Topeka to Auburn: Did a Cow Just Fly By?

Almost a month in to 2014 and no race recap yet? Please forgive me for my failure to provide running ramblings. Let me fix that immediately. The first outing for this year was the Topeka to Auburn Half Marathon.  It’s a local race put on by the local running group, the Sunflower Striders. It’s got a lot of things going for it: over 30 years of races, great hills for the area, Kansas’ standard could be anything weather, and varied scenery. I thought , when I signed up, it would be a good test to get ready for my goal races this year. It was.

Let’s start off with me. I have been nursing a nagging knee nearly 9 (yeah, take that alliteration) weeks. I had basically decided I need to back down and really re-build things. Slow slow slow was the name of the game and it seemed to be working relatively well. I decided I needed to carry that into the race too. Which meant slow the eff down and don’t mind them people passing you. Oh and something about enjoying the scenery along the way yada yada yada.

Now, on to race day. This deserves it’s own paragraph. Kansas, we do love ourselves some weather.  One of literal draws to this race is that it is in late Jan and not even god knows what the weather will do.  Well, we knew a week out it was going to be windy. And it did not disappoint. Thankfully though, the temps were very un-seasonal. Upper 40’s to love 50’s is a rarity around here. That being said, it was still windy. Well, windy doesn’t describe if very well, gale force may be more apt. We had 30 mph sustained with 50+ mph gusts. If I had a sail, I could have taken off.

Thankfully the course was laid out so that for the most part, the first half of the course was either in areas where the wind wasn’t quite as strong, or was at our back. This was mostly residential areas, a couple hills, nothing too out of the ordinary. The second half, however was a different story. Starting at about the halfway point is Urish hill, which is the biggie. Now, I get it, you folks near mountains would think our little hill is a speed bump, but for us it is one of the best we have locally.  That being said, it wasn’t race shattering. Doing more trail running lately, I enjoyed this part. They set a camera guy at the top to capture people slogging up it, sort of a race tradition. All in good fun. This point on, the hills rolled and we moved on to gravel roads. Another thing that changed is we moved out of the residential and into more open farm land area. This meant far less wind blocks as well as a turn back into the wind. And man, it really punched you in the face going up hills into a 30-50 mph wind with the lovely around of cow being rammed into your nostrils. Just for fun, it also started sprinkling a bit, or light hail, I couldn’t quite tell as hard as it hit us. Again though, it was fun. It was different, I enjoyed it.

Finally coming around a corner and over a hill or two we could see the finish area. At Cowtown I talked about passing a little girl that passed me previously, here, in a Karmic kick in the butt a 12 year old-ish girl absolutely flew past me. I did nothing but laugh and wish her luck. She was earning it. For me, it was a slow sprint (I know that is an oxymoron but it really is what it was for me) to the finish. I gathered myself and felt great. I bounced around a little to see how the knee felt and it was good. I saw friends, talked to them a bit, and rode a wind gust back to my car feeling like I actually followed a plan for once. I really wanted to use this a training run and I think it went well. Skora Forms took care of my feet, Orange Mud Hydra Quiver Double Barrel on my back felt amazing for carrying water and other gear and goodies, the Island Boost “gel” was delicious and rocket fuel as usual. I think I am ready for Cross Timbers in TX on the 15^th which means I am completely not ready or something incredibly odd will happen. But that is the fun right? 

Orange Mud Hydraquiver Double Barrel Review

One of the drawbacks of being human (or sasquatch-ean?) is that water is necessary to sustain life. While this is probably good news for companies that sell water, for people on the move it also means the need to schlep water around. A water bottle on my desk at work or in the gym cup holder is relatively simple and probably not worth much fuss. Running around in the great outdoors on the other hand is a bit more problematic. Once upon a time one could probably have stopped and taking a refreshing pull from a crystal clear stream to quench the thirst. Now, if you do that, you will probably die within 10 yards from some horrific cornucopia of parasites.  This leaves us runners few options for carrying this necessary liquid. Bottle in hand, bottle stashed along your route, belt, or a hydration pack.

First and foremost I am not fond of carrying anything in hand while I run. I have an irrational (wait, I do it all the time, so totally rational) fear of falling. And I know if I fall with a bottle in my hand that my bottle, hand, arm, and/or pride are going to take a massive blow. I like to keep my hands clear to pretend at least like I could catch myself. Plus, you can’t fight off the inevitable werewolf attack with hands full of water. That’s important too. Stashing bottles is a flat out no, come on, that’s just asking for someone to tamper with, or drink it in a thirsty moment of panic.  Plus it ain’t easy making your way out into the middle of a trail just to set water down then back so you can start your run. Unless you have a Iron Man suit or something, which I do not. Speaking of super heroes, belts always made me feel like bat man. I should be flinging batarangs not sipping Gatorade from them. And again, should I (ha, should I, how about when I) trip, having a bottle precariously close to regions of my body that should NEVER be used to cushion a fall is a bit disconcerting. This brings us to packs. Most packs are big and bulky with bladders that are heavy and flop around. That works about as well as it sounds. This leads to a tough decision on what to suffer with. Well, queue up your best infomercial voice. That is no more. Let me introduce you to the Orange Mud HydraQuiver Double Barrel.

Unlike an infomercial, this is a bad ass product. First of all it comes in 2 flavors for runners: the single barrel and the double barrel. That is how many water bottles it holds. “But you hate bottles” you say to me. Well these are bottles you hold these are bottles that sit in holsters on your back. Not low slung like a bladder but high on your back between your shoulder blades. This is awesome as it means that the swaying and flopping is very minimal and is so much easier on the back for long distances. The lightness of the pack cannot be understated as it was one of the toughest things I dealt with for my long trail races. I assume it’s called a hydra quiver cause it really is like reaching in and plucking out an arrow from a quiver, which, when you get down to it is awesome. Furthermore, you don’t even have to use their bottles if you didn’t want to, although they do make for a perfect fit in the holster. It also has abundant cargo space for food stuffs or whatever on the shoulders, making for an easy reach. On the back is another compartment for phones, wallets, cards, cash, maps, and assorted other small things needing carried. There is even a draw cord between the barrels for cinching down a shirt or jacket or whatnot.

I really cannot understate how comfy and easy this thing is to use. No water tube to keep clean or have a plastic taste. The padding is soft and easy on the back where it rests. Really it is exactly what I had been searching for out of a pack. My only qualm was really just getting used to putting a bottle back into it’s holster behind my back. But once I got used to where it was, the mouth of the holster is wide to guide it back in and it became a smooth action. I had been concerned that the straps that go under the arms to secure it to the body would chafe but I really didn’t even know they were there. I saw pictures of others wearing them with no shirt so I think they are very well placed to minimalize that kind of thing. I highly recommend this for anyone who needs a means to carry water (be it the single bottle or double) or doesn’t like their current method for transporting it. You won’t be disappointed. For the record, I purchased mine online at www. Orangemud.com so my opinion is my own and isn’t influenced other than my own squealing glee at having a pack I love instead of dread.

Last Runs

While I try and figure out a way to write a year recap (been a really busy year) I thought I would share something awesome from last weekend. It has been, for the most part, unseasonably warm. I know one long run it was almost 80 out, in late December. Well, winter is a cunning warrior and was just setting us up. Winter’s distraction tactics are second to none. Little warm weather, holidays, ample food…then pow, hit them square in the jaw. Yes, winter is a ninja, and we forgot it was there. But alas, he has shown himself and the throwing stars of cold air are flying all over the place.

 

Luckily for me I like the cold weather much more than hot weather. I can put more layers on if need be and it offers a sweet opportunity for ice beards (more on that later). Something about some cold air in the lungs and seeing your breath is rather exhilarating. Also, the near total elimination in spider attacks cannot be understated. So really I was rather excited to see winter make an appearance in something else besides vague foreshadowing in Game of Thrones.  I decided to go ahead and take advantage of this and get some good long runs in. When we started on Saturday it was a balmy 3 degrees with a -9 windchill. Not the coldest weather ever (see: Antartica) but it was a bit chilly. I was glad for that too, I had new cold weather gear to try out. What resulted was an amazing run. 2 hours and around 10 miles later I was still nice and warm. It really was a lot of fun and after about 5 min I didn’t really notice the weather except when I took the gloves off to snap a picture. Oh the punishment we take for a picture.

That night we got a nice dusting of snow. So I was very excited to get out and run again. It was a bit warmer but same general principle as the day before. The run was even better!. 2 hours and around 12 miles in the fresh crunchy snow. I really felt like I was flying. It was amazing. Special thanks to Island Boost For anyone who has not tried it, it's AMAZING. Straight rocketfuel, and tastes great, easy on the tummy, and most importantly…DIDN’T FREEZE! I really didn’t want to stop. This was really a great way for me to kind of wrap up my year (I know a couple weeks left).  Now, if only those spiders would just leave me alone…

KC Marathon (The Low)

I came To Kansas City for the KC Marathon on leftover fumes of awesomeness from Hawk 100, trepidation from getting back to this evil concrete, and an overwhelming stench of Vicks. Yes, because my timing is impeccably bad, my body decided this in between month was the right month to run down the list of illnesses sweeping the nation like they were the hot hits top 20 or something. I had some sort of plague flu, some sort of stomach adverseness to eating (which if you know me, if I am not eating it can be safe to assume I am probably beating on deaths door), some violent reaction to breathing and using my throat in general properly. And because my family loves me so dearly, everyone decided that they should pitch in and get sick in KC too, ‘cause they care.

Skora Forms with the loot

So the hotel room was a bastion of illness and little sleep. There was even consideration of packing up and going home. Even after waking I wasn’t sure I should be out there. But instead in the dark and quiet (or as quiet as you can be getting race gear ready in the dark) I got ready. My hotel room looked out of the opposite side from where the race start was so it wasn’t until I got down to the lobby and out the door that I could see the throng of people. It was, jolting. Not the “touched a live wire and now have no eyebrows left” kind of jolt but really a “this is freaking awesome”. I have never experienced a race this large before. This many people toeing the line all at once. It was amazing to see and even more amazing to swim through the people to find some friends and get in our areas to start.

On to the race itself. First of all the course was gorgeous. If you have never been to KC I would highly suggest a trip down. It goes through a cool area of town from the Power and Light district, by the hotels again, up to and out of the War Memorial (incredible in the early morning), through the plaza, through the very upscale neighborhood, then through the not so upscale neighborhood, and back home. It was a scenic route. It was billed as hilly (for around here anyways) but I didn’t think it was THAT hilly. Maybe that’s the recent trail running spurt talking but there were hills and they were manageable. You probably won’t set a PR here if you run other super flat courses, but it was a very solid course. Perhaps the most evil part of this course was running by Gates BBQ while they were smoking ribs. Slight aside, KC is really known for 2 things, fountains and BBQ and you get both on this route. Again, come check it out. You will not be disappointed. Back to the route, the day was also perfect. Cool in the morning, sunny, just warm enough by the time I crossed the finish line.

War Memorial - Not befitting of the awesomeness

I had high hopes for this race despite the fact I wasn’t feeling nominal. My goal was under 4 hours. I had felt good coming out of the Hawk in Lawrence. Well. Things were ok for a while. I was hovering around that 4 hour pace for about 16 mi then I really started laboring. Then it really just fell apart. Started feeling pain in my right hamstring and had to stop and walk. That was really the last thing I wanted to do.  If this was a trail race I would have been running with intermittent walking, but this was not and walking was the absolute death of me. The slower I moved the more things tightened up. I tried to run/walk/run as best as could. It would work for a while until the pain crept in. Slowly I crept towards the finish getting passed by people, encountering other “walking wounded” (that’s another post for another time). Finally getting close enough to hear the finish I had to pass a group of people sitting, tailgating really, with a sign saying “Free Beer if you quit”. That was when I started running and carried me right up to the finish line with many adoring fans lining up to see me finish (sorry what I really meant was a few people left over waiting for others to finish who really wanted me to get out of the way). It was one hell of a feeling to stagger across, grab my bagel and fruit, grab my water, grab my medal and correctly put one my neck and the others in my pie-hole.

Laboring

But that isn’t quite the end of the story. Another reason I had hoped for a 4 hour marathon was to give me time to shower, get dressed, get the van packed up , maybe stop by the free bbq/beer tent before I headed home. Well, that didn’t really leave me a lot of wiggle room before I was unceremoniously booted from my hotel room. The slower I went the slower I wedged up against that time. Sure enough the margin was too thin and the family packed up and checked out right about the time I was crossing the finish. This meant that no food and no shower. It also meant a stink van ride home. Sorry all involved. That seemed to be the worst part until I tried to get out when I got home an hour or so later…you know, once rigor mortis had set in. Getting out of the car may have been the hardest part of the whole weekend.

Where's the crash cart, with beer?

Hawk100 Marathon (High Point)

I like to start my posts off with something funny or catching so that you, the reader, might actually hang around for another sentence or two. I am having a hard time starting this one off. I am quite literally that speechless about what I did on Saturday. In my previous post I stated I had signed up for back to back races. It was time to reap what I had sown.

 

Back to the North Shore trail around Lake Clinton in Lawrence for me. It wasn’t just the chill in the 5 AM air that had me shaking, I was nervous. The race the week before had shattered any semblance of confidence I had in what I was about to do.  I did take solace in knowing I learned a lot the week before. Eat, drink, pace yourself, be smart. I kept going over that in my head. I took time to go watch the ultra-runners take off for a little extra inspiration. Something about seeing the headlamps dive into the woods like a pack of fireflies was pretty awesome. After that, it was watching the sun rise over the lake that really started getting me amped and ready to go.  By the time we were lining up to start. I was anxious to get going. I felt ready.

This really has nothing to do with the race other than... JESUS LOOK AT THAT THING. I better run FAST lest I get eaten...

 

This race was completely different from the one before. First of all, the weather was amazing. We started in the low 50’s. A nice cool breeze blew for most of the day. Even at the end it as warm but not “I could catch fire if I trip and hit the ground” hot. It was awesome. As we took off the sun was rising, the mist was lifting, was really quite the sight to behold.

 

Aww that's just majestic, I bet it was fleeing that hellacious spider.

For me, cause of my terminal case of stupidity, it was imperative that I start in the back. This would keep my ability to go galloping forward to a minimum. The marathoners started with a little out and back loop through what looked like a nature preserve trail. Easy stuff, single file, CONGA LINE!!!! The group kept me in my place pretty well. Next up was Saunders Mound, a little uphill/downhill with a cool top and a cooler view. More conga line preventing my poor pacing decisions. Finally things started to open up and I had the opportunity to show my true colors and outrun myself. Lo and behold, I stayed put. I fell in behind a couple nice ladies that didn’t mind me stomping and clomping behind them (thank you). They were going about the right pace for me not to shoot myself in the foot. I should probably mention right now that my goal was under 6.5 hours. I had no idea what I should expect and I was rather skittish after the week before and it’s, um, horror?

 

My hands look weird cause I still had the creepy crawlies from that terror-spider.

So apparently I can be taught. I was running within myself. About 5 min of every hour was spent walking. The course wasn’t chock full of hills, so some time was just spent walking of my own volition. It was nice. It was peaceful, and what the course lacked in hills in made up for in good views. The shore line of the lake was magnificent. That was also the hardest part as far as rocks go. It was easy going honestly. I was gliding. It was about 11 miles in that I broke off from the people I was tailing. This was also one of the coolest parts of the course. It was circling up a hill with a bunker (or some structure) built in the side, hence the name bunker hill. At the top we could see across the whole lake/park area. It was exhilarating.

 

Bunker hill was sandwiched between rest stops. It should be mentioned that the Hawk had amazing aid stations. The food and drink were varied and plentiful. The people were amazing. I got my pack felt up one two occasions to make sure I wasn’t lying about my water situation. The best though was definitely the awesome lady who threatened to give me “angry mother eyes” if I wasn’t eating anything and that she would find me if I wasn’t telling the truth. Ahh, nothing says caring volunteers like motherly threats to eat. They knew me well.  

 

Coming out of those stops I was about 14 miles in. I felt good, I was pacing well. Then something happened that has never happened to me up til this point. I fell. I was cruising along thinking about lots of things and nothing at the same time when that ghost root snagged me. Down I went, leaving an offering of blood to the trail gods. But thankfully no one saw me so it never happened. Back on the move I went.  And on to the last Aid station.

 

I had been glancing at my watch from time to time, seeing how I was doing. I was pleased at my time relative to how I felt. Now here I was, about 5 miles from home and pacing well ahead of where I thought I would be. This was a jolt. I took off and ran and ran and ran. It was exhilarating. So exhilarating that when I came to the turn off to go cross the finish line I ran right past it. It wasn’t until I hit a volunteer about a third of a mile ahead that I realized what I had done and backtracked. Back to the turn, out and around the parking lot and down the finish line I streaked. It was…indescribable the feeling of crossing the finish line. The race director asked me how I liked it as he handed me my medal. “Incredible” was all I could think to say. I had done it, and in 5.5 hours no less.  This was a high point for me. First marathon completed and conquered the trail that whipped me the week before.  I even managed to play it relatively smart (minus the running right past the turnoff). 

It would appear the bright green repels SUV sized spider monsters. Well done Trail Hawks.

Skora Affiliate

Just a quick update as I FINALLY finish up my marathon update just in time to finish and write another one. I am now a Skora affiliate. I absolutely love these running shoes. I currently own a pair of Forms and pair of Phases. They are minimal and zero drop. They have really helped my running by helping my form. Helping me to shorten my stride and get away from hard heel striking. If you are interested check them out here and learn how they help you RUNREAL.

2013 North Shore Trail Half Marathon Recap (See: Hot)

I am a firm believer in the words “There is no try, only do, or do not”.  Thanks Yoda.  I am also a firm believer in this nugget of wisdom from the gentleman scholar Ron White, “You can’t fix stupid”. Right now I feel both apply very well to me.  Shortly after finishing (barely) the Psycho Wyco 20 miler I signed up for the North ShoreTrail Run Half Marathon. The intent was to really push the “no try only do” quote but as I found out, I was really testing the “stupid” quote the whole time and only working my way up to Yoda.

 

For those unaware, Kansas in the summer is insane at best. We may have 80 degree highs or 80 degree lows. I was very fortunate to have gorgeous weather for my first trail race. The second one, not so much.  I knew it could be iffy signing up for a race in Sept., so I signed up for 2 anyways (more on the other later). Come race day, I realized I should have known better. Highs around 100, 9 AM start, it was time to SWEAT.

 

So before we get to the flame kissed Sasquatch, let’s talk about the course and other pertinent stuff. I got some decent trail running in before the race. However, this trail was a wee bit different. Very rocky compared to what I had been running. Not devastating, just different footing. Next, it was a bit more flat, except the stairs of impending doom. Those were less than pleasant and thankfully few. Course itself was nice. It ended up being a 2 loop out and back due to some park snafus which may have been a blessing in disguise as people were dropping due to the heat. The race was put on by the local Trail Nerds, and Ben’s races are top notch. The volunteers did a fantastic job tending to the numerous “casualties” from the heat and rocks. I know one person got ambulanced off and I also know runners, a ranger and volunteers did an excellent job helping that person. A gentleman that was in front of me as I came to the finish had a particularly nasty gash on his chin from falling on one of the rocky sections.  We helped him up to the line. The day took its toll.

 

I was no exception. I started off strong and made it through the first loop strong. There, however,  things started to deteriorate. It was @#$%^&* hot out. Before I said I signed up for a second race. One week after this one I signed up to run a marathon on the same trail. Remember that fixing stupid line? That’s me. But it sounded like fun. So as I went through the gate and back down for the second loop I started thinking should I slow down and save a little something-something for next weekend. I tried to run-walk-run for a while and it just kept getting hotter. Then I slowed down even further. I pretty much walked the last mile and half and that alone was a bear. And not a Winnie the Pooh bear, but a bear-shark from syfy wreaking havoc all over. Finally I got to the finish line pretty much crawling across. I was done. I got my medal, got a drink, and promptly crumpled like a wet towel dropped to the floor.

 

Generally this is where the race recap would end, but let’s go a bit further, overtime recap if you will. I sat in the shade and watched the walking wounded stagger in for a few minutes. I was legitimately scared for a few minutes. I hadn’t felt this bad for a long long time. And seeing others miserable wasn’t helping. I still had to heft my deflated self up off the shady grass and walk what seemed like 20 miles (.25) back to my car. Got there, poured myself in, and then felt REALLY bad. At Wyco I had drank too much. Not enough electrolytes to balance it out and gotten to feeling miserable. Here, I drank too little and surprise surprise, was feeling miserable. On the way home I had to stop at convenience store to grab some cold water and a Gatorade cause I was shaking so hard. Suffice it to say, I learned another hard lesson. Hopefully next week would be better.