November 28, 2010
10k - 39:20 - 1st/35?
Garmin tracking here.
The biggest race in the Bay Area the Sunday after Thanksgiving is the Run Wild 5k and 10k in San Francisco. However, since I ran the Quad Dipsea Saturday I wasn't expecting a great performance Sunday so I made the cost conscious decison to run the smaller 4th Sunday Race which is put on by the Lake Merritt Joggers and Striders on the 4th Sunday of every month. The $5 price tag for non-members saved about $25, and the LMJS race had 5k, 10k, and 15k options - 1, 2, or 3 loops around Lake Merritt in Oakland.
I chose to run the 10k because I didn't feel I'd have fast enough turnover for the 5k and I thought if I ran the 15k I'd run out of steam before the end. I got there just in time yet again and finished entering as they were explaining course instructions. I guess I just count on it starting a little late for that at some of these races.
The start was a little different than anything I've ever seen. The loop is just shy of 5k so there's about 20 yards extra to run after completing a complete loop to make a 5k. This means 10k runners run an extra 40 yards and 15k runners run an extra 60 yards, more or less. Usually everyone starts together and they have multiple finish lines. This time they had multiple starting lines and a single finish line. It looked like a corral system at the start since there were 3 groups over people at 3 start lines with some open space between them.
When the gun went off I almost immediately caught up to most of the 5k runners. I also tried to keep track of where the 10k runners were in relation to me. It looked to me that 2 10k runners made it through the 5k crown in front of me. As we got to the first 90 degree turn I saw a fast guy in an almost glowing green shirt cruising along in the lead pack who was not one of the 2 people. I thought he must be in the 5k to be moving that fast.
I ran the first mile in 6:06 and caught the two guys around the mile mark. I ran 6:14 pace for the next mile as I pulled away. I was very conscious of the possibility they could catch me since I wasn't as fresh as usual. I glanced over my should at every turn and it appeared I was slowly pulling away. As I was completing the first loop I wondered if I was in first or if the bright green shirt was in the 10k. I thought it possible he could run the first 5k in low 17s which would explain the gap. I didn't see him at the finish as I passed through to start my second lap.
It seemed I opened some space on both guys in back of me on the slight uphill leading to the 3 mile mark. I decided that as long as I ran my own race I'd hold them off because if either was going to make a move they wouldn't have let me get so far ahead, maybe 30 seconds by now. I didn't spot green shirt guy on the opposite side of the lake and all but concluded he must have been in the 5k.
I finished my second lap a little slower than the first. Midway through the 2nd lap I was hoping for a time in the 38:s but when I hit the 6 mile mark in just over 38:00 I knew it wouldn't happen. I finished in 39:20 and was told at the finishing chute that I was the first 10k finisher. I asked about the green guy and they told me he was in the 15k! Sure enough, only 53 minutes after we had started! I was also told that the 5k winner ran 18:11 which normally I could do, but not likely with the long race the day before. So I appeared that I entered the easiest race to win.
They only award ribbons for age group place and overall places (what else do you expect for a $5 race?). Overall I was satisfied with my time and the fact that I had a solid road time only 1 day after the Quad Dipsea is making me consider setting an aggressive goal at next week's California International Marathon.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Race 10-109 Quad(ruple) Dipsea
November 27, 2010
28.4mi. - 6th/201 - 4:40:29
Today I ran my 4th (total, and consecutive) Quad Dipsea. I had modest expectations due to low (read: non-existent) training and my sub par performances at the Whiskeytown 50k (5:25:53 in the rain) and Morgan Hill Marathon (3:12:56 in the rain). Also, the forecast for today was rain.
I arrived in usual fashion, with just enough time to park, get my bib, and get to the starting line. I saw Leor Pantilat, Gary Gellin, and Victor Ballesteros, all of whom I wouldn't be surprised to see in the top 3.
I started at a fairly normal pace and as things settled in I found myself around 12th place. There were a few guys around me with whom I traded places as the terrain went uphill and downhill. Caren Spore, the first woman by far on her way to a 1 minute course record 4:38, passed me for the last time in the Dynamite Section just after Muir Woods. Other than turnarounds I never saw her again.
For most of the first two legs I traded places with the same couple guys, with me passing going up and them passing going downhill. I entered the half way point in 12th but I left in 10th, I think due to 2 DNFs (Victor was one of the 2, he had a calf problem). I immediately passed 2 more people moving me up to 8th because there first mile from there is all uphill starting with a 676 stair climb. I didn't see them again so by then I was gaining more on the ups than what I was losing on the downs. On the 4th leg I passed a guy in a red shirt within the first mile. It was clear he was having some issues, maybe leg cramps. As I was getting to the Cardiac end of the Gale Scott section I passed Toshi Hosaka, who normally I can't keep up with. This put me in 6th. I ran down Hogsback as fast as I've ever done in this race but I took it easy on Dynamite because the mud there is almost always slippery, and it was extremely slippery by then. Toward the end of the 4th leg I was told Caren was anywhere between 30 seconds and 2 minutes ahead. Not knowing which was correct I didn't make any special effort to try for another place, knowing that 4th place was well ahead and uncatchable. I ran my own race from there, struggling up the non-shortcut way parallel to Suicide (Suicide is off limits in the Quad). I walked some of the road section and the subsequent trail to Windy Gap and then finished the last mile very strong.
My official time was 4:40:29 and shortly after seeing it I wondered whether a quick restroom break on leg 3 cost me a sub 4:40 time (close but I don't think so). Several people were surprised to see my place and/or time as good as they were including me! I came in thinking 4:50 would be tough to beat so i far exceeded expectations.
I felt very happy knowing that the people in front of me were 3 people I'll never catch (Gary, Leor, Mark McManus), plus a guy who finished 3rd (one place in front of Mark), and Caren Spore who set a new women's course record with a 4:38. The old record was 4:39 by Beth Vitalis in 2007. During Beth's race I ran around her most of the way before fading to a 4:47 myself. This year I didn't see Caren after mile 3 and she was more or less 2 minutes in front of me at each of the turnarounds. I get the feeling she was relatively more of a climber (like me) compared to the rest of the field around us, so we didn't really have any back and forth since she gained ground when I gained ground. next year the goal will be 4:35, provided I'm in good shape.
28.4mi. - 6th/201 - 4:40:29
Today I ran my 4th (total, and consecutive) Quad Dipsea. I had modest expectations due to low (read: non-existent) training and my sub par performances at the Whiskeytown 50k (5:25:53 in the rain) and Morgan Hill Marathon (3:12:56 in the rain). Also, the forecast for today was rain.
I arrived in usual fashion, with just enough time to park, get my bib, and get to the starting line. I saw Leor Pantilat, Gary Gellin, and Victor Ballesteros, all of whom I wouldn't be surprised to see in the top 3.
I started at a fairly normal pace and as things settled in I found myself around 12th place. There were a few guys around me with whom I traded places as the terrain went uphill and downhill. Caren Spore, the first woman by far on her way to a 1 minute course record 4:38, passed me for the last time in the Dynamite Section just after Muir Woods. Other than turnarounds I never saw her again.
For most of the first two legs I traded places with the same couple guys, with me passing going up and them passing going downhill. I entered the half way point in 12th but I left in 10th, I think due to 2 DNFs (Victor was one of the 2, he had a calf problem). I immediately passed 2 more people moving me up to 8th because there first mile from there is all uphill starting with a 676 stair climb. I didn't see them again so by then I was gaining more on the ups than what I was losing on the downs. On the 4th leg I passed a guy in a red shirt within the first mile. It was clear he was having some issues, maybe leg cramps. As I was getting to the Cardiac end of the Gale Scott section I passed Toshi Hosaka, who normally I can't keep up with. This put me in 6th. I ran down Hogsback as fast as I've ever done in this race but I took it easy on Dynamite because the mud there is almost always slippery, and it was extremely slippery by then. Toward the end of the 4th leg I was told Caren was anywhere between 30 seconds and 2 minutes ahead. Not knowing which was correct I didn't make any special effort to try for another place, knowing that 4th place was well ahead and uncatchable. I ran my own race from there, struggling up the non-shortcut way parallel to Suicide (Suicide is off limits in the Quad). I walked some of the road section and the subsequent trail to Windy Gap and then finished the last mile very strong.
My official time was 4:40:29 and shortly after seeing it I wondered whether a quick restroom break on leg 3 cost me a sub 4:40 time (close but I don't think so). Several people were surprised to see my place and/or time as good as they were including me! I came in thinking 4:50 would be tough to beat so i far exceeded expectations.
I felt very happy knowing that the people in front of me were 3 people I'll never catch (Gary, Leor, Mark McManus), plus a guy who finished 3rd (one place in front of Mark), and Caren Spore who set a new women's course record with a 4:38. The old record was 4:39 by Beth Vitalis in 2007. During Beth's race I ran around her most of the way before fading to a 4:47 myself. This year I didn't see Caren after mile 3 and she was more or less 2 minutes in front of me at each of the turnarounds. I get the feeling she was relatively more of a climber (like me) compared to the rest of the field around us, so we didn't really have any back and forth since she gained ground when I gained ground. next year the goal will be 4:35, provided I'm in good shape.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Race 10-108 Turkey Trail Trot
November 25, 2010
5mi. - 9th/824 - 30:03
Garmin tracking here.
Wow. It's been a year since I last updated this blog. Things have gotten away from me a little since I've been more focused on updating detailed past records of my race log.
So I ran the Turkey Trail (neé Beach) Trot for the 5th year in a row. The weather overnight was near record lows and early morning reports said the temperature in San Francisco was 44 degrees so I opted for a long sleeve tech shirt. It was a bright sunny days and I arrived 15 minutes before race time.
It was the 4th different course I've run on this race (beach, 5k, double loop, and this one) but I knew it better than I knew any of the others because I spent yesterday afternoon measuring and marking the course. I didn't see any blazing fast people at the starting line, in fact the fastest 2 people I saw were Magdelena Boulet and a several months' pregnant Clara Peterson. For some reason I didn't pay much attention to what place I was in, but I know it was somewhere around 10th. I started near the MacNiders (Ian and Andrew) and commented to Ian that we better not finish behind a pregnant person (we didn't, fortunately because I know several Excelsior Club guys who wouldn't let me forget something like that). Ian and Andrew slowly pulled away and/or I fell off pace around a half mile in but more or less maintained my place after that.
My first mile was under 6 minutes and the second, mostly downhill, was around 6 minutes. After completing the first loop we headed off to a part of the course I had never raced - some trails between Middle Drive and MLK. I traded places with a couple guys and passed a guy who had to stop and walk twice. I finally caught a guy I had been working on catching at mile 4 and tried to catch one more but didn't quite have enough left.
I ended up in 9th or 10th place (I think). I was 3rd in the 30-39 age group which got me a bottle of 2009 Charles Shaw wine, which I'll have to save for a very special occasion. I've been trying to diversify my race schedule over the last couple years but I like the course for this one, it's close to home, and the race atmosphere is great so I'll likely come back to this one every year in the foreseeable future.
5mi. - 9th/824 - 30:03
Garmin tracking here.
Wow. It's been a year since I last updated this blog. Things have gotten away from me a little since I've been more focused on updating detailed past records of my race log.
So I ran the Turkey Trail (neé Beach) Trot for the 5th year in a row. The weather overnight was near record lows and early morning reports said the temperature in San Francisco was 44 degrees so I opted for a long sleeve tech shirt. It was a bright sunny days and I arrived 15 minutes before race time.
It was the 4th different course I've run on this race (beach, 5k, double loop, and this one) but I knew it better than I knew any of the others because I spent yesterday afternoon measuring and marking the course. I didn't see any blazing fast people at the starting line, in fact the fastest 2 people I saw were Magdelena Boulet and a several months' pregnant Clara Peterson. For some reason I didn't pay much attention to what place I was in, but I know it was somewhere around 10th. I started near the MacNiders (Ian and Andrew) and commented to Ian that we better not finish behind a pregnant person (we didn't, fortunately because I know several Excelsior Club guys who wouldn't let me forget something like that). Ian and Andrew slowly pulled away and/or I fell off pace around a half mile in but more or less maintained my place after that.
My first mile was under 6 minutes and the second, mostly downhill, was around 6 minutes. After completing the first loop we headed off to a part of the course I had never raced - some trails between Middle Drive and MLK. I traded places with a couple guys and passed a guy who had to stop and walk twice. I finally caught a guy I had been working on catching at mile 4 and tried to catch one more but didn't quite have enough left.
I ended up in 9th or 10th place (I think). I was 3rd in the 30-39 age group which got me a bottle of 2009 Charles Shaw wine, which I'll have to save for a very special occasion. I've been trying to diversify my race schedule over the last couple years but I like the course for this one, it's close to home, and the race atmosphere is great so I'll likely come back to this one every year in the foreseeable future.
Friday, November 27, 2009
Race 09-103 Stinson Beach 25k
November, 7, 2009
25k - 18th/126 - 2:16:30
Generally I prioritize other races over the Envirosports series, mostly because they are similar (but not quite as good) to the PC Trail Runs and I’m still a little bitter over a poorly marked 18k course in the fog which I turned into a long 10k. However, there is 1 course they use for use 2 races that I enjoy running so I entered the Stinson Beach 25k. I have run the course 3 times in the spring when they call it the Muir Woods 25k but I had never run it in the fall when they call it the Stinson Beach 25k.
The course follows the Double Dipsea course (no shortcuts) to the bridge at the bottom of insult hill. There, instead of taking a right, it gets straight up Steep Ravine to Pan Toll station. It goes down the Old Mine Trail to the top of Cardiac, briefly follows the Dipsea trail toward Mill Valley before taking a left down a trail I don’t know well but ends up in Muir Woods. Then there is a long uphill through more trails I don’t know well up to Pan Toll and then down the Matt Davis Trail to Stinson Beach. Due to fast time and GPS discrepancies it has been suggested that the course is well short of 25k, but I haven’t seen anything conclusive enough to count this as anything else.
Before the start I talked with Will Gotthardt who was looking to break 2 hours and Kennet de Silva who I thought would be running the marathon. I would have liked to be under 2 hours but I didn’t expect it at this point in the season. The race advertises one start time which they then use for the marathon. The 25k runners start about 15 minutes later and then the 7 mile runners another 15 minutes later. You find this out when you get there. It sounded as though Will did not know this was customary at an Envirosports race (I like it this way because it gives me time to watch the marathon start and get ready for my own race).
When we finally started I started in the back of the lead back. The leaders pulled away like I expected but I knew I was in for a not so great race when a larger than normal number of people passed me going up the first hill. I got passed by several more going up Steep Ravine and I didn’t go by as many marathoners as I’m used to in that section.
The first aid station was at the top of Pan Toll. Sometimes there is food and water, sometimes water only. It was a rare occasion that I wanted food this early and inconvenient that this was one of the times where they had water only. I ran in a group toward cardiac and we caught up to some non-racers down the Dipsea trail. A bunch of us missed a left turn (our fault, just following the person in front) and we had to back track. I didn’t lose more than a minute. Because of this I (re)passed people going down to Muir Woods.
By the time I was climbing out of Muir Woods I lost the pack. The only people in back of me were 2 chatty women who didn’t at all know the course. I had earlier told them the layout of the 2nd half. I knew I wasn’t running as fast as normal but I felt like I was giving a solid effort.
Getting to Pan Toll the 2nd time is my favorite part of the race because it’s 4 miles downhill from there. There was food at the aid station this time but I wasn’t in the mood to eat and didn’t take any because I knew it is an easy finish. I didn’t leave the aid station running very fast but I started to pick it up as I looked across the hills and started to see runners in front of me. It was very difficult, if not impossible to tell the difference between 25k runners I was catching up to, marathoners I was catching up to (because I was picking up the pace), and 7 mile runners who I was catching up to. I decided to try to catch everyone.
After the marathon turnoff I could rule them out and it was easier to see. There is a large woods section with downhill switchbacks so and it’s easy to gauge if I was gaining ground. I ended up passing several more people although I still couldn’t tell what race they were in. I think only a couple of them were in the 25k. When I hit the road at the end I tried to catch the only guy in front of me. I ended up passing him after almost running into the back of him as we were turning off the road to the narrow finish.
I didn’t run with a watch so I had I was surprised to see how slow my time was. I expecting a little under 2:10 (my course PR is 2:02:25) but I ran 2:16:30 which was a personal worst by 5 minutes. I do know I could have gone faster if my legs felt better but I didn’t think I was almost a whole minute a mile slower.
At the end I talked with some people I didn’t know as well as a few I did. I saw Will who ran well under his goal time. I stayed until Kennet had finished his race. Also Dimitris Sklavopoulos was there who I gave a ride home to after he went swimming in the ocean and I took some pictures.
25k - 18th/126 - 2:16:30
Generally I prioritize other races over the Envirosports series, mostly because they are similar (but not quite as good) to the PC Trail Runs and I’m still a little bitter over a poorly marked 18k course in the fog which I turned into a long 10k. However, there is 1 course they use for use 2 races that I enjoy running so I entered the Stinson Beach 25k. I have run the course 3 times in the spring when they call it the Muir Woods 25k but I had never run it in the fall when they call it the Stinson Beach 25k.
The course follows the Double Dipsea course (no shortcuts) to the bridge at the bottom of insult hill. There, instead of taking a right, it gets straight up Steep Ravine to Pan Toll station. It goes down the Old Mine Trail to the top of Cardiac, briefly follows the Dipsea trail toward Mill Valley before taking a left down a trail I don’t know well but ends up in Muir Woods. Then there is a long uphill through more trails I don’t know well up to Pan Toll and then down the Matt Davis Trail to Stinson Beach. Due to fast time and GPS discrepancies it has been suggested that the course is well short of 25k, but I haven’t seen anything conclusive enough to count this as anything else.
Before the start I talked with Will Gotthardt who was looking to break 2 hours and Kennet de Silva who I thought would be running the marathon. I would have liked to be under 2 hours but I didn’t expect it at this point in the season. The race advertises one start time which they then use for the marathon. The 25k runners start about 15 minutes later and then the 7 mile runners another 15 minutes later. You find this out when you get there. It sounded as though Will did not know this was customary at an Envirosports race (I like it this way because it gives me time to watch the marathon start and get ready for my own race).
When we finally started I started in the back of the lead back. The leaders pulled away like I expected but I knew I was in for a not so great race when a larger than normal number of people passed me going up the first hill. I got passed by several more going up Steep Ravine and I didn’t go by as many marathoners as I’m used to in that section.
The first aid station was at the top of Pan Toll. Sometimes there is food and water, sometimes water only. It was a rare occasion that I wanted food this early and inconvenient that this was one of the times where they had water only. I ran in a group toward cardiac and we caught up to some non-racers down the Dipsea trail. A bunch of us missed a left turn (our fault, just following the person in front) and we had to back track. I didn’t lose more than a minute. Because of this I (re)passed people going down to Muir Woods.
By the time I was climbing out of Muir Woods I lost the pack. The only people in back of me were 2 chatty women who didn’t at all know the course. I had earlier told them the layout of the 2nd half. I knew I wasn’t running as fast as normal but I felt like I was giving a solid effort.
Getting to Pan Toll the 2nd time is my favorite part of the race because it’s 4 miles downhill from there. There was food at the aid station this time but I wasn’t in the mood to eat and didn’t take any because I knew it is an easy finish. I didn’t leave the aid station running very fast but I started to pick it up as I looked across the hills and started to see runners in front of me. It was very difficult, if not impossible to tell the difference between 25k runners I was catching up to, marathoners I was catching up to (because I was picking up the pace), and 7 mile runners who I was catching up to. I decided to try to catch everyone.
After the marathon turnoff I could rule them out and it was easier to see. There is a large woods section with downhill switchbacks so and it’s easy to gauge if I was gaining ground. I ended up passing several more people although I still couldn’t tell what race they were in. I think only a couple of them were in the 25k. When I hit the road at the end I tried to catch the only guy in front of me. I ended up passing him after almost running into the back of him as we were turning off the road to the narrow finish.
I didn’t run with a watch so I had I was surprised to see how slow my time was. I expecting a little under 2:10 (my course PR is 2:02:25) but I ran 2:16:30 which was a personal worst by 5 minutes. I do know I could have gone faster if my legs felt better but I didn’t think I was almost a whole minute a mile slower.
At the end I talked with some people I didn’t know as well as a few I did. I saw Will who ran well under his goal time. I stayed until Kennet had finished his race. Also Dimitris Sklavopoulos was there who I gave a ride home to after he went swimming in the ocean and I took some pictures.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Race 09-101 Helen Klein 50 Mi.
October 31, 2009
50km - 38th/122 - 9:22:15
I broke from my rule of not running more than a marathon on the road and entered the Helen Klein 50 miler. Chikara and I made the trip up together. It also (hopefully) marks the last time I need to get up super early for a race in 2009. In addition to a 50 mile race they had a 50k and 30k which would start shortly after the 50 mile runners started. We left in the dark and got to the start in the dark. The first person I saw when we got there was Wally Raposo who was volunteering at the registration table.
I was optimistically hoping to be under 7 hours because I ran the AR50 in 7:20 and the HK50 does not have nearly as many or as difficult trails (or hills). I was realistically thinking anything around my AR time would be decent. There were many familiar faces there with optimistic hopes including Sean Lang, Jean Pommier, and Ray Sanchez. The course is an out and back, mostly on a paved bike trail along the American River. I had run on well over 50% of the course before.
I started near the front but was careful not to start too fast. Due to construction the first mile+ was on trails. I enjoyed this part although I was anxious to get on the road where I would be able to move faster. I was also eager to get the part of the trial that overlaps with the AR50 because I know that section. Once we got to the road I started to settle in although a few people passed me as the miles were still in the double digits. I thought that a couple of people that passed me may have been in the 50k because they were moving so fast.
I enjoyed the race until around mile 12 when I started to struggle. I had no reason for it, especially considering I had run a good 50k the previous week but for whatever reason the course seemed a lot harder than it should have. I was purposely running in the dirt shoulder to save my feet from the pounding. Adrian Jue who was in the 50k caught up to me shortly before his turnaround and I told him I felt like I had run 40 miles already.
I pushed on lowering my goal to just finish but I made no improvement. Around mile 21 I saw Chikara coming the other way – well on his way to winning the race. This was in a stretch where the aid stations were a mile more apart than was marked (the next 2 were a mile closer) so I had a difficult time not getting to an aid station when I expected. I got a second wind a little as I got to that aid station and Jonathan Bretan in his 50 mile debut catching up to me. We exchanged friendly waves as I left the aid station he was coming into.
I got to the turnaround under 4 hours much to my surprise. I felt like I was going a lot slower than that. My biggest problem was landing on the ground, not leg fatigue. I felt OK for the next couple of miles and ran with Jon as he closed the short gap between us. Eventually I let him go, mostly because I didn’t want to push that hard until I was at least at mile 40. I continued to slow down but pushed on. Some people passed me but not nearly as frequently as I thought would given how slow I felt I was going.
By mile 35 I was running quite alone. I didn’t see many other racers, the other runner traffic had died down a bit, and the bike traffic was more sporadic. About 1/3 of a mile before an aid station where we cross over the river I saw a rattlesnake in the middle of the trail. Chikara and I had had a couple conversations about what to do if that ever happened with the 3 main choices being 1)wait 2) try to go WAY around it 3) stand at considerable distance and throw a rock or stick to scare it away. It was in plain sight far enough away and it was moving from right to left so I briefly though about quickly running by when I got there it was already in the middle of the trail so I opted for choice #1. After about 10 seconds I went around it on the right in the space it had just vacated. I warned several cyclists approaching from the other way and moved on.
Only a few runners caught up to me after that and I tried to hang on with each of them. I felt a bit more confident after I got 47 miles in (“I can always run just a 5k”) so I tried to pick up the pace. I chatted with a guy who ran faster than me on downhill, slightly faster on flat ground, but could not stay with me going uphill. As we got closer to the end I pulled away. When we hit the trail for the last 1+ miles I caught several people. I felt like I got a second wind around mile 49 (nice time for it) and finished very strong.
I finished in 9:22:15 (yes, slower than Firetrails 50mi. and over a 1:00 slower per mile than Miwok 100k). I wasn’t really disappointed because I had been running too much this fall (6th week in a row with an ultra, 3 of them being 50mi.+) and the reason for going slow wasn’t due to fatigue. Jean Pommier took a picture of me covered in sweat which was solely a result of my effort in the last 1+ miles (and it was warm out). I learned Chikara won and didn’t set a course record but came within a minute of doing so (later found out he was :02 away). I got to formally meet both Helen and Norm Klein. Norm gave me a Bald Eagle finisher prize and Chikara and I discussed how we could fit the clock he won into my car – worse case would be put the roof down and sit it up in the back seat like a person but since the top half of the clock can be unscrewed we took it in 2 pieces. I enjoyed the race although the distance is farther than I will want to run on a road (and flat) again. I would consider doing the 50k next year.
50km - 38th/122 - 9:22:15
I broke from my rule of not running more than a marathon on the road and entered the Helen Klein 50 miler. Chikara and I made the trip up together. It also (hopefully) marks the last time I need to get up super early for a race in 2009. In addition to a 50 mile race they had a 50k and 30k which would start shortly after the 50 mile runners started. We left in the dark and got to the start in the dark. The first person I saw when we got there was Wally Raposo who was volunteering at the registration table.
I was optimistically hoping to be under 7 hours because I ran the AR50 in 7:20 and the HK50 does not have nearly as many or as difficult trails (or hills). I was realistically thinking anything around my AR time would be decent. There were many familiar faces there with optimistic hopes including Sean Lang, Jean Pommier, and Ray Sanchez. The course is an out and back, mostly on a paved bike trail along the American River. I had run on well over 50% of the course before.
I started near the front but was careful not to start too fast. Due to construction the first mile+ was on trails. I enjoyed this part although I was anxious to get on the road where I would be able to move faster. I was also eager to get the part of the trial that overlaps with the AR50 because I know that section. Once we got to the road I started to settle in although a few people passed me as the miles were still in the double digits. I thought that a couple of people that passed me may have been in the 50k because they were moving so fast.
I enjoyed the race until around mile 12 when I started to struggle. I had no reason for it, especially considering I had run a good 50k the previous week but for whatever reason the course seemed a lot harder than it should have. I was purposely running in the dirt shoulder to save my feet from the pounding. Adrian Jue who was in the 50k caught up to me shortly before his turnaround and I told him I felt like I had run 40 miles already.
I pushed on lowering my goal to just finish but I made no improvement. Around mile 21 I saw Chikara coming the other way – well on his way to winning the race. This was in a stretch where the aid stations were a mile more apart than was marked (the next 2 were a mile closer) so I had a difficult time not getting to an aid station when I expected. I got a second wind a little as I got to that aid station and Jonathan Bretan in his 50 mile debut catching up to me. We exchanged friendly waves as I left the aid station he was coming into.
I got to the turnaround under 4 hours much to my surprise. I felt like I was going a lot slower than that. My biggest problem was landing on the ground, not leg fatigue. I felt OK for the next couple of miles and ran with Jon as he closed the short gap between us. Eventually I let him go, mostly because I didn’t want to push that hard until I was at least at mile 40. I continued to slow down but pushed on. Some people passed me but not nearly as frequently as I thought would given how slow I felt I was going.
By mile 35 I was running quite alone. I didn’t see many other racers, the other runner traffic had died down a bit, and the bike traffic was more sporadic. About 1/3 of a mile before an aid station where we cross over the river I saw a rattlesnake in the middle of the trail. Chikara and I had had a couple conversations about what to do if that ever happened with the 3 main choices being 1)wait 2) try to go WAY around it 3) stand at considerable distance and throw a rock or stick to scare it away. It was in plain sight far enough away and it was moving from right to left so I briefly though about quickly running by when I got there it was already in the middle of the trail so I opted for choice #1. After about 10 seconds I went around it on the right in the space it had just vacated. I warned several cyclists approaching from the other way and moved on.
Only a few runners caught up to me after that and I tried to hang on with each of them. I felt a bit more confident after I got 47 miles in (“I can always run just a 5k”) so I tried to pick up the pace. I chatted with a guy who ran faster than me on downhill, slightly faster on flat ground, but could not stay with me going uphill. As we got closer to the end I pulled away. When we hit the trail for the last 1+ miles I caught several people. I felt like I got a second wind around mile 49 (nice time for it) and finished very strong.
I finished in 9:22:15 (yes, slower than Firetrails 50mi. and over a 1:00 slower per mile than Miwok 100k). I wasn’t really disappointed because I had been running too much this fall (6th week in a row with an ultra, 3 of them being 50mi.+) and the reason for going slow wasn’t due to fatigue. Jean Pommier took a picture of me covered in sweat which was solely a result of my effort in the last 1+ miles (and it was warm out). I learned Chikara won and didn’t set a course record but came within a minute of doing so (later found out he was :02 away). I got to formally meet both Helen and Norm Klein. Norm gave me a Bald Eagle finisher prize and Chikara and I discussed how we could fit the clock he won into my car – worse case would be put the roof down and sit it up in the back seat like a person but since the top half of the clock can be unscrewed we took it in 2 pieces. I enjoyed the race although the distance is farther than I will want to run on a road (and flat) again. I would consider doing the 50k next year.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Race 09-99 Whiskeytown 50k
October 24, 2009
50km - 1st-30 - 4:43:10
For the second year in a row I made the trip up to the Redding, CA area to run the Whiskeytown 50k. Since it’s a 4 hour drive it’s almost imperative to stay overnight. Ron G. and I carpooled together. Ron won the race the previous 2 years but wasn’t feeling 100% healthy this year. We stayed overnight in a Howard Johnson Express in Redding for only $60 total.
It was my first time staying anywhere overnight with Ron and it turned out to be easy as he went to bed as soon as we got to the hotel and apparently gets up in the morning ready to go straight for the car. I opted for a wakeup shower and then spent 7 minutes looking for a pair of socks I had in my hand before I took a shower. I didn’t find them so we left in order not to be late. With the exception of missing an exit and driving an extra 3 miles we made it there uneventfully with enough time to get ready at the race. I used this time to find the socks I was missing but then decided not to race in them because I liked the ones I was wearing.
Ron decided as late as possible (i.e. as the race was beginning) to change from the 50k to the 30k. Since we couldn’t get a third Excelsior team member to make the trip this didn’t affect team scoring. I took an immediate lead and I didn’t know Ron had switched so I was wondering how long it would take him to go by me. I wasn’t feeling 100% because I had been running an ultra every weekend for several weeks, including a couple 50 milers. Ron had finished 15 minutes in front of me last year and I was thinking it would be a successful race if I could keep that distance.
The first mile is on the road but then we immediately hit a fire road and it’s trails for quite a long way. We went up a good size hill and then back down toward the lake to the first aid station. As I was leaving the aid station I saw a pair of legs from the knee down approaching (I think it was Ron – the 30k is an out and back over the first 15k of the 50k race). This was the last time I saw a person for a while.
The course is a double lollipop. We run to a Y shaped intersection, run 2 different loops, then run back to the start/finish. The first loop goes out and uphill to the left, then comes back from the same direction. There is a stretch of road on this loop. The second loop goes out to the right and near the end hooks up with the first loop so we again come back from the left. There is an aid station at the Y intersection as well as in the middle of each of the loops.
I ran the uphill from the first aid station to the second and took the left to keep going uphill. I was real curious as to when Ron would go by. I almost ran the whole way up but near the top there is a very steep section and I felt like I might pay for it so I walked a short stretch. I ran down the other side to the road and ran fast on the short road section to the aid station. On my way out of the aid station another runner (not Ron) got there from the opposite direction. I thought he was lost so I didn’t think I was in danger of losing the lead Turns out he only missed a short turn although it turned out he missed a turn just before the aid station so he was right on my heels.
I left the aid station and tried to cross the river. They had a rope to hold onto although the volunteers told us we were free to find another way if we wanted. I held the rope the whole way and that was the only thing that kept me from falling in as I slipped in an awkward way and it’s a good thing I was able to hold up my body weight. The river wasn’t too deep but it was moving a little and the area is full of rocks. I pushed on through the river and as I ran the dry land (and easier but scenic terrain) to the Y intersection I thought I might have a chance to hold on for the win.
They were very excited to see me at the aid station and I took some time to get the food I wanted. The next stretch was long steep fire road downhill. It was the kind of hill that a more daring runner with a quicker leg turnover would fly down. I approached it a little conservatively not wanted to beat up my legs. The second place runner closed within eyesight. I could see him a couple hundred yards in back of me. I figured he was a much better downhill runner which might not work out given the last part from the Y intersection to the end is mostly downhill so I planned on moving fast up the hill after the next aid station.
I came to a right turn followed by a short out and back before hitting a small loop with an aid station on it. As I was on the small loop after the aid station I looked across the meadow and saw a couple other runners. I hoped second place was in there. When I got through the short out and back (way back) I asked a volunteer who was there giving directions how far and back second place was and she said 4 minutes. I was gaining and planned on continuing up the next hill which contained over a dozen river/stream crossings.
The river crossing section is the most distinctive part of the course. At the first major crossing I slipped on a wet rock and fell sideways getting the entire right side of my body submerged in the river. From there I decided not to try to stay dry which sped up my crossing time since I no longer was concerned with balancing on the rocks. The section is also difficult because the trail is very hard to see and a few of the crossings are diagonal with the exit out of the river a bit farther up than the entrance in. I lost 3 minutes on one of these as I overshot the trail by maybe 40 yards and had to backtrack. Since, despite that, I didn’t see 2nd place I figured I was still gaining ground.
I got back on track and continued up the river with the only other notable event being a huge salamander looking thing that I almost stepped on. It was brown, about 7 inches long, and had what looked like a small fin down the length of its back. I tried to find a picture of one online and could not find anything, although a (large) salamander is the closest I could find.
I spend little time at the Y aid station and got going down the long gradual hill toward the last aid station and ultimately the finish. I would have liked to run faster but the terrain was a little rocky (with soft pine forest dirt in some sections) and my feet were a little sore. I made decent time to the last aid station which is about 5k from the end but really started to slow down. I walked up the last uphill but could see no one was close so I just tried to get to the road where I turned it on to the finish.
My finish time was 4:43:10 which was an improvement over last year’s 4:51:58 so I was very happy with that. It was at that time I learned Ron had run the 30k and eventually second place came in around 4:59. The second guy said he pulled a hamstring at the bottom of the big hill he almost caught me. It’s too bad that happened, but one of the reasons I went slowly there was to prevent injury. The food after was very good although someone had put M&Ms in the skittles bag and vice versa so I had to eat the one at a time (the mixing food thing – some things I just can’t mix). Last year soaked my legs in the lake up to my waist but this year it was a big colder so I only got in knee deep.
The ride back was good – I got to see Mt. Shasta (the south side) for the first time. It’s tall and gray and reminded me of Pikes Peak. I was surprised not to see any snow on it although I only got as glimpse because I was driving. I did see a lot of snow to the east on a volcano that must have been in Lassen Park. We stopped on the way home at the Olive Pit at my request. It’s a store with many locally grown products. The jar I got last year only lasted a couple months so this time I bought 2 big jars of beer style olives. Ron was happy that they had burgers. We made it back to SF around 6:30 that night, plenty of time to get a good night’s rest before Sunday’s DSE race.
50km - 1st-30 - 4:43:10
For the second year in a row I made the trip up to the Redding, CA area to run the Whiskeytown 50k. Since it’s a 4 hour drive it’s almost imperative to stay overnight. Ron G. and I carpooled together. Ron won the race the previous 2 years but wasn’t feeling 100% healthy this year. We stayed overnight in a Howard Johnson Express in Redding for only $60 total.
It was my first time staying anywhere overnight with Ron and it turned out to be easy as he went to bed as soon as we got to the hotel and apparently gets up in the morning ready to go straight for the car. I opted for a wakeup shower and then spent 7 minutes looking for a pair of socks I had in my hand before I took a shower. I didn’t find them so we left in order not to be late. With the exception of missing an exit and driving an extra 3 miles we made it there uneventfully with enough time to get ready at the race. I used this time to find the socks I was missing but then decided not to race in them because I liked the ones I was wearing.
Ron decided as late as possible (i.e. as the race was beginning) to change from the 50k to the 30k. Since we couldn’t get a third Excelsior team member to make the trip this didn’t affect team scoring. I took an immediate lead and I didn’t know Ron had switched so I was wondering how long it would take him to go by me. I wasn’t feeling 100% because I had been running an ultra every weekend for several weeks, including a couple 50 milers. Ron had finished 15 minutes in front of me last year and I was thinking it would be a successful race if I could keep that distance.
The first mile is on the road but then we immediately hit a fire road and it’s trails for quite a long way. We went up a good size hill and then back down toward the lake to the first aid station. As I was leaving the aid station I saw a pair of legs from the knee down approaching (I think it was Ron – the 30k is an out and back over the first 15k of the 50k race). This was the last time I saw a person for a while.
The course is a double lollipop. We run to a Y shaped intersection, run 2 different loops, then run back to the start/finish. The first loop goes out and uphill to the left, then comes back from the same direction. There is a stretch of road on this loop. The second loop goes out to the right and near the end hooks up with the first loop so we again come back from the left. There is an aid station at the Y intersection as well as in the middle of each of the loops.
I ran the uphill from the first aid station to the second and took the left to keep going uphill. I was real curious as to when Ron would go by. I almost ran the whole way up but near the top there is a very steep section and I felt like I might pay for it so I walked a short stretch. I ran down the other side to the road and ran fast on the short road section to the aid station. On my way out of the aid station another runner (not Ron) got there from the opposite direction. I thought he was lost so I didn’t think I was in danger of losing the lead Turns out he only missed a short turn although it turned out he missed a turn just before the aid station so he was right on my heels.
I left the aid station and tried to cross the river. They had a rope to hold onto although the volunteers told us we were free to find another way if we wanted. I held the rope the whole way and that was the only thing that kept me from falling in as I slipped in an awkward way and it’s a good thing I was able to hold up my body weight. The river wasn’t too deep but it was moving a little and the area is full of rocks. I pushed on through the river and as I ran the dry land (and easier but scenic terrain) to the Y intersection I thought I might have a chance to hold on for the win.
They were very excited to see me at the aid station and I took some time to get the food I wanted. The next stretch was long steep fire road downhill. It was the kind of hill that a more daring runner with a quicker leg turnover would fly down. I approached it a little conservatively not wanted to beat up my legs. The second place runner closed within eyesight. I could see him a couple hundred yards in back of me. I figured he was a much better downhill runner which might not work out given the last part from the Y intersection to the end is mostly downhill so I planned on moving fast up the hill after the next aid station.
I came to a right turn followed by a short out and back before hitting a small loop with an aid station on it. As I was on the small loop after the aid station I looked across the meadow and saw a couple other runners. I hoped second place was in there. When I got through the short out and back (way back) I asked a volunteer who was there giving directions how far and back second place was and she said 4 minutes. I was gaining and planned on continuing up the next hill which contained over a dozen river/stream crossings.
The river crossing section is the most distinctive part of the course. At the first major crossing I slipped on a wet rock and fell sideways getting the entire right side of my body submerged in the river. From there I decided not to try to stay dry which sped up my crossing time since I no longer was concerned with balancing on the rocks. The section is also difficult because the trail is very hard to see and a few of the crossings are diagonal with the exit out of the river a bit farther up than the entrance in. I lost 3 minutes on one of these as I overshot the trail by maybe 40 yards and had to backtrack. Since, despite that, I didn’t see 2nd place I figured I was still gaining ground.
I got back on track and continued up the river with the only other notable event being a huge salamander looking thing that I almost stepped on. It was brown, about 7 inches long, and had what looked like a small fin down the length of its back. I tried to find a picture of one online and could not find anything, although a (large) salamander is the closest I could find.
I spend little time at the Y aid station and got going down the long gradual hill toward the last aid station and ultimately the finish. I would have liked to run faster but the terrain was a little rocky (with soft pine forest dirt in some sections) and my feet were a little sore. I made decent time to the last aid station which is about 5k from the end but really started to slow down. I walked up the last uphill but could see no one was close so I just tried to get to the road where I turned it on to the finish.
My finish time was 4:43:10 which was an improvement over last year’s 4:51:58 so I was very happy with that. It was at that time I learned Ron had run the 30k and eventually second place came in around 4:59. The second guy said he pulled a hamstring at the bottom of the big hill he almost caught me. It’s too bad that happened, but one of the reasons I went slowly there was to prevent injury. The food after was very good although someone had put M&Ms in the skittles bag and vice versa so I had to eat the one at a time (the mixing food thing – some things I just can’t mix). Last year soaked my legs in the lake up to my waist but this year it was a big colder so I only got in knee deep.
The ride back was good – I got to see Mt. Shasta (the south side) for the first time. It’s tall and gray and reminded me of Pikes Peak. I was surprised not to see any snow on it although I only got as glimpse because I was driving. I did see a lot of snow to the east on a volcano that must have been in Lassen Park. We stopped on the way home at the Olive Pit at my request. It’s a store with many locally grown products. The jar I got last year only lasted a couple months so this time I bought 2 big jars of beer style olives. Ron was happy that they had burgers. We made it back to SF around 6:30 that night, plenty of time to get a good night’s rest before Sunday’s DSE race.
Race 09-108, 09-109 DSE Lake Merced, PA XC Championship
November 22, 2009
4.5 mi. - 1st/74 - 26:14
6.09 mi. - -
This past Sunday I ran the DSE Lake Merced race. DSE offered a single loop and double loop race. I ran the single loop race because my feet weren’t feeling 100% during the Turkey Trot Saturday and I wanted to be as competitive as possible during the PA Champs race later in the day. The weather was very cool and there was a heavy mist, almost rain.
I considered the possibility of winning the race before I got there because I knew many faster runners, including some regulars, would be at the XC race in Golden Gate Park. The fastest person I recognized before the race was Ian Macnider and we the exchanged information that we were both running the single loop before the race. Ian and I go back and forth during races as well as week to week because we run about the same pace. The eventual winner is usually the one of us who is more rested from our higher priority events, me – Saturday Ultras and him – prep and racing his first marathon (Chicago).
Both events started simultaneously and Ian and I found ourselves in 5th and 6th places. There were 2 guys out in front, then 2 young kids strung out, then Ian and me. We were both surprised that so many people started out that fast. Around a half mile in I sped up hoping to at least catch the high school kids. I passed the first quickly but didn’t get the second one until a little over a mile in, just after we started the longest downhill of the race. At that time I noticed I had closed on the lead 2 guys so I made a move to try and catch them.
I overtook 1st place just before the 2 mile mark but gave it up a little after the 2 mile mark as we started up the longest uphill of the race. The person that passed me was Will, one of the high school kids that started faster. I thought it was odd that I went by him on a downhill and he went by on an uphill. Usually the opposite happens when I race high schoolers. As we got to the op of the hill near the 3 mile mark Will began to fade and I went by him. I was hoping to have it easy from there but I looked over my shoulder at the 4 mile mark and saw one of the 2 early lead guys 10 yards in back of me.
I ran hard to the finish and only then found out that both guys that took an early lead were in the double loop race. Also, Ian had passed Will near the end and took 2nd. The lead guy in the double loop race came with a group from Finland and Germany (explains why I didn’t recognize him). After the race I had big purple grapes and Fred’s homemade cookies. I only stayed until 10:20 because I had to leave to go to the PA Cross Country Championship Race.
I arrived at the XC race almost 20 minutes before race time. I had to enter the race but was already warmed up. Tyler Abbot found me just before the race and announced me to be the #5 guy. I’m not sure if he meant the 5th Excelsior runner to arrive there or the eventual 5th place guy on our team. Either one would have been correct.
The misty air started to clear as the race began and eventually gave way to a partly sunny sky. The course is 3 laps with each lap being slightly over 2 miles. It is mostly dirt path with a significant potion of grass and one small log jump.
I started on the back row as usual and tried to make a push to be in the middle pack. I held on to the middle for a while before getting passed by a couple people as the middle pack started to split up and gain ground on me. I was asked by a runner who I couldn’t identify if I was running the Quad next weekend to which I replied “yes”. I don’t know many runners that would run both the Quad Dipsea and a XC race a week apart but he must have been one of them.
I finished the first lap in about 12:16 and thought that was good. As the weather started to get better I felt better although my running time didn’t get faster. Sina (Excelsior teammate was cheering me on by saying to catch a Pamakid runner right in front of me. Not only did I not catch him, but another Pamakid passed me on the 2nd loop which I finished in about 26:20. I tried to stay with both of them on the third loop. I passed one of them before the 5 mile mark, passed another runner after that, and passed the other Pamakid at about 5.75mi. He made a last minute push to the finish and I saw his feet next to me in the sprint at the end but I held him off. After the race we both agreed that we had our sights set on a guy in orange one place in front of me but it just wasn’t happening. I must have sped up on the last lap because my finishing time was about 39:42 (official results not in yet).
I always get my butt kicked in these Cross Country races but I like them because they are short and they are some of the handful of races that I go in without any possibility of getting top placing overall or in my age group. I was also pleasantly surprised that they had warm shrimp pasta salad by the time I finished. It was prepared by Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and it tasted very good. I also got to have a good XC conversation with Russ Kiernan after the race. It’s always great to talk to Russ because he can give you stories and perspectives that you can’t get anywhere else.
I considered the possibility of winning the race before I got there because I knew many faster runners, including some regulars, would be at the XC race in Golden Gate Park. The fastest person I recognized before the race was Ian Macnider and we the exchanged information that we were both running the single loop before the race. Ian and I go back and forth during races as well as week to week because we run about the same pace. The eventual winner is usually the one of us who is more rested from our higher priority events, me – Saturday Ultras and him – prep and racing his first marathon (Chicago).
Both events started simultaneously and Ian and I found ourselves in 5th and 6th places. There were 2 guys out in front, then 2 young kids strung out, then Ian and me. We were both surprised that so many people started out that fast. Around a half mile in I sped up hoping to at least catch the high school kids. I passed the first quickly but didn’t get the second one until a little over a mile in, just after we started the longest downhill of the race. At that time I noticed I had closed on the lead 2 guys so I made a move to try and catch them.
I overtook 1st place just before the 2 mile mark but gave it up a little after the 2 mile mark as we started up the longest uphill of the race. The person that passed me was Will, one of the high school kids that started faster. I thought it was odd that I went by him on a downhill and he went by on an uphill. Usually the opposite happens when I race high schoolers. As we got to the op of the hill near the 3 mile mark Will began to fade and I went by him. I was hoping to have it easy from there but I looked over my shoulder at the 4 mile mark and saw one of the 2 early lead guys 10 yards in back of me.
I ran hard to the finish and only then found out that both guys that took an early lead were in the double loop race. Also, Ian had passed Will near the end and took 2nd. The lead guy in the double loop race came with a group from Finland and Germany (explains why I didn’t recognize him). After the race I had big purple grapes and Fred’s homemade cookies. I only stayed until 10:20 because I had to leave to go to the PA Cross Country Championship Race.
I arrived at the XC race almost 20 minutes before race time. I had to enter the race but was already warmed up. Tyler Abbot found me just before the race and announced me to be the #5 guy. I’m not sure if he meant the 5th Excelsior runner to arrive there or the eventual 5th place guy on our team. Either one would have been correct.
The misty air started to clear as the race began and eventually gave way to a partly sunny sky. The course is 3 laps with each lap being slightly over 2 miles. It is mostly dirt path with a significant potion of grass and one small log jump.
I started on the back row as usual and tried to make a push to be in the middle pack. I held on to the middle for a while before getting passed by a couple people as the middle pack started to split up and gain ground on me. I was asked by a runner who I couldn’t identify if I was running the Quad next weekend to which I replied “yes”. I don’t know many runners that would run both the Quad Dipsea and a XC race a week apart but he must have been one of them.
I finished the first lap in about 12:16 and thought that was good. As the weather started to get better I felt better although my running time didn’t get faster. Sina (Excelsior teammate was cheering me on by saying to catch a Pamakid runner right in front of me. Not only did I not catch him, but another Pamakid passed me on the 2nd loop which I finished in about 26:20. I tried to stay with both of them on the third loop. I passed one of them before the 5 mile mark, passed another runner after that, and passed the other Pamakid at about 5.75mi. He made a last minute push to the finish and I saw his feet next to me in the sprint at the end but I held him off. After the race we both agreed that we had our sights set on a guy in orange one place in front of me but it just wasn’t happening. I must have sped up on the last lap because my finishing time was about 39:42 (official results not in yet).
I always get my butt kicked in these Cross Country races but I like them because they are short and they are some of the handful of races that I go in without any possibility of getting top placing overall or in my age group. I was also pleasantly surprised that they had warm shrimp pasta salad by the time I finished. It was prepared by Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and it tasted very good. I also got to have a good XC conversation with Russ Kiernan after the race. It’s always great to talk to Russ because he can give you stories and perspectives that you can’t get anywhere else.
Race 09-107 Santa Cruz Track Club Turkey Trot 10k
November 21, 2009
10k - 5th/197 - 38:20
On Saturday for the 2nd year in a row I ran the Santa Cruz Track Club Turkey Trot 10k. They have a 5k at 8AM and a 10k at 8:45AM. I considered running both races but given the long drive (and therefore earlier wake-up time) and double race day Sunday I decided not to run the 5k. Race Day entry fee was $25 and instead of a shirt they give out socks with turkeys on them. Last year’s socks were black and red and this year’s were bright yellow.
The weather was clear, sunny, and cold. I ran in my purple Firetrails shirt hoping I would be warm enough. The course is an out and back with the first kilometer going from the start to the ocean and the next 4km along the ocean on the cliff just north of the boardwalk. The turnaround is close to the Santa Cruz wharf.
I started in 5th place and made my way up to 3rd by the first mile. The section along the ocean had a headwind and I wasn’t feeling great. First mile was 5:59 but the next 2 were well over 6 (around 6:20) and I got passed by several runners. I hit mile 2 in 7th place at 18:48 (projects to a 19:26 split). At that point I was thinking I’d be happy finishing under 39 minutes. I could tell first woman was right on my shoulder from miles 2 to 3 as her cheering squad indicated as they drove the course and parked every half mile.
At the turnaround it didn’t appear 6th place was within striking distance and other than the 1st woman no one was close in back of me. I thought about hanging on to the place I was in but at mile 4 it appeared I had closed on 5th and 6th place who were running close to each other. I thought I might have a chance to catch them. It didn’t make me happy that the guys in 5th and 6th cut through a small parking lot instead of staying on the bike trail which gave me more reason to try to pass them.
I passed both guys with a little more than a mile to go. I tried to do it quickly so neither would be inclined to stay with me. One of them tried to stay with me (I think) because I heard footsteps for a while but eventually they went away. I ran hard until the end hoping I wouldn’t have to end in a sprint out (it was too cold for that). My finishing time was 38:20 meant 18:54 for the way back and a negative split by 32 seconds.
The post race spread was decent. Whole Foods was a sponsor so there were tons of bananas and they also had some packaged granola snacks and some big cookies. I entered a random draw raffle and guess how many skittles are in this jar competition – I guessed 1196 but not word yet if I won either. They gave turkeys to the overall winners and medals to top 3 in 5 year age groups. I was 2nd out of 11 in my age group.
10k - 5th/197 - 38:20
On Saturday for the 2nd year in a row I ran the Santa Cruz Track Club Turkey Trot 10k. They have a 5k at 8AM and a 10k at 8:45AM. I considered running both races but given the long drive (and therefore earlier wake-up time) and double race day Sunday I decided not to run the 5k. Race Day entry fee was $25 and instead of a shirt they give out socks with turkeys on them. Last year’s socks were black and red and this year’s were bright yellow.
The weather was clear, sunny, and cold. I ran in my purple Firetrails shirt hoping I would be warm enough. The course is an out and back with the first kilometer going from the start to the ocean and the next 4km along the ocean on the cliff just north of the boardwalk. The turnaround is close to the Santa Cruz wharf.
I started in 5th place and made my way up to 3rd by the first mile. The section along the ocean had a headwind and I wasn’t feeling great. First mile was 5:59 but the next 2 were well over 6 (around 6:20) and I got passed by several runners. I hit mile 2 in 7th place at 18:48 (projects to a 19:26 split). At that point I was thinking I’d be happy finishing under 39 minutes. I could tell first woman was right on my shoulder from miles 2 to 3 as her cheering squad indicated as they drove the course and parked every half mile.
At the turnaround it didn’t appear 6th place was within striking distance and other than the 1st woman no one was close in back of me. I thought about hanging on to the place I was in but at mile 4 it appeared I had closed on 5th and 6th place who were running close to each other. I thought I might have a chance to catch them. It didn’t make me happy that the guys in 5th and 6th cut through a small parking lot instead of staying on the bike trail which gave me more reason to try to pass them.
I passed both guys with a little more than a mile to go. I tried to do it quickly so neither would be inclined to stay with me. One of them tried to stay with me (I think) because I heard footsteps for a while but eventually they went away. I ran hard until the end hoping I wouldn’t have to end in a sprint out (it was too cold for that). My finishing time was 38:20 meant 18:54 for the way back and a negative split by 32 seconds.
The post race spread was decent. Whole Foods was a sponsor so there were tons of bananas and they also had some packaged granola snacks and some big cookies. I entered a random draw raffle and guess how many skittles are in this jar competition – I guessed 1196 but not word yet if I won either. They gave turkeys to the overall winners and medals to top 3 in 5 year age groups. I was 2nd out of 11 in my age group.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Race 09-77 Pikes Peak Marathon
August 16, 2009
Marathon (26.2mi.) - 73rd/711 - 5:23:18
One of my long time goals has been to run the Pikes Peak Marathon. This year I was able to get into the race by taking an early lunch at work and coming home to try over and over again as soon as the registration opened. So I got in and then waited 5 months until race weekend.
For the Sunday race I took a flight landing in Denver on Friday morning. The big goal for Friday was to drive up the mountain to get a feel of how the atmosphere would be. There's a park entry fee at the bottom and then a long winding road to the top which got a little scary in a few spots but the views were amazing.
The weather at the top was decent, a little cold, and almost foggy. There is a big souvenir store with freshly made doughnuts there. I looked around, had a doughnut and took some pictures. I could definitely tell I was at significant elevation although not at all close to being sick. Of course, that's a lot easier to say after driving instead of running. I spent the rest of the day as well as most of Saturday exploring the area, taking pictures, and spending time around the race site.
The expo on Saturday was not very impressive, but it was sufficient. It consisted of the standard number pickup with a tent containing running apparel and shoes for sale by the store from Colorado Springs that seemed to be a sponsor. I had planned in running in the road shoes I raced the Miwok 100k in but the expo had a pair of New Balance 904 Trail shoes that I liked so I bought them to race in. They were probably a little overpriced but I had run with success in 2 pairs of 904 Road shoes before and the Trail version felt the same. I thought I would be able to race more aggressively in trail shoes as well so I went for it.
The morning of the race went well. I got up with plenty of time, got to the race in plenty of time, and the weather looked excellent. I couldn't decide what to wear. The it was clear and cool. I expected the top to be around 38 degree and the bottom to be in the 70's by the time I got done. I wanted to go in shorts and a T shirt but opted to tie a jacket around my waist as runners had warned that flash storms can appear at the top and start snowing.
The race starts in downtown Manitou Springs which is at elevation of 6412'. The first mile of the course is all road, through downtown Manitou Springs, slightly uphill. I held about a 6:45 pace and was breathing hard (a rarity for me) after a couple minutes. I thought if I kept that effort up I would be in trouble real fast. I backed off pace just as we hit the trail which didn't really reduce my effort because the first 3 miles of trail had a significant slope to them. I dropped my goal of top 20 to top 50 as the 20th person went by. I didn't see the point in racing for place that early. I maintained my goal of 3:00 up and 5:00 total time.
After about 3 miles of climbing with some nice scenery we went into the woods a bit and the land leveled off. There was a long stretch of several miles running through a forest with little climbing. As we ran through I wondered where the cog railway was and how we could run up the entire mountain without crossing it or the road.
The aid stations were well stocked and frequent. I didn't have much to eat on the way up but I took careful notice of how frequently they occurred in case I needed one on the way down. After the thick forest and as we got up to 10,000' the land started to get steeper and rockier and the forest became less dense. For a couple miles before passing the treeline we were running up rocky ground. The ground did not get any more forgiving after that and I wondered how fast I would be able to run down. I was going through periodic phases of feeling good and bad, but nothing that made me think I couldn't make it.
After passing the treeline the summit and perspective of the entire landscape became more visible. The trail zigzagged up the mountain and it didn't appear so far away although it turned out to be. When I was only a couple miles from the top, perennial winner Matt Carpenter came running down. I didn't see the next place runner for quite a while - he already had the win in the bag. I struggled a bit more as I continued climbing. By about 13,000' I was feeling lightheaded off an on. From the drive up 2 days prior I learned eating helped me cope with that so I began eating at the aid stations. My head was not totally focused like it usually is, but my legs kept running and I don't think the elevation slowed them down. Fortunately (and this is probably due to all the races I do in the Headlands and on Diablo) my legs were only very mildly sore from all the climbing. The most limiting factor was the difficult terrain - hard rocky surfaces, single track with many turns.
The last aid station is only about a mile and a half from the top. By the time I got through there runners were starting to come down. I knew I would make it but I was hoping that I just didn't crash. It became difficult because the trail ("trail") was very narrow and the people coming down were quite fast and apparently much more nimble on their feet than me. They call the last section near the top The Golden Stairs. I saw a sign but did not at all see to what it was referring. It seemed like I had been climbing stairs for the last hour. Just before the top someone was calling out places. I was in the low 50's. I made a point to pass enough people to make it to the top in 50th place or better. I was in either 49th or 50th, I couldn't tell which number they told me as there were a few of us in a row. The top is just a turnaround and I thought I could stay a while, look at the scenery, and take in the view. I was wrong. I made it in 3:12 which was over my goal time but I was happy enough with it. The race officials allowed us to take food but hurried us down to the next aid station. It seemed they wanted to get people down to lower elevation as quickly as possible. The temperature was low 40's I think and very clear. No need for a jacket at all although I saw a couple patches of ice that hadn't frozen from last night.
I had a hard time descending. I got passed by almost 20 people within the first couple miles. I wasn't prepared to take quick steps over rocks, make quick turns, or navigate around people still climbing. I went a lot slower than I should have and I looked forward to the mostly flat forest in the middle so I could go full speed. The forest didn't help as much as I wanted, I actually walked up a tiny hill on the way down. I had been running over 4 hours so it kind of made sense because 50k is about as far as I can run in mountains with any kind of speed. I hit that time where I am usually finishing a 50k so I didn't have much left. I took more time at aid stations to get food (candy) and drink. I felt I had some energy but couldn't descend quite fast enough. As a couple runners started to catch me I tried to hold them off while catching a couple of runners that I caught up to. I was successful in holding off some and was happy to get to the road. The road section at the end is only about 1km and I ran it real fast. I had plenty of energy left to fast on easy terrain. I finished in 5:23 which was short of my goal and 10 minutes slower than I wanted to running down but in hindsight I think I could go down even faster than 2 hours with some more experience.
The finish area was much more exciting than the expo. Downtown Manitou Springs had the same atmosphere that Mill Valley has for the Dipsea race. There was a finisher tent with food and chairs. They gave finisher jackets and had plenty of food in the pavilion. Many of us soaked our legs in the river that ran through town. It felt good to be back at a normal elevation of 6000'+. I spent most of the rest of the day in the town satisfied that I did OK and especially made it up without crashing.
By Tuesday I had heard about the Manitou Incline. This is a 1.01 mile stretch of hill that has an average grade of 41%. The steepest section is 68%. The bottom is at an elevation of 6574' and the top is 8585'. I had heard that Matt Carpenter could run it in 18 minutes so I thought 27 minutes would be reasonable for me. There are wooden railroad planks spaced out on it which are visible for quite a distance. It looks like these really help to reduce erosion. I was able to run up in 28 minutes. I haven't ever run a more difficult section of trail. It's about as difficult as the top quarter mile of Mt. Tam (the direct way - up the rocks). There were no rocks on the Incline, but it is a considerable climb which I walked quite a bit of. From the top there was a nice view of downtown Manitou Springs.
On Saturday for a short hike through The Garden of the Gods where there were stunning rock formations. Pictures below.
Also, Seven Falls:
Marathon (26.2mi.) - 73rd/711 - 5:23:18
One of my long time goals has been to run the Pikes Peak Marathon. This year I was able to get into the race by taking an early lunch at work and coming home to try over and over again as soon as the registration opened. So I got in and then waited 5 months until race weekend.
For the Sunday race I took a flight landing in Denver on Friday morning. The big goal for Friday was to drive up the mountain to get a feel of how the atmosphere would be. There's a park entry fee at the bottom and then a long winding road to the top which got a little scary in a few spots but the views were amazing.
The weather at the top was decent, a little cold, and almost foggy. There is a big souvenir store with freshly made doughnuts there. I looked around, had a doughnut and took some pictures. I could definitely tell I was at significant elevation although not at all close to being sick. Of course, that's a lot easier to say after driving instead of running. I spent the rest of the day as well as most of Saturday exploring the area, taking pictures, and spending time around the race site.
The expo on Saturday was not very impressive, but it was sufficient. It consisted of the standard number pickup with a tent containing running apparel and shoes for sale by the store from Colorado Springs that seemed to be a sponsor. I had planned in running in the road shoes I raced the Miwok 100k in but the expo had a pair of New Balance 904 Trail shoes that I liked so I bought them to race in. They were probably a little overpriced but I had run with success in 2 pairs of 904 Road shoes before and the Trail version felt the same. I thought I would be able to race more aggressively in trail shoes as well so I went for it.
The morning of the race went well. I got up with plenty of time, got to the race in plenty of time, and the weather looked excellent. I couldn't decide what to wear. The it was clear and cool. I expected the top to be around 38 degree and the bottom to be in the 70's by the time I got done. I wanted to go in shorts and a T shirt but opted to tie a jacket around my waist as runners had warned that flash storms can appear at the top and start snowing.The race starts in downtown Manitou Springs which is at elevation of 6412'. The first mile of the course is all road, through downtown Manitou Springs, slightly uphill. I held about a 6:45 pace and was breathing hard (a rarity for me) after a couple minutes. I thought if I kept that effort up I would be in trouble real fast. I backed off pace just as we hit the trail which didn't really reduce my effort because the first 3 miles of trail had a significant slope to them. I dropped my goal of top 20 to top 50 as the 20th person went by. I didn't see the point in racing for place that early. I maintained my goal of 3:00 up and 5:00 total time.
After about 3 miles of climbing with some nice scenery we went into the woods a bit and the land leveled off. There was a long stretch of several miles running through a forest with little climbing. As we ran through I wondered where the cog railway was and how we could run up the entire mountain without crossing it or the road.
The aid stations were well stocked and frequent. I didn't have much to eat on the way up but I took careful notice of how frequently they occurred in case I needed one on the way down. After the thick forest and as we got up to 10,000' the land started to get steeper and rockier and the forest became less dense. For a couple miles before passing the treeline we were running up rocky ground. The ground did not get any more forgiving after that and I wondered how fast I would be able to run down. I was going through periodic phases of feeling good and bad, but nothing that made me think I couldn't make it.
After passing the treeline the summit and perspective of the entire landscape became more visible. The trail zigzagged up the mountain and it didn't appear so far away although it turned out to be. When I was only a couple miles from the top, perennial winner Matt Carpenter came running down. I didn't see the next place runner for quite a while - he already had the win in the bag. I struggled a bit more as I continued climbing. By about 13,000' I was feeling lightheaded off an on. From the drive up 2 days prior I learned eating helped me cope with that so I began eating at the aid stations. My head was not totally focused like it usually is, but my legs kept running and I don't think the elevation slowed them down. Fortunately (and this is probably due to all the races I do in the Headlands and on Diablo) my legs were only very mildly sore from all the climbing. The most limiting factor was the difficult terrain - hard rocky surfaces, single track with many turns.
The last aid station is only about a mile and a half from the top. By the time I got through there runners were starting to come down. I knew I would make it but I was hoping that I just didn't crash. It became difficult because the trail ("trail") was very narrow and the people coming down were quite fast and apparently much more nimble on their feet than me. They call the last section near the top The Golden Stairs. I saw a sign but did not at all see to what it was referring. It seemed like I had been climbing stairs for the last hour. Just before the top someone was calling out places. I was in the low 50's. I made a point to pass enough people to make it to the top in 50th place or better. I was in either 49th or 50th, I couldn't tell which number they told me as there were a few of us in a row. The top is just a turnaround and I thought I could stay a while, look at the scenery, and take in the view. I was wrong. I made it in 3:12 which was over my goal time but I was happy enough with it. The race officials allowed us to take food but hurried us down to the next aid station. It seemed they wanted to get people down to lower elevation as quickly as possible. The temperature was low 40's I think and very clear. No need for a jacket at all although I saw a couple patches of ice that hadn't frozen from last night.
I had a hard time descending. I got passed by almost 20 people within the first couple miles. I wasn't prepared to take quick steps over rocks, make quick turns, or navigate around people still climbing. I went a lot slower than I should have and I looked forward to the mostly flat forest in the middle so I could go full speed. The forest didn't help as much as I wanted, I actually walked up a tiny hill on the way down. I had been running over 4 hours so it kind of made sense because 50k is about as far as I can run in mountains with any kind of speed. I hit that time where I am usually finishing a 50k so I didn't have much left. I took more time at aid stations to get food (candy) and drink. I felt I had some energy but couldn't descend quite fast enough. As a couple runners started to catch me I tried to hold them off while catching a couple of runners that I caught up to. I was successful in holding off some and was happy to get to the road. The road section at the end is only about 1km and I ran it real fast. I had plenty of energy left to fast on easy terrain. I finished in 5:23 which was short of my goal and 10 minutes slower than I wanted to running down but in hindsight I think I could go down even faster than 2 hours with some more experience.
The finish area was much more exciting than the expo. Downtown Manitou Springs had the same atmosphere that Mill Valley has for the Dipsea race. There was a finisher tent with food and chairs. They gave finisher jackets and had plenty of food in the pavilion. Many of us soaked our legs in the river that ran through town. It felt good to be back at a normal elevation of 6000'+. I spent most of the rest of the day in the town satisfied that I did OK and especially made it up without crashing.
By Tuesday I had heard about the Manitou Incline. This is a 1.01 mile stretch of hill that has an average grade of 41%. The steepest section is 68%. The bottom is at an elevation of 6574' and the top is 8585'. I had heard that Matt Carpenter could run it in 18 minutes so I thought 27 minutes would be reasonable for me. There are wooden railroad planks spaced out on it which are visible for quite a distance. It looks like these really help to reduce erosion. I was able to run up in 28 minutes. I haven't ever run a more difficult section of trail. It's about as difficult as the top quarter mile of Mt. Tam (the direct way - up the rocks). There were no rocks on the Incline, but it is a considerable climb which I walked quite a bit of. From the top there was a nice view of downtown Manitou Springs.
On Saturday for a short hike through The Garden of the Gods where there were stunning rock formations. Pictures below.
Also, Seven Falls:
Updates Coming Soon (with pictures!)
Pikes Peak Marathon, Whiskeytown 50k. New resolution - since I obviouslycan't keep updating this every time I race, I'll just update it for significant races (which still happen every couple weeks anyway). In the mean time, who are these visitors from Hawaii, Canada, Ireland, and Norway?
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Races 09-(06-07) DSE Sawyer Camp 5k, 10k
February 8, 2009
5k - 6th/173 - 18:54
10k - 11th/103 - 41:47
For the first time, DSE scheduled the Sawyer Camp 5k and 10k in sequence, instead of concurrently so runners could race in both races. The race fee went up this year from $3 for members to $5 for members, although the fee for 2 races was a deal at $8.
Taking only 8 minutes to get to the race I got there plenty early enough but had to park far down the road as usual. The weather was cool and cloudy, with mist in the air at time. Still sore from yesterday I decided to give my best effort and not worry about the time. Of the people at Jed Smith yesterday, both Eduardo and I did both races, and Chikara and Noe ran the 10k.
Before the 5k I was guessing I could run 19 minutes but I wasn't really sure. I didn't start too fast but I kept a good pace for a while. I ran the first mile with Ian and we hit it in around 6 minutes. I then started to slow down. i slowed down more as the race ewnt on, ultimately finishing in 18:47 which was 6th place.
The 10k was next and I was not feeling nearly as optimistic about having a good race although I would try my best. As the race went on I didn't hold a consistent pace well so I finished in 41:47, which was still 11th place.
5k - 6th/173 - 18:54
10k - 11th/103 - 41:47
For the first time, DSE scheduled the Sawyer Camp 5k and 10k in sequence, instead of concurrently so runners could race in both races. The race fee went up this year from $3 for members to $5 for members, although the fee for 2 races was a deal at $8.
Taking only 8 minutes to get to the race I got there plenty early enough but had to park far down the road as usual. The weather was cool and cloudy, with mist in the air at time. Still sore from yesterday I decided to give my best effort and not worry about the time. Of the people at Jed Smith yesterday, both Eduardo and I did both races, and Chikara and Noe ran the 10k.
Before the 5k I was guessing I could run 19 minutes but I wasn't really sure. I didn't start too fast but I kept a good pace for a while. I ran the first mile with Ian and we hit it in around 6 minutes. I then started to slow down. i slowed down more as the race ewnt on, ultimately finishing in 18:47 which was 6th place.
The 10k was next and I was not feeling nearly as optimistic about having a good race although I would try my best. As the race went on I didn't hold a consistent pace well so I finished in 41:47, which was still 11th place.
Friday, February 6, 2009
2009 PCTR and PAUSATF Awards Dinners
Both the PC Trail Runs and Pacific Association held their awards dinners on the same day this year. Fortunately the PCTR one was a breakfast and the PA one was a dinner.
It was generally easy to get to the PCTR dinner because the directions were very similar to how I go to their race at Mount Diablo. I did spend over 10 minutes looking for the last turn. When I got there most of the people who were coming were already there. People were dressed very casually. As soon as I entered the building I was given 10 raffle tickets. They had at least dozen raffle prizes and each person was allowed to distribute his own tickets as he wanted. I liked this idea very much because I got more chances at the items I was interested in, and didn't patricipate in the items that i wasn't really interested in. However the strategy didn't pay off as it turned out that I didn't win anything.
There were a lot of awards to give out as there were 4 different race series (Trail (under 50k), Ultra (50k), Mini Prix, and Grand Prix). The gave awards to top 3 overall plus top 3 in each age group for each series. There was a lot of photo taking by various people but the only one I ended up getting a copy of only shows my back. After the awards, people got together for a run. I wasn't prepared as I didn't know this was on the agenda but I resovled to remember this for next year so I could participate.
It was generally easy to get to the PCTR dinner because the directions were very similar to how I go to their race at Mount Diablo. I did spend over 10 minutes looking for the last turn. When I got there most of the people who were coming were already there. People were dressed very casually. As soon as I entered the building I was given 10 raffle tickets. They had at least dozen raffle prizes and each person was allowed to distribute his own tickets as he wanted. I liked this idea very much because I got more chances at the items I was interested in, and didn't patricipate in the items that i wasn't really interested in. However the strategy didn't pay off as it turned out that I didn't win anything.
There were a lot of awards to give out as there were 4 different race series (Trail (under 50k), Ultra (50k), Mini Prix, and Grand Prix). The gave awards to top 3 overall plus top 3 in each age group for each series. There was a lot of photo taking by various people but the only one I ended up getting a copy of only shows my back. After the awards, people got together for a run. I wasn't prepared as I didn't know this was on the agenda but I resovled to remember this for next year so I could participate.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Race 09-03 Jazztrax Snowshoe Stomp 10k
January 25th, 2009.
10k - 6th/19 - 1:07:36
Complete Results coming
This year I found 4 people who were interested in going to Bear Valley for a snowshoe race - Chikara (again), Jim, Erika, and Lisa. We all left the Bay area in a rented SUV at 6:30 Saturday night toward our reserved hotel in Stockton. The purpose of staying overnight there was to cut in half the 4 hour drive from SF to Bear Valley the morning of the race.
We made it to the hotel with plenty of time for a good night sleep and by 5:30AM Sunday we were on the road to Bear Valley. The weather was good, of course, until we started climbing into the mountains. By 5000 feet up the road was snow covered and it it was snowing. We left so early though we had plenty of time and were the first people at the race (I don't know if I've ever done that before). We had more than enough time to use the facilities, get a coffee (Jim), rent snowshoes (Jim and Chikara), and learn to put them on (everyone except me).
The turnout at the race was better than last year. There were 19 10k runners and probably almost as many 5k runners. We all listened to the race instructions eager to start. It was cold as expected and my hands were numb shortly after we started. A couple guys went out real fast and Chikara passed me only a couple minutes in, despite his snowshoe coming off just after starting. I made it to the half mile mark in a little under 5 minutes. Two other guys and I settled into 4th-6th. One of them asked if I was an ultrarunner, because he noticed I was walking up the hills. I told him I was and eventually he peeled off at the 5k turnoff as I settled into 5th. Soon I was passed by a fast guy who started 8 minutes late. No one else caught me and I didn't catch anyone else for the last 5k.
I decided relatively early to walk up the hills in order to save some energy for the end. Unlike last year the couple did not repeat over any sections - it was just a 10k loop. I liked it much better this way. The weather on the back stretch was much nicer. The snow stopped and it started to get brighter. I probably should have run harder on the ups and downs because I probably could have recovered after some short bursts. As I got to the end my I really started to warm up and took my headband off.
I finished strong in 1:07:36, 6th place out of 19. Chikara was 3rd despite his snowshoes coming off 6 or 7 times. Erika was 8th (1st female), Lisa 10th, and Jim 18th.
The awards ceremony was in the pizza kitchen of the lodge. There was more than enough food. I had a bowl of minestrone soup, a bowl of potato soup, a bowl of meat chili, 2 bowls of salad, a brownie, 2 pieces of cornbread, and a couple cups of warm cider flavored Clif drink. The middle school Jazz band that the race director instructs provided the music. Jim was especially impressed with their performance of Rock around the clock. He and I turned out to be the only people in the group who knew who Bill Haley and the Comets were. I got a medal for 2nd in the 20-29 age group (out of 2 people). Since there were more raffle prizes than runners I got 2 - a big bag of orange glucosamine chewy things and a $50 gift certificate to a computer repair store in Angels Camp. Not sure how I'll be able to make use of the gift certificate so I'm open to suggestions.
They way home was not totally uneventful. We saw a car skid across the road into a pole right in front of us. We saw a car in a ditch as well as many other tire tracks leading from the road off the side. After we descended the mountain it rained, then turned sunny, then hailed (2nd year in a row with hail). Still we made it home without anything bad happening (to us).
Barring any bad weather or excessive chain control requirements imposed by the evil Caltrans people, I will keep going to this race. This was the third time going (out of 4 years they have had it), and I was told that was tied with 1 other person for the most, need to keep the streak going.
10k - 6th/19 - 1:07:36
Complete Results coming
This year I found 4 people who were interested in going to Bear Valley for a snowshoe race - Chikara (again), Jim, Erika, and Lisa. We all left the Bay area in a rented SUV at 6:30 Saturday night toward our reserved hotel in Stockton. The purpose of staying overnight there was to cut in half the 4 hour drive from SF to Bear Valley the morning of the race.
We made it to the hotel with plenty of time for a good night sleep and by 5:30AM Sunday we were on the road to Bear Valley. The weather was good, of course, until we started climbing into the mountains. By 5000 feet up the road was snow covered and it it was snowing. We left so early though we had plenty of time and were the first people at the race (I don't know if I've ever done that before). We had more than enough time to use the facilities, get a coffee (Jim), rent snowshoes (Jim and Chikara), and learn to put them on (everyone except me).
The turnout at the race was better than last year. There were 19 10k runners and probably almost as many 5k runners. We all listened to the race instructions eager to start. It was cold as expected and my hands were numb shortly after we started. A couple guys went out real fast and Chikara passed me only a couple minutes in, despite his snowshoe coming off just after starting. I made it to the half mile mark in a little under 5 minutes. Two other guys and I settled into 4th-6th. One of them asked if I was an ultrarunner, because he noticed I was walking up the hills. I told him I was and eventually he peeled off at the 5k turnoff as I settled into 5th. Soon I was passed by a fast guy who started 8 minutes late. No one else caught me and I didn't catch anyone else for the last 5k.
I decided relatively early to walk up the hills in order to save some energy for the end. Unlike last year the couple did not repeat over any sections - it was just a 10k loop. I liked it much better this way. The weather on the back stretch was much nicer. The snow stopped and it started to get brighter. I probably should have run harder on the ups and downs because I probably could have recovered after some short bursts. As I got to the end my I really started to warm up and took my headband off.
I finished strong in 1:07:36, 6th place out of 19. Chikara was 3rd despite his snowshoes coming off 6 or 7 times. Erika was 8th (1st female), Lisa 10th, and Jim 18th.
The awards ceremony was in the pizza kitchen of the lodge. There was more than enough food. I had a bowl of minestrone soup, a bowl of potato soup, a bowl of meat chili, 2 bowls of salad, a brownie, 2 pieces of cornbread, and a couple cups of warm cider flavored Clif drink. The middle school Jazz band that the race director instructs provided the music. Jim was especially impressed with their performance of Rock around the clock. He and I turned out to be the only people in the group who knew who Bill Haley and the Comets were. I got a medal for 2nd in the 20-29 age group (out of 2 people). Since there were more raffle prizes than runners I got 2 - a big bag of orange glucosamine chewy things and a $50 gift certificate to a computer repair store in Angels Camp. Not sure how I'll be able to make use of the gift certificate so I'm open to suggestions.
They way home was not totally uneventful. We saw a car skid across the road into a pole right in front of us. We saw a car in a ditch as well as many other tire tracks leading from the road off the side. After we descended the mountain it rained, then turned sunny, then hailed (2nd year in a row with hail). Still we made it home without anything bad happening (to us).
Barring any bad weather or excessive chain control requirements imposed by the evil Caltrans people, I will keep going to this race. This was the third time going (out of 4 years they have had it), and I was told that was tied with 1 other person for the most, need to keep the streak going.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Race 09-02 PF Chang's Rock and Roll Marathon (Phoenix)
I had wanted to run the Rock and Roll Marathon in Phoenix for several years now. I think I first heard about it from Chuck, back when we used to race together in Florida. I heard good things from other people as well. So I took a 3 day weekend trip to Phoenix for the race.
I arrived at Sky Harbor in the early afternoon after flying on United for the first and last time. I was happy though that the rental car company sped people right through the line and gave me a free upgrade from the cheapest car possible to a Mustang.
Immediately after leaving the airport I went to the expo downtown where Erika and I met Chuck and a couple of his friends. We hung around at the expo for a while. The expo was the best one I had ever been to. There were a ton of vendors - many giving free food which was excellent after flying. I already knew that PF Chang's was the main sponsor, but the sponsors names and logos were not plastered everywhere. It didn't have the commercial feel that the big SF races have. After that we spent some time downtown although it wasn't much of a happening place.
The next day I slept in a little too late butin the afternoon Erika and I went north to Sedona. We stopped at Montezuma's castle on the way.
We hiked up Bell Rock just before sunset. It wasn't difficult and I could have done more as there were many nice places to go, but I was careful not to spend too much energy walking around. I would have liked to spend more time there, maybe I will go back another time to do some hiking. After a little shopping in downtown Sedona we went to Jerry's house (Chuck's brother who I had never met) for a spaghetti dinner. I was late, as usual.
The day of the marathon I got up early checked out of the hotel and drove to the race. The hotel was close and I parked on a city street a few blocks away. It was very easy to get to.
I found Chuck at the starting line so we started together and ran together for a couple miles. I was trying for 2:55 and I think he was going for sub-3 so I pulled away a little after a mile or so. I got my mile pace down under 6:30 which made me perfectly happy but I did not expect to sustain it forever.
The Phoenix streets are designed on a grid so I had a very good idea where I was the whole time. I ran by the street the hotel was on, and thee was a supermarket right there that I wished I had found a couple days ago. The race went well until I got to mile 8 where felt I needed to take a restroom break. I finally found one in the 10th mile which cost me almost 2 minutes...When I came out within a quarter mile I caught up to and went by Chuck again. I was holding low 6:40 pace which crept up to 7:00 but I was happy enough. Things went well until around mile 16 again when I decided to take another break. This time I waited until mile 19 and spent an extra 3 minutes at that mile marker. After that I held 7:00-7:30 the rest of the way. And right before the 25 mile sign - you guessed it - I caught up to Chuck again. He was doing pretty well as was I. I finished last 1.2 in 8:21, passing at least a dozen people. My final time of 3:04 wasn't what I hoped for but good enough to go to Boston in April.
The race wasn't as scenic as I was expecting but it was still fun. There were around 25 bands playing along the course - mostly Rock and Roll. My favorite was the Elvis impersonator who was fun to hear around mile 22. There were also a lot of cheerleaders there which I had never really seen at a race before. Although the streets weren't packed it was nice to have someone cheering there I guess.
The post race food was excellent. I had a couple Dole fruit cups, about 4 popsicles, among other things, some fruit, energy bars, etc. I drank some Cytomax during the race even though I don't like it, but I certainly didn't want any after I was done. The post race gathering was in Sun Angel Stadium at ASU.
After the race we went to Jerry's house again and he generously lent his shower to anyone who ran. We made it there in time to see the end of the NFC Championship game, which the Cardinals won. The house full of 20 or so people erupted at the end of the game. Ironically the Cardinals are going to the Super Bowl in Tampa, and the game is being played at the stadium across the street (literally) from where I used to live. Shortly after I had to leave to catch a plane home. The flight back was uneventful. I made it back home around midnight so I went to bed around the same time I normally do.
I would like to do the race again, but while I was there I found out about the Sedona marathon which is in February. So if I go back I would probably run Sedona to try something different.
I arrived at Sky Harbor in the early afternoon after flying on United for the first and last time. I was happy though that the rental car company sped people right through the line and gave me a free upgrade from the cheapest car possible to a Mustang.
Immediately after leaving the airport I went to the expo downtown where Erika and I met Chuck and a couple of his friends. We hung around at the expo for a while. The expo was the best one I had ever been to. There were a ton of vendors - many giving free food which was excellent after flying. I already knew that PF Chang's was the main sponsor, but the sponsors names and logos were not plastered everywhere. It didn't have the commercial feel that the big SF races have. After that we spent some time downtown although it wasn't much of a happening place.
The next day I slept in a little too late butin the afternoon Erika and I went north to Sedona. We stopped at Montezuma's castle on the way.
We hiked up Bell Rock just before sunset. It wasn't difficult and I could have done more as there were many nice places to go, but I was careful not to spend too much energy walking around. I would have liked to spend more time there, maybe I will go back another time to do some hiking. After a little shopping in downtown Sedona we went to Jerry's house (Chuck's brother who I had never met) for a spaghetti dinner. I was late, as usual.
The day of the marathon I got up early checked out of the hotel and drove to the race. The hotel was close and I parked on a city street a few blocks away. It was very easy to get to.
I found Chuck at the starting line so we started together and ran together for a couple miles. I was trying for 2:55 and I think he was going for sub-3 so I pulled away a little after a mile or so. I got my mile pace down under 6:30 which made me perfectly happy but I did not expect to sustain it forever.
The Phoenix streets are designed on a grid so I had a very good idea where I was the whole time. I ran by the street the hotel was on, and thee was a supermarket right there that I wished I had found a couple days ago. The race went well until I got to mile 8 where felt I needed to take a restroom break. I finally found one in the 10th mile which cost me almost 2 minutes...When I came out within a quarter mile I caught up to and went by Chuck again. I was holding low 6:40 pace which crept up to 7:00 but I was happy enough. Things went well until around mile 16 again when I decided to take another break. This time I waited until mile 19 and spent an extra 3 minutes at that mile marker. After that I held 7:00-7:30 the rest of the way. And right before the 25 mile sign - you guessed it - I caught up to Chuck again. He was doing pretty well as was I. I finished last 1.2 in 8:21, passing at least a dozen people. My final time of 3:04 wasn't what I hoped for but good enough to go to Boston in April.
The race wasn't as scenic as I was expecting but it was still fun. There were around 25 bands playing along the course - mostly Rock and Roll. My favorite was the Elvis impersonator who was fun to hear around mile 22. There were also a lot of cheerleaders there which I had never really seen at a race before. Although the streets weren't packed it was nice to have someone cheering there I guess.
The post race food was excellent. I had a couple Dole fruit cups, about 4 popsicles, among other things, some fruit, energy bars, etc. I drank some Cytomax during the race even though I don't like it, but I certainly didn't want any after I was done. The post race gathering was in Sun Angel Stadium at ASU.
After the race we went to Jerry's house again and he generously lent his shower to anyone who ran. We made it there in time to see the end of the NFC Championship game, which the Cardinals won. The house full of 20 or so people erupted at the end of the game. Ironically the Cardinals are going to the Super Bowl in Tampa, and the game is being played at the stadium across the street (literally) from where I used to live. Shortly after I had to leave to catch a plane home. The flight back was uneventful. I made it back home around midnight so I went to bed around the same time I normally do.
I would like to do the race again, but while I was there I found out about the Sedona marathon which is in February. So if I go back I would probably run Sedona to try something different.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Race 08-09 PCTR Sequoia 30k
February 16, 2008
30k - 2nd/100 - 2:32:35
Complete results - not available
For the 3rd year in a row I ran the PCTR Sequoia Race. The first 2 times I did the 20k, last year intentionally and the first year on accident by missing a turn in the 10k. this year I decided to run the 30k. The course is the same with an out and back stretch about half way through the 20k loop.
I got there plenty early (maybe a new trend?). Before the race I met the guy who won my age group in the PAUSATF ultra series. He said he did it by running a lot of the races.
The weather was cool - ideal for running but not so good for standing around beforehand. I was happy when we got started. I started quickly as I like to do on this course. There is a small hill near the beginning that I don't like to climb in a crowd. Soon a couple of 50k runners passed me. The first one of them was going quite fast. I eventually settled into a pace by the first age station. After the first age station there are quite a few rolling hills. I ran down them very fast and up them not so fast. Jason W was the first 30k runner to catch up me. I stayed in front of him for a while because I was running fast on the downhills but eventually he went by.
When I got to the left hand turn for the out and back section I was eager to see what it was like. The left took us down a wide trail but shortly after there was a right turn. The course wound down to a road but I was unable to run a fast pace because the footing was not helpful and there were a lot of curves. We ran along a trail for a while and then I saw some runners some down the hill on my left. They must have missed the turn. Shortly after that we hit the turnaround and there was an aid station.
After the aid station I ran back and ran by everyone else in the race who were on their way to the aid station. Going back up the hill wasn't as difficult as I thought although it was beginning to get a bit warm and sunny. I was happy to get to the end of the out and back section. It took about as long as it took me to run to it, so I figured I was 2/3 done the course.
The rest of the way back was relatively uneventful
30k - 2nd/100 - 2:32:35
Complete results - not available
For the 3rd year in a row I ran the PCTR Sequoia Race. The first 2 times I did the 20k, last year intentionally and the first year on accident by missing a turn in the 10k. this year I decided to run the 30k. The course is the same with an out and back stretch about half way through the 20k loop.
I got there plenty early (maybe a new trend?). Before the race I met the guy who won my age group in the PAUSATF ultra series. He said he did it by running a lot of the races.
The weather was cool - ideal for running but not so good for standing around beforehand. I was happy when we got started. I started quickly as I like to do on this course. There is a small hill near the beginning that I don't like to climb in a crowd. Soon a couple of 50k runners passed me. The first one of them was going quite fast. I eventually settled into a pace by the first age station. After the first age station there are quite a few rolling hills. I ran down them very fast and up them not so fast. Jason W was the first 30k runner to catch up me. I stayed in front of him for a while because I was running fast on the downhills but eventually he went by.
When I got to the left hand turn for the out and back section I was eager to see what it was like. The left took us down a wide trail but shortly after there was a right turn. The course wound down to a road but I was unable to run a fast pace because the footing was not helpful and there were a lot of curves. We ran along a trail for a while and then I saw some runners some down the hill on my left. They must have missed the turn. Shortly after that we hit the turnaround and there was an aid station.
After the aid station I ran back and ran by everyone else in the race who were on their way to the aid station. Going back up the hill wasn't as difficult as I thought although it was beginning to get a bit warm and sunny. I was happy to get to the end of the out and back section. It took about as long as it took me to run to it, so I figured I was 2/3 done the course.
The rest of the way back was relatively uneventful
Friday, March 21, 2008
Updates Coming soon
3 things:
1. Due to recent non-running events I haven't had a chance to update much. I plan to have updates starting Sunday night.
2. Revising my race schedule - will have this updated too. Making some changes and working on making some more ambitious goals!!!
3. I think there have been about 20-25 different people to visit my blog. Most people are from the Bay area but there have been people from:
CA
MA
VT
FL
MI
MD
Netherlands
I think I know who everyone is except for the person who visits every 3 days from Los Angeles. WHO ARE YOU??? Please email me at jasonreed247@yahoo.com. Whoever you are you have been here more than anyone else.
1. Due to recent non-running events I haven't had a chance to update much. I plan to have updates starting Sunday night.
2. Revising my race schedule - will have this updated too. Making some changes and working on making some more ambitious goals!!!
3. I think there have been about 20-25 different people to visit my blog. Most people are from the Bay area but there have been people from:
CA
MA
VT
FL
MI
MD
Netherlands
I think I know who everyone is except for the person who visits every 3 days from Los Angeles. WHO ARE YOU??? Please email me at jasonreed247@yahoo.com. Whoever you are you have been here more than anyone else.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Race 08-08 DSE Golden Gate Vista 10k
February 10, 2008
10k - 1st/89 - 39:41
Complete Results here
This is the first DSE race I ran in 3 weeks. The weather was perfect and I got there unusually early with a stomach full of spaghetti. There was plenty of time to discuss the courses changes. Instead of running straight through the trail to the Legion of Honor we went south toward the Cliff House for a little bit, did a sharp right and followed a trail that joined the road near the bottom tof the big hill leading up to the Legion of Honor. Because of the added distance the turnaround was moved to the entrance of the trail just before the Golden Gate Bridge.
I started off fairly conservatively but had no problem taking 2nd place after a half mile. I passed Milan by the mile mark and led the rest of the way. I could tell no one was close in back of me. I confirmed this at the turnaround which was about 3.5 miles into the race because of the course change. Not much interesting happened by I got the song Home on the Range stuck in my head and couldn't stop singing it. When I got the the hill at the Legion of Honor I asked Jerry (who was volunteering as a course monitor(if he wanted to make it a relay and run the last uphill. He told me no one was close behind. So I ended up coming in first by about a minute and later I found out that Grant had dropped out due to not feeling well.
After the race there were grapes and oranges which were good. We don't usually have those at DSE races but they seemed to be popular. I also enjoyed a ton of Starburst-like candies that were there. They weren't as popular because there were plenty left over as they were picking everything up so I grabbed a bunch for a hike down to the beach after.
10k - 1st/89 - 39:41
Complete Results here
This is the first DSE race I ran in 3 weeks. The weather was perfect and I got there unusually early with a stomach full of spaghetti. There was plenty of time to discuss the courses changes. Instead of running straight through the trail to the Legion of Honor we went south toward the Cliff House for a little bit, did a sharp right and followed a trail that joined the road near the bottom tof the big hill leading up to the Legion of Honor. Because of the added distance the turnaround was moved to the entrance of the trail just before the Golden Gate Bridge.
I started off fairly conservatively but had no problem taking 2nd place after a half mile. I passed Milan by the mile mark and led the rest of the way. I could tell no one was close in back of me. I confirmed this at the turnaround which was about 3.5 miles into the race because of the course change. Not much interesting happened by I got the song Home on the Range stuck in my head and couldn't stop singing it. When I got the the hill at the Legion of Honor I asked Jerry (who was volunteering as a course monitor(if he wanted to make it a relay and run the last uphill. He told me no one was close behind. So I ended up coming in first by about a minute and later I found out that Grant had dropped out due to not feeling well.
After the race there were grapes and oranges which were good. We don't usually have those at DSE races but they seemed to be popular. I also enjoyed a ton of Starburst-like candies that were there. They weren't as popular because there were plenty left over as they were picking everything up so I grabbed a bunch for a hike down to the beach after.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Race 08-07 Jed Smith 50k
50k - 4th/ - 3:39:35
Oliver, Chikara, Eduardo, and I decided to carpool for this event. We met at Oliver's house at 5:30 and left at 5:45 to pick up Eduardo on the way. It was supposed to be about a 2:15 minute drive but we did it in about 1:45. On the way I had a big bowl of spaghetti which I didn't quite finish and a 6 ounce box of Hot Tamales Cool Mint flavor. We took a quick survey and determined that I was racing as fast as I could and the other three were using the race as a training run. It was Eduardo's first ultra and my 8th. Oliver has done a handful I think and Chikara had done more than I could count on my fingers.
We had plenty of time to get our numbers and chips, warm up, and get ready. The weather was overcast and mid 40's. It was cold just standing around but looked to be good for racing.
The course consisted of an out and back accounting for 1.6 miles and then had to run a 3.3 mile loop 9 times. The 3.3 mile loop was actually like a figure 8 with the overlapping section being about a half mile. One end of the loop was road, the other end was a trail which got muckier the longer we ran. It was not a day to keep the shoes clean.
When the race started 2 guys started well in front of the rest of the pack. I started with Chikara and 2 other guys. I didn't really pay attention to who was in back of me. One of the guys asked if I was planning to run 7 minute pace and I said yes.
About half way through the first loop I backed off into 6th place. The first 5 loops were pretty boring. I debating taking a restroom break whcih turned out to be smart. I started wondering where the other 3 were. By the end of lap 5 I saw Chikara had a 7 minute lead on me and I had a 5 minute lead on Eduardo and Oliver (Oliver slightly in front). I could tell because we started passing in the overlapping section. On loop 6 i started to gain ground on Chikara because we stopped passing in the overlapping section. On the next half lap Eduardo said something about Chikara being close and I let him know where Oliver was. Very shortly I caught up to Chikara who looked fine but obviously he slowed down from racing mode. He said he was fine. Eduardo (who looked fresh the whole way) ended up catching Oliver. 
Half way through the last lap I saw a guy just in front of me going about my pace. I guessed (correctly) that he was finishing as well so I made a point to catch him. I was prepared to sprint if necessary, my legs felt fine but I didn't need to. I passed him with a half mile to go, he maintained and I picked it up for a finishing kick. I ran the last lap under 23 minutes (6:57 per mile). Initially I was very happy with that but after finding out my average pace for the whole race was 7:04 the last lap turned out to be nothing special.
My legs were more sore than any race under 26 miles but less than they usually are for an ultra. This race was not a typical ultra anyway, it was more like a marathon+5. Given the weather and muddy conditions I was happy with my pace (under 22 minutes per 5k!). This was my 8th ultra compared with only 7 marathons so I've made a milestone that I probably won't be able to undo. It was also my fastest pace maintained in an ultra (by far). Actually it was a faster than 4 of the 7 marathons...
It was cold after we finished. I was less than impressed with the post race meal which basically consisted of aid station food. I also noticed the shirts were less than spectacular (kind of plain), not that I care about shirts, I have enough. We all waited for the entire group to finish, we got food together and left. We made it home quickly other than my first time inside a Jack in the Box (I didn't eat anything).
Oliver, Chikara, Eduardo, and I decided to carpool for this event. We met at Oliver's house at 5:30 and left at 5:45 to pick up Eduardo on the way. It was supposed to be about a 2:15 minute drive but we did it in about 1:45. On the way I had a big bowl of spaghetti which I didn't quite finish and a 6 ounce box of Hot Tamales Cool Mint flavor. We took a quick survey and determined that I was racing as fast as I could and the other three were using the race as a training run. It was Eduardo's first ultra and my 8th. Oliver has done a handful I think and Chikara had done more than I could count on my fingers.
We had plenty of time to get our numbers and chips, warm up, and get ready. The weather was overcast and mid 40's. It was cold just standing around but looked to be good for racing.
The course consisted of an out and back accounting for 1.6 miles and then had to run a 3.3 mile loop 9 times. The 3.3 mile loop was actually like a figure 8 with the overlapping section being about a half mile. One end of the loop was road, the other end was a trail which got muckier the longer we ran. It was not a day to keep the shoes clean.
When the race started 2 guys started well in front of the rest of the pack. I started with Chikara and 2 other guys. I didn't really pay attention to who was in back of me. One of the guys asked if I was planning to run 7 minute pace and I said yes.
About half way through the first loop I backed off into 6th place. The first 5 loops were pretty boring. I debating taking a restroom break whcih turned out to be smart. I started wondering where the other 3 were. By the end of lap 5 I saw Chikara had a 7 minute lead on me and I had a 5 minute lead on Eduardo and Oliver (Oliver slightly in front). I could tell because we started passing in the overlapping section. On loop 6 i started to gain ground on Chikara because we stopped passing in the overlapping section. On the next half lap Eduardo said something about Chikara being close and I let him know where Oliver was. Very shortly I caught up to Chikara who looked fine but obviously he slowed down from racing mode. He said he was fine. Eduardo (who looked fresh the whole way) ended up catching Oliver. 
Half way through the last lap I saw a guy just in front of me going about my pace. I guessed (correctly) that he was finishing as well so I made a point to catch him. I was prepared to sprint if necessary, my legs felt fine but I didn't need to. I passed him with a half mile to go, he maintained and I picked it up for a finishing kick. I ran the last lap under 23 minutes (6:57 per mile). Initially I was very happy with that but after finding out my average pace for the whole race was 7:04 the last lap turned out to be nothing special.My legs were more sore than any race under 26 miles but less than they usually are for an ultra. This race was not a typical ultra anyway, it was more like a marathon+5. Given the weather and muddy conditions I was happy with my pace (under 22 minutes per 5k!). This was my 8th ultra compared with only 7 marathons so I've made a milestone that I probably won't be able to undo. It was also my fastest pace maintained in an ultra (by far). Actually it was a faster than 4 of the 7 marathons...
It was cold after we finished. I was less than impressed with the post race meal which basically consisted of aid station food. I also noticed the shirts were less than spectacular (kind of plain), not that I care about shirts, I have enough. We all waited for the entire group to finish, we got food together and left. We made it home quickly other than my first time inside a Jack in the Box (I didn't eat anything).
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Race 08-06 Jazz Trax Snowshoe Stomp 10k
SATURDAY
This entry has 2 parts because really the trip started on Saturday night. I had a reservation to get a rental SUV at 4PM from SFO. I planned to pick it up, and go to the annual DSE Gala Dinner at 7PM, then leave S.F. with Oliver and head east toward our reserved hotel in Stockton. Upon coming home from a trip to the gym (ran there and back of course) I realized the dinner was at 6PM, not 7PM. So I hurried to get the car and went to the dinner. I had 5 cars from which to choose and I took a charcoal Jeep Cherokee Laredo. It had under 1000 miles and it was an automatic with a slap stick shifter.
I left the rental place and headed for the Gala Dinner. The dinner was very good. Ken did a great job of putting it on. I had the salmon for the second year in a row. People had a great time letting off loud squeaky balloons at random times. The balloons shots around the room, flying up toward the ceiling, and darting at people hair, and going all over the place. We saw an excellent movie about Harry, a totally blind runner who ran the Dipsea race. Most everyone in the club knows who Harry is.
There was a low key awards ceremony. Instead of handing out trophies and the like as names were called, it was up to us to pick up our hardware from a table. They just announced the names and it was up to us to stand up when we were called. it was much better this way as it moved along. i found it helpful to leave my awards on the awards table because there was limited room on the dinner table. I got several awards:
- A Mongo trophy for having done a certain number of DSE races and volunteering (I don't remember the requirements, I just do them)
- A small trophy for 1st place Age group points. This was largely due to Grant not moving to SF until February, getting lost on a couple courses, and missing that start for another race, etc. He will win from now on if he wants to.
- A plaque for being 2nd overall in top 5 finishes (ironically Grant was 1st, because when he did run the races he usually won). The plaque was also for most racing miles in 2007. This is the award I care most about. I ran 606.5 miles in 2007 (plus swam a 1 mi. race that didn't count toward my total). I achieved my goal of 600 (50 race miles a month). This is largely due to running most races I could find up to 31 miles. It is difficult because I actually race every race with 100% effort. I don't ever run a race and take it easy (why go?). The thing that really helped was getting in 2 races in many weekends (or sometimes 3 races, and on one occasion 4 races in 1 weekend). I have set a goal of 800 race miles 2008 and 1000 in 2009, so we'll see where it goes.
At some point I invited nearly everyone I could to he snowshoe race Sunday but had no more takers. After I left I picked up Oliver who had gone home to finish packing and Chikara who couldn't make the dinner. So it was rainy and uneventful for the group as we went to the Stockton hotel. We checked in quickly and made it to bed at 1AM. We scheduled a 6Am wakeup call.
SUNDAY
The wakeup call came at 5:45. I took a shower, Chikara and Oliver opted not to. we checked out without a problem and ate at a MacDonald's just up the road. I had orange juice, and a biscuit with cheese (I took the bacon out). I don't really like MacDonald's but we were in Stockton before 7AM on a Sunday and our options were limited. The weather looked good for most of the way. We noted how many Ron Paul signs were in people's lawns (there were a lot). I started to get a little nervous about chain controls after we saw a sign saying CA-4 was closed at a certain point. According to Oliver's GPS the closure was 4 miles past where we were going.
As we started climbing the road became wetter, then slushy a little, and just past Arnold we hit the Caltrans authorities. They turned us around for not having chains so we went back to Arnold to get some. The 4 or 5 stores we went to were out so we didn't know what to do. A courageous member of the group wanted to hitch, a less daring person wanted to go back up and try to talk our way through, and an undecisive one of us did not offer an opinion or break the tie. So we decided to go see how far we could get. When we got back to the chain control checkpoint the police cruisers were gone and only a couple Caltrans people. The same woman greeted us and informed us that chains are required. She also noted that she was not an officer, she was just Caltrans.
So we made it through and got to the race at 10:16 for a 10AM start. However the race was postponed until 10:30 and Patty Jo (the race director) was very accomodating to make sure all entrants were ready and had their equipment ready before started. So we didn't miss the start. Chikara, another guy and I started in the lead group. After about 10 minutes Chikara started to open a serious lead (so what else is new), Oliver caught up and passed the other guy and me, and the places were set - Chikara, Oliver, other guy, me. It stayed that way for the whole race, other than Oliver missing a turn (not his fault).
It felt fine while we were running, but it was freezing after. the temperature was 33 degrees and during the race we picked up a couple inches of snow. After geting warm clothes in the car we went in for food and awards. The food was excellent for the 2nd year in a row. I had a few different soups, some bread, and hot chocolate. I got a medal for 2nd in my age group (Chikara counted as 1st overall, not age group). I also won a candle in the random draw prize. There were 3 big prizes - 2 pairs of snowshoes and an Ipod. None of us got those despite odds that were more favorable than normal. we stayed a while, took some pictures, and headed home.
Going down the mountain wasn't so bad. I kept it in 1st gear for an hour as went about 15mph and lost 2000+' of elevation. I didn't have to hit the brake at all in that stretch and we didn't slide on the snow at all. By the time we got to 5000' there was no more snow and it was a long boring drive back. We stopped for gas because we were on E for quite a while. We got quick cheap food at a K-mart. I ate a pound of Twizzlers, Chikara got a hot dog and nachos, and Oliver got something I don't know what it was because I never saw it before. ("Asian delicacy" he says). i dropped them off, and went back to bring the car back. Unfortunately since we didn't make it back until after 8PM we got charged for another day with the car (I haven't told them yet!). It was a very fun trip and all 3 of us were very glad that we went.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
2008 Planned Race Schedule
Races I plan to run in 2008:
Tue Jan 1 Run for a Healthy World 5k
Sun Jan 6 DSE Double Lake Merced Run 9M
Sun Jan 13 DSE Fort Point 12K
Sat Jan 19 PCTR Pacifica 30k
Sun Jan 20 DSE Sawyer Camp Trail 10K
Sun Jan 27 JazzTrax Snowshoe Stomp 10k
Sat Feb 2 Jed Smith 50k
Sun Feb 10 DSE Golden Gate Bridge Vista 5M
Sat Feb 16 PCTR Sequoia 30k
Sun Feb 17 Auburn Snowshoe Challenge 10k
Sun Feb 24 DSE Waterfront 5K
Sat Mar 1 PCTR Skyline Ridge 37k
Sun Mar 2 DSE Windmill 10K
Sun Mar 9 Snowshoeing National Championships 10k
Sun Mar 16 Across The Bay 12K
Sat Mar 22 PCTR Pirates Cove 30k
Sun Mar 23 DSE Easter Roller Coaster 5K
Sun Mar 30 DSE Embarcadero 10K
Sat Apr 5 American River 50mi.
Sun Apr 6 DSE Great Highway Run 4M
Sun Apr 13 DSE Golden Gate Park 10K
Sat/Sun Apr 19/20 The Relay: Calistoga to Santa Cruz 199mi.
Sun Apr 27 PCTR Big Basin 30k
Sun May 4 DSE Walt Stack 10K
Sat May 10 Quicksilver 50mi.
Sun May 11 DSE Kennedy Drive 8K
Sun May 18 Bay to Breakers 12k
Sun May 25 DSE Mission Rock 5K
Mon May 26 Marin Memorial Day 10k
Sun Jun 1 DSE Practice Dipsea Run 6.8Mi.
Sun Jun 8 DSE PCTR Mount Diablo 25k
Sat Jun 14 PCTR Santa Cruz 29k
Sun Jun 15 DSE Conservatory 5K
Sat Jun 21 DSE Double Dipsea Handicap Race 13.7M
Sun Jun 29 DSE Strawberry Hill 5K
Sat Jul 5 PCTR Angel Island 25k
Sun Jul 6 DSE Double Lake Merced Run 9M
Sun Jul 13 DSE Golden Gate Bridge Vista 5M
Sat Jul 19 PCTR Sequoia 30k
Sun Jul 20 DSE Marina Green 5K
Sun Jul 27 DSE Windmill 10K
Sun Aug 3 Skyline 50k
Sun Aug 10 DSE Daly City Scenic Run 6.8M
Sun Aug 17 DSE Golden Gate Park Cross Country 5K
Sat Aug 23 Golden Gate Headlands 50k
Sun Aug 31 DSE Potrero Hill Run 4M
Mon Sep 1 Tamalpa Mt. Tam Hill Climb 2.6mi.
Sat Sep 6 PCTR Redwood Park 30k
Sun Sep 7 DSE Rainbow Falls 5K
Sun Sep 14 DSE Stern Grove Run 4M
Sun Sep 21 DSE Lake Merced Half Marathon
Fri Sep 26? Palo Alto Moonlight Run 10k
Sun Sep 28 DSE Oyster Point 5M
Sun Oct 5 Bridge to Bridge 12K
Sat Oct 11 Dick Collins Firetrails 50mi.
Sun Oct 12 DSE Golden Gate Park 10K
Sun Oct 19 DSE Ballpark 5K
Sun Oct 26 DSE Fort Point 12K
Sun Nov 2 DSE Sawyer Camp Trail 10K
Sat Nov 8 PCTR Stinson Beach 30k
Sun Nov 9 DSE Embarcadero 10K
Sun Nov 16 DSE Polo Field 5K
Sat Nov 22 PCTR San Francisco 20k
Sun Nov 23 DSE Great Highway Run 4M
Thu Nov 26 Turkey Beach Trot 5k
Sun Nov 28 Quadruple Dipsea 28.4mi.
Sat Dec 6 PCTR Woodside 35k
Sun Dec 7 DSE Ferry Building Run 4M
Sat Dec 13 PCTR Muir Beach 30k
Sun Dec 14 Miracle Mile
Sun Dec 14 Chrismas Relays 4x4.5mi.
Sat Dec 20 PCTR Rodea Beach 10k
Sun Dec 21 Christmas Classic 5K
Sun Dec 28 DSE Mission Rock 5K
Total: 74 races, 822.9 miles
Other events:
Sat Jan 26 DSE Gala Dinner
Sun Aug 24 DSE Volunteer Picnic
Thur Dec 25 DSE Xmas Blind Date Relays 2x2 mi.
Tue Jan 1 Run for a Healthy World 5k
Sun Jan 6 DSE Double Lake Merced Run 9M
Sun Jan 13 DSE Fort Point 12K
Sat Jan 19 PCTR Pacifica 30k
Sun Jan 20 DSE Sawyer Camp Trail 10K
Sun Jan 27 JazzTrax Snowshoe Stomp 10k
Sat Feb 2 Jed Smith 50k
Sun Feb 10 DSE Golden Gate Bridge Vista 5M
Sat Feb 16 PCTR Sequoia 30k
Sun Feb 17 Auburn Snowshoe Challenge 10k
Sun Feb 24 DSE Waterfront 5K
Sat Mar 1 PCTR Skyline Ridge 37k
Sun Mar 2 DSE Windmill 10K
Sun Mar 9 Snowshoeing National Championships 10k
Sun Mar 16 Across The Bay 12K
Sat Mar 22 PCTR Pirates Cove 30k
Sun Mar 23 DSE Easter Roller Coaster 5K
Sun Mar 30 DSE Embarcadero 10K
Sat Apr 5 American River 50mi.
Sun Apr 6 DSE Great Highway Run 4M
Sun Apr 13 DSE Golden Gate Park 10K
Sat/Sun Apr 19/20 The Relay: Calistoga to Santa Cruz 199mi.
Sun Apr 27 PCTR Big Basin 30k
Sun May 4 DSE Walt Stack 10K
Sat May 10 Quicksilver 50mi.
Sun May 11 DSE Kennedy Drive 8K
Sun May 18 Bay to Breakers 12k
Sun May 25 DSE Mission Rock 5K
Mon May 26 Marin Memorial Day 10k
Sun Jun 1 DSE Practice Dipsea Run 6.8Mi.
Sun Jun 8 DSE PCTR Mount Diablo 25k
Sat Jun 14 PCTR Santa Cruz 29k
Sun Jun 15 DSE Conservatory 5K
Sat Jun 21 DSE Double Dipsea Handicap Race 13.7M
Sun Jun 29 DSE Strawberry Hill 5K
Sat Jul 5 PCTR Angel Island 25k
Sun Jul 6 DSE Double Lake Merced Run 9M
Sun Jul 13 DSE Golden Gate Bridge Vista 5M
Sat Jul 19 PCTR Sequoia 30k
Sun Jul 20 DSE Marina Green 5K
Sun Jul 27 DSE Windmill 10K
Sun Aug 3 Skyline 50k
Sun Aug 10 DSE Daly City Scenic Run 6.8M
Sun Aug 17 DSE Golden Gate Park Cross Country 5K
Sat Aug 23 Golden Gate Headlands 50k
Sun Aug 31 DSE Potrero Hill Run 4M
Mon Sep 1 Tamalpa Mt. Tam Hill Climb 2.6mi.
Sat Sep 6 PCTR Redwood Park 30k
Sun Sep 7 DSE Rainbow Falls 5K
Sun Sep 14 DSE Stern Grove Run 4M
Sun Sep 21 DSE Lake Merced Half Marathon
Fri Sep 26? Palo Alto Moonlight Run 10k
Sun Sep 28 DSE Oyster Point 5M
Sun Oct 5 Bridge to Bridge 12K
Sat Oct 11 Dick Collins Firetrails 50mi.
Sun Oct 12 DSE Golden Gate Park 10K
Sun Oct 19 DSE Ballpark 5K
Sun Oct 26 DSE Fort Point 12K
Sun Nov 2 DSE Sawyer Camp Trail 10K
Sat Nov 8 PCTR Stinson Beach 30k
Sun Nov 9 DSE Embarcadero 10K
Sun Nov 16 DSE Polo Field 5K
Sat Nov 22 PCTR San Francisco 20k
Sun Nov 23 DSE Great Highway Run 4M
Thu Nov 26 Turkey Beach Trot 5k
Sun Nov 28 Quadruple Dipsea 28.4mi.
Sat Dec 6 PCTR Woodside 35k
Sun Dec 7 DSE Ferry Building Run 4M
Sat Dec 13 PCTR Muir Beach 30k
Sun Dec 14 Miracle Mile
Sun Dec 14 Chrismas Relays 4x4.5mi.
Sat Dec 20 PCTR Rodea Beach 10k
Sun Dec 21 Christmas Classic 5K
Sun Dec 28 DSE Mission Rock 5K
Total: 74 races, 822.9 miles
Other events:
Sat Jan 26 DSE Gala Dinner
Sun Aug 24 DSE Volunteer Picnic
Thur Dec 25 DSE Xmas Blind Date Relays 2x2 mi.
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