Where's Critchlery? Oh, There You Are...Yeti review and What's Next

Well shit, haven't sat down to tap out a recap of anything for quite some time.  Where to start?  Well, between work and family commitments, my running has been inconsistent as hell, and my race schedule has been adjusted accordingly since the Yeti 100.  More on that in a bit.  It's mid-October and it still feels like we're in the death throes of an extended Summer, and I've not had the motivation to get out after work most days.  But whatever, it's no pity party and the running I've been doing has been very nice, very scenic, and quite fun.

Highlights:

September 3rd I did a 25-miler at Bluff Point with Faith and Beth, which was awesome!  Multiple loops around Haley Farm and Bluff Point, getting Faith ready for her 100-miler (oh, and me for mine?).  Great day, honest pace, and I didn't feel like it was forced at all.

After that, it was all shorter, cruisy runs in the woods...

YETI 100, Damascus VA.

Soooo...the Yeti 100.  Hmmm...where to start?  In the middle sounds good.  I DNF'd at 34 miles with a jacked-up heel that I couldn't put weight on.  But the beginning and end?  Pretty awesome experience.

I'll start with this:  I met my partner in crime Eric along 95, and we slowly (like, real slow) made our way through shitty CT traffic into NY, then PA, and somehow exceeded the speed limit for hundreds of miles in several states to make it to the race HQ in VA for a mandatory meeting and packet pickup.  Our timing was so close we even texted the RD to let him know we'd be 10 minutes late!

So we get there, I made a last-second decision to change my drop bag and conveniently left a number of things out.  Nice.  Now I'd have to carry all that shit the first 17 miles to the drop bag area.  We rush into the place where the mandatory meeting was happening, just in time for RD Jason Green to take the stage, tell us to "have a great fucking race, can't wait to give you all a hug at the finish!" then basically drop the mic and stroll out like a rockstar.  Classic.  Our race packet was epic, and the best race packet I've ever seen:  bib was inside a vinyl album, printed with Smiths/Sex Pistols classics (I have both albums) on either side.  Trucker hat, shirt, etc...outside I finally met Brian R. and Andy O., our other CT runners.  Brian was in for the 100 and Andy was crewing/pacing for him.  Brian kicked ass, more about that later...

Registration madness!

At the "meeting" I finally meet face-to-face my FB buddy Brian Burk, badass ultra-dude and writer of "Running to Leadville," a running-centric novel that's pretty damned good.  Nice!

We checked into our cottage up the street from the race midpoint in Damascus, and went out to grab a quick bite to eat.  We landed at a bar/restaurant downtown, which, with the influx of runners and crew for the race, was pretty jammed up.  The 20-somethings (think: cast of Scooby-Doo) running the show were swamped, and in spite of some slow service, the beer was good and the pizza we ordered was very good!  Got to bed by 10:30 for a 4 a.m. wakeup.

MY BED WAS LIKE CONCRETE, WRAPPED IN WRINKLY PLASTIC.  No bueno.  Otherwise the accomodations were good.  Oh, and zero cell service and no internet, which would cause problems all weekend.

So here's my race:

We were up way too fucking early, got our shit together and made it to the shuttles at 5:45 for Mr. Toad's Wild Ride to White Top, the mountain we'd start at.  I sat down next to another runner, and as we were chatting, I find out that he has already done a couple of hundred-milers, and that he used to weigh over 400 lbs. and lost over half of it!  Wow!!!  And now he's doing ultramarathons.  Awesome.  After we arrived at White Top, which was quite cold, everyone huddled around until a short speech from our RD, and we were off and running.  Very early on, I ended up running with Brian, as he was doing a 10/2 interval schedule.  In fact, most of the runners seemed to be doing some variation of intervals.  We'd pass people walking, then we'd walk and they'd pass us, and on.  Eric shot past us, and after an hour or so I let Brian pull away.  I caught up to Eric, and we stayed together for the next 20 miles or so, all the way through Damascus, the main aid station, and on to Alvarado.  It was around this time that my right heel started to hurt.  Like really hurt, and every step sent shooting pains up my leg.  I tried running, but it wasn't happening, and I basically limped 9-ish miles to Abingdon, the 34-mile mark, turnaround and first third of the race.  I knew I wasn't gonna be able to run, had zero chance of making the next time cutoff, and dropped out of the race.  The volunteers gave me a bag of ice for my foot, I chilled for a while, then collected my stuff and tenderly made my way to my truck.

Creeper Trail

But wait!  Eric's still running, and I can still crew for him!  It took a while to figure out where he was, but I gassed up my truck, got oriented on where I could catch him, and finally caught up to him at Damascus.  We got him fed, watered, changed up and I agreed to haul his drop bag up to the next aid station.  He was gonna go for it.  I stopped at a Dunkin' Donuts and grabbed him a large iced tea and an iced coffee for myself, and cruised on up to the next waypoint.  After some time, Eric arrived, chugged the iced tea and after some gear changes (it was getting chilly), he set out for Green Cove, 9 miles away...

Here's where my GPS totally screwed me: I couldn't get shit for a signal, so I drove into town and finally snagged a wireless signal, and my GPS was giving me a route up the other side of the trail.  I set out, and found myself on a rutted dirt mountain road, all switchbacks, deep ditch on one side and death drop into the trees on the other.  Great!  I don't get scared, but I was white-knuckling this one.  After what seemed like several miles of this, I finally hit pavement again.  Whew.  I arrived at Green Cove, where a sizeable group was quietly waiting to crew their runners.  By the time Eric made it to me, it was after midnight, quite cold, and I'd seen enough to know that I'll be thinking long and hard before I attempt this distance again.  I just wasn't feeling it.  Eric had been fighting a chest cold before we made the trip, and it had finally caught up to him at roughly 62 miles.  I pulled him off the course, got him into a warm vehicle, and we drove down to Damascus to drop him out of the race.

As for Brian?   Andy paced him for 33 miles, and he ended up finishing in 19 hours, good for 5th place overall at his first 100.  Incredible!

The next day we rested, cruised around Damascus, and did a bit of shopping.  Drove home on Sunday. 

The Appalachian Trail runs through downtown Damascus!

More Creeper Trail

So there's my Yeti recap.  Didn't go well for me.  I took a few days off, then tentatively started running again.  I have to see an orthopedic doc for my heel, and I can manage the little nagging issues that are popping up here and there until then.  As for my race schedule?

I'd entered the lottery for the Georgia Death Race before the Yeti, and got in.  WTF.  When I got back from Virginia, my family let me know that they had really missed me, and asked that I not go away for 4-5 days for races, which I sort of understand.  So I pulled the plug on GDR.  That's life.

Meantime, I have the RI 6hr (version 2.0) coming up this weekend. and was feeling fresh enough to enter and finish the Bimbler's Bluff 50k this past Sunday (recap forthcoming).  After that?  Local trail races until 2018...and then we'll see!

Summer Slacker! Catching up on 7/17 to 8/20

I've fallen down the "Summer Blog Update Void," along with many others, and it's easy to see why!  More time outside, less inclination to sit in front of a computer, yada yada yada...mine is more to do with a loaded work schedule and less running, but that said, here are a few recent highlights:

 7/22 - 10 Miles - Barefoot beach run, Misquamicut.  Loving the beach runs, as there are zero bugs and it can vary based on the tides!  From Weekapaug to Taylor's house and back is exactly 10 miles to the foot, and I love it.  It's historically been a progression run for me.

7/27 - 5 Miles - Rainy Bluff Point.  I was going to do the usual loop at Bluff, but when I reached the point, something told me I needed to explore the actual coastline, and I had a thoroughly enjoyable run in the rain, on rocks and packed sand, with not a soul in sight!  Turned the 3.5 into 5, and I discovered another facet of the Bluff property.  Awesome.

***Highlight***

7/29 - 31.1 Miles (50k) - Airline Trail Madness w/Faith and Laura B.  So Faith messages me about a long run, asking if I'm up for 20.  Sure!  It'll be on rail trail, which will simulate the Yeti course, which I need to be doing.  The night before, I get a message saying that if we're feeling good, maybe hit a marathon distance? OK.....I know where this is going.  The morning of, another message: "Maybe 50k if we feel up to it..." And that's how it happens...so I filled my hydration pack, and my handheld, and stopped at the Voluntown Chucky's convenience store for supplies, which consisted of pickles, 2 Kind bars, a tube of Pringles, some Jacklinks beef/turkey jerky, and a banana.  It would be enough, haha...we had a fantastic time doing three out/backs on the trail, used the cars as an aid station, and I was able to change shirts/hats every time, which helps a lot (trust me on that one)!  A great day with friends!!!

8/6 - 4 Miles - Run4Kerri road race, Matunuck.  My first race ever and 9th year in a row, and favorite race in my schedule, period.  I really love this race, which has transcended running (for me, at least) because it embodies everything good about the sport.  Family run event, great cause with a history, local highlight every year (drawing new runners and professionals alike), great vibe before and after, lots of friends...it's just awesome.  I picked up my race packet on Saturday, spent time chatting with the Bessette family, and dropping off some books for a local charity.

     Sunday, I got to Matunuck early, ran into Tommy and we did a short warmup.  I met up with TNT runners George and Jodi, and George mentioned he was running with "Team Jodi."  Well, I wondered, can I join Team Jodi?  And yes I did!  And had arguably the most fun I've had at this race ever.  We ran, kept Jodi at the pace she was aiming for, talked incessantly (George and I, anyway!), and had a blast!  All crossed the line together, and the afterparty at the Mews was just as much fun!  A great day as always :)

8/8 - 15 Miles - Bluff Point loops (4), Groton.  Really early work day and I wanted some Yeti-type terrain, so Bluff it is!  Kept to the regular loop, ran it 4 times with brief stops at the truck for aid station simulation, and there you go.  Warm day.

8/12 - 8 Miles - Narragansett Trail out/back w/Jim.  I'd decided on a p2p run with Jim, where we'd drop a car at the "official" NT end at Stubtown Road, and run there from the RI/CT border.  There's a perfect mix of flat, rooty trail, a short dirt road stretch, and some very technical and hilly stuff in the Long/Ell Pond area.  Very humid day, 100% humidity and tropical as fuck...Jim's usually good for 4-5 miles unless I mess up on plotting and lure him into his longest runs ever (which has happened!), so I picked a route that would get him 4, and if I felt good I'd just run back to my truck.  Which I did.  Great day, awesome run, and I really love bombing down the steep stretches at Long/Ell, so much fun!

8/13 - 4 Miles.  Roads!  Misquamicut run w/Mike B.  First casual road run since Europe.  The tide at the beach was ridiculous, and I'd basically given up on a run, but Mike was going for a run on the roads, so why not...it was hot, his jogging pace was my struggling pace, but it was a nice cruiser around Weekapaug, and I called it at 4 miles and settled in under an umbrella on the beach, took a nap and enjoyed the hot Summer day.

8/19 - 10 Miles - Barefoot Beach Progression run, Misquamicut.  A shitty work week meant no runs at all.  I just can't physically running after some of the shit I've been doing.  And I have family visiting so I had prep to do at the house.  That aside, I set out at ultra low tide to do the TS10 (Weekapaug to Taylor's house and back is exactly 10 miles) barefoot at a steady pace.  Turned into a hot, frying pan progression run, and I dropped a 1:27 for 10 miles, my first sub-1:30 in a couple of years on this route.  With shoes on, who knows?  But Summer runs on the beach are to be run barefoot, or not at all, right?

8/20 - 21+ Miles - Bluff Point long run w/Faith and Donnie. - So a LSR (long slow run) with Faith and Donnie (training for his first marathon) was on tap, and a cool morning warmed up quickly.  Not as hot as yesterday, but enough to let you know it's still Summer.  Did three 7 mile loops from Haley Farm to Bluff and back.  Donnie had done 10 miles before he met up with us, and joined us for 14 miles for a total of 24.  Faith and I had plans to do 25, but tapped at 21+, and called it a day.  Good time there, and ran into Josh and Kate, Spyros, and some other really fast dude that Faith knew who coaches college track?  Lots of people out running, walking, biking, even horseback riding!

So my Yeti training at this point is pretty much like my training for every other race I've done, which means I run when I can, long or steep when I can (depending on the race), and trust that my love of running and being out there will carry the day!  Much time to get ready, and I'll be working it in as I can.  The end of September through the end of October for me will be interesting, as it begins with Yeti but doesn't stop there.  Details to follow.

Catching Up! CT50 DNF, and Red Newt Redemption at Whiteface Mountain

I do enjoy a Red Newt Racing event!

As my mileage was way down due to work/family responsibilities, I pretty much shut things down on the blog for a bit.  Had some good runs, but low weekly mileage and not much to share.  I went into the CT50 undertrained, but hopeful that several good results (Goat Hill 50k, 7 Sisters, Massasoit 10k), would carry me through the day.

Sunrise at the CT50, glorious...

Giddyup!

Pre-race instructions from Ian

Buttermilk Falls

'Mo Buttah!

Ahhh...a flat stretch...

Look at all the tiny runners down there, I'll be there soon enough :)

A great place to celebrate, or drown your sorrows!

Instead, I was having a good run and cruising along fine, only to land funny on a benign stretch of trail at mile 22, and hear an audible "POP" in my knee.  I walk/jogged to the turnaround at 27-ish miles and called it a day, opting to not do any further damage, and dropped out of the race.  I had a great time and the course was in great shape, plenty of water flowing through the gorges and a perfect day, just not MY day.  Hey, I got to see the whole course anyway?  I had a nice dinner at Ithaca Beer Co., drove home and took a couple days off, and that seemed to do the trick.

My runs following that little escapade were all trail runs.  Matter of fact, everything is a trail run now.  And beaches.  Beach runs rock!  I run barefoot, there are no bugs, and I can be fast at low tide or slow and gutting it out at high tide in the soft sand, depending on the day.  And the cool off in the Ocean is glorious...

I can't see running on a road right now unless I absolutely have to, just my current mindset.

So with that said, I was finally able to gain some meaningful mileage at the end of June, and resolved to get some "Red Newt Redemption" at Whiteface, to cancel out my DNF at Cayuga.

Whiteface Sky Race and Vertical K, July 8-9, Wilmington NY.  Totals:  18 Miles, 10,500' vertical gain, 7:33 total time.  I've never run in the Adirondacks.  Drove through them once a year ago on our way to a family gathering and was floored by their beauty, and couldn't shut up during the car ride, I was that excited.  I vowed to sign up for Whiteface for 2017, just so I had a reason to spend the weekend there!  I really had no idea what I was getting myself into when I signed up for both races, only that hey, if I'm driving all that way, might as well get my money's worth!

I arrived in the rain (it had rained for a couple days already), and checked into the Hungry Trout lodge, a half mile from Whiteface.  Had dinner at the restaurant, checked out the mountain (you really can't miss it, it dominates the skyline in Wilmington), got officially nervous, and retired to my room with positive thoughts about Saturday's VK.

My first look at Whiteface...

Lots of rain = lots of water everywhere

Up and up...and up.  (Note the mountain in the fog in the upper right corner of the picture, it just keeps going...)

Part 1:  Whiteface Vertical K - 2.4 Miles, 3049' vert., time 1:11, #72 of 97 finishers.  I awoke to thunder and pouring rain, and was thinking that the race was gonna be a total shitshow.  Grabbed a quick breakfast at the Up the Creek diner, as the race didn't start until 10, and eventually made my way to the ski lodge for check-in.  And hey!  A fellow Shenipsit Strider, on crutches?  Could it be the mythical Lara Oh?  It is!  She's working through an injury but wanted to be there to see the start of the race.  We run in the same circles, haha, but had never met.  Spent a bunch of time chatting until it was time to go line up, and then we're off!

This race weekend is part of the Altra US Skyrunning Series, and drew some very fit and fast runners from all over the country.  Great atmosphere as everyone was getting ready to go!  The front runners take off immediately and run straight up the mountain.  Us mere mortals run the first couple hundred yards then settle into a conga line, power hike thing.  It's a relentless climb, 2.4 miles with 3,000'+ of vertical gain, much of the lower part on service roads but the upper part?  Steep as Hell single-track, grades of 30-40% or more, and slippery, mucky and involving some hands on the ground type stuff.  No running here!  I did note that the people using trekking poles seemed to be having a much easier time getting up the mountain.  Hmmm...I stayed middle/back of the pack, and got to see the main part of the course for the Sky Race, and finished in 1:11, and excited for the big event on Sunday.  Little did I know...

VK done!

Gondola cruise down the mountain...

In the afternoon, I had a great lunch at a local brewpub, took a nap. drove over to nearby Lake Placid to pick up a few things (what a great little town that is!), including some trekking poles I bought in a moment of panic (didn't use them), and had the best pan-fried trout of my life for dinner at (where else?) the Hungry Trout.  Off for a fitful night's sleep!  I maybe slept an hour or two at a time.  I rarely get nervous before races anymore, but I was nervous about this one.

Part 2:  Whiteface Sky Race - 15.6 miles, 7350' vert., time 6:24, #108 of 121 finishers (some DNFs and a lot of DNSs).  I awoke to a perfect morning for the race, and my legs felt a tad sore but not trashed.  Realizing I had no breakfast-type things to eat, I scrambled to get my shit ready and drove back to the Up the Creek for some quick eggs and toast, chatting briefly with a couple of local dudes who were working the aid stations.  I arrived at Whiteface about 15 minutes before the race, quickly got ready and lined up with a potpourri of runners.  Some well-known names, some nervous amateurs (like me!) and everyone in between.  Hey, at least I knew what to expect, right?

Maybe not.

I'd looked at the course breakdown and divided it into 5 parts: First Alpine ascent, First Alpine descent, Flume Loop, Second Alpine ascent, Second Alpine descent.  It's easier for me that way :)

About 10 minutes after the race began, my legs began to signal that maybe, just maybe, doing the VK the day before wasn't the wisest choice?  Whatever.  Heard it before.  I plowed ahead at a slower pace, and reached the summit in 1:24.  No problem, I'm better on descents anyway!  But wait, the descents are a bit too steep to fly down, and there's a really treacherous muddy stretch where EVERYONE wiped out at least once, and was completely unrunnable.  I did reach the start/finish at 2:06, and felt really good heading out for the Flume Loop, the "easy" portion of the race.  Yeah...twisty, rolling, semi-technical single-track for 5 miles is the easy part...and finished it at 3:35 total time elapsed.  Slower than expected, but I was determined to get back onto the climb to the summit, as several people who I'd been with on the Flume loop were contemplating dropping.

All happy after the first ascent!

Panoramic!  Killer views

Tough to start that climb again, and it was warm and fairly sunny at this point, and the slope is totally exposed.  My hydration pack was topped off several times during the race, and I drained it every time.  So the second ascent was basically a Death March, which involved my legs revolting and refusing to move through certain sections without stopping for a moment of rest.  Seriously, there's this one stretch at around 1.5 miles of the ascent where (and you get to see it from a distance) the average grade is around 40%, and it just crushes your will.  Or mine, anyway.  I knew by this point that I'd finish the race, but that my time wouldn't be very good.  I reached the summit for the second time at 5:23 elapsed, and began my final descent with a couple of new friends and the knowledge that I'd finish the race.

And finish I did.  6:23 officially, and way off my internal predictor.  Not pretty but I got it done, and mile for mile, the toughest race I've done so far.  Really.  It's definitely a Red Newt Racing signature to conjure up a stunningly beautiful and unique course that's brutal in its design.  Probably why I'll drive 5+ hours for their races!  Their organization, execution, and especially their volunteers are awesome.

Took two days to get all the mud out...

Done!

So there's a quick-ish synopsis of my Red Newt Racing Summer.  My recovery involved taking the entire following week off running, as I was working with heavy Italian tile and had developed DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness), which is a thing and, while not an injury, made my legs feel like they'd taken a hit from a baseball bat.  OUCH.  I didn't run until the following week at the Run With the Beavers 10-mile trail race, where I took it easy on the first 5 miles, then felt awesome and pushed the second five for a 1:43 finish.  Feeling good!  I'm feeling stronger after Whiteface, have no injuries, and really feel good.  Matter of fact, I did a 10-mile beach run, barefoot, today, in a flat 1:30.  Dodging kids, no less!  One short local race next week, then nothing until the end of September.  I should be ready for that one for sure!!!  I'll update again with anything worthy :)

7 Sisters Trail Race, Willy Wonka River of Chocolate Edition!

They're mean, trust me...

This actually came up during the race, but I'll back up a bit...Jonny, Beth and I set out at 5:15 for Amherst, stopping a couple of times for breakfast-type things at DD, 'cause that's what you do in New England!  It had rained a LOT on Friday, and I knew that the trail was going to be messy, much like 2016.  We arrived, grabbed our bibs and suited up.  Jonny was in the elite wave, I was in wave #2, and Beth was in #4.  After a short warmup to assess the initial climb (very slippery), the waves got sent off!

The course that bites back!  Chomp!

The race starts at the edge of a short singletrack trail near the road, which lasts about 75 yards before the first climb, 500+ feet in the first mile or so.  The weather was overcast and the ground very wet, and it was also quite humid, so much so that I'd saturated my hat with sweat and it was dripping off the brim after mile #1.  Nice.  Now, I know the course.  Beth knows the course.  Jonny didn't know the course, and I tried to explain it as best I could:  very technical, always up or down (no real flats), and runners never a chance to get into a real rhythm.  Add wetness, and the difficulty factor goes through the roof.  It's a course with the very real possibility of injury.  A great course, but unforgiving.  That said, I threw my designs on going sub-3:00 out completely, and resolved to just have fun and survive!

#255, and a sweet tech shirt from Atayne, my favorites!

The trail was a mess.   A soupy mud (Think Wonka's Chocolate River, or Ghostbusters 2's River of Slime) was flowing down many sections of the trail, and I saw numerous wipeouts.  Crazy.  I plowed through the first muddy section I came to, got wet and carried on.  Knowing this course definitely helps, and I was able to give people around me a heads-up about where we were.  The guy I ran with for quite a while at the Goat Hill 50k was out taking pictures!

I saw Jonny right near the summit cabin, and he looked determined.  Not thrilled, but focused.  I bombed the descent to the turnaround as much as I could, grabbed a refill of Tailwind and scarfed a couple of orange slices and bananas, thanked the volunteers and bolted.  I had my Li'l Rhody shirt on and one of the volunteers shouted "Hey, Westerly!!!"  Well, hey!

After the turn comes the long, slow climb back to the cabin (saw Beth at this point, gave her a hug and chatted for a minute about the race).  The beauty of that climb is the knowledge that once you reach the cabin, there's still several miles to go, but the worst is behind you.  Except this one long climb, about two miles from the finish, that never seems to end and I always almost stop midway because my legs are screaming "NO MORE!!!".  That part sucks.  Every time.

I knew that sub-3 was not even close to happening, but damned if I didn't have a great time with my partners in pain.  We ended up having a pretty sizeable group bunch up in the last descent, and I almost wiped out in the last 0.3 miles, saved only by my handheld bottle...I finished well, and in a time of 3:26.  Not what I'd hoped for, but I emerged unscathed from the 7 Sisters course for the third time!

Post-race!

RD Amy Rusiecki is to be commended for putting together such an incredible race, and with so many runners to manage, she has assembled a crew of awesome volunteers.  They were all over the course!  Cheering, feeding, drumming?  Everywhere!  What a race.  It's a tough race that seemingly everyone wants a piece of, until they realize how effing hard it's gonna be.

I'm honestly not sure why I've been gravitating toward the oddball, tough races (especially the last couple of years), other than I'm trying to test my limits, and testing them means committing to races that I may/may not finish.  Way outside my comfort zone. 7 Sisters, Cayuga, Breakneck Point, Kismet Cliff, and some upcoming unmentionables...and I don't have anything to prove to anyone, really, except maybe myself.  So I'll keep at it.  It's fun, I get to meet great people along the way, see some incredible places, and push myself.  100 miles is a goal.  It's gonna happen.  Then some other things on the radar that I've shared with a couple people.  I'm keeping it fun in my own way, and if you're not having fun, why the Hell do it?

Delicious beer, Courtesy Jonny H.!

Next up:  Cayuga Trails 50!

Race Week! Week of 5-1 to 5-7

Toothy!

Well, shit!  It's the third installment of the 7 Sisters race for me, and this time I'm bringing some backup!  In 2015 we had a good showing from our area.  Even a certain "frenemy" (who's in a social media time-out on my end) gave it a shot!  I was nervous/excited that year and rented a room the night before, and loved the course immediately, running a 3:10 for the 12-ish technical, nasty miles with 4,000'-ish elevation gain?  In 2016 I was the only taker from down our way, drove up the morning of the race and did well in OK conditions (cooler but muddy from recent rains).  3:15 for the effort.  I feel as though I would go sub-3:00 with decent conditions...but the forecast is a probable repeat of LY, so we'll see!

So anyway, BLS is going back for a chat with the Sisters, and Jonny is gonna channel his inner Mountain Goat to tackle the course, and we're all driving up together.  Fun!  I'm also upping my mileage, after taking a very low mileage week post-Goat Hill race weekend.

Monday - 10.  Bluff Point.  Good run, partly on the main fire road and partly on the awesome singletrack trails, and there are a LOT.

Tuesday - 4.  Hewitt Trails with Jim.  Easy cruising on a bright, sunny afternoon, and everything's turning green again!

Wednesday - 4.  Bluff Point with Faith.  Even did some strides!  Great short run to keep the momentum going.

Thursday - 0.  Kitchen demo: cabinets, appliances, floor, ceiling...you get the picture.  Fookin' heavy.

Friday - 0.  Woke up with a sharp pain in my ankle, thankfully it went away a couple hours later!

Saturday - 11+.  7 Sisters trail race.  Report forthcoming.

Sunday - 0.

Goat Hill 50k! Engage Stealth Mode...

OK, so this was a first for me.  I've been way behind on my mileage, getting runs in when I can but not really racking up any kind of meaningful numbers.  It was getting frustrating, and after our family vacation to Europe over Spring Break, I was ready to force the issue.  So the week that we got back, I decided to get something going.  No plans on the upcoming weekend, and after a travel day and day of sorting out things at the house, I hit up Long/Ell Pond Wednesday for a short but intense run, covering 4 miles with 1000'+ of elevation gain on very technical terrain.  The next morning, I did a short trail run at Hewitt Farm before work, then nada Friday and Saturday (well, except for a hilly bike ride to cheer on runners?).  Saturday afternoon, I realized that I was gonna have to do something big on Sunday...

So this happened on Saturday afternoon:  I had looked at the Goat Hill races for a while.  It was on my radar, 1 hour from the house, and promised 1000' elevation gain for each 8-mile loop.  Some of my friends were signed up for the various distances (8, 16, 24-miles, and 50k).  Registration had closed on Thursday on Ultrasignup (and no race day reg.), so I texted the race director about possibly getting on board.  He replied back that their own website still had open reg. for a few hours, so I registered for the 50k, on my phone, in the middle of Stop & Shop.  That's a first!  And the 50k.  In for a penny, in for a pound, in all its definitions (and there are many!).

I kept things quiet, even telling my wife that I was going for a long run with friends, which was mostly true!  I let a couple people who were going know I'd be there, and got to bed early.

4:30 alarm for a 5:15 departure.  Ugh.  I ONLY do that for races or travel.  The weather looked perfect for the race though, sunny skies and very little wind.  I made the 1-hour drive to Uxbridge, Mass., and got set up quickly.  Ran into Sonny G., TNT's "untaggable" Chris J. (who was 6th overall in the 50k!), Ben N., and chatted with them before the race.  Our small group of 25 or so 50k runners listened to a quick course meeting, sang a VERY soft National Anthem (like a whisper, haha), and then we were off!  Ultra-badass running superstars Pat and Ben (eventual 1st/2nd) took off like a shot, and I stayed with Sonny (Who got 5th, a week after Traprock!) for about 1/2 mile, until his pace was too fast for my game plan and I fell back.  After about a mile, runners hit Goat Hill, and a short but steep climb.  The course is rolling, somewhat technical in places, and has switchbacks from Hell.  Never seen anything like it, and it really messes with your head during the race.  You could be 10 feet from another runner, think you're just behind them, and in reality they're 1/2 mile ahead of you!  Nuts!

So I made the first loop in 1:31.  Perfect.  The second loop was uneventful until I tripped on a root right before a muddy patch, went all the way in, and got totally filthy.  Trail races!  If you don't get dirty, you're doing it wrong, haha...and lap 2 ended in 1:36.  Still pretty damn good.  Things were already heating up temperature-wise, and the 8/16/24 milers were on the course, which was fun.  Lots of runners!  And fast!  Got to see TNT runner Patrick Quinn (who made the podium!) on the course before he caught me, thanks to the ever-present switchbacks!  Fun!

Out of the woods after loop 2 or 3, cruisin'...

Photo: MRA Multisport

I was slowing big time on lap 3, but my strategy of walking the uphills and running/jogging everything else seemed to be working.  My legs were getting pretty beat from the constant change of direction, climbs/descents, and technical terrain, but whatever.  I was going to finish the 50k no sweat.  I caught up to a 50k runner toward the end of loop 3, who had pulled away from me early in the race, and was now dropping.  I made it a mission to get through the start/finish and back on the trail ASAP.  Too easy to drop on a loop course.  Once I was into loop 4, it was all good!  It was warm out, I knew exactly where I was on the course, and gauged my time well, figuring I could get in under 7 hours.  I ran with a couple people and we all chatted about how we were likely the last people on the course!  Turned out, we weren't.  I ended up following a woman in bright colors, who had no quit and never got less than 50 yards from me.  We picked up the pace in the last couple miles, and finished the Goat in 6:53 officially.

Finishing the 50k

Photo: MRA Multisport

31.5 miles with 3888' of elevation gain, and I was handed a 10th place finisher trophy with a goat on it!  Sweet!  I never get stuff like that!!!

Goat trophy, bib, and celebratory beer!

What a cool race.  Very well marked course, perfect aid stations, the volunteers were great (especially the rainbow unicorn gal directing runners at the top of the Goat, you rock!) and I was stoked that such a laid-back event felt so well organized.  Congrats too to all the runners who tackled this course at any distance, it's a tough one!  I highly recommend MRA Multisport's events, as they were friendly, supportive and kept things low-key and world-class at the same time.  Props!

My Ultra training schedule is, to say the least, spotty and questionable and basically nonexistent.  So it's a big boost to my confidence that I was able to jump in last-minute on a tough trail 50k and do fairly well!

I'm Woody in this picture, howdy howdy howdy ;)

Next up?  A return to 7 Sisters, thankfully with friends this time, and hopefully a course PR.  Really want a sub-3 hour on the course, and it could happen!

No races until May! Training may begin now. Week of 3-27 to 4-2

I made the comment, half-kidding, right before the start of the race on Saturday that "Training is for suckers," which was overheard by a certain someone.  She looked over her shoulder and, with a dead serious voice, said "You better train," as she's well aware of my upcoming schedule, track record of shoddy planning, and tendency to just wing it when race day arrives.  Point taken!

I shall now endeavor to train better, according to my plan, and get my mileage into the realm of acceptability.  And still have fun!  Gotta have that too, or what's the point...

So I have no scheduled races until the 7 Sisters race in early May, and that should give me time to get it all lined up!

Monday - 5.  Late afternoon road (gasp!) recovery run from the house.  Misty, sort of rainy, but 50+ degrees and shorts/t-shirt weather!  And flowers coming up from the ground, and felt much like Spring.  Peeptoads peeping out in back of my house, too!  Good run.

Tuesday - 0.

Wednesday - 5.  Canonchet Preserve w/Jim, Hopkinton.  Mid-50s, partly cloudy and a nice breeze, and we're very lucky to have clear trails here!  Great time cruising the lower part of the preserve...

Thursday - 4.  Pequot Woods w/Faith, Mystic.  Yet another glorious day before another shitty round of weather, and a fairly early release from work, meant another commuter stop.  Got ahold of Faith, who's into her VT100 training plan, and suggested Pequot Woods right off I-95 (next to Fields of Fire Adventure Park!  There should be Strava segments and an "open run" hour there, just sayin'...).  Perfect day, cool and breezy and clear trails, although this place has some rock garden, ankle-snapping stretches that would slow even a Brightman or Lonergan...but fun times, then off to pick up Soph and friends from softball!

Friday - 0.

Saturday - 0.

Sunday - 5.  Lantern Hill fun w/Jim.  Great time exploring the Mashantucket Pequot trails, the old remnants of the Pequot trail, and some bushwhacking off trail for fun.  I highly recommend the steep, rocky hill directly next to the beginning of the Narragansett Trail!