Farewell, 2009

Bryon Powell over at super awesome ultra blog iRunFar.com asked me to write a short response to these two questions:

"What 2009 running moments are you proudest of? What in your running life you are most thankful for?"

My response, as well as others from ultra elites and everywomen/men, can be found here.

Writing back to Bryon gave me the chance to reflect on 2009 and what it meant to me personally, professionally, and in my running life. I am so proud of my kids and what they have accomplished this year, and I am proud that Rusty and I have been able to raise mindful, thoughtful, and compassionate teenagers despite all the mixed messages they get from their peers and the media. Professionally... I am very proud of a few new programs and initiatives I have organized that will benefit the health and well-being of my students, and grateful to work for and with people who believe in me and have confidence in me. I love my school, my students, and my colleagues!

As for my running life... despite getting older and busier (see above), I am proud that I was able to run a few course PRs at a variety of distances: 5k (20:30 on the hilliest 5K course in town); 50K (5:42 at Potomac Heritage 50K in cold, wet conditions); and 100K (14:58 at Hellgate 100K). I attribute this ramp up in speed during the second half of 2009 to my huge miles from Grindstone training over the summer coupled with more longer hill repeats and harder track workouts thanks to AJW's coaching plan. I also recovered well from Gstone, taking a full week off post-race and then no speed or tempo for 4 weeks. This recovery plan made a huge difference for Hellgate and I am using it right now as I recover and get ready for 2010.

2010...wow. My oldest son graduates from high school this year, and will be off to college in August. This will dictate my race planning, as I will have a lot on my plate this spring with school, coaching, and "senior year" parent stuff. As a result, I am focusing on just one key race this spring, the Terrapin 50K in March, and then just training through and volunteering at other ultras. Over the years I have figured out that trying to race in April and May, while juggling coaching, work, and parenting, as well as heat acclimation, is not a good recipe for me. It is better to train in January and February for a March key race, then scale back for a push at Highland Sky 40 in June (my second key race).

I will not be training for a 100 miler this year, but I plan to refer to my 100 miler training cycles as I go for a sub-9:30 at Masochist in November(key race #3). I love the challenges of going for course PRs, and this will be my fourth Masochist and third attempt at the sub-9:30. In 2006 I ran 9:40 and in 2007 I ran 9:34, so the challenge is set!

Finally, if all goes well and I emerge from Masochist injury-free, I am considering running a road marathon (gasp!). A few of my ultra buddies and I helped out at the inaugural Three Bridges Marathon a few weeks ago, and it was a blast. Low-key, flat and fast, this race is the closest thing to an ultra in vibe. We had an aid station with hot chocolate and soup, and were able to jump in to pace runners at any time since it was a four-loop course. The course followed a beautiful rushing stream and was very serene...perfect for my first road marathon since 2003. My marathon PR is 3:28, set at Richmond in 2001. I am curious to see what the ultra training effect will do...can I run a PR nine years later? We shall see!

I am very thankful for so many things in my running life. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words...

thankful for my VHTRC peeps (shown here causing trouble at the VHTRC Gap-to-Gap training run, 1-09)

thankful for my Charlottesville training buddies, Bill and Quatro, shown here with Jack, Stephie, Bess and Robin on Q's birthday run on the AT, 1-09

thankful for fabulous trails like the Rivanna Trail, 1-09

and The Wild Oak Trail, 2-09

thankful for the Catawba Run-Around, the defining run of my ultra career back in 2004, and one that I am happy to share each year with new friends--here are Rebecca Byerly and Bobby Gill atop McAfee's Knob, 3-09

thankful for the chance to pace Marlin Yoder at MMT 100...what an honor! 5-09

thankful for redemption at Capon Valley 50K after my Bull Run Run drop, 5-09

thankful for the chance to run the Priest and Three Ridges with good friends, with the mountain laurel in full bloom, 6-09

thankful that racing gave me the chance to bond with Michelle Harmon at Highland Sky 40 as we brought it in for third place, 6-09

thankful for more bonding with Michelle, Bobby, and Marc Griffin at Catherine's Fat Ass 50k, 7-09

thankful for new ultra friends who "get it" like Hallie, who was totally hooked after suffering through Martha Moats Baker 50K, 8-09

thankful that I could train for Grindstone with Rusty and watch his reaction to the climb up Chimney Hollow, here with Quatro, 9-09

thankful for the endless support of my family and students, here at the Grindstone finish line, 10-09

thankful to be able to share the ultra life with Virginia while volunteering at the SMUT 50K, shown here with Gary Knipling, 10-09

thankful for a reunion of friends old and new at the Mountain Masochist 50+ finish line, here with David Horton and Bethany Patterson, 11-09

thankful I can share the pain and pleasure of a tough 5K with Virginia and Carter, here at the Boar's Head Turkey Trot 5K, 11-09

thankful for annual training runs with the VHTRC, here at Vicki's Death March, 11-09

thankful for the chance to experience my fifth Hellgate 100K sunrise over Headforemost Mountain, 12-09

I am also so, so, so thankful to the folks at inov-8, who selected me to be a member of Team inov-8 for 2010. I am very excited to be representing a company that supports the very best of the ultra life: competitive yet inclusive, committed to excellence yet down to earth, and environmentally conscious. I look forward to being an active ambassador for inov-8 and grateful for this amazing opportunity!

As the waning moments of 2009 drift away, I would like to wish my family, friends, and readers a very healthy, happy, and safe 2010. Thank you for your positive vibes, shout-outs, and support. I can't wait to share new adventures on the trail and in cyberspace with you in the new year!

Spending time in the Pain Cave at Hellgate 2009

Readers of this blog will know that I put it out there on my previous post: my BHAG. This is an acronym used in the business world that stands for "Big Hairy Audacious Goal."

A true BHAG is clear and compelling, serves as unifying focal point of effort, and acts as a clear catalyst for team spirit. It has a clear finish line, so the organization can know when it has achieved the goal; people like to shoot for finish lines.
—Collins and Porras, 1996

My BHAG for Hellgate #5 was to break 15 hours after coming very close in 2006 with a 15:16 and then again in 2008 with a 15:03. I came into this year's race enjoying the training effect from summer 100-miler training and Grindstone 100 in October, and I scored two PRs in a 50K and a hilly 5K in the last month to boost my confidence. Plus, race night fell on my 47th birthday...what better way to celebrate than to bust it loose and break 15?

Over the years I have become well-acquainted with the Hellgate course. One could say we have a "love/hate" relationship... I love the course but hate certain sections. "Familiarity breeds contempt" might be an even better way to describe my feelings for Hellgate: the more I struggled for the sub-15 benchmark, the more determined (and frustrated) I became. I know exactly where I typically run strong and where I typically fall apart. So this year, in setting up this BHAG, the plan was to minimize my mistakes from the past and capitalize on my fitness. I focused on all the areas within my control: fitness, nutrition, rest, equipment, and attitude. The areas of the race out of my control were weather and trail conditions (and, of course, the chance that I might fall and get injured. Fortunately I only fell twice with no lasting effects). I accepted it was going to be cold, wet in places, and possibly icy and/or covered in leaves. I knew about the Devil Trail, and was ready to take it on.


The Devil Trail: 3 miles of rocks, leaves, off-camber trail and rocks.

Fitness
If there was ever a year for me to achieve this BHAG, this was it. I am in the shape of my life thanks to a summer of 100 miler training set up by Andy Jones-Wilkins. Andy had me running more weekly miles, more intense track ladders, and more hill repeats than ever before. Adding the Grindstone 100 into the mix, a few longer runs in late November and swimming and pool running 2-3 times a week since early October helped me stay stretched out and injury free. I was also mentally ready to start spending time in the Pain Cave. I read up a lot on sports psychology and training and the concept of getting comfortable while being uncomfortable is something I totally buy into. I coach my lacrosse players to embrace this mindset so Hellgate presented me with the chance to walk/run the talk!



The first half of Hellgate is the toughest---the most climbing, no daylight, and long sections on knarly trail. But there are also long sections of gravel roads which I tried to run whenever I could. If it was at all runnable, I ran it. That became one of many mantras for the race---"Run the Runnable Stuff." I also took advantage of the long downhills and tried to hammer those sections without trashing my quads. By the midway point, I was feeling great on the climbs but my right hip flexor was screaming, so the downhills were slower than I wanted. Donna Utakis, last year's womens champ, came into Headforemost Mountain AS (mile 22) right behind me and we started the process of leapfrogging one another. She was feeling great on the downs while I was hammering the ups, but we managed to stay near the other and this was perfect as it kept me focused and moving.


Donna Utakis enjoying the climb in the Forever section--NOT!

Nutrition
This was the key to my race, hands down. I drank about 1200 calories from Perpetuem Cafe Latte (absolutely the most de-lish flavor sport drink ever), and had the rest come from mix of Hammergel, Clif Shots, EFS, Sharkies, Clif Bloks, three egg mini-quiches and half a plain burger (which was personally delivered, with Horton's permission, 200 yards up the trail by John Cassilly, my de-facto crew at mile 43). The "real food"--eggs and the burger-- came at crucial points in the race and combined with the other gel products, provided me with a grand total of about 3800 calories for 15 hours, which is 230 calories an hour. Perfect!

Rest

I am in awe of the Hellgate finishers who are also Beast Series finishers. After running the Grindstone 100 in October, they also run the Mountain Masochist 50 in November! There is no way I could attempt to run a decent, competitive time at Hellgate if I didn't take a long recovery after Grindstone. Rest and recovery are essential to my training, so after Gstone I ran very little save for a 50K, a 5K, a few 4+ hour runs and a few track workouts. The rest of the days were filled with sleeping in and pool running/swimming. I took at least one day off a week and often two days, and came into Hellgate feeling very rested and eager to race---always a good sign!

Equipment

Yeah, it was cold out there. At the pre-race meeting we were told to expect temperatures overnight in the low teens and only in the 30s/low 40s during the day. Fortunately we had very little wind, and the trail conditions were a bit wet but not bad. In fact, we ran through an inch of lovely, soft snow for a few miles on the Promise Land 50K section of the course, and had a few icy patches where I lost it and ended up on my rump, but overall conditions were perfect for a race. I wore the same race kit that I wore in 2006 when we had similar conditions: Underarmour tank top, Patagonia Capilene Zip-top, Patagonia fleece vest, Sugoi jacket, Patagonia beanie, Injinji toe socks, and Arcterex gloves. No problems at all staying warm, and I shed my jacket and vest at mile 40. One tip that worked well was to stuff my hydration pack hose down into my tank top to keep it from icing up...this worked like a charm, though my bottle top froze and I had to unscrew it every time I wanted to drink from it.


Sunrise over Headforemost Mountain--it was about 7:00 am and 15 degrees, the coldest period of the race

Attitude

A few days before the race I happened upon an Endurance Planet podcast that featured Krissy Moehl and Lisa Smith-Batchen talking about goal setting in ultras. Krissy and Lisa are two of the most humble and inspiring ultrarunners today and the wisdom they shared in the interview became a key component of my BHAG plan. Krissy talked about how she likes to look at racing other women as "competing with" as opposed to "competing against" and I really liked that idea. I am competitive. Anyone who knows me, or who has watched me race or coach lacrosse can attest to that. But I also embrace the idea of synergy, or working together for a common goal. When Donna came upon me at Headforemost, I didn't realize how instrumental she would be in helping me achieve my goal, but I knew I wanted to take Krissy's advice to heart and race WITH her. We would chat a bit, laugh when I fell (again), commiserate, and then run. She was really fast on the technical downhills while I was strong on the climbs. When we came into Bearwallow Gap (mile 43) together, Horton yelled, "It's a race!" But I shook my head and said, "Nope! She's helping me break 15!" and he was bummed, I think. He likes races, and I like collaboration.

A true BHAG...serves as unifying focal point of effort, and acts as a clear catalyst for team spirit

As we left Bearwallow, I knew the next three sections would be the key to achieving a sub-15. Over the years I had always had problems- stomach, energy, attitude--in these sections, so the mantra now was, "Let's spend some time in the Pain Cave." I had to move really well and run as much as possible, and it was important to reach Bobblett's Gap (mile 49) by 12 noon (I got there at 11:55), and Day Creek (mile 56) by 1:45. Donna had been moving really well on the downhill from Bobblett's but I was pulling away on the climbs in Day Creek, so she waved me on and I started to hammer. I got to the Day Creek AS at 1:47 and didn't stop. My mind was racing with the math and I knew I had to run 1:12 on the last 6+ mile section. In the past it took me anywhere from 1:15 and longer, depending on my attitude. This time I was ready. I sighted Brad Birkholz, Jarett Tighe, Justin Faul, and Jack Kurisky about 50 yards ahead and made reaching them my goal. I ran as much as I could, but at times it was so steep that walking was more efficient. "Every step counts" was all I could tell myself.

A true BHAG is clear and compelling

I wasn't looking behind me, I wasn't racing someone else, only the course and the clock. I asked myself, "do you have the courage to do this?" Spending time in the Pain Cave means not being afraid to go to the edge, to experience discomfort, and to take a risk. As I reached the top of the climb, I asked the guys to help me run it in for a sub-15. They smiled. "We've got this" one of them said. The time of day at the top with 3+ miles to go was 2:27. We had to run 32:59 to make it. Brad took off, then Jack. Justin and Jarett followed. I tried to stay behind Jack, feeding off his energy. The "one mile to go" sign came up and I had 9:59 to run a mile. Piece of cake, right? I felt like I was running tempo pace, which is about 7:20. But as I neared the finish line it was clear I was running more in the 8s. We turned in to Camp Bethel, onto the driveway, and I knew it was about 400 yards to the finish. Jack was about 20 yards ahead and he yelled, "go Sophie!"

I will never set a course record, so this was the closest I would come to that feeling of urgency. It was exhilarating. I rounded the bend and saw the clock: 14:58 with 20 yards to go. I had done it.

People like to shoot for finish lines.

This was my last Hellgate 100K, at least for the next few years. It was my fifth finish and I achieved my BHAG, but I also missed my daughter's swim meet to race this year, so the time is right to enjoy the memories of the past five races and give back to the event as a volunteer. I have grown so much--as an ultrarunner and as a person--because of this race. Now it's time to let it go and move along the trail. Thank you, David, for another memorable adventure. They say that ultrarunning changes lives, and I know for sure that this race has changed mine.


I am so grateful to my husband and kids for their support of this crazy race...and to all the players in this year's drama: Ed Duval, JR Ankney, Donna Utakis, Jack Kurisky, Brad Birkholz, Jarett Tighe, Justin Faul, John Cassilly, George Wortley, Charlie Hesse, Susannah Greever, and of course, David Horton and his band of merry volunteers. Happy Trails to all.