Training Log Archive: BashIn the 7 days ending Oct 2, 2011:
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Sunday Oct 2, 2011 #
Note
Mom and Dad met BazingaDog this weekend. After breakfast, he made himself at home.
Saturday Oct 1, 2011 #
9 AM
Running race (Trail) 5:32:51 [3] 50.26 km (6:37 / km) +656m 6:13 / km
ahr:142 max:174 shoes: Salomon SLAB-3 XT Wings
Run for the Toad 50K
Paris, Ontario
Last year this was my first 50K trail race and this year's edition was my second. It's a large (1350 participants), well-organized event held near my parents' place so 'Bent and I made a weekend of it. It's entertaining for Mom and Dad as spectators since it has a formal opening ceremony with a bagpipe band, national anthems and speeches from politicians. Now they probably think all my events are big deals. ;)
Lots of friends were there. In this pic: M&M, WandAR, Mrs. Tiny and me.
STORM (although I didn't see him), Tiny, Funderstorm and Shannon were also there, among others. 'Bent, BazingaDog and my parents came for the start, and 'Bent was nice enough to cheer and take photos till the bitter end.
What a perfect autumn day for a trail race! A little cold and windy to start but the sun eventually came out and racers shed any extra layers they'd started with. The breeze continued and it never got warm enough to be uncomfortable.
STORM ran a blistering first lap but was forced to withdraw due to injury.
Shannon had an incredible first 50K, finishing 10th female overall with 4:50.
M&M withdrew with hip pain but ran a good 25K before stopping.
Tiny had a great first 50K (his only previous ultrarun was a 50-miler!) - 4:52.
WandAR had an awesome race too - 5:05.
There are no pics but Mrs. Tiny and Funderstorm both had great 25K results.
According to my 50-miler training plan, I wasn't allowed to "race" today. I was supposed to treat it as a long run and "learn to be at peace with a slow pace in a race". (Hahaha, as if I've ever had any trouble with *that*.) I wasn't sure how to accomplish this but decided to aim for a moderate 140-ish heart rate. I also prepared myself to feel calm about runners passing me. Given that over 800 runners were starting the 25K race ten minutes behind us, I knew there would be lots of passing, most of it unrelated to my event. The measure of success today would be the consistency of my heart rate over 4 laps of 12.5 km.
The first lap was the only one where I felt that I had to hold back to maintain the heart rate. In the other three laps, I felt like I was running in my training comfort zone and the only difference from racing was that I never tried to push beyond it. Strangely, I was a minute faster in my first lap than I was last year. That improvement didn't last, however.
At the 9K mark, I ran past 'Bent and my parents. Note BazingaDog watching me.
At this point, it is essential to the story that I go back in time to a conversation before the race.
Me: "BazingaDog's collar is too loose again." (...an ongoing source of domestic disagreement...)
Spouse Who Shall Remain Unnamed: "I'll tighten it a little but I don't want him to be uncomfortable. Don't worry, I'll be with him."
Fast forward to the 9K mark shown above. About 20 seconds after that photo was taken, an uncollared black puppy shot past me on the race course. He ignored my frantic calling and continued a short distance to a junction where the runners turned left onto a park road (a road we shared with *cars* - aack!) BazingaDog bounded happily among the volunteers who were stationed at the corner and made short dashes toward various racers who caught his fancy. I went off course and performed several reps each of Lab Lunges and Puppy Intervals while calling his name in a panic. By then, 'Bent had arrived to assist. I finally grabbed BazingaDog's hind end and 'Bent took over from there. I believe I said something along the lines of, "My dear husband, it appears that my assessment of the dog collar situation this morning was accurate." Except that my wording was far more succinct - ahem. In spite of that heart rate spike, I still had a good first lap.
The second lap felt fine but was over 6 minutes slower at the same heart rate. This included a 2-minute break in the washroom building but it was interesting to see the deterioration of my pace at the same heart rate. Maybe it's because I haven't done enough long runs this year. There were a lot of 25K walkers on this lap and I sometimes had to dance to get around them.
Last year Hansel and I agreed that the 3rd lap felt interminable and painful - a real mental challenge. I was waiting for that but it didn't materialize this year. The *mental* pain didn't happen, that is. The *physical* pain started around 27 km and seemed to be the result of pounding down hills earlier in the race. (I purposely didn't do anything to protect my body on the downhills since I'm trying to build up strength for a mountain race.) Like last year, the pain started at the side of my lower hips and radiated down the sides of my thighs, stopping a few inches above the knee. I think this would be the ITB? (Leanimal?) I'm guessing that ITB stretches and abductor strength training may help, as well as lots of downhill running. The 3rd lap was almost 6 minutes slower than the 2nd lap. I'm pretty sure I passed more people than passed me though. My cautious start had put me in the right part of the pack. It was peaceful because the 25K runners were finished so I only saw the occasional walker now.
The 4th lap was great mentally since I was doing every part of the course for the last time. After running 45 km, it felt like nothing when I had only 5K to go. The only minor down side was that a lot of spectators, volunteers and racers had left so the air of excitement was largely gone. Until now, I'd been happy that I'd chosen not to wear headphones because there was plenty of friendly chat on the race course but for this lap, I would have enjoyed some tunes. My 4th lap was a little faster than the 3rd lap.
I finished in 5:32:51, 11 minutes slower than last year when I "raced" it. That was enough for the 3rd place plaque in my category behind two very experienced runners I could never catch no matter how hard I tried.
Lap 1 - 1:15:45 - Ave HR 144
Lap 2 - 1:22:01 - Ave HR 142
Lap 3 - 1:27:51 - Ave HR 141
Lap 4 - 1:27:33 - Ave HR 140
I'm happy with the consistent HR although I'm not sure what else to take from this. Maybe the pace I was running in the final two laps was the pace I should be running from the start in a 50-miler? I will *not* be wearing my HRM in the 50-miler. My major post-race pain after the Toad was from HRM chafe! (Yes, I could solve the problem but I don't think keeping my HR down will be an issue for 50 miles so I'll just use pace and perceived effort.)
Aerobically, I felt fine due to the moderate heart rate. Bonkwise, I was a little light-headed for the second half. I didn't eat as much as last year but I drank about 2.5 L of eLoad which brought in some calories. That doesn't sound like a lot of fluids but I had two "nature breaks" and didn't feel dehydrated. I wore all my Salomon compression wear and it felt great. Although I felt localized hip/thigh pain during the race, that went away soon after I stopped, and the delayed onset muscle soreness the next day was minor. I even wore my calf sleeves under my dress pants for Sunday brunch wih my family!
Congrats to my friends who did so well at the Toad! Now I need to focus on the North Face Endurance Challenge 50-miler in 9 weeks. I've got a Pacer/Coach Extraordinaire coming to San Fran with me - the one and only M&M. I'm excited and honoured at this amazing opportunity to learn from an expert trail runner!!
Paris, Ontario
Last year this was my first 50K trail race and this year's edition was my second. It's a large (1350 participants), well-organized event held near my parents' place so 'Bent and I made a weekend of it. It's entertaining for Mom and Dad as spectators since it has a formal opening ceremony with a bagpipe band, national anthems and speeches from politicians. Now they probably think all my events are big deals. ;)
Lots of friends were there. In this pic: M&M, WandAR, Mrs. Tiny and me.
STORM (although I didn't see him), Tiny, Funderstorm and Shannon were also there, among others. 'Bent, BazingaDog and my parents came for the start, and 'Bent was nice enough to cheer and take photos till the bitter end.
What a perfect autumn day for a trail race! A little cold and windy to start but the sun eventually came out and racers shed any extra layers they'd started with. The breeze continued and it never got warm enough to be uncomfortable.
STORM ran a blistering first lap but was forced to withdraw due to injury.
Shannon had an incredible first 50K, finishing 10th female overall with 4:50.
M&M withdrew with hip pain but ran a good 25K before stopping.
Tiny had a great first 50K (his only previous ultrarun was a 50-miler!) - 4:52.
WandAR had an awesome race too - 5:05.
There are no pics but Mrs. Tiny and Funderstorm both had great 25K results.
According to my 50-miler training plan, I wasn't allowed to "race" today. I was supposed to treat it as a long run and "learn to be at peace with a slow pace in a race". (Hahaha, as if I've ever had any trouble with *that*.) I wasn't sure how to accomplish this but decided to aim for a moderate 140-ish heart rate. I also prepared myself to feel calm about runners passing me. Given that over 800 runners were starting the 25K race ten minutes behind us, I knew there would be lots of passing, most of it unrelated to my event. The measure of success today would be the consistency of my heart rate over 4 laps of 12.5 km.
The first lap was the only one where I felt that I had to hold back to maintain the heart rate. In the other three laps, I felt like I was running in my training comfort zone and the only difference from racing was that I never tried to push beyond it. Strangely, I was a minute faster in my first lap than I was last year. That improvement didn't last, however.
At the 9K mark, I ran past 'Bent and my parents. Note BazingaDog watching me.
At this point, it is essential to the story that I go back in time to a conversation before the race.
Me: "BazingaDog's collar is too loose again." (...an ongoing source of domestic disagreement...)
Spouse Who Shall Remain Unnamed: "I'll tighten it a little but I don't want him to be uncomfortable. Don't worry, I'll be with him."
Fast forward to the 9K mark shown above. About 20 seconds after that photo was taken, an uncollared black puppy shot past me on the race course. He ignored my frantic calling and continued a short distance to a junction where the runners turned left onto a park road (a road we shared with *cars* - aack!) BazingaDog bounded happily among the volunteers who were stationed at the corner and made short dashes toward various racers who caught his fancy. I went off course and performed several reps each of Lab Lunges and Puppy Intervals while calling his name in a panic. By then, 'Bent had arrived to assist. I finally grabbed BazingaDog's hind end and 'Bent took over from there. I believe I said something along the lines of, "My dear husband, it appears that my assessment of the dog collar situation this morning was accurate." Except that my wording was far more succinct - ahem. In spite of that heart rate spike, I still had a good first lap.
The second lap felt fine but was over 6 minutes slower at the same heart rate. This included a 2-minute break in the washroom building but it was interesting to see the deterioration of my pace at the same heart rate. Maybe it's because I haven't done enough long runs this year. There were a lot of 25K walkers on this lap and I sometimes had to dance to get around them.
Last year Hansel and I agreed that the 3rd lap felt interminable and painful - a real mental challenge. I was waiting for that but it didn't materialize this year. The *mental* pain didn't happen, that is. The *physical* pain started around 27 km and seemed to be the result of pounding down hills earlier in the race. (I purposely didn't do anything to protect my body on the downhills since I'm trying to build up strength for a mountain race.) Like last year, the pain started at the side of my lower hips and radiated down the sides of my thighs, stopping a few inches above the knee. I think this would be the ITB? (Leanimal?) I'm guessing that ITB stretches and abductor strength training may help, as well as lots of downhill running. The 3rd lap was almost 6 minutes slower than the 2nd lap. I'm pretty sure I passed more people than passed me though. My cautious start had put me in the right part of the pack. It was peaceful because the 25K runners were finished so I only saw the occasional walker now.
The 4th lap was great mentally since I was doing every part of the course for the last time. After running 45 km, it felt like nothing when I had only 5K to go. The only minor down side was that a lot of spectators, volunteers and racers had left so the air of excitement was largely gone. Until now, I'd been happy that I'd chosen not to wear headphones because there was plenty of friendly chat on the race course but for this lap, I would have enjoyed some tunes. My 4th lap was a little faster than the 3rd lap.
I finished in 5:32:51, 11 minutes slower than last year when I "raced" it. That was enough for the 3rd place plaque in my category behind two very experienced runners I could never catch no matter how hard I tried.
Lap 1 - 1:15:45 - Ave HR 144
Lap 2 - 1:22:01 - Ave HR 142
Lap 3 - 1:27:51 - Ave HR 141
Lap 4 - 1:27:33 - Ave HR 140
I'm happy with the consistent HR although I'm not sure what else to take from this. Maybe the pace I was running in the final two laps was the pace I should be running from the start in a 50-miler? I will *not* be wearing my HRM in the 50-miler. My major post-race pain after the Toad was from HRM chafe! (Yes, I could solve the problem but I don't think keeping my HR down will be an issue for 50 miles so I'll just use pace and perceived effort.)
Aerobically, I felt fine due to the moderate heart rate. Bonkwise, I was a little light-headed for the second half. I didn't eat as much as last year but I drank about 2.5 L of eLoad which brought in some calories. That doesn't sound like a lot of fluids but I had two "nature breaks" and didn't feel dehydrated. I wore all my Salomon compression wear and it felt great. Although I felt localized hip/thigh pain during the race, that went away soon after I stopped, and the delayed onset muscle soreness the next day was minor. I even wore my calf sleeves under my dress pants for Sunday brunch wih my family!
Congrats to my friends who did so well at the Toad! Now I need to focus on the North Face Endurance Challenge 50-miler in 9 weeks. I've got a Pacer/Coach Extraordinaire coming to San Fran with me - the one and only M&M. I'm excited and honoured at this amazing opportunity to learn from an expert trail runner!!
Friday Sep 30, 2011 #
Note
Bad news: BazingaDog likes to carry shoes around the house.
Good news: He usually moves a matched pair of shoes to the new location, which is impressive given that our front hall often has a dozen random shoes lying around. He may be naughty but he has good fashion sense.
OK, back to finalizing my gear for tomorrow's 50K. It's going to be a cold one!
Good news: He usually moves a matched pair of shoes to the new location, which is impressive given that our front hall often has a dozen random shoes lying around. He may be naughty but he has good fashion sense.
OK, back to finalizing my gear for tomorrow's 50K. It's going to be a cold one!
Thursday Sep 29, 2011 #
Running (Trail) 30:00 [2]
shoes: Salomon XA Pro Tomato 3
I was feeling fine today so back onto the training program. (I stuck with it two days out of the first three - oooh, impressive.) It's only a short run today then a rest day tomorrow then 50K on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the vet gave BazingaDog the go-ahead to start his running training program. Apparently, now is the time to turn him into an athlete and build up his muscle mass. BulletDog came along on the Charlevoix route to show him the ropes. Unfortunately, he was full of energy when we got back. Not sure what we'll have to do to tire this little guy out.
Meanwhile, the vet gave BazingaDog the go-ahead to start his running training program. Apparently, now is the time to turn him into an athlete and build up his muscle mass. BulletDog came along on the Charlevoix route to show him the ropes. Unfortunately, he was full of energy when we got back. Not sure what we'll have to do to tire this little guy out.
Note
Getawaystix and I had our first map planning meeting for Wilderness Traverse 2012. Looks so cool and different from this year. Can't wait to get out for some course scouting in October!
9 AM
Note
If any stronger-than-me trail runner is interested in joining several of us in San Fran Dec. 2-4 for some sightseeing and scenic mountain trails without the part where you race or pay an entry fee, I've just learned that pacers are allowed for the last 27 miles of the 50-mile race. I've never run with a pacer and don't need one at this distance (I don't think) but if someone is interested in visiting SF, I'd be curious about testing the concept since pacers will be important in some longer races. Alas, I don't have a corporate sponsor to cover all costs but I can spring for a large Ghirardelli hot fudge sundae and a Classic Aeroplan flight (while flights on points are still available). If anyone wants to explore the idea, please e-mail.
Wednesday Sep 28, 2011 #
Rollerskiing (Off-road) 10:00 [3]
So of course I couldn't resist. I pumped 4 little tires, donned my helmet and skate ski boots, grabbed my poles and headed out to our back yard. Nada. Even off-road-friendly rollerskis don't roll in grass as deep as ours. No problem, I moved to our 130 m unpaved, sloped driveway where the rollerskis worked just fine as long as I aimed for sections of fine crushed gravel and avoided bigger stones.
If not for Saturday's 50K, I would have driven over to the cinder section of rail trail that I scouted east of Palgrave yesterday. I'll be able to do almost 10K out and back there with only a few road crossings and an optional detour into a paved estate subdivision. But even in a short time today, I could feel the rollerskis doing what they're supposed to do - engaging muscles that haven't been doing their share lately. If I keep this up I'll have the hottest set of tibialis anterior muscles in Palgrave. (Except when VO2Max is in town, of course.) But I'm going to be stiff and sore after the first workouts, so that will have to wait for next week.
Not sure if I'm getting sick or if some aspect of yesterday's meltdown is persisting but I feel a little short of oxygen today - like being at altitude. So I'm not doing the prescribed 8 km run from the training plan. I didn't expect to fall off the wagon so soon!
If not for Saturday's 50K, I would have driven over to the cinder section of rail trail that I scouted east of Palgrave yesterday. I'll be able to do almost 10K out and back there with only a few road crossings and an optional detour into a paved estate subdivision. But even in a short time today, I could feel the rollerskis doing what they're supposed to do - engaging muscles that haven't been doing their share lately. If I keep this up I'll have the hottest set of tibialis anterior muscles in Palgrave. (Except when VO2Max is in town, of course.) But I'm going to be stiff and sore after the first workouts, so that will have to wait for next week.
Not sure if I'm getting sick or if some aspect of yesterday's meltdown is persisting but I feel a little short of oxygen today - like being at altitude. So I'm not doing the prescribed 8 km run from the training plan. I didn't expect to fall off the wagon so soon!
6 PM
Note
Time it took 'Bent to prepare and slow-roast tasty butternut squash halves on the BBQ:
--- 50 minutes
Time it took BazingaDog to pull one of them off the counter onto the floor and start eating it:
--- 50 nanoseconds
--- 50 minutes
Time it took BazingaDog to pull one of them off the counter onto the floor and start eating it:
--- 50 nanoseconds
Tuesday Sep 27, 2011 #
Note
For those who like photos, I've added some pics from Sunday's Algonquin Park bike ride in my Sept. 25 log entry.
4 PM
Running (Rail Trail) 1:10:34 [4] 12.04 km (5:52 / km) +17m 5:49 / km
shoes: Salomon XR Crossmax - Bay Blue
I've been reading "Relentless Forward Progress", a new ultrarunning book by Bryon Powell. I figured I might as well try jumping into his 50-miler training program, even though I should have started it a long, long time ago. I'm not good at following training programs so we'll see how long this lasts. I'm betting not very long.
The schedule includes a 50K race a month later than I'm doing mine but the exact timing isn't considered to be a big problem. The caveat is, no matter when I do the 50K, I am not allowed to race it. I am supposed to do it at the pace of a 50-miler.
That was the conclusion I'd already reached when I looked at my training anyway. Run for the Toad will be my longest long run in recent months by quite a lot. I have the endurance to do 50K but I haven't built up enough time on my feet, other than a 103 km rogaine last month.
Anyway... in the week leading up to the 50K race, whenever it happens, I am supposed to run 12K on the Tuesday, so I did - and it nearly killed me. WTF? It was an easy, ankle-preserving rail trail run. It was only an hour so I didn't bother carrying water, and based on my weight when I got home, I must have been dehydrated to start. It was warm and humid and I felt like crap for the second half. When I finished at 'Bent's dental office, I gulped down cup after cup of cold water and had to sit down since I thought I might pass out. Bizarre. I fall behind on hydration occasionally but it rarely (never?) hits me so hard. Haven't felt that way since a couple of years ago when I actually *did* pass out on the trail on a warm day. The doc's best guess then was that it was probably because I stopped running to chat with a neighbour and the blood chose to flow into my legs instead of my brain.
The schedule includes a 50K race a month later than I'm doing mine but the exact timing isn't considered to be a big problem. The caveat is, no matter when I do the 50K, I am not allowed to race it. I am supposed to do it at the pace of a 50-miler.
That was the conclusion I'd already reached when I looked at my training anyway. Run for the Toad will be my longest long run in recent months by quite a lot. I have the endurance to do 50K but I haven't built up enough time on my feet, other than a 103 km rogaine last month.
Anyway... in the week leading up to the 50K race, whenever it happens, I am supposed to run 12K on the Tuesday, so I did - and it nearly killed me. WTF? It was an easy, ankle-preserving rail trail run. It was only an hour so I didn't bother carrying water, and based on my weight when I got home, I must have been dehydrated to start. It was warm and humid and I felt like crap for the second half. When I finished at 'Bent's dental office, I gulped down cup after cup of cold water and had to sit down since I thought I might pass out. Bizarre. I fall behind on hydration occasionally but it rarely (never?) hits me so hard. Haven't felt that way since a couple of years ago when I actually *did* pass out on the trail on a warm day. The doc's best guess then was that it was probably because I stopped running to chat with a neighbour and the blood chose to flow into my legs instead of my brain.
Monday Sep 26, 2011 #
Note
My new rollerskis just arrived in the mail. Uh oh...
12 PM
Orienteering 1:30:00 [1] 6.1 km (14:46 / km) +63m 14:02 / km
shoes: Salomon XA Pro Ult - 2 Tomato
BulletDog and I checked most of the flags for 'Bent's orienteering training night which is available to CN and GHO members till after Thanksgiving. (E-mail him for the map.) The first control was the only one that seemed a little off but I didn't see another re-entrant nearby - apparently (according to Goose) because it was so overgrown with raspberries that it was almost invisible! I wore the Active Ankle brace and just hiked. Don't want to re-injure it so close to this Saturday's race.