An actual race calendar.

For the first time since moving to Bolivia, I have a calendar of races for which to train.  They're all in Bolivia, but just this morning I discovered the possibility of a 100K in Argentina.  That'd be a backup if the Ultra Trail Tiwanaku turns out to be a mixed Bike/Run event.

For now, I've had 2 very solid weeks of training, nothing terribly long or hard, but no missed workouts. Yesterday featured the Bella Vista road for an hour and fifteen minutes, and this past Friday I found myself way out...somewhere near the end of the road behind my house, somewhere I've never been before.

Cattle Ranch

Near the end of the road

The thing about Friday's run (and something which hasn't been a problem this summer because of the ridiculous rains) was the strength of the sun.  Holy cow did I get dehydrated.  I described it to Nataly's cousin:  pee the color of a rotten orange.

Anyway, my other runs were essentially nondescript: the usual roads, easy miles, one "stride" workout and 1 short run in Vibrams, in total seven hours and fifteen minutes of time dedicated to exercise last week after five very easy hours the week before.

On to the race calendar.  Last September I ran my first race in Bolivia, a 10k which I essentially did as a hard training run (I had all of 2 weeks notice, and really hadn't done any specific prep).  I did nab a PR, but the real benefit was meeting another expat runner who was connected to the race scene.  Via Facebook, she alerted me to a calendar of races in Santa Cruz for 2014.  All 10k or less, but at least it was something.

Then about 4 weeks ago, out leaked info in regard to an actual marathon in Santa Cruz.  Unfortunately, the race organizers decided to provide 2 weeks lead for competitors to get ready, and I didn't participate:  why run a road marathon, out of shape?  I could have finished, but... I gripped on the FB and one of my friends a couple of days later provided me with a link to the "Bolivia Adventure Series".

Oh Happy Day!  

A series of 5 races potentially concluding with an 80k Ultra outside of La Paz in November.  Since then I've been tweeking a training schedule and calendar and I've got it pretty dialed.

Here they are.  A, B, and C indicate whether I am using them as training races, or if there's any focus/special prep for the race.

• Circuit of the Stations, 8k: C priority, will be using this as a LTHR test.  May 18.
• Laguna Volcan 18k: C priority, part of the Bolivia Adventure Series.  June 8.
• Sky Race 28k: C priority, part of the Bolivia Adventure Series.  This race climbs the "Bolivia Death Road".  August 10.
• Ninos de la Calle 10k.  This is the race I PR'd in last year, and I'll come back to it this year, C-B priority.  If I'm feeling strong, I'll probably ease off the volume for the week and give it a good crack.  September 7.
• Conociendo a la PACHA MAMA 100k:  This is where things get a bit fuzzy.  This race is the race in Argentina.  If I do this race, it's because the Ultra Trail Tiwanaku is a part bike/part run event and I couldn't convince the race organizers to let me run the whole thing solo.  It would be the end of my racing season. A priority (or not at all).  October 13.
• Salar 42k.  Part of the Bolivia Adventure Series. B priority (or not at all) October 19.
• Ultra Trail Tiwanaku 80k.  80 kilometers running around La Paz? Yes please.  November 23.  A priority.  
• Cotoca 21k December, date unknown.  A or C priority depending on UTT.

There you have it.  I've got training weeks scheduled out to the end of November, the longest individual week will have me at eleven and a half hours.  That should equate to a distance somewhere in the neighborhood of 135 kilometers, which should get me to the finish line of the Pacha Mama.  Last year's winning time was 13 hours there, so it's not an easy race, but the field wasn't exactly from Boulder either.

Anyway, thanks for reading, and check back for weekly training updates as my season progresses (so cool to be able to say that)...
J

Cuevas–Back in the Hills

The training plan I’ve set up for Leadville grants a day off from running each week, which I usually schedule for Sunday.  Sunday is a day when Nataly typically isn’t working and we often find ourselves splashing in the water at the bottom of the first waterfall at Cuevas.  That gets followed by a couple hour drive in the car and relaxation at home.

This week however I stayed in Cuevas to help Hugo cut down a couple of trees which will become some new benches for the park.   That meant Saturday was a more convenient day off and I went running Sunday evening after Nataly and folks headed home.

My run was just a hard, quick effort from the gate at Cuevas up to the first high point on the road to Bella Vista – total relief 650 feet.  That doesn’t seem like much, but there are a number of small climbs and descents along the way which get pretty steep.  Here's the GPS.

Today (Monday), I’m feeling the effects of 8 weeks off from running in the hills.  Soreness in the hamstrings and quads, and a touch of gimpiness in my left knee.  The run yesterday was my first real running effort in the new Brooks Pure Grit shoe which I bought back in October after injuring my foot, as well. 

I’m not entirely sure what to think of them.  They’re much more shoe than I’ve run in in quite some time.  All of my training for the Blues Cruise was done in Vibram 5 Fingers or NB Minimus Trail.  The Grit represents a step up in terms of cushioning and protection from my last year of running, while still maintaining the offset of the Minimus. 

The Good: I ran with greater confidence on the descents yesterday because I wasn’t afraid of small rocks on the road.  The Bad: That also meant I was landing more heavily on my heels – and I noticed my feet slipping forward and back in the shoe somewhat and possible hotspots developing under my heels.

In my two Imogene Pass Runs, I’ve developed giant blisters on both of my heels.  I ran those races in Brooks Cascadias.  Those blisters made for interesting races the following weeks as well.  My first marathon – the Boulder Marathon 2009 – was colored by the giant blisters on my feet, and I lost 10-20 places when both of my blisters blew on the final descent to the ski resort in the Steamboat 50 in 2010.  I chose to walk it in rather than arrive at the finish a bloody mess unable to appreciate the RD and all of his volunteers. 

One problem I have with all running shoes is that a size 13.5 is impossible to find.  I either have to wear a shoe which is half a size too big or a shoe a half a size too small. 

My sense from my initial trials of the Grit is that it is perhaps slightly longer than the Cascadia at the same size.  Maybe, then, a size 13 will fit me.  I suppose the other thing I could do is to cut a hole in the toe of the shoe like Ed McCaffery used to in his football cleats, but I’ve never been a huge fan of “modding” my shoes…

I wonder if I shouldn’t make my own pair of huaraches.  It would seem to be one of the best solutions for me.  A correctly sized sandal would provide protection from the hazards of the trail, and ignore the idiosyncrasies of my own special brand of foot.  It seems silly I haven’t tried them yet – that’s for sure.

Thanks for reading, and yes, after my run on Sunday I did jump in that pool...
Jay

And...We're back...?

This past Sunday, I got out for my first workout since the Blues Cruise.  Sunday marked the 5 week anniversary of my injury.  It also marked my first workout in my new trail shoes - the Brooks Pure Grit.  I'll give them a review eventually, but my first impressions are positive (with the exception of the stupid strap over the top of the foot).

Unfortunately I don't have GPS on my workout from Sunday, but repeats on the course will become regular fare in my training for Leadville.  I had to make a call in the morning to Nataly to get some information for Cuevas, so I powerhiked up out of the valley to get some cell signal.

Since that specific trek is going to be featured often in this journal, I am giving the location the name Dissertation Ridge.  Nataly used a couple of locations above the waterfalls in Cuevas to investigate whether there was a connection between hillslope angle and nutrient availability.  I didn't understand much beyond that but...

What I do know is that the climb up to Dissertation Ridge gains 600 feet in less than a 1/2 mile.  That's a good grunt on any day.  A 5xDissertation Ridge workout would be a tremendous effort. I expect that'll be a goal as I prepare to prepare for Leadville.

I actually ran today too.  A short loop here in Kilometer 14.  My foot hurt.  It probably didn't help much that I wore my Bikilas, but the pain never got worse.  My conditioning is way off. It was hot.

We'll see how my foot is tomorrow.  It hurt during my power hike up to Dissertation Ridge on Sunday, but Monday felt much better than in many days preceding the effort.  I wonder if working the foot is what's best for it now.

Thanks for reading and enjoy your training.
J

Race Report--Blues Cruise 50k: Lesson Learned.

Getting Up and Getting There
[Note - all photographs were provided free of charge by the race organization, funwithphotos.smugmug.com, and iultra.smugmug.com]
From Erik's house, the race start for the Blues Cruise was about a 30 minute drive.  Packet pickup started at 7:30 and we wanted to eat a bagel and drink some coffee before hand so Erik set an alarm for 5 AM.  I figured I'd hear him puttering around so I didn't bother (I was on the couch in the living room).  When finally I did hear him, I took a look at my phone and discovered it was quarter to 6, a much more reasonable time for waking in my humble opinion.  It turns out Erik had had similar thoughts and decided 5 AM was a bit early and had set his alarm for 5:30.

Bagels were consumed, coffee drunk, and deposits in the water closet made.  We girded ourselves against the inclement weather that decided to arrive over the course of the night.  When we got up, though dark and impossible to see it sounded like it was pouring rain outside.  It was cold.  The rain eventually cleared out before the race started, though there were a couple of instances where a gentle shower passed overhead.

We left at 7, and got to the race start promptly at 7:30.  We'd checked in and had our numbers and pins no later than 7:35.  That left the better part of an hour to hang out and chat.  We went back to Erik's car.

Eventually the clock ticked over to 8:25 and the race director was marshaling the racers to the start.  Erik and I said good luck to one another and went our separate ways.  I took a position about 3 rows back and Erik chose more middle of the pack.  The race director said, "Ready! Set! Go!"

Really.

Race Start to Aid #1

I'm in the right middle of this pic to the left of the tie dye - white shirt, black (almost knee length) shorts.
Interestingly enough, the guy I crossed the finishing line with is right behind me.

The race went out faster than I was happy with, but not too much.  My first glance at my Garmin showed a low 7 minute pace and I was wanting something more along the lines of 7:45 so I eased off the pace.  The course quickly turned left onto some single track and tipped uphill.  A bunch of folks passed me, but I wasn't worried about placement at mile #1.  I was warm and into a sustainable groove.

By the time we arrived at mile 2, I'd warmed up enough that my shirt was uncomfortable and I'd hung it through the back of my visor.  Also by mile 2, I'd started hearing a bit from my stomach.  It was saying, "Dude, you know what?  I'm kind of hungry here.  Think we could get some fuel?"  This dialog would continue throughout the race, but I don't think it cost me any time.  At the start I ate a barely ripe banana, and wanted to grab a couple of gels, but I couldn't find any.  Obviously, I was pretty was anxious to get to the first aid station where I could get some sugary goo down my gullet.

I may have been one of the only people in the top 50 or so to stop there, and I took a moment to appreciate the aid station workers:  Jake and Ellwood Blues.  It actually didn't hit me at first; I was so focused on obtaining gel. By the time it did, I was just through the aid station.  I stopped and requested a song, but perhaps I should have asked if they had any rubber biscuits on the table.

Aid #1 to Ski Slope Hill
The remainder of the first third of the race was flat and relatively fast, but mud kept it from being really fast.  I was pretty efficient at the second aid station to the point where I neglected to appropriately acknowledge the workers there.  Darn it: Race goal #2 - Fail at mile 6.5.

The organizers had a number of folks on the course pointing out hazards and directing traffic.  Many of the bridges were quite slippery.  I was pleased with my Bikilas at how well they performed on the wet wood, but in the mud they weren't ideal.  Not sure any shoe would have fared well in that slop.

The first 10 miles featured three of the seven aid stations on the course.  That's right: seven aid stations for 31 miles.  Truly a well supported race.  I had actually considered running the race without a water bottle, but ended coming down on the side of caution.  Running dry would have had much more dire consequences than a sore shoulder.

Throughout this portion of the race there was always someone close by.  Either just in front of me or just behind.  A little positional shuffling occurred, but no great shakeout happened.  That changed on Ski Slope Hill.

Ski Slope Hill to Aid Station #7
The third aid station was located right at the base of the first real obstacle on the course.  I chatted with the volunteers and thanked them for being out in the crappy weather.  I grabbed a banana and a couple of gels, I also topped up my water bottle with lemon lime Gatorade.  That's the only time I put something other than water in my bottle and also the last time I'll ever drink that stuff.  It just tasted awful and I was in fluid avoidance mode all the way to the 4th aid station.

A young guy pulled up to me here who I'd alternate back and forth with for the rest of the race.  He noted that this was his first ultra, later he noted it was also his first marathon.  He had logged a couple of olympic distance triathlons, but good work young dude - at the finish he declared himself bitten by the ultra bug.

We left the aid station pretty much together, and I settled into a solid power hike.  Young guy tried running the first bit of the climb, but quickly dropped into a walk.  Power hiking was absolutely the right decision and I ended up blowing by a whole bunch of folks.  I don't know precisely how many, but by the top of the climb I was tucked into the position I would stay until pretty much the finish.  I think visiting it the day before with Erik really helped on this key section of the course.

I played leap frog with a few folks between Aid 3 and Aid 4; they'd pass me on the descents and I'd pass them on the climbs, but for each climb it would always take a bit longer for them to catch me.  By the time we went through mile 12, I was in 30th place.

Once through Aid 4, it seemed to take an eternity to get to aid station number 5.  Aid station 4 was at mile 13.5 or so and Aid 5 came after mile 18, I think that is the largest gap on the course.  I pretty much ran out of water and I had only taken 2 gels so by the time I got to the 5th aid station, I was fantastically glad to see the volunteers.

I ate a good sized chunk of banana here and this time I asked how far it was until the next aid station so that I would know how many gels to grab.  The aid workers didn't know off the top of their heads, but were kind enough to dig the info up quickly so that I had it when I set back out on the trail.  I took 3 gels with me and went back out.

The next part of the race I recall running large chunks without being able to see anyone either in front or behind me.  I eventually caught up to a guy who used to live in the area and had regularly ridden his mountain bike on the trails of Blue Marsh Lake.  He and I ran a mile or two together, and I commented to him that somewhere around mile 5 I realized I was running the race without medical insurance and really needed to take it easy on the descents.  I probably should have just kept my mouth shut.

He and I arrived at the stream crossing together at mile 19.  The water was cool, but not freezing cold.  It actually felt really good on my tiring legs.  I was a bit nervous, wading through the water, that there would be some hidden rock or danger that would send me sprawling, but I was able to cross without misadventure.

On the ensuing climb I left my companion behind and started thinking about how I'd go about finishing the race.  When would I start looking for the energy to kick for the finish.  I was actually feeling pretty good.  I knew that my 4:30 goal was gone, but the muddy conditions really took that off of the table for me before the race even started.

I did think that 4:45 was still possible and I decided that I'd try to get as close to that time as I could without totally cratering and losing even more time.  At the next aid station I took on board 3 more gels, thanked the workers and set out chasing my revised stretch goal.

Until this point I'd been taking extra care on the descents.  I tried to avoid big piles of leaves and run where I could see there was clear footing.  Along a descent somewhere around mile 25.4 there was no clear trail, just leaves, and I absolutely tattooed a rock hidden in the leaves.

My toes were curled up, so I hit the rock with the head of my third metatarsal on my right foot.  The pain was truly remarkable and I thought I'd broken the bone.  I limped to the bottom of the little descent and hung my toes over the side of a bridge.  I was happy to see that I could wiggle them fairly freely and continued on - not that there was much choice, the next aid station was one mile further along and I wasn't about to sit down on the trail.

Aid Station 7 to the Finish
I got to the last aid station sporting a rather pronounced limp, but I was sure I could finish.  They were serving perogies, and brats (I think), and had a jar full of pickles.  The Eagles were playing so I requested some pickle juice.  The volunteer laughed and poured off me a shot.  Mmmmm...Salty goodness.

I hit the trail for the final bit and started giving what I had left.  4:45 wasn't going to happen, but maybe I could still beat 5 hours and pull a few places back.

The young guy from the Ski Slope Hill aid station passed at the aid station, so I de-greeted the aid station workers and set out in pursuit.  I could tell I was slowly reeling the whippersnapper in when my foot made this wonderful, cracking/crunching sound which was accompanied by a grinding sensation.

I bleated a choice expletive and lurched to the side of the trail.  I stood there for a minute and thought about dropping.  I had a mile or so to go back to the last aid station and 3.5 to finish.  I decided I'd grit my teeth and press on, hell or high water I'd finish this race.

After a minute or two, the endorphins took the edge off and I was able to manage a "log" - part limp part jog. I even realized that while touch and go, I could probably finish in under 5 hours.  And I did.  It was painful and I had a while where I didn't know where the course went, but eventually I got there.  The guy I'd left behind at the water crossing helped point me in the right direction and asked after my well being.  I'm glad he came by when he did, because I was about to go off course.

At the Finish.
I crossed the finish line in the 59th minute of the 4th hour after the start of the race.  I ran this race faster than I ran the first half of the Steamboat 50, while finishing on a severely damaged foot.

My first stop after the finish line was the buffet table where I took on board a couple of raspberry tart kind of  cakes, a brat and a potato pancake.  I then went over to the paramedics who were kind enough to check the pulse in my foot and provide me with a bag of ice and some gauze to keep the ice in place.  I don't know if my foot is broken, but we're 5 days out now and the swelling is almost gone so I expect I just messed up some tendons.

Erik came in about an hour later.  He'd beaten his goal time of 6:30 by a full 11 minutes.  The Blues Cruise was also his second ultra in 4 weeks and his second ever ultramarathon.  You can read his report on his blog, it seems he's been bitten by the ultra-bug too.

I ended up finishing 30th overall and took home a rock which said Blues Cruise 5th place 40-49.

Lesson Learned.
Over all I enjoyed the race, but I don't see myself ever running a race in Five Fingers again.  Had I had more protection, I would have been able to run the descents more aggressively and I would not have suffered the injury at mile 25 which almost took me out of the race.

My Vibrams will still be my primary road shoe, but as long as I'm racing (not just out for a run) I won't be using them on the trail.  With a burlier shoe, I'm certain I'd have been in the top 20 of this race.  So, while I had a great time out there running the Blues Cruise, I'm packing a fair load of regret as well.

Oh well.
Thanks for reading, and consider "choosing your protection rather than your correction" (Eric Orton).
J

Vein in the top of the foot

I've been able to get out running the last couple of days, albeit gingerly.

Wednesday I knocked out 9 miles in my Minimus trail shoes, though toward the end of the run I was wanting more shoe and yesterday I tacked on 7 more in my trusty old Cascadias.

Last night I noticed that I once again could distinguish the tracing of a vein across the top of my foot.  That of course means that the inflammation is going down.  It's still not gone (need an entire network of veins bulging up there), but it's getting better. The pain is easing off too.

All this is good.  This afternoon, I'll run 11 miles in Cuevas.  Not sure where, I expect the roads are muddy as there has been a fair bit of rain the last couple of days, but I really want to log 50k between today and tomorrow and then again between tomorrow and Sunday.  That'll essentially cap my "training" for the Blues Cruise and I'll really ramp up the healing process going into the race.

Gear wise, I'll go with my Vibrams today, Minimus tomorrow, and decide between them for Sunday's run.

Thanks for reading, and until Monday then...
J

Pain in the top of the foot.

Saturday I logged my first ever Vibram clad marathon.  It was a training run and I kept my effort easy throughout.  I rested for 15 minutes in Samaipata and walked a good bit in the last quarter of my run.  I wouldn't call it an easy marathon; it was by no means flat, and there were no aid stations (except for the corner store where I took my break).

Cuevas-Samaipata-Cuevas elevation profile.

Anyway, I woke up Sunday morning with pain and swelling in the soft tissue on the top of my foot. I've whined about top of foot pain before, but it's been some time since I've been bothered by it, and this is different than previous manifestations.  The pain I've previously experienced has seemed to resonate more from the bones of my feet than the soft tissue.

If you google pain in the top of the foot, you're bound to find a bunch of information, but one site seems to describe my condition fairly well.  The author attributes the condition to an imbalance in musculature in the calves and top of the foot, resulting in inflammation and pain.

Why would musculature balance in the top of the foot and calves matter?  I'm thinking out loud here, and don't really know the answer, but if I were guessing...

The calves are much larger muscles and therefore more easily adapt to when new loads are applied.  The nature of running in Five Fingers (in my case) results in me curling my toes back through my initial foot strike.  Try curling your toes back 10 times, think about how it feels, then consider doing that 20000 times per foot: an entire marathon.  In my case, my calves were ready to handle the load of the marathon, but the little muscles and tendons on top of my foot needed a couple more long runs to get ready.

Oh well.

Today the pain is better, but not gone.  I'm taking another whiny day off.  Tomorrow I'll be back at it though with an hour in my Cascadias.  2 days off isn't going to make a difference in my finish time at the Blues Cruise.  I just can't really afford to miss my long run this weekend.

Thanks for reading, and consider the math (it's actually more than 20000)...
J

Five Finger Marathon and More.

Beautiful tree covered in blue flowers
between Cuevas and Samaipata

This past week and weekend were pretty big for me.  My aforementioned change of racing schedule made it so I wanted a fitness checkpoint.  I set out the week with the goal of logging 2 hours running per day, but after registering for the Blues Cruise I decided that I'd switch my runs up a bit and go long Saturday and not so long on Wednesday and Sunday.

I ended up averaging almost 2 hours running per day last week even though I had an unscheduled day off on Thursday.  Unfortunately, Thursday I spent 4 hours in a bus.  First it had a flat.  Then we got to a section of the road to Cuevas which was closed as they try to get a bridge finished before the rainy season comes.  By the time the bus arrived in Cuevas it was getting dark and my back and knees were hurting so bad all I wanted to do was lie down.

Whining aside, the good stuff came during my run on Saturday.  I ran out and back from Cuevas to Samaipata (link on Garmin Connect).  I was hoping to end up with around 4 hours running on Saturday and 25 miles, but my watch time had me at just under 4:30 and as I was pulling back through the gate to the waterfalls, I knew I was only three tenths of a mile short of a full marathon.  If you were on a training run and had .3 miles left for a full marathon, would you stop or run for 3 more minutes?

Saturday's run told me alot of things.  First and foremost:  I can run a marathon in Vibram Five Fingers.  I debated my footwear before heading out for a while, but came down on the side of, "I don't expect to get blisters on the descent back from Samaipata if I wear my Bikilas."  So, I left the Minimus Trail shoes in the cabin.

I seem to have the eating thing down pretty well too since I never really bonked.  I took the last of my tech food and had a gel or half a pack of ClifBloks every 20 minutes.  This seemed to work pretty well, but toward the mid-point of the return I was really wanting a crapper.  Not sure if that was menu choices from the day before, the long descent out of Samaipata, or the half liter of Coke I drank outside of La Estrellita as I took a few minutes in the shade.

Whatever the case, lower GI distress is something that has really slowed me down on some recent runs.  Though were a toilet or secluded knoll to present themselves, the distress would be released in short order.  I'm not a huge fan of dropping trou' right next to a road, and will avoid it at just about any cost.  The cost on this run was a fair number of walking breaks where I may not have needed them.  Oh well.  Hopefully the Blues Cruise has ready access to facilities.

As far as how I feel after logging a full marathon in Vibram 5Fingers, I'm in remarkably good shape.  I seem to have suffered some soft tissue damage in the top of my left foot which made me decide to run yesterday in my old trustworthy Cascadia's and has me taking today off.  Depending how I feel, tomorrow I'll put the Cascadia's on again for my run.  Other than that, I'm not the least sore in muscle or joint and could run another marathon today without too much trouble.

Thanks for reading and enjoy the flowers.
Jay

Quick note re: Changing Plans

So, Irene came and went and left my wonderful home state a wreck.  Couple with that a real jones to get home and I have decided to travel north at the end of September.  That makes a big change to the schedule and asks a pretty serious question.

• No marathon PR attempt in November.
• What do I do with all of this base?

Turns out a very good, very old friend of mine is running (his second) ultra marathon on October 2nd.  I'm going to be jumping in with him, the Blues Cruise 50K.  Here's a link to the website, which is quite a bit out of date.

I don't have many expectations as far as the race itself is concerned, but I'll lay out a couple of goals.

1. Go under 5 hours.
2. Smile.
3. (Stretch) 4.5 hours.

I think all 3 are attainable, but am confident in only #2.  We'll see.  Should be fun.  I'll also be running this race in my five fingers.  I had wanted to run the marathon in November in them, but this'll have to do.
Thanks for reading and be sure you always have a stretch.
Jay

Brutal change of best laid plans

My plan for today was 5x12 minutes in zone 4.  I made it through one.

This week I just haven't been feeling the run.  Little motivation for much of anything and when I get out, not much motivation to keep moving.  Yesterday once out, I was ok - not great, but ok.  Today???

I warmed up for 20 minutes or so and hit my lap button.  I was actually going pretty good, but by the end of the twelve minutes my fingertips were feeling tingly and somewhat numb and I was kind of light headed.  Couple that with the fact that my water bottle jumped out of it's holster and landed in a sand pile of suspect cleanliness, and I canned the remainder of my work intervals choosing instead to just run out the remaining time I had scheduled for today.

Anyway, I choose to blame my mediocrity on the weather.  It's again windy - 46 km/h gusting to 70, but add to that 35C temps.  In case you're metrically impaired, that's 28.5 mph with gusts at 43 and 95 degrees F.  Not ideal conditions.  Check out what the wind did to my hat and extrapolate that to the rest of my corpse - ugh...

I realized I was looking at a pretty significant positive split and turned around at something like 55 minutes for a 2 hour run and headed back.  Initially it wasn't too bad, but my gut started complaining after a bit.  Eventually it suggested to me that I might want to find a bathroom, but there are none on my run and few places secluded enough to drop and deuce.  I did consider ducking under a bridge, but I had no TP so every time the urge got strong, I slowed to a walk and gritted my teeth.

Eventually even my shoes started pissing me off.  I actually took them off and logged my first barefoot miles in Bolivia because I couldn't stand the soupy mess inside my Vibrams anymore.  For the record, I studiously avoided any obvious cow leftovers.

Miracuously enough, I made it home without any horror stories, and "sprinted" to the bathroom just in time to...

Thanks for reading and be grateful of your potty training.
J

Bella Vista–Again.

This could be my favorite road for training I’ve got in Bolivia.  It rolls.  The climbs are all runnable, and they last for a while.  It’s got some flat stretches too where it’s possible to relax into a good groove.

Anyway, on Saturday I got out onto the road to Bella Vista for my weekly long run pretty early in the morning.  The sun was up, but it hadn’t lit the valley yet.

 

Anyway the last couple of times I’ve been running here mud has been a real consideration.  In fact, the last long run I did on this road had me questioning my sanity thanks to the 3 steps back for every 4 forward mode of transport I had undertaken.  This time, the track conditions were really good. 

By the time I crested the first hill, I knew I wasn’t going to be setting any land speed records – I was simply enjoying the scenery too much.



There isn’t much in the way of actual trail here in Bolivia, but many of the roads are primarily used by foot traffic – lots of double track.  I expect this road would be a freaking blast on a mountain bike too – though coming around a blind downhill curve and running into a cow wouldn’t be a ton of fun…



I’ve been running on this road many times now, but this was my longest by quite a bit.  Many years ago I’d driven back here with Nataly while scouting sites for her PHd work.  She ended up not working back in here, but the drive featured one spectacular (bella even) vista and I finally got there on this run.







The last time I ran here, I knew I was close, but the red dirt you see in a couple of these pictures is absolutely miserable to run on when it’s a bit wet.  Glacial.  I actually think running downhill on it is worse than up – it’s straight dangerous. 

I continued a bit further along on the road and actually came into a bit of a developed area.  Certainly a more “civilized” one.



The big pine tree on the left of the picture is non-native and planted.  Others have started spreading.  Nataly is worried about them because they may change the fire cycle in this region.  She’s on a mission to take out all the pines that have been planted at Cuevas.  I’m not 100% on board with that – the pines are doing something to stabilize the hillside – but she’s probably more right than me.  The native vegetation is adapted more to landsliding than it is to fire…

Anyway.  I turned around just a bit further along down the road and headed back.  There are a few more kilometers to explore on this road yet and I expect I’ll visit them in a few weeks.  This weekend my long run will be here in LaGuardia.  I’ll be back up to Cuevas on Thursday next week.



I should note too - I ran this in my Vibrams - 18 Miles in VFF Trek Sports.  Longest run in them by probably 20 percent (guessing, but...)

Thanks for reading and stay in your lane on blind curves,
J

Week in review: July 25-July 31

Last week was a recovery week during which I suffered a minor injury.  I'm not going to get into the gory details of the training like my usual WIR posts, but I do want to write about 2 workouts, and the consequences of the little bruise.

The week was scheduled:  Day off, recovery run, recovery run, form work, threshold time trial, whatever in Cuevas, whatever in Cuevas.  It went:  Day off, recovery run, recovery run, form work, threshold time trial (DNF), run really fast from Samaipata to Cuevas, day off.  Guess which workouts I'm going to write about...

Friday I had scheduled a "Threshold Time Trial".  Perhaps you're wondering what that is.  Threshold is really Lactate Threshold - the point at which blood lactate is flushed from your muscles at the same rate it's created by your energy system.  Lactate Threshold Heart Rate (LTHR) is the key to all of my training.  It sets my heart rate zones and guides my future workouts.  A DNF in this workout isn't particularly desirable, but does still yield some interesting information.

Anyway, I had a 1 hour 15 minute block of time set aside for warm up, TT and cool down.  It was freaking windy out, I checked out the weather before I set out and saw that the wind was blowing from the north at 50 km/h and gusting to 80.  That's 30 mph with gusts to 50 for the metrically impaired.  I tweeted it'd be a fun run.

My warmup was 3 of my high cadence form drills spaced 5 minutes apart.  At 20 minutes into my run, I hit the lap button on my Garmin and took off.  I was running in the low 6's and my heart rate was surprisingly low.  The way this test is structured, you run essentially as hard as you can for 30 minutes.  At the end of the first 10 minutes of the test, hit the lap button on your heart rate monitor, and your LTHR will be approximated by the average heart rate of the final 20 minutes of the test.

By the end of the first 10 minutes of my effort my heart rate was still off from what I was expecting to see and I was starting to feel like I wasn't getting enough air (I still have some of that goop in my chest from a couple of weeks back).  I was being pushed along by that wind and faced with the prospect of turning around and running back into it.  Less than 5 minutes after hitting my 10 minute lap, I wimped out.

What did I learn from this workout?  I expect I may have overestimated my LTHR previously and have since adjusted it down 3 bpm.  We'll see how that effects my recovery during the week.  I also have a lot to say on the wind.  I mentioned before, there'll be a pretty lengthy nerd post on the wind in the not too distant future.

The other workout was a run from Samaipata to Cuevas.  I didn't bring my camera.  I did it after lunch.  It was downhill.  It was pretty darn quick.  There were 2 chased by dog incidents.

 For the first 4 miles or so I thought I'd run the 20+ km in under an hour and 30 minutes.  Unfortunately somewhere around mile 4, the perfectly sized rock impacted the underside of my heel very hard.  It hurt like a son of a bitch.

I limped along at a decent clip for a while, but quickly started developing a hot spot (which turned into a blister).  This here is one of the arguments against going minimal.  I did this run in my VFF Trek Sport shoes.  Had I been wearing normal road running shoes, I wouldn't have bruised my heel and likely wouldn't have had the weird stride change that resulted in the blister.

I ended up taking Sunday off because of the pain in my left heel and right calf which I assume took on a lot of the load once I switched from running to very fast limp.  Anyway, even though I suffered that injury pretty early on in the run, I still finished the 12.77 mile on a half marathon PR pace, and it wasn't any near race effort.

Oh well, the pain in my heel is almost gone and I was able to get a really good effort in yesterday.  In fact I think the day off really aided my recovery and will likely incorporate the bookend days off into my future recovery weeks (Monday and Sunday - off).

About the dogs, one of them I thought was going to attack for sure.  It was a giant.  I have no idea what kind of dog it was, but if that sucker tripped me, I think I may have been a goner.  Scared me enough that I may never actually do that run again.  We'll see.  I'm looking into pepper spray and/or a whip.

Thanks for reading, and don't be food.
J

P.S.
If you make it all the way through this post, please leave a comment so that I may commend your fortitude.
j

Road to Bella Vista - deserving of it's own post...

My weekend in running.

As I noted in my last post my running had been a bit odd on the week.  Not so this past weekend.  In fact, it was downright spectacular.

Looking toward the road from the cabin.

Saturday got off to a slow start.  Nataly and I have been having some work done on the fence around the house and we had to settle up with the guy who completed the work for us.  I was unsure whether or not to knock out my run in the morning, or wait until we left and do it up in Cuevas.  I decided to wait.

For the sake of my blood pressure, that was the wrong decision, but for the sake of the run it was correct.

The guy whom we were supposed to pay at 12:00 didn't show until almost 1.  Then, when we got out onto the road, our assistant Mary called to say we'd forgotten Boo, Deneb's precious dog without which there would be no sleep.  We stopped for some chicken.  Eventually we started toward Cuevas somewhere after 2:30.  Me getting a run in was looking doubtful.

We had no difficulties on the road and eventually pulled up to the cabin around 4:30.  With Hugo's help, I had the car emptied quickly and I was changed into my running clothes (without Hugo's help) and ready to go.  I hit start on my GPS at 4:41 PM for my 1 hour 15 minute run.

Beautiful Green Mountains.

My schedule called for a run with a variety of options.  Had I done it in La Guardia, it'd've been form work, instead it was hills (strength training for runners).  This weekend I actually did 2 runs on the same road, the road to Bella Vista (you can see the GPS tracks here and here).

By the time I'd finish Saturday's run, it'd be getting pretty dark, but no headlamp would be needed.  The thing that was remarkable about my workout Saturday was that I was cruising.  Felt effortless.  Climbing was easy, descending was smooth.

Gearing wise, I was sockless in my VFF Trek Sports, with my Garmin and nothing else.  As far as effort went, when I do "running strength" workouts I use a heart rate ceiling:  No higher than Zone 4.  That still gives plenty of horses to push it on the climbs and I worked on form on the descents - bent knees, high turnover rate, forefoot strike etc, etc.

Typical scene, lots of veg.

Distance wise, this run was nearly identical to a run I took a couple of weeks ago when I went to Cuevas by myself, but temporally, it was five minutes faster.  I worked harder on Saturday's effort, but only marginally - average HR was 2 beats per minute higher.  Anyway, Saturday's run covered 8.5 miles and had an elevation gain of 1250 feet and finished with a "Hot Damn! That was freaking fantastic."  A workout like Saturday's is the reward for the days when one just doesn't care to get out, but does anyway.

Sunday, well that was another kettle of fish entirely.  I didn't really care to get out, but it was my long run - the most important of the week.  It was raining, then it wasn't, then it was pouring.

Nataly thought it would clear, and when I left, I thought she might be right, but within 15 minutes of leaving it has started misting and for the rest of my workout, something would be making me wet either from above or below.

The road which Saturday had been dry with sure footing was now slick and muddy.  For the most part the traction was fine, but there were parts of the road where the mud was downright treacherous.  Toward the top of the final climb before I turned around, I felt like I was sliding backward 3 steps for every 4 I was taking forward.  Then on the descent, because I'm essentially a wimp when it comes to injuries, I proceeded with extreme caution.  My timing for yesterday's workout was a bit off - whatever.  It's possible that I can blame my shoes for my difficulties in the mud, yesterday I went with the NB Minimus, but I'd be shocked if my VFFs would do much better.

Friend along the way.

One of the great joys of running in Bolivia is that darn near everywhere you get to share the road with livestock.  Sometimes they manifest themselves in the form of demon sheep, but most of the time I'm running in close proximity to herds of cattle.  The road to Bella Vista has lots of cows along it's length, as well as a horse or two.

The cows themselves aren't really much of a worry, it's their residue that I'm not a huge fan of.  Yesterday in the rain, well - yuck.

Anyway, I'm really starting to like using this road as one of my main training routes.  Even though when it's wet the mud and cow effluent make it less than a jungle paradise, the route has a bunch to offer.  Yesterday at my turnaround point I seemed to be almost to a spectacular vista, but I was so sick of sliding around in the muck I decided I'd get there another day.

Not single track.

Given the weather yesterday and timing of my run on Saturday, these pictures were obviously not taken this weekend.  In fact they were taken back in May.  The photo to my left was taken at just about the mid point of my run on Saturday.

Today I'm pretty darn sore - calves, quads, glutes, abs, lower back....  I don't do a boatload of climbing here in La Guardia and so this was my first real up and down weekend as it were.  I ended up with nearly 3500 feet of climbing over 23 miles.  Not a bad couple of outings at all.

Anyway, thanks for reading and watch where you step.
J

Cabin, sweet cabin.

On injuries and barefoot running (Part 2)

What went before.  Short recap:  I ran in normal shoes with orthotics and my feet hurt.  I tried Vibram Five Fingers as an alternative to surgery.

Anyway, after my first several runs in my Vibrams, I realized that it was going to be a process transitioning into the new footwear.  I had more than slight difficulty climbing stairs after a run of anything more than 2 miles and my calves would hurt for days afterwards.

But it wasn't all bad.  Something else was going on.  The pain in my foot (self diagnosed as Plantar Fasciitis) started going away.  In fact, within 2 months of twice per week runs of 3 miles, the pain in my foot disappeared in it's entirety.  I was convinced.  Minimal footwear was the way to go.

Then I read Born to Run.

I was even more convinced.

I pretty much resolved myself to becoming a fully minimal runner.  I understood the challenge, given the problems I'd experienced initially, but I thought everything would be fine.

For a while I logged several miles per week actually barefoot.  Why?  I ran Homey to far one day and he shredded his paws.  I decided, "He doesn't wear shoes, so..."

Our next run together was something like three miles bare.  Cool experience.  My feet chaffed a bit on the concrete sidewalk, but overall I enjoyed myself.  I think our longest barefoot run together was in the neighborhood of 6 miles. Several times during these runs with Homey, I got the "look." The "Wait!  That dude isn't wearing any shoes!" look.

After the Steamboat 50 I had nothing more on my schedule for the forseable future.  A sort of ambiguous feeling I might do the Desert RATS trail running festival in Fruita, but no real plans.  I started really ramping my minimal miles.

I remember a run in VT around Thanksgiving.  In fact, I believe it was on Thanksgiving Day itself.  I got out and ran 11 miles in my Vibrams on icy roads.  It was a good run, but the next day I had extreme difficulty going down the stairs due to the pain in my achilles-s.

I backed off my minimal miles and backed off my miles in total really until January when I started logging virtually all of my runs in my Five Fingers.  I developed chronic Achilles Tendonitis.  I still have it actually, though it's improving.  I hope.

I also experienced something else this year.  "Pain in the top of the foot."  I read up on that and quickly decided to take a couple of days off.  That's gone now and doesn't seem to be coming back so we're good on that front.

I'm a habitually shod runner and I've been running as such for the better part of 25 years.  For me the transition to minimal style has taken 2+ years and is still ongoing.  Since April, I log my 2 longest runs in any given week in the NB Minimus.  There isn't a lot to that shoe, but it's a hell of a lot more shoe-like than any of my Vibrams.

One thing that's different recently is that I've really started adding form drills to my workout repertoire.  I run barefoot around the house with my son using a ridiculously high cadence, or ridiculously high knee lift, or kicking myself in the butt, or skipping.  He thinks it's great fun.

I run a mantra through my head while running out on the roads.  Lift up, don't push off; lift up, don't push off; lift up... This is resulting in improvements in my achilles, but a slight tap on the back of my left heel is enough to make me shudder in pain.

The point of all this is that NYT article seems to be dead on in my case.  There's good that can be had from running in normal shoes and good that can be had from running minimally, but there's bad to be had from both too.  If anybody wonders why I don't run barefoot here in Bolivia, take a look at this post.  There are many, many perfectly good reasons to wear shoes while running.

While all isn't roses in this minimal runner's garden, I am going to continue with the experiment until something forces me to stop or I can run pain free.  My hope/goal is to run the Space Coast Marathon in November in my Bikilas and set a worthy marathon PR in the process.

Anyway, thanks for reading and be careful out there.
J

Added a bit of something to the blog.

You can check out my training calendar by clicking on the tab above.  It's shows my scheduled workouts for the next month.  

In the process of laying out my schedule I discovered I had an extra week.  That's cool.  Right now I'll be using it for an additional preparatory week.  Last week didn't go too well from an accomplishing training goals perspective so I'll try to go better this week.

Today I got out and did an hour of form work.  I ran for an hour in my trusty five fingers and on every fifth minute I increased my cadence to the most rapid foot strike I could manage while still maintaining good form (lift up not push off, core engaged, foot strike under center of mass...).  Each work interval lasted one minute.  I look forward to seeing the graph. 

On a non-running note, somewhere in the last 24 hours my cousin found himself on the summit of Denali.  Well done, Dave.  Dave is singularly responsible for my getting into this whole long distance running thing and I can't appreciate that enough.  Perhaps he'll find himself on the summit of a peak here in Bolivia soon.  Huyana Potosi is easily reached from La Paz and a guided climb can be had for under 500 dollars.

Thanks for reading.

J

On injuries and barefoot running (Part 1)

Money, it's gotta be the shoes!

So, I've been an advocate of minimally clad running for some time now.  I can often sound like some kind of evangelical preacher when talking about footwear, but the truth of the matter is there are a bunch of pluses and minuses to running with less on your feet.

The blog post "Are we built to run barefoot?" in yesterday's New York Times "Phys Ed" section highlights some of my personal experiences with barefoot and minimal running.  The article is interesting and worth the read.

I started running more minimal when I realized that the custom fit orthotics I purchased while still a member of the CU Cycling team were actually doing more harm than good when running.  I got 2 pairs back then.  One pair was for my cycling shoes.  They locked my feet in place on the pedal and actually provided a noticeable increase in my pedaling efficiency (power output at a given heart rate).

The other pair I got because they were supposed to be good for you; they would help me with my back pain; the IT band issue I was having thanks to the 20 hour weeks on the bike would likely go away.  I wore them alot when I first had them.  Sliding them into every pair of shoes I had.  Back then, I was running during the offseason to stay in shape for the upcoming racing year.  I didn't race much, but when I did, I wanted to be happy with the way I performed.

After a year or two...

During my offseason, I started noticing pain in the bottom of my right foot, especially when I woke up and first stepped out of bed in the morning.  A few times the pain was so sharp I darn near fell over it hurt so much.  A search like this one (keywords: morning, pain, foot, bottom) revealed I probably had Plantar Fasciitis.  Reading the articles, I became even more religious about wearing my orthotics, and even purchased "motion control" shoes:  the Nike Structure Triax.  It took some time, but my foot pain got worse.

I started thinking that the problem was with my orthotics.  The pain felt almost like bruising and the only thing I could think would be bruising my foot were my orthotics. They had almost as pronounced an under arch structure as a pair of Birkenstocks.  I took them out of my shoe.  My pain improved, my miles increased and my pain became more pronounced again.

I decided to repeat the process.  I stripped down my shoes, not the way Anton did with his NB's, but by repeatedly buying shoes more meant for someone fleet of foot.  I eventually got down to the Nike Free 5.0.  Every time I tried a less structured shoe, I found my pain would diminish for a while and then come back.  I was running out of ways to get less shoe.

Much of my migration from a maximal shoe to a minimal shoe was a hesitant acceptance of the stuff I'd read about barefoot running.  I however wasn't ready to go all in and ditch my shoes entirely.  I started considering surgery.

I read about this: Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy.  Google it for more, but here's a link to an abstract from a paper published in '96.  A key phrase from the abstract:

Each time 1000 impulses of 0.06 mJ/mm2 were given around the heel spur.

What does that mean?  Well a millijoule is one-thousandth of a joule and a joule represents the energy necessary to accelerate a 1 kilogram block through a distance of one meter.  When boiled all the way down to it's most dangerous don't try this down at home essentials, this article suggests, that as an alternative to surgery, try hitting your foot repeatedly with a hammer.

Well after reading that, I looked at myself in the mirror and said, "I'm already running."

Barefoot wasn't going to happen right away, I had a race to train for and couldn't afford to slack off in the volume, but I Googled barefoot running shoes, and guess what I found.

I bought my first pair of Vibram Five Fingers in the summer of 2009.  My first run in them was 2 miles long and didn't feel too bad.  My second was 3 miles and I could barely climb the stairs at home for 3 days afterward.

I've got what feels like a lot more to say on this subject so I'll cut this off here and come back with part 2 tomorrow or Monday (or Thursday go to Part 2).  This weekend, I'm heading to a land where the internet is nonexistent, but the hills are magnificent.

Thanks for reading.
Jay

Overcast and kind of cool.

Got out for an hour today even though I woke with a hacking cough.  It faded as the morning went on and is most likely a lingering effect from the party on Saturday - there was lots of smoke in the air.

One thing which is really remarkable here is how people react to the cooler weather.  As the post title notes, it's overcast and kind of cool, really rather pleasant actually, but the way folks complain about the cold you'd think we're in the dead of winter close to one of the poles.  I just don't get that.  To me, this weather doesn't even warrant a long sleeve shirt and shorts are fine.  Doing the math, it turns out it's actually 71 degrees outside.  Not cold at all, but people are wearing jackets and hats.  When high summer comes I can see I'm going to be miserable.  Oh well.

There was a weird odor outside while I was running.  Sort of like a wet dog.  Not entirely unpleasant, but not real enjoyable either. It was a familiar smell, but I couldn't place it and I'm probably glad I didn't.

Anyway my run was really pretty uneventful.  Lots of sand.  I went 6.75 miles in 1 hour with an average heart rate of 157 beats per minute.  Pretty laid back.
Thanks for reading.
J

Mmmmm...Pizza.

...Author's note, this first section was written yesterday on my phone and I don't care to change the date references and such...

This here was arguably the best pizza I've ever made.  Dinner last night, couldn't help but gloat.

I'm currently stuck in Santa Cruz awaiting the magic hour of 2:30 at which time I'll be able to pick up a piece of paper which I needed renewed. Then I'll go wait in another line and hopefully, finally get my residency paperwork finished and off to La Paz.

My run today is a sacrifice to the gods of bureaucracy.  Yesterday though I got a number of running things done.  One thing I've never done is to really work on my form. So I Googled about and found some form drills for barefoot runners. The first link had a bunch of good stuff which isn't terribly surprising considering the author.  While I'm not a fan of his shoes, I am a fan of his philosophy...

The drills consist of things like running in place with a focus on high cadence or knee lift,  butt kicks and jumping rope.  So I spent quite some time chasing and/or being chased by Deneb around the house all the while doing these silly drills (except the rope jumping). He thought it a good time.

I also set up a track consisting of thirty bricks in an oval which I then proceeded to do laps around barefoot. I had thought Deneb would dig this too, but I was mistaken, he rather quickly decided I was working in the (author's note - end of stuff written yesterday) yard and complained "No Ayu-u-da"...

Speed work done, I put on my vffs and got out and ran another 5.5 miles slowly while I thought about picking up my foot rather than pushing off with it.  I actually got in a mile more than I had anticipated because, even though I was tired from the previous 2 days efforts, it just felt good to be running.  I didn't really want to stop.

This photo was taken about 2.5 miles into my run, and the one below is at about mile 3.

Much of my running here is on sandy dirt roads.  Depending on what the weather has been like, the sand can be pretty deep.  Makes for an interesting workout.

Yesterday (really), I finally got my paperwork approved and off to La Paz.  In 3 weeks I'll have a sticker which says I can stay in Bolivia unmolested for a full year.  I was done with that finally around 6PM.  When I called Nataly to hopefully have her pick me up, instead she said, "I've got a few more things to do could you come over here?"

I ran.

Pretty nice spectacle too.  Tan dress slacks, blue cotton button down short sleeve wide open, dress shoes.  More than one person actually laughed at me.  Whatever.  I got 31 minutes running on a day I thought a run would be sacrificed to the gods of bureaucracy - should that be the name of a band?

thanks for reading

J

An Argument Against Minimal Footwear.

The run yesterday was good except for one brief encounter with a cement buttress. The result, quick transitory pain and this hideous bruise. The good news is it doesn't hurt me today - Got a 4 mile run in with no pain. I think I might've dislocated it and reset it while I was running yesterday. Oh well...

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Retrospect Piece #1. Drive: Colorado - Vermont.

Whew.

That was rather excruciating.

Last I wrote, I was just about to leave Colorado.  Well...

It took me something like 2 weeks more to finally leave.  I eventually just bailed, leaving the final cleaning and trash hauling to professional types.  There was a storm coming and I wanted to be out of CO before it arrived.

I left Friday the 14th of January from Denver and motored out of CO with a Cruck ('03 Subaru Baja - for sale) full of the last remains we would be keeping, including a sculpture my brother made several years back at the Marble Marble Symposium.  Darn thing weighed something on the order of 400lbs.  My neighbor Dave graciously helped me get it into the back of the otherwise I'm not sure what I'd have done with it - I have a rock hammer...

Stuff is weirder in Nebraska.

Anyway, I totally plushed out the back seat for Jackson.  Camping mat folded in half, comforter, 3 pillows.  Dude was riding in style.  He actually gets car sick so anything I can do to encourage him to sleep while we drive is good stuff.

Friday I wanted to log some miles on the road so we motored the entire day just stopping to pee, grab hideous fast food and that was it.  We eventually made it to a Motel 6 I've stayed in before in Avoca, IA.  It's clean and fairly hospitable, but despite Motel 6's promise of pets welcome, this specific Motel 6 makes you stop as you're leaving for a "room check" if you're traveling with a pet.  I think that's idiotic, but...

I usually make the drive from CO to VT in 3 days, with stops around Council Bluffs, and Cleveland, but this time I wanted to stop in Buffalo and have a visit with my Stepfather and my Uncle who lives very near by.

So, Saturday I stopped in Davenport, IA for a run with Homey.  As I was churning down the highway, I noticed a dude walking his dog on a trail and decided I needed to find it.  That turned out to be easy as the next sign I saw said, "Somethingorother State Park next exit". We only did 30 minutes, me in VFF, he bare.  It was cold and there was some fluffy white stuff on the ground.  We only stopped a couple times to clean out our paws. It was a pleasant place for a run, but overall not too spectacular.

We eventually made it the better part of the way to Cleveland that night and would be able to meet my Uncle for lunch on Sunday.  I hadn't seen him since I'd re-done my wedding in the States something like 8 years ago.  It was good.  I met his horse barn full of horse tennants, whom Jackson wasn't sure what to think of  up close.  We've met some on the trail before, but I've never put him into such close proximity to horses before.  He was nervous.  My Uncle had made a Lasagna which we ate with much gusto and around 3 he had to take off to go skate with a girl.  Nice.  An added bonus, his daughter stopped in and I got to see my youngest cousin for like the 3rd time.  Faith is now a Sophomore at University of Buffalo.  Man...

I had some slack time in the day, having told my Stepfather I'd be over in time to catch the kickoff of the Patriots game, so I popped open my phone and tried to locate a park to get in a run.  Google Maps found a pretty good sized one close by and we went over there.  This was a heavily used park which permitted snowmobiles and skiers and snowshoers, but it was big with dedicated trails for the noisemakers so Homey and I could get out without being run over.

There was snow, but no need for snowshoes, though by the throngs of people clumping around with the ungainly things on you'd think them a part of the uniform.  Jackson and I just looked at them and smiled as we passed in our minimal garb.  I expect we got some weird looks. I was wearing a t-shirt, gloves, Eagles Cap, jeans and 5 Fingers.  All in all the park was really quite nice.  After logging 30+ minutes running through the forest, Jackson and I headed over to my Stepfathers to watch some football.

There we had a very nice visit.  Walter (my stepfather) had made a vegetarian version of Spaghetti with clam sauce.  I'm not particularly a fan of Clams, or seafood of any kind found more than 25 miles inland, so the new take was intresting to me.  He used my favorite bean, the Garbanzo, in place of the clams.  It worked really well.  I'll probably make it with a bit more butter, but mmmmm Tasty!

We watched a good chunk of the Patriots game, but Walter wasn't enjoying it too much as the Jets really seemed in control throughout the game.  We ended up shutting it off, even though I was quietly rooting for the Jets, there was other stuff to talk about, you know like the impending move.  Eventually we called it a night and said good bye - Walter leaves for work really early in the mornings and I expected I wouldn't wake up.

Ithaca is Gorges!

The next morning I spent a few more minutes visiting with Walter's wife Michelle and then hit the road to go visit my Dad in Ithaca.  We were planning on a luncheon.  Dad and I spent a couple of hours together talking about the move as well as my brother's new girlfriend.  It was good.

I finished the drive to VT eventually arriving at my Mom's house around 7PM on Monday.  Jackson and I didn't get a run in that day, but I expected I'd be able to make the missed workouts up during the days I was in VT.  Oh well.

Winter Wonderland

I'll have more tomorrow during Deneb's nap time.
Thanks for reading.
J