, and her was her response:

"That's okay Daddy, I forgive you because Jesus forgives me and we need to forgive everyone."

My heart just melted. I hope and pray that she remembers that always. I hope and pray that I remember that always. I was humbled and blessed by my 5 year old's response in that moment. God's grace is truly an amazing thing.

To God be the glory.

Thoughts from the Morning Run...part 1

2010-02-18T16:41:00.000-08:00

More often then not I run alone in the early morning. I really enjoy running with my friends when we can get out together. But, as I already mentioned, I usually run alone.

This I was more tired than usual. I fought to get out of bed and make my way to the coffee pot (thankfully it is pre-programmed). When I finally got out for my run I was still waking up. My run was comfortable but I found myself day-dreaming during the run. So, here;s what I'm going to do. I'm going to start sharing my thoughts from my early morning runs. Some of them, I know, will not make much sense. hopefully others will make perfect sense. Often I think about people, relationships, ministry, theology, and of course running. Whether you want to hear about it or not, I'm goin gto share my thoughts. Just please remember, these are thoughts about things I may be wrestling with which means they may not be fully thought through. But I hope you will find these posts worthwhile. So then, here's the first installment:

This past Wednesday marks the beginning of the Christian calander known as Lent. Lent is the time period leading up to Easter. During this time Christians traditionally take action and seek to re-dedicate themeselves to Christ through some sort of "sacrificial" activity. As a matter of fact, if you talk to the average church-goer (it seems) the question arises during this season, "What are you giving up for lent?" the top answers to this question are usually one of the following: sugar, soda, coffee, cakes/pies, etc., etc. I have even seen people give up facebook this year. The more I thought about this the more I became annoyed. Is this really what lent is about? Giving up sugar? Now, I'm not knocking anyone for doing this, really I am not. But is this what it had come to?

Are these things really sacrifices? Sugar, soda,...really? The more I read the New Testament the more and more I see something...Christians are those who imitate Christ and just as Christ suffered, so shall those who call on his name (cf. 1 Peter 2:19-24; Acts 9:16; Philippians 2:1-11, Revelation 11:7; 12:11; 13:9-10; 14:12; and many more). The very call of Christ to his disciples to "Pick up your cross daily and follow me" was a one-way ticket from which there is no return. The early Christians got this, why don't we seem to get it?

I know that fasting is a beneficial spiritual discipline, but maybe we need to re-think the kind of fast God desires. Look at Isaiah 58:

1 "Shout it aloud, do not hold back.
Raise your voice like a trumpet.
Declare to my people their rebellion
and to the house of Jacob their sins.
2 For day after day they seek me out;
they seem eager to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that does what is right
and has not forsaken the commands of its God.
They ask me for just decisions
and seem eager for God to come near them.

3 'Why have we fasted,' they say,
'and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you have not noticed?'
"Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please
and exploit all your workers.

4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,
and in striking each other with wicked fists.
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heard on high.

5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
only a day for a man to humble himself?
Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed
and for lying on sackcloth and ashes?
Is that what you call a fast,
a day acceptable to the LORD ?

Now look at God's response:

6 "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?

7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe him,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.

9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
"If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,

10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.

Rather than focus on ourselves and give up something like sugar, soda, etc., perhaps we need to think more outward and reach out. After all, what does the Lord require? He calls His people to act justly, love mercy, and for us to walk humbly with Him (Micah 6:8).

These are the thoughts from my morning run...to God be the glory.

The Running Shoe Industry - Safety Conscious or Industry Conspiracy??

2010-02-11T18:10:00.001-08:00

I started running around two years ago. Initially my goal was merely to get fit. Then about a year ago I began running more seriously (but not too seriously to strip the fun away from it). Around this time I decided to invest in a pair of decent running shoes. I had no idea about the many different types of running shoes on the market. The are shoes for runners with high arches, normal arches and low arches. there are shoes for supinators, overpronators and neutral runners. There are firm shoes and cushioned shoes and there are also minimalist shoes. It's enough to make one's head spin. And to top it all off there are the "experts". this brings me to the point of this post.

According to the experts it is recommended that a runner change shoes every 300 to 500 miles. There are many supposed reasons to do this. One is the midsole begins to break down which. Also there is the issue of cushioning. Over many miles the cushioning just doesn't work and protect like it was designed. I even read somewhere that shoes need about 24 hours to recover from a run. Some people even alternate shoes every other workout to allow for this.

Now I know some runner who splurge and follow this guideline regularly. I will admit, there is something about getting a new pair of shoes. I find it exciting at least. I also know other runners who do not follow this guideline. One friend of mine (Dave K.) has a pair with at least 2,000 miles on them....and he still uses them and has no issues.

Currently I am on my second pair of Adidas Response Cushion 17's (which have now been replaced with the 18's). My first pair were retired with over 800 miles on them. My current pair are approaching the 500 mile mark. This is the uppermost range according to the experts.

Here's what I want to know from any runners reading this post: When do you change your shoes? How often? What are the signs that you follow? etc.

I'm curious as to how many actually follow the experts advice. I'm sure the shoes companies would love us to buy new shoes every 300-500 miles. For some people I know that would mean a new pair of shoes every 2-3 months. With the price of shoes on the market that can really add up over time.

How often do you buy new running shoes?

Super Bowl Party Time!

2010-02-02T16:25:00.000-08:00

That time of year is upon us once again. It's time for chips, dips, pizza, greasy party food, you name it! On Sunday night millions will gather around the TV to watch the Colts play the Saints in the biggest sporting event in the world.

But why do we gather together? What is our purpose? Is it merely to eat too much bad food? Is it merely to watch game that ultimately will be forgotten about in the near future? Oh, I know....it's about the commercials isn't it?

Alan Knox (who blogs at www.alanknox.net)points to a deeper issue. For the Christian our gathering together is about so much more. Here's a snippet from Alan's latest posting:

"I never know what will be discussed during a party like this… but there are always discipling relationships… both for me to help someone else grow in maturity in Christ and for someone else to help me grow. This is what I’m looking forward to the most!"

Discipleship takes place in life situations, even Super Bowl parties. I agree with Alan, I am looking forward to building deeper relationships with people this coming Sunday.

What are you looking forward too this Sunday night?

Prompton Trails - 1, Chris - 0

2010-02-01T10:57:00.000-08:00

Well, I usually have off on Mondays. I had a busy weekend and apparently my body needed to catch up on sleep this morning. So when the alarm went off at 4:30am I went back to bed (and didn't get up until 7am!). After getting the girls ready for school (actually, my wife got them ready and I merely assisted) my day was virtually free. I couldn't help but notice the beautiful winter day that was unfolding. The sky was clear and sunny and the temps were approaching 30 degrees. I felt the urge to take advantage of the day and go for a long run. My legs were feeling really good and the day was near perfect.

Now, the winter around here has been fairly mild. We have seen very little snow or ice this year. With this in mind, I decided to attempt two 9 mile trail loops at the Prompton Reservoir. This is the local trail we run through the spring, summer and fall. It is challenging single track with many roots, rocks and streams. The elevation changes are not great but there are a couple small climbs and the trail rolls gently for the most part. I don't run on trails as often as I would like to, so this opportunity was very exciting to me today. I knew there would be icy sections because the trail is fairly wet all year round, even in the dead of summer when everything else dries up, the Prompton trails do not.

I arrived at the parking lot and grabbed my Ultimate Direction handheld and off I went. I knew the winter was mild but I was surprised at how bare and open the trail actually was. Then, about one mile into the run, I hit the first icy section. It was not a little section, it was deep ice about 15 feet wide and smooth. I went down on my right side and slide onto my back. I was unhurt but the trail definitely caught my attention. "I hope the whole trail is not like this," I said out loud as I brushed myself off and continued on my way.

Needless to say, the rest of the trail was like that. Occasionally there would be icy sections that would be anywhere from 10 to 20 feet wide. It definitely made for tough going. In between the icy sections the trail was great. Wide open, no snow or ice and I could find a good comfortable pace....but as soon as this would happen I would come upon another icy section. I ended up falling two more times and the third time i fell I bruised my right elbow (nothing serious thankfully). The trail I was on stretches for about 5.5 miles before bring you out onto Rte. 170, where you are on the road very briefly before cutting back into the park and follow another trail back to the parking lot. When I got to this section I decided to bag the trail run because I knew it would be more of the same. Instead, I opted for some road running along rte. 170.

I ended up doing 5.5 trail miles and 10.5 road miles for a total of 16 miles. Overall and in spite of the falls my legs felt pretty good. I am thankful that my LaSportiva Wildcats are just as comfortable on the road as they are on the trail.

Also, as I was cruising along rte. 170 a few things came to mind. The one that sticks out the most has to do with humility. I have been feeling really good and have had some decent runs lately and I have been riding high, so to speak. Today's run definitely humbled me and brought me "back down to size."

As I was running this scripture came to mind:

"Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall." - Proverbs 16:18

Today I definitely fell ( three times!). Thankfully I'm okay and it was still a good run for which I am thankful.

To God be the glory.

Here's a picture (obviously not from the winter) showing a snippet of the trail next to the lake.

Off to a Good Start

2010-01-31T14:43:00.000-08:00

Well, here we are at the end of January already. So far the winter season has been suprisingly mild. We have experienced cold temperatures but not too much snow and ice. This has allowed me to get a good jump on training for Laural Highlands in June. Mu total mileage for January comes in at 201.6. I'm pretty happy with that considering it is January afterall. I hope and pray that this is an indicator of how the rest of the year will go.

After an easy and light December and early January my legs are feeling good. The aches and "crankiness" my legs felt after JFK have all been worked out now and I'm starting to get focused in for Laurel Highlands.

To God be the Glory.

Chris after his chilly morning run!!!! Love the iced beard! (1 photo), by stacey freet

2010-01-23T19:41:00.001-08:00

I'd like to share my York photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.
Click here to view photos

Update on Haiti from Free Methodist World Missions and Bishop David Roller

2010-01-22T11:10:00.001-08:00

Here is the latest video update on what is going on in Haiti and how the Free Methodist Church has and is responding. Please take a few moments to watch, pray and plan how you can help make a difference in the lives of people who matter.

To God be the Glory,
Chris

Changes Already?

2010-01-20T14:02:00.000-08:00

Well, we're not even through the month of January yet and my schedule for the year is already changing.

Change 1:
The Laurel Highlands 70.5 mile ultra is now a 76.5 mile ultra. Apparently the bridge that takes the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail across the PA Turnpike is closed and in need of repair. The RD (Rick Freeman) has rerouted that section adding an additional 6 miles to the race. But hey, what's an additional six miles when you are already running 70.5? I'm still looking forward to it and I still want to run it under 15 hours.

For more info on the bridge issue you can go to the website (www.laurelultra.com).

Change #2:
I was going to run something (unsure as to which distance) in the Finger Lakes Fifties in early July with some friends, but I will not be able to do that again this year. We are taking a family vacation with extended family to Ocean City , MD and the only week everyone could get together happens to be the same time as the FFF's. So that one is now off the list for this year.

Change #3:
I was going to run Virgil Crest 100 miler in September with my friend Dave. This was going to be my first 100 miler. Now, Dave and I are going to do Oil Creek 100 miler in October instead. The entry fee is cheaper (free for Dave becasue he is a race director) and for me personally, it gives me a few more weeks to train for my first 100 miler.

I don't mind changes, but I hope that there aren't too many more to come for 2010 :-)

Grace and Peace,
Chris

Watchung 50k Race Report

2010-01-10T11:47:00.000-08:00

We have to begin this race report by going back in time a little bit. I ran JFK 50 miler back on 11/21/09 and following JFK (which was my first 50 miler) I felt like I needed to rest up a bit. I was already signed up for the Watchung 50k and in early December I emailed the race director, Rick McNulty, and asked him to take me off of the list. I had decided not to run the 50k. My training after JFK took a dive as well. I logged weeks consisting of 17.6, 25.4, 16.8, 22.5, 30 and 53.6 miles respectively. Not exactly prime training for an ultra marathon. However, as the race drew near my good friend and ultra runner Dave Kennedy continued to speak encouraging words to me and about a week before the race I emailed Rick McNulty once again and he very kindly placed me back on the list for the 50k (thanks again Rick!). I didn't know what to expect but I knew I was going. The day before the race I was talking with my wife, Stacey, about it all and I shared that I was unsure about how hard I would go, etc. And she responded, "Why wouldn't you race to win?" And I said, "You know, you're right." I knew that when the race started that I would have a hard time not going out hard. This leads up to race day itself.

Dave had agreed to pick my up at 4:45am. I woke up around 4am, had some coffee and grabbed a shower. Then I did a double check of all my gear. The race consisted of three trail loops of the Sierra Trail in the Watchung Reservation outside of Morristown, NJ. In light of this, I brought multiple changes of shirts and layers just in case I needed to change clothes between loops. I definitely over packed. Around 4:30am I had a large bowl of Kashi cereal with vanilla soy milk (my race day breakfast of choice). When Dave got to my house precisely at 4:45, we packed up and proceeded to go to Dunkin Donuts for more coffee (yeah!). Then it was off to Watchung which was only about 2 hours by car.

When we arrived we were one of the first people in the parking lot. It was cold and breezy. We sat around in the warmth of the car going over things and just enjoying the pre-race mental preparation. I like getting to the location early then I'm not rushed and can enjoy the time and get into a good mindset early on. I wasn't sure what to expect with this being my first winter race so I brought two pair of shoes and I made a late decision as to which pair to wear. I brought my LaSportiva Wildcats which are a great trail shoe with good cushioning and great grip and I also brought my Adidas Kanadia TR's which I have winterized with screws for added traction on snow and ice, but the Adidas lack good cushioning. About 20 minutes before the race I heard the race director telling others that the trail was icy with a thin layer of snow. I decided to go with the Adidas shoes. with the screws.

After handing out some pre-race goodies care of Hammer Nutrition, Zombie Runner and Road ID, the race director gave the pre-race talk and by a few minutes after 8am we were off and running. I first half mile or so if this trail had a think layer of ice with a light dusting of snow on top. It was already pretty slick and you can imagine how it looked after 100+ runners passed it numerous times--it was just a sheet of ice. The going was slow at first but the trail quickly opened up and the runners quickly spread out. I was moving along pretty good for the the first few miles until....what a minute, where are the white blazes on the trees? I was lost already. I had followed what I thought was the trail and climb a steep hill that actually was not the trail. Thankfully, I recognized the lack of trail markings and a group of about 6 runners passed me by and shouted to me that I had to backtrack. What a great way to start the race. I could have kicked myself because the trail was marked well, I had just missed it. Thankfully, this would not happen again during the race.

After getting myself back on the trail I would find myself running right behind Randy Miller (the winner of the Mountain Madness 50k and the Laurel Highlands 70 miler). I just tucked in behind Randy and fell in at a good pace. I followed Randy for a while through beautiful sections of tall pine trees, over ridges, along creeks and small lakes and ponds. This trail is awesome. There was one technical section but it was not longer than about a quarter-mile and the rest of the 10+mile trail is very runnable. It may be one of my favorites. There were really no big climbs, just a lot of gently rolling terrain. After few miles a girl named Amy (who would be the first women to finish) joined in and I found that the three of us, Randy, Amy and myself were flip-flopping positions. this would take place for the first two laps. Randy would walk and I would pass him. Later Randy would pass me again. then Amy would stop for a drink and i would pass her. then a little bit later she would pass me. It went on like this for a while.

This race is what is known as a "Fat Ass" race. these races are self-supporting and they are free. Rick did have three aid stations set up though and they looked fully stocked. I planned on using my own items though. I had filled three water bottles with Hammer Nutrition's Perpetuem. Each serving has about 240 calories and just the right amount of fat, carbs and protein. The added benefit of Perpetuem is that it does not use any refined sugar. It only uses natural ingredients and is diabetic friendly. Refined sugar can also wreck havoc on one's digestive system. I decided that this would Be my main fuel for the race. I also had some Hammer Gels and a few 100 calorie Cliff Bars in case I felt like something else. I also carried Hammer Endurolytes with me. Endurolytes are electrolyte tabs. I planned on taking two every hour. I put 12 of them in a Ziploc baggy and hoped I would finish in under 6 hours. I ended up using all three bottles of Perpetuem, one bottle of water, one Cliff Bar and two gels.

As I came into the parking lot after the first loop (1:38) I went directly to the car and exchanged bottles, put a gel in my pocket and grabbed a Cliff Bar and I was immediately on my way. I could not have been there more than 30 seconds or so. I didn't want to lose time between the loops. As soon as I was off again, I found myself running in the vicinity of Randy Miller again. And as was typical with the first loop, Amy would catch up and the sequence would continue on. At one point Amy and I were talking and she shared that this was her first ultra. She was an accomplished marathoner though (she ran Boston on 3 hours last year). She said that this ultra was "just an experiment." Humph, some experiment. She didn't even look winded at all. At one point Randy mentioned to me, "she looks good doesn't she!" She looked fresh like she just started the race. The second loop was uneventful for the most part. However, I did feel my legs start to tighten up around half way through the second loop. Prior to this 50k my longest run since JFK 50 was only 15.4 miles. I could start to feel my lack of training taking effect. In spite of this I came out of the woods to the parking lot finishing the second loop and about the same time as it took me to do the first loop (1:39 = 3:17).

The third loop would be much different from the first two. To put it bluntly, I bonked on the third loop. My legs felt zapped of energy, I walked more than the first two loops and mentally it was tougher as well. Also,I literally "felt" my decision to go with the Adidias trail shoes. I felt the lack of cuhioning in the shoe beginning to affect my calves. the began to tighten up. No pain, just stiffness and tightness. Wha they made up for in traction they lacked in other areas. I don;t know if I will wear them on a long run again. But I just continued to push onward. Within the first mile of this loop both Amy and Randy passed me by and I would not see them again until the finish. I felt alone on this third loop. I think I only saw one other person for around a five mile stretch. The beauty of the trail helped pass the time. I found myself praying often as well. It was lonely and tough but enjoyed the peaceful of the day. It was a perfect winter day. The temps were int eh 20's, the sky was clear and the sun was bright. I had actually shed my outer jacket after the first loop and I often took off my gloves throughout the race. I just wanted to move at a steady pace till the end. Finally I came back into the parking lot and the race was over.

I ran a total time of 5 hours 17 minutes which was good enough for 8th place overall. That last loop took me 2 hours to complete. I was 19 minutes behind the leader who ran a 4:58. My friend Dave ran well, too. He placed 12th overall with a 5:46.

All in all, it was a great day. I wanted to finish under 6 hours and I did that. Despite my lack of training since JFK I still had a good race overall. I learned a lot from watching runner's like Randy Miller and I hope to continue to grow as an ultra runner. Watchung is a great race on a great trail with great people. Lord willing I be back again next year.

Dave and I prayed before the race that we would bring glory and honor to god through the gifts and abilities He gave us. I fell like we did this today.

To God be the glory!

Here's a shot of Dave coming through the woods.

Here's a shot of your's truly coming into a field.

Running for the Community

2010-01-02T18:05:00.000-08:00

http://www.wayneindependent.com/news/x370508290/Church-assists-County-Food-Pantry
What good are the gifts we have been given if we do not use them for the edification of others?

Winter Running Set-up

2010-01-01T12:21:00.000-08:00

First of all...I hope and pray that every one has a great 2010!

Here in northeast PA we had another snowfall yesterday. It wasn't much, only around four inches or so total. It was just enough to make it slushy outside today for my first run of 2010. Today I ran a short 6.6 miler and I had the opportunity to try my winter running set-up for the first time.

I regularly read Jeff Browning's blog, he's from the Bend, Oregon area and is an accomplished ultra runner. I have a link to his blog on my blog roll if you want to check it out. He has a post regarding his winter running set-up. Jeff demonstrates step by step how to "screw your shoes" using 3/8" hex head sheet metal screws. I went to the local home depot bought a few of the specified screws and came home and went to work. First I placed four screws on the outsole of my winter boots and I placed two on the outsole of the heel. I wanted to practice on those first before attempting it on my shoes. Needless to say, it was very easy and simple to do. Jeff recommended using a drill type tool, but I am mechanically deficient, so I just used a screwdriver and arm power. My driveway has just enough pitch to it in the middle that when I would shovel I would always slip and slide. Now with the screws in the boots I can shovel the middle portion of my driveway and I have not slipped yet. The screws work.

After I screwed my boots I moved on to my shoes. I decided to screw my Adidas Kanadia TR trail shoes. I followed the same format as with my boots, four screws on lugs on the outsole in the forefoot and two in lugs on the outsole of the heel. Here's a picture:

During my run today it was warmer than I expected so I didn't encounter any ice, but I did encounter a lot of slush. The shoes have a pretty aggressive tread pattern anyway, but with the added screws I did not slip once during the run. And the screws are so light that you don;t even know they're there. If you are looking for a winter set-up I recommend trying this. Also, if you are wondering, this does not hurt the shoe since the screws are inserted into the lugs on the outsole. they can also easily be removed.

If you have a winter running set-up what is it?What do you like to use for the slushy and icy days?

2009 Mileage

2009-12-31T05:27:00.000-08:00

Well, today brings a close to another year. For me it was a year in which I really caught the "ultra running bug". In 2009 I ran my first 50k and my first 50 miler. Overall, it a great year full of great experiences, great friends and fantastic support from my family. I'm looking forward to what 2010 will bring.

Back in March 2009 I started logging my weekly mileage and since March 23, 2009 I have run a total of 1,444.6 miles. I'm pretty happy with that total considering this was my first year of really running any distances.

I hope and pray that everyone's 2010 will be full of joy and blessings.
To God be the glory.

-Chris

A Story of Perserverance--Adam Fitzgerald

2009-12-28T10:22:00.000-08:00

Bryon Powell over at iRunfar.com has shared an amazing story that I think helps put things into persepective. Life as we know it can be changed in an instant.

Here's the story as Bryon shares it:

Over the past year you may have heard the inspiring stories of runners Diane van Deren and Amy Palmiero-Winters. Diane, whose epilepsy was cured by aggressive brain surgery in 1997, was named one of National Geographic’s Adventurers of the Year for 2009 for being the first woman to finish the Yukon Artic Ultra 430-mile race. In the second half of 2009, Amy, a single leg amputee, set an unofficial 50-mile amputee record, broke that record again with an 8:43, and then won the Heartland 100. Well, just in time for the holidays, we’ve got another inspiring runner for you: Adam Fitzgerald.

Adam, a pastoral care minister at Seacoast Church in South Carolina, is no stranger to endurance sports. While in high school he ran the mile, but focused more on competitive cycling. After the theft of his bike during college, Adam focused his attention on running. He picked up some local sponsorship and busted out sub-17:00 minute 5ks and a 1:21 half marathon. However, after a few years of racing, Adam burned out and gave up competitive running.

Fast forward to 2000. Adam is lying in a hospital bed. Complications from asthma have him on the brink of being intubated. During his week in the hospital he decides he should run a marathon, something he previously swore he’d never do during his earlier running days. A year later, he ran the Myrtle Beach Marathon and, as he says, “caught the distance bug.”

Two years later, Adam was out for a short run with his brother. Four miles in, Adam stopped and vomited. Something didn’t seem right. Over the next few weeks he couldn’t eat, so he eventually returned to the surgeon who had removed his appendix six months early. The doctor could find nothing wrong. Two months after the initial incident, Adam was down to 120 pounds and was starting to lose motor control.

In search of answers, Adam got a second opinion from his neurosurgeon. Again, the tests showed nothing… until two weeks later when he returned to the doctor. A brain fluid culture showed Adam had a slowly growing brain infection. Ninety minutes later, Adam was in surgery. The surgeons replaced the shunt that drains Adam’s brain. The new shunt was Adam’s fifth. He’s had them continually since doctors discovered he was hydrocephalic when he was three months old.

A month after two surgeries in 2003, Adam told his wife he wanted to run a 50k in nearby Charleston. She consented. Seven months later, he completed his first ultra. As it turns out, the 50k would be far from Adam’s biggest challenge. Since 2003, he’s had 13 surgeries, including 11 brain surgeries. A second brain infection led his neurosurgeon to replace Adam’s existing shunt that drained excess brain fluid to his abdominal cavity with one that drained to his heart’s atrium. That shunt has since been replaced multiple times due to a series of malfunctions.

As if hydrocephaly weren't enough of a challenge, Adam also suffers from a form of vertigo called BPPV. When untreated, BPPV leaves the afflicted feeling as if they are moving even while at rest. From 1994 through 2007, Adam had five ear surgeries to try and correct the problem. However, in 2008 the condition worsened to the point where Adam had to give up his martial arts teaching position. (He has black belts in taekwando and tang soo do, as well as a purple belt in a Korean sword art.) He also had to stop driving. Non-invasive treatments did not correct the problem. That led Adam to have a lab labyrinthectomy in October 2008.

What is a labyrinthectomy? In short, the balance center in the inner ear is removed. In some cases, including Adam’s, this involves drilling. The surgery put him through “living hell for a week” until his brain corrected. And then he started relearning how to walk.

Early in the summer of 2009, Adam decided he wanted to end the year on his terms. He started looking for local ultras. It turns out that he’d long been fascinated by 12-hour runs and had planned a 12-hour self-support track run prior to his second brain infection and resultant surgeries. Fortunately for Adam, there’s a 12-hour option at the Freedom Park New Year’s Ultra in Morganton, North Carolina on New Year’s Eve.

Following his labrynthectomy, Adam couldn't run more than 50 meters. He slowly increased his training to the point where he was able to log two runs of 29 and 30 miles in recent weeks. His training has been aided by his longest surgery-free streak in 11 years – almost 14 months. (Adam, right, following a brain surgery)

On Thursday, Adam will test his training and his resolve for 12 hours. He says he’ll be satisfied with 40 miles, happy with 50 miles, and ecstatic with 60 miles. Even though we think that his stepping up to the starting line is a victory, we wish him the best of luck in achieving his goals and hope you will, too. We're sure your encouragement would mean a great deal!

Adam intends to provide updates from the course. Once we learn where he’ll post those updates, we’ll add that location to his post.

We’ll close with two thoughts Adam shared during our interview:
•I would have preferred not to have had those surgeries and gone through the hard times, but it’s an asset in this line of work [as a pastoral care minister].
•Relentless forward progress is a mentality that you can use in everyday life.

Looking Ahead --> 2010

2009-12-28T09:36:00.000-08:00

Well, here we are at the end of another decade looking forward yet once again. I'm not really one for "new year's resolutions" but I do like to have goals. I think it is important to work toward something, whatever it is. So, I decided to share some of my goals for 2010. Some of them are running related, others are ministry related and a few are family related.

Running Related Goals for 2010:
1. In 2009 so far I have covered a little over 1,400 miles (since the end of March). I would like to cover at least 1,500+, if not 2,000, in 2010.

2. I plan on focusing on two races: Laurel Highlands Ultra = 70.5 miles; and Virgil Crest = 100 miles. These will be my first races at these distances. Merely finishing them would be nice.

3. I have been reading a bit about "minimalist running"...so I am going to try to make a gradual transition to a minimalist shoe. I am not planning on being a barefoot runner, however, minimalist running strengthens the muscles in the lower leg. These muscles are often weaker due to the cushioned shoes we wear. My goal is to build up the strength in my lower legs (which will also prevent injury). I did receive a pair of New Balance MT100's for Christmas. They are a minimalist trail shoe. When the weather breaks in the spring I will take them out on short trail runs occasionally.

Ministry Related Goals for 2010:
1. The more I read the New Testament, the more I am struck by the "community" of saints. The early church was a community of believers who looked radically different from the rest of the world. Each member of the community recognized they had a part to play in the building up of the Body of Christ. My goal is to continue, with God's guidance, to bring awareness to this truth and encourage the church in which I serve to embrace and live out this truth.

2. Missions is not just merely a program of the church. Missions is to be a way of life for the believer. I want to focus more on making missions a lifestyle in the local community to which I am a part.

Family Related Goals:
1. Continue to make my relationship with my wife of the utmost importance. The greatest gift we can give our two little girls is a strong marriage. We are the model that they see on a regular basis. My wife comes first (next to God, of course). We need to take time for regular "date nights" together.

2. Continue to spend as much time with my daughters as possible. I'm not a believer in "quality time" per se. I believe more in "quantity time". If the quantity is there then I think that the quality will also be there too. My girls need to know that their Daddy is there for them.

If we don't have goals, things that we are striving for, what are we doing with our precious time?

How about you? What are your goals?

"A Random Convenience Store" by Alan Knox

2009-12-25T13:31:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine named Alan Knox, who is a PhD student at South Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest N.C., posted a great story about something he and his wife experienced while picking up ice at a local convenience store. Read it, it is a great reminder of how we are to treat others (especially as people who call on the name of Jesus Christ).

Hoping everyone is having a wonderful Christmas!

Grace and Peace,
Chris

Now here's Alan's story:

_________________________________

Yesterday, Christmas Eve, we spent the day with my family. We had lunch with my Mom and Dad, and with my brother and his family. We needed some ice, so Margaret and I went down the road to a local convenience store to buy a bag. This was a normal convenience store combined with a chain gas station. (I honestly don’t remember which gas station.)

There were two employees in the store, both of them men. The oldest of the two men was wearing a “Santa” hat, and was helping an elderly lady pick out a bottle of wine at a wine display. When the lady had picked out her bottle of wine – the bottle that was recommended by the employee – they walked up to the counter together. She asked how much the wine cost, and also handed the man two bottles of coke (in glass bottles!).

The man, “We talked about this already. This is our Christmas gift to you. There’s no charge for the wine or for the cokes.”

The lady protested slightly, as you must do in the South, and then began proclaiming, “I love y’all! I just love y’all so much!”

Meanwhile, I was standing in line at the cash register where the other employee was working. The lady in front of me wanted to by a car wash. She said that she had not bought gas because she had a full tank, but she was traveling through town and wanted to get a car wash. The man rang up the lower price for her (as if she had bought gas), and then he reached beneath the counter to get her car wash code.

“Oh, no!” he said, “It says the car wash needs maintenance.”

The other employee said, “I guess I need to fill up the soap.”

The employee at the cash register asked the lady if she could come back in a few minutes. She said she needed to buy a few things, so she would go to a local store and come back for the car wash. He handed her the car wash code and said, “I’m not going to charge you for this. That way, if he doesn’t get the soap filled before you come back, then you’re not out anything, and if he does get it filled, then you can just consider it a Christmas gift.”

I bought the bag of ice, thinking about the great example these two employees demonstrated. I don’t know if these two men are Christians are not, but they showed that they cared more about people than about their business. They were more concerned with being good neighbors than making a buck. We need to see – and be – more examples like this.

As I walked out of the store, the elderly lady was still saying, “I just love y’all so much!”

Gear Review -> LaSportiva Wildcats

2009-12-14T12:35:00.000-08:00

I have been wanting to write a review of LaSportiva's Wildcat trail running shoes for a little while now and after today's run I finally told myself to sit and and write the review.

I live in northeast PA and even though it is eastern PA we still get "lake effect" snow the comes off of Lake Erie. You can watch the systems move west to east on a fairly regular basis. Now, of course we do not receive the same amount of snow that others receive, but for the east I think we get our fair share. Last year we had white stuff on the ground from October to early April. So far this year it has been pretty mild and we did not receive our first winter weather until last week. We received around 6 inches of snow and we have been dealing with freezing rain for the past couple of days. Well, today was fairly mild, approaching the 40 degree range, and I decided to go for an afternoon run. I ran a 5.4 mile loop that consisted of approximately 60% dirt road and 40% paved road. Since we have melting snow and ice I decided to wear my LaSportiva Wildcats. I love these shoes, let me just say that from the beginning.

I first received them in mid-September for my birthday (thanks to my wonderful wife, Stacey!). Right out of the box I did a 30 miler on a fairly rocky trail. They felt great. A few weeks later I wore them for the Mountain Madness 50k, again a fairly rocky course. And once again, my feet felt great. I used them on a few shorter trail runs in between and I have not had any issues with them. No blisters at all, none, nada, zilch, etc., etc. I even used them to run the JFK 50 miler this past month.

The Wildcats have adequate cushioning for the long trail runs but not too much. They still allow you to feel the trial under your feet but you do not feel the sharp rocks underneath. I experienced no bruising from the stones on the trail.

Also, the tread on the shoes are superb. On mud, rocks, grass, whatever the terrain, I found the Wildcats to perform very well. Especially today on my run in the ice and snow. The dirt road section was covered with melting ice from the recent storms and I found that with each step I did not slip once. With each plant of the foot the shoes gripped very well. I did notice a little bit of slipping occasionally when I would pick my feet up, but when I planted them they felt firm. I did not have any hobnails or any other traction device on the shoes but I still felt confident in them despite the conditions.

A little bit about the size of the shoes. LaSportivas use the European measuring system so make sure you check the sizing chart. I normally wear a size 10 (in Adidas) road shoes. When I looked at the sizing chart I noticed the a US 10 was somewhere between an EU 43-43.5. So I called LaSportiva (in America, not overseas) and they gentleman on the phone suggested I go with the size 43 because they have a large toe box. I did and I must say that was a good call. They fit perfectly and they have more than enough room in the toe box.

Another added feature of the Wildcats is the mesh debris guard the cover the front of the shoe underneath the laces. This is just enough protection from unwanted debris that can enter you shoe and cause blister or other discomfort.

All in all, the LaSportiva Wildcats are a great trail shoe with adequate protection and just enough cushioning for the long trail runs. They drain water well and the debris guard helps keep out unwanted stones and sticks. They retail around $100 (but I found mine on sale for around $60).

Snow Day

2009-12-09T16:02:00.000-08:00

We'll, we had our first major snow storm of the season today here in noetheast PA. We ended up with about 6 inches of wet and heavy snow. After shoveling the driveway, sidewalk and parking spot. I had to go to a monthly pastors meeting. After that it was "game time" with the family.

Here are some photos of our fun filled afternoon.

Here are Daddy and Emma after a ride down the hill.

Here are Emma and Ana posing with Mr. Snowman.

Here comes Ana...watch out!!

Watch out for the house! Yikes!

"I'm the big sister."

My three favorite ladies.

I love spending time with my family. When I am away from them for a long period of time I miss them very much. I like to spend as much time with my family as possible. I'm a believer in quantity time over quality time. If the quantity is there then the quality will be there too, no matter what you are doing.

A Time to Rest

2009-12-08T06:02:00.000-08:00

The author of the Old Testament book Ecclesiastes wrote in chapter 3,

"There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity
under heaven."

The classic band The Byrds made these words from this chapter of scripture popular in their 1960's hit, "Turn, Turn, Turn". But these words hold truth for all people.
There is a time for everything under heaven.

I have entered into a time of rest regarding my running. Many runners take a hiatus from running at some point in the season to heal, recoup and spend extra time with family, etc. I was planing on taking some time anyway but my plans have changed somewhat from my original idea.

I was registered for the Watchung Winter Ultra 50k that is scheduled to take place on January 9th. This was going to be my last race of the "season". Following this race I was going to enter into my rest period for a few weeks. However, I am dealing with an achy left knee and an achy left ankle. Also, since JFK my legs have not yet recovered their usual "umph" (or at least it feels that way). Yesterday I ran 10.4 miles at an 8:19 pace and my knee was really achy the rest of the day and through the night. So, I have decided to withdraw from Watchung and enter into my rest period now. I am planning in doing the Laurel Highlands Ultra in June and I want to be fully rested and healed before I start training for that one, which is 70.5 miles.

Am I disappointed? Yeah, a little. I love to run. I love the feeling I get while running. I love running with my friends. I love talking to God while running. But as I look back over 2009 I am full of contentment. I ran my first two ultras this year and they both went very well. In October I ran in the first Mountain Madness 50k and placed 7th overall. Then a month later I ran my first 50 miler at JFK finishing sub-9 hours and placing 177th out of 1027. Back in April I ran my first and longest trail race which was 9 miles. I have come a long way since then. I also began tracking my weekly mileage back on March 23. From March 23 to December 7 I ran a total of 1,354.1 miles. I'm happy with that total since this is really my first year of long distance running.

I am already excited to get back out on the trails and roads, but now it's time to rest, recover and rejoice with friends and family. I am thankful to Jesus Christ for the ability and opportunity he has provided through the outlet of running and I do not want to take it for granted. I know it can be taken away in the blink of an eye. I look forward to what new adventures 2010 will bring. In the meantime....

have a merry Christmas and a joyous new year!

To God be the glory!

JFK 50 Photos

2009-12-05T11:14:00.000-08:00

Here are two photos from the JFK 50.

This is a shot of your truly crossing the finish line at the school in Williamsport, Maryland. My finishing time was 8:51:11. That time met my goal of sub nine hours and was good enough for 177th out of 1027. All in all a great experience.

This one was taken on the canal tow path at some point in the middle miles of the race.

JFK 50 Race Report - Part Three

2009-11-24T13:59:00.000-08:00

The next stage of the race was the infamous C&O Canal Tow Path which runs along the Potomac River. This stretch is easy as it is on packed dirt and gravel with a nice layer of fallen leaves and it is flat, flat, flat. However, the TP is not easy on the mind. I have heard about the monotony of this section because it extends 26.3 miles (slightly longer than a regular marathon) and it all looks the same. It is beautiful but it is long and drags on.

Almost immediately I joined up with a runner named Steve of the Albany Runner's Exchange team. Steve was a 5 time veteran of the JFK and I asked him if he would be okay with some company. Steve was someone to talk to on the TP and I know it would help pass the time. Steve was wearing a Garmin and after the first two miles he checked the pace...we were doing 8:20! We both decided to pull it back to around 9:00 and go steady. After a few miles we ran and chatted and ran and chatted. Steve was very polite and even gave me some advice when he found out it was my first time running JFK (thanks Steve!). When he found out that I was hoping to finish under 9 hours he was very encouraging and he looked at his Garmin and said, "If you keep this pace up, you'll definitely meet that goal." I wanted that goal but I knew there was a long way to go yet. Eventually I looked over to my left and recognized a familiar sight--Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. I knew that we were now around the 20 mile (+/-) mark. I use to kayak on the Shenandoah and Potomac with friends a few years ago, it was nice to be back in the area once again and to see the water from a different perspective. After a few more miles with Steve we came upon an aid
station and they had port-a-potties and I still had not gone to the bathroom from earlier so I decided to stop since there were no lines and no waiting. Steve wished me luck and I him, then we parted ways.

After coming out of the port-a-potty I passed a runner who was sitting on the side of the path with his shoe off and ice on his ankle. I thought, "Bummer, he must have twisted it on the AT section." I filled up my bottle with the 50/50 mix of Gatorade and water then continued on my way. My stomach was feeling good and I also took another Saltstick tab around this point. Things were going well. That particular aid station stop was my longest. I made it a point not to linger at the aid stations and coming in to them I would unscrew the cap off my bottle for the volunteers and to conserve time. I think I did a fair job at the aid stations overall.

Things were going great overall until around mile 30. That was when it started getting tough for me mentally. I knew I still had another half-marathon to go until I got off the TP section. It was also around this time that I really stopped taking in solid food. My stomach was never queasy but it did feel "full" (but not bloated). For the rest of the race I would only have two Hammer gels, a GU gel, and some chicken soup broth. I must admit, one of the things that got me through this section was the aid stations/volunteers. I would check the mileage to the next aid station and take them one at a time. Also, the volunteers were phenomenal! For example, aid station 34.5 was great. Coming into the aid station there were candy canes lining the path, signs that said welcome to the north pole, etc. You could even get your picture taken with Santa and they would email it to you later (rumor has it that Dave and Paul got a photo with Mr. Claus). I didn't stop at this aid station but the Christmas music and the atmosphere was a great encouragement. Later I heard they even had Christmas cookies. I didn't realize it at first but the volunteers of the aid station at mile 34 were playing off of the Miracle on 34th Street. Pretty clever theme, gang. Thanks for making it easier on us. Also, during this stretch there were sections lined with hundreds of spectators and they were all fantastic. Shouting encouraging things, etc. It was a real boast during a mentally difficult section.

Also, during this section I was leap-frogging with another runner named Chris. He, too, was extremely helpful and encouraging. Occasionally I would take some walk breaks during this section. I tried not to take too many because, (1) I didn't want to get into a death "death march" routine and (2) I found that when I shifted from walking back to running it was difficult. Instead, I tried to just slow down to an easy jog rather than walk. I still did take a few walk break though and I think my longest was three minutes. I did walk coming out of the aid stations, but they were only about 30 seconds or so. Then, finally, there it was....the dam! I knew that the TP section ended near the dam, that meant I was almost at the last road section. Eventually I came into the last aid station right before turning right onto the 8.5 mile road section, I filled up my hand held and stepped onto the pavement...and it felt good. I looked at my watch and the time read 2:26pm. I was on the TP section for about 4:36 minutes, about a half-hour longer than my anticipated goal. Can I still make it under 9 hours? I knew the road section would not have many walking breaks if any if I wanted to make it under 9 hours.

Almost immediately you approach a hill on this third and final section. I did walk this hill even though I don't think it is really that big. But once I crested the hill I dug down and used what I had left and began to pick up the pace and I felt a second wind as I went up and down over the gently rolling terrain. I passed a few people on this stretch and that felt good. I skipped the aid stations on this stretch because I knew I could do 8 miles with one full bottle and I filled it when I came onto the road. I did take two 30 second walk breaks on this section but I wanted to keep going because I knew my time was close and I could smell the finish line. Again, the volunteers and support during this section (as well as the whole race) was great! Everyone was so encouraging. :You look great!" "You look strong!" "You're almost there, keep going!" I heard those phrases over and over again, and each one helped. During this section there are road markers every miles which was nice. The next thing I knew I was at marker 3...only a 5k left to go! Then the sign signifying only 1 mile left to go!

Now at this point the race comes into the town of Williamsport, Maryland. And the volunteers did a great job directing traffic, etc. I came into one intersection and they had all four ways blocked for the runners and One lady yells to me, "You're doing it...only a half mile to go! Way to go!" And then it hits me...I'm really going to finish this thing! Then the tears start to come. I just can;t help it. But I laugh at myself and tell myself, "Come on Freet! You have a half mile to go!" Then I see it, the finish line. You seem to pick it up a gear and cruise across the line to the cheers of the crowd and the announcer calling out your name. I looked at my watch and it read 3:51!! I had done it! I broke the nine hour barrier! My official time was 8:51:11. It was surreal for me. Immediately they take the timing chip off my shoe and place the finishers medal around my neck and I go over to the left where the school complex is located and I kneel down and pray...."Thank you, thank you, thank you for this ability and this opportunity. Thank you for the support of all the people who helped me get here. I hope You were honored today by the way I ran. Thank you for the church and the community that raised $6,651.21 for Clear Blue Global Water Project through this event. Please help Dave and Paul to finish strong. In Jesus' name, Amen!"

After this moment I walked over to a grassy area to sit and watch for Dave and Paul to come in and cross the finish line. After a few minutes an EMT came over and asked me if I was okay. I told her yeas and that I was fine, just waiting for my friends to finish. She told me that there was pizza in the school as well as other food for the finishers. I struggled to get my stiff legs moving but I managed and she again asked if I was okay. I told her I was and that I was just stiff. I went in and got two slices of pizza, a banana and some water. After eating I went back outside and found Dave, he had crossed the line in 9:08. Then Dave and I went back in to the school as he shared with me some events from his day. After he grabbed some food we hurried back outside to watch for Paul. We knew he would not be far behind. then, after a short period of time, we saw his blue shirt. Dave and I quickly got into a good position so we could cheer our friend in over the finish. Paul had completed the course in 9:39.

All in all my first race at the 50 mile distance couldn't have gone any better. The atmosphere at JFK was awesome and I think I want to run it again. I will definitely try another race at this distance. Writing this a few days after the race I feel great. I have no issues with my legs, knees or ankles. Everything feels great. This moment is one I will cherish and forever carry with me. The best is that I had the opportunity to share it with two great friends. I would like to thank my wife and daughters for all of their support, my church family for their generosity and for going above and beyond all expectations, as well as Dave, Paul and the rest of the Run Free group. I could not have done this without your help and support.

To God be the glory!

JFK 50 Race Report - Part Two

2009-11-23T05:24:00.000-08:00

Prior to the start as the three of us were walking to the starting line we prayed. We thanked God for the ability and the opportunity that he provided us. We also prayed for all of the runners and their safety and also we prayed that each of us would worship God through our running during the race and bring honor to him. These words were not just a whimsical prayer, for me they were very serious. And right from the beginning I felt like things were dialed in. On the climb to the AT trail head I felt good. I kept telling myself to not go too hard too early. My breathing was already in a steady rhythm and I could hear people around me huffing and puffing on the 2 mile climb to the AT.

Once on the AT section I tucked behind a train of runners and felt like I hit cruise control. As long as my pace felt steady I was content to follow the train but when I felt my pace dropping off or I starting getting to close to the runner in front of me then I would make a pace on the left hand side. This was the way I ran the AT section the whole time. One thing I will say about the AT section is that I thought the hills were going to big bigger. Now don't get me wrong, I walked the bigger hills early on to conserve energy for later but overall I thought the AT section was going to be tougher. When I saw the elevation profile I tried to really prepare myself mentally for huge hills. Actually, I think the AT section was mostly ridge running. Here's an elevation profile from Bryon Powell's website (iRunFar.com).

The AT section was technical but definitely runnable. I made it a point to run on some technical trails as much as I could to try to prepare for this section. I ran a local 3 mile trail loop called Shuman Point Trail that has little to no elevation but is rocky and technical. Also, Dave and I ran the Mountain Madness 50k which was hilly and technical. This was great preparation for JFK in my opinion. One dilemma I had to deal with was which shoe should I wear for JFK. Bryon Powell recommended road shoes even though there are about 16 miles on the AT. I really wrestled with this prior to the race and actually I brought my pair of trail shoes and my road shoes. I finally decided to go with my trail shoes (LaSportiva Wildcats). My Wildcats are cushy for trail shoes and they wore great on the trail and also on the tow path and roads. I'm glad I went with them. As a matter of fact, while on the AT section I noticed many runners in road shoes and they were slipping all over the place as well as rolling their ankles. I had no such problems during this section. As a side note, I also came out of the race blister free and with zero hot spots on my feet. My sock choice was a pair of Wigwam Tailwind Pro's. They are a thinner sock, which I personally like, and they were comfortable throughout the day.

After running for a while and still feeling good, we began to descend gradually and I began to hear something in the distance...the faint sound of screams, shouts and cowbells. This was the Gap aid station and after a few isolated miles on the AT it was like coming out into of the woods into a clearing and crashing some block party. It was awesome! there were literally a few hundred people there lining the trail and volunteering at the aid station, everyone cheering and clapping and yelling encouraging things to the runners. It was quite the scene. I handed my hand held Ultimate Direction bottle to a volunteer and politely asked for some Gatorade (they had lemon-lime at every aid station, my favorite!). Before I could say "Only half, please" she had it filled up to the top. I wanted to do a 50/50 mix of water and Gatorade throughout the race. But not wanting to waste any time at the aid stations I politely thanked the girl, put the top back on my bottle, grabbed three pretzel sticks and continued on my way. At the next aid station I went with water only to try to keep the balance I wanted to achieve. Also, Dave had a bottle of Salt Stick tabs (electrolyte tabs) and I grabbed 6 of them before the race. I used them fairly regularly and I think they helped a great deal throughout the race. I also made it a point to take small sips from my bottle regularly. This is a habit of mine and again I think it helped greatly throughout the race.

The Appalachian Trail section went very well for me in my opinion. Even the final downhill which is a series of steep switchback was not much of a problem. I feared that my quads might take a pounding early on but that was not the case. I came off of the AT section, running through another large crowd of exuberant spectators, made my way to the next aid station where I grabbed a PB&Jelly sandwich and proceeded to run onto the tow path which was the beginning of the next section.

As I stated earlier, my projected time goal for the AT section was about 3 hours. I stepped onto to tow path at 9:50am - 2 hours and 50 minutes - a full ten minutes ahead of my projected time. I was still feeling good. But I knew the worst was yet to come.

JFK 50 Race Report - Part One

2009-11-22T17:44:00.000-08:00

This year's JFK 50 miler was my first ultra at the 50 mile distance. It also marked the culmination of eight months of training. Being relatively new the the ultra running scene I really did not know what to expect. I read as many race reports as I could find as well as articles by other ultra runners with suggestions for newbies who were training for there first ultra. I soaked up as much as I could. Going into the week of JFK I felt really confident. Initially my goal was to finish, then over time it was to finish sub ten hours, then around four weeks out I began to think that sub nine hours was possible. In my mind I had some basic times broken down corresponding to the three stages of the race. The first stage was about 15.5 miles on the Appalachian Trail. I thought that it was possible to do this section in around three hours, at an easy pace and barring any bottlenecks from the large number of runners on the single track trail. The second section was the tow path, 26.3 mile along the Potomac river (flat, flat, flat...and mentally tough!). I thought around four hours for this section. Then there's the final road section which is around 8.5 miles taking you into the finish. For this section I thought no more than two hours to finish. Those estimated times would put me right around nine hours total.

I had the awesome privilege of running this race with two great friends, Dave Kennedy and Paul Maopolski. These guys both helped me out greatly during my training. They are always so encouraging and helpful, not to mention patient with me. Thanks guys! They picked me up at my house around 9:15am on Friday before the race. We went to a local eatery called the Track Side where Paul couldn't fight his urge to get pancakes (If you go there for breakfast you must get the pancakes). After sharing stories and great fellowship we departed for Maryland. According to both the Garmin and the Mapquest directions the trip would be about four hours long. The trip was smooth and quick. We ran into little to no traffic and we made it to our destination an hour ahead of schedule, even with a stop at Panera Bread for lunch. After checking into our hotel we proceeded to go to the neighboring hotel which was the host hotel for the JFK 50. We arrived to pick up our packets with our bib numbers. That's when we saw Hal Koerner and Scott Jurek. We were a little star struck and we wanted to meet them but no one else was making any fuss about them so we ultimately decided that we didn't want to be "those guys" fawning all over the ultra running stars. So we just gazed from afar. We grabbed some free Montrail schwag (water bottle, t-shirt, etc.) which was present since Montrail was a sponsor of the race as well as the race being a part of the Montrail Ultracup series.

Following this we went back to the hotel and just relaxed for a little while before heading out for some pasta at the Olive Garden. When the time came to go eat we arrived to hear that there was a 45-55 minute wait. We proceeded to wait in the bar area and as we waited a table opened up and we waited only around ten minutes. After downing salad, breadsticks and a plate shrimp and asparagus risotto, we proceeded to go back to the hotel and settle in for the night. We set the alarm for 4:00am. We thought this would give us adequate time to get up, shower, eat and get to the school in Boonsboro for the pre-race meeting at 6:20am. The night before we bought cereal, bananas, soy milk and Dave's wife Alice made homemade honey wheat bread. This was our breakfast on race morning. I was not ready to get up when the alarm went off at 4:00am. I tossed and turned practically all night with my mind racing and thinking about the race which was now only hours away. I think I did finally fall asleep and managed to get only a couple hours of sleep. Surprisingly I felt pretty good despite my lack of sleep.

After breakfast, a quick shower and a trip to Dunkin Donuts for some coffee we were on our way. However, we had one small issue. We weren't exactly sure where the Boonsboro school was located. We had an intersection of two routes but without a street address the Garmin cannot find a location. So we looked at a map and attempted to find it that way only to find ourselves heading in the wrong direction. We quickly turned around all the while we were watching the time tick by, we were going to miss the pre-race meeting. Eventually we found the right place and made it in time with seconds to spare only to find out the gymnasium at the school was so packed that we couldn't hear anything anyway. Oh well. Now it was time for last minute checks ups. Re-tie laces, adjust everything, apply Vaseline, etc. One issue we had to face was what to wear during the race. The forecast was partly sunny and upper 50's for the temp. We knew it would be cool if not cold in the morning hours though. eventually we decided on short sleeve shirts and that turned out to be a wise decision. With about 15 minutes until start time I tried to find a bathroom but that was futile. The lines were so long that there was no way I could wait and make it to the start line as well. That would have to wait for later in the race. The starting line was about a half-mile walk from the school. So Dave, Paul and I began the long walk with the other participants. The atmosphere was like that of a huge celebration or party. It was really neat to experience it. We arrived at the starting line with only a minute or two to go before the official start at 7:00am. We worked our way up to around the middle of the pack and before we really knew it the starting horn had blown....we were off. That's when it hit me and I realized that I had just embarked on a 50 mile journey....these were the first steps of many for the entire day. No turning back now.

For about two miles the race follows paved road that gradually climbs up out of Boonsboro, MD to where the runners turn off onto the Appalachian Trail. Dave, Paul and I had talked about trying to stay together as much as we could but we also said that if someone was feeling good then they should just go ahead. During these beginning two miles we were together, until we turned off on to the AT. That was pretty much when we got separated. I would see them about a mile later on the AT but then that would be the last time until We met again at the finish line.

Running for a Purpose

2009-11-18T12:56:00.001-08:00

I know that it is nothing new for marathoners, ultra marathoners or even entire races to be an avenue for raising money for a certain charity or cause. Well, with JFK coming up this Saturday, two friends and I decided to get into the act. With the help of our entire church family (Beach Lake Free Methodist Church,in Beach Lake, PA) we decided to make our attempt at JFK more than about a foot race...we made it about the race for life. We have raised money for a mission called Clear Blue Global Water Project (www.clearblueproject.com). Clear Blue works with local people in developing countries to bring fresh drinking water. they drill wells using indigenous peoples to essentially provide life. Water is essential to life. Our bodies are comprised of around 60% water. As a runner I know the importance of water for the body. But did you know that around 80%(+/-) of children who die in developing countries die of something that is water related? We use hundreds of gallons of water a day in America while the average person in a developing country gets by on much less--about 1 liter!

I am proud to say that Dave K., Paul M. and myself along with the huge support of the church have raised a total of $6,651.00 for Clear Blue!

We don't want to run the race of life aimlessly. We desire to run it with perseverance, using our God-given gifts and abilities to worship and glorify him and edify those we come into contact with, even if it is someone we will never see in another part of the world. To God be the glory.

Preparedness and Self-discipline

2009-11-17T12:44:00.000-08:00

Last month I competed in my first ultra event--the Mountain Madness 50k--placing 7th overall. I blogged about the experience last month. Up until that point I have never run that far. But I knew I could do it. Particularly, I knew deep down I could do it because I put in the time, energy and effort beforehand. I felt like I was prepared and ready for the race. Well, no I am facing down another challenge--the JFK 50 Miler.

Four days from now I will be traveling from northeast PA to western Maryland to participate in what will be my longer run so far. I have the privilege of running with to of my good friends, Dave K. and Paul M. I must admit that I am a little nervous, but I am also very excited. Again deep down I know I can do it because I have put in the miles in training and I feel prepared. I know much can happen between now and the finish line, but I am feeling very positive right now.

This morning I was thinking about the past year and all that has transpired. Sometime in March I was having lunch with Dave and I asked him, "If I started training now, do you think I could be ready for JFK in November?" I could tell Dave was shocked but a little excited that maybe he "converted" another ultra runner. That luch was to become the beginning. I started gradually building my weekly miles--20, 25, 30, 35, and so on. I learned that the weekly long run was a key to training so I gradually started to increase my weekly long run--14, 18, 21, 25, eventually doing a 30 miler. Eventually my weekly miles ranged from 40-70 miles per week. More often than not I would run very early int he morning. Eventually I fell into routine: Wake up anywhere between 3:00 and 5:00am (depending on distance and if I was meeting up with Dave or another friend), grab a fresh cup of coffee and my Bible, sit, read and pray at the kitchen table, get my running cloths on and head out the door. Usually when I woudl get home my wife and kids would still be sleeping so I would not take away any family time (which is very important to me). I must admit, there were days when the alarm went off that I fought myself to get out of bed, and somedays the bed won. More often than not, though, I would get out of bed and read, pray, and run--usually by headlamp becasue it was still so dark outside.

Preparedness is important but a key to preparedness is self-discipline. I had a goal in my mind (finishing the JFK 50) and that helped to motivate me in my training. But this applies not only to running, being prepared and self-disciplined applies to all areas of our lives. The apsotle Paul points us int this direction when he says the following in 1 Corinthians 9:26 - "Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air." Paul was a man with a plan. His plan was to follow God's plan for his life and ministry. this means that Paul was a man of self-discipline. He was focused and did not want to lose focus and take his eyes off of the prize--serving, knwoing and growing in Jesus Christ. The same principle is true for runners or anyone with a goal--it will not always be easy and it will take work but in the end it will be worth it.

These principles are something I want to live out in all areas of my life--my walk with Jesus Christ, my running, my family, my friends. I want to live in such a way that I will encourage others, bring pleasure to God and finish the race with perseverance.

This morning as I was think about all of this I recieved an email from my friend Brad M. He sends out encouraging words to a group of us regularly (and I am grateful he does). Today he send a quote from Bill Rodgers. It said: "To be a consistent winner means preparing not just one day, one month, or even one year—but for a lifetime." Think about it, are you running the "good race"?

Whatever You Do, Do It With All of Your Might

2009-11-10T16:42:00.000-08:00

Well, my cell phone is officially dead. I'll spare you the story but it fell into some water, completely submerged, and now it's not working at all. I'm not so concerned about the phone itself but rather the photos I had taken with the camera on the phone. Back in September I participated in the North Face Endurance Challenge with my friend Paul. We both ran the half trail marathon in D.C. It was a blast. We even got to meet the "ultramarathon man" himself, Dean Karnazes. I used to camera phone to get pictures of Paul and I with Dean. I also took some memorable shots (at least for me) of the festivities. But, alas, now those shots are gone, never to return. I never bothered to download them and now it is too late.

Why am I sharing all of this? It is interesting how our minds work sometimes (or maybe it's just mine), but I was thinking about this today and I thought about how easily these pictures and the phone itself were gone. Life is like that sometimes. One day things are grand and the next day or even the next hour the wind gets taken right out of your sails. Nothing in this world is guaranteed this side of heaven, nothing. Our jobs (as this economy can attest too), our homes, our cars and cell phones, our health and even our families and loved ones--nothing is guaranteed.

I don't mean to sound like a "Debbie-Downer" but this is reality. And, this reality should affect how we live our lives. Every breath we breathe is a gift from God. As a Christian, I also believe that worship is a 24 hour a day/7 day a week thing. Every opportunity is an opportunity to bring God glory. My daily interactions with my family is an opportunity to worship. My encounters with the people who cross my path is an opportunity to worship. Even my early morning runs are an opportunity to worship God. I love these words from Sharon Barbano, the national 50k cross-country record holder: "When I hit the trails every morning, the first words in my head are, 'Thank you, thank you, thank you.' I'm just so appreciative to have the ability to run." Where does that ability come from? Our wonderful Creator. I think Eric Liddel, the Scottish Olympian and missionary, had this in mind when he said something like this: "When I run it's in His pleasure."

To use an often overused cliche, today is a gift that's why they call it the present. The apostle Paul said this: "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31). The author of the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes said something similar: "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all of your might,..." (Ecclesiastes 9:10). So then, whether it is running, being a father or mother, making music, etc., etc., etc., ...do it all for the Glory of God.

Sale!

2009-11-06T07:51:00.000-08:00

With Christmas around the corner or if you're just looking for somenew gear you might want to head over to EMS . They are currently running a 40% off everything sale, including trail shoes. I just wanted to pass it on to you. About two months ago I bought a pair of LaSportiva Wildcats (retail $100) for $70. Now EMS has them for $55. Check out the deals.

Peace

One of My Favorites

2009-11-06T06:39:00.000-08:00

Tonight my wife and little girls will be traveling to my hometown of York, PA. We are going to watch my "little" nephew (he's 6'2", 265lbs!) play in his final high school football game. Then tomorrow I have the privilege of running one of my favorite trail spots, Lakes Williams, which is part of William H. Kain County Park. This will be my final long run before the JFK 50 miler on November 21.

The picture is one of the two lakes that make up a large portion of the park. The Lake I run around is Lake Williams, it is the smaller of the two. The other is Lake Redman. I run on trail #2 and connect to trail #4 for a total 5.2 mile loop. I usually do 2 to 4 loops. Trail #2 has some small hills while trail #4 has one challenging hill that takes you to a ridge. The trail in mostly double track and is fairly smooth so you can just cruise. There are always many types of birds and usually some white tail deer in the area. IT really is a gem of a place. IT is situated close to I83 and can be reached easily from Harrisburg or Baltimore. Every time I get to York I make it a point to hit the trails around Lake Williams.

When my wife and I lived in York (pre kids) we would hike there regularly with our dog. Lake Williams holds a special place in my heart. I hope the people of york County know what a great opportunity they have right in their own back yard.

I cannot help but feel close to our Creator when I am enjoying the beauty and peacefulness of these trails.

Tell me about your favorite trail spot.

Flocking Together

2009-10-30T06:12:00.000-07:00

Erik Skaggs is an ultrarunner who lives, works and trains in the Ashland, Oregon area. A short time ago Erik competed in the Where's Waldo 100k nation trail championships...and he smoked the competition while at the same time setting a new course record. This was short lived however because shortly after his record setting victory Erik experienced renal failure. Needless to say he spent time in the hospital and is recovering nicely...but Erik has no health insurance and his time in the hospital accrued a handsome bill, as you can imagine.

But this is where the great news enters into the story. The running community in the Ashland, Oregon area recently hosted a race to offer support for Erik. Over 200 people came out to participate in the Birds of a Feather run. The event was hosted by Rogue Valley Runners and Southern Oregon Runners. The event for Erik raised over $6,000 in entry fees alone, plus another $2,000 through other avenues related to the event. That's a total of over $8,000! That is great news for Erik and it shows what true community is all about.

As a pastor, I cannot help but think of Jesus' words: "Love your neighbor as yourself." And also the words of the apostle Paul: "Honor one another above yourself." The Birds of a Feather event held for Erik Skaggs is another example of the truth that we need people. We need people around us to help us through life. God brings certain people into our life at just the right time to assist on our journey. But it is about more than people helping us. We are called to go out and reach out to others. I don't know where the organizers of this event stand spiritually speaking, but I know that we can learn a lesson from how they reached out to one of their neighbors.

2009-10-27T09:02:00.000-07:00

Here is a photo of Dave and I during the Mountain Madness 50k. I'm unsure as to what point this is in the race, but if my memory is correct this little climb culminated in climbing over a boulder to get over a ridge. It was a good time! dave is leading us up the hill in the photo.

Mountain Madness Race Report - Part 2

2009-10-26T07:52:00.000-07:00

Following this the trail consisted of more elevation changes. Dave recalled a conversation that took place before the race. He was speaking with a runner named Tony who informed Dave that there was one particular climb that was around 1000'. Again, I was not ready for the hills, particularly the downhill sections coupled with the rocky terrain. Now I will admit I am inexperienced when it comes to ultras, but this race was listed in Ultrarunning Magazine as being a 2 out of 5 for the level of technical terrain. If this course was a two I am not sure I want to see a three (but maybe I'm just whining a bit).

I can't remember all of the details, but I'm pretty sure it was somewhere in this stretch that I pulled slightly ahead of Dave. According to the splits I came into aid station 3 just three minutes ahead of Dave. I was feeling pretty good up to this point so I refilled my water bottle and grabbed a banana. Upon turning around I passed Dave coming into the aid station. He was running with another runner who had run Western States this summer. At this point the trail transitioned to a new trail and I proceeded tentatively. I must admit after getting lost a few times I was afraid I would miss the turnoff. I found the turnoff and continued onward and after taking two bites of the banana my stomach didn't want anything to do with it so I tossed it into the woods and keep going. I continued at what felt like a good pace with a small group of about 4-5 guys following close behind. I think it was somewhere in this section where Dave caught back up to me and we would be together for the remainder of the race. After some more rocky trail we came to an old jeep road and we enjoyed the smooth runnable surface and we were chatting away before cutting back into the woods. I felt like the runnable sections were short lived on this course.

shortly after this we came into aid station 4. this was a double aid station, it was also aid station 6. We had a drop back at this location. I quickly grabbed a couple gu gels for the road to make up for the few I already used. They had ginger ale so I downed two cups of it hoping that it would help settle my stomach. I also grabbed two orange slices which actually went down easy. That was pretty much all I had to eat. Looking back I don't think I ingested enough calories overall. We quickly departed from the aid station and continued onward. Again, much of the trail was rocky and not very runnable. Throughout this stretch we climbed and descended multiple times and the climbs were rewarded with nice views of Shepherd Lake. It was actually very pretty, but I feel I did not get to enjoy the scenery due to the demands of the trail. Did I mention the rocks?

During this stretch the terrain and the demands of the race started taking their toll. My right hip started to feel tight and one of Dave's quads started to cramp up. I made sure to keep drinking water and fill my handheld at every aid station. They had water and HEED (Hammer nutrition), but I did not try the HEED never using it before. I didn't think now was the time to experiment. It was also in this stretch of the race that Dave got a rock in his shoe, but since we were close to aid station 5 we kept going. At aid station 5 Dave quickly found a chair and took off his shoe and was attended to by a volunteer. I took the cap off my bottle and a volunteer quickly filled it with water. Dave and I also grabbed a pack of electrolyte tabs (Hammer nutrition). Dave was dealing with a cramping quad and my stomach wouldn't allow me to eat much (other than some more orange slices) so we though they were a good idea. We promptly left and quickly turned back into the woods on a new trail. It was all the same, hilly and rocky terrain. We continued on at a steady pace. After getting lost three times and passing the same pack of runners three times we pretty much threw out any thoughts of placing and we knew out time goal was not even a remote possibly. We both thought we were in the middle of the pack somewhere. That was until we were coming into aid station 6.

On our way into aid station 6 (also a.s. 4) we passed two runners coming away from the aid station. One of the runners started hooting and hollering, "Yeah...top ten!" Dave and I looked at each other with puzzled faces, "What?" The other runner said, "We are around 7 and 8 so your are around 9 and 10." To say we were surprised was an understatement. Then coming into the aid station we quickly refilled our bottles, I grabbed two more cups of ginger ale and I also ate a small cookie, then we were back on the trail. This time we had a boost thinking about the possibility of a top ten finish.

The few miles from a.s. 6 to a.s. 7 went by fairly uneventfully. We did not see any runners in front of us or coming up behind us. The trail was the same--rocky and hilly, but not impossible. After a steady pace and Dave and I taking turns leading we finally came to the final aid station--a.s. 7. This was a very low key water only stop. It was only about three miles to the finish and I had about half a bottle left so Dave and I just kept going. These last three miles would seem to go on for ever.

The final stretch of the course was beautiful, especially with the autumn leaves. Unfortunately, by this time I was hoping that over the next hill would be a view of Shepherd Lake...and the finish line. There was one particular section of trial that stands out during this final stretch. It was rocky but the rocks were placed there to make the trail (possibly for mountain bikers). As the trail climbed the next hill it wrapped around the hill as it went. This provided for some stunning trail running. As I mentioned already, this final section seemed to go on for ever. Dave and I had both given the race our all and there was nothing left in the tank. Then, finally, we crested a hill and thee it was...Shepherd Lake. We exited the trail on a dirt road, hung a left and followed it around the lake back to the finish line. At this point there was some pep in my step as I anticipated finishing my first ultra. As we rounded the final bend I pulled slightly ahead of Dave (I still think he held back slightly to let me have my moment) and crossed the finish line about 10 seconds ahead of Dave. It was finished.

The Mountain Madness 50k was my first ultramarathon and it will be forever in my memory. I was blessed to run it with a great friend (thanks Dave) and I can say it was the hardest thing I have ever done, not only physically but mentally as well. I crossed the finish line in 7th place overall. My time was 6:39. So much for 5 hours! There were around 102 starters and 70 finishers. I am continually amazed at God's creation--the human body. It is capable of far more than we realize.

Mountain Madness Race Report - Part 1

2009-10-24T11:08:00.000-07:00

I have been enjoying running now for about a year and a half. When I began I could not even run a mile without feeling like I would pass out. But with the help of many friends along the way (hearty thanks Dave, Brad, Paul and Dee) I officially ran my first ultramarathon on Saturday, October 17th. Dave and I signed up for the first running of the Mountain Madness 50k held in the hilly part of northern New Jersey.

going into the race I had previously completed a 30 mile trail run in 4:45, so in my mind I was thinking I could do this one in around 5 hours. I came to find out that this was Dave's goal as well heading into the race. Boy were in for a surprise.

The weather reports leading up to the race did not look so well. The temps had dropped into the 30's and 40's and they forecast called for heavy ran all day long. However, this was not to be the case for race day. The temps were hovering around 39-40 degrees according to the thermometer built into my car display. It was cloudy and breezy as well. But thankfully the rains never arrived. It was actually nice weather to run a trail ultra.

After brief instructions from RD Rick McNulty, we toed the line and before we knew it we were off and running. We began in the grass next to Shepherd Lake. It was beautiful with the fall leaves. After maybe about 0.5 miles we turned to the right onto a dirt trail and headed into the woods. Dave and I were together at this point and we were toward the front of the pack. The pace early one felt great and we were enjoying the moment, then it happened. I was in the lead, Dave was following and another runner was behind him and I looked up to notice that we were by ourselves and we did not see the correct color blazes on the tree. Could we really be lost already? Yes! We quickly backtracked and found the trail, losing maybe a couple of minutes. Unfortunately, this would not be the last time this would happen. The trail was challenging and rocky, but not impossible. I found myself watching the trail most of the time to compensate for the rocky terrain. It demanded the runner's attention.

Following this we came upon a pack of approximately 10 runners running single file on the single track. Dave and I were still together and following each other we politely made our way around the pack one at a time. This early part of the race went out and back on a loop of rocky but nice single track. Shortly after this we passed the first aid station (an unmanned water only stop) which Dave and I continued past. It wasn't long after this that we did it again. Once again yours truly was leading and I looked up and....oh no! We are following the wrong blazes again! I could live with doing it once, but twice being in the front was too much. I felt so bad that I had led Dave of course again. This time we were not that far from the correct trail and we quickly corrected our course and continued on. This time we came up on our friend Jessi who was steadily moving along. After some quick greetings we continued up what I think was the first big climb. I don't know what the actual elevation gain for the course was (I don't wear a Garmin) but I saw some comments online that put the range between 6700' and 6997'. This climb switched back a few times and Dave and I slowed to a strong walk. I remembered David Horton's words from the documentary "the Runner", he said, "Take what the trail gives you." So we walked. Actually, I did more walking on this trail than I had anticipated. but you have to take what the trail gives you.

After this climb we had a long switchback downhill. I am not used to long rocky downhills and I could feel it effecting my quads. Let's just say lesson learned, but it would be a lesson I would learn again and again before crossing the finish line.

My new blog

2009-10-24T11:04:00.000-07:00

For a while now, I have been thnking about deleting my blog and beginning again. Well, if you are reading this I obviously have done so. I was growing "cold" and not that into my previous blog. I think this one will hold my attention more. The title describes my love for running, but this blog will not be limited to running. I will be posting on a myriad of things (trail running, road running, my family and my faith). I hope you like the posts.
Peace,
Chris