No Dancing Here

Well, the 2010 Western States draw has come and gone and I'm on the outside looking in. All in all I feel OK, since I'm working even to get back to full health it's probably best in the long run (no pun intended). For now I'll reconsider the distance of February's race, I'm not sure I'll be ready to tackle an ultra that soon, but there are 17 and 35K options so I'll at least get a taste of the fun I hope. I think I'll toss out the idea of the Free State 100K as that would be soon as well, not to mention a 9 hour drive.

Here's what I feel for sure though. I think I'll for sure be out at Sageburner again, love that race. I do believe Jon and I will be headed out to Big Horn to run the 50M (Jon's first ultra) a race I'm really, really excited for. I've never had the chance to run a point to point race or a net downhill race. STOKED! Not to mention, Jon's family is in Sheridan and has a cabin just outside Dayton. I also plan on running one of the distances at North Fork, the closest race to home I'll get here in Denver. I'll be excited to get out and run some the course in spring months (Leila, you in?) Collegiate peaks would be fun, probably the 25M but I'm going to keep my options open and take my time getting back to full distance running.

The WS draw has made me consider tackling the LT 100 this year, but I want to be prepared so I'll see how my knee progresses. If I don't get in, I'll still be up there for sure pacing/crewing. For now, I'm going to consider some other late season 100's as well just in case I need a bit more time and feel good about how this is progressing. But right now it's time to shovel some snow...

My Mouth is Frozen...

Well, let's just say it's been a bit cold lately. My jaunt through the park last night was all of 13*. But there are some good things about the weather, here's my list:

*No yuppies! The only other people out are nuts just like me.
*Quiet, When the snow falls it really dampens the sound.
*Sights, man is it pretty with a light dusting of snow, really gets you ready for the Christmas season.
*Street Cred. All of your co-workers and anyone who sees you out knows that you are certainly tougher than they are...

Enjoy the weather!

On a side note my knee is feeling less tender, still slow short runs, but I'm just glad to be out right now...

More Frustration

Last week I was heading out for a Sunday run and about 6 miles in I started feeling soreness in my knee again so I decided to shut it down and call it a day of 8 miles instead of 10. It was frustrating because I was feeling that I was gaining strength in that knee and I was going to be able to move forward. Then on Tuesday I went out for a chilly run after work and had some serious pain in that knee again. I decided to walk the last mile of the run and take a few days off. I only ran once in Texas, 5 miles on a pretty fun little trail actually and it felt good, sore but not the same pain I had experienced before. So I'm taking another day off tomorrow and I'll sort of restart the easy running on Tuesday and hopefully I'll be able to continue forward again.

On another note, I'll be looking forward to this weekend because it's the draw for Western States. I'll be stoked if I get in, but if I do It might change any race plans I had drawn up. If I don't get in, it might be a welcome event, as this recent soreness has made me worry a bit on the timeline of my full recovery.

Gaining Traction

Over the past week I've been out logging consistent if not short milage in the quest to regain fitness and endurance. Mostly I've been in the realm of 5-7 miles with moderate to harder intensity.

This is what I've realized so far. While training to recover from injury, I need to be extra focused on how hard I'm pushing my body. Perhaps I should work on gaining milage rather than pounding out fast mile after fast mile. My knee was a bit sore after my 58 minute 8 miler yesterday (fast for me) so I've decided to let my longer runs or those of 7+ be slower than my adrenaline is telling me.

So, for now, I'm going to enjoy a bit of time to myself and get a few trail runs in before I go down to join the Fam in TX on Wednesday.

Happy Thanksgiving All...

Holiday Shopping

This year my holiday shopping list revolves around the thing I love doing most with my free time, ultra's of course!

I've decided to list a group of events that I'm mulling over for next year's racing schedule. First things first, December 5th will help shake some things out, that is when I find out if I've survived the numbers to enter Western States. I have about a 16% chance of making it through, so I'm not holding my breath, but if I don't get in I'll be able to run some races that I've really had my eye on.

Gunner and I have talked a lot about the Big Horn 50, which sounds like it just might be his first go at 50 miles. He's got family in Sheridan, WY so it would be simple for us to get in and be comfortable. It's a point to point which I've never had the chance to do but have always wanted to try.

Of course there are the two races I most want to get back to, Sageburner 50K and Run Rabbit Run. Depending on how things shake out, both could be possible.

I'm for sure (barring injury) running the Woodside 50K in Woodside, CA when Rachel, Xavier, and I head out to Salinas for a short vacation. This race I'm excited for for a few reasons, it's in Redwood forest, it's fast, and it's at sea level. The only time I've raced below 7,000 ft was in TX for my first ultra which I was grossly unprepared for. Needless to say I won't be unprepared for this one :)

My goals for this winter are to get consistent, solid training on trails. Secondly, I want to work on running long uphills which we fortunately have plenty of. I'll work on running to the top of Myers Gulch from Lair O' Bear park (6 miles all uphill). Also, I'll run Mt. Falcon from Morrison which is sufficient to kick anyone's ass. Third, I plan on getting down and running with CRUD once a month. This will help me spend some time with big time ultra runners and learn a lot. I think I'm soon going to be ready to make it down for a Saturday long run with them.

As for today, Xavier and I are going to play out in the cold. Happy trails.

Jonathan's Run

Here are some Pictures from Gunner's big run at the Denver Marathon. He finished strong in 3:45ish if I recall correctly and looked as if he'd just gone for a training run. Talking with him post race there was a great line where I asked him if he could have gone faster/further. His response? "Oh, I think I could have gone at least 6 more, no problem..." Uh oh, ultra world here we come ;)

Actually, this was just prior to the first Gunner sighting, Dazbog Coffee, and PBR(s)

Dude, he totally beat Headband Guy with the sweet deep V-neck

Striding out to the line!

In the game again... Sort of

It's been almost a month since I've posted anything, and for that I'm sorry. The reason for the haitus is that it's directly followed my running haitus. I just started running again after the frustrating layoff forced by the IT-band problem. Also, just as the weekend of Zion was approaching the family rather instead took to a bout of puking where we, like dominoes made our way to puking up everything we'd eaten for the past 2 days. I got the ball rolling, with Xavier and Rachel to follow. I am however running again, not far, but I'm running. I put in about 21 miles last week and am hoping to continue the baby steps towards recovery. For now I've decided to scrap Rocky Raccon as it's too soon to be ready for and run the Woodside 50K on February 6th. We've got our trip booked to CA already and Rachel, my Dad, and maybe my Bro-In-Law Joe will run the 10K version. I should be back to a normal posting schedule if you care to follow my coming adventures into the further depths of ultrarunning...