Countdown....

....to Knee Knacker. Less than three days to the lottery on March 6. Let's hope my luck is better than Western States. I'm one of 320 vying for 200 spots so the odds are better this time.

The Dirty Duo 50km

The Dirty Duo is quite a unique event. There are many choices to participate in:

15km run
25km run
30km bike
25km run + 30km bike as a relay team
25km run + 30km bike as a solo
50km run

Something for everyone. I chose, surprise, surprise, the 50km. I received this entry in a draw at the 2006 Haney to Harrison race but couldn't use it last year so Heather MacDonald graciously let it carry over to this year. I'm glad I did it.
I'm two for two in the beautiful weather department for racing this year. For the beginning of March we were greeted with overcast skies but no rain. The sun came out briefly on the run and more afterwards.
Again I was treating this day more as a training session but wanted to slightly push the pace but still have the legs feel less thrashed than Orcas Island. A lot to ask for and all have come together for one event. I talked with a few people whom I hadn't seen in a while - Matt Sessions and Bruce Grant to name a couple. Both are fabulous athletes that I plan to extract as much ultra expertise from as I can over the next few races. Matt is even venturing into Ironman territory this August in Penticton. Get on the bike, man, for goodness sakes!!
I drove up with Scott Corsie who was doing the relay, as the runner, with another Burnaby Fire Fighter, Greg, riding the 30km.
There were a few speedsters starting out, namely Matt, who did a 100 miler in Texas a month ago but looked amazingly strong and light going up the first steep stair sections. I thought about keeping him in sight but kept the mantra, "Chuckanut in two weeks, Chuckanut in two weeks", repeating in my head to slow myself down. It worked because I never felt over-extended in the first few miles and, again, walked the steep sections or at least walk/ran them.
After a couple of miles I figured I was in third place after passing Jen Segger from Squamish, first woman at Orcas Island and the youngest competitor in Badwater this July at 27. As it turned out today she was third overall. I ran on my own for a number of miles, always worried if I was on the right track, grateful every time I saw the orange flagging tape. There was never a real worry as the course turned out to be very well marked (nonetheless I took a map this time, lesson learned from Orcas Island). I never really thought to be in contention as a top finisher as I was only on a "training" run. Even so, going up a the long steep Old Buck trail the aid station personnel informed me I wasn't far behind the leaders. The competitor switch turned on and it only got worse when I could see Matt and someone else way up the hill in front of me. Turning onto the Baden-Powell trail the second place guy was even closer, with Matt still floating up there the same distance away.
I think it was around eight miles when I went into second place, right in the snowiest part of the route. There was a lonely outpost of an aid station up there that made me feel glad to be moving and warm. After that it was a steep, technical downhill through Ned's that I caught and passed Matt. I'm not overly great at the downs but for some reason I felt really good - feet landing okay and seeing the trail well ahead.
At the Gazebo aid station I grabbed my two other bottles and left with Matt about one hundred feet behind me. One volunteer directed me where to go as there wasn't a person manning the turn back into the woods about a kilometre down the road. I wasn't sure where I was turning off but sure enough when the time came it was so well-marked there was no way to miss it.
I took off through this loop and after a couple miles we reversed down the same path to do a second loop of Old Buck, Ned's, back to the Gazebo. My footing on Ned's wasn't like the first time, fatigue setting in, slowing me down so I wouldn't go down.
Once past the Gazebo it was a few miles to go but they were TOUGH miles. After some flats we had to go up and down and up again stairs and more stairs. It was the Grouse Grind of stairs. Then it was past the last little aid station where two girls directed me down the path saying, "You're almost there now". I've heard that once or twice in races and never trust it. This was a very muddy section that zig-zagged through a swamp and you felt like you weren't geting anywhere. Once through that and into the sunlight it was all down hill to the finish. Time 4:11.
I couldn't believe how good my legs felt on the flats at the end. I definitely felt tired on the last sets of stairs but all in all I was in good shape. Even Sunday and today I felt none of the soreness like Orcas. Maybe the trick is to race every couple weeks. Wait a minute, I'm doing that anyways.
Scott had already finished his 25km run and we were waiting for Greg to come in. Finally we saw him finish and he described his day of getting lost and climbing numerous switchbacks, bike on shoulder, for no reason other than to find the course again.
This was the first race that I taped my toes and the balls of my feet. I did it for my interval training last week but knew that the feet take more of a beating through the trails. All in all it worked well with no blisters. I'll try again at Chuckanut to see if it works again. Pictures from the website to follow shortly.

Thank you to Heather MacDonald for the picture!

Only 1161 kms to go ...

1211 kms of racing

If all goes well this year and I make the lottery for Knee Knacker in a few days AND decide to do the Stormy 50mile one week after the Canadian Death Race, the year's racing will total 1211 kilometres. If no KK or Stormy then it's a mere 1081. That's more mileage raced in a year than even my biggest triathlon year, and that's all three disciplines, not just running. Hopefully this isn't an injury waiting to happen.
So why am I finding it as hard or harder to get in all the training doing six or seven workouts a week when I used to do up to thirteen during triathlon training? I think I have more on the go right now and also usually have to drive a distance to get my long runs in the trails which takes up the whole day. Not that I'm complaining. There's more people out there who don't have the time and want to run and be active than those who have time yet sit around mostly. There's no part-time job I'd rather have right now than running. Of course, the pay could be better....

Aldergrove Mud(?) Run

Last Sunday was the 8km Aldergrove Mud Run. In the past years I've done this event it's lived up to it's name but with about ten days of little precipitation, it was a much different run. The trails were dry and the weather perfect. I had planned to do a 24km Diez Vista training race on that day but due to the lingering snow at the higher levels (the story of this winter), it was cancelled. Too bad because I would have liked to see some of that course again before the race. I guess I'll be going up there solo in a few weeks when it clears out.
So I decided to do the Mud Run as it's put on by Peninsula Runners and it looks good to fly the colours when I can. I decided to do it as a three lap run but at a faster pace than a simple training run. Maybe 80% speed or so. I could get used to this "easier" pace and way of thinking when it comes to racing - no stress, no time worries. It's nice. I do need to get my killer instinct back if I want to have some success in the shorter races.
I started out in the middle and let a bunch of people go ahead. After settling in to a pace, I started passing them. Funny how that works. Going out hard is not all it's cracked up to be. I finished the first lap in 33:08, three minutes slower than two years ago but still good for 9th place out of 161. Lisa took my tag from my number and I carried on. I had a few comments from folks as we crossed paths out there. Mostly disbelief that I'd be doing another lap or shouts of encouragement from those who thought I was still racing. Good times.
By the time I finished my third lap the crowds were dispersing after the awards and draw prizes. A solid run (bad memory, forgot the GPS) in 1:45, much easier than a trip through the Diez course but that'll be for another day.

Orcas Island 50km "Race"

My prayers were answered in regards to the weather for the 50 km run on Orcas Island last Sunday. The sun was beautiful and even a little warm when you were standing in it. I was praying for decent weather, not for me running, but for Carrie and the kids watching. It would have been tough facing Hannah and Elias afterwards if it was pouring rain and they were stuck inside the whole time. The ferry ride and drive home would have been even more fun than that.


We arrived at Camp Moran, an old summer camp, around 4:30 on Saturday and set out making our dinner in the huge industrial kitchen before the rush to use it came. We got settled into our cabin, comprised of seven bunk beds and a bathroom, soon after. We shared our cabin with Jeff and Debbie from Oregon. They had three kids of their own. We didn't see them much as we were doing our own dinner preps and eating and watching the running movies playing in the huge dining room. After that we bedded down at 8:30 in the cool cabin as the heaters didn't seem to want to perform as intended. It was a most chilly night with all of us in touques and dressed fully in warm clothes. I was jealous of the kids' new mummy sleeping bags we just got for them, my ten-year old Canadian Tire special just not cutting it. We were all so tired that it didn't matter much.



It was quite cold in the morning as well but I opted for shorts as I always warm up when I run. A few people doing the 50 started early at 7:30 while the rest of the 25km and 50km racers left at 8:30. I didn't know who was doing which race so didn't try to keep up with any of them. The goal of this "race" was to make it a simple training run and finish feeling good and not too thrashed. It was a big step in my running year as this kicked off a busy schedule of runs and races. I was excited that my plans were being executed and with such a beautiful day it couldn't have been more perfect.




At the two mile mark my toque came off while climbing a huge goat path that was barely discernable save for the flagging tape for general direction. What treated us at the top was an equally steep downhill - one of those roads that you either walked or had to fly down. The legs felt pretty rubbery for a few miles afterwards and I was concerned because we would be doing those hills again on the second loop. The race was supposed to be more of a single loop but that course took us up to elevations where there was still a lot of snow so the race director, James Varner, decided to make an "easier" two-loop course of lower elevation. It turned out that what we did had only 600 feet less climbing (6400') than the regular course. I got to practise my power walking up the steeper hills, as hard for me to stop that it is. I think that's a big reason why my legs felt fresher at the end than a usual race. I even walked when others around me were still running!! Funny thing is that they didn't get much farther ahead of me.


I was running with Miles Ohlrich from Seattle towards the end of the first 25km. At the end of that loop I got new bottles from Carrie and I reapplied the lube on my toes. I was starting to get hot spots so decided to try and hold them off for longer. It worked because at the end I had no blisters and my feet felt great. Could be because I have only four toenails out of ten at the moment.

Used with permission from Glenn Tachiyama

I caught up with Miles which helped me endure the second trip around. We chatted the whole way with finishing being first and foremost in our plans. As it turned out we were in third place most of the second lap but an errant turn (my fault) took us a mile off course until we realised our mistake. Both of us being out of water didn't make us any more happier but we got back on track nicely and ended up tied for ninth.


I was happy that I was able to push at a moderate pace and not be dead at the end of it all. It was awesome to have the family at the end to greet me and the kids enjoyed playing with other kids while they waited. The ferry and drive home was good as well until we hit the border where we proceeded to crawl through for an hour and forty minutes. All you can do is laugh.

I Feel Dirty

I've done something that I never thought I would do. I feel strangely dirty, almost the need to take a shower or go to the confessional. It's something millions of people have done in the past, but it was always a thing I said I didn't want to and wouldn't ever do: I bought a cell phone. We've had one in the past but it was an emergency one only. It was a huge, heavy old boat anchor that worked like a phone and that was it. No camera, texting, internet, mp3, etc.
Now I know most of you are let down by this build up because chances are you own one of these devils. I never had the need to have a communication device stuck to my hip 24 hours a day. If worse came to worst, I would go to a pay phone (which are pretty much obsolete now) or to a gas station and ask to use their phone. OR I would simply ask the first person I saw if I could use THIER cell phone and guess what? 99.9% of the time that person had one.
I don't have a business where suppliers or employees are in need to talk to me RIGHT NOW!! Anyone who needs to get hold of me can leave a message at my home phone and I'd get it eventually. Frankly I don't want to be called anytime anywhere by just anyone. One of my pet peeves is people who drive and talk at the same time. So I leave the parking lot with my new phone and what do I feel the strange urge to do? Call someone while I'm driving!! It's a demon alright.
Now with the kids getting older, it is handy if they need to call me from somewhere and that's an advantage. It's also helpful being semi-lost running on a mountain needed to phone for directions or for help or someone to pick up the kids from school which happened a few weeks ago. Scott Corsie and me were in Chuckanut and headed back kind of late with a big border line-up as the icing on the cake. He had a cell phone (remember the 99.9%?) and I called the kids' school.
Anyways, I now can be reached at all hours day and night so if you think you may need to have that convenience, email me and I'll send you the number. I'll answer, of course, as long as I remembered to take it with me.

Winter riding

Back in the fall, when triathlon season ended, I was going to write an article on "Ten Reasons I'm Not Going to Miss Riding". Things like, "Taking twenty minutes to get the six layers of clothes on", "Accumulating an extra few pounds when every stitch of clothing is soaked", "Changing flats in the cold and/or wet", and "Not having to deal with the horrendous traffic". I never really got around to it and for some reason, every time I've gone out this year, as a means of cross training, I haven't felt the need to go through with the writing of it. Maybe because I can pick and choose my days to stay out of the wet or extreme cold, or it's just that I feel no pressure or guilt if I don't make my prearranged times on the bike. I don't mind getting dressed and it's my old adage that once you're soaked, you're not going to get any more wet.
As it's simply a way of recovering from a long run, I can sit and spin and take in the scenery without worrying about distance or average speed when I'm done. The worse I've been in was a month ago when it was about two below and I lasted two hours. Last week I headed out east with a glorious tailwind, feeling great. Then some of those old negative emotions crept in when I turned to come back and the wind was full on in my face and the skies opened up. The rain lasted only a short time and then it was only my soaking self and thirty kilometres to go. At the end it still added up to a great day. Today I did two hours in seven degree temperatures and it felt like spring was beginning to beat back winter. How much riding I do is up to Coach Ian, but I think my head is in the right place for it.