T-minus One Week

Bonjour from France.

My home for a week in France.

We're one week out from the 2012 edition of the IAU World Championship 100k which will be run just outside of Milan, Italy.  I have been in France for almost a week on a business trip.  I'll be flying straight to Italy on Thursday, which is really great since I won't have to worry about the effects of jet lag.  It took me a few nights in France to really get adjusted and sleeping well, but I've slept at least 8 hours the last couple of nights.  The food has some taken some adjustment also, but I'm doing well enough in that department.

Aiguillettes de canard (duck) foie gras.

I've been able to get in some nice runs, although I hesitate to consider it "training" because I am definitely in the taper phase right now.  I'm not really trying to add any fitness at this point.  I just want to get the legs 100% recovered and fresh, while not letting them forget how to run fast.  I did a 4x1mile workout on Wednesday and a light 6 mile tempo yesterday (Saturday).  Everything else has just been easy runs exploring the French countryside around where I'm staying.

My biggest issue is that my lower back has tightened down on me a little bit.  I'm sure this was caused by working all day at a laptop, in an unfamiliar chair, with poor posture.  It feels a lot better today than it has, so I'm confident that it won't be an issue by the time the race rolls around.  It constantly amazes me how sensitive my body is to such slight changes in the routine.  I'm supposed to be this incredibly fit athlete, and sitting in a chair the wrong way for a couple days throws me off.

I learned last year at the World Championship 100k race that the accommodations that are provided for the teams can be somewhat different than what I'm accustomed to.  It seems this year will be no different.  It appears that we'll be staying in a church retreat facility of some sort.  Plus, it's about 20 miles from the race start and up in the mountains as the picture below would indicate.  It might be more of a challenge getting some basic groceries at this place than it was last year.  I guess it's better than paying $300 a night in Milan though.  I'm really not a hotel snob; I just need access to food and wifi.  Is that too much to ask? 

Accommodations for Team USA in Italy.

For those of you asking about how to follow the race, the official website is http://iau-ultramarathon.org/.  I believe we'll be 6 hours ahead of ET time in the US, and with an 8AM start time, hopefully I'll be finishing around the time you are waking up.  Also, on twitter @iaunews says they will be providing live updates as well. While you're there, make sure you're following me as well: @rundavid1.  I know haven't been good about tweeting this week, because I haven't had a cell connection, but if I can find a wifi connection at the race, I'll try to send out some updates.

Ok, that's enough blogging.  I have more exploring to do in France.  Bon Journée.

One more thing for those that are interested.  This is what I've been doing for work over in France.  Attending a wind tunnel test to study the performance of a next generation jet engine inlet like the one below.

This is what I do for a living, design aircraft engine nacelles.

Time to Go

Today we are two weeks out from the IAU 100k World Championship race which will be contested just outside of Milan, Italy.  Tomorrow I leave on a business trip to France.  I'll be in France until next Thursday and then I'll fly straight to Milan for the race.  It's really quite amazing how well all this fell into place with a wind tunnel test being conducted just prior to the race.  It should allow the body plenty of time to acclimate to the new time zone.  Plus, the weather should be very similar where I'll be working and racing.

Almost packed.

I know I've been a little short on the updates lately but that's just because I've been so busy.  I was in Seattle last weekend for a wedding and had the opportunity to catch up with US 100k teammate Andy Henshaw while I was there.  Between that trip and preparing at work for this business trip, I haven't had much time to do anything besides work and run.  

But everything is going well.  Training this year has been really good, and I am confident that I'm in the best shape of my life.  I feel like I entered my taper phase for this race in a really good place.  I think last year before the 100k I was bordering on injury and overtraining when I began my taper.  I've been really smart this year and, while I'm tired, I haven't put my body in a hole.  I hope this shows in the result of the race.

For those of you who aren't aware, this won't be my first time running the 100km World Championship.  The 2011 race was last September in the Netherlands and it did not turn out well for me.  You can read my full race report here if you like, but the short story is that I caught some sort of bug before the race and was forced to drop out around halfway.  It was my first DNF ever, and it was really disappointing.  I hope to redeem myself for last year's poor performance and help team USA bring home the gold medal once again.

Early in the race last year.

In my final hard workout on US soil before the race, I donned my team USA uniform as a sort of dress rehearsal just to make sure everything fit properly and I didn't have any issues with chaffing.  Let me just say, it is really hard to keep the pace in check when you're wearing the US flag.  I feel like it gives me super-human powers and instantly makes me faster than I would be in any other uniform.  I can't help but feel an immense sense of pride when I represent this great country.   Hopefully I can channel that feeling and turn it into a worthy performance.

Some Sponsorship News

While this has been in the works for some time, I am excited to finally announce some sponsorship news for the 2012 racing season.

Before I get into the new news, I wanted to first give a quick shout-out to the folks at GU Energy.  I've been running for them for a couple years now and have relied on GU's nutrition products for all of my ultra wins and course records.  Their gels seem to get all of the attention, but the raspberry GU Brew electrolyte drink mix is my secret weapon.  The constant flow of calories and electrolytes keeps me running strong, especially when the gels just won't go down late in the race.  And I love the single serving packs that are so much more convenient for my crew to deal with when I'm racing.

Special delivery last week.

You might have also noticed that I recently added Swiftwick as my sock sponsor.  I ran my first race in Swiftwick socks at the Land Between the Lakes 50 miler (race report).  With the chilly temps at the start, I went with the Pursuit 12 merino wool compression sock.  It performed great even as the temperatures quickly climbed throughout the course of the race, a testament to the fantastic temperature regulating property of merino wool.  In addition to their wicking abilities and compression, one of my favorite things about Swiftwick socks is that they are made right here at home in the USA. 

Donning the Swiftwick Pursuit 12's before LBL50.

Now, I am especially excited to let everyone know that this year I'll be running for Salomon as my trail shoe and apparel sponsor.  After watching the great things Salomon has been doing on the trail and ultra running scenes, I finally had an opportunity to try out some of their gear for myself.  Not surprisingly, I found Salomon's reputation for producing high-quality and innovative products was well-deserved.  I've been wearing their Speedcross 3 shoes on the trails for the last few months.  My win and course record at Land Between the Lakes 50 miler was run in that pair of shoes.  The Speedcross is very well cushioned and I have found the heel-to-toe transition to be silky smooth.  If it weren't for the aggressive outsole lug pattern, I would wear these shoes to run on the roads.  Of course, that lug pattern gives them great grip on the muddy trails that have been persistent in the Midwest of late.

Speedcross 3

I just received my first shipment of team apparel and gear this week.  Although I've never run with a hydration pack before, I am really excited to try out the S-Lab Advanced Skin Pack.  The reviews have been fantastic and it seems to fit very well just trying it on around the house.  The real test though will be how it performs on the trails.

S-Lab Advanced Skin Pack

Speaking of exciting new products, Salomon is about to release a new shoe.  If you are an active member of the trail/ultra community and you haven't heard of the Sense, you must be living under a rock.  Salomon is hosting a live event tomorrow (Monday, 3/26/12), featuring Kilian Jornet, to officially introduce the Sense.  Weighing in at only 6.5 oz, the Sense was designed specifically based on Kilian's needs for the Western States 100 mile trail run.

As if it needs an introduction.  The Salomon Sense.

You see why I am getting excited here?  I am running Western States this year.  Kilian is running Western States.  We'll both be running for team Salomon.  Salomon will have a brand new shoe tailored for the WS trails.  In addition to Kilian, Miguel Heras and Ryan Sandes from the international Salomon team are currently entered in Western States.  No pressure, right?  I haven't gotten a pair of the Sense on my feet yet, but word is that it won't be too much longer.  While I am obviously optimistic, I definitely will have to thoroughly test out the Sense to make sure it's a good fit for me at Western States.  Seeing how I adjust to the low 4mm heel-to-toe drop will be of particular interest.

But before we get to Western States, I need to be mentally preparing myself for the IAU World Championship 100k as it is the next race on my calendar.  Physical preparation has gone extremely well thus far.  LBL50 two weeks ago was a great checkpoint race, and after a little recovery week, I was back at 105 miles this week.  This week included a 3x3200m track workout and a 25 mile fast progression run followed the next day by a 20 miler.  I'll do one more hard week before beginning my 3 week taper leading into the 100k in Italy.  Another exciting turn of events is that work is sending me to France to cover a test right before the 100k.  So I'll have plenty of time to acclimate before flying straight from France to Milan to meet up with the rest of the US team.

I'll leave you with this.  You've probably already seen this video, but it's worth another watch, I promise.

 

Land Between the Lakes 50 Mile

A sweet sterling silver belt buckle was the award for the CR.

It's good to occasionally use races as training runs or tune-ups for bigger goal races.  It's also a good idea to actually remember on "race day" that you intend to use the race only as a hard workout.  I forgot that little detail on Saturday at the Land Between the Lakes 50 mile trail run.

Now, I don't think there will be any long-term physical consequences; the issue is that I didn't mentally acknowledge that I wouldn't be 100% fresh and I should have factored that into my race plan and goals.  I also conveniently forgot to keep all that in mind after the race yesterday.  I was physically feeling banged up and mentally not all there.  Weird huh?  Who would have thought that running 50 miles could play with your emotions?  Even though I had just finished in 5:53, won the race and broke the course record by nearly half an hour, I was disappointed.

My smile hides how cold I was at the start.

Well, I can happily report that the day following the race I am thinking much more clearly.  I still will say that it wasn't a perfect day, but the reasons for that are pretty obvious to me now.  In the end, it's encouraging to know I ran 7:04 pace in 50 mile trail race and didn't feel like I had a great day.  The fitness is there.  I just have a few kinks to work out.

So, what did I do wrong?

1) I ran positive splits.  I am usually very good about running even splits, or even negative splitting, and I know from experience that I feel much better when I run this way.  But with the loop course setup allowing several shorter distance races to be run concurrently, I stupidly allowed myself to get caught up racing folks who were in shorter races.  I ran 4 loops on the trail with each being about 11 miles a piece.  My final loop was over 10 minutes slower than my first.  Not how I like to do things.

2) My taper was minimal at best.  And that's fine — that was the plan.  I just need to do a better job of adjusting my expectations accordingly.

3) I didn't bring a crew with me to this race so I was effectively self-supported, and that's something I'm not entirely accustomed to.  The volunteers were great as usual, but it's just not the same as having your normal handler there.  Being able to roll through aid stations like I could at JFK is easily worth several minutes in the end.  I failed to take that into consideration yesterday when evaluating my performance.

4) My nutrition plan still needs some work.  The first 3 points are pretty easy to fix.  This one may be a little more difficult.

Although I am hard on myself, I must be realistic and admit that it was a pretty good day altogether.  The weather was perfect.  The trail was amazingly dry in spite of the recent rains.  The course was also quite runnable assuming you could avoid the numerous exposed roots.  There were lots of little rhythm-busting up and downs, but no major climbs to speak of.

Elevation profile from my Garmin 405 showing 3500' of climb.

I had no major issues with gear.  My Swiftwick merino wool socks performed wonderfully, providing additional warmth during the first few chilly hours of racing, and then compression without overheating later in the race.  I also raced in a pair of Salomon Speedcross 3s for the first time.  They have a more aggressive lug pattern than was really necessary for this race, but they are also surprisingly comfortable on the roads.

Amanda finishing a loop.

I also want to give a quick shout-out to the winner of the women's 50 mile race, Amanda Lindsey.  She also lives near Cincinnati, and while she's an experienced triathlete, this was her first ultra run.  She asked for a few tips prior to the race, followed my advice to perfection, and was able to pull out the win.  (I wish I had followed my own advice.)  I think you'll be seeing her name atop the results of quite a few ultras in the future.  You've been warned.

So, a big thanks to the Durbin brothers for putting on a great race.  And thanks to Grand Rivers, KY for hosting a bunch of crazy ultra runners for a weekend.  That's definitely a place where I could spend a long weekend on the lake.  And now I know where to find the trails.

Mile High

Now that I'm finally getting a chance to breathe a little, I thought I should update my training and share some pictures from a fun run yesterday.  But first, let me explain how I got the chance to run in Boulder.

Everything has been going well since I last wrote my Mountain Mist race report, but this week has been really busy.  I'm in Colorado as I write this post, which is the reason I have been so busy this week, but that's also why I can finally relax a little now. My wife interviewed for a fellowship position at Children's Hospital Colorado today.  I know, exciting isn't it?  But, don't get too excited just yet.  The possible move is still a long way off, and to be honest, I think the odds are pretty low that we leave Cincinnati this go round. It's a complicated situation that I won't go into detail about here, but I will keep everyone posted as decisions get made.  

But, this is a running blog, so let's talk some shop. Being an unusual week with travel and time out of the office significantly impacts my running routine. I've gotten relatively comfortable working 40 hr weeks while running 100 mpw. It's tough to maintain that level of training though when the schedule is thrown off due to travel. I started adjusting last week switching my back-to-back long runs to Friday and Saturday instead of the normal Saturday-Sunday. Then I front-loaded this week with more mileage than usual because I know my mileage will suffer this weekend (because I'll be skiing). On top of the additional mileage, I was also spending extra hours at my day job trying to get in some comp time and save as much vacation time as I could. Plus I still had to pack for the trip. That all makes David a pretty stressed out guy. But, now I can breath.

Don't feel too sorry for me though. Listen to what my wife had to do. She got up at 5:30am on Wednesday and went in to work a 30 hour call shift at the hospital.  She only got a 45 minute teaser nap Wednesday night.  She goes home Thursday morning, packs her stuff, picks me up from work at noon, then we drive to the airport and fly out. We figured that she'd been up for basically 40 hours straight before she was finally able to fall asleep in the hotel room in Denver. And this is the day before one of the biggest interviews of her life! After a full day at the hospital tomorrow, we'll head out to the slopes and ski hard this weekend. Fly home Sunday night, and Monday morning she goes back in for another 30 hour call shift! See, I told you that you shouldn't feel sorry for me.

The shifted schedule has definitely taken it's toll on my legs though. I ran a hard 24 mile progression run last Saturday and didn't get my usual short and very easy Monday run this week. Tuesday I hammered some hill repeats with the local track workout group. Then came back Wednesday with an 18 mile run.  The legs are definitely toast, but the story isn't over. I'm still attempting to get to 100 miles again this week. It won't be on singles though. One time I actually like to do two runs in a day is when I travel. I like to run before I travel just to make sure I get something in just in case I were to get stranded at the airport or something. But I also like to run in the evening, after I have reached my destination to shake out the stiffness that inevitably results from a long day of travel. So, I hit the hotel treadmill after we got settled into our room.

Her Friday interview basically left me with a free day, so I made a beeline up to Boulder to find some fun trails to run. I went fishing for some running buddies since Krupicka, Mackey, and Jurek are all in the Boulder area right now. Unfortunately Krupicka is still nursing a sore leg, and Jurek's schedule didn't allow us to hook up. But, Mackey and his friend Jeff Valliere were up for giving me a guided tour of Green Mt.

It was an eye-opening experience for me. I expected the climbing to be tough, since I don't have access to mountains like these to train on. But the snow made things extra tough. A set of microspikes would have been nice, but I don't think it would have been a game changer. I struggled with the variability of the snow conditions. Sometimes the snow was packed and smooth but the next second we'd be postholing.  The trail was also icy at times, or packed irregularly which made turning an ankle really easy. Never knowing what to expect for the next step was tough. My words can't do it justice though.  You'd just have to try it yourself.

I had so much fun though, after and hour and half with Dave and Jeff, I headed back out alone to explore Flagstaff Mountain.  Check out the pictures from my adventure below.

The Flatirons.

Me, from the top of Green Mt with a very small city of Boulder in the background.

Dave Mackey

Jeff Valliere on the peak of Green Mt.

I think that's Bear peak in the background.

Looking forward to riding Salomon again tomorrow.