Less than 2 weeks out........

Last week finished up with about 30 miles of run training along with cross training in the water and in cycling classes. Feeling pretty good. Started this week with a 10 mile trail run at 6.000 ft of altitude and 40F temps. A challenging run. Discovered my cold dry air exercise induced asthma - that resulted from my run on Sunday afternoon. Symptoms were identical to Leadville, which interestingly enough occurred at night when the temps dropped. So i'm thinking that I may that riddle solved for 2011 Leadville races.

Work is busy, but going to manage stress levels going into next week. Got a great massage tonight - lower back and legs were the focus, feeling brand new. This week I will be getting in 25-30 miles and then followed by 10 miles during race week just to stay fresh. 2 days out from race will get massage and will stretch and stay limber.

With this being the last race of the year - really looking for a good performance. This is a very very challenging course. No real flat straights to loosen up. Either your ascending or descending on this course. Strategy will need to be thought thru and managed on race day.

Life is good.

Cheers

3 Weeks till NF 50 Trail Run......Game On!

Managed to finish the week, STRONG! Got in a 10 mile run on Friday morning followed by calf and core work out. No issues with the right high achilles - that's HUGE! Yesterday I got up at 6AM for a 15 mile run with a local young bull and a bunch of U-30 triathletes. It was a beautiful blue sky morning, 55F when we started and 60's when we finished.

The course was all pavement, except that I tried to run on the grass, thru downtown Nashville. It was a hilly run which was good for the quads and prep for NF 50 Trail Run, which has more hills than calves and quads can handle. We averaged a modest 9 min/mile pace. The goal was to just put time on the legs and train at a slower pace. This is important because you do not want to go out too hot on a 50 miler, else you pay for it with a down on one knee BONK somewhere in the 30 mile zone.

Post run I iced down my right achilles and sucked down amino acids, recoverite and Aleve. It did the trick. I woke up this am popped some more Aleve, vitamins and H2O. Today is a cross training day. Swimming at the WCRC, long course, which will help the cardiovascular and endurance, with 1.5 hours of swimming. Going to jump try to get in a 2 hour bike ride before the swim. Would like to get in 3 hours of training today.

This week is a very important week to stay focused on staying healthy and not overdoing the training. I expect to get in 25 miles, all on the treadmill, 90% of which will be at a 10% grade or greater. 2 weeks out starts the taper, which admittedly I suck at, it is the hardest aspect of training. 1 week out is all about rest and staying loose while keeping weight off. Currently at 182lbs this am - which is 6-7 pounds heavier than I need to be for the NF 50 Trail Run. Thinking I go into the race at 177-178lbs, given the distance and need for strength. If I go in too light I will fade in the late stages of the race. That aint gonna happen.

Cheers!!

Training Resume's ........in San Francisco

Exactly 2 weeks post fall, I flew out to SF to meet the young bull for an attempt at running on the North Face Endurance 50 mile Trail Run. Two days before I went to a bone and joint doc who advised me to let my ribs heal for another 2 weeks. He also said in the interim I could do so cross training to keep my butt in shape. So with that I hit the pool and did a spin class. Two days later I was on the trails in Muir Woods National Park with the young bull.

By mile 3 on Saturday morning exactly 4 weeks out from the race the muscles in my back had loosened up and despite some minor discomfort I felt great!!! Game on young bull!! We managed to get in about 15.5 miles on the very hilly course a few miles outside of SF. My legs felt like they had a 2 week layoff. They were fresh for the run, but post run it felt like I'd been thru the meat grinder.

Saturday was a beautiful morning. We ran thru the fog, into the sun and back again. The temperature was probably mid to high 50's. The course itself is not very technical, unlike the Leadville Silver Rush 50 Trail Run. It is however, almost as hilly and challenging as the ascent and descent in Leadville, only minus the effects of altitude. See Pic below taken from the Muir Woods side of the Golden Gate bridge.




On Sunday am we managed to grind out 10.5 miles in the windy, foggy, rainy weather on muddy trails. On sore legs, the quads and calves were talking to me the entire time. At 4 weeks out, the timing was perfect to trash my legs and then load up on amino acids and proteins to build some muscle for the race. On Monday, we both flew out and back to work. Fortunately my #1 massage therapist was available on Monday night for a 90 minute rub down and work out some of the soreness in my quads, achilles and calves. I've been getting lot's of rest post SF training weekend, while doing some cross training - swimming, biking and running each morning. Run's have been 3 miles each day on the treadmill - so not to beat up my achilles - and allow my legs to recover, while I suck down proteins, antioxidants, alleve and lot's of water. Feeling good but tired. Getting up at 4:45AM for a 5-6:30 swim class, followed by a 5 mile run.

The plan for Saturday is to get in 10-15 miles on the soft treadmill. Realizing that this is different than trail running, just simply trying to keep the wear and tear off the legs while still getting in my miles. Also, will go for a two hour bike ride on Saturday as well. Goal is to get in 4 hours of training continuously so I'm prepared to put my body thru a sub 10 hour time at the NF50.

Cheers!

Training on hold..........

8 days ago I was clumsy enough to take a spill on the hardwood stairs. Needless to say - the stairs won. Sadie saved the day by calling 911 and getting me a ride to the Williamson County Medical Center. It was a full moon ..that's my story, morning glory.

As you can see from the picture below it was a pretty nasty fall. Cracked a couple of my ribs - very painful and has left me unable to train for my up and coming race in San Fran, the 50 mile North Face Endurance Ultra. Next weekend was suppose to be a training weekend on the course in SF. Not looking too good right now. While I feel a little better 8 days post accident - still a long ways from being able to run. I went to Prairie Life Fitness yesterday to do calf raises and quad work. While there, I decided to step up on the treadmill - at a 15 degree incline and walk at 3 MPH. Not a good idea. So I stepped down off of the treadmill and decided that I simply need to take it easy for the next week - if I want to have any chance of racing on Dec 4....





So the young bull has the psychological advantage right now. I'm taking this as an opportunity to heal up my old bones and joints. Doing a lot of stretching of the achilles, calves & quads. Unfortunately the core will suffer - a critical component for finishing an race of this length. When I raced the Leadville Silver Rush 50 trail run, my core is what sustained me late in the race and kept me from doing a couple of face plants. Post mile 40 it's a little difficult to keep your feet up and if they catch a root or rock it's your core that saves you. So......gotta keep the feet up.

More to follow....very very hard not to train.....going CRAZY **#$!!

Big Wheels Keep on Turnin.......

My achilles is feeling better today. Instead of taking the day off I decided to put my bike back together and go for a ride. My Felt B2 Pro has been sitting in a box since skinning the ass of the young bull in Syracuse. Got the machine assembled in about 15 minutes this am. Like in typical Queen fashion.........i got on my by and ride!!

Above is a picture of the Big Ring...........as we all know it's about the run. If I can't run because of my achilles - I sure as hell can ride. So I dropped it into the big ring and let it stay there. A great quad burner today. Kept it in the big ring and let the quads burn. I love the way it hurts ....... Come NF 50 in 6 weeks my quads will appreciate the classes that I've taken them to.

Got a 2 hour "massage" today at ME - all I can say is .......W-E-A-K!! Got a talker when I simply needed my calves and achilles worked. They never seem to listen. My gal in Denver is OUTSTANDING. Against my better judgement I got a massage in Nashville, getting my massage lined up in Denver this week :)

Anyways - training hard for NF 50.....It's going to be a great day ....I'm certain.....


Cheers......


The Baker

6 Weeks till the Baker Delivers Some Humble Pie

Last night I ran with the Denver Trail Runners Club in the foothills of the Rockies. To warm up I ran 2 miles before the group arrived. The runners are usually divided up into several different groups. I try to run with the average running group not the fast group. Last night however, I managed to get with the fast runners. These cats like to run up hill at a 9:00/mile pace at 6,500-7,000 feet of altitude. Needless to say it was a real blood pumping run. During the first 5 miles I was anaerobic and then my endurance training kicked in and I was able to run very comfortably with the group.

Well, it's 6 weeks till the last race of the season. I'm getting anxious but enjoying the build up to the run. A 50 miler requires patience and lots of it. The tendency is to want to run this distance - when it requires walking every incline, no matter how slight. You can actually run the inclines during the last 6-7 miles as you'll know just how much gas you've got left in the tank. During the Leadville Silver Rush 50 I wanted to push it early, but waited till I got warmed up over the first miles of the race, which I never broke a 9 minute/mile pace. At mile 30-40 of the race I hit the proverbial wall. I walked for a very long time and was falling asleep due to a glycogen low. It took me an hour and sucking down water and hammer gels to recover. When I did I felt fine and finished, for the most part, pretty strong.

A 50 mile race is the equivalent to a full Ironman. While probably difficult to understand it is the real deal. It is challenging both mentally and physically. One has to go in prepared and very mindful of nutrition, hydration, pace and alert to what is happening to their overall physical and mental state throughout the race and respond accordingly.

Below is a picture of the Leadville 100 Trail Run at about mile 18-20. Sadly enough I never made it back to this part of the out and back course. This area of the course is between Fish Hatchery and Half Moon aid station. It was at Half Moon aid station that I DNF'd.....Mile 72 a big ass bummer.

Tomorrow I've got to get in 10-12 mile run. It'll bring my run mileage up to 40 miles for the week. I'm planning on getting a 2 hour massage on Sunday :)

Anyways ...... still lots of training to go. It's my white room.....

Cheers!

North Face Endurance 50 Ultra Run

The training continues ........ major focus is on the run. I've been nursing an "overuse" injury on my left achilles, so my training was more of a rest week, last week - only getting in 25 miles. Today was a very warm day to run mid 80's fall afternoon 12.6 mile run at an average speed of 8:45 mile. Walked all hills to take the strain off of the achilles. Felt really good, despite a very late night on the town with guests in town. Felt even better last night :).

I've got a busy week in front of me, travel, meetings, etc. the usual stuff. All is going well on the work and home front. Weight is 3-4 pounds over where I need to be come race day - but as they say - train heavy - race light. The interesting thing about 50 mile endurance races is that you actually want to go into the race a couple of pounds over a 70.3 IM. A 50 miler is like doing a full IM. The body takes one hell of a pounding.

Below is a picture of the Leadville Silver Rush 50 mile trail run. This was a very difficult track - at altitude. Hoping that San Fran track is easier. Thinking that it will be.







Gotta get my rest this week and goal is to get in 40-50 miles while working calves.

Cheers.....