Ozark Trail 100 Mile Endurance Run

Getting ready for the Ozark Trail 100 Mile Endurance Run this weekend. My training has been just ok. I have been running lots of fast short runs (My average has probably been 10 miles at 6:55 pace), a few long runs of 20 miles, the Chicago Marathon (26 mi in 3:27) and one long run of 31 miles as a pacer on the Kettle Moraine course for the North Face 50 miler. This race will be interesting for me. I have not been able to stick to a strict training regimen as I have in the past for my 100 milers. Things like keeping the kids in line, building a hair salon in our basement for my wife (Only one item on a long list of To Do’s at our new house), working etc…have all come before my training. And rightly so… running isn’t everything. Especially when you have a wife and three kids.

As such, I am just setting a goal of finishing this race. I just want to be realistic and enjoy the race. If I’m not enjoying it and continually pushing trying to meet a certain time goal, it can become counter-productive and make for a long day. Plus, with this being the inaugural Ozark Trail 100 miler, nobody knows what the course is like yet. From what I can tell there's plenty of elevation change throughout the entire course, and 7 creek crossings. It's a point to point course, so I am very excited about not having to see the same thing twice! Here's a link to the race website where you can see the elevation chart and course map etc.... Click HERE.

A few things I’m trying different this time -

- I will be trying out Vespa for the first time in a race longer than marathon distance. I used it at the Chicago marathon, and have heard great things about it from runners who have used it for 100 milers. I’m looking forward to it.

- I will be eating a pre-race meal of a very rare steak, baked potato w/LOTS of sour cream, and a dessert of berries with heavy whipping cream. (Not carb loading…). This goes along with the Vespa plan….

- I will be using Nuun for the first time instead of Endurolytes for ease and to make sure I’m taking in enough. I have had trouble keeping on track in the past with Endurolytes. With Nuun it’s simple. Half or one full tablet per bottle. So every time I fill up I toss in a Nuun as opposed to setting my watch to remind me when to take an Endurolyte. Plus, I think it’s better to base your electrolyte consumtion on water consumption and the weather conditions, and not on time.

- I will be using pure Maltodextrin ordered from a bakery online. This is in hopes of not getting sick as I have in the past with using Perpetuem. I may eat some gels and down some Ensure for taste changes…. My uncle Dale tried this along with the Vespa at Arkansas Traveller 100 this year and it worked great.

- I will not be taking Hammer Anti-fatigue or Race Caps Supreme. Again, I am trying to make this as simple as possible. I’m hoping that cutting out the need to track how much of which thing I’m taking when, and where to keep it will help.

The weather looks good so far, and it sounds like the course is in okay condition. Apparently the ice storm that came through the lower half of the course last year did quite a bit of damage to the first part of the course. However, it sounds like the trail is cleared and is marked well. An update said to watch out for the huge voids left by the root balls of the trees that fell, because you might fall in. Must be some big trees….

So, I hope this goes well with all of the changes that I’ve made. If not, at least I tried. The only way to learn is to try and learn from what happens right??

Chicago Marathon 2009

So the Chicago Marathon is over. The race went ok. I didn’t have a qualifying marathon time to get me into the front corrals, so I had to start with the Open Field and work my way through the Open field up to the pace I was shooting for. My goal was to finish in 3:00-3:15. It took me about 12 – 13 miles to swim through the open field and finally get into a group that was running my pace.

By that time I had wasted so much energy I pretty much knew that my goal was not going to be met. So I stopped at charity mile and said hello to the UPS for DownS charity cheering section and my family for a few minutes, and soon after stopped at the porta potty for a few minutes.

I ended up finishing in 3:27. Just short of my goal.

However, the real goal of raising $20,000 for UPS for DownS was blown out of the water. I think we ended up raising about $50,000.

I also spoke to the charity group at the pre-race dinner two days before the race. It’s not often that I’m able to muster the courage to stand up in front of a big group of people and talk, but I did and it went great. I brought my 8-year old daughter who has Down Syndrome up with me, and she took the spotlight immediately as always. So that was also a victory…

All in all it was a good race, and I will probably try it again next year since I will have a better starting position with my time from this year as my qualifying time for next year.

Ozark Trail 100 Miler

It's official. I am now signed up for the Ozark Trail 100 miler Nov 7-8. I'm excited! Paul Schoenlaub and Stuart Johnson are the co-race directors. I have met and ran with both a few times. They are great people. It sounds like there's going to be many fellow ultra runners working the aid stations as well. Sounds like a recipe for success to me.

I was reviewing the entrants list and it looks like same group of runners that usually assemble down in Arkansas for Three Days of Syllamo, and Arkansas Traveller. It's a fantastic bunch of people that I have begun to get to know over the last few years. They are always very welcoming and friendly.

There will be many AURA and SLUG members in attendance, that's for sure. Most of the runners are from Missouri or Illinois, but many other states are represented as well.

As of August 17th there were 100 runners signed up from 24 states. Here's the breakdown;

Arkansas - 9
California - 2
Colorado - 2
Georgia - 1
Illinois - 14
Indiana - 3
Kansas - 5
Kentucky - 1
Michigan - 1
Minnesota - 4
Missouri - 32
North Carolina - 1
Nebraska - 1
New Mexico - 1
New York - 1
Ohio - 1
Oklahoma -2
Oregon - 1
South Dakota - 1
Tennessee - 4
Texas - 6
Utah - 1
Virginia - 2
Wisconsin - 4

Male - 83
Female - 17

M 20-29 - 5
M 30-39 - 26
M 40-49 - 29
M 50-59 - 17
M 60-69 - 6
M 70 + - 0

F 20-29 - 2
F 30-39 - 7
F 40-49 - 6
F 50-59 - 2
F 60-69 - 0
F70 + - 0

I'm looking forward to it! Maybe we'll see you there!

Busy summer....

It’s been a long time since I have posted here. This summer has been one of our busiest ever. So what did we do this summer?

- I helped my wife train for her first half-marathon (Rock n Roll Chicago Half), and she finished in 2hr 14min. That’s faster than my first half marathon! I was the crew chief this time, and was in charge of corralling the kids and getting to certain spots along the course where we could see her and cheer for her. This was more difficult for me than running a 100 miler!

- Helped out with the UPS for DownS charity team that ran the Rock n Roll Chicago Half as well.

- We moved! Although only 5 miles, it was very difficult with 3 kids and a dog….. we are still unpacking to this day…. There’s lots of stuff that comes along with moving too. Including but not limited to cleaning, painting, organizing, landscaping, etc…

- Traveled to Tennessee to visit the in-laws, who just retired and moved down there this summer.

- Our new house got struck by lightning. It hit the roof just above our bed. I had just laid in bed a minute before it hit. That was scary. It fried out lots of small things, but overall there was minimal damage. One of the worst things was that our underground dog fence got zapped, so now we have to walk the dog on a leash many times/day, which is very difficult having 3 kids… Anyone want a dog???

- Swam in the pool with the kids almost every day throughout the summer.

- Decided I couldn’t run the Superior Sawtooth 100 miler due to too much going on…

- I ran a self supported (Carried all of my water and nutrition on me the entire way) 32 mile training run all alone 3 weeks ago and wasn’t sore at all after.

- I have been doing some speed work with a friend at the local high school track. Yasso 800’s is what we usually do. This is new for me. I have never done speed work before.

- I have been running up the biggest hill I can find in our area. Usually 10-20 times per workout.

- My goal with the speed work is to try to finish the Chicago Marathon in 3 hrs. (Just for the heck of it – not running at Boston anytime soon) and ride that into the Ozark Trail 100 miler in November. I am anxious to see how the speed work affects my 100 mile pace.

So after a very busy summer, I am trying to get re-focused on my training. It’s been tough with work, kids going back to school, helping with the kid’s sports and school activities, and my allergies in full effect. But I’ll figure out how to get it all worked into the schedule. That means lots of 4 AM runs…. What a great way to start the day….

Kettle Moraine 100 miler

The short version – I finished in 20 hours and 28 minutes. Good for 14th place out of 126 starters. Full results are here.

The long version – The weather couldn’t have been better. It was overcast, mid-50’s to low 60’s for the temp, and just a little bit of rain. I felt great in all aspects – physically and mentally. I had an excellent crew lined up with uncle Dale pacing from the 100K point on. A friend of mine, Ben Niles, was planning on running in the Night Fun Run (38 miles) which started near the time that I expected to be back around Nordic (Start/Finish line). So maybe I’d get to run with him as well….

As I approached the start/finish area I noticed quite a few familiar faces and said hello to those I knew.

My strategy for this race was to minimize my time spent at aid stations, carry both of my bottles in my new Amphipod belt so I didn’t have to hold them the entire time, and try to stay at a very consistent pace throughout the race.

My pace was fairly consistent throughout most of the race, but was a bit faster than I had planned at the start. I was at a 19 hour pace until maybe mile 50, when I started to feel nauseous, and began to feel the urge to hurl often. I ate lots of ginger, but I couldn’t put the bottle of Perpetuem (My calorie source) to my lips, or there was an almost automatic gag reflex as soon as the bottle hit my lips.

As I came into the 100K turn around, I was feeling quite sick and hadn’t been able to take in much in the way of any kind of fuel, weather solid or fluid. Dale suggested that I slam an Ensure, eat more ginger, take a few ibuprofen, take some Endurolytes (electrolytes), eat some caffeinated gum, and stop being a wuss!

Ben was able to get started early on his night fun run (Since when is a 38 miler that starts at night and is on 98% single trac trails considered a “fun run”??? I’m still trying to figure that one out). Doesn’t matter, I was very happy to get the chance to run with him and my uncle from 100K to the finish. They kept the mood light with some “humor” (They should both keep their day jobs).

Dale kept me on my toes re:everything from correcting my gait to trying to diagnose what was causing my nausea. Dale thought it was either my new belt bouncing on my stomach, or lack of electrolytes. Looking back I think it was the lack of electrolytes.

By the time I arrived at Rice Lake (81.5 miles) I was toast. I hadn’t been eating anything at all, and wasn’t drinking enough either. I sat down here for the first time all day and wondered how I was going to get back to the finish. If I was going to I’d have to do it on guts alone (not much left in the tank there), or I’d have to figure out the nausea and start getting some calories down the hatch.

Turns out I wasn’t ever able to get much down after Rice Lake, but was able to keep my feet moving and get back to the finish line just 28 minutes over my target time of 20 hours. In the process I set a new 100 mi PR, beating my previous mark by 2 hours and 26 minutes, and beat my time from the same race last year by 3 hours.

There’s no way I could have done it without all of the race volunteers, my awesome crew including my awesome wife Cortney, my parents Janie and Lee, Uncle Phill and his nephew Will-I-am, Uncle Dale and Aunt Peggy, and Ben. That’s just the people that were there. My other sources of motivation include my three beautiful daughters, my other friends and family that couldn’t make the trip, and a group called UPS for DownS that is extremely close to my family’s heart.

If you’d like to find out more about UPS for DownS, or would like to donate, please click here.

National Running Day!

Today is National Running Day! Celebrate by - RUNNING today! Click HERE for a cool story from Time magazine. I'm currently reading this guy's book - Born to Run. I figured it would be good to read and get my mind focused on the Kettle Moraine 100 miler this weekend. Enjoy....

It's a beautiful thing....

Matt Hart from Montrail created this video for a presentation on ultrarunning. It captures some views along the trails that I have never been able to capture because I never carry a camera for fear of ruining it. It also captures some of the reasons why I have fallen in love with the sport. Enjoy!