Mon: Off
Tue: Off
Wed: 10 mi (1:34, 2,000') Mesa Trial to Shadow Canyon junction
After a couple days of rain, including today, the trails were refreshingly cool and wet. Since I started at 5:30 pm without a headlight, I didn't have much remaining daylight, so I ran pretty quick compared to my usual effort on the Mesa. I arrived back at Chautauqua Park in the dark, but could still make out the trail pretty well.
Thu: 10 mi (1:30) Bobolink from work
Another evening run. A little sore from the previous night, but warmed up about thirty minutes in and felt good the rest of the way. Beautiful evening.
Fri: 6 mi (1:06, 1,300') Mesa Trail to top of Bear Canyon
Pretty tired on this morning run. Ended up topping out at Bear Canyon and hung out on the rock overlook for a few minutes.
Sat: 4.4 mi (1:02, 2,400') Green Mtn
Tried to get a PR on the ascent, pushing hard up Amphitheater, hitting the top with a PR 7:50. Then hit the SR/Greenman junction in a PR of 23:40. Then the wheels fell off and I slogged the rest of the way up, tagging the summit in 41:26. Oh well. Had a speedy descent though, :21.
Sun: 10 mi (2:02, 2,000') Mesa Trail to Shadow Canyon
Really slow, mellow run. Pretty warm morning. Cruised up the Shadow Canyon connector for a bit before turning back. This little meadow is pretty choice, affording nice views of Devil's Thumb and smooth singletrack; not a soul in sight.
-------
Totals:
Miles: 40
Vert: 7,700'
Time: 7:15
The last two weeks of tapering have gone well and I think I'm ready for this year's Blue Sky Marathon. This will be the first time I've run a race more than once, so I'm excited to see if I can improve on my performance from last year. We shall see.
The last month has been a well-balanced mix of running each week with one or two mountain summits, a couple dead-flat runs, and some long runs with short rolling climbs. Also mixing up the shoes has added a bit more variety, which I believe has helped in muscle recovery and reducing the chances of over-use injuries. The shoes: Montrail Bajadas for long runs; New Balance MT110's (previously, my go-to shoe for every run) for technical mountain runs and flat runs; Pearl Izumi Peak 2's for super rocky, talus-literred runs; Adidas Mana 5's for everything else.
As for the rest of the year, I'm hoping to get back into running Green and Bear much more than I have in the last few months. And I'll likely shoot for 200+ miles each month of the last quarter to maintain a base in preparation for the San Juan Solstice 50 in June.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Thursday, September 27, 2012
9/17 - 9/23
Mon: 10 mi (1:35) Bobolink - Mellow spin from work.
Tue: 9 mi (1:19) Twin Lakes & White Rocks - Another flat one from home.
Wed: 3.1 mi (:50, 1,300') Mt Sanitas - First time going up this mountain in the dark. Smooth effort to the top.
Thu: 4.4 mi (1:11, 2,400') Green Mtn - No motivation for speed, tagging the summit in 42 mins.
Fri: 8.3 mi (1:38, 2,600') Amphitheater/Saddle Rock/Chautauqua/Enchanted Mesa/Mesa Trail to Skunk Canyon - Sort of a rushed effort after work to go up Green Mtn, but upon reaching the Greenman junction, my motivation waned and I headed back down to Chat and hit Mesa for a little bit.
Sat: Off
Sun: 13.4 mi (2:30, 3,250') Mesa Trail - Mellow morning run.
--------
Totals:
Miles: 48
Vert: 9,500'
Time: 9:03
Tue: 9 mi (1:19) Twin Lakes & White Rocks - Another flat one from home.
Wed: 3.1 mi (:50, 1,300') Mt Sanitas - First time going up this mountain in the dark. Smooth effort to the top.
Thu: 4.4 mi (1:11, 2,400') Green Mtn - No motivation for speed, tagging the summit in 42 mins.
Fri: 8.3 mi (1:38, 2,600') Amphitheater/Saddle Rock/Chautauqua/Enchanted Mesa/Mesa Trail to Skunk Canyon - Sort of a rushed effort after work to go up Green Mtn, but upon reaching the Greenman junction, my motivation waned and I headed back down to Chat and hit Mesa for a little bit.
Sat: Off
Sun: 13.4 mi (2:30, 3,250') Mesa Trail - Mellow morning run.
--------
Totals:
Miles: 48
Vert: 9,500'
Time: 9:03
Sunday, September 16, 2012
9/10 - 9/16
Mon: 10 mi (1:27) Bobolink - PM run afterwork. Really easy pace.
Tue: Off
Wed: 10 mi (1:19) Bobolink - Quick tempo run after work. Fun to get the legs spinning a bit faster.
Thu: 4.5 mi (1:15, 2,000') Mt Sanitas & Anemone - Took Sanitas slow (summit :25)
Fri: 10.4 mi (1:41, 2,000') Mesa Trail to Shadow Canyon - Mellow going out, quicker coming back
Sat: Off
Sun: 19.4 mi (4:06, 4,700') Flagstaff Mtn/Green Mtn/Mesa Trail - Ugh, bonked pretty hard on the Mesa after tagging the peaks. Should have taken in some more calories the day prior I guess. Oops.
--------
Totals:
Miles: 54.3
Vertical: 8,700'
Time: 9:50
Tue: Off
Wed: 10 mi (1:19) Bobolink - Quick tempo run after work. Fun to get the legs spinning a bit faster.
Thu: 4.5 mi (1:15, 2,000') Mt Sanitas & Anemone - Took Sanitas slow (summit :25)
Fri: 10.4 mi (1:41, 2,000') Mesa Trail to Shadow Canyon - Mellow going out, quicker coming back
Sat: Off
Sun: 19.4 mi (4:06, 4,700') Flagstaff Mtn/Green Mtn/Mesa Trail - Ugh, bonked pretty hard on the Mesa after tagging the peaks. Should have taken in some more calories the day prior I guess. Oops.
--------
Totals:
Miles: 54.3
Vertical: 8,700'
Time: 9:50
Sunday, September 9, 2012
9/3 - 9/9
Mon: 7 mi (1:09) Bobolink
Tue: 7 mi (1:07, 1,300') Mesa
Wed: 5 mi (1:31, 2,600') Green Mtn - Summit PR, :39:59
Thu: 9 mi (1:35, 1,800') Mesa
Fri: Off
Sat: 7 mi (1:42, 2,700') Green Mtn
Sun: 16 mi (3:03, 3,450') Mesa/Doudy/Springbrook
----------
Totals:
Miles: 51
Vert: 11,912'
Time: 10:08
Tue: 7 mi (1:07, 1,300') Mesa
Wed: 5 mi (1:31, 2,600') Green Mtn - Summit PR, :39:59
Thu: 9 mi (1:35, 1,800') Mesa
Fri: Off
Sat: 7 mi (1:42, 2,700') Green Mtn
Sun: 16 mi (3:03, 3,450') Mesa/Doudy/Springbrook
----------
Totals:
Miles: 51
Vert: 11,912'
Time: 10:08
Sunday, September 2, 2012
8/27 - 9/2
Following the race last Saturday, this week felt like an easy transition back into the rhythm of training. I remember the last time I followed up a race with an overzealous attitude. I kept the effort pretty mellow for the whole week with mild vertical and slow paces. My legs were pretty tight early in the week, but eventually came back around with enough stretching and easy running. I'm now ready to start tallying some more miles over the next few weeks in preparation for the Blue Sky Marathon up in Fort Collins next month.
Mon: 4.1 mi (:37) Twin Lakes
Tue: 4.1 mi (:38) Twin Lakes
Wed: 4.1 mi (:34) Twin Lakes
Thu: 8 mi (1:23, 1,900') Mesa Trail
Fri: 10 mi (1:53, 2,000') Mesa Trail
Sun: 8 mi (1:59, 2,700') Green Mtn, Mesa Trail
Totals:
Miles: 38
Vert: 6,600'
Time: 7:05
Mon: 4.1 mi (:37) Twin Lakes
Tue: 4.1 mi (:38) Twin Lakes
Wed: 4.1 mi (:34) Twin Lakes
Thu: 8 mi (1:23, 1,900') Mesa Trail
Fri: 10 mi (1:53, 2,000') Mesa Trail
Sun: 8 mi (1:59, 2,700') Green Mtn, Mesa Trail
Totals:
Miles: 38
Vert: 6,600'
Time: 7:05
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Silverton Alpine 50k
Well, this was technically my first "ultra" marathon and I must say it was quite fun. Despite my lack of focus during training in the couple of months preceding the race, I put out a decent effort, placing 5th overall. Sure, the field was only 24 heads deep, but those in the top 4 were pretty stout competitors (with many more ultras under their belts than myself). I should also mention that I slept in the back of my wife's Nissan SUV the night before—squeezed between her and a cooler.
The race started at 7am and we headed up a 2.4-mile out-and-back section before hitting the standard marathon course. During this hilly road section, I immediately felt my right outer hamstring cramp up (it had been unusually tight for the last week). This worried me because the rest of the course loops through the high mountains around Silverton and the last thing I would want is to bail on the run at mile 20 deep in the mountains and wait for a support truck to pick me up or something silly like that. But I motored on and decided that if my leg got any worse by the time we reached the marathon section, I'd bail out there and just walk back to our camp spot across the road. The cramp subsided and I continued on with the race, much to my delight.
The next 8 miles was essentially a flat mining road (the whole course was actually an old mining loop) in the 10,000' valley of Silverton. At this point I had put a good gap on the competition behind me and there were 5 runners ahead of me, 4 of which were out of sight. The fifth was only about 50 yards ahead, who I passed four miles into this section. That would be the only person I passed for the remainder of the race.
After the flats, I headed up what would be the long 10-mile big climb of the day (toping out at California Pass at 12,900'). My pace was nice and smooth up this rocky dirt road and I had gapped the runner previously in 5th by about a half of a mile. After about ten minutes, I was alone, climbing through this huge alpine gulch. As I popped a GU, I looked back and noticed a runner right on my tail. This racer seemed to appear out of nowhere and quickly passed me; it was Dakota Jones running the marathon (which started an hour after us) and going for the course record. We exchanged pleasantries and he continued up the climb at a staggering pace.
I hit the pass (mile 20) in 3:50. The final approach to the pass was quite steep, so I power hiked it to conserve energy. During the final climb up the pass, two other marathoners passed me, but I hadn't seen a single 50k-er down valley. Once I crested the pass, I grabbed a slice of PB&J and casually descended to let the cramping in my stomach subside and allow some food to go down. I cruised over the last little 400' climb over Hurricane Pass and mentally prepared for the hammering 11-mile descent. At the pass I noticed my left thumb and left side of my lips were completely numb. Since this was the first time I had ever run with a pack, I figured the shoulder strap was playing funky games with my nerves in my shoulder, so I loosened it and feeling started to come back—weird.
The descent was far more arduous than the climb in my book. The super-rocky, steep trail is unforgiving and seemingly never-ending. Though, much to my delight, my feet were still feeling decent—good thing I had chosen to run the race in a pair of road racing flats, Addidas Mana 5s, rather than my go-to MT110s. I counted the miles, one after the other, under the hot sun of mid-day. I hoped for a much faster pace through this section, but all I could muster were short blasts of 7-minute miles surrounded by high-8s.
Throughout the entire descent to the finish I didn't see a single person behind me, so I essentially coasted across the finish in 5:47. I was hoping to get in somewhere under 5:30, but my sand-bagging on the back stretch prevented it.
I'll be back next year to hopefully snag a podium finish.
The race started at 7am and we headed up a 2.4-mile out-and-back section before hitting the standard marathon course. During this hilly road section, I immediately felt my right outer hamstring cramp up (it had been unusually tight for the last week). This worried me because the rest of the course loops through the high mountains around Silverton and the last thing I would want is to bail on the run at mile 20 deep in the mountains and wait for a support truck to pick me up or something silly like that. But I motored on and decided that if my leg got any worse by the time we reached the marathon section, I'd bail out there and just walk back to our camp spot across the road. The cramp subsided and I continued on with the race, much to my delight.
The next 8 miles was essentially a flat mining road (the whole course was actually an old mining loop) in the 10,000' valley of Silverton. At this point I had put a good gap on the competition behind me and there were 5 runners ahead of me, 4 of which were out of sight. The fifth was only about 50 yards ahead, who I passed four miles into this section. That would be the only person I passed for the remainder of the race.
After the flats, I headed up what would be the long 10-mile big climb of the day (toping out at California Pass at 12,900'). My pace was nice and smooth up this rocky dirt road and I had gapped the runner previously in 5th by about a half of a mile. After about ten minutes, I was alone, climbing through this huge alpine gulch. As I popped a GU, I looked back and noticed a runner right on my tail. This racer seemed to appear out of nowhere and quickly passed me; it was Dakota Jones running the marathon (which started an hour after us) and going for the course record. We exchanged pleasantries and he continued up the climb at a staggering pace.
I hit the pass (mile 20) in 3:50. The final approach to the pass was quite steep, so I power hiked it to conserve energy. During the final climb up the pass, two other marathoners passed me, but I hadn't seen a single 50k-er down valley. Once I crested the pass, I grabbed a slice of PB&J and casually descended to let the cramping in my stomach subside and allow some food to go down. I cruised over the last little 400' climb over Hurricane Pass and mentally prepared for the hammering 11-mile descent. At the pass I noticed my left thumb and left side of my lips were completely numb. Since this was the first time I had ever run with a pack, I figured the shoulder strap was playing funky games with my nerves in my shoulder, so I loosened it and feeling started to come back—weird.
The descent was far more arduous than the climb in my book. The super-rocky, steep trail is unforgiving and seemingly never-ending. Though, much to my delight, my feet were still feeling decent—good thing I had chosen to run the race in a pair of road racing flats, Addidas Mana 5s, rather than my go-to MT110s. I counted the miles, one after the other, under the hot sun of mid-day. I hoped for a much faster pace through this section, but all I could muster were short blasts of 7-minute miles surrounded by high-8s.
Throughout the entire descent to the finish I didn't see a single person behind me, so I essentially coasted across the finish in 5:47. I was hoping to get in somewhere under 5:30, but my sand-bagging on the back stretch prevented it.
I'll be back next year to hopefully snag a podium finish.
Weekly Update: 8/20 - 8/26
Mon: 4 mi Twin Lakes - Afternoon easy run. The stomach was not feeling that great after a Chinese food binge at lunch.
Tue: 4.5 mi Twin Lakes - Much more pleasant easy run than the prior day.
Thu: 6 mi Twin Lakes - One more mellow run before heading down to Silverton for the race.
Sat: 31.6 mi (5:47, 4,400') Silverton Alpine 50k - 5th place
---------
Week Totals:
Miles: 46.5
Vert: 4,400'
Time: 7:45
Tue: 4.5 mi Twin Lakes - Much more pleasant easy run than the prior day.
Thu: 6 mi Twin Lakes - One more mellow run before heading down to Silverton for the race.
Sat: 31.6 mi (5:47, 4,400') Silverton Alpine 50k - 5th place
---------
Week Totals:
Miles: 46.5
Vert: 4,400'
Time: 7:45
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