It started innocently enough when one of my customers asked if I was running the Towpath Half Marathon. He said he was going with a big group of coworkers and suggested I join them on race day. It sounded like a great idea. After all, I had been consistently running and I had a considerable amount of fitness left from tri-season. Also, a group of my friends were running the half so joining everyone sounded fun.
While the 13.1 sounded nice, I knew deep down I really needed to ramp up my mileage for a 50k I signed up for in November. I gave serious thought to just sticking to my current training plan and just putting in some long steady miles. That's when the phone rang and my long time friend Suzanne, an accomplished ultra-runner, talked me into the full Towpath Marathon. She argued that I needed to get a long run in anyways, it would be a little longer than planned but that was OK, it would be fully supported so I wouldn't have to worry about race nutrition, and I could simply just go out at an easy training run pace. I knew deep down she was right and after a short discussion with my girlfriend she suggested I sign up. I was about 4 weeks out to "training" day so I needed to get a plan together.
I didn't have a lot of runway ahead of me to build up to the long runs usually incorporated into a marathon training plan so I needed to improvise. I knew I had a solid running base from years of tri's and half-marathons but it had been over a year since running the marathon at Ironman Muskoka, if you can even consider what I did there running. What I needed was to build up my strength and stamina quickly and the answer was hills and track workouts.
The towpath is generally flat so training on hills would make the flat course feel easy. Running the loop around Hinckley Reservation would be the perfect training ground to ramp up quickly. Each loop is just a hair over 3 miles and the elevation change was perfect for what I needed to accomplish. I ran there 2 times per week, tempo run on Thursdays and long run on Sundays. Tuesday evenings were dedicated to track workouts, Monday and Wednesday recovery runs and Friday and Saturday was typically a cross training day. Perfect.
The longest I had ran all year was 25 miles at the Burning River Relay at the beginning of August. However, this was not continuous as it was broken down into a 15 mile leg and later in the day a slightly over 9 mile leg. While the distance was there, it certainly didn't match up with your typical marathon distance training runs. In the weeks leading up to the marathon, I was able to get in one hilly 15 mile run at Hinckley. I knew that my distance was short for a proper marathon but it would have to do, I was out of time.
Race morning was interesting. There were a lot more people running than what I expected and I'm glad I arrived much earlier than required. I used the restroom and upon exit realized I had seriously beat the crowd. That took a lot of anxiety off me. I made quick check of Facebook and the FB Memories brought up a post from exactly 5 years earlier when I had ran my first Towpath Marathon. I distinctly recalled saying to myself, "That's a long way to run, I'll never f'in do that again." Little did I know that single day started the path to triathlon, Ironman, and a huge group of like minded friends.
I exchanged a few texts with my girlfriend Judie and she was kind enough to text me an ecard wishing me well on my marathon and not shitting my pants in public. She has a way of making me laugh and quite honestly that broke the morning's tension. Suzanne had decided to run and I bumped into her as she was headed to the bathrooms. She reminded me that this was a training run, treat it as so and don't go out too fast. I shook my head in agreement.
The starting line was about a 1/2 mile walk from the parking lot to the north on Riverview Rd. The air was brisk, mid 40's, and I was just wearing t-shirt and shorts. It was cold walking and waiting but I knew that once I was moving wearing anything more would have been too warm. At a few minutes after 8:00am the bell rang and we were off. The downhill start was easy and I quickly fell into a running rhythm. Boy, the flat run felt so easy compared to the hills at Hinckley, this was going to be a great race, oops I mean training run. As you might expect, I started off too quickly and my game plan quickly went up in smoke. At around 1:50 race time I hit the 13.1 mile mark. That's a damn good pace for me and certainly not a pace I should have been running at for a 26.2 mile distance. At least not with the training I had logged. It was such a beautiful fall day, the sun was low in the sky and the trees cast long shadows across the crushed limestone surface of the Towpath. I was in the moment and enjoying myself along the way. Until mile 16.
At mile 16, I noticed that my legs were starting to feel a little heavy. I checked my heart rate and it had crept up higher than it should have been. I slowed down, took deeper breaths and my heart rate started to settle down. My pace dropped to about a 9:40/mile and I needed to get back into my quicker turnover rhythm and settle into a 9:00 pace. I pushed on the gas and the response wasn't good, I felt slow and heavy. I hit an aid station and downed a gel and sports drink. This additional race nutrition helped me make it to mile 18 but significantly slower than planned. Now it was a race for survival. If you've have ever ran this far you know that the mind starts working on you. The dark thoughts from questioning why you are there to quitting come crashing in. I have said that sometimes controlling these thoughts are as hard as the physical effort of running. Ultimately, the lack of training for this distance and going out too quickly was starting to take its toll. Miles 19-22 were a combination of walk 1/10 run the rest. At mile 22 I started to get the twinge of calf cramps and could only run for short spurts to stave off the cramps. This went on until mile 25 when I finally got my second wind and ran into the finish for a respectable 4:29 marathon with little training. I'll take it.
Some highlights of the race: The CVNP is beautiful. The volunteers are awesome. The run surface is easy on the body. Seeing Judie and Lisa at mile 17 sporting signs and cheering me on gave me a lift in spirits. Todd Smith harassing me on the way out and walking with me on the return trip offering encouragement when I needed it. Suzanne asking me when we passed each other if I hated her for talking me into signing up. The solitude and quiet of running on the Towpath.
Some lowlights of the race: The solitude and quiet of running on the Towpath, the flat and straight doesn't keep the mind occupied long and gets boring. The stretch from miles 18-22 just seems to not want to end. Wrestling the demons that creep into your head when things start to hurt.
I'll wrap this report up the way I wrapped up my 2011 Towpath Marathon. "That's a long f'in way to run. I'll never do that again." Wait, there's an early signup discount?
Monday, October 10, 2016
Sunday, February 1, 2015
Run for Regis 2015. A lesson in pain...
Run for Regis is a challenging trail race in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park that offers various distances from as short as 13.1 miles to as long as 50k. It is primarily single track made up of two loops. One loop is a bit over 8 miles and has steep climbs, descents, and rolling trail. Loop two is 4.7 miles and not nearly as technical as loop one but make no mistake, it is not easy!
I was turned onto this race back in 2012 when I jumped online right as registration opened for the 2013 race. Since there is a limited number of spots, the race quickly sells out. With some changes in race leadership this year, the sellout took a little longer and at race time there were a lot more people that were enjoying their first 'Run for Regis'. There were also numerous race veterans who have been R4R supporters since the race inception.
In 2014, it was frigid on race day and if memory serves me it was 7 degrees as the 50k kicked off. I can recall saying to myself, "I'm not signing up for next year if it's going to be this cold". But, as registration opened for the 2015 race, I couldn't pass up the opportunity for early registration. I was counting on the near springlike conditions from the 2013 race. Boy, was I wrong...the 50k kicked off at 1 degree above zero. The difference is that in 2014 it stayed frigid but this year the temps were forecast to steadily rise to near 30 degrees. While I made one major mistake in this race, the thing I did do correctly was properly dress for the temperature and the warming trend expected through the morning.
The 50k kicked off at 7:30 with those of us running shorter distances crossing the starting line at 9:00. As we lined up for our start, I was quite aware of how stiff my right ankle felt. Like many other training runs and races, it typically loosened up as I warmed up so I paid little attention to the ankle and was distracted by the cold temps. The horn went off for our start and I fell into the single file line of runners as we started the longer loop. Once we made our first descent, the trail widens and I was able to break free from the pack and started running. Wow, I felt great. My legs were refreshed from the taper and the snowfall over the past weeks had actually made the trail easier to run. The roots, stones, and ruts were covered with packed snow making footing a little easier. At the pace I was comfortably running this was sure to be a PR.
I was 3 miles into the race and surprised that my ankle had not loosened up. Actually, I was becoming more aware of the discomfort. I pressed onward with my heart rate in my prescribed zone and moving swiftly along the trail at a PR pace. At the first aid station I downed a Kona Punch Powergel that was on the verge of freezing. The consistency was a lot thicker than normal and it reminded me of ice cream. I washed it down with two cups of ice cold Gatorade and hit the trail. The cold hit my stomach and caused a little abdominal cramping that went away as quickly as it presented itself. No worries rounding the lake and heading back towards the start.
The bulk of the return to the start/checkpoint is uphill, some easy to run, other parts were walk run. The return takes a loop on the Pine Grove trail. This is a relatively flat section of trail that attracts a lot of hikers and runners. The surface was snow packed but a little uneven from all the foot traffic and it really started working on my sore ankle. At this point, the discomfort was tuning into pain.. It is slightly over a 1/2 mile to the start as you exit the Pine Grove trail. I kept running but I walked up the rocky incline just short of the start and made the run into the start/check point.
The start/checkpoint aid station marks the beginning of loop number 2. I took in another Kona Punch Powergel, two cups of Gatorade and made the first and only mistake of this race, leaving the aid station. I was injured, the discomfort in my ankle was now painful but I didn't want to face a DNF so pride overruled commonsense and I ran out. This decision would haunt me for the next one hour and nine minutes. At this point, a PR race was no longer a reality.
As I ran out across the snow covered field to the trail I had rationalized that the pain would go away and the only place that I had to worry about was the unpacked snowy trail in front of Happy Days Lodge. This uneven surface would be difficult to run with my sore, unstable ankle and I gave myself permission to walk through this section. At the halfway point of loop two I was struggling with the pain. It was making me nauseous, my eyes water and my run turned into walk run. However, I figured if I pushed on running I would be done quicker. I made my way back towards the Ledges Shelter and ran in for the finish at 2:37:21.
I hobbled around my house Saturday night, and restlessly slept through the night. This race taught me that pain is pain and should be acknowledged. My pride overruled the need for self preservation and I can only hope that I haven't caused any permanent damage to my ankle. The coming week holds a break from running, a trip to the foot and ankle doctor, and a return to the pool. R4R, see you next year.
Thursday, February 6, 2014
Baring it all in Key West. Bone Island 70.3 Race Report (First race in my new AG: 45-49)
I remember the day I posted on Facebook, "Wow, this looks like a cool race!" Nearly a year later I found myself standing waste deep in the Atlantic Ocean waiting for the starting gun of the Bone Island 70.3 Triathlon. This race marked my 4th Half Iron distance race and will certainly be one of my most memorable.
TRI CAMP
My coach, professional triathlete A.J. Baucco, sent me an email in October about getting together for a tri camp at his winter quarters of Clermont, Florida. He had a grand scheme of getting together a large group of athletes and training for a week in the warm Florida weather culminating with a race in Key West, the Bone Island Tri. Really? I was all in. Fast forward to January.
"Come to Florida they said, it will be warm they said." Pushing off for our first ride of training camp proved to be a little cooler than I had hoped with temperatures topping out in the mid 50's. Cool yes, but a lot warmer than the negative temps back in Cleveland and there is something good to be said about the Florida sunshine and blue sky. It was a little cooler than typical for the area the whole week but it sure beats training indoors in Cleveland during the month of January.
The group that A.J. had hoped for never reached the intended numbers and I'm thankful. The 3 other camp members were a great group of guys and friendships quickly developed. We trained, played games in our down time, ate as a family, and joked around with each other as brothers. They always say time flies when your having fun and this was true with camp. With 200+ cycling miles, 25+ running miles, and countless yards in the pool it was time to wrap up camp. We bid farewell to 2 members that wouldn't be racing, grabbed our bike mechanic and we loaded up the truck for the trip to the southernmost point in the Continental US, Key West. While we may have lost two in Clermont we would be picking up two awesome members of Team Baucco in Key West.
MY RACE
The weather was absolutely amazing on race morning. The sunrise over Key West, the calm water, and warm breeze all combined to make the morning magical. The 5 of us from AJB Coaching gathered for a "team" picture and we all wished each other well as we readied ourselves for the wave start.
THE SWIM- Wave 4, 8:15 start. The horn blows and we are off. I took an inside line to start and fell into a nice rhythm sighting the first turn buoy fairly easily. During camp, we had practiced drafting techniques and I was about to give it a try. I tucked into the armpit of the swimmer next to me and matched his stroke. I was blown away at what little effort I needed to exert to maintain my speed. As I reached the first turn, it was obvious that my draft was not going to keep that pace up for the whole swim, I moved onto my next victim and drafted on his toes for nearly half the swim. As I sighted, a few things were quite obvious to me. #1. The course markings were really spread out and made sighting difficult. #2. This would not be the time to have a cardiac event because there was very little race support.
I noticed that I began passing green swim caps, the group that started 5 minutes in front of me, so I knew my swim was going well. I took a breath to my right and that's when I noticed the pink cap and distinctive swim stroke of team mate, Heidi. She started 5 minutes behind me so she was having a great swim! I kept turning over my arms for what seemed like an eternity and ended up climbing out of the swim at 42:22. This was significantly longer than my ability and I was kind of surprised. Later, I got word that the swim was just shy of a quarter mile longer than normal. This obviously affected every one's swim times so we were all in the same boat.
THE BIKE- When AJ started coaching me he insisted that I get a heart rate monitor. He used the heart rate monitor to set up training and performance heart rate zones ranging from "recovery" ZnR to "all out" Zn4. Racing and training in the zones with the monitor takes out the guesswork and allows you to maximize your performance. If you are not familiar with HR training there are tons of articles available on the Internet. While there are pros and cons, I have found HR training lets me know when I'm dogging it on days that I need to go hard and more importantly tells me when I'm going too hard on recovery workouts. Back to the race...
I felt great getting out of the water and quickly sprinted to my bike. I wasted no time in transition and was pedaling towards US-1 for the 28 mile out and back ride. A.J. gave me strict heart rate ranges for the bike and I was way out of my zone to start. I backed off on the gears, slowed my cadence and fell into a rhythm that brought my heart rate into my zone. The goal was to maximize output within the HR zone, refuel with PowerBar gels at 2 per hour, rehydrate with PowerBar Perform at 1.5 bottles per hour. This plan would be crucial in keeping the tank full heading into the run. One thing I've learned over the past two years is that proper nutrition on the bike will make your whole race.
If you've never been to the Florida Keys, US-1 is the main road tying the keys together and is essentially a 2 lane highway. Our bike course consisted of the roughly 3 foot wide berm of US-1 and you could expect to be passed by large RV's towing Jeeps, delivery and semi trucks, and any assortment of cars. Riding on such a busy road didn't really bother me at all but post race I heard a lot of comments that the traffic made them nervous.
About 15 miles into the ride another cyclists and I started playing cat and mouse. He'd pass, I'd chase, I'd pass, he'd chase. This went on for a few miles and as he started to pass again we talked to each other. He was from Seattle and the race was his first time riding outside in months. As we neared the halfway point, I noticed he was working hard to keep up with me. To be quite frank, I was holding back. We rounded the cone marking the half way turn around and now the cross wind was slightly on my right rear quarter. Time to hammer back to T2.
I took note that there were not that many people ahead of me so now it was time to really take advantage of a favorable wind, my solid nutrition plan, and my consistent training. I rolled up behind another 45-49 AG and you could tell this guy was a cyclist. Time for me to reach out of my comfort zone and pace off of him. I held on tight dropped a gear and went after him. My heart rate was at the top end of my zone and I didn't care, this was my competition. I watched the road ahead for a clear
pass when I heard a "clink" and I watched as my competition rolled off to the side with a dropped chain. I didn't let up and I finished the last few miles of the ride with nobody in sight in front or behind me.
THE RUN- I quickly transitioned and exited the bike corral and started running the HR zones A.J. suggested. I was running around 8:00 miles to start and I was super jacked up about how I felt. The run was two full loops and one small loop to total 13.1 miles. The aid stations were really far apart and offered water, cola, and the dreaded Hammer Heed. I have never been a fan of Heed's taste and it doesn't sit well in my stomach but that was my only choice to keep my sodium intake up. At the first stop, I took in Heed, poured a bottle of water down my neck to cool off, and grabbed a gel. I was about to open the gel but the flavor just sounded gross so I tossed it and pressed onward. Looking back, I think it is time for me to pick up a fuel belt and carry what works for me. I don't process Heed very well and I have upcoming races that will have Heed on the course.
As I finished loop one and headed back out to loop two it was evident that it had warmed up considerably. At one point on the course, I took note that the pigeons were all sitting on the ground in the shadow of the light posts and curiously watched me as I passed them. It was as if they were wondering why I was running and I asked myself why am I doing this? I'm nearly 45 years old and many of the guys my age are sitting around a bar drinking beer, 45 pounds overweight and bitching about life. There was my answer, I'm living my life and enjoying every step along the way. After all, have you met anyone that bitched about crossing a finish line and completing a goal? Time to turn the voices in the head off and push onward. Pigeons, I'll see you again on lap 3.
I grabbed water and cola at the aid station, I couldn't stomach the thought of drinking Heed. As I rounded the distant turn my pace had slowed considerably. My heart rate was up from the heat, my foot turnover was nowhere near where it had been. At this point, I made it my goal to run easy until the shaded area about 3/4 of a mile ahead. Then I would buckle down and push. Did I mention it was getting hot? The push to finish loop two was on and off, I wanted to keep my heart rate in the zone but also didn't want to walk.
Thankfully, the last loop was just a short loop maybe 1/3 the distance of the previous loop. I buckled down and kept the legs turning over. As I rounded the turn and headed towards the finish I heard a spectator comment, "nice leg turnover, keep it going, you got this!" He was right, I did have it and I crossed the finish line to the cheers of my teammates for my 4th Half Ironman Finish and an 8:00 PR.
THE KEY WEST AFTER PARTY - Sorry folks, you just had to be there. Let's just say I may have the script for Hangover 4.
TRI CAMP
My coach, professional triathlete A.J. Baucco, sent me an email in October about getting together for a tri camp at his winter quarters of Clermont, Florida. He had a grand scheme of getting together a large group of athletes and training for a week in the warm Florida weather culminating with a race in Key West, the Bone Island Tri. Really? I was all in. Fast forward to January.
"Come to Florida they said, it will be warm they said." Pushing off for our first ride of training camp proved to be a little cooler than I had hoped with temperatures topping out in the mid 50's. Cool yes, but a lot warmer than the negative temps back in Cleveland and there is something good to be said about the Florida sunshine and blue sky. It was a little cooler than typical for the area the whole week but it sure beats training indoors in Cleveland during the month of January.
The group that A.J. had hoped for never reached the intended numbers and I'm thankful. The 3 other camp members were a great group of guys and friendships quickly developed. We trained, played games in our down time, ate as a family, and joked around with each other as brothers. They always say time flies when your having fun and this was true with camp. With 200+ cycling miles, 25+ running miles, and countless yards in the pool it was time to wrap up camp. We bid farewell to 2 members that wouldn't be racing, grabbed our bike mechanic and we loaded up the truck for the trip to the southernmost point in the Continental US, Key West. While we may have lost two in Clermont we would be picking up two awesome members of Team Baucco in Key West.
MY RACE
The weather was absolutely amazing on race morning. The sunrise over Key West, the calm water, and warm breeze all combined to make the morning magical. The 5 of us from AJB Coaching gathered for a "team" picture and we all wished each other well as we readied ourselves for the wave start.
THE SWIM- Wave 4, 8:15 start. The horn blows and we are off. I took an inside line to start and fell into a nice rhythm sighting the first turn buoy fairly easily. During camp, we had practiced drafting techniques and I was about to give it a try. I tucked into the armpit of the swimmer next to me and matched his stroke. I was blown away at what little effort I needed to exert to maintain my speed. As I reached the first turn, it was obvious that my draft was not going to keep that pace up for the whole swim, I moved onto my next victim and drafted on his toes for nearly half the swim. As I sighted, a few things were quite obvious to me. #1. The course markings were really spread out and made sighting difficult. #2. This would not be the time to have a cardiac event because there was very little race support.
I noticed that I began passing green swim caps, the group that started 5 minutes in front of me, so I knew my swim was going well. I took a breath to my right and that's when I noticed the pink cap and distinctive swim stroke of team mate, Heidi. She started 5 minutes behind me so she was having a great swim! I kept turning over my arms for what seemed like an eternity and ended up climbing out of the swim at 42:22. This was significantly longer than my ability and I was kind of surprised. Later, I got word that the swim was just shy of a quarter mile longer than normal. This obviously affected every one's swim times so we were all in the same boat.
THE BIKE- When AJ started coaching me he insisted that I get a heart rate monitor. He used the heart rate monitor to set up training and performance heart rate zones ranging from "recovery" ZnR to "all out" Zn4. Racing and training in the zones with the monitor takes out the guesswork and allows you to maximize your performance. If you are not familiar with HR training there are tons of articles available on the Internet. While there are pros and cons, I have found HR training lets me know when I'm dogging it on days that I need to go hard and more importantly tells me when I'm going too hard on recovery workouts. Back to the race...
I felt great getting out of the water and quickly sprinted to my bike. I wasted no time in transition and was pedaling towards US-1 for the 28 mile out and back ride. A.J. gave me strict heart rate ranges for the bike and I was way out of my zone to start. I backed off on the gears, slowed my cadence and fell into a rhythm that brought my heart rate into my zone. The goal was to maximize output within the HR zone, refuel with PowerBar gels at 2 per hour, rehydrate with PowerBar Perform at 1.5 bottles per hour. This plan would be crucial in keeping the tank full heading into the run. One thing I've learned over the past two years is that proper nutrition on the bike will make your whole race.
If you've never been to the Florida Keys, US-1 is the main road tying the keys together and is essentially a 2 lane highway. Our bike course consisted of the roughly 3 foot wide berm of US-1 and you could expect to be passed by large RV's towing Jeeps, delivery and semi trucks, and any assortment of cars. Riding on such a busy road didn't really bother me at all but post race I heard a lot of comments that the traffic made them nervous.
About 15 miles into the ride another cyclists and I started playing cat and mouse. He'd pass, I'd chase, I'd pass, he'd chase. This went on for a few miles and as he started to pass again we talked to each other. He was from Seattle and the race was his first time riding outside in months. As we neared the halfway point, I noticed he was working hard to keep up with me. To be quite frank, I was holding back. We rounded the cone marking the half way turn around and now the cross wind was slightly on my right rear quarter. Time to hammer back to T2.
I took note that there were not that many people ahead of me so now it was time to really take advantage of a favorable wind, my solid nutrition plan, and my consistent training. I rolled up behind another 45-49 AG and you could tell this guy was a cyclist. Time for me to reach out of my comfort zone and pace off of him. I held on tight dropped a gear and went after him. My heart rate was at the top end of my zone and I didn't care, this was my competition. I watched the road ahead for a clear
pass when I heard a "clink" and I watched as my competition rolled off to the side with a dropped chain. I didn't let up and I finished the last few miles of the ride with nobody in sight in front or behind me.
THE RUN- I quickly transitioned and exited the bike corral and started running the HR zones A.J. suggested. I was running around 8:00 miles to start and I was super jacked up about how I felt. The run was two full loops and one small loop to total 13.1 miles. The aid stations were really far apart and offered water, cola, and the dreaded Hammer Heed. I have never been a fan of Heed's taste and it doesn't sit well in my stomach but that was my only choice to keep my sodium intake up. At the first stop, I took in Heed, poured a bottle of water down my neck to cool off, and grabbed a gel. I was about to open the gel but the flavor just sounded gross so I tossed it and pressed onward. Looking back, I think it is time for me to pick up a fuel belt and carry what works for me. I don't process Heed very well and I have upcoming races that will have Heed on the course.
As I finished loop one and headed back out to loop two it was evident that it had warmed up considerably. At one point on the course, I took note that the pigeons were all sitting on the ground in the shadow of the light posts and curiously watched me as I passed them. It was as if they were wondering why I was running and I asked myself why am I doing this? I'm nearly 45 years old and many of the guys my age are sitting around a bar drinking beer, 45 pounds overweight and bitching about life. There was my answer, I'm living my life and enjoying every step along the way. After all, have you met anyone that bitched about crossing a finish line and completing a goal? Time to turn the voices in the head off and push onward. Pigeons, I'll see you again on lap 3.
I grabbed water and cola at the aid station, I couldn't stomach the thought of drinking Heed. As I rounded the distant turn my pace had slowed considerably. My heart rate was up from the heat, my foot turnover was nowhere near where it had been. At this point, I made it my goal to run easy until the shaded area about 3/4 of a mile ahead. Then I would buckle down and push. Did I mention it was getting hot? The push to finish loop two was on and off, I wanted to keep my heart rate in the zone but also didn't want to walk.
Thankfully, the last loop was just a short loop maybe 1/3 the distance of the previous loop. I buckled down and kept the legs turning over. As I rounded the turn and headed towards the finish I heard a spectator comment, "nice leg turnover, keep it going, you got this!" He was right, I did have it and I crossed the finish line to the cheers of my teammates for my 4th Half Ironman Finish and an 8:00 PR.
THE KEY WEST AFTER PARTY - Sorry folks, you just had to be there. Let's just say I may have the script for Hangover 4.
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