Spring time!

Now that it is spring time I won't be using the treadmill quite as much. For my training runs I'll post up a map of the route and a little summary of its difficulties in my daily totals. Anyone interested in some good routes around town check them out!

This run starts out pretty flat near the entrance of the Huckleberry Trail, circles around through campus and runs through the south rec fields reconnecting with the Huckleberry Trail. After doing the loop back to the start of the Huckleberry the run starts up Clay Street and gets pretty intense going up the largest hill in town limits. Once you get to the top though its a great view and smooth sailing from there on out. Fly down Harding avenue as you are now looking down on the cap to the Graduate Life Center in the distance. Once you hit Patrick Henry there's only a few speed bumps left to get over and not to mention a great view of the Appalachains to the west. Circling around back through campus, the run ends with a nice sprint down Washington St.

PS. If you didn't get a chance check out the article from the CT Tuesday!

Totals on the Day -
Miles = 8.9
Time = 64 mins 38 seconds
Check out my route here!

Good News From The Doc!

So I went into Sports Medicine Doctor Siegel's office today to try to get a diganosis of the knee problem that has been bugging me ever since before Holiday Lake. He had me go through about 16 different leg motions and took some X-rays and the final result . . . . . the IT band once again! I couldn't have dreamed of hearing anything better come out of his mouth being terrified going in there that I might not be able to run for months or need surgery. So I got some anti-inflammatory cream and a couple pages of stretches to do to loosen the darn thing up and got right to it at McComas. It was still a little tight once I finished my run but nothing like it has been the past month so things are looking up for the rest of my 2010 schedule!

Totals on the Day -

Miles = 7.58

Time = 1 hour

Shoutouts = Liz, your proposal made my day, I just hope I don't talk your ear off.

You win some, you lose some, and then sometimes you face plant in the mud.

Alas! It's Friday, March 12th and finally heading out of Blacksburg on spring break! Worked all spring break to save up a little cash and now the fun part, Land Between The Lakes 60k. A nine hour drive later I was fortunate enough to have found some folks Michael and Crystal in Paducah, KY that were going to let me couch surf for night. This was my first couch surfing experience but it turned out great, in fact, i'm afraid to try it again this worked out so well. Michael and Crystal, by coincidence were mountain bikers and gave me the low down on the Canal Loop trail and what I had in store for me on my run the next day. I got to bed around 10:30 or so and set 4 alarms for my 4:45 AM wake up.

Arriving at Grand Rivers, KY Saturday morning my mind had been set on breaking the course record for the past week. After all coming home with a 1,000 dollar purse would be pretty nice. I got to the race start 30 minutes early and long story short, lesson #1, this will be the last time I bank on using race port-o-potties to take care of my needs before a race. A little tidbit of wisdom to any racers reading. Use the bathroom at the closest gas station to the race start before you arrive. Race port-o-potties WILL have a line and the people in line are not in line to go #1, if you catch my drift . . .or maybe i hope you don't after waiting in that line.

So I started the race, mentally prepared this time but not physically. Sadly enough, to toe the starting line, I had to leave the bathroom before it was my turn. I thought not much of it at the time as I had done great in Alabama with a similar situation.

The race consisted of a 23k, Marathon, 60k, and 50 miler and all 350 of these people started at the same time. Sticking up in the front of the pack, the race started pretty fast but this was typical for me and I was comfortable with my pace knowing that most of the guys ahead of me were probably in the 23k. Coming through the first mile I was at a 6:45/mile pace, a bit fast for my goal pace of 7:19/mile so I cut back a bit as we entered the 11.1 mile canal loop which we would now do 3 times. The fanny pack I was wearing ended up being a tad bit bouncy on my back so I dropped it off at the second aid station and grabbed some Jelly Belly Sport Beans for the road, yummm. My pace felt all to comfortable and I was psyched mentally because I hadn't felt this motivated to stay in the lead of a race for a long time! A runner caught up to me and we were back and forth on the uphills and downhills for a while, him catching me on the downhills and me pulling away again on the uphills, the monotony of it was almost calming. Here I will give you a little trip through my brain at this point . . .

Calm, calm, ooooh pretty Kentucky lake, calm, calm, oooh fun single track trail, calm, calm, oooh tasty gu energy drink, calm, calm, man this is perfect running weather, calm calm, this trail couldn't be more fun, hop over a root, zoom around a banked turn. . .calm, calm, ouch, OUCH , WTF, stomach cramp, oh no, I should have waited in the port-o-pottie line, ouch ouch, aid station up ahead you can make it, OUCH OUCH.

Well, all in all, I did not make it to the aid station and was challenged with obstacle number one . . stopping and finding a place to use the bathroom that would not be right next to the trail. Ok ok well we won't go into detail here but this always makes an ultra race interesting. Getting back out onto the trail I found myself running right in front of a pretty intense looking runner and felt like he had a great pace going so I tried to stick just in front of him.

We ran along for a good two miles and crested a hill with a huge radio tower and this is where I had my dream come true. Throughout all of the ultras I've run I always see people coming across the finish line with bloody knees or elbows and have read so many stories about nasty spills and wondered just how does this happen so much? Well I can tell you now, it happens real quick. I went from "Henry with a runners high sprinting down a muddy trail" to "Henry face full of mud and mud all over his water bottles while lying sideways watching people run by" faster than you can say "Can't touch this". It was a true epic fail kodak moment but probably the most fun I had all day. I got back up and tried to run probably looking a lot like like this guy and held with it until the next aid station where . . yes . . i needed another bathroom break. Once again, details excluded but I will never be having a Chai Latte the night before a race again.

At this point I was 13 miles into the race and at a time of 1 hour 42 mins. I was running just over my goal pace, problem was with all the stops, once again my trusty knee had locked up and I was forced to make a decision. Try to run and risk injury for the rest of the season? Or suck it up, walk the rest of the way and drop down from the 60k down to the marathon distance. Well I decided to walk and as irritating as it was seeing my goals for the day fade away after such a long drive, the second half of the race ended up being a great experience thanks to a few folks.

Walking along I got a bit fed up with the amount of trash that I saw along the trail. Trash from this race alone! Therefore I designated myself as the official Energy Gel Pack/Heed Energy Cup/Various Nutrient Bar trash picker upper. This is one thing I have recently not been so impressed with at ultras. The trail side is not your trash can for the race and many of the people that pick these races do so because of the surroundings, lets keep them gu energy pack free already!

On the other hand I have always only had good things to say about people I meet at these events and I continue to do so here. As I was walking my second lap of the Canal Loop I would say at least 90% of people asked me if I was doing alright, 50% of the people asked me if I needed an ibuprofen or offered me various ultramarthoner essentials, and a few people even stopped to talk and walk with me. Two people stood out in my mind on Saturday.

First was a man that came running by and asked me "you doing alright?" I said, "yeah, yeah just locked up my knee" so he said "well which race are you running?" . . "I was signed up for the 60k but i think I'm just going to have to do the marathon" . . . as he faded off into the distance he shouted back "You know, that's the amazing thing about what we're doing out here, you're JUST going to do the marathon!" This runners comment and congratulations to me coming through the finish line put a lot into perspective for me on the second lap and throughout the car ride home.

Second was Dean Deziel. Dean came running up behind me towards the end of my second lap and shouted my name. I immediately turned around thinking "who the h*ll in Kentucky knows that I am here??" Dean walked with me for a few minutes and we shared stories from the Holiday Lake 50k++. Often being one of the younger participants in the ultra races and trying to work my way into a sponsor I wonder a lot about how I fit in and if all the efforts I am putting in will finally add up. Dean was full of enthusiasm and only had inspiring and encouraging things to say that also helped put these things into a new light for me.

To sum up the race I ended up walking the whole second lap with my knee locked up. I dropped down to the marathon race instead of doing a third lap to complete the 60k and finished in a time of about 5 hours and 56 minutes. Walking across the finish line I thought I had lost complete confidence in myself and my goals at these races yet thinking back to the things that people said to me throughout this race I realized... that you win some, you lose some, and then sometimes you face plant in the mud.

Totals on the Day-
Miles = 26.2
Time = 5 hours 56 mins 40 secs
Shoutouts - Dean Deziel, nice to meet you and thanks for your words of encouragement. Also, cheers for challenging yourself to do the 60k, you're a great runner to have out there on the trails.
Michael and Crystal - Thanks again for the couch surf! I'll make sure I get to an international soccer game ASAP!

Totals on the Day -
Miles = 8.2
Time = 59:46
Calories = 940
Elevation = 640 ft.

Keep It In The Bag

Mom, Dad, and I headed out of Blacksburg around 11 AM for the Talladega National Forrest with absolutely no qualms about leaving the cold, snowy and windy Blacksburg tundra.

So on the ride down to Alabama I was thinking over some of my mistakes and lessons from the last race. Number one, be mentally prepared. Check. This marked one year of ultra racing for me and my favorite race to date and I was psyched to go back and work for a little redemption from last year when my IT band locked up. So good, I'm already on the right track with learning from my mistakes of last year and to add on luckily pops had rented out a cabin for the whole family to stay in so I would not be bunking in my Nissan Stanza for the night. Two goals down and we're not even out of Virginia yet...spot on.

Following the 8.5 hour car ride we arrived at the top of Alabama, just as I remembered it from last year and the cabin was amazing. Stopped by packet pick up real quick and eagerly dumped all of my new goodies out on a bed in the cabin . . whats this? Montrail Ultra Cup? Why is this race listed on this sticker? Well, ends up that I did not realize that the Cheaha 50k this year would be part of a competitive series held by one of the #1 trail running shoe companies. That means, yes, a big step up in the competition. Quick pasta and chicken sandwich dinner and off to bed to get some rest for the 5:30 wake up. EARLY in the morning I realized I had fixed another goal from last race. Not by charging my cell phone and setting all 28 alarms, but rather by bringing Mom along (she woke us up at 5AM because we forgot to bring the cream cheese for bagels), love you Mom.

Moving along to the race. We showed up to the trail head about thirty minutes before the start. There it was the Mount Cheaha 50k sign that you start under and don't see again until your at the top of Alabama. I stretched a bit and tried to stay warm in the car (starting temp was about 35 degrees) until 5 minutes before the race start. The race director came over the speaker and told front runners to move to a suitable position because immediately after the start the trail funnels everyone into a single track for about 3.5 miles. The picture above (thanks to my sister for all the awesome photography over the weekend!) was taken just before the start right after this announcement. The cool part about the photo, the 9 people you see in front ended up coming in within the top 15 places, just goes to show that everyone knew exactly what they were capable of!

Onto the race already!!

There is no better way to start a race in Alabama, in the beautiful Talladega National Forrest, 10 miles from the not so beautiful Talladega Speedway, than with the sweet sounds of Lynard Skynard. Yes, to start the race they blast Sweet Home Alabama. When you hear the music, boy you better start runnin. I tore out in front as usual but feeling alright and came down into Aid Station #1 at 3.5 miles running just in front of two guys. Here starts the climb, aid station #1 to aid station #2 is in my mind one of the hardest parts of this race and it comes at you quick. I decided to drop back my pace and not even attempt to keep up with the two guys that came through the aid station with me, they were running at a phenomenal pace. A good choice, one of them one the race with the closest person behind him coming in over 30 minutes later. Congratulations, Dane Mitchell. I took it very easy between the first and second aid station as to not burn out all my energy as I had the previous year but I did give up a few places and was running in 5th coming into aid station 2.

Oh no...Aid station 2. The marker of the start of my least favorite climb of the whole day. I decided to power hike the section and gave up two more places. Now running in seventh I started getting a bit bummed...last year I had run in first until mile 19! Well there's no room for negativity in an ultra and the last thing you can do is try to compare races, EVERY ONE IS DIFFERENT. I got to the top of the climb and it was game on. Having studied my elevation charts before the race, the next 15 miles of the race were the fun runnable trail that you have to take advantage of. I decided to try to hold my place and it worked pretty much all the way from mile 9-19.

Dreaded, heinous, mile 19. I started feeling a cramp coming in my hamstring and decided to stop to stretch. Here's where I learned my biggest lesson of the day. Never in an ultramarathon, can you drift off and let your mind wander, or you will pay the consequences. Well it happened, my mind was wandering and instead of stretching my hamstring I stretched my quad...totally wrong muscle. From standing on one leg i put my left leg back down to the dirt and the second it hit the ground so did I. You would have though I got hit by a shock wave I fell so fast. I really don't even remember falling. This had only happened one other time in my life and it has to be the most embarassing moment of a race. I was lying, face up directly in the center of the trail, praying, that the number 10 runner was not going to come around the last turn. Well after relaxing and having it cramp up two more times, there he came. Once again though this is why I love this sport, the guy didn't laugh, didn't run right on by, he paused and said . . you aright? you need a GU? Knowing I'd be ok in a minute or two I waved him on by but the cool thing about this sport is that I have no doubt if that guy and I had been fighting for first and second place he would have done the same exact thing.

Coming out of the cramp I made the best decision to date in any race that I've run. I decided to sit back and take it easy and walk to aid station #4. Being an all downhill section . . I can't describe how hard it was letting ten runners breeze by without wanting to at least just try to keep up but I held strong to my plan and walked it in to mile 22.5 hoping that my leg would be rested enough to compete the last 9 miles.

Leaving aid station #4 I picked up behind a super nice guy that was running at a pace I felt like I could handle and decided to stick with him for now, soon enough though I ended up in front of him after he took a few steps down a wrong trail. Then I saw another guy ahead in a white t-shirt and thought "maybe I could slowly catch him?" Learning my lesson with not letting my mind wander off I took careful attention to each step I was taking as to not irriate my cramped leg again. One mile down the trail, I was passing a guy in a white shirt. I kept on truckin. We reached mile 25 where you come out onto a dirt road and yet again I saw a black shirt, a quarter mile up the road. By the end of the dirt road, I was passing the black shirt. I have NEVER passed someone in an ultra before, this was a huge accomplishment. Up until now its been RUN RUN RUN really hard in the beginning and between miles 20-30 people come passing by me as I'm walking trying to recover my energy. I came into Aid station #6 in 14th place with 3.5 miles left and Dad told me two guys were only 2 minutes ahead. How would I fare on BLUE HELL?

Blue hell is a section of trail at mile 29 that is 900 vertical feet in one mile. Hands down my favorite part of any ultra that I have ran to date. I ended up passing three people in this mile reaching the highest point in Alabama feeling more accomplished then I have in any race. The third guy I passed ended up sprinting by me in the last mile of the race, and cheers to Marcus, it was a heck of a sprint to the finish with you.

Final time and place. 5:17:52. 12th place. 48 minutes and 10 places better than last year

The Cheaha 50k once again holds its place as my favorite trail run, much of this to do with the excellent organization of Todd Henderson. A race will always reflect its director and I have no doubt that the Cheaha 50k will continue to grow bigger and bigger over the years so thanks again for a great race Todd and all the volunteers all the way from the EMS and the Ham Radio to the Virginia Tech Hokie Alum at aid station #4. Hokie Nation!

Here is a link to all of the other lovely pictures that my sister took of the race and park!
And another link to the race results!


Totals on the Day -
Miles = 31.1
Time = 5:17:52

Shououts=
Thanks Mom, Dad, Hannah, and Mark for being a great support crew and motivators! Mark, looking forward to having you out there next year :-)

Cheers to Dane Mitchell for an AMAZING time of 4:00:25 and for smashing the course record by 30 minutes!

Congrats to DeWayne Satterfield for setting a new PR for himself on the course as well!