More Cowbell!: Mudland Farms (5/26/13)

SRR at the Tent...

Race: Pineland Farms 50k

Location: New Gloucester, ME

Goal Time: 4:45

Actual Time: 5:47:53

At the end of the Pleistocene Epoch (10,000 years ago), the glacier that covered most of modern day Maine receded.  During the glaciation process, parts of the earth’s crusts had been pushed down up to 100 meters. Thus when the glacier had receded, the ocean poured into and flooded valleys of Southern Maine.

In places the ocean received clay sediment or rock and gravel sediment created ridges on the ocean floor.  However in some places, the sediment built up over hundreds of years to build a “glaciomarine delta.”  As the crust up lifted these deltas were raised above sea level.  These silted deltas provide great agricultural land.

Much more recently – Saturday – a huge band of clouds covered Southern Maine.  These clouds were visible accumulated groupings of frozen and liquid water droplets and vapor.  As the droplets condensed in to heavy droplets, they become heavier than air.  Once these droplets and vapors condensed into heavier droplets that were heavier than air, they were pulled to the ground – like Newton’s apple – by gravity.

So many of these droplets were pulled to the ground that they created rain: vast amounts of rain that came down in heavy sheets. These heavy sheets of rain hurdled to the ground and struck the dirt that had been built up by the aforementioned glaciomarine delta.  This water from the rain joined with the dirt on the ground to create MUD.

Even without the mud, the rain on Saturday was bad enough that Tim and I were glad we didn't pick a race and felt empathy for those who did run Saturday's races (10k, 5k, Canicross (doggy) 5k).  The hardy souls that represented SRR in the torrential downpours got our props.

ALEX AND BRIAN BEFORE THE 10K

MILLY BEFORE THE  CANICROSS

URVI FINISHING 10K

By Sunday, the rain had stopped but the mud stayed on. Over the 25km course (2 loops for the 50km and 3 loops + for the 50 mile), there were vast miles of mud. And all sorts of mud: thin layers of mud in some of the woods, sneaky mud hiding under pine needles, hills that made for mud surfing.  But the worst mud was the fields and fields of ankle deep slimy mud that would continue for up to three miles, completely unarrested except for puddles so wide they could not be jumped.

These unjumpable lakes of icy Spring water were of varying – and unknown - depths.  Two were less deep than the mud.  One was knee deep.  (My first time across, I looked back at the people behind me and yelled: "Watch out that s**t is deep!")

MUD IN STAGING AREA - (NOT CLOSE TO THE WORST OF IT)

The three-mile stretch from the 5km to the 10km mark was the absolute worst. This slipping and sliding through empty fields with the occasional icy bath for your leg. The first time through I rolled the ankle I twisted in Pittsburgh three weeks ago.

By it was the second time through that was the near death of me – and probably a moment of self-realization that every ultra runner has to deal with and accept. The pain had become so bad in my ankle that I could not get proper stability on the mud.  It was painful to run on it: Hell, it was painful to stand on it.  In these wind-swept open fields from 30km to 35km, I was slipping and sliding in pain on my right ankle as the wind hit in cold blasts at gusts of 20 mph.

I stood there a second and looked back out over these fields: noone near me, no road, no house.  I was desolate and destitute.  I imagined myself in black and white in some Ingmar Bergman existential allegory of death.  I knew that I still had 11 miles left.  I also knew that the next two miles were going to be REAL hard.  I also knew that the 9 miles after that would be comparatively easier. So I gutted out the 2 most painful miles of my running career.  As I put in three miles averaging 17 minute pace, the goals of breaking 5 or 4:30 had not only vanished, but seemed like fools' errands.

SARA and KAREN FINISHING 25K

Without the ankle issue, I'm sure I would have run near 5 hours.  In the second loop, I couldn't effectively run on the deep mud or on the downhills because it hurt my ankle too much.  This left the 35 meters of flat dry trail and the uphills to be the fast parts.  Yes, let's review, the uphills in a trail race were the FAST parts of the second loop.

Until about 28 km in the race, my ankle didn't bother me too much.  It seemed like I might have dodged a bullet and pulled off something. But slowly into the first mile of the real bad mud, it dawned on me how much my ankle hurt from stabilizing.  Fortunately, I realized that I could only do what I could do.  Once I used a clever gambit of my knight and bishop to fight off Bergman's Död, I accepted my duty.

KATE COMING IN FOR THE WIN

I just needed to run 9 miles through pain and just finish - DAMN YOU, PLEISTOCENE EPOCH!!!.  While I was passing 50 mile runners (and some stragglers from the 25k), many 50 km runners just blew by me in that last 9 miles.  With every step I cared less about the pain and the mileage in front of me seemed less daunting.  At 48 km, I thought I should start running hard to finish faster.  Then I thought: Why?  So I coasted in the last brutal 2km.

In the last 200 meters there is the biggest of puddles/ mud pits. Over the race a trail had been created around the puddle.  This was now filled with more mud.  I was trying to navigate through two trees off to the side, when a woman tried to push me and said: "Excuse me, I'm trying to finish..."  Well, I sprinted to the end to make sure I beat her.

SPRINTING TO THE FINISH IN PURE PAIN....

As I crossed in pain but under 6 hours: Take that Död, I'm not going with your dance.  I was handed the "finisher medal:" a cowbell!

MORE COWBELL!!

I had once listed the 5 hardest athletic undertakings:

1.  Cycling Patra-Olympia

2.  Half Iron Duathlon

3.  Bay State Marathon

4.  Climbing Basjke Ostarije (even without minefields after)

5.  Boston Brevets 200k, 2010

This race moves into 2nd...

Shoutouts

Alex White took 3rd in the 10k on Sat on 2nd in the 50 miler on Sun

Brian Tinger took 1st in the 10k and 4th in the 50 miler

D-Fizz took 2nd in the 50k

Kate Hails was 3rd in the 5k and successfully defended her 25k title

Scot DeDeo won his age group in the 50k with a 5 PR (god knows what his time would have been on a halfway decent course)
The SRR-Tree Bien Teams took 3rd overall in the 25k and 50k races

Milly ran her first trail race. 

SCOTT WITH WATER BOTTLE AND COWBELL!!  Click for Scot's blog here

Season Ender: Wolf Socks! (11/3/12)

SRR getting at the start of Wolf Socks!

Race: Jack London Trail Race 10K

Location: Nashua, NH

Goal Time: 45:00

Actual Time 43:08

The damp leaves strewn about the trails were a cool reminder of the end of season.  2012 that had been such a strong season for me was now but a few strides over the browns and reds of fallen leaves.  The older man who told me: "Looking good, only 300 yards left" was both pleasant and some what sad.

Fall was the third and busiest running season for me.  I ran 4 half marathons, a marathon and two Pub Series Races.  The Jack London 10K would culminate the 91 Miles in 35 days of the fall and the 2012 Season.

Walking about before the race Tim commented how some top quality runners were there: 4 from New Balance Boston and 4 from Team Hello Kitty.  "I won't even come in the top 25" he said.  Normally a low-key race there were quite a few fast people.

The race itself held nothing spectacular for me.  I ran the first four miles quite well.  In fact, by mile four I had caught up and passed Emma and Anthony.

Mile 5 told a different story:  Dan, Emma and Anthony all passed me.

I regrouped for the last mile, and was able to even make it easily over the last annoying Walter Payton type training hill:

I managed to dash the last 300 yards and almost catch Emma again, coming in well below my goal time and breaking 7 minute miles (unprecedented for me in a trail race).

Mama Larmuth's White Chicken Chili was a great way to finish off the race and the season.

Urvi and I sporting this year's Wolf Socks! (Anthony is in last year's)

SRR Shoutouts -

- Emma Kosciak almost defended her Wolf Socks title, finishing second overall and first in her age group.
- Korynn matched her 3rd place age group from last year
- Erin Morin and Florentien each took third in their age groups.
- John Wichers finished in second in his.
- Tim Morin DID finish in the top 25 - 15th.

Trials, Trails, wrong Turns and Turkeys: Blue Hills Trail Races (4/10/11)

Trials

Its 13 miles to Milton, we have a full tank of gas and full cup of coffee - HIT IT!

I definitely cut this one to the last minute. After hanging with Glenn and watching yesterday's Spurs-Stokke game with him for far too long - I had one hour 15 to get to Milton. I took Ajax Telemon and hurried down Mass Ave. My normal ride out to Milton would be down the Orange Line trail to Forest Hills and then thru Franklin Park. But when I got to Jackson Square I realized that was dumb since I can just ride the mile through Egglston and get to Franklin Park. Sure enough cut off a mile!

Made it in just enough time to get my number and stretch a bit. (better than the National Marathon.)


Trails
Race: Blue Hills Trail Races, Fox Trot 10 Miler
Location: Blue Hills, Milton
Goal Time: 1:30:00
Actual Time: 1:32:something

Last year I ran this exact same race. This year, however, I put this on the C level race. Sandwiched the weekend between the Dighton Rock 200K and the Voluntown 300K, I just wanted to get a workout. I figured 9 minute miles would be cool. They would have been!

Despite not living up to my own half hearted expectations, the race once again did. The Colonial Road Runners and their volunteers make these two races fantastic. (There is a concurrent 3 miler too - the "Bunny Hop"). They manage to make it both well organized AND low key.

I might do this one every year - regardless of fitness.


Wrong turns

En route back from the race, I rode straight up Blue Hill Ave to Franklin Park. I took a right only to ride RIGHT INTO the Doyles 5 mile race. I saw quite a few SRRs who were looking like they were running well - including Sarah who was one of the ones I'd seen yesterday on the Minuteman! (She probably thinks I'm stalking her runs now). Aaron Beer had a PR at Doyle's.



Turkeys

Saw an entire rafter of turkeys (I swear a flock of turkeys is a "rafter" - look it up; I had to).

Lost in the Woods on All Hallow's Eve (10/31/10)

It all started with a simple thing. I signed up for the USATF New England Cross Country Championships. On November 7th, there will be a 10K Cross Country race.

A few weeks later, Tim - my realist racing advisor (should probably talk to him BEFORE races more often) - and I were discussing the upcoming race. Tim informed me that not very many slow people would show up since it was a "championship" and it may have been a mistake for me to sign up.

Well, upon reading the fastest times from last year, I can say once again my realist racing advisor was correct and I am "stupid." Yeah, there are som fast people in this race.

I know what you are saying: "Okay jagoff, but how does this get you lost in the woods on All Hallow's Eve?"

Well, I figured if I did a training run that was harder than the one I am racing this weekend, then maybe I won't come in last at the Championships.

So, Sunday I hopped on the bike and went to the pool. After my swim, I rode north up to the Malden/Meffa line on East Border, locked my bike and went into the woods for a run. I was able to follow the Cross Fells trail and meet up with the Rock Circuit trail for what would be a total of about 6 miles. That is of course if you do not lose the Rock Circuit trail - if you do that you might be screwed!

I was running over the rocks and through the trails aimlessly (well, not "aimlessly" my aim was to find the rock cirucuit trail!, unsuccessfully). The sun tipped lower and lower and I became more desperate to get out of the woods.

Meanwhile, I found it hysterical that I was horribly lost in the woods, not in the 100 Mile Wilderness or Northern NH or anything but in Malden for Christ's Sakes.

Almost an hour later, I heard a road and trampled not down a path but straight through the bushes to emerge - "Crap, I'm over by Oak Grove!"

Well, its only a mile and a half to my bike.

Tino Pai!

Jesse...

Trailing Away - Fox Trot Trail Race (4/25/10)

Race: Fox Trot Trail Race, Blue Hills, MA
Distance: 10 Miles
Goal Time: 1:30:00
Actual Time: 1:26:14

So it was about 4.5 miles in when I officially confirmed to myself that a ten mile trail race is WAAAAAY harder than a regular half-marathon:

I was briefly talking with a guy. He asked me how much trail running I had done.

"This is my first time." I said.

"It's my first race, too. I've only been training on trails for a few weeks."

This is when I officially confirmed to myself that I was a moron. "No," I said, "this is the first time I've ever done any trail running. I suppose I should have done it at least once before."

By Six miles, I felt completely finished. I had to walk up one of the hills. (something I've never done in a race.) Then I threw up at the top.

This is when fortune smiled upon me. A woman in a 2010 Boston Marathon shirt ran by me during my expelling of the morning's coffee. She was running slightly faster than my brain wanted to but in a speed my legs could handle. "I'm following her," I said to myself and that I did until about 7.5 miles. She tripped up a little bit. I tried to process the trip to avoid the root or stone she tripped on only to find myself flat on my back! "Awesome!" I exclaimed. Well, as she tied her shoe I got up started running. (The small blister on my right foot was no longer bothering me since there was a big strawberry on my left knee now that was killing me.)

A little past eight miles was the last real tough hill and by then I wanted to quit. Well, once again fortune smiled. The same woman in the 2010 Boston shirt passed me again. From there a strange random memory of a friend's band hit me: I am on top / I can do anything. So, I was just determined to just follow her footsteps.

For the rest of the race until I could smell the finish, I just followed that turquoise (maybe, aqua-marine?) shirt. As we reached toward the end, I realized I could probably beat somebody in a sprint who ran the hardest marathon major a mere six days ago. While I almost killed myself in the sharp slope that led down into the Trailside Museum parking lot, I happily blew by the woman who spent Monday out on the hills of Newton while I sat on my couch eating nachos - wondering where Meb had dropped back to.

My goal time was surprisingly close to my finish time - considering I had NO earthly knowledge of translating road times to trail times. I think I might run some more trail races (but practice trail running at least once before hand). And I know I won't complain about the Great Bay's hills again.

Tino pai,


Jesse...