6 posts tagged “ultrarunning”
While I was traveling to and from the Ottawa Race Weekend, I read through Pam Reed's "The Extra Mile." It was a worthwhile read, although I wasn't crazy about her writing style.
First off, this book is worth the read just because of all Pam's amazing ultrarunning accomplishments: two wins at Badwater, 24-hour US run record, 48-hour US run record, first non-stop 300 mile run, transatlantic triple marathon in less than 48 hours, plus a host of others.
One of the best parts of this book deals with Pam's battle with anorexia. While I expect that Pam's experiences with anorexia are very different from the average person, I learned a great deal about this eating disorder from reading this book.
I had hoped that Pam's book was going to be a collection of race reports. Instead her stories tend to focus on the time around her various events. I did find the stories she tells surrounding her various Badwater innovations very interesting.
As expected, there is a part of this book dealing with the supposed Pam Reed / Dean Karnaze feud (enough said).
My recommendation would be to borrow, not buy, this book. For those interested in ultrarunning, it is certainly a good read although not a book I intend to re-read.
Havybeaks recently posted this response to a Trail Running Blog Tag from Scott Dunlap and Paul Charteris. I figured that I'll give it a go as well but, like havybeaks, my answers are more general in nature than trail specific:
1. Most memorable moment on the trails… was the 2007 WDW Marathon in early January (race report). I went out way too fast in very hot/humid conditions and thus dropped of my goal pace at about mile 14 but the experience of a marathon + Disney was awesome. I'd recommend it to any runner. I ran a 3:51:44.
2. Best new trail I discovered in 2007… I dunno really. I did find a new six mile route from work but its more of a convenience route rather than a great route.
3. My best performance of the year was… I did not run many races in '07 and the ones that I did run weren't all that fast (i.e. no PRs this year except for the marathon). Of the races that I did run, I think that I performed the best at the Seaside Half Marathon in early March (race report). I ran a 1:38:07 which was only 30 seconds off my PR for the distance. I hope to train and run a 1:35:00 half mary this year in order to qualify for the CF National Running Championship.
4. I do not know how I previously survived without… my Amphipod Hydraform Handheld Pocket handheld water bottle (gear review). I used to run with a regular handheld water bottle and I found that the round cross-section of the bottles would lead to hand cramps on my longer runs. The ellipitcal cross-section bottles used by Amphipod solve this problem and the pocket on the handle works great for gels, ID cards, or credit cards.
5. The person I would most like to meet on a trail in 2008... While I wouldn't be able to keep up to his pace or run as long as he can, I'd love to see Scott Jurek out on the trails/roads (earlier post regarding Scott). This guy's ultrarunning preformances are just amazing.
6. The race I am most excited/scared about in 2008 is... the Bataan Memorial Death March Marathon at the end of March (original post). I'm running/slogging this one with a team from my work. This isn't a regular mary; the course goes through the high desert terrain of White Sands Missile Range, N.M., conducted in honor of the heroic service members who defended the Philippine Islands during World War II. In the division our team is entered, we will be completing the distance while wearing BDUs, hydration packs, and combat boots.
It's been awhile since I've posted regarding my running so here is a recap:
Most importantly, I decided to forgo my training for a first ultra in December. I have lots of things going on in my life this fall and keeping up the necessary mileage was becoming too hard. I'm still preparing with the team for the Bataan Memorial Death March marathon in March but our training plan is pretty relaxed until the New Year. I'll refocus onto the ultra distance after I move next summer.
Week 10-16 Sep - 34 miles for the week. This week included a very hot weekend 11 mile long run thru town. I felt like crap nearly the entire time and thus ran very slowly (almost a 11 mins/mile pace).
Week 17-23 Sep - This week I stuck to shorter runs for a total of 22 miles. The weather was really starting to get good for my morning runs (down to ~70F in the morning). My average HR has come down significantly and my average speed is picking back up.
Week 24-30 Sep - The plan was to run four or five times while on vacation at Disney, but I only got two runs in for a total of 16 miles. My first run in Orlando was supposed to be only a 6 or 7 miler around the block; I misjudged slightly. I ended up running 11 miles at dusk and returned to a very nervous and concerned wife (and rightly so). I stuck to the treadmill for the next run.
I especially liked the 'race report' portions of the book: his 30th birthday run, his first WS100, and The Relay. I really wish that he would have included more of these detailed race reports in the book (more detail of the Badwater would have been awesome). This is probably because I'm interested in eventually participating in some type(s) of ultra-running event.
This book was very inspiring and I've now flagged a few pages and copied down a few quotes from the book to help motivate me when training gets tough.
In the end I'm left with the thought "how the hell does he find the time to do all of this?" He seems so dedicated to both his sport and family that I cannot seem to figure out how he can make it all work.
I've got a new training schedule so I've been re-energized and I'm hitting the roads with renewed determination. It's a very long training program that I have adapted from a number of different 'official' programs (including the TransRockies, Hansons, and Higdon programs) with the aim of being prepared for a 50K/50M Ultra in December. I have not yet committed myself to the Ultra... I want to see how the training goes the next few weeks. There are plenty of marathons in the same time frame in case I wimp out. Here was last weeks training:
- Monday - 5 miles
- Tuesday - 5 miles
- Thursday - 6 miles
- Friday - 7 miles
- Weekly mileage - 23 miles
I finally picked up the "SAS Survival Handbook" to replace my old series of various Scouting books. It's a pretty good book that covers all types of survival issues. Feel free to roll your eyes... my wife did.
I also finally bought Dean Karnazes' "Ultramarathon Man". The straw that broke the camels back was when I grab a bowl of cereal on Saturday morning and Dean was staring at me from the back of the box. I'm only a few pages into the book and I've already found a great Plato quote:
It doesn't have much to do with ultrarunning (or just being crazy) but the phrase fits very well around our house these days."Of all the animals, the boy is the most unmanageable"
