Black Mountain Monster 12/24 Ultra

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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