Training Log Archive: SuddenIn the 7 days ending Feb 23, 2014:
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Sunday Feb 23, 2014 #
Running 38:40 [3] 7.0 km (5:31 / km)
Post-Birkie run. Isak joined me for the first few km.
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=6216214
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=6216214
Saturday Feb 22, 2014 #
Skiing race 3:30:00 [3]
Birkie. Definitely an experience.
18 inches of snow fell Thursday night and organizers plowed the course instead of packing the snow. Drive from the Twin cities to Hayward took almost 5h. Roads were really, really bad. Blizzard warning had ended just before we left town so it was only the ice on the road we had to worry about.
Slept in a school corridor for a few hours. Buses left at 6AM, my start was at 9:40 so a couple of hours were spent in a tent. Tent had: heating - some. floor - no. chairs - not enough. Wind chill was -30C when it was finally my turn to start. Second last wave of all 50K classic/skate and 23K classic/skate, so perhaps 6000-7000 people had already started. The wind almost knocked my over at the start line and it was really hard to get going for the first few km. Nevertheless, already then did I start to catch up to earlier starters and already then did I experience my first line up a hill. There would be many of them. It was basically 50K intervals. After the first few km, I started to feel really good and pushed hard when I could, but the hills were just packed with people. I tried to double pole on the sides; I used my speed (had great skis) to go between two lines of skiers and then when I need to start skate/walk, I just squeezed in and many times did I ski over someone else's skis. Or poles. And like that it continued. After a while, fellow skiers started to call out I was one of the first wave 8 skiers, which inspired. Eventually did I and another 8-er battle it out and strategy how to pass people most efficiently became important. E.g. "left side or right side - need to look ahead and plan" and "there is a hill coming up, which line has the lowest numbers? Ok, this line has more people from wave 4, but this line has a lot of wave 5 people. The 5-ers have caught up the 4-ers so that line is probably faster". It worked sometimes...
The track was super soft and the vets called it one of the slowest Birkies. Not sure what time period they referred to but it was not fast. And definitely not for us in the back. The course itself was really nice; all woods except for the start and crossing a lake at the end, both brutally cold. Lots of twists and turns, small ups and downs, but also a few really tough climbs. B***h hill had an accurate name.
I don't know how many I passed, new record for sure, and this stop and go allowed me to have energy all the way to end. After many years of thinking of doing this race I am glad I did it. I will go back soon and then try to race it properly. My time, despite being the slowest pace I have ever had since my first Vasaloppet, will perhaps move me up all the way to the first wave.
18 inches of snow fell Thursday night and organizers plowed the course instead of packing the snow. Drive from the Twin cities to Hayward took almost 5h. Roads were really, really bad. Blizzard warning had ended just before we left town so it was only the ice on the road we had to worry about.
Slept in a school corridor for a few hours. Buses left at 6AM, my start was at 9:40 so a couple of hours were spent in a tent. Tent had: heating - some. floor - no. chairs - not enough. Wind chill was -30C when it was finally my turn to start. Second last wave of all 50K classic/skate and 23K classic/skate, so perhaps 6000-7000 people had already started. The wind almost knocked my over at the start line and it was really hard to get going for the first few km. Nevertheless, already then did I start to catch up to earlier starters and already then did I experience my first line up a hill. There would be many of them. It was basically 50K intervals. After the first few km, I started to feel really good and pushed hard when I could, but the hills were just packed with people. I tried to double pole on the sides; I used my speed (had great skis) to go between two lines of skiers and then when I need to start skate/walk, I just squeezed in and many times did I ski over someone else's skis. Or poles. And like that it continued. After a while, fellow skiers started to call out I was one of the first wave 8 skiers, which inspired. Eventually did I and another 8-er battle it out and strategy how to pass people most efficiently became important. E.g. "left side or right side - need to look ahead and plan" and "there is a hill coming up, which line has the lowest numbers? Ok, this line has more people from wave 4, but this line has a lot of wave 5 people. The 5-ers have caught up the 4-ers so that line is probably faster". It worked sometimes...
The track was super soft and the vets called it one of the slowest Birkies. Not sure what time period they referred to but it was not fast. And definitely not for us in the back. The course itself was really nice; all woods except for the start and crossing a lake at the end, both brutally cold. Lots of twists and turns, small ups and downs, but also a few really tough climbs. B***h hill had an accurate name.
I don't know how many I passed, new record for sure, and this stop and go allowed me to have energy all the way to end. After many years of thinking of doing this race I am glad I did it. I will go back soon and then try to race it properly. My time, despite being the slowest pace I have ever had since my first Vasaloppet, will perhaps move me up all the way to the first wave.
Friday Feb 21, 2014 #
Skiing 1:00:00 [2]
Some nice, easy skate skiing in Minneapolis (Wirth Park), but cold and windy. Not sure how many km of groomed trails (20K?) but a great place for skiing and just minutes away from downtown. Lots of fresh snow - 40 cm or so came overnight (first snow, then rain, the flash freeze and snow again). Roads are covered with ice and the ice is too thick for salt so they are shaving of the ice layer by layer. Road conditions in and around the Twin cities are labeled impassable.
Thursday Feb 20, 2014 #
Note
Heading to WI tomorrow. Hayward are expecting to get anything from 20 to 50 cm snow tonight. It will be a soft course. If I get there...blizzard warning.
Wednesday Feb 19, 2014 #
Running 43:50 [2] 9.6 km (4:34 / km)
A little road run to inhale some sunshine. http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=6212093. Didn't have much energy. I think the 5 AM mornings are starting to hurt.
Monday Feb 17, 2014 #
8 AM
Running 1:09:00 [3] 15.4 km (4:29 / km)
Cold, -15C or so, but beautiful morning. Added a couple of clicks to Friday's run. Still slippery, esp sidewalks.
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=6210139
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=6210139