Frank Bott, Ultra Running Blog

Pony Express 100

2011-09-03T15:45:00.000-07:00

Yes, I still run and yes those are my super freaking old feet..

One more time:
I am not crazy. No, i really don't enjoy pain. However, one more time this old body is heading out to try and complete all 100 miles of the Pony Express Ultra. Why? Easy, i enjoy trying to do what appears difficult and tough because the reward for success is shit loads of joy.

This is my fourth try at the 100 mile mark for this race. The last three i always made it 50 miles or more with each year getting worse. This will be Ultra 21 with Ultra 19 being a total near death experience with tons of pain and super big doctor bills.

So, if the numbers are right i have completed 18 50 mile races, 2 12 hour races and one 44 mile run with death at my door step. Also, since starting the madness of running long distances I have now completed about 14,000 plus training miles.

What does this all mean? I enjoy running long distances. I feel so humble, so peaceful and so silent at the end of a long training run and those training runs need a final.. a closing moment so i try to get in as many races as money will allow. While most people are in the air conditioned mall I am out running 18 miles like it is a walk in the park, seeing bears and scaring the hell out of the parkway tourist. (near naked 54 year old men are really freaking ugly)

Some Health History:
During my 3rd running of the Freedom Park 24 hour New Years eve race my kidneys failed. They failed around mile 30 or so but I did not stop until mile 44. Given I kept pushing the end result was a core body temp of 92 deg. and blood pressure around 70/30. The best part was when the fire dept. rescue folks picked up my frozen body and put me on a stretcher.. I felt like my body had been crushed alive and the pain was super super intense.

My Kidney Doctor has been fantastic and expensive. His understanding of the human body is amazing. I learned a bunch about what happen and how to prevent it in the future. Most important I learned that my consumption of protein was way to freaking low for what I was doing to my old body.

End result of all this knowledge is super freaking strong legs for a man my age and low body weight. I consume around 80g of protein on training days all veg .. no animal protein. Best part is i weight about the same as last year but with only 12 percent body fat.

I also learned that those Mormons are right. Caffeine is really bad for you. I have gone without Coffee since the 2nd of January of this year. Talk about freaking total hell. I miss my coffee so bad.. But the body runs so much better.. and i have learned why.

Training:
I train on the shut-in trail. I start at the French Broad River or mile marker 395 and run all the way to the fire road 5,000. This gives me a super tough run of 18 miles. The run is almost all up hill and some downhill both ways. Nothing easy about this trail. I have never trained so hard for any race.

http://www.hikewnc.info/trailheads/pisgah/longdistance/shutin.html

Right now my physical condition is intense. The Kidney Doctor is amazed at my body’s ability to grow muscle and be so healthy.. but i always remind him that he lives in a state that celebrates body fat as a holiday. I just happen to be different. Very different.

Closing thoughts:
I will do much better than in the past. First reason is the shoes. I love my NB101s. They rock. Second I have much stronger legs and lungs then in the past.

However, my lungs still have trouble with dry dusty air. This race is about dry dusty air. The key in beating this problem is get into super freaking amazing shape. That simple.

Thanks to all those in the medical industry who helped me in January. To Davy Crockett who never seems to give up on me.. and to my soul for always wanting to do the impossible..

f

ps: if you desire to learn more about what i learned about my kidneys and ultra running feel free to contact me. However, this link found on the ultra-running mag. website says it all.

http://www.ultrarunning.com/ultra/9/9_1/running-rhabdomyolosis-an.shtml

2010-11-01T13:33:00.000-07:00

Steps to get ready for the Freedom Park 24 hour

Insane cold Ultra on December 31st, 2010

Food Consumption

My foot doctor, Dr. Dan Waldman tells me that the reason a cream he subscribes works so well is because i eat right and take care of my body. I agree. Ok. Lets cut out the crap. I am 53 almost 54. The body is getting old and old fast. The good news is I can't remember all the stuff I am mad at myself about and the bad news is muscles just don't want to grow or develop very fast or at all.

On top of all of those things one must face the challenges of recovery and repair. Given my age the entire recovery process is ten times more sensitive and complex then if I was 30 years old.

Now given these two things I thought I would share a few pieces of diet and information that may help others do what I am doing; running 70 plus miles a week and working out super hard at the local gym.

Recovery:

This topic is important. Nothing is more important for my age. If I can't recovery fast the entire training schedule becomes a joke and i find myself sitting in a chair rocking away my life.

Hammer Gels during runs
128oz at least of fluids during training days
Heed or Scaps for electrolyte replacement
Large amounts of mineral vitamin and normal amounts of normal vitamins
Fruits in drink format, large amounts of fruits daily
Plenty of rest
Protein at least 80grams

Diet & Training

Diet:

Large coffee and something with carbs and small amounts of sugar (scone)
Gels during the run. i take about 2 Gels per hour of running if I am doing tons of hills
64grams of protein drink
32oz of Berry Boost
1/2 of a roasted chicken (dog gets the other half.. amazing small dog eats more chicken then i do.
4 to 6 Bananas per day
(on bad days when my soul is evil I have three plan cheese burgers at Wendys.. oh shit!)

Vitamins:

Minerals, tons and tons of Minerals
6 X normal Vitamin intake of normal vitamins including B group and some Fish Oil
Infoflex. My ankles would feel like pain. Miracle drug almost as good as beer.
NO. But not all the time only when I want to run 30 miles. It does not do much

Rush Club

Running in Bent Creek

Running:

Right now the goal is to run about 15 miles 4 days a week and one 30 plus mile run on the weekends. Work sometimes takes up the weekend so I find myself doing other forms of training to at least make my legs sore and feel like crap by the end of the day.

During the runs if I am taking my Gels I can do 15 miles in about 2:15.. or if I do a 13 mile run I finish in 1:45 to 1:55.. depending on my soul.. The run has tons of hills.. and then down hills.. then some flat sections. I hate flat sections the soul starts thinking of evil things.. so I would rather focus on climbing the hill or not falling on my face running down hill then run on flat trails or roads.

Speed going both up hill and down hill is the point. I have a problem running fast on flat trails.. my body hates flat trails. This is a problem given my next race is freaking flat going around in a circle.. Drugs anyone?

Rush Gym:

So you thought the running was enough training? Wrong. I try to make it to the boring gym at least 3 to 4 times a week. The gym is total hell. I ride a cool bike for about 10 to 20 miles depending on how close I want to take my soul and brain into hell. The other intense training devices is the stair master. Talk about evil. This beast allows me to do 110 floors at 125 steps a minute or until I start to fall off the pile of torture. While on it i wonder if Dick Cheney used this device to torture folks.

I also try to get in some light upper body work to keep my muscles in good shape. Given my age this is a battle going down hill fast. The entire gym process is tough and takes about 2 hours. The longer the better I feel when it is over and the better i feel through out the day.

Closing Thoughts

The real key to all of this is good solid diet along with training and tons of training and good sleep at night. If you enjoy the party life well you are screwed because this will not work. However, if you are old and want to keep your sex life, energy and strong body then this is the way to go.

Freedom Park 24 hour Ultra is going to be a test piece for me. It will test my diet and overall mental energy. I will be adding a few things that I am not talking about in this blog like Vespa and VO2 Max products.. along with the energy product from Hammer.. and one other super secret weapon.. that must be secret less other old people planning on beating me read this far into the blog.. oh no

enjoy

Pony Express 2010

2010-10-19T07:39:00.001-07:00

The Pony Express Trail Ultra 100

Sunrise East of Faust Utah on Pony Express Trail.

On June the 15th my left foot started a long journey down hill. Not until the 15th of August did my left foot return to normal. On the 16th I posted a good 8 mile run. By the end of the week i was running my normal 15 miles a day with some good split times. By the 15th of September my total miles for the month hit 400.

I am telling you this because at some point during the summer i feared there was no way I would be able to run in the Pony Express 100. This race means a lot to me, one because it is in my birth place and two because of the friends and relationships I have created due to doing something crazy in the middle of the Utah Desert.

This year was a challenge not because of physical conditioning but because of super hot temps for hours during some of the toughest sections of the trail. However, from the start point to Simpson Springs I ran 45 minutes faster then the year before. I also completed 20 miles in less then 4 hours and reach Dugway Pass 30 minutes faster then last years split.

However, around mile 42 (Geo Beds) the lungs started to fail on me. By mile 50 just like last year i was having trouble breathing. At mile 53 most of my lungs came back up on me.. and if I laid down I could not breath. The sad news is I spent days out in the desert getting ready for the altitude and dry weather. However, despite drinking 7 gallons of water before the race the lungs just wanted to go home.

I love this race. I will run it again but only 50 miles. I will run it faster and if luck is on my side I will have a solution to my lung problems so the race does not push my body so close to the brink of failure. The photo below shows me right after making it over Dugway Pass. The photo tells the story.

I am driven but at some point the body will fail. Mile 40 after

going over Dugway Pass. Lungs have started to fill up with fluids.

5am vs. 7am

Back in September it was decided that I should start with the 5am group. I am 53 and the old bones are getting old. I was very excited about the early morning start because it would give me hours out of the sun and allow me to reach the 50 mile mark way before the sun went down.

However, Davy felt my skill level was strong enough for the 7am group. It was an honor to be a part of this group and I stayed right on their heals for many miles. I enjoy getting to know folks who have the ability, use this ability and then perform.

At mile 53 after throwing up my lungs. I was in hell.

Details of the race

Several days before the race Hudson spent some time teaching me Yoga. He was impressed with my flexibility and the Yoga really helped me shoot out the gate at a very good clip. My biggest challenge to doing well was tons of hydration without much loss of time. The first part of this goal was great. I hydrated to the point of peeing at least 4 times during the race. The second part of the goal was a failure. I lost over an hour to stops in order to hydrate. There is a plan for next year that will help reduce this to 10 minutes but that is next year.

The first 8 miles show strong 9 min mile pace. I was keeping up with everyone and feeling ok except for my right leg. For some reason it was stiff and cramping. Scaps started to fix the problem along with some tender loving care. By mile 20 the right leg was doing well and no longer a factor in my running.

I was very excited with my split time at Simpson Springs. This 17 mile stretch is a good example of a normal training distance. To be able to run this fast in the middle of freaking hell and feel very strong gave me a ton of energy. By mile 20 I was cooking doing below 10 min. mile pace and feeling no issues.

At 53 I am one tough cookie. Notice the salt on my arms.

Notice the salt on my shorts. Shot at mile 53. Hudson took

this picture. I will always be in debt to this man for his effort and support.

This photo was taken looking back over the area i had already run.

If you have not run an ultra before this section is total hell.

The River Beds

The next stretch to the course is through what i call the valley of hell. For first time ultra runners this is a tough mind bending section. For myself this is an easy section except for the sun working its butt off to eat you alive. Given this is my 17th 50 plus mile race i have total control of my mind through sections like this.

As I approached the Dugway Pass the right foot started to cause some issues. I had replaced my first pair of shoes for another pair. However, the right foot did not like this at all. So, i put the old right shoe back on but did not change my left shoe. This lasted all the way to the end of my race with no issues. I also wore a sock on both feet when i started but by mile 8 i had to remove the right sock due to cramp issues. I did not wear a sock on the right shoe through out the rest of the race and had only a couple of blisters on my foot.

Valley of Hell with Dust every where.

The biggest challenge to this race is heat and dust. The dust adds to my lung problems. I live in Asheville North Carolina and all of my runs are in nice moist areas. I never see any dust. This year i wore something over my face when ever a car drove by but it did very little to help reduce the amount of dust that entered my lungs.

Davy Crockett's Hammer Control Center near Look Out Pass

After Dugway Pass

The big challenge to getting over Dugway pass is running down hill. I hate running down hill. My legs feel like crap after a few miles of this. By mile 44 i was a hurting camper. I wanted to quit and was very depressed with my times. I lost so much time to hydration that my numbers at this point in the game looked like last year. How could this be given I had run almost the entire distance with little or no walking? Easy, now that i look back on it at mile 42 I had spent over 1 hour and 10 min. drinking water while not moving.

Clinton

Around mile 45 i noticed someone coming up on me. Wow there really is someone behind me. I am excited. The person turned out to be Cliff from Salt Lake and Atlanta. We talked, moved fast and gathered some energy from each other. It was a super pleasure to run into someone doing their first Ultra. I hope to see him next year and maybe at the Freedom Park freeze your body off 24 hour race.

150th Birthday Party Sign

Last 13 miles

At mile 42 i noticed the lungs filling up with fluid. I was screwed. My goal was to run as far as I could without getting into trouble or causing Hudson some challenges. I am very proud of myself for choosing to play it safe and not create the same insanity as last year. On mile 53 i started to cough and before I know it.. my lungs are coming up.. If you have not experienced this might i suggest you do all you can to not experience the fluids of your lungs coming back up..

I picked myself up. I was out in the middle of the dark. Hudson was about 1 mile ahead. When he noticed i was falling behind he ran up and helped me move forward. Hudson was a champ. He worked his butt of to help me do well and I will always be in debt for his efforts.

I made the call to quit at this point due to medical reason. No reason in hell to push to the point of death. That is stupid. I was excited to know that my feet did well and at this point (4 days later) i am fully recovered and ready to start a training program for my next race.

Creature and I at the 5 Mile BLM Park

Closing thoughts:

I am a very lucky and blessed man. I am 53 and still have a body that can take one hell of beating, get up and move on. The return trips through the airports or the working on the first day all make the experience a challenge but in the end i love every minute. I am very proud of my effort given I spent so much time in the gym given the left foot was broken. Yesterday I visited my foot doctor. He took an x-ray and counted my 11 stress fractures. He is very impressed with the ability of the body to repair and move on.; so am i..

Freedom park here I come. I am excited for this race. My body is doing really well and there is no doubt I will shine. As for next year on the pony express.. well there is no doubt i will return.. but only to do 50 miles.. I will be 54 and it is time to accept reality.

What would i change?

Not much. The hydration plan needs to take up much less time. I plan on training with a pony bottle for next year. The number of Hammer gels worked perfect. I never have stomach issues with Hammer gels. At each water stop i took a gel and two scaps. The scaps reduce cramps but do nothing for the pain in my quads. If there is one thing I want to change is the amount of pain in the quads. This is a training issue and I will resolve this problem before the next race.

I will also be looking for someone to help out Hudson. His job is tough and he needs to have someone there to help push me, push me and then push me some more. I have a weak mind for these sorts of things. My brain is rather logical. Hey, this is way too much.. so it wants to rest.. and I don't blame it.

Remember, this is my vacation.. and most people my age.. are on some beach somewhere soaking up the sun.. while drinking a cold one.. no not me.. i am out trying to rip my soul out of my body.. by running in the middle of a super dry desert..

more training, fix the quads.. see a doctor about the lungs.. and just keep trying..

Five Mile Pass outside Faust Utah.

Yes to living life. Anything else is failure. Failure is to do nothing.. to give nothing.. and to never try. God is always proud of those who try.. try..and try again.. anything else is just a waste of time..

so i try.

September 23rd, 2010

2010-09-23T10:00:00.000-07:00

Regional President of the

Old Farts Ultra Running Club!

I do not support the Tea Party Only Green Tea Parties!

Old and Ugly but not slow. My self pic after running a 13.3 mile run with 6,000 vfg & loss in under 1:47. I am pleased. Not bad for an old ugly man.

Just few weeks ago

Only a few weeks ago my left foot was a mess. Nothing worked. It hurt all the time and never seemed to heal. The foot doctor treated me like i was crazy for even trying.

Today I am happy to report that four weeks later my left foot is happy and has now run over 400 miles.

It is true that I am still ugly as all hell but the left foot is perfect and the right foot is happy.

The training schedule until race day:

At this point in the game i am going to push the body as hard as it will go. Nothing is going to stop me from pushing. Distance is important but not as important as lung max and hard running miles. I want speed with distance other wise what is the point. So far I am doing 15 mile runs in 8:14 min. miles which is good given i am old as dirt. (well.. maybe not all dirt just some dirt)

This saturday the goal is a day of running all freaking day. I plan on doing a loop on the shut-in trail that gives me 10 miles per loop. This will give me plenty of fluid stops as well as a few rest stops with the dog. If all goes well I should have the 40 plus miles completed in 8 hours or less.

I leave for my race on the 9th out of Ktown. My last stop will be with my super tight bro, brian who gives and gives and never stops giving. Once in Utah I plan on sleeping high for at least 2 days. This will give me an extra boost of blood so that my body is more able to adapt to the altitude on the trail.

Hudson is my hero once again. He will be support and the poor guy who must put up with me. I plan on bringing my creature of God who provides tons of love and companionship as well as being a pain in the butt half of the time.

The body is ready. The mind is ready and I am ready. The key is having fun and knowing that due to age this may be my last shot at 100 miles.

soon

September 2010 Report 1

2010-09-04T14:55:00.000-07:00

Pony Express Update:

Insanity:

"Insanity, craziness or madness is a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity may manifest as violations ofsocietal norms, including becoming a danger to themselves"

I found the above when i did a search on Google. Yes, it does seem that those of us we run these long races are crazy and yes it is true that near the end of our ability we have reached the point of Madness! My foot doctor has assured me that I am crazy. "The pain you feel in your feet is due to pounding the hell out of them for hours. There is nothing i can do except tie you to this chair to help reduce the pain".

Training over view:

When I returned from my long run today the first "Facebook" post I noticed was from Davy Crockett. He had just finished some insane training run of super long distance. I was at first very proud of my 18 mile run.. but my 18 miles was nothing compared to his run of 59 miles. http://www.crockettclan.org/blog/ No wonders this guy wins the races and I just manage to stay alive. Yes, I said alive.

The numbers look very good. I am doing about 70 to 75 miles per week with an average of 8.2 min miles for 18 or so mile runs. The body punishes me when I eat or drink anything with sugar the night before the run. I did that last night and felt tons of pain in my legs. However, I just continued to push no matter the pain until the end of the trail.

I am not doing anything close to last year. As a matter of fact I am not even close but who cares. Last year I was in perfect shape up to a week before the run then I managed to get super sick. The body was in top condition so even with the sickness I kicked butt but.. nothing like i should have.

Finish 100 miles:

Yes, I will make it all 100 miles. Two big reasons, better hydration plan and the fact that the turn around point is at mile 58. This will push me past the wall that seemed to stop me every time. I hope to pass mile 50 under 11 hours and then do my best until the finish. The key is not thinking it is late because it is dark. I keep getting tricked on this one. The month of October is the first month when dark falls fast.. and if you are not told the time.. your brain could get tricked.

Tony:

First, Tony is an amazing runner. His dedication blows me away. His life and how he presents himself also blows me away. I was glued to my computer during Western States and have tons of respect for this man. Tony managed to Bonk at Leadville (http://www.leadvilletrail100.com/lt100races/LeadvilleTrail100MileRun/overview.aspx). He gave up around mile 81.

Last year i also gave up on the Pony Express. I too had bonk issues. My brain fell apart. However, 2 hours later my brain was in top condition again. I found myself under one of the support drivers cars fixing his engine in the middle of no where trying to fix his car problem. Amazing and a good learning point. If I can crawl under a car.. i can keep running.

This year I will rest if my brain fails.. if my body fails.. then start up again.. That will really help.. To Tony that would not make logic.. because he is a champion.. i am just some crazy old man running like hell.

Running 100 miles is never easy. Running 100 miles at 53 is nearly impossible. I plan on doing the impossible. I can see the end.

Man, this photo blows me away.. make me want to cry.. and helps me to know.. that pain is just down the road.

August Report (Old Fart Ultra Runner)

2010-08-28T20:02:00.000-07:00

Overview:

Yesterday during my run i noticed leaves falling to the ground and several egg corns (sp) all over. The sounds in the forest are different. There is more silence. Winter is coming and everything knows it except the humans at the mall.

I figure given global warming fall will be about 3 days long. But i am wrong far more then I am ever right.

During the first week of June I won a 12 hour race, mens division all ages.

http://www.raceforawesomeness.com/?p=60

Below is a picture of the race course!

This gave me tons of emotional energy even though I knew without a doubt that no one in my race fitness level was present during the day race. Dave was present at the night race and did 60 miles. Dave told me during the award ceremony that a race together during the day next year is a good possibility. I look forward to this race (fingers crossed)

http://www.davehornerfitness.com/

I waited 7 days before running again. Then i walked an entire day in my new NB-876 11-2e shoes. The next day i had Plantar Fascities (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantar_fasciitis). After waiting 3 weeks I went to a doctor, got a shot and was nearly as good as gold 2 or 3 days later or so it seemed.

http://www.blueridgefoot.com/

After 3 pain free days I headed back out to the trail. Within 7 days I managed to sprain my left ankle due to super piss poor form and not listening to my left foot.

So i waited another week or so. I went running on short runs around the unca track. One day I decided to run really fast on the last lap. Heck why not. Well the end result was a stress fracture on the left foot. Wonderful.

So here we are in late August feeling pretty good. My left foot only hurts after I run. I am running 13 miles a day and have for two weeks or so. Yes i am very excited.

During my down time this summer I spent most of my time training on a bike in the gym. I also did a small about of weights and treadmill. I hate gyms and super hate gyms during the summer.

Very old painful feet that seem to make running tough.

Pony Express:

ponyexpress100.org/

The Pony Express 100 is only 6 or so weeks away. Am i screwed? Well the body is coming back fast. The feet are ok just hurt like hell for an hour or so after I run but the split times are getting stronger and soon i expect to be at my old average of 8:20 mm for 15 mile runs. Yes I wish like hell it was June but it isn't so i will do my best.

Hudson my super hero will be my support again. He expects to have to kick me and push me. I expect to run all 100 miles just not too fast but one never knows. I also expect to drink 10 times more fluids this year. I am serious. Yes, I have a plan.. same plan that worked in June at the last race.

Hudson doing what Hudson does, snow board!

For now I am just very happy that the left foot is coming along well. Miles so far in August 150. Expected miles in September around 400. I will rest from the 5th of October to the race day.. with only a few short runs in between. I look forward to helping Davy with race setup and being part of a great race.

The race foods:

Gels
Ensure
Super cold Gatorade with electro coconut water.
maybe a few other things
beans and cheese (the beans are for old farts)
coffee
figs

Current training diet:

128 oz of liquid or more
1 entire roasted chicken
1 block of sharp cheese
1 32 oz berry bolthouse smoothie
coffee 2 a day
N.O. by AMP
Multi Vitamins and some stuff for my old joints
4 Bananas
4 rolls
2 packages of licorice
1 wheat beer once a week
Amino Acids

that is it folks..

July 26th, 2010

2010-07-26T09:25:00.000-07:00

This is one of the trail head signs along the Blue Ridge Parkway

that marks the Shut-In-Trail. Most folks call it the Mountain to Sea

Trail. I try to run this trail as often as my feet will allow.

A small mushroom on the 479m Fire Road about 1500 feet

above the 491 parking area in Bent Creek Forest

Some leaves after a summer rain near

the 479m fire road in Bent Creek Forest

Shut In Trail sign taken in the Sleepy Gap Parking lot of

the Blue Ridge National Parkway

Mountain to Sea Trail.

Where I Train:

The pictures above shows the beauty of the shut-in-trail/Mountain to Sea trail. I reach this trail from the 491 parking area and sometimes directly from the Blue Ridge Parkway road. The biggest challenge I face on this trail is my ankles. The trail is covered with rocks and tree roots. I find half of my body at least 4 inches higher then the other half making wear and tear on the feet a big issue.

Most of my runs are on the fire roads around the trail because of the reduced impact on my feet. However, the beauty of the trail including the chance to run into wild life makes is very tempting.

Training in the future:

Today I returned to the UNCA track. The idea is to help me get rid of some fat and run in the super wet heat. I did 7 miles today with the goal of reaching 10 miles by mid week. The left foot is still not perfect but moving along. The run was amazing because I lost so much water and then drank so much water. I managed to drink an entire gallon of fluids during the 7 miles of running. Ok, i am not a doctor but that is rather cool and just shows how the body can work when all is right.

I hope to run at least 10 to 15 miles per day on the track and head to the mountains twice a week for a break. The track should help with my speed and over all running style. The track helps me stay focused on the quality of my running while working on my splits. The trail is great for the mind and long distances but given the very limited water supply these days the trail can cause injury and prevent the body from pushing to the full limit of its ability.

Body's condition:

After the last race in June (first week of June) I managed to hurt my left foot by getting Plantar Fasciitis. It took an entire month of no running before i was able to run again. However, I spent a ton of time in the gym riding bikes. I am now over 1,000 miles on the bike for the year. The bike however does nothing for weight or overall fitness. Running seems to be the only thing that kills fat and helps the body reach its peak.. at least for me.

Since the 15th of July I have logged about 110 miles of running and should see some very strong numbers for August. My left ankle is not perfect which is the reason I am running the track. The left ankle and Plantar issues all come down to one thing.. poor running style.. which I hope the track running will correct.

Numbers:

Today in hot sun running on track i did 7 miles with an average of 9:45 min miles. Not too good but great given the left foot is about 60 percent whole.

Black Mountain Monster 12/24 Ultra

2010-06-06T16:11:00.009-07:00

http://www.raceforawesomeness.com/?p=60

Black Mountain Monster Race Course and my Number 12 all beat up and super wet racing shorts.

Insanity:

I knew something was up when around mile 35 folks would clap and cheer me on when I entered the main section of the 3 mile loop. Also, around mile 38 the race director came up to me while i was getting supplies at my aid station and took my picture along with my setup.

Something was up. I was the leader in the Mens Division.

Yes, it is a miracle and yes it was a tough race. My time was 11:41:00 for 52 miles. Given the last lap is not counted unless completed by 12 hours I stopped at this point. I finished first place mens division and 3rd place overall. Crazy.

The rest of the Story:

My first plan for the weekend was to run 50 miles in Morganton around the track park loop. Sure it was a race but not a real race and the only person in the race was me and my crazy mind. On Friday I stopped by FooT RX to pick up some gels when Robert the manager told me about the Black Mountain Race. I called the race director and paid my cash and entered the race only a few hours before cut off.

Plan of attack:

When I arrived i knew the weather was going to be hot maybe as hot as 90+ with 90% humidity. Not great weather to run an ultra race in no matter what kind of conditions. Given I now have a dog the mornings are taken up walking the dog. This means all of my training runs start a bit after 10:00 am and last until about 1:30 or 2Pm in the afternoon. My body was ready for the heat and dripping from every cell. I mean every cell.

The course was a 3 mile loop (100meters short) with some small elevation gain and some short down hill sections. At the back mid point was some cold water and other fluids which would end up playing an important role in my hydration needs.

I also knew the course was going to be super fast given most of the runners had shown up to run the relay part of the ultra. The first lap was fast. I ran the 3 miles in 24 minutes which is moving. The goal during the first lap was to figure out where all the walk places would be later in the race and figure out water and gel needs.

Around mile 10 I was moving at a 9min mile pace and feeling very strong however consuming super cold liquids (mid race point and main aid station). My 10 min time was around 1:30 which is very strong for frank.

At first I started to take 1 scap at the main aid station but this soon became two at the main aid station and one at the mid point station. The end result was no cramps throughout the race. I also consumed about 3 cups of liquid at the main aid station and 4 cups at the mid point aid station.

Along with the fluids and scaps I consumed Hammer gels. If my numbers are right I consumed about 18 to 20 gels throughout the race a rather high number for me. However, nothing else worked with the body. When I tried to eat anything my body rejected it asap.

Even though I drank tons of fluids my recycle of the fluids was super fast and the scaps did not generate any issues.

The weather caused my body to drain water super fast and it was not until mile 50 that i took my first pee.

Race:

The race started out super fast. Tons of people would pass me. However, as the day moved on i found the entire course to myself. Around mile 30 which was mid afternoon no one was at the mid-point aid station. No one. I had the course to myself. It turns out that the heat was eating folks alive and many who had passed me had now quit the race.

Race overall:

When i showed up and walked the field of tents I started to get a gut feeling that I was going to do very well. However, I had no idea. Some of the folks who did well in the start gave up by mid race. Near the end a couple of runners tried to put some extra energy into the race. These guys added to my motivation to run faster and stronger.

Around mile 42 I stopped by the main race desk and ask for my position. I was told it appears you are in first and 5th overall. Amazing. I never figured this could be true but it was true. This information added to my overall motivation and energy in a way I never dreamed possible. The last three miles in the dark turned out to be as fast as the first three miles.

I have trained hard for this miracle. I have no idea if other miracles might be around the corner but in the end.. all i can do is keep pushing and learning until the next race.

Training:

I have been training this year very different then last year. I put in far less miles, almost half as many and spend at least 60 miles a week on a bike. The bike riding is adding to my overall endurance while the running keeps the lungs strong and running muscles ready for action.

I have also added gels to my training with no water stops during most training runs. The lack of water stops I think helped me get through this race.

Supplies used or consumed during the race:

2 Gallons of Water
1 Gallon of Gatorade
4 cups of ice
18 Hammer gels
29 scaps
3 daily vitamins
6 fig bars
1/2 a cup of rice
Sock for my left foot
876 New Balance Shoe, a great shoe by the way.

Post Race recovery:

I feel very strong however, the right foot hurts near stress fracture points. The pain in the right foot did not show up until today while walking the dog. The left foot has a super large blister and two of the toe nails on the right foot are falling off fast.

I expect to be in the gym on Monday and doing some minor bike riding byTuesday.

Next race, heck if i know.

May 21st, 2010 Update

2010-05-22T21:07:00.000-07:00

May 21st, 2010 Update:

Map of Bent Creek (red dots is the 22.8 mile course)

I have 8 different courses that i run with 12 miles being the smallest and 36 miles being the longest.

Bent Creek also gives me the chance to take trail 5000 all the way down to Mill Creek and up to the parkway. This is a very tough run given the long down hill and then return trip of going up hill with no water supply along the way.

The course I ran today, 22.8 miles, is a good run. I used to mix some single track from the Shut-In trail but given the ankles no longer like single track i have removed all the single track except a small part near the start of the trail.

The goal this year is to try and get speed in before distance. If all goes well I hope to do 17 or 22 or there abouts on Sunday in an effort to push the week over 70 miles. However, if i notice that the weather is bad or i am starting late then i may just do 14 miles with speed being a key goal.

The new New Balance 876 shoe is working out ok. It is not as good as the 875.. but it is much lighter. The big challenge with shoes is moisture. I figure the weight of my shoes doubled after the run due to all the moisture from my body running into the shoes.

I spent the first few hours after the run today cutting the lawn and taking the dog for a walk. Now late at night i am eating pasta and getting ready for some sleep ..

enjoy

May 9th, 2010 Update

2010-05-09T18:01:00.000-07:00

Running

When the year started my right foot was a mess and the gluts did not work at all. The Morganton 24 hour race had done me in as far as running was concerned so this is what I decided to do instead.

January rode 300 miles on a bike
Feb. rode 300 miles on a bike
Worked out hard in the gym both months
March, started to run just a little maybe 30 mile weeks
Most important, worked on the gluts.. and it has paid off

By April my body was just starting to come out of the most insane winter ever. The legs did super well after the long winter of bike riding but my lungs had no real capacity.

The last week of April i managed to get above 55 miles for the week and the numbers started to look good. Today it is the 9th of May and my splits are amazing. I am running at least 30 percent faster then last year at this time.

Courses for the year

Bentcreek Forest

Course #1: (12 mile run-fire roads and some single track)

The personal best on this run is 1:53:50. This run is from the 491 parking area up sleepy gap and then all the way to the last gate of the 479m trail and then down 479 main road all the way back to the parking area.

Course #2 (14 mile run-fire roads and some single track)

The personal best on this run is 1:58:00. This run also starts at the 491 parking area but instead of going up sleepy gap it works its way up the hard times trail all the way to the start of the 479m trail. I then take 479m all the way to the last gate which connects me to the main road of 479. I then run all the way down 479 to the parking area. This is a good hill climber.. and good down hill run.

Course #3 (15 mile run-single track some fire roads)

The personal best on this run has not been established yet this year.

This run is on the Mountain -Sea trail walked on by the President and the First Lady a few weeks ago. I start at the 491 parking area and run up hard times to the 479M fire road. I then run all the way to the mid point of sleepy gap then up to the parkway connecting me to the trail. I then take the single track (amazing single track) all the way to the parking area of the arboretum and then back up the main highway to the 491 parking area. I love this run but the feet do not like it.. so i do it once in a while.

Course #4 (22.5 mile run on fire road only)

The personal best so far is 3:01:55. I enjoy this run because there is plenty of water. I start at the 491 parking area through hard times up to the 479m trailhead. I then take 479m all the way to the final gate then given insanity I then turn around and return to the start point of the 479m gate. I then re-join the hard times trail and run all the way past the arboretum parking area down to the road and back up to the 491 parking area.

Daily Diet

Chicken Roasted (one entire chicken)
Yogurt (48oz a day)
Strawberries (2 pounds a day)
2 cups of coffee and a scone
3 plain cheese burgers.. nothing but bun and meet
5 bananas
2 quarts of ben and jerries ice cream a week
1 pound of block cheese a week
11 64oz apple juice containers per week

Diet while I run

Hammer Gels both with and without caffeine
River water
2 to 4 scaps
4 muscle relaxers 200mgs

Overall thoughts and goals

My feet are in pretty good shape and the gluts are doing well. I hope to get the weight down below 160 which is very low for me but important to keep up the speed. I hope to get the times down to the 8min mark if not lower by the end of the summer.

For May the goal is a total of 400 miles with at least 1 50 mile race. Not sure if the body is ready for that but so far it looks like it do ok.

Problem still exist with the lungs. After 3 hour long runs my lungs start to act strange, and filled up with fluid..

Right now I am as happy as a full pig..

Barefoot Training Project with collected Data

2010-01-24T16:11:00.000-08:00

Opening Thoughts:

Last month when i finished born to run at first i figured it was just another good book with a story line. However, over the course of a few days I remembered my surfing days in Southern California and the fact that by the end of the summer my bare feet could take a pounding and do very well.

I also remembered the Seal Beach Wrestling team. We always dreaded wrestling these guys because they seemed so tough and as always never wore wrestling shoes; 100% barefoot. Tough feet due to never wearing shoes.

So given these memories I decided to try some barefoot running and collect data so i could learn and pass along what I learn to others with a long term goal of mutual sharing.

First attempt and lesson learned:

Given i had no idea where to start I drove out to Beaver Pond Park (private city park full of runners) and took off my running shoes. Zero stretching just started to run. No socks, just bare feet. Within minutes I could not walk let alone run. The bottom of my feet are soft and gentle. Even the smallest rock or bump caused the bottom of my feet to hurt. I learned that shoes have turned my bare feet into wimps. super wimps.

Data collected from the first effort:

Feet are super sensitive after years of wearing shoes.
Park grass is full of bumps and rocks. Feet are very sensitive to the unsettled grass
I felt everything. Brain seemed very aware of what my feet where doing.

First week of efforts:

The next day I returned to barefoot running but this time at the UNCA soccer field. The grass is super short and very well groomed. The field is closed to the public so i ran on the sidelines of the field which appeared to be in the same condition as the field. Boy what a difference. I was able to run 2 miles.

Data collected from my first week of running:

Soccer field much easier to run on then park grass
First 100 yards my feet did not know what to do. I was kinda lost
200 yard mark to 2 mile mark my feet felt very good.
Was landing at the back of the ball of my foot, both feet
After 100 yards of running my feet started to do the same thing
When I started the left foot had a different style then the right.
By the time I finished the 2 miles the left and right foot had the same style.
I did not spend much energy.
Moved about the same speed as running with shoes but with much less effort
Near the end of 2 miles the heal on the right foot started to hurt a bit. New pain.

Second and Third week effort:

Each time i would go out the running seemed easier. I looked forward to the short runs. My brain felt like a kid when I kicked off my shoes and started to run. I also did the same course with my shoes on. First, I would run the 2 miles then I would put my shoes back on and run the same 2 miles. I would return on week three and try putting my shoes back on with and without socks.

Data Collected from second and third week:

I felt like a kid when I went running barefoot
Within a few yards of running both feet would self correct and have the same style.
Would run the 2 miles without shoes then put shoes on with no socks.
Noticed that shoes require much more energy to run on the same grass.
When I ran barefoot my feet and the brain connected. I did not have to do anything
When I put the shoes back on with or without socks left foot would land on the left outside of the foot almost right away.
I went running 2 miles then went on a 14.3 mile trail run. Noticed that my entire body was in balance with almost no pain. It seemed like the pre-barefoot run was a great warm up to a long trail run.
When I wore no shoes the feet relaxed. When I put shoes back on the foot would crunch up and I would have to tell the foot to relax. (all the time)

Forth Week:

The most important thing I have learned so far is running a short barefoot run on groomed grass then heading out to the trail is a great warm up exercise. My entire body performed much better with this process then without this process. Most important thing I noticed was the body was much more relaxed on the days that I went running barefoot before I ran a long trail run; 14 miles.

I tried a bit of park grass this week. So far the foot is still not too excited about the rocks and bumps. However, the bottom of the foot is getting stronger just not very fast.

Tonight I went to the soccer field and ran about 1 mile. The field is very wet and very cold; 32 degrees. At first my feet performed very well with both feet acting the same and relaxing. However, within 10 minutes I could not feel my feet and before you know it I had no clue what my feet did. With my feet numb from the cold it felt like i had shoes on. I had lost a connection with my feet even though i had no shoes on.

Data collected from the fourth week

Bottom of the feet getting tougher but a long ways to go.
Within 20 yards both feet self correct and start running almost the same style
Put the shoes back on and the effort is much harder plus feet start running a different style. Right foot does its thing and left foot does its thing.
If the foot goes numb due to running on a super cold surface the feet start acting like they are in shoes. I can not tell what they are doing any more.
If I run 2 miles barefoot on the soccer field then head out and do a 14 mile trail run the entire body is relaxed and i use much less energy during the run. My leg muscles do not hurt. I sweat less. (not a whole lot less however).

Closing point:

Back to my surfing days. At the start of spring when i started to walk around on pacific coast highway or the hot sand my feet needed some protection. By the time school was out my feet could walk on any road surface including hot sand with no problems.

Second, when i wear shoes the feet do their own thing. The right foot has its landing and motion style and the left foot has its landing and motion style.

Most important after a month of this effort two big things stand out. First, it takes a ton less energy to run without shoes then with shoes. Second, a 2 short miles on the groomed soccer field barefoot then a long 14 mile trail run create perfect condition. My body is very loose and very relaxed.

It seems so far that shoes do a great job of protecting my feet while making my legs and upper body do tons of work. My feet stay super weak and my legs get super strong.

to be cont..

Freedom Park 24 Hour Race New Years Eve

2010-01-01T12:17:00.000-08:00

http://www.my-bmrc.org/FPNYU.html

Complete race report with photos..

I am so excited:

I managed to come in 50th place out of about 100 runners and given i am always near last place that is nothing but super good news. If my right foot which is a pain in the butt all the time had held up just a bit longer I would have been at least in 40th place. Exciting!! Plus the brain was in heaven for most of the race. My weak mind did super super well. Watch out Utah.

Leading up to the Race:

Weeks leading up to the race I spent about 15 hours running around the circle track in Morganton. The splits did not look good and my brain was not happy with the circle concept. My biggest fear was giving up around mile 23 because my brain had failed. The good news is my brain did super well. I did a lot of reading on the mind and ultra-running prior to this race. What I learned helped me gain a better understanding of my brain.

Work leading up to the race was insane. I work on computer networks and systems associated with the mad and crazy banking world. December is the month of money and anyone in the money world can tell you nothing can break down. Second, the weather proved to be near global melt down with more snow and cold then in the last 40 years. This meant only gym time for December with very few running miles. Gym time is great but it does nothing for my feet and that is the point.

Race Overview:

The weather tried super hard to make this a very bad race. However, this race was a blast. I enjoyed the run, the layout and the other runners. Most of the runners loved to talk to you and see what you thought and felt; visa versa. I also enjoyed making that turn around the last corner to see tons of tents, food stands and timing devices all lite up in the night sky. It was fun to run down this row of stuff, stop by pick up some apple juice and head back out for another lap. Good stuff.

Clothing:

I knew from the get go that staying dry and warm was going to be a big challenge and a very important function if planned on staying alive. Freezing weather / rain is a great way to die. Every five miles for the first 40 miles I took off all of my top layers except the thin rain jacket and replaced with a brand new layer of clothing. My sister would take all the wet frozen clothes to her car and dry them over the dash board heater. This drying system worked for some clothing items but not for everything.

The best move i made was buying extra stuff to wear including some cotton shirt that sucked the water off my back faster then any fancy stuff but of course.. once the cotton is wet I had to pull it off and replace with another dry top. I wore about 5 layers and replaced all 5 of the layers except the rain jacked every 5 miles.

Shoes and Feet:

I wore a pair of NB 875 Double E shoes for the first 30 miles. The shoes did a great job with about 100 miles on them before the race. I walked for 3 miles in a new pair of 875 NB shoes. This was a big mistake. I should have just keep the old shoes on if for no other reason then it cost me tons of time changing shoes.

I changed back into the older pair of 875 shoes for the rest of the race. The shoe offers very little support but given my feet are a mess it does a better job then any other shoe I have found on the market.

The left foot was hurting a few days before the race due to all the walking at work. However, the left foot was a champ during the race causing no pain or issues. The right foot also did well up to about mile 47. I was running a slow pace when the right foot twisted outward 100% causing tons of pain. I managed to walk back to my tent and rest for a bit. At the 50 mile mark i stopped running and rested in the car holding the foot in the air. This helped. I managed to get out of the car and move another 3 miles before giving up. If the foot had held up I am sure the numbers would be much higher. It should be noted that at mile 53 i was full of energy but the foot was in deep pain.

Layout and Food:

I set up my old trusty tent. This tent has seen seven 7,000 plus meter peak climbs over the many years. I bought this Noals tent in 1984. Inside the tent was my old Moonstone sleeping bag and some pads. I had a cooler located outside the tent with vitamins and scaps including some gels and other minor items including the famous ibuprofen which i kept to a very limited supply.

Food intake:

3 whole bananas
4 quarts of water mixed with multidextrin
6 Cliff Shot Gels (body got sick of these after a while)
3 GU gels
1/2 of pizza (big mistake it came back up )
16 ibuprofens over a 24 hour period
12 scaps
1 small mixture of coconut water (hate that stuff)
1 gallon of water
5 small cups of chicken broth soup
11 small cups of apple juice
2 small pieces of hamburger which also made me sick
1 grilled cheese sandwich at mile 50

The cliff shot gels and the water mix of Maltodextrin played a super big role in giving me extra energy both with the mind and the body. The pizza and hamburger did nothing but bring me down with the body throwing the pizza right back up within 10 minutes of eating.

The cramp issue was big. I was eating scaps every few miles. The scaps did their thing but only for a few miles. I was very surprised how many scaps i consumed during this race.

Splits:

5 mile = 44 min My PB = 37
10 mile = 1:20 My PB = 1:10
20 mile= 3:35 My PB = 3:16
50 mile = 11:40 My PB = 9:36 this year. Last race was 12:39 however.

Mistakes:

Going into the tent and laying down without someone to help get me back out
Eating pizza slice cost me 15 to 20 minutes due to throwing up the food
Changing shoes at mile 30 cost me 15 minutes
Letting my sister leave at mile 40

Outstanding issues:

Figure out what is wrong with my right foot for the long term
Figure out why my lungs fill up with fluid starting in the 40 mile range

Goals:

Beat my last 50 mile run by 45 minutes (beat it by 47 minutes)
Run first 20 miles in less then 3:45 (made this goal)
Never get frustrated or angry during the race, feel positive and in control (100% success)
Do not injury myself beyond fast repair so i can run another race in March (made this goal)

Recovery and Next Race:

The next race is March 27th on Antelope Island State Park in Utah. This is a 50 mile run and i should do very well with this race. This run is all trail and more to my style of Ultra running.

http://www.buffalorun.org/

The recovery so far has been very strong. My best friend Brian dropped by on the 1st to party and have some fun. I drank 2 beers which caused my body to feel strange. However, here we are on January 3rd and I am feeling very strong. My right foot still hurts but is not super big (i can put my shoes back on.. wow!!!!). I figure it will start working 100% in about a week so no long runs for a while.

The legs hurt but after some bike ridding in the gym today I am feeling pretty good.

Race Results and Info on the race:

http://www.leetiming.com/FPNYU09-10RESULTS.pdf

Closing thoughts:

I had a blast. Period. Sure my body was feeling the miles but the mind did so well that I am super excited about the next race. My biggest concern from the last few races was the brain and how it was dealing with running for long distances. I worked on this weakness with fantastic results. Until next time.

November 23rd, 2009 Freedom Park Ultra

2009-11-23T11:52:00.000-08:00

shoes, tons of shoes this year!

Winter Running:

For me the true sign of an insane runner is when that runner keeps running even when the weather outside gets nasty, wet and super cold. Given it is super cold and wet outside my guess is I am insane.

Most of the time November, December and January are gym days. I seldom do much running during the dead of winter and start up my trail runs during the month of Feb. However, this year I have decided to give the Freedom Park Ultra a try.

My training for the Freedom Park Race:
First, this race requires running around a 1 mile course, around and around until the clock says 24 hours. The course has a few teeny hill climbs which start to add up around mile 20 or so but also offer a change in pace from an all flat run. Second, the race is during New Years Eve ending on New Years Day. For those who do not know the weather in Western North Carolina it will be cold.

My training has consisted of running the 1 mile course during the weekends (20 miles is the average) and spending most of my training runs around the UNC campus running on roads and sidewalks. A few times I have headed out to the forest to do a run including one night run. The only challenge with the forest right now is the hunters. Even if you wear orange there is a good chance you will get shot so until the season ends on December 12th I will stick to the roads and the UNC campus.

What do i see when I run around the campus?
I start my run at the top of the UNC Asheville Campus. Located at the top of the hill is the center for retired folks. The parking is free there and it is center point for my runs.

The cool part of the run is all the young people in their cars. I see car after car drive by and then maybe if I am lucky a student on a bike. My guess is the ratio is about 1 student on a bike for every 100 cars that drive by. I then run outside the campus to a city street. For some reason this one mile section is super cold even on a sunny day. I make my way down the city block until the campus re-appears. Once back on campus I climb a big hill past some construction for a Wellness center and then onto the UNC campus track. I run the track one or two times then take back off into the center of campus and back up my hill to the place where I parked the car. The entire loop is about 3 miles.

On a good day I run past my car off to a small trail in the forest surrounding the campus. This trail is up and down and then down and up but only last around 1 mile.

The challenge is to run for at least 3 hours. Given this is the most boring run I can think of (until the Freedom Park run) the three hours is tough to come by.

It is important to note that three times a week I work out my legs and lungs super hard at the local gym. This work out along with the runs has kept my weight around 168 which for November is amazing.

If all goes as planned I will be on the 1 mile trail this weekend doing my best to run around the course as often as possible. If I am lucky at least 4 hours of good running.

Things I need before the Freedom Park Race:

1) A pair of 875 shoes not modified or made lighter. Stock

2) An additional pair of tights for the night part of the run

3) At least 2 or 3 tops that suck up the water so my chest stays dry and warm

4) New pair of running socks.

5) An Ipod loaded with dance music.

6) And if luck allows my sister to help me stay sane.

Until next time. Current Nov. Running Log.

About 120 miles short of a summer log for the month

but about 150 more miles then last year in Nov.

Rank	Runner	Team	Distance	Miles/Km	State
1	Runner9		394.5	Miles	Washington
2	glenn flynn		242.7	Miles	New York
3	coop74	CPTC	238.65	Miles	New York
4	sarahA	CPTC	237.25	Miles	New York
5	frankbott	AVL	221.2	Miles	North Carolina
6	bigdog531		209	Miles	New York
7	ktwhite		208	Miles	Virginia
8	StuartXC	CPTC	206.9	Miles	New York
9	aconlon	CPTC	200.95	Miles	New York
10	bill	CPTC	198.5	Miles	New Jersey

Pony Express 100 2009 DNF

2009-10-18T08:18:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Davy Crockett and Hudson for all they have done to make this insanity possible.

Opening thoughts

Funny thing. In my effort to run one crazy race in the middle of the Utah desert I have managed to run seven 50 plus mile races in two years. Not bad for an old body.

This years race for the Pony Express started last year when I decided that the most important thing I could do was to train 110% percent for the 2009 Pony Express race. I bought more shoes, paid foot doctors and fixed physical problems as they came about. In my training this year I did four 50 mile races with my best time of 9:30:37 and averaged about 400 miles of running per month.

However, life is always an unknown which is what makes it so much fun, well maybe. No matter how much we plan and train there is always something that can effect the end results. For me this effect was cleaning the gutters and roof on my house as well as dusty camping out near the Geo Beds.

Last Friday (friday before the race) I decided to clean my home's gutters and roof. This year the rodents have been everywhere and the roof had not been cleaned for a year in which time we had about sixty inches of rain. About 5 hours after the roof work on Friday I started to get sick. My body temp reached 103 and i had no energy at all. I did not fully recover until Thursday the day before the race.

Given I was feeling pretty good on Thursday and full of energy Hudson ( my super partner in this race) and I decided to give the run all we had. We moved our camp from the Dugway Geo Beds where we had stayed searching for magic rocks during the week out to Lookout Pass in preparation for Friday morning.

The run started very well. I had been given advice by many long term Ultra runners that the best thing to do was slow down; so i slowed way down. My average split time for 5 miles was 45 minutes during training. However, in order to reserve some energy I slowed to about a 12 minute mile.

By mile twenty my average split time for 5 miles was around 1 hour or in other words I was running around 5 miles per hour or a 10 hour 50 mile posting. At mile 20 i decided to try something different. My thought (a thought that had been with me for 4 months) was to stop and stretch, eat something and chill for 10 minutes. In all honesty it did nothing but make everything hurt worse.

Around mile 25 i started to notice some strange pain in my left hip but not all the time plus my left shoulder would hurt each time i moved my left arm. I had never felt this kind of pain before but decided the pain was the result of the shoes so i changed during my stop at mile 30 from my NB 875 shoes to my NB 757 road shoe. The 757 was my road training shoe and given the ground was as hard as a cement road with rocks on it I felt it might do something great for my body. It did. By mile 45 the pain in my hip was gone but the pain in my shoulder was very bad and getting worse.

Around mile 35 i notice a strange cough coming from no where. When I coughed it felt like i had the flu or some sort of common cold. No doubt my lungs had started to fill up with some fluid. I was not too concerned because it did not seem to have much of an impact on my performance.

Also around mile 35 if my memory recalls correctly I caught up with a fellow runner Pablo who I raced with last year. Pablo was hurting a bit so I got him up and going and we decided to work together and get the best time we could to the 50 mile mark.

An amazing friendship formed in our team effort to reach 50 miles. We pushed each others bodies and minds as well as talked about several complex subjects in a way that you would think we had started our own TED program in the middle of the Utah Desert:: It was a blast. Heck with the race we are having way to much fun teaching each other so much thought and idea.

As the darkness started to fall and time moved forward I started to notice that my lungs did not seem to want to work at all. If I breathed very deep at all a cough would develop so I just pushed on and payed more attention to Pablo and our discussion then the reality that I was running out of oxygen for my muscles and rest of my body.

Around mile 48 to 50 my brain started to fail. Not only was I bonking but worse I could not breath. I had a tough time breathing. In my bonk state looked out for Hudson who could not be seen so I just pushed forward with Pablo. At this point it was not me helping Pablo but Pablo helping me move to the 50 mile mark.

At mile 50 I turned around and started to head back. In my head the one thought that frustrated me the most was how I went from feeling very good a few miles back to not being able to breath or move forward without great pain and trouble.

Going back before the race the one comment I heard over and over again was mind control. This second 50 miles was a mind game. Given this information i figured that it must be my weak mind. I took my bonk killer drink and moved forward figuring maybe my problem was a weak mind and not failed lungs.

Around mile 52 i could no longer think clearly. Most important I could not tell if I was standing up or moving forward or sideways. According to Hudson I really walked about 55 miles because for a long time I justed walked in a big circle or went backwards or forwards on the trail making no real progress but eating up tons of time going no where.

After about an hour of this circle and miss guided walking I crashed to the ground only to be caught by Hudson who stopped the fall.

I hugged Hudson with all of my might and cried with great sorrow releasing a year of dreams and hopes in one big emotional drain. Where in the hell was the YouTube video for this moment?

Hudson moved me over to a chair. He worked with my legs and lungs trying to get my breathing improved. His effort and drive was amazing and may have saved my life. For two long hours in the dark Hudson did everything he knew how to do to get my lungs and rest of my body working again.

After 2 hours of this work I was able to move over to the driver side of his car and with great emotional pain get inside. My emotional pain came from knowing that the minute i stepped inside the car the race was really over.

Re-cap:

My work shift back home starts at 2:30pm. Talk about the perfect runners shift. I get up every day and head out to Bent Creak National Forest and run some of the most beautiful single track in the world. While running i could see myself on the Pony Express trail pushing and moving forward.

My runs over the summer became super strong and my times went down to the 9 min. mile mark for most of my splits which for me was amazing time for my age and given my average run was 20 to 30 miles.

Stopping was not an option this year. As I said to Hudson during my walking around in a circle there is no way i am quiting this race. I must fall to the ground because my body has failed or i must keep trying. Try i did right to the very end.

My only doubt at this point is what would the body have done if after the 2 hours of rest I had started to run again? I know the answer. I could not breath during the drive back to the tent and most of the night. The entire breathing process was one of taking control. No longer was breathing a back ground brain function but a full on must pay attention function.

Last thoughts:

What went wrong with the Lungs? I have no idea. My guess is the camping out at the Geo Beds during the week when the wind was blowing up tons and tons of white powdered dust all of it ending in my lungs. I have also been told that my lungs may not adjust well to the dry air given I live in a very moist climate. Who knows. What i do know is i loved every intense painful moment. I will return some day to do the 50 mile run but will never return to do the 100 mile run. Pushing my body and mind that hard on the Pony Express 100 trail is way to selfish and crazy.

So on Wed of this week if all goes planned I will be on some wonderful single track running along the Smokey Mountain Parkway looking for black bears. Thanks to God who gave me such a wonderful body and a chance to be part of something so crazy, wild and fun.

Next Race you ask: The Freedom Park 24 hour New Years Eve run in North Carolina. I have not decided if it will be 12 or 24 hours. Wed of this week I will decide.

http://www.my-bmrc.org/FPNYU.html

enjoy.. and happy trails..

October 5th 2009

2009-10-05T09:43:00.000-07:00

Last run before the Pony Express 100

Today I went out to my running trail and picked up shirts and other items left behind during my 50 mile run on Sunday. The legs don't hurt much and the body seems very excited and happy along with ready ready ready for the 100 mile run.

If I was to look back over the last summer the one thing that is much stronger concerning running is my knowledge of my brain and how it works with the rest of the body. My guess is each person has a different brain structure and how that brain structure effects our ability to run long distances. For me the brain will not allow its self to run out of fuel even if the rest of the body is doing well. Once the brain gets the fuel it needs the body is free to go out and kick ass. Not respecting that aspect is crazy because no matter how much endurance the brain just shuts everything down.

Since my last post the real issue has been understanding mixed blessings. During September for two weeks I got pretty sick. This did not stop me from running or working out but did make a big cut. Davy Crockett during the first week in September told me to reduce my run miles per week. In August that number was 120 mile per week. The flu made me reduce the run totals per week to half or more. This reduction allowed my right foot to heal and the rest of my body to get much better.

The month of October has been one hell of a month and it is a young month. I am running so much faster it is crazy. I have no freaking idea for sure what is causing this increase in speed but I am running at least 20% faster then August runs, same runs. This gives me a ton of motivation because if there is one thing I am not good at is speed.

On Sunday I ran like a dog for 50 miles. I am going to post a letter i wrote to my team members concerning the run given it does a great job of laying out the results of the run. One thing for sure is the right foot and leg are still issues going into the race. I am not perfect but with some drive and planning along with two good rest weeks all should be well for the race. The goal is not to win the race but to break 24 hours and I really think I can do that.

enjoy

hudson. and brian. in the darkness of hell...

9hrs 30min 31sec 50 miles..

i am pretty happy with myself and my body in this last 50 mile run and last run in north carolina before the race.

I plan on doing some workout time in the gym but no more runs .. allowing the muscles to repair 100% after this last push. I do plan on running some 5 mile splits each day maybe 2 a day in the desert while Hudson looks for rocks. These 5 mile splits are super important for the race..

The time posted above is 7 minutes faster then the last time i ran this course. I lost time in a few strange places. Here is the data and situation.

Temp out side was in the 50 and 60s.. light super cold rain last 8 miles.

Mile 0 to 21.2 3hrs 11 min. Ok. this just plain rocks.

Rest for 19 minutes drank maltadextrin, banana and some water along with peanut butter. would eat some bacon and some saltine crackers with frosting in utah run however. (rested way too long) most of my rest time was working on my compression sock which made things worse.. and working on my right foot. i did not need to give up this much time.. and it fucked up my breathing for sure.

Mile 21.2 to 42.4 miles 4hrs 10mins I had some trouble getting started . when ever i rest too long the body starts to tighten up a bit. Not until mile 33 did i get my times per mile get much faster. From mile 33 to 41 i rocked big time. about 9.5 min miles

Rested once again too long. was trying something else with the compression sock.. which did not work. rest time was 19 min again. I had the same stuff as the last rest time but this time i drank my bottle of mountain dew that stuff is amazing.. and taste amazing at that point in a run. However i did not feel the impact of the mountain dew for about 1 hour. Important to note.

Mile 42.4 to 50 1hr 32min
First mile was very strong. Second 1.5 miles was ok but i started to bonk. My mile 3 i started to walk and just did not want to be there at all. started to feel angry and disapointed all signs of no blood sugar or super low blood sugar walked about 2.0 miles. I then started to run. at first very tight muscles. But after about half a mile i noticed intense amounts of energy and drive. brain drive is key at this point. My legs felt very strong but sore. I also did some super good breathing exercises while i walked the 2 miles. Along with the mountain dew kicking in and better breathing i was rocking. By mile6 and 7 i was very strong. I ran the last mile in about 9 mins. I ran very very fast to the end line.. which shows the power of the body. Here i am about 1.5 hours after the run feel very strong. very little leg pain just a bit stiff.

Given the mountain dew kicked in about 1 hour after mile 42 i would say it would be good to run through mile 50 without resting. Have a mountain dew at mile 50 and some water for the road. I figure that i should see the second impact of mountain dew around mile 55.. getting me into mile 60 with no problem. At mile 60 we rest again and refuel back up. Make sure i do not stay in these rest places for more then 10 minutes. I also think that i did not drink enough water last night or during the first 21 miles. big mistake and caused me some issues from mile 21 to 33.

i also found that if i run faster, rest then run faster my body does better. as long as the brain is not starving for sugar this method words.. but once the brain starts to run out of sugar.. i get upset.. and almost angry.. it is amazing to watch this process in the brain. once this happens all i can do is walk.. the brain acts like it does not want to run any more.. just walk.. and enjoy the surroundings..

I also had some issues with cramps in my right calf and foot. My guess is lack of good protein. I am going to eat as much meat and powder protein as i can take along with amino acids.. crossing my fingers that helps..

thanks for reading..

frank

September 20th, 2009

2009-09-20T10:25:00.000-07:00

Rain and the Flu. Ok for the first time since working I took a sick day, friday. Man that never happens. Of course this means very little running this week because the flu managed to get into my lungs which makes me very sad and very weak.

However, today like a nut that I am my soul and body returned to the mountains to run and enjoy the heavy rain. Given it has rained just about every days this week all day long most folks including my self are starting to go crazy, very crazy.

Getting out for the run was a very important event and most of my soul hopes that the lungs are able to withstand the insanity of the cold, wet and long run.

Now it is important to note that even though I was sick and even though I did not run my body was at the Gym working out like a mad dog all week. I hope no one got sick from my touching everything but the body needs to stay active.

I started the run today, all 17 miles, running my normal run. The first 1 mile is slow as the body wakes up and finds all the parts. By the time i am at the first connector trail my body is doing very well and I am at the 10 min mile run point which I kept most of the run.

As I was returning back to the car a woman pasted me. I could not tell how old or young only that she wore about 500 dollars worth of pretty cool clothing along with an ipod or something to keep her mind off the forest, trees, birds and nature. I noted to her how wonderful the day was but given she was stuck in music she did not hear me.

Being that I am a tough crazy person I yelled back as i started to pass her "ok so you dont want to talk i will pass your ass!". Given i live in Asheville and everyone seems to go to church and love everyone I stand out like a strange weed among plastic flowers.

I managed to keep up a good 8 min mile pace for about 2 miles. Not bad for someone born before color tv. Shit that makes me old. However, at some points I knew there was this side trail i could take and escape the insanity of this woman passing me. It was not that she was silent or a woman but the strange tan on her legs. This was not a tan created by the sun but one created with some sort of booth / chemical. Wonderful.

I must note that as i passed her the trees and birds did jump onto my side and push me forward because going 8 min miles for this old body is a bigger miracle then man walking on Mars.

I took a strange set of trails home and managed to get back to the car with my lungs feeling like shit and my heart screaming at me. Yes i said, the body is back to life, pissed at me but ready to run 100 miles.

If all goes well i hope to run with some folks next saturday. It is my dream because i never get to run with anyone. My runs are great but after a while it would be nice to run with other humans.

enjoy.

September 13th, 2009

2009-09-13T16:43:00.000-07:00

First the important stuff: Davy Crockett managed to run the Wasatch 100 in 28:32 with the best time in his age group and given the hot shots did it only 8 hours faster that is a great time.

This week started off with the flu. Sore throat and some minor fever issues. After eating an entire bottle of Vitamin C in which I did not die the flu decided to leave my body given it could tell that I was crazy. However, this was a two part type flu. The throat gets better then this little shits attack the lungs and other parts of the body.

On Wed. I managed to run 12 easy miles but some running. It was tough because the body did not feel too good. On Thursday a bit more running along with some gym time on the bike. Tons of hard work but the body was not too ready. On Friday the fever returned and the lungs started to fill up with something so i rested both Friday and Saturday which i must admit is total hell given I really wanted to run bad. Saturday I did managed to work out pretty hard in the gym however.

Sunday: The lungs not being 100 percent I still decided to give a long run a chance; long run equals 50 miles. The other thing going against me was the 85 plus heat that was sure to try and melt me.

I started at 9am a bit late given the heat but the best I can do given it is Sunday. The first 21.5 mile split was very strong. I had the bowl runs.. and was having problems keeping things down. Took about 4 shits before the end of the splits. However, when i was finished i felt pretty good.

The second split was not so good. The run over the grassy knob and the tunnel went very well given it was my second shot. However, by the time i got to the water I was hurting. My body was dehydrating super fast and no matter how much I drank it did very little good. I walked a bit of the surface road section and some of the connector to the 479a fire road. At this point I started to get very sick so I started to walk then run then walk then run. I felt like I had heat stroke or something but in the end managed to get back to the car only 15 minutes off normal split time.

I can assure you that walking up sleepy gap was not a fun thing.. and with nothing left in my body to push me forward it was amazing i got to the top. Not sure if i could have done anything different given the heat and being sick but i also just did not have the eye of the tiger today. Not sure why.

I plan on running my 21.5 mile run in the morning then resting on tuesday and wed. Thursday and Friday will also see high milage days with Saturday and Sunday being work days. It is getting close to the end of the month and I plan on dropping off the miles about 7 days before the race.

As for recovery. Amazing. My legs hurt a bit but here it is a few hours later and I am feel super good.

September 6th, 2009

2009-09-06T18:07:00.000-07:00

Trying to write this blog after running 50 miles is about as tough as cutting the front and back lawn while you have swine flu. However, here i go given i want to record some of the information before i fall asleep and die.

First: I ran into 2 little lost girls and a dog around mile 38. That turned into a big situation but only cost me about 10 to 15 minutes off my last split.

Splits: 21.5 mile post=3hrs 30mins.

Splits: 35.5 mile post =2hrs 45mins.

Splits: 50 mile post = 2:hrs 50mins (minues 15 min. with the park ranger helping find the lost girls)

Give or take Ranger and rescue time i figure i did the run in about 9 hours and 37 minutes. The split times do not take in the rest time between splits / loops but the overall time does.

I started about 9am. The idea was simple. Do my 21.5 mile run starting at the mid point, Sleepy Gap parkway parking lot and then running on shunt-in trail do my entire 21.5 mile loop. The weather was cool around 65 when i started and cloudy which is proof there is a God.

The 21.5 mile loop is about 2 miles surface roads, 15 miles fire roads and the rest is single track. The grade is up and down with about 8,000 foot gain loss during the loop.

The next loop is about 15 miles with a about 3 miles on surface roads, 10 miles on single track and the rest on fire roads. I like this loop given the single track work but is tough on my right foot i have to be careful.

The last split / loop is the same and i run it a bit more to make sure i have 50 miles (more surface road and a bit more fire road.

The logic was simple. After doing the first 21.5 miles I would rest at the car for 15 minute which is not part of the split time but part of the over all run time. During the rest i remove my shoes and socks. I then consumed a protein shake i had made as well as eat some peanut butter plus drink some water. I took 4 pain pills which i dont think do shit except to make my kidneys work harder.

On the second loop i was there about 18 minutes or a bit longer. Time flies when you are sitting on your butt resting. This time i consumed my friend Multi-dextrin (sp) in large amounts. By the time i was about 20 minutes into that split i started to feel very good and very happy.. Gotta love stuff that is used in making beer for ultra run training.

The rescue time took place at mile 38 and mile 45. It cost me concentration for it is tough to focus on running knowing that these two girls are in danger and after watching two woman cry after i told them i saw their little girls. however I did ok.

I am very happy with my run / split times. This is proof that if i rest between splits the end result is much faster overall times. The other thing to point out is my run in october is kinda flat but super hot and dry. This run is very wet, full of bears, snakes and lost children. The wet really helps keep the body moving fast even though I do a ton of super big hill climbs for miles.

I plan on doing the same run next weekend with only a few small runs and some gym time during the week. I want the body to rebuild for the next weekend and see how well i do running another 50 miles. The real key is rebuilding and rest time. If the sun is not out again i might reduce my rest times between splits.. but not sure..

However, how does all this effect the second 50 miles? Great question. I came home and drank a ton of protein mix as well as sugar free cranberry juice so my kidneys got some fuel. I feel ok but the legs are tired and i have a bad rash between my two friends and the legs.. oh no..

My right foot is not perfect but the left is willing to do extra work to help the right foot..

enjoy

August 30th, 2009

2009-08-30T17:42:00.000-07:00

What form of stupidity drives a person to run in the middle of the day for 21 or so miles? Why not run in the morning when the air is cool and your body has just consumed a hot cup of motivational coffee? Heck if i know but for reasons beyond sanity I try to run my weekend runs in the middle of the day so i can sleep in and pretend I am a normal american looking for rest and fun on the weekend when in fact I am far from normal and work all week long so i can run in the middle of the day and feel like total shit!

Lets start with Saturday. I decided that I need to do something different with my runs so I started on the super 15 degree up hill 2.5 mile run that then loops through a wonderful single track which then finds its way back to the bottom of the 2.5 mile hill. Of course the run was started at 1:00pm and the heat was already going crazy along with 100% moisture in the air without it raining.

Given that most of my brain is fried (years of living in Los Angeles) i decided to run this loop 3 times and only when there is nothing left of myself do I stop at the bottom of the third loop. I have no idea how far i just ran but decided the runs are nearly 6 mile loops given I run about 4 miles per hour up a 15 degree climb and run 7 miles down hill for 2 miles.

But there is much more to the story:: Saturday really started in the gym riding a stationary bike that shows you in virutal space your ride (kinda fun). I of course selected the third hardest virtual rides so i could end up soaking wet after 20 minutes of super up hill riding. (now that everyone is afraid they will die of the swine flu those of us who really work out and get all wet are known as the danger to society types)

Yes, I then went for my run and then given I still have a small amount of energy left over decided to return to the gym to do some more riding and weight lifting.

Sunday morning:

I felt like total shit. I felt like some large truck had just run me over. So what do i do? I clean the entire house including the bathroom and finish all of my laundry. I then eat a bit of food and not thinking twice i head out the door around 1pm while the sun is beating the shit out of everthing and start a 21.2 mile run of which most of it is up hill and the only source of water is small dirty stream water bears pee in during the night.

Ok so what do i feel like right now? I am sore, tired and ready to hit the bed. I am upset with myself that I did not run the 21 miles faster; walked about 1.5 miles of it and was off by 1/2 hour on the split.

Of course my brain has no end to the insanity. It wants to pop up first thing in the morning and try to at least do my fun 14 mile single track run. I love the run so maybe it will happen but on the other hand have i lost my mind? Yes.

In the end do i really think all of this will help me finish my 100 mile run? Heck if i know. However, given someone who i very much respect had a DNF I dont feel too bad. Here is one of many cool photos of Tony after being shutdown.

August numbers with at least one more day left in the month, monday. I wonder what will happen..

Rank	Runner	Team	Distance	Miles/Km	State
1	frankbott	AVL	423.8	Miles	North Carolina
2	homey claus	CPTC	418.7	Miles	New York
3	port147		365	Miles	Washington
4	coop74	CPTC	355.2	Miles	New York
5	jhm	CPTC	329.75	Miles	New York
6	sonic		324.35	Miles	Ohio
7	jfb1	CPTC	299.25	Miles	New York
8	pmonster	BTUNCPEM	279	Miles	North Carolina
9	susanmls	CPTC	274.3	Miles	New York
10	scs	CPTC	273	Miles	New York

August 23rd, 2009

2009-08-23T07:54:00.001-07:00

The first thought that keeps entering my mind is Tony.

Something went wrong around mile 70 and he had to quit the Leadville 100. It would be nothing to me if I did not know how hard this man worked to get ready for this race. His personal sacrifice and energy for training coming back from injury says something for his efforts and the cost of the DNF. I however, hope that he has the same fight i had when i failed to finish the Pony Express last year. I reviewed my failures and studied my body. Most important, I just did not give up. I took the time to change my training to reflect my bodies needs and then discounted the real value of the race. The primary point was not the race and never is. The primary point for me is getting up every day, running, seeing nature, feeling the power of the planet i live on and staying in top conditon so my body and mind can meet any challenge life might throw my way.

Tony is still my hero. He is unplugged from the system, does what he loves and is his own man.

My training is going well. I keep blowing through shoes like they are free water. My last pair of shoes lasted no more then 150 miles before they split top front. Amazing damage my guess from running over something super sharp.

The right leg which is what did me under last year is doing super well. The key is the body and its ability to install, create and enlarge blood vessles in the right leg so the circulation of blood is much better. I look down at my right leg and see tons of new vessles that did not exist last year at this time.

My times are getting stronger and the distance is moving over the 100 miles per week which is amazing given work is doing all it can to make life difficult. My primary goal this year was to reduce the amount of fat in my legs. My legs are lean but not as lean as they could be. This will be an issue.

I hope to reach 420 for the month of August and see 130 mile weeks for September. Tough goals but goals none the less. I will taper down first of October to 60 and 70 mile weeks with at least 1 super long distance.

If i can run the first 50 miles in 10 hours that is good. The last 20 miles is the point of this type of race. How much energy do you have left to run that last 20 miles? The more the better chance you have of doing well in the race.

Example: The top runners last year managed to get to the 50 mile mark around 10 hours. They then spent almost 14 hours on the last 50 miles. This means slow running / walking the last 50 miles. I hope to do the same except in the last 20 miles. That will be interesting to say the least. The plan may fail but the point is trying.

As I run i also ask myself how many more years can i keep up this level of training and racing? Not sure. But i do know that a move out west would be a good first step to keeping up this insanity because so many of my running friends live out west. Something about the west that lends itself to running long distances.

In closing: Fight Tony. It is really the only thing we have in a tough and insane world.

August 11th, 2009

2009-08-11T11:32:00.000-07:00

Bugs. I said tons of Bugs. The bugs seem to have decided to want the water that lays on the top of my legs, shorts and rest of my body at any and all cost. Given the temp. outside is in the 90s and the air is as thick as water you would think the bugs would have all the water and heat they need. But no. The little guys have picked me.

The good news is they are just a pest. Most die the minute i see them because like Obama I am getting good at killing anything small that flies and bugs me; bugs that is.

Now for the running. Last few weeks have seen 100 mile plus runs. The running is starting to be a burn out and I am thinking what on earth could i be doing this running for. However, given i have no logic in my brain i keep running.

The good news is my body is starting to look like it did when i was in high school wrestling. Well almost. My hips have kinda started to merge with my chest causing me to look like some little fellow in Peru that sherpas part time during the weekends.

My legs on the otherhand are starting to look good. I have reduced my overall diet and increased my load of soy and real meat protein. Both seem to be doing their job and giving me leaner leg muscles. However, given i am suppose to be climbing high mountains my legs are still a bit on the bulk side which means more energy to move them forward.

Yesterday I spent the first 2.5 hours running in Knoxville at Haw Ridge. I love Haw Ridge but the bugs also love Haw Ridge and given the air is about 100% water the run is not much fun. After completing the run I stopped over at Bent Creek and did my climb single track run up shunt in. It was fun but challenging given I had already run in hot tough conditions. Total miles for the day comes to about 30.

My real concern is my mind. As the running gets longer my mind starts to burn out. I find myself with less endurance or so it seems. However, there is plenty of power and muscle to move me forward but the mind would reather be doing anything but running. Not sure how to fix this but i will fix it or fall on my face like a fool.

I enjoy reading Tony's blog. He can write better then i can and most important is doing something super impressive. I am not sure if at his 25 we are both about the same. I ask myself, "Do i get a handicap for being 52 running 100 miles a week over his 150 mile runs per week? Not sure. In any case I think we both have done well.

But the run is not the point. The point is i love most of the minutes out there. I see turtles, bears, snakes and all sorts of creatures including 100 different types of bugs that all know how to fly some faster and slower then others. The world seems to think that the soul is only happy when we are going to church or the mall. I have found my souls love point by running in the desert or the mountains and connecting to the very planet i came from. Shame on me i know.. should really find my love for money but heck.. it never seems to do much for me but melt holes in my pockets.

Am i ready for October? Heck if i know. I will be smarter and leaner no doubt. My feet will be in very good condition and my body ready to do 200 miles but the brain is the point. If the brain is not ready then i will get my butt kicked. Yes i am a bit concerned but nothing I cant over come for sure.

July Ending Numbers: My goal was 400 so i was a bit short. Why? Lazy!

Runner	Distance	Rank
homey claus	449.7	1
coop74	384.25	2
frankbott	362.3	3
sonic	343.03	4
glenn flynn	340	5
sonny67	302.4	6
felice	301.11	7
susanmls	299.6	8
alanruben	299.5	9
AFRanger24	287	10

August so far... as of the 10th

Rank	Runner	Team	Distance	Miles/Km	State
1	homey claus	CPTC	154.3	Miles	New York
2	port147		142.5	Miles	Washington
3	frankbott	AVL	141.2	Miles	North Carolina
4	coop74	CPTC	127.8	Miles	New York
5	jhm	CPTC	125.5	Miles	New York
6	pmonster	BTUNCPEM	106	Miles	North Carolina
7	glenn flynn		105.5	Miles	New York
8	trackstar	BTUNCPEM	105	Miles	Maryland
9	sonic		104.4	Miles	Ohio
10	susanmls	CPTC	103.8	Miles	New York

July 25th, 2009

2009-07-25T16:42:00.000-07:00

Adventure with nature has been going on with me for a long time. I think my first adventures with nature started when i was a young man doing hikes all over southern California. Mount Baldy was my favorite because i could do it winter or summer. Then the hiking turned into rock climbing and the rock climbing turned in to high altitude alpine climbs and then the climbs turned into ice climbing multi pitch mixed rock and ice.

Of course it did not end there. Once i moved onto a sail boat and learned how to sail I found the pacific ocean full of challenges. So now that my bones are too old to rock climb and my soul has no desire to climb high mountains I find myself doing ultra marathons.

The crazy part about my ultra running and the intense training that goes with it is my mountain bike. If the mountain bike several years ago had not been stolen and i had not been broke I am betting i would never have taken up ultra running which should really be called ultra training.

Today was just another day in which Nature is Nature and does its best all by it's self to kill me which suits me just fine because I would rather deal with Nature on my day off then the insanity of the world.

Over the last two weeks I have started to run 3 long runs during the week and one ultra long run on the weekend. The ultra run on the weekend is a 45 mile run right now which i hope to turn into a 60 mile run. Yes I said 60. The runs take me a good part of the day and when i finish i spend the night doing all i can to repair my poor beat up body.

The current weekend ultra run is two loops of a 22.5 mile course that i measured with a GPS. The only change to the course is me moving around on the fire road which adds small amounts of distance to the entire run.

The run starts out on a single track that helps wake up the old body. The body is not really interested in this ultra adventure stuff it would rather be resting next to a nice cool swimming pool. I then move over to a fire road for a good many miles and find myself going up a super steep single track to another super cool fine thin single track.

The single track is so thin in some sections that i can not see my feet. This is bad because I might step on a snake or I might trip over a rock.

Today was very hot. My first time around was in good time. The split was 3 hrs and 40min. I rested for about 20 minutes before starting the second loop. The second loop was much worse given God and Nature tried to help me and in the process of trying to help me almost killed me.

Given it was Hot and given I have a strange and crazy relationship with God (not the normal christian relationship ... the kind that comes from meeting God at 8,000 meters type relationship) I ask God if there was anyway in this nice hot bright sunny day he could send shafts and shafts of pouring rain.

Well guess what. Right about half way through the single track I started to hear thunder. The thunder got closer and closer and then soon small drops of rain. Given i was super hot and very tired I acted like i am suppose to and got all excited and danced in the rain.. teeny rain mind you but rain.

However, the teeny rain turned into super amazing down pour .. the kind of down pour you see on the national geographic africa specials. I started to run because with the down pour was lightning. Tons of lightning. One of the bolts hit a tree and went all the way to the ground. You ask how close? Ok maybe 10 feet. Too close.

By the time I get to the fire road again the fire road has turned into a big wide river about 3 inches deep. My shoes are about 10 pounds *start at 11oz* and i am running for my life. I still have at least 3 miles to go before I arrive to the car but with good luck the rain starts to let up and I make it back.

The second split of 22.5 took 4 hrs and 20 minutes or there abouts.

Over all a great run. The heat was a bitch and did create some Lactic Acid issues in the legs which I can feel at this very moment. I have plenty of energy and a few hours after the run my heart rate is near normal.

to the adventures of doing!

Rank	Runner	Team	Distance	Miles/Km	State
1	homey claus	CPTC	331.4	Miles	New York
2	frankbott	AVL	305.2	Miles	North Carolina
3	coop74	CPTC	287.55	Miles	New York
4	sonny67		269.15	Miles	Michigan
5	sonic		261.78	Miles	Ohio
6	felice	CPTC	255.51	Miles	New York
7	glenn flynn		246	Miles	New York
8	susanmls	CPTC	235.9	Miles	New York
9	trackstar	BTUNCPEM	232.5	Miles	Maryland
10	pmonster	BTUNCPEM	232.1	Miles	North Carolina

July 18th, 2009

2009-07-19T17:43:00.000-07:00

Ok: Why would anyone run 45 miles in one day let alone 100 miles? Cause I like ice cream. Does that work for you?

Since my last post I managed to go from a tiny wound in the bottom inside left leg to running 45 miles in about 8 hrs and 15 minutes with amazing split times, or at least amazing if you are old like me.

I managed to get some sort of left leg injury that seemed to only hurt if i walked but did nothing while i was running. Not sure what caused it but my guess is bad shoes. The injury went away after i rested for a few days; torture no less but important if i want to get better.

This week started with 3 19 mile days. The weather is getting less wet and more sun but cool sun so the times are rather good; around 3 hrs and 20 minutes give or take. I am never in a big hurry and given most run past me super fast no need to worry too much about speed.

On Saturday I took a course that is 22.5 miles and includes a very tough single track for about 1/3 of the run and doubled it. I did the course twice with a nice rest of 20 minutes between or there abouts. The first 22.5 was done in 3 hrs and 30 minutes a pb no doubt. Amazing. I had so much extra time that i rested and ate well, drank well and thought well.

The second half went ok with some resting on super tough hills. I was scared that my legs would cramp up or my head would bonk but my legs never cramped and my head never bonked. I finished the second 22.5 miles in 3 hours and 50 minutes. Both split times are much less then the average during training of 4 hours.

The weather on saturday was cool with a breeze which i am sure helped. I had some Oxygen issues for the first 5 or 6 miles.. not sure why the body managed to work out the problems. For the first time in any run i was drinking a mixture i made of maltodextrin. The stuff seems to be in love with my body and visa versa because i had no bonk and tons of energy. Most of the energy was from the good oxygen vo2max rate.. and some from my head feeling fine.

I was not too sure i had 45 miles in so given i might be off by a mile or two i ran another 2 miles which i have not included in my times just in case. I wanted my numbers to error on the side of more work not less.

So now that i have done the WTF (as i learned from Tony) training run.. what is next? Good question. I am going to do one of these double course runs at least once a week. Sure they take all day (8 hrs and 15 minutes for this last one) but they help train the legs for a super long run or so i hope.

I love to run the single tracks however, the snakes are out in full force an Bears are taking a dump on the trail.. not a good sign.. kinda like.. hey.. maybe you should take up tennis.

July Numbers so far

Rank	Runner	Team	Distance	Miles/Km	State
1	homey claus	CPTC	257.9	Miles	New York
2	frankbott	AVL	213.5	Miles	North Carolina
3	coop74	CPTC	196.5	Miles	New York
4	sarahA	CPTC	194.8	Miles	New York
5	sonny67		184.9	Miles	Michigan
6	felice	CPTC	181.06	Miles	New York
7	sonic		179.78	Miles	Ohio
8	bigdog531		171	Miles	New York
9	susanmls	CPTC	169	Miles	New York
10	trackstar	BTUNCPEM	164.5	Miles	Maryland

June Numbers

Runner	Distance	Rank
coop74	372.85	1
frankbott	356.7	2
glenn flynn	316	3
susanmls	304.7	4
bigdog531	279	5
sarahA	274.5	6

Enjoy.. to many more runs..

July 4th, 2009

2009-07-04T20:08:00.000-07:00

First and most important stuff:

Aaron made me a "Friends and Family member of Foot RX".. kinda best stated as a team member.. as they build their team. I figure if you are old.. and someone wants to take care of you.. cause you run hard.. well that is a good thing.. no .. a great thing.. so i am very honored.

The week was a tough one at work or a super slow one. Some days i worked my butt off and others I just sat around. The tough days caught me on the running and the easy ones made running heaven. On Thursday after our work meeting i went out for a short single track run. (13.5 shuntin). The body was very upset with me and many things broke. The end result was I had to sit out Friday which caused me to be very sad.. but in the end given I worked 13 hours on Friday.. a good thing.

The run on Saturday was special. Ok.. what does special mean? Legs get pushed. Body pounds hard and a few times i feel like the world is ending. However tons of good hills.. tons of single track on good hills and some real strong times. Amazing part i am running my butt off and still having tons of energy left over. That is important. No food and just a bit of water from dirty streams with 22.5 miles in 4.02 hours. Not a bad time and a great run.

My goal for July is to run at least 90 miles per week with a 50 mile run at Haw Ridge on Friday, July 16th. The run on Friday is about pushing the body and learning what I am weak at. My friend will keep an eye on me.. but the logic is to do 12 mile loops... stop get something then keep going. Haw Ridge is so soft that the body does not feel as much impact so I am expecting some good times. However, the air is wet, wet and more wet along with some heat and you have shut down in the works.. so we will see.

I worked out at the new gym in town; "Rush". I felt like i was in Southern California.. very San Diego ... very flashy.. i am not sure where in the hell they got their money. I rode on a virtual mountain bike. Ok. I am getting old.. which means.. i was excited when we got a black and white tv.. so can you imagine what the virutal mountain bike did for me.. shit.. i am screwed.. love that thing.. and am hoping someone gets me one for xmas.. well maybe..

The body is in great shape. I am holding at around 170 to 174.. the range is cause no one's scale says the same thing.. i figure i am full of water.. or have no water at all. My low has been 165 after a run and 177 after a run.. the 177 was due to no potasium (sp).. or electrolytes..(sp)..

more as i run more..

June 28th, 2009

2009-06-28T17:53:00.000-07:00

Today was special. Great run at Haw Ridge. (more on that in a bit) But most important, a wonderful day with a friend, sharing, expressing giving and being tight. Great blessings are not things you can touch, they are the people who touch your soul.. and you theirs too..

Haw Ridge:

I was not too sure what to expect and given i love to sleep did not get to the running place until around 11am. The goal regardless was to try a run in the super hot super wet conditions of Haw Ridge as part of my training for the race in October. On Saturday, the day before, I got shut down from the heat. The course in Bent Creek was more demanding with most of the run up hill on single track or fire roads. However, plenty of water and not as wet as Tenn. air.

What i learned was the track is super soft. I had tons of spring power with little or no impact to my knees or feet. The speed was amazing and the energy left over after 2 hours of running no water and nothing to eat was amazing.

I managed my vitamin intake a bit different. The night before i had tons of protein, rice and water. During the drive down took a couple of Iprofin, some vitamin B and then some general for old people type vitamins. When i arrived a couple of hours later i added scaps to the list of items, two pills. I should have taken them a bit earlier given they got my stomich upset a bit.

Most of the run was around the forest park. I got lost a few times which added miles and a bit of concern because that is one place you can get lost for a few hours if you try hard.

My future goal is to return in two weeks and do the loop twice minus the getting lost part. This should mean a 3.5 hour run or about 19 miles.. see what happens. One thing for sure is it was a great place to run on single track.

June 22nd, 2009

2009-06-22T06:21:00.000-07:00

Since my last post the big news is a great right foot. After tons of work, patience and love the right foot is almost perfect. I get a bit of pain in the foot around mile 20 but not much and nothing like it was about a month ago.

I have started to post my logs on "www.therunninglog.com" because it gives me better faster information then a spreadsheet which i never seemed to keep up todate. I also get to watch other runners throughout the east coast.

So far the weekly numbers are staying in the low 80 miles per week group. This is in line with my goal. I hope to push the number to 90 miles for July. Given the heat and lack of water this will be a big challenge.

My plan on dealing with the big numbers is more carbs with rice and pasta as a primary source. I will be drinking more smoothes as well as a product called "Revive" which is a natural liquid that the body seems to get more from then anything else liquid. I am also taking large amounts of sugar in a liquid form (2 cups) around mile 12 which is helping a bunch. The body is storing about 90 minutes of sugar in the muscles and when it runs out i run out. The brain giving in is the biggest point. I become lazy and not willing to push once the brain runs out of sugar. Keeping the body full of the stuff is key and it just requires me being far more professional about my running.

I have also ordered a product for O2 help from 1stendurance.com The product will help in several ways with my body and its use of O2. I also expect that it will help with speed issues. Right now I find myself not moving as fast the first half because i dont want to run out of energy during the second half. This is kind crazy and I need to pickup the speed at the start.. with the ending times rather solid.

My good runs are the shorter runs. I love to do a short 13 mile run on shunt-in that is so wonderful. The run is mostly single track and kicks my butt for the first few miles all up hill but then it drops. I can assure you there are tougher runs on this single track and i intend on adding them to my diet of running during July.

The new 875 NB shoes are great for running and i think played a very big role in my foot doing so well. On the other hand the shoe falls apart faster then any shoe i have ever owned. The shoe does very well in single track runs but the single track conditions eat up the stability of the shoe.

Overall I am very happy. My body is doing well through a natural form of eating like a horse instead of taking all sorts of strange man made things in order to get the numbers I need. The good race results will depend on learning how to keep the blood full of sugar.. .. if for no other reason then to keep my brain motivated.

The only challenge and a strange mix that I have added is short track runs. I find myself on my rest days running around the track a few times moving as fast as the body will move. The only problem with this is I threw a muscle that connects my hip to my butt. The result was flying in the air and landing on my hands and body. Looked great but did very little damage to me.

Thats all for now.

June 6th, 2009

2009-06-06T18:53:00.000-07:00

The last few days I have been posting my times.. and some important left brain details in an online runners log.. it has been fun.. (the runnerslog) .. is the name i think. The best part about that addition to my running is it gives the left brain something to do.. so far i have been running as far as i think i should.. and not really keeping track of details..

Thanks to my friend Davy Crocket the log is now an important tool to my running and training.

This week will see my total for the week above 85.. at least.. or there abouts. My average during June needs to be in the high 80s.. with each month adding another 10 miles.. so by the time of the race i should be doing 115 miles a week with no problem.

Today the foot did great.. but the blood was a mess. Ok I am stupid. I go out and run in the heat with no water.. except dirty streams.. which i drink out of.. and no food..nothing.. so by the time i get to mile 15 i am a total mess.. the body is weak on blood sugar... way to weak.. but understand this issue and challenge... so tomorrow i hope to leave some food near the trail 5000 point.. where it meets the 479 fire road... the shunt-in trail crosses this..

I love the single track runs. I love them. They are so at peace with me.. just wish my body could go more.. but.. without the blood in balance i am fucked.. so just got to figure that one out.. not sure why some days i am doing super well.. and other days i am doing so poor..

So, some food.. something for the body.. i might make a peanut butter and jelly sand... and leave it someplace safe.. along with something that is carb loaded liquid.. then keep going.. i hate having things on me or carry anything..

I think i did about 23 miles.. because i went up the trail futher then before.. well at any time.. i made it to the bitch switch backs from total hell.. they dont switch for much.. based on the map.. but are key for the 50 mile run i hope to do up there in august..

what do i hope to do sunday.. ? Good question.. I am off to help a friend.. and I have no idea what my legs will do tonight.. some nights they hurt so much.. they scream with pain.. I lack protein and amino acids is my guess.. shit.. more money i have to spend..

so how is the body? shit.. for my age i am kicking ass.. super kicking my ass.. the body is getting very strong.. very good.. and a bit lighter ever week.. i am very happy what all this means to me as a person..

enjoy..

http://www.newbalance.com/events/ambassadors/roster/akrupicka.php

tony.. you are right.. the human race.. a good part of the american human race is not pushing themselves.. at all..

May 30th, 2009

2009-05-30T16:47:00.000-07:00

Well the rain stopped. Amaziing but true. Every river and stream is at the max and everything green is super green. Of course if there is no rain the wonderful snakes return. Yes I almost stepped on one super long black one and another black one was spotted in front of me before i managed to almost step on it too.. no fear.. black ones wont kill you.. just make you feel sick..

First, i got up early and did a short but tough run up shunt-in. The old 875 shoes had hit their max. I think all the rain made them worth less faster then normal and they provided zero protection for my sad right foot.

Given i am trying to support the economy of this area I picked up another pair from Foot RX which just happens to have 5 pairs my size in stock with my name on them.. so no one can buy them.. it is true.. i go through a pair of shoes every month or so.. only way to help prevent stress fractures.. for my old bones..

Given i had another pair of shoes i headed back out to the trail. The heat was there.. but the soul wanted to run a bit more.. so i pushed as hard as I could.. hitting my wall a few times. The sugar engine in my body was falling behind. Plenty of fuel.. but could not get it to the places.. fast enough.. so .. i hit a wall.. then would slow down.. then would have energy.. kinda strange. near the end of the run i was feeling super strong.. too bad.. but it was getting late and i wanted only one thing.. no not sex.. food.. i love food after long running days.

The two runs together bring the run for the day to 4 hours.. and who knows how many miles.. miles are stupid cause the single track runs are single track.. rock.. sticks.. roots.. you name it.. how fast can you run on this.. not really sure.. sometimes.. super fast.. sometimes slower.. depends..

Today was not busy in the forest..not sure where everyone is at.. but the numbers are way down.. to sad.. but i enjoy the forest to myself..

The right foot is doing well. It hurts sometimes super bad. .. and with the new shoes i should be ok..

Plan on running sunday.. the same run i did this morning.. unless Aaron decides to join me.. he is a much better runner on trail.. and much younger.. so if he does run with me i will get my butt kicked..

enjoy

ps: still no woman.. i think they are all afraid of the forest.. that is all i can figure..

May 25th, 2009

2009-05-25T15:19:00.000-07:00

The last couple of weeks have been great because of the new shoes. Sunday I pushed the wall as hard as i could. Four hours of running mostly single track trail full of rocks, sticks and everything else nature could throw in. Running the fire roads is easy compare to the single tracks but the view on the single tracks makes the entire challenge worth it.

Most important I am never really tired. My need for water starts to show up about mile 18.. or so.. but it has been raining so much that the air seems to supply all the water i need. My right foot is still a problem and I can assure you it starting to take away from the peace of the run. However, the point of running is not to win.. cant win much at my age.. the point is to push the mind and body.. to do what everyone else is not doing. See if the mind gets upset.. see what happens when i push that hard and to learn from the process.

At times I get upset and the peace of the forest is beaten by the sounds of my soul screaming out loud for no good reason..

The best example Sunday came near mile 20 when I was very tired from the wet beating, super wet.. i mean it has been raining for hours.. solid.. super hard.. my right foot hurts.. and so i start to bitch about life, sure sign i am human. Before you know it i am in the middle of this mind game when all of a sudden the birds start to make tons of noise.. it is just me the birds and some snakes i am sure.. ok.. they get my attention and i shut up for a few minutes.

I walked in the forest a bunch today.. get the right foot a rest.. it is feeling good today.. but yesterday was a very different story. I also had a super bad rash that hurt so bad.. i was screaming when i got home.

Will try to push for at least 3 long hours on Tuesday.. i look forward to the runs.. if for no other reason then the beauty of the forest right now.. the rain is making everything super green.. and things are growing like crazy..

Look forward to this weekend... One day will be with a friend of mine Nick.. few miles.. (tough to find sick people willing to run 20 plus miles on the fly) then Sunday see if i can run for 6 hours.. yes.. i said 6 hours.. time to get my body really angry..

thanks for reading.

frank

ps: new camera by mid next week and a repaired mountain bike.. i am starting to kick again .. a bit.. any way..

May 15th, 2009

2009-05-15T09:33:00.000-07:00

Sweet run today plus great new shoes. I have been rather short of cash (not as broke as GM, but broke) which means old shoes. Today i found myself running in my new NB 875 shoes. Wow. Heaven. My feet love them.. i even think my left foot looked up at me and smiled.. the right one is a pain in the ass.. so it did not smile.. but screw the right foot.

Today started at the parking lot at the entrance.. throught the connnector and out to 479a. From 479a i ran all the way up to sleep gap trail, to the top of the parkway, along the shunt-in / parkway trail all the way to the highway and then back to the parking lot. The shunt-in / parkway trail was pretty.. it was amazing in color and silence.. Given it has rained so much the ground was soft.. (note: God did not try to kill me today with Lightning.. thanks)

My goal is to do 30 on saturday. I have to work sunday.. so Saturday is the day. Push as hard as my body will go and see what happens. So far my running is on track. My right foot still acts like it is broken and the lower back is a bit upset with me.. outside that i am doing very well. Body fat is about 10 percent.. which is good for an old man.. ..and i run between 5 to 6 miles per hour.. on trail..

enjoy.. more after the saturday run.. Boy do i love my new shoes..

May 3rd, 2008 oh no.. i meant 2009

2009-05-03T11:27:00.000-07:00

I was running along on the parkway trail just below where the secret hotel is located when i spotted these orange flowers. I have no idea what they are called except to tell you they were about a half a cup in size and orange as an orange. Pretty cool. (the flowers grew on a tree)

ps: the black snakes are back in the trees again. I look up in the trees and see them hanging there.. in the rain.. ok.. gotta find another job.. cant be running with snakes hanging over my head..

Today i ran about 23 miles for about 3.75 hours of running. Given i am not sure it could be less or a bit more. The run started off in heavy rain with all the green screaming bright colors of green. I loved how the water dripped from the rim of my ball cap. At one point it rained so hard i could not see more then two feet in front of me. The warm air kept me warm but the rain makes me feel like i was in the shower. I always wanted to run in the shower.

I started off at the parking lot near the entrance to the park. Ran the connector over to the 479a trail. From the 479a trail i went up sleepy gap to the parkway then back down given i am a weak old man in need of a bit of rest. I then took 479a all the way to another entrance to the parkway trail and stayed on the parkway trail for about 5 miles before turning around. The trail is super thin but wow.. it was amazing in color and life.

I have decided to take a teeny little kmart camera up there one day next week and photograph the one section of the trail that super rocks. I will post the pictures on the blog. Heck maybe i will do that monday given i dont plan on running monday.

The return trip was a bit rougher. The rain makes your shoes weight a ton and before you know it you start to feel the effects of heavy shoes. I had no good water and no food so the body started to get really up set around mile 18. The last mile was pure torture, legal kind, and by the time i returned to the car there was nothing left of my body.

The total for the week is 85 or 5 miles short of my goal of a 90 mile week. However, i did managed to get in 3 days of hard work out in the gym so maybe that counts.

enjoy..

April 26th, 2009

2009-04-26T13:48:00.000-07:00

The run today was best marked by the spotting of a super big owl. I was near the 10 mile mark when out of no where comes this owl. He stops and parks. I do the same. I tried to talk to him but the conversation went no where. This is the largest owl i have ever seen in the wild. He had at least a 3 foot wing span.

added side note: and yes there was a long super fat gray ugly snake by the river.. he was more scared of me then i was of him.. but given i dont like snakes.. i wont talk about them.

It was hotter today and i was still a bit tired from yesterday however i managed to run 25 more miles on somewhat of a different course. Instead of starting in the 491 parking lot I started the run deep in the hole of the Arboritum (sp) near the highway. I figured this would give me more up hill work and make the course a bit tougher then yesterday.

My goal was to run up to the parkway then head on to the trail however, a small voice in my teeeny brain said bad idea given i might end up getting tired so pushing it was not a good idea.

I did the 479a trail all the way to the hell road connector that takes me from 479 main road up to the 5000 trail point under the parkway road. I ran down that road a bit then looped back on a the parkway trail where I stayed until I sneak back to the 479a trail for water. By the time i got back to the water (small stream used by many creatures) my body was not too happy. My problem was not my legs or feet but my blood sugar. I have a teeny test kit which i took with me today only to find that the number it returned said i should be dead: 52. Ok. Given i was not dead then the reading must be wrong so I moved on.

I had to walk about 1 mile total but in the end returned to the car with the last two or three miles very strong. Yes!. I am sun burnt, fried and beat up and in pain. Yes real Pain.. can you imagine.. and i got all of this wonderful stuff for free!!! or at best the cost of gas getting to the park.

I plan on resting monday with a short run on tuesday. I do hope to hit the gym a bit on those days in the evening. My biggest issue is getting a few pounds off and working with the blood. Ok, so i dont eat anything during the run and only drink stream water.. which some of it does have little creatures.. which i guess you could call that eating.. well maybe. In any case I need to look at eating someting near the top of the 5000 trail.

Next weekend is the same insanity.. maybe because i have a chance to see my friend in ktown.. and party.. and as much as i love to run.. i love to party just a teeeny bit more until of course the morning when this body reminds me that i should have been running..

enjoy

April 25th, 2009

2009-04-25T14:32:00.001-07:00

The best way to define today's run is to tell you that at mile 20 or so I jumped into a super cold river.. stayed for a few minutes.. and enjoyed the first hot day of spring.. wow. Given it is spring I managed to find tons of small streams to drink from.. throw water on my back.. and enjoy nature.. heck.. there still is no leafs on most of the trees.. and only a few weeks ago it snowed super hard..

I ran for about 4.5 hours. Total distance is around 25 miles with one 3 mile 15 degree from hell hill climb to the parkway. I did my normal run by starting on 479a.. then up the hill from hell to trail 5000.. then a bit more running.. then back through the parkway trail which is as sweet as it gets. Boy do i love that trail. The trail runs along the Smokey Park Highway.. and of course being this is Fat America everyone is out driving not running or walking.. There is one section where the trail and the road come together.. and for a short period of time I am an official tourist viewpoint object. I feel like a deer or something.. Everyone standing next to their safe car peers out at the nearly naked man running by on the trail... wow.. But of course these folks could have selected the Mall today.

The right foot is still the bitch of everything. I have been running about 12 to 14 per day.. with tons and tons of time in the gym. Why the gym you ask? Easy. The gym is for the bones. Lifting big stuff with my legs allows the bones in my legs to get stronger.. and bigger and more stronger.. and bigger.. or so they say. I do know that making my legs super strong in the gym is really helping with running. The biggest part of the gym that works is i no longer get cramps during long runs and that is super heaven. No cramps is worth the time and money in the gym. I do very little upper body in the gym because the goal is to get into the 160s weight range.. and for me.. that is super thin..

Ok. so where do i go from here? Well sunday is another day to push the body to the wall. I hope to do another 25 miles. That means 2 days in a row at 25 which means 50 miles. If i do that I am going to be one very super happy man. My weakness is blood sugar. I have to eat an entire quart of Bens and Jerry's ice cream to lower the heart rate. I always test my blood preasure and heart rate after a long run. I wait about 2 hours after resting and then find my heart rate at about 100 beats and my blood preasure around 105 / 60... My normal resting heart rate is about 50 or so. except near the end of the summer it drops to the mid 40s. My normal blood preasure which is excellent for the food loving south is about 110 over 65.. so i am happy.

I need to get up to about 90 miles per week in May. This means 3 or 4 short run days and 2 super long runs. If I run 50 miles or more on the weekend then all i need is about 13 or so each of the other days. My older body needs the rest and rebuild time.

The sad part is I love to drink a good beer.. which I dont and cant.. and I love to smoke one cig with my friend brian about once every 50 days or so.. yea.. one cig.. it is a bonding thing.. nothing to do with normal logical behaviour.. which i dont do that either.. shit.. i am missing out on all the good stuff. Best part is given I am older and ugly i dont have to worry about sex.. no one wants to have sex with ya when you are old and ugly.

Enjoy.. yes.. i am thinking of running bare foot in the park tonight.. but i bet i am in the gym instead .. working out.. and watching tv.. what a freaking life.. when you think about how crazy it is in other parts of the world..

March 8th, 2009

2009-03-08T16:47:00.000-07:00

Another Great 20 Mile Run:

The last couple of weeks since the last post have seen good long runs, great times in the gym pushing the legs and the flu. I managed to have a great run last week in freezing rain and snow. The next day was colder and by monday we had 13 deg. weather outside.

Given i work outside the body was upset. However, today, Sunday, the weather was perfect. I think it managed to get above 80 during my run which is amazing given it was 13 on Monday.

If I had taken water with me there is no doubt that I could have done at least 5 more miles. The lack of good water supply is always a challenge out at Bent Creek.

Today I ran from the first parking east of the park to 479a. From 479a I ran all the way to the top of 5000 trail which is the way to Mill Creek. From this point I turned around and headed home giving me about 20 miles. I did the run in around 3 hours and 15 minutes which is good for this old guy.

My goal this coming week is to run short run about 12 miles on Monday with Tuesday being long miles. Wed should be a rest day and Friday another rest day given I have work issues. However, next saturday and sunday should see some good miles given I am not sick.

My training program has changed a bunch. I now spend nights in the gym and when I am not running in the morning I try to get in at least 45 minutes at the gym. The gym includes about about 30 minutes hill climbing and running super fast on the treadmill. The rest of the time is spend on weights for the legs.. and a bit for the upper body. The body seems to enjoy this mix of work.

My friend Hudson wanted to know how I was doing. My answer to him was simple, I am at least 30 percent better off right now then I was in Sept of last year..

Feb 28th, 2009

2009-02-28T17:42:00.000-08:00

Today the weather went from nasty to super wet and nasty. I started with a goal of running about 25 miles or 4 to 5 hours. However, the rain and hail was very strong with the wind doing its best to keep me super cold.

I managed to run about 18 miles or 3 hours there abouts but found myself super wet and very cold. My right leg and foot did not like the entire run and my body was just about out of gas.

It is now late in the evening and i have the chills, a sore throat and some fever. It is good to say that you keep going... but bad that the body did not respond well to the beating...

Sunday is a rest day with Monday another day pounding in at least 10 miles of running.

Feb. 22nd, 2009

2009-02-22T15:04:00.000-08:00

After my efforts on the Pony Express I had to take some time off in November to let my right foot get a bit better. During December my goal was to start training for the treadmill race. The race was a 10 min. 10 degree see how far you could go race. My time for the race in January was .95 miles which is pretty good. I then took off a few weeks in January to rest the foot a bit more.

Starting on the first of Feb I started to train both in the Gym and outside daily. My runs started out small with the average daily run around 7 miles. This last week i took the miles up to about 12 and today did about 20 miles.

Even though my right leg is not perfect it is has come a long ways and both of my legs are much stronger. I have found that tons of work with my lower body and some upper body in the Gym has helpped a bunch.

The insanity of the economy and the demands of work have made running difficult but today I just focused on the sounds of my feet hitting the ground. Davy Crocket publishes these audio sounds of his runs and the one thing I noticed was the sound of his feet hitting the ground. Putting focus on the sounds helped me focus on just one thing and not the demands of life.

My goal this year is the North Face Death Race and the Pony Express or the Pony Express and helping someone out at the Bad Water race. see what happens.

Oct 20th, race results

2008-10-20T15:19:00.000-07:00

Fifty miles in 11:15 hours. Super tough course because of the hard ground, dust created by wanta be hunters and a very driven hot sun. My body was in really good shape but the hard ground and driven sun did their damage. The course and race was a blast. I loved every minute of pain and joy. That simple.

My fifty mile time is very close to the top group of runners. This is a surprise to me given their long history of running and I think speaks strong of the long training runs and good planning. The top group of runners can be stated as super tough, very professional and very focused around running. Top knotch folks.

I started the race at my normal 9 to 10 minute mile pace. My goal was to run 5 miles an hour which is my normal training speed for long runs (25 to 30 mile runs). I felt very good around mile 25 and only started to notice the hot sun around mile 30. At mile 30 my soul started to scream at the dust and the hot sun.

Some have noted that i started the run too fast. I am not sure and will spend some time thinking over this possiblity.

The straw that broke my back was the bodies in ability to process liquids. Most if not all of my training was in much cooler conditions, early morning or late at night. Seldom did i do runs during the middle of the day while the sun was at its best. I did my normal thing by taking scaps (1 per half hour) and drinking a sports drink mixed with carbo pro. At mile 30 the body would no longer process the fluids. Not sure why. It just stopped. Given it was still very hot I had a problem. In the future ice, and other solutions including wearing better clothing will help.

The crazy thing is once the sun went down I had a new kick of energy. Given I had trained to run in the dark over the summer the body was ready for a new run, however i was not. At this point in the process the body started to function a bit better but the sun, lack of water and other conditions had eaten the soul alive.

If I had known that I was doing well in relationship to the other runners my soul would have come alive and there is a good chance i would have run the entire 100 miles. However, for reasons beyond me I thought i was doing poorly.

The body recovery was very good except for the right ankle. The ankle does not hurt and was not swollen after the race. I am not sure what is wrong with the right ankle but my guess is it will get much better in the next day or two.

As for the course and the race wow.. what a blast. I really had a good time. I felt so connected to the other runners even though I had never met them or raced with them. This means a bunch to me.

Future: Easy, keep running. Do at least 2 or 3 50 mile races before october when I run the pony express 100 again.

Closing thought: My friends who know me remind me that three years ago i was running 10 miles a week at best. They remind me I weighted 200 pounds and fat was all over the place. Today I am at 165 and fat is hard to find. I can run at will 20 miles and have a driven desire to train, feel the energy of the outdoors and have tons of fun.. cant beat that.

count your blessings.. name them one by one..

frank

October 11th 2008

2008-10-11T05:57:00.000-07:00

The training has stopped. So what has happen? Well not what i expected. First, I reduced my diet from tons of food to a normal amount or less. Second, my joints started to really hurt. The left ankle started to hurt and the right knee also started to hurt. No real reason why. Today, about 4 days later the joints seem to be getting better even though the sleep last night was very limited. The other strange thing was pee. Heck within 24 hours of not running all i did was pee. This lasted for about 48 hours. Today i feel much better. I think brian, my tight bro, gets credit. He made sure i ate so much food last night. I never felt hungry.. i just ate and ate and ate.. so that is really good.

I plan on doing some running during the weekend and during the week prior to the run. Not long runs just short runs that allow me to stay ready. Yes, i am ready and yes i am excited.

October 7th, 2008

2008-10-07T09:05:00.000-07:00

Today was the last training day. Body is doing super well. No injuries just a very burnt out and tired soul from running all the time. Did about 180 miles last 7days. Tons of food and tons of running kinda defines that many miles.

Today did a minuture run of maybe 10 miles. Tried to enjoy my run, go places i used to go and see the forest for the last time before the big run.

I have no idea how I will do. My body seems in top condition but I am also 51 so it really depends on the next few days and how well my body rest, repairs and fixes all that is broken. The right calf still hurts but i have grown used to the pain.

The last month was about no water on the runs, no scaps .. nothing.. push the body super hard with no reward during the run. The basic idea is to build up resistance and get used to feeling like crap.

I hope to do one small run around beaver pond which kinda where this insanity started. Not sure how that will feel given the run is less then a few miles at best and all flat. Wow. Three years later if I am not running super hard long distances I feel like I did nothing.

crazy.

so ... today starts the period of rest.. for both the soul and the body.. see how it goes..

Tony Krupicka (Sept 28th)

2008-09-28T13:36:00.000-07:00

I list Tony's name because when i watch myself run, when i look at the bottom of my NB 874 shoes.. and i see perfect wear.. on the fore-front.. nothing on the heal.. and my times are better.. my legs are stronger and i am running.. more.. i say.. wow.. thanks Tony. !!

The most important thing i have learned with this intense running program of 100 to 12o mpw is that running right.. light.. so forth.. is key to little or no injury and reduced energy requirements.
For me at least.

This week starts the end of months and months of training. I plan on running through Tuesday the 7th and maybe the 8th. Yes, I am looking forward to the end and yes I am ready to take some rest time. However, I am sure that when the running ends a good part of my body and soul will be screaming for a chance to run. Maybe.

I ran on Friday about 20 miles. Worked until 2am then worked for 16 hours on Saturday. So far today I have put in 15 and plan on 15 more tonight. The 30 miles will be on concrete and a bit of grass. My goal is to have 50 miles in 24 hours and do this at least 3 or 4 more time before the end of the training period.

I wish like hell I had found these NB 874 shoes prior to June. May was a super painful month as far as the feet goes. How much pain you ask.. so much pain that blisters seem like super minor issues.

soon. yes.. i am ready.. or at least the body is.. as for the soul.. heck if i know.

September 18th, 2008

2008-09-18T19:30:00.000-07:00

Today i am about to finish a 40 mile in 24 hour training streach. The goal is to run as much as time will allow in 24 hours. I might get 20 or so in the morning, 10 or so at night and another 20 in the morning within the 24 hours.

The challenge with this type of training is the body recovery rate. During the day like most folks I am working until late at night. I then run at night in the dark (last night after midnight) and then wake up in the early morning only to run some more. The only time the body has a chance to recover is during sleep and mid day while working.

So far so good. I have been eating mostly protein and carbs along with tons of water. At times I think the blood sugar drops super low so I have Ben and Jerry's ice cream or what ever works as well as tons of fruit.

The goal is to run up to and through the 7th of Oct. On the 8th of October I hope to stop, start walking some and just learning how to silence the mind as much as possible. I think the biggest challenge is going to be the mind wanting to slow down and stop during the race.

As I get older the drive to do seems to be getting replaced by the drive to chill. Given I dont want to chill just yet that is a challenge.

Off to run in the dark while others drink beer, eat bad food and watch the tv.. shit.. no wonders I am all alone.. i am crazy.

September 12th, 2008

2008-09-12T18:44:00.000-07:00

Today i picked up another pair of nb 874 shoes. For my feet these are the perfect shoes. The support is lacking but the flexability of the shoe is amazing. When i finish running 20 miles the feet feel like i never ran a mile.

The run is going good. I have been putting in 20 to 30 miles a day. I run in the morning and at night. The biggest challenge is eating enough of the food my body needs. I have selected to eat food instead of taking pills. I could take pills but eating food is a bigger funner challenge and i am crazy for a good challenge. No doubt science has some great pills out there but eggs are not all that bad cooked right.

Aaron of Running RX has been fantastic with support. We did a video today of my running and there is little to improve. The real issue is getting more blood to the right calf given it is cramping almost right away. Aaron gave me some streach tips which should help and gave me some new information as to what the pain meant. So far I have just put up with the cramps. At some point you get used to it.. however that is a problem in the long run.

I figure to run as much as i can until the 8th of October. On the 8th i will start a rest period with an increase in protein and carbs.. plus tons of liquids.. see what happens.

f

September 9th, 2008

2008-09-09T09:47:00.000-07:00

Just a short update. Received an email from the race director. Seems most of the runners have done a few 100 mile races in their time. Given my longest is 50 this should be interesting. My guess is I will learn something about my body and my soul.

The running is starting to get old. I love the mountains and the beauty after a rain but the hills are starting to bug the heck out of me. The good news is my body seems to enjoy the harder flatter ground and that is what this race is all about, flat ground and hard ground. If this race was about hills i think i would spend half of my time upset at the hills.

Friday is new shoe day. Given i am running at least 25 to 30 miles every day these days.. and eating like a horse I need new shoes. The 874 shoe is turning into the greatest of blessings.

On another note: I was born in Ogden utah. This race is in Utah.. my home.. and the world i have a good understanding of. I appreciate the desert and love the feeling it brings to the soul when running in the desert.

enjoy

September 5th, 2008

2008-09-05T15:31:00.000-07:00

My tight bro, Brian, assures me i am crazy. I have decided he is right. Well, I kinda knew he was right some time ago.. but you keep those things secret. My running this week is well. The cramps in the right calf are getting much better and the big toe on the left foot is nearly perfect. Ok, so i ask myself with a sigh.. what could break.. what could go wrong? I am not sure. Just cross my fingers.

Hudson, my crew boss for this race.. or manager as he likes to call himself (he has no one below him.. so i am not sure if he needs any title except the guy who will keep me alive) is ready.

I think i am too. I really think that every single mile after 50 is my mind telling my body it can keep going.. the minute my mind does not want to go.. the body will be weak and give in.. kinda that simple.

Tonight if work allows I will hit for another 10 miles. Trying different food diets.. then running.. seeing which ones give me the best payback.

What i do know is once the run is over.. i plan on hitting the gym. Given I am in better shape then at any point in my life here is my chance to look like a million bucks.. or at least look great in case i move to southern cal.. where many look great.. .. as i laugh under my soul.

The shoes have saved my race. Without these shoes i would have given up the ghost by now.

later..
f

September 1st, 2008

2008-09-01T20:07:00.000-07:00

Ok. I have been putting in about 100 miles per week. During the month of August I failed to run 2 days that means 29 days or running. Most of my shear miles is in the mountains of Bent Creek the rest has been around UNC Asheville. (UNC Asheville is at night most of the time)

The big challenge is eating enough protein and carbs. I am pushing down about 8k per day in calories and this is not enough. My weight is dropping super fast. Even at night when i should weight the most I am not. Example. August the first I weighed in at 178. Today, the first day of September I am at 168. Ten pounds in one month. I can see the ribs on my back.

The other big challenge is my right leg. I am getting cramps sometimes so bad I can not run and other times just enough to be a pain in the butt. I know why. For months the shoe problem took away from the right leg. The right foot was injured due to the wrong shoes for months and now the right leg is way behind in power and strenght then the left leg.

I am taking something to relax the muscles and that is helping. If i take it before i run it really helps. I think the leg needs protein in super mass amounts along with amino acids. That is my guess given the rest of the body is not having cramps.

I plan on doing at least 125 per week until the end of sept. On october first I plan on dropping to 80 until the 8th at which time i will stop running.

Picking up another pair of 874 shoes on Tuesday. They are the reason I have made it this far. I can not imagine what i would be doing right now without them. No more serious feet problems.

One more month of super hard running. Soon it will be over.
frank

August 15th Update

2008-08-16T00:24:00.000-07:00

It has been a couple of weeks since the last blog and much good has happen. First, my weekly miles are getting close to 100 miles. Second, i managed to find the perfect pair of shoes for my old feet. The New Balance 874.. the shoe is built on the logic that you do not need a tight arch control and that you run correctly. I really enjoy the stability and light weight.. and my feet love the freedom.

The other great news and thanks to Aaron of Running RX .. is my diet. I have started to eat a bit more.. in an effort to find out what the body needs to get rid of cramps and loss of energy on long runs. So far eggs and honey are in first place. I eat about 12 eggs a day with 4 right before i run and the end result is amazing. I have tons of energy during the run and no signs of cramps.

Right now my pattern is to run a long run of 20 plus miles and then the next day run 10 miles on grass / up roads with steep hills.. then back down. I do this 7 days a week and the results seem to work inside a demanding work setting.

My only issue right now is my big toe on my left foot. I cant seem to get it better and wonder what course of action I will need to take to fix the little guy.

enjoy the runs..

35 miles

2008-07-31T11:52:00.000-07:00

the start time was about 6:50am. The temp outside was already 74 degrees. By the time i had run about 5 miles my entire body was wet as though i had stepped into the shower for 20 minutes. The right leg started to cramp up so i keep eating s-caps and drinking water.. not enough water. By the time i hit the 23 mile mark the cramps had started to build up however did not need to do any walking.

The real surprise and the super good news is honey. I also ate that super fast and it did amazing things for my energy. I had 23 miles in at 3.10 minutes which is much faster then my normal times given the bulk of the running to the point was up hill, super up hill.

The bottom 12 miles which is 6 down and 6 up was killer. The temp was near 90 and the humidity was as bad as it can get. Lighting and thunder but no rain. What is the deal. I had no choice but to walk most of the return section given it is about 1,500 foot gain and the right leg was super cramped.

By the time i made it to 35 miles the legs (both) had cramped up on me. I had taken about 10 s-caps and 4 quarts of water. My guess is the water intake was way below what I needed to make it in those temps and humidity. I will never know for sure.

I started in my La Sportiva shoes. They did good. Given weight issues and a desire to cut back on work load for my feet I switch to the NB 873. I am not sure if that was a mistake but at this point it looks like it. I think the switch made the cramps worse.

Came home and took some asprin, laid down for an hour and drank water. My goal is to head out to the UNCA grass track and do some miles.. maybe 10. Yes it is super hot and yes it is crazy but I want to do 50 miles today one way or another.

pre-50 mile thoughts

2008-07-30T19:29:00.000-07:00

last saturday was my last big day. not sure.. maybe 21 miles then 10 walking miles in town. by the end of the night my legs and feet felt like the world had come to an end. However, by morning i felt new. The last few days I have just spent time visiting friends.. and family. Today i went and planned out the run. no support. just me and my brain hiding water and stuff all over the place in hope that it is there when i need it.

my body is in top conditiong but not near its wall at all. I can without a doubt get much stronger and much better. I know i can. I have problems with blood sugar which is normal and the soul getting tired of the insanity.. but today.. walking among the trees.. no humans.. nothing evil or bad.. no corporations.. no getting fired.. just me and the forest.. and i felt so at one with what was around me.. no judgment.. just me.. and it felt very very good..

going to bed now.. and getting up early.. see what happens. the days have been hot.. so that concerns me.. so we will see..

July 26th, 2008

2008-07-27T06:53:00.000-07:00

Thursday was ten miles on grass and track during the heat of the day. Did really well. Also did ten of this super short hill climb that added to the mix. Friday was a rest day and Saturday was the day from hell. On Saturday ran 21 miles. Started the run in the afternoon around 4pm. The day managed to get really hot so the air was strange. I took tons of s-caps.. but in the end started to get cramps. Given it was saturday night and folks wanted to party I headed into town on foot. No drinking for me.. but just see the big party in town. However, by 10pm my legs and feet felt like a large truck had run over them.

The goal is being met. This week has some good long runs. and if all goes as planned today i will run at least 16 to 20 miles putting the week into the 90 plus miles.

July 23rd, 2008

2008-07-24T07:50:00.000-07:00

After some work managed to get foot rx to get me a pair of new balance 874 shoes. the logic is to keep the shoes super light.. and very wide.. no arch support. If this shoe works it will be the primary shoe for my 100 mile.

Today I did about 18 miles in Bentcreek. Biggest challenge is the temp. outside. However, the body did super well. The night before was tough. I had cramps in my hands and arms for reasons beyond me. Made it very tough to sleep. My over all time was about 7.2 miles per hour.. I mixed the course again to make sure i was near water. I also took about 4 s-caps during the run, 2 before and 1 after the run was over. This layout of s-cap supliments seems to reduce cramps at night and helps my feet not hurt as much. I wore the imogene la sportiva shoe.. which loves to create blisters but gives me tons of good knee support.

No night running, was lazy. that simple. Last night i layed in bed thinking about the race and starting to understand how important it is going to be to do more mixed runs.. multi times a day.. not allowing my life to cancel runs.. and to reduce photography projects to get in my training time.

July 21st, 2008

2008-07-21T10:10:00.000-07:00

Yes, i ran on sunday. i did about 10 miles in direct sunlight.. temp was about 92.. and water was in the air as thick as soup. i was wet all the time.. shoes, shorts.. and body.. drank as much as i could.. and just pushed. I averaged some good 8 min. miles.. but without s-caps was pushing it. Today i went out.. and ran my normal run. Did about 18 miles.. went down sleepy gap .. back to the car.. met a friend.. and talked for a few minutes. the heat is crazy.. drains the soul of everything.. the plan is set. next week about this time will be doing 50 miles.. in one day. more as it gets closer.. very key to understanding what works and what does not work..

July 20th Day Run

2008-07-19T13:37:00.000-07:00

the morning run turned into a fall and catch yourself run.. yea.. i fell pretty hard.. and the left knee .. looks like some bear attacked me. However, given i have big bones nothing is wrong. I did about 21 to 22 miles with 90 degree temps. Most of the run is in the shade of the trees.. but some is not. The big challenge with today is no s-caps.. only water from creeks.. of which i pour more on my body.. to keep cool then drink.. the water is pretty bad and even for this 3rd world country man i have to cut back.

I did several mixes.. i started at the arboretum.. took a side trail .. up to 479a.. then followed it all the way back to 479.. at which point i turned around .. and went back.. to sleep gap.. ran down.. then over to some water.. then back up sleep gap .. and down the rest of the way back to the arboretum.. the multi hill climb on sleepy gap is enough to kill you in the heat.. but the only thing wrong with me right now is the lack of salt in my muscles.. no s-caps.. a bit of pain as the legs try to catch up.. yes.. i will run tonight.. only 7 miles.. then back to the same place in the morning.. to do about 16 to 18 miles..

July 19th 2008

2008-07-19T05:18:00.000-07:00

Night run number 2. Biggest challenge is finding good shoes. The shoes, even after much work are no good. My right foot is flat as all hell and my left foot is rather normal. I appreciate the support the arch in the shoe gives but the right foot needs flat. I ran about 5 miles. I ran 2 miles then drove home, got my new balance 873s.. and then returned to run 3 or 4 more miles.. It was hot and wet... and strange but in the end.. it was completed. In the morning i will run my normal 20.

July 16th Night Run

2008-07-18T17:23:00.000-07:00

Taking the advice of Anton Krupicka I have started to do some night running. My only problem is running in dark forest could mean getting lost or attacked or something so i have selected the soccer field and grass course of UNCA. To my delight there was another runner doing his thing. Shirt off and slim body along with almost perfect simple style gave me the motivation i needed to add more miles to an already kinda tired body.

This specific run, about 7 miles was run with my new ASICA IGS. What a joke shoe. I will need to do some big remodel work on this shoes to make sure it does not cause my feet tons of pain. I have been running with the New Balance 873.. on the long morning runs.. as of late. The feet seem happy if for no other reason then the shoe is not telling the feet what to do or where to stay.. and the feet seem to be liking this relationship.

The night runs are amazing. The moon came out. The sky was kinda cloudy..with a few stars. The body loved the darkness and the moments. Yes, I will be back. The goal is to do at least 4 night runs a week and 4 to 5 day runs for a total of 110 miles. See what happens.

f