T.M.I. 18 Miler

After last weekends' deuce of long run fails I felt some pressure to get 18 miles logged. The mileage actually didn't phase me too much. I wasn't nervous about whether or not I could complete it, especially when I thought of it as two loops around the Sandrat trail. But, unfortunately, even though I tried hard to eat clean this week I ran into some unknown trigger ingredients towards the end of the week. I suspect decaf coffee uses corn as a preservative on the beans and also in the de-caffeination process. Companies will swear up and down they don't use any chemicals, blah-blah in their process but corn avoiders pretty much have a hard time finding a safe coffee -especially decaf. Anyway that and a couple other ingredients led to some more days where I just felt sluggish and had bodily function problems.
Never-the-less, I got out to the trail a 1/2 hour earlier than the usual meet-up time to run 2 miles. Shaving those off left me with two 8 mile loops.
Gary was waiting in his car as I came out of the woods. After waiting around a bit we decided no one else was coming and set off into the forest. I like running with Gary because he lets me fly at my own pace and has lots of conversation for keeping your mind occupied. We talked about jobs, family, endurance running and the Hawk 50. We saw mulberries and snake berries (pictured to the right). We ran into our fellow Trail Hawk, Christine, who was a Hawk Marathon finisher last weekend. And then Gary taught me a big trail lesson I'd been wanting to know about: Poison Ivy. Because the trail is a popular biking trail for weekend warriors (the ones that don't know the rules of the trail and that the runner actually has the right of way), we have to quickly step aside off the trail as they come swishing by at top speed. They almost never slow down. They barely say thanks. Mostly they just breeze by as we are teetering on the edge of the singletrack and the brush just glad to have seen them in time to hop out of the way. Well, I had be worrying that every time I'd jump to the side, I was standing in poison ivy. It turns out I was right, it's everywhere. Gary had me point it out along the way (I think I got pretty good!). The trail is maintained super well but still, there's so much poison ivy that it seems a matter of time before I'm going to come in contact with it.
While chatting we were trying to come up with a Trail Hawk name. It's customary for each new member (I finally paid up in dues) to be named out on their next trail run. Laurie had already came up with a hilarious name about a month or so ago but then Gary suggested 'Bama Hawk.' It's hard to sum up who you are in one little name, but as soon as he said that I thought, yeah, I got a soft spot in me for the deep south. And it stuck.

Southern Girl, Erykah Badu (Link to Play or Lyrics)

After about 8 miles, where I'd felt pretty good, the cramping came back. Gary thought it was salt/water intake. It was warm but I'd ran farther distances in lots of warm weather and I knew from experience and from the days before that it was my food issues. I was still paying for mess ups the day before. Heck I still had eczema and issues from a week ago when I ate wheat.
I slowed down a lot and started walking off and on. ARGH. Makes me want to pull my hair out that my body overreacts to food that isn't truly a poison.
I thought about taking a break and going to a bathroom where I could deal with part of the issue. But, I was so thrown by my previous failed attempts that I couldn't let myself stop, even if it was just a break. I was worried I'd go home and log another too-short attempt.
So after saying goodbye to Gary I headed back into the cooler woods and plugged my ear buds into my ears. Surely the scenery, the music and the cooler forest would help move me forward the last 8 miles. Relentless forward motion as they say.
I did move for a few miles but then as a lovely biker came hurling towards me around a corner. I stepped out of the way in time but he chose to stay in the middle of the path instead of hugging the opposite side of the trail (as I was) and totally clipped me.
*#@*% BIKERS!!!!!
It hurt but wasn't lasting. More frustrating than anything else. And sometime soon after that the cramps and nausea came back and the last 6 miles were a battle. The closer I got to finishing the worse I felt. I just needed to get the h-e-double hockey sticks off the trail.
But I wasn't going home early that's for sure. I was sticking it out if my body had to blow up and all I had left was legs.
I was finishing.
And I did.

18 miles DOWN!

Food that worked: Coconut Water, Whole Foods Electrolyte Water, Reed's Ginger Chews (2), Chocolate #9 Agave Gel @ 6mi., Banana @ 10 mi.

Next up: Storm the Dam Trail Half Marathon, El Dorado, Kansas

16 and Build'n

If it was a snake, it would've bit me!

I thought this was a sleek, black, shiny, long snake as I was running up to it. Luckily it was just a trick stick.

That's what happens when you're out running for two and a half hours! Ya start see'n things! Actually, it was a relatively easy run that I really enjoyed. My legs took a couple miles to warm up and then at six, I got distracted and my foot caught a root. BAM! I was eating dirt. Ugh. I get so pissed off at myself for doing that. My knee HURT too. Just ached for the next three to four miles. Then the pain disappeared for the rest of the run. Whew!
At mile eight I stopped off at the car to wipe up the dirt and scratches a bit, top off my Nathan and grab a little food. I had a Reed's Ginger Chew on the first loop and coconut water. Even though I wasn't exactly hungry, I wanted to start playing with eating more solid foods. The most I've done so far I think is to eat an all natural, organic fruit leather in mango, Justin's Almond Butter & Maple Syrup, and Chocolate #9 Agave Energy Gel. Which has all worked out great. This time I ate a RAW Organic Food Bar in Chocolate Chip (Ingredients: Organic Cashew Butter, Organic Dates, Organic Agave Nectar, Organic Brown Rice Protein, Organic Dark Chocolate Chips (Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Organic Chocolate Liquor, Organic Cocoa Butter, Non-GMO Soy Lecithin), Quinoa, Flax). I cut the bar up in tiny, bite sized pieces and stored them in a snack baggie. This worked out okay although the baggy was kinda hard to stuff into and pull out of my already-used chest pocket. I really need a smaller bag. But, the bite sized pieces were perfect for eating slowly. I'm finding so far that I can eat while running, but I have to do it slowly over a mile or more. I eat a little and drink a few sips, then as soon as I can, do it again. Maybe this is good anyways for a constant supply of energy while requesting my stomach to work a little at a time.
Otherwise, nothing new out there - just logged the miles, felt great and went home. :)

Dogwood Canyon 25K Trail Race Report

This is the 2nd year for Bass Pro's Dogwood Canyon Trail race. The trail is located a little over an hour SW of Springfield, MO and dips into Arkansas a bit as well. This part of the Mark Twain National Forest is actually private land of the owner of Bass Pro Shop.
The Web site for this race completely sucked. Maps were promised and never posted. In fact, the forest was easy to get to using my iPhone GPS but we only found the entrance to the Dogwood Canyon park because of 5 cars turning there in a row. Had we been on our own a few minutes before, we would have certainly driven right by. Additionally, more race info should have been posted to the site. Since I am not from this area, I had no idea about the terrain. All I knew to train for was the mileage and "trails." The obvious. Well, trails can certainly vary in description... city/park trails, bridal paths, cut grass paths, single track, double track, paved.... How easy would it have been to post some pictures and/or post a more descriptive review of the challenges? Challenging it was and a few words about what to train for would have certainly focused my training runs to hills, hills and more hills! And I know true trail races might factor in hills but an elevation map was promised and in this race, the elevation change was the most significant factor in the race and they should have posted it. I need to send an email with that suggestion to the race director for next year.
There are two options for this race, the 25K (which I did) and the 50K. Weather: Although it had been freezing and winter-like all week, we woke up to temps in the 50s and a race day ending in the 60s although, it rained alot during the race.
We took off from the Springfield area about 6am and got to the park a little after 7am. Everything was easy at this point... parking was close and organized, finding the bib table was a short walk from the car and there were no lines, ... within minutes we had our stuff and went back the car to get ready. I would guess there was a 150 runner turn-out so it's quiet small and I loved that! Lining up right before 8am the race director had a LONG winded talk, introducing some famous runners and explaining the rules. We were off and running on time however.
The race starts out on the parks' paved path and within a mile or so starts going off-road. The most significant thing about the first 4 miles of this race are the 14 water crossings. We think there were probably at least 15 total in the race, with almost all of them being in the first quarter. Some are shallow and narrow and some go up to your knees and are very wide for a creek. Either way, your shoes are wet and muddy this entire section. Also starting a couple miles into the race are the hills. We counted about 9 hills throughout the race which doesn't sound like a lot at first but considering a 15.6 mile race, you are pretty much going up or coming down at any given point. You'll feel some fire in the quads, calves and glutes! We read afterward that the hills ascend around 400 feet and my Garmin 405 gave me an elevation gain of over 4500 feet! The hills were steep, muddy & rocky. It rained for 3-4 miles straight, adding to the mud fest especially around the water and really making the downhill sections a slip-in-slide except in the grown-up version if you slip, the rocks are gonna tear you up. The one thing we kept saying about the rain though was that it could have really made for a freezing cold day - but luckily the temps held and somehow I had dressed just right so that I never felt too hot or too cold! My race outfit was: wicking long black pants, short sleeved shirt, Nike wicking light jacket w/fleece outside, and a ball cap.
The course was very well marked. They used pink ribbon tape that was easy to see and marked off areas to not go and marked other ares to make sure you were still on the path. Additionally they had some signs up as well. Another nice thing was the mobile aid stations on jeeps. We heard them and saw them throughout the race and I really felt like if something happened, help would not be too long or too far away. They also were constantly joking with us and checking in to make sure we were still having fun - nice! The aid stations were also wonderful. I didn't really pay attention but I want to say they were every 3-4 miles. I don't use aid stations much due to my food allergies so I'm not sure what all they had but I did eye the gummy bears for a few seconds until my friend slapped me out of it. We did however, take advantage of the steamed new potatoes! They left the salt off and I THANKED them profusely because had they pre-salted them I would not have been able to eat it due to my corn allergy (a corn derivative binds iodine to the salt in regular table salt). This made me overly happy and gave me such a boost to be able to eat something new. Otherwise, I munched on a couple of my Yummy Earth organic candy (the only candy I've found that i can eat), a half a ginger larabar (before I knew I could have the potatoes), and one packet of maple-almond butter. I had my Nathan filled with coconut water (natures Gatorade folks, try it) and Smart Water. I had zero cramps, good energy the whole time and only a little nausea towards the end after trying to eat a 2nd potato. In my training I hadn't had any nausea since going all natural and eating less and I used to SUFFER from it constantly back in my days of Gatorade and GU products. Yuck.
Best news for last: The swag. Wow. Entrants receive a New Balance long sleeved tech tshirt (in white - bad news for girls - totally see through) and finishers received a workout towel w/race logo and a NORTH FACE TKA Glacier pull over fleece jacket!! Yes, it says North Face. Yes, it feels great. Yes, it's worth $50 which is more than the race itself cost ($45). The womens jackets were black and the men's were a mossy green. Wow.
Overall the race was a lot of fun. Beautiful scenery with numerous waterfalls towards the end of the race. The hills totally killed my legs at about halfway through the race but if I ever do this race again I'll train for the hills and take 'em on a lot stronger! Don't expect to PR here -- my time was not quite, but almost double of my normal half marathon time. But, I should add though, we also didn't go all out - not that we didn't run or try but just that the hills really made us hang back for safety and to conserve energy and we also stopped to take pictures of ourselves and the views. I don't regret that either - - I'm running to enjoy the ride. Some racers have a problem with that but I'm not a racer, I'm a trail runner and I'm out there to experience it all, not just let it whiz by unnoticed.

Link: Trail Runner Magazine review of the race.
Link: Anton Krupicka's review of the race from 2008

Review: Running On The Sun DVD

I have no idea why but I've watched this movie about 4 times. I've had the DVD, rented through Netflix, for about a month and still haven't sent it back! The trailer is probably more professionally made than the actual documentary is... but I guess the stories are so intriguing and the race is so captivating that I keep thinking I'll watch it once more before returning. I just need to buy it! Haha. Anyway, here is the trailer if you haven't seen it.

Current Inspiration: 13 Year Old Runs an Ultra

I love this video even though it's kinda old and I've watched it a number of times.
I appreciate the moms' support of her daughter, their time together, that a 13 year old wanted to do it and succeeded.
Mackenzie says that she didn't really train, ..it's an ultramarathon, surely they did a little running beforehand. :) Anyway, it's inspirational and makes you want to get out there and go farther.

Currently Reading: The Extra Mile

Title: The Extra Mile
Subtitle: One Woman's Personal Journey to Ultra-Running Greatness
Author: Pam Reed

Pam Reed is a two time Badwater Ultramarathon winner, a multiple ultramarathon record holder including the 300 mi and 24 hr track, the Tucson Marathon Director as well as a mom and wife. Although she's achieved a lot and certainly an athletic hero, her book is less than inspirational. This may not have been the point of it however (in her defence).
It's basically an autobiography, written as if she's speaking to you. But the voice of the author is very choppy, skipping around from thought to thought and topic to topic. She talks about how energetic she is and that characteristic comes through in her writing as very scattered.
If her life other than her athletic background was exciting and full of unique, captivating stories, this book might have been a great idea. However, it feels like a public diary full of mistakes and selfishness. She even adds quotes from her children about family dynamics and her lack of maternal instinct which made me cringe.
Some amazon reviewers hinted about these negatives points and I still bought the book thinking maybe people were just uptight. I was really interested in hearing about the process and drive of an ultramarathoner. I was curious about her training and about her future goals. But, the book is about her over-idolizing some Olympic gymnast from the 70s as a child, the dissolution of her first marriage, how she is cold emotionally, has difficulty communicating her feelings, how much she and her current husband clash and how hard it is to direct a marathon. Nothing uplifting or inspirational.
I am a little more than halfway through and will finish it just because I paid money for it. If I come across anything worth more than I've described, I will update my review!

p.s.
Update on my Nathan pack from my 12 mile run today (will review soon): I loved it. I didn't notice any of the previous problems except the bite valve issue. But I read a trick online that you need to twist it as you pull it out and that did seem to help. I also played with it a lot, pulling it in and out before running with it again to loosen it up. I guess you want a tight valve so you don't have leaking but, both times I've ran with it, it's leaked onto my shirt. I always end up with a huge circle of water near my waist. This has been OK since I'm sweating so much anyway, but in the winter time that would suck. Also, if I had any colored beverage like Powerade Zero in there - it could stain clothes. I'm currently thinking about getting a Camelbak Omega reservoir. Everyone seems to say that combo of the excellent Nathan pack and that bladder is the best of two worlds. The only issue there is that you have to rig the reservoir to your pack since it's got different hooks to hold the bladder down. I need to read more about this...