Fresno Half Marathon

I completed the Fresno Half Marathon on November 6th. This year, I took my off season in October after completing my A race in September, P2P100. So doing this race signifies the start of my next training phase on a 12 week marathon training plan for the Surf City Marathon. Using a pace chart, its a good check what holding 7's for a half marathon means when you pace threshold intervals, tempo, long runs and EZ days on the chart so I'll do the right pace on the right days for my training plan. Here's some training workouts my known baseline pace per Fresno now projects me for:

• Tempo: 6 mi @ 7
• Threshold: 6 x 1 mi repeats @ 6:29 pace
• Long Run: 12 mi 8 min long pace, last 6 miles new 6:47 goal pace
• EZ: 8 mi 8:30 pace

By training pace correctly, I'll adapt my ability to handle these same workouts consistently over 3 weeks in November. I'll take the 4th week as a recovery week. Then in December, I'll wrench up the pace subtracting 5 seconds from November's training pace to use on these same run's. At the end of December, I'll take the 4th week as a recovery week. Then in January, I'll wrench up the pace subtracting 5 seconds from December's training place to use on these same run's. At the end of January, I'll take the 4th week as a recovery week. The first week in February is Taper and time to race 26.2 My training is like clockwork and I'll see what perfecting my pace in training can do. I'm going to train like a machine using that 3 weeks on 1 week off pattern wrenching it up across these blocks just by 5 seconds so just as I adapt to my training pace I'll recover then introduce more stress in a logical manner. Dedicating yourself to a pace acclimatizes the mind and body to running that pace and adapting to it in training so on race day you can trust your training has brought you a pace you can now execute.

Pine to Palm 100

On September 17, I ran for 29 hours from Williams to Ashland on a 100 mile adventure in Southern Oregon's Siskiyou Mountains. The event started at 6 am with headlamps in the dark up the Rock Creek trailhead. Out of a field of 80 participants, I selected a position about 25 runners back in order to avoid wasting energy using pre-race nerves or following competitors which tends to dictate to aggressive of a pace to early in the race. It's going to be a long day, so my plan is to race smart.
O'Brien Creek marked the completion of the first 13 miles. The uphill trail had multiple switch backs and I noticed 5 runners overstepped a marked log on the ground missing a turn so I took off after them and brought them back on course. The course was well marked and heeding the race director's advice if you take responsibility to keep your head up looking out for typical trail markings you won't get lost.
Running to Steamboat Ranch at mile 20 my training partner Josh enjoyed conversational pace with fellow runners on the trail, finding out where they were from and the story that lead them here. He also commented that I was quieter than usual and noticed I had an inward focus trying to digest the sheer magnitude of the distance we just fully committed to by starting. I had thoughts flashing through my head about preserving energy & slowly entering into my game face rather than diving in head first like I typically do.
Then came the wake up call, shit I heard behind me. A screaming yell so I turned & found Josh sitting down on the trail. My heart beat skyrocketed with a rush of adrenalin, this could not be good. Josh must have kicked a branch on the ground instigating two bees to sting him and from what I recall he always avoided bees in our training routes because he's allergic to them. In response to the sting, he wanted to get to the next aid station ASAP to have it treated and avoid an unknown reaction on the trail. Not to mention the cost of a back country rescue in these woods. He told me to meet him at the next aid station and takes of at a sub 7 minute mile pace which is a risky pace faster than anyone else at that early point in the race.
As I continue running, that one scenario we specifically agreed to avoid just occurred, he was no longer running behind me, an approach we planned to ensure the greatest chance of a finish together. After months of practicing every aspect of this race in training we could, an element out of our control, a little bee, just took over the plan.
Come to find out, because Josh was running scared to the next aid station to treat the bee sting settling, he ran down hill at too risky of a pace and this gamble cost him a sprained ankle. By the time I meet him at the aid station to assess the damage of the bee stink, I realized he was not going to make it as his ankle appeared swollen, the same size of his calf. Josh and the aid station medic confirmed how it looked, he was out but being head strong he paced with me to Seattle Bar ignoring the pain just to get that self confirmation & allow the fact to settle in this really did just happen.
After leaving Josh, I picked up a new group. A couple kids I dubbed the Montana boys whom I meet the night before at the pre-race dinner. I introduced them to other runners we came upon as such, the Montana boys. Those kids were running strong, tall & shirtless but I got the sense this would be short lived after finding out the strenght of their youth came with no experience under their belt at any significant distance to warrant the pace they held this early in the race. Then came the most seasoned ultrarunner I’ve ever run with, Todd Ragsdale, whose credentials included 30 ultra's including one he ran completely barefoot. When he told me to slow the pace, I heeded his advice. We ran side by side and for about a dozen miles before he left me at the Squaw Lakes aid station at 37 where I took a break to shed some gear including leaving my backpack and shirt. As it turns out, that guy Todd held that same smart pace for the rest of the race going from the 20-30 field position to finish 7th simply due to attrition from those in front not staying even with their early pace. Todd demonstrated to me how to race smart at these events.

The descent to Squaw lakes was rocking single track dowhill. I caught up with a group of 5 who took off fast early in the race and now took the head position in the pack with these 5 running behind me. Those boys went out faster than me but I caught them after the marathon warm up by pacing it right. I was starting to feel my runners high and at this point, they were hitting a mental barrier at the marathon distance waypoint.
At the Squaw Lake loop around the lake the pack dispersed and I ran with one runner, Randy Nidalmia. I had meet Randy the night before at the pre-race dinner and marked him as someone I wanted to run with when I found out he's a 10:20 Ironman athlete and 2:56 marathoner. Credentials I aspire to. His wife was great and shared sunscreen with me at the aid station which was nice since I was crewless. She was hilarious too, she’s a nurse and wore a nurses Halloween costume to contribute to the ultrarunning vibe.
Running with Randy at the French Gulch Divide, I had him look away from the trail and out at the vast tree landscape and by doing so, your eye's are so used to the movement of the trail that they play an illusion with the tree's landscape moving in an outward motion. Randy and I admittedly were in the zone, in a running trance. The best way to explain the running trance to a non runner is think entering pirates of the caribbean davy jones locker for the race and leaving this place at the finish. During this trance you are aware of your thoughts as they impact performance and physically hyper sensitive to taste, touch, feel, etc. It a very primal state of being fully aware of living in that exact moment, like an animal must feel.
At this point, my nutrition was on schedule. This included one eGel plus one salt tab an hour and two bottles of electrolyte fluid between each aid station. I felt very good rehearsing this nutrition plan in training and felt good executing it today. The large number of eGel's I took in like clockwork was more than Randy could imagine taking in himself and witnessed it impact his performance. As we descended Hanley Gap, he could no longer hold my pace and we parted ways. It was good running with this new friend.
Climbing Dutchman peak I was alone at mile 61. Going beyond the 100K has been a significant waypoint in my mind where I take my first step running further than I’ve ever run before. To compound the virgin distance, the sun was setting and along with it the temperature drops. As the temperature dropped, I was not uncomfortable because running kept my core warm but my extremities got cold, most significantly my hands. This started to impact me when I realized my thumbs were so cold I could not physically open an eGel packet no matter how hard I tried. I continued on just knowing I was missing my one eGel per hour interval hoping there was an aid station just around the corner.
When I did reach the next aid station, I intentionally played catch up eating deli turkey wrapped avocado and walked away to allow my big meal of the day to digest. As I pressed on, it continued to get cold. I over estimated where to check in my drop bag which would not be until Glade Creek at mile 73. At this point it was dark and I turned my headlamp on. My nutrition dilemma solved at the last aid station would be short lived as I still did not have my jacket and my thumbs were once again frozen unable to open an eGel. Then came the aid station with miso soup, food never tasted so well. This was still not the aid station with my jacket but fortunately there was Josh and Trish with my spare drop bag. Josh pulls out my puffy brooks jacket, pearl izume gloves and powered by warm miso soup I was back in the game.
Arriving at the Wagner Gap aid station mile 80, the field was getting thin. This aid station was on the side of a ridge with gusty winds. Based on my experience skiing in bad conditions, if you stop at the lodge you don't go back out so being prepared by meeting Josh and Trish at the prior aid station, I blew through this one only changing my shoes and socks from my drop bag and not succumbing to the other comforts drawing everyone in to stay. I pressed on through the night on the Wagner trail perfectly warm and perfectly able to stay on track with my nutrition.
Nutrition and running was going well. But my demons came in the form of being tired from lack of sleep with no access to caffeine and I was alone without a pacer next to me to help stay awake. If you have ever driven your car tired you know your skills are just as impaired as driving drunk and being so tired I was running and swerving all across the trail. Spiralling downhill in my thoughts and my tracks while descending, a car light came up behind me and there was my second save of the day, Josh and Trish. They pulled up behind me with my emergency aid bag which I had tucked a Red Bull into. That Red Bull kept me going to the end of Wagner Gap.
Then came Wagner Trailhead at mile 82. This would be interesting, heading off the dirt road and onto the trail in the middle of the wilderness in the middle of night and at this point, a little sketch as I could fall asleep mid flight standing up. I told myself, don't get lost on this trail, stay awake and would have been willing to double back at any point I stopped seeing trail markers. But I continued on course and felt assurance as I passed each trail marker, even though the trail itself was sketchy with overgrowth. To combat the sleepiness, I would run on the trail and every quarter mile reach a tree to lean up against for 10 seconds to close my eyes for a mini break before trekking on. I almost fell asleep leaning up against those trees but the intervals worked to break up the distance and fatigue into manageable piences and I barely made it to the top.
At the top of Wagner Glade at mile 85 I meet two college students camping out and I stared at the mat next to their blazing fire. Their instructions were to pick up the flag at the top of the climb, the final 3 mile peak, then after bringing them the flag all that is left is a half marathon downhill to get home. I was drawn by that fire, way more appealing than leaning up against those trees. I laid myself down and just before falling asleep from exhaustion; I had that shock that goes through your nerves waking me up just enough so I could talk myself into just picking up that flag first before taking a nap.
Picking up that flag at the final peak was gratifying and along with it came sunrise presenting the most amazing views and a sense of renewal. The flags were placed on top of a rock formation they made you climb and at the top you could see 360 views, everywhere I just ran and the lights of Ashland where I would finish. I ran right past that camp fire on my way down & felt the emotions running through me as I overcame that struggle within.
On the way down I ran along side Juliano Wilson. This guy was a character, had a thick accent and was joined by his wife to pace him. I was descending faster on the single track and looking forward to that last aid station. All of a sudden, I heard Juliano scream behind me, waving his hands in the air. I was so fatigue I just stopped like a deer in the headlights. Ten feet away, a bear ran by straight through bushes stomping and breathing loud. It was watching me and Juliano had scared it away. It was brown and what must have been a teenager in size and I hugged Juliano and his wife for looking out for me. We ran home together.
The feeling of arriving in town in Ashland was surreal. People in the neighborhood looked at me like I was an animal and I felt like one. Completely stripped down from comforts to the basic simplicity of running and the heightened awareness of being fully present in the moment with one senses is primal. Crossing the finish line I realized I had acquired the ability to run 100 and the journey I took to accomplish this had transformed me in many ways. I had done it; I had completed 100 miles and relentlessly endured the physical perseverance and emotionally challenges faced.
Why did I do it? My fellow ultra friends will comment belt buckle but its more than that. My favorite quote goes "What you get by achieving your goals is not important as who you become". You begin with life's dreams and goals in your mind then work to build a successful life in the present, one day at a time. In our daily life, we are creatures of habit and routine and you will need to use self discipline to build positive rituals that support full engagement in the things that really matter and make conscious decisions to say no to the non-essentials that are not mission critical. Be deliberate about your decision making and similar to how I made the decision to press on from darkness to sunrise, don't just let your environment dictate your circumstances. Actions often reflect external pressures like wanting to sleep and not core values like wanting to finish. I am always amazed at what you can bring out of yourself when want something accomplished and have the will power to stick with it in the face of life's boundaries & obstacles to deliver results.

5x7 Folded Card

Birthday Sketch Birthday Card

Shutterfly custom cards for Valentines Day, Easter & Mother's Day.

View the entire collection of cards.

I don't diet, I fuel my active lifestyle

Take notice, you are what you eat. For the sake of our future generations, we need to re-think our relationship with food. It is my opinion that the 33% American obesity rate epidemic can only be addressed through educating one's mindset for greater self control over the mind & body connection. The preventable scenario with our overweight and obese population & non athletes is addressing the weak mindset driven by taste first. If your mindset is taste first, its inevitable what will occur in an environment where restaurants & convenient stores outnumber produce & grocery stores 8:1. The odds are not in your favor when your mind is thinking taste and it takes extra effort to make the right choice in this 8:1 environment. To compound the issue, media is over saturated with diets. Restrictive diets do not work and will leave the body depleted from energy and the mind in a constant battle to be tempted to stray from diet and fall victim to our environment antagonizing one's tastful cravings. The weak mind can be educated & trained to get over the taste first mindset and rethink the mind to crave meeting the nutritional needs of the body as a focus. Do not think of food as taste, think of food as fuel. Do not make goals to get light, make goals to get lean because the difference is you need to fuel your muscles & energy levels and not be left feeling lethargic from a diet. Forget the fad diets, what you choose to eat should depend on your metabolism. Let's be more picky about what we put into our bodies and train your mind to not make decisions based on taste but rather make decisions based on how that food makes you feel. Eating well is the key to a vibrant and healthy life. Failure to address your minds default addition to taste is your lack of education so to address this issue learn the nutritional benefits of different foods. I believe the weak mindset driven by how food taste instead of how food makes you feel contributes to failed diets, obesity, a trip to the doctor with cliche advice to exercise and eat right and a non athletic lifestyle so get to work and learn more about food as fuel.

My Pine to Palm 100 TAPER

T-minus 13 days & counting til P2P go time. My Taper:

5th: 3 hr Long run for a nutrition & equipment rehearsal only

6th: Swim workout, get in the pool to give your legs a rest

7th: foam roll/stretch, 10 minutes warm-up run, 4 - 6 x 200's, 10 min cool down

8th: 8 mile w a few 30 second pick ups

9th: OFF

10th: 2 hr easy spin

11th: 1 ½ hr relaxed run

12th: Swim

13th: foam roll/stretch, 10 minutes warm-up run, 4 - 6 x 200's, 10 min cool down

14th: 30 min relaxed run

15th: Drive there, stay off your feet!

16th: foam roll/stretch, 15 min run to shake out the drive, stay off your feet!

17th: Race Start

18th: Race Finish

19th Drive Home

A Sharpened Mind Can Shape Our Bodies

How You Think Is Everything. Be Positive. Think success, not failure. Beware of a negative environment. There are two types of people, those who say I can’t and those who say I can. Don’t watch the game, be in the game. The will to peruse success in athleticism is not shared by the greater majority of our society so embrace it; you are different and represent that 1%. Following the herd is a sure way to mediocrity. Don't let other people or things distract you. Do not just cruise but challenge yourself to bring your A game and take performance to another level. Keep your head in the game.

Pursue Life’s Goals. Write down your specific goals and develop a plan to reach them. A reason to believe, even against poor odds, is enough to stay focused on reaching a successful outcome.

Take Action. Goals are nothing without action. Don't be afraid to get started. Just do it! Take responsibility. Be persistent. Be dependable. Be consistent. Address skill issues with training. Work hard. Success is a marathon, not a sprint. If things go well, look through the window for someone to praise; if things go bad look in the mirror to assess your own impact on the results and what you can do to correct it.

Learn to Analyze Details. Get all the facts, all the input. Learn through experience and learn from your mistakes. Ask a peer or a coach for meaningful feedback, explicit to understand exactly what you should do more of or less of. Commit to being the best at what you do, perfecting even the smallest task. Everything worth doing is worth doing well. Choose the discipline you are passionate about, go deep into what you choose and study, study, study sharing ideas and thoughts with your peers. Doing this homework is an acquired skill. Cherish not just the physical aspect but the intellectual dimension of our sport.

Manage your Time. We all have scheduling considerations in our lives. Family, health, work, climate, hobbies, social involvement, church - you name it, they all influence our daily decision making on where you spend your time. Evaluating your triathlon objectives within this context is a very deliberate act that each of us must undertake. Balancing all these considerations is a two way street – both triathlon and the non-triathlon commitments have needs for your time. Things work out really well when there are many points of intersection between the two. Conversely, it isn't always a happy story when the two lack alignment. Frequently, there is a frustrated and overwhelmed athlete in the middle of these moments. If you find yourself in that moment, step back and do the analysis. What are your most important considerations in your life? What environment gives me the best chance to line up all these priorities? Which considerations am I most ready to sub-optimize to preserve another? The formula is different for each of us. In fact, the formula may be different for each of us at different times in our lives. My message is very simple, be deliberate about your decision making and don't just let your environment dictate your circumstances. We all have the freedom of choice, just be deliberate about the choices you make. There is no doubt that a good athlete carefully looks for time management opportunities and deliberately plans where he wishes to spend his limited resources.

Kings Canyon Rae Lakes Loop 8/20/2011

The Rae Lakes Loop is a back country trail in the Sequoia and Kings Canyon national park. The loop is 42 miles long, and climbs from 5035' at the trailhead to 11,978' at Glen Pass.

The trail head start with Randy at Roads End station.

Yosemite like views without trails being trampled by tourist, there's something unique about isolation in the untamed wild.

The rugged terrain boast big trees, high peaks, pristine lakes and deep canyons.

Nature's streams provides all the aid stations needed (using my MSR filter).

Unspoiled nature.

Nature is a piece of Scott Nelson's character, not an abstract idea so being in nature is how I'm trying to connect with the space he left behind.

Climbing Glen Pass oxygen gets thin, only 70% as compared to sea level.

The view from the top 11,978' at Glen Pass

Randy at 11,978' Glen Pass

Enormous rock faces.

LIving life in the presence of nature.

A display of nature on the John Muir Trail.

Running through back country wilderness surrounded by cathedral like peaks.

Josh and Randy at the end of the trail, 12 hours 47 min. total trip.

My friend Scott Nelson

A close friend, Scott Nelson passed away yesterday around 7pm. He was on an after work training ride on Rocky Hill. Comming down the hill he announced to a runner 'on your left'. The 14 yr old runner was not paying attention and while doing hill repeats, proceeded to turn around going toward the midle of the street without looking, directly into Scotts path. Scott swerved to avoid, collided with the runner and flipped directly over his handle bars still clipped in landing on his neck and instantly dying due to head trauma. His best friend, John Perez was riding with him and found Scott not moving when he went by his side. John spent the next two hours at the scene of the crash at Rocky Hill. Both John and Scott work at Mt Whitney High School and for today's first day of school the whole community is in morn. Our Visalia Triathlon Club is getting together tonight and I'm preparing a slide show with these pictures I've compiled from last year. John also shared that during this ride, they were just discussing this weeks Visalia Tri Club newsletter, see below, so riding safety was at the forefront of their thoughts. Unfortunatley, awareness was not there with the other party who just as well would have turned to run into the street in front of a car without looking.

Great Monday Morning VTC!

I wanted to discuss a few points on downhill riding. Descending a hill at speeds of 30-40 mph can get quite precarious. Add in oncoming cars, narrow roads and loose gravel and you have yourself a tough situation. You must stay aware and cautious at all times. You should always be looking ahead; looking for turns in the road, oncoming cars, rough road, and/or other cyclists. Don't ever let your mind wonder on fast downhills, be in the moment and conscious of what you are doing. Hands should be on the brakes, slightly pumping them when you need to make a turn or slow down. Don't just hit one brake or the other, use both of them to aide in better decrease of speed. Be ready because cars do not look out for cyclists. Oncoming cars can be coming around a corner at high speeds, be ready! Communicating with other cyclists is crucial. "Car Back!" "Car Up!" "Gravel in the road!" There is no such thing as too much talking when on the bike with others. Remember, safety is first when we are out there on our bikes. If you are by yourself and wear headphones, keep the volume very low so you can hear what is going on around you. If you are with a group, headphones should be left at home. This becomes a dangerous situation when you wear headphones and are with a group.

Let's continue to have fun out there. Be careful, safe and keep working!

To morn his Death I wish to tell my story to celebrate the last year of Scott's life.

Scott's a teacher and he taught me to set a course and enjoy every moment in its persuit, not necessarily just the destination. His deminour is very accepting of what low points are thrown at you in life while very encouraging on every bit of the progress made thus far. Scott welcoms people for who they are and in turn they gravitate to him like a coach or father figure. I recall him expressing utter shock that a girl like Cara would be interested in him and how lucky he felt. His course was a relentless persuit of weekly flowers, weekend family camping trips and placing the idea of a shared experience with their extended family and friends at the top of his priorities. We had discussions about Triathlon and his thoughts on this season was to spend the limited time he could train to optimize the bike leg, just focusing on riding and team up with his best friend John to do the run and girlfriend Cara for the swim along with the entire family to go camping at Wildflower. Everyone gets to have fun perspective and it was not even so much about the race as the shared experence with the people he was around. The humble course he set at Wildflower to seek experience first and results will follow odviously paid dividents and they took second place in the Wildflower relay 2011. Arriving back at the campsite the first words that came out of his mouth were 'how did you do' but to anwer this question would be almost impossible with an obvious medal he was wearing posing my response to inquire about his experience first before boasting about my own. Scott's patience was amazing, his daughter Audry's softball coach, his son Ethan's camping & fishing guide, his students calculous teacher and the like. His riding style was selfless letting the entire group draft him to the base of the hill then attack past him up the hill only to pick up anyone who blew up their legs in doing so to let them draft him home. Being around Scott is like having a springboard that provides the basis for you to excel. He took responsibility to set up base camp necessities to share with everyone when camping, let the group draft him when riding, always brought an ice chest with an abundance of extra chocolate milk & gatoriad to offer his training partners, always brought the best micro brew beer to create an experience to have a beer with a good friend, knew the best bands arriving in town to rally a group of friends to go see, insisted on picking you up to drive there, etc. Everything about Scott created a better shared experience and I hope to have learned to from the examples he set in our lives. Next time I offer to pick you up for a course I've plotted and have an ice chest with cold Gatoraid and perhaps even a fat tire, don't than me, thank Scott for demonstraing to me how to help the people you surround yourself with enjoy today just a little more.

The Fresno Classic Century & Half Marathon

The Fresno Classic is a two day event with a 100 mile bike (century) on Saturday followed by a 13.1 mile run (half marathon) on Sunday. I participated in this race as a training weekend because in mirrors my typical weekend brick workout as a triathlete. The Fresno location also works well as home turf. There is just something about eating at home and sleeping in your own bed that makes it easier and seem more like a training day than a race.

At the start of the race, I meet several friends from the Visalia Triathlon Club, Josh Polk, Monte Mitchell and a few others. I pick out the fast riders, the guys in the Safeway cycling kit. I also observe we don't have our major valley teams who must be participating in tonight's criterium instead. This should leave the field open for us triathletes to set the pace in solo time trial without economy of road teams dropping us triathlete who ride like individuals.

The ride starts slow at a mandated 10 mph by the CHP and Rabobank jerseyed amateurs bringing us out of town. I assume this tactic was in order to have everyone start on the closed off freeway at the same time. This was the first century I have ever heard of where they actually close down the freeway to let us ride. Once we hit the freeway, it was game on. The freeway surface is super smooth, better than any surface I have ever been on. At the very start my friend Monte pulls a time trial solo off the front and I hold his wheel tightly with Josh right behind me. The peleton spits and I find our lead group consist of about 14 riders dropping everyone else. The speed was fast, going from 26 to the low 30's.

After the freeway, Monte sets precedence to pull the pelaton for Josh Polk to lead it for the next 15 miles with few rotations not in front. He was not running the next day so he was leaving nothing on the course. At the first aid station, I notice Monte stopped but the rest of the dozen riders kept going. At this point, we head into the hills. Once the hills start, the group fragments and I'm now in the front group of 8 with Josh Polk. This group further fragments and Josh stops at his Moms house who lives in squaw valley to say hello so I find myself with 4 riders in front of me who dropped me on the hills and I'm in 5th with no one in sight behind me. This was half way through the course and I rode time trial solo for the next 50 miles. I finished the day 5th, averaging 19.5 miles an hour which is right on pace to what I'm targeting for Ironman.

After the event, I had a massage and realize I have tight hips from cycling. I learned a few band stretches I can do to help. My tight hips may be attributed to sitting at work so going from sitting 8 hours to riding hours on end on the weekends I am putting them through a lot and will take the extra time to incorporate the recommended band stretching going forward. That night, I picked up Costco sushi and cooked salmon to go with it as my in between recovery meal. I also took an ice bath and stretched.

On Sunday was the half marathon. My goal for the day is a 1:30. I had a great warm up with Justin Levine and Eric Blain, enough to start to sweat before the start. Before the race I drank half a Gatorade and took salt tablets. During the race, I kept nutrition light and only sipped at the aid stations, ate one E-Gel on the course and one Gu after I finished. I also had one salt tab during the run and gave out my others to cramping athletes on the course who needed it. I finished the race right on target with a little spare change, 1:30:58. Overall, very happy for getting out of it what I wanted which was to simulate going out hard on the bike like I will do at an Ironman then running a good pace on tired legs. I am noticing my stride is very different on tired legs than on fresh legs. On fresh legs, I tend to muscle it to be fast and on tired legs, I have to think about running mechanics to be efficient. I am going to invest in a lot more training on tired legs and work on improving my running mechanics for long endurance as my top priority, knowing once I achieve where I want to be as a long distance runner I can always turn it back up on the bike.

My friends also killed it. Eric Blain and John Perez both pulled a 1:26 and Justin Levine did an amazing 1:24. These are my friends who come to the table with running as a strentgh so I like following suit with them on the run and in turn let them follow suit with me on the bike for a reciprocal training investment in our Visalia Triathlon Club group workouts.

Born to Run 100K

When was the last time you did something for the first time? On Saturday May 14, 2011 I did my first 100K (62 miles), the Born to Run ultra. Here is my race recap to tell my story about the challenges I experienced and some lessons to remember.

I'm relentless in my pursuit to prove to myself there is nothing I can't do. I embrace the 'I can' attitude. Endurance events are just as much of a mental game as a physical one so choose your mantra and stay driven. My mantra, Relentless Hickey!

Signing up for an event keeps you disciplined and the specifics of eating and exercising will almost automatically follow from taking the event you commit to seriously. Given the date on your calendar to work toward, you know you've got to give 100 percent effort into training and do everything you can to get yourself ready. Its not that you wouldn't like to watch sports, drinking beer on the couch, it's just not important enough to make this trade off if you want to be active and participate in the game yourself. I thrive on setting a goal for an event then looking at every single detail to help get me to the finish line. On race day it's a test of my own assumptions for success.

I've read a lot of advice and there is no cookie cutter recipe for success. Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face. What separates those who succeed from those who DNF is what you do when you get punched in the face. Doing a 100K, it's just a matter of time until you hit the wall or something does not go your way so get ready for when the inevitable occurs because its how you respond in that moment that counts. When you reach that extreme state of fatigue you have to dig deep, reach inside and push through the obstruction.

The ultra experience is more of a primal state. The story may be told similar to how Alice in Wonderland chases the rabbit or Jack Sparrow visits Davy Jones Locker. You dip into a trance and stay there for a long time. At the start of the race on the first mile, I literally fell into my own rabbit hole.

I was running directly behind a group and landed in a hole up to my calf throwing me flat on my side. I picked myself up and recalled what the race director said, take responsibility for yourself. I stood up and decided to stop running behind people so I ran toward the front of the group to sort things out and luckily, came out unscratched. That was the start of my trance where I became acutely self aware. Self aware to make sure I felt ok, self aware of my own pace, self aware of each footstep on the rough trails, self aware of my surrounding environment, etc. The state of Davy Jones Locker has begun and I'd be there for an epic 11 hours 41 min.

After the first lap, I took of my shirt and ditched the ipod. Running through the grass fields you can let your hands down by your side and feel your fingertips brush through the grass as you navigate the
single track. When the wind picks up, you can take a deep breath and enjoy the clean ocean air. Its going to be a long day with the pendulum going between the primal states of thrive and survive so when
you have that runners high its time to milk the experience while it last. For me, it lasted for 55 miles, I could not believe it. For 55 miles I felt like I could run forever. Then on the ridge sometime after mile 55 I ran out of water so the last 7 miles were like hitting the wall trying to deal with catching back up on hydration.

Your body starts with about 2,000 calorie reserves so the first two hours of the endurance event primarily spend the calorie reserve you started with. Between hours two and three, most people hit the wall
you often hear described in the marathon which is when you have burned through these calories. Track kids who don't pay attention to this can rock a 5K, 10K or even a half marathon but blow up on the marathon and beyond. So during an ultra event, you have to execute a nutrition plan to stay ahead of the curve. For me, I don't wait until the 2,000 calories I started with depletes and work toward replenishing my tank with a Gatorade and Gew every 5 miles. If I was able to consume this the entire race I would but at some point you literally get sick of the sugary concentrate. Diluted Gatorade and water taste a lot better toward the end of the race but you'll need to factor in how water flushes out your sodium so salt tablets at each aid station become a must. Real food also settles your stomach down so I had a nice hot grilled cheese sandwich, cantaloupe and a red bull for lunch which kept me going. Crazy but you also need to monitor how often you pee as a sign of keeping hydrated.

A crew can also help you succeed during an ultra by serving as a pacer and monitoring your nutrition. During the miles I'm familiar with, I actually served as the pacer and reminded my friend Scott to fuel because he must have skipped aid earlier in the race and was trying to catch up. After I helped him along the way on his nutrition issue, he returned the favor and helped me re-hydrate and pace last 7 miles when I needed it. We both went through cycles between thrive and survive and partnering up to be each others pace & nutrition crew we achieved more than I would be able to accomplish alone.

The impact this event has on my life is the realization that sometimes we need that punch in the face to overcome the inertia of your normal routine. I can't wait to hit training with my whole new perspective. And yes, the ultra belt buckle 100M 24hrs will be a future endeavor because I'm going to need that buckle to hold my pants up after all this running, ha!

2011 AVIA Wildflower Triathlon

This year's 29th Annual AVIA Wildflower Triathlon was amazing, as always. It's the Woodstock of triathlon and I thoroughly enjoy being around people who live and celebrate this healthy lifestyle. My favorite thing about Wildflower would have to be the humbling race experience every age grouper goes through in their quest to evolve in the sport. It's certainly humbling when you whiteness what the elite are capable of enduring on this very same race course but it's those lessons learned that allow us grow as we laugh at ourselves and share in this common experience. This year I had the opportunity to publish some of my favorite campfire stories for everyone on page 50 of the official Wildflower event program and tell my story in an interview for TriCal TV.

I arrived at Lake San Antonio on Thursday to set up the Visalia Triathlon Club campsite. This included setting up 5 tents and roping off space for 5 RV's for friends arriving the following day. We scored a prime campsite location including game day lounge seating at the half way point of the run course. Camp set up was followed by packet pick up and an interview with the director of TriCal TV.

On Friday, I woke up with real bad allergies leading to a head ache. Fortunately, this went away after taking allergy medication and acclimating to the environment. This is exactly why I come one day early so that I have time to adjust. Racing in a new location, your body will respond better if you acclimate and give yourself time to settle in. On Friday afternoon, everyone arrived at camp and I took the bus to the race expo, bringing along plenty of fluid & fruit to stay fueled. At the expo, I entered my name in a drawing (won a Polar RS300 watch) purchased some local wine labeled Wildflower (for Grandma who's babysitting back home) and meet Ben Greenfield (the endurance nutrition expert).

Race night you can't expect much sleep because you'll either be excited with pre-race jitters or the noise will keep you awake as cars pull into the campsite through the night. Fortunately, I had a great night sleep on Thursday and got plenty of relaxation during my taper week. Game day I woke up early for my cup of coffee and there's something about a morning campfire to make you feel like your going into battle. By the time everyone else awoke, I was in race day uniform including helmet prancing around a blazing campfire with music and all to awaken the fire in me, ha! Going down Lynch hill with the triathlon backpack on and people all around on amazing bikes you can just feel that incredible vibe the magic this event brings.

After setting up transition, I had time to warm up and watch the pro's. I love the fact that these guys will suffer the same elements (hot weather, cold water temp, headwinds, etc). They lead by example when they kick off the race in the first wave to show us age groupers how it's really done. One of my favorite mantras goes along these same lines, 'shut up and ride'.

On the swim, I line up in front and enjoy the entry as everyone elbows for space. I'm comfortable in the water and enjoy contact sports. I stayed on the heels of the former high school/college swimmers as long as I could then did my best to navigate past the age groups who started in the waves in front of us. Personally, I find the swim does not test my max speed as much as it tests my navigational skills. I had a decent swim time and certainly had more fun than those in my way.

Things are looking good through T1 as I make my way out on the bike. My bike strategy was to conserve on the first hill then attack the 5 rollers that followed leading into mile 10 then max out on the aero section of the course for the next 30 miles. Overall, I played the bike course exactly as planned, conserving on both major hills and attaching on everything else. However, I came in just over my 3 hour bogie but given the massive headwinds it was on par for what I had expected to achieve. Toward the end of the course, we had a training partner reunion as Monte overtook me followed by us both overtaking Josh Polk. Yes, I did give Josh Polk the inevitable ass smakin' as I rode by which I had established as a training partner tradition our first year on the course. It worked and woke him up to finish the bike leg with me strong as we entered T2 together.

Out of the run gate at T2 my training partner Josh Polk took off given running is his strength. I employed some sound running strategy advice; 'keep him in your sights'. The first half of the run course includes the grueling hills and with each turn, it took everything in me to ensure he was still visible on the horizon. At the half way point on the run, there was my sanctuary, the Visalia Triathlon Club campsite with everyone there cheering. Its funny how the return on investment in people works and the karma coming back to me at this particular moment was more than I would have expected. Running through my camp triggered the negative split in me and my pace completely transformed into that second wind that just makes your race. Landon paced me and gave me my split, 5 minutes behind Polk. It was on and I kindled the motivation to grind up the hill knowing a long descent through the team in training campsite area was to follow. This move paid dividends and I caught Polk about mile 11. The two of us proceeded to pace to Lynch Hill where I found that 'extra gear' at the end of the race to bring it home. The finish line was lined with people, yelling and screaming and feeling good I simulated a slam dunk on the finish line clock. The best thing about today is how good I felt after, not injured or run down like the prior year and I'm so looking forward to keeping my #1 focus to stay consistent on a marathon training plan to work toward qualifying for Boston which in turn will also help me at the Vineman full end of year.