Training Log Archive: Bash

Event: Creemore Vertical Challenge
 

Creemore Vertical Challenge 25K trail running race

Fatigued legs when I woke up today - not a good omen before this hilly race. I'm not sure how much last weekend's 22-hour Wilderness Traverse course test is still affecting my body but I guess it would be naive to think that I could be totally back to normal. Regardless, Creemore has such a fun race atmosphere that I was looking forward to it.



Tizzle, Amber and me at the start.



'Bent very kindly came along so there are lots more pics than I'd normally have. Here are Tarno and Frankenjack leading out the race.



Frankenjack leading around 11K. These three guys ended up being the overall podium.



Logie coming into the aid station near the front of the race. He finished 6th overall and 2nd in 40-49.



Dee, at 5 months prego, rode 43 km to cheer us on at a twice-visited aid station. Isn't she looking awesome? :) It was great to have her there since she's a natural coach and called out good advice as we went by.



Jokeysmurf was one of the top female finishers. She looks like a pro when she runs!



Charlotte did the 50K with a big smile.



Back to the leaders.



Me coming into the aid station. Right arm too low but otherwise the running style isn't *too* awful. I'm about as far from a natural runner as one could possibly be. Whenever I clear up one bad habit, another becomes painfully obvious.



Later when I got tired, I put on a clinic in heel striking. Ugh. Frankenjack saw me twice on the course and advised that I need to work on increasing cadence, which would rule out heel striking. I've been doing this on my bike to good effect and I've *thought* about doing it in my running but haven't gotten around to it. Will do.



I started closer to the front of the pack than I usually do because the course starts on narrow technical trail. In previous years, I've been caught behind cautious people for 2K. I know many of them can pass me on the road but I figured I might as well use one of the few advantages I have.

It was cloudy when we started then after about 8K, the sun came out and the temperature rose to 31C with smog and humidity. The 25K race started at 9 a.m., an hour later than usual, to give the 50K runners their own start. Probably a good idea, especially after STORM won the 50K by a landslide last year after spending the first half running with a 25K runner by mistake. :) This meant a hotter run for us and my legs turned to jello when the sun came out. My first 10K was a little faster than last year but I felt like I was done. I stopped doing math - no more comparing my time to last year's younger, better-rested, slightly cooler self. I would just try to hold my position relative to the women around me, and that made me feel more positive since nobody seemed overly energetic in the heat.

I always monitor my pace when training and racing. Today I was wearing my heart rate monitor intending to look at the data afterward since I'm hoping to get back into HR-based training. Although I had no intention of making decisions based on HR, it was easy to see that my body was reasonably functional at 150 but turned into Gumby near 160 - not good for careening down steep hills. So I ended up watching HR more than pace as the sun beat down harder. My race wasn't pretty. It was mental. I focused on eating, drinking, electrolytes and HR, hoping to fend off effects of the heat. I saw a few overheated runners, including one woman who left in an ambulance.

At the front of the race, Frankenjack beat the course record! Alas, so did Kyle Aitken, who beat it by 67 seconds more. So it was a silver medal for our friend.

I definitely didn't feel as perky as usual in the final 5K but I passed more people there than in any other part of the race. Several runners were literally standing still. One friend was walking but told me he had stopped running because he was overheated. It took me a couple of tries to grab the right saplings to haul myself out of one of the steep gullies near the end, then it was all flat or downhill to the finish. Soooo glad to see the line and 'Bent smiling at me.

I was almost 5 minutes slower than last year although the first 10K (mostly cloudy) was 90 seconds faster than last year. Wow, did I ever fade big time! Looks like my overall rank in the race was about the same so the heat must have affected a lot of people.

The post-race experience is the absolute best. Free Creemore beer on tap followed by a cooldown in the Mad River.





Believe it or not, it got even better!



On my third attempt at Creemore, I was lucky enough to win my age group and get one of the nice pottery bowls handmade by one of the race directors. I also got a litre of local maple syrup and a big bag of Creemore Coffee. Love these prizes!



Tarno was the only guy on the 40-49 age group podium who stayed for awards, so he picked them up for everyone!



Brother and sister prize winners. Jokeysmurf was second in the under-40 age group. Frankenjack was awarded 1st in the under 40 age group.



These guys look like they're posing for their engagement photo...? Logie swears they're just good friends.



'Bent says he's just friends with Dee as well. :)



Fun day! And as always, there is more work to do.

The Creemore Vertical Challenge 25K is tomorrow and I'm still feeling the Wilderness Traverse course test in my legs, so I was going to take Canada Day off. But it was just too tempting to join Bender, Harps and 'Bent for the first part of their ride through the Rocky Ridge / Hilton Falls area. I tried hard to keep my heart rate down and not use any muscles that I might need tomorrow. :)

This will be my third time running Creemore. The first time I came home empty-handed; last year I was 2nd in my age group and won a cool pottery mug handmade by one of the race directors. This year I'd really like to win my age group so I can bring home a big, gorgeous handmade pottery bowl. But I haven't exactly prepared well so I'm not clearing off a shelf for it just yet!

Our ride had great single and double track. It was a good reminder that rocky escarpment riding is different from the other technical riding I've been doing. I should get down there to practise once in awhile. My problem there is largely mental; if I don't psyche myself out, I can ride a lot of that stuff just fine but I keep thinking how painful it is to fall on rock. As the ride went on, I got less chicken-hearted.

I can't think of a better way to kick off Canada Day than with good friends doing fun things outdoors!



Afterward, we enjoyed coffee with the Piller family in the screened-in deck outside their beautiful, historic stone farmhouse. At last, we met 12-week-old Matteus Piller; the cute little guy was very fine company indeed. Check out his awesome Canada Day shoes.

I never thought I would agree with a column in the National Post. I'm sure it won't become a trend, given their right wing views, but this one hits close to home.

"The Regulated Health Professions Act prevents health professionals from providing services to their husbands, wives or common-law partners, under the bizarre theory that this protects patients from 'sexual abuse'."

"... what if a ...dentist’s spouse thinks her husband is the best in town and wants to continue using him...? Why should she be denied her choice of health care professional when every other Ontarian is free to choose?"

There was an exemption for dentists for many years so it's only for the past two years that I've been without a dentist after many years with an excellent one. 'Bent is the only dentist in Palgrave and he would automatically lose his licence for 5 years if he treated me. I know enough to know that not all dentists are created equal so I would need to drive a long way to find someone with the same philosophy and high-tech procedures and equipment. Grrr.

http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2011/06/29/kar...

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Today was the Hump Day between recovering from Wilderness Traverse and tapering for Saturday's Creemore Vertical Challenge 25K trail race. So I figured it was a chance to sneak out and do something quickly!

I rode to Inglewood via Palgrave West trails and the rail trail. Dropped by the bike shop to buy gels and a few new tubes. (I think I owe you one, Frankenjack?) Then to the weekly Inglewood Farmer's Market for fresh local strawberries, kale, asparagus, spinach and mushrooms, plus homemade strawberry-rhubarb jam, chocolate chip shortbread and bagels. I snacked on a local lamb burger fresh off the BBQ with homemade sweet chili BBQ sauce. VO2Max's little sister has started baking and selling Cosicakes - elegant cupcakes of various flavours - so I bought a couple for Knobless and me to eat while we chatted at his booth. I rode home (the slightly uphill direction) with a 15 lb pack so it counts as training even though it was fun.

Wow! We have 37 teams confirmed for Wilderness Traverse with only 3 spots left. We'd been kinda hoping we might hit 30 teams this year. To grab one of the final spots, contact Getawaystix at bob at wildernesstraverse dot ca

My Wilderness Traverse course test report has now been posted on June 26.

Ran around the Palgrave West trails. Poison ivy is running rampant! I'm pleasantly surprised at how good I've felt since the weekend. Unfortunately, it's a very busy week but I was craving a long bike ride yesterday and would have loved to run for 90 minutes today. I do have some nasty bruises from splatting various body parts on rocks but it seems that my joints and muscles are OK.

On Sunday morning, both Getawaystix and Frankenjack commented that they were probably going to lose both their big toenails after our long trek. I felt a little smug because my feet were fine - until yesterday when I stubbed my toe on the bathroom cabinet. Now it's purple and it looks like I might lose it... :)

Kudos to our friend Crash who blew away the women's solo division at this weekend's 24 Hours of Summer Solstice mountain bike relay with 20 laps. She had time to do a 21st lap but retired at 23:17 with a 4-lap lead. If she had continued, she would have been 4th of the 38 solos (male and female) in the race but her 5th place overall is still mind-bogglingly impressive.