In the car on the way home from this race, I told my family this race is my favorite race. This race and Leadville. I guess I'm not getting any faster. I don't very often test myself against my previous times. However I've done the Rattlesnake Ramble in Eldorado Springs, CO a couple times now and my times are 39:44 in 2005, 39:31 in 2011, and this year 39:54. It's a 4.2 mile race that covers the main (but not the climbing access) trails in Eldorado state park. This year was the first time that I'd run it in an even year, therefore the race is run in a different direction than my past experiences.
The honorable John Prater said go and I knew my body was about to hate me. We took off straight uphill that makes everyone annoyed. It's really tough to manage the start when the start is uphill on a serious false flat. I tried to keep everything in check but my watch was mad at me and beeping "heart rate too high," which is funny because I've never seen that error before. I think it was getting a false reading and within another few seconds it settled into 175 which was the lowest it would be for a while. I kept motoring up the road hoping to save a little for the real climb ahead. We hit the eldo trail and mile 1 done in 11:36 and I started power hiking as planned and just kept my position. I passed a runner here or there but for the most part it's just follow the leader for the next half mile.
I got my first view at the frontrunners and before I knew it was already at the end of the park/turnaround. I took the downhill pretty easy trying to lower my heart rate which was high 180s at this point. The road connector to the Fowler trail was tough as it felt very slow, is open and non-technical so road runners take off here and I was now in pretty serious anaerobicity. The savior was the amazing view running out the fowler trail with the Bastille wall and the wind tower in a little haze with sun shining down. It was glorious and I forgot that I was running a race. I need to go back at this time of day to grab a picture of this view.
Oh yeah, serious hurtin' here. I did my best to keep my stride short and fast, but the turnaround didn't come fast enough. I started getting passed by a bunch of women. No guys though. On the way back I gave in and walked about 2 steps, but then threw it back in gear because I knew the downhill finish was about to arrive.
Once I rounded the curve, I was super glad to see no one right behind me or slightly in front. I was pushing as hard as I could go and didn't need external motivation to hold someone off or catch anyone. I was pushing a 5:30 pace for the last 1/2 mile as it's all downhill and again got the warning alarm about my HR. I looked down and saw 195. Ouch. Through the chute and I'm done.
Again it's better to be lucky than fast as the top few runners got their pick at the amazing prizes on the award table and then race director Bill Wright pulls raffle numbers out of a box and almost everyone walks away with some additional prize. I was hanging out here with a bunch of friends and friends of friends and I got called in about 5th place and picked up a fresh sharp pair of Kahtoola Microspikes to go with my cool tech shirt. $32 well spent.
Maybe I outta do some trackwork or something. My mile splits did get progressively faster though 11:36, 11:00, 8:23, 7:50, and 5:47 pace for the final 0.2 mi. Average HR 184.
Run fast ... fall down
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Memorial of Indie
She has traveled with me from Colorado to the Grand Canyon, Tetons, Yosemite, Glacier, Montana, several trips to North Carolina, California to Oregon, Utah, and all over Colorado.
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| First picture I have of us together - April 2002. |
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| On a winter day in the Boulder Mountains |
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| First backpacking trip. She's ready for dinner. |
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| At the Tetons |
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| Halloween |
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| Is that a binky? |
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| She accompanied me on so many 14ers. Here's Missouri Mountain. |
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| Heidi and Indie en route to Huron Peak |
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| The worst she has ever smelled - cleaning it off in a pristine mountain lake. |
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| Wedding Day photo. She walked down the aisle with me and stood next to us |
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| Curious about a marmot |
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| Running down with Heidi off of Uncompagre to beat out the thunderstorm |
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| Kehoe Beach in N. California |
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| She slept in a tight circle practically on top of me every night for 10 years |
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| She loved opening presents. This is her looking in the Hanukkah box |
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| Under the covers |
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| Downtown San Francisco |
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| About to become a sister |
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| In Yosemite National Park with pregnant Heidi |
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| Such a family girl |
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| Christmas 2011 |
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| Starting to show her age |
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| One of her last runs |
At least memories live forever. Love ya, little girl.
Friday, September 7, 2012
Mt Bierstadt - Wednesday after work
Ryan and I left Golden at 5 and drove up to Guanella Pass to try to watch sunset from the summit of Mt Bierstadt. I've done this a few times on Grays and Torreys, but this was the first sunset hike on Bierstadt. This fine September day boasted the gentlest weather I've experienced on a 14er; warm, calm, and awesome. Based on the stats of RT 7.7 mi, and 2700 ft gain, I hoped it was as runable as Audubon was on Monday. However the first mile is rather downhill such that 2500 ft is really only spread over 2 miles. I found it was a little too inefficient to run much on the ascent.
We made steady progress up while seeing only 3 others on the mountain (each heading down) and ended up still being about 15 minutes from the top during sunset over Square Top Mountain. Still a nice show though. Someone left a bag at the summit from WhichWich so we took our picture with it to claim a free lunch on Friday.
90 minutes up and about an hour 20 down. We could have pushed much harder on the way down but no need to hurry today.
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| Sun setting on the Sawtooth Ridge between Bierstadt and Evans |
We made steady progress up while seeing only 3 others on the mountain (each heading down) and ended up still being about 15 minutes from the top during sunset over Square Top Mountain. Still a nice show though. Someone left a bag at the summit from WhichWich so we took our picture with it to claim a free lunch on Friday.
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| Sunset behind Square Top Mountain. Grays and Torreys are the 2 pyramids on the right side |
90 minutes up and about an hour 20 down. We could have pushed much harder on the way down but no need to hurry today.
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Mt Audubon - Labor Day weekend 2012
Inspired by following the Spot GPS tracks during recent amazing endeavors on the high peaks, I was anxious to get up high and enjoy the peaks before the snow starts flying. Heidi wanted to revisit Mt Audubon as it climbs relatively straightforwardly to over 13K with less than an hour to arrive at the trailhead. Hannah spent the night at Grandma's house which afforded us the leisure to get up and go as early as we wanted.
We arrived at Mitchell Lake Trailhead at 6:30 AM and dropped a $10 bill in the envelope of the newly added self pay station and gathered our belongings. Two years ago, on Labor day weekend, we climbed Audubon and saw from above the start of the 4 mile canyon fire. We saw that it started far before the news ever admits. Here is a shot from around the time that it was reported to have started. It was super windy up high and we toughed it out.
This year, as we climbed the winds were ever so familiar and fearing deja vu, we checked for smoke clouds all day.
Once above treeline the winds picked up more and more, and Heidi suggested turning around. I was in agreement and just happy to be out hiking that I didn't care much about making the summit. We headed down as the wind seemed to settle down.
On Monday, I got the pass to go for a hike on my own. I contemplated many options but decided I wanted to push myself and get up Audubon as fast as I could. This time I waited until late afternoon in hopes of hitting the peak at sunset in the warmth and cruising down by headlight. I arrived at the TH utilizing my same receipt from the previous day (which is good for 3 days) in a downpour. I figured the storm would soon pass so I geared up and got ready to leave just as the rain was letting up.
I took the first 20 min easy as a warmup, downed a gel and got to work. The clouds parted and displayed a full rainbow. I pushed hard and constantly had to adjust my clothes as the wind was wailing and quite cold, but would occasionally die down. I hit the summit at 90 minutes, hunkered down in the wind shelter, put on my insulated jacket and got ready to run down.
Back to the trailhead in another hour. 2h35m roundtrip.
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| Start of the fourmile canyon fire 2 years ago |
We arrived at Mitchell Lake Trailhead at 6:30 AM and dropped a $10 bill in the envelope of the newly added self pay station and gathered our belongings. Two years ago, on Labor day weekend, we climbed Audubon and saw from above the start of the 4 mile canyon fire. We saw that it started far before the news ever admits. Here is a shot from around the time that it was reported to have started. It was super windy up high and we toughed it out.
This year, as we climbed the winds were ever so familiar and fearing deja vu, we checked for smoke clouds all day.
 |
| Navajo Peak under a full moon and clouds |
On Monday, I got the pass to go for a hike on my own. I contemplated many options but decided I wanted to push myself and get up Audubon as fast as I could. This time I waited until late afternoon in hopes of hitting the peak at sunset in the warmth and cruising down by headlight. I arrived at the TH utilizing my same receipt from the previous day (which is good for 3 days) in a downpour. I figured the storm would soon pass so I geared up and got ready to leave just as the rain was letting up.
2012 - Leadville 100
I've been intrigued about this race since 2003 or 2004 on a 14er climbing weekend, I was signaled to stop while driving out from a trailhead back in the Sawatch range. It was pretty mellow, someone held out their hand, a runner or 2 emerged from the trees, ran by me and then I was allowed to leave. No big deal in those days, no real crowds, just people running 100 miles.
Ha, so long story short, I've attempted this race now in 2007, 2010, 2011, and 2012. All ultimately resulting in unfinished business. This year (2012), I had solid training, completed the difficult San Juan Solstice in June, was well-tapered, and had a better nutrition plan than last year.
My fail of last year was a wrenched stomach between miles 26 and 45, which may have been due to eating too much at Fish Hatchery aid station at mile 23. This year my plan was to stick to liquid calories from drinking solely Vitargo and water. I've practiced this plan in training and in the SJS50.
I hit the ground running at 4AM and stayed well within myself (just barely slower than last year, but felt better likely due to better fitness and more training at running more flat miles) and consumed 500 cals of Vitargo in 20oz of water. I came into Mayqueen Aid at mile 12.5 at 2h36m, about 3 minutes behind schedule.
Mayqueen to Fish Hatchery involves the first real climb of the day over Sugarloaf pass. I ran a little bit more of this climb than in the past, but took it easier on the brutal Powerline descent. I consumed another 550 calories of Vitargo and another 30 or 40 oz of water. I was another 6 minutes slower than last year but left the aid station abruptly and wasn't worried. I had kept in mind all morning that I wanted to run much more of the section from Fish Hatchery to Twin Lakes. It worked, I took it easier at the beginning and was able to jog much more.
I hit the half pipe aid station 8 minutes ahead of last year and learned from the aid station crew (who also owned the house we rented in Leadville for the weekend) that my crew had car troubles and were looking for a garage.
I called Heidi and got the scoop. Moreso I just called her to tell her I was feeling great and had made up the 10 minutes I lost in the beginning. I actually carried my phone because I have an app that allows her to see where I am most of the time. It provides my crew feedback about when I might reach various aid stations.
I continued onward managing some slight patella irritation that was expected. I also began to deal with some stomach issues where I had to violently force a burp after every sip of water or vitargo. I deal with this often, whether racing or not, but it controls my races. I need to find out how to fix this. I dropped a Gu Brew tablet into my water bottle which adds some fizz. This helps a bit as it helps cause the burps. It seems I can feel each sip hit my stomach, where it hurts for a while, until I burp, and then a few minutes later I can feel it leave my stomach and am hungry so I take another sip and the cycle repeats.
The rollers along this section felt decent and I was excited to drop into Twin Lakes at mile 38.5 to see my crew, daughter, and one of my pacers to start after mile 50. I felt pretty good and swapped my bottles for my pack and poles. I ate a few bites of watermelon, some chips, and drank a small coke. I was feeling sleepy and hoped the caffeine and sugar would give me a jolt, while the carbonation would aid in burping. I was less than thrilled that my only water source for the Hope climb was my camelbak filled with Vitargo but this was my fault as it's what I wrote in my pre-race plan for my crew to follow. After 40 miles, the taste was less desirable, and I was using my fizzy Gu Brew in one bottle to aid digestion while calories came from Vitargo (over 1500 calories at 8.5 hours in).
I left Twin Lakes (mile 38.5) feeling okay and more than 30 minutes ahead of 2011. On Hope Pass (the big climb of the day), I hit the wall. I slowed considerably on the climb and couldn't force myself to drink. I watched the altitude tick away on my watch much slower than I "hoped". Again this year, I spent time hunched over my poles, catching my breath and letting my raging heart rate drop.
I was tempted to drink out of a stream coming down the mountain as the water looked so clean but then considered the llamas at the hopeless aid station ahead. I was hot and knew the water would be cold but I have had Giardia or something like it before and don't want to deal with it again. I passed on the stream and just looked forward to reaching the next aid station.
Eventually Hopeless Aid station came and I took a seat and downed some Ramen soup, water and coke. My stomach instantly felt better and I was excited to see the leaders coming down the pass. I spotted numerous famous faces and was excited to watch the race unfold. I hammered on up to Hope pass and began heading down. I jogged some runnable sections on the steep downhill and dodged all the runners coming up.
I knew the next section involved a new segment of the trail to avoid the Winfield dirt road. The turnoff was well marked and reasonably flat. I was behind schedule and anxious to reach Winfield. My stomach hated the downhill and I didn't know what to do, eating was not working, but I knew I needed to. Along the trail, you can easily see Winfield down in the valley but 2 things: it's way down there, and the trail doesn't point that way at all. It keeps going up the valley. Well beyond Winfield it begins to descend and added an additional 1.5 miles to each direction. At a 15-20 minute pace, this makes about an hour difference!
I came into Winfield excited to see my pacer but knew I was well beyond the time to make the strict cutoffs on the return trip to Leadville. I ran through the aid station and weighed in at 138 (9.3 lbs below my starting weight!) The volunteer did not stop me, but said "better start drinking." I had my pacer grab a few things from the aid station but nothing sounded good and my optimism was low. We left as soon as I could get going and climbed up to the new trail. I walked this whole section and was finally able to jog on and off along the new connector trail. I knew the ascent would be tough so I got as much fruit down as I could and sat down at the Hope trail to get a gel down before the ascent.
The climb was on and we were passing puking runners and felt the general pessimism of all the runners who were likely to be running their last segment. The climb continued, every bit as hard as I remember, and I did my best to keep a steady pace. I did still have to stop many times to offer reprieve to my HR and catch my breath. I did my best to get down some fluids but the stomach wasn't turning around. Daylight faded and I wasn't even over the pass yet. We offered a spare headlamp to a runner in trouble, exchanged names, and then huffed it over the pass.
The clock didn't slow down and I realized the next cutoff wasn't going to happen. I cruised down to the hopeless aid station and was informed they were out of the veggie Ramen, but had potato soup. I sat by the fire and ate cup of that. I probably sat down a little too long here and realized it was time to get on in to Twin Lakes. As soon as I started moving, the soup violently came back up. I felt much better and continued on, running as much of the downhills as I could. The elevation does not drop fast enough on this section. We made it to Twin about an hour behind the cutoff. No juice, my race was over.
I've got some more work to do to figure out how to master these hundred thingies.
Ha, so long story short, I've attempted this race now in 2007, 2010, 2011, and 2012. All ultimately resulting in unfinished business. This year (2012), I had solid training, completed the difficult San Juan Solstice in June, was well-tapered, and had a better nutrition plan than last year.
My fail of last year was a wrenched stomach between miles 26 and 45, which may have been due to eating too much at Fish Hatchery aid station at mile 23. This year my plan was to stick to liquid calories from drinking solely Vitargo and water. I've practiced this plan in training and in the SJS50.
I hit the ground running at 4AM and stayed well within myself (just barely slower than last year, but felt better likely due to better fitness and more training at running more flat miles) and consumed 500 cals of Vitargo in 20oz of water. I came into Mayqueen Aid at mile 12.5 at 2h36m, about 3 minutes behind schedule.
 |
| Nearing the top of Sugarloaf pass early in the morning. |
I hit the half pipe aid station 8 minutes ahead of last year and learned from the aid station crew (who also owned the house we rented in Leadville for the weekend) that my crew had car troubles and were looking for a garage.
I called Heidi and got the scoop. Moreso I just called her to tell her I was feeling great and had made up the 10 minutes I lost in the beginning. I actually carried my phone because I have an app that allows her to see where I am most of the time. It provides my crew feedback about when I might reach various aid stations.
I continued onward managing some slight patella irritation that was expected. I also began to deal with some stomach issues where I had to violently force a burp after every sip of water or vitargo. I deal with this often, whether racing or not, but it controls my races. I need to find out how to fix this. I dropped a Gu Brew tablet into my water bottle which adds some fizz. This helps a bit as it helps cause the burps. It seems I can feel each sip hit my stomach, where it hurts for a while, until I burp, and then a few minutes later I can feel it leave my stomach and am hungry so I take another sip and the cycle repeats.
The rollers along this section felt decent and I was excited to drop into Twin Lakes at mile 38.5 to see my crew, daughter, and one of my pacers to start after mile 50. I felt pretty good and swapped my bottles for my pack and poles. I ate a few bites of watermelon, some chips, and drank a small coke. I was feeling sleepy and hoped the caffeine and sugar would give me a jolt, while the carbonation would aid in burping. I was less than thrilled that my only water source for the Hope climb was my camelbak filled with Vitargo but this was my fault as it's what I wrote in my pre-race plan for my crew to follow. After 40 miles, the taste was less desirable, and I was using my fizzy Gu Brew in one bottle to aid digestion while calories came from Vitargo (over 1500 calories at 8.5 hours in).
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| Leaving Twin Lakes and getting ready to use my poles to ascend Hope Pass |
I was tempted to drink out of a stream coming down the mountain as the water looked so clean but then considered the llamas at the hopeless aid station ahead. I was hot and knew the water would be cold but I have had Giardia or something like it before and don't want to deal with it again. I passed on the stream and just looked forward to reaching the next aid station.
 |
| Summit of Hope Outbound |
I knew the next section involved a new segment of the trail to avoid the Winfield dirt road. The turnoff was well marked and reasonably flat. I was behind schedule and anxious to reach Winfield. My stomach hated the downhill and I didn't know what to do, eating was not working, but I knew I needed to. Along the trail, you can easily see Winfield down in the valley but 2 things: it's way down there, and the trail doesn't point that way at all. It keeps going up the valley. Well beyond Winfield it begins to descend and added an additional 1.5 miles to each direction. At a 15-20 minute pace, this makes about an hour difference!
 |
| Mile 52 with pacer Ryan in tow |
The climb was on and we were passing puking runners and felt the general pessimism of all the runners who were likely to be running their last segment. The climb continued, every bit as hard as I remember, and I did my best to keep a steady pace. I did still have to stop many times to offer reprieve to my HR and catch my breath. I did my best to get down some fluids but the stomach wasn't turning around. Daylight faded and I wasn't even over the pass yet. We offered a spare headlamp to a runner in trouble, exchanged names, and then huffed it over the pass.
The clock didn't slow down and I realized the next cutoff wasn't going to happen. I cruised down to the hopeless aid station and was informed they were out of the veggie Ramen, but had potato soup. I sat by the fire and ate cup of that. I probably sat down a little too long here and realized it was time to get on in to Twin Lakes. As soon as I started moving, the soup violently came back up. I felt much better and continued on, running as much of the downhills as I could. The elevation does not drop fast enough on this section. We made it to Twin about an hour behind the cutoff. No juice, my race was over.
I've got some more work to do to figure out how to master these hundred thingies.
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