Race Recap: The Ascent
About time I write that quick recap from the hill climb race, The Ascent. We arrived to the start line via the valley rather than coming in from town down the course to the start (read: most other runners had seen the course when they drove in, but hubby and I were remained in denial). About 150 yards from the start line the road wrapped around a blind horseshoe curve and went up. That's about all I could tell...steep from the start. There were only about 50 runners (this was the first year of the race) and from bathroom-line chats, it sounded like a lot of people threw this race into their training mix for marathons w/o any tapering. So a lot of us were in the same boat-DEAD LEGS. Chris and I jogged around for 5 min to "warmup" and realized there was nothing in the tank for our legs as it was, so we'd just take it easy at the start of the race.
Race time started and off we went, around that corner and from there on my legs were burning. I maintained pretty well and "ran" almost the whole first mile, but the 13% grade was killing me. Then I saw Chris up the ridge and he was hiking it. Smart kiddo I tell you. My hiking was about as fast as my running so I switched it up and gave some hard effort walking/hiking up the climbs with spurts of jogging. There were 2 downhills in the climb and I felt good enough to push those a bit. People were kindly cheering the last 1/2 mile from the top which was great because the finish was around another blind corner and I needed a little extra encouragement to push it through the top. I didn't set any time goals for this run but figured I'd fall somewhere in the 45-50 min range. Final time: 47:08. It was a good solid effort, but certainly not my best day of running. Chris got 7th overall - what a beast :D
We waited for 15-20 min for a person to give us a lift back down the course to the hospitality area (my only complaint really was there was no shuttle from the finish line back to the main area). The community where the race was, Blue Ridge Mountain Club, is just a ridge or two over from my mom's house and it had been quite a while since I had been through it. The race was run on the main road which straddles a ridgeline, offering beautiful vistas on both sides of the road at many points along the race. I was glad that my mindset for the day was to be in the moment and enjoy the run. We may our way back to the start line/hospitality area in time to watch the bike race (which went from the valley up to the top) come through. Man those guys were flying! The top 3 were from Winston-Salem (woot!). While the bike race carried on, we enjoyed the hamburgers / hotdogs off the grill and some cold brews. Chris got his age group medal and then it was off to Mom's house to grab Mr. Oliver.
We packed Oliver up in the car and headed to the swimming hole in Elk Creek where I used to spend countless hours every summer. Even in the middle of summer, the water never warms much above 60 degrees. Oliver hasn't had much water experience yet as a puppy and we wanted to see how he'd handle some deeper water at the hole. Added bonus: standing waist deep in ice cold water was wonderful on our legs after the race! Oliver was so excited by the water and tried to walk out from the creek bank to me standing in the middle when, all the sudden the bottom dropped out from under him, and - for a split second- I really thought he was going to sink! But he popped up and started swimming (thank god!). We left him on his 30 foot leash and let him run and splash in the shallow area and he got more and more curious about the deep area right off the boulders (probably about 10' deep). He kept walking out on the edge of the boulder which is about 5' above the deep pool and then he'd back away. After 3 or 4 times though, he had gotten the boulder wet and slick and WHOMP, in he slid! He swam over to the shallow end and gave me a "are you crazy? this is cold!" look. Next time I'll take his water bumper toy and make sure to bring a camera. After a few more minutes of splash play in the shallow end, we hiked back to the car, grabbed showers at Mom's and *I* grilled steaks and veggies for our dinner out on the deck with a beautiful view and mountain breezes. I love the mountains in the summer :)
It was a low key, small race but run extremely well and the location was breathtaking. Given the proximity to Mom's it's definitely one we'll be repeating next year and hopefully bringing a few more with us. Thanks to Pirate Race Productions for such a wonderful event!
Monday, September 17, 2012
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Grab your weakness by the horns
So base building is going well (except for the occasional foot or minor ITB ache) - I have several weeks under me at 15+ miles and carefully building from there. I'm incorporating some hill repeats on my Thursday runs (oh wait, that's today - yipee!) mostly because I...am...terrible...at hills. My mind says "engage!" and my glutes say "Engage what?" I've been going to some yoga classes to stretch out that ITB and strengthen the tendons in my foot which have been wonderful, but another major weakness is my lack of core and butt strength. Those cross training components will be added in next (didn't want to jump head first into everything at once).
But to find more motivation on these hill repeats, I just registered for "The Ascent" run. Remember "The Bear" race I did a bit ago? Yeah, this looks even more challenging and I am definitely not in near as good of hill run shape. The race is 3.7 mi with an average grade of 6.1%.... and the subtitle for the race is "The Hardest Hill Climb in the South". Oh Joy. Alas it is in 2 1/2 weeks and so I am no serious threat to the competition but I'll be out there and I'll get from Point A to Point B with some walks in between for sure.
Race Bonus: It's on the ridge across from my mom's so I guess it's kind of in my "hometown backyard" whatever. Except I never ran when I lived in the mountains. Definitely regretting that now. But seeing as it's just down the street and the race is at 11am, I forecast some post race beers and burgers on the deck at Mom's in the mountains with friends :)
Check out the course map below:
But to find more motivation on these hill repeats, I just registered for "The Ascent" run. Remember "The Bear" race I did a bit ago? Yeah, this looks even more challenging and I am definitely not in near as good of hill run shape. The race is 3.7 mi with an average grade of 6.1%.... and the subtitle for the race is "The Hardest Hill Climb in the South". Oh Joy. Alas it is in 2 1/2 weeks and so I am no serious threat to the competition but I'll be out there and I'll get from Point A to Point B with some walks in between for sure.
Race Bonus: It's on the ridge across from my mom's so I guess it's kind of in my "hometown backyard" whatever. Except I never ran when I lived in the mountains. Definitely regretting that now. But seeing as it's just down the street and the race is at 11am, I forecast some post race beers and burgers on the deck at Mom's in the mountains with friends :)
Check out the course map below:
Monday, July 9, 2012
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Week in Review: Base Building Week #1
Week 1 is in the books and I'm on my way :)
Here's the Week in Review:
New this week - Cross Training at the YMCA. I got a guest pass to check it out and did 20 min of Raquetball with hubby Friday and went back today (Sunday) to do an hour of yoga after my long run. I forgot how awesome yoga is - getting centered, stretching, meditating. <3!! Plus all of the balancing positions really tested the stability muscle in my feet which are weak and why I keep getting tendonitis...
My dad called an offered to get me a 12 month YMCA membership for my birthday this month which I am super excited about. I'm the kind of person that might not use a gym membership allll that much on my own dime, but will absolutely not waste it when someone else is paying so it is actually more motivating. I've really enjoyed the few things I have done already and look forward to trying more classes and maybe even some swimming...
That's all for now!
Here's the Week in Review:
- Monday- 2.21 miles easy
- Tuesday- rest day
- Wednesday - 5.01 miles of trail running at Pilot Mtn with hills
- Thursday - rest day
- Friday - 20 minutes of raquetball followed by 1.07 miles on treadmill at Y
- Saturday - 3.02 miles moderate
- Sunday - 4.99 miles long run and 1 hour yoga
New this week - Cross Training at the YMCA. I got a guest pass to check it out and did 20 min of Raquetball with hubby Friday and went back today (Sunday) to do an hour of yoga after my long run. I forgot how awesome yoga is - getting centered, stretching, meditating. <3!! Plus all of the balancing positions really tested the stability muscle in my feet which are weak and why I keep getting tendonitis...
My dad called an offered to get me a 12 month YMCA membership for my birthday this month which I am super excited about. I'm the kind of person that might not use a gym membership allll that much on my own dime, but will absolutely not waste it when someone else is paying so it is actually more motivating. I've really enjoyed the few things I have done already and look forward to trying more classes and maybe even some swimming...
That's all for now!
Thursday, July 5, 2012
So about that race...
I woke up Monday morning this week and realized that running NRT50K was pushing it if I wanted to do it right and do it healthy. My base was nearly base-less and the training plan was too aggressive. So before getting injured again (bonus pt - maybe I am finally learning?) I decided to scrap my plans at a 50K this fall. Instead, I'll be setting my sights on a "Hometown" course if you will - the Salem Lake Frosty 50K held the first Saturday in January each year.
New race, new plan. I have 10 weeks of "base building" now before the actual 50K training plan starts. High mileage weeks fall after most of our Fall travel plans and tapering occurs right over the holidays :) I've been apprehensive in the past about doing races at Salem lake because that is where a lot of my long run are and to be frank - 7 mile loops get boring. But the Frosty 50K is a double out-and-back horseshoe course with some trail and some greenway. I can roll out of bed and be at the race within 10 min rather than lugging myself across state lines and staying in a cheap motel with no sleep the night before.
Also, to get me where I need to be (athletically) I need to be more than just a runner which means crosstraining! I've got to work on endurance, cardio, core strength and flexibility. Coincidentally, my dad offered to get me a YMCA membership for a year for my birthday next week. Woot! I've already printed out the class schedule and plan to head over today to check it out and become a card carrying member. Those 5:15am cycle classes are going to kick my butt, but probably not as much as the sport conditioning classes (I hear they make you do wall sits!! ahh!!!)
Hoping everyone had a great July 4th. Being a Wednesday, we stuck around but did manage to get out the door (after a little foot taping) for a trail run at Pilot Mountain before it got too hot. I did an enjoyable 5 miles on the Corridor Trail and Chris / Oliver went ahead to get a total of 6 miles in. Oliver's reward was a dip in the Yadkin River to cool off afterwards. It was his first open water adventure and after a few nervous minutes, he was running out into the middle of the river and paddling back. <3 !
New race, new plan. I have 10 weeks of "base building" now before the actual 50K training plan starts. High mileage weeks fall after most of our Fall travel plans and tapering occurs right over the holidays :) I've been apprehensive in the past about doing races at Salem lake because that is where a lot of my long run are and to be frank - 7 mile loops get boring. But the Frosty 50K is a double out-and-back horseshoe course with some trail and some greenway. I can roll out of bed and be at the race within 10 min rather than lugging myself across state lines and staying in a cheap motel with no sleep the night before.
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| KT Tape to the rescue!! |
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| Oliver sporting his new trail pack! |
Hoping everyone had a great July 4th. Being a Wednesday, we stuck around but did manage to get out the door (after a little foot taping) for a trail run at Pilot Mountain before it got too hot. I did an enjoyable 5 miles on the Corridor Trail and Chris / Oliver went ahead to get a total of 6 miles in. Oliver's reward was a dip in the Yadkin River to cool off afterwards. It was his first open water adventure and after a few nervous minutes, he was running out into the middle of the river and paddling back. <3 !
Friday, June 29, 2012
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Adventures in Trail Running
Remember this guy? Back in August I blogged about our soon-to-come-home 8 week old puppy Oliver, a german shorthaired pointer (GSP). He's now a leggy 65 lb goofy bundle of energy and he LOVES TO RUN. More than I do, more than hubby does, more than all those Olympic hopefuls we'll be watching this weekend.
We spent a lot of time training Oliver this year and it's paid off tremendously. He's super duper smart (and I'm not just saying that as a proud puppy parent) and truly likes to participate in training activities. Our major problem is traffic in the neighborhood - it used to terrify him and we're to the point of tolerating it, but it still makes walks difficult on some days. A healthy fear of traffic is ok though...he's gotten out of the backyard fence twice (gate left open) and he gets to the front yard and goes "Oh No!!"...we know this because he came right to the front door and barked to come back inside. I told you he was super duper smart.
His favorite places to go have trails though. In researching the breed as runners we were thrilled to find out that GSPs are one of the best speed or distance running breeds as well as an trail running breed and it's a trait we've embraced, especially with his discomfort near traffic. When we get out of urban Winston and on the trails, he's in unity with it all. As with most GSP puppies though, he's got two speeds - sleep or GO FAST! He's learning, with our guidance, that an 8 mile run cannot be started at 6 minute miles... we will all tucker at before the end. Pacing is getting easier and he listens much better to vocal commands on runs. He's learning that runs are about him getting to stretch out his legs and test speed, but runs are about getting outside with us to exercise together.
Last night we headed to Tanglewood Park after work to enjoy some of the shaded singletrack mountain bike trails given the sudden jump in heat/humidity this week. Hubby and our friend A headed off on a different trail to do a faster / longer run and I took pup down a different trail. I packed up my Camelbak hip pack even though I planned on only doing 4 miles. It was quite hot/humid and I knew pup would appreciate some water too. Oliver stuck right with me loose leashed and cruised along the trails, just happy to be in his element. I grew up horseback riding and realized that I use a lot of those techniques with Oliver on runs in terms of gentle leash taps for correction and vocal clicks to get his attention / focus. It works very well for us. At trail splits (or a tree in middle of trail), I can gently tap the leash in the direction to take or an intersection, Oliver will pause, turn, and wait for direction. It's so nice not getting tangled in the leash or fight with him on directions.
About halfway through we came across the boys and Oliver was beside himself...I think he was ready to ditch me and go fast with the boys, but alas on this day it was too hot for him to go faster (at least until he gets more acclimated). After a quick chat I let the boys go in front of us on the trail and waited a min or two for them to get out of sight. Oliver decided that we must have been lost and had his nose to the ground tracking for Dad. Every trail intersection he took pause and pulled to where they went. We took pause for another minute, hit the reset button, and he was back to running with me rather than tracking Dad. I'm sure it'll get better with more practice though. Truthfully, I did get lost in the middle of the trail and did a loop three times before Oliver found the correct way down the trail...whew!
My favorite thing about taking Oliver out as a running partner? It's a tie between the bond we get during that time and the aftermath of snuggles on the sofa. I swear if a dog could smile, he's smiling every time he looks at me on the trail. It has definitely been worth the time, training, and all other efforts to have such a dedicated running partner in our family!
We spent a lot of time training Oliver this year and it's paid off tremendously. He's super duper smart (and I'm not just saying that as a proud puppy parent) and truly likes to participate in training activities. Our major problem is traffic in the neighborhood - it used to terrify him and we're to the point of tolerating it, but it still makes walks difficult on some days. A healthy fear of traffic is ok though...he's gotten out of the backyard fence twice (gate left open) and he gets to the front yard and goes "Oh No!!"...we know this because he came right to the front door and barked to come back inside. I told you he was super duper smart.
His favorite places to go have trails though. In researching the breed as runners we were thrilled to find out that GSPs are one of the best speed or distance running breeds as well as an trail running breed and it's a trait we've embraced, especially with his discomfort near traffic. When we get out of urban Winston and on the trails, he's in unity with it all. As with most GSP puppies though, he's got two speeds - sleep or GO FAST! He's learning, with our guidance, that an 8 mile run cannot be started at 6 minute miles... we will all tucker at before the end. Pacing is getting easier and he listens much better to vocal commands on runs. He's learning that runs are about him getting to stretch out his legs and test speed, but runs are about getting outside with us to exercise together.
Last night we headed to Tanglewood Park after work to enjoy some of the shaded singletrack mountain bike trails given the sudden jump in heat/humidity this week. Hubby and our friend A headed off on a different trail to do a faster / longer run and I took pup down a different trail. I packed up my Camelbak hip pack even though I planned on only doing 4 miles. It was quite hot/humid and I knew pup would appreciate some water too. Oliver stuck right with me loose leashed and cruised along the trails, just happy to be in his element. I grew up horseback riding and realized that I use a lot of those techniques with Oliver on runs in terms of gentle leash taps for correction and vocal clicks to get his attention / focus. It works very well for us. At trail splits (or a tree in middle of trail), I can gently tap the leash in the direction to take or an intersection, Oliver will pause, turn, and wait for direction. It's so nice not getting tangled in the leash or fight with him on directions.
About halfway through we came across the boys and Oliver was beside himself...I think he was ready to ditch me and go fast with the boys, but alas on this day it was too hot for him to go faster (at least until he gets more acclimated). After a quick chat I let the boys go in front of us on the trail and waited a min or two for them to get out of sight. Oliver decided that we must have been lost and had his nose to the ground tracking for Dad. Every trail intersection he took pause and pulled to where they went. We took pause for another minute, hit the reset button, and he was back to running with me rather than tracking Dad. I'm sure it'll get better with more practice though. Truthfully, I did get lost in the middle of the trail and did a loop three times before Oliver found the correct way down the trail...whew!
My favorite thing about taking Oliver out as a running partner? It's a tie between the bond we get during that time and the aftermath of snuggles on the sofa. I swear if a dog could smile, he's smiling every time he looks at me on the trail. It has definitely been worth the time, training, and all other efforts to have such a dedicated running partner in our family!
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| The aftermath of runs...Pure snuggles |
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