Including mileage, strength, and mindset exercises for success:
I’m abandoning that particular project, and here’s why:
While scrolling through Instagram I saw a post by one of my heroes, coach David Roche. This guy. He gave more, better, and easier-to-understand information in a hundred words Instagram post, (with video!) than I’ve done so far with three blog posts. I’m over it. I’m going back to what I do best. Aimless rambling around a point. Descriptions of the wrong parts of experiences and events. Semi-coherent retelling and musings of the moment.
The corporate challenge 10k was last weekend. I did okay. 26th overall. 2nd in my age group. Personal record by 2 minutes, no big deal. Once again, if I wasn’t such a clown, goofing around and acting foolish, I might have performed a bit better. I guess the world will never know. There’s a 5k this weekend. I haven’t decided if I’m going to jog it for laughs or put my head down and try. My 5k p.r. is this ridiculous number I got during one of the hundred milers. Topping that would be a miracle. There’s a different number I’ve been chasing for a while. If I can get in the 20-minute range I will be very excited. I would also have to win at least my age group, also. Results matter, but ALL the results. If I run a 20-minute 5k and come in 5th in my age group my entire week is ruined. If I win the entire race and run a 24-minute 5k my entire week is ruined. These are exaggerations, of course. My week is great after racing no matter the result. Goals are fine, but it’s the process I love. Running every day isn’t a chore. I don’t do strength and yoga because I’m training. These are things I enjoy doing for their own sake.
The real joy in racing is performing to the best of my abilities at that moment. Seeing my friends performing well is very exciting. Following along on personal journeys, like injury/recovery struggles, break-up/hook-up drama, and rivalries, these are the reasons to pay $40-$50 for a 5k. I want to run fast so I can get back to the hot goss. It’s the whiskey run 5k but I’m going for the tea!
As far as training: run extra miles. Get time on your feet by any means. Lift heavy weight. Do stretch, core, and balance exercises. Eat well, and rest often.
I have recapped and covered and gone over the Heartland races again and again. Not to sound dramatic. I have been over these races before, though. The route hasn’t changed. The course hasn’t changed much. The hills are hillier. The rocks are rockier. So the technical, descriptive part of this recap ought to be brief.
The weather was perfect on May 3rd. A brisk, calm, and clear 48⁰ in Cassoday, Kansas. Sydney and I were well-rested and ready after a great night’s sleep in El Dorado. There was a little tension as we realized we left our drop bags in the hotel. PANIC! It was fine, though. Our friends Jennie and Dusty were there, and Dusty drove back to our hotel, grabbed our stuff, and drove back to have it all waiting for us at Lapland aid station. A real hero! HOORAY!!!
Sydney ran the 50k with a friend, Gay Ann. I wasn’t worried about her finishing at all. I hoped she would have a lot of fun, and she did.
I ran the 50
I found our friend Ben right away, at packet pick-up. We saw Ben doing a long run the week before and he told us his strategy for the race. He intended to run intervals of 3 minutes running and 1 minute walking. He even programmed his watch to alert with the tempo change. I thought that sounded like a good interval, so I copied it exactly. Still, I had every intention of hanging out with Ben the entire race. He’s a very strong runner. I hoped to pace off of him to a new personal record.
After about a mile of jogging along and chit-chatting we caught up to Jennie. We filled her in on the race plan and she loved the idea. We decided immediately to team up and run together. It was the best idea I’ve ever been a part of!
The team-up was especially helpful because I didn’t have any crew out there. I didn’t need one. The aid stations are few and far, but well managed. The food was top-notch. Hydration options were water and Gatorade. I opted to use just store-brand bottled water to start and reused the bottles all day. It worked okay. The bottles were crushed by the end. If I do that again I’ll use more bottles.
The three of us kept each other on track. Pushed, encouraged, and backed off the pace like professionals. Or enthusiastic amateurs. I brought up the idea of teaming up again for Badwater Salton Sea. Everyone was up for it at the time.
The real star of the race was the location. I finally got to see the Flint Hills in ideal weather. It is beautiful out there! Stunning! People compare it to a screen saver. Photos don’t do it justice. The majesty of it defies description. Even later in the race, when we were trying to keep it together, the magnificence of where we had been lingered.
There were laughs the entire time, which is another plus for running in a group. For example, we only had five miles to go for about eight miles. Lol! And every hill was the last hill. That’s never true!
The route is a bit over 50 miles, so “technically” we did 50 miles in under 10 hours. My actual finish time for the race is 10:08:25. I think that’s really good. We all crossed the finish line together, which is very special. And we had finish line beers, which is just the best!
Overall, I was very happy with the event. The intervals are the way to go. I can’t thank Ben, Jen, and Dusty enough for everything they did out there. I will run with them anytime!
Preparing for the Heartland 50 mile in a bit less than 2 weeks. This is a fun run. No pressure on this one. Yes, 50 miles is a long way. No, I haven’t been training for this run, specifically. I’m confident, though. I am in great shape, I know the course, there’s a generous cut-off, and there are a few friends also running. It should be good. Plus, if a runner does both Heartland races they get an extra award for the double.
Sydney and I had some friends over for a long-run party on Saturday. We ran 6-mile loops around the neighborhood. There were plenty of snacks to fuel with and doggies 🐕 to look at. Everyone did great and had fun. I finally got some real mileage and felt good. I want sore at all except for my feet around my big toes. I’m blaming that on dry skin and ignoring it. Hopefully, I’ll develop some callous there before the fall. I was hurt more from the watermelon margaritas on Easter Sunday, lol!
I’ve done an okay job of sticking to the training plan. Some life things have become obstacles. The plan is easy to adjust. No part of the plan is vital, so I just skip, cut, or replace parts that I can’t find/ make time for. I feel like I have been hitting all my goals so far. I will know where I am with mileage and fitness after Heartland. That’s when I will fill in mileage goals on the plan. I don’t think 100-mile weeks are too ambitious.
Nutrition is good. I’m sticking with the diet from 75 hard, sort of. I base my calorie intake on the calorie usage from the previous day, instead of a flat 2990 calorie limit. And I have treats. As many as I want! Welcome back, chips and salsa.
There are two motivational podcasts I listen to nearly every day now. Listen to is an exaggeration. They’re on when I start running. After a bit, everything turns into background noise. Maybe something will accidentally soak in, I don’t know.
My plan this weekend is:
Trolley run, long run, eat good food, do some supplements shopping, hang out. Get ready for the 50 miler. I’m not calling it a taper because I didn’t build. Just mentally and emotionally prepare myself.
For our Sunday long run, Sydney and I visited Argo Road. A stretch of road in Grain Valley/Blue Springs, Missouri from 7 highway to South Dillingham Road, another anonymous through street on the east side of the area. Argo Road runs through the William Landahl Park Reserve and has some cool locations, such as the county sheriff’s shooting range, an outdoor archery range (supposedly one of the best,) and a mountain bike park with trails varying in difficulty. We were there, however, for the hills. Argo Road is (about) 5 miles of steep, rolling hills.
Along with a detour down Owen’s School Road, Argo is the home of “K.C.’S TOUGHEST ROAD RACE!” Which is a bit hyperbolic, but wild claims are fun and harmless. Twice a year, a certain type of runner gathers to run 13.1(ish) miles, unofficially. The only prizes are for first place male and female. Official time is at the start finish on a stopwatch or wristwatch. The entry fee was recently bumped to $xx, cash. No refunds. Finishers get a shirt. Maybe some food, if there’s any left. Maybe a soda or beer. The weather is supposed to be bad. The whole thing is supposed to be bad. I feel like the Argo 13.1 is a great example of “type 2” fun.
Sydney and I have, in the past, done some practice runs on Argo. The road isn’t too far from the house, and it’s fun to reminisce about the good times on race day. Plus, you know, bombing downhill. There are no sidewalks, just open ditches. The hills are steep and blind. The neighbors are…more friendly than hostile. People just don’t expect runners out there. The whole ordeal is exciting!
This particular visit, though, wasn’t to practice for Argo 13.1 summer edition. It wasn’t ajog down (and up and down and up and up and up and down) memory lane. We are getting ready for the Heartland spirit of the prairie 50k and 50 miler. We both know what we are in for, and knowledge is power. But you can’t know hills if you don’t run hills. Argo is the closest thing I can think of to big rolling terrain of the flint hills. There aren’t big, chunky rocks. I have no idea how to practice that. At least we will be in good shape for running the hills.
I was a bit disappointed in the addition of 2 brand new, clean, and well stocked portable toilets at Argo Rd. Vanity wants me to believe i am the reason for them. Last time we were there, i had to mosey up and say hello to some bushes. There are trail cameras everywhere! And a guy was doing trail maintenance. Heh. Realistically, it’s probably because it’s spring, and they want people to come enjoy the amenities and be comfortable. Antithema to the Argo Road race.
They’ve also done a lot of trimming and clearing along the sides of the road. The feeling of danger is reduced considerably! From having nowhere to go off a car comes barreling over the hill at you, to now you’ll get a little dirty. Maybe scraped up. Maybe tetanus or hepatitis… it’s just not the same thrill. Well, shucks. Nothing lasts forever, I suppose. The only constant is change. You can’t fight progress. I’ll just enjoy the new level of comfort and hope they don’t decide to flatten the danged hills. Pics to follow.
Today is day 7 of No Shave November. My face…itches. except it’s not really an itch, but rather a desire. A desire to scrape the stubble off. There is discomfort, to be sure. Sometimes, I try to distract myself. Other times, I lean in. The feeling comes and goes. Former smokers probably understand. Ultrarunners get it. The fact that nothing lasts forever. That discomfort passes. You adapt.
Sometimes, when i bathe, I get in the shower before I turn the water on. That initial blast of cold water isn’t even that cold. It’s the fortitude it takes to turn that water on knowing full well what’s coming. Uncomfortably cold water is going to hit me full on, and there’s nowhere to hide. The thing is, once the water warms up it’s almost too hot. I’ve gotten used to the cold water. Sometimes the cold water feels really good. I guess I’m just a weirdo. I also park on the end where nobody can park next to me, so… grain of salt.
It’s difficult to find the mustache movies i want to watch on streaming. I guess they’re just too valuable. Yesterday, I watched the misfits with Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe. Honestly, I only watched about 40 minutes of it. I had to work, and I’m glad I did. Seeing a tired old has been trying to “make it” with the model of classic beauty was a struggle to be sure.
I thought surely Flash Gordon would be streaming somewhere. But no. I guess I’ll miss a day (at least!) of mustache films. Boo!
I guess I’ll take this disappointment and use it to push through a tough training day. Like all disappointments and discouragement. Like coach Bennett says: this is about running. This is not about running.
The final race in the Kansas grand slam of ultrarunning super slam is the same as the first race in the Kansas grand slam of ultrarunning. Starting at celebration hall in Ottawa, Kansas. Running on the prairie spirit trail all the way to iola and back.
Maybe it’s poetic? Ending where it began, but a different season. The whole thing began way back in January, when I ran cactus roulette 24-hour, trying to get prepared for The Hawk. Every run, every race, every workout all leading up to this.
As of this writing, I have no intention of trying to “win,” or “breaking a record.” I’m really just looking forward to getting some fun miles with our friends.
The weather report so far looks awful! Rain, cold. Maybe wind? I love it! Let’s get miserable! Maybe we should set up a swear jar or “whine fines?” We’ve been pretty lucky with the weather this entire time. I guess we are due for some comeuppance.
We have a great group of pacers and crew signed up. There are more pacers than available pacing spots, so competition is getting a bit heated. I hope it’s all in fun, but I’m not worrying about that part. The whole thing is H.B.I.C. business.
Speaking of, Sydney has done a great job (as usual), getting everything set up for success. For example: accommodation 5 minutes from the start line. Yes, please! How about that? No 4:30 wake up. It feels kind of weird. Plus, all the fun costumes and Halloween stuff she’s doing. This will be a race to remember!
So, I’m very excited. And nervous, still. What I’m really doing is putting off thinking about what comes after. 🤔
This was a fun one. Getting to the start line was rough! There are warnings all over the literature for this race about flat tires. The roads are sharp rocks and gravel, watch out! Sydney and I were very nervous about it. We drove down the weekend prior for a dry run. Let her have some practice finding the aid stations. That paid off tremendously! She wound up being a little bit of a pathfinder for the other race crews. 😁
My name came up to work mandatory Saturday overtime, and there is really no room for compromise there. Luckily, I had already scheduled the weekend off! So I guess I’m a little more prepared than I like to believe.
We went down to packet pickup Friday afternoon. Sydney got some more detailed driving directions. There was a malfunction at the tollbooth in El Dorado, where we stayed that weekend. Our room was amazing, by the way. Days Inn was great! We slept like logs.
Early race morning things got hairy. We didn’t get a toll ticket in El Dorado. There was a lineup at the tollbooth in Cassoday. I took off my vest and jumped out to see what the problem was. It ended up being nothing, but now we were running behind, and I had to check in. Check-in is at race hq/finish line. The start line is about a half mile down the road from there. We just make it. I tell Sydney I’ve lost a bottle. It could only be at race hq, that’s the only time I wore the vest outside the car. She said she’d look for it. I went to get my pre-race photo. People kept jumping in front of me. Elden,the race director, kept yelling out the time until start. The Runner’s Church preacher was there, trying to pray right into God’s ear, just as loud as he can get. It was very frustrating!
Also, I was pretty nervous. 3 weeks is not a lot of turnaround time. I feel like I did the best I could. I felt okay, but I’ve done enough of these now to worry about mile 63 right at the start.
My plan, as always, was to go easy. Take it easy, take the whole time, and get to the halfway mark before dark.
Heartland, I thought, should be ideal for taking it easy. It’s got rolling hills and very pretty views throughout the race. And gravel. Big, chunky, tire-shredding gravel.
The gravel roads I sort of remember from doing the 50 miler in the spring. I might have blogged about it. They tore my feet up then, and they tore my feet up this time. There might be a practical solution to the foot problem. The only thing I can think of is “get tougher feet.”
Sydney found my lost bottle at the Cassoday tollbooth! That was a very lucky break. We hooked back up at the second manned aid station. I got to pet a dog and eat some snackies. It was a bit unsettling because they moved the aid station since the spring race. I came over a hill expecting a celebration and only found a sad little sign with an arrow pointing uphill.
This was also when the wind started blowing right at the front of me. It was at my back for the first and last 16 miles. So for about 100k, it was rock & roll and heavy winds in my face.
The aid stations were all pretty good. Standard ultra foods, tents to get out of the wind, friendly-ish volunteers. I had 3 burgers during my run. That doesn’t sound like a lot right here, but at the time, I felt like the hamburgler or Jughead.
I got to Matfield Green Aid Station, the last manned aid station before the turnaround, in really good shape. The trailhawks ran this aid station, and it was my good friend Eric volunteering! They had good ramen (spaghetti soup) and potatoes, but no forks. 😳
Crossing a flyover above I-35 on my way to Lone Tree Aid station and turning around, I got a semi truck to honk. Still fun as a grown up! There’s an unmanned aid station with water and Vaseline and very little direction. I lubed under my arms, where I had a hot spot going and jogged down the road. The course was well marked, I’m just very bad at looking. I knew I was going the correct way, though, because I saw more runners on this little 3 mile stretch than I had seen so far all day. Right then, at that moment, it occurred to me that I had not brought a headlamp. I made it before dark, but just before. So I was hoofing it out of there, trying to get as close to the aid station as possible before “dark” dark.
When I got back to Matfield Green, Jamie and her kid had shown up to help the crew, and Kirby was there, ready to pace me. The new faces re-energized me!
Kirby was a great pacer! We talked about her running goals (a marathon in Febuary! Killer!) And childhood road games. I am so glad she told me about “my cows!”
After Kirby, Coach Randy took over. He carried me all the way back to Cassoday. Figuratively. We were doing consistent and fast intervals and also used the terrain to help maintain a real nice pace. Not too fast! Not too slow. We did pick it up whenever we saw another runner (soul-taking? Lol!)
The funny story: Randy and I are passing “the Runner’s church” preacher and he tells us “don’t miss this turn coming up.”
So we cross an unmarked cattle guard, and Randy says, “I think we missed that turn.” After some quick math and a review of the strava heat map we decide yes. We did miss that turn we were specifically told about. And we also got passed by 3 racers! Grr! Not that I’m competitive. 😉
As we make our way to battle creek, the first/last manned aid station, we change up the intervals. 1:30 run 1:30 walk. Just a 30 second change, you might say? Plank for 30 seconds.
Battle Creek is special to me because my friend Scott “KSdirtrunner” is the one manning it the entire weekend! I just met him last year when I volunteered at this event and he has been an inspiration to me ever since.
The longest 8 miles in the world are between Battle Creek and the Cassoday Community Center parking lot. Randy and I are doing our thing…1:30 run, maybe 11 or 12 minute pace, 1:30 walk. Power hike! I have been practicing, and it did pay off. We passed some guys who were really suffering through the chilly morning.
We were approaching the end of the gravel when Rick from mile 90 pulled up and started taking pics. Randy and I agree, you do NOT walk in a race photo.
NOT walking!
Also, we could see Syd and Kirby stalking us from the paved roads, so I felt some pressure to go ahead and finish this thang!
We’re jogging the last 8/10 of a mile to the finish. I had told Randy the finish line strategy of start jogging at the stop sign, slowly build speed until I sprint into the finish. He asks me what the elapsed time is, and I tell him, “26:57 and change.”
He says, “Don’t you want to beat 27 hours?”
I ran. I sprinted in and finished at 26:59:18!
Afterward, it was coffee, a massage from Happy Hawk, and a table nap before a bath, a proper nap, and the long ride home.
Everybody is different, with individual abilities and differing skill levels. Some people are pretzel-like yogis, and some can’t touch their toes. It’s all 🙂 👌 👍. A part of my fitness and something that has really been key for a couple of years now is adding at least some strength training to the routine. Nothing too crazy. Mostly body weight. Mostly core and leg things.
My favorite resource for workouts is, hands down, YouTube. I did a particular challenge that I won’t name here (it took 75 days and wasn’t easy) that required two 45-minute workouts a day. So I go to YouTube, search “45 minute ‘insert type’ workout” and BOOM! List of follow along workouts. It is too easy!
Some of my favorite YouTube workout channels are Juice & Tonya; Yoga with Adriene; Critical Bench; and 5 minutes fitness. There are so many more, but these are the ones I go to the most.
My standard, nearly everyday workout/warmup/confidence builder/ just do something routine is the 3 minute mountain leg routine by S.W.A.P. coach David Roche and I do it like this:
12 alternating back lunges
25 step ups with each leg
That’s it.
That simple little leg buster has helped me through some tough “I don’t wanna” days!
So there’s a little peek at my running support “program.”
I’ll try to publish some recaps for ultrapalooza 100 and Heartland 100…soon. Watch the Heartland 100 video on YouTube now! Sydtherunner is the page!
I’ve been trying to put the race reports together for the Hawk 100 and now Ultrapalooza 100. Thank you for being patient.
In the meantime, I suppose I can go through some of my process for these last races.
The shorter periods between events was pointed out to me, frequently and with varying degrees of concern (from curiosity to alarm) since I started discussing the super slam with other people. My response to “that’s not a lot of time between races” has consistently been “I think that’s part of the challenge.” I realize now they weren’t pointing this out to frighten me. They just want to know the plan. So here it is…
🤷♂️
I’m giving myself a week to recover, a week to do some tiny little builds, and a week to taper. Then it’s heartland 100.
After Heartland, I take a week to recover and a week of rest before Kansas rail-to-trail extravaganza. Basically, 8 hour workdays instead of 12, no runs longer than 1 hour, eat a lot.
W.W.R.H.D. 