I am sitting at the computer watching the tail end of a pretty good rainstorm and realizing that next week will be October. I feel like I had a pretty good focus early in the year. For running that was true. I had a race plan and I stuck close to it (close is a stretch). My original goal was to complete my Glacial Ultra Series. What is the Glacial Ultra Series you may ask?
The Glacial Ultra Series of races encompasses Five Races:
1. The John Dick Memorial Crusty 50K in Feb.
2. The Chippewa 50K in April
3. The Ice Age 50 Mile in May
4. The Kettle 100 Mile run in June
5. The Glacial Trail 50 Mile in October
Why these races? I guess my logic was that each of these races traverse sections of the Ice Age Trail in Wisconsin. Of course there are a few other races along the trail but since I made up this series and can define it the way I want!!
Well, I made it through the first 4 races with decent results (for me) and then got invited to a wedding in California the weekend of the Glacial Trail 50. I could either backslide and change my definition of the Glacial Series or just wait until next year.
Since I am probably the only person in the world who is likely to run the series this year (or any year) what difference does it make? Let me think about it. I could claim success for completing the 4 race series this year and then expand it next year but I am leaning to just say that I did not make it this year and set the series as a goal for next year.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Friday, July 17, 2009
July Update
Not whole heck of a lot going on running wise. I have dropped off my mileage in the last few weeks since the Kettle 100. I am a bit worried about that because it is tough to pick it up quickly. I am looking at the calendar over the next two months and I am not seeing alot of opportunities for races. I am planning on heading out tomorrow to the Kettle Moraine for 20 miles or so. Hope to meet up with Tom at 9AM.
Saw that Zach Gingrich came in third at Badwater. I get a sense that he was looking to take that race. I saw him run in the last few months and I think he was really close. He said he had been doing 200 mile week training! As a 50+ year old, I cannot even imagine that. My body aches when I do 50+ mile weeks.
Had a great trip to Kauai with friends; didn't get much running in but did manage lots of swimming, snorkeling and hiking.
My sister, April and family also visited Madison. April was my crew chief when I ran Western States in 2007. If I ever do that run again, she will be my first choice. She was much more organized than even I was. I do need to figure out hydration and calorie intake for 50 mile and longer races. I have had problems at both 100 mile races I have run with vomiting, etc. I know that I am not getting the fuel needed to stay strong.
Saw that Zach Gingrich came in third at Badwater. I get a sense that he was looking to take that race. I saw him run in the last few months and I think he was really close. He said he had been doing 200 mile week training! As a 50+ year old, I cannot even imagine that. My body aches when I do 50+ mile weeks.
Had a great trip to Kauai with friends; didn't get much running in but did manage lots of swimming, snorkeling and hiking.
My sister, April and family also visited Madison. April was my crew chief when I ran Western States in 2007. If I ever do that run again, she will be my first choice. She was much more organized than even I was. I do need to figure out hydration and calorie intake for 50 mile and longer races. I have had problems at both 100 mile races I have run with vomiting, etc. I know that I am not getting the fuel needed to stay strong.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Kettle 100
It is Monday morning and I am resting up from the Kettle 100 mile race last weekend. Let me start off and say that I finished in a good time (21:01) and I am pretty happy with that.
It was a crappy looking day, cloudy and cool and looking like rain in the afternoon and evening. Bad weather for anything but running. My wife, Geri and I had planned to camp out at Whitewater Lake the race weekend. We met up with Tom Schlaefer (my running buddy and pacer) and his partner, Cindy. Friday night was great and we had a fire, good food and company before turning in.
The morning came soon enough and the start was cool (low 50's?) and we all headed off. The Kettle 100 is basically two out and back loops. The first loop heads north to Scuppernong at 31 miles and the return makes the 100k course. The second loop is out again south to Rice Lake and back. The loop is mostly single track and since it is run at night my hope was to be able to get a piece of this in before dark.
My plan was the same as always: start reasonably (5 miles/hr), hydrate well and try to eat enough to keep my body moving. I headed out on towards Tamarack station along the roller coaster of hills. Since this section must be covered 4 times in 100 miles, I knew that the up and down hills would be a pain later in the race. The run up to Emma Carlin aid station went fairly well. I was keeping my pace and feeling a bit leg tired but still strong. After Emma Carlin you go through about 4 miles of open prairie and I felt pretty good and passed a few people there. The rain was still holding off and the thick overcast sky protected the runners from the sun. When I got closer to Scuppernong, I saw the 100k and 100 mile winners fighting it out along the single track. Wynn Davis was leading Zach Gingerich but I guess they fought it out over the first 100K. I met my crew (Geri, Tom and Cindy) and had some food at the turnaround and quickly headed out. I started having stomach problem at the next aid station. I think it was a coke and salty potato combination but I burped my way onward.
The rain started about 45 minutes out from the turnaround but it was not too bad. I noticed running through the prairie area that I was feeling more tired that I had hoped and my feet were getting wet from the wet grass but I caught up with Scott Meyers who I had run with about a 1/4 of the Ice Age 50 race 4 weeks ago. Scott was struggling a bit but he was still powering. At Emma Carlin, I saw my crew again (a bit of a surprise) but I was thankful as I could change my socks before heading out. The rest of the first loop back to Nordic passed uneventfully except for the last 5 miles from Tamarack through the rollercoaster which played a mind game on me as there were countdown mile signs which seemed to always took longer than I had hoped. I made it to the welcoming 100K finish at about 6:15PM and hooked up with Tom, changed my shirt and grabbed by headlamp and headed back out.
Tom and I pushed it pretty good for a while. I really wanted to get as much of the trail under my belt before dark which normally would have been around 9PM but because of the clouds would be around 8:30 (unless you were in the thick woods). We made it out to the open area before HW12 aid station around 9 and got in around 9:30 if I remember right. I downed a cup of soup and some crackers and about 50 feet from the station, everything came back up. I decided to head back and try to get something in my stomach so I grabbed a few more saltines and put a sandwich in my pocket and we headed out again. Its funny how you do feel better after barfing so we pushed on through the tough rocky section. This last 4 1/5 miles to Rice Lake is really three parts: the first rocky and hilly, the second pretty smooth and the last a rocky section with stairs down to the Rice Lake turnaround. We made it to Rice Lake around 10:30PM and after lounging around for a few minutes, headed back. It is a bit dreamlike to be running through the woods at night and seeing lighted runners approaching from the distance. Glow sticks at road intersections also added to the dream elements. There also seemed to be alto of moths that would light up in the glare of the headlamp and fly towards up. I will admit that this last bit was a bit of a plod. I tripped and fell a few times but I think that is normal.
I knew we were doing well because we saw runners coming towards us most of the way back. By the time we got to Duffin Road, I knew it was less than 10 miles to the finish. At Tamarack, it is only 5 miles to the end and even though it was the dreaded roller coaster, I knew That it was doable. We were still running the flats and downhills so I was surprised to be passed about 2 miles from the finish (turned out to be a 38 mile 'fun runner'). Anyway, the finish came soon enough. The crowd of 4 people cheered us in and Tim Yanacheck gave me my kettle and a surprise 2 place plaque in the Senior Masters division.
Anyway, that's the raw race report. It was a good run. It was well supported and my thanks go out to all the volunteers who made it possible for me and the other runners.
Now to deal with the soreness and pain.....
It was a crappy looking day, cloudy and cool and looking like rain in the afternoon and evening. Bad weather for anything but running. My wife, Geri and I had planned to camp out at Whitewater Lake the race weekend. We met up with Tom Schlaefer (my running buddy and pacer) and his partner, Cindy. Friday night was great and we had a fire, good food and company before turning in.
The morning came soon enough and the start was cool (low 50's?) and we all headed off. The Kettle 100 is basically two out and back loops. The first loop heads north to Scuppernong at 31 miles and the return makes the 100k course. The second loop is out again south to Rice Lake and back. The loop is mostly single track and since it is run at night my hope was to be able to get a piece of this in before dark.
My plan was the same as always: start reasonably (5 miles/hr), hydrate well and try to eat enough to keep my body moving. I headed out on towards Tamarack station along the roller coaster of hills. Since this section must be covered 4 times in 100 miles, I knew that the up and down hills would be a pain later in the race. The run up to Emma Carlin aid station went fairly well. I was keeping my pace and feeling a bit leg tired but still strong. After Emma Carlin you go through about 4 miles of open prairie and I felt pretty good and passed a few people there. The rain was still holding off and the thick overcast sky protected the runners from the sun. When I got closer to Scuppernong, I saw the 100k and 100 mile winners fighting it out along the single track. Wynn Davis was leading Zach Gingerich but I guess they fought it out over the first 100K. I met my crew (Geri, Tom and Cindy) and had some food at the turnaround and quickly headed out. I started having stomach problem at the next aid station. I think it was a coke and salty potato combination but I burped my way onward.
The rain started about 45 minutes out from the turnaround but it was not too bad. I noticed running through the prairie area that I was feeling more tired that I had hoped and my feet were getting wet from the wet grass but I caught up with Scott Meyers who I had run with about a 1/4 of the Ice Age 50 race 4 weeks ago. Scott was struggling a bit but he was still powering. At Emma Carlin, I saw my crew again (a bit of a surprise) but I was thankful as I could change my socks before heading out. The rest of the first loop back to Nordic passed uneventfully except for the last 5 miles from Tamarack through the rollercoaster which played a mind game on me as there were countdown mile signs which seemed to always took longer than I had hoped. I made it to the welcoming 100K finish at about 6:15PM and hooked up with Tom, changed my shirt and grabbed by headlamp and headed back out.
Tom and I pushed it pretty good for a while. I really wanted to get as much of the trail under my belt before dark which normally would have been around 9PM but because of the clouds would be around 8:30 (unless you were in the thick woods). We made it out to the open area before HW12 aid station around 9 and got in around 9:30 if I remember right. I downed a cup of soup and some crackers and about 50 feet from the station, everything came back up. I decided to head back and try to get something in my stomach so I grabbed a few more saltines and put a sandwich in my pocket and we headed out again. Its funny how you do feel better after barfing so we pushed on through the tough rocky section. This last 4 1/5 miles to Rice Lake is really three parts: the first rocky and hilly, the second pretty smooth and the last a rocky section with stairs down to the Rice Lake turnaround. We made it to Rice Lake around 10:30PM and after lounging around for a few minutes, headed back. It is a bit dreamlike to be running through the woods at night and seeing lighted runners approaching from the distance. Glow sticks at road intersections also added to the dream elements. There also seemed to be alto of moths that would light up in the glare of the headlamp and fly towards up. I will admit that this last bit was a bit of a plod. I tripped and fell a few times but I think that is normal.
I knew we were doing well because we saw runners coming towards us most of the way back. By the time we got to Duffin Road, I knew it was less than 10 miles to the finish. At Tamarack, it is only 5 miles to the end and even though it was the dreaded roller coaster, I knew That it was doable. We were still running the flats and downhills so I was surprised to be passed about 2 miles from the finish (turned out to be a 38 mile 'fun runner'). Anyway, the finish came soon enough. The crowd of 4 people cheered us in and Tim Yanacheck gave me my kettle and a surprise 2 place plaque in the Senior Masters division.
Anyway, that's the raw race report. It was a good run. It was well supported and my thanks go out to all the volunteers who made it possible for me and the other runners.
Now to deal with the soreness and pain.....
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Syttende Mai
My running buddy Tom Schlaefer and I ran the Syttende Mai last weekend. This is a fun local 20 mile run from Madison to Stoughton. It is run from the state capital square through local countryside ending up along main street in Stoughton. The morning was a bit brisk. I ran from the house to add a few more miles (6 it turns out which was a few more than I thought). Anyway, the run was fun; I finished in about 2hrs and 43 minutes although my name and time are missing from the results? I wonder if the chip timing malfunctioned because I ran over all the mats and they called out my name at the finish?
I have decided to run the Kettle 100 in early June so I need to keep my mileage base up. I am shooting for 50 mile weeks for a few weeks and tapering the first week of June. I have not run a 100 mile race since Western States 2 years ago. It is a bit intimidating but I have decided to just try to have some fun with the Kettle. It is a course I am somewhat familiar with (at least parts). I will try to run steady for the first 100K and then hold on for the last section at night. Lets see how the next few weeks go.
I have decided to run the Kettle 100 in early June so I need to keep my mileage base up. I am shooting for 50 mile weeks for a few weeks and tapering the first week of June. I have not run a 100 mile race since Western States 2 years ago. It is a bit intimidating but I have decided to just try to have some fun with the Kettle. It is a course I am somewhat familiar with (at least parts). I will try to run steady for the first 100K and then hold on for the last section at night. Lets see how the next few weeks go.
Monday, May 11, 2009
2009 Ice Age 50
Another Ice Age run under my belt. The day started out pretty miserable with windy and light rain conditions at the start. A bunch of people tried to huddle around the outhouse to stay out of the wind but most packed into the warming hut until a few minutes before the start.
I took my normal position at the back of the pack and shuffled off a few minutes after 6AM. The crappy weather seemed to ease off as we were finishing off the nordic loop and my glasses were fogging up so I changed to a short sleeve shirt and headed off to the Rice Lake turnaround. This is a nice section through a pine plantation, a few open fields but a lot of Wisconsin native forests. As we got near Highway 12 we could hear the Sandhill Cranes making their normal racket. The boardwalk section has been rerouted to a evil hill right before Hwy 12 due to ? (flooding or damage - its been 2 years now).
Just past 12, I saw Zach Ginerich coming the other way. I didn't see his race number and I assumed he was just a runner that was not part of the race. It seemed too early to have the lead runners coming back? Then I saw Wynn Davis powering right behind and I knew that there was going to be a fast finish. After the Rice Lake turn, it feels like a long haul to Confusion Corner (not really very confusing). This is probably around 25 to 30 miles into the race. Its tough because I am starting to feel fatigue but I know that I have 4+ hours of running ahead of me. I always feel that the mental elements of these races is critical. The body can do a lot of things if the mind tells it to.
On this last out and back to Emma Carlin aid station, I hooked up with a group including Scott Meyers, Dave Reid, Ken and Steve Plumb, and Nick Stoneman and we trudged along for most of the remainder. It was somewhat exciting to see the leaders coming back around including the women runners: Christine Crawford in first and Ann Heaslett following closely. There were also two younger women running well: Chelsea Clammer and Toney Avakova - good to see some fast youngsters.
Anyway, I was able to keep moving forward and tagged along with Dave Reid (first 50 miler) for the last few miles (although I did sit on the bench on top of Bald Bluff for 20 seconds as a reward to myself). Just before the finish, I noticed Steven Arndt making a sprint to pass us but I found a few more fumes in the tank to finish 59th in 9:31:58 at an 11:27 pace.
I turned out to be a great running day - cool and overcast. The beer at the finish was tasty and I sat by the fire to keep warm. Great race and volunteers. It was probably a tough day to man an aid station due to the cold, light rain and breeze but I thank you all! Especially the person at Confusion Corner who had the lonely job to steer people onto the right trail.
I took my normal position at the back of the pack and shuffled off a few minutes after 6AM. The crappy weather seemed to ease off as we were finishing off the nordic loop and my glasses were fogging up so I changed to a short sleeve shirt and headed off to the Rice Lake turnaround. This is a nice section through a pine plantation, a few open fields but a lot of Wisconsin native forests. As we got near Highway 12 we could hear the Sandhill Cranes making their normal racket. The boardwalk section has been rerouted to a evil hill right before Hwy 12 due to ? (flooding or damage - its been 2 years now).
Just past 12, I saw Zach Ginerich coming the other way. I didn't see his race number and I assumed he was just a runner that was not part of the race. It seemed too early to have the lead runners coming back? Then I saw Wynn Davis powering right behind and I knew that there was going to be a fast finish. After the Rice Lake turn, it feels like a long haul to Confusion Corner (not really very confusing). This is probably around 25 to 30 miles into the race. Its tough because I am starting to feel fatigue but I know that I have 4+ hours of running ahead of me. I always feel that the mental elements of these races is critical. The body can do a lot of things if the mind tells it to.
On this last out and back to Emma Carlin aid station, I hooked up with a group including Scott Meyers, Dave Reid, Ken and Steve Plumb, and Nick Stoneman and we trudged along for most of the remainder. It was somewhat exciting to see the leaders coming back around including the women runners: Christine Crawford in first and Ann Heaslett following closely. There were also two younger women running well: Chelsea Clammer and Toney Avakova - good to see some fast youngsters.
Anyway, I was able to keep moving forward and tagged along with Dave Reid (first 50 miler) for the last few miles (although I did sit on the bench on top of Bald Bluff for 20 seconds as a reward to myself). Just before the finish, I noticed Steven Arndt making a sprint to pass us but I found a few more fumes in the tank to finish 59th in 9:31:58 at an 11:27 pace.
I turned out to be a great running day - cool and overcast. The beer at the finish was tasty and I sat by the fire to keep warm. Great race and volunteers. It was probably a tough day to man an aid station due to the cold, light rain and breeze but I thank you all! Especially the person at Confusion Corner who had the lonely job to steer people onto the right trail.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Music While Running
I am running the Ice Age 50 this weekend and I got an email of runners rules. Of course one of them says the wearing of headphones is a violation of the rules and not allowed by the insurance? WTF? Is there a higher risk of tripping on your headphone cord and face planting? Are you going to be so focused on a Coldplay tune that you would bump another runner off a cliff accidentally?
I guess that going into the headphone world is a bit antisocial during a race. It is fun to chat with other runners during a race. What I will say is that when I am training, I do like to have some music to help me get into a 'flow'. When you are 6 hours into an ultra, your mind does things that I think music can only help.
I will keep my eyes open this Saturday and see what is going on with this. Its really not that big of a deal. So 50 miles on Saturday. I know this race pretty well. It is a pretty tricky course with a lot of up and down (small ups and downs) and some rocky, root covered sections.
My strategy: Take it easy around Nordic (say 11 minute miles); eat well; keep moving and hold on for the last 8 miles or so. It seems like the section back from Emma Carlin turnaround can be a bit of a struggle. Focus on the run (and a cold beer at the finish). I will give a race recap and describe what I feel like at the end (it could be ugly).
I guess that going into the headphone world is a bit antisocial during a race. It is fun to chat with other runners during a race. What I will say is that when I am training, I do like to have some music to help me get into a 'flow'. When you are 6 hours into an ultra, your mind does things that I think music can only help.
I will keep my eyes open this Saturday and see what is going on with this. Its really not that big of a deal. So 50 miles on Saturday. I know this race pretty well. It is a pretty tricky course with a lot of up and down (small ups and downs) and some rocky, root covered sections.
My strategy: Take it easy around Nordic (say 11 minute miles); eat well; keep moving and hold on for the last 8 miles or so. It seems like the section back from Emma Carlin turnaround can be a bit of a struggle. Focus on the run (and a cold beer at the finish). I will give a race recap and describe what I feel like at the end (it could be ugly).
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Sore about Economy
I have to chuckle to myself when I read how things are starting to pick up. Consumer sentiment is improving, the markets are up 20% (even though the economy shrunk more than 6% in the last quarter), the banks are making money, housing prices are down 8% but it is the first month not to set a record!
Well, some see all these items and say that we are at the bottom and that things are only going to head up from here. I don't feel this way. My main concern has to do with an item that is not really seriously discussed : Jobs
We have supposedly lost over 7 million jobs since the last quarter of 2007. We are expecting to continue to see increases in unemployment into 2010. My question is: How can we see a significant improvement in the economy when the country is losing jobs at this rate?
I think there is general agreement that the US economy has been sustained over the last few decades by bubbles of inflated value. The most recent bubble was housing. A minor bubble that continues to this day is credit card debt. These credit bubbles have allowed people to borrow and spend beyond their real income so as to grow our economy (about 70% of our economy comes from consumer spending). The US worker income is not growing at a rate to support a growth of the economy - bottom line. With the exception of a few percentage of the jobs that are highly paid and with large growth in total compensation, the vast number of workers are seeing little to no pay increases and increases in their out of pocket costs for health care. This trend is only growing in the current bad economy.
So what we have now is actually flat or decreasing income for those who still have jobs and massive job losses in the overall job market. This will not allow the economy to grow significantly. The economy will need consumer spending growth to pick up as the government cannot maintain deficit spending at current levels ( the current unsustainable bubble). How can this happen? Where will the jobs come from?
I will give some of my thoughts on this question later (on things like the green economy, etc.)
Well, some see all these items and say that we are at the bottom and that things are only going to head up from here. I don't feel this way. My main concern has to do with an item that is not really seriously discussed : Jobs
We have supposedly lost over 7 million jobs since the last quarter of 2007. We are expecting to continue to see increases in unemployment into 2010. My question is: How can we see a significant improvement in the economy when the country is losing jobs at this rate?
I think there is general agreement that the US economy has been sustained over the last few decades by bubbles of inflated value. The most recent bubble was housing. A minor bubble that continues to this day is credit card debt. These credit bubbles have allowed people to borrow and spend beyond their real income so as to grow our economy (about 70% of our economy comes from consumer spending). The US worker income is not growing at a rate to support a growth of the economy - bottom line. With the exception of a few percentage of the jobs that are highly paid and with large growth in total compensation, the vast number of workers are seeing little to no pay increases and increases in their out of pocket costs for health care. This trend is only growing in the current bad economy.
So what we have now is actually flat or decreasing income for those who still have jobs and massive job losses in the overall job market. This will not allow the economy to grow significantly. The economy will need consumer spending growth to pick up as the government cannot maintain deficit spending at current levels ( the current unsustainable bubble). How can this happen? Where will the jobs come from?
I will give some of my thoughts on this question later (on things like the green economy, etc.)
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Chippewa 50
Well it was a nice change from last year. The Chippewa 50K ultra in norther Wisconsin is one of the most beautiful races I have run. It is well directed by Wynn Davis and his team of wonderful volunteers.
Recap
It looked like the history of crummy weather was going to continue in the second year. The drive up from Madison offered rain and pelting hail. I started wondering what you do if you are on a trail and golf ball hail starts up? Anyway, the day turned out perfect; cool and dry with 45 to 55F cloudy weather. Perfect spring weather for Wsiconsin runners. After a quick chat about some course changes, Wynn ran the bell and off we went - straight down an evil hill that would come back to haunt me at the finish.
My plan was to try to average 10' miles. I don't know why this was my plan. I have not done enough long trail runs or trail races this spring to have some realistic expectation. Anyway as I ran along with others on the beautiful single track around lakes, over boardwalks I did manage to hit the first 10 miles in about 100 minutes. I felt pretty good so I tried to keep the pace and stop for food at the aid stations. I always have issues with eating in these races. I love MM's but cannot figure out how to eat them during a race. I also get tired of sugary foods. I won a bottle of apple cinnamon heave/Heed last year so I carry a vial of this with me and it is growing on me. Peanut butter sandwich piees seem to be my current food of choice. As we got to around 14 miles, I saw a tent and some campers crawling out with their coats. They must have been shocked to see 200 runners in shorts and shirts cruising back and forth for a few hours at their remote lakeside spot.
Actually a bt before this, I saw the lead runners on their way back. I didn't really know where I was at and was a bit surprised to run by about 30 or 40 runners. Soon we arrived at the turnaround aid station (just past the hunting blind - turkey season?). I still was feeling Ok but a bit leg tired.
I hit 20 miles and figured I had dropped about 8 minutes from my first 10 mile pace. I cannot really control this very much. There is only one direction for me once my pace starts to drop. I passed a few runners and played leapfrog with Karen Schoenrock (F2) for the last part of the race. I felt OK actually and only bogged down the last 3 miles or so. It is tough to finish this race for two reasons:
1. You go right next to the finish at 29 miles at the top of a hill and you know you need to do another 2 miles.
2. That mother hill at the end. I don't know who that person was harrasing me to run the hill but that was not going to happen.
The finish is a relief about 100 feet beyond the top of the hill.
Not too sore that night and went back with my wife, Geri, to run 4.5 miles on Sunday. I am happy!!
Great race and one I hope to return to annually.
One request: I am not wining but there are better beers to showcase Wisconsin than Leinenkugels! Hint Hint
Recap
It looked like the history of crummy weather was going to continue in the second year. The drive up from Madison offered rain and pelting hail. I started wondering what you do if you are on a trail and golf ball hail starts up? Anyway, the day turned out perfect; cool and dry with 45 to 55F cloudy weather. Perfect spring weather for Wsiconsin runners. After a quick chat about some course changes, Wynn ran the bell and off we went - straight down an evil hill that would come back to haunt me at the finish.
My plan was to try to average 10' miles. I don't know why this was my plan. I have not done enough long trail runs or trail races this spring to have some realistic expectation. Anyway as I ran along with others on the beautiful single track around lakes, over boardwalks I did manage to hit the first 10 miles in about 100 minutes. I felt pretty good so I tried to keep the pace and stop for food at the aid stations. I always have issues with eating in these races. I love MM's but cannot figure out how to eat them during a race. I also get tired of sugary foods. I won a bottle of apple cinnamon heave/Heed last year so I carry a vial of this with me and it is growing on me. Peanut butter sandwich piees seem to be my current food of choice. As we got to around 14 miles, I saw a tent and some campers crawling out with their coats. They must have been shocked to see 200 runners in shorts and shirts cruising back and forth for a few hours at their remote lakeside spot.
Actually a bt before this, I saw the lead runners on their way back. I didn't really know where I was at and was a bit surprised to run by about 30 or 40 runners. Soon we arrived at the turnaround aid station (just past the hunting blind - turkey season?). I still was feeling Ok but a bit leg tired.
I hit 20 miles and figured I had dropped about 8 minutes from my first 10 mile pace. I cannot really control this very much. There is only one direction for me once my pace starts to drop. I passed a few runners and played leapfrog with Karen Schoenrock (F2) for the last part of the race. I felt OK actually and only bogged down the last 3 miles or so. It is tough to finish this race for two reasons:
1. You go right next to the finish at 29 miles at the top of a hill and you know you need to do another 2 miles.
2. That mother hill at the end. I don't know who that person was harrasing me to run the hill but that was not going to happen.
The finish is a relief about 100 feet beyond the top of the hill.
Not too sore that night and went back with my wife, Geri, to run 4.5 miles on Sunday. I am happy!!
Great race and one I hope to return to annually.
One request: I am not wining but there are better beers to showcase Wisconsin than Leinenkugels! Hint Hint
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