Training Log Archive: silkychrome

recovery hike at Chubb w Erl and T. we are both pretty beat up. but a beautiful day and this was the perfect thing to move some blood around.

another pool sesh w the Gnu. this time we brought packs and PFDs to work on gear arrangements. figured that out and then practiced wet exits/entries w PFDs which is a bit harder but doable.

C • Gnu 10

FOUR. LAPS. OF. BERRYMAN!!!!!!!!!

on my birthday, w Erl. watch died w about 5mi to go i think. 1 lap is 26 real miles but garmin doesn't get all of it. started at 8:30 AM, tried to keep laps under 4hrs and TA under 15min. trail in great shape. we rode rigid forks....nice and light but man did hands take a beating! ring and pinky fingers on both hands are still tingly.

so stoked w how this went down. we really wanted 4 laps but didn't make the commitment to go for it til about 1/2-way thru 1st lap, we needed to get comfortable w trail conditions (pretty good) and riding singletrack again. but then Erl said he was in so then i was in too.

lap 1 was just cruisy, temps in the 25-35 range. wet spots melting here and there on the trail but nothing more than 10' long, not too mushy and the rest was dry so didn't get bogged down. Erl had a bit of chain suck w new chain but that got sorted once a little dirt got worked in there.

lap 2 i was strangely anxious. so many questions about the mythical "4 laps of berryman" that i didn't have answers to. how bad would it hurt? would the laps drag by or just blink and they were over? could i even do this? would i be miserable? i didn't want to be miserable. so i told Erl and he said just focus on this lap we are on and we will get to lap 3 and lap 4 when we get there. so comforting and also i started believing in myself again and mentally saying "we can do this. you can do this". what a huge change! smile back on face. then we saw the other EK and Adam riding opposite, and they were camping, so they said to stop by after our lap 3 for a beer. YES!

lap 3 was uncharted territory. we turned lights on about 1 hour in. i started getting tired and we took more snack breaks. so hard to stay fueled on this trail while riding, so we just would stop and eat. plus i needed the mini rest break too. we started getting into the "just get 'er done" mode. simple goals of spinning and keep moving. landmarks from the other laps were really helpful and we called them out. we split things up as Spring (mi 6), Sign (mi 12), Paved Road (mi 16), Gravel Road (mi 21) and then 3 grinder climbs and then a 2 posts, a ruin, and then the car. boom! we stopped by EK and Adam's campsite and they took care of us so well...beer, snacks, cheering, just amazing. yay friends!

lap 4 was just about the same as lap 3 except completely in the dark. legs continued to feel good, obvi not as spunky as beginning but able to turn over pretty good. my bar light (seca) was going low so i rode the last 1/2 of the lap with it only on for the downhills (still had stella on helmet). so just got it DONE. it was very very tough but i was never miserable. very proud of this ride.

C • You guys are awesome. 5

chiro appt this AM. really needed as L hammy was getting tight. and a big day planned for tomorrow :)

WU:
10min AD, foam roll, 2x10 SD, 2x15 AS, 2x20m lunge, 2x10 GM, 2x10 push-up, 5x4 SLOB squat.
THEN:
3x5 DL 95#
3x4 DL 115#
3x3 DL 135#
2x2 DL 155#
2x1 DL 165#
2x1 DL 175#
THEN:
5 rounds of: 4x TGU 20#, 20m sled sprint +50#, 4x off-box lunge 2x15#, 100m row, short rest.

Matt spared me from bday workout today. things are feeling good!

night run w Erl n T to the grocery store.

supa EZ spinning, watching RTNX Whitehorse w Erl.

and then a road run w Erl n T. MO Solar Sidewalk Cleaning, Inc has been at work!

C • Finally! Kind of slow servi... 5

w Erl from Page Ext, on the Katy with a Terry/Duke loop. Katy was melting and quite soft. i was struggling to maintain 10mph most of the time. started w 15# pack but dumped 3L water after 1hr. on the pavement things were better. but then back on the Katy it was again a challenge, mostly mental to keep myself happy going 9mph with effort. had a bit of a temper tantrum about 2mi from the finish. but fixed that w a Huga Bar and about 2min walking.

Erl gets genius award of the day for remembering fenders for both of us!

not an easy day on the bike but great training.

C • Belize!! 3

C • The Katy 1

maiden voyage of the Gnu w Erl! we really didn't want to test this baby out in 40F temps so grabbed a spot at MWA's pool sessions. went to the later one which was better because fewer people. the folks who were there were very nice and curious instead of shunning us! yay. just paddled laps around the pool, testing out diff positions, and then wet entries.

Event: SLOC - Babler Cold Nose-O
 

red course at Babler w Erl. he punched i navved. things went really well. lot of white woods on the map which were sorta slow, just small brambles everywhere. but kept nav clean and it was so awesome to run w Erl.

ride home from the shop on "race ready" mtb. well not quite.

--service rear hub then check rear shifting
--more stans in both tires
--rotate grips up
--redo duct tape on bars
--clear wear tape on a couple spots on headtube
--add bottle cage

CTS "Mountain Biking" w Erl. 5x2min @ 180W at the end, 2min EZ.

wore my new climbing helmet to check fit. it works good.

129W NP.

C • Please 4

another snowy slushy run w Erl n T.

CTS "Race Simulation"

142W NP

w Erl and T. first run in new road shoes. Missourians don't shovel their sidewalks. so lots of loose footing.

C • sidewalks 10

WU:
10min AD, foam roll, 2x5 WS, hip mobility, 2x10 SD, 2x15 AS, 2x10 push-up.
THEN:
work up to heavy BP...85# for me today.
THEN:
5 rounds of: 2x BP 65#, 100m ski, rest.
THEN:
10x DL 78#
3 rounds of: 10x DL 108#, 2min step-up 18", rest.
THEN:
4 rounds of: 10x DL/RDL, 10x BOR, 10x UR, 10x curl, 10x SP, rest.
all w 35# bar.

a longer sesh today. forearms sore. the upright rows and curls were the hardest.

EZ recovery spin while watching MasterChef Jr w Erl. Tess supervised from the green chair.

93W NP

Event: POCAR
 

POCAR w Jeff David Erl and Rachel. Morgan-Monroe State Forest south of Indianapolis, IN.

before i forget, i wore some amazing clothing and i would like to document it here. these are items that i consider worth spending full retail, "WSFR". temps in the low 30s when we started and in the low 20s when we finished. light wind, mostly cloudy. here it is from the bottom, up.

FEET:
--Salomon Fellraisers - WSFR
--SuperFeet orange insole - WSFR
--Swiftwick Aspires - WSFR
love love love the tread on the Fellraiser. rumor is Salomon is discontinuing these shoes but replacing them with the "SpeedTrac".

BOTTOMS:
--2XU shorts w fleece chammy
--Gore Windstopper tights WSFR
--ExOfficio DamselFly trekking pants WSFR
the DamselFly pants are for Belize but I needed a test run in them. they are SUPER light and v comfy. velcro fly closure, which i've never had but really liked it. didn't snag at all. sizing runs slightly large. also they are pre-treated with Permethrin, doesn't matter for this race but will probably come in handy for warmer weather.

TOP:
--SmartWool sports bra
--Icebreaker Oasis 200 LS baselayer WSFR
--Salomon Trail Runner Warm LS ZP Tee WSFR
I wore these 3 items for the entire race. the Salomon shirt is so awesome, it is 1/4 zip plus has extra fabric around wrists that flips over your hands for a light mitten. I adjusted the zipper and mitten at least 100 times during the race.
--Specialized Deflect SL jacket WSFR
besides being an amazing color of pink, this jacket is slightly heavier than the traditional "wisp" jacket i usually wear. the fabric is softer and feels less synthetic against skin. does a great job protecting against wind and the full-zip is nice for cold racing. also the zipper is asymmetric so doesn't irritate chin skin.
--Patagonia Nano-Air jacket WSFR
i wore this jacket in TA and for the first 20min of the final section. it is WARM and the cut is amazing, esp on the hood. the best part is you can afford to bring it along "just in case" because it is so light. Erl has one too and we both just love them.

ACC:
--Macpac Amp 25 pack WSFR
this pack rides a bit high which somehow makes the load seem lighter. super simple design, v lightweight, just a no-nonsense pack. also a beautiful bright green. wish the hip belt pockets were farther forward to improve access.
--Seirus lightweight gloves
--Buff
--fleece hat
--Princeton Tec Apex Pro headlamp WSFR
just a durable little light that can go bright to assist in pinging CPs, and go low to save battery. buy your CR123's in bulk to save $$.

Loop 1 (North)
~15 miles, 3:30 ish
ran almost the entire time w Odyssey (Peter J, Shane H, Charlie R, Chris V). we would take different routes and still end up at the CPs together. we ran pretty hard, but not exhaustively.

Loop 2 (South)
~17 miles, 6:30ish incl plotting time
then we split up, Odyssey was assigned to go West by RD. we had trouble w the first CP on the loop, H6, it simply was not anywhere near the plot. we knew exactly where we were so searched for 10-15min and then bugged out. got the next one and then a long-ass road run to the south, it was paved and mostly downhill. then C10 i believe gave us trouble, David found it sorta by the plot but not anywhere near the creek alluded to in the clue. oh well. got to Fire/Water South still in daylight and did a special rope swing challenge, got it on the 2nd try which was good bc i screwed up my finger during my turn. turned lights on about 30min after this. then the CP which gave us the most trouble all day, we contoured correctly right to it, but couldn't ping the flag so thought we were short. went back up to the ridge, re-located, re-attacked, and found the flag almost exactly were we had stopped the first time, except from the other direction the flag was visible (no reflector on this one). then on the run back home we passed Odyssey hiking outbound on their South loop so guessed that they were about 1hr ahead of us if the South and West loops were equal. my feet were really starting to hurt, but could still shuffle.

Loop 3 (West)
~15 miles, 4:30ish incl plotting time
got some Motrin in TA, bundled up, plotted, and set out on our final loop. this had some strategy as there were several CPs w point values ranging from 1-5 points. teams had to collect 15 points to complete the loop. no bonus points. we selected a longer distance route because the attackpoints were easier and it was going to be dark the whole time. this route also had more road/trail opportunities. worked out great as David nailed everything and we were able to run all of the road/trail. i struggled in the off-trail portions but could hang on otherwise. Jeff had a dead-on pacecount to the creek junction CP. my feet still hurt but didn't worsen. got back to Race HQ in 1st! turns out Odyssey had some nav and injuries to deal with on their South loop.

such a pleasure to race w these fine people. and great Belize training.

also Jeff wore pink tights the entire time!!!!! OWWWP.

C • POCAR 9

doc appts in AM, i now have an epi-pen, but it's heavy, really don't want to carry it.

then travel to POCAR in the PM. OWWWP!

C • Wooo! 3

loop from home w Erl on his day off. so sunny and warm. found the Creve Coeur/Amiot connector, then over the bridge to Bangert, back, and up Hog's Hollow and back via Ladue. rode w packs, the MacPac sits much higher than my GoLite so i need to loosen the straps to keep my neck happy. i am feeling really good overall but it's not showing on the bike. just need some more time.

WU:
10min AD, foam roll, 2x10 SD, 2x15 AS, 2x15 push-up, 2x20m lunge forward/backward.
THEN:
5 rounds of: 2x DL, 2x RDL, 2x PC, 2x PP or jerk.
55#, 65#, 75#, 85#, 90# (only 1x jerk).
THEN:
work up to heavy hex DL...200#.
5 rounds of: 4x hex DL 150#, 4x box jump 24", rest.
CD:
4x45sec FLR on rings.

a super good sesh today. L hammy still tweaked a bit but it is getting stronger. great vibe in the gym and box jumps felt great. finally getting training rolling again.

EZ night run w Erl and T to the grocery store. warm enough that they could wait for me to buy ingredients for dinner.

w Erl and Tess around FP after T's vet appt. sunny day and a nice run. stopped about halfway so T could say hi to the police horses.

w Erl. CTS "Fitness". installed new PM batteries so all good to go.

136W NP

then a road run w Erl and T.

AM trainer ride w Erl. CTS "Cadence". my power meter died so rode by feel rest of the time.

road run w T in the cold. she loves it so much. i don't. but glad to have an enthusiastic training buddy.

Event: Frigid
 

first, both Erl and I signed up for DK200.

then we got out of the car and rode from Page Ext. to Lewis & Clark connector trail. it was raining and about 38F. i got my hards warm right away and they stayed happy, despite my lobsters wetting out. then, my FaskerKatts got wet too so feet got a bit unhappy. but thanks to Arc'teryx Beta, my core was great! hoods work great over bike helmets. big mistake was not wearing rain pants...wore softshells instead and they were ok but not awesome.

locked bikes in the woods and AR-shuffled a loop of Clark. feet frozen for 30min, some nerve twinges in L, but both came around. need to remember not to freak out about this. rain turned to snow but ground was still soaked.

saw Mickey and Lori and heard a rumour about kgiesen and HatePavement being out there as well!

C • Sorry we missed you! 2

then the return trip to the car on the now slushed-over Katy. with wet feet and hands, it was a race against the cold. did okay but we didn't eat/drink at all so pace suffered a lot. finished about 33F.

despite the terrible weather we saw a lot of people out. over 20 between both trips. some walkers, some runners. way to go people!

WU:
10min AF, foam roll, 3x5 WS, 2x15 AS, 2x20m lunge, 2x15 GM.
THEN:
10x FS 35#
10x3 FS 35# + heavy chains, full depth.
THEN:
work up to 55# SP
10x3 SP 55#
THEN:
5 rounds of: 100 skiERG (low SPM), 10x box jump 18", rest.
CD:
5 rounds of: 10x GHD sit-up, 5x GHR.

night run w Erl and T to try and get back on the training wagon. warm out and felt good.

WU:
feel uncomfortable for several hours.
THEN:
puke x6
CD:
feel uncomfortable for several hours.

C • hope it passes quickly.... 6

Event: Little Woods Last Man/Woman Standing
 

snow slog in the SP w Erl and packs. was kinda congested in the AM and then the slow going made me crabby. but good mental training to push thru and focus on steady progress instead of speed. which pretty much sums up our goals in Belize. so a great training day w my fave person :)

w Erl n T around Fountain Lake