Alright, alright. I know it has been awhile since I posted and there really isn't a good reason for that. So, what have I been up to the past 6 months? Well, after Bandera I took off the whole month of January from running and spent most of my free time up at Sugarloaf to get in the most days on the mountain.
January:
February: 50 miles for the month and long run of 8 miles
March: 20 miles for the month, long run of 9 miles, and dislocated my shoulder snowboarding
April: 100ish miles for the month, long run 14 miles, and 2 week vacation in Bahamas
May: 160 miles for the month, two 20 mile long runs leading up to Pinelands 50k which I Finished just over 6 hours for the 34 miles. Also, paced Tanya at Riverlands
June: 110 miles for the month, three 13 mileish long runs, rolled my ankle pretty bad, paced an unsuccessful FKT of 100 mile Wilderness
July: 180 miles for the month. 20 mile long run, 6 mile trail race at Bradbury
I decided this year I didn't want a super strict plan like I had last year leading up to Vermont 100. I wanted to spend my free time in other ways instead of just running all the time. So I chose quality miles over quantity. There were many runs I let off the gas or called it early due to a weird twinge or soreness, etc. After dealing with an injury last year, I wanted to avoid dealing with it again.
So here we are in August. This is where my season really starts for 2019. Last year it started in April and I felt some burn out near the end of the season. I wanted to have more time to train ahead of the races instead of going through the vicious race/recover cycle.
August started off with the Beach to Beacon 10k and I managed a PR of 42:40. This was my evaluation of how training was going and it looked like I was headed in the right direction. The next weekend was Bradbury Breaker 9 mile trail race. I took the race super conservative the first half and let the legs fly on the second half. Felt good and was happy with my finish.
After the breaker, I did a 60 min run and a 40 min run to stretch out the legs before the big race.
GREAT CRANBERRY ISLAND 100
Last year I pulled out of GCI less than 25 miles in. I had just completed my first 100 mile race (VT100) and GCI was only 4 weeks later. I thought I would still give it a shot, but an injury I had been dealing with all season prevented me from going any further and I received my first DNF.
This year, I had something to prove. As soon as I found out Gary Allen was going to be hosting the race again, I applied. I wasn't deterred by the distance or the monotony of a single road. I had something to prove to myself and others.
Great Cranberry Island has a rich history of running which you can read about here: http://www.crowathletics.com/great-cranberry-100/#history
The course is a 2 mile paved road with lightly rolling hills. It's a very low key race with only 5 runners this year. I wanted to run this race for the simplicity of it. It's just pure running.
Race day: at 3:50am the alarm clock went off and by 4:30 me and my crew of Ian, Catalina, Matt, and Obie were on the road from Portland towards Southwest Harbor. We grabbed the 9:30 ferry to the island and started setting up tents and getting all the gear sorted out for the 11am pre race briefing. Gary had some nice encouraging words to say and then let us finish up getting ready.
Race Start: A signal is heard and the race starts with a Firetruck escorting the runners down to the dock. I started off smooth and fast and actually had to slow up a bit so I didn't run into the firetruck!!!
Mile 0-24
The first 24 miles were pretty much uneventful. I had planned on starting out by finishing each 4 mile circuit in about 36min (9min/mile) as long as I could; however, I ended up going out a bit too fast and spent each circuit trying to slow it down a bit. At this point everything felt easy. I was taking in 150cal tailwind in 18oz water every single circuit. No issues.
Mile 24-36
My pace slowed down closer to a 10min/mile, but I was happy to go farther than I did last year. I was leading the race and knew the pressure was on to keep up the work. I was still taking in just tailwind and water at this point
Mile 36 Aid station
At this point I could feel my feet start to swell and knew it was time to change into my shoes that were a half size up. I had planned on not stopping until mile 40, but needed to make a change now. So I changed socks and shoes and shirt. total time in aid station 10 min.
Mile 36-44
At this point, I knew something wasn't right. I was getting cold and couldn't figure out why. Tanya was pacing me and helped me trouble shoot it. I wasn't getting enough calories! 150cal/hour is usually just fine for normal conditions, but I was working so much harder then "normal conditions"
It had started to get foggy and the humidity hung in the air and made it hard for my sweat to evaporate. I decided I needed to fix this now before it got any worse.
Mile 44 Aid Station
I came in cold and needed to change everything! New shirt, added a buff and jacket. drank some hot coffee, vegetable soup, chicken tacos and some other foods, I think. This was when I started to get frustrated, because my legs were still fine and cruising. During this time, Bradford passed me which put me in 2nd place. A total of 36 min were spent at aid station
Mile 44-48
I was chasing Bradford at this point, just barely keeping him in sight. He was my rabbit and reason for me to keep pushing even though things were going wrong. Caught up to him at the aid station and I kept pressing to take my spot back.
Mile 48-64
Running became mechanical and fluid again. Everything seemed to be better now. The fog was difficult, but thankfully I had a waist light and a headlamp, so I wasn't just staring at light reflecting off the moisture. Then I blinked. Except, my blink lasted two seconds. I was cold and tired. I needed to wake up and warm up ASAP!
Mile 64 aid station
My crew was amazing!!! I changed shirts and ate close to 1000cal while seated and wrapped up in a sleeping bag trying to get warm. At this point I thought I may not be able to finish this race. I told my crew I need a pacer every step until the finish line. I can't risk falling asleep while running. took some coffee and off I went. 25 min at aid station
Mile 64-68
These miles were not pretty. Catalina was pacing me and I know I needed a hard reset somehow. I was having fun, but running had become tough.
Mile 68 Aid station
I took a nap. I have never taken a nap before in a race, but I felt like I needed it. I had been running for 14 hours at this point. I convinced my crew that I needed 20 min to take a warm nap and be off my feet. I laid down on the floor in the community center with my legs up against the wall over my head. This felt so good! I woke up to my legs falling off the wall and went back to sleep. Catalina woke me up to tell me it had been 20 minutes. I put on a new pair of shoes and told her I need 5 minutes with my head on the table. That 5 minute nap was so much better than the 20 min nap! I felt like a new person! 50 min spent at aid station.
Mile 68-86
That nap was huge! I got my legs back, I felt good. There were no complaints. Still hanging out in 1st place. I ended up passing the 2nd place runner around mile 86 and he told me he was spent and was going to walk it in from here. I believed him too since he had a coffee mug in his hands. I was so happy knowing I was going to finish this thing despite the crazy evening.
Mile 88 Aid station
Taking Bradford's comments as truth and knowing I had another big race in two weeks, I was content walking it in. I changed into fresh socks, a cotton t shirt and a hoodie. I was going to stay warm. I started off my walk with a hot coffee and stale vinegar chips.
Mile 88-92
Big smile on my face knowing this race is mine...until I saw Bradford behind me and running. Fuck! So now I have to start running with a damn cotton shirt and hoodie on. I put on the gas. I know I'm still up 4 miles on him, but I wanted to guarantee my lead.
Mile 92 aid station
Took off my shirt. Lets run!
mile 92-100
I wanted there to be no question: I am the one to beat today. I put on the gas hard and ended up doing two miles at a 9:30 pace that late in the race. It hurt, but it was almost over.
Finish time 20:41
1st place
2nd fastest course time (behind Mike Wardian)
This was a fantastic race. I loved the tiki torches that lit up the road at night. I loved the lowkey vibe and encouragement from the residents and visitors. Gary said this would be last organized race on the island, but this is still a beautiful place to visit and run your own miles on. I never got bored or tired of the course.
Miscellaneous:
I was spitting up food/saliva/water from the point I consumed the vegetable broth and spicy chicken until the end of the race.
I had pacers for over half the race. We were allowed bike pacers as well since the road was not closed off to regular traffic.
Only wore headphones for 8-16 miles
Shoes: Hoka Carbon x sixe 11.5 and 12
Brooks Adrenaline 19 size 11.5
Nutrition: mostly tailwind, some maple untapped, and a few clif bars along with the aforementioned foods
Gear: Garmin forerunner 945- had 13 percent battery upon finish
nathan insulated exodraw 18oz hand helds x2
Squirrel's Nut Butter - NO CHAFFING in places I applied!
