getting ready to go long

the time has come.

after about seven solid months of training i'm about to tackle a brand new racing distance tomorrow (56km and on trails, no less).  this is my goal race for 2014 and i'm excited about venturing into new territory.

i'm thankful not to be embarking on this alone - aside from the support that i've received from the barrie roadrunners, the barrie trail running club and the MEC barrie running ninjas, my extreme ultrarunning friend extraordinaire jim willett is coming up with me to run the same race as part of his training for his attempt at setting a new record for running the bruce trail end-to-end.

as far as how i've been readying myself for this event - i've shared some thoughts before on training plans before - and like any lazy yet semi-resourceful DIYer i googled ultramarathon training plan and wound up with results that would help someone gear up for anything from 50km to 100mi.  the plan that i settled on using as a basic groundwork was the first hyperlink on the results page - the Runner's World "Ultimate Ultramarathon Training Plan".  as i'm prone to doing, i beefed it up a bit with a few extra runs here and there ... even though the plan is set out for someone tackling a 50-miler (and i'm only going 35 miles).  the one new thing that following this plan did introduce was tracking in imperial distances - i switched my garmin 305 so that my laps were no longer in kilometres.  this was an interesting experiment, as i previously found a mile extraordinarily long when being used to training in kilometres - but during the past seven weeks or so i've actually come to quite enjoy that as my baseline distance.

carboloading has been a bit sketchy for this week - work has been intense and so i've often found myself eating late and skipping what otherwise would be my intra-meal snacks.

i'm still unsure as to what shoes will be on my feet, but i think that i will start out with the skechers GObionic trail and then pack the GOrun ultra in my dropbag in case that i want to swap out partway through.  i'm also thinking seriously about wearing compression socks since i anticipate being on my feet for 6.5-7 hours, but it's also supposed to be pretty warm and i'm not sure that i want that much of a layer on my legs.

nutrition is a huge piece of the puzzle, and i think that i will rely on a combination of gels, shotbloks, granola bars and trail mix.  depending on what the aid stations are stocked with i might also pick up a few treats now and again.

i'll be using a handheld waterbottle (the nathan quickdraw plus) as i've been training with one and it seems to work well for me.

that's it for now - my goal is to finish the race.  period.  but i will in the car with jim for about 100 minutes each way and he's already been planting in my head the idea that i could finish close to the leaders.

believe me when i say this - i'm out there to enjoy this race.  

oh, and #GOlikeneverbefore!
 

getting ready to go long

race report - barrie Spring Thaw 10k

last fall i decided to tackle a 10k (my first ever race in that distance) as a bit of a time trial in advance of the road2hope hamilton marathon.  this year, when the organizers of the barrie spring thaw races sent a request out to the barrie roadrunners to support their event, i thought that the timing was right to once again test my mettle and gauge my conditioning - this time in advance of the mississauga marathon.  

pre-race
i had a mental goal of running sub-40min., but knew that it would depend on the conditions and the pace of the other runners around me.  with this being a small-field event (maybe 130 competitors total participating in a 1k run, 5k walk, 5k run and 10k run) and having reviewed previous years' results i gathered that it could be hit-or-miss as to whether or not i'd place in my age-group, and how fast the finishing times might be.  but having my newly acquired Skechers GOMeb Speed 2 on my feet, i felt like something really good was ready to happen.

i couldn't pick up my kit the day before the race, so i arrived early on race morning, got a few kms of easy warm-up in, ran several strides and then did some lunges/stretching before picking up my bib and ankle-strap chip.  the registration space was well organized (even if the volunteers were reading their what-to-do instructions straight off of a sheet) and i got set up with relative ease.

as the 10k race was the second last event to go in the staggered-start arrangement, i spent some time chatting it up with my friends tom and brandy who were running the 5k.  tom is an 18-min. 5k runner who is built like a tank - he's got the physique of a pro-wrestler in a small 5'6" package, and he runs like the wind.  i'd had hoped that perhaps we might overlap on the course so that i could try to keep pace with him, but the logistics just wouldn't work out that way.

the race

the line-up at the start had a fair number of high-school aged students - the Spring Thaw is an event organized in support of Unity Christian High School so i gathered that many of the families enrolled in the school showed up for it.  there was also a bike pacer right at the start planning to lead the group for the first 2k or so until we would hit a limestone trail at which he would bail out - i think mostly because the trail was still a bit mushy with snow/ice spots that could make pacing (even with aggressive knobby tires) a hazard for runners trying to follow.

1st km - 3:44

i started right at the front of the pack and kept up with the bike pacer/marshal and it felt like a great way to go.  after about 400m i settled into a nice rhythm and followed the hum of the tires just ahead of me, thinking that if i could keep this going that i would be golden.  at about 650m i was passed by a teenager who seemed to be moving very strong, and i was ok with that - i did want to stick to an even-splits kind of race strategy, so i let him go but managed to keep no more than about 20m behind him.

kms 2, 3, 4 - 4:07, 4:11, 4:03

i felt decent with the pace, and nearing the 2k mark we lost our bike pacer, leaving just my teenage friend and i to keep the pace.  i found him to be fairly steady, and i didn't mind creeping into the 4:xx/km territory hoping to have something strong left in the tank for the final third, especially if i had to race this kid to the finish line.

km 5, 6, 7, 8 - 4:04, 4:07, 4:06, 4:11

at about 4.5k we had a hairpin turnaround and just after that i found myself closing the gap on the leader.  i wondered at first if i was picking up the pace, but sure enough i was staying steady.  when i caught up to the leader he quickly tucked in behind me - so my immediate thought was that he was going to take advantage of a bit of drafting, save himself for the final couple of kilometres, and then take me and whomever else down.  but about 600m after making the pass i realized that i wasn't hearing his footsteps anymore - i didn't look back, but instead told myself to stick to my race and try to feel good through to 8k.

since the 5k race started 15 min. after the 10k race and shared part of the same course, i caught up to the 5k runners at about the 7k mark.  up to that point i'd found it challenging to push myself, as it was like being out on a tempo run on my own.  with no one to try to keep up to or with, i found it easy to let a few seconds slip here and there, making it up with the occasional surge.  

i want to also mention at this point that there were two aid stations available along the 10k route - i didn't make use of any of them, but it's worth noting that this event was well-staffed, including various course marshals.  at no point did i have any questions as to the route, and they were all very encouraging as i was plugging away.

km 9, 10 - 4:09, 3:55

coming down the home stretch i was able to begin to 'pick people off' as numerous 5k runners were now in my sights.  this was a psychological boost and gave me focus on both accelerating smoothly and looking good/relaxing in my stride.  however, the 9th kilometre also produced several momentary vomiting sensations - and this was new to me.  i must have been pushing myself harder than i thought i was ... and with each perceived wretching instinct i had to concentrate on relaxing my upper body and taking deep easy breaths.  i don't know whether or not this slowed me down at all, but the result was that i managed to keep going without having to hurl.

with the finish line in sight i managed a decent push knowing that there were cameras catching the finishing straight.  the organizers said that they would be sending a complimentary finish-line photo to each participant, and i wanted mine to look half-decent, especially if i was going to place in my AG.    

official race gun time: 40:59 / garmin GPS 10k time: 40:37

post-race
my friend tom was there at the finish line ready to congratulate me on a strong performance, as well as to graciously fetch me a bottled water and a half-banana from the refreshments table while i paced around trying to regulate my breathing again.  i spent a bit of time 'unpacking' the race with he and his wife brandy when i finally noticed the second place 10k finisher - the teenager whom i'd followed through to 4.5k - coming in at about six minutes after i'd crossed the line.  i went over to him to thank him for letting me follow his lead, and he commented on how he thought i must have been a good runner, and that he'd come into this race without really having trained.  ah, to be young again ...

i stayed through waiting for the medal presentation, and in so doing was able to cheer on another friend (marc) who raced 10k on this day just as he had done one week prior - almost posting a new PB this time around again!

it was fun watching the medals being handed out, as they were awarded to the top three finishers in every AG division (by gender).  tom, brandy, marc and i all received medals, which was a real bonus!  and as it often is with smaller races, there were age categories where medals were awarded by default because of the number of entrants - some groupings not even having the full complement of three finishers.

having been recognized for the fruits of my labour, i went on to finish my morning run with an easy 15k, completing a 28k morning.  

not bad - a new 10k race PB, a 1st place AG finish, and 1st place overall.  as far as lessons learned goes, i discovered that being a frontrunner (literally) requires a different kind of discipline if you're going to try to take down any records - even just your own.  i feel as if i might well have had a better chance of going sub-40 if there were other faster runners to keep up with or even just a few of us in the end going toe-to-toe as we duelled for podium places.  

so maybe i exchanged a fast time for a first-place finish.

still, i'll take it - and will continue to #GOlikeneverbefore!

race report - barrie Spring Thaw 10k

walking wounded

i think that it may be broken.

but first, a little context.

on november 20, 2013 i embarked on my first 'group run' with the barrie roadrunners who meet up at the local running room store.  it was a decent paced first outing, but as i was a newbie i was unfamiliar with the route that we were taking so stayed in the middle of the pack.  the roads and sidewalks had a few slick spots thanks to near-freezing temperatures so as the bunch of us approached a corner the lead runner(s) slowed just a tad so as to not wipe out.  those of us just slightly behind did not anticipate the drop in pace and began to log-jam, and as a result i kicked into the heels of the runner ahead of me, almost taking the both of us down.  i thought nothing more of it at the time as we managed to carry on unphased, although i wondered whether or not that other runner might not have been grumbling in his head about the rookie.

the day after i noticed a bit of swelling on the second toe of my right foot - the same foot that gave a good boot to the guy ahead of me.  it didn't look or feel quite right.  a bit swollen, a bit discoloured, and a bit tender.

worth a trip to the doctor?  no way.  "i'm not going to clog up the medical system for something like this" i told myself.

but i did i give it a rest?  any ice, compression or elevation (the famous R-I-C-E formula)?  nope.  that's my stubbornness that borders on/is confused with determination.  

fast forward to now 10 weeks later, and here's how things look (apologies if footie pics gross you out):

in the photo you can see that 867km of running later my toe has not returned to the same normal coloured, un-swollen condition of the same toe on the opposite foot.  now, aside from being occasionally itchy (not athlete's foot, and just the top of that swollen knuckle) it has not caused me any discernible pain or impeded my running in any way.  i've googled "running with broken toe" and on numerous forums the words of advice given are that you can use the level of pain as the real determinant as to whether or not to stop running and/or seek medical attention.  that seemed like sound counsel (read:  stubborn) to me so i carry on as is with my wonky digit.

it's not much of an injury, but i can't entirely dismiss it either.  however, i certainly don't consider myself in any way shape or form as 'toughing it out'.  i'm just curious if anyone else in my readership circle has dealt with anything like this - or if you have your own 'thorn in the flesh' that you are living/running with.

as for me and my toe?  there is only one way to go - forward.

walking wounded

race report - snowflake series race 3 (10k)

on a rather last minute suggestion from my friend rhonda-marie i made my way north into orillia for the third race in the CANIrunning snowflake series - a 5/10k competition.  it seemed like a good way to start off 2014, and who knows ... maybe i'll become more like my running idol yuki kawauchi and race my brains out this year.

pre-race
it was a slick drive on snow-packed/icy highway 11 from barrie to orillia, so i was worried that i hadn't given myself enough time to get to the start line to register.  maybe the motto for my commute there would be my mantra for the day:  slow and steady.

arriving at the waterfront in orillia, there were two small card tables set up in a snowy parking lot - that was registration HQ.  the snowflake series is marketed as a no-frills race:  $15 per race (or $50 for the four-race series), no shirt, no medal, with all proceeds going toward The Sharing Place, a local food bank.  the process was no muss-no fuss:  fill in your vitals (race bib number, age, name, home city) with a golf pencil, pay the entry fee, try to manipulate your now frostbitten fingers to pin the bib to your outer shell.

i prepped with a 2k warmup jog with strides, including a quick trip to the one port-a-potty seemingly stranded out in the snow-covered park.

the underfoot conditions that we would be running on were similar to what i encountered on the highway - packed down snow and icy, tire-track worn patches in -21°C windchill.  i can honestly say that i was worried when my 'warm-up' only managed to notify me that the entire front half of each foot was frozen numb ... being a forefoot striker i really rely on my ability to push off from my toes and this was not a good start.

by the time that the group that had gathered (i eyeballed about 150-200 of us) were herded to the start line, i'd managed to recover feeling in my feet.  the race organizer/announcer did a solid job of announcing the route, the hazards (e.g. traffic - these were not closed courses), and the fact that there was no awards ceremony afterwards ... only hot chocolate and timbits (enough incentive for me!).

the race
with simple verbal countdown we were off.  i started about 15 feet from the front runners (who were off in a flash - what did they have on their shoes, tire chains?) and worked my way through the pack easily enough into what looked to be about 12th spot.  i tried to find a group to run with, but i didn't want to blow up so the pace that i found manageable kept me lagging about 5 seconds behind a pack of three.

the course itself was easy enough to follow - turns were marked with small orange pylons and signs, and one major turn/intersection had a course marshal to help encourage/manage traffic.  for a no frills race, this was one of the best controlled courses i'd seen.

i was pleased (given the greasiness/lack of traction) with the pace for the first 5k.  at points i wondered whether or not i'd made the right choice to wear my skechers gorun 2s when i'd also packed my brand new merrell mix master 2s, but the tread seemed to perform just as well as anybody else's footwear.  today's road surface was a great equalizer.

the 5k turnaround (it was a loop course) was treacherous at best - a hairpin turn on a single lane of road marked by those little pylons.  there was simply no running through that, and a shuffle pace meant risking a turned or busted ankle.  what was impressive, however, was that in the midst of the turn my watch beeped 5k - they must have measured this course using a garmin. :)

setting out on the second loop i quickly recognized that several of the front runners had wrapped up their morning, and that i was now in about 6th or 7th place.  this was a similar experience to the MEC burlington race five back in november, only i didn't have the benefit of my pal trevor to push the pace on me here.  but before the 6th km was up i managed to catch up to one of the guys (now the lone guy, having lost two of his pack compatriots after 5k) whom i was chasing during the first half.  his name was jason, a half-marathon specialist ten years my younger - and we managed to link up and finish the race together.  even though he'd not run in about three months before today, it was evident how quick he was as i gave another full-out sprint effort over the last 150m and could only manage to stay on his heels crossing the finish line.  

post-race
checking my watch, i managed to complete the race in 44:09 (about 4:24/km) - which according to the unofficial results is decent enough for a 2nd place age-group finish.  far from even my personal training time best for the same distance, i was pleased with the result as i was really treating this as a tempo run for the week, and it served as just that.

following a 2k cool-down jog (part of which involved helping to push a mini-van spinning its tires over the crest of a hill), i took full advantage of the aforementioned timbits and hot chocolate.  at this popular spot i chatted it up with several people that i'd recognized from the running room/barrie roadrunners group - all of whom commented that the running community in orillia is very much underestimated and very strong.  for sure there were a number of jackrabbits out there today, and i think that i'll be looking out for more CANIrunning races in orillia to help sharpen me in 2014.

kudos to all of the snowflake series organizers and participants - i will definitely make a point of seeing you again!

race report - snowflake series race 3 (10k)

pack mentality

off-season is a great time to make some changes ... or so i've heard. 

i'm trying to maintain a base until mid-january of about 50-60km per week, with a view to ramping up my next marathon training schedule to peak in and around 110-120km. in some conversation with my pal stan i've come to believe that i'm one of those runners who is better suited to more mileage in preparation for races.  i've managed to run injury-free for about 3-1/2 years now, topping out at about 3700km (projected) this calendar year.  hopefully the winter conditions in south-central ontario this season won't be too daunting as i press on through the holidays.

one of the things that i've started doing in the last few weeks is running with a group.  as a noted introvert, i've mostly enjoyed solo runs - and when i run with a partner it's usually been as a deliberate means of keeping my pace easy (often with mike) or up (often with trevor) - i've written about this already in a post earlier this spring.  but the barrie roadrunners are the local running club and their outings coincide with the running room's free training runs, so i thought that it would be a good opportunity to connect with others in the local running community and try to unlock the secret that the east african runners have known for a long time.    

it's only been a couple of runs with the group so far, but i've already got a few observations to share:

1. it's providing me with the experience of running at a different time of the day.  normally i wake up around 5:30am to go out for my run (no matter the time of the year), but this group sets out at 6:30pm - so my biorhythms are completely different, my energy level is different, and i have to be a little more aware of how i'm fuelling throughout the day.  i can't say that i'll convert to nighttime running, but it's a welcome variation in the schedule.
2. in-run conversations have offered some interesting personalities and running tips.  while i've already been identified as the 'chatty-cathy' new guy, it's been great how personable and generous the other runners have been with their stories and advice.  already i've met someone from my hometown who's migrated here to barrie, as well as a veteran ultramarathoner who has shared insights and training tips as i plan for my first trail ultra next summer.
3. there's no way that i would be working this hard right now without them.  the last two runs have been tempo runs with the group, and while i probably fall smack dab in the middle of the bunch in terms of age, they're hoofing it at a really solid pace.  it's been a great way to maintain decent stride form during this off-season while reminding myself that i'm not losing too much of an edge from my racing speed.

are you a pack runner?  what recommendations do you have for me to help me get the most out of (and contribute the most back into) this running group?

pack mentality