Tony-Ultra Running and Adventures

map test

2012-02-03T05:57:00.000-08:00

Western States Test

2011-07-13T19:22:00.001-07:00

Where the heck have you been?

2010-11-06T06:30:00.000-07:00

It sure has been a long time since I last posted. I can blame it on a few things..First and foremost I really can't underestimate the post WS funk I went into after the race in June...So many years thinking about the day and it was achieved. Then what? I am still kinda in that mode I just kept thinking that can't wait till fall and the nice temps for running....Work has left me also totally thrown off. With travel and preparing for presentations life was hard to get out and run at very odd hours. I guess I am also a creature of habit and being thrown off from some of my routines set me off in a funk as well....

I am looking to get some sense of normalcy in the next few weeks. I am setting some fitness plans...Putting my name into Western States Lottery, Miwok...Vermont if all else falls through. Also with 50 looming in January what the heck do I want to do with the rest of my life :) Hmmm so many puzzles...so little time.

Been a couple weeks....some notes and comments

2010-08-08T08:29:00.000-07:00

Hi all it seems like it has been forever since I last posted. I am slowly returning to the trails and can say that I feel a bit lost without such a big goal to target. I have been talking to other folks that target Western States each year and many feel the same. While there are many that simply keep on running with little break there are others that relish the time off during the dog days of summer to recharge. At my age and level of conditioning I see the later being where I need to focus. Enjoy this time off versus feel I gotta get back out there. There is one personal area where I want to focus that free time but that has yet to take place yet. More on that goal later...

So what the heck have I been doing...Mostly work, at night when I come home it could be a short trip to the gym and rarely has it included a run on the trails...While at the gym I see the regulars that do their routine..I sometimes ask myself what are they building towards...? Or is it to feel good and be happy. Guess we all have different reasons.

I made it back out the last few weekends on some longer runs on the trails lasting 3hours but I am still a bit tired after..gym workouts during the week do little for my overall capacity..But I have noticed that my times are on par right now with some early season training times so things are coming back. I am considering returning to Quad Dipsea in November and try and finish the course after my miserable attempt last year. But I need a lot of conditioning and more mental toughness. However if there is one thing that WS taught me is that I have a bit of mental toughness to continue on and I use that thought during the day when things appear hard.
Someone compiled a clib of images at Devils Thumb and me finishing at WS..Boy I was running slow..link can be found here...
Link to a WS Clip..Me finishing (about 4:30min in to clip)

So I just need to ride the storm out a bit longer...I am coming back to fitness levels I want to be at ...a few more personal things to take care of and life will be good....Till then hit those trails and have some fun.

Tony

Time to comeback, Tevis, and other rambles

2010-07-25T08:06:00.000-07:00

As I looked at the title of my blog..I guess it is time for a change..No nothing drastic just the title will surely get dated soon so maybe a new title to reflect what is coming up next...Will have to think about it.

It has been one month since the race..many of my fellow WS runners have gotten back into racing etc...As for me it has been short runs a lot of work, all leaving me kinda feeling sluggish. I did keep in mind that Twietmeyer always says he takes a full month off after WS then comes back. Give the body a break. Well Saturday was a month..I wanted to head to Auburn and the overlook to see the set up for the Tevis Cup race..Tevis is the one that helped start 100 mile runs..This is the horse race on the WS course which Wendell Robie started in the early 50's after he helped lead an effort to mark and perserve the trails used to all the old mining camps and towns during the gold rush. Simply amazing seeing these horses move on the same trails up very rocky slopes....Does any other of the 100 mile courses have so much history of use?

So I went on a run..I felt pretty good..I set off slow but then stopped for a minute to be caught by a couple of runners..I reverted back to old competitive stance and had to get out in front of them and stay that way...So I started running harder than I wanted to...(ok I must have wanted to) and by the time I got to NoHands..My legs felt like jello...I returned slow but feeling this was a start back to fitness. Today my legs are a bit sore and I will head to the gym...Build the distance back in time..enjoy and pick a few races.

A few other things...on my mind. First I have to give a major presentation in a number of cities in the west starting in late Sept. It ends in Hawaii and I am figuring out where I want to spend some additional time. Torn between the night life of Honolulu or just relax a bit at Maui..leaning to Maui...

Better go and get my body ready for the beaches of Maui...Aloha...

Summer Doldrums...

2010-07-17T07:10:00.000-07:00

Post Western States Syndrom..I got it! Being so focused for so long and now no real goal in the near term has left me bored. I just returned from my companies regular User Conference in San Diego...14,000 software users. It did offer me the opportunity it eat, drink and stay up later than I have in months so maybe the recharge will do me good. I am torn today about driving up to Tahoe to watch some friends run TRT 100..maybe get in a short run or just rot at home after being on the road for a week...
Such is life after WS...

The Finish!

2010-07-07T07:08:00.000-07:00

Ok...
Now time to start planning for my next adventure. I know for sure I will put my name in the WS Lottery one more time.
The break has been nice but there is a void left that is anticipated after all the time spent training and running the event. I am open to suggestions on next events. I am leaning towards Headlands 50k in late August.
The Finish Photo-Not Pretty but a great time!

Western States 2010-Race Report

2010-07-01T20:06:00.000-07:00

A few photos from the day and night for my Western States 2010 Experience

I first want to start by saying THANK YOU to my parents and nephew Andrew who came in from Michigan, My Crew-Ken Blankinship and Pacer Darin Loucks being it my first major event like this I never realized how important support is during the race and for that I am thankful. Also I can't forget Cheri and Louis Alverez and all their help at the finish along with all the other volunteers and finally to Mo Bartley for coaching me these last 6 months it went by so fast.

Ok...Let me start by saying that many folks have asked me these last few days if I would do this again and my immediate response is Heck Yes! It was fantastic and in the end my most challenging event I have ever attempted. The week leading up to Western States was very hectic and it took a lot of energy out of me leading to Saturday. My parents and nephew arrived early in the week and thus started the events on how to coordinate my family and crew to get my gear and follow some of the plans I had set. This turned me into a high strung person as I arrived up in Squaw Valley. First the first time ever I was really getting strung out and always feeling I was having to be doing something, being somewhere etc..It was a frantic pace set up for someone that is supposed to be relaxing prior to the longest race of his life. I was short and terse, I was not thinking about the race just trying to make sure every one was being taken care of...Not a good receipe leading to Friday and medical check in...

Friday was great seeing everyone we got the swag which was great a nice day pack, hat, shirt, jacket, moeben sleeves a good haul..now time for the blood pressure check..I saw Chris Perrillo getting his taken..he said his was high..once I sat down in front of Mo who took my blood pressure she said relax..I was strung out! My blood pressure was over the top..gad! So after that me and my Pacer Darin Loucks went to get a bite of lunch after getting my drop bags assembled and dropped off prior to the final meeting. It just felt like go, go, go...never stopping..Darin and I had a beer at lunch and that helped calm me down a bit..I was now tired but ready for the race. We had pre race meal with my parents and then I settled in early to get some sleep..It actually went well leading up to Saturday Morning and my 2:30 wake up for the 5am race start.

We got to the start seeing everyone and wishing everyone a good race, my dad, nephew and pacer where on hand I think they where impressed and excited...I kept calm then the gun went off..It was cool but not cold, dark and ready to hit the first long climb to the escarpement.

I settled in to the back of the pack..I had no idea how I would react to the climb. My nephew Andrew was up ahead and took some pics of me then he went down to be with my dad etc..The climb was steady not really hurting and I suprised myself at how fast it took to get to the first aid station. I started to hydrate and use my s-caps at this point..as we made the summit Craig Thornley's brother was at the top with a gong as we crested..pretty cool. we passed Watsons Monument which gave us our introduction to the snow fields we would encounter for the next 4 or 5 miles. I took time to take a picture of Lake Tahoe and the rising sun..The first downhill was a relief after the climb as we went into single file mode..but the snow set in and that was tough! Very slick and you had to watch your footing, some runners trying to run fast would push and cause other runners to fall..on the downhills I sometimes just fell on my butt and slid down..that seemed the best. My quads could feel this but I kept a steady pace..We made good time I was still in the back but trying to take it easy..it was after all a long day. Pete Korn, Matt Keyes where close by as well they where keeping their heart rates down waiting to move faster later..I hoped I could hang with them. We all chatted a bit and approached the new snow route..I then got stuck behind WS legend Gordy Ansleigh..he is a nice guy but very opinionated and slightly full of himself.. I was aggrevated being close to him and listen to his banter..I moved by him as we hit the first aid. Last I saw of Gordy...

The run on the snow route had some stunning views and steady downhill..I thought I was taking it easy but as I got towards French Meadows I felt a little tired...Trish and Chuck Godfredson where just ahead..we would leap frog most of the day..Both Trish and I where slowing down early but would recover the climb then downhill to Duncan Canyon taught me a lot as we crossed the fast moving but passable duncan creek. It felt cold and refreshing and I saw Chuck in the middle of the creek waiting for Trish..As I reached the other side I had a sudden calf cramp and went down in the stream..Chuck grapped me and got me to shore..he told me to take two s-caps and split em open and pour them on my tongue followed by lots of water..This was nearly instant relieving the cramp and that did not bother me the rest of the day. I took it easy trying to get to Robinson Flat..but the climb out of Duncan was long and hard...We hit more snow as we approached Robinson..I actually arrived at Robinson 15minutes slowner than when I projected 12pm. Darin,Andrew and Ken where there..I am glad since it gave them a chance to see what it was like. I got out fast after I fueled on mtn. dew code red and some food weight was spot on from the start..I forgot about the snow after Robinson and we had that for a while..Chuck and Trish stayed with me on this section out.

With noon now past I did not feel any real high temps and that was nice. Lots of cloud cover though. We had all thinned out some as we ran down from Little Bald Mountain I look back now at this section and feel I took it too easy as we headed towards Last Chance. Perhaps I also was not eating enough but my stomach was solid and weight consistant I was taking manly Roctanes every 45 minutes but sometimes forgot. I was thinking how I needed to have energy for the climb up Devils Thumb..During this section I let Chuck and Trish pass..I was walking more now with running coming every few minutes. Dusty Corners was the first time I saw the 30 hour pace time and I saw I was headed by about 35 minutes I was not too concerned and kept up same effort. I got a chance to run into Last Chance with a very strong runner and I used his pace to keep me moving faster..this helped a lot. I forgot how long the distance was from Last Chance to the downhill to swinging bridge..it seemed like forever to get to swinging bridge.

I was now about 1hour behind where I wanted to be but took a minute to cool off in the waterfall prior to the Devils Thumb Climb. Mike Hernandez was there and took off just head. I could not catch him on the climb I took it easy with 100 steps and 10 second rest..it was about 50 minutes to climb the dt. I enjoyed getting to DT and the aid station..there Chris Iwahashi and George Parrott where hanging out..I sat down for the first time of the day and had my popsicle..It was now 5:30pm.

I was behind and took off I felt ok but was moving slower..I am guessing it was low calorie intake...Deadwood to El Dorado was a long run here I arrived at 7pm where Mike H. was not looking too good at the aid station..I grabbed some orange slices, cooled off then set out to get to my crew and Michigan Bluff..Hard and long is what this climb was..also my low point of the day. as the sun started to set I thought I should stop at MB..but during those dark moments I could not imagine having to tell everyone why I quit. It did not settle well with me to quit..I thought of Dan Moores, my folks etc..and just kept going..Once at MB it was now about 8:15 gad! Ken and Darin where there and they asked if I wanted Darin to pace me from her..I sat down and said yes..it was the right move! I had a little bit of burger, a cherry slushy and then tried to take a roctane..right then I gagged and threw up....I resolved during that time I was heaving that I was not going to quit and wanted to get going. I had told Ken and Darin we would assess my condition at Foresthill but I knew I was not stopping now...

Darin saved me and the run from MB to Bath road was nice and easy which got some of my energy back..It was really buggy then and no stopping allowed as we had on our flashlights. We got to Volcano Creek and saw two guys crossing in the dark..One dude tried to go too fast and landed flat on his face in the creek...eeeash. We then all set out climbing to Bath. Funny thing about running all night we would pass folks or come up on the side and someone would say..hey is that you Tony? I did not recall who they where a lot but I guess I am a known face in the world of running..it felt good.

As we got to Foresthill..time 10:15 (about 1:15 behind where I wanted to be), I had to stop and use the inside restroom..I say this that toilet seat felt great! I did not want to leave but I picked myself up and met Ken and Darin outside to change shoes and socks..I had a few small blisters but did not want to get em treated since I wanted to gain some time. We where in FH for about 10 minutes and it was hard on the legs and getting moving again was hard..Darin was leading a good pace staying out front.

We settled into the long night with a little talking now and then but mostly silence. We tried to stay clear of any long trains of runners and actually would pass a few..I hated leap frogging but I was not strong enough to keep them away. Darin seemed to be enjoying the whole experience. I kept thinking during that time how I was pacing Rena last year along the same sections of course..I felt stronger now than last year but we where behind time.

Cal1 to Cal2 and impail trail where pretty good sections but I had settled back into a consistant pattern of run then walk...Darin was fueling me and reminding me to take a s-cap. I was starting to gain some weight slowly..now up about 1.5lbs. I so enjoyed the silence and the thoughts to myself..I wondered where some of my friends where on the course and what normal people like Kaori where doing on a late Saturday night..I felt in my place. The climbs where hard and long but not bad now. Darin was running for the first time at night ever and he was doing great...I was happy for him too bad we where not going to be at the river at 2am.

We got to the river at 3:30am we where looking for Darin Farmer who was volunteering at the river. But they got us in the boats really fast. The boat was filled with runners and I never got a chance to look around a lot..we where on Far Side in no time and off on the climb to Green Gate. I felt now we could start smelling the barn..someone else came up along side of me and knew me..I can't recall her but she said we had it in the bag..just needed to run 18 miles in 6 hours..That was on my mind now.

Green Gate to Alt seemed long even though I know this section well. I was slowing and walking a lot..We kept referencing a comment by Ken Crouse when we saw him at FH..he said walk but walk with a purpose. That is what we did! Finally at ALT as I was getting weighed the women started asking me too many questions about how I was feeling and if I knew what day it was..I looked at her thinking..Lady your crazy..I am in no way stopping now! Darin later said he was concerned for a brief time at ALT...I was not eating a lot and the sun was starting to rise...Maybe our best section came leading to Browns..Darin set the pace and wanted to bank some time..we where moving fast with short walk breaks..I felt like he was pushy me just right...It hurt but I had to respond. We where gonna make it!

The sun was now up we hit Browns Bar at 7:30am...EEEESCH a long day of running..I wanted to get out fast grabbed some coke and left..Darin had a beer at the hashers aid station and we started talking about the next section. Heading down Brown to Quarry Trail I told him lets run as much as we can since there is a lot of climbing to HWY 49 we did that but I also had to stop and get my breathing down a bit. I had on my mind what time we would be at HWY 49 and the last medical checkpoint..I wanted to be on weight and not held up for any reason.

We hit 49 just fine..no time for the breakfast or smoothy..The women that took my weight said I was up 3lbs. and to get out of here fast and finish the race..Good Advice! Right as we got out of the aid we start the climb up F and A hill. to the valley and downhill..My lower back started hurting duing the climb. We had to stop a few times on the climb. It felt insulting after all this time to have my back hurting on this climb. Still we pushed on..Darin took the downhill to NoHands well. We passed a lot of runners..Darin would later say I was pushing him....NoHands Looked so great! We got there about 9:25...We where gonna make it...As I crossed the bridge we where grouped up with other runners we all commented we where gonna get the buckles..But I still did not feel good about my back and just kept walking. As we started the last steep climb on single track my back was wrecked! Darin told me to tough it out and keep moving. I let folks pass me..We finally crested Robie and the aid station and grabbed ice and put it on my back...

From Robie..It was all business but first I wanted to take time out to take a drink at the drinking fountain on robie drive..to honor the course and folks that live in the neighborhood that put up with us. Ken and Andrew finally appeared they did not want to hike up all the hills so met us near the fountain..I said where the heck have you been..and gave them my pack and finally felt good that we had it in the bag. Its all kinda hazy after this..just take it to the track..I recall seeing June and a few others then bame the track! I was inside happy Cheri Alverez was screaming and taking pics...She had my medal..I wondered where my parents where..I told Darin to stay with me then to peel off..We saw his sister in law on the far corner taking pics of us..I was so close..I heard my name called out FINALLY I was GONNA GET MY BUCKLE! 29 hours 34 minutes. I hit the line..It was awesome. I looked around for my folks they where there..got a fast hug then off to medical..I starting hurting as soon as I sat down.

Post race I let my folks head back to the hotel..Darin and Ken came back later and I was hanging out cooking in the sun sitting in a chair..I was a wreck. But somehow I cleaned up changed clothes and went to the awards tent..I have my buckle now. It was a long day. I have never been so happy all I want to do is relax and enjoy this moment. But I had some family things to take care of and the stress stayed high until Thursday.

This is not the most descriptive post but it was a very enjoyable event..The training, the people, the sierras, the course, the whole thing..so special to me...

I hope to race it again and I am now honored to have a Western States Buckle!

Tony

Western States-finished!

2010-06-28T20:51:00.000-07:00

Finished my first Western States 29:34! Not pretty but a buckle nowcin hand. More later after I rest a bit...
Tony

7 Days!--Lots left to do! Follow me online

2010-06-19T05:33:00.000-07:00

Let us start with some info about next week: Anyone wishing to follow me and the whole race itself can go to the link below: My bib number is 280. You can follow all of the runners here as well as a live blog cast once the race starts. Images of each runner will be posted as well.
Live WebCast and Tracking of Western States Runners

This field is stacked this year with some very good elite men including masters runners. The womens field I am thinking is a bit more wide open..Cut to the chase here are my men's and women's predicted winners and two sleepers---
Winners:
Mens-Hal Koerner, Women-Devon Crosby-Helms

Sleepers: Men-Erik Skaden Women-Rory Bosio

There is so much new talent arriving on the line that in the end for the men experience will play out. Not to say that Geoff,Anton, or Killian will falter. Many of these folks major victories came with wide time margins..not a lot of stacked field hanging on to push all the way...So I side with course experience to bring in the men..That is why Erik is my men's sleeper he is running well this season and can bring in one final push you never know. For the women...Devon just seems to be the one here for me though Nikki Kimbell will force the issue now that Anita is out. Rory is my sleeper I have scene her run alone on the WS trails..that takes strength and her effort seems minimal as she climbs these trails...Her first time at 100 but I feel she will crack the top 10 with ease....

What about me...As the race gets closer I have been calm but so many things happening at work make it hard to focus on what I really want to get complete..That is all the logistics,crew assignments..getting the drop bags ready. Finalize my vision for split times on the course. The taper has been minimal running to date a stagecoach run, gym elliptical to warm up and heading to the sauna. The sauna has been hard on me with about 30minutes being the amount of time I can stand. Next weekends temps don't look like 100 yet but I am not taking any chances..Today will be one last Sauna...My legs will be really fresh for the day.

The start will be key getting to Robinson Flat in one piece after going through the snow, slush, trails which maybe streams cause of runoff, the starting altitude, Being safe and sane. Prep the mind for the major push from Robinson down to Swinging bridge..save the quads, cool off and climb steady up to Devils Thumb, Recover well and get to Michigan Bluff...don't worry about the time it takes to climb here....Recover out of MB and enjoy the work to Foresthill and pick up my pacer and see my crew and family. I hope to have some light as we begin the trek to Rucky Chucky. I am guessing boats to cross the river and to be there about the time folks will be piling out of a bar on Saturday Night..ie 1-2am...The river to Hwy 49 will be hard and low energy till the sun comes up..at 49 I pick up another pacer and we take it to the barn. I suspect I maybe walking a lot from Nohands but I want to enjoy this with my pacer and then take it to the track...Goal finish time a wide finish 27-28.5 hours...8am-9:30am.
It will be painfull, enjoyable and a lifetime achievement. Thanks for following during this last 6months. It seems so short in this training cycle...

Maybe a short note once I hit squaw valley etc...Take Care...Tony

13 Days Calm before the storm...

2010-06-13T07:05:00.000-07:00

Interesting that as the days get closer I am getting a bit more calm about this whole thing. I don't know what to make of this but maybe it's because I have so many little things to take care of prior to the race that my mind is occupied.

I have a ton of work things to complete and try to postpone until after the race but I am guessing my emails and phone calls will be going right up to Friday before the race...Never mind that you put out of office the calls just keep coming. The crew instruction and pace spreadsheets are nearly complete but I need to put in all those little things like driving directions etc..I gotta remember these folks don't eat and breath these trails and roads like I do..I gotta make it as simple and easy as possible to get to the locations I want them to be. Get the house ready for the parents arrival..We will always be someones kids and always need the house just right for arrival...Oh and I forgot about my drop bags...Need to get those inventoried and created.

Still a bit of running left before the race and its time to focus more on getting some heat versus long runs. This is where I need to watch myself. My tapers sometime go to extreme..either no taper or Taper to the point of doing nothing...neither can work here. I want to focus on short runs during the week only 6 miles just to warm up then hit the sauna if the temps are not at 90 when I start my run. The sauna has been killing me of late...We did do a run Saturday in starting at noon from the Overlook to Cool and back. It was warm but so breezy it never felt too bad. I was a bit tired from poor diet during the week..ie skip dinner on Friday night and barely eat on Thursday...The next two weeks need solid meals etc..

Other than that I am thinking about life after WS as well..I want a fun 4th of July and I have a few ideas...then I need to head to San Diego the week after the 4th..then a high school reunion...eeesch I better have that buckle for that day....

I goofed up with the new templates on these blogs when I get some time I will clean this up....

Minor Heat Training, 20 Days and thoughts on the day

2010-06-06T06:53:00.000-07:00

After the Western States Training Weekend I admit it I was tired. After these longer or higher volume weekends I return to work with a brain that finds it hard to focus on anything really challenging. So went the week. It was a hard week for me to be doing real work, I was tired and thinking about all the things I need to complete.

I started the week having to make a hard decision regarding Western States. I had to drop one of my pacers. It was hard since she is strong running but it came down to who I felt I was most comfortable with going the distance. I felt bad having to tell her since I knew she was excited. I hate to disappoint folks but as I get closer to the this race it will be the one day where when I am out there on the course it will be about me getting this done...So I feel I made the right choice.

Back to the week..After these hard weekends I have found the cycle to be a harder recovery that takes longer so was the tale for this weekends run.
Temps are starting to climb and I wanted some heat training and so I put on a couple extra layers and met up with Rena for the first time in like forever to run Cool to Alt and back. Rena has been off the trails with some major injury at Napa..She is now back and ready to run for that 1000 mile buckle at Western States..10 finishes...that is a huge thing to do.
As we left Cool I felt pretty good a little stiff but no tiredness..I was heating up fast however and after a half hour took two S-Caps...I figured I was sweating so this will be good. We got to Browns Bar in a pretty good clip but I was getting tired..maybe all these layers..some extra heat. I promised myself I would keep the layers on to ALT. I was suffering, and feeling a bit down on myself as we ran along. I then thought back to a recent interview I heard with Anits Ortiz...She won WS last year..In her talk she recounted some advice from Dave Mackey that I was focusing on.."When things are going bad, Slow Down" That was my mantra for the rest of the day...Rena was out front and I was plodding along..I know that I will be ok for race day and just take it easy through this low day. In reality the total time was not really that slow..it just felt that way.

I spoke with my coach later in the day...I am starting to build my final plan and vision for race day. There are a few areas I want to highlight now...
1)There two unknowns-The snow conditions and the amount at the start, how it will effect us and the pace. The second is the river crossing. I am betting boat year. These I can't control but can be prepared .

2)I want to be conservative. It will be a train of runners at the start and along the early sections of trail..there will be heroes of the average runner set that will try and scream those downhills early...push you out of the way...I can't get caught in that..The quads are gonna be key to keep em fresh for as long as possible. Getting down to Swinging Bridge in one piece is important for me.

3)I am thinking my hardest section will be from Deadwood up to Michigan
Bluff. I need to be ready for this section and take it one step at a time on the final climb to MB...I want to be renergized after MB..use the final run to FH as some recovery prior to picking up my pacer.

4)Take it to the river and prep my mind for the climb up to Green Gate. That is a tough climb. Then try and relax to ALT. It will late in the night and energy low. Once I hit Browns get out of there fast..and then suck it up for the seemingly long 3 miles to Hwy 49..

5)Hwy 49 take it to the barn!

I had some good news seems like I am having a lot more support than I thought. I have Ken Blankinship, Darin Loucks helping me out along with my parents and nephew coming from Michigan..then yesterday a high school friend said he would like to come out as well..John Klees. I think he should help pace me from 49 he will enjoy that section. On the low side my friend Kaori has gone total MIA and I can't count on her to be there.
But there is so much to be thankful for that a slight bump is minor compared to the big picture...

A couple of Pictures from Robinson Flat-Day 1 WS Training Run

2010-06-02T05:57:00.000-07:00

Two Images from Robinson Flat, notice the roof of the restroom! Images Courtesy of Craig Thornley

6months of Training now complete..Its in the barn next stop Squaw Valley

2010-06-01T05:39:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a good feeling...I was tired, I finished my Western States Training Program (the major long runs) and took it to the barn for maintenance and final preperations. I am tired this morning. I thought back to January 1-the official kickoff and where I have gone since then. A lot of miles...some good and a few diffenently bad days...

So Monday was day 3 of the WS training run...Day 2 for me since I had finished the first two in one day. We had cool overcast weather as we met up at Placer High...I saw Rena for the first time in a long time and she was out for her second day. I met up with my pacer as well and we ran together all day. I missed out on seeing a lot of other folks that have been training all year long by missing them at the start...could not figure that out..Oh well. My legs where stiff and did not respond well at the start as we moved on to 3rd gate...I recalled the same from last year and as the day wore on I was fine. I was moving slow with some good sections and tucking in with a few other runners every now and then to keep the pace slow.
Allyson was one of those folks her and Sandra seemed to be chirping along the way and doing fine...I was pretty focused all day...not saying a lot. Just processing and thinking that this was it...all the hard stuff was over for the 6months...and where was it going to lead?

I still had one last goal and that was to move as fast as I could down from Cool on the trail to NoHands Bridge..I did it last year and wanted to see if I could empty out the tanks and let the quads burn...I was successful in pressing it hard down the trail..not out of control but fast and steady with some pick ups along the way...I was in better shape than last year (I better be!) I pretty much walked it from NoHands to the school the quads now felt it fine...

It has been a long grind and I was kind sad and also very glad to get to the finish and see the folks cooking out and the other runners that have gone through these months of training now taking it all in..I stopped and talked to some out of town folks amazed we all are gonna be on the line June 26....I will be posting more info as the days go by but its in the barn....the dream is about to become reality...Holy Cow an average runner is gonna be on the line....now all I have to do is finish that will be no small task!

Tony

Day 1-Western States Training..a little snow, a few lows and some good company

2010-05-30T10:28:00.000-07:00

Day One of 2010 Western States Training Weekend marks the end of the really serious long runs leading up to the big day. I choose to run Day 1 and Day 2 combined into one long Training Run..and it was long. My longest training run ever..

There is so much to cover on this event..if I get some pics and elevation profiles generated I will. First the news of the day. It only turned out to be about 44miles total. Since their is so much snow up at Robinson Flat that folks could not drive too close. There were several folks that did shuttle to about 4miles from Robinson then hike up and go from there. I got a ride back to Foresthill last night from Rory Boscio...she was one of those runners and she said it took them 4hours to cover 10miles in the snow..it was deep and postholing was the norm for them.

For me I caught an early ride and got dropped off at N43/N44 with Ken Crouse, Barb Ash, Allison Thomas and others where we started our shorter version of the long run. My pacer Darin Loucks was in from Seattle and had to get up at 4am with me to get ready. He would later join me at Michigan Bluff and run with me. We started off with about 4miles of snow which compared to the stuff at Robinson was kid stuff..but still snow..It was leaving my quads and hamstrings tired. But we where ahead of the main buses with about 300 other runners so that was nice...I settled in with Barb Ash and another women and got out ahead of our main group. Things were going very well as we broke free of the snow and things started to warm up...Lots of Sun it was gonna be a nice day. My IT was fine and I was s-capping and hydrating well. I kept thinking back to last years run on the same section. I was so much stronger and in better shape...but is it gonna be enough for race day?

We hit Last Chance and a few of the fast runners caught us but no worries I managed to get to Swinging Bridge in 2:45 then start the climb up devils thumb about 43 minutes up so that was good for me that even had some stop time as some kayakers where heading down the trail..first time I saw that! It was nice to be out in the lead pack of runners so when we got to Deadwood and the aid station the food was fresh and they still had plenty of ice...Barb Ash who had got behind me came up fast from the Thumb and we took off for the downhill to El Dorado Canyon...I got out in front and felt good for the first time in a long time running downhill and kept thinking of MB and the climb. That was hard on me..Barb came by about a mile into the climb and that is the last I saw of her. I got to the stream which signals 1 mile to the top and had Brian Hacker come up and say hi...we all where getting some cold water to push on. My coach was at the aid station and my pacer was there as well..I thought I felt ok but when we took off out of MB I was having my low point of the day. For nearly a mile I was walking and tired. My pacer just kept telling me to keep moving..Things improved on the single track and downhill to Volcano Creek...Energy back. Tim Twietmeyer comes by fast I point him out to Darin and he is impressed. We catch him at the stream and I again stand in the cold water...It reminds me of a horse I met last year on the trail its owner said any stream the horse just loves to stand in the cold water..Well I am just like that horse..it feels so good! We got to Foresthill and it was hard not to say lets bail here..I had been on my feet for about 7 and a half hours..slow but steady...but we pushed on after a long break there. There where other runners going on to Drivers but they seemed in no hurry to leave. Me on the other hand wanted out. Some good sections with my pacer down to Cal 1 as I pointed things out about race day on the trail. I know these sections very well.
It was now getting late afternoon and the canyons got a little dark but we would pop out into the sun every now and then . It was very still and quite very nice. We ran down Impail Trail only to be passed by two runners that know how to downhill! I suck...Oh well we caught the at Cal2.

Legs actually came alive on the fun switchbacks down and this was the fastest and easiest section all day. Darin was wondering what to say and do as a pacer for me..I usually don't run with a lot of folks so I stay quite and don't talk much but he was helping by keeping me moving and making sure the Scaps where being taken..I have adjusted my doseage to 2 caps an hour. This seems to work wonders for me. A very strong push up Cal3 and some average running to sandy bottoms and the river. It was a long day. I was ready for it to end so I wanted a ride out from Rucky Chucky for the first time ever..it seemed popular as a lot of runners did that option..It was now about 8pm as we finished at Drivers Flat Staging...wow a great day...Still some energy left in the tank..but I wanted to get to my car. Rory came up just then and we got a ride with her..she seems pretty neat...She says she just wants to finish WS..but she better beat me is all I can say....

Darin and I grabbed some pizza and got home about 10pm...stayed up till 11pm and the legs where now cooked it was hard sleeping..between my neighbors dogs barking all night..(really can we be more rude!) and the legs it was not quality sleep.

Taking off today then off to run the final 20 on Monday. Legs should not like me for the first few miles. Then its tme to go into maintenance mode. I am so happy my IT and knees seem healed. WS is gonna be so hard but such a reward getting to the line and running as good as I can. The goal is to finish....

Tony

Next weekend Western States Memorial Training Weekend..But First....

2010-05-23T06:50:00.000-07:00

Gad! What the heck has happened to warm weather leading to 100 degree temps of June? We are hard pressed in northern California to wrestle free from winter temps once and for all.
With two weekends left in really hard training then on to sharpen and maintain for June 26, This Saturday's run was meant to be a moderate amount of suffering.

It took me longer to recover from Miwok and the amount of time it took to finish than I had wanted it to be..with the last two weeks work week training being very light...It did not help that most of my real life work was bumping in to my training schedule. But that is what springtime is. I was able to generate a sound proposal for an enterprise system for one of my major agencies I work with. Sorry I rarely talk work..but this took a lot of time and strain on the brain. After I presented the proposal it was well received. So I can still prove my worth on the work front...

One to one more matter..I was at Auburn Running on Friday and picked up a new dvd of someones account of their running Western States...It is called 100miles to 40. It is about a women that ran WS for the first time last year...Lets start with the good...It had a lot of video of runners I know and run with...Erik Skaden, Mark Lantz, Eric Johnson, Stephan Itano...and glimpse's of a lot of local folks...Some nice footage of the course itself...The not so good...Understanding that each persons motivation to run Western States is individual it really was the persons own story. It just was not motivating and lacked some real information on what she did to get to the starting line...No really why do you want to run Western States? It is like she could have run any race and felt good about it...I felt no real passion in her words or experiance of being at the event and all its history. I am sooooo glad the producer had footage about the course etc..She is very different than those that I know who run on the WS trails and aspire to run the event. She kept talking about her limited training and saying she was gonna break 24hours..It seemed so naive and very self absorbed. The kicker was that she started out saying and showing that she is a smoker and is not gonna quite...That just hit me as being so wrong. The worst scene was her sitting in a chair at squaw after getting word that WS was cancelled in 08 due to the fires..she was puffy on her smokes and whining on her cell phone..The positive is I found another very strong motivator for race day is to use this woman's image of completing WS to get me through those tough times. Just my view point..Focus on the side story and watch the other runners in the event and then its a good dvd. Still Race for the Soul is the best dvd, followed by Running Madness....

On to Saturdays run...BITTER COLD! SNOW! I saw a bunch of folks leaving out of Foresthill as I was gonna run out of Michigan Bluff today...I was happy to be running alone today and see how things went with the IT and other minor leg issues. I have been working on those everyday. I ran the whole day without any IT issues, now IT support bands etc..that was major. I ran the downhills faster but still very slow and timid. But I had much more energy than last weeks crater day...I was back! That felt good.

As I started this out...it was sunny when I set out with some fast folks 6miles behind me...I graped my gloves and long sleeve jersey I normally only wear on winter days and I am so happy I did! I was starting to overheat on the way down to El Dorado Canyon and peeled off the clothes but that soon changed. I got cold heading up to Deadwood but on the plus side no tired quads and a steady pace up. It was still and quite out there as I got to deadwood. At the pump my hands got numb filling the bottles and I got out fast.
I was being a wuss heading down Devils Thumb and I thought I am glad that I will not be going down this many more times between now and June..It seems worse for me to go down than up!
I was near the bottom when Mark Murray, Erik Skaden and Mark Lantz caught me. It was warm in the canyon but soon to change...Energy level was very high and I just focused on the climb up Last Chance...Last Chance was very cold...I got to the first gate and was freezing..I saw Monica Moore and Sandra and they where heading back..they said it was snowing up at the water spigot! The temp dropped fast in that short time and they where right..I grabbed some water and food and took off back on my return..I saw Victor Bellastoros and Rob Evens heading up..they looked fresh..Then on run down Pete Defty shirtless he was gonna suffer for that! Then Rory Boscio..running alone...Strong young runner. It took me a long time going down from LC to Swinging Bridge just wanna keep everything in place and not injuring myself...

Got to the bridge and saw Jim Hopkins and a friend of his...I let them go on the climb up the thumb. I wanted to go up alone and practice my race day strategy...It worked well with trying to conserve energy while still making solid progress on the climb. I was thinking what it would be like when we get some real heat..that was the only downside of an otherwise perfect effort up DT.

I did not take much time at the deadwood pump and passed Jim...I wanted to see how I reacted on the downhill to El Dorado canyon..I was going conservative but much faster than in previous weeks..No IT, NO Pain...Pete Korn came blowing by me...it let me know that I was still running slow on the downhill..no worry cause no pain! Now some work...climb up and finish at Michigan Bluff..it was cloudy and cool at the start..
I was amazed at how well I was climbing this first mile..somewhere along the way it just started SNOWING..getting real cold...So the last 30minutes where spent moving as fast as I could running and power walking up...I got to MB in all out downpour of that white stuff...I made a point to get into some warm clothes, start the car and heater and wait for a few runners I knew that started at Foresthill..they most likely would need a ride out and save them from hypothermia. Not far behind came Rory...dang girl your fast...I spoke with her and then a few minutes later came Jim..I got him and saw Stephan Itano come up as well..everyone got into their cars and peeled out as fast as possible...It was COLD!.

A good day of running a long time on feet but about 50minutes faster than last weekend so a positive sign..Into the sauna today and think of one last weekend of training 72miles in two runs then take it to the barn for repair and begin final preparation's for the big dance!

Sufferfest in the Canyons: "Make it feel like the last 20 at WS"

2010-05-16T08:15:00.000-07:00

Let us cut to the chase...Yestedays run in the canyons was my worst ever! I just plain out suffered after the first 9miles to my finish of only running about 31 out of a scheduled 37.

I had all good plans..meet up with Mark Lantz at Foresthill School and run to Last Chance and back. That was accomplished I saw a ton of folks heading out to the canyons most starting at MB and doing various canyon distances. I had some hesitation running with Mark since even though he is coming back from injury...M9 from last year is still very fit. We took off from FH and had a nice crossing at Volcano and I powerwalked very well up to Michigan Bluff in a time of 1:15. Mark normally runs that in 1:06 and me..well about 1:30 so a good pace for me...legs felt fine no issues at all, IT ok.

We saw Kate Evens at MB waiting on Rob to catch her he must have started after us from FH...We took off on the downhill to El Dorado. Mark was doing fine for his first day in the canyons. We began the climb to Deadwood and I handled that well until the quads suddenly felt weak with about 3miles to Deadwood. I was tired..Here started my day of suffering. I tried gels, extra S-Caps (those seemed to help later) as it felt more like a hike the rest of the day...I have never felt so low mentally as well in the canyons.

Overall time wise I was only about 15 minutes slower than normal as I began my downhill to Swinging Bridge...With my IT concerns it took forever as I babied the downhill...I finally go to Swinging Bridge to see Mark waiting for the climb up to Last Chance...we set off and it was here I had my minor mental melt down. I told Mark to F OFF as he told me to power walk really strong (he was right ) but I had no energy still...Caren Spore came up from behind and told me to use the day like the last 20 can be at WS....Then Pete Korn on his way down said to do the same..so that was it..just get through this...

I finally go to Last Chance and turned with Mark...The time was really not slow about the same as 4weeks ago so even though I felt terrible it still was not bad in the big picture of things...I waddled down to Swinging Bridge and grabbed some very nice spring water prior to going up Devils Thumb..thinking like race day I timed the ascent. It was slow, not as bad as heading up to LC...but I have that time to measure for race day...I met up with Caren again and she was being nice and showing concern..nice thing about trail runners.
I took it easy on the way down from Deadwood and saw Grant and Leslie on some of the switchbacks I could have caught em and had some company but I was intent on suffering by myself.
Finally...the climb to Michigan Bluff..I was really slow and the 10minute log took me 14minutes to get to on the climb...I just kept moving. with less than a mile to go I heard Grant shout down to me on the switchback above me....I caught him and we finished out the day of suffering. I had to stop at MB...Mark was coming to get me. I had done the same for him and Skaden in the past now my turn.
We all hung out for awhile with all the dogs of MB....Matt Keyes offered up a beer and we enjoyed the late afternoon sun.

A long day of suffering nothing went really well after the first 2 hours. But still If I had to push I could have...but better days ahead. Still on track I have been doing the work, with long hours and runs. Today...going to the gym, sauna, cold pool.

Tony

48 Days till the Dance...Some good signs and plans are taking shape

2010-05-09T16:23:00.000-07:00

With last weekends Miwok 100K in the books the week proceeding turned out to be about recovery, test the legs, and begin to set a plan.

The early week had me a little tired on Sunday and Monday just from the shear hours being out there and not sleeping well on race night. I still managed to get to the gym and jump on the Elliptical to start the road back. I used the sauna each day and was working the legs and IT. I noticed that I did not feel as tight in my legs as in past races. I believe my legs are getting used to this. I went to Monsters on Tuesday and both IT's where hurting during the session. I vowed to continue stretching, using the foam roller,stick and sauna. I am gonna be ready. It was a revovery week before things go on for the final 30 days of hard training. I enjoyed not running but was looking forward to Saturday and a return to the canyons.

I tested the weeks worth of this recovery effort with a run from Michigan Bluff to Devils Thumb and back. A great spring day...I saw many runners and it was enjoyable stopping along the way to talk to everyone. As a side note..As I drove up that morning I was letting myself vision what race day would be like from the start to the sections along the trail and the finish..It was rather exciting and emotional..I am going to make it to the starting line. So hard to believe.

That said I ran easily and on my climb to Deadwood I noticed something all the climbs are hard but my legs are feeling fine on these climbs. It does not mean I am running faster but the effort is not as hard as in prevous years in the canyons. I think this is a good sign...The best however was the fact that on the run down from Deadwood to El Dorado Canyon I had no IT pain at all and ran some sections free and easy.

I then climbed up to Michigan Bluff and the last mile with Bob Crowely we had a good talk and I had ots of energy.It was a perfect short recovery day!

Sunday I went for another short run and planned out the coming last three weeks. The IT was holding up and I felt ready for a hard week coming up. Foresthill to Last Chance and back. Then two weeks till Memorial day training. Things are going by so fast. I was able to make my first draft of my Western States Race Day Plan. I will share more as it get firmed up but its very conservative with some unknowns on how race day will be...Snow Course Route cause of too much snow near robinson? Boat River Crossing? I am going ahead with some goals at certain sections fo the course. My coach thinks its pretty conservative and could be faster. We will be reviewing this. I have my crew, I am planning my aid station, drop bags and crew. Its all coming together...

Its so close now...and I can't believe it...

Tony

Training Race Number 2-Miwok 100k-Fun and Lessons Learned

2010-05-03T18:01:00.000-07:00

John Blue Snapped this image a stunning climb

Partial Elevation Profile-about 56miles--The garmin ran out of power.

I guess the best way to begin how I approached Miwok is to take a look back to the workweek prior to the run. It all started with the short taper run in the canyons the week before. I begin to focus the Monday prior with trips to the gym each day to go in the sauna after a short workout and work out the issues in my legs with the stick. This was starting to work out and after my last massage on Tuesday my legs (ie..quads) finally felt normal they where tight! I started to feel better about running Miwok..The work week had long hours so I did not really think a lot about Miwok and my first 100k so maybe that was just as well. I had a late week call with a friend and he described how I should manage the Miwok course and the out and back...Just take it easy on the way out and not focus too much on busting it hard on the climbs and save it for the return to the finish. With that in mind I packed my gear and blazed out of Rocklin mid morning on Friday...

I arrived at the newly renovated Larkspur Hotel in Mill Valley (race central ) to some stunning views and perfect weather for relaxing the day prior. A quick take on the hotel..it was nice, not a lot of thrills, but very clean, and not noisy at all...well worth the price since I never heard a sole while in my room at night..

There where so many familiar faces arriving it was nice to talk to a few. I meet up with other first timers Chris Perillo and Amy Schmich. I would give them a ride to the start. Race day arrived very early with getting up at 3am and then meeting them downstairs. We got to the start with about 50minutes to kill but it seemed to go fast. Dark, not cold, no breeze it would be a nice day.

Conditions where ideal as we all set into our own races..Front of the pack folks including Skaden, Anton, Hal, Wardrian, etc where off fast. I saw Chris and Amy and they looked comfortable each time we passed during the day. I had my plan to take it easy, hydrate and eat well, not let the IT get wacked out on fast downhills. All was going according to plan. I did feel legs being a little tired early on in the race but knew that all this would pass during a long race like this..just get through that low and soon a good section will come. My best section came from the turnaround at mile 35 to Bolinas Ridge about 41miles...With energy in reserve I set out to cut a little time down from my start. This was fun I had a nice pace leading some folks that where most likely on par to finish somewhere in 14hrs..I really had no idea where I was in my pace..I just ran.

I did get caught up in some folks running when they slowed I would slow I wanted to save my energy...but as I got to mile 49 it was late about 11:30hours of running...I had lots of energy and took off after grabbing my flashlight just in case it got dark..A smart move indeed!

My IT had been fine and I kept things in check. I hit HWY 1 and the descent into Tennessee Valley..I had this in the bag I was smelling the barn and feeling good. Well my IT on my left leg flaired up on the downhill to TV..it was frustrating..I wanted to run strong to the finish but could not..Going up hills was not the problem just the downhill...And that is really what the last 7.5 miles where about. It got dark, windy and I hit the flashlight..as I saw the finish in the distance I got passed by a dude I smoked by at the start..oh well.

But in the end I found out a lot...This was my longest time on feet and I went through many different phases, some good, some bad but through it all I kept moving. This race taught me I can do that..It was the slowest ever.
But still satisfying.

I want to say thinks to all the volunteers..Especially Stan Jenson and Victor Ballesteros they where out there all day and always had good things to say when I saw them.

Now work on the IT keep training in the canyons, get in some more heat. The base is really there to finish Western States. No, not a silver buckle bbut a good run will be there the work is showing the dividends.

Second Weekend at Michigan Bluff, One week until Miwok 100k

2010-04-25T08:11:00.000-07:00

A short post as I begin preperations for next week and Miwok 100k. With training ramping up it was bound to happen that there are some minor pains and injuries that have flaired up along the way to the start line in June. The real goal is get to the line healthy as possible. I was able to review with Veloyce at Monsters of Massage a nagging stiffness that has gets to me at night..not so much when I run but after. We found that in a small connector area of the left knee..go figure. I think we can control that in the coming weeks. Next some IT issues. I started a good strengthing and stretching program this morning that I feel will help. Just wish I had done that earlier..it feels like my hip abductors are just a bit weak. Better work on that....
On with the week in running...I took it easy during the week trying to follow instructions to see if some rest can help on the IT. I did however go to Michigan Bluff on Saturday to run a bit of the canyons. I could have done 6-7hours again this weekend but I wanted to A)test the IT again access for issues, B)Have some energy for next weekend and 100k. So this weekend not so large of a group where out on the trails. Archie the Mayor dog of Michigan Bluff was out in all his glory and we had a long chat sitting in the sun after (granted he only was nice when I gave him some of my Cliff Bar) he was good company as always at the finish...Oh back to the run..I did 15 from Michigan Bluff to Devils Thumb and back I kept it at 4hours of running. It felt short for a weekend..aside from the 2hour run the weekend before AR this 4hour time was my shortest run in a long time..I am happy that most of my time has been 5-7hours of running and with the slow 9hr 50 minute AR I have spent good time on my feet. Will come in handy next weekend. It was a stunning day..I ran a bit with Amy Schmich who is also running WS for the first time. She is pretty new to the community but is a strong runner and should do fine. Chris Perillo was out for 8hours of running today and flew by us...John Blue and posse where out and Matt Keyes, along with Nichols where out for some long suffering runs of 46-ish miles. Ken Crouse was leading the back and helping out some new runners on this day....But the sun was out mild temps...I just power walked up to Deadwood and it was fine. I left everyone and felt guilty on my turn early to head back from the thumb. I had a easy run to the river. I so love this stillness on the single track taking in this peaceful scene. I stopped for 10minutes or so and talked to Charly Jones...it was that kinda day...Just enjoy. I felt better on the days climb up Michigan Bluff...Then sat in my chair and talked to Archie for about an hour.

Next week is Miwok...I am going to take it easy on the downhills and keep the IT and knees in check. This is a training run..it does not matter about how fast I will finish...That said I would be happy with 14hours of time on feet...For this week stretch, work on the hip abductors and taper for a long run.

Tony

Week after AR50 a day in the Canyons

2010-04-18T06:36:00.000-07:00

All Photos courtesy of Barb Ash:

First Day in the Canyons--Still a lot of Snow-Heading back from Last Chance

A good group of folks..heading back to Michigan Bluff...L/R-Sandra Ross,Jack Meyer, Barb Ash, Trish Godtfredson,me, Monica Moore, Amy Schmich

Archie the Mayor of Michigan Bluff (he is the dog!) always there to greet a runner if they have food!

As the Photos indicate yesterday was the first real run in the Canyons this year. I also was very curious on how I would react a week after AR50. I have been waxed in past years following not moving well. My post week for AR had me a bit concerned with the IT Band on the right leg. I went to the Gym on Sunday and Monday to test the leg. I was tired from the run and just took it easy. I had not done a lot of streching during those days and went for a run Tuesday and felt the IT tighten a lot. I did have my standing Tuesday appointment with Veloyce at Monsters and he worked on it..I was not too concerned after that just feeling I had to be conservative and not push it too hard for the week.

So that was what I did. I started stretching Wed morning, went on a short run with minimal tightness, did the same Thursday. Friday off and I wondered if it would be good to run up and down the canyons with everyone on Saturday. This section is Michigan Bluff to Last Chance and back. 25miles total with long downhills and climbs..all a good chance to really screw things up if I went too fast.

So I decided to give it a try. I would start with running down from MB to the river and maybe turn at the pump in Deadwood. Well when I arrived at sleppy gold mining town of Michigan Bluff I was shocked! James Barsted had sent out a note on Facebook seeing who was interested in running from MB..normally maybe 10 tops you would see..Well this morning we saw about 50 folks! Gad what a cluster! Most newbies, not that there is anything wrong with doing things the first time but this is pretty hard core if they where going to Last Chance...I saw this and jumped in front of the pack and ran as fast as I could at the start to get away from the crowd. I was taking it easy when I wanted to scream down the trail to the river. Things where ok! No real pain yet..the climb to Deadwood for 5 or so miles was hard but my week after AR50 I was feeling good so I must be getting in better shape. I slowed down to take in the views and say to myself..its a week after AR no need to go too fast. That is when I let Jack Meyer and his posse catch me..I am glad they did..I stayed with them pretty much the rest of the day.

I got to the pump with them and had mentioned turning. Barb Ash said you better keep going your in WS...you got to suffer even if your IT is acting up. She was right..next we moved on to Devils Thumb and the descent down with the IT a little tight I actually walked/ran down DT for the first time ever..normally I run but today no hurry, the group was slow but steady and offering me some company for a change. Down to Swinging bridge and I was about to bail and turn when Barb said time to climb to Last Chance..So I did..she was good for me today. I just tucked in behind her and power walked up. I was feeling really good. We then got up to Last Chance and started to run into a lot of SNOW. We got to the spiget filled up and turned back. The run down from Last Chance would be interesting..I had a IT strap on and that seemed to keep things in check.

As we got to Swinging Bridge I should have fueled up with the steep climb up the Thumb. I was moving slow and actually getting a little dizzy and tired on this climb..I took a roctane when I caught up with Jack and the group around one of the runners..she had fell and had a gash in her ankle and a wrist that looked broken. She was really tough, they cleaned her up and we took off up DT...she just kept running. It was later confirmed that she broke her wrist.

From the pump to the river its downhill and I wanted to so run this section fast. But I took it slow..this was the last section I thought I could do damage on this run. I was near the back but not caring just enjoying the day. Finally the last climb up to Michigan Bluff..it was long for me today but as I got to the top I had made it through with the IT issue. I think I will be ok..I stretched after and will more this morning. My legs feel pretty good..it was a slow day but great time on feet...I need that.

Miwok in a few weeks I think I will be ready but so much to build on in these last couple of months.

Tony

American River 50mile-A beginning, the middle and the finish

2010-04-11T05:44:00.000-07:00

American River 50 mile was held yesterday..As I wrote in my blog previous its a training run on the road to WS. It is still a race though with some goals to hit and things to test.
This years addition was held under perfect conditions with steady cool temps all day, cloudy skies, dry trail when we got to it...I begin my day getting up at 2:00am to have a fast breakfast, pack the car and travel to the finish area at the Overlook. As I approached the Overlook just before 3:30 I recalled how many times I have run from this area..its my home base. We got to the start with about a half hour to kill..it was down out nice temps so no shivering as I said hi to a lot of folks I know...The first 19 miles are bike path and flat..you need to manage this section well and not go out too fast or too slow or your toast on the single track.

I started the race in a consistant and easy pace wearing road shoes for the race..I had said I was gonna run 10minute average but breathing and legs said take it faster so I was dropping down under 9minutes after the first 6miles...I kept a 8:40pace knowing if I bank a bit of time I would be good getting to mile 27 at beals and the single track. I hit Nimbus 18.1 and some single track about 2:50. I had been popping two roctane and a S-Cap every 45minutes prior and no real need to stop at Aid stations. There were a few folks that I was grouped with as we set off for the slower section to Beals....Getting to beals slowed things down a bit but that was anticipated. The marathon time about 4:12 and hitting the mat in 4:20 versus 4:30(original goal)...Well Nature called and that slowed things down 10minutes so I was really not out of Beals till 4:30..oh well.

Here things got rough with running on the pavement..As I hit the single track my right IT flaked out (which never happens!) It really started to slow things down on the downhills and was down and out hurting. I lost time from 27-38 going through Buzzards and the rocky narrow sections. I settled in with a group in this stretch with Allyson Thomas and 5 other runners..I was in the back and just dragged the leg..it was so slow I was thinking the pace was easy..I had all this energy but could not move fast...about that time Barb Ash and Kathy Welch said coming by and took off in front of me..it sucked I could not go out with them.

However as we got to mile 38 after buzzards the IT freed up and I was a bit behind schedule now..but I could run! I had some energy saved up and took off making a bee line for Rattlesnake..mile 41ish..I wanted to be there by 7:30 but was there at 8:09..I was mad when I got there..but I wanted to see if I could push it hard and get in under 10hours..I took off flying out of Rattle..I was back to 9;30miles and feeling good. I hit the last aid station before the river with a ton of folks as I got there I had my plan get to the river with 50minutes to spare to climb and finish under 10..it was doable..but some work..I shouted to a group of folks that we could get under 10..just a little work..they shouted back..and said you GO..make yourself happy...they had quit! I blew by that without looking back ran into another group and said we can get there and they started to work with me on the final mile to the river..We hit the mark with 3 extra minutes to spare..now the hard part..climb to Last Gasp! I power walked with determination I felt good as I hit the steep section..at the top of the climb I started running no time for a break and got to Last gasp and final 2.4 with 39minutes to spare..It looked pretty good about getting under 10! I ran walked with energy and finished in 3:51 a solid run from Rattlenake after the IT released. So I was happy going through the injury and running well at the finish..it really could have been a lot faster but that was what the day brought...Today..legs sore, IT a bit tight..going to the gym and spin and hit the sauna...Not a bad effort but lots to do still before June....

Pre Race Plans and the next week

2010-04-08T18:55:00.000-07:00

Weather is shaping up nice for AR with partly cloudy, moderate temps and nice dry trails. I have been reviewing what I want to achieve for this 50mile race. I know the course well. Understanding that the first 26 miles are really where you will make time. Reviewing past race info you find that the time from Beals to the finish is =to your time to beals + 40minutes -1:20=your finish time ex...4:30 for the first 26.5 + 5:10 for the last 23.5=9:40finish. Of course there are faster more even splits but not many runners if any will run faster on the second half. With that in mind I have a few simple goals...Get to Beals in 4:15-4:30, Get to Rattle about 7-7:30 and give myself 50minutes to climb from the river to the finish. Just get in under 10hrs. I am excited to see how I run the next weekend in the canyons...I hope to have a few pics but if I am running fast none till I get to the finish...

Tony

Coooold Running before AR

2010-04-04T15:27:00.000-07:00

Cool Runners---Yes its COOOLD

L-R-Chris Prerillo,Me,John Blue,Eric Johnson, Erik Skaden (image-John Blue)

The Last weekend before American River 50 mile was good. There where many folks out on the trail Saturday for taper runs of various distance. I had 15 on the schedule and ran well with a group of 8 or so. It was a strong run out and I needed to keep it down a bit and dropped off the pack about 30seconds to a minute. It was good running with the group but I had other plans. I wanted to use the turn and climb back to get in my strategy for those final 10miles from Rattlenake in...The clmb simulated what I am guessing my pace will be and it was really easy...Granted next week it will be after 47miles. AR50 is just a training run in the big picture but still want to test myself a bit.. I am more curious about the following Saturday and a run in the canyons. I feel in better shape but one never knows until you try. The taper and cold weather have played on the mind a bit. I want hot weather to begin the next phase of training which is gonna be critical.

Till next week...stay warm and keep running.

Got the Bib Number...Guilty Taper for AR

2010-03-28T07:15:00.000-07:00

It has been a guilty week of sorts with a Taper week built in for the next two leading up to AR50. I had been a bit sluggish legs after Rucky Chucky so I did not mind it early in the week. But as the week wore on I wanted to run a bit harder than the scheduled run on the American River Trail yesterday. I was feeling guilty knowing I need so much work on long downhills and climbing strong. That had it settled so I compromised with myself and will talk to my coach about it..I went back to Calstreet and ran to Cal3 and back. Short in that it was 20miles but good with the downhill, climbs and cruising sections. It was so much easier than last week on the return when you cut off 11miles. I ran up most of the way from Cal3 to Cal2 and that had me excited..I then cruised till the steep climb up impail trail (as I call it) Moved very well to Cal1 aid and stopped to talk to Allyson Thomas, Julie Fingar and Don Freeman...as they where heading in the opposite direction..It was nearly a perfect day..what would happen on the final climb to FH..that did not go as well. I slowed down to a pace I did not want to be. . But it still was a very good run, the sun was out it was a great spring day....I went home cooked on the grill, then went out to see Hot Tub Time Machine..suprised it was pretty good......

This week one step closer....I got Bib #280 for Western States! All my forms are complete now time to train, train, train...Next weekend I will run AR course to taper but my heart is in the canyons that are just starting to heat up with the change in weather. AR will not be a race for me but another training run. Miwok will be a test and a tough one at that. Then we are into the last solid month of training leading to JUNE! Where did the time go?

Rucky Chucky 50k a long training run....

2010-03-21T07:47:00.000-07:00

Today's post finds my legs a little tired. Yesterday I ran Rucky Chucky Roundabout 50k..I wanted a training run with support on the Cal Loop to the river and back. So the race offered the chance. It is really a laid back race with about 75 -85folks. Mark Lantz, John Blue, Eric Johnson,Charlie Jones, John Nichols where there and we saw Rory of the mountains as I call her. A young gifted runner, she won the womens 50k and has her slot in WS so it should be interesting.
We all took off on a cool very comfortable morning I settled in with Charlie Jones for the most part and we ran with a guy from Oregon as we cruised into Cal2. Things where not too hard but the idea was to get to the turn around and then add 1 hour to my time down to get my finish time. As we cruised into the first aid station we where in for a suprise. About 9miles in and the aid station was not stocked! Seems the gate was locked and the owners where gone....Jeez. This seems to be what happens with this race every year. Race Director...it does not take much to plan ahead and make sure things are in place for race week...I find this very unprofessional that this continues to occur at this race since he took over.

Ok on with the race..after we ran to the next aid station about 13miles in we got refueled thankfully. I was low. Aid station folks there where helpful and glad to quench our thirst. Runners where on the return to the start finish and we where on par to hit the turn a little under 3hrs. We hit the turn at 2:50 and got out of there to return. I suffered my low point really from there to Cal 3..I let Charlie go and was taking my time. I stopped at one point and a guy passed me as I was looking into the canyons....He said..are you ok I said yes...two other guys would also pass me on my way to Cal 3..things would change though soon enough...I got to Cal3 and was wondering if we would have full aid at Cal2 on the way back..we would really need it..I stopped and took down a Roctane and did a dry heave putting it down...I was downing S-Caps as well it was getting warm. On the climb up to Cal2 I passed 2 runners and that felt good they where hurting and I was moving well on this climb. Yippee they found the key and there was full aid at Cal2..Filled my two bottles and took off I was behind my schedule now but I wanted to get up the steepest climb on the return ok...5hours in and I start that climb..not too bad and I start running for the final 6miles..run then walk up the hills as I was thinking about my time and the final 2.5miles and the climb that can feel like an insult..its hard.

As I hit that final climb I thought I could get within 10minutes of my goal..and I came upon the dude that asked me hours earlier if I was ok..he was a mess...I blew by him and said lets get this thing done but he had no energy and said for me to go on...I did..I was off goal now and said get in under 7hours..a long day for sure..a middle of the pack finish. I am happy with the last 6weeks with these long runs each weekend....Now a minor taper as we get ready for AR50....then onto Miwok. I still have a lot of work to do but just need to stay on the plan....Till next week....

Only 100 Days...!

2010-03-18T06:32:00.000-07:00

That's right down to only 100 Days till Western States! When I see it that way there is so much to get done. In reality after the Western States Training Weekend. Most of the work will be done so the body better get tuned and fast....
I had a minor setback this week with some achilles issues on Tuesday..I think I know the cause and it was foolish..That should not come back again. Seeing only 100 days sets the mind into a good sense of PANIC! Line all the training up and make it count. Long runs...and Getting into the Canyons. Heat Training. More Canyons...Saturday and Sunday's are going to be getting really long and hard. Weekdays..a little longer runs and repeats at Stagecoach up and down...slam the quads.

This really is getting fun for me...Spring is in the air, 100 days and a lot of miles to go.

A Cool Weekend..Next up Rucky Chucky Roundabout

2010-03-16T06:49:00.000-07:00

Cool Cupcakes (photo by Jack Meyer)....Me by Chuck Godtfredsen

Way too Cool really was Cool. Friday I arrived at Auburn Running Company to work packet pickup. Only an hour or so into workng we started to see the first rain of the week. This was not too welcome of a sight for all the runners coming in the store. Temps where dropping and it looked like a cold day in late December not March. Jeez. I was happy to be working inside versus the crews setting up the Start and Finish in Cool. I had a good time but not so much taking time to talk with folks..just ask for last name, grab their bib packet and move on..I left late in the afternoon and a return to Cool on Saturday morning to work some more at the race.

Saturday was cold and foggy as I arrived in Cool runners where all bundled up..with temps in the mid 30's everyone was happy to get the race underway..But it sure was gonna be slick. I will not get into race details but the day was filled with a lot of fun catching up with folks as I worked the awards table. I was gonna come back on Sunday for my long run and was a little worried I had been standing all day for the last 2 days making my 30'ish run to be hard.

I arrived Sunday at the overlook in Auburn to run my long run solo again for the third week. EEEsch...It was again cold but with the time change a bit warmer than previous days....Sun was out as I took off towards Cool, Not a bad run as I made my way up from Nohands..I ran into Grant Carboni who was out since before 7am...Not too many runners on this day a lot of folks resting. The mud really was pretty bad after I made my way on the Cool course at HWY 49 and decided to run up Ball Bearing to ALT...Energy was ok but not a fast pace. I was practicing walking pace every 12 minutes or so to review how my walking will be at WS..it was hard for me to walk for a set time especially when in the middle of my 1 or 2 minute walk time I was on some flat or downhill just wanted to move on those sections..I need to practice this a bit more it did not feel natural. ALT to Browns was really pretty good and I started to think about how this will feel on WS race day/night/errr morning...Browns to Quarry road was a mess to just get down and cross the streams..It was slow going here as it will be long into the night. I really lost it on the mental energy side once I got to Nohands and my last few miles...Finished my run at Placer High and my traditional touch the WS plaque found there..It felt long today, hard but overall a good week with increased mileage.

That leads me to about a month out from American River 50...I want to run one last long hard run this weekend and am gonna run Rucky Chucky Roundabout. About a 50k course from Calstreet to the river and then back...lots of downhill and alot of climbing..should leave me very tired come Saturday night..I will practice the walking on the steep long climbs and manage fuel and fluids on this test race...

Till next Week...

A week of Lone Long runs....

2010-03-08T05:30:00.000-08:00

Geez...there are so many options this time of year that there are weeks where one has a good chance of running alone on those loooong runs. This was the second consecutive week as folks raced pctr series, Napa Marathon or taper for Cool.

I really don't mind the lone time as I have put into words before..I even thought of taking my ipod along but thought better of it as I set out on a 31 mile run along the American River...Silence is fine for me except for the sounds of spring be it the birds or mud puddles splatting against my shoes. I use these longer solo runs to review things and see how well I can go since this is mental to be out for 5 or 6 hours.

Funny that with American River 50 coming up in a month I have not really thought of that or even Miwok I just want to run each day and focus on hitting the training goals on the schedule...Perhaps this being such a narrow focus is doing me good. I am not getting to caught up in others faster, longer programs but just looking at what I am doing getting to that day in June. That said the long Saturday run had some low and high moments all of which I handled well. I had a low point about 25 miles in but just put the head down to speak and moved through it for about 2miles after which things go better once more. Steady was how I felt on this run. The next days follow up recovery run of 9 miles had me thinking that only 2 or 3 weeks ago I was feeling exhausted to run and made every effort to get out the door. This week like last no problem...The legs feel it put the endurance is getting there again...Longer runs on Sunday to come that is good news I am getting ready.

Having a heck of a time getting my pacer('s) lined up...maybe living so close to the course and having friends in the race is a curse for this..I have asked four friends so far and all taken. Way Too Cool is this weekend and I am doing my WS volunteer work there so I hope to see some other folks out there that I might be able to ask pace me..gotta get this taken care of soon.

Tony

Why all the competitive juices when I have gotten so slow...?

2010-03-04T05:46:00.000-08:00

A quick note this morning...I am off for another busy day of WORK.....hmmm another 10hour day, constent multi tasking in terms of subject matter I am reviewing,discussing and presenting solutions...I love it..

But what jumped into my mind this morning is that even though I have slowed down and have no chance at placing in my age group at any race...unless they are really slow is I have taken time to review folks on the WS list to see how I compare to them and my scant race resume...Gad...! When I do race it has been when I have not been in my best shape and in other cases run via a heart rate monitor...I consider that I really have only been in good running shape with very solid training one year in the last 9...the rest just goofing off...run a marathon or trail race in crappy shape....
This year with help of my coach and that new found PANIC of being in Western States knowing that effort put in now will make a huge difference for me in June has my competitive juices flowing a bit...I have a private list of folks in WS that I want to beat at WS...Its great that they are in....many for their first time, a few folks that have run well at WS in previous years...But they have never raced against me when I am in shape and tuned both mental and physical...Funny...49 years old and just wanting to finish the race also has some targets on other runners backs to chase down...I love it...Will see what happens but I know I am putting in a solid effort these last three months and look forward to seeing the result...Now off to work!

Tony

A Dizzy Run...bound to happen. Training Picks Up,Good Recovery Run

2010-02-27T17:43:00.000-08:00

Sorry, No pictures this week...It was a rather hard week after such a good run on Ball Bearing last week.

The week began with some slower legs, a bit heavy but still out running following the weekday schedule. Things are ramping up now. Weather changed a lot of things during the week..a brief taste of spring turned back to late winter storms come midweek and then returning Friday night. To make things a bit tougher I came down with a bug that left me feeling dizzy and a tad nauseous on Thurday and Friday....I just could not get out and run feeling like that leaving me in a pickle for Saturday's long run...

I awoke feeling a little better Saturday morning a little before 5am..I was going to run the Way too Cool course..including the six mile start at Olmstead....Weather was wicked! At least at my house as I prepped..fired off early morning emails...But out the door I went on a dark stormy morining..As I got to the Cool Firestation I saw a group taking off on the course and Andrew Schooley just pulling in to the lot...I was heading toward Olmstead with a goal to see how I felt, take it slow and just plan for a long day...

That was the needed attidude! Olmstead loop to hwy 49 was a mess..I was running by alone and not feeling good and mind not focusing on running..I was pushing through deep new streams with runoff and just not enjoying it at all...I began to think then that this was a run to focus on building mental toughness..This was not easy at all and just get the time in since it pays dividends come June!

I crossed 49 and saw Twietmeyer heading back and moving easy..I was just picking points to hit as I ran down trails that had turned to steams. I made it to Browns Bar never seeing the streams moving so fast and so deep...it was a true adventure..I was slowly starting to feel better and got to ALT. Here I saw a runner coming back and he said that DeadTruck stream crossing was very deep....Dang. Lets consider to run that and ball bearing...I could run to 3rd gate and turn getting in my 30 for the day...I finally started to feel better! It only took four hours! I was still running slow but with more focus. I went up Goat and started talking to myself (thank god no one was around...) just words to encourage and that seemed to help I followed this pattern to 49 and to the Firestation..I wanted it to be long and slow and set 6hours for this 30 mile run..no not fast it was about time on feet, getting over being sick and being out there..So as my watch had died in the first hour or so...I pulled in got to my car and looked at my phone...clock time...6 hours and 1 minute....Not bad. My legs feel pretty good on Saturday night...Well after todays run..happy to be on the sofa watching tv and relaxing....Mileage goes higher next week....

Just returned from a very succesful 9 mile recovery run...not the fastest but that was not the point so a 39mile weekend...not bad. Legs feel tired but not trashed..A ray of hope for the last day of Feb! Bring on March...

Tony

A little inspiration in Winter....

2010-02-23T06:44:00.000-08:00

Enjoy Matt Hart's follow up to his trail video from last year...Lots of images from WS..climbs up Devils Thumb..a good view indeed....enjoy.

Tony

A Quad Ball Graduate-Wheres my diploma? Where is my friend?

2010-02-21T06:19:00.000-08:00

Rena and Me...Just starting loop 2---

Quad Ball Profile---it is missing about 1mile since I had operator error...

I have some good news...I am finally getting some running legs that make me feel good about my training! With plan moving into its 3rd month and the mileage is building I am feeling better each weekend on the long runs. Granted I have some tired legs the next day but they snap back soon. That is a good sign. I will admit to enjoying seeing a day off on the schedule but those are now once a week versus two early on in the calendar.
With that said...The week began with a tired leg run on Sunday that had me running short. I made that up on the day off with a fast Stagecoach Loop on Monday that had me suprised at how it felt easy and in control. The rest of the running week was kinda like that...Saturday was a big day on the Western States Trail with the first organized run sponsored by Greg and the WS Crew...It is the annual 20mile run from GreenGate to the finish...they had 200 runners on the course. It was short for me so I got Rena to run Ball Bearing Repeats.....This is a tough course with speed and climbing...John Nichols invented the term QuadBall for 4 laps..so that is what we set out to do. It was a very good day for me...A big improvement over my TriBall effort in January. We screamed some sections and moved hard up Ball Bearing...Our loop times where...
1:24, 1:21, 1:19 and 1:23. Folks can run this faster but it was so good for me...It left me tired but still energy in the tank. During the second lap we got the train of runners on the training run and they all seemed happy. Tim Twietmeyer had a posse of WS newbies swarming around him as he made the turn from 3rd gate up to ALT...He did not mind in the least and I would guess a thrill for many running next to him on the trails.

Today I feel good about the training...but on a bummer note..My valentine has gone MIA...It is important to me that she be around to listen in on these moments that are hard but joyous..for my own reasons it is important that she be involved even from a distance. I guess I want her to be proud of me..like saying I can go the distance.but when she goes MIA it casts doubt. Regardless of this my training moves forward. Will she be at the finish in June? ..time will tell but I can't stop and wait...Till next week...tony

Check that Junk Mail, Run in the Sun

2010-02-14T05:24:00.000-08:00

Lets cut to the chase and start with...THE SUN IS OUT! After weeks of winter storms, We had our first real day of sun, warmth and even some flowers and trees are starting to bloom!
This makes such a difference in getting out.

Back to the title...Like many we receive a ton of junk paper mail these days...What ever happened to getting a nice letter or card in the mail...Those are far and few between but a few friends still send notes and cards..It is nice. Anyway...As I have come to do...see the mail..don't recognize the sender (for credit cards, refiance the house, etc) I just rip it up and throw it away. I picked up my mail and was starting to do the usual on Tuesday when I saw an envelope it...looked like junk mail...I opened it I rarely do...To my suprise it was from my bank that is holding my mortage on my house (btw..anyone want to buy it for what I purchased it at?) anyway..it was a check for nearly $800 for my impound account for taxes! Well it is not nice to get that check knowing that my home value has reduced so but its still a nice suprise considering I was about to throw it out...!

The other cool thing this week aside from running was a high school classmate is the commander of the last scheduled space shuttle that took off this week..now that is pretty cool....not many of those in this world and I went to school with him. Granted I can't recall him well but still neat.

On to running and life in general. I had a very nice week of running with some increased mileage from the coach leading to a long run Saturday. All my midweek runs this week took place at the Overlook with me running down to the river and the American River Trail. The shortest run was time wise...1:23 and the longest a tad over 5hours. I am getting some of my endurance back since I noticed the 1:23 felt very short in terms of time and post run feeling. It was fast and enjoyable. The AR trail drops down from the Overlook to the river for 3.1miles and then hits some sweet single track from there. This creates a nice out and back with the climb good training for race day. Saturday I ran long with Rena, Karyn Hoffman and one other person...We took off early to run to Sterling Point and Back...26miles. I did make a rookie error and not stay at my pace for the first half and had some very fast split times as I chased Karyn...We had a long break as folks loaded up with water at Sterling and the return. This long break of 5minutes plus got my legs tight..they never really came back....The return was not too comfortable but the day was nice I was thinking that my last two weekend runs where the same time a little shorter and tried to compare the effort on a flattish course versus the climbing on the cool course. I am thinking that my diet needs a major tweak since I still talk about not eating enough during the week leaving me a bit tired during the long run...better get that dialed in soon.
Valentines Day...have a good one...Tony

First Saturday in February-Mud on those Trails

2010-02-08T05:14:00.001-08:00

Week 1-February, the California is caught in the el nino weather pattern bringing the continued much needed rain and snow in the Sierras. SoCal is getting soaked as well with mudslides in many burn areas. That said it seems the weather likes to arrive with its higher rain totals towards the end of the week and those scheduled long runs...Perhaps I need to move these to the midweek so I can run on less muddy trails!!!!

The week of business travel and cancelled weekend in LA left me with lower quality miles. Having Western States on the horizon leaves me each day with a sense of urgency to be prepared and do my part. The date is in stone and my goal is to make each day count. Business travel involves endless time in airports, meeting with clients and listening, endless opportunities to miss a workout by following group dynamics with endless drinks and dinners. I was grateful to make time early and late in the evening to get something in....

Altered plans led me back in nocal on Saturday. It was rather dark and pounding rain as I woke early to meet some folks in Cool. I knew that it would be hard out on the trail but the run had to go on as scheduled. Once at Cool I was greeted by Kate and Rob Evens...they where helping Fleet Feet Roseville with some ultra training group. This brought a ton of folks to the trailhead on a wet and soggy day....My group arrived shortly after including my coach and off we went on the trail..The pace was great as we headed to Browns Bar. I dropped back about 30 seconds as we started our climb. My legs this week felt ok and pace a bit faster. On the way to Alt we began to see different packs of runners heading back towards Cool. Lots of newbies, many other friends as well all on the trails...I looked forward to when the trail would be quite once more...

The overall trail conditions where very muddy, slick, and streams moving fast. I was moving faster but the hips where getting tight as the day wore on..Goat Hill to HWY 49 was hard on me..it has gotten rutted so that it slows me down when I get tight...I did finish the day 11minutes faster than last week so that was good. A short run Sunday has me back on schedule for training.

Thinking of next weekend already...but first need to have a solid work week of training...be it in the rain again...

1 month down-5 to go

2010-02-01T06:09:00.001-08:00

The Legs are tired after running Cool....

Whew...The first month of training for Western States is over. It was a base building month with volume being low and maximize quality. That said I heard comments that my mileage was low but in reality it was not too far behind those naysayers. I still have the need to really monitor my early and mid week runs. For me I can get so caught up in work that can limit my time on feet. January there was only one day that work got in the way. So I was happy about that.

Last week was kinda tiring for me. I have been cutting back food and trying to cut a few of those pounds. I want to get back down to 144 which is a good running weight for me. I have 7 pounds to go and it seems to be all in that dreaded mid section...John Nichols says I should just run every event with my shirt off and that will shame me to lose it fast :) After Pacifica I did a 3 mile recovery run on Sunday and then the gym. I did not feel too bad, nor did my Tuesday speed workout. But come the middle of the week and my Stagecoach loop my legs where tired they did not respond well and my time felt long..In reality it was not too bad and not my slowest Stagecoach by far so maybe preception had something to do with that...Saturday I ran the Cool Course..For those wondering this is the course for the Way Too Cool 50k. Many folks love running WTC..it is just too crowded for me and I am volunteering again at the event. Back to Cool..

I met up with Andrew,Kim and 3 others to run the last 25 of the WTC course it was a bit cool at the start but not bad. Mud was the theme of the day and a little slick in spots but nothing serious. Streams I just went right through them, no rock hopping. As we took off I stayed tucked in behind Drew and Kim as they lead it down to 49 crossing. I am soooo slow on any real technical downhill so they picked it up a bit. I caught em as we waited at 49 for the others and headed to Quarry Road....I let em go as they where moving fast. I stayed back about 30seconds and could here them chirping away. That was the last I saw them and the others in the group. I spent the rest of the day trying to bridge up to Drew and Kim. I gave up as I hit the top of Browns Bar. I saw a large group from Auburn Running heading up to Goat...I would be there later but some work to do first. I had not really felt good all day running the legs just plain tight. I got into a slow steady pace and just focused on hydrating and eating correctly since I was going slow...might as well make sure I have some fuel. As I approached 3rd Gate I saw the pile of food and drink that the Nichols quad ball group had as they were doing multiple climbs up Ball Bearing. I had hoped to seem them but never a sight today...Oh well.

I made it down dead truck carefully and had a real good climb up Ball Bearing and was happy with that. As I got to ALT I ran into a group that had left Cool Firestation 45minutes before me that where running the same route..So I caught them..That was nice but I did not want to run with them the rest of the day..The wheels where about to come off. I just lost it from ALT to Browns..a little less than 1hour to go those 5miles..it was pathetic...But time on feet. I decided climbing up to Goat that the rest of the run and final 5 would be reviewing my attitude, how times can be tough and just NEVER STOP. That is going to be my phrase in my head come race day when things get hard. There will be lows that will want to make me stop but I need to review that hard times will pass and followed by some good.

I finished with those thoughts and time seemed to go by pretty fast out there. Overall I was tired but that was fine..it was time on feet. The month has ended. My February schedule in hand. Mileage really starts to ramp up. I have a business trip all week. Trying to find some way to actually go out on a date with my friend but schedules, maybe timing are throwing it off the rails. This has happened before with us... it is disappointing but not the end of the world..She is just missing out on all this fun...Till next week....

Pacifica 30k a Great Training Run!

2010-01-24T07:09:00.001-08:00

Saturday was a very interesting day. As some may be aware it was a very stormy week in all of California with downpours, snow in the sierras and high damaging winds. I had Pacifica on the schedule to run the first 50k of the year. Early on in January I had debated 50k on this course and talked with my coach about downgrading to the 30k if I would do that I would have to run this race smart and tactical versus just finish the 50k. All that went out the door during the week with the storms..I was not at all excited about driving to Pacifica early on Saturday morning and run in sloppy conditions. So on Friday afternoon I had planned on bailing and run Foresthill with some folks...As I prepared Friday evening for Foresthill I saw some images from a friend that lives up there...A LOT OF SNOW! I went to bed by 9pm thinking I was gonna be in the snow...I woke up about 1am and took another look at the snow photo and decided at 1am Saturday morning to run Pacifica!!! What a flopper I am!..I reset the alarm for 3am and poof..off I go at 4:30am to Pacifica..

Weather on the way down was wicked with downpours and some pretty serious accidents on 80...As soon as I turned off onto hwy 1 to Pacifica POOF..no more rain! Dry roads..Still dark..no idea what i was getting myself into...
Pacifica trail race is a series of races ranging from 9k to 50k with 400 signed up for all the events. the longer races 21k,30k and 50k started with a long climb and then turn around head back down. This was some single track and fire road..This caused some serious traffic jams on the way up...I was in the company of some local runners..Kim Kortz, Jeff Barbier,Barb Ash, Greg Holmes,Charlie Jones and Gus(gotta get your last name and Darnelle Little. Me,Kim,Jeff, Darnelle 30k..barb,charlie,greg,gus 50k..As we climbed and descended we all had a chance to talk a bit,take in some stunning views...I had settled into some mid to back of the pack on this climb..I wanted to run better on the subsequent two laps to come. That said I witnessed in the this pack of runners some real rookie errors on the steep narrow rocky downhill with folks who have no need to pass on the downhill thinking they are going to win some age group awards when they are SOOO far back and causing the rest of us to be pushed aside..I will say this revenge was sweet..all these foolish runners I would pass on the remaining two loops!!!

I had an nice talk with some folks heading to the aid station at about 7miles and for the first time we hit the course where we would have to do two 5.5mile loops. Here I started to settle into a great tactical race....One this loop trail..either you where climbing or going downhill. The uphills not too steep. I managed my energy well with slow run and power walks on the these sections. I was passing a lot of folks now and opening gaps when I hit the two major dowhills on this loop. I felt great..Lap 1 was in 1:08 not fast but in control..I could not wait for lap 2...I followed the same plan for lap 2 run, powerwalk..here I passed more runners even with the powerwalk..I was feeling in control..on the last downhill it was slicker than the first..I was in a out of control downhill run but loving it! I passed some female hikers heading up as I was screaming down and they only could gasp and say.."oh my god..your crazy" I loved it! I got to the final turns leading to the finish and caught a train of runners..I gently told em to let me go pass on this I was using gravity to move me through. I hit the finish in a not spectacular time but felt very good..not tired, blown out at all but GOOD...A smart run...
Quads are a bit tired today..will head out for a run later...I made the right decision Pacifica was the bomb.

TRIBALL a good hurt

2010-01-17T05:46:00.000-08:00

The 3 loop Profile of Ball Bearing starting from 3rdgate:

The TRIBALL and QuadBall Group in the photo: John, Charlie,Karalee,Gus,Rena,Andrew and me..taking photo Kim

With the third Saturday in January it was pretty appropriate I guess to do something three times..Maybe it will bring me some luck! I sure hope so! But really luck is what you set your mind to doing and set out to make it happen...Saturdays run had all those elements.

No trip on the horizon on Saturday to SoCal so I had all the time in the world..granted I would have hopped a late night flight in a heart beat but I would have been tired...On with the running diary. John Nichols and Charlie Jones have put into their annual WS training multiple laps going up Ball Bearing hill (which is part of the Cool Course). I had never taken part in this. Lets review a little bit about the course:

1)From Third Gate about .8mile down to a drop point where we you can have a aid station of sorts. From here Each lap is about 6.7miles.
2)From Third Gate gentle running as one heads to Dead Truck and the technical downhill to a strong flowing creek.
3)From the creek a nice runnable stretch with various names..I call it the waterfall trail which leads to Ball Bearing.
4)Ball Bearing to Alt Junction then up the WS trail and great crusing section to our starting point....Repeat as many times as you want!

That in mind I have run this during WTC but never multiple times. I forgot how nice this is a perfect loop course for some serious workouts. As we set out I was leery with staying so close to Nichols,Drew Schooley, Kim and Karalee. I wanted to see how the legs felt on the first lap. With cool temps and overcast skies off we went.
My legs at the start did not feel so good even though the group was moving slow...As we did a slow steady climb to the base of Deadtruck I stopped, did a shot of asthma meds and seperated from the group for the time being. That said I scrambled down Dead Truck which has a few technical steep sections down to the river. Here I caught the group crossing let em go as they made their way to Ball Bearing Intersection. I was starting to feel better on this cruising section and kept the lead group in site but did not want to catch at the time. Ball Bearing 1 climb was steady but tight achilles but it did not feel overall hurtful yet.....The lead group was now cruising on the climb from ALT juntion to WS I saw them on climbing above on the switch backs and settled into a power walk..they where about 1 or 2minutes ahead at this point..As we crested and got on the cruise section for the final 2miles to our aid station..I gradually pulled em in and settled for the last 1 mile to the finish for lap 1--time was 1:22.

Rena was not feeling well and being my ride back to Cool I had to see get another ride..I wanted to run those 3 laps! Drew said he would while Kim and Karalee where on for 3 plus more miles...We took off for lap 2--I took the lead but let the group pass at Dead Truck during the descent...Nichols and Drew where screaming down the hill! So where Kim and Karalee, Me and Charlie..a bit slower but I let Charlie take the lead..Legs feeling good now as we get to Ball Bearing..Charlie and I talked it up a bit going up to Alt all the while we could here drew chatting it up somewhere in the distance. Again I walked up the hill from ALT and let charlie make some time in front of me..much like the past I reeled him in with a mile or so to go to end our second lap...
Lap 2 Time---1:23. Legs felt good lets get 3 underway!

Drew said he had to bail after 2 to go somewhere and if I wanted to go we better get a move on..Here I felt..I really need to finish what I started today no matter what..So I asked Kim for a ride even though they would finish after me I was willing to wait awhile...This was a good mindset for me...I could have bailed at 1 lap, 2laps but I did not want to break my own promise to myself..This was Western States Training not some goof around..Every Day counts! So with that we bid Drew farewell and off we went for Lap 3...

Lap 3 was slow for me from the start..I wanted alone time and let everyone go. I could tell I was getting tired with how bad my downhill section on Deadtruck was..but on any flats I was moving well and pushing the legs..Climbing Ball Bearing for the 3rd time was HARD...I took a few short breaks..this was training..and kept the head down and moving to ALT..I knew once I climbed alt I would be clear and running free..Which I did. I was running steady to finish lap three...seeing Nichols and Charlie getting ready for lap 4..I was happy finishing 3 when I had so many chances to bail! Lap 3 slower but that was fine. Legs feel tired this morning..a tough workout. There where other options that day to run long even a AR training run..but really this was perfect..tough with some runnable sections and mental toughness..perfect!
Lap 3-Time 1:27

That said things are going well...This is controlled training, not some haphazard plan it will get me to the line strong! I need to work on the socal plans and make those reality as well. A wet and wild week ahead..oh and I turn 49! Gad!

Tony

No Light...No Problem...Stagecoach in the Dark

2010-01-15T05:48:00.001-08:00

This has been one of those weeks...A week where things have not turned out as planned and adaption has been the rule of the game so far. The good side of things is I have stuck to the plan regardless of some things that occurred.

Northern California has been in the fog for the last 10 days or so and recently some pretty heavy downpours. We really need this but getting in sun keeps me in a good mood. After the Nichols run I started to review the upcoming week and training schedule. There where going to be some issues between work and getting in the time to run. I actually handled this pretty well. I would hold to working as late as possible and then cut off the meeting or conference call and head out the door. I had been doing more road running and building speed according to the workouts. The trails where calling by middle of the week so I did my speed work there and that helped cheer me up. When the sun finally did come out on Wed...I had a cross train and weight session scheduled...jeeez but I went and did that. Come Thursday I had a hectic work day with meetings in Sacramento ..I left the last meeting and headed out the door for Auburn to run the Stagecoach Loop..

I got to the Overlook about 5pm and bolted out to the trail..grabbed my bottle and flashlight and ran down the trail....Still some light and I felt I could get to the 49bridge before total darkness...As I crested near Robie..and heading down WS and the black hole it got dark..I looked to my trusty flashlight...DANG! DEAD Batteries! I was running well,running hard and felt no way would I turn back then...I would just be careful as it got DARK! I am not too skiddish about running alone on trails I just did not want to fall...I ran hard to nohands and sprinted across 49bridge lucky no car traffic at the time..I got to the base of stagecoach where it was really dark..Pace slowed to a slow shuffle..even though I know this trail like the back of my hand it was still hard in total darkness..this is a wide old stagecoach road but ruts and rocks abound so slow run..The plus side to this is the pace was so slow I never went too high in the heart rate and it was really comfortable from that standpoint...But slow. I finally made it to Foresthill Road and was careful running back to the overlook..I enjoyed it though..WHY? Because it was a challenge to finish this in the dark..not smart but a bit more difficult and there where no other folks out on the trail the whole time..I love running in solitiude like that.

So the week and mileage is where it is supposed to be I keep asking myself if I should be doing more but this is January not March or April! No travel to LA so I will be running part of the Quad Ball with Nichols and others...Gotta be flexible and go with the flow...

First Full Week of Training--end with the Nichols Run

2010-01-10T07:39:00.000-08:00

Looks like I am hooking up my training bra (oh its my camelback!) getting ready to go up browns bar...

Saturday was the annual John Nichols Birthday Run..It always has the option of running a total of 40miles or something less. Some years it has been really cold..LIKE 18degrees at the start (yes it was that cold one year....Yesterday was mid forties at 7am with fog..seems we can't get above the cloud bank right now...Anyway we had the largest turnout ever with about 30 runners pulling in to Placer High School to run the WS course.

Fast and long group consisted of Nichols, Victor Ballestoros, Erik Skaden, Mark Lantz and Rob Evens...Others going the full distance included Charlie Jones, Grant and Leslie Carboni...I was in the short group it was on my schedule to run 22 and this resulted in lots of discussion and some teasing on not running longer...All part of the plan it will get tougher as we progress...

Yesterdays run on the WS Trail had us start near the track and head out on the WS course in the opposite direction then heading back..So with 30 runners off we went into the fog on our way to Robie Point..By the time we got to Robie I was overheated and pulled off the gloves and vest, Heading down the black hole was slick with mud and tough moving through at any real speed..No time to improve downhill technical running form on this section...We had a large train of folks with Chuck and Trish Godfredson, Rena Schumann, Kate Evens and others lite and chatty till we got to no hands bridge....From No hands and the start of the climb I wanted to just keep it steady and slow and not bust my lungs running the whole section to Cool since its early in the run...So I jumped in with Leslie, Trish, Chuck, and Derek Schemanski and ran and power walked to the top..Derek and I talked about not blowing out the heart rate so early in the year and running smart on these training runs. I have in the past run with Rena, Mark and others and kept up well early in the multi hour runs only to lose it later on the return....Today was not about how fast I went but how smart I ran on this training run.

We got to Cool and more cool and fog...At HWY 49 was the nichols aid station a cooler filled to the gills with food and drink...way cool. We headed off down Quarry trail and found some serious blowdowns that stop you in your tracks...We also saw Tim Twietmeyer running up qt with some folks..they looked fresh and running easy..oh to be such a good runner!
Life got easy once we hit Quarry Road and a easy run on the way to Browns which was about 9.5miles with the climb to the top that would be 10. Once there a few turned back to finish with 20 and I continued on for add on mile to get 11 and my return being 22...From here I ran alone the rest of the way...I was taking observations on how I felt compared to last years run (like I did on New Years Day) fitness is far ahead at this time as compared to last year and I ran well to HWY 49 a litle tired climbing quarry trail and a steady controled downhill from 49 to NoHands..keep the quads alive!
Running from Nohands to Placer High always seems long on the stretch climbing up the black hole..just a mentally tough section with gentle uphill grade and tired legs make it a long time..Victor Ballasteros blew by me (he turned at ALT and ran 30) he was running easy..I was tired but that was fine.

A good day and time on feet for the 22miles..with the new year mileage total is 67miles...it will increase with each week and get a bit faster. Next week I have some planning to do and see my friend in Socal can get together at her new place and get in a long run somewhere on the trails down there that will be nice...Looking forward to seeing her and some sunshine (I hope!). Oh these little complications may seem stressful but they sure are fun...

Day 1-New Years Day-Western States Training

2010-01-02T05:16:00.001-08:00

Note: all photos in today's blog courtesy of John Blue and Trish Godfredson

SUN ARISES as Runners leave Drivers Flat to head towards CalStreet---

Jan 1 2010 starts early, I arrived about 6am to help do any set up and corral cars to parking spots and get a prime one for me...Dark and misty was the overall description as runners started flowing in by 6:30. Peter Defty and his group had the pop ups and we got those up early since it looked like ran for the breakfast after....It was fun setting things up and waiting for friends to shuttle and start. Mark,Rena,Charley,Rob and Kate made it up to Foresthill by 7:30 and where greeted by many other runners that decided to park there and save the 10 buck park fee at Drivers...Here we saw some old timers-Wayne Miles, Bill Finkbeiner and newbies. No time to waste as we hit the trail...

There was a conga line for the first mile down and it was fun...Mark,Rob leading Kate wondering why Rob was going so fast and she thought he was going to just run her pace today...Peter Korn and a friend of his,me,Rena and some new folks....moving fast and easy. I knew better after the first 15minutes and jumped out of the line to settle it down...My legs felt so good as Rena and I crossed the first stream then the second stream...Two women where about 50 yards ahead and I decided to just draft on them as I cruised into Cal1 aid station. This year I did not stop and just kept on going keeping my distance and enjoying the run. Rena had dropped off a bit but I knew she would catch up as we started some uphill towards Cal2 and 8miles in.
Like clock work Rena caught up and we ran down impail trail to Cal2 in a very typical 1:31. We do this all the time..this year however I noticed a change..I felt really comfortable...hmmm maybe I am actually getting into some real running shape...

Rena and I then had a little break at Cal2 with Karyn Hoffman and her pacer from last year...It was funny we had not seen any runners hanging out so we must have been in the middle between the fast and early runners and the folks that started later..But it was nice to be out temps still cool but really perfect for a first training run....We chatted it up down Cal2 and upto Cal3...That climb normally has me totally gassed..but a change this year..I was talking and moving well on the climb..proof 2--I must be getting better! We hit cal3 in 2:00hrs and started to smell the barn...well a long way to go...During this stretch we reviewed some Rena's running and how she felt on these sections during last years WS...she had some dark moments but just kept moving through...

Energy was fantastic..I kept wondering when the legs would give and I would hit that slow dreaded non power walk but nope! Not in 2010..We cruised into Rucky Chucky and Rena peeled off to the bathroom...she said she would try and catch me..I was thinking..dang I have never beat her to the top and finish at Drivers Flat maybe today...So I hit the 2.4mile climb up at 2:55 and thought I better get to the top by 3:30...That in mind it was a hard power walk and short runs on the flats the first mile up..that is the hardest..No Rena yet and no other runners. Years past and other training runs I often get passed here...so far no runners just me. I was moving well, I heard my cell go off (it was in my pack...) telling me I had a text message..I knew it was from my friend on the centtral coast :)...I wanted to stop and respond but in the middle of a good climb with 1mile to go I wanted to finish well...So I started a slow shuffle to the top...always thinking "where is Rena"...I got to the gate and hit my watch..3:26 made it to the top feeling very good. It turned out Rena was about 3minutes back..I told her she eased up on me today...But it was a really a good run.

At the finish we had a visitor..some runners in the front noticed a sick Bald Eagle at Sandy Bottoms and scooped up this BIG bird and shuttled, ran it up to the top of Drivers to get it to a vet to rescue..It was pretty wild that this guy in the picture carried the eagle a few miles..No word on if the bird will recover...

I will end this lengthy blog with some photos of the finish..This morning off to Cool and a 9mile recovery run on the Olmstead loop..meet with my coach and get into shape....Tony

New Years Day Run and other thoughts

2009-12-29T05:59:00.000-08:00

My favorite annual celebration is only a few days away...No not New Years eve but New Years Day run on the Calstreet loop. I really do not know the origins of this annual "unorganized" run but I have been there since 2001. I have battled rain, a foot of snow in Foresthill, very high stream crossing and slugging it through Sandy Bottom to run this with friends..I suspect a lot of newbies to be there this day where we run 18miles from Foresthill to Drivers Flat Staging area. It is just such a thrill to wake up early new years day...with a clear head and thoughts that the day will be fun that keeps me going back year in and year out. Breakfast to be served after and talk of what everyones running plans for the coming year will be discussed. Oh such joy!
Only one downer the person I would like to usher in the new year is gonna be on the central coast and not able kick my butt out of bed and say..."Go run..I am heading back to sleep". As I write this I am thinking...Gad you really are crazy! It is only one day of running but a very important watermark day and new years eve will take a back seat. Six months from now I want her seeing me finish the race of my life. So the eye on the prize is Finish strong Western States with my friend greeting me with a smile and hug as I cross the line (that is if she can hug a pretty dirty, sweaty me)...

Other than that I am excited. Waiting to see what my January training will look like and talk to my coach. Even though I have Pacifica on the calendar for January 23 I need to review how this fits in the training. My December mileage has been what I consider low but this light month has helped build some speed and get the legs and mind ready for the months to come.

New Years Day a coming countdown to offiical training..

2009-12-26T13:37:00.000-08:00

One holiday down and one more to go..Then the official start of Western States 2010 training cycle begins. A friend will be coaching me through this and just getting her to take me on as a client in December has helped already. I have known her for years since I first came to California. Funny I started running with her in 2000 and could not figure out why her and her husband kept my lungs and legs busting as I tried to keep up with them...Well it turned out she was/is a very good runner in Sacramento area, run WS well in the 90's and now focus's on coaching cross country, and select clients in the area. That said she had me focus the month of December on a few things...
1)Take down the mileage and focus on buiding some leg speed on short 6 mile runs during the week.

2)Go to gym and focus on light weight and core build up

3)Enjoy December....January will start the ramp up...

With this I really started thinking about each day and make the most of it even as I travelled on business. So I end December being in what I consider my best overall shape for this time of year in a long time...No real injuries...

I have also been spending some time reading blogs on individuals experiences at Western States in 2009. I want to read more about what images people had about Western States from those that do not live in the area and train in different conditions. Granted there are the elite but I wanted to see the average runner coming in. Some of my observations:

1)Why does every runner coming into WS say that they will break 24hrs? This seems to be some kind of disease for the average runner on their first attempt at WS. Reality in the statistics is that only about 20% of all runners that finish come in under 24 hours. So right from the start many of these bloggers set themeselves up for FAILURE!

2)Expecations..One runner that finished in 28hrs had written for months that on that day she was finishing in 22hours..This from a runner that had never run 100. The training in her blog never reflected that it was something in her grasp. Be real in what is possible. For a first time runner that has never covered the distance...Consider finishing to be the goal and everything else past that is bonus. Granted there are exceptions but again...20% or less that finish get a silver buckle.

3)Training must be solid: I read many a blog where the weekly mileage, downhill and heat trainng where so low that these runners really did suffer out there by not being prepared. They finished but where not ready at all for what the course brings...HEAT and downhill.

4)Drop Bag items, food and crew review...Again I saw errors in reading that lack of time spent really reviewing these items leading up to race day...When the day hit there seemed to be a lot of failure here.

I may appear critical of these runners but Western States is still a 100mile race...Once the day starts you better be ready. For many of us this can be a one time shot. So listen, read, ask questions, have some input with a group of folks that have been on the course, have finished the race to give you honest assessment on what it takes to finish the race..have a coach that can get you to the line injury free and ready. After that anything can happen that day...I have a lot of friends that where ready, had trained, but something happend that made them dnf...I know that can happen I just want a chance to toe the line healthy and ready.

Week after Lottery--Planning begins

2009-12-12T12:30:00.000-08:00

Running on the Dipsea Course--A stunning view

One week after the lottery and seeing the final names begin to appear on the participant list for 2010. A few more friends have gotten in and the final aid stations selections will yield a few more. The one benefit for living local is knowing many of the captians that staff the aid stations on the course. These offer up one spot each year for doing all that work. So friends that don't get selected begin seeing who has an aid station slot available.

For me I meet with my coach for the first time and set up a December training schedule. Not a lot of heavy running but some core work at the gym and short runs focused on easy with strides on flat sections. It feels good knowing that this is only 6 months off..its REAL. So I want to make the most of each day. The temptation is just listening to other friends running schedules and not following my plan. One friend asked about running 30miles on Saturday..sounds good but I want to follow a routine that will get me to the line healthy and ready.

I have not selected my crew or pacers yet though I have set out some feelers for crew. I don't expect that to be complete till spring. I dropped the dollars for lodging in Squaw and a hotel near the track. Even though I live 10miles from the finish having that room so close will be important. Next up for me is trying to figure out some of the items I need to think to order..ie shoes, inserts, shirts with sponsor names from Auburn Running and Mosters of Massage, headlamps and hand held flashights. Get in my 8 hours of trail or volunteer work...see if I want to spend extra time up near squaw to acclimate for altitude...check on work schedule..oh yea...gotta work during this training..All fun.

See you all on the trails..Tony

Lottery Weekend and the debates rage on...

2009-12-07T04:32:00.000-08:00

Anyone on the planet that has run an ultra seems to have been tuned in online for the past weekends Western States Lottery. 270 names drawn from the new electronic GUbucket, folks watching online and about 200 in attendance in the Placer High Cafeteria. Having already been on the invite list for months I too got caught up in reading as many folks opinions and thoughts on the event via blogs and friends posts on Facebook. It was fun seeing all the excitement build there where good and bad emotions discussed on these blogs.

Being from the area and running, enjoying the trails it is sooooo easy to see it as your own..After all I did work at Canyonlands National Park Island in the Sky District..385,000 acres and often it was me and 5 other souls playing in the park...do we want to share or let others in..I often enjoyed showing the park but also loved closing the gate and having it just be MINE...ok a selfish act but the silence and beauty are such that I did not want it spoiled. So I can understand many opions seeing that Western States needs to be changed to remain viable to its own legend it has built over the years. No matter what I did however would stop people from discovering this area and today its still remote, still beautiful but visited by a new generatation of adventure seekers all wanting to experience what I had...Can the same be said for Western States? I would say yes. I was not part of the original group and I get to see Gordy Ansleigh, talk to Tim Twietmeyer, Ann Trason all legends of the trail..Each has there own view on the race, the trail, the experience. Perhaps my opinion about the race is best as a visual I saw last year at Western States 2009....I was pacing friend Rena Schumann coming in to finish her
9th Western States and go for the 1000mile buckle in 2010. As we where making our final climb up the "Black Hole" to Robie Point...Running down and Smiling was Tim Twietmeyer..(yea that is right 25 time sub 24hour finisher)He was running down offering encouragement to those runners getting close to the 30hr cutoff at Nohands..He wanted those runners who had been out there long after the elites had finished, had been out all night and now into the middle of the second day to finish the race and get their buckle..Later at the finish hugging these same runners..those that did not WIN the race but finished the race where just as important as the sub 24silver buckle group..He simply wanted to show he cared for those folks, the trails and the event itself...For that I see no point to change the event, keep it as it is, enjoy the course, the training, the day.

It was really disappoining to not see all of my friends get drawn but it has become a bigger race that dreams are made of...Good Luck to all that got picked and I will see you at the line June 26,2010.
Tony

Official Entry in for WS 2010..Now time to Train

2009-11-16T05:47:00.000-08:00

A short post...better running this last week. Volume still low but quality on Cal to Cal2 and back a good sign. Up Next Quad Dipsea...just a slooow run and survive the steps.

Official Spot for Western States is now in and it left me nervous and excited. Other races I have paid for for 2010 Pacifica 50k in Jan, AR50 in April, In lottery for Miwok....

Have a fun week.

Training for Quad Dipsea..do the double

2009-11-08T06:36:00.001-08:00

Stinson Beach below, big waves and the turnaround for the double dipsea

Check out the dork compression sleeves: a group photo at Panorama Aid Station

Double Dispsea Profile

I went out to Mill Valley Yesterday to run on the Dipsea Course for the very first time. The run was to be out and back ie..Double Dipsea(Mill Valley to Stinson Beach and back). The course is famous for the stairs at the start which total over 600 right at the start. I was lucky to run into a group that was taking off on their training run on the course so I would not get lost through the complicated first mile as it winds up Mill Valley. Right off the bat we started running up the stairs, no warm up just run. This had my heart rate going from 65 to 177 in a matter of it felt seconds. I had no time to slow down, just look down and put one foot in front of the other, don't fall and don't get dropped so early.
The stairs are slick uneven etc..as we snaked up a series of three sets of stairs, with short respits on road surface. This lasted about a half mile till we finally got to some sort of trail. From their we had a brief rest as we ran down and finally began single track and fireroad climbing for 4.5miles this was pretty gentle but and runnable but I was breathing hard. Along the way we hit some exposed sections where the ocean was in full view, there where huge waves of 15 feet swelling up today..the group said we would need to go to the beach and see these large rollers before we turned back. About the time we hit one of the aid station locations at Panorama Karalee Morris came flying by on her training run.
This was pretty nice really but different than running on the WS course.

shortly past Panorama we made our last climb which markes on the course a downhill to Stinson for the most part. The quads where already feeling this downhill it would be slow heading back. This was about 7miles as we hit the beach with the return trip about ready to begin. I decided to drop back and see what its like to run on my own to Mill Valley, see if I can make the right turns etc...It was tough and it was good to be on this course to see how you feel on the way back..after all come race day we have to go back to Mill Valley, head down those stairs and then return back up and do it all again. I had planned about 3hours to be out there and that is what it turned out being. I was tired but not exhausted which was good but at Quad this will be hard. I am guessing with the crowds the start will be really slow and walking up the stairs etc..Slow going out and back will be the motto...Looking forward to the return to Mill Valley a reall neat town for sure.

Tony

Getting Ready for Dipsea, an early wake up call and all those WS stats..

2009-10-29T06:05:00.000-07:00

During these last few weeks I have had some busy days at work followed by a lot of good runs during the weekend. Why can't everyday be like Saturday or Sunday with no work pressure just get out and run for hours. Hmm..too bad my retirement money tanked last year like so many..

Weekdays in the fall have been mixed with lots of work often starting by 6am and getting calls throughout the day. During that time if I am at home I can snag some time out to run Stagecoach or head over to the gym for an hour(that is all I can really handle there..). I had a friend from Seattle stop by one day last week for a run on the trails. I forgot how slow I have gotten over the last two years since he is on the 3hr marathon kick...We went out to run in Auburn and the trails..He loved it and I took him on Down Stagecoach up K2 and back down from Cool and back. This 9mile run with steep climbs on K2 where easy for him..me and my ultra set mind took it slower up K2. We each have different goals but this was a training run..why did I stay behind him and not push so hard?

That was a wakeup call of sorts..I am not in bad shape at all for this time of season and pushing towards Quad Dipsea in November. It had me realize I need to squeeze any type of workout in during the work week in order to get better. So it was good I experienced this ego momement climbing up K2.

As described I am working towards doing Quad Dipsea in late November. I have been running a lot up StageCoach, K2 etc and make these longer time out on the trails.

Here is a 13mile training run profile with me starting at the top of Stagecoach and climbing K2 twice and running down WS as a loop then finish with running up Stagecoach.

I did this last Saturday..I would have done three loops but I needed to be somewhere in Tahoe that afternoon..Funny I was tired and had my last climb up to my car at Stagecoach...just at the base there was a girls cross country team getting ready to run up stagecoach..I thought dang..I don't want to run that hard and race these girls (even though I had been out for two hours) I did not want to get chicked...
So I had to run as fast as I could to the top..tired but a good week of running indeed.

Be sure to check out the latest stats on the Western States sign up on Ultra Sign Up..lots of info on who is invited to run, where the runner applicants came from and their races used to qualify..

First Fall Storms, Good running and WS Lottery

2009-10-13T06:34:00.000-07:00

Finally with these past two weekends temps have broken and today we have our first "winter" storms of the season hitting today. Snow Levels will be high but at least with the rain the trails will pack down a bit. It has been very nice recovering from SNER with the last four long runs comprising of long steady ascents up the WS trail to Cool and then finish it off later in the run with the climb up Stagecoach. The quads are getting stronger, heart rate lower but the pace remains slow. No worries. Some track workouts and occasional tempo will take care of that.
These long recovery runs have only lasted 3hours max and then follow that up the next morning with a 1.5 hour run. Not really long time on trails but that is going to increase this weekend with a 4hr run I am planning from Cal Street to Cal3 and back..this will give me long descents and long climbs..perfect for Quad Dipsea.

With the Western States Lottery open on till the 15th there are over 1500 folks on the list so far! Wow...Some names of very familiar folks and some new ones, I scanned the list and saw some suprises and I hope to run into them this winter on the trails...

Have a fun week....Tony

SNER...HOT!...HOT!...HOT!..First up on the way to 2010

2009-09-28T17:14:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was the unofficial kickoff to my 2010 Western States...Yes it's nine months off..So lets review what this past Saturday had to offer. The title says a lot. It was hot! Go figure today is two days since the race and the weather folks are saying that this should be our last 100 weekend for the year. JEEZ! This years Sierra Nevada Endurance Races had a new twist with a marathon distace along with a double marathon and 100k for those still needing longer runs for the year.
This was a very laid back event...very small with 50 or so entered for each event and a 6:30am start. I saw Mark Lantz, Scott Dunlap and others as the pre race began in a warm Saturday morning.

My goal for this was to review the use of my heart rate and keep the pace slooooow. As the gun went off so to speak we began our run from Cavitt Stillman school and head up to the American River Trail with my finish at world famous NoHands Bridge.
With temps being in the high 60's I had two water bottles filled,roctane and S-CAPS to fuel me between aid stations. With the start came a slow pace yet my achilles tendons in both legs where tight off the bat..there where a few minor hills as we wound our way up the levee towards the first aid station 4miles away. Pace was low, and I was just out observing what the other runners where doing as they ran..This was a training run for me after all not a race so might as well observe. I did little to no talking with folks and just focused on the achilles...As I ran through the first 3 miles or so it settled down and did not bother me after that. Pace seemed about right..I was looking at level of effort, my breathing and the heart rate monitor as I moved along. With the first aid station came into site about the time I projected...Comfortable I did not stop and headed on towards Buzzards Cove and the first tough section.

Between the fist aid and Rattlesnake Bar (about 12 miles into the race) is the section on AR known as Buzzards Cove..I have exploded here before so today I settled in behind two women and pace on through. My heart rate was high, but breathing and level of effort low..what would happen if I kept this up..I would find out soon enough. Aid station stops the first 2 and half hours where minimal, just enough time to take a gel, fill my bottles. I was taking my S-CAPS as it was starting to get warm. By about 11 miles in the race I was thinking..gad I have to be the last person in the race
My first low level of focus happended about 3hours just past the power plant and heading toward the river. With that I had noticed I needed some extra fuel so extra gel and two S-CAPS did the trick. I was getting close to the river base and climb up Cardiac Hill when I took it down real low and walked for a few minutes. I finally heard a runner come up..Diana Kressy (excuse the spelling) she asked how far to Maidu and with the climb to go I said about 2miles..she had run out of fluid..I gave her a portion of my second bottle as we started the climb up Cardiac..Damn if that hill did not take a long time. It was a chore to get up to the top..I stopped every few minutes and streched out my calves..this was taking foreeeeever! A 100k runner was losing it on the way up. It was hot now and taking its toll. Thankfull to be on the canel I stopped a few minutes and cooled off on my way to Maidu Aid...Ken and Ellen Crouse greeted me with ICE COLD COKE and water..with only two miles to the Overlook and about 6miles to nohands. I was toast.

Finally at the Overlook about 40minutes behind schedule I saw Mark (he dropped), Rena and Erik Skaden...I stopped long enough to grab a coke and shout to Erik he should run with me...That was a joke..but here he came! Erik was my coach the last 4 miles...This stetch is pretty easy but on this day with the canyon in this section being fully exposed to the sun temps where near 100! Erik kept chattering as we passed a women with 3miles to the finish..Erik said we had to keep this up and not let her catch me..It was about dignity he said...don't let someone pass you as you finish! Erik with his wins at TRT and 3 time 2nd place WS finisher can give out this advice and mean it..I was so fried but I kept moving along..Finally a half mile to go and the bridge is in sight...Erik says to pick it up and finish strong..I turn on the jets to finish it off with a 8minute pace..I thought I was flying...As I learn later it was also my highest heart rate of the day....!

Thankful to be done..I just wanted ICE COLD COKE...Tim Twietmeyer saw me and said a few things..all I could do was head to the cups of cold beverage. Nothing like heat training in September! This training run lasted over 5 hours and I learned a lot..It was nice to have Skaden push me. Upon return to Cavitt I got a massage from the Monsters and hung out with other runners the rest of the day. A nice afternoon indeed.

Post Race. Legs have recovered pretty well, Achilles still tight. Need to work on that with some extra stetching. I am thinking some additional 4-5 hour training runs before Quad will be a must....

Next Up--Training Race and 11 Days till WS Application

2009-09-20T07:11:00.001-07:00

With the first day of fall on the horizon weather in NoCal seems to have forgot its time for some chillier temps please. 90's and a day or two of 100 scheduled as we move towards Sierra Nevada Endurance Race next weekend. With me on running the marathon distance I see no reason to taper as I am building back to the base level.
With about a month of running up K2 I returned with the Garmin Heartrate monitor to access where I was..With a 4mile warm up the ascent begins. As I started up this steep section my breathing was not as labored, nor was my heart rate jumping off the charts as much...So things are coming back and some strength is building back in the legs for climbs like this...Running near Auburn during the weekdays this fall and winter I should put this in once a week and have stagecoach on the list as well. Granted every run seems to start with a downhill and end with a climb so that will be fine. The SNR marathon distance has a run through Buzzards Cove ($#$%) a short steep ascent up Cardiac Hill but for the most part its a training run on area I am very familiar with..I will run with the heart rate monitor and access some performance vs heart rate and level of effort. It will not be really fast except the last four miles from the Overlook to NoHands..More on this next weekend..

Fall or some shape of it does bring the opening of the Machado Orchard in Auburn which means two things..fresh pressed cider and hand made pie!!! I recommend this to anyone in the area. Stop by, its not as popular as Ikeda's but seeing the staff peeling apples, cutting peaches and then pulling out the pies from the oven is the bomb. If you run far enough you can always have a slice of pie...

I am getting kinda excited knowing that the application process for Western States opens in about 11 days. It has me thinking about the experience and what others have done to get to the race..its a lot of work. A lot of time spent on the trails with friends running, hurting etc..Come January 1 life goes into high gear for running and I hope many of you can join me....

Tony

Been a few weeks but lots of running and experiments

2009-09-13T08:06:00.000-07:00

No Pictures today but I have been out and about running and testing some new ways to train. Also signed up for two more races this season.

Last we talked I was coming back down from Lake Tahoe and busting my lungs at altitude and tired on those climbs. To combat that I have taken to the hills so to speak with more running focused on building better climbing skills. On steep climbs I have taken to way too much walking always hearing the term "walk all hills" when running ultra races..well these are not races these are TRAINING Runs so why not hurt a little now and have that pay off later.

That said the past few weekends have been trying to get my self up K2-aka Training Hill as fast as possible, and additional weekday and weekend runs up Stagecoach. I must admit that things are getting better on both of these sections. Each range from 1.3 to about 2.4 miles of climbing. K2 is not really runnable, while Stagecoach has all sections one can run...One friend offered to help me and give me some climbing lessons on running up K2---I still think that sounds funny, but will be open to seeing how it can be possible.

It seems that the air quality in the late afternoons has been difficult on my mild asthma. Mornings are much easier this time of year. With that in mind I began to review how my heart rate is affected during my running. By bringing in the old garmin 305 I am noticiing where I start to work a bit too hard early on in these runs and take it down to not spike the heart rate so much. It is a slower pace but as I return to better fitness levels this will focus more on aerobic vs. anerobic conditioning.

With training now underway for next June..I see I have a lot of work do accomplish. I am focusing on very moderate weekly mileage between now and October 1. I have a training race the last weekend in September and will focus on working on the heart rate for a trail marathon distance. I am going to work on just that and not get caught up in placing..It follows the John Nichols training mindset tough but it will pay dividends in the future. I also signed up for Quad Dipsea in late November. I hear this is tough..always wanted to sign up for that but felt that the stairs would kill me. Now I get my shot...

Desolation Wilderness=Royal Butt Kicking

2009-08-16T08:37:00.000-07:00

The view of tahoe just 1.5 miles into the run...already had climbed 1800feet..

With Summer days turning towards Fall it is time to start getting some form of real running shape. So what better way to set a bench mark than to head up to Lake Tahoe,challange the lungs above 6000feet and try and run with a elite ultra runner.

That is what I set myself up for. I have been talking a lot recently with Prudence L'Heureux. She is one kick ass ultra runner. I get a kick out of watching how easy she makes the transition between climbing and downhill running. You can tell it is a true passion and she really has not been running very long. She lives up in Tahoe-how cool is that! So much training opportunity and stunning surroundings.

Enough of that lets talk about the run We where going to run from Bayview to Meeks Bay through the Desolation Wilderness area. Durning the week I had been suffering with very tight Achilles Tendons and had a theory I wanted to test on the run...It might have been the shoes..ie the new Montrail Mountain Masochist..I had not been able to run with my inserts with these shoes..just too tight so I pulled out the Mizzuno Wave Ascends (had not had them on since WS). We set off from bayview...UP we went...Prudence said take it easy today..and I sure was trying we passed some hikers on the first 100 yards and I was already blowing up with my breathing...but the trail was stunning!!! I always wonder about the effect that having asthma as a child has impacted me when I run at elevation..I always seem to be dying way too soon or early. I let Prudence go ahead..just hope she would wait up on any trail junctions. The air was crisp and views to die for..It took me over twenty minutes to go 1 mile! What was going on? I sure was not getting bonus points from Prudence by slowing her down. My ego was also suffering. BUT THE GOOD NEWS...NO ACHILLES ISSUES! The shoes, the shoes the shooooooes. Problem solved guess I will use the montrails as slippers or something.

The area is pretty popular with a lot of tourists but that was not too bad as we continued to climb. I was thankful when we completed the first ascent and now for some downhill...Prudence and trusting Sophie where off ahead..it was fun to watch them take off and head out of sight on the way to a series of lakes. All of the sudden I caught up with Prudence..she had her knee buckle and it hurt! That sucks cause there are some races in the near future. She is tough and wanted to continue to Meeks..but we did the right thing and hike out without doing any more damage. We made it back to Bayview and headed back to her house..I am thinking her knee will be ok.

For me I hope to hang out again with her. She seems like a neat person. I do need to improve in my running if I want to hang with her though...a good test. Life sure does seem like a series of tests...till next week.

Tony

Running at 6000ft..tough but fun

2009-08-02T17:07:00.001-07:00

What is becoming a annual summer passage (well...its my 2nd) head to Squaw Valley the first weekend in August for the Mountain Run.

This a short run really...3.6 miles BUT with 2000 feet of elevation climb. I love the slower pace in Squaw Village and cooler temps then in the Saramento Valley so off I went early Friday...

I ran early friday morning in Rocklin..short only about 4 miles then a little work. I was to meet up with Prudence later in the afternoon for a run and catch a bite of dinner..Upon arrival I decided to run up from the start of WS towards High Camp..Gad at 6200 feet it was tough on my lungs. I sure was working hard on this short 2 mile climb..I made it back down feeling a bit leery to run about 6pm..but that changed when Prudence called. She had not run at all since her 2nd pace finish at White River so I felt it would be ok for my third short run of the day. She kicked my butt! We did manage to run on some nice trail and see some stunning views. That said it was time for dinner..being that the race did not start till 9am the next day I thought what the heck 2 gin and tonics with dinner. We had a good time but I was thinking..hmmm my legs where a bit tired.

Saturday morning was a blast even though I felt tired and stomach a bit woozy I caught up with Mark and Rena, Mark Murray was there as well..There where over 400 runners there and some very fast ones to boot..Caitlin Smith was there and Mark was worried about running well. I just wanted to get to the top!

Rena and I started off the race together but I quickly let her go We climbed right off the bat..It was quite. I was breathing hard but my legs where tired from Fridays three runs...It was gonna be a long time getting to the top. I just settled into a pace where I wanted to try and run harder at the 3mile mark. As I got to the 2mile mark..I looked at my watch and said..well the first runners should be done right now... I was right but I still had work to do..

Finally at the top we got our beer mugs hung out with everyone then off to Watson's Monument..I was tired but needed to see this stretch for the first time ever.. Rena took me up the escarpment...dang if that is not a heck of a steep climb..She says its worse on race day if it is icy..I was thinking..I have to run another 96miles I am no way ready!

The runners..Me, Rena, Mark Lantz, Caitlin Smith, Mark Murray

We all ran back from Watson's where it was time to enjoy the day.

Mark and Rena treated Mark Murray and I to dinner for us supporting them at WS..it was great..right on the Truckee river. I ran or should I say walked back up to high camp on Sunday morning with Rena..I was tired. All in all three days of fun, really a lot of running..I look forward to the challenge States will pose

Lazy Summer Days, A return to running and shoe review

2009-07-26T06:28:00.000-07:00

Many of the trails near Auburn and Foresthill are busy highways from January to June with many gearing towards Western States. After states life on the trails gets a bit slower..not so many runners (though there are a lot of races still to be had..) the excitement wears down. Granted over the last 5 years or so there have been a huge increase in the Auburn Recreation area with hikers, folks heading to the river to cool off, mtn bikers all seeing these areas for the first time...While I a happy to see this increased use I kind of want to see it a bit more unspoiled, less people, less informational signs, no cars at trail heads...Can't stop progress right?

Next weekend on the states trail is the Tevis Cup...the race that started it all..I watch video of those horses and their riders climbing on these trails and am amazed at this level of effort. It will be too bad that I will be at Squaw Valley for the Mountain Run. I have never scene the finish of Tevis and it is on my list of things to do...If your in Auburn next weekend be sure to check this race out.

Yesterday I went over to Auburn Running to meet up for the revised Auburn Running training group runs..I got there a few minutes late but the run turned out fine just as well. It was my longest run since Western States...I had lost that charge after states and it was good to feel focused once more on a run. The run was only 14 miles from the store down to StageCoach and then up to Cool and back...But it had me going consistant..not fast nor trying to blow over my max heart rate, so I was happy about that. I did get to see a few runners in the early morning and also test out my new Montrail Mountain Masochist trail shoes!

Montrail Mountain Masochist

Mark,Rena and Erik had all raved about this shoe so I had to order a pair. Overall the shoe is very nice. I was very happy with the fit in the heel right off the bat. Snug fit in the heel and a wide toe box which I like. There is not as much forefoot cushioning as in the Mizuno but I got over that pretty fast. With three runs on these shoes it appears like it could be part of my running gear to review for next years use at States. I will see how they work with the montrail shoe inserts I use in other shoes. That may change the overall feel for the shoe making it hard to run in but will see.

As I said next weekend is the short mountain run at Squaw Valley...looking forward to tahoe area once more.

Have a good week...Tony

Crewing at Tahoe Rim Trail 100--Long but fun

2009-07-20T17:25:00.000-07:00

This years addition of the Tahoe Rim Trail running series..50k,50mi and 100mile had just as much drama as last years if not a bit more. I got a chance to unwind after my week long annual software user confernce in San Diego. Those that know me understand that that conference is hard on me. Non-Stop talking, joining clients with solution teams, business partners, attending socials etc..only leaves me exhausted and ready for a long weekend of not seeing or talking to anyone...ie decompress from the event. Instead, it was off to the Tahoe Rim. It proved fun and rewarding...I am still tired but happy.

TRT is the 100mile National Championships. It is a tough race, elevation, heat and a brutal course. Crews have access at Mt. Rose and at the start/finish-Spooner Lake. This allows a lot of time for crews to mingle and have fun waiting for there runners. This is a good event to crew for sure!

I arrived early at Mt. Rose after quickly packing for a day of fun in the Tahoe area.
I made it to Mt. Rose after the first 100milers went through. I was to meet up with Mark Lantz and Rena Schumann. I would help where needed. Mark was crewing early for Erik Skaden, then pace Skaden and Rena was to pace Bree Lambert from Mt. Rose to the finish. At Mt. Rose..I ran into Jonathon Bernard's girlfriend Linda Barton and I introduced myself..that was nice to finally meet up. She was crewing Monica Ochs from Seattle. About that time I saw Kate Evens...Rob's wife she was towing along Forest the wonder dog for the day...Forest and I would have a lot of time together as the day went on. Rob came through in 7th place and looking really good at his first stop at Mt. Rose. He would really prove himself later in the day...Mark Gilligan came through as the first 50miler to arrive and he was fresh and happy. Temps where starting to rise and the sun at elevation is pretty intense. Things would get a lot harder for the lead 100milers soon.

I hightailed it down to Spooner Lake to meet up with Mark and Rena. Having had no time for food I knew that the TRT staff would have a great burrito spread at the finish line for the 50k and 50milers..These are great volunteers by the way and offer a lot of support for this event. I was able to donate to the food service and grab a monster plate of food..Here I got to run into Prudence L'Heureux, turns out she was helping crew Bree so we had alot to chat about...

Me and My big plate of food..thanks TRT Staff!

Prudence and Me hanging at Spooner

Images courtesy of Prudence L'Heureux

After the big lunch..it was time to head to lake and wait for the 100milers to come through and see the finish of the 50k and 50milers. TRT is such a fun race to watch with opportunity to hang at the lake..try and sample one of the finisher beers they supply and talk running..Kate Evens was set up and waiting for Rob. Forest was the bomb and everyone enjoyed taking turns playing with him. Nerves where a plenty as Mark Lantz waited for Skaden. He had been 3 or 4th place at the 25mile turn with some gifted runners in front. Mark indicated that was the plan and he was on course. Mark was right...Skaden came through first at the 50mile turn...He looked ok a little hot with the rising temps..He made a rapid turn out. The 2nd place runner came in 15minutes behind..but for some reason he did not want to head out and chase Erik, 3rd and 4th appeared the same while Ian Torrence looked a little injured but he would come on strong later. With now one really chasing it was up to Skaden to make it to Mt. Rose and have Mark bring him in. 20minutes off pace was Rob Evens..he looked really good and picked up his pacer Jasper Halekas (Jasper is one gifted runner out of Oakland, and just finished an impressive run at WS finishing 3rd)..this was going to challange Skaden the most..two gifted runners (one pacing) to reel him in. Wow this was gonna be fun...

Mark Gilligan in the meantime finished the 50mile in First Place! He is off to Mount Blanc next month so this was a great tune up for him.

Mark celebrating with family..a great win.

All talk about the upcoming race duties as we got ready to head to Mt. Rose

Mark Gilligan, Mark Lantz, Kevin Swisher hanging at Spooner..

As we waited at Mt. Rose in the early evening Rena was getting ready to pace Bree. She was ready early making sure she would bring out the best for her. Bree was in first place at the 50mile marker and had a friend pacing to Mt. Rose. It was her friends first attempt at running like this while Rena the ever present professional runnner ready to contribute where needed. Talk for me then revolved around food and getting some folks excited to hit a nice dinner in Incline Village after crew duties where done at the 78mile mark...Forest and Prudence's dog both entertained chasing a tennis ball in the field. The view from Mt. Rose is great with a large meadow the runners come through on the way to the aid station..We all awaited for runners to arrive around 7:30...Not to long and we spotted the orange Montrail Jersey of Skaden in the meadow! All alone he arrived..

Skaden actually smiling as we get him ready..or is that a grimice :)

At this point Mark was ready and took charge to get him to the finish..Erik had a few issues but for a guy having run WS three weeks ago he was doing great..only question could he hold off who was in second place...It turned out that the leaders all suffered big time...all but Rob Evens! Rob was in second place! He arrived with Jasper 30minutes behind Erik. It was going to be a great finish! Kate was all excited..though Forest could care less..he was busy burrowing for insects in the field..We awaited for Bree and send off Rena..Bree came in first women at 10:30pm! Rena was set to go when Bree's first pacer said she was not needed and she would take her in...I can understand that as she was friends with Bree..but at the same time Rena was ready to go and much more experienced than Brees pacer. Rena was very understanding about the situation and had briefed Bree that if she wanted to go on that she would be fine..It was a nice gesture on Rena's part to keep the dynamic going with Bree and her pacer. With all that done it was now time for some dinner...Dang it was too late..Rena, Prudance and crew and I made a bee line for Incline but really not much open so late..We managed a trip to the 7-11 for an elegent dinner of coffe that tasted like cigarette butts, some beef jerky (Forest btw loved the jerky more than I) and a apple fritter..hmmmm good fixins..Time to head to the finish!

Nervous we all where but tired too..We got to Spooner about midnight and headed down. Prudence had her sleeping bag and crashed..Kate and I hung with Forest who was looking for all the jerky he could find. Rena had a beer and was dancing to the hawaiian music in the background...about 1am we heard word that the first runner had passed a checkpoint..rumors abounded that Rob had cut the lead to 7minutes! Skaden's number came up from the checkpoint and we awaited to see the headlamps dance from across the lake...Finally at 1:27 we saw some lights approaching the finish..Kate nervous..She shouts out into the dark..to name who it is...Mark Lantz shouts out...SKADEN! Skaden won the race in 20:27....Kate was not really too disappointed..shortly after we hear that Rob was making his way in..2nd Place! Winner of the masters race for USATF! 20minutes back..it was great. Erik was in good spirits and thanked us..

So much race to come it was time for sleep..after 2hours of sleep in the car I came down at 4:30am to see Bree finish first. I was done. Sun coming up I packed up and drove back down the hill to Rocklin. A great day..Some inspiration as I get ready for WS next year. I came away ready to prepare and looking forward to all that awaits..Next up the fun Mountain Trail Run at Squaw Aug. 1

Post Western States Funk

2009-07-12T05:44:00.000-07:00

Hi all it has been two weeks since Western States and all the excitement. I must admit to being a little less focused these last two weeks with a kind of let down not having the big race right on the door step so to speak.

After being up for 33hrs the next work day I was a mess. All I wanted to do when I went to the office in Sacramento on Monday was talk about the race. Note to self...next year I am going to take the whole week off after Western States and recharge the body and brain. No sense not being being at work and not being productive.

July 4th was a fun filled day with a little bit of drama thrown in for fun. I started the July 4th day by heading to Sacramento and working at the Buffalo Chips annual FREE 4th of July 5mile race. My assignment as usual was traffic control at an intersection to keep about 400 runners safe. This race has been going on for 30 years in the same neigbhorhood..8am on the 4th. Flyers sent to all in the area notifying them of this. Most folks are really supportive and patient as I have them wait for runners to pass. Well I said most...I had a very rude, impatient female driver that decided to try and mingle her car with the lead pack! I had to run to get her to notice me and pulled her over. Lucky she did stop but that did not stop her mouth from running for a long time while I held her back from trying to drive her car through the rest of the runners.
Lucky for me I headed over to Rob and Kate Evens house later for a 4th of July party. It was all talk about WS..I was the slowest runners in attendence. Nichols, Lantz, Rena, Jasper, Prudence, Andy, Victor..I was out of my league. Still fun though.

Overall, running has been hard...The legs are not tired at all...just the post event let down. Everyone is coming back to running shape again so not a lot of group runs taking place..I did sign up for my second attempt at the Squaw Mountain Run August 1..I love heading up to Squaw for this and enjoy this laid back short race straight up the mountain to high camp. I am also looking at the 100k or double marathon for the Sierra Nevada Run in late September..

http://snerultras.com/

Then next edition will be a little more fun and full of energy....See you on the trails. Tony

Western States 2009 Review

2009-06-30T05:34:00.001-07:00

Before I begin my review I want to say with a heavy heart that the Weekend was a bit subdued at times to mourn the passing of Dan Moores. One of the bright spots was seeing the ribbons on race day shirts of the runners and all the auburn running shirts out there to show that Dan was a very special person and we will all miss him.

Sorry folks no pictures so to speak even after arriving at Squaw Valley Thursday before the race. This was a great event to be a part of and I hope all of you get a chance to participate or watch the race some day.

I met up with John Nichols on Thursday afternoon in Auburn after I had stopped at Auburn Running to checkin on the buzz happening at the store. It was packed with runners just wanting to buy last minute things or chat about the race..a good feeling. Nichols and me made it to Squaw Valley and pulled into race central to see standing outside Karyn Hoffman and other runners we know..Race Central felt like home..you know many of the folks walking around or these would be soon to be new friends since you where all there for WS. Rena Schumann and Mark Lantz had been there since Wed....Mark was all nerves and hoping for a top 10 finish. Friday morning had us all making our way to the runner check in, and purchase of WS gear. Such a happy time for all with the view of the startline and hills to climb right from the start. We all had put in a lot of $$ for raffle tickets in hopes of securing one of three slots for 2010. These would go to a select group of friends if my tickets would be drawn..For some reason I was confident we would get the draw. The major discussion was about the predicted heat in the valley below predicted for Saturday.

Friday evening I has asked Nichols if he wanted to go get some dinner..he initially said no. He would have some powerbars for dinner etc..He did join me and his crew member Gus as we went out..As soon as he saw the all you can eat WS dinner special he changed his mind...Dang Nichols three plates of pasta and a full side of chicken wings turned out to be his pre race meal! We all joked that he better bring extra toilet paper on race day!

Saturday Morning started at 3am with a wakeup for Nichols..The race starts at 5am the time flew by to the start. I finally got a bit of nerves as I watched the runners line up in the dark. I was thinking about Dan, and my chance to toe the line next year. With the gun off they went..And our day began. I quickly packed up and got the gear ready for my drive to Robinson Flat...I was to meet Nichols there. I arrived at Robinson about 9am. I ran into Mark Lantz's parents there and they where nervous for Mark since they know he just loves the competition. Robinson was a huge party! There must have been 200-300 people all waiting for their runners to come through. Dave Mackey and Hal Kroener came through first, Jurek looked comfortable in third. Lantz came flying up and about 40minutes off the lead in 15th place..Just as we started working on him Skaden blew by without stopping. Lantz had a blister and stopped to work on that then was off. I waited for Nichols and he passed through about 11:20am he was scrapped up after a fall. It was heating up by then with temps in the high 70's at 6000ft. As I was leaving I saw Jenn Shelton..the gifted young runner who gets a lot of press..she was done for the day. I could see it in her eyes and would find out later that I was right...many more would drop as the day wore on.

Next up for me was get to Bath Road...This is the Auburn Running Store aid station..about 2miles from Foresthill School. Here there was a large picture of Dan Moores on a story board. Runners where asked to sign the board as they passed through...it was a nice gesture. Here I had gator and fruit for Skaden and Lantz. Skaden came in first and was at 11th place..he looked good and was feeling ok..The temps where now well into 90's at 3:30pm. Mark was about 20minutes behind Skaden and in 13th place..He was worried about others catching him. His main competition was Andy Jones Wilkes who was about 6minutes ahead. I told him to focus on catching him and keep moving.

With these duties now done I headed back to Foresthill and mile 62 aid station and began my waiting for Rena Schumann. We had talked early that it might be about 7pm when she would arrive. Most runners with the heat where all registering about one hour or more behind their projected times. Jurek had dropped at Devils, Mackey was hanging by a thread to the river and the drop list was nearly equal to the remaining runners on the course. Reports where slow on where runners where and I had heard Rena was on course to arrive at FH about 8:50pm. It would be a long night with headlamps from the start...Rena had some friends from work that showed up and I talked with them when Rena came into sight about 9pm...She was ok..had some issues at Devils and El Dorado. But she was moving and that was fine..We got out of FH about 9:12pm..headlamps blazing. She was not feeling too well and was tired. This would be the theme for the night.

From FH we started the slow downhill strides and got used to the headlamps and tunnel vision it brings. It was slow going but we started to pick off a lot of runners. We saw Karyn Hoffman near Cal1. Rena was moving along pretty good on this stretch and it was a very strong consistant running pace as we moved passed more runners. She had some issues with dry heaves now and we had to stop and focus on getting that better as we got close to the climb to cal3(fords bar)...We approached cal3 and wondered where the aid station was! It had moved down the trail about a half mile...it made the run to the river only 4.5miles that was nice. But things where getting tough for Rena and the stomach.

We kept it moving to the river..it was about 2am now and it was amazing to hold on to the cable and move slowly across. The volunteers standing in the river to help where the bomb! As we crossed to Farside Rena changed her shoes and we saw Karyn Hoffman come up from the river..that was the last time we saw Karyn it was tough out there... I had to really begin to get Rena to keep moving and there where streches where she ran strong then had to stop and cough etc...We had a very good stetch with Ling Ru and her pacer Pete Defty..I lead a group for a couple of miles and felt Rena had a strong stetch. At ALT Rena had her lowest point. It was now about 3:30 I was telling her to just focus on 3miles per hour and get in by 9:30am. She wanted to stop and take sleep against a tree. I just could not let her do that. We where hitting the splits I set for her and just wanted her to keep moving. Lots of talking on my part and focusing her on run and walk stretches. The ALT med folks suggested she take it easy since she was dry heaving and wanting to sleep. Knowing Rena that is not what she would really want that..We took a few extra minutes here and moved on to Browns..She ran really well to Browns Bar (maybe her best yet) she was revived a bit and the Hashers Aid Station was busy at about 6:30 the sun was up and that helped her mood.

Push on to HWY 49..here we had her last med check and weigh in she was up about 3 lbs since ALT and the nurse was questioning that...Rena was ok..not puffy yet and going to the bathroom so I pushed to get her through to the finish. Rena perked up a ton as we ran down to NoHands bridge...blasting some AC/DC she got all charged and as we checked in two runners looked back to see us and said..."We knew you two would catch us"! She flew through there like a rock star...She was running really strong. In fact it was kind of hard to keep up with her...when you pace you take on the runners strides etc..and when you suddenly pick up the pace it is hard to get the legs to react.

Near Robie point we saw Tim Twitemeyer running down to no hands..he was all smiles and excited. His assignment was to get the remainder runners into the finish that where close to the 30hour cut off...he was great as I watched him later help those folks out..pretty neat.

We got Rena to the track at 9:23am ahead of my 9:30 prediction! That was the bomb. Mark was there with his 9th place finish to see Rena cross as where his parents. I was a mess!

It was a great experience and helped me understand what 28 hours of running looks like..I am happy to have helped out and look forward to next year.

Tony

Local runners carrying heavy hearts - Auburn Journal

2009-06-29T09:31:00.001-07:00

Local runners carrying heavy hearts - Auburn Journal

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A Little Humor leading up to Western States...

2009-06-21T06:16:00.000-07:00

Watch this its really pretty funny..and does have some sick fun humor..Tony

10 Days till the track meet and my duties

2009-06-17T05:35:00.000-07:00

Just a stroll through Volcano Creek..heading up to Bath Road and FH School..

Only 10 Days till this years addition of Western States 100! I have been off travelling the midwest for a week and it is good to be back near the Western States excitement. Right now it appears that below normal temperatures will the biggest thing facing runners this year. It has been COLD in relative terms here in NoCal...This should make it easier for all runners and push the leaders to a new course record.
Now who would I look to placing in the top 5? In no real order...

Mike Wolfe, Jasper Hakelas, Michael Wardrian, Eric Grossman and Graham Cooper.

For the women..I see Nikki Kimbell being the one to beat. Jenny Cappel and Caren Spore may suprise and crack in the top 5, Bev Abbs will race well and Jenn Shelton will fade to a finish in the top 6-10.

Of the locals I hope that Skaden can pull off a top 5 but the fied is deep. Pulling for Mark Lantz to beat out the dreaded Dean Karnazes...(YUCK!) Do not get me started on him and how he got into this years race what a piece of work. I hope that he is not in 2010! Lantz has been running great all year and seems poised for a great race..He will be challanging Andy Jones Wilkes and others for top mens masters it is a deep field..

So many others to mention...John Nichols, Charley Jones, Mike and Karyn Hoffman, Marty Hoffman, Ken Crouse, Karalee Morris, Wayne Miles, Bill Finkbeiner who the heck is not running????

Well I will be pacing Rena Schumann for the third time and picking her up at Foresthill Mile 62 for the final 38. Rena has been doing fine this season and is poised to finish her 9th meaning next year is an automatic entry to go after her 10th finish! We have not talked specifics but I am guessing that she will arrive about 7 or 8pm in Foresthill and from there off we go. I want to keep her pace easy as we move through the early evening towards the river crossing. So about 4hours would be in my mind the right pace..though she can easily hit 3:30 to the river I would like her to start really knocking off runners between green gate and Auburn Lake Trail Aid Station...She could pull a sub 24 if things are on we will see..
Rena running up from NoHands...

Here are two pics from Western States Training Camp Runs..images by Joe McCaddie

A Great Montage Running Clip...

2009-05-29T06:28:00.000-07:00

This has been making the rounds since its release..Check it out and share it with your non running friends..maybe they will get the trail bug as well!..Enjoy Tony

UltraRunning from Matt Hart on Vimeo.

Day 3 Western States Running Camp-Screaming the downhills

2009-05-27T18:42:00.001-07:00

Having a long day on Day 1 of Western States and not getting home until 7:30 after hanging out with Rena, Mark Murray, Jen Pheifer and others at the school. I took it easy Sunday morning and focused on returning to day 3 Greengate to Placer High School.

Monday had less crowds with only about 160 folks running this stretch..This stretch total mileage from the bus drop off and run to GG was about 22 miles. Everyone took it easy on this stretch in the early on and I did the same. The legs where warming up after about 4 miles and then some of the best cruising on the WS trail takes place as you enter Auburn Lake Trails and continue on to Browns Bar. Here I got to see a lot of different types of runners. For some it was their first day and others it was their 3rd and last day to run. You could tell who was there all three days by their running style. It seemed a bit more focused on steady movement. I was taking some mental notes of this form. I was starting to feel like I was now part of the Western States Running Family...I was staying within and not wasting effort on running too hard, fueling at the right times. It felt nice..
After slowly climing up quarry trail to hwy 49 and began the downhill to NoHands Bridge I was running with three others in front. The 3miles are gentle and runnable..I decided to test the legs here and open it up..I flew down for a mile and felt great! This told me alot about my condition. I was happy with that test and took it easy to Nohands and then up robie to the finish. It was by no means fast but that was not the point. The legs and mind where fine. It gave me a bit of hope leading up to my pacing duties from Foresthill this year and as I hit the full on training cycle to Western States 2010.

Tony

Western States Training Run-Day 1 Robinson Flat

2009-05-24T06:17:00.000-07:00

Western States Memorial Weekend Training Runs...A tradition like no other. I have run days two and three but never the first day. Robinson Flat to Foresthill. Really was a fantastic day!

With all the advertising I arrived early in Foresthill and had a chance to hang out with a ton of folks as we waited to get on the bus for the ride up to Robinson Flat. Saturday is day one and is comprised of 32 miles of running. Beginning at Robinson Flat at about 6000 feet we head down to tradional aid stations Dusty Corners, the old mining town of Last Chance, a nice pause at Swinging Bridge, Up Devils Thumb, ramble on down from Deadwood to El Dorado Creek (SWEET!) one more climb to aid at Michigan Bluff and take it to the barn through Volcano Canyon to the finish at the elementry school.

Foresthill School--Registration Area:

I would guess we had about 300 people taking part. I saw many friends along the way...The biggest enterance was the ELITE Runners...Seems Graham Cooper's dad driving a sweet Lexus SUV was shuttling a group of top runners from Drivers Flat to Robinson. The Lexus SUV arrives at the school and out pops top contenders at this years race either top ten or age group placers....Skaden, Cooper, Lantz and others jump out..it was like a Hollywood Production! How funny the joke was they all just needed their Superman Capes to complete the picture.

Robinson Flat was covered in Snow and we had a train of folks moving through the snow fields for the First Mile.

SNOW at Robinson Flat, Me, Mike and Karyn Hoffman hitting the snow!

We where rewarded after that mile with spectacular single track downhill running with stunning views on our way to Dusty Corners.

Me and Rena at Dusty Corners Aid--9miles in.

I had missed Rena after we got off the bus but no worry, there was time to talk to new folks from all over the country..So many just amazed at these trails and telling me they where jealous to have this so close by. The party was moving along past the first aid station at Dusty Corners..Rena got there about a minute before me and it was really slow for the first 9miles. I was feeling ok but legs did not feel too fresh...(I had two back to back speed workouts during the week). Dusty Corners to Last Chance was stunning..

I thought it would have more climbs but really was gently rolling downhill to Swinging Bridge..I started to hear folks along the way say..man my quads are hurting with all this downhill.

Swinging Bridge was about 16miles into the run as we all took time out to grab cold water from the waterfall..cold and it tasted good. We would need it as we began the climb up Devils Thumb. This was MY CRATER MOMENT of the day...My calves where tired and I slugged it up Devils in about 52minutes..SOOOOO SLOW. I was wondering what I could do the rest of the way. I am thankful for the aid station at Deadwood..I had run out of gel by then and needed this station to get some energy back in.

Taking a Dip at El Dorado Creek...

The downhill to El Dorado Creek was in the max heat of the day..it was only about 70 but still sunny and warm..I got the legs moving again and felt good running down to the Creek. Come race day that creek will save many as you have a chance to cool off the body and legs. This proved the same for me today...I moved up Michigan Bluff after my dip feeling good. I was way off schedule as I hit MB but managed a solid 1:30 down and up the canyon to the school..I even had a strong sprint down foresthill road. It was a long day...but nice to be out among friends..Taking today off then back to the training run on Monday from Greengate to the WS Finish.

Hours in the Canyons, No Time for the Road

2009-05-10T07:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday marked one more day in the Canyons. I was signed up for Quicksilver near San Jose yesterday but bagged that after a week of driving back and forth during the work week from that area. I just could not face another 3 hour drive this week. So a 50minute drive to Michigan Bluff and a 6 hour run was the ticket.

This week had me suffering during all the climbs today. The legs had no energy no matter what I did. This included a few more gels and a slower pace. Most of these low energy efforts on these long runs come from two sources. When I get too busy at work I tend to not eat well during the week, either not enough calories or quality (sometimes both), the second habit I have been getting into has been work long hours, return home if I am travelling and not go run as much during the week. These low quality fitness weeks really hurt me. I have been thinking of altering this a bit with some early morning runs instead of immediately starting to work at 5am etc..
I have also developed a haibt of not wanting to run at all on the roads near my house..this builds to lower miles during the week. Again a slight change in attitude can cure this.

The rest of the day in Michigan Bluff was nice as I had some aid station support set up for runners heading on to Foresthill. Always nice to help out.

Looking forward to the first day of the Western States training weekend in two weeks.
The run from Robinson Flat--if there is no snow, to FH will be nice. It should be a zoo out there and I get a chance to meet some new runners...

Tony

Week 2 in the Canyons-Lots of Folks and good talk

2009-04-26T06:23:00.000-07:00

This is a short note this morning. A second weekend of running from Michigan Bluff to Swinging Bridge and back. Its a short 18 but a lot of downhill and uphill making this a good training run for the future...Which had me thinking today as I was slowly moving up from the river to the deadwood cemetary. The phrase "you have to walk before you can run". This day was cold in the mid 30's as I arrived to see Rena getting ready for our run starting at Michigan Bluff. She of course was greeted by the dog mayor of MB--Archie. We where later joined by Karyn Hoffman and made our way down to the river with me in the lead..not to comfy with that but I knew I would slow down once I started my climb...I had my second sighting of Rory this week...a very graceful runner as she was heading down on her way to Last Chance..She sure made a impression on all of us runners out there by her ease in which she ran..No chance for any real talk here but one day :)

As the climb began I let Rena and Karyn go and focused on me improving my time to the cemetary..About this time I spotted Bill Finkbeiner, Wayne Miles and Mike Huff running and powerwalking from behind..I let them catch me and pass...I then jumped on their train since I figured I could learn something here..which I did and the climb to Deadwood was much better than last week! As we chatted at the water pump and then made our way to Devils Thumb and the downhill to swinging bridge I was feeling better and comfortable. Once the downhill started Bill and Wayne just smoked me and ran very lightly on the steep descent. I was running too rigid and slow to keep up..note to self (better downhill running please)..Heading up from the bridge was Paul Charteris taking "action" photos' of all of us as ran down..I stopped and chatted with him and swung on down to the bridge, Rena, Karyn, Bill and Wayne where waiting..they where all turning back so off we went. I stuck with them for a short while and we ran into Mark Lantz,Eric Skaden and Marty Hoffman..It was a real running party out there! Feeling better as I got to the top but with the same time as last week I ran much better from the Waterpump down to the river more speed and relaxed. That just left the climb to MB..Well that was better but not by much..some running but still a slow time..As I said I have to walk before I can run...As I got to MB my time was much better than last week and I felt pretty good. Being in the busy city of Michigan Bluff..population hmmm about 100? which includes at least 15 dogs and horses! We had a chance to talk to a few locals as we waited for Lantz and Skaden..that was fun. More of the same next week...Tony

Welcome to the Canyons-Michigan Bluff to Swinging Bridge

2009-04-18T19:07:00.000-07:00

A Day in the Canyons...Last weekend was prelude to see where I am at with my climbing legs. Today had all the climbing and downhill to test the quads. Weekends this year have been pretty cool. On this day a little more heat. I had planned my run to be shorter than others that where starting from Foresthill this morning. I swung by the school about 6:30am to get some water from Ken Crouse that wanted me to drop it at Michigan Bluff. I had a cooler full of coke, water, gatoraid, ice and gels for friends today since my car was going to be at Michigan they could use it for the final 6 miles to Foresthill. At FH Jen Pheifer arrived shortly after for her first run on these trails in two years..hmmm Western States this year? Rena and Jamie Frink showed a few minutes later..so three groups heading out from FH headed towards MB as I drove off...It was cool and sunny in Michigan Bluff..Archie the unofficial mayor of the dogs at MB greeted me. Michigan Bluff is a old gold mining settlement with about 15 houses dogs wonder the streets and you can always have a coverstation with the handful of residents. Its is also a major aid station come Western States day so everyone there seems really friendly towards runners.

Michigan Bluff to El Dorado creek is 2.8 miles of downhill and is a nice warm up...but let me tell you the return is hard! I forgot all the climbing to the abandoned mining down of Deadwood (all that is left is a cemetary). I was not comfortable running at all from the creek to Deadwood and the water pump that is there.
The Community of Michigan Bluff--Mile 55.7 Western States

But I kept thinking I wanted to do the hard work today which meant getting down devils and back up. The stretch from the creek to deadwood though all it does is climb is stunning and quite...I was moving slow but that was ok. I hit the water pump and as I was heading to Devils..I heard voices behind..it was Jenn and her group...they started about 7 from FH and had 6 extra miles to run..there they where. That was cool they where turning back at the pump for about a 26mile training run.
Temps where starting to rise now as I headed to Devil's Thumb and the descent to Swinging Bridge..it was going to be tough coming back up.

Devil's Thumb-Western States 47.8--A tough climb

The run down to swinging bridge via the Thumb is switchbacks and very rocky, roots all over..It is slow running downhill here and took me over 28minutes to make it down the approx..1.5 miles. At the bottom you are awarded a stunning bridge and roaring spring runnoff of the american river. As I stopped a rather attractive young women came blowing past me to the bridge! I am thinking dang she is moving fast. She stopped long enough to say hi and exchange running plans..I was amazed since she only had two bottles and a few gels for her run from MB to Last Chance and back. Sure would be nice to see her again! I turned here and started the climb back up to Devils. This is the steepest climb on race day at Western States so I best get really used to this. I was alone pretty much to this point but then a ton of runners (about 12 I lost count) where all heading down as I was going up. I said hi and kept on my climb..no running at all on this and it took me 43minutes to the top. I was tired but felt good still..I geled up at the top and took off for my return to the water pump and the downhill to the final climb from El Dorado to MB.

Swinging Bridge-At the base of Devils Thumb

The run back was slow and the quads where shot on the long downhill to El Dorado. I saw a few runners here but kept moving. The final climb up to Michigan Bluff had me whinning internaly as I approached the last half mile. It had been a long day.
Today..still a bit tired but thinking this should be my long run on Saturdays for the next couple of weeks..Get very comfortable with this stretch and build the climbing legs...Tony

Last weekends trip to the canyons

2009-04-16T05:22:00.000-07:00

Elevation Profile of 12 mile run from Foresthill to Michigan Bluff(and back) on WS

Last weekend I did the same post American River 50 workout as did the previous year. It was to help me understand where I am and need to be for June 2010. That said the course as the profile describes has some all the elements that will help me run better...lots of up and lots of down. Overall, I had a much better experience on the course than last year. I had set out with Rena, Kate and Karyn (they where headed all the way to Devils Thumb). It was cold as can be..must have been in the high 30's but as we started moving it turned out to be a glorious day. It was nice to be on this section of trail..so much history and less traffic, never a lot of day hikers etc..just folks training for Western States. After we crossed the creek at the bottom of Volcano I let the women go ahead and I wanted to focus on my own pace and see where things where at for me...They went ahead. I really enjoyed the stillness as I climbed up and out of the canyon..Per last year I took the one wrong turn as I headed to Michigan Bluff..dang. I ended up on the road to MB got to the small settlement of Michigan Bluff and no sign of the women... I thought that odd but hung out for a few minutes then went back on the correct path to Foresthill..Here I ran into Rena and company..they took a different wrong turn and doubled back. Seems we all do this on the first run in this section. John Nichols and Charley Jones came through as well. On the return I slowed down and my legs where feeling heavy.

This weekend I am planning on running from Michigan Bluff to Swinging Bridge or Last Chance and back..this will be about 6 hours of running. I am planning on going on my own but will surely see a few folks along the way.
Tony

A few images of American River 50mile

2009-04-10T14:20:00.001-07:00

Still Kinda Fresh--About 13miles in along the American River..

About mile 37 finally on Trail..Just passed Buzzards Cove Aid Station..I soon would be running better...

The finish...Not Pretty but a Western States Qualifying Time...

What did I do the week after AR?

2009-04-10T05:30:00.000-07:00

I will be posting some official photo's from AR soon. But I thought I would share a bit of what happend the following days after American River 50mile...

First, I was a total piece of toast on Sunday Morning and in fact all day. Saturday's post race victory dinner consisted of graham crackers and a large glass of milk! It was all I could really muster as I tried to focus on watching the ncaa semifinal game...It seems that my mind and body after a 50mile race have a tough time focusing on things..I had even planned to get my taxes completed on Sunday but that turned into a total NO..This began the typical two day period that has me feeling really tired and not moving well after being idile sitting down. Kinda like the marathon shuffle...by Monday I was ready to eat kinda normal again and enjoyed shoveling down some sushi and a ton of rice at lunch.
My overall feeling aside from a smashed toenail recovered well by the middle of the week and my weekly deep tissue massage actually felt pretty good. All the while during the week I had been reviewing my performance at AR and where and why I lost focus...It also afforded me to really think of the 1 year training cycle for Western States 2010 that will begin the Monday after WS...

Emails started to flow about this weekends training run from Foresthill to Last Chance and back...I am leaning towards FH to Michigan Bluff and back as my recovery run and intro to the canyons...Last year that same course the week after AR was really slow..I will see how I compare.
One last thought and important note to self: I need to convert my first floor home office to a full bedroom...prior to WS. I just can't handle those stairs..I have two empty bedrooms upstairs that easily can be my office...save my legs!

Tony

A tail of 3 races--American River 50Mile

2009-04-05T17:06:00.000-07:00

A Little Tired after AR

Mark and Rena..Looking a heck of a lot better than I...

It really was a nice day to run along the river to Auburn yesterday. The day began way too early as I awoke at 2:45am and then catch the bus from the finish to the start at 6am in Sacramento. The course had a few changes with some additional trail and climbing..200 more runners on the course. The start was not so bad as I thought it would be and off we went. I saw Rena, Jenn Pheifer, Ernie and a cast of others as the sun began to rise.

In my prediction I wanted to keep things low and slow..that kinda happened for the first 19miles but it was a very uneven pace ranging from 8:50 to 10minute miles along the bike path. It felt easy and I was a bit concerned as I hit Nimbus 7minutes ahead of schedule. I had been taking 2 scaps per hour and one roctane every 45minutes...this seemed to work early on...As we hit the trai and the bluffs I took it down a bit and held that pace as I went through Negro Bar...I was a little bit uncomfortable as I hit Beals and here I started to take way too long at the Aid Station..nearly 7minutes as I filled my hip pack with more roctane etc.. At Beals I was right on the mark I predicted 4:50. But I was not feeling strong..This was the first third of my race..

As I left Beals to head to Granite Bay and Buzzards I started to have slower than expected times..the sun was full force and temps rising. I kind of lost focus past Granite Bay and wondered dam..is it a long way to Buzzards today...This was my low moment of the race. I was thinking I just want to stop running all the time..not run Western etc..Finally I was at Buzzards (20minutes behind schedule..) Yet as I stood at the Buzzards Aid Station and facing the toughest stretch of course things began to change...

This third portion of the race from Buzzards to the Finish was the bomb! My pace quickened, I started to really focus as I pushed through the rocky sections between buzzards and Rattle Snake..I was back! Running well. I was only passing people and not being passed. This sure was not the case last year and I was happy...Hitting Rattle I was ready to tackle the final section to the river and that was met with conistant steady focused running..I kept passing folks from 41 to the river..I recall a women that was on the trail running and not wanting me to pass her..she wanted to talk and all I could think of was get the heck out of my way...I was not polite but after being on the trail all day it was time to finish and get to the final 3.2 mile climb from the river...As I hit the river I was HUNGRY..or at least my stomach thought so..I had not had anything from Buzzards except water and a SCAP here I looked at my watch and thought I am behind my goal pace but well under my Qualifying time so might as well enjoy it a bit..I talked a little on the steep climb with someone then ran to last gasp and from there it was walk/run...As I approached the finish..I thought it was slower than last year but I ran a much stronger final 19miles than I have ever run..I was feeling good about that..I did spend too much time at Aid Stations past beals..The watch stopped at a turtle pace of 10:35. Western States Qualifier now complete..The real work begins now..

Mark and Rena stuck around the whole time..they hade finished 4 and 2 hours prior but it was nice to see them at the finish..This years finishers jacket is super sweet!
Post Race..I had tough time eating/or wanting to after the race...and did manage breakfast this morning. Legs did not let me sleep too well last night either..it goes with the territory of ultras. Will take a slow recovery run on Tuesday and see what the weekend brings...

Tony

20mile Taper, Prediction AR50

2009-03-31T05:58:00.000-07:00

Often a week prior to a marathon I would run 10k to shake the legs out...This past Saturday I planned to run a version of that for a 50mile..20miles. This 20 in my head was to be slow out to RattleSnake on the AR Trail then return at race pace to the finish. That seemed to go out the window when we had two additional runners join us for the day. Both fast they said it was going to be easy. As we took off the pace was fast for me..but I did not back off. Gad! I made comments but the group dynamic was to keep at that pace...I thought why not and took it to the river 5minutes faster than normal. Here I did just say the heck with that pace and dropped back. Yet the legs where on that pace and kept on moving faster than normal. So at the 6mile mark 3minutes faster than normal pace...At Avery Pond...8minutes faster. By the time I got to Rattle and the turn the fast group where there waiting but I was 9minutes faster! I felt good but said that was it..My return I recovered some sanity and took it real easy back..My legs however where tired on Saturday, Sunday. I got to remember to keep my eye on the prize....Western States 2010.

That said...American River 50mile is this Saturday. This years addition has a new race director who increased the field from 500 to 650...Last I saw on the runner list 700bib numbers where released! This could be a bit too large for the course and the middle runner like me. Weather...Has been very windy and forecast for weekend could bring some of that. If the winds are strong and from the north we are running into headwinds..Will wait and see.

Goal 1---Run Qualifying Time for Western States----Anything less than 11 hours!

Goal 2-Run slow controlled pace for the first 19miles.
This is bike path and relatively easy.
Previous I have run some fast splits here.
Which left me little once I got to Buzzads.
Projected time to Nimbus Dam:3hr 12 minutes.

Goal 2-Beals Point Aid--This is the major aid station.
Last before it goes single track. Here I look
at a time ~10minutes slower than average runner
predicated pace.Still alot of race to go!
Projected Time to Beals----4hr 50minutes

Goal 3-Beals to Buzzards:This section has a new addition
of trail. This will add some time. Here, I maintain
concentration and keep the legs moving. Again, about 10min.
slower than average runner pace.
Buzzards Goal Time:6hr 20minutes

Goal 4-Buzzards to RattleSnake:This is it! The toughest section
on the course. Rocky, narrow. I expect a trains of
runners. I am not going to get into their game.
Push through. This will be much faster than last year.
Buzz to Rattle Goal Time--7hr 45minutes.

Goal 5--Rattlesnake to the Barn!---My nemisis is the really the
2.6mile stretch prior prior to the climb from the river.
I plan on enjoying this section! Climb from the river just
smile.
Goal Time to the Barn...I project to finish
between 9:45 and 10:10..Its not fast! Qtime in pocket
and enjoy the late afternoon in Auburn.

Things to remember to do on the course..

1)Drink 1 water bottle between each aid station (at beals I may carry two bottles)
2)One SCAP every half hour since we are hitting some heat and it will be warm.
3)One Gel every hour. If things bonk..then two per hour
4)No lagging at aid stations--I can cut time off from last year..

Thats it...Tony

noon time run location

2009-03-25T16:11:00.000-07:00

Just a short note...Here is where I run most often...When I work from home this is a my lunch time view as I set out to run the stagecoach loop....

American River at the Coffer Dam Location...Notice the hillsides cleared of trees and the start of a coffer dam. Construction Stopped(thank god!) and river returned to natural stream bed with a rapids built for rafters and kayaks as seen below...

Two Weeks Till AR50

2009-03-23T04:27:00.000-07:00

With a little less than two weeks to AR50 I had my last longer running weekend. With that I ran one last time from the Overlook to Rattle with tack on including Stagecoach loop on Sat. And a miserable run through cold and rain Sunday to finish the cycle. The run Saturday I had really fresh legs with limited mileage on them (business travel cut down on that). It was really quite since I started just before sunrise..I enjoyed the stillness. I thought of the big cats and it being their time to feed so I kept a bit more focused on my surroundings. Other than that the day was pretty uneventful with a stronger run on my climb from the river.

Sunday was cold and rain. But the last longer run had to be done. It took nearly 1 hour for my legs to start feeling good with the rain coming down and me freezing I turned back to finish shortly after. As I returned to the overlook. I had a chance to reflect on this winters training...Much better than last year. More 30-45 mile weekends. The last month had less running on weekdays leaving me feeling a bit apprehensive for AR. I will post my prediction splits and finish time later this week....Tony

Running Into a Running Legend,Hanging at Cool..and too much taper

2009-03-15T05:50:00.000-07:00

When there is a race in my back yard..ie Way Too Cool, American River 50, Western States. The week leading up to the race brings a lot of excitement to me. Even if I am not in the race just having a chance to hang out, give a bit of my time at the finish, see friends cross the line is great. This weekend did not disappoint...

Running into Ann Trason.....
Friday, I stopped work for the day just after lunch so I could go on a run at the overlook then stop by Auburn Running to see who was at the packet pickup for Way Too Cool. Friday was a bright spring day..but just a bit cool. None the less I was pressing to get my last conference call for work completed and out the door. Things ran a bit behind and later in the afternoon as I pulled into the Overlook Parking lot...
Just as was getting out of my car another one pulled up near by...I took a look at the driver as I was pulling on my shoes and was thinking....is that her? Could it be? I was thinking I better stay around for a few and see if this was perhaps the best ever female ultra runner ever...
I fumbled around and as she got out of her car I knew who it was...At times it can be kind of awkward just talking to a stranger but I thought lets talk to a legend...
We started the typical small talk...ie great day, etc...when she asked me if I was running Cool this weekend. I said no since I did not enjoy the insane folks that try to jostle for position heading down quarry trail to quarry road so early in the race...She laughed and said that she hated that part of the race and only ran Cool twice..but that her husband had won a few times..at which point I said..."Your Ann", she replied back.."I used to be I am just too banged up to run fast anymore"...That is how it started a long conversation with Ann Trason, Multi Time winner of Western States, and so many others.
Ann and I chatted about a number of things including her place near the Western States Trail..I run by it often. She said feel free to stop in if we are not there and grab some water or food(in a shed that is stocked with aid station food for Dick Collins Fire Trails..)..We reviewed the issues of being a race director and the feeling that we are passing the tourch so to speak to new ultra runners..It was a fun conversation and I nearly thought I should run with her..but even in her described out of shape status..she would drop me like a bad habit..But it was nice to see and talk to a running legend.

WAY TOO COOL..The New Finish Line...

Sorry this was my only picture. It got busy out there. Way Too Cool was Cool..and that was the temperature all day...It felt a bit like a bay area morning at the start..a little fog moving in, chill in the air. I watched the start and then grabbed Rena and Kate from their volunteer duties for a run around the Olmstead Trail while we await the runners to come to the finish. Like last weekend Kate and Rena jumped out fast from the start..we where actually running in the opposite direction of the Cool runners as the complete the first few miles on the Olmstead course prior to heading down to HWY. 49 and off to the quarry trail. We saw the back end of the runners that where racing..a few even walking and only 5 miles or so in..(Oh btw..we all saw a runner arrive to the start/finish) about a half hour after the start...He looked pretty clean with a bib on and confused..He was looking to get his chip removed...Turned out he MISSED the start time and arrived late...DANG! I felt for the guy...We heard something like he had slept past his alarm..I don't know how he could sleep past his alarm on race day..). We continued our run along the Olmstead..taking the reverse route it was all about a long climb so we all had a good workout..It was short so I need to run long today. We got back to the finish area to take part in the finish line activities..Rena (she was nervous awaiting Mark Lantz to finish..kinda like a happy house is when both Mark and Rena finish well at a race. If not it can be a long week for either of them..issues of being a running couple I guess) and I helped out with handing out awards to the top finishers..Cheering on friends. Post race is always great as we all get to hear about the race stories of the elites that we hang out with...Eric Skaden was in rare form today and was drinking a beer out of his trophy cup that was handed to him for being ultra runner of the year(PAUSATF)--Scott Dunlaps blog will post a pic of Eric and his trophy...classic. Tons of good natured smack between Graham Cooper, Lantz, Skaden etc...it was fun. Other runners, coming in under 5 hours included John Nichols...So many runners so many stories..We finally had a chance to end our award duties and take off somewhere around 7hours after the race started..Mark and Rena along with Skaden and I went over and grabbed more beer and pizza next door and we started to talk about the Lantz and Skaden training and race strategy for Western States..those two are geared to finishing at or near the top..It will be fun to watch..

I am running long today..but these last two weeks have had me running only long on the weekends and minimal running during the weekedays...I think I have dropped a bit of fitness cause of this..well I have two weeks of running before the week taper for AR...

Tony

Dan Moores Thank You, Second 30mile run day, tired legs

2009-03-07T17:00:00.000-08:00

Hi all no pictures today...but the first thing I wanted to comment on was a thank you card from Dan and Patrice Moores in my mailbox this afternoon...It really made my day.

For those not in the know about Dan..He owns Aubrun Running Company and a real nice guy, trail runner and Western States fnisher..Back in November he was diagnosed with Leukemia and this week he was off to Stanford for his bone marrow treatment (I know they do something different but that is the best non medical way to describe it)..During these last few months the community has rallied around Dan and the store..a benefit run raised an astounding amount of funds to help on costs not covered by his insurance. I have been lucky to remain in contact with Dan these past few months as he completed his chemo..he was feeling great and even running a bit..that all changed this week with some unsettling news. But he is still as positive and yes scarred as he heads down for the treatments..He is planning to be at the finish line at Western States in June to see the runners come through..that is his goal...he has asked runners to email him their training leading toward western this year..he looks at his battle while at Stanford to be the same and he is pointing like many to be at Western States....how cool.
So today in the mail a simple thank you card for donation and being a friend..it meant a lot.

Today marked my second weekend in a row where I set out to run about 30miles on the same route I did last weekend..This time Rena joined me and a friend Kate joined after we completed stagecoach for the finial 20ish....We met early at the overlook very cool, clear skies..Rena and I ran strong on the stagecoach loop and hit our mark of 1:30 for the nine miles..by then temps where up and at the overlook we changed from long sleeves to short, fueled up, grabbed Kate and off we went..Trails where perfect as we hit the breakfast spot and 6miles additional in 62minutes (Rena and I's typical time without running 9 prior)...I was pretty amazed but was thinking I should hang back and not get caught up in running faster than I had planned to the turn at rattlesnake...It really was stunning day on the trails and the American River with all the rain is filling up nice to see rapids and deep water moving fast and cold below..From the breakfast spot I dropped back and Rena and Kate moved ahead very fast I was ok with that and hit the turn around at 3:30 ..I had been switching this week to a 45minute interval on gels, blocs and salt...this was working Rena and Kate where no worse for wear as we chatted at Rattle with 10uphill miles to go I was at my low point for the day...out of rattle I hit true turte pace and watched my pace slow on my garmin watch...Things where soon to improve I was moving slow and steady and from miles 8 down to 6 I was getting a second wind and moving better. These last 6 always my hard part with the majority of climbing occuring here betwen miles 8 and 5 then all uphil from 3.2 miles to the top. I ran this better than last week and looked like I could hit my goal time..I noticed the planter kicking up and I often hear comments from people ask me if I am ok since they can see a limp. I have grown so used to this I barely notice...

I ran into a guy at the river and the final 3.2..he and I started chatting on the steep climb up I was out of gas and really did not see a major difference if the run back from rattle was 2 hours or 2:10 so that is how it went to the top some talking and then all out running the final 2.4. from last gasp..Not bad overall with a 13 minute improvement from last week..Legs are cooked..I don't care what distance run I(10, 15 or 30 )always a bit sore..They will be better on Sunday for a short run...Next up go and watch Way too Cool next week and 20 on the Olmstead loop then hang out and chat with all the runners at Cool...it will be fun. Soon I will post my predicted splits at AR 50...it ain't gonna be fast and not too pretty :)

Tony

30mile unsupported Training Run

2009-03-01T05:38:00.000-08:00

Saturday was about a month out for American River 50 mile Race and on the calendar was my first 30mile run of the year. I was late in signing up for a PCT race and a lot of others where in Napa for todays road marathon. I was on my own. Today's route was again the a portion of the American River Trail (Overlook to RattleSnake and Back) and at the start I added in the StageCoach Loop from the Overlook. This was not bad way to start with a 9mile run prior to hitting the AR course. The trail to and from StageCoach was really nice a few slick muddy spots but some interesting views...
Here is a waterfall..just before the climbing the blackhole

The view from StageCoach-Below American River HWY 49 to Cool
It was overcast with temps in the high 40's when I started at 7:30. I took a alternate route up Robie Point to the Overlook and saw a older gentlemen walking up Robie (for those not familiar Robie Point is on the WS course and swings through a neighborhood in Auburn to the finish line at the Placer Track. The guy said..Hi and good form as I ran slow past him..just then he mentioned that he used to run endurance races..so with only 7 miles under my belt and 23 to go I thought I would walk with him and chat about his history...It turned out that he had his 1 Western States Buckle and ran the race back in 1981---We talked about his strategy and his gear he used 28 years ago...He left me at his house with one word of advice..Patience! He said he started the race that year in last place and was just saving himself for a faster second half..he let everyone get in front of him and then he started to pick folks off after Michigan Bluff..He said he finished 38 that year..so he said take your time at the start and use Patience.

From there I got to my car at the overlook and grabbed my camelback and took off for the final 21...I took things slower from there to my normal checkpoints along the AR course but was holding steady. I hit my turn at Rattle figuring I needed about 2 hours to cover the trail and final 3.2 mile climb. I was feeling better than last week at this point and that continued. Running on your own for that long I can get unmotivated at certain sections along the day and I think that contributed to my slowing as I headed toward the river. I did a run/walk up the hill to the overlook and finished the final section in 2 hours 9 minutes. So not too far off my mark. Race day will be different..There will be two more 30mile runs in the next 3 weekends then a moderate taper two weeks prior...

Have good week...Tony

Saturday Running-The goats are out and Lantz,Skaden and Evens smoke me on the final climb!

2009-02-21T16:32:00.000-08:00

Today was a very nice day to run in Auburn. It seems the last two weeks running plans have been fluid..As was the case today. Rena joined me on a run from the overlook on the American River Trail we ran a total of 23miles under sunny skies. Mark Lantz,Rob Evens, Eric Skaden and John Nichols started a little later but where never far behind. With all the rain the previous week the trail was near perfect. To back up a bit we ran on presidents day on the same course but only for 15 miles it was sloppy, windy, pouring and cold...we all had fast runs that day up from the river.

It we ran very consistant the first 10 miles and I decided to make the turn at 11.5 and just prior to starting the run through buzzards. It was getting kinda warm. I was out front to this point and with Rena..she knows when I ask her to lead that I am starting to get tired. On the return to RattleSnake we loaded up on water and food for the final 10miles. Just past rattle we hard a familiar sound from last spring...a bells that are tied to two Goats that a guy brings along with his german shepard for a walk on the trail...These really are pretty amazing goats. They walk just in front of the owner with no leash and the german shepard tags along...Only in California! From Rattle to the 6mile to finish mark things where ok..getting slower but not minding. At this point is a section

Still Smiling...on the American River Trail

I need to start working on as repeats...2.6 miles from there to the river before the final climb. It is this section that is so runable that I tend to crumble all the time. I gotta fix that. Rena was gone at this point and I told her to push it since nothing is worse than getting caught by runners that started after you begin...I was not so lucky with a mile to the top I turned to hear Mark Lantz say...your worst nightmere..I caught you..I cursed a four letter word as he blew by...then came Skaden and Rob Evens..all strong to the top. I was tired and sore...
The week was pretty good with highlights of 15miles on Monday, 23 miles today and will end it with a 13mile run Sunday. Still have a lot of work to do for AR but it is coming along...Tony

Fashion is obviously not our game after the run Me, Erik Skaden, Mark Lantz..

Valentines Day Run..No Broken Heart, But Broken Legs!

2009-02-15T06:18:00.000-08:00

Aquatic Center, up the bluffs to Cavitt School and Return via south side lake natoma. 22miles...
As the title hints...Valentines Day...No Broken Heart, Just broken legs from the run. In an earlier post I weather was the talk of nocal as Saturday/Sunday approach.
The run was again diverted after hearing weather reports of nasty,cold,snow etc near Auburn..which is only 1200ft elevation. So Friday night with calls from folks it was decided..stay close to Sacramento area and run from the Aquatic Center to Cavitt School via a combination of trail and a well used bike path. This is also part of the American River 50 course so no harm done..it is just more pavement than trail. Rena and I met early Saturday..It did not look too bad out with drips of rain and little wind as we took off. We had planned to head to the Granite Bay Horse Staging area and then back..not to be.

Lets start with what I felt went wrong and then end with positive..I have not been running road, or any ashphalt for that matter much and I was just not I think ready for that mentally as we took off. The mind was thinking...jeez this bike trail thing feels long and no real destination..lots of folks on bikes, a few runners...I wanted to be on the single track trail...alone, only the river below providing sound and focused..The mind was not hooked on the running. Fluid intake was low again this week. I think that hit to my bonk the final 4 miles.
On the plus side this was a good run to be doing since the first 19miles of AR50 are on the trail..this caused leg turnover versus running on the trails..It was faster in overall pace by about one to one and half minutes per mile. So it was kinda a long run with tempo. The last four miles where tough but I kept the legs turning over. Rena knew I was in some pain and was a help by just staying in front of me as we moved to the finish. I was thankful for the finish..let me tell you! The legs felt beat up..again..maybe it was the tempo feel..But overall it was good for me.

As for this Valentines thing..it was a none event...It did leave me time to ponder about someone (a little pinning..how's that for an old fashioned word). WS 2010 really is the outside focus right now..dwelling on situation not in my control does me no good.

On that note about WS 2010,I did get a nice note from Jen Pheifer on some suggestions training leading to WS..Her take was use training cycles to hit the goal..Here is an excerpt....In each cycle I would plan a "focus".... hills, speed, downhill running, uphill walking whatever...that way you can really hit all the important stuff and maybe leave the big endurance training (like back to backs) for the last big cycle which will lead you into the race. At the end of each cycle I would plan a "rest period" so that you make sure you are recovering and not over training.

Pretty good advice...Tony

Tony

Wet Trail Running, Tour of California and Dan Moores Update

2009-02-13T04:28:00.000-08:00

Just a brief note...Hey is this the drought buster week or what? Rain and low snow levels have arrived this week and will be more intense this weekend. Winds will be with these storms making it a bit more difficult on the trails. But for the most part the sections where we run are pretty well protected. Granted blow downs and diversions will be a given. To avoid as much mud sucking sections Saturday will be a 26 mile run on the American River Section from the Overlook to my favorite section.....Buzzards and those $%#$$# tight rocky climbs..it will be good for me. Sunday higher wind forecast of upto 50miles might have me altering plans but 15-20miles is on the agenda.

Local talk is focused on the start of the Tour of California..and the return of Lance Armstrong..They will be earning their pay this weekend. The time trail around the Capitol should be rain and wind free but the ride in Davis and Santa Rosa will be really wet...Oh well can't time everything.

A positive note...I ran into Dan Moores at his shop Auburn Running yesterday. He was getting ready for a brief snowshoe run near blue canyon. He is prepping for his bone marrow transplant at Stanford first week in March. He is very upbeat. With the schedule he said he will be living through posts of runners training for this years Western States...those posts he will be comparing their prep and race season leading up as he recovers...They expect him to be out of hospital in time to see the finish at the track in Auburn for WS! That is his goal like the runners make it to the finish line. We will all cheer him on.

Tony

Work gets in the Way, Strange Diet and Strong Weekend

2009-02-08T15:24:00.000-08:00

The work I am involved in has one or two times in the winter and spring that can bring havoc to my training schedule. The first happend last week. 5 solid days of no running and standing on my feet talking to clients. It just has to be. I have been fortuante for the most part to have some freedom to complete my work and have time for some training runs.

That said I had to run solid Saturday and Sunday. Both runs took place on the American River Trail.

Saturday consisted of the out and back to RattleSnake Bar from the Overlook. Most everyone where racing at Woodside or at Jed Smith. So it was just me on a cool, but sunny day. Skaden and Lantz where running on the same course but being so much faster I was on my own. So off I went. Some may wonder how I while away hours on a trail...? Running alone I usually process something. Today I used the miles to calculate time splits for the AR50 race. Not quite like the lead in a beautiful mind I run calculations in my head...This helped me gauge where am fitness wise as I haed toward April. Getting to the turn around and the final 10miles I felt ok. But as in the past with 6miles to go my splits slowed. I did finish with a good run up the hill better than last weeks.

This lead to the strange diet for the whole day...Here it is..its a wonder I could run at all Sunday...

Saturday Diet...

Pre Run...1 cup coffee, 3blocs, 1 water bottle Ultima, One Vespa

During Run...About 60oz Ultima Sports Drink, Two packs blocs, two salt tablets

Post Run...Immediately after 2-Chocolate Ensures, One small serving coke

Dinner--Three hours later...Two Cheeseburgers on the grill, one beer, one glass milk...
Thats it...I may need to eat a bit more during the run but I am gauging levels of food during the days of running.

Sunday..With all that lack of food..I had a casual run planned. I was only going to run 12 miles. I took it easy in the morning. Just sipping coffee and three blocs prior to the run. With one bottle of ultima off I went back to the overlook and a run on the trail...It turned out better than expected. Legs felt so good the whole day. I used this time to run steady to my 6mile turn around. I could not figure it out why I felt good. But I was taking it for all that it is worth. My return splits to the overlook where very positive....With the coming weeks I feel I need some longer weekends and get past two or three hours on Sunday.

I am still ahead of last years running and feel good about that..

Weekend Total..32 miles.

Tony

AR over ball bearing ..work that needs to be done

2009-01-31T16:27:00.000-08:00

Profile from the American River Course--From Near Dam Road to Overlook 24.5 miles

Today I passed on the Nichols Quad Ball Bearing Run and focused on a run that will do me more good come April. I wanted time on this section of the American River Course since it includes some narly sections of running at Buzzards Cove and has that 3.2 mile climb to the finish at the Overlook. More time on feet here and sections that are runnable so lots of leg turnover perfect to close out the month of January. I was joined by Rena today. Rena is a strong runner with hill climbing being her speciality. I was trying to start of slow today like I did last week when I run with Mike Hernandez on a slow first 10..I had hoped that but We ran faster at the start..maybe cause she is faster than Mike. I was feeling tight the first 3 miles but gradually started to feel better. By the time we got to Buzzards Cove time seemed to stand still..dang is this slow for me and a lot other runners. It took foreeeeever to go through Buzzards with steep climbs, tight turns, rocky. This section ate me up! Rena was none to worn out...a fast train of folks with Jen Phiefer, came by us headed to the overlook no slowing them down. I felt Rena was being nice staying with me as we pulled into Rattlesnake and 10miles to go..I let her lead and I started to slow down about 10 seconds behind. While I still felt ok I had a major melt down with 6miles to go..this is my hard section all the time as we run to the river and the climb to the finish. I tried to keep moving but I was at least 10minutes behind Rena now...The climb to the top had me humbled..50 steps walk then 100 steps run..I just wanted to finish. Today was tough but that was ok..better days ahead. I will finish the weekend Sunday with a short 10miles and calle it a week...Tony

Some Elevation Profiles and early week run

2009-01-27T14:28:00.000-08:00

Elevation Profile of My Rocklin Running Route...

I usually wait till the Weekend to post thoughts on my running but thought a early week review maybe ok...I am working out of my home office today and took off on a short lunch run through the concrete streets of Rocklin. I used to run this route allllll the time but since the every present contruction homes and office parks in suburban hell I have limited running this route to only a few times a year and when I guess traffic volumes are low...So with cool sunny skies at lunch off I went..
So you see I still run on the road though it was just under 7 miles it reminded me that I still need to get some tempo in my workouts. I felt very comfortable running but not at a pace I would have run if I where training for a marathon...This was slower than my boston qualifying pace. Oh well something to work on. But it was nice since it was less than an hour of running. I then head off in the late afternoon for my weekly leg massage at the Monsters...That has kept me moving all these years and I recommend it to anyone putting in the mileage.

I also attached the abbreviated Cool Course Profile from last weekend..notice the flat spot just at the top of Goat Hill..that is the time I forgot to turn the garmin back on..oh well it gives you a general idea what it is like to head down to hwy 49 and Quarry Trail/Road----Up Browns Bar-----Run on ALT---Down Ball Bearing to Quarry Road---Quarry Road to Goat Hill---Goat to Cool Fire Station....

Here is the Profile of Saturdays Run...

Till Next time..hit those trails....Tony

Abstract of Running Weekend...

2009-01-25T12:21:00.001-08:00

As I was running this morning..it was cold, raining and empty trail except for me..I thought man was my post about Saturday wordy..so without further adiu..a abstract of the weekend and read/be bored at your own risk the lengthy post from earlier...

Tony

Abstract:

Excellant Weekend Running, Cold, Rainy. Mudddddy. Ran on Cool Course, up browns bar twice, American River Trail Sunday, Legs felt fine, Great Climb up from Last Gasp. Total mileage for Weekend.....30.

No Pics or Profile..But a lot of Mud

2009-01-25T05:49:00.000-08:00

Sorry...The Saturday Run had no pictures and I forgot to turn my garmin back on after goat hill so no real elevation and distance profile...That said

Saturday was our first real day to run on the trails this year in some really sloppy conditions. A group of 10 met at the Cool Firestation for to run portions of the Way Too Cool Course. Nichols lead the 26mile group. Today though we had the pleasure of Ernie Takahashi joining us..Ernie is a guy to look up to..mid 60's and still running a 3:20marathon and very good 50k,50miles. He got the ok to run his first 100k so he was out with the group that was great.

I had been taking it easy since Wed monitoring some minor lower leg issues..I wanted to get the long run in today and Sunday. So I choose to go right to the back of the pack and just stay there. It really turned out pretty good. From the Firestation we ran down quarry trail to quarry road then up Browns Bar to ALT. Achilles was really tight climbing up Browns..here I started to run the next 6 miles with Mike Hernanadez...it was perfect pace to stretch things out! I quized him on his badwater and states runs...told him the year I passed rena at states that we used his lead as a goal to catch him before the finish...So this was nice to get to 10miles at ALT..
Here I made decision to just make the most of the slick,muddy conditions. So off we went down Ball Bearing..that was not fun. Here we heard some runners from behind and it was Rena and 3 others that had turned and wanted to run with us....
My strongest portion of the day was from the base of ball bearing and returning to browns via quarry road...I was moving fast and dropping the group. Moderate climbs here and I was enjoying this. From Browns it was time to climb that one more time and this time it was easy....Next stop climb up goat hill. Always tough on me and here Mike and another runner caught me at the top. We saw the Nichols aid station and stopped there for a second. Now since I have been taking Vespa I just want to keep focused and running on these days again was no different. I told Mike I was heading out and they where going to be close behind....

I said it was muddy...Well..just past Goat on a Steep downhill..it was slick mud...As slid down this section I was yelling MUDE LUGE!!! Being by myself I was hoping Mike would hear the warning..not less than a minute later I heard a roar of laughter from behind..They must have found the LUGE....That was the last I heard of them that day...perhaps they fell here but for the next 4miles I ran on my own..I did have a little fatigue from Hwy 49 up the hill to Cool. But I was impressed with the second half of the run...Total distance was about 18.5 miles.
Today I will try and see how the legs react for a 16mile run on the AR trail. It is cooler today so I will have a later start...Have fun all.

Tony

Runnin the Trail to Rattle..a Good Week of Running

2009-01-17T16:08:00.000-08:00

On Avery Pond on the American River Trail

A very nice week of running and a nice suprise on a warm northern California Saturday

Running this week could not have gone better..I had set a mileage at only 50miles for the week. Following my game plane to hit high mileage in March with two 50mile weekends to prep for American River 50mile..

The week was really nice and a lot of strong base running..Runs included stagecoach loop and two runs down and up from the American River with strong 2.5mile hill climbs from Last Gasp to the overlook in the middle of the week..That leaves Saturday and Sunday..I set a 20mile limit for Saturday and choose to run from the Overlook to Rattlesnake and bac on the AR trail. I was on my own today...Rena was sick an others where scattered at races from Pacifica to Redding. Not bad though as the parking lot was not too crowded as I departed at 7:30 not too chilly and a promise of warming..I had set myself to review my fluid intake today and every 15minutes set to drink 4oz...and at 45minute 3blocks and a scap. Pace the whole day was steady with no real "wheels off" I was enjoying myself. I did encounter a large group of at least 20 hiking and taking their time..that is fine but they would not move over as I called out to pass..I caught them first at the powerstation and later as I crossed a stream..they were all being carefull and I was set to finish my run in the time I had in my head..no time so I just ran through the stream getting wet.
Oh well..I did see Erik Skaden and Mark Lantz just after I turned back from Rattle..they had another 2 miles to run before they turned back and I decided I did not want the fast folks to catch me at any cost..So off I went running scared for the final 3.2 of climbing..I did have a low point on the climb but was checking to see if I was on for my predicted finish after I left Rattle...Got to the overlook with 2minutes to spar and no Mark or Erik to be scene..I was happy. I think Vespa really works..its now part of my long run suppliments....

My nice suprise for the day was when I headed over to Auburn Running Company...and to my suprise Dan Moores was in his shop!!! It was great to see him out of the hospital and smiling. He was very grateful and stunned at the outpouring from Auburn and the trail running community as he deals with leukemia...He felt great and just wanted to talk..It was GREAT! Granted he has one more chemo and then the bone marrow transplant..but I want to see him in 2010 at the Bath Aid station at Western States that is my plan...and his as well!

Tony
A nice view of the American River

Elevation Profile---Overlook to Rattlesnake and Back

Nichols Birthday Run...A Long Day on the Western States Course

2009-01-11T07:56:00.000-08:00

Total Elevation 13,311
Elevation Gain 6,654
Elevation Loss 6,656
Distance-22miles

The annual running of the Nichols Birthday Run took place yesterday on the Western States Trail. This marked the 4th year I have particpated. I should note that I did not RUN the Tradional Total Birthday Distrance of 40miles. Just too early in the season to load that mileage on for this average ultra runner.

Lets Review the facts...Thank God it was not too cold at the start with a safe and sane 8am start temps where not bad to begin..but there was frost and ice on along the shaded spots. Ten of us meet to take part in this run...Nichols being the most generous had stached at the Hwy 49 crossing at Cool a Cooler filled with a wide assortment of aid station goodies...from red bull to goldfish and some chicken jerky if anyone brought a dog for a treat..I actually did eye the jerky and thought about taking somethen I recalled the association with jerky and dogs nichols has..and thought better of it...

Short digress there. Lets frame the group...Nichols, Mark Lantz and Rob Evens where the lone group to tackle the full 40. There was a tough group of women runners headed by Karyn Hoffman, Karalee, Lisa,Karalee, Elizebeth..sorry for being bad on your last names..They had committed for a 28mile total. Rena and Charlie Jones...Had 30miles on their mind...ME....I had set a total run time for the day over miles and wanted to keep this between 4 and 5 hours...That said off we went.
Sunny Skys and today must have been like spring fever on all sections of the traile from Auburn to NoHands Bridge, HWY 49 to Browns Bar and Browns to ALT...A consistant stream of runners..getting ready for Way Too Cool, etc...Riders and their Horses...(I always find these folks very friendly and they have bailed me out from time to time)...and a ton of general type folks out on a hike..It sure is different than a few years ago...The most interesting group we saw along the way was one that included Jennifer Phiefer and she is back to some ultra training after her time away to have a child and olympic marathon trails last year in boston...she had on some bright green brooks trail shoes and seemed pretty happy..Her goal was to run AR50 again..with her in the field it would be easy to see her win or place in the top three...

For the second week in a row the climb from 49 to Cool got my lower back tight..I was also breathing way too hard..I have some lingering effects from a cold still and that has to pass..I let Rena use her strong hill climbing to bridge up to Karyn and the group. I was not concerned today with competing or testing fitness levels..just time on feet was the goal. I did take Vespa one more time as a gauge..My overall results are that I feel a bit more focused, not wanting to lag around much, better overall endurance and legs not to wasted after the run. So I think I will rate it a sucess and try it on races etc...

It was warming nice and as we got to Browns Bar, Rena asked me if I wanted to go the full route to ALT and 30miles..I nearly said yes..but I was feeling good and used my stay the plan instead. Nichols and the 40mile group where way ahead. Charlie for all his injuries was running well..at this point I said good by to everyone and only ran another mile past browns since I would be at 2:15 then..I was feeling good but slowing down a bit on the way to browns and back down to quarry road..strong though from the road and to the Hwy 49 junction where I did take time to have some food...The bad part of my run is that I had only had one full bottle of fluid to that point...I ended my total run of 4:30 with consuming 2bottles...gotta change that. At 49 I had planned to cruise fast down to Nohands bridge but I was hitting a wall of sorts and did not have strong leg turnover..passing nohands I was thinking glad to have turned when I did knowing I was about to start some more hiking than running. Up through the black hole to robie point had me hiking..I had enough for the day. I was pretty impressed though that I was spot on and finished in 4:32..A good run!

It was now time to wait for all the other distance groups it was nice to sit in the sun and listen to the playoff game Ten vs Baltimore on the radio and wait it was a long afternoon when Nichols made it in...he was tired and beat but we got him to go out and grab some food...It was a long day for all..I had left my house at 7am and got home at 7pm..Tired now..I hit the bed I think by 8...I need to finish this weekend with a 2hr recovery run on the AR trail in a few...lets hope the legs get me through this...

Tony

Run for Dan, Screaming Quads and a Cool Run

2009-01-03T15:14:00.000-08:00

Today was a very special day for the training running community near Auburn, California. Today was a benefit run for Dan Moores. The day was to support Dan in anyway the community can and they sure did. Greg Soderlund-WS Race Director, Tim Twietmeyer and a cast of many hosted the event on the Placer High Track..The Finish for Western States. Greg estimated about 400 individuals turned out to run a lap or more. It was nice to see so many come out and support..

It was however...dang cold at the start of the day...what is with this low clouds we have been having keeping temps near freezing at night! I met up with Rena and Karyn Hoffman about 8 at the track and we ran a tricky warm up around the track..it was slick with a light coat of ice in portions. The quads just hurt from New Years Day. I admit it was tough to leave the track as they where bringing food and hot coffee out for everyone..I was thinking....hmmm stay on the track anc run 60laps would be a good workout...But alas We headed out to the cold and muddy trail...

Karyn, Rena and I all felt it in the quads but we said we would take it easy..The downhill in the black hole was very slick with mud..like a slip n slide...I kept a good pace for the group to No Hands bridge..but I was wondering what would happen on the climb up to Cool. Karyn and Rena where running strong up to Cool and I dropped back..I was a bit whinny with some tightness in my lower back..However on the way up we saw many runners returning from Cool to head to the track to support Dan..there must have been nearly 15 runners on the stretch down from Cool..I was hurting..the back was tight..I told Rena and Karyn to head to the Firestation and I would cut it just short of the Firestation...This seemed to work out well and I at least had a nice final climb up to Cool. The return from Cool to No Hands was very nice but dang if it was not cold in the shade! Karyn was running very strong and consistant for the final 3 miles to the track....Rena jumped on the Hoffman train and they took off..I kept a steady slow pace..my legs where a bit shot...Upon hitting the track there were a lot of folks taking part in the event...Mark Lantz was long finished with his training run with Rob Evens and was there to great us...Time for a little socializing...

So it was a great day to support Dan...I had a ok day and this is what January is about..building a good base.

Tony

New Years Day Run Review---Fantastic! and how Rena Smoked me again :)

2009-01-02T06:44:00.000-08:00

California Street to Drivers Flat
Start Elevation (ft): 3,214
Finish Elevation (ft): 1,694
Min. Elevation (ft): 732
Max. Elevation (ft): 3,214

New Years Day 2009: What a great day! 2009 started with a high...I did not ring in the new year at midnight...though I did wake up I think about then to hear a few firecrackers that the neighbors set off..I quickly went back to sleep. Better things on the agenda...The unofficial first Western States Training Run.
Leaving my home at 6am and driving through a series of cold low hanging clouds had me thinking the remainder of the day would filled with brilliant sunshine at higher elevations..I was not wrong.
This year like many that are good weather years..you see more and more first timers and that shows the growth in trail running..Drivers Flat was packed with cars and runners by 6:45...Many familiar faces for those that read this blog..Mark Lantz, Rena Schumann, Charlie Jones, Grant and Leslie Carboni, Jeff(sorry), Mark Murray, John Blue, Karyn Hoffman, Ken and Ellen Crouse...and cast of others...Snow at spots as we arrived to California Street but brilliant sun and temps in the high 30's it was gonna be good...I started off ahead of Rena with a mission..I had not told her..I just wanted to get to the top of Drivers Flat before her this year..and I figured a few minute head start would be good...

This was my third time I tried Vespa as a supplement and I was curious if its just a placebo or really works...On that note..I think it worked very well...I felt stronger and ran better, very focused the whole day and had a pack of blocs so a positive result...Back to the run...

Off I went and held a steady deliberate pace...I was by myself when the fast train lead by Mark Lantz came breezing by just before Cal1 three miles in...they made it look so easy. I passed a few groups of runners and was way over dressed. Running the trails which where perfect..not muddy, covered in leaves...had me runny with a big smile..it may not have showed but it was there...I was running comfortable as I descended impail trail and ran that tough downhill really well...I caught up at Cal2 with Grant, Karyn and Jeff they had a head start on me so I took off with them for the downhill and then climb to Fords Bar..Cal3. Karyn ran easy as we run down this stretch always a good time to chat it was nice. We started the climb up to Cal3 and I was listening and learning from Grant as he was talking to Karyn about better uphill techniques..I tried it out as well hmmm gotta keep practicing. I did not want to lag long at Cal3 and grabbed my last blocs and filled my bottle and took off. I actually had a good stretch of running from here to the picnic table...Oh and No Rena in sight...I wandered if she was hanging back with Charlie...Anyway there are good cruising streches here and the sun was shinning bright...Making it to the picnic table now only 5miles to the finish with 2.4 being the climb. I took it a bit easier on the this stretch and we passed a campground with a few new years day campers..they where most likely confused at all this energy so early in the new year.

Then it happend! Just as I begin the climb up Drivers Flat I heard some fast feet moving up on me...I thought it was Grant but then I heard Rena!....She said damn I had to really pick it up to catch you....It was really ok...I knew though that her strong climbing would make my unknown goal a none reality..we where talking at the start and I told her..she smiled as did I....oh well. Our run times where the same since she started a few behind me...

We got to the top (Lantz, Mark Murray and Rob Evens running 2:26) long finished had hot water for tea and hot chocolate ready to go...we came in about 3:20 not bad to start the year....This year no breakfast fixins at the top...oh well. I had kinda wanted those pancakes and eggs...We did bring a few items to share and some beer...We all hung out for about two hours after...all in all we saw about 60 runners.
Today I will focus on picky a few races to run prior to American River 50.

A note for my out of town friends....2010
One of these days a few of my friends from out of town just gotta join us for this run..so to those...pull out your running shoes and joins us for 2010..You know I got a lot of space in my house...Ring in my 2010 training for Western States..

A long post..but it was Fun! Tony

The Traditional New Years Run!

2008-12-31T05:56:00.000-08:00

For many a trail runner in Northern California New Years Day means one thing....Gotta go run the Western States Trail...18miles from California Street (in Foresthill) and finish with the climb upto Drivers Flat!

Maybe its the new year and all but this is my top on the list of all training runs any time of the year. Granted I tend to go to bed way early New Years Eve and not head out to any parties..It seems that my party is the next day on the trail. It can be a who's who in the trail running community in Sacramento and northern California that may all be pulling into Drivers Flat to shuttle to the start in Foresthill. There always is a lot of chatter and catching up to do as we all prep..then off to the start...From there we will run on the Western States Trail with brief stops at Cal1,Cal2,Cal3(locations of Western States Aid Staions)...This section offers nice downhills, a few stream crossings and of course the 2.5mile climb upto drivers flat...I always think it would be great to end the run at the river..but NOOOOO gotta finish at the top...However we are often awarded with food and cheer once we arrive at the finish...we all bring something to pass around and celebrate the new year with many folks starting their Serious Training for Western States 2009!

Happy New Year..see many of you early New Years Day!

Tony

Gordy's Christmas Run Race Report-NICHOLS WINS!

2008-12-26T06:52:00.001-08:00

10k Winner John Nichols! with Santa Gordy!

Gordy Ansleighs annual Christmas Run..Truely reminded me of a Michigan winter day! No race could be more laid back as this...Maybe 50 or 60 runners..a lot of dogs happy to be outside. Gordy provided the entertainiment with a lengthy discourse on the course directions with green and organge ribbons. Having been in bed sick for two days my mind was not all there...just go run. Back to the race...It was spitting sleet and temps somewhere in the high 30's. Nichols and a few others I recognized where there. It turned out that there where two races a 5 and 10k. With the weather and not feeling well I opted for the 5k, while Nichols picked the 10k...I just wanted to get a slow run.
At the sound of the horn off we went. Both races took us through the small village of Meadow Vista..Nichols went off the lead and appeared comfortable and I settled into being about 100 yards back in the first half mile...The 5k seperated and I saw up ahead 2 runners making the turn and there where three others I turned with. I was not thinking of challenging...after all I had not done any speed work in over a year! I was just happy to be running..After the turn things settled in and the group of three just ahead of me started to break up a bit. This 5k was not flat with 3 climbs. I started working a bit with the lone female in the group but I was not interested in passing her...but on the first climb I did. I was calling out our mile split since I had on my garmin watch. The course hit a canal and we passed one other runner now as I could figure we where running at least in the top 5. I decided to take it down a bit and let her work in front of me while we set our sites on a runner just ahead. By mile two we could not see two lead runners and it was myself and two others. I was breathing kinda hard but comfortable with the leg turnover. I would continue to close the gap with the women on the climbs and get within a few feet but I just did not turn the legs over on the downhill and I was settling in to not catch her. It was kinda like a yo-yo I would catch on the climb then lose it on the downhill. Oh well. As the watch rang out 3miles I did not see the finish..hmmm this is a 5k right? I held back a bit here not seeing the park...I cruised in to the finish 5 overall and hey I won my age group! Yea limited folks running..I will take it for the ego...Oh and the course was 3.3miles!

Meanwhile on the 10k Nichols was flying in his retro Nikes...He was all by himself and took the grand prize in for the day...

All in all a good day..Tony

A Cold for XMAS, Gordy's Run, Run for Dan and WS2009

2008-12-25T06:58:00.000-08:00

Just a short note early on XMAS morning. Dang it if I don't have a nasty cold which has slowed down running the last few days. Yea..some will say it's ok to run and often I do but this time I want to take the time off which I have..But I will head to Meadow Vista and Gordy Ansliegh's kinda traditional 10k run. For those new to Western States...Gordy started the whole running 100 mile thing for us in Northern CA..the first Western Stater...anyway he has a small race on this morning I will go and waddle through. John Nichols said he will be there..It will be nice to get outside no matter what.

An update note went out about a benefit run for Dan Moore's-supporter of Western States--You may have scene him staging the Bath Road Aid Station...running in Western States or stopped in his store Auburn Running Company. January 3rd is a benefit run at the Placer High Track...funds will go support additional costs while Dan is in hospital..a very worthy cause.
For more info go to http://www.ws100/latestnews.com

Wow...on paper 2009 Western States 100 looks like a who's who of top ultra runners. Latest has Scott Jurek returning. The young guns will be there. It will be fun to see how all this turns out. The masters race will be very competitive as well...

Have fun today...Tony

Road to Western States--A lot of Training

2008-12-20T19:26:00.001-08:00

Hi all! Welcome to my first new blog location. This site will be for me to post my thoughts on training and running in Western States 100 mile Endurance Race. Though not till June 2010 I will need every day to prepare. I hope that you will contribute comments and suggestions as I move toward this life goal.

Call it a bucket list achievement but that is what it is. It does scare me a bit knowing what I have felt like when I have run only portions of the trail for 5 or 6 hours. Climbing up Devils Thumb and to Michigan Bluff have pummelled me before.

The image to the left is mile 97 of the Western States race. I would love to see this before the sun rises on that Sunday morning in June. I don’t know if that is possible but if I make it to Nohands I will be almost home. I will need a lot of support during this 18months of training. If you interested in running with me, being on my crew or pacing me on race day let me know…I know that seeing friendly faces on race day will be a big boost.

Why Western States now? I guess it all goes back many years ago..For some reason I recall reading about the race in Sports Illustrated back in the late 80’s . I was living in I think Ohio at the time and for some reason I recall thinking that 100 miles is cool. It fell to the back of my mind and then when I moved out to the Sacramento area in 2000 I was stunned to read in the Sacramento Bee that only a few miles from me was the Western States Trail! I had totally forgot about this and poof there it was again. SOOOOOO I immediatly went to the Auburn Overlook (after reading that this was a good place to hit the trail). Being way out of shape I had on my running shoes and found the overlook. Low and behold there was someone just getting ready to go on a run on the trail. I went over and asked her if she was going to run the Western States Trail…She said yes that she was doing a 15mile short training run on the coffer dam loop run..I thought Dang! 15mile training run…I said sure can I tag along…It turned out it was Rena Schumann!. Rena took me down the trail and was talking a mile a minute about the trial and all I coud do was say “yea” and “oh” I was dying! She ran with me to NoHands and I thought this is the bomb but I cant run any further..I left her then…Funny thing I did not see her for about 2 years then as all thing turn she started dating one of my best friends Mark Lantz and in 2004 I paced her at Western States for the first time…Since then I have run with Mark and Rena a ton and consider them best friends…Ok back to why…Well I have helped pace, crew and train with so many of my running friends it was time to test my own skills and run it myself. It does mean I need to alter some lifestyle and diet ways…oh and be consistant in training…

So join me in this journey and leave a comment or two…