What a busy week. The wife and I completely moved out of the snowbird home we were staying in for the summer and are now back to the joys of apartment living. We actually really love our new place and have been busy unpacking, painting, and trying our best to use the pool while it still hits the 90s each day. After last week's race I took it relatively easy. I did try to have some quality long runs toward the end of this week because at the time of writing this I have about 8 hours to officially decide if I want to venture out on Saturday the 20th to try my feet at a 50k. I feel strong enough but I have not logged enough long runs to feel confident. At this point I think I am gonna just go for it and start extra conservatively to get a feel what it feels like to be on my feet that long. We will see. Here is how post-race week went.
Monday October 8th
OFF
Tuesday October 9th
Urine Hill* Out n Back-5 miles (45 mins)
Was planning on running for longer but moving duties were calling my name and my legs were still a little sore.
*This route was aptly named because on my first exploration run out here I stopped to relieve myself atop of this little hill. Just so happens it became the turn around point for many a run. Hence the name.
Wednesday October 10th
OFF
No running today. Just lots of lifting and stair workouts with hands full of couches.
Thursday October 11th
Urine Hill Out n Back-5 miles (45 mins)
Last run on my classic route. Funny how you can get attached to running routes. I have yet to find a go to route at the new place. Given the fact that we are living in the flat city more it may be difficult to find a hilly course that will whet my appetite. The White Tanks are about 7 miles away so that might not be a bad option.
Friday October 12th
Rincon Rd.-Scenic Loop Ridge Out n Back-14 miles (1:52)
Had to tag along with the wife to Wickenburg in order to turn in paperwork for a job. After the job duties were complete I parked in a "parking lot" off of the dried up Hassayampa River down Rincon Road. I then ran the road up to a jeep trail turn off that linked with Scenic Road. I took this road down hill to another jeep turn off which led back up hill to a ridge trail that I cruised as far as I could before I was forced to turn around in order to make it back for lunch with the wife. My legs felt awesome on this run and this will go down as one of the best training runs I've had in quite a while. This route had a mix of everything so it was really good test of fitness.
Saturday October 13th
163rd-MT-Bell Road-15 miles (2:12)
I realized that if I wanted to give the
Cave Creek Thriller 50k a go I should at least experience what 30 miles feel like, even if it was over a 2-day span. This is probably not a good idea a week out from the race but I figured I would take it easy the rest of the week. I stayed in town to finish up moving stuff and had to drop off the borrowed car at the old house. This left me with only one mode of transportation to get back home...my feet. Now I could have skirted all the roads and made this run about half the length but what is the fun in that? I decided to run the
Maricopa Trail (MT) from the end of 163rd Ave. to Bell road and then would take Bell Road home. Because I knew this would be a relatively flat run I chose to wear my overused New Balance MT110s. I also only brought a small water bottle with me. Of course I under estimated the heat of the day and was out of water by about 7 miles. The MT was in pretty bad shape and very overgrown thanks to the monsoons we've had this summer. This caused my shoes to be quickly filled with sand. This only added to the frustration of the day's effort. After a quick break to rid my shoes of the desert I glanced up what does my parched self see ahead on the trail and what do I behold but an unlucky off-roader lost his bounty and was now fair game for any who happened upon it....ME.
 |
| 5 Perfectly Sealed Coors Light malt beverages begging for consumption. |
Now I was quite thirsty by this point and I would be lying if I said that I didn't stop and ponder over the choice of continuing thirsty, or the immediate gratification that would come if one, or some of these were consumed. Fortunately, my better judgment won out and I passed over the steamy cans of Rocky Mountain goodness. The main reason was because the mountains weren't blue...and the commercials say that the mountains must be blue. By the time I hit the road I was ready to quit. It was at this point that my feet started to feel a little weird and I noticed that my shoes had completely come apart. The laces had torn from some eyelets and the upper was separating on one of them. I trudged along for another 2 miles but finally had enough of the shoes and ditched them. The last three miles were completed unshod and this actually took my mind off the thirst and hunger.
So there it is. What did I learn this week. Well a couple of things.
#1. I HATE MOVING. I would rather run 15 miles in the desert with little water and drink warm beer than have to move. This week I did both. Fail.
#2. Active rest is key to recovery. After actively resting and intentionally taking some days easier my legs feel great and I am ready to race again.
#3. Always bring more water than you will think you need. Never know when you might change the route last minute or get lost.
Long winded I know..
Jog on mates!
No comments:
Post a Comment