Georgia Death Race Training Camp

So, my upcoming spring A race is the Georgia Death Race. It's a 68 (ish) mile race from Vogel State Park to Amicalola Falls State Park in North Georgia.  I say 'ish' since it's acknowledged by the RD that it at least 72 miles, if not more.  This year, the RD decided to host a training camp for a few lucky folks.  We would get a bunk bed (or private room), breakfast, and transportation to/from the trailheads.  It was modeled after Western States Training Run, and was sure to be a good learning experience.  almost 30 miles on the trails the race was going to be on over two days.  I was able to snag a double room, so dragged Mark along for the fun, as it was open to anyone who paid, not just those participating in the race.

We've learned after living in OH for many years, you do not plan on flying in Feb, especially on a cross country trip.  So when we originally scheduled this trip, we fully expected to drive.  What a surprise we had when the weather was predicting temperatures in the 60's.  We decided to take advantage of the original plan to drive and fly down on Thurs afternoon.  That gave us a chance to play some golf!

Achasta Golf Course in Dahlonega, GA.

Then on to training camp. at the Hiker Hostel.  This was a cool place.  Lee and Josh thru hiked the AT a few years ago and decided to open up a hostel nearby to help other hikers get to the AT start at Springer Mtn.  Josh also is the RD for Cruel Jewel 50 and 100 miler (actually 56 and 106).  Our Cabin:

Day 1 was going to be a challenging 13 miles, with the option to go an additional 2.5 out to another gap on the course and return (total of 18 miles).  We would start at the start line and make those first big climbs up Coosa Bald to the Duncan Ridge Trail that we will not see during the race due to the the early start of 5 am.  The weather, while not freezing, did us no favors and it rained off and on for most of the day.  Trail was pretty good, very narrow in places, and there were some pretty steep slopes, both up and down, but very fun trails to run.

Day 2 had us going to Nimblewill and running to the finish (with a short detour to run the AT connector).  I started with Mark since I didn't want him to be alone today, so hiked up the road.  It will be interesting since it's a lower grade, but still uphill and mile 60ish.  Once we got to the top, it was runable and even downhill for the most part.  Mark went with one of the other RDs and continued running a different route.  He completed about 11 miles, but at his pace.

It started out a bit foggy (photo courtesy of Run Bum):

But later cleared up:

However, then we get to the really cruel part...we get to the bottom of the park and can see the finish line across the parking lot, but do we get to go there.  Nope, up to the top of the falls and back down.  Including a cumulative 600 stairs going up to the top, back down via trails.  That's going to be interesting at the end and in the dark.

View from mid-fall (courtesy of Mark):

Then the next set of stairs...

Looking back down to where we started...

Finally we must cross the river to finish (despite there being a perfectly good bridge)

This was a big week for me:  13 hrs, 58 miles and 10,100 ft of climbing.  Wow!  My quads are a bit sore this evening, but really nothing too bad.  Maybe all the squats are paying off.

Less than 6 weeks till GDR.  I've got my spike and can't wait to give it back to Run Bum for an engraved one at the end.

Power Lines and Friends

Today we drove down to Cincinnati to meet up with some friends to run in Mt Airy Forest and do the power line run.  I've been wanting to run back down there since running a Stone Steps Fat Ass a few years ago.  I'm not familiar with the trails, so having others is helpful.  Also, I needed to get some good climbing in, and running the power lines was a perfect way to do that!

It's amazing how many people I have met here in OH that run trails.  It is a great community of runners and I love it!  There were a few people that I haven't seen in ages, and we picked up like we've been running together each week.  It was also nice to meet some new folks as well.

I was able to get Mark to come out for the first 5 miles of the course, and at one time he was leading us.  Neither of us are sure how he ended up there, but he did good.

After the first 5 mile loop, we headed off to the power lines.  And they didn't disappoint....

What a fun day, we even got to see Nancy at the end of her power line power hike!

Proof that I completed the entire track, touching "Nancy's Fence" (PC Mike Rioux):

For lunch, we decided to forgo the post-run beer, since we wanted to enjoy the great weather and go flying for a bit.  He needed some instrument approaches, so we went out and did some flying.  

Since I don't plan to run tomorrow, here are this week's stats:

37.6 miles, 8 hours and 4000 feet.  I was feeling tired and have either a sinus infection or a head cold, so I didn't run as much as I had expected, but it was a good week. 

Here's hoping to getting a chance to fly next week to GDR Training Camp.  I'm excited to see some of the course.

Hayes Arboretum Trail Run

Today I ran a trail marathon in Indiana.  I originally wanted to run Louisville Lovin' the Hills, but we had tickets to the Dayton Symphony to hear Mahler's Fifth and the logistics to get to Louisville for an 0800 start were just too complicated.  I didn't want to miss the symphony, but needed a marathon or longer run as part of my training for Georgia Death Race.

Another member of a ultra Facebook group suggested the Hayes Arboretum Trail Run in Richmond, IN.  This is the second year of running this event, but it was so well done that one would think it's been around for a lot longer.  There were three options of +10k, 1/2 marathon and full marathon.  Although, I tend to shy away from looped courses, I signed up for the marathon.  Each loop was around 6.55 miles, meaning 4 loops for the marathon.  I tried to get Mark to to the half marathon option, but the weather was pretty cold.  Turns out the Nature Center would be open for him to relax and keep warm while waiting for me to finish.  Now we know for next time.

I had a great time.  We had a great showing from the Dayton area for the races, and it was fun catching up with some friends that I haven't seen in a while.  The temps were in the mid-teens at start and rose to the low 30's by the end.  I hate this temperature range, as I don't know how to dress.  Every time I wanted to take off my jacket the wind would blow and convince me otherwise. 

Looking at the course map and elevation, I was thinking that if I could hold even 1:10 laps, then I should be able to finish in about 4:40.  Per normal for me, I went out faster than that, getting caught up with the 1/2 marathoner's and 10k folks.  It felt slower than normal, so I was thinking all was good.  I finished the first loop in 1:07, so a bit fast, but not too much.  The second lap turned out to be exactly the same at 1:07, despite stopping to help a couple of people who took some pretty bad falls.  My 1/2 marathon time was 2:14 ish, and I was still feeling good and loose.  

On the 3rd loop, it would be my turn to take a fall, on the same root that one of the folks from earlier had hit.  This was my first bad spill in a while.  My knee was cut and my shin is going to have a doozy of a bruise. I tried to hit this same root again on the 4th loop, but thankfully missed.  I did slow down a bit on this one, but not much, as I finished it in 1:10.

On the 4th loop, my stomach started to turn sour.  I carried my handheld full of tailwind and was taking water at the aid stations, in addition to cookies and pretzels.  Luckily, I had a ginger chew in one of the pouches of the handheld, and although hard, was extremely helpful.  it settled my tummy and kept me moving.  I managed to finish that lap in 1:10 as well.

Overall, I finished in 4:34, better than my goal.  At one point, I considered going out for a 5 loop, given that I had plenty of time, but decided against it (that thought was wiped out when I 'wiped out').  

I would highly recommend this race.  The course was extremely well marked.  I even zoned out at one point and almost ran into the tape going across a section I wasn't supposed to run on.  The RD mentioned that he modeled the race after both the ORRRC and Topo races.  There were two aid stations, one at the start/finish and one about 3 miles in.  While they had basic options, there were plenty of helpful volunteers and a good vibe throughout, with fires going and even port-a-lets.  In my opinion, he did a great job.

My GPS showed just over 27 miles with 2500' elevation gain.  The course was fun, winding back and forth over the bike trails and switchbacks.  About 1/3 of the loop was gravel road, but it was smooth gravel, although lots of rocks.  

This week's stats:
4 runs (3 days) for 55 miles, 10:22 total time, 6300' elevation gain.  Not a bad week.

Thoughts on Over-Training

I think that I am over-training.  I hinted at this in my first post, but I am bit more convinced now.  The bad thing is that I don't feel like I am over-training.  I'm enjoying my runs (except for having to pull up my tights every two minutes on Monday, but that is another story).  I ran almost ~188 miles in Jan, almost (but not quite) double my normal mileage.  Yes, my legs are tired, but that's a price to pay when running that much, right?  Well, to a point.

So why do I think I'm over-training?  Little things.  I've noticed my back is starting to hurt again after not bothering me for a few weeks, and my lower calf, which hasn't cramped since I retired, is giving me fits at all hours.  Finally, there's my heart rate.

I've joined a indoor cycling studio to add to my cardio without the pounding of running.  They project a profile and the goal is to get your HR to match the profile.  Spinning with a purpose.  My hope was to use these high intensity rides to avoid doing speed workouts on the track.  Last year, I was doing pretty good on keeping in the zones.   However, so far this year, I have been unable to get my HR to the higher zones.  At least yesterday, I teetered on the 80% line.  Two weeks earlier I couldn't even get there.   Forget going to the 90% anaerobic.  That wasn't going to happen.

So afterwards, I asked the owner what could be causing this.  He showed me two identical rides that he did on two consecutive days.  The difference in his ability to get to the zones on the second.  It's the body's way of telling you to rest.  And big surprise, trying to push hard after running for 4 hours the day prior was just not going to happen.  (I completely forgot at the time that I had also run on Sunday with Mark for almost 3 hours).  Yep, I was tired.

Time to rethink my training strategy.  I was trying to use Training Stress Load to set a fitness goal for each of my A races, but given where I am right now, I may have been too aggressive.  Today I changed my workout to a hike with the camera rather than the run that was originally planned.  I'm also re-arranging some of my workouts for next week, adding shorter runs in rather than the long ones and making sure that I have a rest day prior to a cycle day.  I'll have a coach as I start training for the Bear in May, so maybe that will help me avoid this.

From Jason Koop's book Training Essentials for Ultrarunning, he recommends a min-max approach to those with limited times.  For a 100 mile or 100k, he recommends a minimum maximum of 9 hours per week for 6 weeks, starting 9 weeks before your goal race.  As I look back on my other races, I didn't have time to train like I do now, yet I successfully completed them. I doubt I did 9 hours of running (I never cross-trained).  I would do one long run on the weekend and shorter, but harder runs on the weekdays.  If I was running during work, I'd do just over 4 miles, but the pace was at the 8-8.5 min/mile pace. I'd try to get my 6 mile trail run prior to work as far under an hour as I could, pressing harder each run.

I am now doing more trails running and they are longer.  When I do the 6 mile loop, it's with Mark so we have a chance to run together, so it's not as hard (but still we try to get as close to an hour as we can).  This week alone, I have two runs over 4 hours scheduled.  I have however, started to add a hill workout into the mix to get some climbing.  However, I haven't run on the pavement for over 2 weeks.

It has been said that it is better to go into the race slightly under-trained than over-trained. I need to take this advice to heart and slow down and focus.

On the good news side, I did take some nice photos today.