I had a good race at the Mid-Winter 10-Mile Classic, but I can't believe I was beaten by this guy (neither can the guy with the orange hat who's retching in the background).
That's Nedicus Maximus who founded the Portland Hashers who told me he's not a serious runner, but he is competitive, as he passed me at mile 6.
More details to follow...
Monday, February 2, 2009
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Another Bradbury 6, and Fast Shoes
Back to Bradbury this morning for another 6 mile run. Just when we thought no one else was going to show Dave, Jim and Lily arrived. I had brought my snowshoes but since no one else had planned to run in them I left mine behind, but it turned out they would have been useful. It had only been two days since the last major snowfall and there hadn't been enough snowmobile traffic to pack down the trails so I thought the conditions were even worse than last Saturday.
We ran the "usual" route northeast along the Snowmobile Trail. Dave and Lily turned around at about 2.7 miles and I turned at 3. The three of us are all running the Mid-Winter 10-Mile Classic in Cape Elizabeth tomorrow so we didn't want to go too far. Emma and Jim wanted to get in 10 miles today so they kept going. Funny how people can say "I'm not in shape to race 10 miles" while they are in the middle of a 10 mile run in conditions far worse than they would ever encounter in a road race.
I had a nice run and felt pretty relaxed despite the arduous conditions.
time: 1:05:49
distance: 6.0 miles
pace: 10:57
weather: 23 degrees, sunny
conditions: very soft snowmobile trails
gear: Brooks Cascadia 3, wool socks, tights, 2x long sleeve tops, gloves, mittens, buff
Earlier this week I was in Boston and I came across these shoes that whispered "We'll make you run faster"
So I bought them in hopes of making up for lack of fast training by wearing fast looking shoes.
I'd never heard of them before: Saucony Grid Sinister. They look a little more substantial than a racing flat but a lot less bulky than most of the road shoes I've used before.
I like the fact that they have a relatively low heel at 27mm and weight only 10.3 ounces. That's about the same as the Inov-8's that I wear. I have yet to actually run in them, but they feel pretty good wearing them around the house. Hopefully they'll do the trick tomorrow during the race.
We ran the "usual" route northeast along the Snowmobile Trail. Dave and Lily turned around at about 2.7 miles and I turned at 3. The three of us are all running the Mid-Winter 10-Mile Classic in Cape Elizabeth tomorrow so we didn't want to go too far. Emma and Jim wanted to get in 10 miles today so they kept going. Funny how people can say "I'm not in shape to race 10 miles" while they are in the middle of a 10 mile run in conditions far worse than they would ever encounter in a road race.
I had a nice run and felt pretty relaxed despite the arduous conditions.
time: 1:05:49
distance: 6.0 miles
pace: 10:57
weather: 23 degrees, sunny
conditions: very soft snowmobile trails
gear: Brooks Cascadia 3, wool socks, tights, 2x long sleeve tops, gloves, mittens, buff
Earlier this week I was in Boston and I came across these shoes that whispered "We'll make you run faster"
So I bought them in hopes of making up for lack of fast training by wearing fast looking shoes.
I'd never heard of them before: Saucony Grid Sinister. They look a little more substantial than a racing flat but a lot less bulky than most of the road shoes I've used before.
I like the fact that they have a relatively low heel at 27mm and weight only 10.3 ounces. That's about the same as the Inov-8's that I wear. I have yet to actually run in them, but they feel pretty good wearing them around the house. Hopefully they'll do the trick tomorrow during the race.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Bradbury 6
Another day off from work and another visit to Bradbury before the next big snow storm. Today we planned on 6 easy miles and that's what we did. Conditions were better than on our Saturday run, but still a little soft underfoot in places. We ran an out-and-back up the Link Trail then north on the Snowmobile Trail.
About two miles into the run we came across two men with guns and a dog, I guess it's always hunting season for something in Maine. We didn't stick around to find out what they were planning to shoot today, just hoping it wasn't us.
My hamstrings have been tight ever since cross country skiing (classic) for the first time this year on Friday, and all the hilly miles since then haven't helped. At least today's run didn't make the situation any worse. I just hope they loosen up by Sunday.
Overall a pretty casual run with most miles at around a 10 minute pace, until we hit the gradual downhill leading back to the park when Emma picked it up and we got in an 8:35 final mile.
time: 58:51
distance: 6.0 miles
pace: 9:45
weather: 23 degrees, sunny
conditions: soft packed snowmobile trails
gear: Inov-8 Roclite 315 with screws, wool socks, tights, 2x long sleeve tops, gloves, buff
About two miles into the run we came across two men with guns and a dog, I guess it's always hunting season for something in Maine. We didn't stick around to find out what they were planning to shoot today, just hoping it wasn't us.
My hamstrings have been tight ever since cross country skiing (classic) for the first time this year on Friday, and all the hilly miles since then haven't helped. At least today's run didn't make the situation any worse. I just hope they loosen up by Sunday.
Overall a pretty casual run with most miles at around a 10 minute pace, until we hit the gradual downhill leading back to the park when Emma picked it up and we got in an 8:35 final mile.
time: 58:51
distance: 6.0 miles
pace: 9:45
weather: 23 degrees, sunny
conditions: soft packed snowmobile trails
gear: Inov-8 Roclite 315 with screws, wool socks, tights, 2x long sleeve tops, gloves, buff
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Georges Highland Path
On Sunday Emma and I headed up the coast to visit my aunt and decided to check out some new trails, new to us anyway. Two summers ago I did some running on the land of the Georges River Land Trust in Thomaston and this seemed like the kind of place that would get plenty of snowmobile traffic, but without knowing for sure we took a bit of a chance. From the trail head on Dunbar Street there was a sign saying no snowmobiles or ATV's, but I decided to take a look over the snow pile at the end of the road and see what the conditions were like. It looked like only one person had walked through the snow since it fell last week, but about 100 yards down the trail it looked like there were snowmibile tracks, sneaky buggers.
After wading through deep snow for a short stretch we came out to one of the most immaculately maintained snowmobile trails I have ever seen. The trails was about 10 feet wide, the whole width had been groomed and was well packed for easy running. Well, it wasn't that easy, there was a lot of uphill. After a little more than a mile there was a powerline than crossed the trail with snowmobile tracks in either direction, and even bigger hills. Since neither of us were feeling that adventurous we thought we would skip the powerlines and stick to the flatter trail, but this ended up in someone's back yard after another quarter mile so we turned back to hit the powerlines and the big hills.
After a short but very steep uphill we were met with an incredible view as this powerline cut seemed to go on forever in both directions. It's nice when the effort of climbing is rewarded with a view. We headed down the other side of this hill and continued to descend for more than a mile. These trails weren't groomed like the ones we started out on but had seen enough traffic to make them easier to run on than the ones at Bradbury the day before. We eventually hit a logging road and made a short detour off the powerlines to do some exploring, this is the little peak in the middle of the elevation profile.
From here we turned around and headed back the way we came, now going up a very long hill. Although the air temperature was in the mid-teens with all the sun reflecting off the snowy slope it felt much warmer, and combined with the increased effort of running uphill we got quite warm. We each took off a layer but after reaching the top of the hill and running downhill on the other side for a few minutes we started to feel the cold again.
We finished the run wishing we could have gone on longer. Looking at a map I can see that the powerlines head east directly into Rockland, and going west they just keep going. Great potential for long winter runs and hopefully some good summer running too. We'll definitely go back to Georges Highland Path.
time: 1:07:13
distance: 6.7 miles
pace: 10:01
weather: 16 degrees, sunny and breezy
conditions: firm packed snowmobile trails
gear: Inov-8 Roclite 315 with screws, wool socks, OR gaiters, tights, 2x long sleeve tops, gloves, buff
After wading through deep snow for a short stretch we came out to one of the most immaculately maintained snowmobile trails I have ever seen. The trails was about 10 feet wide, the whole width had been groomed and was well packed for easy running. Well, it wasn't that easy, there was a lot of uphill. After a little more than a mile there was a powerline than crossed the trail with snowmobile tracks in either direction, and even bigger hills. Since neither of us were feeling that adventurous we thought we would skip the powerlines and stick to the flatter trail, but this ended up in someone's back yard after another quarter mile so we turned back to hit the powerlines and the big hills.
After a short but very steep uphill we were met with an incredible view as this powerline cut seemed to go on forever in both directions. It's nice when the effort of climbing is rewarded with a view. We headed down the other side of this hill and continued to descend for more than a mile. These trails weren't groomed like the ones we started out on but had seen enough traffic to make them easier to run on than the ones at Bradbury the day before. We eventually hit a logging road and made a short detour off the powerlines to do some exploring, this is the little peak in the middle of the elevation profile.
From here we turned around and headed back the way we came, now going up a very long hill. Although the air temperature was in the mid-teens with all the sun reflecting off the snowy slope it felt much warmer, and combined with the increased effort of running uphill we got quite warm. We each took off a layer but after reaching the top of the hill and running downhill on the other side for a few minutes we started to feel the cold again.We finished the run wishing we could have gone on longer. Looking at a map I can see that the powerlines head east directly into Rockland, and going west they just keep going. Great potential for long winter runs and hopefully some good summer running too. We'll definitely go back to Georges Highland Path.
time: 1:07:13
distance: 6.7 miles
pace: 10:01
weather: 16 degrees, sunny and breezy
conditions: firm packed snowmobile trails
gear: Inov-8 Roclite 315 with screws, wool socks, OR gaiters, tights, 2x long sleeve tops, gloves, buff
Saturday, January 24, 2009
10 @ Bradbury
There were 10 of us and I got in a little over 10 miles. Good day.
The group today included Randy, Mindy, Jim, Dave, Alan, Chuck, Lily and Dom in addition to myself and Emma. Our biggest group in some time.
Conditions proved to be more difficult than expected and the pace was very slow today. I had hoped that after a week of snowmobile traffic since the last snow the trails would be well packed, and they looked fairly well traveled but we all sunk in deep with every step.
Not to be put off by the conditions we trudged along in a single file line that gradually extended itself as we each found a pace that was as comfortable as could be expected in the soft snow. The sun was shining and the temperature was well into the 20's, a great day to be outside running.
Mind the gap in the snowmobile bridges, one wrong step could lead to a painful fall. Chuck, who has learned from experience as have I, makes it look easy.
At 5 miles we hit the powerlines that run east towards Brunswick and west towards North Pownal. No one felt like going any further so we all turned here.
Most of the way back along this out-and-back route is uphill and we clocked some very slow miles. Good ultra training as I always say when the pace is forced this slow. By the time we reached the top of the last hill, about 1.5 miles from the parking lot, Chuck, Dave and I had got a little ahead of the rest of the group and proceeded to pick up the pace for the gradual descent along the Snowmobile Trail in the park.
As punishment for getting ahead of the rest of the group I made Chuck and Dave join me on an extra half mile that included an uphill finish. We averaged a 10:23 pace for the run as a whole but got in a 9:02 for out last full mile. Emma, Alan and Jim were waiting when we got back to the parking lot and Mindy and Randy who had made a minor detour weren't far behind. Jim brought cookies to share and we all hung around in the parking lot drinking coffee, hot Gatorade and eating cookies until we were too cold to take it any more.
time: 1:48:12
distance: 10.4 miles
pace: 10:23
weather: 27 degrees, sunny and breezy
conditions: soft packed snowmobile trails, very inefficient
gear: Inov-8 Roclite 315 with screws, wool socks, OR gaiters, tights, 2x long sleeve tops, gloves, buff
The group today included Randy, Mindy, Jim, Dave, Alan, Chuck, Lily and Dom in addition to myself and Emma. Our biggest group in some time.
Conditions proved to be more difficult than expected and the pace was very slow today. I had hoped that after a week of snowmobile traffic since the last snow the trails would be well packed, and they looked fairly well traveled but we all sunk in deep with every step.
Not to be put off by the conditions we trudged along in a single file line that gradually extended itself as we each found a pace that was as comfortable as could be expected in the soft snow. The sun was shining and the temperature was well into the 20's, a great day to be outside running.
Mind the gap in the snowmobile bridges, one wrong step could lead to a painful fall. Chuck, who has learned from experience as have I, makes it look easy.
At 5 miles we hit the powerlines that run east towards Brunswick and west towards North Pownal. No one felt like going any further so we all turned here.
Most of the way back along this out-and-back route is uphill and we clocked some very slow miles. Good ultra training as I always say when the pace is forced this slow. By the time we reached the top of the last hill, about 1.5 miles from the parking lot, Chuck, Dave and I had got a little ahead of the rest of the group and proceeded to pick up the pace for the gradual descent along the Snowmobile Trail in the park.
As punishment for getting ahead of the rest of the group I made Chuck and Dave join me on an extra half mile that included an uphill finish. We averaged a 10:23 pace for the run as a whole but got in a 9:02 for out last full mile. Emma, Alan and Jim were waiting when we got back to the parking lot and Mindy and Randy who had made a minor detour weren't far behind. Jim brought cookies to share and we all hung around in the parking lot drinking coffee, hot Gatorade and eating cookies until we were too cold to take it any more.
time: 1:48:12
distance: 10.4 miles
pace: 10:23
weather: 27 degrees, sunny and breezy
conditions: soft packed snowmobile trails, very inefficient
gear: Inov-8 Roclite 315 with screws, wool socks, OR gaiters, tights, 2x long sleeve tops, gloves, buff
Friday, January 23, 2009
Second time faster
I've never been a fan of early morning running. Mostly because I'm not good at it. On Tuesday (last week) I knew that I wouldn't be able to get out of work in time to make it to Twin Brook for the weekly run so Emma and I decided to go for a run before I went into work. I don't know how people do this on a regular basis.
One of the down sides of living in Portland during the winter is the length of time that it takes to get the streets and sidewalks cleared after a major snowstorm. By Tuesday morning there was still much evidence of Sunday's big storm in the form of packed snow and ice, 1" to 2" thick on most surfaces which made running pretty sluggish even with screw shoes. It wasn't our intention to go fast so we plugged along a nice 4 mile loop of the peninsula at about a 9 minute pace.
On Friday I took the day off from work in honor of Emma passing the Nursing Board exam and decided to repeat the same loop as before, this time at 3:00 in the afternoon. Feeling recovered from the previous nights adult beverages and with a spring in my step I headed out towards the Western Prom and found the roads to be somewhat better than before but the sidewalks were still a mess. I didn't check my watch as I ran but cruised along at a comfortably quick pace, broken occasionally at some of the busy intersections in town and by the need to dodge and weave around people on the sidewalks who weren't expecting to come across anyone moving at my pace.
Not that my pace was incredibly fast, but I was happy to run the loop almost 7 minutes faster this time around in a 7:20 pace, with a last mile of 7:10. I was pleased with this run but it didn't give me a ton of confidence about the thought of the Mid Winter 10-Mile Classic coming up next weekend. Last year, after two months of speed work and hill reps I managed to run the race at a 6:53 pace. This year I've been doing a lot of slow miles in the snow. I feel strong but certainly not fast. We'll see...
Tuesday
time: 36:14
distance: 4.0 miles
pace: 9:03
Friday
time: 29:22
distance: 4.0 miles
pace: 7:20
One of the down sides of living in Portland during the winter is the length of time that it takes to get the streets and sidewalks cleared after a major snowstorm. By Tuesday morning there was still much evidence of Sunday's big storm in the form of packed snow and ice, 1" to 2" thick on most surfaces which made running pretty sluggish even with screw shoes. It wasn't our intention to go fast so we plugged along a nice 4 mile loop of the peninsula at about a 9 minute pace.
On Friday I took the day off from work in honor of Emma passing the Nursing Board exam and decided to repeat the same loop as before, this time at 3:00 in the afternoon. Feeling recovered from the previous nights adult beverages and with a spring in my step I headed out towards the Western Prom and found the roads to be somewhat better than before but the sidewalks were still a mess. I didn't check my watch as I ran but cruised along at a comfortably quick pace, broken occasionally at some of the busy intersections in town and by the need to dodge and weave around people on the sidewalks who weren't expecting to come across anyone moving at my pace.
Not that my pace was incredibly fast, but I was happy to run the loop almost 7 minutes faster this time around in a 7:20 pace, with a last mile of 7:10. I was pleased with this run but it didn't give me a ton of confidence about the thought of the Mid Winter 10-Mile Classic coming up next weekend. Last year, after two months of speed work and hill reps I managed to run the race at a 6:53 pace. This year I've been doing a lot of slow miles in the snow. I feel strong but certainly not fast. We'll see...
Tuesday
time: 36:14
distance: 4.0 miles
pace: 9:03
Friday
time: 29:22
distance: 4.0 miles
pace: 7:20
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Snowshoe Strength Training
Another fairly short run today, I would have gone a bit longer but my face was getting cold.
I love the icy unibrow.
I planned to lead a snowshoe running training group at Bradbury this morning for people interested in participating in the Pineland Farms Winter Triathlon but I think the blizzard put people off. So it was just me, I don't mind doing winter sports in winter conditions.
I set off on the east side trails the way I intended if others had been with me, I figured I'd start out easy and then hit the mountain. The Knight Woods trail had received a fair amount of ski and snowshoe traffic before the 3 inches of fluffy snow that had already fallen this morning so running was pretty easy for the first 0.75 miles. I then hit the Snowmobile Trail which had received a lot of snowmobile traffic (go figure) before today so that was even easier to run on. As I approached the Link Trail and the way back to the parking lot I decided that I'd try a little back country running and follow the Bradbury Scuffle course. I wasn't sure how easy it would be to follow the single track trails of Fox and Ginn but thought I'd at least get a good workout in while I tried.
It appeared that maybe one person had skied out here a while ago but their tracks were quickly disappearing under the new falling snow so I was pretty much on my own. I'm sure I went off trail a few times, no matter how well I know these trails there are places that are hard to follow under a foot of snow. This 3 mile stretch of single-track was pretty hard work, my Atlas DT snowshoes are great on semi-packed snow but in loose fluff they sink in quite a lot.
By 4 miles I was back on the Snowmobile Trail and was able to pick the pace up again. Now on wider trails I felt a little more exposed to the elements and snow started to accumulate on my face and everywhere else. By the time I reached my outgoing tracks near the end of the Scuffle course my footprints were getting covered by the fast falling snow and even on previously packed trails it was becoming hard work.
I decided to call it a day after finishing the 6+ mile course.
time: 1:18:37
distance: 6.3 miles
pace: 12:29
weather: 14 degrees, blizzard
conditions: light, fluffy snow 3-4 inches deep over old snow
gear: Altas DT Snowshoes, Inov-8 Roclite 295, wool socks, OR gaiters, tights, 2x long sleeve tops, t-shirt, gloves, mittens, buff
I love the icy unibrow.
I planned to lead a snowshoe running training group at Bradbury this morning for people interested in participating in the Pineland Farms Winter Triathlon but I think the blizzard put people off. So it was just me, I don't mind doing winter sports in winter conditions.
I set off on the east side trails the way I intended if others had been with me, I figured I'd start out easy and then hit the mountain. The Knight Woods trail had received a fair amount of ski and snowshoe traffic before the 3 inches of fluffy snow that had already fallen this morning so running was pretty easy for the first 0.75 miles. I then hit the Snowmobile Trail which had received a lot of snowmobile traffic (go figure) before today so that was even easier to run on. As I approached the Link Trail and the way back to the parking lot I decided that I'd try a little back country running and follow the Bradbury Scuffle course. I wasn't sure how easy it would be to follow the single track trails of Fox and Ginn but thought I'd at least get a good workout in while I tried.
It appeared that maybe one person had skied out here a while ago but their tracks were quickly disappearing under the new falling snow so I was pretty much on my own. I'm sure I went off trail a few times, no matter how well I know these trails there are places that are hard to follow under a foot of snow. This 3 mile stretch of single-track was pretty hard work, my Atlas DT snowshoes are great on semi-packed snow but in loose fluff they sink in quite a lot.
By 4 miles I was back on the Snowmobile Trail and was able to pick the pace up again. Now on wider trails I felt a little more exposed to the elements and snow started to accumulate on my face and everywhere else. By the time I reached my outgoing tracks near the end of the Scuffle course my footprints were getting covered by the fast falling snow and even on previously packed trails it was becoming hard work.I decided to call it a day after finishing the 6+ mile course.
time: 1:18:37
distance: 6.3 miles
pace: 12:29
weather: 14 degrees, blizzard
conditions: light, fluffy snow 3-4 inches deep over old snow
gear: Altas DT Snowshoes, Inov-8 Roclite 295, wool socks, OR gaiters, tights, 2x long sleeve tops, t-shirt, gloves, mittens, buff
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