There is nothing sad about not finishing a race. Nor shameful. In fact, when knowing that one is underprepared to race, the DNF can be a godsend.
The 2013 Meet Your Maker 50 mile ultramarathon went off this year with twice as many competitors, over 300, topping the inaugural year's count of just over 140. I was one of the solo competitors who signed up almost a year ago with dreams of finishing the ultra for a second time. After this year's Knee Knacker and the feelings that I had in my body in the following weeks, we set out a plan to deal with the MYM50 ultra, undertrained.
Showing posts with label Meet Your Maker 50 mile. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Meet Your Maker 50 mile. Show all posts
Thursday, 12 September 2013
Monday, 26 August 2013
Meet Your Maker 50mi Race Preview: The 2013 plan.
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| Frisby Ridge, Revelstoke: A lot of climbing..... |
After a solid couple of weeks of vacation in the interior (Kamloops and Osoyoos), I absolutely feel underprepared for the 2013 Meet Your Maker 50 mile ultra. In a bit of haste, my brother in law signed us up last year as soon as registration opened: he wanted to finish the race that he could not, due to some serious blisters; I was down with conquering this ultra for a second time, this time with more preparation. *My race report from last year is here.
My 2013 MYM 50 training began last December, and was going great even up until the Knee Knacker, albeit was a bit stunted due to a love affair with my road bike in May and June....and July and August.
Tuesday, 11 September 2012
The 2012 Meet Your Maker 50 mile: An ultra report for the ultra race.
My first 50 mile race was and effort in:
1. Determination
2. Patience
3. Discipline
and....
4. Running slowly.
How else would one approach a race that you were forced into by your brother-in-law? On September 2nd, 2011, I attempted to complete the first ever Meet Your Maker 50mile in Whistler. Going out too fast, I could possibly be crippled by the course with dehydration, cramps, a crash, or any other type of ailment that goes along with ultra-marathons along the way. However, going out too slow, and I ran the risk of not making time cuts and getting pulled from the course. Sean and I were victims of the latter rather than the former.
Wake up call at 4:30am, Sunday morning. I tried to organize everything the night before: clothing, hydration pack, breakfast, electronics, and shoes. All I had to do was meet Sean in the lobby of the Marquise, and we would be off to the Olympic Plaza to begin our day. Instant oatmeal down and a bottle of Skratch for breakfast was all that I needed to fuel my morning.
At the start, I bumped into Mike Murphy, my old cyclocross competitor from last year's Aldor Acres CX race, and wished him luck on the run. He had just finished 2nd to Adam Campbell at the Squamish 50 21km event, and I had hoped that he would be fast for this day. I told him after the race that I would find him and kick him in the crotch for bringing this race to my attention. With a pre-race pep talk from Chris Colpitts about the course and the day, and the lead first aid attendant who asked the racers the question "What would your grade 8 P.E. teachers say if they could see you now?", the countdown was on, and we were off.
Start slow and then back off--words used by my father-in law when running marathons. We knew that the race was going to be long and steep with 3637m of climbing, 2000m more climbing than we had ever done in one single go. We did not expect the grades to be as steep as they were, both climbing and descending.
Below is a recount of the stages of the race. The time limit to complete the course was 13 hours.
Stage 1: Olympic Plaza to Wedge Parking Lot, 10kms
Within 5 minutes, Sean peeled off the trail and headed into the bushes to have a nature break. We lost almost 20 or 30 places in that break, but I justified this by thinking that everyone was going to blow up on course and we would be fine. This section of the course was relatively easy. Not much climbing, not very technical, kind of like a run in the Delta Watershed, save for the rare steep rocky descents on fire road. We made it to the aid station in just over an hour, taking our time along the way.
Stage 2: Wedge Parking Lot to Base 2, Blackcomb, 21kms
This section of the course was run on a shorter version of the 25km Comfortably Numb trail. I thought of my son Noah while running this mountain bike trail. One time he mentioned, after seeing celery for the first time, that he had never eaten it before. After trying it, he proclaimed "You can't eat that, it is not food!" My feelings were the same about this trail. Mountain biking on this trail would be arduous, slow, and painful. Crashing would be inevitable due to the extreme technical nature of it. It seems next to impossible for someone to clean the whole trail on a bike. Rock descent, stunts, log bridges, and steep pitches litter this trail. I thought we could complete this section of trail in two hours. It took us nearly 3. We passed a gentleman whom thrashed his hand during a crash and sliced up his fingers (therefore deemed "Bloody Fingers for the rest of the race), met Vicki and DK, Minimalist Lee, and East Van who did not want to pass her ex-boyfriend up the trail. Sean, Lee, and I ran into Base 2 together, where we met our families there and took pictures. It was a huge morale boost.
Stage 3: Base 2 to Peak to Peak Gondola, 10 kms
This had to be one of the cruelest section of the course--straight up Blackcomb mountain until the service road, and then wind our way up to the singletrack, over the top and then descend on the Peak to Peak. What we thought would take us and hour took us closer to two. Some first aid for Sean's blisters, a change of shorts, some lunch, and a refill on Refresh and we were on our way across Fitzsimmons Creek in the gondola, spanning the two peaks.
Stage 4: Whislter Peak to Peak to Creekside. 8km Descent
This quad thrashing downhill had us run one of the slowest legs on the day as we were cautious to not crash. Perhaps running with a bit more reckless abandon would have been good, as we could have made up some time, but we were not willing to give up safety for time, and manage to walk some of the hairy-er sections of trail. Making it into the Creekside aid station by 2:30 pm, it gave us only an hour to make the cutoff at aid 5, and thus, we had to run the next 12 kms in one hour. Something that, 50kms into the race, would be asking alot of Sean (and I) with the state of his blisters. The Creekside attendants taped up Sean's heel and toe blisters and managed to get us running. We lost some time here due to the first aid.
Stage 5: Creekside to Function Junction. 12 kms.
This leg of the race had us running through Kaedenwood highlands, up fireroad until we made it to the Cheakamus river and some sweet singletrack. Wow!! This part of trail running was gorgeous!! Absolutely fantastic to run alongside the river, dancing off of the rocks, passing 3 runners (one of whom, a relay
team member, who proclaimed "You are my hero" as I passed her. Thank you for that, fine lady). At this point in the race, I had resigned to quit because I knew that we would not make it to aid #5 by the cut-off time. By 3:48, aid #5 was within sight, along with Kathryn Stanton. I saw her and immediately and gave her the double thumbs down. She asked me how I was doing, I said fine, and she told me that if I left that second, she would allow me to continue the race, even though I was 18 minutes past due. I said I would love to, but I had to wait for Sean to arrive. She said "Every second that you wait, your window is getting smaller for me to let you go." She made a deal with me: Finish the race before 7 pm; complete the remaining 21kms of the course in less than 3 hours and 7 minutes, and get back to the east side of highway 99 by no later than 6:30pm. To me, that sounded like a joke. Completely doable. Two minutes after I arrived, Sean came into the aid station. I told him that we were allowed to continue, but we had to leave right then. He refilled his Refresh, and we went off into Function Junction, and to the trails above Alta Lake.
I caught up with Minimalist Lee on the Valley Trail with the final 10 kms to go. It was great to meet up with him and chat with the last bit of running ahead. I figured that he and I were going to be the last two to finish, so I made the effort to take off. Those last 10 were deceptive. Very difficult through the Lost Lake trails, especially when I expected it to be more direct back to the Olympic Plaza. Towards the end of the race, my voice starts to waver as you can hear on the videos.
42 solo racers who started the race. Only 20 completed the full course. I was 19th overall, the second to last finisher in the solo catagory by 2 minutes or so. With the last 3 legs of the event, I saw many people too tired to go on, exhausted, injured, or fed up with running. Invariably, they abandoned the race. Even for myself, going into aid station #5 after the 3:30pm cutoff, I was considering throwing in the towel. I am glad that I did not. I'd say we were in pretty good shape for our post-race interview:
1. Determination
2. Patience
3. Discipline
and....
4. Running slowly.
How else would one approach a race that you were forced into by your brother-in-law? On September 2nd, 2011, I attempted to complete the first ever Meet Your Maker 50mile in Whistler. Going out too fast, I could possibly be crippled by the course with dehydration, cramps, a crash, or any other type of ailment that goes along with ultra-marathons along the way. However, going out too slow, and I ran the risk of not making time cuts and getting pulled from the course. Sean and I were victims of the latter rather than the former.
 |
| The profile is daunting. |
Wake up call at 4:30am, Sunday morning. I tried to organize everything the night before: clothing, hydration pack, breakfast, electronics, and shoes. All I had to do was meet Sean in the lobby of the Marquise, and we would be off to the Olympic Plaza to begin our day. Instant oatmeal down and a bottle of Skratch for breakfast was all that I needed to fuel my morning.
At the start, I bumped into Mike Murphy, my old cyclocross competitor from last year's Aldor Acres CX race, and wished him luck on the run. He had just finished 2nd to Adam Campbell at the Squamish 50 21km event, and I had hoped that he would be fast for this day. I told him after the race that I would find him and kick him in the crotch for bringing this race to my attention. With a pre-race pep talk from Chris Colpitts about the course and the day, and the lead first aid attendant who asked the racers the question "What would your grade 8 P.E. teachers say if they could see you now?", the countdown was on, and we were off.
 |
| Looking fresh at the start |
Start slow and then back off--words used by my father-in law when running marathons. We knew that the race was going to be long and steep with 3637m of climbing, 2000m more climbing than we had ever done in one single go. We did not expect the grades to be as steep as they were, both climbing and descending.
Below is a recount of the stages of the race. The time limit to complete the course was 13 hours.
Stage 1: Olympic Plaza to Wedge Parking Lot, 10kms
Within 5 minutes, Sean peeled off the trail and headed into the bushes to have a nature break. We lost almost 20 or 30 places in that break, but I justified this by thinking that everyone was going to blow up on course and we would be fine. This section of the course was relatively easy. Not much climbing, not very technical, kind of like a run in the Delta Watershed, save for the rare steep rocky descents on fire road. We made it to the aid station in just over an hour, taking our time along the way.
Stage 2: Wedge Parking Lot to Base 2, Blackcomb, 21kms
 |
| A gorgeous day in Whislter for a run |
This section of the course was run on a shorter version of the 25km Comfortably Numb trail. I thought of my son Noah while running this mountain bike trail. One time he mentioned, after seeing celery for the first time, that he had never eaten it before. After trying it, he proclaimed "You can't eat that, it is not food!" My feelings were the same about this trail. Mountain biking on this trail would be arduous, slow, and painful. Crashing would be inevitable due to the extreme technical nature of it. It seems next to impossible for someone to clean the whole trail on a bike. Rock descent, stunts, log bridges, and steep pitches litter this trail. I thought we could complete this section of trail in two hours. It took us nearly 3. We passed a gentleman whom thrashed his hand during a crash and sliced up his fingers (therefore deemed "Bloody Fingers for the rest of the race), met Vicki and DK, Minimalist Lee, and East Van who did not want to pass her ex-boyfriend up the trail. Sean, Lee, and I ran into Base 2 together, where we met our families there and took pictures. It was a huge morale boost.
 |
| Base 2 support crew. Parenting the kids around the aid station was difficult as they thought is was a buffet for them. |
This had to be one of the cruelest section of the course--straight up Blackcomb mountain until the service road, and then wind our way up to the singletrack, over the top and then descend on the Peak to Peak. What we thought would take us and hour took us closer to two. Some first aid for Sean's blisters, a change of shorts, some lunch, and a refill on Refresh and we were on our way across Fitzsimmons Creek in the gondola, spanning the two peaks.
 |
| Straight up Blackcomb! |
 |
| Peak to Peak. |
 |
| Panorama of Whislter |
Stage 4: Whislter Peak to Peak to Creekside. 8km Descent
This quad thrashing downhill had us run one of the slowest legs on the day as we were cautious to not crash. Perhaps running with a bit more reckless abandon would have been good, as we could have made up some time, but we were not willing to give up safety for time, and manage to walk some of the hairy-er sections of trail. Making it into the Creekside aid station by 2:30 pm, it gave us only an hour to make the cutoff at aid 5, and thus, we had to run the next 12 kms in one hour. Something that, 50kms into the race, would be asking alot of Sean (and I) with the state of his blisters. The Creekside attendants taped up Sean's heel and toe blisters and managed to get us running. We lost some time here due to the first aid.
This leg of the race had us running through Kaedenwood highlands, up fireroad until we made it to the Cheakamus river and some sweet singletrack. Wow!! This part of trail running was gorgeous!! Absolutely fantastic to run alongside the river, dancing off of the rocks, passing 3 runners (one of whom, a relay
team member, who proclaimed "You are my hero" as I passed her. Thank you for that, fine lady). At this point in the race, I had resigned to quit because I knew that we would not make it to aid #5 by the cut-off time. By 3:48, aid #5 was within sight, along with Kathryn Stanton. I saw her and immediately and gave her the double thumbs down. She asked me how I was doing, I said fine, and she told me that if I left that second, she would allow me to continue the race, even though I was 18 minutes past due. I said I would love to, but I had to wait for Sean to arrive. She said "Every second that you wait, your window is getting smaller for me to let you go." She made a deal with me: Finish the race before 7 pm; complete the remaining 21kms of the course in less than 3 hours and 7 minutes, and get back to the east side of highway 99 by no later than 6:30pm. To me, that sounded like a joke. Completely doable. Two minutes after I arrived, Sean came into the aid station. I told him that we were allowed to continue, but we had to leave right then. He refilled his Refresh, and we went off into Function Junction, and to the trails above Alta Lake.
Stage 6: Function Junction to Rainbow Flank Trail: 10kms
Crossing the 99 at Func Junc, Sean peeled off to pee, yelling at me that he would catch up. I power hiked the last 1000m of climbing and managed to lose him, passing Bloody Finger, Visor Man, and another person. They looked toasted, whereas I was feeling solid. A heap of climbing, and great vistas of Blackcomb and Whistler. Amazing singletrack. I got into aid 6 at 5:10, with the cutoff at 5:25. A few minutes there and I was off to the finish.
Stage 7: Rainbow Flank to Valley Trail/ Lost Lake/ Finish Line
I caught up with Minimalist Lee on the Valley Trail with the final 10 kms to go. It was great to meet up with him and chat with the last bit of running ahead. I figured that he and I were going to be the last two to finish, so I made the effort to take off. Those last 10 were deceptive. Very difficult through the Lost Lake trails, especially when I expected it to be more direct back to the Olympic Plaza. Towards the end of the race, my voice starts to waver as you can hear on the videos.
A huge surprise to me was that I bumped into Sean on the trails. We were able to cross the line together, as we set out to do. After pulling himself on leg 6, Kathryn drove him to Lost Lake to meet up with me.
42 solo racers who started the race. Only 20 completed the full course. I was 19th overall, the second to last finisher in the solo catagory by 2 minutes or so. With the last 3 legs of the event, I saw many people too tired to go on, exhausted, injured, or fed up with running. Invariably, they abandoned the race. Even for myself, going into aid station #5 after the 3:30pm cutoff, I was considering throwing in the towel. I am glad that I did not. I'd say we were in pretty good shape for our post-race interview:
Two days later, my legs and feet are swollen. Usually thin and bone-ey with protruding veins, after this race my feet look full and puffy, my quads lack definition, and walking is not very much fun, especially going up and down stairs. My father asked me today if I would do the race again. Without hesitation, I said "absolutely". In fact, I look forward to next year--to improving my time, pushing harder, and challenging this course, rather than doing it for the experience and just to finish. Until then, I have to wait until the Chuckanut 50, which will be my next ultra in March.
On a side note, something that got me through this race was thinking positively the whole time. I smiled at all the volunteers, people spectating, and other racers. Knowing that the race was 50 miles, I did not let myself give up. Keeping my chin up and staying focused on one step at a time was huge in getting me through this, along with all the well wishes from many, many friends and family leading up to the event. Thank you all for that!
On a side note, something that got me through this race was thinking positively the whole time. I smiled at all the volunteers, people spectating, and other racers. Knowing that the race was 50 miles, I did not let myself give up. Keeping my chin up and staying focused on one step at a time was huge in getting me through this, along with all the well wishes from many, many friends and family leading up to the event. Thank you all for that!
 |
| All the deets from the body, 8000 calories to boot. |
A huge congratulations to Mike Murphy for taking the win at this one! The man is a beast. A very thin, small, lightweight, quick beast. (Mike--I still owe you that kick to the crotch!) Thank you so much to all the volunteers, RD Chris and Kathryn, all the 5 Peaks and Salomon crew, Sugoi Brand Champions, and all of the sponsors for such a wonderfully organized event, great food and prizes, and, most importantly, a well marked course.
This race is sure to become a classic ultra marathon. Truly challenging!
This race is sure to become a classic ultra marathon. Truly challenging!
Thursday, 30 August 2012
Marathons, vacations, and running injuries
After inadvertently deleting my last post, I have tried to recreate it here, with some minor edits. Here is the jist of my former post.--JW
It has been a while since my last post, but I have not been resting on my laurels. Trips to Saskatchewan, Whistler, Kamloops, Dominican Republic, and Otter Lake/ Tulameen have filled my summer, making this the best summer we have had as a family yet. Preparation for the Meet Your Maker 50mi race in Whistler on September the 2nd has been on my mind, as all efforts training is like saving for that first house--You hope you have done enough to make sure you have success. Part of my training was to do another marathon after the BMO in May. On the 29th I completed my 3rd, the Kamloops Marathon. Under sunny skies, and rising temperatures, I ran what would turn out to be a personal best, but not without hurting myself along the way.
Leading up to it, I paid a visit to Physiomoves, Tyler Dumont's physiotherapy clinic, for some treatment on my locked up left ankle. This has been a problem from the beginning of the year, and I have dealt with it each time it comes up. Christine took it to task and had me feeling right as rain in no time, ready for the marathon on the weekend. PT is becoming a necessary part of my training, so it seems, in order to correct the little things before they become big injuries.
The marathon was organized by Phil Hiom, owner of the Dirty Feet Trail Series. This guy is gold--he knows how to throw a race, and the Kamloops Marathon was no exception. Although the field was small, the course was flat and well laid out. A 6:30 AM start time had me up at 4:45 to eat breakfast and digest it a best as possible. Nick Gill picked me up and we made it down to the Start/Finish in the darkness of the day.
Hide a deuce, bit of a warmup and my prerace prep was rock solid. I bumped into Kevin Black, an old high school basketball team-mate from Kam High. He started running a couple of years ago, and completed Boston this year. The guy is a competitor, and has a killer instinct that I knew him to have years ago. He was shooting for a sub 1:30 in the half. I was trying to keep up with Rika Hatachi from Coquitlam. She finished the BMO with a 3:07 this year. My fast time goal was 3:00, my soft goal was anything under 3:10 so that I could get a Boston Qualifier, even if this course did not offer it, I wanted to know that I could do that time.
The race started off quick with Ryan Day (3rd at the 2012 BMO) taking off, followed by Rick Brewster (a killer runner--old and fast). I managed to lose sight of them along Westsyde Road, but keep a solid pace going, shooting for a 4:20 min/km.
Things were going well as I came through the halfway point at 1 hour 33 minutes, 2 minutes slower than in May. I met up with Aaron at about 25 kms, and he rode with me for the next 15 kms. It was great to have him there to keep me focused and to encourage me all along.
I was on pace for a sub 3:10. Uncomfortably comfortable, if that makes sense. However, coming back towards the Overlander bridge I began to slow, I did the math and realized that I would not make my time goal unless I could run a 40 minute 10km. Then, disaster struck.
As I crested the bridge, I pushed a hard go on the down slope. What I did not realize then, was that I blew out my O-Ring, for real. The final two kms of the race were some of the hardest that day. I did not hit the wall as far out as I did for Vancouver, but I did slow my pace over the last 2kms on Mac Arthur Island.
3:11:53. A shade faster than Vancouver in 2012. Disappointing, even if it is a personal best.
Crossing the finish line, things went a bit blurry, tunnel vision set in, and I saw stars. I walked right past Lori-Ann as she waited to place the medal around my neck. She had to chase after me as I was shattered, knackered, and all the other British terms that describe the feeling of being tired.
The two best post race amenities the organizers had for races was:
1. A horse trough to dunk you whole body in cold water to begin the recovery process. Submersing in cold water after completing this race in the Kamloops heat was magical.
2: Post race massage. I had a post race massage for 50 minutes. WOW!! That was crucial to my feeling like I had not even run the next day. I was flushed right out, with little muscle soreness, save for the hoop. Hands on Health Manual Therapy Clinic took care of me something fierce. Always go for the post race massage. Always.
Speaking of that, I visited the doctor the next day. Dr. Dodd at the walk in clinic assessed the situation, and prescribed me a steroid creme and suppositories for my injury. It took 14 days, but I am back to normal now, thanks to that banned substance that I had to apply daily.
Looking back, I am pleased with this one. I am getting older--the ripe age of 36, and am getting faster. This is a good thing, defying odds and logical thinking. Again, all of this was in preparation for the Meet Your Maker 50mi, now in a few short days.
A good race, a great day. We booked it over to Whistler a couple of days after the race to meet up with the Baker's and their crew. On this trip, Sean and I ran Singing Pass, over to the top of Whistler then down to the Roundhouse, a 4 hour run that was the single greatest run of my life, even if I was all blown out and sore.
The majestic vistas, the terrain, the snow, the challenge--this run had it all and more. An amazing run capped of with a ride down the gondola to the village made for something that was near perfect.
The MYM is in a couple of days. I hope I am ready. This will be the ultimate test.
It has been a while since my last post, but I have not been resting on my laurels. Trips to Saskatchewan, Whistler, Kamloops, Dominican Republic, and Otter Lake/ Tulameen have filled my summer, making this the best summer we have had as a family yet. Preparation for the Meet Your Maker 50mi race in Whistler on September the 2nd has been on my mind, as all efforts training is like saving for that first house--You hope you have done enough to make sure you have success. Part of my training was to do another marathon after the BMO in May. On the 29th I completed my 3rd, the Kamloops Marathon. Under sunny skies, and rising temperatures, I ran what would turn out to be a personal best, but not without hurting myself along the way.
Leading up to it, I paid a visit to Physiomoves, Tyler Dumont's physiotherapy clinic, for some treatment on my locked up left ankle. This has been a problem from the beginning of the year, and I have dealt with it each time it comes up. Christine took it to task and had me feeling right as rain in no time, ready for the marathon on the weekend. PT is becoming a necessary part of my training, so it seems, in order to correct the little things before they become big injuries.
The marathon was organized by Phil Hiom, owner of the Dirty Feet Trail Series. This guy is gold--he knows how to throw a race, and the Kamloops Marathon was no exception. Although the field was small, the course was flat and well laid out. A 6:30 AM start time had me up at 4:45 to eat breakfast and digest it a best as possible. Nick Gill picked me up and we made it down to the Start/Finish in the darkness of the day.
Hide a deuce, bit of a warmup and my prerace prep was rock solid. I bumped into Kevin Black, an old high school basketball team-mate from Kam High. He started running a couple of years ago, and completed Boston this year. The guy is a competitor, and has a killer instinct that I knew him to have years ago. He was shooting for a sub 1:30 in the half. I was trying to keep up with Rika Hatachi from Coquitlam. She finished the BMO with a 3:07 this year. My fast time goal was 3:00, my soft goal was anything under 3:10 so that I could get a Boston Qualifier, even if this course did not offer it, I wanted to know that I could do that time.
The race started off quick with Ryan Day (3rd at the 2012 BMO) taking off, followed by Rick Brewster (a killer runner--old and fast). I managed to lose sight of them along Westsyde Road, but keep a solid pace going, shooting for a 4:20 min/km.
Things were going well as I came through the halfway point at 1 hour 33 minutes, 2 minutes slower than in May. I met up with Aaron at about 25 kms, and he rode with me for the next 15 kms. It was great to have him there to keep me focused and to encourage me all along.
I was on pace for a sub 3:10. Uncomfortably comfortable, if that makes sense. However, coming back towards the Overlander bridge I began to slow, I did the math and realized that I would not make my time goal unless I could run a 40 minute 10km. Then, disaster struck.
As I crested the bridge, I pushed a hard go on the down slope. What I did not realize then, was that I blew out my O-Ring, for real. The final two kms of the race were some of the hardest that day. I did not hit the wall as far out as I did for Vancouver, but I did slow my pace over the last 2kms on Mac Arthur Island.
3:11:53. A shade faster than Vancouver in 2012. Disappointing, even if it is a personal best.
Crossing the finish line, things went a bit blurry, tunnel vision set in, and I saw stars. I walked right past Lori-Ann as she waited to place the medal around my neck. She had to chase after me as I was shattered, knackered, and all the other British terms that describe the feeling of being tired.
The two best post race amenities the organizers had for races was:
1. A horse trough to dunk you whole body in cold water to begin the recovery process. Submersing in cold water after completing this race in the Kamloops heat was magical.
2: Post race massage. I had a post race massage for 50 minutes. WOW!! That was crucial to my feeling like I had not even run the next day. I was flushed right out, with little muscle soreness, save for the hoop. Hands on Health Manual Therapy Clinic took care of me something fierce. Always go for the post race massage. Always.
Speaking of that, I visited the doctor the next day. Dr. Dodd at the walk in clinic assessed the situation, and prescribed me a steroid creme and suppositories for my injury. It took 14 days, but I am back to normal now, thanks to that banned substance that I had to apply daily.
Looking back, I am pleased with this one. I am getting older--the ripe age of 36, and am getting faster. This is a good thing, defying odds and logical thinking. Again, all of this was in preparation for the Meet Your Maker 50mi, now in a few short days.
A good race, a great day. We booked it over to Whistler a couple of days after the race to meet up with the Baker's and their crew. On this trip, Sean and I ran Singing Pass, over to the top of Whistler then down to the Roundhouse, a 4 hour run that was the single greatest run of my life, even if I was all blown out and sore.
The majestic vistas, the terrain, the snow, the challenge--this run had it all and more. An amazing run capped of with a ride down the gondola to the village made for something that was near perfect.
The MYM is in a couple of days. I hope I am ready. This will be the ultimate test.
Thursday, 29 March 2012
When 50 becomes 50
Having just completed the Chuckanut 50, it is time to take stock. I have been trying to come up with a plan for my next set of races. So to ask myself the question, what is the next logical step after doing a 50km trail race is to:
A.) Rest
B.) Sign up for another 50k run
C.) Do a marathon
D.) Sign up for a 50 mile run
This morning, Thursday March 29th, my buddy Mike Murphy shot me a link to the Meet Your Maker 50 mile ultra marathon in Whistler, September 2nd of this year. I jokingly forwarded the email to my brother Sean, thinking that he would tell me to eff-off. This evening, Sean shot an email back to me that had this attached to it:
I opened it. My jaw dropped.
I sat in front of the computer in disbelief.
In shock.
I got excited.
I got sweaty.
I was merely joking when I fired it his way. In no way shape or form did I ever expect him to register me or us in it. I thought we might talk it over, make a plan, figure out what we wanted to do, if we wanted to do it. There are other ultra's around, others that are less expensive. But this one--this run looks epic. It looks like a quality run, that will be supported very well, where the organizers will take care of the racers, where the route will be amazing and scenic. It seems like I need to take things a bit more seriously. Like nutrition and what I put into my body from now on.
This is huge.
A few years back Sean and I talked about running until we could not run anymore. How much do we have in us to make that happen? How far would we be able to go? The challenge of running in Whistler will be epic. This will be harder than the Chuckanut by sheer distance, but also in climbing. The map looks daunting:
The straight line on the map just in the bottom right hand corner here represents the Peak to Peak gondola. I am a bit speechless right now about this whole thing. So why not plan out the next few months of runs right now. ** indicates that I am committed to doing these runs. This is just a rough plan for the time being.
April 21st: 5 Peaks Maple Ridge **
May 6th: Vancouver Marathon**
Possibilites:
May 27th: Tender Knee/ Iron Knee
June 9th: 5 Peaks Squamish
June 10th: Sandcastle 10km or
June 10th Junk Yard Dog South Surrey Mountain bike race
June 30th: Tenderfoot Boogie Squamish to Whistler
July 15th: NB Fort Langley Half Marathon
July 21st: 5 Peak Cypress
July 28th: Triple Crown Road Ride
July 29th: Jog for the Bog
Sept 2nd: Meet Your Maker 50mile**
Then Cyclocross season begins. I suspect that the Meet Your Maker will interfere with the first CX race of the season, and also Aaron Schooler's school of Cross. A bit of a bummer, but this will be a new experience for me, and lately, the new experiences are pretty awesome.
It looks like I will have to invest in a pair of those Salomon Speedcross shoes I have been eyeing for a while for the upcoming trail races. Those look bomber.
What a day. The meet your maker is an 84 or 85km trail run. The Chuckanut was hard with the rain, snow and cold. The MYM 50 may be more bearable. I have my work cut out for me.
Shit.
A.) Rest
B.) Sign up for another 50k run
C.) Do a marathon
D.) Sign up for a 50 mile run
This morning, Thursday March 29th, my buddy Mike Murphy shot me a link to the Meet Your Maker 50 mile ultra marathon in Whistler, September 2nd of this year. I jokingly forwarded the email to my brother Sean, thinking that he would tell me to eff-off. This evening, Sean shot an email back to me that had this attached to it:
I opened it. My jaw dropped.
I sat in front of the computer in disbelief.
In shock.
I got excited.
I got sweaty.
I was merely joking when I fired it his way. In no way shape or form did I ever expect him to register me or us in it. I thought we might talk it over, make a plan, figure out what we wanted to do, if we wanted to do it. There are other ultra's around, others that are less expensive. But this one--this run looks epic. It looks like a quality run, that will be supported very well, where the organizers will take care of the racers, where the route will be amazing and scenic. It seems like I need to take things a bit more seriously. Like nutrition and what I put into my body from now on.
This is huge.
A few years back Sean and I talked about running until we could not run anymore. How much do we have in us to make that happen? How far would we be able to go? The challenge of running in Whistler will be epic. This will be harder than the Chuckanut by sheer distance, but also in climbing. The map looks daunting:
The straight line on the map just in the bottom right hand corner here represents the Peak to Peak gondola. I am a bit speechless right now about this whole thing. So why not plan out the next few months of runs right now. ** indicates that I am committed to doing these runs. This is just a rough plan for the time being.
April 21st: 5 Peaks Maple Ridge **
May 6th: Vancouver Marathon**
Possibilites:
May 27th: Tender Knee/ Iron Knee
June 9th: 5 Peaks Squamish
June 10th: Sandcastle 10km or
June 10th Junk Yard Dog South Surrey Mountain bike race
June 30th: Tenderfoot Boogie Squamish to Whistler
July 15th: NB Fort Langley Half Marathon
July 21st: 5 Peak Cypress
July 28th: Triple Crown Road Ride
July 29th: Jog for the Bog
Sept 2nd: Meet Your Maker 50mile**
Then Cyclocross season begins. I suspect that the Meet Your Maker will interfere with the first CX race of the season, and also Aaron Schooler's school of Cross. A bit of a bummer, but this will be a new experience for me, and lately, the new experiences are pretty awesome.
It looks like I will have to invest in a pair of those Salomon Speedcross shoes I have been eyeing for a while for the upcoming trail races. Those look bomber.
What a day. The meet your maker is an 84 or 85km trail run. The Chuckanut was hard with the rain, snow and cold. The MYM 50 may be more bearable. I have my work cut out for me.
Shit.
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