Missoula Marathon Recap

I have been slacking off on writing anything in awhile because I just haven't had much to write about.  Over the weekend I ran marathon #25 the Missoula Marathon so now I have something!

Overall I was happy with how I ran and the marathon itself.  Depending on where you are coming from Missoula, MT can be easy or hard to get to.  There are several direct flights from Denver and Minneapolis each day.  We (my wife and I) flew in on Friday and after dropping our stuff off at the hotel (the Hilton Garden) and unpacking we decided to load up on some carbs.  The best way to do that is visiting some local craft breweries.  We went to several but Bayern Brewing which specializes in German beers was our favorite.  There are several other craft breweries worth trying such as Big Sky, Flathead and Tamarack Brewing.

On Saturday we went early to the expo, it is held in an outdoor pavilion near the same place as the finish for the marathon.  It was not that big but was organized pretty well.  They use virtual swag bags in that they send you coupons and offers via e-mail to use at local retailers or online.  The bags and t-shirts they handed out are nice, I always like when you get a reusable marathon bag rather than a plastic one because they come in handy.  You write your bib # on the bag with a marker rather than a tag or label.  We spent the rest of the morning eating breakfast and walking around downtown Missoula.  They had a farmers market along with a few other things so it was a bit busy in places.   In the afternoon I went back to the hotel to rest and prepare for the race the next day.  We tried to go to a chain Italian restaurant for dinner but the wait was 90 minutes so we ended up eating at the hotel restaurant.  It makes no difference to me where I eat the night before a race because I just want to get some pasta and not eat anywhere it takes too long to get food.

Sunday morning was race day, this is an early start race in that it begins at 6 AM.  The course starts outside Missoula and they bus you out there.  They had buses at the University of Montana taking you out there starting at 4:15.  I got out to the start over an hour before the beginning of the race so I sat down around a building and talked with 3 women who sat down nearby.  Two were from British Columbia (one was running her first marathon) and the other was from Oklahoma.  The one from Oklahoma is named Camille Herron and is an elite runner who was very nice, here is a picture of them from the start: MM-Start

The start of the race you funnel through a small start arch and they set off cannon and fireworks which was kind of cool.

I decided beforehand I was going to do something different for this race.  I start out too fast in marathons and then end up paying a price for it in the last 5 miles.  This time I decided I'm going to stick with a pace group for at least half the marathon.  I picked the 3:40 pacer and had to go fast to catch up with them in the first mile or so but I stuck with them through half the race.  I ended up talking with lots of people that were running around the pacer.  I made a point of always trying to catch up to them after water stops or when I used the bathroom. After the halfway point you reach the only significant hills on the course.  The pace group kept up the same pace but my breathing started getting erratic so I fell back.  Missoula is lower elevation than where I live so I should not have gotten out of breath but you adapt to the conditions facing you.  I should also point out that it had been in the 90's the last few days in Missoula and race day was supposed to the hottest day.  Luckily the race starts early and it warms up slowly but it was still a bit warm.

Miles 15-22 went by in a blur, the only significant thing I remember is around mile 16 there was a guy playing a grand piano on his lawn in a tuxedo!   It was very neat to see and hear at the time because it was in an area where it was quiet, shaded and there was a river on the right.  It was one of the few times where I wished I carried a camera phone when I ran.

Miles 22-26.2 were in the city and went around various blocks with a number of turns.  There were a number of holes in the road to watch out for at this point.  At this point I was dumping water on my hat and down my back at water stops to cool off.   The other thing I didn't want to do is get leg cramps in the final miles.  I have had this happen and usually it is caused by taking longer strides than I should.  I was relatively cramp free up until the last couple miles and only got one in the final sprint to the finish.  You finish by running across the Higgins Street bridge and I was able to get a good kick going at the end.  I ended up finishing in 3:55 which is more than the 3:40 - 3:50 that I wanted but still less than 4 hours (which is always my secondary goal).

They have a huge contingent of half marathoners that run this race and they start at the same time so there really wasn't much food left when we got done.  It's not a big deal to me because I just want fluids after a race and they had your choice of Big Sky beer at the end which was great!


A few pictures:

With Camille Herron after the race - the female winner of the marathon who I met at the beginning:

The finisher's medal - the biggest I have in my collection

Overall I recommend this race because it is well organized and well supported.  You do need to be prepared depending on where you live because the elevation in Missoula is above 3,000 feet although the course it self is not that hilly.

Traveling and running

My job requires me to travel on occasion.  Sometimes I will be traveling back and forth to the same city for a project for months others times it is like this week where I am somewhere just for the week.  I've had to travel for work for over a decade so I have a few ways that I can keep training while on the road:
- I always pack workout clothes for every single day.
- Check the weather for where you are going so you can be prepared if you are running outside.  It's been raining here so I'm glad I brought my rain running coat.
- Check to see if your hotel has a gym, if they don't I find a local one that has daily or weekly rates.  I've joined gyms for several months while on a longer term project just so I can have a place to work out.
- I stay at hotels that at least have a fridge in the room so I don't have to eat out all the time.  I go to local grocery store on the first day and get some fruit and food I can have for breakfast and dinner if possible.
- Do a little research on where you are going to figure out running routes.  If you are in a place where it is not conducive to running outside then most hotels at least have a treadmill.

Greetings from Calgary and have a good week!

Weekly Recap

Last week turned out to be a very good and little bit bad week.

On Saturday I went out for what I thought would be a 16 mile run, due to all the various side routes I took I ended up going 19.  I have a marathon on July 13th so I am ahead of where I expected to be at this point.  I actually wanted to keep my miles down before this race so I don't go in with dead legs but I might consider 20 this week.  The last marathon in April I felt worn out so I'm trying to hold back to have a better race.  The weather has been really good here in Colorado for morning runs so it just seems effortless to keep going.  This morning I planned on going 6-7 miles and ended up just over 8 miles. 

Sunday I went out trail running at a place named Deer Creek Canyon.  They have various trails to take but I usually go on this one loop that is 2.75 miles and do a couple laps.  Part of the trail is also a mountain bike trail so you have to watch out for bikes.  The trail starts at 6,000 and goes up for another 1,000 and then back down through some very rocky parts.  The first lap was no problem, on the second lap I was dodging two bikes, hit a rock with my toe and went down.  I ended up scraping up my right knee but just got up and kept running.  My toe was bit sore the next couple days but it is better now and it was nothing to keep me from running.

My upcoming schedule is the Missoula Marathon in July, the Revel Marathon in August and the Bear Chase trail 50k in September.  These are all different types of races so I will be doing all different types of running training.  The Missoula is a regular marathon, the Revel is a downhill marathon and the Bear Chase is a trail race.  This summer will be a chance to try different things because I don't have to travel as much for work.

Two new pairs of shoes I really like: Adidas Glide Boost 6 (for regular training and long runs) and the Brooks Cascadia 9 (for trail).

If anyone has any training tips for my upcoming races feel free to leave a comment.

The Lone Runner

I ran my two 10k races for the year and accomplished my goal of finishing faster than the year before.  Now it is time to train for the Missoula Marathon on July 13th.  Considering I have about month of training before I taper I am trying something a little different.  I will run every single day and do a long run every weekend but I am not going to go over 20 miles on my longest run.  I think I was over trained for the last marathon and it showed in my time.  Also it is getting warmer so really long runs require lots of water and fluids, I can run around places and keep refilling my water bottle but it does take a toll on your pace.

This weekend I got to go to one of my favorite places to run and cross train - Red Rocks Amphitheater.  This is what it looks like at about 6:30 on a Sunday morning:

There are so many options for running and cross training that you are only limited by what you are willing to try.  I did some stair running, planks, dips, pushups, box jumps, lunges and step jumps.  I spent about 90 minutes out there and even though the altitude is only about 700-800 feet higher than where I live you can really feel it.  A good rule of thumb is that however much water you usually bring when working out bring double that to Red Rocks because it is warm and very sunny.

I went for a longer run of just over 14 miles on Saturday and I was thinking about a couple of the people I know through social media who were going on group runs.   Many people belong to running groups or have a training partner.  In most of my years of running I have run alone other than running with a friend every now and then when I was training for my first marathon.  I thought about it for awhile and this is the only way that I can train and be ready for races.  There are times where I am traveling a great deal for work so I won't join a running group locally.  Plus I wake up really early (by 3:30 - 4 AM most days) and don't want to wait several hours to run with a group (yes, I run in the dark a fair amount).  I'm self motivated so I run, lift, etc. without needing to be pushed by a group or a partner.  There are days when I am sore (like today, my calves are sore) so I didn't run as hard because that is a way to risk injury.  I think everyone has their own pace so trying to conform to somebody else's pace can lead to bad form or hurting yourself.  Maybe some people do it for the social aspect of being around people with similar interests?    The more I thought about it the more I realized I like running alone, it allows me to clear my thoughts or think through a work problem or just let my mind wander.  I can talk to people before or afterwards but I don't really want to have to talk to someone while running.

I'm curious how many other people out there are Lone Runners?  Would you rather run in a group or alone?
 

Bolder Boulder Recap

Yesterday was Memorial Day and for those of us in Denver and Boulder that means the Bolder Boulder 10k.  This was the 8th year in a row I've ran it so it has become a tradition.  The Bolder Boulder is a huge race with over 50,000 runners and walkers but you don't notice it until the end because you start in waves.  Each year I have been able to move up in starting wave because it is based on your previous year's finish time.  I was in wave #9 CB so I started early.  One of my fellow runners Jennifer rode with me up there and ran in the same wave.  She has always been a bit intimidated because she thought it was a huge mass of people and difficult to get in and out of Boulder for it.  I have a system for this race: I drive up, park in the same spot that is near the start, run, walk back to the car (the race starts on one road and finishes inside Folsom Field - the football stadium for the University of Colorado) and drive home.  I am home in plenty enough time to watch the elite runners on TV (they run after everyone has cleared the course) and then the program afterwards (they honor several veterans, have skydivers from each branch of the armed forces land in the stadium and have a flyover).  This year worked out exactly as expected although I wanted to find an old friend in a later wave but I could not get back to the start before her wave took off.

My goal for this race is always the same: I want to finish faster than the year before.   I did accomplish my goal and did it without looking at my watch for the whole race.  I usually look at it a few times so I can pace myself but I wanted to hold off until at least the halfway point.  I didn't look at it then so I decided I am going to run the whole race by feel.   The course for the Bolder Boulder is somewhat tough in that there are lots of turns and you are going uphill from miles 1-4 until you reach the highest point of almost 5,400 feet then you have a good downhill section before you go back uphill to run into the stadium and finish.  All in all I am happy with how I did but now I have to change gears and get ready for the Missoula Marathon in July.

I'm wondering if anyone else has run a race without a watch?  I ran one other time where my watch went dead because I forgot to charge it but never consciously made a point of not looking at it.

Runstreak day 900

Today I reached 900 days on my runstreak.  Note: A Runstreak is defined as running at least a mile a day.

I first started this back on December 3,2011 as part of the Runners World holiday runstreak in which they propose running a mile a day between Thanksgiving and Christmas to keep off the added pounds during the holidays.  I started several days late mostly as a way to see if I could do it for a week and then kept going.  The days keep piling up so now it is just a matter of how far I am going to run and where not if I'm running that day.  It has involved some trial and error when I am getting close to a race to figure out what works best to keep the streak going and run like I want to during a race.

Here are my random thoughts on runstreaking:

- There are going to be good and bad days but tomorrow is always another opportunity to have a better run.
- The first week and month are the hardest.
- You have to taper down the distance of your runs the two weeks before a marathon.
- If you cross train with weight training cut out lifting legs extensively several weeks before a marathon.
- You are going to lose weight (and in my case strength) so you have to eat more. 
- Your clothes aren't going to fit well anymore so be prepared to buy new, smaller clothes.
- People will keep telling you that you look smaller.
- I don't dread treadmills as much as I used to.  There are times where I have no choice but to run on a treadmill even on good weather days.  I realize most everyone would rather run outside but sometimes the weather or other factors make a treadmill the best option.
- The day after a marathon is tough but forcing yourself to run a couple miles really helps speed recovery.


I'm not suggesting or recommending that everyone should do this because for many it would lead to injury.  I do know it has made me faster because my times in certain races still keep improving. If you want to change up your training it might be something to try on a limited basis.  I think if you are structurally strong and not prone to injury then it might be an interesting change.  Personally I am going to keep streaking as long as I avoid injury.

Another Marathon

I could not resist and signed up for another marathon this year.  This will bring my total to 5 even though I usually try and only do 4 a year to allow for some rest and recuperation time.   My reasons for signing up:
1. It is close by
2. It's not that expensive
3. It is spaced out a month after one marathon and and a month and half before a 50k I'm running.
4. I just couldn't resist it!
5. It goes downhill almost 5,000 feet

This is the marathon if you care to join me: http://brooksee-events.appspot.com/rdv