I am training for the California International Marathon (CIM) on December 6th.  I want to run under 3 hrs again but I am not sure of that since my leg speed seems to have disappeared.  In preparation for CIM I ran the Primo's run for education Half Marathon (picture below of me - in black).  My time was 1:26.  I was really not happy with the time but my confidence in my leg speed is slowly coming back.

A few more weeks of heavy training then a nice long taper to recover to get ready to race.

I have heard the argument that Pros make their living on racing and therefore should save themselves from a long recovery if they are not racing well.  I on the other hand do not really think this is the best policy.  If you are sponsoring an athlete would you want your product associated with the tough as nails guy that gets to the finish no matter what or the athlete that quits every time they are not leading a race.

I ran the Western States 100 a few weeks ago and I saw people quitting all over the place.   I had the worst race of my entire life.  I literally vomited from mile 30 to mile 55.  At times the vomiting was so bad I could hardly walk, and at its worst it took me 2.5 hours to go 4.8 miles.  I know that if I had even a little bit of quitter in me – I would have pulled the rip cord.

There are a few quotes from the Western States program that I really like.  “Western States does not test your character, it reveals it.”  This could not be truer of any race of any distance.  You have to resolute in wanting to finish.  The other quote I like says “Running Western States hurts for a few days.  The ride back from and aid station hurts all year.”

My opinion:  DNF should be the absolutely, positively last resort.

I think Lance Armstrong is a great example of someone that won’t quit.  He is almost assured that he will not win the TDF and yet he is still riding.  Sometimes just finishing should be enough.

Two days before the race I had a bout of food poisoning.  This was very disappointing since the lead up to the race was going so well.  My stomach never felt right again.  I kept hoping that I would feel ok on race morning or once the race started but that never happened.

The gun went off and my stomach was a total wreck.  I could barely take in any calories and that caught up to me fast.  At mile 30 I was able to see my crew for the first time and I was already in bad shape and they knew it.  I tried taking in some calories but it made me feel very queasy.  Almost immediately after leaving the mile 30 aid station I started vomiting.  I continued to do this all the mile to mile 55.

 At mile 55 I was able to see my crew again and pick up a pacer (Katie) and they started working to get me back on track.  I tool one sportbean every 10 minutes and 1 salt tab every 30 minutes.  I was able to do this without throwing up.  I was able to recover enough to run for the last ¾ mile into Foresthill at mile 62.

At Mile 62 I saw my crew again and they had a vanilla milk shake for me.  This was the greatest milk shake ever.  I picked up my other pacer (Dan) and he and I started the last 38 miles to the finish.  I left Foresthill just 10 minutes before the absolute cutoff and 2 hour behind the 30 hour pace.

On the way down to the river we were able to move pretty well.  I was passing a lot of runners and feeling good. Crossing the river was great because it dropped my core body temp.  The run up from the river to the Green Gate aid station went pretty quickly.  By the time we got to green gate we were an hour ahead of the 30 hour pace and almost 2 hours in front of the absolute cutoff.

At the mile 85 aid station I was down 15 pounds and they made me sit until I gained some weight.  I downed a bottle and ½ of water and that was enough to add 5 pounds (not sure how but it did).  I was then allowed to leave the aid station.  There was no looking back from there. 

Running onto the track was the best moment of all the sporting events I have participated in.  I had to fight for every step of this race and finishing was so rewarding.

Anyone that would like to follow my progress can click on the link below and add my race number - which is 111.

http://webcast.ws100.com/emailtracksignup.php

There is also a race day webcast that can be accessed by clicking on the link below.

http://webcast.ws100.com/

Anyone that does not already know - I am trying to raise money for a very worthy charity with this run.  If you are interested in donating - please go to the link below.

http://www.activecharity.com/States.htm

Thanks,
Dave 

Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim is an absolutely amazing run.  We started on the South Kaibab trail at about 4:30 AM.  We took our time in the dark but after about 30 minutes we no longer needed our headlamps.  We took the North Kaibab trail up to the north rim.  There was really cold water on the north rim which was a welcome relief from the heat.  Going down the north rim was a ton of fun.  We were back at Phantom ranch in no time.  We stayed long enough to down some lemonade (they do not have any soda) and then head out to climb back up to the South Rim.  We took the Bright Angel trail back up because there is water on that trail but none of the South Kaibab trail.  After about 3.5 hours we were back up on the South Rim.   The run took about 12 hours total with a lot of stops for pictures and to refill our backpack bladders.

Only 24 days until Western States.

Anyone that has not already donated - please go to www.activecharity.com/states.htm and make a donation.

The latest test in my preparation for the Western States 100 Mile Endurance run was the Miwok 100K (62 mile) Trail Race.  I completed the event in 10 hours and 53 minutes.  I am very happy with my time and the way my body held up.  The conditions at the race were terrible.  It was very foggy, very cold and raining (read downpour).  At times the wind was blowing so hard the rain was coming in sideways and pelting my face like hail.  Not the best way to spend almost 11 hours but still a successful run.

I am definitely feeling much more ready for Western States.  Today was a great test.

Anyone that has not already donated - please go to www.activecharity.com/states.htm and make a donation.

I left the race and drove the 2 hours back to my house, took a shower and then drove 6 hours to Long Beach.  The next day my family and I (and several other friends with their families) went on a 7 day cruise.  I managed to get in some training runs on the treadmill on the ship and also get some needed rest.

The next big race is the Miwok 100K in early May.  Western States is coming up fast.

Anyone that has not already donated - please go to www.activecharity.com/states.htm and make a donation.

Thanks,
Dave 

I am not in any way affiliated with Dunkin Donuts or compensated in any way by them – I am just a coffee lover that is trying to get by until Dunkin comes to their senses and opens some stores in California.

As far as trail ultras go this one is fairly flat - only 3200 feet of elevation gain.  I started the race at a relaxed pace.  The biggest issue with this race is resisting the urge to go out fast.  Since it is relatively flat for the first 31 miles there is the potential to go out too fast and then blow up when you come into the hills later in the race.  I ran easy (about 7 ½ minute miles) for about 18 miles or so and then I picked up the pace.  I went through Beal's point, the 27 mile aid station, in 3:32.   I hit the 31 mile mark at about 4:10.  I just kept focusing on running from aid station to aid station.  The aid stations are not spaced uniformly - some were 3 miles apart and some were as much as 6 miles apart.  The last aid station is part way up some very steep hills that feel like Mount Everest after having run 47 miles.  I managed to run up those hills and finish in 7 hours and 28 minutes.  This was 31^st overall.

I would very much recommend this race to anyone.  It would be a great first 50 miler or a great place to shoot for a PR at this distance.  I have run several 50s but this was my best experience so far.