Tushar 93K Race

Tushar 93K Race


Last Saturday, way out in the Tushar Mountains, was the Tushar 93K race. Part of the US Skyrunning Ultra series, this inaugural race came just 13 days after the Power of Four 50K in Aspen. After the Power of Four my quads had some pretty good DOMS, and I really didn't do much running. A couple days of rest and the DOMS wore off and I was able to run a couple good runs on the local hills. I felt fairly good about the upcoming race and was excited to get on the road.

We left Thursday after work and drove out to Grand Junction for the night, then continued on to Beaver, Utah the following day. There is not a lot to the town of Beaver, and hanging out in town one thinks they are in a semi-desert wasteland. However, driving up the canyon towards Eagle Point Ski Area and the start of the race, the environment begins to change and pretty soon you are up in the desert alpine of the Tushar Mountains. I didn't really pay much attention to the course profile or description, hoping not to scare myself or get too psyched out. Rather, I tried to just go into the race as a "long day in the mountains."

Saturday morning the race got under way at 5am. It was pretty casual, and we all started mellow under the fading light of the full moon. I quickly fell into pace with Scott out of Salt Lake and we joked how our goal was to finish before it got dark again - 16 hours roughly. Little did I know that that was just about right for me.

The course was killer. It was a massive lollipop course with one serious out and back at the half way point. All of the course was either at treeline or above it, with a few sections where you dropped down to around 10,000' before climbing back up to the alpine. Most of it was on singletrack or overgrown, grass slopes, some talus, a bit of alpine tundra, with a few small sections of jeep road thrown in for fun. There is very little that one would consider "smooth, flowy trail" but rather "tight, technical, rocky trail" is what the course consisted of. The views were out of this world, the wildflowers were over the top, and the summits made the long climbs worth it. It was a true Skyrunning course.

My race went well. I stayed consistent most of the day, just chugging along trying to run when I could, but mostly power-hiking as fast as I could. As the day wore on, despite being tired, I was pretty happy with how I felt - I was able to keep moving and my spirits were high all day. I can't say that was the case for everyone, as over half the field dropped or were timed out. I didn't bring my camera, something that I cursed myself for during the race as it was so beautiful, but I've stolen a couple photos from other runners to showcase just how amazing this course is.

I crossed the finish line just as it was getting too dark to see without a headlamp, almost exactly 16 hours after starting. That's right, it took me 16:02:47 to cover 57 miles and 16,500' of gain. Good enough for 18th place overall, 3rd master. The winner took over 12 hours, so that should give some idea of how brutal a course this was. The aid stations were amazing - one had a live red-tail hawk just hanging out - and the volunteers really made the race. Without them I doubt that I would have finished.

 Views of the Swell on the way out...

 View from the start at Eagle Point Ski Area

 5AM Start

 It was an amazing sunrise that morning...

 View of the Tushars looking down at Blue Lake. We descended all the way down to the lake, then climbed up past it and to a saddle just outside of the photo on the right. This was only the 5th of 11 climbs. Photo from Scott Zipprich.

 Typical view with wildflowers on the course. Photo from Scott Zipprich.

 We ran along this for a bit - simply amazing!

 Sunrise with runners on the course. Photo from Austin Baird.

 

Big climb up Copper Belt Peak at the halfway point. Again, amazing views. Photo from Scott Zipprich.

 Typical views and running terrain.

 More views of the "course".

 

And done!

Audi Power of Four Race

Audi Power of Four Race


I went into the Audi Power of Four 50K race with a couple goals in mind: get points in the US Skyrunning series, stay steady and strong for the entire race - don't crash and burn, and use it as a build up race for Nolan's. I'd say I accomplished all three goals, but I still was a bit disappointed in myself.

I won't go into a turn by turn race report, as that really only helps those who ran the course. Instead, the quick summary of the day is that there were three major climbs, two major descents, some traversing, meandering, and then a final mellow descent down to the finish. It rained off and on all day, making the course extremely muddy and wet, but it kept the heat down which was a good thing. I've heard a lot of people gripping about the first part of the course, where we went straight up Aspen and Highlands - pure powerhiking. I've also heard some people complain about the descent off Highlands - straight down ~2,000 in just under 2 miles. I found those sections to be fun and challenging, just what I would expect from a skyrace. My complaint with the course was the last section on Snowmass where we tooled around on tedious singletrack switchbacking slowly down to get in the correct miles to equal a 50K. Basically, I hated the running part!

And really, that is where I fell apart. Going up, going down, no problem, but the long traverse over to Snowmass in the deep mud, and then the tooling around on Snowmass for over 7K to just get in some random miles really killed my spirits and I mentally threw in the towel. I guess I'm just not a "runner" deep down.

I ended up 7th Master and 37th Overall. My watch said the race was 33 miles with 11,000' of gain. Despite my mental failure, I had a great time at the race - incredible course, great aid station volunteers, and a pretty fun day out in the mountains. If there were any complaints, it would be more options at the aid stations (pretty much only water, a few had Coke, and some Clif products) and some sort of medal at the finish line. This last thing seems to be a trend with the Skyraces, perhaps because the RDs need to pay the Skyrunning Federation too much to be part of the series or something, but I know mentally I really wanted something to prove that I slogged through that course. Now I've got less then six days to continue to recover and prep before the Tushar 93K in middle-of-nowhere Utah.

Spring - Training Starts

Spring - Training Starts


Today is the first day of spring, and that means training needs to get serious for any summer projects or goals to be completed. Last year I was already well into my G & T Challenge, which consumed one of my two free days every week, preventing me from focusing 100% on any other goals. This year my two main goals, as stated before, are to do Nolan's and to race in the US Skyrunning Ultra series. The two goals do not go hand in hand, as Nolan's is a long walk in the mountains, while the US Skyrunning races are fast 50Ks (Tushar is 50 miles) on fairly runnable courses. As such, I need to build massive endurance and vertical stamina, while also somehow maintaining any leg speed and tempo endurance I have gained over the winter. Not an easy task, and one that I continue to struggle with in my mind. My work and volunteer schedule keeps my life pretty tight, but my plans right now are to focus on recovery, tempo, and fast speed work during the week when I have only about 1 hour each day before catching the bus to work. On my two free days, I am hoping to spend them slogging up and down mountains to get in the massive vertical training necessary for Nolans. How these two opposing training plans mesh is up in the air, but that is the idea going in from here on out. I will also be taking a random day off when I can to try and get one more long, vertical oriented day starting in April. Not sure how it will all work out, but that is the "plan".

So, to start it off, I did the M5 challenge today. I've done this before, and it is always a killer. Run (hike) up and down Mt. Morrison's southeast ridge 5 times for a total of around 10,000' and 20 miles. It went well, but I could certainly tell that I didn't have my climbing legs as I have done more road stuff over the winter.

 Long's Peak from the summit of Mt. Morrison.

Pike's Peak from the summit. So crystal clear this morning, you could see forever...

Speaking of which, last Saturday I ran the Erin Go Braugh 7.77K race in Westminster. This was the shortest race I have ever run, and I had little idea what I was getting into. Most of the winter has been spent building a solid base, with some surge runs thrown in here and there, and an occasional tempo run as well, along with vertical slogs. I figured I would just go as fast as possible from the gun and see if I could not hold on. After a mellow warm-up, I lined up and took off with the lead pack. I instantly hit a wall but kept pushing and trying to keep pace. The pack thinned out and I soon found myself running alone. Umm, I thought that only happened in ultras, not fast road races? At the turn around, I noticed that I was not alone, and the entire 400+ field was right behind me. I kept pushing, chanting positive mantras over and over in my head and just praying that I could hold on. I could feel a good burn in the legs, and my stomach started to get acidic, but I just steeled my eyes on the finish and kept pushing. I crossed the finish line and instantly threw up, right there off to the side. Nothing bad, mostly just a tad bit of water/stomach acid. This is the first (and only) time I've every tossed my stomach after only running for 4.8 miles! I guess I was pretty much at my limit. At the results, I found out I was 8th overall, and 2nd in my age group, which was a shocker. Pretty good for a MUT oriented runner I think. I might have to see if I can't loose my breakfast in an even shorter race!

Notice my hat above, pretty cool. Here is a better shot.

I got it from the magazine Like the Wind, out of the UK. I also wrote a piece for them, which finally showed up in their latest issue. Pretty psyched to have my name in print alongside Bill Rodgers (yes, him), Dakota Jones, Guy Oliver, and a slew of other running writers.

I had a good friend make me some custom snow tools for this coming season. Made by Paul Sibley, one of the original climbers of the area from back in the '60s and '70s, he did a great job. They are made of aluminum and titanium and are perfect for moving fast over snowfields on the local mountains. I got a set of two, one for each hand.

Ran up Grays and Torreys a week or so again, testing snowshoes once more. Not much snow compared to last year, but I still really enjoy the mountain and area. Soon the better lines will open up and some serious adventures can be had.

The Apex trails are running so nice right now...

Got a first-hand look at the Rowdy Mermaid kombucha brewery yesterday. Jamba is turning out some incredible flavors and brews. If I could, I'd drink a bottle a day simply for the health reasons.

Finally, I picked up about 200 pairs of old, used running shoes from BRC Littleton. I was thinking, most people are excited about spring because of the flowers, longer days, warm weather, etc. I picked up these shoes, filling my little VW Rabbit to the max, and was thankful that it was warm enough to keep the windows down. Nothing like a car full of used running shoes with the windows up and the heat on...

2015 USA Cross Country Championships And Sourdough Snowshoe Race

2015 USA Cross Country Championships and Sourdough Snowshoe Race


I don't have a lot of wisdom concerning cross country, having never run an XC race before (but wanting to now), but I do have one thought that has been going through my mind. I had the honor of getting a press pass so that I could sit right at the finish line and take photos and notes from the runners. It was an amazing experience to be able to be right there when the elites came across the line, and then to be in the midst of the chaos as athletes collapsed to the ground, officials directed runners to certain areas, press people surrounded the winners, with people on the sidelines yelling their hearts out at teammates. Some runners came across and seemed to recover quickly, while others fell apart and had to be dragged over to the tent and in the shade. The level of effort left out on the course was inspiring. My one thought has to do with the current scientific thinking around fatigue and what I witnessed out on the course. Science has shown that we never really run out of energy, and that it is not our muscles or the actual build-up of lactate or other bi-products in the muscles that cause fatigue. Rather, the current thinking has to do with the idea of a "central governor" that controls our efforts and monitors our body. When we start to get out of homeostasis the central governor begins to shut our muscles down to preserve itself. Fatigue in this model is really a trick, a trick our brain plays on us to preserve itself. What I saw during the race is that the Juniors and some of the Elite/Open men and women seem to be able to overcome their central governor and push one level beyond. This was especially evident among the Juniors, as many of them came in to the finish line and instantly collapsed, blacking out for a brief moment, and taking some time before they were able to walk again. The Masters and many of the Elite runners did not reach this level of effort, they ran using their mind, while the Juniors, young and throwing it all out there, somehow were able to run past their mental limits and push into that zone of pure physical limits.

So, my thought, quick and unformulated as it is, is that as we become better at our sports, we develop mental attributes that allow us to be better runners - knowing how to pace, pushing through hurdles, training smarter, etc. However, this mental development also hinders us at a critical point, the point where we need to push beyond all of our known limits and find one more gear. The Juniors, still young and running on physical and emotional strengths don't have that mental limit yet - they simply have not reached it - so they go all out and simply collapse at the end. Spectacular and something to think about. How often do you really go all out? Probably not as often as you should.

Photos from the race (some more good ones on Boulder Running here).

 Kaitlyn Benner and Val Constien out front (no central governor holding them back)

 Kaitlyn Benner winning in spectacular fashion.

 About to collapse...

 The aftermath...

 Conner Mantz winning the Junior Men's race.

 Paul Roberts from Lyons showing what it takes to go to China (no central governor again).

 CU's Paul Miller pale and dazed - but going to China (no central governor)

 Women's Open at the start.

 Laura Thweatt and Sara Hall dueling it out at the start of the last lap.

 Boom!

 Men's Open start.

 Chris Derrick making a surge.

 Derrick making the "3-peat goggle" sign at the finish.

 Sportsmanship.

Does this man exist?

In other news, I ran the Sourdough 30K Snowshoe race last week. "Running" 18+ miles with snowshoes is !*$king hard! Great time, but I failed with my nutrition and lost four places within the final 2 miles. Totally my fault, and something I will focus on next time. Still, great time. Finished 9th overall in 4:16.

2014 Review, New Science Articles, Colorado Ultra Runners Of The Year

2014 Review, New Science Articles, Colorado Ultra Runners of the Year


It's already five days into 2015, and things are already heating up (literally, if you are paying attention to today's weather compared to the past two weeks). 2014 turned out to be a good year, and I was able to accomplish several of my goals: finish the G & T Challenge, run and rank in the US Skyrunning series, get back into climbing and boulder V9/10, have some adventures, and run some races. The one goal that I failed on was doing Nolans, which as I look back now, other then the logistical and planning errors, was also hampered by the G & T challenge. In fact, a lot of my other goals were slightly compromised by the challenge, simply because I never got to have a week off, a down week, or anything similar. Although such a challenge didn't wear me out, it certainly didn't keep a spring in my step or allow for proper rest and tapers. I've only been "running" for three years consistently, so I don't have the logs to compare to over the years to see just how 2014 stacked up, but here are some numbers.

2014

Miles: 3,167.5
Vertical Gain: 713,897'
Hours: 559.92
Peaks: 184 summits, 71 14ers, 27 13ers, and a bunch of others

2013

Miles: 2,747.23
Vertical Gain: 521,943'
Hours: 399.81

2012

See here, no stats, but a narrative recap.

I want to say that I'm getting faster/stronger, but it is hard to tell that from the numbers. I don't have PR times at set distances to see if I have actually improved, but I want to say that the numbers support my perceived gains: in 2014 I was able to run 420.27 miles further, with 191,954' more of gain, in only 160.11 hours more time. My average miles per hour, however was slower: 5.6 in 2014 and 6.8 in 2013. Perhaps that extra 191,954' of gain explains that.

Plans for 2015 are still in the works, but they involve running the US Skyrunning Ultra series, with an aim for top 5 overall, attempting Nolans again (early summer), doing some other races, and climbing V12 if possible. I will be a master this year, so we will see if that means anything. I believe I have a good shot at the US Skyrunning series since it will be a major focus, and I won't have the G & T challenge to slow my leg speed down. As for Nolans, well, we will see, although I'm more confident then last year with more experience under my belt. Climbing V12 should be possible if everything stays on track, as I am now back to my 2011 strength, and V10s are regularly within my range. As for other races, I'm planning on the Sourdough snowshoe 30K, the Twin Mountain Trudge, and then trying to figure out a spring that will benefit an early Nolans attempt. I'm currently thinking something like 24 hours of Utah (March 21-22) for the all day effort experience, Desert Rats 25 miler (April 18), Collegiate Peaks 50 (May 2), then give it a go early June. I would prefer some more mountainous races, but there doesn't seem to be any around.

I wrote a recap of the 2014 Ultra Performances of the Year by Colorado runners for Colorado Runner Magazine. A lot of amazing races and performances last year, and I hope to keep track again and put together an even more comprehensive list next year. 

Obviously, I run a lot at sunrise, but that is a perfect time to get out and get in a solid run up the mountain. Hence, my sunrise heavy photos.

Finally, another set of very interesting and informative articles on running and endurance performance.

• Nutrition and the Adaptation to Endurance Training
• A Step Towards Personalized Sports Nutrition: Carbohydrate Intake During Exercise
• Dietary Nitrate Supplementation and Exercise Performance
• New Insights into the Interaction of Carbohydrate and Fat Metabolism During Exercise