Week of 6-23 to 6-29

I'd first like to say how proud I am of my WTAC team - from Beth and her team, who did the Mt. Washington Road Race on Saturday (It's only one hill!), to the group who made it to the OMG! Triathlons (Tommy, Jeff, Shara, Matthew, Jonny...), and so many more, I'm sure.  I was even able to sneak out in the early hours Sunday morning and bang out another long trail race along with our newest team members Joe and Faith, and I'm fortunate that I'm in good enough shape right now to be able to do that...

So what's next?  Speedwork?  The Nick Bottone Track Mile (Hosted by the WTAC), which is FREE and taking place this Friday at the Stonington High School track (which is really, really nice...).  This will be a chance for me to go sub-6:00 in a mile.  If I can get out there this week to do some track work, I'll have a pretty good idea of whether this is going to happen or not, but I'll be there either way to give it a shot!  Link to the event below:

http://www.westerlytrackclub.org/bottone_mile.html

I also need to get out to the section of trail I manage...one section in particular gets really overgrown fast, and difficult to navigate if it isn't trimmed back, so there's that as well.  I also have the kids all week, so I'll be conjuring up summer activities for them and working any runs around them.  Should be fun!

Monday, 6-23 - 5 Miles (Road) - Recovery miles with Muddy.  Met up in NoSto with Muddy, who's been running some easier miles amid a nagging achilles...warm day, sunny and a tad humid, but we kept a good conversational pace, and the only fail was an initial botched attempt at a short Yannatos Preserve trail run, which went something like this:  Run through waist-high, tick-infested grass, cross the crooked stone bridge, spider web-web-web-web-web, and NO.  Roads won out today, but a good afternoon run in the country!

Tuesday, 6-24 - 3 Miles (Track) - Track work, Westerly High School.  Two weeks in a row?  Huh?  I'm determined to get faster while still enjoying every run, so in between errands in town, I decided to hit up the track again.  Previously, I've not been able to get past the 200m distance, because I don't know what the Hell I'm doing, and how to dial back my pace slightly to adjust for more distance.  Not on the track, anyway...today, though, I was feeling better about the 400m distance, and I'm starting to figure out how this all works.  Maybe I can conjure the elusive Mr. Galoob out of the ether to direct me on what I'm doing right or wrong...

...so anyway, I did a mix of 400-200-400-200-400-200-100-100, with slow jogs in between.  Squeaked out some decent times for me, at: 87-38-87-37-91-38-12-13, and feel pretty good about my effort in 75-80 degree, breezy weather!  And a bonus?  I was able to score what I consider to be one of the best, and least available, IPA's to hit the beer world in recent memory (In my humble opinion), the Long Trail Limbo IPA:

Well, hello there...

Wednesday, 6-25 - 0 Miles.

Thursday, 6-26 - <1 Mile (Trail) - Impromptu trail jog/hike with the kids.  Driving through Mystic and I see an Avalonia Land Conservancy sign for the White Cedar Swamp, so I pulled over and dragged the kids out onto the trail to check it out.  Looks like it's considered to be the northern terminus of the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center's trail system, and runs out to I-95 along the watershed lake...definitely worth another look when I have more time to play...

Friday, 6-27 - a.m. - 2.2 Miles (Road) - Dog Jog up Fowler Road.  The dog loves the runs, and is totally wiped out by the time we're done.  Fun!
                       p.m. - 2.6 Miles (Trail) - Lantern Hill run.  My goal for this run was to get back one of my segments, which I'm 100% sure I did, but my GPS was dodgy and didn't line things up correctly.  No worries, I put in a good effort, and I'll hit it again soon.
                       p.m. - Bottone Mile, SHS track.  6:13 officially.  I'd hoped to go sub-6, but it didn't happen.  First lap was strong, laps 2 and 3 not so hot, and I finished well on lap 4.  For my third run of the day and first 1-mile time trial since last summer, I felt like I performed well.  Fun event, and I got to see a bunch of friends today, which is always nice since I don't get to the fun runs very often.  Great time!

Getting ready!

The 8-Minute Group, I snuck into the 6-and-7 group...

Fast group...

Cruising around the turn...

So overall, a spectacular day for running:  dog jog, trail run, and an event with friends.  All good!!!

Saturday, 6-28 - 0 Miles.

Sunday, 6-29 - 10 Miles (Trail) - Narragansett Trail run with new WTAC member Joe S.  I met Joe a 7 a.m., with plans to do an out/back run, but I suggested dropping a car near RT. 49, and running back to Lantern Hill, which we agreed on.  It's a great stretch of trail, as anyone who's run it knows, with several really good climbs and descents, and there aren't a whole lot of "easy" parts to it.  I took the lead and "spider duty," and caught some webs to the face.  The deerflies were present, but I'd sprayed myself down and they mostly left me alone...a great trail day (although a bit warm and humid), and a technical, hilly 10 miles in 2:21.  We actually saw hikers and one runner on the trails, too!  A good day, and good way to close out the week.  Never made it to the beach, but soon...

Lantern Hill, the end of the line

Calm day at the beaver dam

Week of 6-16 to 6-22

So the last-minute decision to jump into the mix for Mt. Greylock was a good one - I felt pretty good, and although it was, pound-for-pound and mile-for-mile, the toughest race I've done to date, my recovery time was minimal.  I feel a bit sore but really good today!  Went to karate this morning for a great workout, and the legs were OK.

That said, I don't have any races scheduled until mid-July.  Sooo...I might look for something in the next few weeks.  If not, there's some exploring to be done, fun runs, and some surfing with Sophia if there's waves...

Monday, 6-16 - 0 Miles - 1 Hour karate class.  Legs were sore but solid!

Tuesday, 6-17 - 2.5 Miles (Track) - Impromptu WHS track jog with 200's.  Muggy.  Dropped the cat off at the groomers in Westerly for his annual "Summer cut" and had just enough time to get the legs moving again.  Driving by the high school, I noticed that the track was empty...so I did an easy jog, mixed in with 5 x 200m efforts, and one 100m at the end, which came in at 17s?  I think I could do better with that, though, but the legs felt heavy today (I wonder why???).  Good fun, though!

Wednesday, 6-18 - Hot! Wait, did I say that??? - (0-ish Miles) - 1 hour karate, full uniform and no AC, then light weight training, and I'm still trying to figure out where in Hell my "Driveway" segment begins and ends (curse you, Muddy!)...I'm pretty sure I destroyed it several times over already...love doing sprints in my driveway...no matter, plenty of time to play with that.  Going to try to incorporate some speedwork into training now, I've heard that the Daniels' Running Formula is the shit, so I'll snag a copy of that and try some organized training, in the midst of my disorganized, free-flowing fun runs.  Yin and yang?  Thoughts?  Meantime, I'm tentatively thinking about the Nipmuck South trail race this weekend (http://www.shenipsitstriders.org/nipmucksouth.html), which is the next race in the Grand Tree series.  Less than an hour away, not crazy elevation but a good test, and the weather should be just right by Sunday...family first, though, so it'll be another game day decision!

Thursday, 6-19 - a.m. - 6.5 Miles (Road) - Westerly/Pawcatuck roads.  Dropped the car off for an oil change and ran a big loop in the rain while I waited.  Love running in the rain.  Hammett sighting at the Westerly Y!  So it's the first time I've done a road run in a while, and of course I almost got hit by a car, because looking BOTH WAYS before pulling out from a side street onto a main road is just too much to ask, right?  I'm going back to the woods...

Friday, 6-20 - 0 Miles.  Soph's first day of Summer vacation, so I was a good Dad and took her and a pack of her friends to the beach, then got them lunch, then took them to my sister-in-law's pool, then back to our place so they could chill...did get to watch the HON-ECU World Cup match, really looking forward to this weekend's matches...

Saturday, 6-21 - 5 Miles (Beach) - Summer solstice beach runs with Jim and some of the WTAC crew.  7 am start, and as the WTAC contingent were mostly doing the Oh My Goddard triathlons the following day, they went for a final prep swim before their races, so Jim and I did a 2-miler first.  The 3-miler?  Down to the jetty and back, perfect day and perfect way to kick off summer:

One of the best parts of Summer is walking up this ramp...

WTAC Tri- crew suiting up

Empty Misquamicut Beach!

Sunday, 6-22 - 14 Miles (Trail) - 2nd Annual Nipmuck South Trail Race.  Last minute decision to jump into this race.  Left the house and arrived in plenty of time to get bibbed up and do a short warmup right before the race.  Ran into Michele Hammond and her husband Russell, our newest WTAC'ers Faith Raymond and Joseph Strafach, and Patrick Quinn from the TNT right before the race.  I've done almost all of the blue-blazed trails in eastern CT, but not this section of the Nipmuck, so I was excited to check it out.  I also decided to use my heart rate monitor instead of the timer, just like I did at Greylock, which worked perfectly.  Keep a certain range (174-182) which means I'm working hard but not too hard for a distance race?  It's working for me...

The gun goes off (well, the RD said GO!) and we all take off onto the trail.  The Shenipsit Striders hosted this race, and they'd done a good job of tying blue streamers to trees whenever there weren't blazes.  Only went off trail a few times!  As an out and back race, it was pretty cool to see the lead pack flying toward us, and I was able to high-five Pat before I got to the turnaround.  The weather was great for the race, although it was a bit humid and the Sun made it quite warm toward the end of the race.  Hilly race in parts, especially the "50 foot cliff" hill, which went on forever.  I learned after last week to hike the bigger hills, and I neither passed or was passed on them today, so everyone was on the same page.

My result?  14 hilly miles in 2:32, good for 52nd place.  Results here:

https://register.aratrace.com/results/default.aspx?event=26913&r=8404

Great day, and I unfortunately had to jet, but there was a cookout with burgers, watermelon, etc., and Pat was going to a cool brewpub in Willimantic, but I had to get home.  Great to see everyone, though!  Next up, trying to set a new mile PR at the Bottone mile this week!

2014 Mt. Greylock Half Marathon

Happy Father's Day!  My wife asked me what I wanted for Father's Day, and I said I wanted to go run this race, and that was it.  Green light!  My friend James was fishing for someone to go with, so I gave him a shout and let him know we were going.

We left my house at 6, with a possible 3 hour drive.  Made it there in much less, and it was great (as it always is) to have conversation on the long ride.  Coming around a curve in Adams, Mt. Greylock, the highest point in Massachusetts, is unmistakeable.  We both let out a gasp and the nerves started to kick in.  I never (well, hardly ever) get nervous before a race, but I was looking up at this mountain with apprehension.  I'd been running hills, but nothing like this.  The tower at the top, partially obscured by...clouds...fog...something, was beckoning, and a cool wind was whistling through the Glen, at the lower part of the mountain.  Hmmm...

Met up with Greg H. almost immediately, then WTAC brethren Jonny and John.  Glad to see familiar faces, but I ended up having some great conversations before and during the race with quite a few people - trail runners are quite a friendly crowd.  James and I checked in, got bibbed up, and did a short warmup on the tail end of the course.  Looked very similar to what I'm used to!  Now about that mountain...

Got ready and lined up for the race.  With single-track trail right off the bat, there was a big bottleneck, but nobody seemed like they were in a big hurry.  The slow three mile trudge up the mountain had begun.  My goal was to hit the top in under an hour.  At 2400' of gain in the first three miles, that seemed totally reasonable.  I chatted with a runner named Will, who grew up at the base of the mountain and was running his 16th Mt. Greylock race.  He gave me plenty of good advice, as did others.  Apparently the net downhill back 10 miles were no love-fest - in fact, with recent rain, they'd be steep in places, slippery and muddy...

Got to the top, camera at the ready to snap a quick picture, and...fog!  Clouds!  Could barely see the enormous statue, so James and I continued on.  I was skipping down the first descent at a good clip, it was technical but fun.  there began a series of rises and falls on the backside, on tight trails.  At one intersection, we run into about eight runners.  No streamers in sight, so we take the left.  After a bit, I notice a muddy section with no recent footprints.  Back we go.  I think we added just a few hundred yards each way there.  I did stop to take one picture on the back part:

Breathtaking scenery, one of several waterfalls and stream crossings...

A long, slightly ascending, then descending, service road followed.  Lost James here around mile 9.  When we hit the super muddy downhill singletrack section at mile 11(?), I opened up what I had left in the tank, and passed a number of people, fast and recklessly.  The best part of the race for me.  I finished well!  I was thinking I'd come in just over the 3-hour mark, until the official results got posted:

Just squeaked in under 3 hours with 0:00:06 to spare!

The Sun finally came out!!!  Greylock, looking less formidable than it was for me...

Greg was 3rd and Jonny 6th in a really competitive field, not sure about John but the "official official" results will be posted soon.  Some crazy fast runners there!  After James sat in a nearby stream to cool off, he changed up and we were out rather quickly.  A directional mishap added a bunch of time to our drive though (I'm not blaming anyone...James!!!), so I got us back at 5.  Great day, and one Helluva race put on by the WMAC (no affiliation with the WTAC!).  I got home to receive this handmade painting from my daughter for Father's Day, which capped my day off perfectly:

Love my daughter, she's awesome!

Great day!!!

Decisions, decisions...

I'm thinking about this weekend, and the "Father's Day weekend" opportunities for racing, and there are three races coming up.  First, there's the Niantic Bay 10K on Friday the 13th (yikes!), which I ran last year (and placed 2nd in my age group!).  This is a team event, and I know a few of my WTAC brethren are jumping into this one, so maybe?  It's also my 10K PR.  Second, the Mt. Greylock trail half marathon on Sunday, which Jonny and John (and possibly Greg) H. are running.  Very intriguing race with a Hell of an interesting elevation profile, all uphill for the first three miles, then a net downhill for the last ten.  It's 2 1/2 hours away though, so I'd be gone all day.  Lastly, and this one is starting to really look like a possibility, the Summer Solstice 5.5 mile trail race in Hebron on Sunday.  It's early (7:30 start), finishers get a nifty pint glass (can never have too many of those), and it's held on some pretty good trails.  Gazelle ran this a couple of years ago and had good things to say about it, so...I'm mulling over the options, and should know by Wednesday what I'm doing...

Monday, 6-9 - 0 Miles - 1 hour karate and some light weights/stretching.

Tuesday, 6-10 - 0 Miles - Full day of construction, and a visit with my mother-in-law, who finally got moved into a facility to start physical therapy...

Wednesday, 6-11 - 5.5 Miles (Trail) - Lantern Hill double.  I slipped over to Lantern Hill after karate class and did a "Double Lemon-Squeezer" run to the top and back to the bottom.  Slow and steady up, fast and reckless down the hill...and about 700'+ of elevation gain.  Good hilly trail training run!

It's on:  Mt. Greylock trail race, 1/2 marathon distance...leaving at 6 on Sunday with James I. for the mountain...holy shit...let's do this, I can't wait to crest the mountain and bomb some downhill...

Thursday, 6-12 - 2.2 Miles (Trail) Fowler-Grindstone Preserve across the street.  Short run before the bus got to the house.  Muggy and very rainforest-like today...and spider webs.  Lots of those.

Friday, 6-13 - 0 Miles...

Saturday, 6-14 - 1.5 Miles (Trail) - Dog jog on trails across the street.  The dog is an excellent trail runner, by the way.  Even on a retractable leash, he stays on the trail, reads the turns and jumps every obstacle with ease (except one really big log).  Great dog, love the runs with him!

Sunday, 6-15 - Mt. Greylock trail half marathon... - Separate writeup to follow!

What Now???

I purposely didn't sign up for any races until mid-July, because I figured on giving myself a chance to recover after the Cayuga race.  Since that has passed (and I hear it was brutal), I'm going to run, surf, and thoroughly enjoy the warmer weather, and not be bound to a race schedule for a bit.  I might jump into a race, I might not!  Depends on how I feel on any given day.  My daughter is almost done with school, and wants nothing more than to go surfing with her Dad.  That's me.  Awesome.

Monday, 6-2 - 2.6 Miles (Paddling/Surfing) - Conant Avenue surf session with my nephew on his birthday.  I taught Tristan to surf about 8 years ago, and he's turned into a very good surfer.  Driving out, I realized I was still wearing my glasses and had forgotten to put my contacts in.  This should be interesting...We checked a couple of local spots but the wind direction was indicating Point Judith was the best bet.  The lighthouse is usually bigger, but more crowded and a lot less mellow, so we decided on Conant Ave.  6-8 people in the water, including a few friends, and a really fun session in clean, chest-to-head high waves:

Such a fun break...

Once I got used to everything being blurry, I was fine!

Tuesday, 6-3 - 1.2 Miles (Paddling/Surfing) - Matunuck, RI.  A short window of opportunity on a sunny day, so I drove down to Matunuck to check the surf.  Lo and behold, there were still clean chest-high+ waves coming in.  Suited up and hit the water for a half hour, until the wind picked up.  Very few people out, too!

The MTK...clean, empty waves...

Just registered for the Nipmuck Trail Marathon, again!  Third year in a row, first marathon I ever did, and I love the course.  I highly recommend this race - the price is right, it's a local, established race that draws some great runners, which says a lot about its appeal.  Great race!

Wednesday, 6-4 - 3 Miles (Road/Trail) - Brief trail exploration before the bus arrived.  My daughter was staying after school and taking the later bus home, so I decided to check out some unmarked trails at the top of the Fowler Road, right up the street from me.  It's all Pachaug State Forest from there to Voluntown and beyond.  See attached Enduro Trail map:

http://www.americasstateparks.org/park_maps/pachaugenduro.pdf

Awesome double-track trail, basically old unused forest roads, totally runnable...and I was about a half mile into the woods when my daughter calls to say "Oops, I forgot to call you earlier, I took the early bus instead and we're on our street."  Shit.  Turned around and hoofed it down the trail and down the road back to the house.  She's old enough now that I shouldn't panic, though, cause she sure didn't.  Going to get out there again tomorrow to continue exploring, rain be damned.  Definite potential for some sort of weekend group run from the house, once I get the trails up there wired...

Really runnable

Was heading this direction when I got the call...more uphill!

Thursday, 6-5 - 4 Miles (Road/Trail Mix) - Local roads mixed with short Fowler-Grindstone Preserve and Pachaug Forest trails.  Pouring out!  I was immediately soaked and wore a hat just to keep the rain out of my eyes, but so much fun getting good and muddy on the trails.  Checked out another unmarked trail at the top of Fowler, and I'm starting to piece together where everything leads...

Friday, 6-6 - 5.6 Miles (Trails/Road connector) - Fowler-Grindstone Preserve and MORE Pachaug Forest trails w/Gazelle.  This time I had backup.  Gazelle met me at my place and we set out to explore more of the unmarked trails up the street.  I've been studying maps of Pachaug to decide a course given our time frame, and we went through the preserve across the street first, then made the seemingly endless uphill run into Pachaug, all the way to Wyassup Road, then downhill back toward the road and spied yet another unmarked trail, this one overgrown with ferns, which spit us back out on Fowler Road, and I knew right where we were almost the whole time?  Good time!

Saturday, 6-7 - 5 Miles (Road) - Warmup, cooldown, and the Pawcatuck Lions 5K.  With no races scheduled for June, I'm in a great place - I can run for fun on the weekend, or jump in to any race I choose!  Today's race was local, for a great cause, and is run by local triathlete Melanie D.  A bunch of my WTAC friends were going to be there, and I was able to break away from hosting duties at my daughter's sleepover to make the race.  Got there early and chatted with everyone I knew, got bibbed up and did a solo warmup.  It was already really warm, and although the course is a flat out and back along the Pawcatuck River, there isn't a lot of shade.  Going to be a toasty affair.  I'd only been running trails at an easy pace and hadn't done any speedwork, so I figured I'd go out steady and see how it went.  After the start, I felt OK but not great, and focused on Paul Walker, who was about 100 yards ahead of me.  I spent the first half of the race reeling him in, and finally caught him around the 2 mile mark.  I had a much faster third mile and finished well, in 23rd place of almost 200 total?  No official results yet, but Strava had me at 22:55.  My only 2 previous results were a 24:07 in 2012, and a 27:14 in 2011 - good to see improvement over my previous times, but my lack of speed training won't get me any more PR's until I change my routine...fun race, though, capped off with a group cooldown run through Westerly, and the awards, where I found out that due to Gazelle running his last 5k in the 40-49 division, I was one spot out of placing in our age group.  Turn 50 already, will ya!!!

Sunday, 6-8 - 3 Miles (Beach!) - Barefoot beach run, 1 mile with my daughter, 2 miles solo.  Yeah, she complained...yeah, she had to walk a couple of times...but I was able to get a rare mile run in with my 12 year old girl, and it was her choice and suggestion to come along!  Hot day too!  Love it, the beach was packed, and although it was a high tide slog, I loved every minute of it.  Great beach day with the family, and just missed a run with the crew on the other end of Misquamicut, the riff raff...next week?  (Unless I do something stupid on Father's Day...)

Countdown to the CT50...and, I'm Out.

Made decision to withdraw from the CT50, due to family obligations.  See below.  Disappointed?  Most definitely.  Wrong move?  Nope.  I'll get 'em next time, and do something almost as cool instead...

Monday, 5-26 - 2.2 Miles (Trails) - Champlin Glacier Park - Met my good friend Sally today, to show her some trails.  She knows I love trail running, and wants to get into races, which I do tons of, so I was the person to ask?  Anyway, we did a easy pace 2.2 mile loop in Champlin, even coming across a lady slipper flower along the trail:

Google photo, didn't have my camera with me!  Cool flower though :)

.  She asked me a bunch of questions, and I rattled on about why trail running is so much more fun for me than roads, and I think I made a pretty good argument for trails!

Tuesday, 5-27 - 0 Miles - Worked construction today, and my mind was all over the place.  My mother-in-law has been at Yale New Haven hospital since last week, awaiting surgery for two aneurysms, which require stents to bypass.  The surgery is set for Friday morning, and I just rightly made the decision to put family first and bow out of the CT50.  Killing me, but it's the right thing to do.  My family (and especially my wife) need me to be close to home, so I'm out.  Already e-mailed race director Ian, and let my family members from New York know, as they were planning a road trip to visit with me.

I'm going to pick up the miles this week, and try for something awesome this weekend, just closer to here.  Stay tuned...

Wednesday, 5-28 - 0 Miles.  1 hour karate, and a lot of yardwork...grrrr...

Thursday, 5-29 - 3.4 Miles (Trails) - Green Falls loop.  Talked to my mother-in-law, who's totally antsy and just wants to get the surgery over with.  I'd feel the same, I think, if I were laying in a hospital bed for a week.  Sucks, but has to be done, and the sooner the better.  Today, I gave another good effort going up to the dam, and shaved 24 seconds off my previous best!  Closing in on Muddy's CR...look out!!!  Looped around the pond, ate a minimum of spider webs, and decided to scout out the service road near the dam, which leads...somewhere?  The Enduro trail cuts across it, so I ventured down that for a bit, not a bad trail either!  More exploration is definitely in order...perfect day out there!  Beat my CR from the dam to the road by a whopping two seconds on the way back to the truck.  Bling!

Overlook at Green Falls Pond

Saw a baby fox on the way home, his Mom was across the road telling him to stay put...

love living in the country!

Friday, 5-30 - 10 Miles (Trails) - Bigger Pachaug loop.  Wanted to make it to Hell Hollow road, but ran out of extra time and bailed onto the connector trail.  The Quinebaug section was a mess - faded blazes and I got turned around a couple of times, as the Enduro trails criss-cross the blue blazed trails, but still fun.  I had printed a DEP map and stuck it in my pocket, which definitely helped.  Perfect weather day, and I didn't see a soul out there???  

Fortunately, my Mother in law did well in the surgery, and we'll get to visit her tomorrow.  Hoping she gets to come home by Mon.-Tues...


Saturday, 5-31 - 0 Miles - Visited MIL at Yale New Haven.  Awesome doctors and nurses there.  My mother in law should be a few more days and then home for recovery, which should take about a month.  If anyone is ever in New Haven, go to the Yale New Haven hospital campus, find the street where all the food vendors are, and get a steak and cheese from Jon's Steak and Cheese cart.  Epic.

Sunday, 6-1 - 13+ Miles (Trail/Road crossovers) - Pachaug/Tippecansett loop from Green Falls.  Great loop, although the web-infested crossover trail that Gazelle and I traversed last year was so overgrown that I missed it several times, and decided not to run it after I did find it.  No problem though, tons of other webs to chew on during the run!  Started below the dam, and went all the way to Beach Pond, crossed the bridge, and took the Tippecansett south to the Yawgoog Scout Camp property on the border.  Solid trail time, although it was quite warm and I ran the CamelBak dry about three miles from the truck.  Needless to say, I was definitely feeling dehydrated for a while after the run...I think I had about 30oz. in the bladder, and ate three GUs.  Maxing the bladder at 50oz. would have made the difference, I think.  Great day though, saw a bunch of cool stuff out there:

The quiet end of Beach Pond

Tippecansett Trail goodness

Eastern Box Turtle, hiding from my fat fingers...

Tell Muddy the boat goes in the water...

So while it wasn't the CT50, it was a good run, scenic, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.  And apparently, the CT50 was an absolute sufferfest with temps at of above 80 degrees, yikes!

Is the Hay in the Barn? I don't think the Hay's in the Barn, Pre...

Shit, I suppose at this point I'll just have to throw myself into the race and see what happens.  Nothing to do but go for it, right?  No races scheduled until Ithaca, just cruisy, mellow trail runs.  If I have strong suits to my training (do I have any?), I suppose they are these:

1. Excellent "trail legs."  I'm confident and sure-footed on trails, even the most technical trails, uphill or down.  I don't get rattled by difficult sections - in fact, I enjoy them even more than the smooth single-track.

2. Trail time.  Almost all of my runs are on fairly technical single-track.  The amount of time I spend alone, in the woods, running tricky trails, is to my benefit.

3. Elevation.  I've substituted lack of time to train with vertical gain.  I've gone for, in most cases, the hilliest trails I have near me, and my short runs have been as steep as possible.  I've also learned that I'm pretty decent at descents...

4. Fueling.  My hydration/fueling, especially during a longer run, has become more sensible and consistent.

5. Mental.  I'm still a head case, but I've learned to adopt an approach that works (at least in my head):  "You have fun every time you go out for a run, no matter what the distance.  Enjoy the run."



Weaknesses?  Anyone?  I'll leave #5 open.

1. Miles.  I don't have enough miles per week under my belt.  True.  No argument there.

2. Support.  Solo trip, after I told Lori about the drive time.  Maybe I'll be able to focus better?  Fortunately, trail runners are quite a supportive bunch :)

3. Travel time to and from, and sleeping in a strange room.  I don't mind the drive, but it's another factor to consider, and I'll have to pop a melatonin and go to bed really early Friday and Saturday...especially Saturday.  6 a.m. start?  Really???  I should be ready to join the 4:45 club after this...

4. Trail time on the race course.  Going in on Friday before a Sunday race, I'm relying on previous runs, and course recon from fellow runners.  Jason (http://mustlovejogs.com/2014/05/16/cayuga-trails-50-the-course/) drove out a few days ago and previewed the course, and was a big help.  Lots of stairs!  Gorges!

5. ???

Monday, 5-19 - 7 Miles (Trails) - James L. Goodwin State Forest, Chaplin CT.  Finally got out to this place, about a 45-minute drive from here.  Secure parking, well-mapped, and pretty damn good trails.  I only managed one wrong turn, and did portions of the yellow and red trails, the blue-blazed lake loop, and a finish on the Natchaug Trail.  It even merges with the Airline Rail Trail, so many options.  Saw a number of hikers, and a couple on horseback with mosquito netting on their heads.  Great mix of single and double track, technical and smooth trail.  Great place, but I had to drive past a bunch of other quality trails to get there...map below!

http://www.ct.gov/deep/lib/deep/education/goodwin/goodwintrailsmap.pdf

Tuesday, 5-20 - 5 Miles (Trail/Roads to and from) - Relaxed Champlin run w/Gazelle.  Another awesome weather day, and after some official WTAC business, we were able to get a short run in over in Champlin, which I hadn't been to since there was snow on the ground?  Warm but very nice in the woods, and slightly too warm on the road.  I'll take it over sub-zero and icy though!

Wednesday, 5-21 - 0 Miles - Sick child.  I'm not calling it the Norovirus or anything, but my daughter got sent home today, along with about 20 other kids in her grade alone.  Not pretty.  So, with that said and an utter refusal to use the treadmill, I opted for a zero day, and took care of my ailing child.  Good Dad (who's praying he doesn't catch it - they even sent a letter home about it...) :)

Thursday, 5-22 - 0 Miles.  Sick child, day #2.  She's better, but had to take another day to get the bug out of her system.  She had a perfect attendance record up until yesterday, but she knew what the better decision was.  I was toying with the idea of doing repeats in the yard, but it wouldn't have done anything for my training so I scrapped it.  Besides, I had a job today that Soph had to tag along on, and she was able to do her homework during the drive and I took her to lunch after.  Lots of heavy lifting for me, good workout although not quite what I'd prefer to be doing!

On a lighter note, here's the preliminary revision of the elevation at Cayuga, OH SHIT...

Section 1 = 2.9 miles, +1,020', -560' = +460'
Section 2 = 4.0 miles, +790', -1,250' = -460'
Section 3 = 5.5 miles, +1,170', -1,180' = -10'
Section 4 = 5.7 miles, +1,210', -1,200' = +10'
Section 5 = 4.0 miles, +1,250', -790' = +460'
Section 6 = 2.9 miles, +560', -1,020' = -460'
Total = 25.0 miles, +/-6,000'
2 laps = 50.0 miles, +/-12,000'

Talk about upping the ante...that's crazy...

Friday-Saturday - 0 Miles - Newport overnighter, lots of walking and eating :)

Sunday, 5-25 - 5 Miles (Trail) - Green Falls.  Easy miles from now until...then.  Good stuff, technical and scenic, and I felt like I could have gone all day (which I'll have to!)...