Thursday, December 12, 2013

URP Boys get a great Maine quote out of Meltzer


On an episode of Ultrarunner Podcast (URP) from may 31st 2013, Karl Meltzer is asked a question about trench foot in which he brings up getting it in Maine while attempting an FKT of the Appalachian trail. He gives a great mention to Maine for all those folks who think the east has nothing to offer.The quote goes like this.

Karl: Maine is the hardest terrain of all..I have ever seen. There is nothing out west that ever compares to that. 

Scotty: Is that right? Maine? Huh.

Karl: Oh yeah...

Scotty & Eric: Huh? 

Karl: Go on the Appalachian trail for 5 miles in Maine and your going to be like...oh my god. why am I going like 2 miles an hour?

If you are interested in hearing the whole interview or many more great interviews with other runners check out http://ultrarunnerpodcast.com.

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

NYC Marathon - Race Report

I didn't think I was going to be able to run the New York City Marathon. I had to stop running for over two weeks after the Vermont 50 to let a shin injury heal and wasn't sure that it was going to be enough time. Following that I had to take it slow just to get back running at all. I had planned to do speed training following Vermont, but as the race neared the reality of my lack of faster training set in I changed my goals to have fun and enjoy running with 50,000 people and screaming fans for 26.2 miles.
Lunch
Dinner

After a week on my hands and knees laying floors on North Haven, I caught the ferry, and headed to Portland. I had to take the 6am flight to New York so I could get to the city in time to register and pick up my race number. When I got to the Javits Center on the West side of Manhattan there was a line out the door, around the block, and back again. Turns out the folks who organize the NYC Marathon have done this before. The line moved fast and the whole process was quick and easy. I then had lunch with my friends Smith, Sarah, and Asa at our favorite spot Pies & Thighs in Williamsburg. As lunch settled I questioned the intelligence of a fried chicken sandwich on a biscuit with grits and coffee as a pre-race meal. But Smith gave it a thumbs up so I decided it was alright. Sarah and I followed up the fried chicken by going to see the new Jackass film Bad Grandpa. Hilarious and way too strenuous on my abs. We then went back to Sarah and Asa's apartment where I got my gear together and Asa and Sarah cooked me a great pre race pasta dinner. (with a Guinness of course!)
Race Day Gear & Supplies
The next morning Asa was kind enough to get up at 4:30 and drive me to Times Square where I was catching a bus out to the start on Staten Island. I sat next to a nice woman named Heather and was really happy to get to hang out with her, her friend Kelly, and a bunch of other folks. I had almost 4 hours before my wave started and it helped to have great people to get to talk with and make the time fly.

We made it to the start area and the Robin Hood runner's tent by 7. A little after 8:30 I tightened the laces of my Hoka One One trail shoes, (yes trail shoes!) and started making my way towards my start corral which happened to be only a couple back from the elite men runners. (how did I end up here?) After they corralled everyone we were marched up towards the starting line. On route we ditched our warm layers in bins to be donated to goodwill. As we reached the starting area someone on the stage shouted 7 minutes to the start. I had thought there was still over 30 minutes! After sharing a panicked look with an Italian guy next to me, I ripped open a GU packet, and crammed it down with some water. Mayor Bloomberg got up on the stage with some other folks, said a few words, and then bam! The race started...for the elite woman.

We still had a half hour to stand around and wait for the start. It was pretty cold at that point but I was thankful it was not colder as it could have been on an early November day. The overcast weather and temps were actually perfect for running. Everything except the 20 knot North Northwest wind that for this course is a headwind for the first 20 miles. As the eventual men's race winner (Spoiler Alert! I didn't win.) Geoffrey Mutai said, "The weather today. It was not easy."

I felt slightly nervous leading up to the race as one often does before embarking on something like this, but the last half hour before we headed off I felt very calm. I was so happy to be out there, and felt relaxed and ready to run. After some more short speeches and the National Anthem sung by a Staten Island middle school choir they got the racers ready, fired off the cannon, and we were off. For real this time.

It's not easy to start fast in a mass of people going uphill into the wind, but all things considered I was able to make decent time and knock off my first mile over the Verrazano bridge in about 7:46. It's quite a view of the city from here. You can see the entire course and just how far you have to go. It's also fun to be running through all sorts of places that you can't at any other time. I have spent a lot of time in New York in my life. My dad's whole family is from there, I have lived there, and I have a lot of friends there as well. I have driven over the Verrazano bridge at least a dozen times and even sailed under it. But I never thought I would run it too.

From BuzzFeed's
"35 Best Signs From the NYCMarathon"
After getting off the bridge I got to experience what this race is all about. The fans. immediately the road was lined with people, with signs, with loud voices, and smiles on there faces. Shouting out and cheering you on. No matter who you were. I ran this race with headphones, but I could still hear plenty of the people. And this first moment heading into Brooklyn will probably go down, for the rest of my life, as one of the best moments I have ever experienced running.



From here all the way through South Brooklyn and into Williamsburg I felt great. I was running miles between 6:15 and 6:45 and started to think that I could actually break 3 hours. I felt light on my feet and flowed between all the runners around me. I was eating GU's every 30 minutes or so and alternating between water and gatorade at most of the aid stations. I had never run a race where you get handed water like this, but I liked it. It felt easy to stay on top of hydration and nutrition knowing that there was a station exactly every mile.

Thanks Smith!
After passing through South Williamsburg I moved to the right of the course to keep an eye out for Smith and Asa who I knew would be waiting for me somewhere around mile 11. I almost missed them but fortunately saw them off to my right just as I went by them. I gave two thumbs up to Smith and kept moving. Smith made a sign for me and it pumped me up even more.

From here the course moves into Greenpoint before heading over the Polanski Bridge into Queens. The Half-Marathon mark is just at the beginning of the bridge and I had just done it in 1:26:53. I knew it would be hard to keep that same pace for another 13.1 miles but I felt like it was still possibly in reach considering how good I was feeling at the moment.

Of course it was right around then that things started to feel not so good. I was still feeling decent but my legs started to feel heavy. As we hit the 59th St. Bridge that heads over to Manhattan I ran my first mile over 7 minutes. The bridges are the hills in this race and this one put me in check. I came down it fast and was fired up by hitting the "wall of sound" as I entered Manhattan for the first time, but it wasn't too long after this that my legs felt even heavier.

From here the course heads due North up 1st Ave for miles 17-19. On this day it was right into the wind. You can also see a long way ahead which was a reminder that there was still a long way to go. People started passing me for the first time all day. I was running miles in the mid 7 minutes here and thought to myself that it was best to just try and maintain this pace as best I could, get to the Bronx, back into Manhattan, and turn up my intensity then. At this point I was passing some walkers, and some folks doubled over and I knew that if I gave it too much right then that I would self-destruct before the finish and be doubled over myself.

Thanks Robin Hood Cheer Brigade!
1st Ave turns into the Willis Ave Bridge and heads over the Harlem River into the Bronx. I was not feeling any better at this point but the fans in the Bronx fired me up. I ran this race on behalf of the charity group the Robin Hood Foundation. They do amazing work in the city to fight poverty and promote education. And they do a lot of work in this particular area. (Including building a school that my new friends Heather and Kelly both work at.) I was wearing a Robin Hood shirt during the race and up here people just started going nuts for it. There was also an actual Robin Hood cheering station too. I ran by to a lot of high fives and cheers and picked up the pace hard for a few moments. A few moments that were unfortunately short lived. After I passed them I slowed even more dramatically.

Up to now I never quite understood how people could bonk so hard that they would drop out of races when they were so close to finishing but I started to understand that more clearly and personally the next few miles.  Around mile 22 the race heads back to Manhattan and mostly uphill to Central Park. My whole body started feeling heavy and I was getting light headed. I started having tunnel vision and new that I was not in a good place. I knew sub 3 hours was out, I knew qualifying for Boston was out, and I started to think sub 3:30 might be out. I never felt so bad that I though I would not finish, but I was pretty sure that I would be dragging myself for the next 4 miles to the line. I ran mile 23 at a 9:40/mile pace. I new I had to change my head space so I pounded a GU and took it easier through the next aid station making sure to drink a full cup of water and gatorade. There was also a woman with orange slices on the side of the road. I'm not sure if this was a sanctioned part of the race or not but I was happy to grab one and scarf it down. I was continuing to be passed by more and more runners and that was a bit discouraging. At the same time with over 50,000 runners I didn't feel like I was racing anybody but the clock and course. They were doing their thing. I needed to do mine.

At mile 24 the course moves into central park and finishes the last 2.2 there. I could now sense the finish line and knew the sooner I finished, the sooner I would feel better. I put the hammer down as hard as I could. At one point another Robin Hood runner came by me and put his hand on my shoulder. I don't know who this guy was but I want to thank him for this. It somehow snapped my mind from survival mode to race mode and for the rest of the race I raced. I ran as hard as I could and passed many people. Mentally it did change to be a race against the runners around me for this last push. And this mental shift helped give me what I needed to finish as hard as I could. I wasn't flying but I did start running sub 8:00/miles. It felt like the fastest and hardest I had run all day.

I crossed the line in 3:12:40 averaging 7:22/mile. I had aspirations earlier in the race that I might run sub 3. I also had though leading up to the race and just that morning before the start that sub 4 would be about right considering my lack of preparation for a road marathon. I know at the end of the day that I put all I had into this race and didn't leave anything on the course.

Splits & Results
I was a little bummed out not to run sub 3:05. If I paced myself better at the beginning I might have had the strength to maintain better in the second half. Maybe it was nutrition or training. But all things considered, I don't think I could have given anymore in the situation I was in. I have never felt so drained after any finish in my life. I learned a lot out there that I know will help me next time. All in all it was a great race and one of the best times I have ever had running in my life.

When you cross the line they give you a finishers medal, wrap you in a space blanket, and give you a recovery bag with some food and drinks. I felt very weak and slow as I made my way through the park and eventually out of the racing area. I kept eating and drinking water slowly. And by the time I finally exited I was feeling stronger and getting my bearings back. I was very thankful for the recovery bag. Everything except the Strawberry-Kiwi flavored Gatorade recovery drink which is quite possibly the worst thing I have ever tasted in my life. Seriously. Keep your distance from that stuff!

Found on the steps of Lincoln Center!
No time for a picture with space blanket.
Give me those cloths! And the beef jerky!
I would like to thank all the volunteers and organizers of this amazing race. Logistically it seems like the most challenging race to possibly put on. And besides the Strawberry-Kiwi Gatorade it was flawless. I would like to thank Robin Hood Foundation for all the great work they do, for allowing me to run on their behalf, and to Molly Brethauer and the other Robin Hood staff for their great communication and organization. I especially would like to thank Asa, Sarah, and Smith for taking such good care of me during my less than 48 hours in the city. They got me everywhere I needed to be including back to the airport after the race, fed me, and helped smooth out some rather difficult transportation issues as races are concerned. The only problem we had was that the place we decided to meet after the race happened to be in the race course and impossible to get to. I had no phone and we had no back up plan. So I sat in a space blanket on the steps of Lincoln center for quite a while before we finally connected. Fortunately I had 20 buck, a debit card, and a MetroCard with me just in case. I ended up buying an egg sandwich from a street vendor and after borrowing a 1/2 dozen different phones from nice random people, we connected, I got my warm cloths, ate more food, and we headed back to Brooklyn.

Over the last two years I have been bit by the ultra bug and only really cared to run this marathon because it was New York. A special race, a special place, and one my dad did many times. But after finishing this race I now have a lot more love for the road 26.2 mile distance. And even more love for the city of New York. I know now that on the right day with the proper race plan and training that sub 3 hours is doable for me. Something I didn't think possible before. I'm already looking forward to my next shot, and hope I might have the opportunity to try it again in the five boroughs.

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Rocky Runs a 50K ?

Turns out that ultra marathoning is a highly effective cross training tool for boxing. Not only did it work well for Little Mac from the Nintendo video game, Mike Tyson's Punch Out, but it also panned out for Rocky who apparently ran a 50k in the movie Rocky II. Here's a link to a great and more detailed article about his route, and here is a video clips to remind you of Rocky running awesomeness. 

Monday, September 30, 2013

Vermont 50 - Race Report

It was a beautiful morning. Foggy as it often is in the Vermont valleys this time of year. The temperature started out around 45 and warmed up to a peak of about 75. The course was perfect. Wet enough to keep the dust down and dry enough to have little mud and no puddles to navigate. I felt relaxed and excited to run. I had a race plan. I was ready.

The first 10 miles were comfortable. I felt like I was running conservatively, walking the steeper hills, and not pushing it too hard. At the same time my heart rate was up higher than I thought it should be for the effort. I was obviously pushing harder than it felt. I came up on the first handler aid station, Skunk Hollow at mile 12. I handed off my two 20oz Amphipod bottles to Cec and got two fresh ones. The transition was smooth and quick and I moved by a lot of runners who were stocking up at the aid station. 

From there the course pretty much goes up for 6 miles on mostly dirt roads to the highest point of the course at about 1800ft. There is a beautiful meadow (that distracts from the brutal ascent) and leads up to a spectacular view including the start/finish at Mt. Ascutney. (Which looked really far away!) From here the course moves back into the woods and down some steep windy single track including the steepest drops of the day. All run while dodging mount bike traffic from behind. As I neared the end of the real steep section I started feeling cramping in both my inner thighs. Something I had not experienced before. I usually think of downhills as trashing quads but not for me today. At first it came and went but then it started coming more consistently and pretty much from mile 20 to 45 I was stuggling with leg cramps that would leave me waddling like a duck with tree trunks for legs. I started thinking the cramping was from low electrolytes, so I really started pounding the Tailwind and decided to make an unplanned stop at the next aid station to mix another cocktail of it. The next aid station happened to be Margaritaville which is volunteer staffed by a local chapter of the Jimmy Buffett fan club called the Frozen Fins. They also run an aid station at the VT 100. They are awesome and it's a fun aid station to come upon in rural Vermont. But unsurprisingly they blast Jimmy Buffet music. I had "Cheeseburger In Paradise" stuck in my head for the next 10 miles. Definitely not part of the race plan. 

Elevation profile


Mile 20-30 were painful and slower than I felt like I could be moving. I find the halfway marks can especially be hard no matter what the race distance. My fitness felt solid, but the cramping was throwing a wrench in the works. At mile 32 we came up on the next handler aid station which is also the start/finish of the VT 100. I started feeling better as I pulled in. My GPS watch was saying we still had more miles to get there so it was uplifting to be there "early" and to see the crowd and Cec. I traded out my bottles again, grabbed some extra baggies of Tailwind, and took off. This aid station gave me a major second wind and I felt great as I headed back off into the woods. I passed a guy who looked like he was also struggling with leg cramps and I shouted out lots of encouraging words like "You're going to get through these and feel better! I did! You got this!" It was about a mile later when my leg cramps came back worse than before and I was having pain in my left shin. Things felt like they were going from bad to worse and quick. I was on some tricky single track where I caught my right foot on a root and went down pretty hard. About 5 minutes later I did it again. My already questionable form was flat and felt like I was falling apart. My stomach felt ok but not right. A little cramping there too and I started rethinking my fueling and if I should get some real food in my belly. I was running with some Probars in my pockets but they did not look appetizing. 

It was about this time that I met a guy named Ernie on the trail. He was also struggling with the downhills but was having a more traditional trashed quads issue. He said to me. "My goal is to do this in under 9 hours. You think we can do it?" "We?" Up to this point and even before the race I wasn't thinking too much about my finish time. I had it in my head that between 8-10 hours was where I would be, but never having run over 32 miles I really was trying to be conservative and run smart. But now all of a sudden I was like, "Yeah. Totally. We got this!"

At mile 37 (so said the GPS watch) I came up on another aid station. I decided to try and drink some water and eat some oranges because I was craving fruit and wanted something in my belly. I overheard a few people talking about the distance on their watches being different than the course and learned that we were actually at mile 41. Wow! It was a huge boost mentally to all of a sudden be over 40 miles with only 9 to go. I was still cramping and the pain in my shin was getting worse, but I knew we were in range. 

After this I approached a steep road hill section. Ernie caught back up to me. He was looking good and really moved well up the long uphill road section ahead. I could see him way up in the distance and then disappear and I thought, "He's going to beat 9 hours." I kept plodding along. Soon after the road hill we hit more single track. I was trying to make way for a mountain biker on my tail, tripped again, and as I hit the ground both my legs seized up. How quickly during an ultra things can feel great, terrible, great, and terrible again. I love trails and I love running single track but at this point I just wanted to be on some roads where my f'ed up legs could shuffle along and not trip over something!

Before, during, finish, post.
I knew I had to do something different to try and turn things around. Like all good race plans, mine was being revised. When I reached the second to last aid station I grabbed some Gatorade and a bunch of pretzels. I chugged the Gatorade and ate the pretzels on the run. I also started to noticed that I was feeling less leg cramping the faster I went, so decided to run everything to the finish. I passed a few people I had been going back and forth with for a lot of the races and even caught up to Ernie again. With about 5 miles to go I passed Ernie and started charging. A mile later I could see Mt. Ascutney again. (this time much closer.) The leg cramps were better and the shin pain less glaring. I passed some 50k runners and was now back on a sub 10min/mile pace. I hit a road section with a bunch of people cheering and turned up a steep driveway to the last aid station. (pictured) I grabbed one bottle of tailwind from Cec and drank more gatorade which I think was helping with the leg cramps. I also came up on some 50 mile runners I hadn't seen in a long time and went right by them. I kept running, and running hard up Mt. Ascutney. Past runners, past bikers, past everybody. Nobody passed me those last 3 miles except two bikers on the final 1 mile very ridable downhill. The heat on the ski slope was pretty searing coming out of the woods, but being able to see the finish less than a mile away kept me moving fast. I passed another group of runners and reached the finish line in 8:40:54. 18th place in the mens 30-39 age group, 35th men's overall, and 37th out of all the 550 men and women runners. Ernie came in just behind me in 8:48:08 and 5th in the men's 50-59 age group.  

Like my first 50k I found myself thinking at certain times during the race that I would never do this again and at other times (especially when it was over) thinking about when, where, and how long my next ultra was going to be. Exercising is good and being fit is nice but I love ultras for the headspaces you go though. For the mental fortitude it takes to keep going and succeed. The ups, the downs. There are so many life lessons to be learned running long distance, and especially racing where you are trying to go hard and do your best. Whether you are running for first place, just hoping to finish, or anywhere in between, all those experiences are just as valuable as each other, and the rewards just the same. 

The Vermont 50 is a great race. The organization is amazing. The aid stations and all the volunteers are incredibly nice and helpful. The course was well marked and easy to follow. The only real downside to this race is running with mountain bikes, and I am sure the bikers feel the same about riding with runners. The speed and way in which each group travels in so different. And especially navigating the tight single track together can be really frustrating. I felt like I was constantly jumping in the woods to avoid a rider. Or hammering to a stop as a rider in front of me had to jump off there bike to climb a hill. It really messes with your tempo and theres, and adds addition risk from bikes or injuries sustained from jumping off the trail while running down a hill. For the most part the bikers and runners were all really respectful and everyone was looking out for everyone else. But the basic design is not very compatible. I don't think there is a better option to put forth though. They can't ask volunteers to be there two days and split up the races, and they can't spread out the field much more than they already do. They also can't ask the generous landowners and community members to let us run and bike all over their land for another day. Participants of both groups are equally important for the success of the event and the money raised for Vermont Adaptive Sports. If you're going to participate in this race you just need to treat it as another element and challenge, and be prepared for it. 

Thanks to all the organizers, volunteers, and landowners who made this event a success yet again for the 20th year. I also would like to thank Zeke and Yuen for all the hard work they do for both the VT50 and 100. (We met while I was volunteering at the VT100 this past July) I was really happy to get to see them since they were so busy leading, organizing, and volunteering their asses off to make another Vermont race be great. A special thanks to Cecily for being a supreme handler and going way beyond the call of duty including and not limited to finding coffee filters late night before the race, responding with a positive attitude to my negative back seat driving on the morning of the race, driving us back to Maine after the race, and for all the food, love and care. Less than 24 hours later and I am feeling pretty decent which I fully credit to her and her ever present awesomeness.  


Friday, September 27, 2013

Vermont 50 - Equipment and Nutrition


I'm running my first 50 miler in a few days and here's what I'm using:

- two baggies of Tailwind Nutrition (150 calories each)
- one Probar cut in half (flavors Koka Moka and Original)
- two Amphipod 20oz water bottles  (Strap w/ out  pocket) 
- Hoka One One Bondi 2 shoes
- Dirty Girl Gaiters 
- Drymax Trail Socks 
- Race Ready LD shorts (modified) 
- Nike Pro Comp compressions shorts
- Patagonia silk weight capeline shirt  
- Garmin 910xt watch w/ HRM

I plan on fueling with Tailwind and water. I'm bringing the bars in case the tailwind doesn't feel like enough. I don't plan on using anything from the aid stations except water. I have tried tons of different hydration strategies and always come back to the Amphipod 20oz bottles w/ out pockets. I have been running in Hoka One One shoes the last year and a half. I recently switched from the Stinson Evo to the Bondi 2 which fit my feet better. I find that the Bondi's have a lower cut below the ankle though and I get more debris in them. So I am wearing the Dirty Girl Gaiters. They are great and I barely notice when I have them on. The Drymax trail socks have always done great by me so I'm sticking with them. I have a pair of Race Ready shorts that I love for the pockets. But I find, like I do with a lot of running shorts, that they bunch up in my crotch. So I cut them up and basically made them into a cross between shorts and a skirt. They feel great and don't bunch up anymore! I wear Nike Pro Comp compression shorts. They are more for chaffing than any compression benefits. I like them because they are $25 unlike a lot of "compression shorts" that cost much more. I've had the Patagonia shirt for 15 years and it still fits and feels great. What a company. I recent got the Garmin 910xt GPS watch and love it. Big and easy to read and not as heavy as it looks. Very user friendly and a 12 hour battery life. I use a heart rate monitor all the time now and find it really helps me gauge where I am at. It also keeps me from going out too hard. (or at least makes me aware when I do!) 


Here is what I will have in my drop bags:

- two baggies of Tailwind Nutrition (150 calories each) 
- two Probars 
- pair of socks

My crew (aka girlfriend) will have:

- two amphipod water bottles 20 oz 
- Tailwind
- Probars
- duct tape and scissors (foot care)
- pair of shoes (if the other blow up!)
- pair of socks 
- towel 

If all goes as planned I will trade my empty bottles for full ones with Tailwind and water at each handler aid station and that will be it. Everything else is just for backup. And backup to the backup. I'm leaving drop bags just in case my crew has some type of issue and doesn't make an aid station. I think the best thing I can do for my first 50 is keep the gear simple and focus on the running. Probably good advice for any 50 no matter how many you have run. I'll write a follow up race report and let you know how it went.