austinjason

my core muscles, especially my iliopsoas group, were soooo incredibly sore. I started out with the intention of doing the 1 hour super hard DVD, but the muscles were sore to the point of near failure so I opted to do the high intensity 15 minute set instead.

I can't say I did a very good job on this one. I was tired and sore, but I muddled through it. There's always next time. (and I hate core workouts, HATE HATE them, but they are necessary)

what: long run
where: Bastrop State Park
who: various HCTR folks
when: 6:30 am-ish
calories: 3073
nutrition: ~200 oz water, 6x hammer gel, lots of S. caps (1 dr. pepper (20oz) & some cheez-its

distance: 21 miles
total workout time: (running, aid stations, etc) 5hr 15min

Loop 1: 7.5 miles

I did the purple "lost pines loop" as did most of the group. Since I am building my base, and I knew the end part of this run was likely going to be tough, I decided to start out pretty easy. I was pretty far behind the group from the beginning, when I had to stop and re-adjust how one of my shoes were fitting. By about 1.5 miles in, I was pretty much by myself, which was okay. I knew I'd be seeing people here and there as the day went by.

Most of the first 4 miles I was alone, but then I caught up to Cheri & Brenda and talked to them for a mile or so, and then came on in back to the cars. I think I was the only person who took the "Roosevelt Cutoff" back to the cars, which makes a 7.5 mile loop, but it was my plan to use that route today. Everyone else did "the spokes" which nets you just barely shy of 12 miles back to the cars. I got back to the cars and was the only one there for a moment, but then Henry, Lynn & Joe K came in from the spokes. wow. they are sooo much faster than me. hah! My time for the first loop at 1hr 38 min, a personal best and I was not even pushing. yay! Nutrition, hydration & electrolytes were all doing great, I had done a good job of managing that so far, now to try to stay on top of it.

I could tell that I needed to eat a little something, so I did, then refilled water/fuel and headed back out for one more loop. I wish I had eaten slightly more, but oh well.

Loop 2: 7.5 miles

I knew this 2nd loop was going to be a little slower, and it was going to be getting hotter (and hotter!) I felt good, though, and kept it going at a moderate pace. I got hungry feeling surprisingly soon, and that is when I realized I probably should have eaten a tiny bit more, so I just took a good swig off of my Hammer flask and kept on trucking. I was sweating SO much, oy. Miles 11 & 12 were super slow, for whatever reason. It was starting to get so hot, and I felt yucky from it. During mile 14 I mentally decided "no more distance runs in the FREAKING heat. run at night. run at 4am. screw this." Hah! I was so hot & cranky. What I really needed was the aid station, and I needed to sit down, refuel and cool off for a few moments. By the time I crested the hill (and mile 15) to the cars, I had convinced myself that I would just come home and run more miles in town tonight, or something. I wasn't sure I could stand another lap at all, it was so SO hot, and I had been out of water at least the last 3/4 mile on my 2nd loop.

Thankfully, Cheri was there and I think she could tell I needed some encouragement, so she told me that I needed to go back out, and I could go with them if I wanted. They were going to do the spokes, and I wasn't sure I had any hills in me, and plus I needed to rest & refuel. I was huuungry! So, while I was sitting there cooling off, and having my food, I watched them head back onto the trail, and I started to feel a lot better. I kept thinking how disappointed in myself I was going to be if I didn't gut it out and do this run. Not to mention, that I was feeling a TON better second-by-second. So, I got up, refilled fuel & water and headed back out, but this time just for an out n back since I knew I would DEFINITELY run out of water on a whole loop.

Final miles: 3 miles out n back (6 mi)

I decided that I would be happy with 21 miles. I had hoped to do 24 miles, but hell 21 miles is the longest run I have done since....probably December, so I was glad with it. So, it's almost exactly 3 miles to "the power line" and back, and that is what I did. I was amazed at how *great* I felt once I got back out, once I was about 1/2 mile in, I felt great. I think I felt too great, and perhaps didn't mind my pace and ran too fast!! (and I was going to throw in the towel before that last aid station stop...pft!) I chugged along really nicely for what seemed like a while, then I had to stop and walk a moment because I was buuuurned out. Suddenly I look up, and it's Lynn. Yaaay company!

I ran a mile or so of that with Lynn, then turned around to head back. Once I turned around, I had such a hard time keeping any pace. it was really sporadic, and I was tired. Some points I felt I could barely move, then I"d look down and I'd be running a 9 min pace on the trail (fast for me), then I'd stop and walk about half a min or so, and continue. when I got back to the trail junction point, Lynn was coming around the corner! she had run 4 more miles in the time I had run 3, awesome! (man I need to get faster, but it takes time!)

Lynn and I got back close to the same time, and then Henry got in. I did not see anyone else, and I was not sure where everyone was. This run was a "at your own pace" thing and people had decided on all sorts of different routes. I think more were doing shorter trips out n back, just over and over, because it was sooo hot and the need for an aid station seemed to be sooner than normal. I decided to head back and be happy with my accomplishment.

In summation:

Even though I ran a lot of this, most of this, by myself, it is still SO nice to have friends around. They can offer you a boost when you least expect it, and most need it.

I did a MUCH better job managing nutrition on this long run. I could have done better. There is always next time.

This is probably the least impressive finishing time for 21 miles in Bastrop, but I'll take it :P

what: core workout (DVD)
workout: 1 hour of intense core


ouch. this workout is hard. it's going to be a while before I am good at it. I made it through, barely, and hey, it's a core workout I got done.

I decided not to run today. I've run two days in a row in heat indices ranging from 103-111 and I just cannot freaking take another consecutive day of it.

Project: RunEarlyorSuperlate shall be enacted starting this Saturday for long run, as usual, but I hope to maintain that for most of the future workouts. I will do two workouts a week in the afternoon, otherwise, all the rest are going to be at sunrise or, by the light of the moon in the wee hours.

I know in advance I am going to be sore tomorrow, but my core desperately needs this strengthening, and it will only improve my running. win++

what: wednesday club run
who: most of the usual suspects, a total of 16 of us.
where: HoL- BCGB
when: 6pm
weather: 106 degrees, Heat Index 111. Unbelievably hot!!
nutrition: 70oz of water and 3 electrolyte pills

workout: ~ 5 miles
time: a tad shy of 1.5 hours

Sweet. Merciful. Heaven. this workout was the hardest run I think I have ever done in my life. The only thing that made it difficult was the heat. This 5 miles felt like almost twice the distance. The high allergen count did not do wonders either, for my breathing, but I just dealt with it via snot rockets and coughing. Gee, aren't I appealing?

Warmup was sort of brutal. It just took a while. It actually started out pretty nicely (1st mile), but then it just got SO hard, and I finally kicked that after a little over 2 miles. We had to move at a slower pace than normal, and so Marcia very wisely chose a route that was just about exactly 5 miles (maybe a tiny bit shy, but not much).

There were parts of this where it was very challenging to keep going. This was a no-drop run, thankfully, but it was SO hard to start up again after you had stopped. Then, when it was so hot you felt like you had to stop, you'd stop to walk a moment, and realize it actually felt better to run, at least you get a breeze that way.

Luckily I was able to pick up the pace toward the very end, somehow, and power on through. Coming up HoL was so painful that I wanted to cry, but I did it! yaay.

It's hard to believe that I have officially only been trail running for 1 year, on July 25th. Lots has happened in that period of time, and I can't say I ever imagined I'd be where I am now, or considering some of the crazy things that I am signed up to do ;-) (and I would not change it for anything in the world)

what: quality workout (hills)
who: Layla, JoAnna, Alicia, Mark, Elizabeth & me (and we saw Jeanette & Jim for a few moments as they were finishing)
where: St. Edward's Park
when: 6:30pm

distance: 5 miles (probably more like 5.25- 5.5)
time: 1hr 27min

This was the hardest hill repeat workout that I personally know of at this place, and it did not disappoint today. Warmup took a bit for me, but I felt a *lot* better on my 2nd repeat of this out n back that we were doing.

I thought this was just two miles, but it ended up being more like 2.5 miles and it was harrrrrrd, so I was happy with completing two of them, even though I had thought I woudl do three in the beginning. Since I"m doing the club run tomorrow, and it's gonna be sooo hot, I thought I should save a little something for tomorrow, and I am glad I stopped where I did. It was an excellent workout, and I felt that I got just exactly what I needed from what we did. Mark, being the amazing hill-running animal he is, did one extra trip to the top and back and still made it back with everyone. Someday I will be able to do the same, I hope :P

what: quality workout (speed)
where: BCGB
when: 6:15 pm-ish
weather: upper 90's not particularly humid, that is until you got on the muddy trail in tree cover, then it felt like a freaking sauna

workout: 6 miles
time: 1 hr 15 min

I really can't say that I haven't done speedwork lately, because there have definitely been recent runs I have pushed, pace wise on, for big parts of the run, but this one I at least set out with the intention of being that sort of workout, and with a basic plan in mind.

My original plan was to: do a 2 mile warmup, run tempo for 3 miles, do a mile cooldown.

Warmup was miserable. It was SO humid once I got onto the trail, and it was just one of those days when warmup was taking longer than normal. I kept having, also, to remind myself that I didn't need to push pace at warmup, just to take it easy, I caught myself sort of trying to push a few times. Anyhow...Once I got to the tempo part, I was having HELL sustaining a tempo pace, which is odd, normally that isn't a big deal, but I decided instead of scrapping the workout I would change my tactic and do intervals. I decided I would run harder for 4 mins, walk 1 min, and continue that 4/1 pattern. This worked out pretty well, and I ran HARD when it was time to run. A few times I actually ran so hard I could only sustain the pace I was running for 3 minutes. It was intense, and I was a fairly uncomfortable for most of this workout. (that is how you know it's a speed workout! hah!)

Toward the end, I was so SO glad to see cooldown, so I started to walk and then I realized that walking felt horribly slow and actually not very comfortable. I reminded myself cooldown did NOT mean I had to walk, I *could* just run an easy pace, which is what I did.

I love interval workouts. They remind you just how precious one minute can be, and especially when that is one minute of breath. It's the little things. Toward the end, I was catching my breath and then that post-workout bliss accompanied by a calm washed over me. I looked up at the sun through the trees and, for some reason, some favorite song lyrics went through my head,

"And a bead of sweat, runs down my arm and I drink it from my skin. It is the most real thing that I feel. It is communion."

Today was the club run, except I was stuck in traffic forever. I was having lot of lower leg pain in my left leg, just lateral to my shin, almost like shin splints wanting to start. I did lots of stretches and some myofascial work on it, and decided to take the night off and let it rest. Tomorrow would be speed work.

what: quality workout (hills)
where: St. Ed's park
who: Layla, JoAnna, Stephanie & Me
when: 6:30 pm
weather: much cooler (high 80's - but verrrrrry humid)

distance: ~ 6miles
time: 1hr 24 min


This was a great workout, and it was fun, too! We followed a favorite loop course for hill workouts that we have used in the past during training programs. I was pleased in that each of my three trips up the hill got a little better & faster each time! (used to be the opposite)

The first one we did as a no-drop, and the rest we pretty much kept our own paces at, but we still got to see and wave and say hi even when we were not running together! Slowly, but surely, I can see & feel improvement in my uphill running. Huzzah!

Saturday - I recovered from the blood sugar fallout from hell during my friday night long run. Turns out, after inspecting my fuel flask, I consumed only about 200 calories during that 14 miles. Not. Good. No wonder I was so freaking sick...anyhow...all I wanted to do was eat & sleep, and that is pretty much what I did when I did not have a client.

Sunday - I was wanting to get up and do 15 miles with the running club, but I woke up as sick with allergies as I've ever been in my life! SUPER congested lungs, throat, head...yuck! Add to that, it was 70% humidity and in the mid 80's (at 5am). I couldn't even breathe *dry* air, much less the humid gunk out there now. I took allergy meds and went back to bed. Later I did a little bit of core work. 20 mins or so.

Monday - 1 hour of static/balistic stretching. (DVD 57 mins)

what: night trail run
where: BCGB
who: roger, me, joanna, jason, naresh, john
when: 9pm

We met at HoL at 9pm to head out. The plan was to run down to Zilker park, dip in the springs, run back to HoL (~15 miles) and then tack on whatever extra we wanted. about half were planning to do just one trip.

Anyhow, we headed out. It was nice to run without the sun beating down on us, and it was decidedly cooler out, although not "cool" by any means. (mid-to-upper 80's), but as it cooled the humidity increased. Still, it felt pretty nice, and there were even brief moments when we would feel a breeze, here and there.

I felt great when we started out, and felt great all the way to Zilker. We tried to find a way to get to the water, but it was all locked up and the bottom part was being patrolled by cops. booooo. so, no dip the springs. Jason had a quite nice drop of water and fuel that he shared with us just a mile back up the trail from the park, so we ran back to that. I guess that would be about uhm..Mile 8.5. I didn't feel sick at that point, but I started to just feel odd. I wanted to sit a moment, so I did. I had been hydrating like I should, taking salt like I should, and taking fuel like I should. Everything should be right.

We continued on. About mile 10 I had to drop back, and I lost my stomach pretty badly. I felt really good after that, so I caught up with everyone, and ran a couple more miles before my stomach really started to freak out again. I could not keep anything down: not water, salt, fuel, ginger ( to help with nausea). It was like my body was just refusing anything, and I could not figure out why in hell I was so sick! I had not neglected hydration, fuel or electrolytes so I was stymied.

Luckily, we weren't far from my place, and I had an aid station set up for us here. I continued to get sick even after we were here. I decided to call my portion of the workout there, my Garmin said I was at 14 miles. (we somehow racked up extra miles taking this route, and I need to figure out how!) I really had wanted to get 20 miles in, and I really think that would not have been an issue at all, but my stomach was just freaked out in a way that would not let me continue, and I could not seem to get out of the spiral of not being able to keep anything down in order to continue.

Everyone was saying I should eat, and I knew that was probably good, but no matter how I tried I could not keep anything down. Not even water. It was just around 1am when everyone left here to head back to HoL (about 3 miles from here) My stomach continued to behave this way until 6am, and I was finally able to sleep. I slept until noon (man that felt odd), and then I was able to hold food down.

I tried forever to figure out why this happened. My conclusion was this: this last week I trained pretty hard. Even though I gave myself a day off before this, I pushed harder than I ever remember pushing, in the hottest part of the day, too. I think, perhaps, I just over did it a bit this week, and my body was telling me this.

good points:

The portion of the workout that my body was functioning for, was excellent.

I really enjoyed this run, and it was in great company

Going up yet another shoe size for my run shoes was a great idea, these felt better. (and YAY new shoes, anyhow, my old ones had lost their rock-protection properties)

Today is a day off. Tomorrow I start my back-to-back long run weekend #1, and it's going to be a night run with some friends, which should be quite fun.

I got new trail shoes today! I got another pair of the Patagonia Release shoes. I never wrote my review of them, but I love them, for the most part. I also want a pair of Montrail Hardrocks, but they are out of size 14's until late July at Rogue. I need to check Hill Country Running tomorrow.

I've been stuck at a pretty steady place as far as my base goes for long runs for the past few months. I consider my base to be just at 20 miles now. Raising it to prepare for Bandera seemed so fast and easy during the winter. I hope I am able to do it in this crazy heat. If I can just add on about 3-4 miles each week on long run day, I should be fine.

I have done hill work and speed work on my own, and that has paid off. For some reason, I'm feeling antsy about ramping up my distance. It seems so much less exciting in this heat. Everyone around me seems so utterly convinced I'll do it just fine, and now I need to feel that same way about it. I don't really doubt that I can do it, it's just so hot, so early this year! ooof, distance + heat is ugly.

I want to sign up for training, but I am having a hard time deciding which options I want to sign up for...and also having a shoe blow out ate up money I was going to spend on that...so I might have to stay out on my own for a while longer. I have lots of tail running options via the running club and friends, so I will keep enjoying those :)

I'm a little freaked out about back to back long runs. My goal is 20-22 miles Friday night (into sat morning), and 15 miles on Sunday. I am making myself do a 45 minute recovery spin on the trainer Monday, but no running. Time for more bike!! Duathlon, here I come!!!

what: wednesday group HCTR run
where: HoL
when: 6pm
who: many folks
weather: 104 sooo very hot.

distance: 6 miles (plus or minus a tad)
time: 1hr 45 mins


Woooooo this was a nice, hilly course. We actually went on a section I had never been on today. I was a little wiped out from yesterday, and started to feel it about halfway through this workout. I felt like I really wanted to push the first half of the workout, and I did. I pushed rather hard, actually, and by the halfway mark I had to back off pace some. This was a great workout, and I felt incredible afterward!

what: hills
where: st. ed's
who: just me
when: 6:30pm

distance: ~5 miles
time: 1hr 35 mins

I did 3 trips up the hill, then wound my way back down using the other trails in a loop. I felt surprisingly strong for me on hills and I was quite happy with the way this workout went.

I did it in backup shoes that I didn't really like, but they were better than my favorite shoes, which are trashed. New shoes will be acquired by the end of the week!

That I haven't been blogging my workouts for a while. I have been blogging much of *anything* for a while. Here's what the deal is:

I just haven't had the time, or the desire. Job searching on the computer and working on cover letters and resumes and the like had me pretty tired of being near the computer. I was also working for the better part of 5 weeks on a remodel of my place, so I was painting, moving furniture, re-doing floors, etc.

To be honest, I was spending a TON of time doing these updates, and really wasn't going back to re-visit the info, so it did not seem like it was that important for me to do, unless I just wanted to. (and, I very obviously did not want to! :-)

Anyhow, there are a couple of other old saved race reports I will put up, but I am not bothering to go back and blog a couple of months worth of workouts, there are just too many of them. As for future workouts, since I am trying to go into new territory with distances, I guess I might at least blog my long runs, if not all of my workouts again.

This weekend, I am going to try a back-to-back long run thing. I am shooting for 20 miles on Saturday, and 15 miles on Sunday. That should be....interesting. A *lot* of my friends who do big distance on the trail really love back-to-back weekends. I'm sure that those make those off weekends even MORE enjoyable :)

what: quality workout - speed
where: BCGB - Moonshadow
who: Rogue RHR group and some Team Traverse folks
when: 6pm

distance: it was between 5-6 miles
time: unsure, I kinda borked my timer up

This workout went SO well. I was amazed how strongly I ran, especially considering how crummy I felt beforehand. I had to literally force myself to get dressed just 30 minutes before this workout started and head out the door. I am very glad that I went!

Today's workout was a speed workout, so our course was relatively flat, considering, but it was a very technical stretch of trail. We were to push the first section, have a short recovery section in the middle, and then hammer back on the last section. The loop was 2 miles we were to do it 2-3 times. (only a few folks did it 3 times, and I was not one of them)

I wanted a fast warmup today, so I ran relatively hard to the start spot (and I was the only one in front who knew how to get there) I really like the stretch of trail that this run is on, and my first loop went really well. I talked to joe a moment after my first loop, and I felt ready to go into my second pretty quickly, so I did one more loop. I was able to push this loop and I think my time would have been better, except I was flying down the ridge and missed the flags on my second loop and ended up about .25 mile down the trail before I realized it, and the backtracking part was an uuuuugly hill that I went back up and still was very pleased how good my time was on the 2nd loop.

I did not tape my ankle for this workout, and it was pretty aggressive, and I ran HARD when I could possibly do it. By near the end of the 2nd loop, my ankle was feeling twinge-y and I decided against doing a 3rd loop. I really wanted to do one more loop, in the opposite direction, but my inner voice, and my very wise coach told me to take it easy. I really was surprised how well I did on this workout, and boy did I feel great afterward. If I had not done this workout, I'm sure I'd still have felt the same general malaise that I had been feeling earlier in the day.

Running has been going SO well the past couple of weeks, and I feel like I am somehow breaking into new territory. I am able to actually push uphills a little better now, and I am extremely pleased with the paces I've been able to keep on speed workout days. Last "long run" day in Bandera was great, in fact it was the best not-flat long run I have had since my ankle injury, which has me looking forward to this Saturday's long run. It's the last long run before our event on April 18th, The Rocky Hill Ranch trail run. I'll be doing the 25k. Whee!

I'm really *really* looking forward to my ankle being able to tolerate distances 20 miles and over again. It's tough for me to be patient with this: I feel like a rocket about to take off, except I'm aimed toward a brick wall, instead of the sky. :P

what: trail tempo run
where: BCGB - a flat-ish stretch
when: uh 5:30pm-ish
who: just me, but with many on the trail
weather: just turning overcast, high 60's - gorgeous!

distance: 7.02 miles
time: 1hr 18 min

man. this was a good run, but easily the most uptempo I've done in aaaaages. I started out not really wanting to do this run but knowing that I needed to do it.

my legs were some version of sore for most of this workout - that would be because I skipped my Trigger Point work most of last week, and I also skipped my 1 hour of stretching DVD workout yesterday. well, it showed today in the way of soreness.

warmup did go pretty well, and I was able to run a fairly decent pace and maintain it. i didn't have any specific pace goal in mind, it was just running about as fast as I could maintain it , and just outside of my comfort zone. at the halfway point, I had a gel and decided I would try to pick up the pace even more going back in. I managed to pick it up some. I decided that I would use the last 3/4 mile as a cooldown, and I decided to lower my pace quite a bit for a while, but it was actually somehow uncomfortable to do that, so I ended up picking my pace back up a little (but not to tempo again) to finish out the run. I felt amazing after this workout, really energized! I could tell I had really had a workout though, I haven't consciously pushed pace that hard in a while.

Later in the evening: 35 min TP Therapy

I decided to devote about 35 minutes to doing TP Therapy, so I worked on my legs, piriformis & hip flexors. MUCH needed and I feel great after doing the work, although it was very much unpleasant as I was doing it. (that just proves how badly I needed it!)

what: trail run
where: BCGB
who: just me
when: 5:30pm-ish

distance: 7 miles
time: 1hr 23 min

Sunday workouts are supposed to be relatively easy. I think of them almost like "recovery runs." Today I would head out, and not push, just do what felt good. I did not have any specific pace goal in mind.

The weather was utterly GORGEOUS. I set out, and felt very strong, but sore.. Warmup went well, and I continued to feel strong as the run progressed. The trip to HoL seemed to go faster than normal. Going up HoL was great. I jogged much of it, powerwalked the rest very briskly, and ran the section from the powerline all the way up to the top.

At the top, I had a dose of Hammer Gel, an S-Cap and a big swig of water, and I kept going. I went back down Little Fox for some extra mileage and speed. I really love this section of trail and I tend to get supercharged here and really pick up speed. That happened on this run, too. I was not pushing for it, it just felt good, and it came really easily, so I enjoyed it and went with the flow. The run back in to home went really well. I ended up making a near PR (if not a PR) for this particular route! (totally un-intentional - I was not pushing, just doing what felt nice) Makes me wonder what is going to happen when I start pushing these more now :)

sidenotes: this workout flushed out my legs nicely, after that aggressive Bandera run the day before. Thursdays workout was also very aggressive, and I could feel that in my body some, too (on the Friday.) None of these things were indicative of any problems, just that the workouts actually did some work, and that my body is responding favorably. It's good to feel what I consider progress again, it has been a while.

what: group long run
where: Bandera - HCSNA
when: about 9:00am
who: Jemez & Bandera training groups, but almost 100% by myself

distance: 11 miles
time: 2hr 35 min

We decided to camp in Bandera Friday night. It was sooooooo cold and windy. Wow. However, my awesome tent does well in nasty weather, and apparently I slept insanely well. We were supposed to start our run at 7:30am from the Equestrian Center, where we start most of our group runs there. I never heard anyone wake up, and my phone ran out of battery "looking for signal" all night so I could not have an alarm. Anyhow, I woke up, and there were a few others there...it was 8:30! d'oh. I panicked and threw on my running stuff, and hopped in my truck to head over. I knew the route we were running VERY well, and know the park there well enough to have made my own route, if need be, but as I was getting there, Joe was coming in from marking the trails, so he told me their planned route, and I headed out alone just before 9am. (no breakfast for me, but I took lots of energy gels with me)

The loop was an 11 miler, and it was one of my favorites, and one of the hardest, in the park. This run was going to tell me a lot about where my ankle was, and where I was in my running, period. Bandera is my favorite place on earth to run, but one thing it is not, is easy. There is a LOT of open sun, it's *very* hilly and equally as rocky. In terms of technical and aggressive, it's reasonably up there on the scale. This was where my last race was supposed to be, before I blew my ankle out 2 days before the race, marking trail. I would get to re-visit the very hill I wiped out on too! GOOD - we have unfinished business, and I will have to show it who is boss :)

Anyhow, I set out, and I felt pretty good. It was definitely cool, but the main thing it was, was windy. Wow! Warmup went surprisingly well. I was actually surprised I had already made it to Boyle's when I reached that point. I was also really surprised at how not-a-big-deal the ankle-killing hill seemed to me as I ran down it. I also realized what a DUMB path I took before when I fell...geeze no wonder I fell!! Going up Boyle's went pretty well, although I did powerwalk bits and pieces of it. Once on top, I ran the flats pretty well. I was making it a point to stay on top of my hydration and nutrition, especially since I hadn't had time to eat breakfast. This was going well, and I felt SO strong. Before I knew it, I was at Cairn's. Going up Cairn's Climb is toooough. That is one section I haven't managed to run yet, but I hiked hard up Cairn's, and then, again, ran really strong on the flat part up top. I ran into Robert during this part, who was going in the opposite direction just to say hi to folks as they passed. I was SHOCKED that I was coming down the back of Cairn's when I reached it! wow the first 6.5 miles went pretty quickly! I still felt really strong.

When I came down the back of Carin's, I saw Dmiitry & Derek, and I said hey to them a sec and kept going. I knew they'd be lapping me before long, anyhow. Sure enough, about 1/2 mile up the trail, Derek came by, then Dimitry right before Lucky Peak. Bleah, Yucky..er I mean Lucky Peak. I made up and down that okay, and I realized that I was SUPER close to the cars now. I felt really strong going in, and most of the way from Lucky into where we were parked is pretty flat. I hauled it in, and finished feeling SO strong. I really kinda wanted to go out on a 2nd loop. 22 miles was my scheduled distance if I were still doing my Jemez training, but I decided to back down to the RHR group and ease my long runs up more gradually to let my ankle adjust. This was my very first long run in these new shoes, and probably only my 4th run ever, so they are still not quite broken in. My feet were feeling some of that, but my ankle was feeling GREAT. (taped up well with elastic bandaging tape). Also, I had wondered what that "odd feeling" on my right heel was. My running tights had rubbed a horrrrible hole in my heel. ouch! Also, I need to find new uh..underpinnings to wear for long runs. These freaking UnderArmor BoxerJocks have seams that grind the flesh off in the nether regions, and it hurts like hell.

My coaches told me that I looked really strong, and I told them i was considering the 2nd loop. I am glad they put it into perspective: "you did GREAT. We all know you could do another loop, but you do not NEED to do another loop, you need to let your body adjust and heal more for now." Those were wise words. Plus, it was starting to get pretty hot by then. I stayed around and visited with folks for a bit, and then we all went back to camp and broke down camp. I really wanted to stay another night originally, but it was supposed to be even colder Saturday night, and nobody else was staying. Camping all alone wasn't sounding like a lot of fun, so I decided to come back.


My ankle felt great. When I un-taped it at home, I noticed it felt slightly twingy a couple of times, but overall I felt great. (aside from the chafing...ooooohhhh lord the chafing) I also had some blistering on my feet, but I expected that with new shoes they were very mild ones. I cannot wait to write this shoe review. These are simply the most amazing shoes I have ever run in on the trails. :-)

Summation:

I *thoroughly* enjoyed this run. This is my favorite place to run, and on top of it being beautiful and mentally a great run, it went very well. It gives me hope that this ankle injury recovery really IS going in the right direction.