New Years cabin trip and 2011 event plans

So I spent the past week at my Echo Lake cabin. So much happened it’s tough to recount it all. Snow shoe hikes, night hikes, EPIC sledding and some snow running. The trip was all accentuated by one thing SNOW a whole lot of it. The previous storms left more snow than I have seen in a long time at the cabin, much less the sierras. We later received even more.

As luck would have it my long time snow shoes cracked apart the week before. I had thought of buying new boots months ago, but put it off because I’m too much of a tight wad. Luckily my wonderful wife bought me a pair of Salomon snow boots for Christmas. She saw I had circled them in an REI catalog. These are the best snow shoes I’ve ever had. The fit like over sized running shoes, not clunky Sorel’s. If you’re looking for new snow boots check them out. Running and snow shoeing in them was great.
Here is a summary of the trip:

We drove up Monday morning on clear roads to a cabin snow encased from the recent storms. The cabin had more snow than I have seen on it before. The front window was completely encased as was the front door. With us was the Brown family, who were staying for the night. Just like last years New Years trip my friend Thor and his daughter Sienna were with us for the week. All total we had five adults and six children the first night, (ouch).

After digging out the cabin we headed to our normal sledding hill along the Echo Lake Road/Trail. The fresh powder made it a bit more work, but it was great sledding after smashing it down.

The expected blizzard came in late Tuesday just after the Browns left. Tuesday was snowy and fun. We awoke Wednesday to no power and 3+ feet of fresh snow. The power came back on for an hour then was out again until 5pm.

We spent the day digging out the cabin again, hiking, and making water from snow and cutting wood. Daytime high temps were in the 20's so we drained the cabin’s water system to be safe. We kept a good fire going all day.

Johnson Pass Road which is the access road to the cabin had 3+ feet of fresh snow and was impassable till it was plowed on Thursday. I helped dig a few people out that thought they could make it out.

We made an epic snow cave for the kids during the week using the stairs and porch as a roof. When the skies cleared later in the week (Thursday) we dug out a bobsled run from the front of the house.

Thor and I did a lot of hiking over the week. We did a couple of hikes that ended in the dark. Great stuff when the snow is coming down. Snow running and snow shoes running is a great way to get in shape. I’d swear I’m in better shape than when I left.

To put the play and work on the trip in perspective, I ate HORRIBLY the whole trip. I ate candy, chips, salami and cheese, (daily), pizza and a LOT of sodas and beer, (a lot of soda). Somehow I came back 2lbs down. This was after a trip to Mel’s Diner on the way home.  Snow shoveling is the best workout ever.

All in all a lot of snow, hiking, snow play and FUN.  Here are a few pictures, I posted some video and more pictures on Facebook.

Crawling into cave from other entrance



Inside of snow cave



Looking out of snow cave


2011 Event Schedule

I had a lot of time to think about my 2011 event plans. After thinking about it and talking to Lily I changed a few things I had been planning. Here is a list of the races and notable events I have planned for 2011:

March:        Way to Cool 50K

April:           AR50 (pacing and supporting my training group)
                   ***40th Birthday Party***
                   Grand Canyon R2R2R

May:            Bishop High Sierra 100K

June:            Western States 100 (Pacing Kuni Yamagata)

July:              Tahoe Rim Trail 50 mile

August:         Squaw to Donner 50K

September:   Rio Del Lago 100
                    Sierra Nevada Endurance Runs (work the race)

November:   Lithia Loop Marathon
                    Last Chance 50 mile (pace Lily at her 1st 50 miler)

So I bailed on TRT100 for a variety of reasons. In planning it out it was becoming too much of a strain on the family for that time of year. RDL100 will be interesting and HOT! I’ve wanted to try it for some time. It’s local which is always appealing and I know the course. The heat will make the training prep interesting at the end.

I’m looking forward to pacing Kuni at WS100. He is an amazing runner and I was honored to be asked to help him. I look forward to training with him and being a part of his Big Dance in June.

I hope to add a few more things as the year progresses. My big Sierra hike/run plans never came together in 2010, so I want to do that at some time.

Lily and I would also like to do Mt. Whitney again. Mostly I just want to get out more and have a solid season of training and adventures. I turn 40 in April so I have to live it up in 2011, I’ll be officially old according to my family.

AB

CIM Report and 2011 Plans

I can tell it “Tis the season”, I’ve had no time to write since CIM. Regardless the world has been interesting since CIM.

CIM

The race did not go off as planned, but I kind of expected it. Being sick after Clarksburg 20 mile threw me off my game a lot. Regardless I went into the race with the plan I had for some time, go with the 3:10 group and see what happens. By the half I was a little off on time, but feeling smooth enough that I thought I could hold on. I figured I would fade into the 3:15 area.

It was a warm day and I was drinking and eating a lot. My hammies were twitchy by 22 miles and I was slowing. I had to stop and shake them a few times, but I finished feeling good, but crampy. I decided against an all out finish push to save time. My Ultra Training group was starting up the following week. I wanted a quick recovery since my goal was not to be met (3:10 or under).

I learned and re-learned things I had forgotten about run training for CIM. Mainly you can’t go easy (aerobic) all the time. Sometimes you got to go hard and varying your pace is key to improvement. I had gotten into a rut training for Ultra’s.

I look forward to expanding my training in 2011. On the plus side my weight for CIM dropped without trying. I was hovering around 175lbs (I’m about 6’3”) since Clarksburg.

Ultra Training Group

We ended up going well over our 30 person limit. With some more coaches helping us out I think we will still give a great level of attention to all the runners. I look forward to the coming weeks as we get to know the new runners. I should have some pics weekly now as we delve into the trails.

2011 Plans

The Western States 100 Lottery was the day before CIM. I was not selected this year, very sad. The Lottery was a lot of fun catching up with people I had not seen in a while. I know I’ll be back to the race again, so no worries. Kirk got in so I plan to help him train, it will be his first 100 miler.

With the holiday season still kicking me in the head, training has been minimal. It is for the best since 2011 is going to be epic. I turn 40 in April so I want this whole year to be full of fun.

Since States is out I needed to find another 100 miler to run. Tahoe Rim Trail 100 came to mind and is still in orbit around my brain. Other contender’s are The Canadian Death Race, The Trans-Rockies (or the 3-day version) and Rio Del Lago 100. RDL would be fun mostly because it’s local and low key. TRT100 is at the top because it scares the shit out of me; it’s beautiful and is close.

I have also looked at not doing a 100 miler in favor of more races, namely 100K’s. PCTR has a new September 100K in Tahoe that could be fun. Where’s Waldo 100K has been on my radar for years, I hear it’s tough. And finally there is the Bishop 100K. I have wanted to go back and race Bishop for some time. The last time I was there they did not have a 100K.

That would also be the beauty of RDL or another late season 100 (Javalina??). I don’t have to decide now and if the 100K’s go well I can probably still decide to do one later and get it. Locking big races in 6+ months in advance can kind of suck after a while. So the preliminary 2011:

Way to Cool 50K
Lake Sonoma 50 mile
Bishop 100K
TRT100 ???
Where’s Waldo 100K
Lake Tahoe 100K or RDL100??

Some people have told me to just do it all. A very good idea, but I have some big family vacations in 2011, (Disney Cruise for a week in the Bahamas).  I also want to get some fast packing done.  Mt Whitney and a few 14’ers are also calling me and the wife’s name.  Oh and I'll be doing the R2R2R in April, going all the way this time.

Decisions decisions, 2011 will be a great one.  Time to get my butt in motion.

AB

This just in about Way to Cool 50k

The course has changed go here to check it out:   WTC Course  The Lottery opened today so get your entry in, it's going to be a barn burner.

More on this and my CIM later.

AB

Up next the CIM, but “THE LOTTERY” is first and Waffles

It’s been an interesting life since Clarksburg. I got a nasty stomach flu that has derailed my running. My daughter had it first, then me and now Lily has it. Like me Lily is running CIM this Saturday. I’ve kicked my sickness, but life and running just can’t get in the groove.

Saturday I found my cat had the boots put to him by someone. That and typical holiday family stress have made life BLAH, for lack of a better term.

I’m more than rested and tapered and last Saturday’s 12 miler felt good. So we will see what I’ve got in me Sunday. The final plan is to go with the 3:10 group. The body will dictate any further changes come race day.

Lottery Time

Saturday’s Lottery for Westerns States will have the biggest effect on my race. If I get in I’ll be that guy smiling with the care free attitude regardless of the 25deg temps. If I don’t get in I’ll probably be a bit more focused, but still having a good time.

The past few CIM’s I’ve run have been to pace Lily or someone else.  Last year I picked up the fashionable item around my neck from the side of the road.  The scarf will be in full effect Sunday have no doubt.

I had the pleasure of recently trying out the new Honey Stinger Waffle



 
Holy Mother of Calories (160) these little suckers are awesome.  They are based on a Dutch stroopwafel. 

I want a homemade one like this, YUM I suggest you go over to Fleet Feet Fair Oaks and try one out.

AB

A perfect day

Yesterday was a perfect day, (in case you were not aware). How did this rare event in the cosmic pinwheel of existence happen you ask? Well here are the ingredients:


1. A glorious sunrise, think purple, orange, red, yellow

2. Excellent weather

3. LOTS of friends, both new and old

4. A well executed race

5. No stress


The Story of how it all came together

Yesterday was my last big run before my goal of running the California International Marathon for time. The Clarksburg Country Run has been around forever. I first ran it as a junior in High School. I have a photo from the run, but the scanner broke before I could post it. Just visualize a big haired 168lb version of me in red split sided nylon running shorts.

My plan was to run a controlled race to nail down my pace for CIM. My recent training indicated a 7:10 - 7:15 pace was a definite possibility for the marathon. I figured I would go out around this pace and go for even pacing. If the legs felt good then I would try for negative splits.

Prior to the race my buddy Nick Bingham came to town. I’ve known Nick since high school. Nick is the guy you love to hate (from a running perspective). Nick is super talented, his marathon PR is in the low 2:20’s. He placed 5th his 1st year at Western States 100, he has notched a lot of wins in his career, you get my point.

Nick’s daughter Sarah and my daughter Izabella were born 7 days apart and get along great. So Saturday they dropped by so Sarah could spend the night with us. Nick and his son Andrew spent time with Grandpa. We have done this in past when Nick is in town for races. I knew from experience that I would not need to run Saturday before the race, the girls tax me enough. Who knew building fairy houses out of leaves in the backyard could be so taxing.

I awoke early race morning after going to bed early. Nothing like 10 hours of sleep to recharge your batteries before a race. As I drove to the race start I found myself looking at a glorious sunrise across the valley. It was at this point I realized my camera’s battery was dead. So this perfect day had one negative, no photos, but it was the only negative of the day.


Race

The weather was perfect, sunny but cool. There was a head wind on the way out, but nothing too drastic. After a warm-up, I put my watch on and was ready to go. No drop bags and loading of gear. It’s just you and your socks, shoes shorts and shirt. No packs, or bottles, flasks, iPods. I had gels, but only two. I actually used that little pocket inside my shorts (a first) to hold one gel; I held my other gel in my hand.

At the start I saw Lainie Mattoon and Ray Sanchez. Off we went and I settled into 7:15ish pace for the first 3 miles. I felt a bit dead legged, but relaxed. After mile 5 I settled in with another runner and my pace began to comfortably hover around 7:10 most of the time.

I ate a gel at 6 miles and again at 10 miles. At the 10 mile mark the guy I had been running with picked it up. It felt good so I went with him. As we moved along I realized we were pulling some guys back. I later realized we were now running about 6:50 pace. It felt fine, but it was intimidating running this fast with 7 miles to go at point. I felt good but after a few miles I settled it down to 7’s.

The remaining miles I held strong, no problems. I thankfully took another gel they offered at an aid station. If I hadn’t I think I might have had a bonk issue at the end of the race.

At four to go I thought about speeding up again just to see what I had. When I did it seemed to take too much effort so I just stayed put. At two to go I up’d the pace again to see if I was close to the end of my rope. A slight cramp at one mile to go told me to cool my jets, so I did.

I finished feeling strong and in good form, no feet slapping or labored breathing. I definitely still had 10K of running in me at the pace I was moving at. I grabbed some water and ran/walked a few miles for a cool down. My time was 2:22 and change, good enough for a 7:08 paced run.

I spoke to Kuni and Dasie Yamagata before and after the race. I also ran into Ralph and Sharon from my trail running group. I also ran into Jacob Rydman and his wife Sara. Sara won her age group, nice work!! I saw Mark Lantz, Eric Skaden, and John Blue and just about everyone else from the area. I was surprised to see my buddy Thor Anderson. He came up from Monterey at the last minute to run in prep for CIM.

I really enjoyed seeing everyone and having a great time running. The day got better after I drove home, two words: ice cream. A perfect day, the ice bath didn’t even faze me.


What next

I accomplished all my goals for this event. I learned valuable information about my fitness and my pacing for CIM. I believe I have a solid 3:10 CIM in me. At this point I think I will go out with the 3:10 pace group and see what develops.

Next up, the dreaded taper and then CIM.

AB

The new black, cool Blogs, and of course, cool gear

Black is the ubiquitous color in sports and general fashion.  Black running shorts are a mainstay for me and many other runners.  Cyclists are worse than runners when it comes to wearing black shorts, only the elite hammerheads wear the colored spandex like theses guys:

I personally think colored spandex cycling shorts are for another reason, but the photo illustrates that…..

Regardless, like the popularity of the color black, compression sock are all the rage now.  But unless your Paula Radcliffe and have yours color matched to your skin tone, the choice is of course, you guessed it, BLACK.  Now some guys and gals are running in white compression socks.  I’m here to show you that the new black are these babies:

As the sexy (and VERY hairy) model demonstrates neon green is the new black.  And the brand to buy is CEP.  Now pink is availble also, but neon green is what the cool kids wear.

Gear

I recently saw the review of this pack: Salomon Advanced Skin Lab Pack at irunfar.com. The price tag is steep, but it looks to be a very functional and comfortable pack for those epic runs. I’m planning to ply my masculine persuasion on the wife in the near future to obtain one for 2011 adventures.

I recently switched GPS watches after tiring the big red Garmin 305. I love my GPS, but sometimes it just felt too big to wear. It has some draw backs, but the Garmin 110 looks and feels like a watch, but is a GPS. If you’re looking to try a smaller GPS check out the 110 or the just released 210 and 410 that have more functions than the basic 110.

Blogs

Here are a few blogs and website I’ve picked up on recently I think you should check out:

Jacob Rydman, All round nice guy and someone to watch in 2011.

Rhonda Sundermeier, Great race reports

Sacramentorunning, All things running in and around Sacramento.

Jaymee, Sacramento stud who just qualified for the Trials. She sounds very dedicated to her training, a great read.

AB

Running, it’s a new world when training for the marathon

Eight plus years ago I decided to take up running full time again. I was fed up with cycling in general, (Sorry but yes, everyone dopes in cycling including Cat 3’s). So beyond the occasional ride I was no longer interested in racing. Lily and I were trying to have a baby. The whole “bike riding kills your boner” ad campaign was in full swing in the media, so I was taking a lot of heat for the lack of results. In my own defense, I just thought we needed to do as much practicing as we could. I wanted to get it right when we really wanted to be pregnant.

I always ran a little here and there, but not with any frequency. For almost two years I got fat and out of shape, (making babies is stressful). So when Lily became prego I was out of shape and looking for a running goal. Having lived most of my life in Sacramento I knew all about the Western States 100. Sacramento has a large and diverse running community. I signed up for the American River 50 mile as my first step back to a running career. I figured the bigger the better. The rest is history; I’ve had ups and downs.

With my return to running I changed the way I had run in the past due to a few factors: a.) I was older, b.) I was SLOW and fat and c.) training to run REALLY far was different than anything I had done before. I followed what ultra veterans told me and followed suit. Ultra running in general is pretty basic. Lots of aerobic running and lots of long runs in beautiful places, not a lot of quality running. Mile repeats and threshold running were not needed, 4-5hr runs on a regular basis were.

In recent years I’ve noticed that I was in a rut. Training was fun, but the results were not what I wanted. Don’t get me wrong trail running still beats any other type of running for scenery and location. But lots of runs at about the same pace always worrying about being aerobic and if you ate enough can really start to blow. When I was a tri geek and raced shorter distances and a few marathons we ran all sorts of paces and distances, why not in ultras?

I began to notice that a lot of other runners faster than I were not training the same way. Sure with ultras you got slow down and go long. But these guys would still do some paced runs.

So I began to change up my training and realized I had been (still am) a lazy fool when it came to training. So early in the year I began to change things up. This got me thinking about the road marathon again, that holy grail of pain and discomfort.

With the California International Marathon (CIM) running right by my home the choice for me was easy.

Training Changes

My plan was to begin a structured marathon training plan after SNER. I cobbled together a plan from various marathon greats, mostly Pete Pfitzinger. I’m now a couple of weeks into the plan and I’m enjoying the change of pace, literally. If you haven’t run a tempo or threshold run in a while, do it. Talk about clearing out the cobwebs and learning some things about your running.

Things I’ve learned:

As most runners know, drills and working on running form can help you become more efficient. Not just road running but on the trail. But when was the last time you heard a trail/ultra runner talk about running drills? By bring these aspects into my training I’ve already noticed that I ache less, regardless of running surface, I have quieter feet and feel way more relaxed running at different paces.

Running different paces is helping me immensely. Every workout has a point. When it’s a recovery run I keep it slow. Time to run fast, then I go fast. I’m finding better fitness, but I’m also becoming better in tune to my body. I’m also becoming more efficient using fuel. One gel for 20 milers, with no fade is nice. I look forward seeing if I can carry this over to my ultra training.

Gear, sometimes it’s needed, but I think we ultra people go too far some times. Sure you need bottles and packs sometimes on the really long stuff. But a recent trail 20 miler was two gels and a watch, I felt naked. I’m also coming to the conclusion that my iPod is sabotaging my training.

Will this change in training make me a better ultra runner, who knows? But it has improved my running which has made me really motivated to improve myself and race better. A good place to be prior to 2011.

I ran across this ongoing series of articles from Eric Grossman at Running Times. They are a great read, check them out:

Grossman Motivation Series #1

#2
#3

Oh yeah and I bit the bullet and I'm now on Facebook.  So I have to take back everything bad I ever said about FB or I'd be a bigger hypocrite than I already am.

AB