Rocky Raccoon Race Report 2012

Here is my experience at the Rocky Raccoon 100 mile Trail race on February 4, 2012.This was going to be my 3rd attempt at the 100 mile distance, and my last last 100 mile race was in September of 2010 at Superior Sawtooth. I was very well trained for this race, with weekly mileages of 78, 79, 84, 101, 105, 94, 71, 86, 85 and 65 in the weeks prior to the run.My running friend Ryan was going to be crewing for me and then pacing me for the final 20 miles. My sister Janette was going to be running the 50 mile event.
Prior to the race:
A heavy thunderstorm hit the area starting 1 hour before race start. It rained very hard and I knew that this weather would slow the trail down, especially if there was going to be standing water and mud. About 15 minutes before the start, the intensity of the rain lessened.
Loop 1:
I lined up about 30 feet back from the front of the pack. Donning a green North Face rain jacket, I wanted to stay dry while the rain was still coming down. Soon we were off, and I just tucked in amongst the crowd of runners. I was never able to see the standing water or roots ahead of me, and my feet were soaked in no time at all. My rain jacket was very waterproof, but I was heating up badly underneath it. I was drenched in my own sweat before we even hit the first aid station. My drop bag was at DamNation (mile 6.2) and decided to drop the rain jacket there. I remember following a line of runners at Amy's crossing and the front runner decided to stay left of the boardwalk and go through the water. I followed - and WOW!! The water was rushing across the trail and was nearly knee-deep there! Got to DamNation and got rid of the rain jacket. It was getting a little bit lighter, but decided to keep the headlamp for another 6 miles. About this time I was running with and visiting a bit with Dave Clark from Colorado. Nice guy, and we settled into a nice pace on the Dam loop. Towards the end of loop 1, I caught up with Kai Keliikuli from MI. Again, some great times visiting and running. Kai and I finished loop 1 very close together. In the final miles of the loop, we got to see Ian, Oswaldo, Hal, Karl and all the top dogs come past us. I kept my eyes open for Jay Aldous - as he is probably the world's best 50 year old ultra runner (he had just set the men's 50-54 year old world record for 100 miles on a track). I wanted to see if I could somehow compete with him. Jay went past, and I calculated that he was 16 minutes ahead of me.
1st loop time - 3:01:23 (9:04 pace) 26th place overall
Loop 2:
Ryan handed me some fresh water bottles, and I was out of the start/finish (Dogwood) in no time at all. I was running alone now. I felt good, but by mile 24 I was feeling some pain under the pad of my second toe (right foot). Felt like a rock or stone, so I just kept wiggling my toes around - trying to get some level of comfort back. I did not want to stop for this minor problem, so kept going. Got to DamNation (now 26.2 miles) in just under 4 hours. I was able to eat well, and was having PBJ's and lots of other goodies. Still running alone, I was zoned in and doing well. Passed a few people, but it worked best to keep going at my own pace. The foot was hurting pretty bad at the end of the loop.
2nd loop time - 3:09:39 (9:29 pace) 21st place overall
Loop 3:
I told Ryan about the foot, and we went for a change of socks this time. I put on the thicker DryMax trail socks and got out of there. The first few miles, it felt like the foot problem was gone. But somewhere before DamNation, the pain came back with a vengeance. I thought about it and decided to ask for a scissors at DamNation and cut a hole in my insole to alleviate the pain. I arrived at DamNation and asked if they had the tool I needed. Lynn Ballard came over with the perfect tool. I cut out a nice circle and put the shoe back together. After I left, that foot felt a whole lot better. I ran quite a bit of loop 3 with Dan Vega from CO. Dan is a very accomplished ultra runner and I was quite surprised to be running with him. Heck of a nice guy. He told me that he thought Jay Aldous had dropped.... What?? That would mean that if I keep things together, I might have a shot at winning the Master's (50 and over) division! Came in from the 3rd loop feeling physically weary, but my spirits were still good.
3rd loop time - 3:36:51 (10:50 pace) 18th place overall
Loop 4:
My right foot was still hurting in the same spot, so went for a sock change on just that foot. Now I could see the large blister under the ball of my foot, and also up between the toes. Drained the blister areas, and also slammed a Red Bull. Got out running, and it took only about a mile for me to start feeling like crap. I was lucky enough to run with Dan Vega again - he had picked up his pacer. We played a lot of leap frog on the loop as they would run at a pace faster than me, but then they would walk and I would slowly catch back up. During this time my stomach really started to tighten up. Any thought of food made me feel sick and it was getting tougher to put water down. I just wanted to get done with the loop. On the way back to DamNation, a fast-approaching runner caught up to me. It was Hal Koerner, and we got into DamNation at the same time. We left together and I encouraged him to "go get it" and gave him a fist bump, as he only had 8 miles to go. As Hal pulled away from me, I realized I had to cover another 28 miles and started to sink into a dark place. The rest of the loop was tough - especially the SUPER SLOP area between DamNation and Amy's crossing. This area was getting worse every time and had turned into a shoe-sucking-hell-hole. I continued on, and finally got toward the end of the loop. I recognized my sister Janette about 1/2 mile before Dogwood and taunted her a little bit before I passed her. She was finishing her 50 miles, and I had yet to run another 20 with nothing left inside of me. Despite slowing down considerably during this lap, the only person to pass me was Hal Koerner.
4th loop time - 4:00:06 (12:00 pace) 12th place overall
Loop 5:
Ryan was ready to pace me for the final 20 miles. I skipped the food and water at Dogwood, as my stomach had tightened up into a rock. I told Ryan that I will probably need to walk quite a bit this lap, just because I was totally out of energy.On the way out, I saw that Peter Vrolijk (Masters winner at Rocky the last 3 years) was about 56 minutes behind me. We ended up slow jogging quite a bit, but by the time we got through the shoe-sucking-hell-hole one more time, I was spent. "Ryan, I gotta do something with this stomach." I tried to void my stomach contents as Ryan gave me commentary of very gross thoughts to help me out. I had some success, and we walked the rest of the way to DamNation. I was able to drink some Coke there and ate a little bit of food. The Dam loop started out with a lot of walking, but we actually got back to a nice jog where the trail was a bit smoother. Got back to DamNation and NOW I had 8 miles to go. One more time through the (did I mention this before?) shoe-sucking-hell-hole and we were on our way to Park Road. Lots of slight uphill smooth trail here, so we power walked the uphills and jogged the flats. Along here, I was able to get some Hammer gel down and washed it down with water. I was getting much needed water back into my body. We went right through Park Road station and my sister was there cheering us on! We pushed pretty hard the last few miles. I knew we were getting close, and then we crossed a boardwalk where there was a board angled up a bit. Hmmm, never saw that before. Then there was another boardwalk that went into a "Y". Crap!! "Ryan, we are off the course!!" We back-tracked and Ryan shot ahead to find the point where we missed. We got there and went down the trail a bit. I asked the next runners we saw "Which way to the start/finish?" "That way!" Now we needed to turn around. We saw the turn we missed. The arrow was there but was drooping and soggy from the weather. We just didn't put a headlamp directly on it. Finally, we were back on track to finish up. On the last 1/2 mile, Wade Barrett blew past us, finishing with blazing speed.
We arrived at the finish line.
I was done.
Without Ryan to keep me going, I probably would have quit somewhere in those final 20 miles.
5th loop time - 4:31:32 (13:35 pace)
Finish time: 18:19:31 for
14th place overall
and 1st place Masters

Holding the treasured sub-24 hour belt buckle after 100 miles.

Masters Division winners L to R: John Maas 1st, Craig Murphy 3rd, and Peter Vrolijk 2nd

Thanks for reading,
John

Afton Trail Run 2011

First of all, the course was changed from Afton State Park to nearby Afton Alps Ski area, since the State Park was closed due to the MN state budget fiasco. I was feeling absolutely fantastic the morning of the race and was ready to go. I’d really like to say THANK YOU to John Storkamp and the entire staff of Afton Trail Run to make this event happen.
We received our pre-race instructions, and John advised us to “go out slow”. This is opposite to his normal advice of “Go as fast as you can, for as long as you can”. I would heed his advice and sit back on this one. He started us off with a sneak attack “Go” and we were running. Most of the first mile was easy and there were some areas that opened up so that the pack could sort out. We went down a service road, through some good water puddles and mud beyond the Meadows Chalet. Then there was a bit of single track trail to the left of the service road. I visited a bit with Eve Rembleski, who I knew would run well and I planned to keep running in her vicinity today. We got all the way around to the southeast part of the property (I believe it is called the Southern Switchbacks) and we had our first major switchback in the open ski runs. I could see the leaders and was able to count the runners. I was in 13th place with Eve right behind me. I thought a little about not being superstitious, but just to be safe maybe I should slow down on the next uphill and have her pass me.
I had just crossed an open ski slope and there was a slight uphill with a light pole just where the trees started again. The light pole had a switch box and junction box near the bottom of it. As I planted my right leg near the pole, I felt a very intense shock that came from the left and jolted me in the meat of my calf muscle. My calf muscle cramped up into the most intense cramp I have ever felt. I took one step off the trail. Eve asked what happened and all I could say was “I got zapped”. I tried stretching it out but the cramping would not let up. I just stood by the side of the trail, cursed a bit a watched the entire field go running past me. Runners kindly asked me if I was OK. I really didn’t know what to say. I started walking slowly downhill to get to the service road. Walking was extremely difficult and slow. I discovered that if I used just the forefoot of that leg and kept the knee bent, it didn’t hurt as much. But I was not able to let my heel touch the ground. I experimented a little more and found out that slow running hurt less than walking on it. After a total of 15 minutes of going nowhere, I decided to go back to where I left the trail and continue on with the first lap. I ran nice and easy and caught up with my sister JojaJogger. I visited with her a little bit and continued on. I was holding out hope that the cramp would subside a little more, and maybe I could start running a little faster. It did seem to let up a little bit, but the full flexibility never did come back. It hurt too much to let my right heel drop to the ground. With this altered running stride, I knew that I would end up injuring something else if I would attempt to finish the entire 50K.
I was now committed to finishing the first 12.5K loop. I kept running easy and passed a lot of people. There was one time where my leg cramped up intensely again and I had to stop. I tried to stretch it out and about 8 people passed me again. I kind of felt like a fool, as I was wearing my Arizona Road Racers pace team singlet that day. It says “PACER” in big red letters on the back. Some kind of pacer – towards the front, all the way to last, then passing people, stopping, going again…. What an idiot!
Got towards the end of the first loop and caught up with Mary. She was doing OK, but was not enjoying the run at all. I told her she was doing fantastic, especially on the downhill sections! We came down to the bottom of the ski slope and were treated to another climb up. This hill has a really steep section that was the toughest of the loop. My calf muscle hurt a lot on this climb. It loosened up a little bit on the slalom drop down to the start/finish area. I finished the first loop in 1:33 and turned in my ankle bracelet. A little bit later, Mary came in and told me she was done also.
I talked to John and Shari Storkamp after I came in and they became quite concerned about what happened to me. I explained the shock I felt and where it happened. They had me ride out with an Afton Alps maintenance worker and we taped/rerouted the path by that light pole. John also saw to it that Daryl and Lynn Saari took a look at my leg and checked me out. RICE was their recommendation.
***10 days post-injury update***
I did go to the doctor, and he is convinced that the “zap” I felt was either my plantaris tendon rupturing, or it was the quick tear of my gastrocnemius muscle. Or maybe even both. Being in the vicinity of that light pole was merely coincidence. Now, I feel like a fool for thinking I felt a strong electrical shock, but that is really what it felt like and where it happened. Today my gastrocnemius is extremely sore and still cannot run (or even walk very well). I will continue to rest, ice, compress, elevate and gently stretch the muscle so that it heals properly. The continued pain tells me that it was a gastrocnemius tear. It makes sense that I was able to run up on my forefoot with my knee bent, as the soleus muscle controls plantar dorsiflexion with the knee bent. The gastrocnemius controls plantar dorsiflexion when the knee is straight (like lifting the toes up on the trailing foot when walking). Right now I’m down…. But not out!!
John

Something better than a Superior Sawtooth 100 race report

I still have not posted my Superior Sawtooth 100 race report. I've written most of it, but sometimes events come along that are more important!
Some of you might know my wife Mary (whom I usually refer to as "Schmoopie"). To get to the point, she has attempted to get a marathon Boston qualifying time for the last couple of years. She has had a very good summer of training, and her hard work has finally paid off.
Now to really get to the point;
Schmoopie ran a BQ of 3:59:59 at the Twin Cities Marathon yesterday!!!
I am so proud of her and how she ran this race! We will be making plans to be in Boston next April 18, 2011.
We're going to bask in this one for a bit - then I'll post that boring Superior race report.
Later,
John

The next challenge.....

Success at Burning River!

Good news!
JojaJogger had success at Burning River 100. She finished in an official time of 29:39:16!!!
There were some very challenging times, but she dug down really deep and got the job done!
Sorry I didn't post earlier, but my Blackberry went into a bad funk at mile 72 and did not recover - kind of like a lot of the runners out there.
The experience of crewing and pacing at BR100 was fantastic!
John

Burning River update

Here's the latest on JojaJogger's progress at Burning River 100.
She just came through Ottawa Point (mile 39.6) at 2:35PM,(9:35 elapsed time) which is right on her planned pace and 2:10 ahead of cutoff.
Just need her to stay steady and keep moving.
I will start pacing her @ mile 54.5.
John

Going to Burning River!

This weekend I am traveling to the Cleveland, OH area for the Burning River 100. Not as a participant, but to crew and pace for my sister JojaJogger.
She is taking on her first hundred!!!
The plan is to crew her for the first 50 miles, then when nightfall comes I will pace her through the night to mile 85.
There is a 30 hour limit - so I will do my best to keep her on track to reach her goal.
I'm sitting at MSP airport right now, looking forward to the adventure-filled weekend!
If there is time and internet coverage, I may even post a few updates on the blog here.
Run starts at 5:00 EST / 4:00 CST Saturday and 30 hours later is Sunday 11:00AM EST / 10:00 CST.
There also is a live webcast at www.burningriver.org so tune in and check up on us during the run!
Later,
John

It isn't always about running

This blog is not always about running.

Taking a look at all of the entries I've made here - they are ALL about running.

"Challenge Yourself" was meant to be that, I guess. I started with this blog to document a lot of the races and runs that I have set as goals in my little world of running. I am so thankful for all of the experiences in the past few years of my running. It's been very good.

I just don't normally talk about my personal life, my job or much else here. Sure, "Schmoopie" gets a little press once in a while - but that is because she runs also.

I will break away from the running on (hopefully just this entry) to give you a non-running update.

Last Friday night, our farm was hit by a storm/funnel cloud/tornado.

It really doesn't matter what the NOAA will call it, this storm packed a pretty good punch.

We are all safe and in good spirits. I believe that events like this are given to us for a good reason. It was miraculous that the buildings and equipment that I use the most were left nearly untouched. The buildings destroyed did not have livestock or valuable items in them, the equipment damaged was older and not being used. Our house had minimal damage.

This weekend we had many friends and family stop by and help with the cleanup effort. We are so thankful for these people in our lives.

I'll share a couple of pictures here. Our thoughts and prayers go out to those who suffered much greater losses than ours this last couple of weeks.

Ok, now back to running......

Afton 50K is coming up this Saturday. My legs are feeling pretty good, and I'm hoping that I will be able to get up and down the hills in good order. There will be lots of top competition there with the 25K held as the USATF MN Trail running championship and the 50K being the USATF MN Ultra championship.

See you there!

FANS 12 hour race report

Last Saturday I participated in the FANS 12 hour run held at Lake Nokomis in Minneapolis, MN.The 24 hour version is in its 21st year and the 12 hour run is now in its 9th year. For more information about the FANS event, click here.

This year was special, as my sister JojaJogger came up to participate in the 24 hour event in preparation for her first ever 100 mile run at Burning River the end of July. She had been signed up for this a long time ago, and Mary had agreed to crew her for the run. I signed up about 1 month ago, and she gave me a little grief about "only" running the 12 (all the cool kids were doing 24 she said....).
I'm in pretty good running condition right now, but hadn't done an ultra event since late last year. I just thought I would go out there, get comfortable, and see what happens. Then, my sister posts on her blog that to get a "passing grade" of C for her run, she needs to run more miles than I can in 12 hours.

The sibling rivalry is on....

Fast forward to 8:00AM on a somewhat humid morning at Lake Nokomis. Final instructions are given, and 24-hour legend Mike Henze is there to ring a cowbell and get us started.

From looking at the list of entrants, I knew there were 2 runners in the 12 hour field that had very impressive credentials. John Storkamp was out there again to seek the course record, and Carolyn Smith was a runner that no one could overlook. Storkamp told me before the race that at the Fall 50 in Door County, she blew past him in the final miles to win the race outright. He has a lot of respect for her.

We were off on the first lap, and Storkamp laid back - he was running behind me for the first mile. But at the end of the first short lap, he pulled ahead. Others right beside me were Stan Ponkin and Zach Gingerich (who was running 24 - I guess he is a cool and very talented kid).

Notice how Storkamp is looking back and seems to be asking "is anybody going to run with me today?"

I held steady and the others pulled ahead. Holding steady meant 7:55/mile and it felt easy. But it was still very warm and humid, and I was going through about 48 oz. of water per hour. I increased my intake on SaltStick capsules to about 4/hour. Those laps I spent a lot of time trailing Carolyn Smith and Sonya Decker, sometimes running with Zach also. They were consistently hitting about 19:20 per lap. It wasn't long (sometime after mile 20) when Sonya dropped back. Carolyn told me she had some stomach issues.

So for the next 30 miles, Carolyn, and I played cat and mouse. She would pull ahead, but I would gain time every lap because Mary had my filled water bottles ready for me. No stopping at all. And then Carolyn would run with and sometimes pull ahead.

We talked about Storkamp, and how he sometimes goes out too fast. We agreed that if he didn't lap us by mile 40, we are in contention.

The rain started up, but really I didn't mind at all. It felt great, and I could reduce my water and elctrolyte consumption. I know the pace eroded a bit here to about an 8:30/mile but that is still pretty good at this point.

Came into mile 50 with a time of 6:55:06, 45 minutes faster than my best 50 mile run. Oh well, I'm in too deep to back down now!

It was sometime here where I did not see Carolyn any more, but knew she was somewhere behind me. Storkamp was ahead, but I had no idea where. My friend Ryan ran with me a bit here and I asked him to see if he could spy out where they were.
At mile 69.5, Storkamp was 8 minutes ahead and Carolyn was 4 minutes back.

Now is when it gets tough to focus. More than two hours to run yet.

The guys from MN RED came out and ran some laps with me. It was Brian, Rob and Coach Ron. They told stories - a lot of them pretty funny, and it kept my mind off the pain. We were able to hold onto a 9:00/mile pace even in those final laps.

Ryan updated me that at mile 79.1, Storkamp was 14 minutes ahead and Carolyn was 7 minutes back. Storkamp was not fading, he was getting stronger. Oh well, just try to stay steady and not blow up in the last 40 minutes.

I made it back to the lap count area with 19 minutes to go - not enough to run another long lap (I did not have any 7:30 miles in me at that time), so I started the short laps. I completed 8 laps (2 miles) and there was 55 seconds left.
Pushed it pretty hard to get the last 1/8 mile in just as time expired.

Final result: 83.69 miles for 2nd place overall.

John Storkamp compiled an amazing 85.49 miles, and Carolyn Smith established a new women's course record with 82.69 miles.

Now, back to the sibling rivalry....I was able to wind down a bit, clean up and get 2 hours of sleep. I came back to the course to crew for my sister and give Mary a break. Joja was still moving along well, but was reduced to walking now. She had PR'ed already at the
50 mile mark and was doing fantastic. She had a goal, and that was to out-do her little brother. And I was going to help her do it!

The night actually went by quickly, I was able to walk with her quite a bit, helping my legs from tightening up too much. She had to stop a couple times in the med tent to get some blisters fixed up, but she was determined to keep moving. By the time 24 hours was up, she had compiled 85.24 miles and got her goal.

Congratulations, you kicked my butt!!

Here's a picture of the two of us shortly after the 24 hours was over.

The post race breakfast was excellent and the awards ceremony was short and sweet.
Right now it is 7 days post-race and I am feeling very good. No structural damage at all from the run, but it will take all of 4 weeks to be ready for Afton 50K.

Thanks for reading,
John

Miracle at Lake Wobegon

Here is my account of the Miracle at Lake Wobegon on May 8, 2010.

Started right up front. The gun went off and it felt good. There were three runners that shot out ahead of me. Let's call them Red, White and Spinach. Spinach is an excellent 52 year old runner whom I've gotten to know in the last year. He also won the Men's Master's title last year. Red and White were a lot younger.
Time splits were called out at Mile one. Red, White and Spinach - yes in that order went through at 6:00 - 6:05.
I hit it at 6:33 with a lot of runners right behind me.
For me, that's way too fast, so I attempted to settle in to a slower pace. Looking at my Garmin, I was now closer to 6:40 on mile 2. The steps behind me started to pass. I looked over and it was Joe.
Yep, Joe as in last year's winner and Master's course record holder at 2:50:19. He also was sporting Bib #1, which was a bit intimidating for me. Joe said hi and started closing the gap on Red, White and Spinach. He appeared to have set the the cruise control to 6:20/mile and let it fly.
Next to pass me were Brett, followed by Mike and Brad. Mike and Brad appeared to be running together and I visited with them a bit. Their goal was to go sub-3 also. We agreed that 6:45 pace would be wise so I joined up with them and we continued on through mile 4. On mile 5, these guys were pushing closer to 6:35 pace, so I kindly told them I'm going to back down a bit. I got my pace back into check the next few miles, but Brett, Mike and Brad never pulled that far ahead of me. Running felt nice and comfortable.
Now there are 7 runners ahead of me and I'm locked into a 6:45/mile pace.
I have lost sight of Red, White and Joe. Spinach is in sight, but more than 400 meters ahead. Brett, Mike and Brad are still 150 meters ahead of me.
The trail here is a 10 ft wide "rails to trails" asphalt path. Very flat and no hills to speak of. The wind was from the northwest, so the first 11 miles had a cross wind, but then it was a tailwind for the last 15. Couldn't feel the wind all the time, because there are plenty of trees along the trail, providing shade and protection from the wind.
I crossed the 10 mile mark and took note. 1:07:14

Quick math told me that I'm running just under 6:45 pace. At this time, I am very pleased with how this is going.
At mile 11.1, made the turn to head east and I could feel the wind on my back. Mile 12 split gave me a 6:30 - come on, let's keep this thing in check. I tried to pull it back a little bit, just knowing that I'm not even to the half and cannot fathom running 6:30 miles for 14 more miles.

Thoughts running through my head were:

• Keep things in order.
• Be in a good place at mile 20.
• Save the fast stuff for the last 10K.

I was now running at 6:35-6:40/mile and feeling good. The half came up and they called out 1:27:42. I remember thinking that is the 4th fastest half I've ever run, but smiled confidently to myself. I was feeling great. But I was still in 8th place. Could see Brett, Mike and Brad closing in on Spinach. By mile 14, they caught him and they ran together a bit. At mile 15, Spinach had
fallen back from the 3 young guys pushing ahead.
Just before mile 16, I finally caught up to Spinach and visited with him. He said his left knee was hurting quite a bit. I encouraged him to keep going, as a sub-3 for him would still be possible. Just before mile 18, Spinach was slowing a bit, so I pushed ahead.
By mile 19, I was right behind the 3 young runners. It was here where we came up fast on the original leader Red. He had totally imploded and was moving along about a 9:00 pace. I ran right with Brett, Mike and Brad. We were coming up to mile 20. I could tell by their breathing that they were working pretty hard now.
I remember thinking - "Here is mile 20 - and I'm in a good place".
Soon, we came upon another runner who was fading somewhat. It was Bib #1 Joe. I could not believe my eyes. We went by, encouraged him to hang in there and pushed onward. By mile 21 I was now in a pack of 4 runners, realizing the strongest finisher will get 2nd place. It is now a very long, straight section to the finish. The trail has no turns. The young guys pointed out that first place (White) was visible. That was at least 1/2 mile ahead of us. Subconciously, I started to lead the pack and started pushing. By mile 23, the last of the young guys said "Go get him!". Somewhere beyond mile 24, a spectator told me that I was now 1:45 behind the leader. I pushed pretty hard. The Garmin was showing 6:23 pace. I could see that I was gaining, but not fast enough.
At mile 25, I saw some puke on the trail. I'm in second place and there is only one runner ahead of me. Is he getting sick and slowing down? I pushed even harder, but mile 26 was coming up all too fast.
This is the only time I have ever wished the marathon would be one mile longer. I was running out of trail to catch White. At mile 26, he was closer to the finish than I was to him. I tried to stay strong but was not going to go into a full sprint.
I came upon the finish, gave thanks to God for staying with me, and crossed in 2:54:14.

I went over and congratulated White (Brian) on a great marathon. He finished in 2:53:25 - 49 seconds ahead of me. I happened to ask him about the puke, and he saw it too....it wasn't him.
Here are the mile splits:
Mile 1-6: 6:35, 6:41, 6:40, 6:48, 6:44, 6:47
Miles 7-13: 6:45, 6:41, 6:42, 6:44, 6:41, 6:30, 6:34
Half in 1:27:42
Miles 14-18: 6:33, 6:38, 6:45, 6:38, 6:39
Miles 19-23: 6:39, 6:41, 6:44, 6:39, 6:40
Miles 24-Finish: 6:30, 6:26, 6:24 and 1:20

I have included a heart rate chart, comparing my performance at Shamrock Marathon 8 weeks ago vs. this marathon. The main thing to note is the time spent above 170 bpm at Shamrock (miles 8-12) came back to bite me at mile 22. Keeping the HR below 170 at Wobegon
meant I had fresher legs going into the final 6 miles.
Thanks for reading,
John

Race schedule is taking form

There is no doubt I am a crappy blogger.

I have finally committed to a few races this year:
May 8, 2010: Lake Wobegon Trail Marathon - St. Joseph, MN
May 21, 2010: Fargo 5K - Fargo, ND
May 22, 2010: Fargo Marathon -pace Mary to a goal of 4:05
June 5, 2010: FANS 12 hour run
July 3, 2010: Afton Trail Run 50K - Afton State Park
October 23, 2010: Mankato Marathon - Mankato, MN

I have printed out the registration for Superior Sawtooth 100 mile trail run on September 11, 2010. I have not sent it in yet. This would be the goal race for 2010.

Shamrock Marathon Race Report

Mary's results:
Mary ran a 1:58:30 in the half marathon, and looking at her Garmin data, she negative split the race, with the 2nd half going into a brisk headwind. She did very well!
Ryan's results:
Ryan ran with the 3:10 pace group and was right on track up to mile 17. He had a lot of cramping issues and finished in 3:29:05.
I know he will get that BQ soon!
John's race:
Started out a bit slow, mostly becuase of a 10 mph headwind for the first 5.6 miles. I ran mostly alone and could not find a steady runner with wide shoulders to draft. Everyone that started at my speed ended up slowing down by mile 2. I needed to pick up the pace relative to others. At 5.6 there was a sharp U-turn and I could count the number of runners ahead of me. Was in 79th place at that time, and a full minute behind perfect pace. Felt I was working pretty hard, yet really wanted to get some of that time back. I saw that there was a pretty good-sized pack of runners ahead of me, only about 25 seconds in front. Had the wind on my back now and put a target on their backs. Ran out a couple of faster miles (6:35 to 6:40) and caught up with the pack at mile 10.
There were 10 guys in the pack and I just hung in the back and listened. They were the "unofficial" 3:00 pace group. They got onto the boardwalk (actually it is concrete) and they were running pretty steady. It was nice to run with them and not worry about checking my watch. The pack hung together well through the half and our split was 1:30:15. These guys continued to run well, and with a bunch of 6:45 to 6:48 miles, we were back in business. Tough part is that we lost a few runners and were down to a pack of 6 at mile 18.1.
I was feeling good here and felt like the sub-3:00 was very possible. We made the turn at mile 19.1 and now had to run 7.1 miles into the wind to the finish.The course was well-protected for a while and I was able to stay steady. More runners fell off pace, there were only 3 of us left in the pack. Then we had direct sunshine and more wind. At mile 21.3 it hit me. My legs just would not move any faster. The idea of keeping up this crazy pace for 4 more miles in the wind and direct sunlight was killing me. I took a short walk break and managed 7:15 mile for mile 22.
Mile 23 had another walk break and a 7:32. The wheels had fallen off. Now it is time to salvage.Mile 24 pulled back a bit (no walking) and managed a 7:30. Two walk breaks on mile 25 resulted in a 7:59. Came back with a 7:37 for mile 26 and a 7:20 pace to the finish.
What did I learn from this?
I believe that treadmill running does not always translate to moving the body forward on planet Earth. Even though I had a pretty good training cycle, I did not have enough "real" running outdoors.
The push I made to catch up with the group (miles 6-10) came back and bit me big time. I have always found that if my HR goes over 170 (it averaged 172 on miles 10 and 11) for more than a mile in the first half of a marathon, it will result in lactate buildup (and very heavy legs) about 1 1/2 hours later. That is exactly when it hit me the hardest.
Yet, I really believe that if I would have held back on those miles, I would have only been able to run 3:01 - still short of goal.
So, I am satisfied in the effort I put out there. I gambled a bit, but really didn't lose too much. I know that someday again I'll be able to crack that mark again.
Oh yeah, official results:
3:03:23
36 / 2639 Overall
31 / 1600 Men
2 / 190 Men 45-49
P.S. Only 1 guy in the pack went sub-3. He was 35 years old and ran 2:58:34. The rest of the pack finished between 3:02 and 3:20. This is the grim reality of what really happens in the marathon.
John

Shamrock Marathon flash

Finished the Shamrock marathon in VA Beach in 3:03:22.
Was not what I wanted, but every race is a learning experience.
Wheels came off at mile 23 with a lot of muscle cramps.
Still satisfied as I think it was #35 Overall and 1st in M45-49. (The first 5 masters collect cash and not eligible for AG awards I guess).
I WILL post a more detailed race report after I get home.
John

Pre-Shamrock Preparations

Right now, we are waiting in line for some pizza in Virginia Beach, VA.
Tomorrow is the Shamrock marathon.
Mary is running the half, friend Ryan from MN is attempting a 3:10 BQ. I am attempting another sub 3.
I will try to flash some results on the blog here.

Rock 'n' Roll highlights

Famous last words:
"I'll post something here shortly after the race."
The race was on January 17, today is March 10. That's 45 days...I don't think that qualifies as shortly after the race. Sorry.
I just wanted to clear my conscience regarding that promise, so here are some thoughts about the P.F. Chang's Rock 'N' Roll Marathon.
Everyone was in good spirits on marathon morning. Mary and my sister Jojajogger were ready to go. Mary was going to attempt another BQ effort (sub 4:06), even though she had just run CIM only 6 weeks before. Jojajogger was going to run somewhere in the 5:00 range, yet didn't have a specific plan.
Expo the day before was very busy, as many runners stopped by the pacer booth to visit. There are so many that want to run a BQ or personal best and moods are high.
As I got into the start line corrals, all I had to do was hold the 3:40 sign up high and the runners flock to me. At the start, there were hundreds of runners keeping me in their sights. We were in the back of corral 2, and the 3:20, 3:30, 3:45 pacers were not around. Everybody keeps asking me where they are....I almost wanted to say "I think they are at the Porta-potty 3 blocks that way and take a left".
National anthem and then the start. Senator McCain was in the scaffolding above the start line and we ran underneath him as he gave his stiff trademark wave.
I had a plan and stuck quite close to it.
1st mile was in 8:30
We hit the 10K in 52:00 - 8 seconds in the bank.
Approached the half in 1:49:05 - 55 seconds in the bank.
Continued on to mile 20 in 2:47:08 - 41 seconds in the bank.
At mile 22, my parents were there and I handed the pace sign over to David, a strong young runner who visited with me quite a bit along the route.
I pulled over, gave Mom a birthday hug and kiss, and caught back up to the group. I talked David and a few of the stronger runners into keeping a strong pace and pull away from me as I was going to back down very slightly for miles 24, 25 and 26.
This is usually where what used to be hundreds of runners turns into just a few. I remember a young gal (I think her name was Robin). She was running right next to me for the whole time. I could tell she was a local AZ runner because she wore a stocking cap. She was working hard to hold pace with me, I could tell by her breathing. I just told her to stay in my back pocket and not give up. She stuck with me..all the way. I really could feel her pain - she was digging so deep to hang on. We got to the final turn and I told her to take it in to the finish. I slowed down a bit, so that she would get a nice photo. She crossed in 3:39:58.
I crossed in 3:40:03
After the finish, I worked my way through the finish line area (threw away the disposable timing band) and started running the course back, looking for Mary. Saw her around mile 25 and ran with her. She was a few minutes off her BQ pace, but looking good. We crossed the finish together and her finish time was 4:10:19. She will get her BQ soon, she just needs a better training cycle after a good recovery.
Again, I went through the finish area and got back on the course looking for Jojajogger. Saw her at mile 24.2 and ran with her. Wait a second, there was a guy handing out beer....downed one and then ran with her.
She was a couple minutes back from the 5:00 pace group, but was feeling good. She started to pick up the pace, and started to push for the sub-5:00 finish. I didn't think it would be possible, but she was moving very close to a 9:00/mile pace now, and passing lots of people.
She finished with a 4:59:24. That last mile was at least 2:00/mile faster than her entire pace. That's a strong finish!
In the end, I ran 32.2 miles on the course.
Overall, we had a great time in Phoenix. I'll be there again next year.
John

Rock 'N' Roll preparations

Right now, I should start packing a few things in preparation for our upcoming trip to Arizona.
Mary and I are again traveling to the Phoenix area to participate in the P.F. Chang's Rock 'N' Roll Arizona marathon.
My sister jojajogger, will also be coming in from Atlanta to run the marathon.
This marathon is always kind of special to me, as it was where I first qualified for Boston in January of 2006.
This will be the fourth year in a row that I am the official 3:40 pacer for the P.F. Chang's Rock 'N' Roll Arizona Marathon.
This has always been a rewarding venture for me, as I really enjoy giving back to the sport of running by pacing. I can only hope that I am able to help others to realize their dream of qualifying for the Boston marathon or set a new personal record.
The pacing is a lot of fun (yea, running with a lot of 18-34 year old females trying to BQ doesn't hurt).
I've gotten to know the course quite well and try to get the best out of the runners that are with me.
My pacing strategy is quite simple:
A little bit slow on the first mile - like 8:40.
Then, average about 8:15-8:20 per mile to have us right on pace at 10K.
Continue this pace and by the half, we should have about 45 seconds in the bank.
I hold a steady pace of 8:23 from the half to mile 22.
I give back pace ever so slightly in the final few miles, and encourage the stronger runners to finish strong, yet trying to "round up" those that are struggling.
Cross the finish line in just under 3:40:00 chip time.
I'll post something here shortly after the race.
John

Oh so close.....

Mary and I finished CIM marathon just a couple hours ago.
I am sad to report that Mary finished in 4:06:18 chip time (give or take a second or two) which is 19 seconds too slow to be a Boston qualifier.
She did so well up to mile 23, but just could not hang on for the final miles.
Yet, on the bright side, this was a marathon PR by over 12 minutes for her.
Also, there is plenty of time to get that BQ for April of 2011.
We are going to rest up a bit and then go out for some pizza and watch the Vikes dominate the Cardinals tonight.
John

Getting ready for CIM

That's right, Mary and I are in Sacramento, CA right now. The California International Marathon starts at 7:00 AM tomorrow, and there is a nervous energy buzzing about.
Yes, I have not written anything on this blog for a really long time.
Tough.
No, I have not stopped running.
Yes, I have been running less.

Since September, things have been quite busy for me, which leads to less running.
Mary, on the other hand has put in a really good training cycle this year. We are running CIM tomorrow for one sole purpose.

Mary will attempt to a run a 4:05:59 or better tomorrow in order to get a Boston Qualifier.
It kind of sucked that Boston Marathon 2010 registration filled up mid-November, but if all goes well tomorrow, we will be in Beantown in April of 2011.

It appears that CIM has a lot of really good, well qualified pacers tomorrow. I see that Tim Twietmeyer (5 time winner at Western States) is leading the 3:35 group.
I will be running with Mary, and we will tuck in behind the 4:05 group.

We've already gotten our race packets and numbers.
Mary is #3954
John is #3953
If you want, log in to www.runcim.org tomorrow, click on the runner tracking and cheer us on!

I will try to be a good blogger and post something here after the race!
John

Superior Trail 50 in pictures

Here are some pictures that Mary took during the Superior Trail 50 on September 12, 2009.

Just before the start (David Wakefield, Val Shuster, myself and Brian Peterson)

Coming into Crosby Manitou Aid Station

Leaving Sugarloaf Aid Station (I fell again about 2 minutes after this was taken)

Leaving Cramer Road Aid Station

Heading down to Temperance River after the Aid Station.

Checking out the goodies at Sawbill (SteveQ to my right)

Leaving Sawbill with a "Thumbs-up"

Coming into Oberg with Helen cheering the incoming runners.

Finally, the FINISH at Caribou Highlands Resort

Talking with Brian Peterson right after the finish.

Visiting with Matt Patten after the finish

Receiving 2nd place Masters from Larry Pederson

Posing with Brian Peterson (2nd Overall and 1st Men's Open)

I've also compiled a rough summary of my splits for the race:

Leg Time Miles AvgPace

Sonju 1:17 7.5 10:16

Manitou 0:41 4.2 9:45

Sugarloaf 1:54 9.4 12:08

Cramer Rd 1:18 5.6 13:56

Temperance 1:35 6.0 15:50

Sawbill 1:11 6.8 10:26

Oberg 1:12 5.5 13:05

Lutsen 1:40 7.1 14:05

OVERALL 10:48 52.1 12:26

Superior Trail 50 Race Report

Superior Trail 50 Race Report - September 12, 2009
What a ride..
This is a great event, one that any ultra or trail runner should consider. The experience of running on the Superior Hiking Trail is one that I will cherish for a long time. I will try to recap some of the highlights (and low points) of my run there in the next few paragraphs.
Pre Race:
Mary and I drove into the area mid afternoon on Friday and decided to check out some of the 100 mile aid stations on the way up. Since they had started at 8:00 AM Friday morning, I figured the leaders would have about 36 miles in. We decided to stop at Tettegouche (mile 34.2) to see if we could see some of the 100 milers on the trail. We parked in the lot and walked a ways up the hill and got to the aid station. Saw some familiar faces. John Storkamp, Helen Lavin, and Alicia Gordon. It was here that Helen introduced me to Brian Peterson - last year's winner of the 50 mile run. Everyone was just hanging out, 4 runners had come through already. It wasn't long before we saw Matt Patten and Adam Harmer come into the station. They looked good, but both were complaining about the heat and about how many S-caps they were needing to take. Matt also had a problem with his running shorts and chaffing.
He found a solution - that's all I will say about it. After Matt and Adam left Tettegouche, I think it was Jason Boon who came in next.
We left Tettegouche and continued on toward Lutsen. We located the Temperance aid station and saw that they were just setting the tent up. Finally, we made it to Caribou Highlands Resort in Lutsen. The first thing I saw was Moose Mountain. Wow. That thing is big! And the sheer cliffs on the northeast face of it....quite impressive. All I could think about was that tomorrow I need to get to the top of that thing after running 48 miles. This is going to be tough.
Mary and I had a nice meal at the restaurant, and visited a bit with Matt from Iowa who was going to be running the 50 also. After that, it was time for pre-race briefing with race director Larry Pederson.
I got to visit some more with Brian Peterson there also and we talked about the course and how he ran it last year. Brian is a very talented and smart runner. Keep looking for him to perform well in races like this!
Race Start:
We followed the bus with our Trailblazer, as Mary was going to crew me at the aid stations that had crew access. The bus left Lutsen at 5:05 AM and got to Finland about 5:45 AM. A quick restroom stop and I was ready to go. We lined up on the road, and Larry sent us off. I ran a bit with Brian right behind the leaders (Duke Rembleski and I think Matt Howard). The road was just a couple hundred yards and then we ducked into the trail. These guys just attacked it. I hung behind them for a while, but it was just too fast.
Mile 1 (Initiation):
In over 4 years of distance running, there was a fact that I didn't talk about much. The fact is that with over 10,000 miles of running - I have never fallen. Going into this race, I expected the terrain to be tough and my streak would end.
Before Mile 1 even passed, my right foot did not lift up enough and a root grabbed it. I went stumbling, hopping, yet stayed upright. Two of my water bottles flew and had to pick them up in the leaves. I didn't fall, but that was really close. Somebody hollered "Great save". At that point, I slowed down. I need to run my own race.
On to Sonju (mile 7.5):
The most surprising thing about this trail is that there are NO flat sections. It is always going up then down. A lot of the trail is runnable in this section, but I wasn't pulling back enough on the uphills. I could feel it in my quads already. Coming into Sonju area, yes there are a lot of roots.
My toes are still telling me about them. Arrived into the aid station and downed some Heed and refilled water bottles.
The way to Manitou (mile 11.7):
It was a short time on this section where Val Shuster and another runner passed me. They looked so strong and made their way through the roots with ease. I tried to stay right behind them. It was getting warmer, and I had already taken 3 E-caps along with the water. My holder on my belt can hold 5 of them. There were some places where the running was easier, but still - this trail is tough as nails.
We hit a section of road before Crosby-Manitou Park, and I needed to stretch out the legs. Passed Val and the other guy and got to the aid station where Mary was waiting. Refilled water, got some Pop Tarts and headed out.
Long haul to Sugarloaf (mile 21.1):
After just a few minutes, I realized I did not restock my E-caps. I had one left and took it. Brian had told me that this section was the toughest. I started to go to pieces. Up and down hills, more roots - and as we got closer to the Manitou gorge - rocks. Not just little ones, but now we've got boulders. I remember crawling down some of them toward the Manitou river. This is pretty technical stuff that I have never seen before. After the Manitou gorge there's a lot of uphill going up what they call Beaver Valley (just further up a branch of the Manitou river). Lots of hills. Then another tough stretch going towards the Caribou River. Again, just plain tough. After Caribou River, I think the trail gets a little easier, but I was turning to mush. My water was just about gone and my legs felt totally trashed. Somewhere in this stretch a root grabbed my toe a little harder and I took a digger.
Everthing flew. Just rolled over on my back and looked up. That hurt. Got up slowly, picked up water bottles, and got some sharp cramps in my quads. Walked those out and started to run slowly. Not much later another digger. I just can't lift my feet up high enough now, my legs are too tired. Continued on at a slower pace, but I was feeling like quitting. One more digger at the slow pace. This really sucks. Slowly, I made my way into Sugarloaf. My feet started to hurt real bad, especially in my left arch.
I told Mary I needed salt - bad. She looked at me and saw the dirt. "Did you fall?", she asked. I felt like a five-year old boy who fell off his bike where nobody saw him...my eyes welled up with tears immediately. "A few times" I told her. I felt beaten. I told her I wanted to quit but won't. My plan was to walk most of the next section to Cramer Road. The guy at Sugarloaf got me some watermelon and salted it down real good. I had two slices. Thank you watermelon guy!
Then I took 3 E-caps and stocked up with more.
Slowly towards Cramer Road (mile 26.7):
Walked for a bit leaving here. Decided to try and run again and FELL. I wasn't even going very fast. My legs just were not working right. I looked at my Garmin and it had just shut down for good. It was here where Val passed me and asked how I was doing. I just told her I needed to slow down and get myself together. She took off ahead of me like I was standing still. I think this is also where 50-year old Joe Jameson passed me. He looked really strong and was gone. I think he got ahead of Val here also. On the way to Alfred's Pond, I started to feel a little better. Kept drinking water and taking E-caps. On an uphill section I saw Val, but didn't catch up to her. Just knowing she was ahead of me kept me going. I decided to keep her within reach. Just keep moving. Got into Cramer Road and restocked.
Cramer to Temperance to Sawbill (mile 39.5):
Honestly, this part of the race is really blurry for me. All I know is that Val and I played a lot of cat and mouse. Sometimes we ran together. She inspired me. There were places where maybe I inspired her. I remember someplace where there were some construction workers next to a river. We had to climb over the orange mesh fencing and go right past the house/cabin..whatever they were building. The workers told me that it was the finish line and I wanted to believe them. I still can't remember if I was seeing things or where the heck on the course this was?..?..? (maybe it was much further back on the course - honestly I don't remember. It's like a wierd dream). The other thing I remember was approaching Carlton Peak. Wow. Now it is rock climbing. Seemed like straight up the boulders. And then I remember the cave to the left in the side of the mountain, I remember that.
Coming into Sawbill, I was feeling much better. I do remember seeing Steve Quick. He didn't say much, but I made some dumb comment like "Steve, am I ever glad to see your pretty face!" I still don't know what that was supposed to mean. Ultra brain makes you say dumb stuff.
Mary had some Red Bull for me, more water and E-caps. I left Sawbill with the attitude that I only needed to climb 4 more mountains (Leveaux, Oberg, Moose, and Mystery). But then, if they were all as tough as Carlton Peak, I'm in big trouble.
Revival to Oberg (mile 45.0):
I started to run a lot better here. My whole body hurt, the left arch still hurt a lot, but I was able to run quite well in this section. The climb up towards Leveaux wasn't really that bad. I think this is where I caught Joe Jameson again. Never thought I would see him again. Got into Oberg and knew that this was the last aid station.
Let's just get to the Finish (mile 52.1):
More Red Bull, Water, Heed, E-caps and some food at Oberg seemed to help. Oberg mountain wasn't that bad, and it was slightly downhill to Rollins Creek. And then the climb up Moose Mountain. Really, this one is not nearly as steep as Carlton - but it goes on forever and ever. There was a place where a 100 mile runner and her pacer were shaking the smaller trees to get the rain water to sprinkle down from the leaves on themselves. I giggled to myself at the sight of it. I just kept a good power walk going and did not stop. Keep at it, keep moving. Pretty soon I realized that it had leveled off a bit. I started to run. It was slightly uphill yet, but I ran. I was already on top of Moose Mountain! And was able to run!
Now I knew it was about 4 miles left, with another serious downhill and then up Mystery and then mostly downhill to Lutsen Resort. Now I start to see signs that had an arrow pointing to Lutsen Resort - I'm getting closer. And then, crossing the Poplar River. On the bridge, a ground hornet buzzed right by my head and landed on my lower lip. I quickly brushed him off before he stung. It would suck to run all this distance and get stung at mile 51. Some more trail, and then finally I'm on the road. It felt good to run faster again. Saw some people around the gondola area, but they looked at me kind of funny. On towards Caribou Highlands, made the turn behind the resort and alongside the pool and heard the people. Crossed the finish and gave Schmoopie a big hug!
It was over.
10:47:49
Brian Peterson was there and shook my hand immediately. He had taken 2nd place with a 9:48:36. Duke Rembleski won the race in 9:32:35.
Post Race:
We sat around and visited a bit. Matt Patten was there. Helen showed up - and then we found out that besides everything else - she had run the marathon. And smoked it like a Rockstar! 4:11 for 1st female and 3rd place overall!
Talked to Brian quite a while after the race. He was feeling pretty ill, so I hope he got better!
At awards, I ended up in 7th place overall and got 2nd place in Mens Master's. Val was close behind me to win Women's overall in 10:52:43.
The Longest Night:
Over all this time, my left arch began to hurt more and more. It had turned into a hard lump, and it was painful to walk on it. I took more ibuprofen to see if that would help.
Throughout the night, I had very sharp, shooting pains coming from my foot and travelling up my leg. It just kept on and on like someone was jabbing a sharp knife into me nonstop. I did not sleep one minute that night. It hurt like hell.
By morning, the whole foot was swollen from the big toe to the heel, and over my ankle. It was red and warm to the touch. When you would press on it, it would leave temporary white marks. Just like a big infection now. Mary and I left early that morning. On the way home, I couldn't take the pain and lack of rest any more. We stopped at the emergency room in Edina. The doctor X-rayed the foot (nothing on the x-ray) and diagnosed it as plantar fasciitis and prescribed me some Vicodin. At least the Vicodin took the extreme pain away. Had to take two more doses of Vicodin (it lasts exactly 6 hours) to get some sleep on Sunday night.
The miracle:
Went to work on Monday morning high on Vicodin. I was due for another dose later that morning, but the shooting pain did not come back. By the end of the day my foot hurt, but I didn't need the Vicodin any more. By Tuesday, the foot was feeling much better. Wednesday, I went for a run.
I do not have plantar fasciitis.
John's Diagnosis:
This pain was a cramp. The mother of all cramps.
The lack of electrolytes was when it started. Add the excessive pronation/supination that the roots and rocks of Superior provide. The cramp took hold and "grew" on itself, causing the swelling and sharp pains.
Summary:
I survived Superior Trail 50. It was the toughest race I have ever done. These trails are beautiful.
What a ride!
I will return.....