Deep thoughts at the end of the running year

It's been a good year for running. There's been elation, disaster, recovery, comedy, self-discovery, friendship, a little of everything. It was the first year I ran trails in a serious way, the first year I did an ultra, the first year I ran socially. I'm still enjoying an "off season", though I am looking ahead to January, when I'll start gearing up the long runs again. In the meantime, I've been reflecting a little on things I learned this year. In no particular order, a few insights:

1. I can do this. At the beginning of the year, my major goal was to train for and run a 50K trail race. Spring Superior 50K, in May, was a huge achievement for me. As the year evolved, other plans came up: recover from my broken elbow, run with friends on trails, volunteer, run in beautiful places. I recovered from iron deficiency anemia and trained for and ran two more 50K races, Wild Duluth and Icebox 480. At the end of the year, I can say that I can run 50Ks. And that's not something I knew a year ago.

Spring Superior!

Wild Duluth!

Icebox 480! I swear I actually own more than one shirt.

2. I am a lazy runner. I can run all day. No, literally, all day (or at least, 8 hours). Hey, all you need to do that is time (and Larabars). But running fast? Hoo boy, that hurts. I did no speedwork this year -- basically, it was all endurance mode, all the time. I know I've got another gear and that I can go faster (heck, I did it last week on the track), but I've got to overcome my natural inclination to keep it easy all the time.

Endless Summer Murphy 10K with Amy.
Ran this one as hard as I could in the heat.

3. There are things I'm good at. On trails, I get passed going up hills, but pass lots of people on the descents. Somewhere along the way, I actually figured out something about descents! Even if I'm not going fast, I can keep moving for a long time. I've figured out how and what to eat and drink, most of the time. And I have a very high pain threshold (but am finally figuring out the difference between pain I should run through, and pain that should make me stop).

Zumbro 17 mile. Broke my right elbow at mile 2.

You don't want this kind of race bling.

4. Running long on trails = no overuse injuries! Looking back at my training logs from the last few years, I noted when I was having pain. Achilles tendon, plantar fascia, posterior knee tendon, hamstring -- they've all been a little "tweaky" at one time or another. I'd rest, maybe ice, do water running, and if all else failed go see my excellent ART guy. Looking back at this year, though, the last time I saw him was way back in May! He fixed some early PF a few days before Spring Superior. Since then -- and, not coincidentally, since I started doing long runs exclusively on trail -- I've had a few minor ouches and tweaks here and there, but nothing that kept me away from running for more than a couple of days.

I'm pretty sure other things have helped too. I started paying serious attention to my core and posterior chain (calves, hamstrings, glutes) last fall when I began doing kettlebell classes at the YWCA. I started doing a lot more yoga around the same time. I keep a foam roller in my office as well as one at home, and I use them. A lot. The added strength and flexibility are making a big difference in my injury-free running.

Courtyard yoga!

... and some box jumps for fun.

5. The races will still be there next year. I signed up for the TC Marathon this year. Sort of trained for it, but iron deficiency anemia really sidetracked my late-summer running. Despite the fact that I was heading into race week with my last long road run two months previous (and only 11 miles, and it damn near killed me), it was still a major internal struggle to decide not to run it. Heather over at relentlessforwardcommotion has talked about FOMO, or fear of missing out, as an impetus to do things you shouldn't/wouldn't/aren't ready for. Her essay on it came at just the right time, and I kept reminding myself: The race will still be there next year.

I had a little FOMO over the last few weeks, as Frontrunner Sports did their Black Friday discounted entries into the Chippewa 50K and I didn't sign up, and then worse the other weekend when registration for the Ice Age 50 Mile filled in just a couple of hours. Spring is not a good time for me to train for a 50 miler, but still, it was hard to let the idea go. I just have to remember, I've only been doing this a year. There are years and years of great races ahead of me. Deep breaths.

Deena did the TC Marathon (her first) and killed it!
So much fun to do some training runs with you.

Those are some of my insights from the 2013 year in running. What's next? I'm not so big into "new year goals". Why pick an arbitrary time -- the change of the calendar -- to decide what to do next? But I'm pretty sure the coming year will include more trails, more weights, and hopefully some more speed. The most important thing is that it includes lots of runs in beautiful places, alone and with friends. I can work out the rest as I go along.

Have a great New Year!

I just can't get enough of this picture.

Afton 25K/50K Trail Run Volunteer Report

When I was planning my running season, I considered running Afton. I even briefly considered doing the 50K as my first ultra, before settling on the Spring Superior 50K. But its reputation for heat and humidity (it IS in July, after all) was a bit of a deterrent, so when a running friend mentioned that he always volunteered at Afton instead of running it, it sounded like the perfect solution. A chance to be out there on race day, to see all the local runners doing the race, and to begin to pay back the incredible volunteers who made my races this spring so great.

So on Saturday morning, I got up bright and early.

Okay, not so bright. But definitely early.

Threw some hard-boiled eggs and roasted veggies into the car, grabbed my water, snacks, sunblock, hat, and sunglasses, and out the door by 4 to get to Afton by 4:45.

There wasn't much traffic on the way there (go figure!), but things were already bustling at the Visitors' Center. John and Cheri Storkamp and an army of volunteers had already been out at Afton for days getting things ready. The trail was marked and checked, tents and equipment were up at the start/finish area, tables were set up for check-in, timing chips and bibs and T-shirts were sorted and ready to go. There was even fresh coffee. Working at registration, I felt like I was jumping into a well choreographed dance.

About 8 of us worked registration, first for the 50Kers, then the 25Kers. I handed out T-shirts. And saw lots of friends from Lebanon Hills, Zumbro, Superior, and the Endless Summer races. So much fun to work in a spot where you can see everyone!

Way down on the end. Photo by Todd Rowe.

 By the time the last 25Ker had come through (two minutes before race start! Hope you had a good race, Gale!), it was 7:30. We broke down the registration area, put things back in boxes, folded up tables, put the Visitors' Center back together. A quick snack at the car (hey, when you get there at 4:45, you get rockstar parking), and down to the start/finish area to help out there.

Start/finish area. All the runners are out on the course. It got WAY busier later!

Finish line area -- the last part of the race is across that prairie.
Timekeepers, ham radio operators, and race officials working in the tent.

50K aid station and drop bags. The fastest 50Kers were
just coming through the first of two loops. 

 I helped set up for the after-race picnic. It was a pretty good spread -- burgers (meat and veggie), chips, aid-station snacks (brought in as the aid stations closed), drinks, and watermelon.

Two 50-gallon containers of watermelon. That's a LOT of watermelon.

Amy was a watermelon-butchering machine. She cut up
watermelon for HOURS. And it went fast!

Cooking burgers on the prairie. That's an industrial-strength
fan on the right, blowing the smoke and heat away.

Mary Beth and I set up the drinks. Water, lemonade, iced tea, and our personal touch, Arnold Palmers (half lemonade, half iced tea).

The Arnold Palmer went fast.

Once the runners started getting back in (fastest 25K runner finished in under 1:40! Blazing!), things began to get busy. I appointed myself the master of the drinks, and keeping all the containers full was, for a while, a full-time job. And hauling around those 7-gallon carboys of water was excellent physical therapy for the elbow!

Time to make the lemonade. Photo by Todd Rowe.

I also located ice, found chairs, hauled boxes, cheered for finishing runners, and saw lots of friends who were running or volunteering.

By the time I had to leave at noon (gotta get home to the boys), the post-race party was in full swing for many, some of the early finishers were heading home, and the slower 50Kers were still out on the course, some of them for several more hours. The thermometer in my car read 90 degrees, and the sky, which had started out cloudy, was clearing up. You could feel the humidity rising. It wasn't the hottest Afton ever, but it was hot enough. All the runners out there have my respect. It was an epic day to run the Afton trails.

Volunteering at Afton was a great experience. I was really glad to be able to give some time and energy to making such a great race possible. I was really impressed by the incredible amount of work that went into making this day as perfect as possible for the runners, and by the amount of time and energy many of the volunteers (and the race directors) gave to this race. 

Trail running really is a pretty special thing. A group of like-minded people come together in a remote place, build an entire, temporary village dedicated to a single purpose, give everything they have to that goal of running 25K or 50K, or beating a personal best, or placing in the top 20... and then pick it all back up, pack it into a truck, and head home till the next one. 

Thanks, everyone, for the great day. And congratulations to all the runners! See you next year!