Running Through the West

20161004

The 2016 St George Marathon Race Report

Was each mile of the 2016 St George faster or slower than 2015? ( F = faster; S = slower; NC = No change.)

18 miles of this year’s race were faster than last year’s. But the net gain was only about 30 seconds. Most of the faster miles were in the latter part of the race.

This years execution felt good as my plan to go out slower and finish faster was mostly successful. I pretty much knew going in that I was not going to be able to get much faster than last year as it has been a crazy year for me and my training wasn’t exactly what I was hoping for.

Still not 100% sure if there was an early bird perk of a guaranteed entry for next year if you got on one of the early busses but right now, I’m pretty sure there isn’t. But I was still on probably the 3rd bus or so. I had to hang out at the start for over 2 hours before the race started. Not really that big of a deal, but on the way up in the bus it rained and that had me concerned that I might get wet before the race even started. I was prepared for a little bit of rain, but not for a full on downpour for 2 hours. Luckily, it did not rain and it wasn’t all that cold. Which could be a bad thing as if it’s too warm at the start it’s a good indication that it would probably be too warm later in the day.

Anyway, the pre-race happened well enough. The fire was nice and I had brought a small pack-chair to chill on while waiting so It was nice to have my back against something while I sat. I ate a banana, some potato chips and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich just about 1 hour before the start. Then about 6:15 I packed up my stuff and dropped by drop bag off at the truck and went to the start line.

The race started a few minutes late but that wasn’t a big deal. Before I knew it we were off.

The strategy here was to do not much else but slower in the first half than the second half. I was hoping that maybe in the end I could PR by a minute or two but knew that going out too fast in the start was going to spell disaster in the 2nd half. So, I HAD to play it safe the first half and hold back despite the fact that I felt really good and wanted to go a lot faster during the first miles.

Don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before but one of my strategies for running is this: NEVER cut corners in training and ALWAYS cut corners on the race course. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line and when running a race, of course, stay on the official course. But if it’s a closed off two lane road, then the whole road is the course. If you were running on a track in a competitive event no one would remain on the outside lanes if it was allowed because the distance on the outside lane of a running track is of course longer and takes more time to complete. So, the corners on a road course can be shortened in the same manner as taking the inside lane versus the outside lane. So when you turn a corner look for the shortest distance to the inside of the next corner and make a straight line for it. It is not any form of cheating or gaining an unfair advantage (just like runners on a track going on the inside lane).

Having said this, I think some people running a race think they need to do what everyone else is doing and follow the majority of the crowds through the course even though they are staying in the middle of the road or are turning to the inside lane to the next corner too soon. I ran on the inside of the road when others were taking the outside frequently.

So by no means am I advocating doing anything wrong here. But if you can stay on the official course and shorten the distance to the finish by smartly considering taking the inside of each corner and taking the straightest line between each one then you will end up at least getting to the finish by a few steps faster than meandering and staying to the outside of the corners.

So, I passed quite a few people who don’t really consider this and I’ll admit, I had to run away from where everyone else was running which, I guess, could make people a little uncomfortable because they might think that others think they are doing something wrong or whatever. But enough with that stuff. If you are on the course, you are on the course.

Okay, the Veyo hill was kinda fun and I had no problems getting up it. I was constantly checking out my watch and looking at each of my splits. Before I knew it I was halfway done and I was feeling alright. I was drinking something at every aid station and having a gel about every 5 miles. This worked out well, I think. I didn’t have any problems with energy or breathing. It might be just in my head but I swear I could feel more oxygen in the air once I got down to the last 5k of the race.

After about mile 15, when course drops down Snow Canyon I picked up the pace and the weather was feeling okay, maybe a little warm.

There was a big crowd of people there and they cheered and I took a few high fives from some lovely people. Their cheers helped give me some energy and keep me positive.

So mile 18 came up and at this point (I could go off about my stupid gps watch, but I’ll spare you) I didn’t think that I was able to go significantly faster than I had been going. But I knew I could go at least a little bit faster. So I did my best. I checked my watch frequently to keep my speed in check to make sure that I wasn’t going too fast or too slow. Again, here is where I was able to take the inside lane and pass a few people.

Snow Canyon Parkway came up and that was, according to my math the point of the race where 5k remains. I was going at a decent pace and decided to just keep looking at my watch about every minute and make sure that I was going faster than my goal pace. It was the best that I could do to keep hacking away at my time.

I remember last year that it was about mile 24 that I started to fade and I don’t know if it was mental or physical but it was a rough last few miles to crank out sub 6:30 miles. This year, I was feeling okay, I knew that I was getting almost done physically and mentally but the point that I really felt like I had hit a wall was after I saw a sign that said “mile 25.2” it was probably no more than 30 seconds after I passed the sign where my body and head were like “okay, dude, you’re done” and I had to fight that by just counting steps and keep forcing myself to move forward.

Running through town was nice but this year it really felt like there were fewer people than I remember but I thank all those that did cheer on some guy they didn’t really know. And especially a thank you to those who would read my name on my bib and shout “go, Morgan!” and “you got this, Morgan!”

Oh, so there was one person who gradually passed me and I thought that if I could keep them in my sights then I think I’ll be in good shape so I tried to keep going and not let them get too far ahead. Well, that person eventually faded a bit and I ended up passing them. I know it might sound mean, but it is a good feeling to pass people late in the race - not because they feel bad, but because you feel good enough to keep up a good pace.

Well, as I stated before I was 30 seconds faster than my time from last year. And technically a personal record - but by about 3 seconds.

It was a warm year, maybe the warmest that I remember at the finish. So that is a factor in performance. I don’t know what the outcome would have been if the temps were 10 degrees colder but it might have been a little better.

The finish line area was great and all the volunteers were very energetic and helpful. I think now that I’m headed to the ten year club for this race. I would like to get in one more PR on this race and possibly break 2:50 but if I just get out there and have fun for the rest of my days then that would be alright.

20160927

The 2016 Huntsville Marathon - Race Report

In an attempt to not be too boring I’m going to intentionally forego some of the more mundane stuff that usually happens at every race, like getting on the bus, picking up the bib and such.

So some quick positive points up to the start of the race. The bus system worked well, the starting area was very well organized and was very pleasant. I hit the porta potties, had my sammich and a banana and ran up the road a few times to warm up.

I was excited and fairly nervous about how well I was going to do. I was thinking that my stomach was going to act up at some point, but luckily it never did.

The starting area had some good tunes and I don’t remember hearing Highway To the Danger Zone or Eye of the Tiger so I was very happy about that.

The gun went off and so were we.

The plan was to finish about 2:51. I was pretty sure that if everything went well that my training could get me that much. Having run most of the course just 2 weeks earlier was very beneficial because I was familiar with how the course profile went and how to strategize.

The first few miles were pretty fast and the parts that were in the shade were actually quite cool. Not too cool, but still a bit chilly.

I was looking at my watch and knew that I was going a little bit fast but thought as long as I didn’t plan on going faster and just maintain that pace that everything would be going okay. This turned out to be a mistake.

Despite the downhill and the perceived effort to knock out each mile, I was going too fast. Such a rookie mistake to make and I, for some reason, thought that I was smarter.

At any rate, the first half was done and gone pretty fast and I was doing okay. I was drinking at every aid station and having a gel about every other aid station. My lungs and energy levels were all good.

At last I was rolling up on the final 7 or 8 miles and I was starting to fade a bit. It was my legs mostly. They didn’t want to move. I think that my breathing was not too bad and I felt that I had energy. It was just my legs that didn’t want to go that fast anymore.

At one point I started looking at my watch and sort of got annoyed with it (this is a recurring theme with me and running) so I kind of stopped paying attention thinking that I just had to move forward and the the watch wasn’t going to help me do that.

The last miles were pretty grueling I must admit. My legs hurt, a lot. My pace was slacking and I was pretty much in just-get-to-the-finish mode. So, while the end of the race was pretty tough I was able to get a good finish time in.

I crossed the finish line in 2 hours 53 minutes and 19 seconds. Which, technically, gives me a PR, but only by 25 seconds. I don’t want to discount that too much though, as a PR is a PR is a PR.

I did get first in my age group, was 5th place male, and 6th place overall. I talked to one of the organizers at the start who said that there were about 400 who had registered, about 50 of those changed to the half from the full and at the end of the day there were 279 finishers (at least according to the posted results). So who’s complaining about top ten? Not me, no sir.

So, it was a good run. I had a good time. I liked the race and I liked the course. It was well organized and executed and wasn’t all that expensive either.

One more note, the themed aid stations weren’t lost on me. I especially liked the cut outs of the presidential candidates with motivational signs. And to the kid with the tray of Skittles; thank you, they were delicious. I’m sorry I knocked some on the ground.

20160809

2016 Kat'cina Mosa 100k Adventure Mountain Run Race Review Report - Springville, Utah

The 2016 Kat’cina Mosa 100k - Race Review

It’s done. 5th place overall with about 70 people registered, and about 55 or so finished. I have no idea how many of those were DNS or DNF. So bottom line, getting in the top 5 is certainly evidence of a good performance and I’m proud of it. Read on for the details.

I woke up about 1:30am after about 3 hours sleep and got as ready as I could and showed up at the start about 30 mins early. I did all my normal pre-race stuff. I ate a banana, a PB&J and some potato chips and gummy bears. Drank some water and called it good. My brain wanted me to have a bathroom stop before the race but that didn’t happen. Oh well, I’d probably be stopping somewhere mid-race for a visit to the bushes. The start was about as expected and at 3am we were off.

I had a really cheap headlamp with me that I used and was certainly not the dumbest decision I made during the race, but it’s certainly not the smartest either. The headlamp was barely sufficient to light my way along the Squaw Peak road. I had never used this headlamp for anything and I wasn’t even certain the batteries were fresh. With everyone else and their stellar headlamps around me for the first few miles it wasn’t so bad. I was living off the other headlamps as much as I was my own. Eventually though my excitement and determination to finish this race in good time was enough to get me out a head by myself with a few other runners so far ahead of me that they were nowhere to be seen.

Of course one of the things about being out in the front of the pack is the marking of the course. I was fairly certain I was where I needed to be but boy were the markings for this course sparse. Throughout the race I went uncomfortably long distances without seeing markers and at least 2 times I was very near turning around.

The dark lasted quite a while and my pace was well above my goal pace and I knew that this wasn’t too bad because the climbing was certainly going to slow my pace a bit. The first 3 aid stations were over and done in the dark and I was feeling good and knew I was very close to the front. The 2nd big climb to Lightning Ridge came up and I was now passing some of the early starters. I asked one of them and they said I was the third runner. I was pretty excited by this and thought that if I could maintain that position I would be in good shape.

I consider my pace climbing up to this ridge to be a good performance on my part. I was able to keep a good pace all the way up and was feel pretty good. Eventually after the ridge there was some downhill that was a little bit more than I was expecting but not overly difficult. The trail did relent every now and then and I was able to pick up the pace some more and that was going good.

I got to the next aid station at Big Springs and was in and out in what was probably too fast of a time. I don’t even know what I ate or drank looking back at it. I was too excited to keep going.

As I was leaving I heard someone say about it being a really big hard climb coming up and I almost didn’t believe them. I thought that it probably wouldn’t be that bad. But well, it turned out it was. The sun was now up and making the exposed portions of the course rather hot and there were some tricky rocky portions of the trail that wasn’t exactly easy to cross. Again, I kept up my pace as best as I could and passed a few more of the early starters and some other hikers that weren’t participants in the event.

Windy pass seemed like it was forever away from the last aid station. I kept thinking that I could see it but I really didn’t have any clue where it was. Eventually I saw some people on the skyline that was pretty far off and I felt pretty sure that’s where I was headed. I did the best I could muster and eventually made it to Windy Pass. The aid station wasn’t much and I didn’t take much from them. I distinctly remember having some chips with me outside the aid station and throwing them down because my body didn’t want to eat it. I think this might have been an indication that something wasn’t quite right.

I was told that from windy pass it was downhill to the next aid station. Yes. I wanted that more than anything. Well, there was still some climbing then it did go down. But about 5k after windy pass the course was not downhill. It was more of a roller coaster than anything and again, it felt like forever to get to the next aid station. I kept up my pace as best as I could but I was in fact walking more than I would have like to.

The trail started to go down about a mile from the next aid station and I ran as much as I could. I was low on water and energy and it was more difficult to run than it really should have been at this point.

I got to the next aid station and knew that I had to make it quick or I was going to lose my 3rd place position. I changed my shoes and socks and wiped off my feet with wet wipes - they were very dirty. At this aid station there is an out-and-back portion that must be completed. I went up and back and was in pretty poor shape by the time I got back to the aid station. I stopped and knew that I was in bad shape but didn’t know what to do about it. I was a little nauseous and low on energy and didn't have any appetite. So the only thing that I could think of doing was moving forward. I could still do that and that’s what I came here to do.

I didn’t really know what the course looked like from here. I was about mile 40 and knew that it was more or less downhill from mile 52. So I had about 12 miles that I was hoping was going to be some flat, fast road but soon after the aid station was just up and nothing but up.

I was very low on energy and wasn’t eating like I should. I thought at the time that I had been getting enough liquids but looking back I’m not sure.

I walked a lot of this part of the course and kept expecting for another runner (or fifty) to just pass me like this race was a 10k. But surprisingly, no one did catch up to me.

I didn’t know where exactly the next aid station was but it finally appeared. I sat down and asked for a Red Bull. They gave me one and I drank all of it. I took some food but don’t think I ate much of it. Putting food in my mouth was something my body didn’t want. Chewing was hard and swallowing was almost impossible. I thought I was just going to immediately throw it up. I never did yak but I was not feeling well.

The course out of this aid station kept climbing, I sort of knew it would but had hoped it wouldn’t be too bad. Well, it was still tough. The good news is at this point was that I did feel okay and was able to get up the climb with surprising speed. I wasn’t doing 9 min miles but I was able to maintain a good balance of walking and running. That red bull did something. I’m not sure what, but something. I guess.

But after the climbing up my energy began to wane again. The trail leveled out and the sun was beating down pretty hot and I hit a rough patch again. I counted steps and tried to make sure that I was walking at least as many steps as I was running and kept moving forward.

I thought to myself how hard this race was. I really was, at this point, completely hammered. I was toast. I was fried. I was whooped. I was exhausted. I was out of it. I was zapped. I knew that someone was going to pass me before the finish. I was just trying to not make it too bad.

Eventually, out of the blue, someone did pass me. He was doing a much faster pace than I was. I said good job and he and his pacer were out of sight. 4th place, well, that’s still not bad.

The next aid station finally after what felt like an eternity finally came to view. I didn’t know what to do. Drink? Eat? I could drink but didn’t really feel like I needed a lot of water. I was still disgusted by eating. Didn’t think there was any point or benefit to taking the time to force myself to eat some chips or pretzels. I sat down and the nice people at the aid station helped as much as they could. But I was done. Totally done. But totally NOT done at the same time.

So I drank some red bull and some water and just left. I was hoping that since the rest of the course was downhill I would be able to just put my head down and go but it was not to be. I ended up just walking and running. Walking a few steps and running a few steps. When the course went up I walked and when it went down I did my best to run it. But I was still just a zombie moving at a meager pace.

After what felt like another eternity I came to the next aid station. I tried to get some water and food in but didn’t do so well. Had some red bull and got some cold water. With something like 6 miles left on pavement I was thinking 4th would be good if I could just get down the canyon in a decent fashion.

Well, as I sat at the aid station another person who looked like they were on mile 2 of a 10k race flew in and out of the aid station. Good for them, honestly. Now I was in 5th place. I guess this isn’t the finish so I guess I’ll keep going. And 5th isn’t that bad, right?

My brother came up to this point on his bike and rode with me for a while. But this was no fun for him. I wasn’t able to mentally engage in anything else and I could barely run anything at this point.

Before the race started I was looking forward to some fast miles in this part of the race. I had hoped that the canyon would be downhill and shady and since it was a road be a nice way to wrap up the race. Well, for me it was about 4pm and the sun was at a perfect angle to not provide any real shade from the trees. The road was surprisingly flat from my point of view. There was nothing good about this part of the race. I even had to dodge the traffic and that was no fun either.

Well, again, I tried as best I could to run as much as possible but I really couldn’t go for more than about a quarter mile before I had to walk a little. When the road straightened I tried looking back fully expecting a group of runners to just run past me. But no one did. I couldn’t believe it.

Finally after 13 hours and 49 minutes of the worst bashing of my life I crossed the finish line. In 5th place overall!

I think I underestimated this race but then when I say that it’s sounds weird in the context of 5th place overall in a 100 kilometer race. I know I did well in that sense, but I don’t think I did well in the overall execution of it. I don’t know if I should have held back earlier in the race or did something drastically different with my nutrition. But the nausea and the heat were mighty foes.I would like to have been able to run a little bit more consistently in the last 10 miles of the race.

But this is a good effort and a good learning experience for me. Even before I did this race I knew I was going to go at it with much more of a “race” mentality than I did earlier this year at the Zion 100k (where finishing was paramount to pace or place). I wanted to take more risks with this race even if it did mean crashing and burning. I don’t see this as being my last 100k and since I think I could do better, there’s a non-zero chance I'll come back in the future.