Mountain Goat Battle of Allatoona Creek 9 Mile Trail Race

After last weekend’s Dirty Spokes race at Rope Mill park in Woodstock, I found a flyer for the Mountain Goat Trail Run Series under the windshield wipers on my car, as is common with most road or trail races. Normally, I say ‘hey I should do this race it sounds cool,’ then I completely forget about it shortly thereafter. Howevah, while Amanda and I were checking out the Woodstock/Kennesaw area we saw a poster with all the series race dates on the wall at and REI and low and behold the next race was a mere seven days away on April 14. I decided to see how my training went over the next couple days and if I was feeling it I would jump into the race, with the mindset of worst-case scenario I get another tempo run in. Fast forward to Thursday afternoon’s run…I was debating doing this race all week, but made the decision to go for it on Thursday. I had a solid workout on Tuesday and my legs felt pretty good, due to the fact that time constraints have forced me to run a lot of shorter doubles lately.

 

 

I woke up extra early Saturday morning (5:00 am) to get news clips for work done before making my way out to Acworth, GA. My GPS had some issues finding the actual location of the park that the race was at but I ended up noticing a couple cars with all the familiar signs of trail runners (26.2 stickers, USA Triathlon stickers, etc…triathletes love trails) around me and followed them to the parking lot. I parked, signed up, and since this was my first official race as a Saucony Hurricane I threw on my newly minted Vizi-Pro gear and headed out for a quick 1.5/2 mile warm up on the first part of the course. I ran into fellow Hurricane Mitch Novy, threw on my racing gear and we headed over to the starting area.

 

 

The race started out with a 5k in open grass fields before crossing the street and hitting the Turtleback mountain bike trails. Before starting a guy running in the five mile gave Mitch and I a quick rundown of what to expect on the mountain bike trails. He said they were fairly flat with one section that had a couple of switchback hills. Switchback hills seem to be par for the course in this area of Georgia. The gun (err…cowbell) went off and we started running down a gravel road that stretched out about 200 yards before hitting the grass fields. As I always try to do, I got out to the front to escape and carnage and since Mitch and I were wearing bright orange everyone else decided to settle in behind content to let us set the pace.

 

 

After letting things shakeout over the first quarter mile or so I decided to take advantage of the fact that the early part of this course was right in my wheelhouse and put in a small surge to see if anyone was going to respond to any early moves. The one thing that I still struggle with in these trail races is racing with a group on tight winding trails. I thought a little bit of a surge would stretch things out and by the time we hit the woods I’d know who the contenders where. My overall race plan was similar to how I approached the half, stay relaxed early, don’t get in over my head in the first few miles and then work the flats and down hills once I got through 5k.

 

 

My surge worked perfectly. Mitch and a few others stayed within contact but they started to let me drift away after about a mile. I felt absolutely great for the first 5k. I was running effortlessly and used the courses turns to continue to stretch my lead by surging out of them. This section of the course reminded me of the Tufts cross country course in Grafton if it were dead flat. I think my comfort on that type of course helped me run well without feeling like I was running hard. Thinking about running well at Tufts in high school and then winning ECAC cross country there as a sophomore in college only fed my confidence.

 

 

After rolling through the first 5k and building a solid lead we ran back through the starting area, across the street and into the trails. I used the first section of trail as a spot to continue to build my lead and try to make sure I was out of sight once we got into the tight, twisting single-track. Most of the race was actually fairly uneventful. It reminded me a lot of the Xterra half marathon. I was running in no man’s land for a long time and I alternated between worrying about whether I was getting caught and just trying to keep pressing to run away from everyone. One problem I ran into in the woods was the lack of mile markers. Mountain bike trails are tricky because the amount of twists and turns can not only slow you down by make it difficult to judge the distance you’ve traveled. No mile markers left me in a tough spot when I got deeper into the race. I knew there was a water stop at six miles (or 10k I’m not sure), but other than that my only other marker for distance was the finish line. I also never wear watch in races, which left me with no clue of how far I’d run and about mid-way through the race I started looking for the water stop around every turn.

 

 

Eventually I hit the water stop, took a little bit of GU and tried to refocus and close the race out over the final three miles. It’s funny, I’ve taken GU exactly twice. Once in the Xterra half and once last weekend, for about 60 seconds it’s like Popeye’s spinach, I absolutely hammer. Then, shortly after, I want to boot because it’s nasty. Although, the mandarin orange flavor wasn’t as bad as the strawberry banana. Anyway…after the water stop the course continued to have a few ups and downs but overall it was fairly flat. With about two miles to go I started passing lappers from the five mile race, which helped me keep pressing the pace as I tried to catch them. I scared the life out of one woman, who was running with her headphones in (grrr…) I yelled ‘on your left’ twice but she still didn’t hear and then when I passed her she let out a blood curdling scream. I felt kind of bad for scaring her, but like I’ve said before, headphones in a trail race when you might get lapped are not a good idea.

 

 

Shortly after that incident I passed through the section where the trail originally had split at about 3.5 miles, so I knew I only had about a half to go until I hit the finish. I tried to stride it out and drive through to the finish, I had a little hitch in my giddy up with some slight hamstring tightness but I was able to finish strong and hit the line at 55:08.

 

 

Overall I was really happy with the race. It was uneventful but I got in a really good rhythm through the first 5k and separated from the pack without using a ton of energy, then I was able to roll through the single­-track really well. I felt strong for most of the race, despite a little bit of hamstring tightness. As far as time goes, I generally equate these trail races as running a mile longer than their actual distance. What I mean is, I feel like whatever I run for the trail distance I should be able to run a similar time for a race that’s a mile longer on the road. For example, running 55:08 for nine miles on the trails, to me, means that I should be able to run a similar time for 10 miles on the road. That might not be 100 percent accurate but that’s my belief. This was a good long workout that should help set me up for next weekend’s Dirty Spokes trail race.

Training April 2 - April 8

Monday, April 2: GEHC Trails + Ivy Creek Greenway – 8 miles – Started the week off with an eight miler around the GEHC trails and then out and back on the greenway. I actually worked from home today, so I probably could have run further, but my legs were still feeling the 14 miler and the day of paintball from the last couple of days. I decided to get in a quality eight vs. a slower 10.

Tuesday, April 3: AM – GEHC Trails – 5 miles – Amanda and I had originally planned to go to trivia tonight and I wanted to get in 10 miles but didn’t think I’d have enough time to get it in after work. I woke up at 6:15, did my 45 or so minutes of news clips for work then headed out on the GEHC trails for five. It’s really nice running in the mornings right now. The temperature has been in the mid to high sixties everyday making it a little more comfortable than the afternoons.

PM – GEHC Trails – 5 miles – Got out of work and both Amanda and I seemed to be really tired. I headed back out for a quick five on the same out and back that I’ve been doing lately and then came home for dinner and an early bed time. Ten for the day.

Wednesday, April 4: Chicopee Woods – 11 miles – 8 sets 30-60-90s – I wanted to get another workout in on the tough terrain at Chicopee before Olde Rope Mill this weekend. I ran the same workout as last week, Coyote loop to Tortoise and White tail trails for 11 miles with 8 sets of 30-60-90 repeats. This week was much better than last week’s workout. I ran my repeats and my rest much better and finished my final set when I reached the creek crossing at the bottom of Granny’s climb, which means I fit in a whole set more before the creek than last week. I was hoping this would be a good confidence booster going into the weekend’s race, but after finishing, I just kind of felt okay. I was tired and I ran hard but I am still uneasy about how Saturday is going to go. I think I need to find something to mix my training up, whether it’s more miles or a couple of days of longer singles instead of doubles or finding a new place to run once or twice a week. I feel like I’m in a little bit of a rut after I ran the Running the Rocks race slower than I did last year. Made a road 5k is in order to see where I’m at in terms of fitness.

Thursday, April 5: AM GEHC Trails – 5 miles – Woke up early to get in another morning run. This is an old Keene State standby, double up on recovery days. I used to love doubling up on the day after workouts to get good mileage in but give my legs some extra time to recover.

PM GEHC Trails – 5 miles – Second run was the same as the first, but a little bit faster. I got 10 in for the day and let my legs recover a little bit, but still stayed on the hillier trails to try and keep my legs used to the up and down to be ready for Saturday.

Friday, April 6: GEHC Trails – 6 miles – I really wanted to get up and get my run done in the morning but ended up sleeping an extra 45 minutes and running after work. I changed it up a little bit today and went with two loops of the GEHC trails starting with the homesite trail to the creekside trail, up onto the paved section of the Cherokee trail, past the tree top adventure course and on to the sweet gum trail. My legs felt heavy, but that’s to be expected the day before a race.

Saturday, April 7: Dirty Spokes Olde Rope Mill Trail Race – 9.5 miles – Amanda and I left a little bit later than I had originally planned, so we missed out on parking down at the trailhead/starting area…this did not turnout well. After walking down to the registration area I realized I needed to hit the portos, the line was wicked long and by the time I got back to our picnic table staging area to put on my singlet and shoes I had about 10 minutes before the start of the race. I warmed up for about 90 seconds and then headed over to the start. I settled down after about two miles and ran in third where I ended up finishing. The course actually wasn’t as bad as I remembered, in terms of the number of switchbacks but it was still pretty rough. I wasn’t pumped about my race but then I realized I ran about a minute faster than I did on the same course last year, so that was positive. I cooled down three miles and ended up running another three when we got home. After the race I saw a flier for the Mountain Goat race series, which has a 9 mile race in Acworth, GA next weekend. I’m not sure yet but I think I might drive out and jump in it just for spits and whistles.

PM – GEHC Trails – 3 miles – Due to the fact that I didn’t get a chance to warm up and with the ruggedness of the course I decided to do a three mile shakeout after we got home. 12+ miles on the day.

Sunday, April 8: Ft. Yargo State Park – 14 miles – After yesterday’s race I wanted to get something nice and easy in on Sunday, so I went to Ft. Yargo and double looped the hiking trail for 14 again. I actually felt pretty good despite the tough race, but I think the fact that I did a short shakeout when we got home helped. Stopped at Krispy Kreme for some Easter donuts before getting home then cleaned up the kitchen and bathroom. Hit Mellow Mushroom for lunch (they have the best BBQ chicken pizza I have ever had) then just laid low for the rest of the day.

Weekly Totals: 71 miles on nine runs – I feel really good about this week. I hit 70 miles, which is right where I want to be. Looking back on Saturday’s race, I feel good about that too. Granted I got steam rolled by the eventual winner and ran some of the early part of the race a little soft and ended up leaving myself with too much work to do I still made the podium and ran faster than I did on that course last year. I have accepted the fact that there are going to be days that I only have time to run 5 in the morning and 5 in the evening so I am hoping to make sure that I am running at least 10 a day even if its split up with some longer runs on the weekends. I think that is definitely doable for the next couple of months until it starts to get really hot and I have to move to just AM runs. Next week, I’m looking to hit 70-75 miles and maybe throw in a race on Saturday (maybe not), I’m kind of on the fence but I figure I’ll make a decision on Thursday. I’ll also plan on throwing in another 30-60-90 workout. This time I’m going to run at Gainesville State to prep for the next race in the Dirty Spokes series in two weeks.

Training March 26 - April 1

Monday, March 26: Zero – I had another late day of work and didn’t end up finishing until around 7:30. At that point I was too tired and hungry to get out the door, but I vowed to make up for the missed miles by running in the morning on Tuesday and Wednesday to make sure I still hit between 65-70 miles this week.

Tuesday, March 27: AM – GEHC Trails – 5 miles – Woke up a little early to get in a morning five before work. It was slow going but really nice out, overall it was a great morning for a run. I ran out on the sweet gum trail to the GEHC trails down to the bottom of creekside and then back the same way for five.

PM – Chicopee Woods – 10 miles – After work I went back to Chicopee Woods to run on the mountain bike trails. I ran the coyote, tortoise and white tail trails, which total a little more than 10 miles. It is starting to get hot, mid to upper 80s every afternoon so I need to make sure I stay on top of my hydration during the day. I should probably look into either getting a hand-held water bottle or structuring my runs with the ability to stop for some water if necessary. I was dead tired when I got home and passed out on the coach while reading. I woke up completely disoriented and confused. It was 8:30 pm, but I thought that I had slept through the night in the recliner in the living room. It was a bizarre minute or two.

Wednesday, March 28: AM – GEHC Trails – 5 miles – Ran the same morning run as yesterday, so that after this afternoon’s run I will be caught up on my mileage for the week. This afternoon I’ve got a 30-60-90 workout planned, but we’ll see how it goes since I just found out that I’m playing golf around 11.

PM – Chicopee Woods – 10 miles – 8 sets of 30-60-90s - I warmed up on the coyote loop (2.7 miles), which was a little bit long of a warm up but I wanted to run the workout without running the tortoise trail twice as it usually has high mountain bike traffic. About five minutes into the warm up I knew it was going to be a long afternoon. I tried to stay hydrated while golfing but that clearly didn’t work. I started my repeats with the idea of doing six sets but figured that if I could manage eight sets it would probably bring me closer to the end of the run. My first few sets were a little rough. I had trouble recovering after the 30 second periods, even though I was trying to run a similar pace for each one. I battled through three sets and felt like I should do eight total because my rest was a little suspect and I knew that if I didn’t do those extra sets I would end up dogging it back to the car for the last two or three miles. I managed to work in a couple of good 60 & 90 second reps but continued to struggle with the rest and maintaining my pace the whole way through. I am definitely chalking some of that up to the heat and the fact that I spent the whole day in the sun. Mercifully I reached the creek crossing at the bottom of granny’s climb (a three or so minute climb out of the bottom of a little valley back up to the parking lot level). At the base of the climb I stopped and dunked my head in the water then hit my watch for the final set of repeats up the hill. I made it to the top and back onto the tortoise loop with one final 90 second repeat left. After finishing that I took the rest and then tried to run the final 1.5-2 miles with a decent pace back to the car.

It wasn’t a great overall workout in terms of the pace of both the repeats and the rest but I am glad I got in a hard effort day on difficult terrain (Chicopee is one of the hillier runs around with a lot of ups and downs). And that the end of the day that’s what I wanted a hard day on tough terrain because the Olde Rope Mill race coming up is tough terrain.

Thursday, March 29: GEHC Trails – 10 miles – This was a little bit of a weird run but man did it feel good to get it over with in the morning. I woke up a little early again because we have a seminar for work all day downtown. I ran out and back on the GEHC trails for five then out and back on the greenway for another five to get in 10. It’s really nice to be done with running early. Now I just have to get through this seminar.

Friday, March 30: AM – GEHC Trails – 5 miles – Amanda worked early today so got up and got an easy five in this morning before work. This is becoming my go to morning run. It’s a little bit nicer than just running the greenway because it’s got a few more hills in it, well actually it has hills and the greenway is completely flat.

PM – GEHC Trails – 5 miles – Same run as this morning. Nothing special, but I do run it two or three minutes faster in the afternoon than I do in the morning. It must my muscles a little time to wake up. Ten miles for the day.

Saturday, March 31: GEHC Trails – 5 miles – I ended up dialing it back a little bit today. I’ve been feeling pretty tired the last couple of days and decided to just run five to get something in and then I spent the rest of the day out in Canton, GA playing paintball. I was running around in the sun for four or five hours so I’m fine with only running five this morning.

Sunday, April 1: Ft. Yargo State Park – 14 miles – After taking it easy yesterday I decided to close out the week with a solid long run. I drove over to Ft. Yargo and ran two loops of the hiking trail to get 14 miles on the day. I left a little bit late this morning so by the time I got to the park it was starting to warm up. This run, unlike the 13 mile mountain bike trail, has a couple of places to stop for water which I had to do on the second loop. Other than getting hot on the second loop this was a solid run. It was aa little slower than last time I was out here but only by a minute or two and I think that had a lot to do with the heat. After the run I went to Five Guys for a burger and cherry coke.

Weekly Totals: 69 miles on nine runs – This was my highest week mileage-wise since around this time last year and I got in 253 miles in March, which is a little bit low but still my highest month since last April. I’m happy with the mileage (I should have added a mile to get 70 but 69 works) but I would prefer to do it on fewer runs. I like doubling but if I’m going to double more than two days a week I want to get one longer run so it breaks down to something like 8 and 5 or 7 and 3 instead of 5 and 5, but that was kind of the hand that I was dealt last week. I don’t really have any kind of strict training plan; right now I am just kind of running and trying to stay consistent. In that respect I’ve done pretty well. Next week, I’m aiming for another 65-75 miles with a workout before the Olde Rope Mill trail race (race three of the Dirty Spokes series). I will probably do another 30-60-90 workout at Chicopee to simulate the terrain for that race.

Side note: Before posting this I was reading a couple of fellow Keene State alum blogs and saw mentions of arm warmers, gloves and half tights because of the cold. I guess I should complain about how hot it is just yet.

Training March 19 - March 25

Monday, March 19: Gwinnett Environmental & Heritage Center Trails – 7 miles – Ran two loops of the sweet gum trail and added an inner loop of the stream ecology trail. This was a pretty hilly run, nothing too crazy in terms of length but a lot of up and down with a couple of steep climbs and steep drops. Amanda made a St. Paddy’s day dinner tonight since she worked this weekend, corned beef with boiled potatoes, carrots and biscuits, and she topped it off with homemade mint Oreos. Pintrest may be a girly website, but my stomach is certainly reaping some benefits from it.

Tuesday, March 20: Gainesville State College – 11 – After work I drove over to Gainesville State to get in two loops of the mountain bike trail (5.5ish per loop). This is another staple run for me…it’s relatively flat, so it was a good place to run after yesterday’s hilly run. This is also the site of one of the Dirty Spokes series races, so I like to get out on it whenever I can to keep that ace up my sleeve of knowing the course really well, even if I did get dusted by Ferenc when he came down to run it last year. Prior to the run I was a little nervous as my left foot started bothering me after yesterday’s run but it wasn’t too bad once I got going. It did bother me when I got home after getting out of the shower, so I definitely need to keep that in mind over the next few days. I think it’s probably just another slight sprain or strain, which I get from time to time due to terrain or old shoes. It’s probably time to invest in a new pair of daily trainers.

Wednesday, March 21: GEHC Trails – 9 miles – I got out of work a little late today so I had to bag the trip to Chicopee Woods that I was planning due to the fact that it takes about an hour and a half to do the run I had planned and I’m not sure what time they close the gates at this point in the year. I ended up heading home and doing a modified version of my normal run adding a loop of the stream ecology trail to make the run nine instead of the usual eight. I’m pretty happy with the way this week is shaping up mileage wise, now I just need to keep it up.

Thursday, March 22: AM – GEHC Trails – 5 miles – With trivia tonight I wanted to get in 10 and I wasn’t sure how much time I’d have after work so I got up a little early and hit the trails for an out and back five to start the day. I am planning in getting out for another five tonight. My foot was still a little tender at the start of the run but once I got going it loosened up and felt alright. I’ve run the last two days in a pair of high cushion shoes that I have left over from working at GBRC and I think that’s helped. I need my Saucony order to come in ASAP.

PM – Ivy Creek Greenway – 5 miles – Hit the greenway for an easy out and back five miles after I got out of work to get myself 10 on the day. It was nice to spilt today’s runs with five in the am and pm, usually I like to run a little longer on one of the runs but I was just looking to get 10 on the board for today.

Friday, March 23: Chicopee Woods – 10 miles – Today was a little bit of a weird day. I got out of work a little early, but then ended up having to do a few things from home, so I didn’t get out to start my run as early as I wanted to, howevah…it ended up working out well because a little bit of rain and the late hour cooled things off and kept the trail clear of anyone else. Before I get into the details here’s some info about Chicopee Woods. This is another mountain bike trail system that I am fortunate enough to be able to run on. It features something like 20 miles of single track and actually had trails ranked in terms of difficulty like a ski resort. Whenever I go to Chicopee I tend to say on three of the trails, the coyote loop (2.7 miles), the tortoise trail (2.5) and the white tail trail (5.3). Normally I will link those three together to get 10.5 or add the 1.7 mile red tail trail to get 12ish.

The tortoise trail is the gateway to most of the trail system but I find that because this is a hilly area and some of the trails are tight a lot of the people that ride out here tend to ride the more difficult copperhead gap or flying squirrel trails, this allows for a peaceful coexistence between runner and mountain biker on these trails…a far cry from Gainesville State, which I like to run, but almost always run into people that are not paying attention, listening to their ipods and zoning out on the trail. Not a good idea!

Saturday, March 24: Ft. Yargo State Park – 13 miles – Woke up at 7:00 to knock out the news clips for the day then headed over to Ft. Yargo for a run on the mountain bike trail. It was an awesome morning for a run. I definitely need to make it over here earlier in the morning more often. It was nice and cool in the trees for the first few miles then warmed up as the run went on. The pipeline hill was still brutal in both directions but overall it was a nice smooth run. I think I came in around 1:45, which is pretty standard for this loop on a normal day. After I got back home, Amanda and I went to Five Guys, which is one of my favorite things to do after running for nearly two hours…nothing like a burger and cherry coke to recover.

Sunday, March 25: Ivy Creek Greenway – 5 miles – I hit 60 in six days this week so I decided to back off a little on Sunday to give my body a little bit of a break. I thought about running 10, 8, 5 or just taking the day off, but decided that I would rather get something in and I haven’t been running huge mileage or anything terribly fast so I settled on five and will look to continue to build my mileage to the 65-75 range next week.

Weekly Totals: 65 miles on eight runs – Overall I am happy with the week. I increased my mileage after having a little bit of a dip over the last couple of weeks. From here on out I would like to at least average 10 miles per day with a couple of shorter days mixed in and a few longer ones to balance everything out. I figure I’ve still got a couple months before the temperatures begin to soar and I have to reduce my mileage and go back down to running about an hour per day in the morning. Next week I need to get the ball rolling on workouts. I’ve got some stuff coming up with work so I’m thinking of a longer tempo run at Chicopee or maybe mile repeats one the GEHC trails. My goal for the week is to be between 65 and 75 in terms of miles. I’d love to jack my miles up into the 80’s or 90’s but for now I’m going to stick with the range I’m in and see how that works. Next race on the calendar is the Dirty Spokes Olde Rope Mill trail race on April 7^th. That was my worst race of the series last year, so hopefully I will be able to run better there this year.

Trainin March 12 - March 18

Monday, March 12: Zero – Day off – I had high hopes of getting up this morning and getting a run in before heading to the airport to fly back to Georgia, but that faded quickly after I got up, did some work and realized that I needed to pack for the flight. We made it home in good time and avoided most of the nightmarish traffic on I-85 but I still couldn’t drag myself out for a run and decided to call it another day off. This isn’t going to help my goal of getting my miles back up. I guess that means I’ll have to go long on Sunday.

Tuesday, March 13: Ivy Creek Greenway – 8 miles – Got back into the swing of things with an 8 mile afternoon run. I once again had hopes of running in the morning before work but I woke up to heavy rain and complete darkness. I forgot that the sun doesn’t come up until around 7:30 with daylight savings time going into effect over the weekend. The downside is running in the AM and getting out of bed in general is a little tougher but it means the sun will be up until almost 8 now. My legs were a little heavy today, but I’m assuming that’s a result of traveling and not running yesterday. I really should have done a shakeout or a pair of shakeouts before I left and then when I got back instead of worrying about not having time to run 7 or 8 on Monday morning.

Wednesday, March 14: Ivy Creek Greenway – 8 miles – My legs still felt a little heavy to start today’s run but I felt better as I went on. We are trying out a couple new catering services at work so I ate way too much and drank way to little water today. The temperate has started to settle into that nice 70-80 range but it takes a couple days of running in that to get used to it.

Thursday, March 15: Ivy Creek Greenway – 8 miles –Another borderline hot day. Nothing too exciting, just the standard eight mile loop up to the GEHC and then out and back on the greenway. For the fourth consecutive day my legs have been really heavy at the start of the run…I’m probably paying for eating like crap and running so little last week while I was back home. Saturday’s race could be ugly.

Friday, March 16: Ivy Creek Greenway – 6 miles – I was originally planning on running my standard eight mile run today but it was another hot day and I was already worried about my legs not being lively enough for tomorrow’s race so I went with a shorter version that I’m calling six. It was probably a little shorter but I’m calling it six.

Saturday, March 17: Dirty Spokes Running the Rocks 10k – 10 miles total – I’ll do another race recap for this one but it went about the way I expected it. Two mile warm up, 6.2 mile race, two mile cool down. The race went out fast as it starts on a slightly down hill/flat gravel road for about a mile before heading into the woods. Tim (the Dirty Spokes RD) changed the course up a little bit from last year and that made it a little bit tougher in the early going. A fast first mile and hilly second and third mile had me struggling to find a rhythm until things leveled out around four miles. I ended up third, but ran much slower than this race last year. I’m caulking it up to the fact that I haven’t done a workout in a couple of weeks and that my mileage dropped. I need to work on getting my mileage up to stay at the front of the pack in these races. I did manage to grab another 14 points in the age group series and I should be tied for the lead in the 25-29 group through two races.

After the race I met up with my brother, who was in town with a friend on their way back from Daytona Beach. We hit Dillards for some BBQ and then did about three hours of climbing and swinging in the trees on the ropes course at the GEHC. I was totally gassed by about 7pm.

Sunday, March 18: Ft. Yargo State Park – 14 miles – I got a late start on the day and didn’t decide where I wanted to run until about 11, normally on the weekend I plan out my Saturday and Sunday runs during the week. I decided to go out to Yargo and run the inner loop (7 miles) twice to get a nice long run in. Typically, when I head out to Yargo I run the mountain bike loop or the half marathon course but since it was around 12:15 by the time I got out there I wanted to be able to stop at the car and grab some water half way through, so I went with two loops of the hiking trail. The first one went well. I stopped at the beach campground to splash some water on my face and the back of my neck and then stopped at the car for some drinking water and a half a honey stinger waffle, which really helped me on the second lap. The second time around I saw a couple walking a Vizsla that I seriously considered stealing. I cruised for most of the run and finished in 1:36 and change. It’s kind of crazy how much the mountain bike loop adds. It took me 1:36 to run 14 today and two weeks ago I ran the 13.1 half marathon course in reverse in 1:50. Oosh. Post run I hit up Barberitos for a grilled chicken burrito.

Weekly Totals: 54 miles on six runs – Overall, I’m pretty happy with this week. It was tough for me to get going early on and I was a little down after taking Monday off, but I bounced back pretty well with another solid 50+ mile week including one okay race. Now it’s time to step up my mileage. I need to add in 2-3 10+ runs during the week, which most likely means at least one trip to Chicopee and Gainesville State a piece each week after work. I also want to play with my daily runs a little bit. After talking to Matt Rivers on Saturday he told me that in high school they did workouts on the hilly trails at the GEHC. I am thinking of mixing up a couple loops of the Stream Ecology trail into some of my runs. This trails is .82 miles and whichever way you run it, it contains two steep drops and two steep climbs in quick succession. After Saturday’s race I really need to work on finding a rhythm when running terrain like that, especially with the up and down switchbacks coming up at the Olde Rope Mill race.

Training February 27 – March 4

Monday, March 5: Zero – Day off – My back was really, really bothering me today. When I woke up in the morning I contemplated not running, then as the day went on I thought about just trying to get in three or five, but after getting out of work late and nearly collapsing in pain from trying to walk up the slight hill to get the mail. I’m thinking I just strained or sprained something and it will hopefully go away in a day or two with some rest. Depending on how I feel tomorrow I may just try to get five in for the next couple of days until it subsides.

Tuesday, March 6: Ivy Creek Greenway + Sweet Gum Loop – 8 miles – My back was feeling a little bit better today but still a little bit tight. I hit the Sweet Gum Loop and then went out and back on the Greenway trail for eight. I’m looking forward to going back home to Massachusetts for a couple of days later this week. Hopefully I will get a couple good runs in up there.  

Wednesday, March 7: Ivy Creek Greenway + Sweet Gum Loop – 8 – miles – Flying home this afternoon, so I got out the door early for my standard eight mile run. This run is turning into my go to everyday run, which is nice because the seven mile version can get a little bit boring due to the fact that I start and end with the two loops of the same half mile trail.

Thursday, March 8: Middleton Reservoir trails – 7 miles – It took me a little while to actually get out for this run, but it was an absolutely beautiful day so I didn’t mind running a little later. The Rez (as it’s affectionately known) has always been one of my favorite places to run. The main trail is not a very long run but it’s a nice half loop around the town reservoir. It’s almost impossible to run this in July and August because of the horse flies but in the spring and fall is a great place to run. I started out at the house and ran along the old rail road tracks up to rt. 114, crossed 114 on to Lake Street then down onto the dirt road to the entrance to the main rez trail. I ran the out and back without veering off any of the main trails and met up with my buddy Chris, who was out hiking with his dog. I walked and chatted with Chris for a bit before heading back home the way I came.

Friday, March 9: Middleton Reservoir trails – 7 miles – After pleading with my young brother to run with me yesterday I got him to agree to run with me today. I told him we’d only go five but that we’d run without a watch so I was able to trick him into running seven. He didn’t really mind as I let him set the pace. He’s in better shape than he thinks but now that he’s a Marine he hasn’t really been running as many miles as he used to. He’s more of a gym rat now.  

Saturday, March 10: Middleton Reservoir trails – 7 miles – Woke up to a dusting of snow on the ground, no real accumulation as it wasn’t sticking to the roads. I ran the same exact run as yesterday but it was a little slower because of a few slick spots with the snow and much cooler temps. Most of the trail was clear by the time I made the turnaround at the Boston Street gate. After running, Amanda and I met up with Chris for a two-plus hour hike on some of the other trails later in the day.

Sunday, March 11: Middleton Reservoir trails – 7 miles –Same run as yesterday but it was still a little colder than am used to. Pretty much all of my runs this week have been “just getting the miles in” runs, which isn’t a big deal but I wish I would have gotten in a few more miles. After running and eating a great brunch Josh drove down from VT and we went for another two-plus hour hike with Amanda and Josh’s dogs (aka the girls).

Weekly Totals: 44 miles on six runs – This was my lowest week in five or six weeks, but that’s a result of the day off. Had I not taken Monday off I would have gotten around 52 miles for the week and that’s without a long run. I really should have tried to get something long in while I was home with another race coming up on Saturday, but it just didn’t happen. Next week I am looking to get back above 50 and hopefully run well at Running the Rocks on Saturday. We’ll see happens. After the race I really want to start to work on getting my miles up over 60 and into the 70’s. I’m still a little bit nervous about my back as it has bothered me all week long. I need to work on stretching it out and maybe look into getting a massage.

Training February 27 – March 4

Monday, February 27: Hog Mountain Trail – 5 miles – Got out for an easy five at work during lunch. I’m heading to the Atlanta Sports Awards tonight so I decided to get in a shorter run rather than take a zero for the day. I’m not a huge fan of this run as the trail is only about a mile and a half long and other than that there aren’t any great places to run right around the office, but I added on enough to call it five. My hamstring and foot are starting to feel a lot better. I need to make sure I take more time to stretch after runs though.

 

 

Tuesday, February 28: Ivy Creek Greenway – 8 miles – Started out with a loop up by the GEHC on the Creekside trail, down the Sweet Gum trail and then out and back on the greenway. I took it easy again today as my hamstring is still a little tight at times from the race on Saturday. It absolutely poured for about five minutes on the way back to the house. Not fun getting completely soaked but at least it didn’t last long. Hopefully I can avoid the storms we’re supposed to get over the next few days.

Wednesday, February 29: Ivy Creek Greenway – 8 miles – Pretty much the same run as yesterday. Nothing too exciting, still wet out but at least it’s warm. I didn’t get started until almost 6:00 pm so pretty much the entire last 20 minutes of the run where in the dark. I actually had to jump up to the mall road for a little bit because the trail was pitch black.

Thursday, March 1: Ivy Creek Greenway – 6 miles – I got out of work late and Amanda and I go to trivia on Thursday nights, so I didn’t have a lot of time to get this run in. I started out with two loops on the homesite trail and then ran out and back on the greenway to get six. I’m not really happy with the two shorter days I’ve had this week but if I can get in eight tomorrow it will average out to seven per day during the week, which is what I was hoping to get in this week.

Friday, March 2: Ivy Creek Greenway – 8 miles – Got in 8 today, added a mile to the run to supplement the fact that I only ran six yesterday. Thankfully, I got it in before the heavy rain storms moved in. We actually had tornado warnings for a couple of hours when it got really rough, but luckily no damage.

Saturday, March 3: Ivy Creek Greenway – 8 miles – I had to hang around the apartment to be on call for work so I settled for a run on the GEHC and greenway trails. It was a little muddy from the rain but other than that not too bad. Probably a good thing I stayed around the house as most of the local mountain bike trails were closed from the storms.

Sunday, March 4: Ft. Yargo State Park – 13 miles – Normally when I run at Yargo, I get up eat something quick, (English muffin or something) and head out. Today Amanda made a big breakfast with French toast and bacon, so I had to hang out for a bit and digest before I ran. I definitely didn’t drink enough water before this run and it became a death march for the final four miles. The slight blister on my big to was incredibly annoying and I think I took a bad step or two because when I sat down to stretch I really struggled to get back up because of lower back pain. I’ll have to keep an eye on this. Other than that it was a nice easy long run. Even though I started late I didn’t see anyone for the first couple of miles, but by the time I got half way through I saw a bunch of bikers…I guess I don’t have to feel bad about running on the trail after some rain.

Weekly Totals: 56 miles on seven runs – Good recovery week after last week’s race. I’m happy that I managed to keep my mileage above 50 despite a five mile and six mile day. I’ve got three weeks at 55ish under my belt now and I’m starting to feel like I’m getting a decent base of fitness. Due to the fact that Amanda and I are going home for a few days next week I’m not planning on increasing my mileage. I’m hoping to stay right around 55 and then the next week I will start to increase my mileage with some longer runs during the week. I’ll probably start going up to Gainesville state after work and working in some morning or lunch time runs as well. I know I’m not going to run 100-mile weeks, but I’d love to run in the 70-80 mpw range with some consistency.