Are we there, yet?
Three fourths of the year gone, starting to think about next year's races and vacations. After a solid September, 188.9 miles, I'm a little more optimistic. Still have one and possibly as many as three races left this year, but I'm taking it race by race and won't sign up for the next until I see how the current one goes.
qotd: Do you prefer long term planning for your race schedule or wing it assuming the races don't fill in days or hours?
2024 Races:
03/09 - Livingston Oval Ultra 6-Hour, 22.88 miles
05/11 - D3 50K 05/25 - What the Duck 12-Hour
06/17 - 6 Days in the Dome 12-Hour.
Rick
Another low mileage week for me, but got the majority of my work done. Now I can run more. Also hit 1 year on my run streak. Need to decide whether to continue at the same level (2 miles minimum) or up the game to 3 miles. I know, seems like a piddly amount but that can be a long way in the dead of winter during a storm. That was the hardest conditions last year. Surprisingly not that hard to run (shuffle) after an Ultra and actually helped the soreness.
On schedule, I wing it. I would like to do one 100 miler, one marathon, and one big self supported adventure a year. I don't expect any changes in work schedule next year so anything big May through October is out.
FNKYHD - I will be at Javalina pacing a friend (I am too cheap to pay for the race). Hint, Hint.
12-22 Last One Standing - dnf 37 miles
1-23 Sun Marathon - 3:53
3-4-23 Red Mountain 55k - 7:02
4-15-23 Zion 100 - 27:59
Ugh. I'm tired and have gotten another cold/whatever, thanks to the weather warming back up and cooling down again. I had a lower mileage month in Sept (140 mi). Right now I'm just looking ahead to the break I'm taking Oct 21 - I pretty much hate running right now, which always happens when I get sick like this. I've been taking Zicam and that seems to have kept the symptoms mild, but ugh, GO AWAY, MUCUS.
Sorry about the whining.
I plan a few things longer term, and then fill things in as I go. I don't like to sign up for too many races too far in advance because I never know how I'm going to feel, what my travel schedule will be like, etc. I save my far in advance planning for the races I know will fill/have lotteries (Superior). Unfortunately (for me, not for the RDs), more and more races are filling up as trail running gets more popular.
Trails
My OCD self needs to plan. I plan at least a year out and that helps me get in the consistency. If I don't the chair monster gets me and I'll sit there til bed time reading.
I need to find some 50 milers with longer cut offs. I know the Hawk has a 30 hour due to the 100 also being run but can anyone point out any more?
king of the non-sequitur
qotd, races around here seem to fill up fast but i dont really find much advantage to running big races (big fees, crowded field, conga lines, less homemade fare at aid stations) so i may do fewer of those in the future... unless someone cajoles me into something . my long term plans have always been trying to combine races with travel visits to family. i am considering another run at black canyon but just because i need to go help my step Mom with her house. but i am waffling on that too. there are some smaller events id like to try. either way i dont want them to be a big deal anymore. my next event, the carkeek 6 hour there is only one other person signed up for the afternoon 6 (i'd do the 12 except im working that morning). ha! that should count as 12! that race comes with zero pre-race anxiety + + +!
Beryl, i see your logic. go and try again quick! but i dont have any more money or vacation time! i think with the cost of race fee, car rental, gear, food, lodging and gas that last 100 attempt cost me over $500! if i go to AZ that costs jumps with more travel cost
Bridle Trails 50k 1-13-24 5:39
Cottontail 6 Hour 4-13-24
Cougar Long Series (May,June,July,Aug 2024)
Carkeek 6 Hour 10-19-24
The way races fill up here, you have to plan key races in advance. I have to decide by November if I want to do Squamish again. Part of me thinks doing the 50/50 before doing either the 110k or 175k 5 weeks later is too much, the other part thinks it would be great training. I felt good for the 55k, but I'm thinking of skipping Squamish this year, and maybe volunteering instead. Diez Vistas sells out in a few hours, no 100k option this year, would like to try the 50k. Knee Knacker is a lottery, so not sure if I'll bother or not. I want to do less races, and more fatass stuff, so we'll see how that goes.
Club Fat Ass New Years Day 50k - Jan 1 - 6h13m
First Half HM (road) - Feb. 9
Chuckanut 50k - Mar. 21
Sun Run 10k - Apr. 19
BMO Vancouver Marathon - May 3
Vancouver 100k (Club Fat Ass) - 32h07m 2 runs, pacing 100 miler friends
Whistler Alpine Meadows 100 miler - September 25
Tunnel Hill 50 in southern IL has a 30 hour cutoff, same as the 100. Fast rails to trails course. The women's 100 mile record has been broken on it twice, first by Traci Falbo, then a couple years later by Camille Herron.
It's 11/10 this year and has been sold out for a while.
Pain is my friend
Had another great week of running. 70 miles. Did a killer speed work on wedn. and then pace 25 miles of the Bear 100.
September was a good month for me. Finished the month out with 258 miles and almost 40,000 ft of vert. Bring on the fall colors.
ATY 24 141.445 2019 1st
Bear 100 22:08 2021
Jackpot 100 Feb 14:59 - 5th
Pulse endurance 48 hr 175.3 miles
Bonnevile Backyard ultra
Ute 100 Aug
24 hour loop race?
Slower but happier
Three fourths of the year gone, starting to think about next year's races and vacations. After a solid September, 188.9 miles, I'm a little more optimistic. Still have one and possibly as many as three races left this year, but I'm taking it race by race and won't sign up for the next until I see how the current one goes. qotd: Do you prefer long term planning for your race schedule or wing it assuming the races don't fill in days or hours?
I have to plan longish meaning i have to specify my days off for next year
already. Im pretty sure on spring races but not on fall yet. Nothing grabbed my attention. But around here waitlist are not as big a deal. So i do wing sone races, like the North Face 50 mile a couple weeks before. Just a few races fill up as to where i even have to check and since there are plenty others, I usually dont bother with them.
2020 goal: couch to 5K, currently working on the couch block
Had another great week of running. 70 miles. Did a killer speed work on wedn. and then pace 25 miles of the Bear 100. September was a good month for me. Finished the month out with 258 miles and almost 40,000 ft of vert. Bring on the fall colors.
Krikes, thats a lot of vert.
I was flipping back through Garmin phone app looks like im pretty consistently 200 mile per month, but just does last 4 weeks not by month so its kinda annoying. I think 40-60 is my sweet spot. More then that i start to enjoy it as much.
Tunnel Hill 50 in southern IL has a 30 hour cutoff, same as the 100. Fast rails to trails course. The women's 100 mile record has been broken on it twice, first by Traci Falbo, then a couple years later by Camille Herron. It's 11/10 this year and has been sold out for a while.
Agree, I ve done 50 mi and 100 mi. There was an 85 y/o last year who did the 50 and used most of the time. Just amazing to me.
Btw. Zach Bitter is running the 100. Should be interesting to see. Definitely one in his wheelhouse.
Another low mileage week for me, but got the majority of my work done. Now I can run more. Also hit 1 year on my run streak. Need to decide whether to continue at the same level (2 miles minimum) or up the game to 3 miles. I know, seems like a piddly amount but that can be a long way in the dead of winter during a storm. That was the hardest conditions last year. Surprisingly not that hard to run (shuffle) after an Ultra and actually helped the soreness. On schedule, I wing it. I would like to do one 100 miler, one marathon, and one big self supported adventure a year. I don't expect any changes in work schedule next year so anything big May through October is out. FNKYHD - I will be at Javalina pacing a friend (I am too cheap to pay for the race). Hint, Hint.
I have a streak of at least 1 day per week not running for a few years.
I am thinking along the lines of self support adventure next year sometime 2.
I will just post this here for kicks, my first foray into XC
Yesterday driving back from my trail run. I saw a sign for local 3 mi Cross Country Race Run For Kelli, so signed up last night. Here is race website[Run For Kelli](https://www.firstgiving.com/event/413582/Run-For-Kelli-2018).
Race Report:
Race: 3mi XC
Goals: Don’t sabotage upcoming A race with injury, hang on for dear life
Its in the Chicago Suburbs at a local high school. It raises money for charities in honor of a young girl who was killed from the local high school. Link above.
Training: I didn’t train for this at all. My a goal is Indiana Trail 100 in 2 weeks. I run 40-60 mpw. Mostly slow/hills/ couple runs per week trail. I do some strides. I did a 50 mile race 2 weeks ago, went well, recovery went good despite a bad fall/toe/rib injury.
I run mostly trail ultras and shortest “race” I’ve ever done was 10 mi trail. Never did XC, so out of my wheel house. I have walked mostly 5ks w the kids so have a couple age group 5k DFLs!
Prerace: got up had coffee, cereal, ensure. Jogged 2 miles and got my bib. Had time prerace to do some dynamic warmup. I had pushed on my Run yesterday and my right ham/glute was cranky.
Course: 3.1 mi all grass around the highschool ball fields. Well marked. Actually, I thought it was a 5k at the start, but the results listed as 3 mile! Not that it really mattered in the end to me.
Race: I decided on a pace 7:20 ish just based on my tempo pace from earlier in the spring (7:20-7:30). I felt now i would be considerably slower having not worked the high end. Also, didnt want to go all out with upcoming A race and get injured. Weather is cool here now 55-65. Wonderful. It was so hot in the summer I really left off doing tempo/VO2 workouts more for hills/strides.
1st mile I was breathing heavy like a VO2, I thought I’m in over my head. I tucked in behind a woman going my pace. I was in the second pack back. I like the start in open field allows everyone to sort out before the narrower course. This is way more mentally challenging to do then my typical runs lately. First mile (Watch 7:16).
Mile 2: my breathing settled down more to like tempo effort for the most part. I was behind a guy now my age (40-49 ag) who I pretty much paced off the rest of the race. Its a mile loop so at this point we were doing some weaving in and out of the people on the first mile but not bad. (7:33)
Mile 3. Effort was ok. I kept up w the guy. Passing more now. Tried to think when i wanted to overtake him and pick it up for finish. Eventually there was an upslope so i surged there because i figured hell I’m a trail runner i ought to be better on hills. That worked. I think about 0.2 left i saw another guy my AG maybe chased him down then did a little sprint finish. (7:24).
Official gun time 22:50. I walked around a little before I remembered to stop GPS so thats 23:30. I do that a lot. But as a result its also my fastest 5k! I was a little light headed and nauseated. No vomiting thank goodness.
Got some water, a bagel. I ended up getting 3rd AG (40-49) which was cool. I think 15 overall. Theres 264 people so small race and that includes walkers but still i will take it.
Aftermath: I would like to do more XC or a 5k. These are mentally tough for me. Trail running is a different type of mental challenge and pain. I got into trail running to get out of my comfort zone, now it sorta is my comfort zone, so this is another way to do that.
Strava: [Run for Kelli Strava](https://www.strava.com/activities/1875699754/shareable_images/map_based?hl=en-US&v=1538319751)
TMH, nice job on the 5k-.1! i'd like to do a trail HM or 10 miler. looking for one.
WC, great miles for Sept.
TMH, nice 5k, a good way to change things up.
I ended up with 168. The month ended with a TURD week bc of stomach problems (food poisoning I think) so I’m happy with what I got.
QOTD: I do both. I pick a couple big things in advance, which gives me a goal to keep me motivated as well as something to look forward to. Then I jump into local races often last minute, good for supported training runs. Since I volunteer a lot, I can usually get freebie or discounted races.
5/11/24 Grizzly Peak Marathon, Berkeley, CA
7/20/24 Tahoe Rim Trail 56 miler, NV
9/21/24 Mountain Lakes 100, OR