Busy Day

Working 12 hour days ...been busy ,  almost too busy to get away but I managed at the end of the day logging a 10K run at a mostly 6:00 pace.

Not Quite

Planned on going a bit longer on the trail this afternoon but I pulled the plug at 8.4K due to a Thunder Storm.  Initially I wasn't into the run.  Rolled my left  ankle 600 mertres into the run....stupid.  Cursed ,  thought my day was over then walked it off and was running 5 min later.    It hurts a bit and I am sure that it will swell a bit but its not that big of a deal .... been there ,  done that ,  will do it again.  

Countdown to Woodstock is on . Only 7 more sleeps until I take on another 100 Miler.

Looping again

Another 12 laps / 10.2K on my trail last night.Legs had lots of pop after not running the day before.  Averaged a 7:34 pace  which tells me I have created a rather challenging trail.  Its not too difficult but it has lots of  sneaky elevation that you really don't notice.    Finished up just before I needed a headlamp.   Sat in the forest listening to tunes enjoying a few beers before heading back the house.

Haven't been running too much this week but the pay off is that I am ready to take delivery of the new  Hot Tub.  

2nd run yesterday

Logged 10.2K on my trail loop late yesterday afternoon.   An rather unremarkable event made a little more interesting after being awake for a little over 24 hours.   Finished my last mid Mon morn 08:00 am.  The best way for me to switch my sleep around is to keep busy not sleeping until night fall and thats more or less what I did.    There was quite allot of rain yesterday so and it was rather steamy and a bit on the warm side.   The sun was low in the sky and occasionally broke through the forest canopy creating in interesting beams of light.   Had the ATV positioned as an aide station complete with tunes.    After running I had 3 Sleeman Originals on ice ready to go.  Sat and enjoyed the cold bevy listening to tunes wafting through the forest.  

10@3

Last mid so it was a 12 hour shift allowing me to hit the treadmill a bit longer doing 10K at a mostly 6:00 pace.

Pyramid

Pyramid run .  started at a 6:00 pace increasing to a 5:00 pace at 4.5K held it for 500m then geared it back 0.1 kmh every 300 meters until I slowed to a 6:00 pace again.  Add a little cool down and I logged a whopping 11K on my meal break this morning.  

5 in 5

5th mid,   5th 5K done.   12 hours the next 2 nights ... look out 10K.

Again

5K at 3am.... 4th consecutive day!  

So is the life of a shot worker!

Night Run

Another 5K lunch run done at 3am this morning.  

Running on a Treadmill

The best way to run on a Treadmill is to think about anything other then running on a Treadmill.

Logged another 5K lunch run...truly the staple of my running diet.  

4am and all is well!

Too Cool

Lunch Run and Dirty Thoughts

 First mid ...FUN!    Jumped on the treadmill at 01:30 am for a 5K run at a 6:00 pace.    Running on mIds helps me change my body clock around.

 Dirty Girls Run lingered in my subconscious mind for a very long time.   During the run I had decided not to do the Woodstock 100 miler.   I remember thinking there is no way I am going to change my mind... well that changed.   FOR days after the run I dreamed about the DG run .... all good.   On Sunday after running 16 hour on both Fri and Sat I slept in till almost noon.  After breakfast I tore down a deck making way for my new hot tub.    By Tuesday all muscle pain was  gone ,  completely  gone.   The blister ( rub ) on the right heel was completely healed by Fri.   I was amazed at how quickly I recovered from this run.     One of the main reasons why I wasn't going to Woodstock is because its a 4-5 hour drive.    I am planning on driving to Mich race day morning arriving 2-3 hours before the 4pm start.   Driving doesn't take a whole lot out of me but its still a bit of a tour before lacing up for somewhere near 30 hours.   The real concern is the return trip home.   The race will wrap up sometime Sat Eve ...10pm cutoff.   There wont be any jumping in the car and heading home like the DG.   I need some sleep before heading out!!!!    I don't know how well I will sleep in the Corolla.   Sunday could be a very long day.    Another conundrum is nutrition.  Its allot easier doing an 8K loop vs a 32K loop.  Passing by home 5 times vs 20 is a whole other ballgame.  Three  things really got me by at the DG, water bottles ,  Ice Cold Coke and Quaker Oatmeal to Go Bars ... the ones with Yogurt.  I didn't even carry a water bottle at the DG race  but anticipate having to carry stuff at Woodstock.   Thinking abut the Ultra Spire pack minus the bladder .... load up with Oatmeal Bars ,   carrier a disposable water bottle for refill .  Ideally it will be a drop bag or 2 with water bottles and coke!    Aid stations at Woodstock were really well stocked but I hate the idea if leaving it to chance.  Nutrition ,  Hydration and Electrolytes are key ... drop anyone of those and you are not going 100 miles....simple!  

Back on the Trail

Returned to the trail today in a really neat way.    Did 12 laps of my trail that made last month. Equipped the ATV with Beer/Water but the best thing was an inverted with Sub/Speakers and iPod.    I strategically parked the ATV mid loop and I could hear the tunes for all but 250 metres.  Coming through the first  loop when I got within hearing distance it was pink Floyd "Comfortably Numb", a fantastic running tune...
 Finishing up it was Kid Rock "Born Free".


I was planning on doing a few more laps or at least one more to achive 10K.  As it turns out my Garmin said 9.99km.   So one Creemore Original led to 2 Creemore Originals which tasted like more so I fired up the ATV and made the quick trip to the house for a resupply.   The Music sounded just unbelievably good.  The Acoustics in the Forest were amazing.    I just sat on a big ass rock drinking beer ,  enjoying the after run glow ...life is good,  very good.

2 Days Off

Just took the past 2 days off running.  Working Eves Fri I decided to pass up on a lunch run.  Yesterday I was working on the new hot tubs foundation but today I finally ran logging  19.5K Road Run.   Ended up with an extra vehicle at work so I ran from home to Allan Park to pick it up.  It was a bit on the warm side , sunny 26C but I really liked it!

Lunch Run

5K at a 6:00 pace this eve on my meal break.   First run without a bandage on  my right heal and it felt OK.   Should be 100% soon.

Best recovery run ever!

First time lacing up since the DG  4K done at a mostly 6:00 pace on my lunch break this eve.    I have no muscle pain whatsoever ...none!   Now that weird because on the last lap of the DG I was contemplating walking down the big one backwards because my Quads were on fire!   The right heal rub is still hurting a bit but thats it!   I usually go 5K at lunch but I felt so dam good that I decided to stop before it changed.  

At the DG I decided that I wasn't going to do the next 100 Miler in Mich Sept 6,7.  It was primarily due to the logistics of the race ,   4 hour drive ,  longer loop, no where to crash  and so on and so forth.....but I have a plan,  yes I have a plan so what the heck next 100 miler in 3 weeks!    The only part of the "plan" that I am sort of dreading and wondering about is the 4 hour drive home!   Sunday could be a rather long day.

Dirty Girls 48 Hour Trail Race - August 9/10/11 2013 - Mansfield Outdoor Centre

Where to begin....

Going long is really all about the adventure for me.  You never really know where these runs will take you and this years event didn't disappoint.

Did my first 100 miler in 2011 ,  Sulphur Springs.  Last year my one and only race of this distance was the inaugural Dirty Girls 48 hour.   I really like this race for allot of reasons but one very important on is that logistically speaking its a breeze.

Unlike other years this time I was on my own ,  no support,  no pacers ( or so I thought ) just me  and the endless hours on the trails at Mansfield.   Once again I planned and packed and cooked ahead of time and and packed it in my old Dodge Durango.   On very important component was an air bed  and a sleeping bag where I could fully stretch out and snooze  when needed.  

 Race start as 08:00 am ,  I showed up around 07:30 the last to pick up my race kit.    Dianne the RD said she was "worried" because I hadn't showed yet.     I failed to get a race shirt in the last minute arrival but I was OK with that...there are only so many places you can wear a shirt that says " I did the Dirty Girls" besides I have a handful of them already.   Last thing I did before we started was to weigh in.   I had been "eating ahead" and tipped the scales at 178.8 lbs.

08:00 Friday Aug 9th and the race had begun.


Walked the entire 1st loop with 74 year old  Joe Cleary ...the guy is a legend... Google "Joe Cleary Ultra Runner" and you will see.    Joe was using the Dirty Girls to prepare for the " The Pilgrimage to Santiago" ( Google that too).  A little 1000 km walk that has been taking place since the Medieval Times.   90 minutes of talking with Joe was a great way to do the first 8K .   I remember feeling refreshed and excites ready to run the remaining 152 km or 19 loops.   


Got off to a bit of a tough start ,  loops 2 and 3 my "March Madness Broken Ass" flared up...right cheek hurt like hell.   4th loop the Ass troubles went away and I was moving well.  After the 5th loop ( 40K in) I stopped and had allot of food and washed it down with a Beer but I sat too long and it was really hard starting again.  Cramped on the 6th loop after all the food.  7th and 8th loop were great but I was stuck in a mental loop playing the numbers something like this ....

OK , its 7:00 pm I am on my 8th loop  if I finish in 1hr20min it will be 8:20 pm if I keep going is will get to loop 10 by midnight if I slow down to 90 minute loops I should get through loop 13 by 4:30 am take a break until 8:00 am then back out after the 24 hour race starts should get to loop 16 by noon and should finish before nightfall bit maybe I will break at midnight with 10 loops done but I really should do at least one more loop fishing around 1am but then last year I took a break at 03:00 am after 13 loops so I better go til then no wait my feet hurt and I feel tired and its dark and quiet at the start finish I think I should stop after loop 10 and sleep say until 5:00 am then do 2 loops before 08:00 am getting through loop 12.

The above went on on my head constantly for dam near 3 hours.  I tried to think of anything other then the numbers but nothing worked.

Writing this blog I totally forgot about my loop 2 and 3 "Broken Ass".  If it wasn't for this video I would have forgot so here it is loop 1-8 recap...





I had a very pleasant surprise finishing loop 8.   Patrick Rose had arrived and was waiting to pace me.  His timing couldn't have been better.  I explained to him about the numbers game I had been playing and asked him to tell stories about anything just to get my mind to a different place.  He followed me and and totally turned my mental around.   Patrick was going to leave after loop 9 but decided to go one more getting me through loop 10 by 11:30 pm.  Loop 10 was half way to my minimum goal in 15hrs30min with 32hrs30min remaining in the race.   Lets just say I had time on my side.    Said goodbye to Patrick and decided that it would be a good time to break for a bit of shut eye.   My feet were really achy like someone had been beating on them with a 2X4.   When I took  my toe socks off they were full of fine powder like sand.   Only has a couple of small blisters ... no big deal!     Crawled into the back of my Durango and into the sleeping bag and was way way way too hot but without it I was frozen.   I laid there tossing and turning not able to get thermally comfortable for what seemed to be forever.   Laying flat on my back I woke my self up with the loudest snore I ever hear myself snore ...scared me!!!   After the core cooled down the sleeping bag was a nice comfy cocoon from which I couldn't escape due to the single digit temps.   Woke up to day break pissed that I had slept so long still not able to get out of the sleeping bag due to the cold.   Came up with a game plan .... new shorts ,  shirt , shoes my Montrail Mountain Masochist  , socks ,  compression hat , gloves and a sweatshirt I would wear until I started to sweat.   One very pleasant surprise was those oh so achy feet now felt really good.  Decided not to do anything about the blisters knowing they would take care of themselves.    So I hit the trail around 6:30 am wanting to get through loop 11 by 08:00 am.

Did my last video recap of the race after loop 11 was completed....





Nailed the Nutrition ,  Hydration and Electrolytes the entire race.   I had no GI issues what so ever ...only brief minor cramping as a result of eating and eating I did.    Right from the start of loop 2 I grabbed solids  and fluids to go ... lots of calories.   I would walk the first almost K eating and drinking ... it was mostly uphill.  My goal was to always finish consuming after the last big climb to the top then I would start running.  At the 4K aid station I would do 2 full cups of water and a Hammer Gel.... repeat 20 times!

Loops 12 through 18 were all about getting to loops 19 and 20.   I was really moving well and feeling good but the foot pain was building again.    The Montrails are a fantastic shoe but probably not the best choice for this course.   They are a little lite on the "Rock Plate" protection.   Felt a rub on the inside right heal around lap 17 but there was no way I was going to stop to investigate.    Figured I may get to loop 19 before 7pm leaving one loop to so in the dark but I came in around 7:45 pm way to late to go out sans light.     I wished I had of done a video to recount more of the details but there are a few thing the stood out between loops 11 and 19.   Loop 17  I was stung my a  Bee on the top of my head.  Loop 18 I had a really hard right foot kick on a stump that I missed.   Its also the loop that I recall seeing this really nice women  with a very large head of  glowing silver hair  that was always smiling a chipper in the middle of nowhere.  For a moment I though it may have been my "Guardian Angle" so I asked at the 4K aide station if she was real ... they assured me that she was out there cleaning up the trails ... PHEW!

Half of loop 19 was run in the Daylight.   I made it to the 4K aid station before the 12 hour night gang rolled through the course for the first time.   I didn't do any solids heading out on this one just hydration ... I was really tired of eating and eating and eating and eating.    I didn't waste any time heading out on my final lap and decided to walk this one not feeling comfortable running in the dark.   Walking was tougher then running but the trade off was less chance of killing myself.  I had contemplated going beyond loop 20 by crawling into the sleeping bag and getting up at day break for one more loop but then I thought WHY?   The other option was a Red Bull,  pack the Durango ,  1 hour to home , a shower then in bed by 01:30 am.   So I walking through the dark trail I firmly decided on the home option.    It was almost like I was making things go south so I would feel worse and make the choice not to go on.  Walking was way way way more painful then running ,   laying off on the solids a few hours earlier was going to make running impossible it was like committing running suicide ... I was doomed into stopping.  So without fan fair sometime after 11pm I finished lap 20 for a total of 160km.  I collected my Belt Buckle then proceed to pack up and head home.

Driving though Flesherton it was 12:45 am and the Pizza place at the South End of town was still open .... drove by it but did a U Turn.   I arrived at the same time as a young fellow on a Motorcycle.    Whilst we orders he asked where I was coming from.  I told him Mansfiled where I had just ran 100 miles and that's why I was dressed funny and probably didn't smell too good!   He paused for a moment and said " that's like 160 km"   yup I said.  The young fellow excitedly told the two working behind the counter  who gave me the yeah right that's impossible so I whipped out the belt buckle.   The young fellow paused while eating his Pizza and suggested that I must of burned 14,000 calories.   I told him it was non stop consuming calories and he was amazed that we could run and eat at the same time.

I was home a little after 01:00 am ,  a quick clean up and crawled into bed for a really satisfying sleep waking up close to noon not feeling all that bad and already planning next years  48 or maybe even 72 hour Dirty Girls Race.

Live DG Updates this weekend...

You can follow the Dirty Girls live this weekend. https://www.facebook.com/dirtygirlsrun

 Dirty Di posted...

1.  Live Results on Course
We will be using a new digital timing system (run alongside a manual system) that allows us to post interim results live.  In a perfect world, we intend to post to our FACEBOOK page results each day at 8 a.m., 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.  You can link to our FB page from the website:

http://dirtygirlsrun.com/dirty_girls_run/index.html#updates

Why on the FB page?  Because we are unable to access our web pages on site due to Firewall issues. If this changes, we'll post both to our web page & the FB page.  If no results go up during the race, you'll know that we had technical difficulties.  Keep in mind that all interim results are NOT official as final marshal distances (2k, 4k & 6k) need to be manually inputted post-race and tweaking always needs to be done (i.e. missed lap verification).

Three more sleeps ... time to prepare!    

Main Street U.S.A.

Ran Main St. Saratoga Springs NY. this morning . 10k done at an average 6:36 pace. Really needed the run after the longest ever trip here....car troubles at home, traffic on QEW and 2 hours at the border yesterday made for a rather long day

Lunch Run

Last spin on the treadmill for a bit ..let the vacation begin!   5k covered at a 6:00 pace today.


My trail head this morning ...

Lunch again

5K@6:00pace and I am happy with that.

Lots more cross training building trails last night.   I was down on my hands and knees undercutting some of the nastiest  cedars known to exist.    I am about 30 meters in ,  100 meters remaining....at least 2 days work but it will be worth it.