Friday 2/28
Week 1/16 for Mohican 100 miler
Botanical Gardens 4 miles 35 minutes
Last night was one of those nights where I woke and couldn't return to sleep. So after trying to go back to sleep, reading a little, and starting today's entry I decided to just go run now. 8 miles! Before the sun came up. Then my double would be far a part. So I hopped in my car, slightly underdressed for single degree weather and set off for the gardens. I parked right beside the sign that read: No Parking or Trespassing at dark, but assumed they didn't mean 5am. I set off down the trail and realized that running in the dark sucks just as bad in the morning as it does at night. The first compromise was made when my hands wouldn't warm up. Gloves may have helped that. 6 miles! Too cold to run 8 this morning. As the sun slowly made its way closer it seemed to get dark and honestly, I chickened out. I scare easily, especially alone in the dark in the woods. 4 miles is the least I can possibly run and feel like I ran. And that is only the case when all 4 miles is trekking through snow and hearing what I assumed was manbearpig in the woods. I hightailed it back up to my car and drove into Sabraton to go to the most wonderful place in the local world: Sheetz. Picked up a breakfast sandwich, hot chocolate, and some jelly beans. I was back in my house by six. I had two compromises before the sun rose today, but that is life; you wake up and pick up right where you left off: making compromises. It's a habit I've been trying to kick for years.
My view of the trail this morning. (with headlamp and flash on phone.)
Cooper's Rock 8 miles 62 minutes
Night run with Josh. Can't wait to hit the actual trails out at Cooper's, but I think Preston will be coated in snow through May...
Last night's show was amazing. There could not have been a better start to the night: Taco Bell. Where every great night starts. Ketch Secor from Old Crow Medicine Show rocked the Coliseum to start off the night. He put on one hell of a performance. Then there was the Avett Brothers, easily my second favorite group all time. I sat with Patrick and Dan and just absorbed every single second they sang to us. It's not my first Avett show, but they blow me away every time I see them. There is something special about listening to songs continuously in your car for years and then seeing the men behind the words in person. Their music has been very influential in my life and will continue to be listened to almost daily. I think a good show is one that makes the attendees lives better. I can't speak for everyone, but my life improved from the time I walked in to the the time I left the show. And when Old Crow came back on stage with the Avetts and played the crowd off with Country Roads; it was the perfect ending to a perfect show. Honestly, I have never been more proud of being born and raised in WV than when some of my idols were singing that anthem and talking about how much they love the area. I wish I could take that high and trap it inside forever.
I returned home to watch Minnesota finish beating up on the Oilers and chalked yesterday up as a good day.
Unprepared Mile Preview
This will be the second time in a month or so that a group of us race a mile indoors (having no business doing so). In the first running I took it out in 2:13 and fell back to a 4:35, four seconds behind Josh and two seconds ahead of the charging Adam. Russell crossed the line half of a minute later. This next running will be videoed and shared to bring laughter and joy to everyone who enjoys watching bloodbaths/trainwrecks/deaths/etc. NONE of the participants in this mile Saturday are in the realm of being prepared for a mile. I don't have a reliable starting list because of the weather tonight and tomorrow, but I can promise that the video will be epic! Largely because I plan on running the first half mile as fast as possible just to see how hard I die. There will be plenty of laughs at our expense, so be sure
Botanical Gardens 6 miles 45 minutes 73 miles down, 20-27 to go this week.
Rushed into this run because, thanks to a text from Patrick, I remembered that the Avett Brothers were in Morgantown tonight; an event that I have tickets to. Legs couldn't have been more stale, but nothing that some quality music by the Avetts, can't fix! The NHL season also resumes tonight for the Minnesota Wild. Over the past half decade I have convinced myself that I am a member of that organization and love nothing more than the Wild. I have missed less games than most of the players' parents I would assume. Luckily we are playing in Edmonton tonight. It's fortunate because I should only miss the first period with the time zone difference, and Edmonton sucks so we should win. I will be up and at em again in the morning.
Last summer I set out west for my first trail marathon. Much like the Mohican 100 miler, I signed up for this race incredibly far out from the race and ended up suffering an injury that was so severe that I can't recall what it was. I ended up only getting to run three weeks leading into my travels. That was fine with me because I wasn't traveling out west to win a marathon; it was more of a vacation. I had never run more than a few twenty mile runs before this race and almost never ran on trails, but life changes on a dime sometimes. For some reason I just felt like a shake up in my training. That reason probably stems from loads of little events that led to me veering into a new realm of the running world.
Let me start off by saying that I enjoy nothing more than road trips; especially by myself. Almost everyone I have talked to can't believe that I traveled 60+ hours in a car that week by myself; said they couldn't do it. I understand. People probably can't travel alone for a long time for the same reason I can't travel alone with them. Bathroom breaks, picky eaters, tired of sitting in a car, bad taste in music, talk too much, don't talk enough, snoring, and whining are just a few of the reasons why I would never volunteer to travel with most people. I am the lowest maintenance person in the world when I need to be. Few bags of trail mix, coffee, and a bottle of water or Gatorade (also serves as my bathroom) is all I will take in on a day of traveling. You are sitting in a car all day, how hungry can you get? I will never stop for a bathroom break unless I am also getting gas. And once I get that feeling of having to go to the bathroom, I have max 200 miles before leaking. If there are more than 200 miles left on the tank I'm riding in, out comes the bottle. Peeing and driving sounds dangerous, but I have plenty of practice via texting and driving. I am no stranger to sleeping at rest stops, too. My HHR is just big enough to lay comfortably in the back once I put the seats down. I will typically have every blanket and pillow I own already back there; I've had better nights of sleep in my car than some hotels. Once in Minnesota I spent three straight nights sleeping in my car. Washed my hair and brushed my teeth in the bathroom of the welcome center right off of i90 on the Minnesota/Wisconsin border. But that's another story.
My trip to Wyoming was broken into two oddly even drives. The first day I drove 15 hours straight across i70 until I hit Kansas City. 15 hours on one highway may sound boring, but it's amazing to think about. I wasn't in a hurry, but I only made one stop that wasn't for gas. In Illinois I saw an exit advertising Lincoln's home; a sign that I have seen half a dozen times when driving to St. Louis or Oklahoma. I decided to get off and check it out. I enjoy US history and try to enjoy rest of the world's history. Once I got off the exit I checked for the little signs that tell you how far your desired fast food joints or gas stations are and in which direction. Lincoln's home had an arrow pointing right with a small 20 mi below it. In that moment, I had a new understanding on my true opinion of President Lincoln. "Eh, he wasn't that good of a president" I said and hopped back on the interstate. Now Clinton, I would have driven 20 miles to see him, or anything that has ever been a part of his life. I arrive in Kansas City and meet up with an old teammate from Oklahoma. My freshman and only semester in Norman, Kogel was the team captain and veteran (that's how I saw it at least). So getting to crash with him in his new pad in Kansas City, now graduated from OU, was amazing. He was easily my biggest role model while out west that fall. A fellow Twins fan, we played a few games of the newest MLB game on his xbox and called it a night. The next morning we attempted to run at the ass crack of dawn and it was hilarious to me. He was coming off of a stress fracture and I still can't remember my excuse for being in pathetic shape. I just remember that 5 or 6 mile run all but did me in. I left soon after the run and hopped in my car, laughing at the idea of running a marathon up and down the Teton Mountains in a couple of days.
i70 took me in again and introduced me to the state of Kansas. Prior to this trip I had driven through every state that borders Kansas, but somehow always missed all of it's greatness. I hated driving through Kansas for the same reason I hate running on treadmills. I feel like I'm getting nowhere. Also, I got pulled over twice in Kansas; they get a D for hospitality. The speed limit is 70 in Kansas. I was on the left of a semi and traveling 85 when I passed an officer. I was quite upset with myself because it's Kansas and you can literally see cops from a mile away. I quickly got over in the right lane, but the damage was done. Within minutes there was the three colors of freedom, red white and blue, flashing behind me. I pulled over, obviously, and had my license and registration in hand along with my quick, smartmouth responses ready. I was more mad at myself than him, but it's the American thing to do: take your anger out on someone that's just doing their job. Not once did he ask me how fast as was going, but he was all over me about not using my blinker to return to the right lane. Then he had to be a stupid cop with stupid questions.
"West Virginia? That's quite aways."
Bout 17 hours, yep.
"What brings you out here?"
Just trying to get to the Tetons for a race.
"THE TETONS!? Why would you drive all that way for a race"
...because that's where it is.
No one wants to talk to cops. I get back on the interstate and within twenty miles I am back in the left lane and going 85-90 again. I get back over into the right lane after passing a semi because I am not one of those idiots who drive in the left lane all day regardless of if there is anyone to pass. Sure enough as I get into the right lane, a state trooper is passing me, heading east. You would have Anyway, trooper switches from eastbound to Digembound and hauls ass after me. I look down and my speedometer is on 90. I pull over, prepare my "It's not reckless driving because there are no turns or cars and I am very capable of handling my car at such a speed, just like you are. You are no better at driving because you have a badge" speech that would do nothing but make sure I get slapped with a ticket. License and registration was still in my driver side door from the last officer. I hand it over and he just starts riding me about not using my blinker to get in the right lane; once again ignoring my obvious disregard for their joke of a speed limit. I am flabbergasted. I know it's a 'law' to use your blinker when switching lanes, but so is obeying the speed limit and not driving like a Quaker in the left lane. With only a few hundred miles until the Colorado border and back into the other 49 states that don't enforce the courtesy blinker law, I knew there wasn't enough time to start a new habit. What I learned about Kansas? You can drive as fast as you like, but you have to use your blinker or we will all die.
thought that I just went GTA and killed the driver to my car the way that cruiser whipped through the no u-turn part of the median (symbolizing the only feasible part of the highway that you can u-turn). You know what is a no u-turn area? Every other part of the median! No one is going to try to u-turn
through a ravine. If I ever wanted to u-turn I would be forced to do so in a spot that said no u-turn.
I feel like Colorado is imagined by outsiders as 100% beautiful. There are ski resorts, and mountains, and water, and hippies, and every annoying person from the eastern shore that needs to move west, as far as the eye can see. Well Colorado is the most eastern paradise, but the first hundred miles into Colorado from the east is a continuation of the midwest. Doesn't get more boring. And then you hit Denver, at 5 oclock. I have never driven across the country without hitting a major city at the worst time. Typically, it's Chicago. Thus, I hate Chicago. That night was my last night without my reservation in my Teton Valley Cabin so I called it a night between Cheyenne and Laramie; leaving a five-six hour drive all through Wyoming for the next day. On the first two days of driving I had a constant stream of music going through my car, but I did not listen to a single song that third day in Wyoming. It was mid-sixties all day, tasty air, and beautiful scenery. I rolled my window down and tried my best to convince myself that this was my new home. I enjoyed that drive so much that on any given day I would drive 25 hours just to take that 5 hour drive; especially once I got off of the i80 and headed north up a smaller highway. I quickly took the role of the drivers that so often irritate me. Trucks pulled into the left lane of a two lane/two way road, when traffic wasn't heading toward us and passed me every few miles. I didn't touch the speed limit because I was driving alongside the mountains and working my way toward Grand Teton. Unlike the entire midwest, there was finally something to see outside of the car.
I stayed in Driggs, Idaho. It was one of the many very small towns that rested in the Teton Valley. Driving into the valley was terrifying. For months leading up to that trip my steering wheel would shake every time I touched the brakes. To enter the valley you have to climb for miles up a 12% incline, and then head down the other side, just as steep. My steering wheel was beyond vibrating. It viciously shook and soon it felt like my entire car was shaking. I assumed either my car was going to disintegrate or I was about to travel back to 1955 and go to the Enchantment Under the Sea with my parents and Biff. Thankfully, my car stayed in one piece. Sadly, I am still not Marty McFly. The rest of my day wasn't eventful. I picked up my packet at the Dream Chasers running store, went to a local pub and ate some pasta, and just walked around the small town. It was beautiful. Only one stop light in the whole town; something about the vibe I got from everyone that I encountered was just unexplainable.
THE RACE
Before the race started I concluded that I would run trail races for the rest of my time. Just sitting around with complete strangers at six in the morning chatting about life was honestly a life changing event. In my previous world of running, you throw on your tough guy serious face and can't think about anything except executing the race plan. No talking to anyone, this isn't suppose to be fun, we are here on business. In this new reality everyone is sharing laughs and talking about how excited we were to spend a day up in the Tetons. I met this beautiful woman that I talked to for an hour before the race. She shared all of her race experiences and the cool places she has been and I confessed that I was a trail and marathon newbie. She'd run marathons all over for the past decades and assured me that I almost picked the most difficult first marathon. 'Be sure to walk a lot of the first four miles' she told me.
Up to this point I planned on running with some people, making friends and finishing middle of the pack. Just spend a day in the mountains. But when the air horn sounded it suddenly sunk in that I was in a race. I relapsed right back into my competitive mindset and bolted up the side of the mountain. We climbed over 2,000 feet in the first four miles, none of which I walked. I could now see no one behind me and sat in second place. Being at the top of Fred's Peak was the first time I have ever
topped a mountain. Without thinking, probably because I was 10,000 feet in the air, I yelled out DRAGO! The people at the first aid station heard me and enjoyed that. They read my bib, and matched my number to my name on their clipboard. As I headed back down the other side of the mountain they called me West Virginia. Every person I encountered for the rest of the day referred to me as that. Besides me WA, MT, ID, WY, and CO were the only states represented in the marathon so I suppose it was different to see a WV.
From mile four to thirteen I maintained a huge lead over third place because not a step of those 9 miles were uphill or even; Plummeted downward. Now, halfway through the race, my competitive drive is still going strong, in my head. I had never started a race so unprepared or out of shape and there was only so much I could do with the quality of my fitness. Not to mention my first extended run at altitude. So I struggled harder over the next 13 miles than I hope to ever struggle again. I knew at the twenty mile mark we stopped just climbing and began hitting rolling hills. At nineteen miles I couldn't point out anything that had not given out on me. Legs- shot. Back- shot. Arms- shot. Head- slouched. I walked the majority of the 20th mile as you could see the top from a kilometer away. There sat an aid station that I was convinced was a mirage. 3rd and 4th placed stormed by me at probably a solid 2 miles per hour pace before I made it to 20. Once I got there I kept getting asked if I wanted to pull out. It's funny, there wasn't a muscle on me that wanted to continue, but I wasn't driving 30 hours to DNF. Plus the mountain had hurt me so bad that I took it personal at that point.
I crawled in, finishing 4th. The crowd applauded because I still beat nearly everyone, but I felt terrible. I will never forget the relief that came when I crossed the line; knowing that I didn't have to run anymore. A lady put my medal around my neck which almost sent me to the ground. A friend that I had made who passed me before the 20 mile mark extended his hands of Snake River Brewing Co beer. I took one of them and he kept the other one held up. 'Both for you'. I wobbled over to the table of snacks and grabbed the three chocolate snackpacks and a spoon before I laid down on the wooden step that led to a ski lift. I laid there for thirty minutes, coming in and out of consciousness it felt like. Finally I peeled myself off of the step, threw away the two bottles of beer and wiped the chocolate from my face; to this day I am not sure as to whether or not any of the pudding actually made it to my mouth. I then had a brand new problem; I was drunk. After dying several times over the course of a marathon, two 8% beers felt like 15 beers. Not only could I not drive the five miles back to my cabin, I couldn't find my car. I just now remembered what injury kept me out of training- IT band. I took my IT band strap off in my car and noticed that it had rubbed enough to strike blood behind my knee. After lying there in the back of my car, forcing a free burger down, I drove back to my cabin. Slept on the couch for a handful of hours and then set off for the local grocery store to refuel. That day I ate a half gallon of ice cream, bag of tater tots, bag of chicken nuggets, two boxes of kool aid jammers, a gallon of choco milk, and ordered a pizza that night to eat in the hot tub. I remember the cashier girl, had to be in high school, asked me if I was 8 years old when I checked out the same food a kid would buy if he was sent to get groceries. I told her that I am 8 at heart.
Here is a link to a short video slideshow of my trip out west.
OH, yeah the drive back. It sucked. No one wants to drive 30 hours to Morgantown. Drove 15 hours, slept in my car in Omaha and then drove back. It was so hard to drive from the greatest place you've been to a place that you don't particularly want to go to.
Tomorrow:
Avett Brothers Show Recap
Attempt to run again
UNPREPARED MILE PREVIEW!
I leave you with an oldie, but still probably my favorite from the Avett Brothers.
It was one of those mornings where my bed was almost too comfortable to leave. Every time I get out of bed I am instantly less comfortable. Knowing this, I drug my feet for quite awhile this morning until I got bored and started my day. I was planning on doing a three hour run out at Cooper's, but I was bored and went until I hit a marathon. A couple weeks ago I ran almost the same course and finished under 3:29 (rough estimation, watch died on me 24mi in.) The effort on that day was much higher than today because I treated it as a make up race for Pilot Mountain Marathon that was originally planned for that weekend. I figured since I had the intention of racing a marathon that weekend that I would go ahead and do it anyways. The intention wasn't there to run 26 today. The boredom was there. It wasn't even a good run, really. 13 degrees and "real feel" of a single degree I had to deal with more wind then I'd like to at that temperature. I stopped at sixteen miles to change everything that was frozen sweat: hat, shirt, jacket, socks, shoes. Shortly after I finished my fuel that I had brought with me. My fuel was awesome! Hershey chocolate bar. I nibbled on it throughout the run. My stomach had zero reaction to eating it and that's exciting. In June when I am running for a day I hope to know that I can munch on some kisses and feel fine. The only reason today was close to as fast as my last marathon at Cooper's is the fact that there wasn't inches of snow and ice covering every inch of the roads. If the roads were clear a couple weeks ago I think I could have knocked fifteen minutes off easily.
Soon after finishing I headed to Outback to devour this bloomin onion, teryaki tenderloins, stuffed sweet potato, two loaves of bread, and a chocolate milkshake. And just like that I went from a starving child to the little bloated brat from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Classic rags to riches story. I don't think I have ever been hungry when I order milkshakes. I'm always beyond full already, but it's a milkshake. They are meant to be slurped when you are on the brink of bursting.
I read Mr. Mulley's comment which took both the gnarliest fall and the grossest titles. After reading the first scenario several times, I can't imagine it playing any way other than this:
About 10 minutes before the gun at cross country regionals at JM in 2008
I had to go to the bathroom really bad and but didnt want to wait in
the long line. I decided to run down the steep hill across the street
and flew head over heels into where (I'm pretty sure) they dumped the
porta johns/a ruptured septic tank or something. I was so pissed I
punched the ground next to me and it flew into my mouth. I had to where a
girl's uniform and bathed in hand sanitizer and clorox wipes before I
started the race.
Another memorable fall happend in 2011ish. I
went for a normal 10 miler with my teammates at Jesuit and tripped on
the sidewalk and had to get 11 stitches in my hip. I've never seen that
much blood in my life.
I have seen David Collins attempt to dance several times; every time ends with him falling so that story does not surprise me nor would it surprise anyone who has been lucky enough to meet him. I, being easily surprised, turn in a manner similar to Michael Jackson.
Only problem is when I rotated and tried to go in the opposite direction
the momentum of my speed and the loose dirt beneath my feet cause me to
slip and hit both knees on the ground.
And GSC Runner had the fall that I would choose last out of every fall that was taken. I would welcome a dozen stitched in my hip before ever choosing to have frosty shorts. Nothing is worse than that.
The distance to my house was not a ridiculous distance by distance
running standards but when every step is a frozen reminder you may lose a
key part of your male anatomy you begin to wonder why you ran so far.
Luckily all of the falls above were not too embarrassing because at the end of the day, only a handful of people at most actually saw us tumble to the ground. With so many cameras around campus, I can only conclude that Annabel Lee's tumble was a cry for attention. If it was accidental I feel like a scorpion would have occurred rather than a somersault. Perhaps you have more grace than the rest of us, but that is a stretch.
My natural grace took me straight into a front roll, I popped back up
and started running again- hoping nobody had seen my impromptu
somersault in the front lawn. A few hours later I got called to the
office, where a crowd of students, teachers, and office workers were
around the television reviewing footage from one of the school's 150
security cameras. They all burst out in laughter upon me interring the
room. Apparently someone had caught me on "candid camera"- after I
thought I got away with it with nothing more than a bruised ego.
Today I also turned over my 69,000th mile in Tank (my car). We have ventured to 35 states together over the past three years. I have slept in the Tank Inn six times while on the road. I have an unhealthy relationship with him.
I tried to digest my meal by napping and four hours later I woke from my bloomin' coma. I plan on spending rest of the night watching some hockey, complaining about my fantasy players, and listening to Passenger. This song played on my ipod probably a dozen times by request on my run today.
Tomorrow:
Another blog
Attempt to run
Eat Ice Cream
Summary of my first trail marathon (8/01/13 Wyoming)
Morning run kicked off at 7, almost beating the snowfall. Back home by 8 and I am pretty sure that I woke up a quarter til 9. After my run I stopped at Sheetz for a Mountain Dew Kick Start. There are probably better things on the shelves for me, but they taste great and get me where I want to go. Sheetz is the best perk to living in the PA to NC stretch of land. While on my run I got inspired to do a short top three list. The inspiration came while my leg kicked out on me and I nearly fell. Driving four miles back to my house made, I saw two spin outs and one crash along i68. Watching others crash is the most encouraging event that I see during the winter. Every wreck I pass thinking: man, I am a better driver than that person. I am certain that the people in charge of that interstate are either unemployed or take pride in having the worst interstate in the country. Granted, the highway began construction under LBJ's term so I suppose it was doomed from the beginning.
Anyway, here are my three most painful falls in my running career:
3. '13 Summer, Cooper's Rock- I got a fresh tattoo on my right quad the day before this run and it was my first time running with it. The only reason I mention that is because it makes the story a little funnier. Running with Josh through the trails at Cooper's Rock we headed down a long decline. That's when I caught my left foot in a root, but that is common on those trails; to trip up. On that run I happened to trip twice, on consecutive steps. My step after sticking my foot under a root I kicked a rock that sent me falling faster than I have ever fallen. First thing to hit the ground- face. The fall would have easily been the most painful fall if I had not fallen in a huge pit of mud. Most of the mud was wiped off, but mud was mixed in to the lotion over my tattoo and I continued to run for another hour with a nice coat of mud up my leg and most of my body.
2. '08 Summer, Fairmont Senior High School- The summer leading into my sophomore cross country season, I was running more than ever at that point in my life. That just meant running every day. I can't recall my company, but I know it was several cross country teammates of mine and we were running through Fairmont when we took a short cut through our school. Without a second thought, I jumped over a rail and onto the sidewalk. I clipped my foot on the top of the rail and fell on my side. it didn't hurt much because I broke my fall with my hand. I popped back up and finished the run and thought nothing of it. The only reason it is the second most painful fall is because I got a nagging pain in my wrist from breaking that fall. That pain exists still to this day, but after almost six years it feels normal now.
1. 09-10 Winter, WVU Coliseum- Accompanied by my best friend, Patrick, we were running late for an indoor workout at a WV Flyers session. Traffic caused us to be half of an hour late and on top of that it was a home game for WVU's basketball team. That means there wasn't parking within a mile of the Coliseum which was inconveniently located next to the indoor track. After parking we both threw our track bags over our shoulder and took off for the track. We were in full stride coming down the hill from the Coliseum's main parking lot and towards it's lower parking lot when we confronted a wall of snow that stood higher than a woman's steeple (so was only slightly off of the ground). I hurdled the snow and landed momentarily on my right foot before it kicked out to the side. This crash was comparable to the video below of Marv's tumble down the stairs in Home Alone. I will forever remember time freezing while my body was completely parallel to the icy ground before crashing. If there were not groups pouring into the Coliseum to watch the game, I could have laid there for a few days and waited for the pain to go away. That day was one of the many days that showed me that Patrick is a better friend than I am. After I went down, he just helped me up and made sure I was alright. The dozens of times that I have witnessed him fall I have tried my best not to crumble in laughter.
In the comment box, let me know if you have any similar or better stories of a fall on a run. Or a fall in general, but falling while just walking around is pretty embarrassing so I understand if you don't want to share a story like that.
*I will post my favorite stories tomorrow on the blog. And like 50-60 people read this daily (last two days) , so you'd be famous.
I did manage a short nap in between runs today, but I woke to discover that I was serving as a pillow to the queen honey badger. She saw me click this picture and removed me from the bed; declaring the bed as her day throne.
Botanical Gardens
7.5 miles 65 min
Second run of the day was back at the gardens with more snow than yesterday. Josh lent me a headlamp for the second run since we stayed out past the sunlight. Making tonight the first time I have ever turned on a headlamp. The rush it gave me is unexplainable.. We had to deal with a solid coat of snow for the entire run, but luckily I have the best trail shoes ever. I have the New Balance 110 v2 and I love them. What I love most about them is the fact that Josh gave them to me last month and after running in other trail shoes he realized that he liked the NB that he gave me best. When he went to purchase them online he realized that they are not released until this July. That makes the shoes so much more enjoyable because as everyone knows; no givesy backsies.
OKAY. It's time to comment below: Leave me your favorite/funniest/gnarliest fall on or off a run before and I will post my favorites tomorrow evening!
The three reasons that I love doing my shorter runs at the gardens are simple.
#1- Privacy. Today, like most days, I didn't see a soul. If I had it my way I would never run into anyone. Today was just me, my ipod and these fun trails.
#2- Closeness to my town home. This is only a five minute drive from my doorstep and that makes it the easiest place to run. I also enjoy climbing up the steep hill to return to my car at the end of every run. Regardless of how slow my roll is on a run in the gardens, running really hard up the hill never fails to make me wish that I hadn't intentionally tired myself out for the sake of hurting a little.
#3- The trails. My biggest annoyance with the gardens is the repetition that you can't avoid. There just are not enough trails to do more than 6-8 miles at once. But the few trails that are there keep me entertained. Once everything comes back to life in a few months the trails are beautiful, but can't be enjoyed due to the humidity. Sadly, Morgantown only sees two seasons that stretch out way too long; overbearing summer where you have to chew through clouds of humidity and annoying winters where the rail trails are not visible and all of winter's crap is swept onto the sidewalks, keeping the runners at bay. The gardens is home to one of my favorite places to sit down and relax.
Rail Trail 8.25 miles 1 hour
Later run, kicked off around 8pm. Cold, dark, and icy. Only notable thing is how good the legs felt today. After yesterday's constant climbing through the mud I was certain that I would barely function today. Florida Vacation Recap 1/19/14 - 1/29/14
The drive from Morgantown to Palmetto, Florida is 15 hours, 1,000 miles; two hours and 150 miles less than the drive out to Norman, Oklahoma that I've made thrice. Yet, driving to Florida seems to take twice as long as the trip out to nowhere. I think this is because traveling west is easy; i80 or i70 forever. It couldn't be less boring until you hit the Rockies, but it is easy. Driving south through the Appalachian is the most draining drive that I make. West Virginia, South Carolina, and Florida each take a lifetime to get through; all three offering nothing but fatigue. Honestly, the drive is terrible until we make it to the Tampa area and head south down the Gulf Coast. There couldn't be a more welcoming finish line and that helps with surviving the last five hours of dark, foggy Florida backwoods through Tebowville, etc. What makes the drive somewhat fun, aside from conversations that would make for a quality podcast, is this little road dawg-
Palmetto was the destination and our home for the ten day stretch; it couldn't be a homier setting. Can't ask for better company than Josh's mom, grandma, and Bryan. The best seven or so dinners in recent memory all came back to back while staying and being served by Bryan. During the days we could run at anytime since the forecast was paradise with the exception of one day. The majority of our runs would be on Snead Island, in Myakka State Park, or just around the neighborhood at night. Neither of us came to Florida in great shape and we both suffered from the internal battle of trying to gain fitness while gaining mass from a surplus of great food and Grandma's candy. After a week of running by gators, palm trees, and old folks during the day and stuffing our faces and drinking the world's best wine at night: we set off to run the Florida Challenge Half Marathon.
Evidently the trail in Alafia River State park was supposed to be very technical and extremely difficult. But it is Florida. We live in West Virginia and have been out in the Rockies; there is no way a trail in Florida can be difficult in comparison. That was the mindset going in. Granted, thousands of feet were not gained, peaks weren't topped or present, but it was the hardest trail I have ever raced. There is a good chance that my lack of fitness made the race more difficult. The course absolutely annihilated both of us. The switchbacks were u-turns and constant throughout the entire race, the footing was either a minefield of roots and rocks or it was sand, and from approx. mile seven on we must have run up and back down sixty short, four/five step, hills that felt like being an armless prize fighter. Could not have finished that race more exhausted and defeated, that feeling was felt by both of us. And we did feel very defeated, but definitely not by other people; just by the trail.
=========================================================================================
Male Race
Place Time Runner's Name Age City Place Pace
=========================================================================================
1 1:22:54 Josh Simpson 29 Morgantown, WV 1 6:20
2 1:29:13 Dayton McVicker 21 Morgantown, WV 2 6:49
3 1:36:05 Rick Copley 40 Eustis 3 7:20
The following day would be our last in the Sunshine State. We had to drag Cadence away from Bubba and Maggie,
and return her back to Morgantown; where she has no dog friends. Returning home from trips is always the worst
part of the entire trip. There's nothing exciting about returning to Morgantown unless you are coming from anywhere
else in West Virginia. I am not an anxious person, but my anxiety has never been higher than that day of driving.
There was some joke of a winter storm blowing through the Carolinas and Georgia which was the first half of the drive.
Until we hit Charlotte there was zero precipitation, but North Carolina was a mess; almost as bad as southern West
Virginia. For the most part, the drive wasn't bad for a fifteen hour drive in one sitting. The temperature dropped from
almost fifty to below zero while we were in the car. With consecutive days below zero, our water pipes were the main
source of anxiety. Luckily, they had not busted while we were in Florida. They did, however, bust within an hour of our
return. Imagine driving for fifteen hours, hopping out of the car, and walking into a flooding house. Naturally the next
hour was possibly the most stressful hour of this lifetime. Once the power and water were both off after 1am, we
traveled south to Fairmont to stay for the next week.
Morale of the story- If you ever get out of Morgantown, never go back.
Tomorrow: More running and another life morale attached to a story
Sunday 2/23
Week 1/16 for Mohican 100 miler
Mingo Creek County Park - http://www.co.washington.pa.us/index.aspx?nid=164
14 miles 2:08
Coming in potentially less prepared than ever, the early morning commute from Morgantown, WV to Mingo Creek and 14 miles of running what felt like constant inclination all but did me in. I had a late night and did not sleep a wink last night while bottoming a bottle of wine roughly 3 hours before we began our run. Last night was my last night before I began my venture to my first 100 mile race this June.As for today's run, it was a blast and my first time in this park. Staying off of the road for all but the last few miles, we ventured up and down the park's muddy, wet, and icy trails. On several occasions we ended up on private property, too. With every fork in the trails we seemed to incidentally pick the more arduous route. The most damaging decision came ten miles in where we were faced with the choice of returning to our cars or climbing up Mansion hill, a road that was steep enough to suck any life my legs had a quarter of the way up. Luckily we turned around at the top and skidded back to the bottom and returned to our cars. With my run in the books, I finally had the opportunity to catch some shut eye.
Once we made it back into Morgantown, I took a few minutes to wake up enough to put in a pick up order at Pizza Al's and picked up a large pizza to share with no one. After a few slices of heaven I crawled up to my bed and crashed from 1-830 pm. I have decided to start a blog; not out of vein, but for years the funniest stories have come outta my running with my friend and eventually I will be able to share all of my past stories along with every new one when it happens.
This first blog will probably be longer than most because I would like to do a brief background on me and my amigos. I graduated from Fairmont Senior High (WV) in 2011. My high school marks were 1:58 800m, 4:22 1600m (hit that mark about a dozen times), 9:08 3200m, 15:26 5k. I went to Oklahoma University for a semester before returning home to Morgantown. Last August I ventured out to the Grand Tetons to take fourth in my first trail marathon.
Josh Simpson (driver in the picture above) will make the most appearances on my blog. Roommate for the past two years, personal coach throughout high school and post, and leader of the pack are his roles. His accolades are to long to list, but a few quick highlights would be a two time Olympic Trialist in the 10k and Marathon. 28:12 in the 10k. Captain of a US cross team, and two time member on a US cross country team. As far as I have learned in the last few years: if you do anything with him, you will lose. But we always keep trying. Glutton for punishment, I suppose.
Travis Simpson is Josh's older brother and will partake in most of our Sunday runs this year. The three of us are heading out to Montana this fall for the second running of Run the Rut 50k. As the summer comes around that will be the main topic of discussion as the three of us will be trying to maximize our fitness and test our limits out west. As of now, Travis is the most experienced at longer races and carries the Simpson gene that makes them impossible to break. He also serves as my beard consultant. That role consists of making me feel like a little kid when I look like a little kid. I will have a lengthy beard come September to keep my consultant happy.
Adam Schroer was the fourth amigo that trekked through the muddy wonderland this morning. He is the newest addition to our group, coming to WVU for grad school to study stuff that I don't understand. A 2:26 marathoner at Chicago, he seems to only be capable of going one pace: hard. Recently he almost set a new PB in the mile although he hadn't run 14 of the previous 16 days. At some point this week I will share the video of four unprepared runners drawing their own blood and blindly crushing an indoor mile. This May Adam will join myself in Josh in a house that will undoubtedly bring endless epic tales.
There are a handful of mates that I will mention more as they re-enter my running. Here is the big races on my calendar year:
Pilot Mountain Payback Trail Marathon (North Carolina) - 4/12 **
Mohican 100 trail run (Ohio) - 6/22-23
Run the Rut 50k (Montana) - 9/something
**Postponed, originally was scheduled 2/15.
There are sure to be several races added randomly this year.
Last night was one of those nights where I woke and couldn't return to sleep. So after trying to go back to sleep, reading a little, and starting today's entry I decided to just go run now. 8 miles! Before the sun came up. Then my double would be far a part. So I hopped in my car, slightly underdressed for single degree weather and set off for the gardens. I parked right beside the sign that read: No Parking or Trespassing at dark, but assumed they didn't mean 5am. I set off down the trail and realized that running in the dark sucks just as bad in the morning as it does at night. The first compromise was made when my hands wouldn't warm up. Gloves may have helped that. 6 miles! Too cold to run 8 this morning. As the sun slowly made its way closer it seemed to get dark and honestly, I chickened out. I scare easily, especially alone in the dark in the woods. 4 miles is the least I can possibly run and feel like I ran. And that is only the case when all 4 miles is trekking through snow and hearing what I assumed was manbearpig in the woods. I hightailed it back up to my car and drove into Sabraton to go to the most wonderful place in the local world: Sheetz. Picked up a breakfast sandwich, hot chocolate, and some jelly beans. I was back in my house by six. I had two compromises before the sun rose today, but that is life; you wake up and pick up right where you left off: making compromises. It's a habit I've been trying to kick for years.
