Monday; July 11th: Lazy family here....finally crawling out from the covers at 430am...and down to the gym by 525am.....a good weight lifting session of P90X abs, chest, and shoulders and then out for a quick, push the pace for 6 miles.
A discovery was made this morning: Traysen the doberman likes run quite a bit faster than ole Mom here. So, in an effort to keep him entertained and in an effort to run faster, I let him set the pace today. Obviously much faster than my little trot, we now have a new method of speed work! Just let Traysen set the pace!
Tuesday; July 12th: An easy 6 miler with Traysen...feeling not so overtrained or tired....
Wednesday; July 13th: Arriving in Missoula around midnight and then up way too early today, the run went actually quite well. A nice 5 mile trot on the flat Kim Williams trail by the Clark Fork River. At the end, it was a U turn back to the Hellgate Canyon trail, a steep climb through the Lolo National Forest. Always a favorite running spot since this is a rocky, steep climb on a single track with nothing but grasses, moss, trees and wildflowers along the way. With the Leadville race on Saturday, I opted not to go to the top and turned around a one of the switchbacks for the easy downhill trot back to the hotel. Total for the day: about 10 miles.
ftp://ftp.ci.missoula.mt.us/Maps%20and%20Graphics/Parks%20and%20Rec/Trails/mapside11-9-final_s2_web-small.PDF
Home away from home in Missoula; the Doubletree Hotel.
Thursday; July 14th: Off due to work.
Friday; July 15th: Off due to working around the house and trying to taper for the race on Sunday.
Saturday; July 16th: Couldn't stand another off day...so, down to the basement bright and early for a weight lifting session of abs, biceps and triceps. Then, out the door with Traysen for a basic 4 miler! Yes, that is four miles......and only 4 miles.
Sunday; July 17th: Leadville 50 mile Race Day!!!!
Well, I finished...but here are the details:
As for the race: The Leadville 50 mile Silver Rush starts in Leadville and travels throughout the old mining roads/trails to the east of town. An out n back course, it starts at 10000 feet MSL and crests 12000 + feet MSL four different times and involves nothing but hills,....mostly up! ....some running water crossings and quite a bit of dusty trail! The beauty of the course is amazing. With the mining tailings, the aspen lined sections, the low lying areas full of snow melt water that runs swift, the wide open views of Iowa Amphitheater and Ball Mt, and especially the wild flower fields coming into and out of Stumptown, the half way point in the race, the course will keep the eyes filled.
The race organization is top notch. Started on time, well marked course, well stocked aid station all day long, and amazing volunteers that made the race a success. A visit to the website will give quite a bit of detail on the race itself and all was as is posted.
As for Sarah's adventure: In a nutshell: Ran ok and finished in my predicted time, but could have run much better. No sleep the night before, a slightly tweaked back, and mostly "couldn't get my head together" for the first 19 miles lead to a less than "lively" effort. It all started off reasonably well, but it was a struggle to get through those first 19 miles. At each aid station I was considering calling it a day due to a now very achy back and my head just wasn't in the right place. And as most of us know, if your head is not screwed on straight in a race, it often leads to valid or invalid body issues. The back hurt, there was a blister developing on the right inside foot (what tha? I never get blisters!), it was getting hot, and a variety of excuses/issues wandered through the one brain cell. However, as each of the first three aid stations was passed, the ole body kept going and it was in the third aid station that a volunteer turned the entire race around. As I was standing with water in hand and most likely a strained look on the mug, she said, "how ya feeling?" The reply, "Awful...nothing serious...but awful." She then quickly said, "well, you are going to go down this trail for another 6 miles and then you are going to be at the halfway point and this race will be in the bag. Then, you are going to come back through here and go that a way til you get to the finish." For whatever reason, her words changed everything because as I took off ....well, resumed relentless forward motion. anyway.....everything was much better, although the back and the blister were now very valid problems. The next 6 miles did go quite well with mostly a steady trot down into Stumptown where a wonderful crew of one husband and four dogs awaits the arrival. What a sight to see 4 waggin tails and a "what do i do?" husband!!! The licks, hugs, kisses, diet coke and poweraid were a most welcome relief and then it was back out to the task at hand!
From Stumptown, the trotting continued, well, except for that steep slog up Ball Mt... through aid station 3 (about 32 miles into the race), all systems, except the back and rapidly growing blister on the right foot, were working well ..... as soon as I rolled into the last crewed aid station, Jim and Traysen were there with fresh diet coke and poweraid..and some much needed ice to cool the radiator. The next 4 miles or so were not too steep but yet not too gentle climb back up to the Iowa Amphitheater crest. This section went fairly well despite a mid day sun with no cloud relief. At one point, the ole internal radiator was overheating and the pace had to be reduced for a bit. Once cresting the top, it was a long 10 mile mostly descending trail back to the finish. This section should have gone quite well; however, a blister on that right foot had now burst (yes, yuck and ouchy!!!) and was providing considerable "issue." And after that uphill from the last aid station, the back was trashed. (too many ibuprofen had already gone down the gullet so that was not an option at this point) So, when I should have been blazing down the trail, the ole bones were tip toeing as if walking on pins n needles. Finally, after reaching the last aid station at 43.0 miles, the painful foot and back had both reached a level of comfortable pain and the pace was quickened til the finish line. Speaking of which....that finish line was a welcome sight along with my wonderful crew of one husband and 4 wiggly dogs!
Lessons learned/training improvements:
1. No camping the night before a big race. Although the campground did quiet down, it was difficult to get any sleep even with the proper gear. (usually sleep quite well in a sleeping bag). One factor in this camping issue is the prep...it is quite a bit of work to drag all the equipment out of the basement, get all the dog gear ready, load it all into the truck and then do all the setup at the campground. Not really a good idea to have a busy/somewhat stressful day before a big race. For this race in particular, a room at the Super 8 will be much easier and produce much more sleep.
2. While the training for this specific race was good, there is room for improvement. Train more on the course...it seems as though this ole head needs to spend as much time as possible on a race course in order to hit the starting line with full confidence. Also, even though I had trained on the various parts of the course over two different training runs, I needed to train on the more challenging sections, especially the steep climb coming out of Stumptown (halfway aid station). Additionally, there should have been more long hill repeats on technical terrain. Not necessarily rock hopping as is found on Barr Trail between Barr Camp and A frame, but more hard charges up sections that contain at least a 5% grade with many embedded rocks and tree roots on the trail.
3. Work on crew coordination. It was Jim's first time crewing and he did a great job! Thanks Honey...you made the day a success! But with more guidance from me we could have made the aid station breaks a bit more efficient. It doesn't seem like much, especially since this ole girl is not a front runner, but every second counts and spending too much time/energy on aid station stuff is mentally taxing. (And given me being not fond of stopping, these transitions need to be efficient)
4. Learn to enjoy the race itself. As I have mentioned several times in the past, the running is more about the training and enjoying being out on a trail with just myself, with Traysen or with a few close running friends. And while, I do not want the running to become some crazed, pressure filled endeavor, it would be better if I could just enjoy a race without all the mental anguish. It seems as though once I start walking or watch as some folks pass, it is difficult to stay in the race mentally. The whole attitude goes down the tubes and so does the performance and while I have worked on this over the last few years, there is considerable work to be done. Hopefully over time, the ole brain can really come to terms with this and I can just run my own race and realize and be happy with the idea that I am very lucky to be able to be out there running. Improvement can hopefully be found in just enjoying being on a beautiful course with like minded folks and also come to terms with the fact that, unlike in the speed skating days, I am not competitive as a front runner. (oh, no, age has nothing do to with it!!!)
5. While training for races of this distance, the overall weekly mileage usually prevents weight lifting sessions of more than a couple of times a week. And these sessions are limited to upper body only and nothing on the legs. So, an improvement on leg strength can be made with a change in the weight lifting.
Summary of the race: As mentioned: I finished and I actually finished in the time frame that was predicted. However, in reflection, the finish time could have been much quicker....at least an hour quicker. Also, instead of beating myself up on a performance that was not perfect, it has been easy to find areas of improvement and to be happy with finishing a very difficult race. Would I do this race again? Absolutely!!! In fact, that is another good point: by running a slower race, next year, it will be easy to beat the finish time! Also, and more importantly, with lessons learned and a dedication to make the improvements needed in training, a future Leadville Silver Rush 50 miler will no doubt produce a better performance.
A few pics:
Between aid station 3 and the half way point of Stumptown. Ball Mountain is on the left. The course winds around and UP this mountain.
This is the start of the race. A quick uphill blast that rewards the first female and male to the top of this little beast with a silver dollar! Most of us opted to save the energy and walk the darn thing!
Not sure, but this looks like Rebekka from our own Manitou Springs. She is training very hard this year for Leadville 100. Nevertheless, this is one of the easier sections of the course with not too many rocks or steep hills.
The mountain bike race is held on the same course the day before the run. This pic explains why running the course is much easier than biking it....why carry a 20 pound bike for a hike!?
Thanks to The Smudge Blog for the pics!
Summary of the week: With the race, a great week of running with additional highlights of the Missoula run. What is next? Well, no plans for races! It is time to pull the mileage back to something more sane (this will be difficult since I am never really sure what sane means?!). After a recovery from this race for a couple of weeks, hopefully the ole bones and head can change the focus and move towards those improvements mentioned.
Total Miles for week: 80.0
I think you're right, that does look like Rebekka. Way to go, Sarah, you rock!! You are tough, but don't push it. Glad you are enjoying the journey. Love the photos!
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