Sweet Tea and Yuengling

Just got back from a week long stay back home. Couple of days in the mountains and a couple days at Mom's. Ran Whiteside Mountain and hiked it a couple of times, legs felt fine and ready for a good long walk around Silverton. The day after we got there I ran a 5k with the wife and my brother. It was his first 5k, and he got 3rd in his age group. I did not place, but had a good time considering that it was a road run and the course was just too generic. Lots of family time, great food, and a tad too little tea and beer. Got to keep my niece and nephew for a few days and did my level best to wear 'em out. Saw an old high school friend, enjoyed all you can eat crab legs, and basked in "real" warm weather, not this bright fake stuff we have in Kansas with no humidity whatsoever.

Booked the ticket and car for Hardrock. Willie and I have a logistics meeting via phone this evening (which basically means I want to warn him I will be spending some time at the Silverton Brewing Company) and then we're all set. As his pacer, I solemnly vow to make him take a shot if we come across any tequila during the run. New pair of Salomons are making the trip. Checked out video of the Million Dollar Highway, and I didn't think it looked scary at all. Guardrails are overrated anyhow, and don't do anything but wake you up before you go plunging off the side of the mountain. The last time Willie and I were together, we did the Western States 85, a little known event in which you're done at Auburn Lakes Trail, and then go back to the hotel and get as drunk as humanly possible. I swear I saw house plants MOVE that morning.

Social animal

Ran all last week, finishing with the Trail Nerds run up at Lake Perry. I did a self-designed loop with Ben's permission and ended up being out there for about four hours. Time constraints prevented me from being out there all day, and I had to save some time for beer. Wakefield won the half marathon, don't know his time but it was something like 17 minutes, and Darin took the 50K title. Any run that has PBR post-race is a necessary event. Met Bonnie and Ron Ruhs from Blair, Nebraska, another great weight loss story for those keeping track.

Joined the Nerds. Got my Hawk membership renewed in March. I'm not a joiner, so big steps for me. Who knows, I might start actually meeting people for runs or coffee. Weird, must be the better weather, but I no longer feel like flinging my poop at everyone I see.

Now that his kids are old enough to wipe themselves, my brother has taken up running. Next on my plate is a 5k with my wife and bro, how cool is that? It's a road run, but you gotta start somewhere. Been working some lower body strength stuff lately, as Hardrock looms and Willie is doing a million vertical feet per week. If altitude makes everything swell beyond normal size, there will be a picture of my junk on this blog soon. And on facebook. And in the local paper. Right now it's raining...time for a run!

Peace.

Buffett

Running and fitness in general was set aside this weekend in favor of the Buffett concert. Tomfoolery and general merriment were in. I set a personal PR by staying up late two consecutive nights (I am not a night person) and it is a small wonder there is any beer left in Kansas City. I did all I could do. Wowed the crowd with my amazing singing at Howl at the Moon Friday night. Let Buffett do the singing Saturday night while I got absolutely "Wakefielded" on 6 dollar beers.

Past time to get serious about Heartland training. Looking forward to hot weather, dirt road running. Gonna go down to Cassoday a few times this summer, if anyone is up for a half day of jogging let me know. I'll pack a cooler for post-run celebration.

Dr Pepper

Spinach salad to start off the day again. The stuff is rocket fuel and I'm glad summer and fresh produce are right around the corner. Did an hours worth of running and nonstop work stuff since then. Only need to make it 'til Saturday, Jimmy Buffett is rolling into KC and I'm gonna take my liver on a long run.

Tony Clark is in the 10am start group for Badwater. That is perfect, if you know Tony he would not be satisfied unless he's challenged with the hardest possible scenario. Of course, any guy who takes off on a 225 mile weekend jaunt is just not built like the rest of us...

Just finished reviewing the results from Free State. Can't wait to read the reports. I'm curious what the average swim:run ratio was (it's a bit muddy this time of year. Actually, parts of the trail are muddy in AUGUST).

Reading "The Ragged Edge of Silence" by John Francis, so upset over an oil spill back in the early 70's that he spent nearly the next 20 years walking everywhere. And took a vow of silence for about the same time. Considering giving it to some co-workers, maybe that silence thing will stick....

And just so you know, since you've figured out I have nothing to post about...this blog currently fueled by Dr. Pepper. Peace.

Dog bone

Every morning, usually around 8am, my dog comes in my room. Although he doesn't talk, if he did I imagine the first words I would hear are something along the lines of: "I need to pee, poo, and then I want my dog bone!" He has gotten his treat every morning for the past 6 years, but paws and jumps around as if I might somehow forget to give it to him. Once the bone exchange has taken place, there is nothing in the world more important to the dog. He doesn't drink water, growl at noises, or join me on the couch. The bone is the thing, until the end.

So I signed up for the Heartland 100. Given my penchant for paying 100 miler fees to run 50k-50 miles, it's not a stretch to call it a ridiculous proposition. The 100 mile distance, much like the bone, demands my attention. I must do it, just like my dog must treat that bone like a task that has to be completed. I am as excited and nervous as the dog is every morning. Back to reading blogs religously for any iota of training particulate that could propel my own. Wondering what the heck happened around mile 30 last year. No matter. It's an annual race, and I'm gonna keep at the thing until I'm done.

Good to have the bone back.

2011

(Above: in a land far, far away)

Not dwelling on 2010. The short story is that I took DNF to a whole new level, did a number on my hamstring, and fell way short of any goals I had set for running. After the appropriate amount of booze, I went to the calendar and planned this year.

Retraining is gonna take a minute, but in May I'll be doing a 50k or 50 mile in SC. Not sure which option I'm gonna go for, as much of it depends on how quickly my strength returns. If I can't manage speed work by about the third week in April I'll stick with 50K. My feature race is the Speedgoat 50K in July, which I am going to walk with Willie Lambert. Willie was kind enough to register both of us, and it's not too much of a stretch to believe there will be no drinkable alcohol in the entire state of Utah the day after the race, between the two of us. September will see me in Colorado, never been there, and we're gonna spend a week in Steamboat Springs running a couple low-mileage, local events. That, plus I'm excited about the breweries, and need your suggestions if you've been there.

I'll probably throw in a marathon or nine between here and there, but the plans I've set are purposefully low on glitter for several reasons. Aside from a few trips to the brewery, much of the year is planned around diet and strength goals. I have a few, and a mostly vegetarian existence is something I've been toying with for long enough to know I feel better without so much meat in the system.

Somehow, ending this post with a plug for vegetarian diets doesn't seem right, so time for joke of the day: How do porcupines mate? Very carefully! Classic.

Blindfolded

Been feeling like I have a blindfold on lately, but this time it has nothing to do with Valentines Day.

Between incline work, weights, running, and getting my diet back it has been a pretty tame existence. And necessary, I think, to quiet the little voice in my head that reminds me "but you've never done 100 before". Base building took FOREVER, but I finally feel ready to get after it a bit in training, to push just a bit harder and have some confidence in my body to respond. My approach to Western States barely resembles any training plans I had a year ago at this time. Yet the blindfold effect still lingers. Is this really the right way? Does my training reflect a patient, well-thought out plan to succeed, or am I just getting in shape for a big fat DNF?

Although this internal chatter is minimal, I suspect the paranoia will increase in a few months. Lately I've been keeping the self-doubt at bay by going harder...it's hard to think about whether you're doing the right thing while gasping for air or doing the 5th set on the squat rack. Hopefully Rockin' K, Berryman, and the Hawk marathon will provide enough distraction to weather the heavy mileage months with some degree of sanity.

I should note that one thing in my routine is absolutely solid. Every night when I lay down I read something that has to do with Western States. Course descriptions, books, other runners race reports...even if I've already read those items. I close my eyes and slip away to a place where I don't see myself crossing a finish line, or earning a certain buckle. Instead, I visualize rededicating myself to tomorrow and the infinite possibilities it holds. THAT is why I started running. So I tell the little voice in my head that this thing has already been a raging success, no matter the outcome.
Peace.