Training Log Archive: Funderstormin

Event: Creemore 50K
 

I signed up for the Creemore 25K as a training run for my race in Colorado next month, but by the time race day arrived, I wasn't sure if I should even be trying it at all! My achilles continues to plague me and every run is a gamble about the level of discomfort I am going to be in. Adding to that, the day before race I made an emergency trip to my chiropractor to try to figure out what I couldn't put any weight on my left foot without pain all along the underside. But for some reason, the foot felt better in a running shoe than in a sandal and it bothered me less running than walking, so I decided I'd go up and give it a shot because that was better than being afraid to try and wondering if my falling apart body would have made it through!

I did this race once in 2014 and was surprised how much I enjoyed it. Yes, it is hilly but the hills are nice and long so I can justify walking them and the downhills are a blast. I love the small race atmosphere and the pizza and beer in the river post-race!

First hour felt a bit rough and I always have a hard time remembering that it takes me that long to really warm up and start feeling good. Achilles was the worst at that point too, so maybe it just needed a good long warm-up as well! After that, things kept getting better. I never really minded the climbs, it wasn't as hot as I expected it to be, and it seemed like a day where I actually managed to get my hydration and nutrition right, which doesn't happen often! As I haven't run this long since May, I truly expected the wheels to fall off the bus somewhere after 15K and was thrilled that they didn't and that I probably felt the strongest in those last 11K! It was a really good reminder to myself both about the role that hydration and nutrition play, as well as how the mental part is more important than the physical.

The course had been modified somewhat from the last time I had run it to increase the elevation so that the event qualified for the Skyrunning Canada series. I couldn't really remember much about the course from 2014 but I have a sneaking suspicion I know where the elevation was added! The course was also a bit longer than advertised but this was made known to the racers beforehand.

So my run wasn't fast, but on a day where I wasn't sure if I was up to it at all, I was thrilled to have finished feeling as good as I did. And I feel better going into my Colorado race with this under my belt, after which I'll make a more concerted effort to focus on the Achilles. After four years of dealing with it though, I have a pretty good sense though of what it can and can't handle, and it doesn't seem to respond well to inactivity, so I have to play around with other variables to get the balance right.

I really do love this course but was happy to just do one loop of it...I couldn't imagine wanting to do three! As always, I enjoyed the post-race river soak and socializing as much as the running itself. It was a great surprise to see Amy F. there who I believe said she was running her first 25K and had had a great run!

C • Great job! 12

Grand River / Grand Valley trail run. Every morning when my alarm goes off to run before work, I think, do I really want to do this? But then when I get out there I am so glad I didn't stay in bed! Grand Valley trail singletrack along the river is getting really overgrown and I did a lot of burr dodging and pulling slugs off my arms. I'd take slugs over ticks though!

C • Earl 2

Checked out a new hot yoga class last night as the one I love doing on Mondays wasn't running because of the holiday. My enjoyment of a yoga class is at least 50% dependent on who is teaching it, and this girl just didn't really do it for me. My back was thanking me for the stretching though!

Wanted to hit the road pretty early and while there was another trail called "Beehunter" that I was very intrigued about seeing, I decided it would be a lovely morning for a paddle around the now very quiet Red House Lake, since it wasn't an American holiday and the park was nearly empty. Paddled once around the lake and little islands, saw a big ass turtle, and found a little channel that I'm sure they didn't think anyone would try to take their paddleboards down.

Since I can't exactly fit my kayak in or on top of Earl without a lot of mess or hassle, I think he'd like an inflatable SUP instead. :-D

This was a very fun area to explore only a few hours from home. I felt like I got the gist of what the trails were like, but would be interested in going back in the winter for a x-country ski adventure. There were some very cool and inexpensive cabin rentals right across from the Art Roscoe X-Country trails.

C • Ski Adventure 6

Earl and I left Willow Bay and did a bit of driving around before heading back into the NY side of Allegany to check out a couple of different trails. First up was Bear Caves / Mt. Seneca that was a point-to-point trail with some cool rock formations. I was looking forward to seeing the "summit" but realized that after I'd been going down for some time that I'd missed it, oops! The trail sign had said 4 miles but I assumed that was one-way and was surprised to come out to the end as early as I did. The trail was lovely but I hate out and backs so I just rambled back to the van along the road.

After the Bear Caves trail we headed over to the Red House area of the park where I was planning to camp for the night. They had SUP rentals which I thought would be a fun way to mix it up for the afternoon but as I was filling out the rental form, we heard thunder and they said they couldn't (understandably) rent me a boat for at least half an hour after the thunder had stopped. There was another trail I wanted to check out that went up and over a hill so decided to do that in the pouring rain instead. I did have a brief moment of "is this the best idea?" as I set out in the rain but the trail was short and sheltered. Took a beer and some nuts in my pack to enjoy at the "summit" but it was too wet to eat the nuts. The Ellicotville Session IPA went down well though. :-)

Rain kept up the entire time but it was really fun. I had my poles with me for extra traction and it was neat to know I was the only crazy one out there at the time!

After hike #2, I drove around to choose a campsite and decided NOT to choose the one beside the guy who had a big sign out front of his proclaiming "God didn't save us, Sam Colt did." And then it said something else about guns being awesome. I can't make this up! Gotta love 'murica!