Sluggish, sluggish days

So I heard last night that the reason why we Oregonians are suffering terrible allergies this year can be traced back to our nutty thunderstorms earlier this month. Apparently the force of the wind and the rain pulverized our poor little pollen spores so that they have become a fine dust, settling into our systems to turn us in to miserable, sneezing creatures. I can surely attest to the severity of this year's allergy season. I think it is ruining my running.

Okay, probably not for real, but I've got to blame something for my recent lack of energy. Pushing out a run at a 9:20 pace is not easy these days. I'm finding it harder to wake up in the morning. (Why is the word 'overtraining' flashing in my brain????) But what is surprising is that before I got sick this spring, 40 mile weeks were feeling fantastic. I was speeding up, I was feeling great - I was in the flow. But now, I can't get my weight back down, I can't pick up the pace, and I'm falling apart on this plateau.

I have a million theories about why this might be happening. Some involve planetary alignment, some on the obliterated pollen, some on what must have been swine flu that I caught this spring (oh sure, my daughter's flu swab said Influenza B, but I mean, come on. It must have been something terrible.) But none of that really matters, does it? Because whatever the cause, it is happening, and I just have to keep on trudging through it.

At least experience has shown me that these lulls do eventually end for whatever reason. Relay season is upon us, and nothing gets me recharged for running like spending 30 hours in a van with my best running friends. I can only hope that the turn around will begin before that time, and I'll be ready to meet the road with a big smile on my face!

Doh.

Well, my heart was in the right place, but my legs decided to take a vacation. My 10k was not what I had hoped it would be, but I survived and had a fantastic beer at the finish. What else do I need?

Definitely need to start doing some speedwork and working on leg turnover. Or I need to chill out.

One of the two.

Midnight. Race in 8 Hours.

Am I the only one that is hit with nerves the night before the big race?  I try to lay down and get some sleep, but no.  I can't.  I'm too busy running a few more miles in my mind to be able to rest.  It's crazy, and it's delicious, and it's a big part of why I love running so much.

Tomorrow morning I'm going to race in the 10 Cane 10k, mostly because I am curious about finding where my speed is at right now.  I spent so much time focusing on distance for the marathon and recovering from the never-ending crud that I have put little effort into speeding things up.  But it's the possibility of a pleasant surprise that keeps me from sleep.

This inability to calm my nerves enough to rest would probably make me a terrible adventure racer.  I was watching some Primal Quest videos the other day, and I have to admit, I'm interested in those too.  What is it with me?  I have so many things on my to-do list; not one of them includes cleaning up the house, which could really use it.  But I'd so much rather hit the road or the trail, come home muddy, and plan the next adventure.  I guess I just need to learn to live with it.

I don't have much more to say.  I guess I'll go lay down and mentally run the race a few times so that I'm ready to go in the morning!

A Long Time Away

I've been very busy with my runningrelays.com blog - too busy, in fact, to update my personal blog once since last March.  Not one mention of my marathon, my ever lasting flu/bronchitis/diseased lung (ha ha), my cross country journey which has reached the halfway point for the year.  Nothing.

But today's topic of TiART is Relays, Ultras and Tri's, oh my!  and I just can't resist.  Because I guess I'm, at heart, a non-traditionalist, if that's what relays and ultras are all about.  It's no secret that I'm crazy about relays - how could I not be if I spend most of my free time researching and blogging about relays and team names? - but I'm a little crazy about ultras too.  I just haven't done one yet.

I first learned about ultras after reading Dean Karnazes' Ultramarathon Man.  I was fascinated by a race called the Badwater Ultra - a 135 mile race through Death Valley at the height of summer.  Now I've driven through Death Valley in June - it was miserable.  But to learn that there are people who run across it?  I was fascinated!  So I picked up a copy of Running on the Sun, a documentary from the race.  A new world was opened to me.

Now, let me just give a disclaimer; I really don't want to do the Badwater.  But I am inspired by running long, by the idea that a race can be about going the distance, rather than going the distance the quickest.  A race where it's me against the terrain, the elements.  The type of race where you find what you are made of. That I like.

So I signed up for my first trail run - a 25k out at Hagg Lake in February - a place known for its mud.  Although I wasn't running the ultra distance, I was running in the ultra environment (there is a 50k that day too), and what I saw, I loved.  The atmosphere is much more relaxed than a traditional road race.  Aid stations are stocked with things like gummi bears and pretzels and soda.  After the race, we enjoyed hot dogs and soup.  Everyone seemed to support each other, to share the trail and encourage each other.  It was one of the hardest races I've done - I was walking at the end, with muddy shoes and legs (and apparently, it wasn't even a muddy year!).  And I thought it was so cool.

It's the shared spirit that I respond to, I think.  In relays, you are sharing an experience and challenging yourself in a way that I find lacking in a regular road race.  It is very common for ultrarunners to run together for long stretches, helping and encouraging each other through the painful miles. I can't put my finger on why this would be true of ultras and relays, and not regular races, but it is there.  I can feel it.  So I'm looking at trying an ultra distance next; maybe tackling the 50k version of Hagg Lake.  It's a lot to contemplate, but I find it exciting. 

My Cross-Country Running Journey

March 8, 2009 Update (1,609 miles):

I've been making some serious progress in the miles department, logging two record mileage months, with over 160 in January, and over 180 in February.  Just this week, I logged my first 50+ week, and I still feel good.  That's the shocking part.  At least my fears that I was not built to take more than 30 miles are proving to be unfounded.  It just took time to build to that point.

So I've been a little remiss on updating my waypoints on this journey.  I've passed through Tucson:

I've taken a side trip to Mt Lemmon, AZ to dip my feet in the waterfalls:

And I've passed by these cool boulders near Wilcox:

I'm almost through Arizona, and I'm looking forward to New Mexico.

February 10, 2009 Update (1,428 miles):

I'm beginning to think I was a little carried away when I planned out these early stops.  I was worried that the winter would be slow-going, what with the weather and illness and the hundred other things that tend to crop up during a training interval.  But I've been pretty darn lucky so far, and the miles are quickly piling up.  In fact, I've made it to another tour stop - Red Rock, Arizona.
 

At 4,500 feet, the Red Rock / Sedona area is actually cool this time of year.  Today, the weather is 29º, but unlike here, they are enjoying blue skies with the chill.  This looks like it would be an absolutely fantastic area to run.  Sedona does in fact have a February marathon which looks to be beautiful and challenging.  There are some serious hills in the elevation profile.  Still, a February marathon in Arizona sounds intriguing.  

 

February 1, 2009 Update (1,388 miles):

January was a record-setting month for me.  I logged 163.17 miles for a new PR, and I put in 3 40+ mile weeks and am still moving.  Amazing.  I wasn't sure if my body could take it, but I guess building up slowly rather than trying to jump right to that point makes a big difference.

I've made it a new point on my journey - the Sonoran Desert National Monument.  I'm actually about 40 miles past it, but it has been a busy week.  Here's what it would look like if I were

 actually there:

It's a bit different than what I ran in this morning, but it is fun to dream:

January 20, 2009 Update (1,306 miles):

What a fantastic day.  Not only do we have a new President (Obama - you rock!), but I made it in to Arizona and my first stop in this fabulous state.  I've only been to Arizona once, back when I was a sophomore in high school.  Our team was there for a regional tournament, and it was June in Phoenix.  We spent most of our team being freaked out about the heat, but it is one of the highlights of my high school memories.  The high is supposed to be 78º today; I think I could go for that weather about right now.  But while it was cold this morning (30º), the wind has finally stopped, so things are bearable.

An abandoned house near Aztec, AZ.

January 4, 2009 Update (1,231.63 miles):
The miles are finally getting back up to pace after weather related layoffs. I just hope the rain holds for awhile. My mileage takes me past Dunes National Monument in California, which reminds me of the dunes near Florence. I had fun mapping out my route for the next year; I hope to up my yearly mileage to just under 1,350 miles so that I can make it to Austin, TX - a place I really want to run in some day. I finished out 2008 with 1,159 miles - well over the 1,000 mile goal I set for myself. I think the 1,350 is realistic as long as I stay injury-free; I would have reached those miles without the October injuries and December snow, I think. Oh well.






December 14, 2008 Update (1,167.67 miles):
I just ran past Ocotillo, CA. The weather is a balmy 59° - sounds great right now as the 22° weather has descended on Portland. I only know of this town from the interesting photo posted on Google Maps - it looked like the kind of town you might want to run through quickly (though apparently it was once an oasis . . .) :



My next stop on the map is Dunes, CA, home of the Dunes National Monument. But with the heavy snow on the ground and the icy cold air, it may be some time before I log any miles. I am considering begging the neighbor for use of their treadmill, but maybe that's just a little type A! The things us nutty runners will do for our fix . . .

November 23, 2008 Update (1,080.52 miles):

San Diego. 65º and sunny. A nice contrast to the 36º morning we had this morning on the Wildwood Trail, but Oregon is being nice and giving us lots of sun. I'll be heading east now to Yuma, Arizona. From the looks of things, it's going to be a long, boring haul through some desert:



But I've mapped out some cool spots to "stop" at, so it will keep things interesting!



September 30, 2008 Update (964.27 miles):
Phew. Made it through the long stretch to Los Angeles. I decided that I will keep heading south and check in on San Diego (perfect for those winter runs here in Oregon, when sun will be only a happy dream) and then I'll cut across on I-10 to check out Yuma, AZ and the Sonoran Desert.





September 2, 2008:
I've been logging my running miles since November 2007. As of today (Sept 2, 2008), I have run 845.9 miles. If were running from Portland down I-5, I would be about 111 miles from Los Angeles by now. To honor these imaginary travels, I've decided to start a photo album of what I might have seen if I were truly on the road...

Passing by San Francisco (635.6 mi - mid July, 2008):
The cool ocean breezes would have been a wonderful relief from the summer heat. If I was actually there . . .



In the shadow of Mt Shasta (361 mi - April, 2008):



Leaving Oregon (Ashland, 286 mi, mid March, 2008):


Where it all began (and where it all continues, really):

My Latest Project

It's no secret to anyone who knows me - I love relays. I've been raving about the Hood to Coast since I ran my first (and only) one in 1997. But I've been walked the Portland to Coast 8 times, captained twice, and been a van captain three years running. Last year I had the chance to run in the inaugural Cascade Lakes Relay, and I've been counting the days to my return ever since. The idea of the relay is one that I gravitate to, and there is nothing that gets me more giddy than race weekend.

So I decided that I would pour some of that enthusiastic energy into some articles for the Runners Lounge, a great website that shares running knowledge among the participants. But as I thought about the best way to put together the information, I realized what was really missing was a good website on running relays. I could find articles here and there, but nothing comprehensive.

So on a whim, I registered runningrelays.com and installed blogging software. And now, I am happy to say, I have a work in progress - www.runningrelays.com. I've been searching high and low for the relays, and I have been shocked by how many I've found! There are so many cool sounding events - I will be 110 before I get to them all. I've been madly writing articles and researching races, much to the detriment of the care of my family, home and other work obligations, but what I am putting together I hope will be helpful for those thinking about running relays.

At the very least, it has me dreaming about new events.

Common Mistakes & Cardinal Sins - TiART

There have been some great posts so far about running when injured, not listening to the body, all of that good stuff that we seem to learn the hard way.  My favorite piece of advice about deciding to run if things are in pain is from a marathon trainer friend - "Six days, six weeks, or six months. You decide."  It helps keep it all in perspective.

But that's not the cardinal sin that I want to talk about today.  No, I'd rather discuss the sin of (drumroll, please) - not learning from my mistakes!!!   Some examples:

I've known for a long time that spicy, fatty foods and I do not mix before running.  And yet, just last Sunday, I ate two big pieces of greasy fried chicken and went running 1/2 hour later.  Oh, it was bad.  And I know better.  But apparently, I haven't learned from my mistakes.

Another case in point:  I sweat a lot.  I know that I sweat a lot.  Last summer, I had gone out on a run with some light colored shorts and noticed after I had ran a few miles that it looked like I had peed my pants.  So what do I do?  I wear medium gray shorts to a 1/2 marathon on the 4th of July.  Ran almost half the race looking like I had failed to find a porty potty - great photos!  Will I ever learn?

And then there's the BodyGlide.  Awesome product.  Eliminates chafing wonderfully.  Of course, it doesn't work when you leave it in the drawer before heading out the door.  Huge chafe burns from my waterbelt and bra . . . and yes, I know better.

So that's my cardinal sin.  I learn all of this wonderful advice, find great solutions to problems, and then promptly forget to implement what I've learned.  I don't know if this is a big mistake for other people, but I sure know that it is for me.