Well, my 50 mile attempt didn't go exactly as planned, but not for the reason I would have expected.
I was a bit nervous before Saturday's Ruth Anderson Ultra Classic. The weather had warned of a heat spell the could make the distance really rough. Fortunately, the course was just a stone's throw from the coast and didn't get too warm. My family stayed the night in a hotel near the course, so I just walked to the start around 5:30 am through the streets of San Francisco. SF in the early hours of foot is just an eerily quiet place. I'm so used to seeing cars and people everywhere when I visit. I picked up my bib and patiently waited for the 6:30 am start.
Right from the start, I focused on relax, relax, relax. The start was on a slight downhill, so a few people took off quickly. I did my best to settle in at 7:40-8:00 pace, although I was closer to the faster end. I felt fine.
Ruth Anderson is a 4.5 mile loop course around a lake. For 50 miles, I would need to complete 11+ laps. It's a pretty flattish course with a slight downhill on the east side of the lake and a slight uphill on the west side. The west side was right next to the coast and throughout the run was significantly cooler than the east side. The east side had very little shade.
The first few laps I was in a constant battle to keep things easy. Since this was basically a road race, it was difficult not to just let my legs go. Looking back, I wonder if that was a mistake and I should have forgot the watch and simply ran on feel. At 90 minutes, I forced myself to walk for 3 minutes. That seemed to help keep my legs and lungs fresh. I rarely ran with anybody, and as the run progressed, the public lake got pretty crowded with locals out for a morning run or walk. This made it difficult to figure out who was in the run. The good news was that the path was pretty wide and easy to get around groups. It might have been more difficult if I was in a shorter race and running much faster.
Through 5 laps (~22 miles) I was feeling pretty fresh and not struggling. But when I reached 25 miles, my brain started giving me issues. I realized I was only halfway done (I hit 25 miles about 3:18) and would have to be out there for a lot longer. I finished the 6th lap (a little passed the marathon point) and saw my wife and kids for the first time. Doubts started to creep in my head, and those doubts seem to create aches and pains in my body. I spent the whole next lap wondering if I should keep going or just finish as a 50k. The race allowed all runners to pick 50k, 50 mile, or 100k during the race. The 50k point is just a quarter mile from the main aid station, and when the timer there asked if I was finishing or not, my brain took over and just said yes. My day was done. I finished the 50k in 4:09:24 in 4th place (of the 50k finishers).
Just a few minutes later I questioned my decision, but it was too late to change my mind (once you declare you can't go back). I my mile times were definitely slowing down, but I was still able to run in the low 8's and occasionally sub 8. My legs weren't thrashed, but my mind was. After four hours of running my mind couldn't accept another 3 hours of running.
That was a hard lesson for me. It's clear that I need more experience running for over 4 hours. This was only my second time ever running that long. It's Wednesday now, and my legs feel in close to normal shape. It's scary how the mind can convince you that things are worse than they really are.
Now I'm looking at focusing on the 50k distance and get used to being out there for 4-5 hours. If I get enough of those runs in my legs, I'm hoping it will be easier to think of a 7 hour run. My wife also suggests my next 50 mile run should not have an option for a shorter distance. Maybe AR50 next year would be a good option.
I might be doing my next 50k in late May, but I'm not sure yet. I definitely want to run Skyline 50k in August, though. Right now, I'm focusing on putting in more mileage and continue to strengthen my achilles. It seems to be doing well so far, but it's far from fully healed.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
It's Been Awhile
I'm posting here quickly to say I haven't fallen off the planet. Frankly, I didn't have much to say. My training's been going steady except for a week in late March when I couldn't stop coughing.
I ran the Rodeo Beach Trail Run on March 18th, but instead of 50k I only managed 35k. I had tried to run a few hills the week before, but that clearly wasn't enough to allow me to run 6600 ft of elevation gain over 31 miles. When I reached the 35k point (which is right at the start/finish line) my legs and mind were toast. I perhaps could have slogged through the last 9 miles, but I was concerned about causing more permanent damage. I still had a potential 50 miler coming up in a month.
The following week I came down with a terrible cough that left me laying on my couch the whole time. I was able to resume my training the next week and even got in my planned back-to-back 20 mile runs over the weekend. The runs didn't confirm that I was ready for 50 miles, but it at least said I had a shot.
Two weeks ago, I had the opportunity to pace a friend of mine at American River 50 from miles 26 - 40. He hadn't trained much because of a month old baby, so it was mostly a walk/jog for 14 miles, which I was fine with. It allowed me to be out there under the sun for over 3 hours a day after running 17 miles with another friend.
Now I'm just a couple days from my first 50 mile attempt at Ruth Anderson Ultras. The course is a ~4.5 mile loop around Lake Merced just south of the San Francisco Zoo. It's all paved bike path with some hard pack dirt sections right next to the path. There's very little hill climbing (~1000 ft for the 50 milers), so it's a very fast course. I will have to lap the lake 11 times to make the full distance. The race director allows runners to decide during the race whether they want to run 50k, 50 miles, or 100k, so I will have to fight back the temptation to stop early.
Since this is my first 50 mile run, I only have the loosest of goals. Based on my current shape, I "think" I can make 7 hours (8:24 pace). I plan on starting at 7:45 - 8:00 pace because that's my current comfort pace, and if I went slower I'd be chopping my step and actually doing more work. We'll see how long I can hold that pace before I have to slow down. I'll do my best to give a race report soon after the run (and be a little better at updating my blog).
Injury wise, I seem to be doing pretty well. The achilles gets a little tight every once in awhile, but it's never sore or painful. I've continued my practice of doing bike rides and pool running instead of a daily run. I'm still only doing four runs a week max, and my guess is that will continue for awhile.
Here goes nothing!
I ran the Rodeo Beach Trail Run on March 18th, but instead of 50k I only managed 35k. I had tried to run a few hills the week before, but that clearly wasn't enough to allow me to run 6600 ft of elevation gain over 31 miles. When I reached the 35k point (which is right at the start/finish line) my legs and mind were toast. I perhaps could have slogged through the last 9 miles, but I was concerned about causing more permanent damage. I still had a potential 50 miler coming up in a month.
The following week I came down with a terrible cough that left me laying on my couch the whole time. I was able to resume my training the next week and even got in my planned back-to-back 20 mile runs over the weekend. The runs didn't confirm that I was ready for 50 miles, but it at least said I had a shot.
Two weeks ago, I had the opportunity to pace a friend of mine at American River 50 from miles 26 - 40. He hadn't trained much because of a month old baby, so it was mostly a walk/jog for 14 miles, which I was fine with. It allowed me to be out there under the sun for over 3 hours a day after running 17 miles with another friend.
Now I'm just a couple days from my first 50 mile attempt at Ruth Anderson Ultras. The course is a ~4.5 mile loop around Lake Merced just south of the San Francisco Zoo. It's all paved bike path with some hard pack dirt sections right next to the path. There's very little hill climbing (~1000 ft for the 50 milers), so it's a very fast course. I will have to lap the lake 11 times to make the full distance. The race director allows runners to decide during the race whether they want to run 50k, 50 miles, or 100k, so I will have to fight back the temptation to stop early.
Since this is my first 50 mile run, I only have the loosest of goals. Based on my current shape, I "think" I can make 7 hours (8:24 pace). I plan on starting at 7:45 - 8:00 pace because that's my current comfort pace, and if I went slower I'd be chopping my step and actually doing more work. We'll see how long I can hold that pace before I have to slow down. I'll do my best to give a race report soon after the run (and be a little better at updating my blog).
Injury wise, I seem to be doing pretty well. The achilles gets a little tight every once in awhile, but it's never sore or painful. I've continued my practice of doing bike rides and pool running instead of a daily run. I'm still only doing four runs a week max, and my guess is that will continue for awhile.
Here goes nothing!
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