Getting faster, getting psyched: Grindstone Training, Week #12, September 1-7

Four weeks and counting until race day!

I came away from last weekend's training run on the Gstone course feeling really good and absolutely LOVING the trail. I met a nice fellow named Keith Straw at that run...he finished WS100 in 2007 (a "cool" year, as he described it) in under 24 hours, and he told me he was concerned that Grindstone would be harder than WS. I told him that Gstone would most definitely be harder in terms of climb...and also because we might have hot and humid weather, as opposed to the typically hot and dry conditions of the Sierra Nevada. Keith, by the way, is featured in the October Runner's World as the guy who wears a pink tutu, pink Sauconys and carries a magic wand in all his races (he finished Boston this year in 3:12). Perhaps he will share some of his magic with me should I encounter him at Gstone...

Someone asked me what my time goals were for Gstone...and to be honest, all I want to do is finish (I know, that's what we all say). However, it would be *nice* to run faster at Gstone than in my previous two 100-milers: at MMT in 2005, I ran 31:45 and at WS in 2006 I ran 29:15. Both efforts came with significant issues...at MMT I did not fuel properly and bonked terribly; at WS, I fueled properly but ignored my feet until it was too late, and running was impossible after mile 62. My goal for Grindstone is to pace myself properly (slow), eat and drink at regular intervals, tend to foot issues promptly, deal with sleepiness promptly, and the rest, I feel, will take care of itself. My training has gone really well and all I can ask for is the strength and courage to deal with the low moments as they come (and, as we know, they will come).

I am putting together an awesome crew and I know my pacer is going to keep me in line...it's going to be a blast out there!! This next week will be the last of the sharpening phase, and then it's on to the TAPER...woooo-hooo!

This week:

Monday, September 1: Easy run on single track, 2.5 hours (about 12 miles, I think).

Tuesday, September 2: Swim 1,000 easy and lift

Wednesday, September 3: Track. 2 miles WU, then 800/hill, 1200/hill, 1200/hill, 1200/hill, 800/hill. This is the third time I've done the track/hill workout this summer, and this was my best yet: Splits were 3:15/6:30, 4:55/8:15, 4:49/8:12, 4:49/8:11, 3:10/6:25. I then ran 2 easy miles to the power lines and did 1:02, 1:03 and 1:02...fastest yet. Then 2 miles back to the car for 10 miles total. Schweeeet!!!

Thursday, September 4: Lift upper body, core

Friday, September 5: Carter's Mountain. I repeated the route I used a few weeks ago, climbing up to the top, down to Monticello, back up, then down to the trails around Secluded Farm. 10 miles total, HR staying in the 120-135 range, nice and easy.

Saturday, September 6: My son had his first cross-country meet...pouring rain from Hurricane Hanna, knee deep standing water on the course...he LOVED it. He clocked a 23-something for 5K, very solid for a kid who couldn't run more than a mile about a month ago. Rusty and I are very excited to be XC parents!

Later in the day, I took Jack (my Aussie)on an easy trail run near our house and for a swim in the river, 5 miles total.

Sunday, September 7: 16 miles on rolling dirt and pavement with 6 miles at 7:20 pace (tempo pace). This was a toughie---I got a late start and it was humid. Yechh. But I was pleased with the tempo and looking forward to running a road 10K next weekend as part of a 14 miler. Total miles for the week, about 53.



Ring update: Keith Knipling (above, between RingLeaders Mike Bur and Quatro Hubbard) cruised to a course record 14:45 for 71 miles, two weeks after finishing third at Cascade Crest 100. I predict Keith will win Grindstone if he can hold off Krissy M.!

Ring 2008 results are here. Congratulations to the new members of the Fellowship!

The Ring is running this weekend, hurricane rain or shine

(photo collage of the 2004 Ring by Anstr Davidson)Group photo L-R kneeling: Carolyn Gernand, Sue Johnston, Scott Brockmeier: L-R standing: Quatro Hubbard, Bill Wandel, Mike Bur,James Moore, Barb Isom, Bob Phillips, Vicki Kendall, Anita Finkle, Sophie Speidel,Graham Zollman, Dru Sexton,Margie Hughes, Scott Crabb and Sue Thompson.

In 2004 I ran The Ring, a 71-mile circuit of the Massanutten Trail. It was my first ultra longer than 50 miles, and my first night run of any great length. 2004 was the third year of the organized run ("organized" is a loose term---the Ring is a classic Fat Ass with no entry fee, no T-shirts, no wimps and no whining...well, actually there's LOTS of whining). The Ring exemplifies all that I love about the VHTRC ultras--it's a community of friends coming together to create a challenging trail experience with no other motive except to support the runners to the finish, and party like heck in the process.

Some fine folks in the VHTRC conceived the Ring, and Mike Bur and Quatro Hubbard are now responsible for keeping it healthy and prosperous. This year, the Ring closed out entry at 25, and the list of The Fellowship of the Ring is a Who's Who of the ultra world and of the VHTRC ultra community in particular.

My son has a cross-country meet this weekend, so I cannot go up to the Massanuttens to cheer on the runners, but I certainly will be thinking of them, and of the intense experience they will have. The Ring is an ultra that helped define me as an ultrarunner. My first lessons on nutrition, sleep deprivation, proper pacing, and rock running were gleaned at the Ring. I also learned a lot about friendship and commitment, and what it took to overcome my demons. A mantra I like to repeat while racing comes from my 2004 Ring experience: "It's always darkest before the dawn." Yes, indeed.

Happy trails to the members of the Fellowship and to those attempting the Ring this weekend!

Grindstone Training, week #11, August 25-31

"Hmmmm....I don't think people have a clue what they have signed up for."

That was the general theme of our conversation after running miles 50-80 of the Grindstone course yesterday (Saturday). Race Director Clark Zealand and his helper David Horton, along with a few other helpful volunteers, ferried a group of about 11 of us up to Reddish Knob, which is very close to the mile 50 mark of Gstone and the turnaround at Briery Branch Rd. After climbing to the summit (which we will do once on race day)and admiring the spectacular views of the surrounding mountains and valleys, it was time to "Go!" as Horton would say, as he waits for no one on his training runs. Yes, this is true, as I found myself left behind a few times after stopping to eat or adjust my pack.

Miles 50-65 are mostly all downhill on old fire road and the sweet single track of the Wild Oak Trail(click on the link and be sure to read the reviews!). It took us 3 hours to get down to the Wild Oak Trail parking area, which is where the aid station will be for miles 35 and 65 of the race. We were able to fill up our bottles and packs with water and Clif (thanks, Clark!!) and were on our way across the North River to pick up the Wild Oak Trail (TWOT) again. This time we were climbing up to Lookout Mountain and Hankey Mountain, and I was able to hook up with Jenny Anderson and a few other folks for the climbs. I went totally dry (full 60 oz hydration pack and one 20 oz hand held) after 2 hours of climbing...what the ...? Luckily, Jenny had plenty of Clif in her pack and was generous enough to share with me. We had a great time chatting and talking about our strategies for running Gstone, our lives as working moms (she's a teacher and coach like me, and it was great to once again share the trail with another tough woman from Lynchburg)!

The highlight of the day, in addition to making some new friends, was discovering the wonderful, wonderful Dowell's Draft trail: for many years, while running on the TWOT course, I had seen the DD trailhead at the intersection of the TWOT loop atop Hankey Mountain, but knew it lead in the opposite direction I needed to go. On race day, we will climb this trail at mile 20-ish and descend it at mile 77...it is a lovely, gradual descent on smooth single track, the kind Scotty Mills dreams about (he once told me running his ideal trail is like being a "marble in a slot"...they have lots of those trails in CA, but few in VA, I think).

It took us 6 hours to run 30 miles, the fastest day I've ever spent on TWOT (a 26 mile loop of TWOT takes me about 6:30 on a GREAT day). Clearly, the downhills worked in our favor as did running on fresh legs---on race day, I hope to run that same section in 7-8 hours! It was an awesome training run and it gave me a ton of confidence as I head towards the taper in a few weeks!

As for the post-run chatter...it was clear by day's end that Grindstone will be a HUGE challenge to finish, because of the amount of climbing and the first 12 hours in the dark. The trail is fantastic and very runnable (when not hiking), and that will present another challenge, as folks will think they "should" run when really, they shouldn't. Hmmm.....

OK, Here's the week in full:

Monday, August 25: OFF. Nada. Nothing. Recover from Cheat.

Tuesday, August 26: Run 5 easy, lift upper and lower body.

Wednesday, August 27: First day of school! Day off to deal with all that.

Thursday, August 28: Run easy 6 miles on OHill.

Friday, August 29: Lift upper body and core.

Saturday, August 30: 30 hilly miles on Gstone course. Felt great!

Sunday, August 31: 5 miles walking in the woods near our house, discovering some cool new trails, with my hubby and dog. Great way to recover.

Next week: shorter, faster runs ahead as I taper down the weekly miles.

Grindstone training, week # 10: August 18-24

That's beautiful Cheat Mountain in the pic. On Friday I ran the first annual Cheat Mountain Moonlight Madness 50 miler, put on by Adam Cassady with support from the WVMTR. I included this race as part of my Grindstone training for a few reasons:

1. The 9:00 start on Friday was similar to what we'll see at Gstone, with its 6:00 start. I had to work most of the day on Friday, so I wanted to experience the feeling of working and then getting ready to race after dinner.

2. I wanted a really long run that wouldn't trash my body, and I knew a night run work make me run slower and help me resist the urge to race.

3. I am not a strong night runner, so I wanted to practice dealing with navigating in the dark and fending off the sleep demons.

And finally, the folks at the WVMTR always put on fantastic races, so I knew this would be well-run and a lot of fun.

It was also interesting to go into a race without a taper, as well as with the mindset of running 100-miler pace for 50 miles!

Here's the week:

Monday, Aug 18: Rest. No running, swimming, lifting. I worked hard with Greg, Jeff, and Ed up on the AT on Sunday 9/17 and needed a recovery day.

Tuesday, Aug. 19: Swim 1,000 and lift.

Wednesday, Aug. 20: Track workout, 10 miles total. 3 mile WU, followed by 3x1200 at 6:30 pace with the 800 meter hill surge after each 1200 off the track. I wrote about this workout a few weeks ago, and was hoping to keep my splits in the 4:55 1200/8:20 total range. As it turned out, the weather was very cool, and I was able to pop off 4:50/8:09, 4:49/8:11, and 4:51/8:10 splits, my fastest ever! I then ran another 5 miles on O-Hill with two powerline runs of 1:05 and 1:04, also my fastest ever. wooo-hooo! What difference cool weather and a little recovery make!

Thursday, Aug 21: Swim 500 and lift.

Friday, Aug 22: Cheat Mountain! The weather was awesome for a night run...clear skies, cool temps in the 60s, and a fairly bright moon (though not a full one). The race was staged at the 4-H camp in Beverly, WV and my friend Ed Duval and I arrived around 6:00pm. I ate a turkey sub from Subway around 4:00pm and then nibbled on a pop-tart and water around 8:00 while hanging out with the VHTRC (below).



It was fun to catch up with old friends and ponder whether to bring a hand held bottle or a hydration pack (I brought both). It reminded me of the moments spent anticipating Hellgate 100K, but without the stress of the weather. At 8:00 we had the pre-race meeting and were off at 9:00 after a rousing rendition of the National Anthem. The first 17 miles of the race are on dirt road that climb up the mountain, about 2,000 feet. I happen to like running on dirt roads but I could hear some good-natured grumbing around me from the trail lovers I was running near. When we finally entered the single track, I began to look forward to the next road section, as the trail was narrow, technical,and muddy, with lots of exposed roots and undulating climbs. I am sure it would be great in the daylight, but it was tough for me in the dark. Still, my goal for this race was to take it very easy and treat it as a training run, so I just trudged along enjoying the fine company of Rebekah Trittipoe, while we talked about our families, training, and work.

The hours sped by and I found myself running near Rick Gray, one of my faithful blog readers (Hi Rick!). Rick noticed I was plugged into my iPod so he stayed nearby but didn't try to yak, which at that time of the night (around 2:00am), I really appreciated. We navigated about 15 miles of trails and roads together, and then it was time to head for the finish line. I came in to AS 6 (mile 33), which was manned by my C'Ville training partner Bill Potts...he told me I was fourth woman and to get going. I was feeling very relaxed, a bit sleepy, but not interested in racing, so I drank some yummy soup and headed down the road.

Rebekah caught up to me a few miles later while I was fighting my sleep demons, and the caffeine pill she gave me was a HUGE boost. I found myself with new energy and a new attitude...it was time to hammer this downhill road section! Rebekah and I decided to run in to the finish together, so I stayed with her when she had an upset stomach, and we worked hard together to pass a woman around mile 45. Rebekah is one tough runner (she holds the women's speed record for the Allegheny Trail), and it was a blast to run with another woman who is as competitive as I am. We came across the finish line holding hands and laughing, but also rather psyched that we were DONE! (that's me and Rebekah below after getting cleaned up and eating yummy bacon, eggs and pancakes).





The CMMM 50 was a tough race. I ran about an hour slower than I thought I would, but I was very pleased with how I felt at the end---I had a ton of energy left in the tank, my legs felt fine, and I had no stomach problems the entire night ( many folks seemed to struggle with nausea for some reason). I was happy to be able to hammer the last 17 miles, which told me that I had paced myself well. Despite having "only" 6,000+ feet of climb, I got in an excellent training run for Gstone.

Here are the results and some pics on Flickr.