Racing in a Sauna

Monica and I run in a once-a-month musically themed Thursday night series along the Charles River, a 5K that ends with a BBQ, band, and beer.  This month was the Jerry Garcia Memorial Run.  The start/finish for this series is close to the house so it's easy logistically.  Monica parked a car in the lot across the street earlier in the day and we road our bikes to the start.  It didn't seems so hot at first, but as we arrived at the car it was clear that it was going to be a tough night.  The humidity and lack of wind gave the scene a rather drastic feel.

First, we changed into running shoes and pinned our bibs on, then headed over to pick up the t-shirt Monica had ordered.  Runners were beginning to gather in greater numbers, so we walked around the tents to see what was there and dropped the shirt off back at the car.  In just a quick jog across the road I could feel my hip bothering me, and I knew it wasn't going to be an easy race.  At the starting line we stretched and did a quick warmup run to get the muscles moving.  At 7:28 the massed runners surged toward the tunnel under the bridge and at 7:30 the race started right on time.

This time the start was much more organized and orderly than the first race in the series.  There was no mud, and less chaos so we were able to settle into a full speed pace quickly.  As we made the turn at the sign and headed back to the tunnel everyone was already starting to sweat.  Monica was running with her GPS watch and she said that it seemed to take forever to get to the first mile beep, but in fact we were well under 9:00 pace.  This was the first 5K I've ever stopped to get water, it was just brutal.

We crossed the bridge which is right around 2 miles and were headed back towards the finish line now, my hip wasn't bothering me as much as I expected and we kept up the sub-9:00 pace.  We actually passed a few folks that had been ahead of us the whole way.  At the turn into the finish line we handed our tickets to the collector, I said "Hi" to Jackie who I haven't seen in a long time, and we quickly headed for some water, food, and beer, in that order.

On the beer line I kept feeling someone spilling what I thought was beer on my shoes.  It was my own sweat dripping off my elbows. Yuk.  The beer tasted great but it was really too hot to enjoy the food.  The band was fine and I got to quickly catch up with Jackie and Christopher but we were both ready to head home.  We were drenched with sweat even 45 minutes after we finished; thankfully Monica has waterproof seat covers in her car.  Our time was great, around 26:15 which was about 3 minutes faster than last time.  If the weather is cooler for the next two races it will be interesting to see our times improve.

One's cross (training) to bear

In the past 7 days I've gone road running, trail running, hiking, and mountain biking.  Looking back another week and you can throw in road biking and weight training, and a little swimming a bit further back.  One of my goals for this year was to mix up my training in an effort to stay motivated and to avoid injury.  I've certainly been successful in the former, the latter is more of a mixed bag.

The biggest change has been the mountain bike which opens up a significant new level of activity.  The speed, full body workout, and potential for disaster keeps me motivated and alert.  While I love hiking and will never give it up, mountain biking is new and exciting.  There's so much to learn and experience, and I find new challenges each ride that are within my reach that I come away with a feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment that I've missed recently.

Trail running has also been a fun activity, one that adds variety to my weekly running mileage.  I'm not convinced it has been good for my injury, since I often end the loop in the Fells with a sore hip but I think it has been a good experience in general.  I enjoy the need to think and react while running, instead of the steady plod of one foot in front of the other.  Once a week seems about right for me, and I get the added bonus of surprising deer on the trail.

It's hiking season and we're heading north most weekends now.  We've got a few longer hikes planned and there's nothing like that feeling at the end of a long day when you arrive at the car, exhausted but satisfied with a job well done.  I'm mostly hiking in trail shoes and when we can we run the flat stretches.  With our weekends up north we have been hiking one day and doing 1-3 hours of mountain biking the next which makes for an easy drive home without being exhausted.

I still run 3-4 days a week, trying to mix in some variety (hills, sprints, races) but my routine is usually to just go out for a run and see where it takes me.  I still have a group of runners at work but our regular Monday run has taken a beating due to a lot of travel.  With the heat this summer my pace has been rather slow and methodical, but miles are miles.

Weight training is the odd ball.  I have a gym at work that I use when running, and I occasionally do sets of exercises that I've done for decades, but I don't really have a plan or goal.  This is probably where I would get the most bang for my buck, but I don't really have the energy to set something up.  Any suggestions for a training plan that would help me as a runner/hiker/biker?

The only other thing I would consider adding is swimming with the hopes of a triathlon in my future.  The logistics are hard to figure out so I'm just putting that on hold for now.

I wonder if watching the Tour de France and the Olympics on TV counts for cross training?

Runners are stupid

Especially injured runners. This isn't a groundbreaking revelation, but I'm pretty lousy at being injured.  For the past two weeks I've been fighting a nagging pain in my left hip/leg/thigh that doesn't respond to ice, stretching, or Ibuprofen.  The only option remaining seems to be a pretty drastic one; and I'm not sure I'm ready for it but it may be time: rest.  All athletes hate being on the sidelines, and I'm no different.

The worst part is that we are finally getting some good weather after a week of rain and some killer thunderstorms.  I'm stuck in the house with an ice pack on my leg while outside everyone and their sister is running, biking, hiking, and generally having a heck of a time out there.  Rest sucks: it's the absence of fun. I even forced myself to run last week while I was having trouble walking up stairs.  I would hold onto the railing and pull myself up each flight and somehow I felt it was a good idea to run 5 miles.

Monica and I went for a hike in the Blue Hills on Saturday and I was hoping that my leg would loosen up after a bit.  No such luck; about 15 minutes into the hike I knew we couldn't do our planned route, and it probably would be best to just turn around.  So naturally I insisted we go another 10 minutes to the viewpoint, limping up the climb and stumbling back down.  Back at the car we ran into friends from the AMC who were halfway through a double Skyline traverse and I felt even worse about the whole thing.  So instead, we went shopping.

I've got a race on Sunday, so I'm going to rest all week.  Assuming I can survive the rest I should be able to struggle through 5 miles since I really don't care about the time.  I have to run it since the race comes with a t-shirt and I won't be able to wear it if I don't finish the race.  And of course there's BBQ at the end.  That's good for recovery, right?

Finding my Way

Last night I went back to the Fells in an attempt to regain my trail running stripes.  I took a few precautions this time to avoid the fiasco that happened last time; getting lost, coming out after dark without a light, no food or water.  This time I made a few changes:

• Started and ended at Sheepfold, which cut about 2 miles total from the loop
• Carrying my running belt with a map, flashlight, phone, and water
• Planned out my route before starting and stuck to it

The run went pretty well, about 5.5 miles averaging around 11:30 miles on some fairly rough trails, but I did end up with the same pain in my left foot that I need to address.  Right now I'm resting and icing it, but some stretches and exercises are probably in order.  This run was on the new Asolo trail running shoes, but I'm not sure they're ideal.  They offer more cushioning than the Innov-8s but I don't think they fit as well.  More tinkering is in order.

The weekly trail run is a nice addition to my cross training.  I now have a 5.5 mile and a 7.5 mile loop so I can tune it to how much time I have or how I'm feeling. One thing I am not using for the trail running is my MP3 player.  It's nice to listen to the sounds of nature, and it's good to be able to hear the mountain bikers coming up behind me.

Losing my way

When hiking in the Whites I rarely take a map with me.  I know the trails quite well and most of the major intersections have good signs so getting lost isn't really an issue.  Above treeline in the fog or snow I can use a compass and know enough to not head blindly in a direction without cairns, blazes, or a trailbed to keep me on track.  I always carry two light sources, even on a simple day hike, along with extra food and water.  But for some reason I abandoned all that knowledge and preparation for a trail run within earshot of a major highway and it led to a pretty hairy adventure.

I was meeting Robyn at on the Belleview Pond parking area on South Border Road in the Fells for a 7 mile trail run, basically following the mountain bike loop which I have run several times.  We started on the trail at around 5:45 which would have been enough time for the loop.  I was dressing in shorts, a long sleeve top, and carried only my car key.  Just before starting I drank water and had some food. We ran the first 1.75 miles before Robyn said that her knee was bothering her (she'd been having some problems with it, so we knew this was a possibility) and she turned around and headed back to the car.  I continued over to Sheepfold on familiar trails and ran the first 2/3 of the loop without problems.

Ignoring the choice to run without my pack (food, water, light) this is where I made my first poor decision.  I elected to follow the Reservoir trail instead of my usual Mountain Bike loop, thinking that they essentially parallel each other. This was probably less than two miles from the car, so close.  The Reservoir trail was a little rougher than I expected, and didn't seem to be crossing familiar terrain.  As it happens, the trail keeps turning left (east) instead of going straight (south) so I was headed in the wrong direction.  At mile 7 I started getting some pain in my left foot, probably just a bruise but it made me stop running and I had to walk and jog slowly the rest of the run.  I was at a dirt road here, but decided to continue following the Reservoir trail, probably not a great decision either.

So, on I went.  It was getting darker now, and I had the first glimmer of doubt creeping into my mind.  Still no familiar terrain and I-93 seemed closer than it should be.  I came across a trail junction but it gave me no additional information.  There had been no other hikers or bikers for about 30 minutes now, and because I was walking now the chill began to sink in. I stopped at one point and made a decision to navigate by I-93, which I knew was east of me and I could reliably head south which is where I wanted to go.  This was a good decision, and it was accurate.  However, since I was a bit turned around it meant that I ended up back on the Reservoir trail, headed in the other direction!  This freaked me out a bit and I admit that I had a little bit of panic.  I couldn't understand how I ended up back on the trail, even though I thought I was headed in the right direction.  (I was.)

I regrouped a bit and headed out at a jog in the right direction on a dirt road for easier footing in the dark.  I did start seeing familiar sights again including a section of the Skyline trail I ran at around mile 3, so I knew pretty much where I was.  Finally I came across a trail sign that pointed to South Border Road, my destination!  A bit later there was a sign for Belleview Pond, even better!  After another 10 minutes (which seemed like an hour) I came to another dirt road that led to a gate on South Border Road and since I was having trouble seeing the ground on the Skyline Trail I elected to take that.  In two minutes I saw the cars on South Border, then the gate, turned left and soon came to my car parked alone and inviting.  It was now 8:10 PM, dark, and about 49 degrees.

It's a very unusual experience being truly lost, confused, and worried in the woods at night.  During the last hour of my run I could feel panic rising, could observe myself making snap decisions without stopping to reason, rushing around in the dark risking injury when I should have slowed down.  Even at the time part of me knew what I was doing and how I should calm down I really didn't act on those feelings. Headed down a trail I wondered if I had really read the last sign correctly, without heeding the desire to double check the signs and the intersection.  In retrospect I ended up making good decisions, but I could easily have made bad ones; a sobering thought.

Was I in danger of spending a night in the woods?  Possibly, but not likely unless I had gotten hurt.  You're never far from civilization in the Fells and there's always the sound of cars nearby.  My bigger concern was getting hurt by falling or twisting an ankle in the dark which could have led to an unpleasant night for sure. But seeing the cars on South Border road was still a huge relief; I could feel the built up tension release when I stepped out past the gate.  Even with the pain in my foot I was walking easier.

Lessons learned:

1. Never underestimate the woods
2. If you start out within 3 hours of sunset, bring a light source
3. Don't assume you know where trails go, check the maps
4. Don't panic - you have good woods skills so use them
5. Explore new terrain earlier in the day

 Here's the GPS track for the run. Replaying it I can feel the anxiety when I realized that I was looping on the same trail and back tracked.

It's spring, time for trail running

The last two weekends Monica and I have headed out to Great Brook Farm State Park in Carlisle.  She brings her spiffy new mountain bike, and I bring some trail running shoes.  I'll be getting a mountain bike soon so I can join her on rides, but for now I'm content to run some of the great double and single track available in GBF.  I haven't done too much trail running, but I'm enjoying it a lot these days.  The pace is generally slower, the ground is much more forgiving on my legs, and I don't have to deal with traffic lights.

I've been using my new small hydration pack, giving me some easily accessible water, a few Gu's, and a place to hold my wallet and phone. I've used a Nathan hip belt but with the twisty trails the backpack feels like it carries more smoothly and allows me to twist and turn more comfortably. It also looks cool.  For shoes I have two pair; Innov-8 and Asolo.  The Asolos are new and this past weekend was their first day out.  I bought the Innov-8s last year and they have been on a few long hikes and run in the Whites.  The only other trail running gear I use are my Dirty Girl Gaiters, in Lime Gatorade Hurl.  They also look cool.

The trails at Great Brook are a mix of farm roads, paths in fields, and single track.  I don't know the trails in detail but it's not very big and bordered by a few main roads so you can't get too far off.  The first time I ran there I just stayed on the wide paths and strung together a 4 mile loop without crossing my tracks.  The second time I tried more of the single track, such as Indian Hill (Tip: avoid trails with the word "Hill" in the name) and the Woodchuck Loop, then followed a trail I had never seen before which took me out to some town land called Thanksgiving Ground Forest.  It was just an out and back before hitting some more double track, crossing the road and taking the Tophet Loop, which is my favorite mountain bike single track, and working my way back to the car.  It rained for the second half of the loop but never too hard so it just made running in the woods more interesting.  People hurrying back to their cars under umbrellas gave me some odd looks.

The plan is to add at least one day of trail running a week, after work on my way home.  I can run a 7 mile loop in the Fells that offers some nice variety of single and double track, plus the occasional view of Boston from a tower.  That should add some variety to the week and make the longer runs easier on my knees.

Besides, anything that lets me wear the Dirty Girls is a good thing.

New Training partner

Monica has decided to take up running after a gap of over a decade, so I have a guaranteed running partner for at least 1 or 2 days a week if our schedules mesh.  She has to deal with a reconstructed ACL so running is a bit of new venture for her, one she's taking carefully but with gusto.  We started with a few run/walk ventures until she could run a full 5K without stopping several times; we've since gone up to 4 miles.  Our most common route is from the house to the Charles River and up or down a few bridges, which has been my regular morning routine for a while.  Until now I've never run that route with someone else; it's different when you're having a conversation the whole time.

When I started running I ran mostly alone, or with someone who was a much more experienced runner than I, like Al, Robyn or Mimi.  They would guide me with suggestions on stride, pace, stretching, etc and just keep me moving in the right direction.  Now someone is looking to me for the same kind of advice and I feel like I actually know what I'm talking about.  We went through the shoe buying process, getting the right running clothes, training plans, and we're looking at signing up for her first 5K. It feels like I'm going through the introduction to running all over again.

It has reminded me that I need to set a new goal and create my own plan to achieve it.  Right now I don't have a particular race or distance that I want to work on, although I'm very interested in more trail running.  Time to bring up CoolRunning Event Calendar and start looking for something interesting.