Running out of land!

Yesterday's run was a bit different; I decided to run along the coast instead of my usual trails that are always draped over mountainous terrain. It was a nice change of scenery and coasts offer unique challenges of their own. For example, the rocky shorelines get hammered by wave action leaving them quite fractured, weathered and slick, many have large breaks and gullies you have to jump and climb over (you can get a small sense from the video I am posting, but the quality doesn't really do it justice). There is also something really awesome about running the strand line separating land and sea, as the waves are crashing and the wind is blowing off the water, it is almost therapeutic after a challenging week full of stress.

I chose a spit of land projecting into the Strait of Georgia as my goal for this run, and decided to run until I was completely out of land. It was actually really awesome and I am really enjoying what I am doing with my running; by shaking things up and running to many different locations it is keeping things fun, new, and exciting. I went out armed with my bulky camera (since it was another clear day free of precip.) and snapped some shots along the way including some funny self timer ones. Mixing photography and running is also making each run more exciting, and I really enjoy it. I would love to take my big DSLR with me but it is too bulky (but the quality is unmatched). My current camera I am running with is no pocket camera, unfortunately the photo quality is out of date and isn't proportionate to the bulk of the camera.

This run like previous runs was not that great, but it was fun, so I really can't complain. As soon as I can get consistent I will start seeing the results I am after.

Self-timer shot on the rocky point after running to the lands end.

This photo shows what coastal running near Victoria, BC is like. Lots of slippery rocks!

A shot of the skyline just as I left the trails and started on the roads back for home.

In honor of Christmas I decided a photo I took of this Holly as I ran by was appropriate.

This is a short video showing me run to the end of the point. Not the best quality but I wanted to film it. I have to admit I ran it quite gingerly because of the jagged rocks, I was concerned if I ate it that me or the camera could get chewed up so I took it easy and you can also tell I was pretty knackered by this point of the run. I hope it gives a small glimpse of what it is like running the coast of V.I. (It is best viewed with the sound turned off because of the wind and the Cure video playing with the sound on. I know I could have just added a soundtrack in moviemaker but I would have had to convert the video format so this was good enough.)

I decided to post some acoustic Cure today. A Cure song has been long overdue on my blog and "Close to Me" has been one of my favorite songs since I was just a kid. I remember being about 10 years old and falling in love with the upbeat melody. One day after Halloween I had to stay home from school because I ate too much candy the night before and made myself sick. I can recall laying in bed with my recorder trying to play this song. I never could figure out how to get the notes right but it is nice to know the 10 year old version of myself had pretty good taste in music even back then. Enjoy!

Winter trail photos

Yesterday was my long run and I headed out to my usual training grounds to get some hill and distance training in. I took along my bulky camera and snapped some shots of the trail, since winter afternoons always seem to have such awesome lighting. I ran a little early before the best lighting right at sunset but still thought it was a great time to run. The run itself was terrible, I just couldn't keep my breath and my shoes are way past due for a replacement. My shins really took a pounding on the downhills. I have had inklings towards trying the La Sportiva Crosslite's instead of my Cascadia's I have been using for the last two years. I will have to try them on and see how I like them. My only concern is they really can't handle the roads like the Cascadia's based on reviews.

I really miss my really long gnarly trail runs and am anxious to start incorporating them back into my weekly routine again. I can tell that many of my trail stabilizer muscles have weakened a bit so I have some work to do. My hills are really poor so I can't wait to start pushing more elevation. It wasn't the best week for consistency or quality of runs but I am just working on my base and hopefully as my distances increase my weight will decrease and I can get back into that fit zone.

Catching Up

The first snow of the year in Victoria and a frigid 20 F (-7C) run on Mount Doug.

It has a been two months since I updated last so suffice to say a lot has happened. The major events that happened in the last 8 weeks were the Haney to Harrison relay race I did on the 6th of November, finishing my PhD proposal, having my Candidacy meeting with my committee and laying out the topics of my exam.

Haney to Harrison Race Recap

My training leading up to this event was like all my running this year inconsistent. I trained well from the last week of September into the second week of October including a 70 mile week. I was consistent and really enjoying myself. Then I was hit with an upper respiratory infection and rather than risk getting sicker I took the next couple of weeks off from training. I figured that if I trained hard and got super sick I might not have a shot to compete but if I took the time off and got better I would be able to race and finish my leg it just wouldn't be fast. My plan worked well and my lungs cleared about the first of November. I got one or two small runs in the week of the race but really my fitness stunk so I just planned on relaxing and enjoying the run.

The family and I headed to Chilliwack a day before the race and met up with my good friend Rob who was excited to have us over for a pasta dinner and really made our stay in Chilliwack happen. He was going to run the second leg right before me but after the Iowa marathon in September he was concerned about a foot injury. So he decided to run support and did a great job with our team. I met the team first thing in the morning (4:30am) on the day of the race and quickly breathed a sigh of relief when I realized the team was comprised completely of amateurs so there was no pressure to kill myself on zero training. The weather was quite foggy and perhaps 40 degrees out. The lead leg gal ran a very slow time and finished her 8 km leg in over an hour which as far as speed goes is nearly walking but she was our oldest team mate and was quite positive, happy, and seemed to enjoy her whole leg other than the last slow gradual hill.

Our second leg runner was actually Rob's Dr. Office nutritionist and was a last minute replacement for Rob. She had an extremely hilly run with tons of ups and downs and nailed her 13 km's in about an hour and twenty. I was waiting anxiously at the change station and the line to the two porto pots was ridiculous so I hit the bushes and when I popped out I saw our team mate coming in to the station. I took a deep breath and jogged over just as she swiped the chip (with some difficulty and unsureness if it worked or not) and handed it over to me.

My leg was pretty awesome. The entire run was through the forest and consisted of about 750 feet of elevation right in the first mile with multiple switch-backs. It then was undulating for a few miles and then was a gradual down grade to the end, the total distance was about 16 Km or 10 miles. I ran the first mile extremely strong and passed multiple runners and stuck with some of the faster runners all the way up the switch backs. My legs felt great but the lungs were not happy due to the recent bout of respiratory drama I still hadn't quite gotten over. After the summit I quickly found a strong pace that allowed me to be comfortable but still kept things moving along. At about mile 4 I began to feel the effects of my strong push at the beginning and I completely melted down to a crawl. I fought through the tough spot and rallied two miles later. This rally carried me at a strong pace for the next 2.5 miles. I felt pretty good but could tell that I was going to crash before the finish. I slowed my pace down a bit and sure enough at 8.5 my lack of training caught up to me and I crashed hard. The next little bit was extremely painful and I just didn't have the speed work or a consistent base to draw from so I basically came to a crawl. I began to get passed by quite a few runners and I got a bit frustrated. I had to keep in mind the majority of the runners are not balancing family, candidacy, proposal, PhD research etc. So I dug deep and with a half mile to go I was chagrined to see Rob waiting to run me into the gate. I pushed like a mad man to match his pace and was able to finish quite strong. My total time was an embarrassing hour and twenty according to my watch but the official time was slower perhaps due to some issues with the transition at the second switch. I was tired but actually recovered quite quickly and could have ran another leg if they needed me to. I drank a gatorade and then we drove back to exchange vehicles and runners for our last four team mates.

I was looking forward to seeing Vye and the kids along the course and was hoping that Vye could snag a picture of me looking epic. Unfortunately I didn't see her along the way and actually spotted her on the freeway on our way back to Chilliwack. She looked visibly upset. After meeting up with her at the hotel she explained how every road was closed so she could not approach the course at all with the children and cameras etc. She finally drove to the finish line and by the time she found parking and made her way to the station the officials informed her I had finished 10 minutes earlier. She was crushed and frustrated and the kids were upset they missed their dad's race. After Vye and the kids settled down we went to the pool and I sat in the Jacuzzi for an hour. We ate and then drove to the finish line to meet up with the remainder of the team. It was fun to see the last person come in and though I believe our team was perhaps the slowest we had fun. I was happy to know that I ran my hilly 16 Km leg in just a few minutes slower than it took two of our team mates to run their 8 Km legs. So I feel even though I was slow and not in racing shape I still was the strongest of our funny little team and we all really enjoyed the experience especially because it was the last official running of the H2H with it being switched to Whistler next year.

Thesis Work

The Tuesday following my race was the date of my Candidacy committee meeting. I had to prepare a presentation to give to my committee and answer their questions. This left little time between getting back to Victoria Sunday night and the meeting two days later. I luckily got a presentation together and felt I nailed it. My advisor and committee then informed me what they would like me to study for my candidacy exam. All and all it well and now I know what to expect for that exam. The timing made it impossible to train for my race properly but I arranged my priorities and figured I have my whole life to run but my PhD is a one time shot so I better not blow it.

What's next?

My running since has actually improved a bunch. I nailed 5 runs last week and I am starting strong this week even though it is quite chilly (20 F or -7 C) and snowy. I am really just doing multiple short runs right now with some longer runs on the weekend and I am just using the next 6 weeks as a base-building phase and will take off with a more tailored training approach after I have been consistent for a bit.

My race goals for next year are nearly non-existent but the trails I would like to run are quite epic. I would love to run from Smith and Morehouse in Utah's Uinta Mountains to Bald Mountain with my friend Tim. I would also enjoy running Mt. Arrowsmith here on the island. I am planning on speed hiking the Golden Hinde as well. Additional plans include the Tushar Range in Central Utah and a few other peaks in the Northern Wasatch. We will see how it all plays out.

New Music

It has been 15 years since the synthpop band OMD (Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark) has released an album. The band started by accident as the two main members used to play around on their synths in their mothers back room on Saturday afternoons. Friends told them to do a live show so they chose the first ridiculous name that came to mind not realizing they were about to become one of the biggest influences on the electronic scene for the next decade and a half. After many albums and hits around the world they broke up and now have released a new album earlier this Fall titled "History of Modern". I love that the band has stayed true to their original sound and though many bands try to reinvent themselves when releasing a new album OMD has taken a different approach and brought back many of the old sounds and styles of Synths from the 70's and 80's. They figured with all the new bands coming out that have a synth component and site OMD as one of their influences that if anyone should sound like OMD it is OMD and there is still a niche for their music. Today as I was chugging in the crystalline morning air one of their new songs was in my mind and powered me over the frozen terrain of Mount Doug "The History of Modern Part 1". I hope you enjoy their new stuff as much as me.

Running again and a pain in my butt part II

I was able to get 5 runs under my belt this week. I kept everything in check by starting slow and just cranking out 3-5 mile runs for the first 4 runs. Saturday I did my usual Mount Doug course. The amazing thing is just how consistent I am on the Mount Doug course. If I take more than a week or two off from running, the first time I come back to Mount Doug, I always end up getting a 1:06. Usually within two weeks from that time I can shave off 10 minutes, but my first run post-hiatus is always the same. I have decided to do some more miles on flats and roads to prep for the H2H; so I have kept the runs around 30 minutes but I am slowly turning up the heat. I should be nearing 40 minutes come Friday. I am also doing some speed work. My idea of speed work is 4 kms at as fast a speed as possible with a 90 second break and then another chunk of distance as fast as possible. The idea is to increase my speed and stamina without going too far into oxygen debt so I can get used to walking that thin line.

Tonight is a speed night so I will just hit my 4.1 Km run at 6PM after I am done teaching my lab and see just what these legs can do. I am excited but a little nervous. I am just not that fast of a runner even when I am fit. I hope I can improve in this category over the next 6 months and come into the spring with some sustainable speed.

I blogged previously about a pain in my butt. I came up with several hypothesis and did some adjustments to try to remedy the problem. I still have the issue, and even after 6 weeks of not running; my butt hurts worse than ever. Usually if it is a running-related injury 6 weeks rest works miracles, but this was behaving in the opposite way. I finally broke down and visited a sports medicine specialist and after a quick run down of my running history and a series of small tests he concluded it was my Gluteus minimus/medius. I most likely injured the muscles years ago and have never properly rehabilitated or improved the muscles. Since these muscles become more sore when blood flow is decreased my hiatus and constant sitting was causing all the pain. When I began to run this week I felt much better as my blood flow increased. He suggests I see a physio, but at the moment funds are such that this is not an option. I have googled it a bit and have a few ideas on how to strengthen these muscles and stretch them on my own. This will have to do for now but it is nice to be zeroing in on the problem and a solution.

This week will consist of speed work tonight, a 34 minute run on Tuesday, a x-train day on Wednesday, 37 minutes on Thursday, 40 minutes on Friday and my long run will be 1:15:00 on Saturday, with a rest day Sunday. I hope I can keep to the schedule and stay consistent. Each run is a little different in regards to terrain, and running surface, and consists of different levels of exertion and speeds. My hope is that by really mixing things up I can be slightly more well-rounded and perhaps decrease the possibility of injury or plateau. I must admit I really love running in the fall. It is my favorite time of year for running. The colors and temperatures just seem to inspire athletic performance. Well off to class and then to run.

Back from my writing hiatus - The H2H is when?

I can't believe I finally wrapped up the first draft of my 50 page PhD proposal. It was a beast to write with hundreds of references. I basically sat and wrote for 6 weeks with little else to offset the academic-induced coma I found myself in. The worst aspect is I basically had to kiss my training goodbye for the summer and hunker down on my project. I knew that it was a matter of time before school pushed ultra training aside for various stints during my program. Alas, I came here to study Geology and leave an impact on how geologists' think about my area of interest. So I had to push my running aside because to run at all would be to take away from time that had to be spent sleeping or writing.

Excuses aside, I am back at it again. The main motivation is I just realized that I am less than 2 months away from the Haney to Harrison 100 km relay race in which I am a member of a 6 person team. I just realized that I am completely out of running let alone racing shape and I have a team depending on me. So I have developed a plan in which I add 3 minutes to my daily runs each day and 15% to my long weekend runs. This should get me close to 1.5 hours of running a day with long runs near 3 hours once a week. Since it is a road race (yuck!!) I have been incorporating flat road and gravel trail into my training to get me into better shape for pounding the pavement.

Even though I have had a two month break I have found my running coming back fairly quickly (for this first week anyhow). The first run was a bit brutal as my capillaries opened up again and I busted the lungs back in, but since I have comfortably found my breath and air. I really need to kick about 12 pounds as well so it is time to chill out on my eating. I am afraid that the pressurized writing scenario may have allowed me to find solace in snacking and late meals to accompany during late nights of writing. The lack of inactivity and overeating was a simple equation for rapid weight gain. I am glad to be back to burning some calories and eating less and more thoughtfully.

Last night was awesome. My 4 year old son wanted to accompany me for a short warm-up run. It was dark and foggy so we each strapped on the headlamps and hit the dark tree choked trails. What a trooper! He cranked out an awesome pace for a little dude and we ran about 1 km in about 9 minutes which was pretty cool. Perhaps the most amazing aspect of it was sharing this aspect of my life with him. I look forward to future running exploits with my family. I love that I don't even have to push him to do it. He sees me running and the joy and passion I get out of it and he naturally wants to run like dad. It is really cool. Who knows he may have a natural talent that can carry him far. I guess the key is I let him do it on his own without me forcing him. After all if I didn't enjoy it I wouldn't want to run.

I guess I have just a short 31 minute run tonight and I am looking forward to it.

In the spirit of my lack of preparation for the H2H I am including a song appropriately named "Not Prepared" by a group called Mesh. It is a classic song. The first time I heard it was on a napster copy of Depeche Mode's Exciter album. This leaked copy of the album included this track by Mesh and also "Pony Tail Girl" by Brian Hazard of Color Theory (another of my favorites). Apparently the person who put the Exciter album up on Napster around the year 2000 thought these two artists sounded similar to Gore and included them with the album, fooling many people (not me I could tell the two tracks weren't Gore). Well now that I am not prepared remotely in any way, shape, or form, for the H2H this song might light a fire so perhaps I can salvage some sort of a slightly below average time and not completely disappointed my team.

18 Miler in the Gowlland Tod and some early morning runs and my core dilemma

Wow - This post has been in the making for three weeks now. I can't believe it has taken me this long to write about my running exploits. School is definitely heating up as I prep for my candidacy and try to get my research rolling in the right direction.

To begin three weeks ago I cranked out an 18 mile run in the beautiful and scenic Gowlland Tod Provincial Park, in anticipation for a 50km run on the Juan De Fuca. This is the first time I ran the full "Half Monte" course which is 25 km, and then I threw another 3 miles distance in due to a wrong turn to add some significant elevation and get me really good and tired. I was running for over 3 hours without a break and ran with my hydration pack I had bought earlier this Spring (Click here to see the southern 7.1 miles of the course, this was a new course added to the gutbuster series this year but I think they had to change it due to use restrictions). This run was really a great one. I first ascended a major hill that really only flattens out once or twice along the way for a few hundred meters over several miles. I was able to run this first major stretch without hiking or walking and all my hill training really gave me deep hill climbing reserves to draw from. I summited Jocelyn and took in the amazing views and reached the next stretch which is a descent to the base of Holmes peak, a short but sweet little climb. I chose this day to run because I had cloud cover and even though I was running at mid day I never over-heated. I summited Holmes easily and my legs still felt great as I approached the six mile mark in a little over an hour. I ran to the turn-around point at Caleb's Pike and began to retrace my trail. I decided to summit Holmes again even thought the Monty bypasses the summit on the return trip I believe. I was still feeling strong. As I approached Jocelyn again, the course takes a different trail then the one you come in on, so I thought I had turned onto the correct trail I needed but really I was on a little side trail that leads out of the park via a steep descent. Well 10 minutes later I realized I made a 1.5 mile super descent in the wrong direction, so I had to regain the ridge by a 1 mile 1000 foot climb, now I had been running for over 15 miles and my legs finally started to break down (it is amazing how fast you can descend on a wrong trail and before you know it 10 minutes turns into a mile and a half, and then you have to turn around and climb the hill that was so easy to coast down previously). After regaining the ridge I began to crash a little and could tell that I was a bit short on calories. I shuffled along and finished all the uphill and flat stuff at the top and just had the final couple miles descent. This typically is where I excel but my legs were toast and I found myself gingerly picking a nice controlled trot down the hill instead of blasting down it like I normally would. I got to my car in a little over three hours but that included several scenic stops and breaks to take in the views and relax in the cool wind. I was stoked with the run and thought it was perfect to push myself distance-wise and help me understand how I handle longer distances in rough terrain a little better.

The awesome thing about this trail system is just how little use it gets. I have been on this trail a dozen times and have never observed more than perhaps 10 hikers in one day and in the case of this run I only saw two. Sometimes I worry that if I ate it really hard, like a broken/sprained ankle, it may be hours before I could find someone with a phone or who could help. If this trail system was only 25 minutes from the Wasatch Front I assume there would be 100's of hikers on it a day. I feel that many Victorians don't take advantage of the awe-inspiring trails and parks they have at their doorstep, maybe because of just how surrounded by wilderness they are. Perhaps you have to live in the desert to appreciate amazing trails and forests that are so accessible. Another great thing about this run is the views. You start near sea level and climb straight up to almost 1500 feet where you catch expansive views of the Saanich Inlet, a small arm of the ocean that splits the southern end of the island into two pieces. Another awesome thing about this trail is it is purely narrow rocky, rooty single track. I really can't talk this run up enough. It is worth the 25 minute drive to get there. In the future I think I can tack some more distance in the form of adding a double crossing of Mount Work and also Mount Finlayson making a total of 4 peaks climbed twice each and nearly a Marathon in distance and perhaps 10,000' of accumulated elevation (perhaps over estimated in elevation and distance but it would be significant none-the-less). So that is a goal I am aiming to do. I would expect that trip to take over 5 hours and even closer to 6 based on my current fitness and speed but it could perhaps be run in 4 hours by an elite. I have never heard of anyone actually doing this in one go, it would be a really great training run for a long hilly mountain ultra.

I have also started to run earlier in the morning instead of the evening. This means getting up at 5:00. I had a great run on Mount Doug the other day at 6:00 am. I was cruising in my usual direction in the early dawn light and within a km found myself surround by a symphony of sounds that I don't typically hear in the evening. Two owls with there deep hoots were calling back and forth across the trail and it was super eerie to run right through their hooting in the light fog and morning glow. As I climbed Irvine I began to hear white tail deer grunting perhaps a precursor to the rut. It was the first time I have ever heard deer. It was amazing. There was a whole cornucopia of sound I seldom hear. I really was in awe of the amount of wildlife in the park. I only ever notice the deer but there is so much more active wildlife in the morning. One of my early morning runs found clouds over Belingham to the East but a sliver in the clouds allowed the rising sun to only be seen by its reflection off the ocean and quite literally looked as if it was DESCENDING from the strand line of the water and land (like an upside down sunrise) instead of rising. I am going to try to keep my morning runs going since it allows me to be more flexible in my evenings with my family and studies. I am more tired though and have to go to bed by about 11 or I am hooped.

So I have had a "core dilemma" ever since I had part of my ab muscle removed in 2005. My Doc told me that no physical therapy would be needed since you use your core a lot and it rehabilitates itself. Well I took him at his word and didn't really do anything to strengthen it. In fact I have done almost zero targeted core work since my surgeries 5 years ago. Prior to my surgeries I had an insane core, I remember when I was 18 doing 2,000 various crunches and ab exercises in one go just to see what it would take to reach exhaustion. I think that for the last five years I have just assumed I still have that sort of core strength to draw from. I DO NOT! I tried a 15 minute ab workout the other day because anytime I run far it is my core that fails not legs. Within seven minutes into the workout I was thrashed. It took everything I had to do the 25 reps of each exercise. I had to stop in places just so I could finish my reps. In the end I can't believe how entirely weak my core is. The next three days I paid a steep price and couldn't laugh or sit up without killing myself. My conclusion is I have a core dilemma that is going to take many many hours of work to fix. I can't believe how weak my core is and that I haven't really thought about the repercussions of being gutted like a fish and having ab muscle removed. Wish me luck because I have some serious work to do and I almost can't stand the thought of assaulting my core like that again but it should become a 3 time a week ordeal at least. Yikes!! I can't believe how weak I am!

This is just a taste of my running over the past three weeks and though school is almost too much to balance in my running currently I am still trying to force in some miles and get strong. It is really a battle of will at this point because it is taking everything I have to get things done in all facets of my life due to my workload. A PhD is a daunting undertaking and I am not sure that I fully comprehended what it would take. It is a significant step up from a masters.

The song I am including today is "Ghost White" by Swedish Synthpop band Rupesh Cartel. I have loved this song for years now. It is melancholy and yet upbeat at the same time. It is an interesting juxtaposition I think. I have a great acoustic version but can't find a vid to embed. The original is great anyways. I don't know if because I am Swedish I am genetically engineered to like music coming out of Sweden but I find I have a large collection of artists from the homeland. I hope it expands your musical vocab a little!

Summit of Mt. Finlayson and cooking up some lava

Today I decided to run in Gold Stream Park and tackle Mt. Finlayson, a large diorite dome that errupts from the banks of gold stream at sea level. Mt. Finlayson is a short but steep trail that climbs from sea level to 1375 feet in just a few kms. The trail starts out fairly smooth and steep and is runnable but once you reach the shoulder of the mountain you enter multiple class three pitches with rocks wore smooth from hikers and past glaciers. It actually is about the most technical stuff I have attempted on the island. It took me about 28 minutes to top out but I wasn't feeling that well due to a sore neck from a restless night which lead to a morning headache. I was a bit dizzy off and on and it definitely isn't a trail to have any sort of fainting spell. I took it relaxed and power hiked the majority of the upper trail. The run down was quite dangerous with many spots where it would be easy to get out of control or lock ball-bearing gravel under your tread and slide of a ledge. I took a nice controlled descent and I can't for the life of me figure out how I got off the trail (it is extremely straight forward with bright orange markers everywhere) but before I knew it I was in the middle of the bush, whacking my way towards the general direction of the trail. I picked the main trail back up and flew through the last km of the trail like it was nothing. I ended up finishing the round trip in about 45 minutes, which is a pretty short run for me but I think that the steepness and length of the climb spiced up the variability of my weekly regime and I think I will use this one for future hill training and stack multiple summits to really get used to steep 1400 foot climbs and descents over technical ground.

After running Finlayson I headed into school where I whipped up a quick batch of lava. Much like baking cookies but instead of flour and sugar I add Silica (quartz SiO2) and calcium carbonate (limestone). And instead of putting the batch in at 200 degrees celcius I place it in a furnace at 15oo degrees celcius. When it has cooked long enough I pour out the glowing red viscous melt onto a stainless steel plate and now instead of a white or redish powder (from iron) it is a black glass like obsidian.

It was a good day with a steep summit of finlayson followed by making some lava. My life is awesome!

I decided to throw some Arcade Fire on my blog since I don't have Canadian music represented yet. This is a group with quite a few members but fronted by a husband and wife team from Montreal. This song "Keep the Car Running" is one of many favs by the band and I think it is a great song to have playing in the noodle during a crazy trail run like today. Check out more of their stuff, they have tons of different weird instruments that they incorporate in genius ways.

The Music of the Trail

The sun was cooking my back and the sweat was already pouring off the brim of my hat. I had only been running for two kilometers. I was running my 14th run in 11 days and Victoria was in the throws of a heat spell. I knew going into week two of this training block that I would have a tough go since past experience had shown me the middle of week two usually turns into an absolute battle for survival. I turned onto Whitaker and started my first summit push of the day. I couldn't believe it I had absolutely nothing to give. Even before I reached the steeper portion of the Irvine climb I found myself out of breath and my heart was pounding in my chest like a runaway train. I hit a particular steep exposed section and really pushed myself up the hill. As I reached the crest of the scorching little climb my head began to spin and I was swimming in dizziness. I began to alternate short jogs and power hikes as I approached the summit. The last 200 meters were completely in the sun and as I topped out I sat down on a rock complete deflated. I felt like I was giving the run everything I had to give but already I was 4 minutes behind my usual pace and still had 35 minutes and about 6.5 kms to go. I clumsily stumbled down the steep rock slope of the bedrock buster and felt my legs turn to jello as I shuffled through dancing waves of heat rising from the scoured rock. I didn't turn left like I normally would if I was doing the full course, but instead hung a "Randy" and headed right back down to my car. The total run still took me nearly 48 minutes and on a good day would only take 30. I knew that I had finally crossed "the line".

Training for an ultra requires a ton of work and consistency but it also requires a balance of easy runs and careful planning to prevent over-training. I feel to properly train you have to constantly be pushing yourself right up to the threshold of over-trained, without ever actually crossing over. It sounds easy in theory but in practice it is like tightrope walking on 200lb test monofilment stretched over a yawning chasm of over-training induced symptoms and injuries. I knew that I just fell off my precarious perch of "just enough" and was now thrown into the middle of the abyss of misery that is to be over-trained.

As I trudged home that night, after my terrible run, I began to become a victim of one of the worst side effects of over-training, the mood swing. It started a few days earlier as I found that my typically good-natured self seemed to be replaced by an irritable and moody monster. After my terrible run I was playing an innocent game of clue with my wife and her younger sister, I threw a tantrum when I was thoroughly bested by my better half. I left the room and began to read my book and sulk, not about the game (that was just the straw that broke the camels back), but about my terrible run and the fact that it was feeling like my running was getting worse and not better. I knew I still have a ridiculous long way to go, and I was frustrated that I was set back because of my fainting spells last fall. Vye came up to try to sleuth out what was causing this Dr. Jekel and Mr. Hide reaction. I began to vent and really began to realize that perhaps most frustrating of all was coming to grips with giving up on a leg of research that I had devoted the last two years of my life to. A few days earlier my advisor and I reached the conclusion that this particular approach to the problem was not going to work. Two years of 30 hour experiments and trips to Vancouver to analyze my results, and then back to Uvic to analyze with the laser seemed like it was all for not. I was in a very dark place. As I vented if finally dawned on me that my mood shifted several days earlier and that I was not being myself. I began to piece together other clues such as my elevated heart-rate and breathlessness, my out-of-control hunger, and the insomnia that had plagued me for 3 nights in a row now. I was in the middle of over-trained-itis

I quickly apologized for being grumpy and explained what had caused it. The following day I took a much needed break, the first one in 12 days. The next morning I was still not my old self but I felt I was improving. I decided to take the following day off as well.

Last night a small cold front blew in and dropped temperatures significantly. I had taken a slow easy run or two after my two day break. Tonight I was now ready to really run again. The wind was still gusting and the temperatures were in the high 50's perfect for a strong run. I felt well fueled and hydrated and decided to run the Gutbuster course in reverse (a much steeper and more challenging run than usual). I busted into a trot and within three minutes of running reached my first climb, a steep relentless attack of the South face. I typically run down this trail when running the normal direction, but tonight I bounded up it like one of the many bucks I spooked on the side of the trail today. My legs were strong and I began to get into a rhythm. I could hear my feet striking the earth with a metered thud. Almost on cue a strong wind would blow through the trees about every four steps joined by a song of an unidentifiable bird, almost like a concerto playing over my percussive foot strikes. I began to relax and all my senses became enhanced as I continued to listen to the music of the trail. Above tree line a plant covered in black-seeded pods began to join the orchestra of noise. The song now took on an almost tribal feel as the rattles began to grow in both tempo and volume. I became elated as I realized I was running through the notes of a song that only I could hear. A song that can only be heard if you are in the right place at the right time and are paying attention to the mountain and what it is trying to convey. The summit came too quick but for those few short minutes I experienced something almost outer-bodily as I actually felt what it is like to run through a masterpiece. During that portion of my run time seemed to stretch endlessly before me yet it ended so abruptly it felt like a blink of an eye.

The remainder of the run was fueled by that amazing runner's high. I had overcome the spell of being over-trained and found myself in the middle of one of my strongest and definitely the most magical run of the year.

I don't have a song to embed in this post because there is nothing that could do the music I heard tonight on the trails of Vancouver Island justice. I heard the music of the trail.

Heatwave!

Summer decided it was about time to heat up the southwestern BC coast today and I actually was able to run for the first time this year in temperatures warmer than about 20C or 70F. It actually was in the upper 20's (80-ish) when I ran at 4:00 (I know it sounds pretty tame compared to Utah's summer temps but what can I say I am getting soft living on the BC coast). From my previous post I suggested that day 10 of a new cycle of consistent training is always brutal, well today was day 9 and the run proved brutal. There are several reasons for this. First I hadn't hydrated properly today even though I knew it was going to be toasty. I opted out of bringing a water bottle because I wanted to get some heat training without water to stretch me mentally and physically. Lastly I am running on tired legs, nine days without a break and averaging between about 7 and 10 miles a day. So I had set myself up for a real can-kicker. Immediately I knew I was in trouble when I noticed a stretch of trail that typically takes me about 7:30 to run, actually took me 8:10 to run today. Forty seconds slower for a mile is a significant decrease in speed, additionally my effort level seemed much more intense. I bit the bullet and began to push my way up the ferns to the Irvine climb. My legs revolted! I was barely able to maintain a shuffle so slow even an elderly person with a walker could pass me. My mouth was already dry and felt like there was sand in there, but I decided to persevere and kept in mind it was the first warm day in Victoria this year. I finally summited and sat at the top gasping for breath with sweat dripping off my nose and chin and my whole body glistened with beads of salty sweat. The drop down the bedrock buster was a joke, I found myself barely being able to control my descent, my legs were just knackered.

To make a long story short I ended up walking several portions of the climbs, and the sections that were flat, I just maintained a shuffle. This run was about enduring more than anything and I fought the urge to cut-off a summit here, or a traverse there, and gave it some serious stick-with-it-ness. It ended up being a mental victory and reminded me that I have to train and improve my mental game every bit as much as I have to focus on the physical aspect of my training.

Well Victoria looks like it is going to be in a heatwave for a while so I am going to get more opportunities to cook out in the sun and improve my heat tolerance. To celebrate this late Summer and the subsequent first hot run of the year I am going to include a video by IAMX's first album. The song is called "heatwave". I couldn't find any awesome concert footage of the song but none-the-less I had the song on my mind as the sweat poured off my face and the sun baked my back. It is a great song and will be my theme song for the next week at least based on the forecast!

Week in review June 26 - July 4 and some TrailMode

In the previous 7 days I managed to run 9 times for a total distance of about 40 miles. It feels great to see some consistency. My run yesterday on the 4th of July was perhaps the crowning achievement of the previous week's hard work. My legs reached the point where they seemed to be on auto pilot, they pulled my body up the hills with a minimum of lactic acid build-up. It was awesome to not have to power hike anything. I had awesome runs on both Canada Day and also the US Independence Day and perhaps the added emotions that come with freedom and patriotism make for a little extra something to draw from. It seems like after 7 days of consistent running I always end with a strong run. I typically find that the next 7 days, particularly day 10, can be quite painful and sluggish. I will see if my past experience with week 2 this time pans out.

I ran particularly late last night and as I was cruising through the impending darkness on Mercer everything was clicking, and for a moment the only sound that could be heard was my feet on the trail and I just clipped along and "Enjoyed the Silence". One of the many great things about trail running are being able to find yourself in these types of situations where you are completely engrossed in the moment. I find it only appropriate to include some classic Depeche Mode to represent my run that played out in almost eerie silence. This is some classic Exciter Tour footage from the DVD "One Night in Paris". I also included an image of my own re-interpreted album cover art from Violator, I call it "TrailMode".

Reinterpreted Album Art - combining Depeche Mode and trailrunning (geeky I know).

Original Album Art

Running towards consistency and a Whisper to a Scream

I am finally getting consistent. It has taken me a while to get into a grove and start building momentum. I have nothing to blame but myself. Perhaps following the Western States 100 last weekend finally got me out of my slump and lit a fire. I have been very consistent since Sunday and I have started logging some "Twice-a-day'rs" which is a first for my entire history of running. I really like running twice a day it is interesting to run on legs in the afternoon that you thrashed 8 hours earlier. I find my legs sluggish and non-responsive on my morning runs but they are usually pretty peppy for the afternoon runs. I don't know if that is normal or just for me. I do run much harder and longer in the mornings. The two-a-days let me run 10+ miles a day and not have any adverse effects like overuse injuries.

Last Sunday I had an extremely fast run nailing 56:44 on my 11 km run. It felt great to break an hour again and my legs were super strong on everything (hills, flats, rocks whatever). Yesterday my a.m. was brutal I never felt that my lungs, heart, and legs achieved sync. My heart rate was through the roof and 10 bpms faster than normal. My hydration was low and my lungs burned the whole time. I would tell my legs to move faster and step higher, but like naughty children, chose to ignore my pleas and rather they unresponsively tripped on every little obstacle and totally dragged. It was brutal but it was one of those runs that serve an important purpose and remind me that this is an endurance sport and there is a large dosage of enduring required to do well.

This morning found me running on a cold and rainy Canada Day (Happy Canada Day all my friends north of the 49th). I started out with the thought that I am going to focus on my uphills since the rain slows me down on the descents due to slippy rocks. So I hammered the uphills very hard. I felt OK and the first two summits were smooth but I ran out of gas on the third. It was an average run with a time of 1:00 hour even but my legs did have a little more spunk then the day previously. I then helped a neighbor move into a place down the street and I have decided that I am going to take the night off and Celebrate the great Country of Canada and then tomorrow I think I will run two very laid back runs to rest me up for Saturday's long run.

Today's song is a classic 80's and arguably a one hit wonder by Icicle Works. The song is called "Whisper to a Scream (Birds Fly)". I wandered upon it while spending time boosting my 80's collection a bit and forgot what a sweet song it is. I think the song is going to somewhat represent my training this year. My training barely would even be considered a whisper at the moment but it is going to build into a scream as I prep for a major 100 miler. I believe I will be running the Bear 100. I may also look at theStormy 50 or 100. I have a lot of work to do but I hope I will be screaming by the Fall! Enjoy this forgotten under-rated 80's classic!

Photographic Journey through a Mount Douglas Gutbuster training run (a slight variation) Trail Running Victoria, BC

On Father's day this year I decided to take my camera along with me on my run. This is not a simple task since my camera is not that compact. It has a 12x zoom and is pretty bulky. I have been wanting to document my average training run for quite some time so I finally decided to give it a go. It really didn't slow me down that much or make running that much more difficult but it did add about 20 minutes since I had to stop for each of the 200 photos I took. I held the camera the whole time and wrapped the strap around my wrist so I wouldn't drop it. So here is the course. The only variation is I start at point 26 on the map instead of point 1. This only changes the distance by less than 100 meters.

First I will post a video for people who prefer to see a trail live with music.

This is my starting point of my training run (point 26 on the map). I then head north or in the case of this photo follow the hiker on the sign on the Norn trail.

The first length of trail is very smooth and flat this is about 100 meters into the run at a place I call "the dip".

This stretch of trail is a rooty portion halfway between points 28 and 29 on the Norn trail. This length of trail has a very gently grade upward but is hardly noticeable.

Slight downward grade with some swerves between points 29 and 4.

Once again a narrow winding portion of trail between points 29 and 4. This portion of trail is flooded throughout the winter spring and after summer rainstorms.

This is the conjunction of Norn and Whitaker at point 4. The trail now gently climbs a shallow grade as it heads to the South-Southwest.

Just after point 4 and shows the typical trail conditions for the next couple hundred meters.

The trail now gives way to older growth Douglas Firs and more rocks and ferns and often has water flowing down the trail or standing water in the Spring and after storms.

The trail next climbs in a spot I call "the ferns". It is a short steep hill obviously drown in ferns just about to point 5.

You keep climbing toward point 5.

Classic stretch of flattish trail as you approach point 5.

You next have to "bob and weave" around these two arbutus trees between points 5 and 6.

A little climb leading to point 6.

A steep short climb onto the Churchill road crossing after point 6.

Point 7 begins the Irvine Climb.

This is where it starts climbing just after point 7.

Classic Irvine Climb

A nice stretch of trail next to a ledge with great views to the East towards Gordon Head and even Mount Baker.

Here is the view looking out.

The trail gets rocky as you approach point 9.

I call this slab the "rock ramp" can be quite slippy in the rain.

More climbing after the rock ramp.

This is the last steep stretch until the summit nicknamed the "Stone Staircase".

After the stone staircase there is a winding asphalt path that leads to the crow's nest at the summit. Approximately 500 feet of vertical elevation gained from the start of the run until the summit

Self timed summit shot with the gulf islands and mainland BC behind me across the Georgia Straight.

Summit shot without my mug in the view.

After the summit at point 10 you begin a rapid descent off the Northwest face of Doug know as the "Bedrock buster". A barren glacial scoured diorite face. This is a treacherous and technical trail and is where I am the most cautious. A miscalculation on this trail could seriously injure you. Rain only makes it worse and you have to move that much slower.

Typical footing and trail conditions as you descend the "Bedrock Buster".

Descending the buster

A stretch of trees along the Buster.

Last steep descent to point 11. Super steep here.

The trail between points 11 and 12 has slight uphill grade but is nice slice of rooty rocky single track.

Rocky approach to point 12 and starts the ascent of Little Mount Doug.

Begin climbing the short and steep north face of Little Doug.

Short and sweet climb up to LD.

The summit of Little Mount Doug with a lone arbutus tree. Big Doug through the branches of the Arbutus. Lastly a timer shot of me getting ready to take the plunge down the steep south face of LD.

Rocky and steep descent.

This is the last shot before I ate it and hit my camera lens on the ground. I was not happy but I think everything is OK.

Point 13 after running off from Little Doug.

The trail begins to head toward the trees at point 14. This is typical of the stretch between points 13 and 14. Rocky and barren with a slight decline. You can actually run this pretty fast if you pick the right line.

Average stretch of trail between points 14 and 15 and at point 15 the trail dives back into the forest.

When you enter back into the forest after point 15 you enter into a nice stretch of single track called Mercer. The trail has a steady decline that doesn't trash your quads but instead lets you really crank up the speed.

Classic Mercer!

Approaching point 17 along Madock.

Steep stretch between points 19 and 20 along the Whitaker Trail.

Whitaker.

At point 21 you begin your final climb up Big Doug via a steep rocky gulley up the South face.

The climb starts out very loose and sandy and then changes into a rocky almost stair-like climb.

Here is where it gets rockier.

Almost to the summit.

Some stairs leading to point 22 and the second Summit of Big Doug.

After summiting you begin your descent of the "powerline" trail but the top bit is quite overgrown this time of year.

Here is some footage of me running down the powerline grind. The video sucks because the lens cap was clicking against the mic (so turn the sound off) and also the video gets very dark when I reach the forest. The actual video wasn't so dark but once I uploaded it, it turned black. It does illustrate the section of trail somewhat but it definitely won't win any awards for best cinematography.

Commentary:

"I now have been running for just over 10 kms, this is my last km."

"I am going to try to record my last descent of Mount Doug."

"This trails pretty overgrown."

"The most technical part of it."

"The next section is pretty steep and smooth, only a few roots get in the way."

"You can't tell how steep most of this stuff is because I have to hold the camera at a downhill angle just to see the trail. It's actually pretty steep. A lot of the photos I took earlier don't really do them justice at all."

"Just about done, only a few more hundred meters to the car, and it is basically just flat single track."

After the powerline descent there is just a few hundred more meters until you are back at the car. This stretch of trail tends to stay wet and muddy .

Last log to hurdle.

Bust out of the trail and ferns into the parking lot.

Back where I started. 11 km later, 2 summits of Big Doug and 1 of little Doug.

This is a day in my life. I think that the variability of terrain and scenery make this a perfect spot to train. It really is amazing that this is what lies just beyond my doorstep and I get to play in one of the most beautiful playgrounds in the world. Perhaps the main thing the course lacks is searing heat, and some of the dusty rocky trails with loose gravel so many of the Western US ultras have. I would like to have a longer climb like 1,000 feet at least, I feel the mountain with 500 feet is a bit short. I do repeats but that still works different parts of your legs on the down instead of solid 3,000 feet of up hill and solid 3,000 feet of descent. There are some areas close by on the Island with bigger climbs but still nothing compared to what I had at my doorstep in Utah.

On a different note I followed the Western States 100 miler off and on yesterday on various web sites. What an awesome year. Two people beat Jurek's 2006 record of 15:36. Geoff Roes came in at 15:07 with an amazing awe-inspiring first place victory. Tony Krupicka came in 6 minutes behind him at 15:13 and still smashed Jurek's 4 year record. What a show! I don't know how I faired on the contest to guess the top 10 places of the runners but I do know several of my top 5 of both men's and women's didn't start so I doubt I won. Tracy Garneau won the women's with a strong race, there was a mistake at an earlier aid station leading many to believe she dropped but she was the winner. Ann Trason's record still held though. Just amazing to see these awesome records fall. Only the utmost respect for these titans of the trails.