Check Me Into the Asylum Because I've Gone (Ultra) Crazy!

Over the past few weeks I truly have gone (ultra) crazy. Before this year I had done 1 run of over 30 miles. I've done three already this year with another one planned for this Saturday. Why the change, you ask? Well quite frankly, it's the best balance I can find right now towards maintaining competitiveness and staying healthy. While I have increased the length of my (ultra) long weekend runs, I've decreased my total mileage and the mileage of my weekly days. In fact, besides my one long run per week, all my other runs have been 10 miles or less. This has allowed me to work on my speed during the week while working on endurance on my long runs. Will it work? Will I still be able to race like I want to? Time will tell.
For the time being, I've signed up for some ultra races both to test my fitness against some great ultra runners, and to break up the monotony of running 3, 4, or 5 hours by myself.

The first race on the schedule is the Hagg Lake 50K. Normally this race wouldn't be considered too competitive but this year it looks like the Oregon ultra series will start off with a bang. Top contenders should include Lanny Gower, the winner of the Oregon Ultra series last year and Ruben Galbraith from Portland who set the course record last year at the Forrest Park 50K. Dan Olmstead, a 2:26 marathoner and course record holder at the Peterson's Ridge Rumble is also signed up. The toughest competition though, should come from Montrail athlete Max King who has won some prestigious ultras including last year at the American River 50 miler. Normally in an ultra race I would consider myself to have pretty good leg speed compared to the competition but Max blows away my PR's across the board. He and I are both undefeated at the ultra distances so something will have to give on Saturday. Truth be told, if I were a betting man, I'd bet on him, but I'm still going to give it everything I've got on race day.

The next race on the agenda should be the popular Chuckanut 50K in Bellingham, Washington. The entry list for that one looks even more stacked than Hagg. So much so I think it may take breaking Uli Steidl's course record just to secure the win. And finally, I've bitten the bullet and signed up for the American River 50 miler in April. This one should be the best test of all, as I've never run close to that distance before and the competition includes the previously mentioned returning champion Max King, along with Ultra-Running Magazine's Ultra Runner of the Year, Geoff Roes.

It should be an exciting couple of months to say the least. We'll see if I'm cut out for ultra running or if I'm just ultra crazy for putting myself through all of this...

The Races of 2010

I think January is the best time of year to be a runner. Not because of the lack of exciting races during the month, nor because of cold and sloppy conditions. No, it's because the whole year is stretched out before you with limitless possiblities. Are you going to hit the track this year and focus on speed with 5Ks and road miles? Maybe you'll become a marthoner this year and really focus on the event. Perhaps ultra racing has piqued your curiosity, how far can you go? At this time of year, we can dream and imagine it all. I think I get so excited at this time of year because in my own mind I'm going to excell at everything I try. The reality of fatigue, injuries, and lack of time and talent has yet to hit me and I see every race on the calendar as one at which I have the potential to be successful. So as I look through the many race calendars at my disposal these are the races that I'm most pumped about. I certainly won't be able to get to all of them, but if I can show up at the starting line healthy and fit for some of them, half of them, most of them...it will be a good year! For me the focus has definitely begun to shift away from road racing and marathons and towards trail racing, ultra running, and other more adventure centered events.

Here's what I've got right now:

Feb. 20 Hagg Lake 50K, we'll see if I can get in shape in time for this one.
Mar. 20 Chuckanut 50K, a friend from the Transrockies run, Aaron Heidt set the course record last year. Let's see if I can get to Bellingham for Spring Break.
Apr. 3 Horse Butte, can you say 4-peat? I hope I can, we'll see who shows up.
Apr. 11 Peterson's Ridge Rumble, Always a fun event. With more single-track planned for this year I wonder how far these races will end up being. I'm hoping Sean will have some golden arm warmers if I can go 5 for 5.
May 2 Bloomsday. Easily the most competitive race in the Northwest.
Jun. 12 Dirty Half. Rumors have been swirling but I certainly hope it'll be the most competitive Dirty Half yet. It's cool that one of our favorite training runs could be a National Championship race.
June 19 Mt. Washington Hill climb. Always been a fantasy of mine to run this race. This year is especially sweet as the top 6 men win a trip to compete in Norway!
July 31 Ahhh! 3 great events on the same day! 15K trail chamionships in Spokane, 50 mile trail championships around Mr. Rainier, and the Cascade Lakes Relay.
Aug. 7 Mt. Ashland Hill Climb. 13 miles straight up!
Aug. 22-27 Transrockies Run. Will it be a battle of two great running towns? Bend vs. Flagstaff? Should be very exciting!
Sep. 25 50K trail championships in Bend!?!?!? What another championship race in Bend? It will be fun to see what Super Dave cooks up.
Oct. 3 Twin Cities marathon, The only road marathon to make the list. I'm mostly excited about the masters competition but it's also the US open men's championship.
Nov. 6 Lithia Loop Marathon, I've heard my buddy Hal puts on a great race, I'd love to see it for myself.
TBD: Northface Endurance Challenge, the unofficial championship of US ultra running.

So that's my "A" list for this year. I'm sure some things will change over the course of the year but these are what get me out the door to train right now. How about you? Did I miss some great races? What's on your list for this year?

Update

So it's been a while since I've been excited about my running; and even longer since I've been excited about my blogging. With the start of a new decade perhaps both are due for an injection of effort.
2009 ended on a low point. After a mostly lackluster year of racing, I decided to take the last couple months of the year off to focus on completely healing my right foot of the constant pain I'd been running with most of the year. After six weeks off, I was disappointed to start back up and to still have the pain in my foot. But after a few more weeks of running short distances once a day, the pain has seemed to slowly but significantly improve. As of Monday I felt good enough to start running twice a day and to start training "for real." I'm thrilled to report that despite the increased mileage and even the addition of speedwork (OK it was hill repeats so they weren't that fast, but the effort was there) the foot is doing better than it has in a long time. I'm determined to change my training patterns to be a little more conservative with regards to injuries but more aggressive with regards to speed. This translates to more soft surfaces, more specific speedwork, more cross training and strength training, but less total mileage (especially on the roads).
I'm excited to find out what affect this new emphasis will have on my performances. Will I be able to get back under 15:00 for a 5K? Will I ever be able to qualify for the Olympic Trials again? Indeed, I sometimes wonder if I'll ever win another race in Bend again, what with the addition of Mr. King and the cross country skiers that have been humbling me lately.
As for now, the motivation is high and the health is good. I'm expecting 2010 to be my best year yet!

Next Post: The races of 2010

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