The 2 hour and 30 minute gym visit

Its that time of year again, when I end up finding myself inside the confines of a gym more than I would like.

Why 2 hours and 30 minutes?  That's just about the amount of time I have to pencil in to feel like I have had a good workout.  I encourage anyone to go to the gym for even 30 minutes if the alternative is sitting on the couch, but for me I need some serious time to get a workout in that rivals  7-10 miles of running.  So why bother with the gym?  Desperate times call for desperate measures.  The times being when you are tired and banged up from a season of ultras and road races, the weather is cold and icy, and there is little daylight to be found after work hours.  The measures?  Treadmills, arc-trainers, spin bikes, and weights.

The always infamous "dread-mills".

So why do this to myself?  After years of cyclical injuries that require weeks if not months of time off, I'm finally staying conservative with things.  Recovering right, and if things start to feel off cutting back on the running in favor of other cardiovascular activity.

I tried to recover correctly after JFK, taking some time off (well, basically a few days) and then just running easy.  It was probably a mistake to work back in some speed work and shorter road races, but hindsight is always 20/20 and I thought I had rested back up to 100%.  The result was some lingering soreness in my lower left calf around the achilles.  Achilles - a word that brings shivers to the spines of all runners.  It wasn't the achilles injury where you can feel it "crinkle" around in the sleeve, the kind of pain that can drop a runner to their knees and end their career.  It was however annoying enough for me to nurse it back to health, running every-other day, mixing in cross training, and backing off the speed work.  And of course the atypical RICE routine.

I should still be able to mix in some faster tempos and short road races, but nothing on the track, no focused hills, and I won't really be able to run my races all-out.

Enter: The Gym.  The non-running winter solution to getting cardio.  I must admit it is at least nice to have people around and not be freezing.  I'm trying to mix a little strength training back in too, which I usually ignore during nicer seasons.  Its good to keep your running muscles strong, work the stuff that running doesn't hit, and high-rep/ low-weight activities are great for staying lean.

Whats my 2.5 hours at the gym look like?  Really, it takes even longer when you add in time to change, walking around time, cleaning off the machines, and showering:

Arrive.  Find a locker.  Change into gym clothes.  Start workout now.  Hop on arc-trainer (the better alternative to an elliptical).  Get going with enough resistance and incline to keep my heart rate up.  Do this for about 30 minutes while listening to iPod to prevent getting bored out of my mind.  Stretch out for 5 minutes.  Hit the weights for 25 minutes.  Keep it high reps and low weight.  Today lets focus on core (back/abs, chest, and quads/calves/hammies).  Next time we will work on arms, shoulders, and do squats.  Go to locker and put on cycling shorts, grab shoes.  Spinning class for 55 minutes.  Sweat a lot. Pedal really hard.  Keep pedaling hard on my own when instructor calls out annoying (and useless) jumps. Cool down.  Hydrate.  Stretch out for 5 minutes. End workout now.  Shower, change, leave.

Then get home and not feel bad about my lack of running since I still burned 1400 calories.  Here's to a combination of running, spinning, ellipticaling, weight training, and stretching when the weather is dark and cold and your soleuses are feeling tired.

Spinning - still probably the best indoor workout I can find.

DC Roadrunners: Member Spotlight

My running club, DC Road Runners, does a member spotlight every month to highlight a local area runner.  The basis for selection isn't necessarily based on experience or performance, just only that you be a DC/VA/MD area runner who is active in the club.  After coming off a pretty good year of Ultras they asked me some open ended questions:

At JFK.

When did you begin running and why?

I had always been athletic but never ran much. Shortly after college due to a mixture of boredom and weight gain I started checking out area fun runs. Once I got over the 3 mile hump I was hooked, wanting to get faster and run farther. Cute runner girls helped provide some extra motivation - I met my fiance running!

How did you find out about DCRR and when did you join?

From what I can remember it was just word of mouth that brought me out to the Saturday Long Runs. After that I started coming out to more club activities and races. I knew there were a lot of fast runners in the club, and since I wanted to get faster this seemed like a good place to learn. This was probably around the Spring of 2009.

What are you training for right now?

Since I'm in a recovery phase I'm not training for anything specifically at the moment, but I would like to do more speedwork soon and race some of the DCRRC Snowball Series events. There is an Ultra-Marathon Race series called "The Beast" in Virginia that I want to target for 2014. It's a lofty goal but good to have something to shoot for. I plan to get back to the longer distance stuff in late winter.

What's your proudest running moment?

There are many - first 10 miler, first marathon, first ultra, etc. - but the one that stands out was breaking 3 hours at the 2012 Chicago Marathon. As I passed under the race clock at the finish it still read 2:59:something-something so I knew I made it! My last mile was my fastest, albeit the most painful, to make sure I would come in on time.

What's your favorite part about being a DCRR member?

The connection to a larger community of runners is what keeps me coming back. Not only do you have people to run with and races to test your fitness, but I feel like I can "make a difference" in the greater DC/VA/MD running community. Oh, and the free tech t's!

What's the most important lesson running has taught you?

I like to call it "The Three Ps" of running. Patience (don't get anxious and overdo it; Rome wasn't build in a day!), Persistence (follow your plan and keep at it in good times and in bad), and Pacing (run the easy runs easy, the hard runs hard, and then run the heck out of those races when you peak!). Apply these in life as needed!

When did you get into ultra/trail running?

It was around Spring 2012 when I started getting out on the trails more and doing back-to-backs. My first trail race was the Northface Trail Marathon in June, and I did my first 50k a few months later.

What race day traditions do you have?

My race days are pretty regimented. First I like to wake up early enough to have time to just kind of hang out for half an hour (I wake up slowly...). I have 1 cup of coffee and a bagel with peanut butter and a little jelly - I get nervous when I'm stuck with only stale hotel coffee. If its a big race or a long drive to the start I'll sip on some water and maybe eat a banana or cliff bar. I'm not superstitious so I make sure everything I do is for a reason. Don't forget the Body Glide!

Favorite running shoes or running gear?

I find I run pretty well in Saucony shoes, I also like the Books Pure line (though I won't touch anything else even close to "minimalist" footwear). I wear the odd looking Hoka OneOne shoes on the trails for ultras. As far as apparel, Brooks really knows what they are doing, their gear just always fits me perfect. I kind of hover between a medium and a large so it can be tough to find new stuff. I usually only wear a stop watch while running. I think that while technology (such as GPS and iPods) do a good job motivating some people, it can also detract from the experience so I've learned to just run by feel. Oh, and I love my foam roller!

What’s your life like outside of running?

There's life outside of running? Haha, its pretty normal I think. After work I like to play with my dog, watch movies, and just kind of relax at home. I got into cycling last spring so thats a good compliment to running when it's warm out. I'm a big Washington Capitals hockey fan so that keeps me busy when it's dark out in winter. I really love to travel when I get the chance.

If you could be be a pro athlete in any sport other than running, what would it be?

Good question! Probably rugby, the only other sport I have ever really taken seriously. I played in college and it was a blast, it combines the grit of football with the fitness of soccer, and a camaraderie unmatched in any other sport. Like running it probably won't make a good source of income - not that I would be tough enough to play in the big leagues anyway!

You can see the article online along with dozens of other DCRRC member spotlights.

The 2013 JFK 50 Miler: race recap

I have now had over a week since I finished JFK to let things fully sink in.  Immediately after a race you go through a lot of emotions.  Sometimes you can't wait to sign up for another race, other times you don't even want to think about running.  You went through the agony, and now get to feel the ecstasy.  If you had a bad race all you can do is try to analyze your training and race day to figure out what went wrong.  If things went well you just get to savor the accomplishment.  I was pretty happy overall with JFK.  Given my relaxed training schedule that included a 3 week hiatus while I was in Europe, I felt my race day performance was awesome!

Race: JFK 50 Miler
Date: November 23, 2013
Location:  Boonsboro, MD
Finishing Time: 8:10:31

The Wait

Staying warm pre-race in the gym.

Although it would have been possible to come up race morning, I headed up (as did most people) the night before.  Its always fun to be around all the other runners ahead of time, just don't get too excited or you won't be able to sleep!  Speaking of, I was able to get a solid 6 hours of sleep in which is pretty great considering I probably only slept 2 hours before my first marathon.

I let my hotel at 5:15am and walked across the street to meet some of my friends at the official race hotel.  After some weak coffee and stale bagels, it was about a 15 minute drive to the race starting area in Boonsboro.  We got to keep warm while we listened to a pep talk from the race directors in the gymnasium of the Boonsboro highschool.  At about 6:45 we took the half-mile walk to the start line.  We had a jovial group of about a half dozen runners together, all of which would be separated soon into the race.

The First 4 miles

The race started in downtown Boonsboro, which is actually just a tiny main street strip that soon turns into a rural road.  I've never heard of an Ultra that starts in anything else than basically a field, but this is the largest 50 miler in the country so I guess its an exception.  The sun was just starting to peak through giving us more than enough light to find out way.  We were walking down, still lining up at about 6:59am when suddenly the gun went off!

The road quickly starts gaining in elevation.  The starting temperature was in the 30s, and while this is great for running you are pretty cold starting out so the opening hills were a good way to warm up.  It can also be easy to expend too much energy too early on, so I made sure to take it easy an even walk up some portions of the hill.  We soon arrived at the crest of the mountain pass where the entrance to the Appalachian Trail awaited us.

12 Rocky Miles on the AT

Tip-towing down the trail.

If you have ever run on the Appalachian Trail (which fortunately I had) you know its rocky, rooty, and requires your utmost attention.  I was worried about getting caught behind a train of runners but it was spaced out enough that I could see where I was going just fine.  I really did not want to fall flat on my face so, even in the flatter, easier sections, I tried to stay focused on my footing and on the terrain 2-5 feet ahead.

Though is was probably the slowest going section of the race it was also my favorite.  This feels like real trail running, and really allows you to take advantage of practicing on technical trails. As much fun as I was having I still had to hold back a little - you don't want to exhaust yourself considering you aren't even close to being half-way done!

There was more climbing than I remembered, and more pavement than I expected - one long section required walking up to the summit on roads before we ascended back down on the trail.  Things were mostly uneventful - I filled up my water bottle with about 5 miles of AT left.  As you begin to exit the trail there is a steep downhill segment that requires some major tip-toeing, all this while hearing the cheers of spectators in the first major aid station.

A Marathon on the C&O Canal Towpath

View of Harpers Ferry.  We passed in front of the Rocks on the Towpath in
the bottom-left of the frame.  Photo Courtesy of Wikipedia/Harpers_Ferry.

After leaving the Appalachian Trail section, and passing through a cheer tunnel of onlookers we ran through a short but precarious section, under a bridge (that turned out to be Rt. 340), and out to the actual aid station.  This time I not only refilled my hand bottle but eat a PB&J sandwich, a few chips, and grabbed a Gu to eat momentarily.  We crossed the railroad tracks (fortunately no train crossing today) and go onto the C&O Canal Towpath around Mile Marker 59.  What awaited me was over a marathon on the towpath, a tall task both physically and mentally.

I tried to split it up in my mind like you would most marathons: the first 10 miles, the middle 10 miles, and the last 10 kilometers.  Starting off was nice, lots of people around to trade pleasantries with and the sun was starting to really come out.  We passed through Harpers Ferry, a beautiful, historical area at the intersection of Virginia, West Virginia, and Maryland.  Looking out at the railroad tracks and church steeples peaking up through the trees I was reminded of a quaint, sort of "any-town", European village.

From there the towpath just drags on, and on.  The crowds space out and there isn't anything to look at, only forest to your right and the Potomac river to your left.  You really just need to focus on reaching the next aid station, which were about 4 miles apart.  I was really hurting around 35 miles into the race, mentally and physically.  I had the good fortune of meeting up with another runner to give me someone to talk to.  This guy was very experienced and just kind of taking it easy at JFK.  This gave me someone to keep up with when I might have started to fade otherwise.

We kept going, taking walking breaks at times, knocking down mile after mile.  You can run faster than on a real trail, but at the same time the repeated motion on the fairly flat towpath stresses the same muscles for so long that things have a habit of wearing out.  My hamstrings and achilles were getting fatigued - I didn't have any "pep" in my step at this point, not that you need much on an Ultra.  The last aid station I remember on the Towpath was a big boost - not only did I fill up my hand bottle and have a snack like all the other stations, but they also had hot noodle soup which provided for a salty mix of carbs and hot broth.  As we exited the Towpath my new friend took off to try and make some time up in the last 8 miles.

SO happy to be off the Towpath!

8 More Miles on Roads

Finally off the towpath I was cautiously optimistic.  Over 42 miles in you start thinking you are "almost" done, however the term is relative since you must remind yourself you still have probably an hour and a half of running left.  We immediately hit a huge hill that necessitated a walking break, and from there got onto some country roads to guide us into Williamsport, Maryland.  Although you are able to run faster on pavement the biggest downside of this section was the exposure of being in wide open spaces, which nothing to shelter you from the wind and sun.  A lot of the hills were runable but I still opted to power walk up them just to give my running muscles a break.

I never really felt close to the point of "bonking", which is a major cause for concern in any multi-hour race.  My quads and hamstrings were really starting to fatigue, and both my achillies were just about dead for the day.  Stretching things out on the hills did at least help keep everything going when the roads would flatten back out.  I was just kind of in a daze, counting the miles down 1 by 1, but finally started to wake up with about 3 miles to go.  I couldn't wait to be done.  It was cold out and the only way to stay warm was to keep running.

Looking only at the elevation chart for JFK it never really looked like a "hard" race (though its never easy running 50 miles!) since elevation changes are what normally tires you out and slows you down.  The long, boring, stretches on the towpath, coupled with the exposed road sections in the cold & windy November weather made this race justifiably "tough".

Kicking it into high-gear with the finish in sight!

The Finish

With 1.5 miles to go, or "6 more laps around a track" as I reassured myself, I decided to speed it up and run as fast as reasonably possible.  Coming around the final bend I could see the finish chute about 200 meters away.  I was ecstatic and SO happy to finally be done!!  With no other runners around I threw off my hand bottle and hat, pumped my fists, and did a celebratory flying kick through the finish line!

I feel like JFK was one of my biggest accomplishments, right up there with my first marathon, breaking 3 at Chicago, my first trail race, and running Boston.  I got to set a respectable PR for myself in the 50 mile distance and check-off one of the few legendary Ultras.  It wasn't easy, and this was probably the most sore and stiff I have been since my first marathon, but it was totally worth it.

I had some family at the finish so it was great to find familiar faces after so much cold, isolated, and tiring running.  Inside the Williamsport middle school there was plenty of food, massages and a growing number of exhausted runners.  I even got to speak with Charlie from RunWashington, who quoted me in their JFK 50 recap!

Feeling well rested and recovered I can now ease back into running, work on some speed in December and January, and get back into pure Ultra training in late January to prep for my lofty 2014 Goals (stay tuned for those).

JFK Training as a whole

My training for JFK has been successful yet inconsistent.  Summer went fine, but the first month was really spent recovering from some cumulative soreness from Spring.  I had been experiencing some sore hips and after doing the Northface 50 miler decided to take a small hiatus, dive helmet-first into cycling, and then spool back up to ultra running condition.  The Dahlgren 50k went as planned, giving me some confidence, albeit in hot and humid weather.  Things progressed into the Iron Mountain 30 miler, which tested my hill climbing (and descending) abilities.  I then went through about a 5 week period where I wasn't able to get a lot of running in.  I was in the process of buying a condo and performing some minor renovations, and then off playing in Europe for almost 3 weeks.  It was probably for the best - its always better to take down time when you decide to, rather than having an injury dictate it for you.  And I wasn't just sitting on my bottom the whole time, walking a ton and still getting in some miles here and there, probably about 30 per week on average.

Even after returning from my trip I couldn't jump right back into training, so it took about a week to feel back to "normal".  I got in a few more key trail runs, long back-to-backs, some high mileage weeks, and a couple of good rides (ride = cycling).  The highlights were easily the JFK course training run I did, and then the Rosaryville 50k race (only a week later mind you) that felt so good before, during and after.

My weight has remained pretty consistent at around 176 lbs.  When I came back from Europe I was maybe 178, but I can't really seem to get under the 175 mark.  I know I shouldn't worry about this, so I decided not to!  But its still funny that I just kind of bottom out there.  If it was a marathon PR I was shooting for I would probably care more about thinning down to under 170, but I'm not so ill happily eat all the carbs I want.

I have also managed to avoid the I-word (that would be: Injury), but its not out of luck.  I feel like I'm a smarter runner than I was a year ago, I tried to change my stride some and stuck with it, and I know when I'm overdoing it or about to "red-line".  I still do speed work (mostly on the track), but cut it back to every 2 or 3 weeks even.  To be honest, for the first time in a long time, I'm not too worried about an overuse injury.

I also haven't gotten sick in I-can't-remember-when.  Not to brag but I just don't really get sick.  I don't know if its my diet, my love of running and fitness, minimizing stress at all times, or that I try to focus on getting a full nights sleep (its probably a combination of all 4 - maybe doctors should start taking note of my formula!), but I just don't really get sick.  This is fortunate because a bad cold, flu, or "stomach bug" can really knock you on your ass if you are trying to train seriously.

Course Training Run

One highlight of my JFK training was a 24 mile course training run completed 3 weeks out from the race date.  A buddy of mine organized it and we ended up with 10 runners, a pretty good showing for an ultra training run.  The athletes were varied but all pretty serious with plenty of Boston Qualifiers, a Kona Qualifier Iron Man, and a couple of sub 2:30 marathoners to round things out.

Our whole group of crazies pre-run, at Boonsboro Highschool - same spot the actual race starts from!

We had parked some cars at our end spot and then continued in fewer vehicles to our starting point, same as the race starting point, at Boonsboro High School. We ran through a small main street and up a huge hill to the Appalachian Trail entry point.  Everything had been on pavement for the first 4-5 miles until we got onto the trail.  The group was beginning to space out at this point but we all met up at the AT trail entry point.

Rocks, leaves, trees... yup thats the AT!

The next couple hours were spent going up and down the rocky, rooted, AT.  Despite plenty of careful foot placement there weren't any big events to report.  We did hit a water fountain about half-way through that I filled up at.

We had to wait for a train!  And sorry for the
poor photography - remember never to
shoot into the sun!

We continued on through the woods, as I mostly just ran with one other guy.  The group was really spaced out now.  The final section of the AT was a steep decent down to the C&O Canal Towpath.

I had heard rumors about runners getting stuck at a rail-road crossing in JFK before and to my amusement we were the victims of a train!  Right before joining the towpath a train blocked our progress for a solid few minutes.  We didn't mind - it would be different in the race though!

We continued on the towpath, often crowded with walkers, passing by beautiful Harper's Ferry across the river in West Virginia to our left.  The rest wasn't too eventful, just mostly flat, crushed dirt running.  Though I only had to contend with 6 miles on the towpath for the training run, in the real thing we will be on it for about a Marathon.  This will present a major challenge as boredom really starts setting in.  The monotonous physical motion can wear you down as well, since you use the exact same muscles on every stride.  Lets hope I can keep it steady come race day.

Overall it was a great training run, aided by perfect 50s-and-dry weather.  I ran with my Nathan Ultra pack which I had planned on using race day, but after the success I experienced with my hand bottle at Rosaryville I might opt for the hand bottle.  I think ill let this be a function of temperature - if its cooler, lets say below 55 degrees, I'll use the hand bottle.  Since you don't sweat as much and don't work as hard to stay cool, you simply don't need to drink as much as on a warmer day.

I'm feeling pretty confident going into JFK despite not having a stable, consistent training season.  I know I could be fitter since I didn't get the high mileage or consistency in that I would have liked, but I'm happy to be feeling 100% healthy.  My energy already feels through the rough and its hard to hold back on my last few shorter runs.  I'll be resting (and eating) Thursday and Friday to top things off before the big race Saturday in Boonsboro, Maryland!

Through the woods we go...

Life Beyond Running 

Happy Halloween from Abbey the beer wench!

Halloween was last month, one of my favorite holidays.  As I am trying to spend as much time in liederhosen as possible, I re-wore my Oktoberfest outfit for this year's Halloween festivities.  My alternates were re-using my Spartan "The 300" costume (though I'm kind of skinny for that now!) or being Ryan Hall by basically wearing running clothes and a fake HALL bib.  Knowing my love of all things Oktoberfest my sister had gotten my dog a matching beer wench costume a while back.  What a perfect chance to dorkily dress your dog up to match yourself!

I even managed to make it out to the annual DC101 Elliot's Halloween Bash. I was impressed with myself - due to my scheduled Saturday Long Run the next morning (with trail run to immediately follow)  I took it easy on the beer (even snuck some non-alcoholic beer to my friend's pregame party), and headed out early enough to still make it up in time for my running ventures.

As any runner knows, it can be tough to stifle your social life and cut out of stuff early in favor of your training, but always worth it in the end.  I don't think I would have been able to do this a few years ago when I was still a novice runner.  This provides a moral victory of sorts - you get to feel like you can do it all - be a dedicated runner while still maintaining a social life.

Rosaryville 50k Race Report: The one I finally got right

Race Summary

Race:  Rosaryville 50k
Date: November 9th, 2013
Location: Rosaryville State Park, Rosaryville, MD
Finish Time: 4:19:39

Wow! What a great race! I really only signed up for this as a tune-up for JFK (which is in 2 weeks) and because its local, but between the course, the support, and the weather this ended up being probably my favorite 50k I have run to date.  The course was basically 3 loops on single-track trails around a state park.  There was an aid station half-way through each loop, and a bigger one with runner drop bags at the start of each loop.  Each aid station was more than adequate, stocked with water, gatorade, snacks, and even Gu's.  The trails were very runable with only small climbs and descents.  I still considered this a trail race though - it wasn't flat like canal-towpath-flat flat.

And they're off!

It was an easy 30ish minute drive from the DC area to the park.  Arriving around 7:20am it was still close to freezing and the grass was covered with frost.  I decided to go with a long sleeve tech shirt, light windbreaker, and leg tights.  I figured this might be a bit much but I wanted to be sure my legs would stay warm the whole time.  If my top got hot (which it did), I could ditch my jacket at the bag drop station after the 1st lap (which I did).

Looking strong mid-way through!

We set off on about a mile of paved road until we entered the trail.  I wanted to keep it slow and steady.  This ended up being easy as I was caught behind a huge train of runners.  It amazed me that even only 20 minutes into the race people behind me were getting anxious and trying to pass by for pole position.  Really?? We've got over 4 hours left!  As I always say (well, think at least) - "see you again in about 2 hours".  The first lap around I was mostly stuck behind the train of runners, even if I felt like speeding up a little I wouldn't have been able to.  After the first aid station (which I didn't need to stop at) I was at least able to get around the bulk of the crowd.

Things continued on steady and I was able to fall into a nice, fastish but not too hard pace.  Once I finished the first loop I passed a bunch of people at the aid station and the trail opened up for me.  Things stayed pretty uneventful for this lap, holding steady, focusing on footing, and creeping up on some runners who were starting to die off.

The third lap was easily my favorite.  I knew it was late enough in the game that I could push the pace even more.  Blasting through each aid station I wasted no time getting in, getting what I needed, and getting out.  I was starting to feel confident in myself.  By starting out slow I had plenty left in the tank for the final stages of the race.  This is not only a physical advantage, but a huge mental boost as you remind yourself you played your cards smart.  You are gaining on people - you get to be the predator and not the prey.

At around the marathon mark a race official told me I was in 15th, I was happy to hear that but figured I would be able to pass at least a few more people.  I kept reeling in runners the rest of the race, even passing someone into my eventual 9th place position with only a mile left.  I even had a kick down the final stretch.  I wasn't even thinking about my finishing time - until it became visible on the race clock that I would probably break 4:20 - I kept kicking and came in at 4:19:39!  I was ecstatic to cut 15 minutes off my 50k PR.  I think it was about time though - I was finally coming off a good training cycle and feeling healthy; I got my tactics just right using my hand bottle, and (the biggest factor) was racing in cool, dry weather.  I hope to make it back next year!

My friend Jeff and I at the finish.  The matching jackets were purely a coincidence!

The one I finally got right

I felt like everything came together for this race.  In 50k races I have run in the past I have taken wrong turns, wasted too much time at aid stations, eaten and drank too much (or not enough), gone out too fast and made other tactical errors that cost you in the end.  Courses that are super hilly, as much fun as they are, just are not feasible to set a 50k PR on.  The cool weather really lent itself to faster times, as you fatigue less and don't have to drink as much fluids to push on.

I used my hand bottle for this race, a first.  I have used it for training runs, but I typically go with my Nathan hydration pack.  While running in the heat I don't want to risk running out of fluids, but in the cool, dry, fall weather I figured I could get away with just a hand bottle.  I was worried about it bothering my right arm or messing with my form but it ended up being a non-issue.  The hand bottle also has the huge advantage of letting you blast through aid stations.  Just take off the cap right before you arrive, let a helpful volunteer fill-er-up, replace that cap and you are off!  No taking on and off your pack, opening the bladder, repacking everything, etc.  I passed probably a dozen people through the day at aid stations alone.

Success in this race was really the product of cumulative training and finally getting some experience under my belt at 50k trail races.  There is also the perfect weather conditions and being fortunate enough to have a "good day", free of cramping, gastro-intestinal issues, or unpredictable fatigue.

Veterans Day at the Battlefield

Sunday I wisely rested from all sports activity; I wasn't hurting too bad but still feeling a little stiff all over.  Monday I decided to head out to Manassas Battlefield Park for some easy trail miles, a place I have been meaning to check out for awhile.  Though the trails weren't marked too well I had a map and am decent enough at navigating to make my way through.

Trail map with my approximate course in Orange.  Ended up taking about
 80 minutes, so im guessing 10 or 11 miles.

Really great place to run.  The trails are very runable and flat with little actual terrain to navigate.  You pass through woods, open fields, and historical places of interest.  There is a visitors center with water and bathrooms in the middle of the park if you really need it.  The only downside is that there just aren't that many miles of trails - I tried to do the biggest loop I could figure out and it probably wasn't more than 11 miles.  Great for a tune up at least!  I would like to come back and do a training run here for the Holiday Lake 50k in February - you could do the 11 miles loop counter clockwise, refuel at your car, and then do it all over again clockwise for a 22 mile run.  This circular out-and-back motion is basically the course at Holiday Lake.

I almost felt like I was overdoing it having just crushed Rosaryville 2 days ago and with JFK coming up so soon, but I wanted a little something more before I truely taper.  I had the day off work and this was probably one of our last great, beautiful, sunny-and-50s day of the season.  I heard we are supposed to get an "arctic blast" this week... I blame Canada.

Manassas Battlefield is a great find for Civil War History, and felt like
an appropriate venue on Veterans Day.

Now that I finally get to relish in the amazing feeling of having a great race, I have 2 weeks to do some major tapering for JFK.  I'll be doing some cross-training on the arc-trainer, getting in some easy runs, an 11 mile easy shake out next weekend, and then 2 rest days before the big race in November 23rd!

Running through Europe: Part 2

Prague

After a relaxing train ride where we were able to recover from Oktoberfest, we arrived in Prauge, Czech Republic.  Everyone raves about Prague, I thought it was nice enough but similar to most other European cities with an old town center.  My first impression was that it wouldn't be great for running and biking.  Hectic traffic and sidewalks crowded with pedestrians.  Not a lot of dedicated bike travel lanes.

I got up early one morning and headed out to the Vltava River where I found a running/ biking path that headed away from the city.  I actually like this course of action - I'll see the main sights on foot later, while I'm out running I prefer to see the real Prague and what the locals are up to (that is to say, the ones up at 7:30am).   I made my way down far enough to find a bride leading me to an island, Veslarsky Ostov.  It seemed rather deserted, but had the makings for a recreational area, with a few restaurants, park areas, and ramps for launching boats.  As I started to lose my bearings I headed back the same way I came.

This is a view of Prague from the extreme south end.  You can barely see
Prague castle on the rear right.  The tree lined path next to the Vltava River
was where I did most of my running.

I attempted a short jog through the old town area of Prague.  There were plenty of sights but also plenty of crowds, streets to stop at, and tiny hairpin turns so I soon discovered this area was better explored by walking.  It did help me build up a thirst though, a good thing because Czech beer is super tasty, and even better, its super cheap.  Beer is literally cheaper than water here.  Thanks to an already great exchange rate you could get a great, filling, meal for under $10.00.  A soda would run you about $2.50, a water around $2.00, and a beer maybe a buck if you go to the right place!  I loved the hearty Czech foods too.  After starving in Copenhagen, and quickly getting tired of sausages and potato salad in Germany, I couldn't get enough of the pork knuckle, potato dumplings, and sauerkraut in Prague.  Supposedly the Czech republic adopted hearty foods to feed the workers in the fields and later the Soviet era laborers.  Worked for them and it worked for a hungry runner!

Prague's old town - great to walk through, not so good to run through.

We used our full day to take a mega bike tour.  Figuring we would rather just hit everything we booked a bike tour of the city with a small group.  It was a 7 hour tour!  This sounded crazy but with a stop for lunch and another stop at a beer garden later it wasn't too exhausting.  As much as I enjoy walking tours you can just cover so much ground on a bike, and with such little effort.  My feet thanked me afterward.

Hiking in the cloudy, Austrian Alps

In a word: Steep!

Our next stop was Vienna, Austria, though we got in late in the evening and had a hike scheduled in the Alps the next morning.  We had a small group of hikers and a guide who drove us about 90 minutes outside of the city.  We were all disappointed to find out that it would be cloudy out all day, but made the best of it to experience Austria, make some new friends, and get a good workout.

The trails were insanely steep - we probably spent about 4 hours hiking up to our break point.  We made it to a mountain hut at around 1:00pm for soup, sandwiches, and (of course) beer on tap.  Along hiking trails in the Swiss and Austrian Alps its not uncommon to find fully stocked mountain huts, capable of preparing fresh meals and hosting guests overnight.  Europeans wisely don't tolerate crappy beer or coffee (2 of my favorite beverages), so these places are always equipped with drafts and espresso machines.

Of the 8 of us out hiking, 4 of us continued on a short route to the true summit as kind of a "just to say we did it" effort.  Once back at the hut we all met up again and hiked back down to the van in about 2.5 hours.  A cool experience, albeit a cloudy one.

Some excellent Austrian signage.

Vienna

That is to say, Vienna Austria - not to be confused with Virginia.  Vienna turned out to be a great place to run, with plenty of pedestrian friendly paths all around the city.  After arriving from Prague I was able to free up a few afternoon hours and put in a longish 15 mile run through the heart of the city, cutting through the Stadtpark, and into another huge urban park.  I ran along the Hauptallee, a stretch of road closed off to cars but full of runners, bikers, and roller bladers of all things.  I saw the huge Vienna ferris wheel here, as well as lots of kids sports games being played.  I was surprised to see a baseball game going on, with plenty of vocal spectators, a sport I had no idea of being popular in Europe.

Heading back I mostly stuck to a path along the Danube River.  The Danube is pretty fascinating to me - its the longest River in Central Europe (2nd only to the Volga on the continent), runs through or touches 10 countries, and has been crucial to developing civilizations throughout history.  The Roman Empire heavily utilized it before they died out, and now I'm using it to find my way back to my hostel!

Vienna had a bikeshare a lot like DC Bikeshare!

Vienna also happened to have a very cool bikeshare system a lot like the one in DC.  The main advantage though is that the Vienna BikeShare was virtually free - just 1 euro to register and each first hour of your ride was free.  How is that for encouraing bikes as a means of transport?  This meant endless self guided bike tours of the city, as well as extra workouts here and there.

These were great for exploring the pedestrian only streets of the inner stadt, plus, once you dock your bike and grab a few beers you can always take the subway back!

Exploring one evening I even managed to find an organized race - too bad I just ate and drank or I would have considered signing up on the spot! It looked like just a 5k.  A European Bank, Erste, sponsored this evening series popular with locals that starts and ends at the impressive Rathaus (Vienna City Hall).


The nighttime running series with city hall in the background.

As great as exploring the inner stadt was, the real standout in Vienna was the incredible grounds of the Schönbrunn Palace located on the outskirts of town.  Rivaling Versailles,  Schönbrunn was a massive complex of ornate residences that members of the Habsburg Monarchy used as their summer residence, complete with opulent gardens, fountains, and miles of crushed gravel paths.  The rear side (pictured below) starts with a garden, then as you pass the Neptune Fountain on either side appears a steep, zig-zagged path up a hill.  After a steep 200 foot climb you end at the Gloriette, a decorative pavilion like building, that gives way to the best view in Vienna.

Running here from my hostel was about 1.5 miles, then with a little work on the flats and a couple of ascents up the hill got me breathing hard.  I then explored some smaller, single track trails through trees before popping back out by the Roman Ruin - a gate and statue fountain typical of the Romantic movement meant to commemorate the Roman Empire.

The incredible Schönbrunn Palace and the rear gardens observed from the Gloriette high on a hill with the city of Vienna in the background.  The steep climb is well worth it for the view!

Vienna was an incredible place to run.  I'm not going to say it was my favorite spot of the whole trip since everywhere is so different and hard to compare, but if I had to pick one must-run, can't miss area this is it - with the palace being the top priority.

Budapest and Bratislava

My last two stops of the trip were kind of on a whim.  I had a few spare days left before I needed to head home and being a short train ride from Budapest I decided to make the most of my time.  I only had a day and a half and didn't manage to sneak any running in.  After a lot of walking and a low-key night out I was planning to wake up super early the next day to run.  By the time dawn came though I was exhausted and opted to sleep in until my late morning train to Bratislava.  This was a similar situation, only having about 24 hours I just wanted to see the sights and be ready for my flight the next day.

Budapest was a really cool city, big enough to spend a few days in if you have the time.  I was bummed that I never made it to any of the city's hot springs, supposedly a must-see.  They even host a marathon in Budapest so that might be cool someday!  Even though time was short, I was glad I stopped in Bratislava since you really only need a day to see all the sights.  All the old Soviet style buildings, which are incredibly plain and mostly abandoned, were really neat to walk past even if they aren't exactly a tourist attraction.

The Hungarian Parliament building in Budapest - an example of Gothic Revival architecture.  It was built in the 1800s
but made to look much older (and kind of scary), similar to Westminster Abbey in London.

Back to Reality

It took a little time to adjust back to reality, it always does.  Once I return from a 3 week mega trip I always have a few days where it just feels like I'm listening to static, lost and moving through the rat race of everyday life.  My rule of thumb is that it usually takes about 1/3 the time of your trip to feel back to normal.  As much as I want to take a leave of absence from work and explore Asia over the course of a few months, the ensuing adjustment back to normal life scares me.  There is so much the world has to offer, so much energy in so many places - maybe its better to just not know about it and not know what you are missing? Too late for me.

Naturally I wanted to jump right back into ultra training (and I did for the most part), but I knew I would need to spool back up some too.  I was able to jump back into it pretty well, running almost daily and doing longer runs on the weekends, however my lower leg muscles started screaming at me after a couple weeks.  I was at least able to get a few long road runs and a mega trail run in (oh, and even a cold weather cycling day!) before I backed off the gas a little.  After a [sometimes] painful massage, a rest day, and a day of easy cross-training I headed back out on a 5 mile fun run and felt back to normal.  I'm certainly not in peak shape but feeling healthy and confident for JFK.  I'm dreading winter, not so much for the cold but for the lack of light.  Running in the dark, often solo, get old soon - but it makes you stronger mentally.  The next 2 weekends will be key so I'm hoping everything holds up.

Running through Europe: Part 1

Ahh Europe.  Where to start.  Ever since college I have been kind of on a system where instead of taking little trips here and there, 3 day (or 4 or 5 day) weekends, I save up my vacation (and money) and then take off a solid 3 weeks for an international trip.  This year my friends and I set our sights on Oktoberfest 2013, so I broadened my horizon to include a few more destinations.  I know - this is supposed to be a running blog right? Well, running is life to me, the two coexist, so in a sense its sort of a life blog as well.  Just, life as it relates to running.  That being said, these recaps cover mostly portions of my trip traveling on foot at roughly 9 minutes per mile or faster.  I already have a section for this, Travel Running, where I also explain (or rather, justify) my need to run while on vacation.  People who hate exercise don't do it on vacation (because they hate it).  I love to run, so it only adds to my experience.  Its also nice to see 5,10, even 15 miles of a new area at a time on foot!

As I have done in the past I made sure to bring along a pair of multipurpose trail shoes so I can explore the roads and trails, while keeping my packing to a minimum.  Speaking of, I'm a huge believer in the backpacker code, that is, to bring one (carry-on) backpack on a trip.  I pack the same for 3 weeks as I would for 4 days essentially, I just do laundry along the way.  This allows you to be versatile, adaptable, and light on your feet.  You also look a lot cooler than dorky tourists carrying 2 huge roller bags down a cobblestone street (I've seen plenty attempting this feet).

Copenhagen

The first stop on my trip was Copenhagen, Denmark a picturesque town connected by canals and cobblestone streets on the tip of northern mainland Europe.  After a long walking tour during the daytime I was able to sneak out for a run.  This is an old city and a lot of the streets had cobblestones, so the added durability of trail shoes was a plus.  I was staying in the Norrebro area of the city, about a mile or two southwest of the city center.  I headed out into the Assistens Cemetery; normally I wouldn't run through a cemetery but this was more of an urban park with a few memorials scattered around, then to Fælledparken and around the nearby grounds of a University.

Its amazing how a city that is so bike friendly and so walkable might not be the best place to run.  Pedestrians are not allowed in bike lanes, and city blocks have frequent stops at lights and cross streets.  I had seen plenty of people running in other areas of the city, in larger urban parks and on paths along the canals but I was short on time and needed something close.  Somehow being short on time and running tend to run hand in hand.

Probably the most recognizable area of Copenhagen along its oldest canal.

The city was exceptionally flat, old, and vibrant.  Danish is extremely hard to understand but everyone speaks perfect English.  Each neighborhood had its own feel, including "Christiania", an old military base taken over by hippies in the '70s.  The government allowed them free reign and it remains a charmingly scummy part of town, friendly to passers by and cannabis lovers alike.  There was a relaxing vibe that things could always wait here.

City Hall in the center of Copenhagen.

I loved Copenhagen, though being a victim of a cold and wet Scandinavian climate combined with a high cost of living might not make it the best runner town.  Food was my biggest issue due to the high prices.  If you run a lot you typically eat a lot, and once I figured out that a sandwich or snack was costing me around $25 I opted to stay hungry for most of my stay.  As much as I wanted to stay longer I was looking forward to the more American prices of goods in Germany.

Berlin

Being the sight of one of the 5 World Marathon Majors, I had higher hopes for Berlin (and it did not disappoint).  In addition to a walking tour, my friends and I rented bikes to get around quickly and rode through the Tiergarten (a large urban park that starts after Brandenburg Gate).

One of my friends biking through the Tiergarten.

Later in the day I was able to free up a couple hours to get a sizable run in.  This was sightseeing on steroids.  I headed out onto Museum Island (home to some of Germany's mot famous Museums), where the views make you feel like you are in Paris running along the Seine.  I took this over to the Parliament Building (The Reichstag), made my way into the Tiergarten for some soft trail running, and then headed back north to run through Brandenburg gate.  This was an incredible feeling to run not just by, by through such a famous landmark.  I then passed the US embassy on my right!

The most famous city gate in Berlin, Brandenburg gate, and I did in fact get to run under it!

Long, straight, and flat city streets of Berlin.  The
TV Tower can be seen in the background.

Another time I made it out onto the city streets of Berlin, an endless urban jungle of new buildings mixed with East German relics.  The massive TV tower is the most noticeable point of reference here.  I continued through the Mitte district, dotted with parks - none of which large enough to really run through.  I hope to return someday to run the Berlin Marathon.  The city is flat as a pancake which would make it a great PR course.

Though it would have been cool to run past the remnants of the Berlin Wall I only made it over there on a walking tour.  This is a city was that quite obviously divided into 2 (the east and the west) not so long ago.  Its hard to believe the Berlin Wall didn't come down until 1989.  Berlin felt like a mixture of New York City, Seattle, and maybe Baltimore.  Huge, densely populated, and sprawling, but with a gritty feel around every corner, not to mention a thriving coffee cafe culture of hipsters and other aspiring artists.

Munich

Me biking past the BMW headquarters.

I came to Munich mainly for Oktoberfest this trip but we rented bikes one day to take in some of the sights as well.  Munich is extremely bike friendly, with not only painted bike lines but full lanes dedicated to bike travel including stop lights.  This is trending all over Europe (US please take notice), to not just tolerate bikes but to actually make it a more convenient form of travel.  We biked up to the Olympic Park, locked our bikes up and rode up the Olympic Tower to view the city from a height of almost 600 feet!

Looking back down on the Olympic Park.

The Chinese Tower in the Englischer Garten.

As mentioned in Travel Running, I had been to Munich before and even run in the Englischer Garten, but this time I was a better runner and was able to dive even deeper into the grounds.  The park is huge, one of the largest urban parks in the world, at least several miles from end to end.  This time I made it through the massive Chinese Tower beergarden and into the North End, past the Kleinhesseloher See (lake).  I made it out in the morning around 8:00am (don't even ask how I managed to wake up so early) while my buddies slept in.  Its always neat to see what real people are up to in the early morning hours of the day, not that its very different from home; running, walking, commuting to work via bike.  A far cry from the Oktoberfest fueled party going on later in the day.

Oktoberfest

No commentary needed!

Of course, the real reason I came to Munich wasn't to run, but to drink.  Finally, the dream was full filled to visit Oktoberfest and it did not disappoint.  Once we got into town I wasted no time getting my Liederhosen and making our way to the tents.

Certain tents attract certain crowds, and they all come with their own theme.  They have huge outdoor beer gardens too which is nice on a sunny day.  The Hacker-Pschorr has a ceiling that looks like the sky.  Some (like the Augustiner tent) are more for middle aged or older Germans.  These were better to visit in the earlier hours of the day to sample a beer at each - Augustiner is often regarded as the best in Munich.  Other tents like the colorful Hippodrom attract a substantially younger crowd.  Of course, when I hear "young crowd" I think like 20-30, but then I realize in Europe young means like 15-20.  While it was fun being around wasted highschool kids for about an hour it starts to get annoying really quickly.  Still, we had some priceless exchanges with upcoming German youth, namely some drunken 15 year old who kept shouting "WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE FUTBALL CLUB?" to us.  He then needed my assistance to be escorted to the bathroom and that was the last I saw of young Dieter.

There is an actual fair going on inside the Oktoberfest grounds as well with rides and games.  I recommend you go on the rides before consuming mass quantities of 1 liter beers.  However, bumper cars did prove to be fun after.

Looking out over the Oktoberfest grounds (we took a ride in the Ferris Wheel!).  Most of the beer tents are to the
left, out of the frame.  You can see the Munich skyline in the distance.

All standing on the benches naturally!

Our final visit was to the Hoffbrau Festzelt, and I think it was our collective favorite. They played a good mix of German and English songs to keep us involved, and the crowd was in the 20s to early 30s age group. I was really excited when the band played the "West Virginia, Take Me Home" song, and the group next too us couldn't believe we were from Virginia. Did they play this song for us?

Earlier in the day the tents are quieter, but around 4pm the bands start playing and it becomes a huge sing-a-long by 6pm. At some point everyone starts standing on the benches to add to the fun (and danger for some of the more balance-challenged participants). Things start to clear out around 10:30pm, and its best to go to bed shortly after as you will need your rest.

The inside of the Hoffbrau Festzelt tent.  This tent holds about 8,000 people.  Several tents hold up to 10,000 and there
were at least 8 tents in total.  Thats a lot of people drinking out of 1 liter mugs! Yes, it was as much fun as it looks!

Back home now I'm not feeling in the best shape, but its not like I'm back to square one either.  I still managed to get in 25-30 miles per week while on travel, and the low workload gave me time to heal up and kind of hit the restart button mentally.  I won't be running JFK in a great time, but sometimes its worth it to sacrifice a little from your race times in order to actually enjoy life along the way.

Stay tuned for part 2 - Prost!

Iron Mountain Trail Run Recap

Race: Iron Mountain Trail Run (30 Miler)

Location: Damascus, VA

Date: August, 31st 2013

Finish Time: 5:43:36

Labor Day weekend - for many it means heading to the beach, visiting family, or just getting the kids ready for school.  I found a better alternative in Southwestern Virginia.  A few months ago after finally getting my legs back under me post-injury I went looking for a real mountain Ultra (and I sure did find it).  After building my mileage back up, maintaining my fitness through cycling, and completing a mostly flat 50k a few weeks ago I gave myself the green light to make the drive down I-81 and run Iron Mountain.

Heading into Damscus, drivers are treated to some of the most beautiful scenery Virginia has to offer.

There is just something fun about sleeping in a tent!

I headed down Friday after lunch with a buddy of mine and upon arrival was able to camp in the yard of a particularly kind Damascus resident.  At least a dozen other runners were tent camping here too, just a half mile from the start.

At 5:30 am most people were up and moving, ready to head over to the race start in the Damascus town park.  After my typical pre-race procedures and some waiting around we were off at promptly 7:00am!

The weather was fine, not great but perfectly runnable.  It wasn't all that hot (maybe 80?) but the humidity was definitely a factor.  Between the clouds and the tree shade sun was never an issue.  Considering it was late August in southern Virginia it could have easily been in the 90s so I felt fortunate enough to not have any major heat concerns.

The run started off unassumingly enough on the Virginia Creeper trail, a mostly flat crushed gravel path out of Damascus into the mountains.  Though a nice enough way to warm up it was almost a tease having already looked at the elevation map - thinking as I ran that for every flat mile we completed meant cramming all that elevation into even less linear distance.  I traded pleasantries with several friendly runners before the first brief aid station and the ascent to the Iron Mountain trail began.

We headed up some steep switch backs that required walking before things finally started to level off enough to be able to run.  The runners were spread out enough that you weren't at risk of tripping over someone, but there was still plenty of company around.  We made the right turn about 6 or 7 miles in where the course would later split on the way back.  There was a lot of uneventful up and down (mostly ups) until the first major aid station about 9 miles in.  Here as the 16 milers were turning around I took a breather, grabbed a mini PB&J, a few chips, and an orange slice.  I refueled my ultra running pack with about half water and half Gatorade and headed off on the next climb.

Personally, this is the toughest part of a 50k (or 30 miler in this case) race mentally.  9ish miles in you are not even half finished (still less than 1/3 done), so you really can't begin to think about "heading back", or speeding up no matter how fresh you feel.  Just pace yourself and be patient until the next check point.  For me, the next check point would be the half-way mark, and after that the 2/3 completion point.  Sure, you probably feel great but your mind is playing tricks on you - its been almost 2 hours and if you are any kind of runner you won't be having problems for at least another hour.  For now just keep on truckin'!

As mentioned, the real tale of the tape here is the elevation change.
I had over 8,000 ft in 30 miles.  The 50 milers had over 10,000 ft.

The trail continued through an endless forest.  At a certain point the terrain became much more rocky and washed out.  The trail was actually wider at this point, even passable for a jeep trail, but had a bathtub shape to it to add to the footing difficulties.  After a long downhill of this, some uphill, and one last ascent I reached the Skulls Gap aid station to once again refill fluids, get a snack, and access my drop bag.  I wished the 50 milers farewell and turned around to repeat the up and down wash outs.

This was the state of much of the trails, washed out ruts with roots and rocks.  Looking back its still hard to see how steep it actually was.  This section required walking to get up.  Loved it!!

Things seemed to go by faster on the way back.  Although I was able to pass a runner soon after Skulls Gap (and 1 more at the FSR 90 aid station) I didn't see any runners on the way back (other than a few 30 miles who I passed on their way to the turn-a-round).  This is when I really feel in the element of trail running - just you and nature.  During road running it feels like you versus  the road, but out there in the woods you kind of work together with your surroundings.  After 1 more aid station refill and some great single track running I reached the point where the out and back diverged onto new territory.  Must be getting close right? Well, yes, but not before 1 last section of steep uphill switchbacks - that went up, and up, and up some more!  I felt like I would pop out on the side of a mountain and at least see a great vista, but managed to stay hidden in the trees.

A sign indicating I was going the correct direction - not that it was needed,
the course was expertly marked.  This was about 21 miles in.

Then finally the ascent started! At first I felt excited to be traveling downhill with ease, but after about a mile or 2 of steep downhill running with rocky footing there starts to be negative returns.  Its hard keeping your footing and absorbing the downhill shock for mile after mile, but at least its stressing a different system then you have been using on the flats and uphills.  After crossing several streams I knew I must be getting close to the bottom.

The trail miraculously let out onto a paved road which allowed for what felt like a lightning fast pace.  Passing by a few locals I then crossed the main road in town inching ever closer to the finish.  Now back on the Virginia Creeper trail with about a mile and a half to go I was surprised at how much fuel I had left in the tank.  I cautiously increased my pace to about 7:30 miles (yes - Ultra Runners typically consider sub-8 minute miles "fast") to shave a little time off my race.  Rounding the last turn and passing the red caboose I sprinted to the finish.

Then, perhaps stupidly, I took the race organizers up on their offer of a "pull-up/ push-up/sit-up" challenge.  The idea is to do as many pull-ups, sit-ups, and push-ups as you can within 5 minutes of finishing.  Pull-ups count for 3, push-ups and sit-ups count as 1 (pull-ups are much harder than the other two).  I think I ended with 15 total pull-ups, 30 sit-ups, and maybe 20 push-ups.  I thought it was possible I could win the challenge and was probably in the lead at this point, but a couple of other finishers outdid my totals - 1 en route to winning the challenge.  It was a nice touch and all in good fun!

The thunder I heard threatening on the final ascent then materialized into a complete downpour.  I was under cover so I remained mostly unaffected, but having left my tent up to "dry out" all day I still managed to roll my eyes at no one.

About 10 minutes after I finished came the torrential downpour.

After putting my tent away in the rain, taking a quick dip in the stream and finally drying off, I drove back over to the start to wait out the storm.  The rain tapered off around 3:00pm and I was able to walk around town a bit before heading back to race central to see some of the 50 milers finish, including my friend Andrew who did awesome in his first 50 miler - finishing right around the 10 hour mark (seriously, thats a really good time especially on this helluva course!).  I took full advantage of the post-race cook out, as well as some post-race camaraderie with plenty of fellow runners.

Post-race pic.  This was after I dried off and changed.

Goodbye Damascus! See you next year!

In the near term, I should be in good shape for JFK.  After a bit of rest I want to get some speed back in my legs and then get back to the focused Ultra training in October.

I had a blast at Iron Mountain!  In the end I was very pleased that I held myself back and only did the 30 mile option.  I do use the word "only" lightly, and in the presence of other hardcore trail runners.  I plan on making it back next year for the 50 mile marquee event.  If all goes according to plan this would be my last major training run before Grindstone 2014.

However, as runners begrudgingly know, everything's a big "if".