Category: Goals

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Leadville Training – Week 12 Recap

I didn’t write a weekly recap last week, Week 13 since I did a race report for Pineland. So here is the update on training for Leadville that is in – OMG – 12 weeks!

This week I’ve been thinking about my first 50 mile finish and what was going through my brain as I sat on the picnic table at the finish line. I thought for the first time that maybe, just maybe, I will finish the 100 mile race. I felt like my body adapted well to 11 hours of hilly running despite nagging knee pain during most of the race. I liked having a pacer, which I’ve never had before. I really think that as I build up mileage in this next weeks, I might just do this.

I took it easy this week and had no expectations of mileage despite knowing I should try to run 47 miles according to the training plan. I really wanted to give my knee a break so I limited running and added more biking and hiking. The plan worked because today, Sunday, I have no more knee pain.

One of the things I needed to start doing to really prep for Leadville was running with poles.  I ran on June 1 with poles for the first time when run/hiking Whiteface. The poles got in the way a lot but they helped take some pressure off my knees. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Another thing is I need to start running at night and I’m not looking forward to that.

Next week I’m going for a 40 miles week versus a 60 mile week since I want to taper a little bit for the Leadville Marathon on June 15, then it’s 3 weeks of 70 mile weeks. I seriously can’t wait for these high mileage weeks:

I’m also mountain biking more to work my core and to make the legs stronger. It’s also great for cross training. And, oops, I got a bit sign up happy and registered for the Top Notch Triathlon in August in Franconia Notch. (see the picture of swimming in Echo Lake in the top photo) I wanted to do the triathlon for so long. I didn’t have a mountain bike so I couldn’t sign up for the last two years. Now, I can do it.

I heard about this race from a novel, Before You Know Kindness by Chris Bohjalian. I read his book in 2006 when I lived in Colorado. The story is set in northern New Hampshire about a family that spends their summers near Franconia Notch. The book is about complicated families and the ramifications of bad decisions and accidents. But what has stuck in my head is the ending that takes place on the slopes of Cannon Mountain as the family members compete in the Top Notch relay triathlon. I have never forgotten that story and how Bohjalian chooses to end the story on top of a New Hampshire mountain. It’s a story about forgiveness and acceptance – something I still need to figure out with my complicated family.

Miles this week: 28 with hiking

Vertical: 4,366

Average resting heart rate: 47

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Pineland Trail Festival Race Report, 50 Mile

I ran my first 50 on May 26. I really didn’t know what to expect and I didn’t know how it was going to feel. I couldn’t quite wrap my brain around the course with all the loops and running around fields. My mind at the start said just follow the arrows and course markings, and not overthink it. So I just ran. I started out slow, ate and drank at every aid station and waited for Mark to pace me at mile 27.

I ran most of the first 27 and only later started walking up the steep hills. Most of the inclines were runnable. I fell twice during the first 15 miles and landed hard on my right shoulder. I wasn’t lifting my left leg high enough because of knee and abductor issues. It’s a pattern to fall in the first half of a race rather than the latter. Go figure.

Mark was a great pacer and kept my mind occupied with other things. At about mile 40 I felt confident that I was going to make it to the finish. However, the miles seemed off when posted at aid stations. It was then we realized it was going to be longer than 50 miles; which psychologically was tough. At the mile 42 aid station/drop bag I took Advil and drank coke and suddenly I was able to kick it into high gear. The exhaustion went away and I powered up the hills and opened my stride. I felt great and got ahead of Mark. I passed a few men (which is always fun, ha) and finished feeling great. Marianne and Richard were at the finish cheering me on. Mark came in a few minutes later.

At the finish. Photo Courtesy of Richard Hoebel

What a day. The mud was crazy and the heat sometimes overbearing, but I did it. 50 miles.

Now it’s all about a little recovery and getting ready for Leadville in 12 weeks. My knee still hurts a bit but hopefully it is healing.

It was a great festival and the finisher packet was pretty good. I ended up placing 3rd in my age group and 12th female but the official results weren’t posted when I left so I didn’t get a beer mug.

I came for the finisher pint glass and that is exactly what I got. Race 3 of 5 – finished for 2019. Next up Leadville Marathon in June and Leadville 100 in August.

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It’s all about the adventure

My knee is still inflamed and sore but getting better after crashing on a mountain bike Tuesday night. It was my first time on a mountain bike since 2014, and my first time riding trails in New Hampshire after biking in Arizona and Colorado. In retrospect, I probably should not have biked so close to race day but I chose adventure instead of caution.

I’m a pretty cautions person when it comes to choosing to turn back so I can live another day in the mountains. But I really didn’t think mountain biking would be dangerous. I love mountain biking and just laughing as I speed down hills and sweat going up the hills in the woods. It’s so much like skiing in that you are in the moment and not thinking about anything else. Whereas with running you are thinking of everything. When you get that chance to ride in a place you’ve never been with a fun, hot mountain bike racer, you take it. Ha! Crashing on roots and rocks, while not ideal, is part of the adventure. I forgot that.

But alas, I’ve been here before. Not really thinking of the outcomes but taking the adventure because I wanted to do something new or different. It’s why I took a job in Concord and moved here in 2017. It’s why I took risks in relationships and signing up for a race I wasn’t sure I could do.

It’s about the adventure.

I’m trying not to despair as I sit on my sofa on a rainy Friday morning contemplating the next few days. While I can’t run and can barely walk, it’s going to be okay. My race is 8 days away and I can’t even taper. The worse case scenario: I don’t make it to the start line. The best case scenario: my knee heals and I make it 50 miles on May 26. So for the next few days I will swim, stretch, foam roll, walk and do the elliptical at the Y.

May 26 is just a race. It’s not the end of the world. [read out loud and repeat]

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Week 14 Recap, Leadville Training

Tapering is tough when you have a long term goal that is 12 weeks away, and want to be fit and ready for your B race. Tapering last week worked well for me this week; and I need to remember this.

My weekday runs were great; some trail, some road. I had a great race on Saturday (mountainous, trail) and recovery run of 7.5 miles on Sunday (flat, road). Sunday was a great ending to the training cycle in preparation for the my first 50 Miler in 2 weeks.

Here’s how the week played out:

I am particularly psyched about the elevation gain/vert 7,850.

Everything is going so well and I just don’t want to screw it up. So this means foam rolling, stretching, walking and just going with the flow. This week’s mantra – Just roll with it. I’m going to be better about figuring out that fine line of planning and going with the flow (see photo at the top). I have so much I want to accomplish. There is so much I want to do and see and feel. Life is good and I’m so happy – Imagine That.


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Peak Blood Ultra 30 Mile Race Report

I found my people today!

What a great day.

The Peak Blood Ultra 30 Mile course was tough: two big climbs, so much mud, branches everywhere,  and it was 30 miles.

I went out knowing that I would walk most of uphills and that turned out to be a good strategy. The first climb seemed to last forever and when I finally got to the top it was like my legs forgot how to run. I’m so glad I tapered this week and started this race on fresh legs instead of using it as a training run. While the course was hard I never had the ache-all-over feeling I had at the TARC 50K a few weeks ago.

The best part of the race was the aid station people. They were so wonderful and kind and helpful.

The best part of the day was meeting two runners, Janine and Bob.

I started talking to Jeannine in the parking lot and she was clearly nervous. She told me how she randomly signs up for races and didn’t know how she would fare today. Sounds familiar; it’s me since 2007. Her new nickname is #1 since she finished First Female. Pretty good results considering she said she is primarily a road runner.

Bob and I started talking after the first climb. He had an M Dot on his calf but Ironman talk came later – he is running the Leadville 100 and the Leadville marathon this year. He raced the 100 last year but DNF’d before dark now he has a coach and going to the camp. I had so many questions about his race, nutrition, gear. We talked about Leadville and triathlon for most of the race. It’s so much more fun to run with someone to take your mind off the pain.

At the finish I teased the race director about the three mile loop at mile 22. The trail wasn’t even a trail; it was bushwhacking. Bob noted that it was very Barkley-ish. My legs are so cut up from the briars. Why would they put that so close to the end? WHY WHY WHY? The race organizers were so fun and engaging to every racer. Such a fun day. Plus, I was completely surprised to be told I was second female and got a plaque.

It was a good day on an interesting, unique course in the mountains of Vermont so close to where I used to live in Killington. Driving to Vermont is always such a pleasure since it seems like such a different world as soon as you cross the Connecticut River. And it brings back such great memories of living in Vermont, oh so long ago. I drove by the river on Route 100 and remembered it was where my friends and our dogs would play during the hot summer.

I will do  this race again. They change the course every year so running it once doesn’t matter. Despite cursing out loud about the mud and loose branches, I loved the course and the event. Highly recommend. It was an unknown adventure I signed up for since they don’t post the course prior to the race, and that is exactly what I got. Plus, I met some new training partners.