Weekly Training Wrap - 8/25 - 8/31

Not exactly a week of specific training, but training nonetheless. The goal was 50 miles and 8 hours this week to try and keep my fitness at some type of baseline. I knew I'd have to settle for road miles as I work back into running from my ankle sprain. I made the mileage goal but came up a bit short on the time goal -- guess I am too fast :)  My ankle is feeling decent, mostly just a bit achy and still tender in that inversion position. This upcoming week I will try for some easy/ginger trail miles to get back into the swing of it. Two hard weeks left before taper and I hope to put in one last good push.

I finished August with 190 miles and 27K of vert, well below my intended goals of 250 miles and 40K of vertical gain. Such is life with 10 days of training lost...

Time to rise up....

Day	Miles	Notes
Monday	Off	Strength Training
Tuesday	8	Easy
Wednesday	9	Easy
Thursday	9	Easy Strength Training
Friday	17	Long Road Run
Saturday	7	Easy
Sunday	Off	Rest
Total	9

Weekly Training Wrap - 8/18 - 8/24

Most of my close friends know this, but I have not yet acknowledged it yet here, I messed up my ankle pretty good the Friday before LT100. I was stupidly trying to prove something on Hope Pass and rolled it bad with a half mile to the finish. (I had a damn good time going too -- 2:10 round trip to the summit!) My ankles are strong and I've survived numerous rolls, but there was no pulling out of it. I am guessing at least a grade II sprain. Obviously, that isn't great with only 6 weeks left until Bear (only 4 now, really). As a result, I wound up missing my opportunity to pace Chuck and have spent the better part of this week cobbling together any kind of training I could in between icing and PT work. Fortunately, I managed about 6 total hours this week with my bike. And, I doubled my usual cross training work. Right now, the ankle is improving and I can probably consider hour long runs. But, my margin for error is basically zero. The greatest risk right now seems to be the possibility that I re-aggravate it doing too much too soon. In particular, I am concerned about doing big vertical or technical trail runs. Any setback could make training the next 4 weeks impossible. Ugh.

The upside of this challenge is that I am not overly concerned with the big picture stuff. I am just trying to take it one day at a time and keep improving, walking the fine line between continuing to train and not being stupid.

Day	Miles	Notes
Monday	Off	Strength Training
Tuesday	Off	Bike to Work
Wednesday	Off	Rest
Thursday	Off	Strength Training
Friday	Off	Biking and Stair Master
Saturday	4	Easy run and 20 mile mtn bike ride
Sunday	5	Open Space
Total	9

Leadville Trail 100

LT100 Race Report

~ Chuck Radford (Guest Post)

I hesitated to write a report of what went down on the Leadville 100 course mostly because I’m not a blogger and I don’t feel I have much to offer. However, when you accomplish something as monumental as a 100-mile foot race in Leadville, Colorado, you should celebrate it. I can’t promise inspiration or comedy. I can only recount the incredible journey I took with fellow racers, family, crew and pacers.

Something happened to me in the past two years while pacing friends at LT100 that “moved the needle” from "running 100 miles is ludicrous" to "HELL YEAH." After running my first 50 miler last year in Leadville, I caught the bug. As the registration date approached, I told my wife (who I once told I would NEVER do 100 miles) that I was going to register for the 2014 race. I stayed up until midnight on New Year’s Eve and pulled the trigger. I then went to bed and thought “I’ll worry about it tomorrow.”

I ran some “Fat Ass” events early in the season to kick off training and then settled into a loose training plan that entailed 8 to 10 mile runs at MAF heart rate during the week and a long run with fellow running friends on the weekend. Intensity picked up just slightly as the winter ended and the spring was upon me. I ran the Quad Rock 50 miler in May, ran the Leadville Trail Marathon in June and then followed that up with the North Fork 50K a couple weeks later in June. July was filled with a training weekend in Leadville with my buddy AJ and then the Leadville Night Run hosted by Brandon Fuller as my final long run. All this to say, that my training for Leadville really entailed races, plenty of slow long runs and a few high intensity runs mixed in through the summer. This allowed me to stay as healthy as I’ve ever been in a training cycle.

Before I knew it, the “I’ll worry about it tomorrow” lax attitude was no longer appropriate and the race was upon me. All the final details were put in place and I headed up to Leadville with AJ (my crew master and good friend) the Thursday before the race. We stayed busy by doing the medical weigh in and registration packet pick up and eventually headed to Mike Aish’s soiree and then to the New Balance BBQ. Friday activities included a shake-out run, the athlete/crew meeting and expo, the arrival of my wife, daughter and AJ’s daughter and eventually my other buddy and pacer Mike. After dinner it was time to get all my clothes and gear ready for the early morning start the next morning. As expected, very little sleep was had and I was up and getting ready for the race. It was “go time.”

4 am and all smiles ...for the time being.

The Start to May Queen ~ 0 to 12.5 miles

My crew and I all walked to the start line together. After a family photo and giving a kiss to my wife and daughter, I pushed my way up to the front ¼ of the starters. It was a heavy feeling knowing that I wouldn’t see my family and crew again for 3 hours and wouldn’t see the finish line for another 20+ hours (possibly 30 hours as I really had no idea what I was capable of). With a heavy gulp, I turned on my headlamp, heard the gun shot and headed out for a LONG day.

The goal to May Queen was 1:55, which meant a controlled and easy pace down the slight descent from town all the way around the lake. I tried to stay far enough ahead to not get stuck behind the conga line along the lake, but it was unavoidable. I turned on my music and put my hands on the hips of the person in front of me, kicked when I was supposed to kick and just waited it out. When I rolled into the May Queen aid station, I refilled my water bottle and moved right through not even losing a minute (which was good because that section ended up being slower than I wanted).

May Queen to Outward Bound ~ 12.5 to 25 miles

I mentally prepared to hit the Colorado trail leading up to Hagerman Road and eventually the Powerline climb. I started passing quite a few people and was worried I’d blow my plan to pace this section smart. However, every time I looked down at my watch, I was never going too fast, so I pressed on. I had that awful thought, “Am I pushing it like one of those people who blow up early?” Only time would tell.

As I crested the Powerline ascent, I mentally prepared for the steep descent back to the road. I was executing the plan flawlessly in regards to pace and eating. About half way down the descent, I fell and fell hard. In moments like that, you do your best to minimize impact, but they happen so fast, you often can’t do anything to help the situation. After I stopped rolling, I rolled over onto my butt, sat there, took inventory of the injuries, got up, dusted myself off, looked around to see if anyone saw and then just started running again. The pains were there and the blood began to flow, but I knew it was nothing worth throwing me off my game and I just powered on.

After leaving Powerline and the fall behind me, I hit the road and ran almost all of it. I came into the Outward Bound Aid station to see my family and crew for the first time. We had a bit of an awkward exchange of water bottles and food and I ensured them that I was ok from the fall.

Outward Bound to Halfmoon ~ 25 to 31 miles

New to the course this year was a section of meadow that was opened up to avoid some of the road. While I was initially pleased to hear the news, I was horrified at the conditions of that section. There were postholes as deep as my knees and ruts everywhere. It took me about 3 minutes before I fell for the second time. Luckily, it was a nice soft landing, but I was just fuming about it for some reason.


Once out of the meadow, the remaining part of this section was relatively benign and I could really make up time. I was feeling fine physically, but noticed that my stomach started to feel a little “off.” I continued with the plan of running smart and eating well and noticed that while trying to eat a Bonk Breaker bar, I couldn’t swallow it. It was dry as cotton and my throat would not have it. After swishing around some water to reconstitute it, I got the whole bar down, but knew at that moment, Bonk Breaker bars were not going to do the job the rest of the trip. As I came into the Half-moon aid station I was moving well and unknowingly was ahead of schedule. I was rounding the corner to the station and BAM …down I went for a third time. This fall was not as soft as my last one and I did further damage to my hands and knees. Again, I brushed myself off and ran into the aid station. A medic asked if I wanted him to look at my knee and I very disrespectfully (Sorry Mister Medic) scoffed at him and went over to the water to refill and head out.

Half-moon to Twin Lakes ~ 31 to 40 miles

I enjoyed this next section as it was primarily all along the Colorado Trail. It was beautiful, wooded and I was alone the whole time. There was a long gradual climb before heading down into the small Twin Lakes town. My stomach was getting a little worse hour by hour and I was less and less motivated to eat. However, my body was holding together well and I was flying and feeling good. There’s something VERY cool about coming down into Twin Lakes. It’s almost like a fashion show where you have a runway (a ridiculously steep runway) and everyone has a clear unobstructed view of you coming in strutting your stuff. In reality, because of the nature of the ridiculous descent, you slip and slide all the way down looking like a drunken fool trying to problem solve stairs or curbs.

I saw my family and crew at this aid station and sat down in a chair to switch out shoes and started complaining about my stomach. I gave all my extra food to AJ and he immediately noticed I was getting behind my nutrition. His best advice was to take my time because I was 20 minutes ahead of schedule into this station. Once my shoes were on, I ignored AJ’s advice, gave a kiss to wife and daughter and headed out for the big climb ahead.

My crew girl asking for my trash (her very important job).

Happy once again to see family and friends.

Twin Lakes to Winfield ~ 40 to 50 miles

I worked my way through the little town and finally made it to the meadow. I was immediately struck by the smell of bog and started hitting mud and water quickly. After making it through about 4 muddy ponds, I ran into my friend Matt Curtis, whom I had seen a few times earlier. We ran through the remaining ponds and river crossing together chatting about our stomachs and how we were feeling. This section is brutal with over 3000 feet of climb. I down shifted into power hiking mode and was continually reminded of how bad my stomach was feeling. After gagging down a gummy, dry wad of Lara Bar in my mouth, I knew it was going to be gels, fluids and possibly almond butter for the rest of the race.

After some serious climbing, I skipped right through the small Hopeless Aid station and kept my motivated feet moving forward all the way to the summit. Unfortunately, my legs were NOT ready for the ridiculously technically steep descent. I was a dainty princess skipping down the trail trying not to land on my butt again. I caught Matt again (after he and I passed each other a few time on the front side) and then we just ran together for almost the remainder of the descent into Winfield. Matt and I took turns complaining about our sour stomachs, each one making moaning noises throughout the descent. About half way down we saw Mike Aish and Nick Clark coming back up. About five minutes later we saw Rob Krar solo. They make running look easy.

I lumbered into the Winfield aid station where my first pacer Mike greeted me. After messing around at medical weigh-in, I was guided over to my crew where I sat down for a few minutes. Even though I felt good passing people up Hope Pass, I not only lost my 20-minute gain at Twin Lakes, but also lost another 6 minutes. Hope killed me and I was feeling defeated. I continued to complain more about my stomach as we tried to problem solve what to give me that would help me continue to race. I ended up taking a sip of Red Bull (bad idea) before drinking an Ensure (blah).

Running out through the meadow to the base of Hope Pass.

Winfield to Twin Lakes ~ 50 to 60 miles

The good news is that I had a pacer and a good friend at my side (Mike, whom I’ve known and been on running adventures with for the past six years). The bad news was that the Ensure was revolting in my stomach. Mike took the race vest off my back, leaving me with just a hand held (my back was relieved). As we started up the backside of Hope Pass, I prepared Mike for the horrible ascent we had in front of us. What I didn’t prepare him for was all the complaining I would be doing the whole way up. Mike knows me very well and he knew the right times to push me and the right times to let me rest. After another tough climb to the top, we were once again met with technically steep trail leading all the way to the base. The added difficulty now was crossing paths with all the outward-bound racers still climbing the front side of Hope. Fortunately, everyone was VERY gracious and let us pass them by moving to the side.

A little more than half way down the trail to the meadow, my foot caught a rock and I went down AGAIN. These falls on the steep descents are the scariest, never knowing if they’d end your race or not. A couple more scrapes and bruises, but again, no bad damage. Mike lifted me up and we began running again. A little bit of adrenaline helped me make a good final push down the last section of trail leading into the meadow. When we hit the river crossing, I took the opportunity to wash my wounds in the cold, cold water. I felt like an old miner standing in the stream taking a bath. Finally, the double-crossing of Hope Pass was behind me. There was a little joy in that only to be clouded with an upset stomach that was ruling my day.

Mike ran ahead to the crew as I was greeted to applause and support of MANY fans and fellow racers’ crewmembers. Once I found my crew, I sat down and started changing out of my wet shoes and one sock. I complained more and more about my stomach. The obvious answer was to get calories in any way possible, so the crew filled water bottles with Roctane (a high calorie drink) while I started to dance around from a terrible cramp in my hip. We found a GREAT guy (Robbie) to step in and replace pacing duties for my injured friend AJ. A couple drinks of soda and I headed out again.

Those small looking ants are people suffering right along with me up the backside of Hope Pass.

Couldn't resist adding the amazing view from the backside of Hope Pass (photos by Mike Mizones).

Twin Lakes to Tree Line ~ 60 to 71 miles

As we headed up that steep hill out of the aid station, that climb was the closest I came all day to actually vomiting. I tried to talk to Robbie, but couldn’t talk as my voice was quivering and my stomach was ready to blow. I stopped talking, power hiked up it, refocused and avoided “the exorcist” inside me. There was about a three mile climb leading to the Colorado Trail and it hurt. Once we hit the Colorado Trail, my whole world was rocked! After hours of pushing my body to the limits with very few calories, it was no longer working with me. I was bonking. I’ve never bonked in my life and that feeling was startling. I got dizzy, disoriented, and no longer had any energy or interest in continuing on. I told Robbie I needed a break and put my head against a tree. I was stripped raw and needed to find a way to climb out of the abyss. As much as I hated it, I asked Robbie for a gel. I got it down, dealt with the familiar turning stomach and told Robbie I was ready to try and move a little. We started moving a little faster than a stroll and about fifteen minutes later, I asked for another gel. I was coming back from hell and Robbie was key in keeping me moving, helping me refocus on something other than the negative and even got me to run. It was a hard blow and we lost about 30 minutes all in all, but what happened next was nuts. I started dropping a couple 8-ish minute miles heading into the Tree Line aid station. Robbie got me going and we hardly stopped. We caught about three other runners heading into Tree Line and I felt like I was back in the game, only 10 minutes behind schedule. Robbie was a Godsend pacer and brought me back from the dead.

We made it to Tree Line and a happy crew welcomed me with lots of praise. I asked for bacon and powered that down. I grabbed my new pacer, Jon, who is a fantastic runner and friend. He had his hands full with the next 20-mile segment, including Powerline and the lake trail …in the dark!!

Tree Line to May Queen ~ 71 to 86 miles

The bacon didn’t sit well, of course, and I immediately started complaining to Jon again about my stomach. If there is one regret I have about this race, it’s that I complained so much to my pacers and my crew. To that point, I apologize to you all. But I digress! Jon and I were actually running pretty well heading back into the Outward Bound aid station. We made it to the horrible field again and I warned Jon about all the holes. I did not fall, fortunately, and we made it into the aid station, where I grabbed my headlamp from the crew. We were in and out fast. As much as I wanted to be happy about knocking each aid station off my list, I was still finding myself in a negative place where I could only think about the hardships still ahead of me. That’s something I need to work on for my next race …positivity.

We took the long road out of the aid station with some run/walk intervals and made it to the base of the infamous Powerline. Noteworthy for its 1800 foot climb with around 80 miles on your tired legs, we started to power hike immediately. Jon and I had discussed it leading up to the base (in between my constant pissing and moaning about my stomach) and he knew I’d give what I had, but that I’d need some breaks on the way. It was evident the harder I pushed, the less happy (if it’s possible) my stomach would get. There’s nothing fun or fantastic to say about this section. I was broken, my body was aching all over and I was beginning to feel very beat down. I was trying to accommodate Jon’s positive and upbeat attitude (he even recited the Gettysburg Address perfectly to motivate me), but I just couldn’t. We were entering nighttime once again and I started to let more and more negativity infiltrate my thoughts. I was starting another bonk and wanted no part of it. I tried to keep powering down gels and fluids to fight it off, but it was clearly winning. We made it to a surprise makeshift aid station at the top of Powerline and those people were having fun. Fun I was NOT having. The good news was we had crested Powerline and it was time to go down again and on mostly runnable trail. The bad news is that my legs, completely shot, were aching in the knees, the hips and my feet …yeah, the whole she-bang.

The bonk passed and we were on Hagerman Road. I honored my earlier deal with Jon and ran all of Hagerman Road. We hit the Colorado Trail again and I was honestly scared of the pitch dark, technical trail awaiting me. We tackled the trail slowly and ran the runnable sections and walked the bad ones.

We stuck it out, made it through, and popped out on the road leading to the May Queen aid station. We ran into the aid station and were greeted by my family and crew. They were cold and it was evident. Some crew clothed me in arm sleeves and gloves (literally clothed me) as others refilled water bottles, replaced my headlamp batteries and stuffed more food in Jon’s pack. I was behind and knew finishing under 20 hours (my A goal) was no longer in play. I wasn’t defeated, but rather somewhat relieved to know that I could stop worrying about it. I was horribly tired, stripped raw and needed something. So I put my head on my wife’s shoulder, put my arms around her and just stood there in her warmth for a minute. It made me emotional (and still does), but I needed the TLC. After that, Jon and I were gone again off into the dark.

May Queen to Tabor Boat Ramp ~ 86 to 92 miles

I wasn’t looking forward to running along the lake because it was dark, technical in places, and I was getting more and more tired and lazy in my running form. About a quarter mile on the trail, Jon remarked how he hadn’t tripped all day and he tripped right in mid sentence. Not more than a minute later I went down straight into a Superman pose. I saved my knees by sacrificing my hands and wrists. I stood back up, started running again and fell even harder into another Superman pose. This did not do much for my outlook, but I couldn’t stop. Not now. We lost a good chunk of time here unfortunately, but the only way to get to the finish was alive. Jon pushed gels when he could and kept me drinking every couple minutes. You could hear the water lapping up against the shoreline, but could not see it. Jon did his job and he did an amazing job at that. He did me proud and I can only hope I did him proud. We ran up to the crew station to one last greeting from family and friends before heading to the finish. Jon handed off the baton (race vest) to Mike and we shuffled onward.

Tabor Boat Ramp to The Finish ~ 92 to 100 miles

Still plagued with negativity, that sour stomach and a shredded body, I mentally prepared for the long and final stretch of 8 miles. This was going to be the biggest mental fight. We traversed the campgrounds, were cheered on by late night partiers and supporters and never got lost. We popped out on the short road that lead us to the trail section and down “mini-Powerline.” It was just before we hit this section that, out of nowhere, Matt Curtis came blazing past us and said, “I’m sure you’ll be passing me again soon.” We had flip-flopped positions all day, but I knew this would be the last and he had me. I cheered him on, encouraging him to finish strong. I did my little princess dance down the short, steep trail and knew we were done with “technical” trail running.

Once we hit “The Boulevard,” I once again was encouraged by Mike to do a run/walk interval the whole way to the finish. I’d give two minutes (sometimes pushing myself to three minutes) and then walk a minute. I can’t deny that there were times I was cussing Mike out like a drunken sailor, but never verbalized it and knew he was doing the right thing. The Boulevard is known for being long (or feeling that way) and being a slight uphill battle the whole way. Mike and I kept trying to figure out how far away we were, always being on the short end of our calculations. Hell, I couldn’t add 2x2 at that point and really didn’t care any more. Low and behold, up ahead of us was the middle school, which meant we were in the home stretch. One step in front of the other now, relentless forward progress, don’t stop (even though time was standing still)!!

As we headed down 6th St., we saw my wife and daughter there waiting for me, so I grabbed each of their hands and started jogging and chatting. I kept asking where the finish was because I couldn’t see it. When my wife explained where it was, I stopped running, dropped their hands and said, “We can run again when we get closer”. As we got closer, we came upon AJ, Jon, Savannah and Robbie and the motley crew all headed towards the finish. Once we got to the gate, they all told me to go get my buckle. I jogged along the red carpet right up to the finish line with my hands in the air as I looked up to God and finished what I started over 20 hours earlier. Marilee (co-founder of the race) was there to put my finisher’s medal around my neck and to give me an incredibly warm and welcome hug home. Official time: 20:46:32, 17th overall and 3rd in my age group (next to Bob Africa and Dave Mackey).

That was it. It was done. I was done. I greeted my family and my crew giving each of them a hug (even those that didn’t want one). When I got to my wife, I got incredibly emotional and couldn’t even hug her because I leaned over with my hands on me knees and teared up. Off we went into the late night/early morning towards the house and a very restless night ahead.

It's not pretty, but it's not supposed to be after 100 miles.

The Big Buckle for my efforts.

Radford selfie at the award ceremony.

Age group podium with great runners Bob Africa (2nd) and Dave Mackey (1st).

Final thoughts

I’ve been told that as a runner I have “natural talent” and that I’m “fast” countless times over the years. While you would assume I’d find that to be a compliment, the truth is that it frustrates me. It insinuates that I don’t put in the time, the effort or the commitment. Or that I’m perhaps not as dedicated to this sport as others. In truth, I do log fewer miles than many runners, but I like to think that the miles I choose to log are smart, effective miles and not junk miles. I have a history of injuries and many of those injuries are the result of too many hard efforts and too many miles. 50 to 60 miles is a good balance of miles for me. I know some people don’t understand how I can run so few miles and still be a “fast” runner and perhaps that’s where the “natural talent” comes into play, but it shouldn’t diminish my efforts and commitment to the sport. I worked eight long months for this chance to race the epic Leadville Trail 100, and I can only hope that I showed someone, anyone that “volume” is not the only answer to successful ultra trail racing.

It’s cliché and I don’t really care, but I could NOT have done this without my family, my crew and my pacers. I’m not an elite runner, or an amazing athlete that has youth, experience, or a deep knowledge of how to be a solo trail runner. I’m a family man, with responsibilities, balancing what I love to do most (running) with what is most important to me (family). These people stuck with me through the lowest of lows, listened to me complain, pepped me up and kept me moving with no personal gain or reward. They gave the ultimate sacrifice of time, sleep and comfort just for me to have my day. They were all at their VERY best when I was at my VERY worst. You can never thank them appropriately through words or expression and can only acknowledge their selfless efforts. You can only hope to repay them someday when they are in need.

I was told by AJ prior to the race to “make sure to enjoy it.” That’s a hard thought to process. As much as I wanted to truly enjoy it, it was almost impossible to enjoy the pain, the sour stomach and the fatigue. Perhaps it’s more about enjoying exactly those things because they make you feel alive. They make you feel human. This race exposed me, made me very vulnerable, and yet somehow made me stronger. You never know what you are capable of unless you put yourself out there and with that risk, comes suffering and an equal amount of reward. I don’t pretend to be better, tougher, or stronger than anyone. I was just lucky to be one of the few this year that was able to prove that I’m better, tougher, and stronger than I ever thought I was. And in that, I enjoyed it.

Bear 100 - Race Day Strategy

Start (0.0)

Gear and Food

• AK Vest w/ two bottles of water
• Extra handheld with 4 servings of UCan (plain with Nunn tab)
• Altra Olympus with Balega Moh-rino socks
• Race shirt w/ arm sleeves
• Race Shorts
• Food for 4 hours: 4 bars, 2 emergency gels, 2 packets of Skratch.
• Assorted essentials in pack (ginger chews, S!caps, Imodium, Chapstick, Arnica)
• Eat at least a bar (or two) for breakfast, maybe some Ucan too

Letham Hollow (19.66)

Plan

Estimated Time: 4 hours
Arrive At Aid: 10:00 AM on Friday
Elevation Gained: 4400 Feet

Gear and Food

• Drop off head lamp
• Put on sunscreen
• Pick up sunglasses
• Pick up food for 3.5 more hours: 3 bars, Skratch?, spare gels?
• Refill extra handheld with 4 servings of Ucan
• Eat any real food (Epic Bar or Almond Butter?)

Right Hand Fork (36.92)

Plan

Estimated Time: 3.5 hours
Arrive At Aid: 1:30 PM on Friday
Elevation Gained: 4000 Feet
Pacer: Robbie?

Gear and Food

• Pick up food for 3.5 more hours: 3 bars, Skratch?, spare gels?
• Refill extra handheld with 4 servings of Ucan
• Eat any real food (Epic Bar or Almond Butter?)
• Sun Screen again?

Tony Grove (51.84)

Plan

Estimated Time: 3.5 hours
Arrive At Aid: 5:00 PM on Friday
Elevation Gained: 4100 Feet
Pacer: Chuck

Gear and Food

• Pick up Pacer (Chuck)
• Grab enough food for 2.25 hours: 1 bar, Skratch?, spare gels?
• Refill extra handheld with 4 servings of Ucan?
• Eat an Epic bar if not thus far
• Consider head lamps if much behind pace
• Also consider jackets if behind pace

Franklin Trailhead (61.48)

Plan

Estimated Time: 2.25 hours
Arrive At Aid: 7:15 PM on Friday
Elevation Gained: 1000 Feet
Pacer: Chuck

Gear and Food

• Grab enough food for 4 hours
• Refill extra handheld with 4 servings of Ucan?
• Head Lamp if not at Tony Grove
• Put a jacket in pack (gloves and hat too, possibly)

Beaver Lodge (75.82)

Plan

Estimated Time: 4 hours
Arrive At Aid: 11:15 PM on Friday
Elevation Gained: 2900 Feet
Pacer: Chuck

Gear and Food

• Grab enough food for 3-4 hours

Beaver Creek CG (85.25)

Plan

Estimated Time: 2.75 hours
Arrive At Aid: 2:00 AM on Saturday
Elevation Gained: 2700 Feet
Pacer: Chuck

Gear and Food

• Grab enough food for 3-4 hours

Ranger Dip (92.20)

Plan

Estimated Time: 2 hours
Arrive At Aid: 4:00 AM on Saturday
Elevation Gained: 1200 Feet
Pacer: Chuck

Gear and Food

• Grab enough food for 2-3 hours
• If behind pace, consider dropping head lamp?

Finish (99.70)

Plan

Estimated Time: 2 hours
Arrive At Aid: 6:00 AM on Saturday
Elevation Gained: 1000 Feet

Leadville 2014 / Crewing Chuck Radford

Wow, so much to say...

The first thing that I have to say is congratulations to my friend Chuck Radford. He made his debut at the 100 mile distance and killed it. He finished in 20:46, 17th overall, and 3rd masters. Even more impressive was surrounded by accomplished ultra runners (even some former champions) that finished within an hour of him: Dave Mackey, Liza Howard, Timmy Parr, Duncan Callahan, Bob Africa and more... I know the day did not unfold the way he had visualized in his mind, but keeping that kind of company at Leadville is astounding.

It was a very rewarding experience for me to watch his day and race unfold. People kept asking me how he was doing and I just kept using the word "wrecked" because I didn't know how to describe it any other way. The simple version is that he had a sour stomach and never really could eat, leading to a myriad of other problems like cramping, falling, and a few minutes off his goal. The more complicated version of it is that he now understands the journey that is your first 100 mile race. It starts with a dream to enter into a race like Leadville. Then you train, plan, and obsess for more nearly a year, pouring your attention over and over and over again into every detail. By race day, people can only describe you as nuts. Then the race starts and everything you thought you knew goes out the window. You are standing on Hope Pass hemorrhaging time and wondering if you are ever going to finish the race. After you survive Hope Pass, the Colorado Trail climb kicks you in the teeth. Once you recover from that, you are on Powerline. You stagger home exhausted and just glad to be done.

After the race ends, the only word to describe how you feel is overwhelmed. You are mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausted. Everything you worked for has come to fruition, but somehow it doesn't feel at all like you expected. 100 miles is way more than a race and you have to witness it firsthand to understand. In a twisted way, the pain and the suffering are your reward for your year long dream. There are no words to make someone understand. Seeing it from outside the ropes reinforced everything in my mind. I remember all the compliments my pacers and crew gave me and now I understand. Watching someone struggle like that an push on is beyond inspiration.

The other thing that I have to say is that Leadville had a great day! They deserved it after taking so much criticism last year. To have three runners the caliber of Sharman, Aish, and Krar (not to mention all the other great athletes and former champions) in the field was a treat to watch. I have met Mike Aish several times and think the world of the guy. He is very entertaining and genuine and just plain fun to root for. To be honest, I wasn't sure he'd ever figure out the 100 mile distance. And, when I saw him pull into Winfield (and later Twin Lakes) looking labored, I thought he'd blown it again. But he put on the greatest finish in the history of that race (sub 1:50 over the final 13 miles) to close out a 2 hour PR and 2nd place. At one point, he and Ian Sharman were separated by 30 secs with just a few miles to go! What a battle and congratulations to them both.

Watching Rob Krar was just plain impressive. I don't really know how else to say it. He was all business and didn't even seem to break stride all day. He went off course for a little more than a mile and still ran the 2nd fastest time in the history of this iconic race. He looked like a machine with his precision execution.

Rob Krar getting iced down and drinking some kind of nutrition fluid at Winfield

I think my lone complaint about the race was sheer number of changes they made in response to last year. I know they took a ton of heat and had to respond accordingly, but Twin Lakes and Winfield are impossible and now overcome with so many rules that the crew chief's head will spin. Crewing for a front runner like Chuck made it easy, but I really felt for mid and back of the pack runner crews. You almost have to choose between Winfield and Twin. It is complicated and I don't have all the answers, but it is a very frustrating situation. I think maybe they should go back to the 2012 course and just let crews all the way into Winfield or just close it entirely. If I run Leadville again, I will strongly consider skipping Winfield for both pacing and crewing.

One other thing that I find a bit annoying is their propensity to announce course changes so close to the race. In 2012, they added 3 miles to the race and no one knew until the week of the race. It cost me 45 minutes on my finish time. I think that is a detail that should be communicated sooner. This year they announced a change allowing runners to run through the field near Outward Bound instead of going onto the road. And, while I am sure most runners would prefer that, it was an unknown. No one has trained on the field and it wasn't exactly a designated trail for runners. In fact, Chuck expressed concern to me about the number of post-holes in the field, causing him to fall at least once. I imagine that wasn't a ton of fun in the middle of the night.

One last topic, a personal one about me, my upcoming 100 and potential future 100s. I don't think it is any secret to those around me that I have had a tough time embracing running another 100. Leadville in 2012 just took so much out of me. As I mentioned earlier, it is really an experience of just emptying one's self and laying everything bare. I've been worried all summer about running Bear 100 because most DNFs start with a runner that doesn't believe or doesn't want to be there. If you are not steadfast with belief and desire to be there, you'll crack. Guaranteed.

I think this YouTube video sums up how I feel about it after watching Chuck yesterday -- "there's some stuff in the basement."

I think perhaps I am not psyched about running another 100 because I know how hard I worked in 2012, and, yet, I know there is another level in me. My belt buckle was nowhere to be seen this weekend because I am not satisfied with a sub-30 finish. That DOES NOT mean I am ashamed of it. I worked hard for it and am damn proud. I executed almost flawlessly that day, but I never really put myself out there enough to know if sub-25 was realistic. That said, I know I can run 100 miles and get the "big buckle". I just have to prepare myself to suffer that much again. It is frightening thought. But, perhaps a new spark has been lit.... Perhaps returning to Leadville for this year's race allowed me to finally move on.

Leadville 100 Crew and Pacing Duty

I was introduced to "advanced" running and training by my son's soccer coach (and now good friend), Jon Ahern. And later I was introduced to trail and ultra running on something of a dare from my neighbor (and now good friend), Tony Oakes. I guess you could say that is my running tree. I have picked up a lot along the way and made it my own, but those two guys have a lot to do with shaping me as a runner. In that time, I have transformed from a 4:18 "newbie" marathoner to running a 3:13 at the Colorado Marathon and becoming a 50-mile and 100-mile finisher. This weekend, I get to watch as a runner that I have mentored, Chuck Radford, takes on the Leadville 100.

Chuck and I have been co-workers for nearly a decade, but we didn't become good friends until he had a renewed interest in running, in part from watching me grow as a runner. He is without a doubt the most talented runner in our group, but he is also very humble and just wants to be one of the guys. Two things really impress me about Chuck. The first is that he doesn't want to be congratulated for his impressive natural talent, instead wishing to be acknowledged for the hard work, discipline, and patience he puts into training. Many runners wish to be applauded nearly every day for their speed and talent by showing off on impressive training runs and putting up big stats. But, the real reward in running is the hard fought training cycle culminating into a race effort. It is a giant sacrifice to trade weeks and months of training for one shot at a race. When it goes your way, you get about a week of feeling great about yourself. When it doesn't go your way, you feel like crap and often enter into a "revenge" race to somehow make up for the lost effort (which rarely ever works out!). Chuck understands that discipline, hard work, and patience matter more than flashy stats, even though he could go out and execute a run that would blow away 99.9% of humans on any given day.

The other thing that impresses me about Chuck is his toughness. He executes hard runs like no one else that I've witnessed. When it's time to go hard, he goes HARD. And his race efforts almost never disappoint because he can go to places in his mind (the "pain cave") most people don't want to enter. Jon and I are both data geeks and obsess about heart rate data all the time. We've done our best to quantify Chuck, but sometimes all we can do is marvel at his efforts. I have been privileged to see Chuck run to a 2nd place finish at the Colorado Marathon and watch him take on his first 50 miler, where he ignored my advice to go easy and went on to finish in 6th place. (He also went out faster than anticipated at Colorado Marathon in route to his impressive finish.) Oh, and he set the course record at the North Fork 50k this Summer. Like I said, he is a great racer and very hard to quantify.

So, back on point... This week it is my honor to crew and pace for Chuck. I have done unofficial crew duty for a group of buddies doing their first 50 miler last summer, but crewing for a 100 is the big time! And, this will be my first pacing experience. I have my work cut out for me trying to stay with him on Hope Pass, but I secretly hope he is feeling good enough that late in the race to drop me. That would mean his race is going well, even if a little embarrassing for me.

I am excited to be present and vested in the challenge of LT100 without having to run it myself. I understand the emotions and feelings that go along with running a 100, particularly one's first. And I know how hard he has worked to build toward this day. It will be a great joy to watch his year long dream play out. A joy that I hope motivates me some for my remaining weeks of training for the Bear 100. Being a rookie crew member, I am nervous about what the day holds. Leadville came under fire last year for poor race logistics. In response, they have made quite a few changes this year, particularly to the two most important aid stations: Twin Lakes and Winfield. Since it is the first year of these changes, I don't know what to expect. Chuck will likely be in the top 20 runners most of the day, so I hope that allows the crew to stay out front of the mess. Maybe...

I expect Chuck will have a terrific race. He has done nearly everything right along the way. And, his pattern of success is just too impressive to ignore. However, I also think Chuck will find the race less interesting than the journey. Running 100 miles changes a person. I have not done anything in racing like it. Personally, I didn't have any tragic or transcending moments like you often read about. It was just a long, grueling day filled with fortitude, eating (lots of eating!), gratefulness (for all the friends and family that helped me), and pain (near the end). I vividly remember my sister crying when I came into the mile 87 aid station (May Queen) ahead of pace. I had fallen off of pace and they were worried about me, but Jon and I worked hard over the Powerline climb to get back on pace. And, it was the moment when we all realized that this was actually going to happen -- I was going to finish! That was the only moment I recall being emotional. The other impactful memory is how much my daughter got into the whole experience, including wanting to wake a 2 am to watch me start. Running is a selfish sport, but it means the world to me to have my kids see me still taking on challenges and fulfilling my dreams at almost 40 years of age. And, the fact that they enjoy being a part of it is priceless.

At the finish, all I felt was exhaustion. I tried to sneak into a medical tent and steal a nap in a sleeping bag. They caught on and sent me away. And pain. I wanted a doctor to make the pain go away, desperately hoping something was actually wrong with me as I stared at my feet that had swollen like balloons. He concluded that I would live, saying "yep, you just ran 100 miles". Once again, I was sent away. And hunger. I ate the most enjoyable breakfast burrito of my life that morning and I don't even know if it was that good!

The odd thing is that I didn't feel like going out and doing it again right away. Racing has a way of bring a joy to us that becomes addicting. Run a good marathon? Do another one! But not this distance. My sense of accomplishment was full. I nailed it on my first try. I respect the distance and the toll it takes on the body, the mind, and "life". Ken Chlouber, founder of the LT100, is famous for lots of quotes. One of my favorites is: "The biggest distance to conquer in this race is 5 inches... The 5 inches between your ears." And he is right. Finishing isn't that hard if your mind is prepared to battle anything that comes in your way, expecting the unexpected. But if you have any weakness, this distance, this race will find it. Finishing a 100 makes you appreciate just how true those words are, just how mentally tough you are.

"I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle - victorious." - Vince Lombardi

All that to say that I know Chuck is ready. His mind is right. That moment when I get to see him cross that finish line totally exhausted and totally fulfilled is going to be a great treat. And, I get to spend a day with good friends and family helping to be part of his journey.

Weekly Training Wrap - 8/4 - 8/10

Another week in the books. The aggregate stats are pretty much a normal week, but somehow it felt like much more. I had a great day in the mountains on Saturday hitting four 14ers. It wasn't an epic day other than the fact that it is just a rare treat for me to get up that high (nine total 14ers climbed now). But, it was 4+ hours on my feet, 3500 feet of vert and a boat load of time up high. And, of course, it is always special to spend a day with my son, doing anything.

From the false summit on Democrat. I never get sick of the views up this high!

Looking up the final pitch to summit Democrat

Dylan is a natural! He has climbed four 14ers and he's only 9. He needs trail shoes though!

Looking North over the ridge between Democrat and Cameron.  Amazing.

Same view over the ridge.

One more for good measure!

From Mt Cameron looking straight ahead at Mt Lincoln.

The summit of Mt Lincoln.  I was the only one on the summit without a Jacket!

The steep, loose descent down from Mt Bross. I "surfed" this descent for the most part.

Another view of the descent.

I followed it up with a solid, but once again unspectacular, run on Sunday. Twenty-one easy trail miles with a few hill repeats. Changing my current trend, I took no food on this run and just got by on fluids for 3+ hours. The sum total was an 11 hour week, so I am happy with that. Next week will once again be tough because I am pacing and crewing my buddy Chuck at the Leadville 100. After that, things turn somewhat normal and I hope to find a nice final block of training before I put a wrap on this cycle.

On a positive note, things have been somewhat crazy the past few weeks, but I have managed a block of 215 miles and 39K of vert the past 4 weeks. The mileage is low, but the vert is high. I sort of expected that is how it would workout as I switched to Bear 100 training. If I can squeeze it in, I may try to bag another trip up Hope Pass this weekend.

Day	Miles	Notes
Monday	Off	Rest
Tuesday	Off	Rest Strength Training
Wednesday	9	Easy w/ Progression
Thursday	6	Easy w/ Strides
Friday	9	Easy Strength Training
Saturday	8	Democrat + Cameron + Lincoln + Bross
Sunday	21	Bluffs + Open Space + Coyote Ridge
Total	51	About 7,700 feet of vert

Power of Four 50k - Race Report

I was not going to do a race report because I did not really think I'd be racing this. It was supposed to be a training run. However, the more I got to thinking about it, it is a new-ish race and there isn't a ton of information available and perhaps someone could benefit from the things I learned.

A few random notes that I'd like to mention up front:

• There is a cash prize for this event. The top 3 men and women each get some cash. Of course, this makes for a somewhat lopsided field as you get the elites that want a chance for cash with the remainder of the field being generally more of the mid-pack variety. 
• The race is pretty darn new, 2014 being the 2nd year. I felt like the majority of things went pretty well for them and it is a solid event. But, there are a few things I will knit-pick about in this report.
• I have to be honest and say that I wasn't quite "into" this event. It was supposed to be a training run, but of course I showed up wanting to give more effort than that. I was sort of caught in between those mindsets as I raced. Onto the report...

I never intended to run this race or any other races between North Fork 50 (my "A" race for the year) and Bear 100 in September. However, a link popped up on Facebook advertising this event and I decided a weekend in Aspen and "nearly 10k" of climbing would be a good way to prepare for Bear 100. As it turned out, July was an insanely busy month and I have been commuting to the mountains nearly every weekend and am just sort of burnt out, feeling like a weekend on the couch was a better plan! Then, we learned Friday night that I screwed up and booked the hotel room for Sunday night, not Saturday. Ugh, off to a poor start. So we had to scramble to find a room for Saturday night early Saturday morning and then head off for the 4+ hour drive to Aspen.

When we arrived in Aspen, I noticed right away that it was hot! Yeah it was only about 80 degrees, but above 8,000 feet that feels pretty warm. Plus, it is has been a cool summer and had been a cool, rainy week. We picked up my race stuff at Aspen Mountain and watched about 5 minutes of the bike race before heading to our hotel in Snowmass. One thing we did right in this adventure was get a hotel in Snowmass (the end of the race) instead of Aspen (the start of the race). We had to drive 20 or so minutes race morning, but it was nice to be two minutes from our hotel when the race ended. We spent the remainder of the day hanging out in Snowmass Village and swimming in our hotel pool. I was really dreading the race all afternoon, just not able to get my head in the game sort of thing. It is a real bummer to be such a beautiful place with your family and dreading a race the next morning. Fortunately, we had a ton of fun, even playing a few games of foosball in the village.

Race morning the alarm went off at 4:45 and I got myself together and headed to the start line...

A profile of the course elevation

Start to top of Aspen Mountain (5.2 miles)

I have been a part of a few small races, but this one was pretty darn low key! All the runners showed up at the Aspen Mountain Gondola and the race organizers provided a few words before firing off a gun and sending us straight up the heart of Aspen Mountain. The first 5 miles are a 3500 foot climb, averaging close to 13% grade. I am not a good enough runner to run much of that grade in such a long race (6+ hours). The pace was somewhat frantic to start as people jockeyed for position and those going for cash pushed themselves out front. As a result, I definitely hit the first mile too hard. Things finally calmed down a bit the second mile and I got into a 90% hike and 10% run mode and just grinded my way to the top, reaching the summit in roughly 1:21. I was actually pretty happy with that split considering it normally takes me 1:40+ to summit similar climbs (like Hope Pass from the north). At the top was a pretty simple aid station where I got some water and moved right along.

Nutrition note: My general nutrition plan this summer has been a bit of "real food", usually Hammer or Lara bars, every 30 minutes with a goal of eating an entire bar per hour. Then I supplement with some Skratch Labs (about 40 kcals per hour) until it gets hot. Once it is hot, or late in the race, I switch to pure water and gels. I executed this plan pretty much to perfection and ate 4 bars, 3 gels, and 3 packets of Skratch for a total of 1400 Kcals on the day. The one problem is that is only about 5 hours worth of food. More on that part later....

Aspen Mountain to Midnight Mine/Castle Creek Road (10.3 miles)

After summiting you go straight down, giving back nearly all that vertical in the space of five miles. It is an average of about 500 feet per mile down. The good news (for me) is that it is all jeep/service road and quite runnable. I averaged 7:30 miles all the way down without much trouble. Of course, my quads took a pounding, but I didn't feel challenged aerobically and I continued to eat and finally got somewhat into the race.

Midnight Mine/Castle Creek Road to Tiehack Parking Lot (mile 15.5?)

This is where I started to get a bit frustrated with the race: nothing big, just a few small details that make a big deal to me. First of all, at this point I knew the vertical was going to be off. It was supposed to be 3900 feet and I was not quite at 3500 feet at this point. Not a huge deal, but since I signed up to get vertical, I wanted every foot. Next, I asked the aid station volunteers where the next aid station was to be sure I carried enough fuel. There was a little confusion and they gave me some bad information. Once again, this didn't cause me any issues or alter my race, but it was just kind of annoying.

I left the intersection of Midnight Mine and Castle Creek and start heading straight up hill. This climb was tough, like backside of Hope Pass tough. One mile is over one thousand feet of vertical gain (more than 20% grade) and I was grinding to just keep moving forward. And I was sweating like crazy! The trail was a mix of actual trail and some overgrown trail made from bushwhacking. All of it was in the morning sun, making it quite humid as the day warmed up. I measured my progress by vertical gain, just wanting that number to climb higher and higher, both for the training effect and the knowledge that there would be less work to do later. I was a bit surprised when I hit the 12 mile mark and popped out on another service road. This was the end of the climb! Only 1.7 miles? Hmm. To my left was a giant jug of water just sitting by the side of the road -- a make shift aid station. The race directions say the next aid station is at mile 15.5 and I had only consumed about half of one water bottle since the last aid station, so I passed on the fluids and started downhill.

Once again the downhill is mostly jeep/service road and I was pounding my quads at sub-8:00 pace. I was well behind vertical and starting to realize that I am either going to come up short of the 9+ I was hoping for or that I have some brutal miles left somewhere. While I continued to pound down at a reasonable pace, I began to notice that every uphill is annoying and I was just generally lethargic. My nutrition was going fine, but I would likely be out of fuel by hour five. As I approached 16 miles, I was in a neighborhood and running along, sort of just searching the for the next aid station. Finally, I crossed a large bridge over Maroon Creek and hit the Tiehack Parking lot at mile 17, not 15.5. Fortunately I never ran out of water or fuel. In fact, other than water, I used only my own supplies that I carried with me all day. But, missing an aid station distance by 1.5 miles always messes with my mind. How long is the course? A true 50k? Am I going to have enough fuel and water to the next aid station?

My shoes (Altra Olympus) were brand new and a half size larger than previously purchased so my feet were sliding all around on the steep descents. At the parking lot, I took off my shoes to empty out rocks and cinched them down tight to avoid further slipping, worried I might get some of my dreaded friction blisters. As I was filling up on water and chatting with other runners and aid station volunteers, I heard another racer organizer giving instructions to the "Rec" (14 mile/22k) racers. I managed to time it perfectly so they are going off at the same time I start climbing again. Blah.

Tiehack Parking Lot to Elk Camp Restaurant (mile 23)

Leaving Tiehack there is a bit of exposed service-road climb as the trail starts heading up Buttermilk Mountain. I remembered specifically the instructions at the beginning of the race and the organizer saying that "100% of the second half of the course is single track". (This turned out to be not entirely accurate, but was still something to look forward to.) Before long we were on the Government Trail toward Snowmass. And this trail was as advertised! Lots of beautiful wild flowers, Aspen trees, and sections of technical trail. It was very much what you'd expect running in the mountains of Colorado. I sensed -- and vaguely remembered from the course website -- that this section was a smaller climb and was going to be more of the grind walk/run mix variety. The trouble was that I just didn't have a ton of desire to run the portions I could. And, unlike the previous sections, the downhill was technical single track, so I wasn't flying like earlier in the day. A few miles in I came across another unmanned aid station (a water jug) and, smartly, topped off my water bottles.

About that same time, two women from the "Rec" race passed me and they worked together with another woman I had seen earlier, who was doing the 50k course. Again, without much fight, I watched as they continued to work together and remain a hundred yards or so ahead of me. Finally, the two women doing the shorter races pulled away and the 50k runner sort of drifted back to me. (She wound up 3rd woman overall and earned some cash!) I pulled up behind and she asked if I wanted to pass, but I didn't sense that I was much stronger than her at the moment and declined. I just wanted to grind to mile 23 so I could see my family, head downhill and end this thing. I continued to stare/obsess over my Garmin watching the miles slowly tick away and hoping the vertical would start to accumulate faster.

After it became clear neither of us was in the mood to pull away, the woman (Kylie) and I started chatting. She is doing the Pikes Peak Double (Ascent and Marathon) in a few weeks and lives in Snowmass, so she figured this was a good warm-up event. As we got near the 23 mile mark on my Garmin, she asked what our distance was and I mentioned that the aid station should be coming soon. She agreed. Instead, we started subtly climbing and the miles kept ticking away. Soon we were on some service road and just kind of zig-zagging our way toward Elk Camp. We could see Elk Camp and just kept turning in all kinds of different directions on fully exposed trail, with people all around us hiking and biking. I mentioned to Kylie that this must be the highest point for the remainder of the race and she said she thought we went all the way to the top of the mountain (probably another 1K). This news disappointed me because I was spent and just want to be done. But, it also encouraged me because it is obviously the only way we are getting to 9k of vertical on the day. And, it confused me because the course directions that I read online very clearly described us running across, not up the mountain. In addition to Kylie, a gentleman at the bike shop in town had mentioned he also thought the race went all the way to the top. I didn't know what to believe. How long is this race? Will I go uphill or down? When will I actually see aid?

Finally, approaching mile 25 and I saw my family. They had taken the Gondola from Snowmass Village and were hanging out at "mid mountain" doing various activities as they waited to see me. The good news was that they were having fun. The bad news was that I was not. I was hungry, hot, and generally grumpy. I felt bad about not being more enthusiastic to see them. This had to be among the lower moments they have seen me have in an ultra. My wife had me reapply sunscreen and gave me a quick update on what they were doing while waiting for me. I headed over to the aid station and was once again disappointed. My main gripe is that they clearly advertised in the race directions that each aid station would have Redbull. And boy was I hoping to have a giant chug of Redbull at this aid station. In fact, it kept me going the last couple of miles. I just needed the calories and the jolt to snap me out of my funk. Worse, I had my own energy drink that I didn't request they bring because I figured there would be some available.

Elk Camp Restaurant to Finish (mile 31)

As I said good bye to my family, Kylie had already left and put a few hundred yard gap on me, but I didn't care at all. I was ready to just grind out the final few miles and be done. Fortunately, the race directions on the website were correct and the course starts cutting across, not up, the mountain. Similar to miles 18-22, this is mostly runnable with a mix of uphill and downhill. But, I just didn't have the energy. I was out of food and nothing at the aid station appealed to me. (They offered Cliff products which have never sat well with me.) I just trotted along and worked through my mini-bonk and kept waiting for the final descent to come. At one point, I saw a few runners behind me and I gave a little effort, ensuring I didn't get passed the final miles. And, I slogged out a few short, steep uphills. Finally, mercifully, the final descent becomes official at mile 29. I began running at a comfortably hard pace. No one was close enough for me to want to catch and no one was close enough to worry about being caught. I passed one gentleman with less than a mile to go hunched over on the side of the trail and obviously wrecked. He said he was alright and would make it to the finish, so I continued down the hill to the finish. I finished in 6:32, 20th male, 23rd overall.

One of the really cool things about the race is that it includes a voucher for a free meal (and a beer!) from the Base Camp Bar and Grill right in Snowmass. We had eaten there the night before and I was a big fan of the food. I enjoyed my beer and burger before heading back to our hotel. While I was eating, my wife checked into our second hotel, the one I accidentally booked for Sunday night. Since we paid for it, we decided to check in, use the pool, shower, nap, and wait out traffic before heading home. Honestly, it turned out pretty incredible! I managed a little PT in the hot tub before taking a 45 minute nap. We didn't leave until 6 pm and had no traffic on the way home. Plus, my kids got to spend another few hours swimming. And all kids love swimming when you are in a hotel, right?

I know I was pretty critical of the race. Some of the things I said are just born out of frustration from having a ho-hum day and not really being "into" the race. It is not entirely unusual for ultra distance events to be marginally off in mileages. That is part of the reason I wrote this report -- so others can learn from my experience and be prepared. I did get the impression that perhaps this started as a biking event and has been adapted to be a running event. Perhaps that is why there is some small confusion about the course and aid station locations? The shirts they gave away are very nice, one of the nicest of all the races I have done. And the free meal to Base Camp Bar and Grill was a great treat, not your typical end-of-race-Costco-patty-BBQ. The bartender was nice enough to sub out my Bud Light (included with the meal) for an Aspen IPA and he is now my favorite person in Snowmass.

If I had one real complaint, it is the aid stations. I know the race is only a 50k, but for us mid-pack folks on such a tough course, that is at least 6+ hours. I'd like to see some more real food at the aid stations -- fruit, PB&J maybe, something. Even if it was only offered at the mile 25 aid station, that would be an improvement. And don't ever tell me there is Redbull if you don't have it because I am a junkie for it during ultras!

In terms of training effect, I think I got what I wanted out of this. Obviously, I won't cover 9K of vert in the first 6 hours at Bear. The pace will be much more relaxed. One thing I have been noticing all summer is that I am a good climber below 11k in elevation. My splits at this race suggested as much. The good news is that Bear 100 peaks (8800 feet or so) close to my starting altitude for this weekend (8000 feet), so I expect that will help me keep it easy as well. Onto recovery so I can log a few more good weeks of training!

Weekly Training Wrap - 7/28 - 8/3

Oh, what to say this week.... First thing is that I am so very thankful that my wife and kids like to travel with me and support me. It has been quite a year! (And it is not over.) I have raced five times already and have two races remaining (one is questionable). The long weekends and recovery periods are starting to make me wonder if I am over racing a bit. I guess time will tell....

This weekend was the Power of Four 50K in Aspen, CO. Being a high altitude, big vertical race, it isn't exactly in my wheelhouse. But, I signed up knowing that I need to accumulate as much vertical gain as I can in August to prepare for The Bear. They advertise the race as being "almost 10K" of vertical gain, but I tracked it closer to 8500 feet. Either way, it was enough to tax my quads and my glutes and help me get prepared. The first climb was a nice Bear simulation with almost 4K of vertical, very similar to the first climb at Bear 100. I split that first 10 miles in 2 hours, or about half an hour faster than I hope to in September. The second climb was steep (more than 1K of vert in a mile, or about 20% grade) and fairly hot, but it was short. And the final climb was just a long grinder that lasted nearly 8 miles with only a little relief. The bonus of the last climb was the beautiful single track trail. Overall I am happy with a 6:32 finish and feel like that was within 15-20 mins of my current potential.

My family got to take the Gondola from Snowmass Village to Elk Camp and play while they waited for me to come in. They did a rock climbing wall and several other games before they witnessed my suffering. Hanging out in these ski towns is a ton of fun during the summer. Too bad I was here to race!

I am satisfied with where my training is right now. However, I am feeling a bit exhausted and somewhat unmotivated from a busy, long summer. My kids start school next week and the addition of a routine to daily life should help things settle in a bit. My goal right now is to keep grinding but do my best to make training fun and enjoyable. I am in the "no man's land" portion of training and need to get a little closer to the race before I really get excited about the task in front of me.

Walking into the mile 25 aid station, hot and grumpy!

At the finish, just relieved to be done.

Day	Miles	Notes
Monday	Off	Rest
Tuesday	9	Easy Strength Training
Wednesday	6	McMillan - "The Pyramid" TM Hill workout
Thursday	9	Easy/MAF
Friday	Off	Rest
Saturday	6	Easy/GA
Sunday	31	Power of Four 50k
Total	61	About 10,900 feet of vert