13 weeks to My Leadville Build-Up

Just because some day I hope to grow up and be fast runner like Nick. I thought I would do a breakdown just like he did before Western States in the post that I just linked to. Of course my goal at Leadville is just to finally finish this race not be competitive like Nick was at Western States. Nick, I hope that is OK that I copied your format, it makes for straight forward and non-confusing reading which is something I am not very good at doing.

So here we go, the dates are the end of that week. The numbers in the (') is the vertical gain for that week followed by a note or two.

1. 5/16- 72.4 miles (9,950'); 25 mile long run
2. 5/23- 38.85 miles (3,870'); Got married on Saturday so took the weekend off
3. 5/30- 80.25 miles (11,550'); 20 mile long run
4. 6/6- 82.45 miles (13,850'); 31 mile long run (Dirty Thirty 50K)
5. 6/13- 75.3 miles (9,400'); 3 days of over 15 miles each
6. 6/20- 70.6 miles (10,950'); 18 mile long run
7. 6/27- 64.3 miles (5,500'); 26 mile flat long run (sick 3 days this week)
8. 7/4- 62.3 miles (12,350'); 3 days over 15 miles each, went to Nebraska
9. 7/11- 74.1 miles (18,800'); 47.5 mile long run (Pacing Hardrock); mini-taper
10. 7/18- 76.5 miles (9,700'); 3 days of over 15 miles each
11. 7/25- 70.75 miles (13,350'); 35 mile long run and Grandpa passed missed 2 days.
12. 8/1- 71.35 miles (14,000'); 25.5 mile long run and 15.5 mile back to back
13. 8/8- 55.45 miles (8,150'); 15 mile long run- just a crazy busy week at work

I hope that I was able to put in enough long runs and time on my feet. As of this posting I have ran 1750 miles this year with 277,00 feet of vertical. By the time that the taper and Leadville is done I should only be about 500 miles shy of my total miles from last year. It would have been nice to be over 2000 miles on the year right now but that did not happen. Due to daily family obligations, the trips to Nebraska, and all the stress this year I have not gotten in as many long single runs as I would like but instead would run 2-3 times in a day to hit the mileage. There were many days where I would run 4-9 miles before work, 4-6 miles at lunch, then some nights do a track workout of 7ish miles after. I just had to fit it in where I could. I really wanted to do a week or two over 100 miles like I did in Feb but found it very hard to fit it all in. Would I have liked to do more? Yes of course. Was it feasible with family and the new job this year? No.

Another thing that I was trying to balance at the same time was dropping a few pounds but still eating enough calories that I could train worth a darn. By using the free website Livestrong.com (they have a great iPhone App that I used) to track all my calories in verses what I was burning I was able to drop about 15 pounds over the last 4 months. This takes me to the starting line at Leadville at the same weight that I was when I attempted it in 2008 at 173ish.

I also went back and compared the 13 weeks leading up to my last 2 attempts at running a 100 miles with this attempt and discovered that in fact I did cover more total miles leading up to the taper this year. Hopefully that pans out good in a few weeks at Leadville, only time will tell.

These last 2 weeks are going to be filled with a couple of morning runs up Green Mountain but mostly I will be sleeping in, with easy running at lunch during work week, and some hiking up high on a 14er next weekend. I was even thinking of backpacking up to 12K or higher during the week to sleep then getting up early to make it to work in time. Any thoughts on this? I can drive about 30 mins west of the house to Indian Peaks and get some high sleeping in. Is it worth it?

Hopefully this all takes me to the starting line ready for another grand adventure!

Wish me luck!

February's Numbers

Not to bad for the month of February. I was shooting for a little bit more mileage but there was one down week after the Red Hot 50K that my mileage was a bit lower. Here is how it all breaks down so far.

Feb 1st - Feb 28th

Miles covered on foot: 201.05

Vertical gain: 29,109 feet

Total hours (includes weights,swimming,biking,ect.): 39:47:00


Now here is the breakdown year to date.

Jan 1st - March 1st

Miles covered on foot: 432.45

Vertical gain: 57,058 feet

Total hours (includes weights,swimming,biking,ect.): 83:52:00

This next month should be a good month as I start building more mileage for the 50 miler in Buena Vista the 1st weekend of May. You can also check out my on-line log by clicking on the link on the right hand side of the webpage.

Have a great week.

Shad

Log catch up and start of the taper

Sorry I have been really bad the past month with posting what I have been doing. I have been really busy at work and training like a mad man trying to get ready to take on Leadville 100 mile trail run. In the past month I have put in some quality miles on the Leadville course along with doing some races. Here is a quick break down from my last post all the way up to today.
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Monday 6/23: Treadmill 6.25 miles and weights for 45 mins

Tues 6/24: Speed workout(6.25 miles) 10X200 at 6min pace with 200 recovery at 12min pace

Wed 6/25: Run at Green Mountain 7.75 miles

Thur 6/26: OFF

Fri 6/27: Run on the backside of Mount Massive 8.5 miles

Sat 6/28: AM- Winfield to top of Hope and back 11 miles
PM- Mount Elbert 7.75 miles

Sun 6/29: Mayqueen to Twin Lakes 25.5 miles

TOTAL FOR THE WEEK: 73 miles
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Mon 6/30: Treadmill 6 miles and weights for 45 mins (legs really sore)

Tues 7/1: OFF

Wed 7/2: OFF feel like shit

Thur 7/3: Speed (6 miles) 6X400 at 6min pace with 400 recovery at 12min pace

Fri 7/4: OFF Mom here visiting

Sat 7/5: LEADVILLE MARATHON 26.2 miles in 5:32 with over 6000ft in climbing.

Sun 7/6: OFF

TOTAL FOR THE WEEK: 38.25 MILES

I really backed off this week due to lack of sleep and having a hard time recovering from last weeks effort.
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Mon 7/7: Treadmill 6.25 miles and weights for 45 mins

Tue 7/8: Speed (6 miles) 7X400 at 6min pace with 400 recoveries at 12min pace

Wed 7/9: Green Mountain 7.5 miles

Thu 7/10: Green Mountain 8.25 miles

Fri 7/11: Cross train at lunch for 30mins and weights 30 mins

Sat 7/12: High Mountain 50K in Leadville 32 miles in 6:09 and over 5000ft in climbing

Sun 7/13: Mount Yale 8 miles and 4200ft of climbing

TOTAL FOR THE WEEK: 68 miles

Good hard week of climbing, did over 15,000ft total for the week.
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Mon 7/14: Treadmill 6.5 miles and weights for 45 mins

Tues 7/15: Speed (8 miles) 8X400 at 6min pace with 400 recoveries at 12min pace, longer warm-up and cooldown than normal

Wed 7/16: Green Mountain 8.75 miles

Thur 7/17: Green Mountain 7 miles

Fri 7/18: Cross train at lunch for 30mins and weights 30 mins

Sat 7/19: Winfield to Sugarloaf campground in Leadville 30 miles 5000ft of climbing

Sun 7/20: Mount Massive 8.25 miles 4300ft of climbing

TOTAL MILES FOR THE WEEK: 68.50

Another great week of running and climbing, did another week of about 15,000ft of climbing.
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Mon 7/21: Bike paths around REI in Denver 8 miles

Tues 7/22: Cross train at lunch for 15mins and weights 45 mins

Wed 7/23: Green Mountain 9.25 miles

Thur 7/24: Speed (8.5 miles) 10X400 at 6min pace with 400 recoveries at 12min pace; 2X800 at 6min pace with 400 recoveries at 12min pace.

Fri 7/25: Speed (6.5 miles) 8X400 at 6min pace with 400 recoveries at 12min pace

Sat 7/26: AM- Green Mountain 9 miles
Noon- Mount Evans with Ashley 8 miles
PM- Ran to pick up car at trailhead 3 miles

Sun 7/27: Golden Gate Canyon Park with DTR 19 miles

TOTAL FOR THE WEEK: 71.25

Another hard effort week with lots of trails and 2 speed workouts. Did not get into the weight room 2 times this week but that is ok. Did over 10,000 ft of climbing
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This coming up week is the slow start into my taper, I am only shooting for over 50 miles total for the week. Ashley and I are also running the Wild West Relay on 8/1-8/2 and that should be a blast. I will try and have a race report and pictures up next week on it. That will be my last real hard effort until Leadville.

Have a great week and thanks for reading.

Shad

Log for the week of 6/16-6/22

This week was about getting back to around 60 miles after taking a recovery week last week. I also had the Mount Evans Ascent this Saturday which is one of my favorite runs. I just love the scenery and the elevation gain in this race. Here is how the week broke out.

Monday: Run 6 miles on the Treadmill

Tuesday: Run 6 miles on the road then run 1.5 miles on the treadmill; Lift weights with Ashley for 45 mins.

Wednesday: Run 6 miles at Green Mountain with the Weds 4:15pm group of DTR

Thursday: Run 8.25 miles at Green Mountain, hit the summit 2X, then ride the bike for 30 mins after the run.

Friday: OFF

Saturday: Run Mount Evans Ascent (14.5 miles, 4500 feet of gain) in 2:46.

Sunday: Run 14.5 miles to Morrison and back. Really hot outside and had lots of problems with the heat on the way home.

TOTAL MILES FOR THE WEEK: 56.75
TOTAL HOURS FOR THE WEEK: 11

The Mount Evans race is one of my favorites and I thought I would share some pictures with you enjoy!



Next week's goal is to hit 70 or more miles which should not be hard. i am going to Leadville to run and climb on Thursday and will not be home until Monday night. Have a great week everyone!

Shad

Squaw Peak 50 mile Ultra Marathon/Log 6/2-6/8

Last Saturday I went out to Orem Utah with Clyde to attempt the Squaw Peak 50 mile trail run which is rated the 3rd hardest 50 miler in the U.S. with almost 15,000 feet of climbing and descending. After this race I can not imagine what number 1 and 2 are like. Below is an account of my experience.

Race website

Course: Here is the description from the race website.
It is a very challenging, difficult and scenic loop course through the Wasatch Mountains above Provo, Utah. The trail will be marked. It consists of - dirt trails (43%), dirt roads (38%) and some paved (19%). In my opinion about 15% of the dirt trails was bush wacking in order to connect the different trails.
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START - to Mile 5.3 (Vivian Park to Aid Station #2, Hope Campground)
5196' - 5110' - 6660' (-86' drop, +1550' climb)
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Mile 5.4 to 7.6 (A.S. #2 to Squaw Peak road in Rock Canyon)
6660' - 7820' - 7300' (+1160' climb, -520' drop)
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Mile 7.6 to 14.8 (Squaw Peak road to A.S. #3 to Kolob Basin Overlook)
7300' - 7040' - 8480' (-260' drop, +1440' climb)
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Mile 14.8 to 22 (Kolob Basin Overlook to A.S. #5, Left Fork Hobble Creek)
8480' - 5360' (-3120' drop)
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Mile 22 to 29.6 (Left Fork Hobble Creek to Sheep Canyon, A.S. #7)
5360' - 6540' (+1180' climb)
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Mile 29.6 to 33 (just a 5K run, A.S. #7, Sheep Canyon to A.S. #8, Little Valley)
6540' - 7620' - 7120' (+1080' climb, -500" drop)
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Mile 33 to 40.4 (Little Valley, A.S. #8 to Windy Pass, A.S. #9)
7120' - 8280' - 7850'- 9300' - 8932' (ouch)
(+1160' climb, -430' drop, +1450' climb, -368' drop)
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Mile 40.4 to 50 (Windy Pass to Vivian Park and your finished!)
8932' - 5196' (-3736' drop)






Weather:

The weather was forecasted on NOAA all week as 70-72 degrees with cloudy skies. Come race morning it was raining at the start with snow above 7000 feet. It must have dropped 3 inches or so in the 2-3 hours I was above 7000 feet in the first half of the race. The second half of the race it was sunny and right on what the forecast said it would be. We had it all as far as weather was concerned that day.


Report:

This was one of the most challenging things that I have done so far. Not only is it my 1st 50 miler but Squaw Peak 50 is rated the 3rd hardest in the US, great choice Shad and thanks Cylde for talking me into this. Anyway we arrived in Utah on Friday to attend the pre-race briefing on Friday night. At the briefing they had a good diner of pasta which we will be needing in the morning so I loaded up. After collecting our tee shirts and filling our bellies we headed back to catch some sleep.

The race started Saturday morning at 5 am just outside of Orem Utah. At the start there was a slight drizzle coming down that was not to bad. As I was dropping off the drop bags I over heard 2 ladies talking about how the rain was going to get worse before it got better even though the forecast did not call out for rain. Over hearing this I went back to Aid Station #8 drop back and grabbed my GoLite jacket that I placed in there for the climb over Windy Pass. Thank God I did, shortly after the start of the race the rain started coming down even stronger and the temps started dropping as we climbed.

My goal for this race was to try and finish in one piece. With that in mind I started in the back of the pack and just hung out there for a while as we made our way up the mountain in the first big climb. The trail was nothing but thick slimmy mud all the way up. This is the type of mud where it feels like you are walking on ice. I must have slipped and face planted 3-4 times up that 1st climb, I lost track how many times I fell coming down, it was endless. By the time we got down from that climb I was covered in mud front and back. Of course during dealing with all of this the rain decided that it wanted to turn into snow and dropped 3-4 inches on us over the course of a few hours on top. You can see the muddy/snowy trails in the pictures at the end of the report.

At the halfway point of the race the weather decided to clear up. I hit the 25-26 mile mark around 5 hours and 30 mins. The slowest marathon I have ever ran, but that is ok. The weather forced me to slow my pace and save something for the end. I was feeling pretty good. After stuffing my face at the aid station I had about 3.5hours to make it to the 33 mile cutoff, the only cutoff of the race at 9.5 hours. From here I just went into auto pilot and cruised to the aid station at mile 33 which I hit in 7.5 hours, 2 hours under the cutoff time and feeling good. I passed a lot of people durning this section due to starting slow and conserving energy. We also had about 4 stream crossings in this section, the trail even went straight up the middle of a creek for about 100-150 yards. There is no point in even trying to keep your feet dry on this run, especially with the weather we had that morning.

Now comes the hard part, Windy Pass....

As you can see in the course description above this next section from mile 33 to mile 41 has a +1160' climb, -430' drop, +1450' climb, -368' drop, all after running over 30 miles. The second climb of this section the +1450 happens all in 3/4 to 1 a mile trying to gain the top of the pass going up a slick snow/ice covered trail. Good times! This section, especially the second half of it, reminded me more of climbing a 14er here in Colorado and not a run. By the time that I hit the aid station at mile 41 on the other side of the pass my hands were so swelled up that they were painful, I was retaining lots of water and it was causing my joints to hurt like hell. I guess no more drinking for me for a while. I needed to sweat out all the water my body was holding on to. I have not had this happen to me before but have read about it in books.

From mile 41 to the finish was all downhill. About a elevation loss of 4,000 feet. The first 3 miles going down were covered with snow in sections that we had to traverse. Some sections were so steep that the race director had placed rope going across them so that we had something to hang onto. If you were to fall on this section you would slide a couple hundred feet down the hill, that would not be fun to up climb from. After clearing the snow the trail was very runable all the way to the end. The last 3.5 miles to the finish is on a road. Before hitting the road section and the last aid station at mile 46.5 I took a bad spill on the single track. I tripped over a rock and face planted right into the trail. Gave myself a charlie horse in my right leg, felt like I ripped my big toe nail off (see pictures), and split my lip. That fall had to had to been a site to see, were is a video camera when you need one?

It felt so good to cross that finish line and finally kill this 50 mile demon that I have been carrying around for the last 2 months. My final time was 12 hours and 6 minutes. That was good enough for 39th place out of 260 starters and 16th in my age group. Out of the 260 or so starters it looked like only about 200 finished, the weather really effected a lot of people. Even though this is rated the 3rd hardest 50 miler in the country they have had a finishing rate in the past of over 90% because there is no where to quit once you pass the 33 mile point. That was not the case today, it looks like a lot of people quit at or before mile 33.

I learned that I am a lot stronger than I give myself credit for that day, both mentally and physically. It was the confidence booster that I really needed to get myself really motivated for Leadville 100 mile trail run on Aug. 16th. Now it is time to recover from this over the next week and move on to more training for Leadville. Thanks for reading and below is my training log for last week also.



LOG

Monday: OFF

Tuesday: Run 6.25 miles on the treadmill

Wednesday: OFF

Thursday: Run 4.5 miles on the treadmill

Friday: OFF

Saturday: Run 51 mile for Squaw Peak in 12:06

Sunday: OFF RECOVER!!!

Total miles for the week: 61.75

Total hours for the week: 14 hours

Log for the week of 5/26-6/1 (397 miles in May!)

This week on my written up training plan I only had about 35 miles of running called out. It was to be a recovery week, I try and build those in every 4-5 weeks in order to recharge the batteries a little. Anyway with Squaw Peak 50 coming up and getting some new shoes on Thursday that I want to try out I put in a little more than I planned for. Here is the breakdown of the week.

Monday: OFF, recovering from the marathon in Wyoming that I ran yesterday

Tuesday: Run 6.5 miles easy on the treadmill, Lift weights for 45 mins.

Wednesday: OFF, really tired and legs are feeling heavy, thought I needed another day

Thursday: Ran 10.5 miles on Mount Falcon for about 2500 feet of climbing.

Friday: Ran 8.25 miles up Apex to the top of Lookout Mountain for about 2000 feet of climbing

Saturday: AM: Ran 18.5 miles up the Mount Evans road from Echo Lake to Summit Lake.
PM: Ran 6 easy miles with Ashley at the Flying J Ranch

Sunday: OFF, hurt my left foot at the pool, not good. It is swollen and having problems wearing a shoe.... CRAP!

Total miles ran for the week: 49.75 miles
Total hours for the week: 10 hours

It was a good week with lots of hills and getting up to 13,000 feet but it ended with messing up my foot one week before another 50 mile race. Not good. Hopefully it will feel better by the end of the week and I can get a shoe on. It is Tuesday as I am writing this and I am still having problems with even keeping a shoe on. I think I will have to make adjustments and not run much this week to allow the foot to heal as much as possible. Thoughts?

Also just added up my mileage for the month of May. 397 miles this month, not bad but May is a 5 week month. This will need to increase next month to about 450-500 miles, we will see what happens.

Log for the week of 5/19-5/25

I had the Wyoming Marathon on Sunday and it was a lot of fun. I will write a race report here shortly. Over all it was a good week but did not get into the weight room like I needed to. I will have to really work on that next week, I want to keep my strengh up for my upcoming 50 miler at Squaw Peak on June 7th. Here is a break down of the week.

Monday: Off (Bad head cold is in full effect)

Tuesday: Run 6.5 miles on the treadmill and ride the bike 15 mins at the gym

Wednesday: Run 9 miles at Green Mountain and ride the bike 30 mins at the gym

Thursday: Run 6.25 miles on the treadmill (head cold still there, wiping me out)

Friday: Run 9 easy miles on the treadmill

Saturday: OFF... Drove to Wyoming to set up camp

Sunday: Ran the Wyoming Marathon 26.2 miles in 4:09 for 8th place overall

Total miles ran for the week: 57

Total time for the week: 11.25 hours

Overall not a bad week, just a little bit more treadmill time than I would like but between me being sick and Ashley getting sick it was a rough week to get out there.

Have a great week.

Shad

Log for the week of 5/12-5/18

This week has been a challenge just to be active for some reason. I have been tired and run down all week. It just seems like I am not recovering like I was last year from my workouts. By the end of the week I had a raging head cold. Good times. Anyway here is the breakdown for the week.

Monday: Off.. Took the day off work also and just relaxed. Even went to the movies.

Tuesday: Run 6.25 miles on the treadmill @ easy pace; 45 mins lifting weights

Wednesday: Easy run at Green Mountain to the top and back (4.5 miles)

Thursday: Run 6.25 miles on the treadmill @ easy pace; 30 mins lifting weights

Friday: Run road around Green Mountain the home over the top of Green Mountain (9.5 miles) Sore throat starting

Saturday: Run around Green Mountain for 12-13 miles. Turning into head cold

Sunday: Hike Pikes Peak via Crags route (14.5 miles, 4400 feet of gain, 8.5 hours, suffered due to feeling like crap from the cold, it was a long day but willed myself through it.

Total miles ran this week: 38.50 miles

Total hours for the week: 16 hours (8.5 spent on Pikes hiking)

It was a productive week overall, it was nice to get my 1st 14er summit for 2008 out of the way. That will make me 1 out of 3 for the year, not a good start. I was pretty much uneventful hike but I did suffer due to the head cold I had. Pounding head ache and could not breath because I was stuffed up. Hope this goes away, I want to put in over 60 miles this coming week running. We will see. Here is the link to all the pictures from the hike on Pikes. I am not going to write up a trip report like I usually do because this is such a common mountain for a lot of people. One thing that I will say is that the road and the building on top sure is an eye sore on such a pretty mountain.

http://picasaweb.google.com/shadmika/PikesPeakCragsRoute

Have a great week.

Shad

Log for the week of 5/5-5/11

This past week I have been trying to keep around 6 hours of running total with some cross training thrown in. I don't think that I have been cross training enough. Anyway here is the breakdown for the week.

Monday: easy 15 min swim to loosen up

Tuesday: Run 3.25 miles on the treadmill followed by 45 mins lifting weights.

Wednesday: Run 8 miles on the road to Bear Creek and back

Thursday: Run 8.5 miles on the treadmill (2 easy,2@ 7:30pace, 2 easy, 1@ 7:30pace, finish easy) then spent 45 mins lifting weights.

Friday: Run 13.5 miles on the road to Morrison and back.

Saturday: Run 7.5 miles on big loop around Green Mountain with Ben

Sunday: Hike up road going to Guanella Pass from the Grant side with Ash and Braden. We hiked about 5.5 miles in 3 hours with about 1200 feet of gain.

Total miles ran this week: 40.75
Total hours for the week: 11.25

Overall not a bad week coming off a race. My hip that was giving me problems at the race is still hurting. It is like a dull constant ache in my right ass muscle. I have been working on it with the tennis ball and going to start lifting again more regularly. Hopefully that is all that it will take. I am thinking that it is either a slight pull that will go away if I just take an easy for a while or it is some muscle imbalance. If the latter then the weights and cross training should help with that.

I am still on the fence about the next upcoming race in WY. Not sure if I want to run the marathon or try my hand at the 50 miler. I am tempted to do the 50 because I really would like Ashley to be there for my 1st 50 and she is not going with me to Utah in June for Squaw Peak. We will see what happens between now and then, it all comes down to what training I can get in and how the hip feels. Here is the link for the race in WY if you are interested.

http://www.angelfire.com/wy2/marathon/

Log for the week of 4/28-5/4

This week I am attempting to taper for an attempt at my first 50 miler on Saturday. It was the worse week that I have had all year. I was so worried about my race that I was stress eating without even realizing what I was doing. By Monday 5/5 after the race I was up 3 lbs in one week!!! Below is my log for the week.

Monday: OFF, very tired and sluggish

Tuesday: Run 7 miles up and down Green Mountain 3 times. Fell on downhill and banged up right knee.

Wednesday: OFF, only 5 hours of sleep last night

Thursday: Run 5 miles on treadmill at very easy pace, right knee hurt a little

Friday: OFF

Saturday: Collegiate Peaks 25 miles in 4:10. Was supposed to do the 50 but quit and only did 25 due to pain in right hip and leg. Race Report to come soon.

Sunday: OFF, my right leg is sore!!!!

Total miles for the week: 37 miles

Total hours for the week: 6.5 hours

As I was looking back through my log for the week I have notes on almost everyday on how little sleep I was getting and how bad I ate every day. I let this 50 mile race get into my head. That is not like me, I was so stressed out about it that it was no longer fun. I think it is time to step back a little from my goals and reevaluate what I want them to be this year. I need to keep it fun or I will lose my mind.

On a side note I found out last night that someone died in the race on Saturday. Trying to find out more information.

Shad

Log for the week of 4/21 - 4/27

So the goal of this whole week was to try and recover from Greenland 50K while at the same time keep my mileage up somewhat since my 1st 50 miler is a little over a week away on May 3rd. Here is how my week broke down.

Monday: OFF my hamstrings were screaming at me all day, I think that bike ride yesterday may not have been the best idea after the 50K

Tuesday: Run 7.5 miles at Apex trail. I did both side to the trail so about 2500 feet or so of climbing I think.

Wednesday: Run 7.5 miles at Lair 'O Bear trail. This had about 1500-1800 feet of climbing.

Thursday: Run 6.25 miles at Mount Falcon. Up to top of Walkers Dream and back, about 1800 of climbing

Friday: Run 6.25 miles on the treadmill at an easy pace and spent 30 mins lifting weights on the upper body and core only.

Saturday: Run 20.25 miles on the treadmill. This was more a mental challenge than physical one. Did this because they were calling for rain in the morning and needed to be done very early for other things going on.

Sunday: Cherry Creek Sneak 5K (3.1 miles) with Ashley and Braden. This was Braden's (7 years old) 1st 5K. It was pretty neat to see.

Total miles for the week: 50.75
Total hours for the week: 9 hours

Not a bad week overall. I feel like I recovered very well from Greenland 50K and at the same time gots lots of good hill work in this week. Next week will be a half week of tapering for the 50 miler.

Have a great week!

Shad

Log for the week of 4/14 - 4/20 (week of Greenland 50K)

I already posted my race report for Greenland 50K and had some interesting thoughts and comments. Anyway I never posted my log for that week so here we go.

Monday: OFF

Tuesday: Run 8.25 miles up Apex to top of Lookout Mountain (1700-1800 feet of gain)

Wed: Run treadmill 6.5 miles with 4X800 at 6:30 pace. Lifted weights on total body for 1 hour.

Thursday: Run treadmill 6.25 miles with rolling incline.

Friday: OFF

Saturday: Greenland 50K (31 miles) in 5:06 and got a rub down after the race

Sunday: Bike (road) 18 miles for 1 hour 45 mins in Morrison.

Total miles ran this week: 52.25 miles

Overall it has been a good week. Did a lot of treadmill miles due to trying to do a soft surface taper and not risk rolling an ankle or something. Recovery this week has been very good, I will post this week's log on Monday.

Have a great weekend!

Shad

Log for the week of 4/7-4/13 (One week to Greenland)

Last week turned into one of the best weeks I have had running since last fall. I finally got in over 60 miles which I have not done in awhile. Now I just need to keep building on that and get in some more crosstraining to get the total hours up. A lot of my time was on a treadmill due to the weather but at least I got the miles in. Here is how my week broke down.

Monday: Run treadmill 6.25 miles; 15-20 min of upper body weight lifting.

Tuesday: Road Run to Morrison and back 14 miles

Wednesday: Run treadmill 7.50 miles. Did 4X45 sec at 15% incline and at 6 mph.

Thursday: Run treadmill 6.25 miles; 30 mins of total body weight lifting

Friday: off

Saturday: Long trail run of 18.25 miles including Green Mountain, Hogback, Matthew Winters, and Mount Falcon. It was a great run! I averaged 6 mph even though there was a crap full of climbing. I will be doing this loop more often and adding on to it.

Sunday: Run/hike with Braden and Ashley at Elk Meadows in Evergreen. 9 miles.

Total miles for the week 61.25.

Next Saturday is the Greenland trail 50K. I am not sure what my approach to this race will be yet. I am thinking that I am going to treat it like a long run and just run it nice and easy. On the other hand that can be against my nature. This course is 4 loops around the Greenland trail system just off of I-25 south of Denver. I went and ran this 2 weeks ago and did 2 laps in 2:05. This pace would suggest a 4:30 or so finish. I think that would be to quick and would hurt my recovery for my 1st 50 miler on May 3rd which is only 2 weeks later. I think I will back off a little and shoot for a 5 hour finishing time so that recovery would be better and I can get in some more high mileage weeks before tapering for a week for the 50 miler in Buena Vista.

I think Ashley on the other hand thinks I should just hammer it to push my fitness up even higher. She thinks that I will recover without any issues. I am not so sure.

Any thoughts from anyone out there?

Log for the week of 3/31-4/6

This week as been the best week so far in a long time. With the weather starting to be nice on a regular bases it makes it easy to start upping the mileage. I plan to keep building from this week into my first 50 miler in Buena Vista in 4 weeks. I also have the Greenland 50K in 2 weeks. From here on out it is all about completing Leadville 100. Because of that some of my race times will be slower as I try different drinks, food, and equipment combos to see what will work for me for Leadville.

Here is my log for this week:

Monday: Run 6 miles on the treadmill at an easy pace

Tuesday: Run 7 miles on the road with some small climbing (1 hour)

Wednesday: Run 7 miles on the road with some small climbing (1 hour)

Thursday: Run total 7.75 miles ( 2 mile warmup; 5X800 at 9mph with 400 recovery; 1.5 mile cooldown) Weights for 45 mins

Friday: Run 4.5 miles at Mattew Winters (45 mins)

Saturday: Run 15 miles on the Greenland Trail (2 loops) in 2:10.

Sunday: Hiking for 3-3.5 hours on Mount Yale in Buena Vista (Xtraining)

Total running miles for the week: 47.25

Not a bad week at all. Hopefully next week I will hit over 55 miles for the week and be somewhat ready for the Greenland 50K on April 19th.

Have a great week.

Shad

Weekly Log 3/17-3/23

This week did not quit go as planned. Holidays always seem to make me lazy and eat a lot of food. We went to Nebraska for Easter and all I did was eat junk food and did not run. I was planning on doing 2 hours or so on Easter Sunday but with all the family around and all the junk food in the belly that did not happen. Anyway here is a log for last week.

Monday- Run treadmill 4 miles
Swim for 30 mins
Weights 45 mins

Tuesday- Run 7 miles at Bear Creek State Park

Wednesday- Run 6.5 miles at Green Mountain

Thursday- Run 7 miles at the track (2 mile warmup; 3X800 with 400 recovery; 2 mile cooldown)

Friday-Snowshoeing attempt on Mount Columbia (9.75 hours; 15 miles; 4200 feet of gain) did not summit

Saturday- Run treadmill 6 miles

Sunday- off

Total running miles this week: 30.5 (does not include the 15 snowshoeing miles)

Here is the trip report and pictures from Friday's attempt on Mt. Columbia.

http://www.14ers.com/php14ers/tripreport.php?trip=4122&cpgm=tripmain

This week has started out badly with me being lazy and eating like crap. It is time to turn that around. We are heading out to Moab on Friday to do some camping and running. Hopefully I can get some miles in. I will have an update on that next week.

Log for the week of 3/10-3/16

I finally started feeling better last week and was able to resume my running and training. I did not do much in the way of cross training like I usually do but did get some runs in. All of my runs were outside on trails, no treadmill time at all! The weather was just Awesome last week and I hope it holds this week so I can start rebuilding my mileage and base.

Anyway here you go:

Monday: Off (still feeling a little sick)

Tues: Run @ Green Mountain lower 5 miles

Wed: Run @ Apex (hills) 5.25 miles

Thurs: Run @ Mattew Winters 4.75 miles
Elliptical machine for 30 mins

Friday: Off

Saturday: Run @ Green Mountain to summit and back 5 miles

Sunday: Run to Morrison and back 13.25 miles

Total miles ran: 33.25

Need to get this over 40 next week and get back to 2-3 hours of cross training.

Have a great week!

Shad

Trying to get IT back

Seems like since the Red Hot 50K I have been on a downward spiral with no end in sight. The first 2 weeks I cut back on my running because of knee pain caused by the super hard slick rock in Moab. Last week I was sick for 5-6 days with a combo of the super cold and flu I think. All I know is that I missed 3 days of work and did not get out of bed all weekend.

Last night was the first time that I have been running in 8 days and boy did it hurt. All I did was a 6 mile run, 3 out and back, on the trails at the base of Green Mountain in Lakewood. This is the trail that I usually use for easy runs but yesterday was not easy. Not to be gross but I was blowing snot all over myself and feeling like I have not ran in months, light headed, ect.... Hopefully that will improve as the week goes on and I can get that IT back.

I am suppose to do the 24 Hours of Utah in 2 weeks but I am unsure if I will or not. We are going to go out there and camp but I may not run the race. I think what we might do is go out there to watch and I can jump in and do some pacing at night. That might be a better way to get some training in besides pushing my body for 24 hours straight. I could get 4-5 hours in that way I think. During the day while waiting to run after 8pm I could get some rides in on the mountain bike. Not a bad thought.

Anyway I will get back to posting my weekly log once I have one to post again next week.

Have a great week everyone!

Shad

RED HOT RACE WEEK

Ok, it is now race week. We leave on Friday morning for Moab for the Red Hot 50K. I don't know if I am excited or if I am dreading it. I have mixed feelings right now. Since this is my first real year playing in the world of ultra marathons every race is going to scare me I think. I will get more into my thoughts about this race in a second, first lets look below at what I did last week for training.

Monday: Off, I was wiped from the weekend

Tuesday: Run 6.5 miles; Stairmaster 20mins

Wednesday: Run 7 miles; Swim 45 mins; Weights 30 mins

Thursday: Run 8 miles

Friday: Run 2 miles; Stairmaster 30 mins

Saturday: Run 9 miles in the am; Snowshoe 3 hours in the afternoon at Mount Evans

Sunday: Run 6 miles at 8am; Run 6 miles at noon; Run 6 miles at 5pm. Run 18 total.

Total miles ran this week 50.75

Now how am I going to run this race, the Red Hot 50K this coming weekend? I have mauled this over and over in my head. I think because of the fact that I need to keep training after the race, the next day, and that I will not be tapering that this will be like a super long run. I will run/walk it at an easy pace until I cross the finish line. I really do not care what my time is like I did at my first 50K (4:31) last Sept. I just want to keep moving forward and have a good time, I may even carry a camera with me and take pictures along the way. I think my goal should be to finish between 6 and 7 hours. Based on last years results that should put me right in the middle of the pack which is fine by me. I would like to get up the next morning and do another trail run while we are out there in Moab, even if it is only 3 miles long.

In case anyone out there is running this race but has not gotten the e-mail from the race director I have copied it below. Have a great week and I will post a race report next week.
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Hello Red Hot Runners,

First, I would like to thank you for participating in this year’s event. I also would like to go over on what to expect at this year’s race. First, due to the numbers, we will be having a pre race day packet pick-up on Friday the 15Th starting at 5:00 pm continuing to 7:00 pm. You can pick your packet up at the Moab Music Festival Office located at 58 East 300 South, located in the same building as the Advertiser.
Parking is limited at the start line and the finish line, we highly recommend carpooling. Some overflow parking is available in the campground right before the poison spider trailhead at the finish.
There will still be packet pick up on Saturday starting at 6:30 am at the start line. Drop bags (50K only) will be collected on Saturday morning at the start line. Write your bib#, aid station number, and name on each of your drop bags. We recommend you get to the start line by 6:45. My aid station crews will be leaving at 7:15 to their locations. Other than that, I still recommend 7:15 at the latest. The 50k will start at 8:00 am SHARP and the 33k will be off at 8:30 sharp! There also will be no day of the race switching, from the 50k to 33k or visa versa. If you do switch during the race, you will not be officially recorded.
This year’s flagging will be bright pink indicating where to follow and red indicating the wrong way. The course will be well flagged just like last year. This year it has been very cold and wet, so there may be ice and light snow in some sections, so please be careful.
Our aid station vehicles are limited on space, so try to limit on what you put in your drop bags. Aid stations will be stocked with CytoMax, water, salt, candy bars, PB and J, limited HammerGel, potato chips, peanuts, Heed, etc... There is a 10 hour time limit for both races but there is not an official cut off time at any of the stations. But if one of our aid stations does not think you will make it, to the Poison Spider trail head, by 6:00 pm, they can pull you from the course. If you insist to go on, you will need to remove your bib and give it to the aid station attendant. From that point you will be responsible for yourself. I do not recommend going on in the dark on Golden Spike! Please check the website for mileage and the correct station number to put on your drop bag. Aid station 1 will be used as station 3 just to make that clear too.
The finish line will be at Poison Spider trail head which is mile 34 for the 50k and mile 21 for the 33k. There will be an official timing company recording your finishes and they will be posted throughout the day. Awards will be given to the top three in each category: overall male, overall female, master male, master female.
We do have two shuttle vans that will be taking people back to the finish line to pick up your vehicles. The shuttles will start about 11:30 am and will run until not needed. We will be providing water and other drinks at the finish. We also will provide a small lunch to each of the runners. That will be a potato soup served in a fresh bread bowl. Please be considerate because there is just enough for all runners to have one meal.
At 7:30 pm Eddie McStiffs has donated a space in his restaurant for a private Red Hot party. We will provide the keg of beer but to show our appreciation to Eddie, lets have dinner in the Mcstiffs restaurant. Also, If you go in the night before to eat dinner and show your bib to your server, you will receive a 15% discount on your meal.
Thank you again and I hope you enjoy this course as much as we do.
Chris Martinez, Greg Poettgen-Race Directors

This Week's Training

I thought with the Red Hot 50K coming up in two weeks or so on Feb 16th that I would start posting my weekly workout logs. Maybe that will hold me more accountable to my training. Last week was a good week of training. It is the first time that I have broken 50 miles in a week since last summer. I just need to keep building on that. Anyway here is last weeks log.

Monday1/28: Run 6 miles; Weights 30 mins

Tuesday 1/29: Run 6.25 miles

Weds 1/30: Run 7.25 miles (30mins at 7:30 pace); Swim 30 mins; Weights 30 mins

Thurs 1/31: Run 8 miles; Yoga 1 hour

Fri 2/1: OFF

Sat 2/2: Trailrun 8.5 miles

Sun 2/3: Trailrun 19 miles; Swim 30 mins.

TOTAL MILES FOR THE WEEK: 55

This was a very hard week both mentaliy and physically for me. I even took yesterday (Monday) off to recover. I am really under trained for the 50K that is coming up. I guess I will just go out there and run/walk it if I have to and just have a good time in Moab.

Train hard and have a great week.

Shad