The Squirrel had family up for the holiday so we needed to meet up early for her to be able to run; we were at Brad by 7:30. Brrrr. The nippy air made me think of the winter running to come. The BL!
We had plenty to discuss as we made our way out the connector. After we talked family (I almost listed pets next, but they are family), we moved on to next year's running plans. If we're shooting for Bull Run Run, training officially starts next weekend.
We ran out just over 40 minutes and turned around. We needed to be back in the parking lot by 9 to meet up with Ruby, and, hopefully, Unstrung. We timed it perfectly. In addition to Xar and the pup, Four, Chandra, and Tom were there for the 9 am Sunday run. We set out Four-less, but I had given him our course shouted back over my shoulder. Amazingly, he never met up with us.
Ruby pretty much dictated that I led (I sort of prefer it that way). It was all single track so I mostly got to talk to Tom, who was directly behind me. I think it was the most I've ever talked with him. I totally enjoyed getting to know him, his family, and, especially, his new Husky pup. We talked books, dogs, kids, and running, and permutations of those.
When we got back to the lot, the Squirrel had to scatter to be back home for family stuff. Ruby's mom was there to pack her up. Tom had spent all his time. Chandra was also done. Unstrung and I were inclined to get in more miles. We started to head out on the mountain side, when I realized there was a TM race sign to pick up on the east. We only did another 1.5, but felt it entitled us to and E&L trip. yay, us :D
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Sunday, November 25, 2012
The Land of Pine and Oak
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| This was an oops shot, but what I saw most of the run |
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| In Better Homes and Gardens? |
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| Christmas decorations |
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| Explains all the blue squares in the woods |
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| I don't remember the water tower |
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| Hope he made it through the day |
Friday, November 23, 2012
Friday Twofer
Rick and I planned yesterday that we would do 6-8 miles at Brad today. That night I planned with Xar to run in the afternoon at Thorncrag. When Rick found that out, he suggested we go with the 6 miles. That was fine by me.
We arrived around 9 am while it was still foggy. We started slowly, both sort of stiff. My left butt/hammy transition is still tight and painful. It does loosen up, but still reminds me during the run that its not quite right. We had to stick to the mountain as the sound of gunfire reminded us. We ran the Boundary to the Boundary/Tote connector, to the Reverse Mindy, to the boundary, to a path that connected back to the Tote, to the summit, down Terrace, up the Boundary to the new trail up that bypasses the rocky up of the Boundary, to the Reverse Mindy in the reverse direction from the first time, to Tote, onto Krista's Loop (I managed to stay on track this time), down Northern Loop, up Ski, to Northern Bluff, and, finally, down Terrace back to the lot. My garmin read 6.01.
I met Xar at 1:30. She greeted me with half a voice, more than half way through some virus. We started gingerly; my pain in the ass was stiffer. We traded turkey days as we ran. I loosened up, so did junk in Unstrung's lungs. I wanted to take another statue picture. When I reached for my phone, it wasn't there. Slight panic. Xar took a statue picture with her camera. Before we retraced our steps in search of my phone, we decided to run back to the cars to see if it never made it into my pack. Phew! It was on the floor of my car. I checked the time. I only had enough for another short loop. I had to get Spot to a vet appointment. We managed to run just over 4 miles. Xar assured me that was the right amount for her in her present state.
We arrived around 9 am while it was still foggy. We started slowly, both sort of stiff. My left butt/hammy transition is still tight and painful. It does loosen up, but still reminds me during the run that its not quite right. We had to stick to the mountain as the sound of gunfire reminded us. We ran the Boundary to the Boundary/Tote connector, to the Reverse Mindy, to the boundary, to a path that connected back to the Tote, to the summit, down Terrace, up the Boundary to the new trail up that bypasses the rocky up of the Boundary, to the Reverse Mindy in the reverse direction from the first time, to Tote, onto Krista's Loop (I managed to stay on track this time), down Northern Loop, up Ski, to Northern Bluff, and, finally, down Terrace back to the lot. My garmin read 6.01.
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| the fog cleared |
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| on Northern Bluff |
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| Tropical fish at Brad? |
Thanksgiving Thorncrag
It was 2:48 when I stepped out of the car at Thorncrag. As soon as I'd gotten the turkey in the oven, I got my gear together and drove over. I was surprised by how many others were there. I wondered how many were pre and how many were post-feast.
Rats. My garmin said low battery as soon as I turned it on. Maybe it would last my run. Sometimes it'll go over an hour once the low battery comes on. This time it only went 32 minutes. Luckily, I had my phone with me so could keep track of time that way. I pretty much know the loop mileages so would be able to put something fairly accurate in the books.
I didn't run all that fast, but I ran all the hills, no walking. Running out to whale rock, I tried to talk myself into including that piece in the TWMiH3. We'd see people more during and people would get to see the whale. Not including it, the up would be encountered more during the 1.5 hours, the 1.2 miles seems an easy distance to mark AND pick up, and people could get off the course quicker after the time ends. I'm still on the fence.
It was a beautiful, hard (only cause of the hills) run. I had the phone out often to take pictures. 4:08, time to go home. I still needed to peel potatoes and turnips and get them cooking. If I really knew how long the turkey would take, I could have run till dark.
Rats. My garmin said low battery as soon as I turned it on. Maybe it would last my run. Sometimes it'll go over an hour once the low battery comes on. This time it only went 32 minutes. Luckily, I had my phone with me so could keep track of time that way. I pretty much know the loop mileages so would be able to put something fairly accurate in the books.
I didn't run all that fast, but I ran all the hills, no walking. Running out to whale rock, I tried to talk myself into including that piece in the TWMiH3. We'd see people more during and people would get to see the whale. Not including it, the up would be encountered more during the 1.5 hours, the 1.2 miles seems an easy distance to mark AND pick up, and people could get off the course quicker after the time ends. I'm still on the fence.
It was a beautiful, hard (only cause of the hills) run. I had the phone out often to take pictures. 4:08, time to go home. I still needed to peel potatoes and turnips and get them cooking. If I really knew how long the turkey would take, I could have run till dark.
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| Start location of TWMiH3 |
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| A bench for the cutest couple |
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| sweet single track |
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| In person, this looks like a scary face |
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| Where's the statue? |
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| The tree has an outie |
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| My arm's not long enough |
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Quick Catch Up
So, I'm gonna get back to regular posts eventually. Just like last year when I started working, I'm trying to get the hang of the new routine - or, more correctly, establish a routine. I'm away from home for just as many hours as before, but the work day is longer (hardly a 10 minute commute). I have so much to learn. It's very exciting. Meanwhile, I can't seem to make myself take the time to write.
Since my last post, I got in another short night time run with Rick on Thursday. I think I talked about my work the entire run. The weekend was perfect for running. I met a large group of TMs at Pineland (I know, I know...). I think there was a main group and maybe a couple splinter groups. Unstrung, Squirrel, and I ran together on the Oak Hill side. We ran a slow pace with relaxed conversation. That pace on the gentler side was okay for all my sore parts. The back even felt better after the run. Sunday, Brad. Mmmm, Brad. This time Nathan was added to the Scout, Squirrel, Unstrung Trio. We waited for a couple of minutes anticipating the arrival of the final member of our party, Ruby. Mary brought her to run with us. She's a good mom, finding Ruby running partners while Mary knits her hip bone back together. Ruby was well behaved and a pleasure to run with. We met Mary back in the parking lot after an hour (that seemed the right amount for Ruby's conditioning), then headed out for the power lines. So we had 11 miles on Saturday and 15.8 on Sunday.
I did a solo TNR on the fields around the house. On the second lap across the street, I met up with a small, almost black porcupine. It was definitely a young one. He headed for the nearest tree, not believing my assurances that I was no danger. On the way back, I noticed he'd climbed even higher. Don't fall on me!
I'm hoping to get out to Thorncrag today after I get the turkey in the oven. We always have our big meal late. At my house growing up, the menfolk didn't come in from hunting (bird/rabbit season in MA) till almost 5pm, so the dinner was 6ish. Now, I like it cause I think that's the soonest I can get things together.
Since my last post, I got in another short night time run with Rick on Thursday. I think I talked about my work the entire run. The weekend was perfect for running. I met a large group of TMs at Pineland (I know, I know...). I think there was a main group and maybe a couple splinter groups. Unstrung, Squirrel, and I ran together on the Oak Hill side. We ran a slow pace with relaxed conversation. That pace on the gentler side was okay for all my sore parts. The back even felt better after the run. Sunday, Brad. Mmmm, Brad. This time Nathan was added to the Scout, Squirrel, Unstrung Trio. We waited for a couple of minutes anticipating the arrival of the final member of our party, Ruby. Mary brought her to run with us. She's a good mom, finding Ruby running partners while Mary knits her hip bone back together. Ruby was well behaved and a pleasure to run with. We met Mary back in the parking lot after an hour (that seemed the right amount for Ruby's conditioning), then headed out for the power lines. So we had 11 miles on Saturday and 15.8 on Sunday.
I did a solo TNR on the fields around the house. On the second lap across the street, I met up with a small, almost black porcupine. It was definitely a young one. He headed for the nearest tree, not believing my assurances that I was no danger. On the way back, I noticed he'd climbed even higher. Don't fall on me!
I'm hoping to get out to Thorncrag today after I get the turkey in the oven. We always have our big meal late. At my house growing up, the menfolk didn't come in from hunting (bird/rabbit season in MA) till almost 5pm, so the dinner was 6ish. Now, I like it cause I think that's the soonest I can get things together.
Thursday, November 15, 2012
A Good Day Off and a Little Wednesday Run
Normally, I take Mondays as a running day off. Last week, I only ran Saturday and Sunday; the new job had me working long hours and not feeling like venturing out after. There was no way I wasn't running Monday, a work day off. I decided to head back to Brad. I chose to stick to the mountain since that's the only part that hunting isn't allowed. I heard several far off shots, but felt safe. Lots of others decided to enjoy the day on the mountain. A good percentage had their dogs with them! I think I petted every one of them, too. I even ran into George, Four's cousin, his pup Zephie (sp?), and perhaps family. I probably got in about 6 miles, but I forgot my garmin so...it's a good guess. I ran up a good amount of the ups that there are and Krista's loop. I ran it backwards from my usual. Towards the end, this way, right after I crossed the rock wall, I lost the trail. The good thing is I came out right near the summit so now know how to get to Krista's loop from there. It's very close.
I did my first in the dark, after work run. Getting out the door was the hardest part. I did scare a pair of reluctant-to-budge glowing eyes away on the hill across the street. Besides that, I was alone for my teeny 3 miles.
I did my first in the dark, after work run. Getting out the door was the hardest part. I did scare a pair of reluctant-to-budge glowing eyes away on the hill across the street. Besides that, I was alone for my teeny 3 miles.
Monday, November 12, 2012
The Boys
Craig and Brad that is. I know Thorncrag is crag and not Craig, but, I heard it pronounced Craig for so many years before I saw it written, I think I'm stuck pronouncing it ThornCRAIG. The Squirrel's navigator even thought Craig. Well, it thought more but that's another matter.
Saturdays, equals deer hunting in ME in Nov, the TMR group runs are at Pineland. When I showed up for the first one, Ian was shocked that I was there. I make no bones about my feelings for Pineland. I figured 10 miles, no big deal. Well, it wasn't long into the run I was feeling pains I don't normally have. I was left with a pretty sore left backside and backside of that leg. Damn you, Pineland! The Squirrel had similar issues. So this Saturday, I suggested we skip the group run and head to Thorncrag instead. I wanted to see what she thought of the loop I'd picked out for TWMiH3 and to come up with the final mileage and elevation to post on the event page. She did not need convincing. Unstrung was going to be able to meet up, but not till later. We'd just make sure we'd be back in the parking lot at a certain time, easy enough at Thorncrag since most of the running is in loops of under 2 miles.
It was the clearest day I'd seen there in ages. I pointed out the view of Mt. Washington to the Squirrel. I know I always stop to check, but don't think we'd ever seen it when we'd run together there. She was certainly surprised by the view. I snapped a picture with my phone, but, it was not capable of capturing the distance.
We ran with non-stop conversation (almost called it chatter, but, we had an entire week of stuff to analyze; it was more serious than chatter. And not serious at all!) We came across an interesting statue (it's on the TWMiH loop).
We ran into the parking lot almost to the second we were supposed to meet the Unstrung Hero. She arrived seconds later. Back up the long hills, more interesting conversation and stories, and two more statues!
It was a good day with Craig. Mindy and I were more than done before Xar was. I think we had 10.9 miles (we were aiming for 10). That's the longest I've ever run there. I was tired.
Sunday, we went to visit Brad. Mindy and I had 15ish in mind. Rick wanted to try for 10 of those miles. He'd only done one 3 miles road run since Stone Cat. Xar was going to make it an hour after our start, so we wanted to figure a route to get us back. George (Four's cousin, not the Jedi), Tom, and someone I know I've seen before because I recognized his dog, were there as was the Squirrel, when Rick and I pulled in. Four showed up, surprise, just when we were about to head out. I'm not sure how we arrived at the decision, but we all went out the connector. About 1 mile in, George, Tom and Tucker's Dad pulled out ahead. Rick, Four, Mindy, and I didn't try to stay with them. We'd be turning back for Xar anyway.
I think we walked more hills than usual. Both S&S had tired legs. I was just overall tired, too. We picked Xar up after 4.1 miles. No, we weren't that slow! We arrived in the park at 9 and didn't start right away. I'd have to check the garmin to see just how many minutes we'd run by our 10 o'clock Xar rendezvous. We were gonna head back out the connector cause S&S had planned a power line experiment, but took an ever so slightly different route over the mountain to get there.
It may have been the doggiest day ever at the Brad. I think we petted upwards of 90% of them. :)
It added to our time out there, but was well worth it. Four left us when we got to the power lines. Xar, Mindy, Rick and I tried to find a good path to the opposite "bank" of the power line path. We ended up bushwhacking. The opposite bank was beautiful! It had close-mowed grass, soft, flat footing, and a good view. I'm not sure how long that lasted till we basically were bushwhacking again to get back to the other side. Rick peeled off here. The trio kept going to the bench. We were looking for Double T's pinwheel. Sadly, it was gone. Yikes! I didn't realize how late it'd gotten with all our dog visits, bushwhacking, hill walking...time to hurry back.
Just like yesterday, Unstrung had more miles to get in when S&S called it a day. No time even for E&L's :(
Saturdays, equals deer hunting in ME in Nov, the TMR group runs are at Pineland. When I showed up for the first one, Ian was shocked that I was there. I make no bones about my feelings for Pineland. I figured 10 miles, no big deal. Well, it wasn't long into the run I was feeling pains I don't normally have. I was left with a pretty sore left backside and backside of that leg. Damn you, Pineland! The Squirrel had similar issues. So this Saturday, I suggested we skip the group run and head to Thorncrag instead. I wanted to see what she thought of the loop I'd picked out for TWMiH3 and to come up with the final mileage and elevation to post on the event page. She did not need convincing. Unstrung was going to be able to meet up, but not till later. We'd just make sure we'd be back in the parking lot at a certain time, easy enough at Thorncrag since most of the running is in loops of under 2 miles.
It was the clearest day I'd seen there in ages. I pointed out the view of Mt. Washington to the Squirrel. I know I always stop to check, but don't think we'd ever seen it when we'd run together there. She was certainly surprised by the view. I snapped a picture with my phone, but, it was not capable of capturing the distance.
We ran with non-stop conversation (almost called it chatter, but, we had an entire week of stuff to analyze; it was more serious than chatter. And not serious at all!) We came across an interesting statue (it's on the TWMiH loop).
Sunday, we went to visit Brad. Mindy and I had 15ish in mind. Rick wanted to try for 10 of those miles. He'd only done one 3 miles road run since Stone Cat. Xar was going to make it an hour after our start, so we wanted to figure a route to get us back. George (Four's cousin, not the Jedi), Tom, and someone I know I've seen before because I recognized his dog, were there as was the Squirrel, when Rick and I pulled in. Four showed up, surprise, just when we were about to head out. I'm not sure how we arrived at the decision, but we all went out the connector. About 1 mile in, George, Tom and Tucker's Dad pulled out ahead. Rick, Four, Mindy, and I didn't try to stay with them. We'd be turning back for Xar anyway.
I think we walked more hills than usual. Both S&S had tired legs. I was just overall tired, too. We picked Xar up after 4.1 miles. No, we weren't that slow! We arrived in the park at 9 and didn't start right away. I'd have to check the garmin to see just how many minutes we'd run by our 10 o'clock Xar rendezvous. We were gonna head back out the connector cause S&S had planned a power line experiment, but took an ever so slightly different route over the mountain to get there.
It may have been the doggiest day ever at the Brad. I think we petted upwards of 90% of them. :)
It added to our time out there, but was well worth it. Four left us when we got to the power lines. Xar, Mindy, Rick and I tried to find a good path to the opposite "bank" of the power line path. We ended up bushwhacking. The opposite bank was beautiful! It had close-mowed grass, soft, flat footing, and a good view. I'm not sure how long that lasted till we basically were bushwhacking again to get back to the other side. Rick peeled off here. The trio kept going to the bench. We were looking for Double T's pinwheel. Sadly, it was gone. Yikes! I didn't realize how late it'd gotten with all our dog visits, bushwhacking, hill walking...time to hurry back.
Just like yesterday, Unstrung had more miles to get in when S&S called it a day. No time even for E&L's :(
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Stone Cat and Brad
Rick took Friday off so we could head down to Danvers a little earlier. We checked into the hotel then went to the running store holding the race number pick up. We had the time and it entered Rick into a drawing for free trail shoes. We both bought cheap sleeves. I like mine; Rick found that one size does not fit all. He still started the race in them.
Unlike last year, not too many TMs were staying in the race hotel the night before. Julia and David were so we planned to meet them for dinner at the Italian restaurant across from the hotel. I made reservations for six in case Kevin and his son could make it. Pathfinder doubted it, but we saved him seats just in case. He was right. Julia, David, Rick and I enjoyed the food and conversation. It was still raining lightly when we walked back to the hotel. Turns out, they had the room across from ours!
Rick wanted to try to sleep early. There was nothing at all on TV and I'd finished my book, so I decided to turn in, too. I actually fell asleep fairly fast. Then I woke at midnight, but was able to fall back asleep till just after 2:30 am. That was it. I just tossed and turned and waited for the alarm. 4:04am. Time to shine :)
I dressed to run. The Squirrel and I were thinking we'd flit about the course, seeing TMs all over. I just needed to be back at the Start/Finish for Rick's 1/2 way and finish. I realized I forgot to pack anything to pull over my shorts (it was colder than I had anticipated) so I wore my Hello Kitty pajama bottoms.
All the TMs running and supporting milled around the gym. There was an announcement that the race would start a little late. Next there was an announcement, when the race should have been starting that there would be two starts. The 50 milers would go 15 minutes before the marathoners. In and of itself, that would be a good idea, but the marathoners had to wait a full 1/2 hour from the scheduled start. I know Rick didn't appreciate the wait. One nice thing was that they practically didn't need their headlamps. Ann didn't even start with hers!
Snowman had started setting up camp. He had his grill, chairs, cooler, and Danielle's aid station. I made the command decision so put Rick's drop bag in the area. Alison and Frankie were setting up Jeremy's stuff. At some point, I said to the Squirrel, "Are we running?" She made a face that was just like I was feeling. Our Stone Cat experience would be from Snowman's camp. We had so much fun and excitement cheering for our marathoners, Julia, Ian, Danielle, Ann, George, Nathan, Kevin, and Rick and our 50 milers, Jeremy and Iron Joe. All the time waiting for our runners was filled with cheering for all the other competitors and enjoying Ryan's yummy pancakes, bacon, brats, and beer. Francesca also kept everyone smiling with her bulldogness. No kidding, dragging 50ers would look at her and smile.
Rick came through his first 1/2+ in just 2:10:xx. I really didn't expect him that soon. He said he was feeling pretty beat up. His last loop, he'd suffer for going out too fast. I started to worry. I asked the Jedi when he saw Rick last. He'd passed him around 15 miles. I stripped off my Hello Kitty pjs, my 3 hoodies, and ran out the course backwards. I hated having everyone waste their "nice work"s on me. Yeah, I guess I would be looking pretty strong if I was setting out on my 3rd lap of a 50 considering I hadn't even run 1 mile yet. I stopped trying to explain and just smiled. I found two volunteers manning an intersection. They said right there was a good place to wait; runners approach, head into a ~mile loop, and come out just over there. I debated whether to keep running backward or wait there. Had they seen a marathoner, Number 1, yet. Yeah, he was in the loop. That was all I needed to know. I ran back to the finish to wait for his. He ran it in. Yay! It was his first marathon in six years and his first ever trail marathon. Yay!!!
He peeled off his sweaty shirt and layered on the dry clothes to cheer in the others. Ryan made sure he got a brat and beer :) Rick said one volunteer out there noticed his trail monster shirt and said, "Trail Monster AND number 1? Get running!" in a (maybe) Russian accent. <3 nbsp="nbsp" p="p">
Julia ran an amazing race. She blew away the previous course record. Unfortunately, two other woman took more time off it. Ian PRed. Danielle came SO close to breaking 4 hrs. Nathan took lots of minutes off his time. Kevin PRed despite having ITB issues since the BBU. Ann came in smiling as usual (I only actually saw the 1/2 way smile; I missed her actual finish running to the store :( ). Jeff, Jeremy's cousin rocked out an amazing marathon. Jeremy killed the 50. Amazing. Joe sprinted the end of his 50 to pick up another place!
I loved watching all the shapes, sizes, paces, and styles throughout the day.
Rick and I were asleep really early. He seemed pretty good upon waking and hasn't seemed hobbled at all :D :D :D
We were back to the house before 10am. (thanks time change). Oh, yeah, I could see Brad! I made it there to see the end of the TM TM (Trail Monster trail maintenance). They did a wonderful job!
I ran up Terrace, to the summit, down South Ridge, up South Ridge, the Boundary to the Reverse Mindy, to the Boundary, up Ski, up Northern Loop to Northern Bluff, down Terrace and then on to the east side. I finished at about 9 miles. I felt like I could run all day, but had things to do.
Unlike last year, not too many TMs were staying in the race hotel the night before. Julia and David were so we planned to meet them for dinner at the Italian restaurant across from the hotel. I made reservations for six in case Kevin and his son could make it. Pathfinder doubted it, but we saved him seats just in case. He was right. Julia, David, Rick and I enjoyed the food and conversation. It was still raining lightly when we walked back to the hotel. Turns out, they had the room across from ours!
Rick wanted to try to sleep early. There was nothing at all on TV and I'd finished my book, so I decided to turn in, too. I actually fell asleep fairly fast. Then I woke at midnight, but was able to fall back asleep till just after 2:30 am. That was it. I just tossed and turned and waited for the alarm. 4:04am. Time to shine :)
I dressed to run. The Squirrel and I were thinking we'd flit about the course, seeing TMs all over. I just needed to be back at the Start/Finish for Rick's 1/2 way and finish. I realized I forgot to pack anything to pull over my shorts (it was colder than I had anticipated) so I wore my Hello Kitty pajama bottoms.
All the TMs running and supporting milled around the gym. There was an announcement that the race would start a little late. Next there was an announcement, when the race should have been starting that there would be two starts. The 50 milers would go 15 minutes before the marathoners. In and of itself, that would be a good idea, but the marathoners had to wait a full 1/2 hour from the scheduled start. I know Rick didn't appreciate the wait. One nice thing was that they practically didn't need their headlamps. Ann didn't even start with hers!
Snowman had started setting up camp. He had his grill, chairs, cooler, and Danielle's aid station. I made the command decision so put Rick's drop bag in the area. Alison and Frankie were setting up Jeremy's stuff. At some point, I said to the Squirrel, "Are we running?" She made a face that was just like I was feeling. Our Stone Cat experience would be from Snowman's camp. We had so much fun and excitement cheering for our marathoners, Julia, Ian, Danielle, Ann, George, Nathan, Kevin, and Rick and our 50 milers, Jeremy and Iron Joe. All the time waiting for our runners was filled with cheering for all the other competitors and enjoying Ryan's yummy pancakes, bacon, brats, and beer. Francesca also kept everyone smiling with her bulldogness. No kidding, dragging 50ers would look at her and smile.
Rick came through his first 1/2+ in just 2:10:xx. I really didn't expect him that soon. He said he was feeling pretty beat up. His last loop, he'd suffer for going out too fast. I started to worry. I asked the Jedi when he saw Rick last. He'd passed him around 15 miles. I stripped off my Hello Kitty pjs, my 3 hoodies, and ran out the course backwards. I hated having everyone waste their "nice work"s on me. Yeah, I guess I would be looking pretty strong if I was setting out on my 3rd lap of a 50 considering I hadn't even run 1 mile yet. I stopped trying to explain and just smiled. I found two volunteers manning an intersection. They said right there was a good place to wait; runners approach, head into a ~mile loop, and come out just over there. I debated whether to keep running backward or wait there. Had they seen a marathoner, Number 1, yet. Yeah, he was in the loop. That was all I needed to know. I ran back to the finish to wait for his. He ran it in. Yay! It was his first marathon in six years and his first ever trail marathon. Yay!!!
He peeled off his sweaty shirt and layered on the dry clothes to cheer in the others. Ryan made sure he got a brat and beer :) Rick said one volunteer out there noticed his trail monster shirt and said, "Trail Monster AND number 1? Get running!" in a (maybe) Russian accent. <3 nbsp="nbsp" p="p">
Julia ran an amazing race. She blew away the previous course record. Unfortunately, two other woman took more time off it. Ian PRed. Danielle came SO close to breaking 4 hrs. Nathan took lots of minutes off his time. Kevin PRed despite having ITB issues since the BBU. Ann came in smiling as usual (I only actually saw the 1/2 way smile; I missed her actual finish running to the store :( ). Jeff, Jeremy's cousin rocked out an amazing marathon. Jeremy killed the 50. Amazing. Joe sprinted the end of his 50 to pick up another place!
I loved watching all the shapes, sizes, paces, and styles throughout the day.
Rick and I were asleep really early. He seemed pretty good upon waking and hasn't seemed hobbled at all :D :D :D
We were back to the house before 10am. (thanks time change). Oh, yeah, I could see Brad! I made it there to see the end of the TM TM (Trail Monster trail maintenance). They did a wonderful job!
I ran up Terrace, to the summit, down South Ridge, up South Ridge, the Boundary to the Reverse Mindy, to the Boundary, up Ski, up Northern Loop to Northern Bluff, down Terrace and then on to the east side. I finished at about 9 miles. I felt like I could run all day, but had things to do.
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Brad Two Ways
I lucked out to have Unstrung company for my last weekday Brad run before my new job (I start Monday). I was a little worried that we had to stick to the moutain side because, thus far, her return to running from the lower leg issues have been on flat ground. She didn't seemed worried. We ran, chatted, picked the random down branches up, and just loved Brad as we went.
I twisted my ankle on nothing. First time I'd felt the pain that wraps around my left arch in a while. Not long thereafter, I slipped on some dry leaves going down a little drop. I made a big deal of it. I was sure I'd hurt my right achilles. After some tender steps, I was able to run. Damn. I hate it when I make a fuss over nothing. It was just scared and acted hurt. We ended the run down South Ridge. Xar's achilles/calf had just started talking to her. Thanks Xar, thanks Xar's parts for a great send off.
I still had some time so kept running. I re-twisted the left ankle, just to make sure I had a reason to have it grump at me. It wasn't bad enough to stop running though. I finished with just over 6 miles.
I picked up a seasonal salad at E&Ls to perk up the greens I had for our dinner's salad. Good call.
I twisted my ankle on nothing. First time I'd felt the pain that wraps around my left arch in a while. Not long thereafter, I slipped on some dry leaves going down a little drop. I made a big deal of it. I was sure I'd hurt my right achilles. After some tender steps, I was able to run. Damn. I hate it when I make a fuss over nothing. It was just scared and acted hurt. We ended the run down South Ridge. Xar's achilles/calf had just started talking to her. Thanks Xar, thanks Xar's parts for a great send off.
I still had some time so kept running. I re-twisted the left ankle, just to make sure I had a reason to have it grump at me. It wasn't bad enough to stop running though. I finished with just over 6 miles.
I picked up a seasonal salad at E&Ls to perk up the greens I had for our dinner's salad. Good call.
Most Reversed
So, I"m going to stop my catch up at the BBU. I did a few runs the week before, but...gotta get back to the present.
Like I said, I was awake at 2:35am even though the alarm would have let me sleep to 3am. It was a good thing. I seemed to take forever to get out the door. I didn't want to forget anything. I was so happy to learn that the Xtra Mart in Lisbon Falls is open 24hours. I got a large, decent coffee.
I pulled into the school to find Ian already setting up. I wonder what time he woke up. The big tent that Erik had brought and set up the day before had been destroyed in the weather. Poor Erik. Meanwhile, we had to take that apart just to get the Start/Finish area to look ok in addition to getting everything else set up. Mindy not long after I did. So much activity. Then runners started showing up. Yay!!! The BBU was a reality!
Registration. A 50-mile sign up the day of. Pre-race meeting. The start! The lighted tiki torches were the perfect touch leading the 50 milers up Lunch Break. Ian lead them out. I was to follow behind, drop Steve off at the summit to direct returning traffic, then continue on and change the flagging/signs from the 3.5 mile loop to the big 15.7 mile loop. Holy Shit! It was hard to see. The mist reflected off the headlamp lights. I know those trails. I know them well. I had to concentrate to know where I was going. I picked up several runners that were drifting in the mist. I lead a couple of shifts of them to the Terrace. Then I ran back to make sure Steve was set before setting back out the course to change the marking. I changed the arrow at the bottom of Terrace to point towards the east side, pulled up the flagging that lead the runners up Northern loop to the Boundary and was working on getting the arrow to point up the Ski Trail when I saw a headlamp coming down the Terrace. Wow! Already? It was Ian. We talked about what needed to be done. He went off towards the east side. I finished my marking/picking up then ran back to the start.
I was all worried about the part of the course that the 50 milers would cover in the dark if they were still running after 5:30ish. I'm sure I was overly worried, but I had to act. I found Nathan and Xar. We went out with flags. We pulled all the reflective ones that were on the little loop and the big loop, but wouldn't be part of the final miles and replaced them with regular flags so we could reflective-flag the hell out the the final stretch. After that, I ran back to help/hover around the registration area for the 50K. It was all very exciting all over again. Then there was a little lull.
I'm not sure when, but we got word that perhaps some of the flagging/signs had been removed from the power line area. I drove out to Sweeney Rd. armed with flags and arrows. I ran along the power line to the connector. Everything looked good to me. I slightly adjusted the angle of one arrow, but it really was fine. I ran back to the road and dropped a second arrow pointing from the road to the power line. Again, I'm sure it was superfluous, but I was there and had the signage. Then it was back to the Start/Finish to watch all the excellent efforts by the very first competitors in the BBU <3 p="p">
All in all, I think I got in nearly 10 miles on the trails. That was the easy part of the day :) Thanks to all the wonderful, wonderful, excellent volunteers. Thanks to Mindy and Ian for being the perfect team to RD with. Thanks to the school for being the perfect partners, holding down the s/f aid station, creating the coolest trophies, and the best ever post-race food. Most of all, thanks to the runners for their efforts on our challenging course. I love the comment Mindy heard: "It was brutally awesome!"
Like I said, I was awake at 2:35am even though the alarm would have let me sleep to 3am. It was a good thing. I seemed to take forever to get out the door. I didn't want to forget anything. I was so happy to learn that the Xtra Mart in Lisbon Falls is open 24hours. I got a large, decent coffee.
I pulled into the school to find Ian already setting up. I wonder what time he woke up. The big tent that Erik had brought and set up the day before had been destroyed in the weather. Poor Erik. Meanwhile, we had to take that apart just to get the Start/Finish area to look ok in addition to getting everything else set up. Mindy not long after I did. So much activity. Then runners started showing up. Yay!!! The BBU was a reality!
Registration. A 50-mile sign up the day of. Pre-race meeting. The start! The lighted tiki torches were the perfect touch leading the 50 milers up Lunch Break. Ian lead them out. I was to follow behind, drop Steve off at the summit to direct returning traffic, then continue on and change the flagging/signs from the 3.5 mile loop to the big 15.7 mile loop. Holy Shit! It was hard to see. The mist reflected off the headlamp lights. I know those trails. I know them well. I had to concentrate to know where I was going. I picked up several runners that were drifting in the mist. I lead a couple of shifts of them to the Terrace. Then I ran back to make sure Steve was set before setting back out the course to change the marking. I changed the arrow at the bottom of Terrace to point towards the east side, pulled up the flagging that lead the runners up Northern loop to the Boundary and was working on getting the arrow to point up the Ski Trail when I saw a headlamp coming down the Terrace. Wow! Already? It was Ian. We talked about what needed to be done. He went off towards the east side. I finished my marking/picking up then ran back to the start.
I was all worried about the part of the course that the 50 milers would cover in the dark if they were still running after 5:30ish. I'm sure I was overly worried, but I had to act. I found Nathan and Xar. We went out with flags. We pulled all the reflective ones that were on the little loop and the big loop, but wouldn't be part of the final miles and replaced them with regular flags so we could reflective-flag the hell out the the final stretch. After that, I ran back to help/hover around the registration area for the 50K. It was all very exciting all over again. Then there was a little lull.
I'm not sure when, but we got word that perhaps some of the flagging/signs had been removed from the power line area. I drove out to Sweeney Rd. armed with flags and arrows. I ran along the power line to the connector. Everything looked good to me. I slightly adjusted the angle of one arrow, but it really was fine. I ran back to the road and dropped a second arrow pointing from the road to the power line. Again, I'm sure it was superfluous, but I was there and had the signage. Then it was back to the Start/Finish to watch all the excellent efforts by the very first competitors in the BBU <3 p="p">
All in all, I think I got in nearly 10 miles on the trails. That was the easy part of the day :) Thanks to all the wonderful, wonderful, excellent volunteers. Thanks to Mindy and Ian for being the perfect team to RD with. Thanks to the school for being the perfect partners, holding down the s/f aid station, creating the coolest trophies, and the best ever post-race food. Most of all, thanks to the runners for their efforts on our challenging course. I love the comment Mindy heard: "It was brutally awesome!"
Present Interlude
Shauna and I had planned to meet at 4pm to run the Back Cove. She texted she'd be late; why don't I start and we'd meet at 4:30. Just when I was headed into the Hannaford to change into my running close, I got a call from her. I should head out in our normal direction. She would run the other way till we met up. I guess she was going to be able to get there a little earlier. Nice.
It was sort of raining by the time by the time I started running. It was sort of windy. Nothing too bad, but enough to keep the runners to a minimum. My left upper hammy into my butt was really tight. Was it the nearly 4 hours of reading in the car (killing time while Ryan was in class) or was it left over from Pineland? Whatever, it made me start out at a modest pace. Just about 3 miles in, I saw Shauna running towards me! We finished that lap, did another, and then added a little stretch. I got in just shy of 8.4. I think I might have loosened up somewhere late in the second lap.
I don't think there was any dead air as we covered her work, my upcoming work, Ryan's commute, and lots of other topics. We were rewarded with two separate rainbows, one a double. By the end of the run, the sky was breaking up and we saw patches of blue. It's too bad we didn't discover earlier our Wed availability. That was probably our last.
It was sort of raining by the time by the time I started running. It was sort of windy. Nothing too bad, but enough to keep the runners to a minimum. My left upper hammy into my butt was really tight. Was it the nearly 4 hours of reading in the car (killing time while Ryan was in class) or was it left over from Pineland? Whatever, it made me start out at a modest pace. Just about 3 miles in, I saw Shauna running towards me! We finished that lap, did another, and then added a little stretch. I got in just shy of 8.4. I think I might have loosened up somewhere late in the second lap.
I don't think there was any dead air as we covered her work, my upcoming work, Ryan's commute, and lots of other topics. We were rewarded with two separate rainbows, one a double. By the end of the run, the sky was breaking up and we saw patches of blue. It's too bad we didn't discover earlier our Wed availability. That was probably our last.
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