100 Mile Quest

Umstead...

2008-04-22T06:39:00.003-04:00

...they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31 ...but they that wait on the strength of the Lord shall renew their strength...

I ran and was weary but I didn't faint. One hundred miles is a long way. It is easier to grasp thinking about it than actually doing it. My saving grace was knowing that that I at least attempted it and through failure of only getting through 50 miles I have learned much. The body and mind are amazing but they will rebel mostly against each other. There are really no excuses. My body rebelled more than my mind wanted to reconcile. Unlike Rocky Raccoon where I felt the strength was with me and I found something special in the wilderness, the same feelings were not present at Umstead. I had much appreciated help from Shawn throughout the day (which might be a more difficult chore than running) but I am not sure I got enough help from myself. My first three loops were perfectly paced but the fourth loop was a chore and internally my body shut down. Mentally, I got down on myself a bit during the run and once you lose it mentally, it is lost. I finished 50 miles in 12:54, my second 50 miler in 8 weeks. Umstead has wonderful organization and I would highly recommend it as an event whether you run 50 miles or 100. The hospitality of southerners is unsurpassed. As for me, the Lord has renewed my strength to get back on the road, take the next step and continue to try.

Effort

2008-03-21T06:44:00.004-04:00

In reality, serendipity accounts for one percent of the blessings we receive in life, work and love. The other 99 percent is due to our efforts. Peter McWilliams

The 100 mile run itself is serendipity...discovery. It is discovery of the person inside. Why does someone run 100 miles? ...To discover the unknown... to go beyond reason of mind and body... to put oneself on the edge... to be broken... to have faith... to wake up... to exhaustion... to leave it there...

To get to this opportunity requires effort... to get to any opportunity requires effort... it is soon time....

I am broken... God help me...

It's Where I Found Jesus...

2008-02-09T12:31:00.001-05:00

It’s hard to capture in words what it is like to run an ultra but today I picked up a book that I have been reading every day over the last month, Love Beyond Reason by John Ortberg. On Saturday, February 3, I ran the Rocky Raccoon 50 Miler in Huntsville State Park in Huntsville, TX. The 50 miler was actually the fun run since the main event was the 100. Oddly enough, this excerpt describes it all.

Some time ago (Saturday, February 3), I had a day of solitude in a forest preserve. I felt the kind of “weariness of the flesh” the writer of Ecclesiastes talked about. And I realized how strongly I had been living for certain achievements, and how I felt the heaviness when they were not realized. I was caught up in my own trivial pursuits.

But I was in the kind of natural setting where it is hard to remain discontent for long. The chestnut trees and oaks and maples and pines and sycamores were asleep for the winter yet warmed by a brilliant sunshine and colored by a deep blue sky. And something happened, I began to get free. I was somehow given the gift of sensing that God loved me. I began to feel again what a gift it was to be alive, on this earth, in this place, during this moment. I was immersed in this sense so strongly; I began to run, just in the strength of that feeling.

Somehow when I was alone with His creation on that day in the forest, God sang a song to me. It didn’t matter who I was or what I’d done at least to God; being alive and loved by God was enough to bring gratitude and contentment – at least for a few moments (11 hours and 37 minutes.)

Yet that wonderful feeling didn’t completely fade away after I had left that forest.

Several days later, I was sitting in a meeting, and suddenly I was aware that I didn’t have to say anything. This time, sitting there in the meeting, I carried that time alone in the forest preserve with me. God loved me.

This awareness that God gave me is hard to describe: there was a kind of lightness of being in my soul in that moment. I could talk - if I had something worth saying. But I didn’t need to.

I tasted, at least I think a little bit, what the psalmist meant “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” I had been led beside still waters and green pastures.

I just sat there part of me listening to conversation, part of me saying, “Sing it again, Daddy. Tell me you love me, God.”

People ask why – why do you put your body and mind through such torture; why do you do it? Most runners at these events will not be able to say why. It is different for everyone but I suspect that there is one common theme. It gives us insight into life and helps us understand the person inside, the Raggedy Doll (the good, bad, beautiful and ugly) in all of us. During the run, I couldn’t help but to have a portion of the Brooks and Dunn song, Red Dirt Road, repeat in my head every so often, “It’s where I found Jesus.”

“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” Mark 1:35.

“But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” Luke 5:16.

“One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. Luke 6:12.

This appears to be what Ultrarunning facilitates; getting to a solitary place, a lonely place, the mountainside where you can spend the day and night, pray and be with Jesus.

Rocky Raccoon was an amazing event. The race director, volunteers and fellow runners were some of the best in all of my running experiences.

Pictures taken from my camera. Pictures taken from their camera.

40 Miles of Mountain Road...

2008-01-07T06:23:00.001-05:00

It wasn't on mountain road but I combined two days of running to total 40 miles as I continue to prepare for Rocky Raccoon. On Saturday, it was 13 miles of local running on the slight hills of Millstone. On Sunday, I decided to run to the beach, better known as the shore in New Jersey. Belmar, NJ is just over 27 miles away. From my driveway to the Atlantic Ocean it is 27.03 miles. The idea was to get through 25 miles under 5 hours which I did with a couple of slow walks and a stop to eat something since I had to be self-sufficient. I reached the ocean (yes, I went the whole way to the ocean) in about 5 hours 15 minutes. Of course, with 31 marathons under my belt in the 4 hour or so range, this does not sound like a feat. However, it was a training run combining back-to-back long runs using a strategy to get me through 50 miles in a few weeks time. What will be different for me at Rocky Raccoon is that the run will start in the dark and end in the dark where I will need to use a light over rooty trails. The course is also a 3-loop course where running to the beach was point-to-point and easier for me. On the plus side, Rocky is on pine needles and even with the roots should be easier on the body. Of course, there will also be aid stations where I can refuel and change shirts. All said, I was happy with the 40 miles and when I touched my running shoes into the Atlantic, it was actually kind of emotional for some reason, maybe it was the vastness of the ocean, the smell of the sea, the quiet, or knowing that I accomplished something that I set out to do. It was the longest training run I had ever done. Left My Body on the Other Side.

Failure...

2008-01-01T15:29:00.001-05:00

He who has never failed somewhere, that man can not be great. - Herman Melville

I am not looking to be great but I am looking to learn from failure. It is only through failure that we learn the lessons to be better - a better person, a better worker, a better runner, a better whatever. The fall running season has not been great. It has been a Jekyll and Hyde kind of year having a great, fulfilling winter/spring and a disappointing, awful summer/fall. I recorded my first even DNFs in the Turkey Swamp 50K and JFK 50 mile. I ran some of the worst marathon times that I have recoded in the 31 that I have run. Through it all, I hung in there finished my 31st marathon in 20 states. Like life itself, one full of peaks and valleys, perseverance and endurance pays off as painful as it sometimes can be.

It is now time to reset. Push the reset button and readjust life as well as running. I don't make new year's resolutions but I did start the year today by running the Resolution Run 5K. I run few shorter distance races but I always enjoy the local flavor of them. The Resolution Run asked runners at registration if they had a resolution to share. I didn't share one but enjoyed reading the many that were entered - some funny, some deep, some with meaning, some with self-realization. Although I don't make resolutions, I do make goals that stretch me beyond the person that I am, not necessarily in running, but as me as a person. No doubt my running will play a role in that development as it always has. It will be with faith in God that I get out of the boat.

So this blog started as a quest for completing a 100 mile run in April. Although I have not written as much as I would have liked and my quest was somewhat derailed with the painful running experiences in the fall, I do believe that I am still committed at attempting and completing the run. My recent training sessions have gone well putting more distance into my daily runs. I have also committed to the Rocky Raccoon 50 mile in Huntsville, TX in February. I have 3 months until the hundred and have a solid base of 50 mile weeks which I will increase to 60-70 miles with long runs of 25-50 miles. The Rocky Raccoon will give me a peak into the hundred mile scene since the main event is the Rocky Raccoon 100. I guess you could say that I am running the "fun run" at 50 miles. It will give me a flavor of a 100 mile event in general. I still hope to complete marathons in 5 states this year bringing me to the half-way point in states run.

Maybe you could call my running obsessive, compulsive, an addiction but it is how I define me at the moment and how I hope to grow me and be a better person in life. Many things shape our lives, some negatively and some positively but if we work hard enough, have different attitudes and views, continue to have faith and hope, the negative things that shape our lives can be turned into positives with God's plan for our lives. I pray this to be the case for everyone.

Happy New Year to everyone! I pray for peace and love in your life through hope and faith in 2008. I hope to see you on the roads and trails!

Mountain of God...

2007-10-26T07:25:00.001-04:00

Even though the journey's long
And I know the road is hard
Well, the One who's gone before me
He will help me carry on
After all that I've been through
Now I realize the truth
That I must go through the valley
To stand upon the mountain of God

Third Day

Time just gets away from me. I have been delinquent in writing here since running in the Adirondacks. This weekend in Cape Cod, Falmouth to be exact, I will be running my 30th marathon and 19th state. My progression towards the attempt at 100 miles in April is coming along nicely as I use other marathons and ultras as training runs. After Cape Cod, I will run the JFK 50 mile and then the Charlotte marathon in December. In January, I may run the marathon in Phoenix, Rocky Raccoon 50 Mile in February and Way Too Cool 50K in March. I will also be spending some cold nights running through the wee hours of the morning preparing for running in the 10 hours of darkness during the 100 miler.

Third Day’s song Mountain of God shows us that we will all experience valleys in everything that we do and with life in general. I have experienced valleys in my running this fall but I still look to the Mountain of God where I hope to stand one day. Running, in the scheme of life, has little meaning except that for some of us, it gives us the strength and the courage to find our ways through life – to make it through the valleys. The journey is long and the road is hard but if we keep the faith of the One who has come before us we will stand upon the mountain. I do believe that running is a metaphor for life delicately balancing faith, spirit, mind and body among other things. I hope to make it through the valleys of life as well although the mountain seems so far away at times but I guess being able to see it or having the faith that it is there is a step in the right direction.

So, I am off to run one of the top 10 most beautiful marathons in the country.

Trail of Seasons...

2007-09-21T06:35:00.001-04:00

It's always nice to see an old friend again, how you've been, you've changed your place
It's always nice to see an old friend again, staying on the trail of seasons... Kevn Kinney

The marathon is an old friend. Fall begins the marathon season which for me lasts the next 9 months. Except for Baltimore my friend usually changes its place. This year, my friend (the marathon) and I met in the Adirondacks in New York. On one of the most beautiful and perfect days for marathoning in a spectacular, lakeside setting, I ran a pretty awful race. No matter, I enjoyed my time on the road, the views of the lake, and running through tunnels of trees. I even enjoyed the many hills in the first half of the marathon. The beauty of the marathon is that you never know what you are going to get on any given day - thus the challenge. Like a friend whose mood differs, so does the marathon. On this day, the facade of the marathon was beautiful, happy and appeared to be perfect but the reality was inner turmoil and struggle. Just like with friends, we find our way through to the finish and look forward to the next meeting. The Baltimore marathon truly is an old friend having run it 6 times and although it presents its own challenges, it embraces.

I highly recommend the Adirondack Marathon in Schroon Lake. It is tiny (192 marathoners) but it is well-supported, beautiful, well-organized and brings the community together. It is an event in this sleepy, little, lakeside town - more of an event than in most of the big city marathons. If you haven't run a small-town marathon, you are missing a true community-spirited event. In Schroon Lake, the community knew there was a marathon going on and they were excited about it but in the cities, they just know that there are traffic delays for some reason and they are irritated.

I'm walking to the graveyard, I'm punching in at midnight, I'm waiting for the morning sun to warm up the cobblestones...

My Secret is My Silence...

2007-09-08T16:23:00.001-04:00

Hi... I finally got to run the Brielle Day 10K, self-proclaimed as the toughest 10K in NJ. It was tough but I would say that there are others just as tough, the Hopewell Challenge, Woodcliffe Lakes to mention a few. I ran it exactly as I had wanted to - a solid 10K tempo run just under marathon pace. From the description, I knew the hills would be tough but it was also a hot, humid day. I ran 8:10 pace for a 50:42 which is decent on this course for me. I am typically around 46 minutes these days. I do know that I am slowing in the shorter distances and I am also carrying 10 pounds too much which is an additional 20-30 seconds per mile. I also know that it is taking me nearly 3-4 miles to warm up in a race anymore - good for the half or marathon but not so great for the 5K and 10K.

I sat in silence prior to the run. I stood in silence prior to the start. I asked God to let this race be His and to help guide me through it. He did. Sometimes silence speaks louder than words.

I ran at various times this week - morning and evening. In the 100, you need to run or move continuously for 24-30 hours so you need to feel what it is like running at all times during that period. I need to practice this and plan to run multiple times a day during some of my training. It also helps me clear my head. It is my wilderness. It is my friend.

Next up... Adirondack Marathon

Hi...

Learning To Walk...

2007-09-05T19:28:00.001-04:00

I should not be the one learning to walk but I am. Similar to Tom Petty's song Learning To Fly... Yesterday I walked a 4 mile stretch of trail as I continue to consider how I need to be prepared for 100 miles. I will continue to lengthen these walks and then combine them with long runs. I know pure runners out there will say that there is no walking in running but when you consider the distance to be 100 miles, you do what you can to allow you to continually move forward. The forest was serene - quiet, still and the sun going down through the trunks of the trees just as I saw it a few weeks before in the morning as it was rising. The sun rises and sets and with it another day, another day of opportunity, opportunity for whatever you want it to be.

I also ran a solid half-marathon on Sunday in the middle of the day. I needed to rn hard for more reasons than one. I needed to mentally and phsyically exhaust myself. It was a solid tempo pace and give me hope for the Adirondack marathon next weekend.

Today I was off for my typical 5 miler before work and a few sets of pushups. I also signed up for the Hill and Dale 10K in Brielle. Supposedly, it is a challenging, hilly course but I need to run a good tempo run on a hilly course to continue to have confidence in running in the Adirondacks.

Just like a one-year old, I will continue learning to walk...

Moon Shadow and Prospect Point...

2007-08-31T23:41:00.001-04:00

I've had 5 consecutive days of decent running but the highlights were not necessarily the running itself. On Tuesday, I got to see the full lunar eclipse and the shadows of the Earth moved across the moon. On Wednesday and Thursday I got to run through or to the top of Prospect Point Park in Waltham, MA. It was an emotional run through the vast forest to a scenic overlook, as quiet as quiet gets, the wind slightly dancing upon the sweat beads of my skin and a view of Boston 10 miles away. I sat and talked and thought and captured the peace of the moment. The next day I did the same. My runs are of marathon pace right now except in the hilly prospect point. Tomorrow I will be off and then put in a marathon pace half-marathon as Adirondack draws closer. I have felt run-down quite a bit with stress but I am still getting through my runs and they do help. I woke up to beat the Sun from her glory.

Today I registered for the Umstead 100, the first day possible. I will do my best and what will be, will be.

Morning Fresh...

2007-08-24T18:23:00.001-04:00

Life smells different at 5:30 AM. I was committed to getting a solid 10 mile tempo run in this morning but I had to be at work early. Like every morning, I was up before dawn but today slightly earlier at 4:15. I fed the pootangs, made the coffee and listened to Alistair Begg at 5 AM as I do every morning. Today I was out the door for a 10 mile jaunt around 5:30. It was still dark and balmy. I had to wear my headlamp for the first few miles. Of course, senses come alive when others shut down. This morning, the fragrances were amazing. I wasn't quite sure what I was smelling but I believed it to be a unique blend of plants, dew, wood, flowers, swamp all mixed together. Maybe it can only be noticed at that time of morning. Most people miss the outdoors at that time but it is my favorite point in the day. I finished 10 miles just after the sun crested the horizon and was still hidden in the trunks of the trees. Near the finish of the run, a heard of deer crossed in front of me. By 7:15, I had coffee, 30 minutes of bible study with Alistair and completed a 10 mile tempo run. That is not a bad way to start the day! ...and I need it... every bit of it... Whether it is walking or running, everyone needs to experience that time of morning in the outdoors. Of course, it also helps with my quest. I need to move thoughout the night with a headlamp if I am to complete the last 50 miles of Umstead.

By the way... it didn't work out to go to Nottingham and run Robin Hood so it looks like I will be running around Lake Schroon...

Devils and Dust

2007-08-23T20:45:00.001-04:00

I got God on my side
And I'm just trying to survive
What if what you do to survive
Kills the things you love
Fear's a powerful thing, baby
It'll turn your heart black you can trust
It'll take your God filled soul
Fill it with devils and dust

So, do I run the Adirondack marathon or go to England to run Robin Hood? I may need to go to England for business and it just happens to be near the same weekend that I was going to run the Adirondack marathon but it also just so happens that my company sponsors a marathon the same weekend in England, the Experian Robin Hood Marathon. It sounds like a great event! I need to decide tomorrow.

I ran a solid 10 miler on Sunday following my 20 miler on Saturday. I have run a little this week due to work but I don't see some rest days as a bad thing. Tomorrow, I hope to run another solid 10 miler and I will then need to make the effort over the next 9 days to get some quality time in because it is going to be a busy time tot he time I do get in needs to be of high quality. Once labor day weekend is done, I will be fully engaged in marathon madness and the JFK 50 in November.

There is no fear when you have God on your side. You cannot live until you are not afraid to die. Put your life in God's hands and let Him guide you.

Let the Spirit Guide You...

2007-08-19T05:44:00.001-04:00

What a difference humidity makes. Saturday, I decided to venture out for a long run of 20 miles as I continue to prepare for fall marathon season and the Adirondack marathon in September. I needed to have a good solid run to give me confidence from last week's DNF. Saturday's weather was quite perfect for an August day with very low humidity and unseasonably cool temperatures. I started at marathon pace at around 8:37 per mile and held steady the rest of the 20 miles at 8:53 finishing in 2:57. I needed a run like this mentally to give me that confidence. I am sure the body didn't mind either. Earlier in the week, I ran a few 6 milers. Today, I hope to complete a 10 miler or 90 minute run. I always like to feel comfortable with 30 miles on back-to-back days going into the marathon. I am still 4 weeks away for Adirondack and hope to get a couple more medium distance runs in and potentially one more long run.

Let the Spirit Guide You comes from a song called Soulshine by Warren Haynes. I wrote about this song on my 26.2 blog but it played yesterday toward the end of my run and got me through the last few miles. At some point in a run and in life you need to let an inner spirit and a higher spirit take hold. The combination will always guide you.

DNF...

2007-08-14T08:39:00.001-04:00

I've never had to write those letters before referring to the result of a race. The Turkey Swamp 50K ended as a DNF for me on Sunday, my first in 14 years of running and hundreds of races. I guess there is a first time for everything. I did finish 20 miles of the 31 miles. No one likes a DNF. You feel like you quit when you should have just gutted it out. Even race car drivers hate DNF's and they do everything they can to get back out on the track. I did everything I could to stay on the track too. I changed shirts 3 times, socks, shoes, hats, ate, and drank but after 17 1/2 miles, I was totally depleted of energy. I completed the 8th lap of 12 staggering my way through the forest and called it quits. I am not a very good hot weather runner and as the day progressed, although it could be considered a nice August day, it got hotter and more humid.

For a day it put a damper on my spirits especially as I prepare to conquer 100 miles. I will look at it as a learning experience. I didn't run on Monday but today I climbed back into the saddle and ran a nice comfortable 5 miler working out the stiffness in my legs. The Turkey Swamp was meant to be a training run anyway but I wanted it to be a solid training run. The Adirondack marathon is just 5 weeks away and I still believe I am on the right path for a solid marathon finish. I do know that I need to lose weight and I have said this over and over but I can't run at this weight. Losing weight is probably harder than running 100 miles!

it was still a great way to spend a morning - running soft trails through the pines. I did see a deer hustle through the running congo line almost taking out a few runners. And of course, a DNF is better than a DNS!

Lacerating...

2007-08-11T07:07:00.001-04:00

...someone described doing a 100 mile endurance run as "lacerating"... I suspect it will be in some ways...but when I hear the word lacerating, I think of Jesus carrying the cross up Calvary hill and the Roman soldiers whipping and beating him until his flesh is pulled from his body on his way to the cross where he died for us... Keeping things in perspective, I am positive a 100 mile endurance run will not be this extreme. There will be emotional and physical pain but it will be temporary. I am in no way diminishing what it takes to go 100 miles. I'm just trying to keep it in perspective.

So, I already missed a couple of days blogging... for some reason, it is not easy to blog everyday. I am still in final taper for the Turkey Swamp 50K tomorrow. I ran 40 minutes on the treadmill on Wednesday, a 6 miler on Thursday and took Friday completely off. I like to take the two days prior to a marathon or ultra off to rejuvenate the mind and muscles. It appears to work at my age so I'll keep doing it.

The August weather broke also and there is actually a crisp autumn feel in the air today. Tomorrow it will still be nice but a little warmer. The 2 1/2 mile loop course (yes, that is 12 loops for the 50K) is shaded so it should be a nice run. It is a wonderful way to spend 5-6 hours.

Cheers!

Walking Sticks...

2007-08-07T20:41:00.001-04:00

... on easy days, when golf is scheduled, I walk and carry my clubs... I feel like this is a light workout yet challenging... Given that some of the 100 miler is walking. walking 2-4 hours carrying clubs is a form of strength training. I sometimes also include and easy 4-5 miler in the morning. This morning I didn't run so my workout for the day was 2 hours of carrying golf clubs and playing miserably!

Theoretically Speaking...

2007-08-06T12:24:00.001-04:00

Theoretically, any reasonably fit person could run 100 miles, but he or she must train for it.

"... Perhaps the genius of ultra running is its supreme lack of utility. It makes no sense in a world of space ships and supercomputers to run vast distances on foot. There is no money in it and no fame, frequently not even the approval of peers. But as poets, apostles and philosophers have insisted from the dawn of time, there is more to life than logic and common sense. The ultra runners know this instinctively. And they know something else that is lost on the sedentary. They understand, perhaps better than anyone that the doors to the spirit will swing open with physical effort. In running such long and taxing distances they answer a call from the deepest realms of their being -- a call that asks who they are ..."

David BlaikieOwner/Operator of http://www.ultramarathonworld.com/

Today, 8 months from now, I am committed to running the Umstead 100 on April 5, 2008... In the world of 100 mile ultra runs, the Umstead is course suited for novices... for someone who has never run 100 miles, it is a challenge beyond the imagination. Certainly, I will put into perspective the act of completing a 100 mile event, as grueling and demanding at it is, some people's lives are far more painstaking than trying to complete 100 miles in 24 hours.

I will try to make daily entries here so that anyone who is interested can follow my trek, the ups and downs, perseverance, thoughts, training, anecdotes, etc. that got me to the finish line.

Today was an easy 4 miler tapering for the Turkey Swamp 50K this coming weekend. I have a solid base and will expand that base throughout the fall and winter. I also need to drop 10-15 pounds...

Coming August 5, 2007

2007-07-20T13:04:00.001-04:00