Walking a Ragnar Leg: My Hardest "Run" Ever

This weekend was a big experience in how the shoe feels on the other foot.  Three weeks ago, sharp pains in my calf dropped me from 45 mile weeks down to 2-5.  I've made some therapy and medical rounds and came out with a diagnosis of tendinitis.  Nothing serious, but the best medicine for it is, unfortunately, rest.

Last weekend, I tried a 3:1 interval, and didn't get past the first mile before my calf hobbled me into walking the last three.  However, I could walk with no pain or discomfort.

Enter this weekend, Bourbon Chase: A 200-mile relay race along the Kentucky Bourbon Trail

Team Pink Elephants on Parade

My original commitment to the team was 18.6 miles.  Third or fourth longest in our set of 12.  With much thought (and generous teammates willing to run more), I got myself down to 13 miles.  This is doable, I can walk a half marathon, especially across three sittings.

The new leg assignment put me in position #7, the first runner in the second van.

[Aside for those unfamiliar with how these relays work]

Ragnar relays are all about 200 miles broken up into 36 legs.  You (typically) have 12 runners that each take a set of 3 legs.  You run in order 1-12 for all of them.  You split your group into two vans of 6 people.  One van is always "active" and has a runner running at any given time.  Van 1 transports runners 1-6 while Van 2 drives ahead to the 6/7 exchange.  Once runner 6 finishes, Van 2 takes over as active van and runs legs 7-12 while Van 1 drives to the 12/13 exchange.  This repeats until all 36 legs are completed.

These locations where both vans meet are called "Major Exchanges".  These places have more parking and amenities (potentially food, bathrooms, showers, music, or other things).  This also means they are the loudest, most populated of all of the locations since teams will have both of their vans roll through.

[End Aside]

Race Start/Leg 1 (GPS) (speed spike was me trotting down a hill.  It was super painful to go downhill on blistered heels, so I risked it)

I would take over from runner #6 at Maker's Mark Distillery; a gorgeous location.  After the Van 1 started at Jim Beam, we drove there and had a relaxing 4 hours to kill.  We sampled some of the product, checked out the beautiful glass sculptures, and made fun of one of our female members who accidentally wandered in to the men's room.  All great fun.

We didn't have cell service at the Distillery, so we didn't really no how Van 1 was progressing, but they rumbled in a few minutes ahead of schedule and their runner wasn't far behind.  I got into position, able to watch the runners stream in in various states of fatigue.  There were a few fun footraces to get to the next runner and see the replacements bolt away.

Then #6 arrived.  Flying.  She easily looked like the strongest finish of any of the ones I had watched.  I stepped into place and yelled for her to finish hard.  Reached my hand out.  Took the baton.  And.  Walked.

Runner #6 Coming in hot!

 I'm sure it was all in my head and I'm just being self conscious.  But it felt like the crowd got so quiet.  Every look was surprise that this fit looking guy was "just walking".  Pity.  Amusement.  My stupid brain amplifying every reaction, making it just about me.  I nearly burst into tears.

Some lady blocking the picture of the transition.  Oh, and a die hard Clemson fan in the foreground.

But damnit, I floored it and power stepped my way out of there as fast as I could.

I was overtaken a total of 8 times.  Not a bad showing.  And even registered two "kills" myself (the team-relay term for passing someone).

Team vans were driving the same route to facilitate the exchange between runner 7/8.  Since this was the first leg for Van 2, most of them were cheering everyone going by.  Most just "woooo"ing as they passed.  One super-unappreciated, "It's ok, this hill is tough".  Well-meant, but totally not helpful at all to my situation.

By mile 3, I could tell I was doing a number on my heels.  My VFF shoes are wonderful for running, but I still heel strike when I walk (especially walking fast).  I bit my lip and gritted through it, but I knew I'd be paying for it later. (Spoiler alert: I have matching blisters about an inch in diameter.  Go me!)

By the last mile, I started experimenting a little getting a little more of a speed walker's hip turn in, but I'm sure I was doing it all wrong.  I put zero effort into looking into or practicing this advanced skill.

I was super proud of walking through that.  This was one of the most mentally demanding runs of my life.  It was a combination of having enough confidence that this was what was best for my body and being able to ignore all of the negative spin my head was putting on all external input.

Leg 2 (GPS)

For Leg 2, I experimented with running.  My heels were murdering my feet, so I needed to try something different.  So I ran.  And it felt amazing.  It was 1:30 AM and I was flying through the dark.  Zero calf problems.

Was passed a few times at the start when I tried out walking, but quickly avenged every single one of them.  Racked up some 13 kills.  The 3.5 mile run was the longest and fastest run I've had in weeks.

Leg 3 (GPS)

Leg 3 was a bit of an unknown.  It was a lot hillier than Leg 2, which would be harder on my calf.

Leg 3 Start

I get to the start line, and a guy in a banana suit runs off about 30 seconds in front of me.  Brain goes into competitive mode: I CANNOT let a plantain outpace me.

And then he did.

For two miles I chased that banana and even dropped the hammer a bit down one of the hills.  But my calf's protest started to grow, so I swallowed my pride and walked in in the last two miles.  I had to let the banana go.

One of these days, Banana-man.  One of these days...

Weird aside.  During my "run" part on this leg, I passed a guy who called up "Hey!  How much do you weigh?"  To which I told him (165 lbs).  And he responded "Huh.  Big guy!"

Seriously?  I've had comments about my height all my life.  But "big guy?"  I don't even know.

Conclusion

A few years ago, I took a "sick day" of sorts at our ATC Half training and ran with some of the 12-14 minute milers.  One of them was marveling at the fact I could run a half under 2 hours.  To which I responded with something along the lines of "running a 3 hour half comes with its own challenges, some easier and some harder; never sell yourself short on that."

My first leg was the embodiment of that.

Race Report: Hotlanta Half Marathon

Summary
The Hotlanta Half was something very new to me that I have been wanting to do for a long time: to give someone else a great race day by pushing a wheelchair-bound person through a race.  I had the pleasure of pushing a wonderful girl by the name of Sierra 13 miles up and down through the city.  This was easily the most difficult but most rewarding race I've ever completed.

Training
Other than my normal stroller running, I didn't do anything special to prepare myself.  While that's better than nothing, logging zero time on hills while pushing was my biggest mistake.  Anyone who is looking to push in a race around Atlanta should try to get at least some time in on the hills, both up hill and down, to get used to it.

Pre-Race
For whatever reason, I had it in my head all week that the race started at 7:30.  A even mentioned it to me the day before and I argued that it was 7:30 (and never bothered to double check).  Turns out it started at 7.  Good thing I was aiming to show up "an hour early".  I got there around 6;20 and found out I had a lot less time to get ready than I thought.  Not a big deal.  Our team of three had assembled: a good running friend of mine and a guy who had run with this group for a while.

We rolled our way over to the start and got going through the city.


Race
I had the first shift on the stroller and I started out way too fast.  The first mile took us up along Centennial park, past Mercedes Benz Stadium, and then started to head towards turner field.  I handed off to Courtney and my legs were already feeling a little like jello.  Not where you want to be after mile 1 of a half marathon.

The marathon leader overtook us shortly after I handed off the Courtney.  In about 1.25 miles, this guy made up a 3 minute gap.  He was flying.  We wouldn't see second place for at least another minute or two.

When Eric took his first shift, I got a little taste of what I hope running with me is like.  We hit a really long downhill on the back side of Turner field and he took off with Sierra.  It was amazing to watch him accelerate down the hill.  For those of you who haven't run with me, this is something I do all the time when I'm pacing people.  It's one of the ways to play games and have fun while I'm not racing.

My second turn with the chair was about as hilly as the first.  From a few blocks beyond Turner field, back up the hill towards the Olympic rings.  I was hoping to make it all the way TO the rings, but had to get Courtney to take over right when my watched ticked off the mile.

We wound around Atlanta a bit going through parts that I recognized from the Thanksgiving Half.  When going through water stops, it was great getting the volunteers to cheer for our captain as we went through.

My next stint pushing was on the beltline.  The course runs the length of it towards Piedmont park, so it's a nice long 2 mile or so downhill.  Much more favorable than the first few legs.  BONUS because I knew our ATC Run Lead Crew were going to be waiting for us at the Old 4th Ward Skatepark.  Angelina had the little guy out there cheering for all the crowds going by.



 Beyond the beltline, I really don't remember a whole lot.  We went up 10th, and eventually circled back into Piedmont and exited on 12th.  Really, whoever designed this course picked the most challenging parts of the Publix and Thanksgiving courses and found a way to hit them all.

I attempted to take a shift going up 12th, but couldn't manage much more than a walk with the chair.  Courtney tried to joint-push it with me, but eventually just took it.  My legs were completely shot.  Cardio-wise, I was fine, I just had no strength left.  I spent the next miles trying to recover and was able to take a half mile stint through Georgia Tech, but some stinking PF-like pain in my heel hobbled me up the last hill.

With great encouragement from my teammates, I managed a final push over the last quarter and we all got Sierra across the line.

Post Race

We got water and headed back to the tent area.  Both my teammates expressed concern for me, but I was unhurt, just had very weak and tired legs.  Sierra's parents thanked us for running with her.

Conclusion
Pushing a chair through a race is very demanding.  This was easily the hardest race I've ever run, and I only had the chair for 3-4 miles.  Getting to see the excitement on the captains faces and see how happy it made their parents was an awesome feeling.  I'm not sure I want to make this a regular thing; but I do want to do this again.  I'm not sure that Hotlanta is a course I would want to do this on again.

10/10, one of the best race experiences I've ever had.

Race Report: Flying Pig

Stats/Goals
Distance: Half Marathon (13.1 miles)
Location: Cincinnati, OH
Current PR: 1:38:26, (11/28/2014,Thanksgiving Half Marathon, Atlanta GA)
90% Goal: 1:40;00
50% Goal: 1:35:00
10% Goal: 1:32:30 (BQ Pace @ Half Distance)

Result: 1:31:34 (http://pig.onlineraceresults.com/individual.php?bib=14776)
GPS: (https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1719858979)
Mile Splits: (5/4/2014 Relative in parenthesis, last run of Flying Pig)
7:09 (7:48) -0:39
7:00 (7:19) -0:19
6:59 (7:40) -0:41
7:03 (7:34) -0:30
6:58 (7:44) -0:46
6:47 (7:18) -0:31
7:15 (7:59) -0:44
7:11 (8:00) -0:49
6:57 (7:39) -0:42
7:10 (7:49) -0:39
6:22 (7:19) -0:57
6:45 (7:01) -0:16
6:33 (7:30) -0:57

Summary
I really wasn't sure to expect from myself at the Pig this year.  I hadn't really raced a Half Marathon since November 2015 (Savannah R&R) which was rough and my training has been really hit-or-miss since last summer due to various injuries/illnesses but the past two months have gone really well.  Fortunately, decent preparation combined with absolutely perfect weather to yield a huge PR.

Training
I haven't updated this blog since Peachtree of last year.  The biggest reason being that I pulled my hamstring two days afterwards and have rotated sickness and injury ever since.  It was a nice parade of hamstring, calf, ankle issues along with a stomach bug or two plus bronchitis (probably from daycare).

I had a bright spot in September/October where I did the Cartersville and Chicago 5k.  Cartersville was a cross-country race, so I used it as a tuneup for Chicago, but ended up running 20:58, which was a nice confidence booster.  I ran well at Chicago, but ran out of gas at the end and later realized I was in the early stages of bronchitis (20:13, 18s off PR).

All in all, #yearofthe5k was a success.  I hit my biggest goal of breaking 20 in the 5k and crushed my 10k PR at Peachtree.

January this year saw me shaking off some lingering injuries.  I had some calf tendinitis that took 6 weeks of consistent PT exercises to clear up.  That lead me into the spring training programs a little unprepared (since they start a little more intense due to the compressed schedule of Publix).  I ended up dropping back in pace a bit, which was probably the best thing I could have done.

I was determined to make March/April my injury-and-sickness-free months.  A stomach bug in March put the kibosh on that idea, but I only missed out on 5 days or so of training.  Otherwise, I was still able to get in a speedwork day on most weeks and was able to peak out at 14 miles three weeks ahead of Flying Pig.

Race Weekend
We drove up on Thursday so we could take the whole weekend at a relatively easy pace.  The family had races Friday night, Saturday morning, and Saturday afternoon while mine was a 0630 start on Sunday.  I love that Flying Pig starts early, but it's still a rough wakeup.  Temperatures were supposed to be chilly (low-40s overnight lows) but lower humidity made it feel a lot warmer than 40s in Atlanta.

Shortly after arriving, I quickly realized I hadn't packed any running socks.  Bad for the oversight in packing, but good for laying out my outfit on the first night to verify.  Unfortunately, no one at the expo carried my brand, so we made a quick trip out to REI.

Bouncing my race-day choice of attire off Angelina, she was skeptical about my lack of sleeves (I usually dress a layer or so warmer than her).  I had an Under Armor, but didn't want to overheat, so she broke out the pair of arm warmers she wore at Chicago last fall.

I also made the call to leave my handheld in the room.  This is the second time I've attempted a half without a handheld.  The first was awfully hot Savannah.  Regardless, I've never run what I'd call a successful half without my handheld.

"Nothing new on race day" checklist for those following along at home:

• First time wearing the pair of socks I just bought
• First time ever wearing arm warmers of any variety
• Second time ever running a half without carrying hydration (had 3 GUs though)

Pre-Race
Staying at a downtown loft made race-day travel so much easier.  In the past, I've gotten up at 0400 for Peachtree for a 0700 start.  I was able to sleep in (lol) until 0445!  This gave me plenty of time to eat a Clif bar, get dressed, forget the bottle of water I was going to carry (doh), and get in the corral by 0600.

The water wasn't a major concern.  Just wanted something to sip and possibly something to wash down a pre-race GU if I had wanted it (I didn't).

Last time we did the Pig, it took a while to figure out the start locations.  We were thrown off by the fact the Saturday 5k/10k events started at a slightly different location.  I was prepared, this time, and had no issues getting my gear onto the bus.

Quick aside:
Flying Pig has an *amazing* gear check system.  They have about a dozen school buses parked with bib number ranges taped to the windows.  You walk up to your window, hand them your clear bag with your stuff in it, and walk away.  They drive the buses to the finish area (which is probably about a mile from the start), and you pick it up out of the same window you dropped off.  No lines, no waiting, really, really, easy.
End aside

I had two hat options with me (ear band or full hat) and had a throwaway jacket I ended up feeling comfortable just leaving in my checked bag.  Weather at the start was nothing short of perfection.  Wind was calm, it was crisp and chilly if you were just standing around, but running around for 5-10 minutes before hand was plenty enough to warm up.

One of our friends racing stopped by at the corral to say 'hi' before the race, which was nice.

I had finally settled on a plan: stick with the 3:10 pacer until we hit the base of the hills, then try to push ahead a bit, hopefully getting the 3:05 pacer within view before the course split at mile 8/9.  Unfortunately, there wasn't a 1:35 half pacer.

I was caught completely off guard by the National Anthem and all of sudden we were off and running.

Race
I spent mile 1 calming myself down.  I had a huge mental dichotomy going.  I really felt no pressure in hitting 1:35 on the day; I would have been completely happy with 1:40 and finishing healthy.  On the other hand, I had near perfect running conditions and the last half I raced (a year and a half ago) went very poorly.  Redemption.

The first mile felt easy and I tried to keep 4 strides per breath.  That got us to the base of the first bridge.  I edged my way to the front of the 3:10 group and took the downhill off the bridge a bit faster.

The Kentucky side of the course had a few road changes due to construction and had a few road surface issues (mainly loose rocks/gravel) that bothered my feet, but it didn't last long.  I was going to write about how I slowed down a bit climbing the two bridges to go back into Cincinnati, but the splits look pretty even in the data, so go me?

I let the 3:05 group pull away through the next few miles.  I could still just see them.  I have no concept of how close the 3:10 group was.  I made a concerted effort to not turn around once the entire race.

It was great turning back into town, especially now that I knew the layout of the city a lot better.  our loft was actually just off the course and I knew pretty much exactly where Angelina would be spectating.  Mile 6 would be my fastest mile until the end (downhill+kick) which I attribute mostly to a bit of excitement seeing them.

Racing to see the family

Mile 7 starts the biggest of the climbs on the course.  It also has some of the biggest and most supportive crowds (at least on the Half portion).  There was a guy with a pink cardboard F (probably 18 inches tall) with a megaphone right at the base of the hill saying, "You're not anywhere close to the top, so get the F up the hill" (like, literally saying the letter "F", not actually swearing, because that would not be cool).

Other cool spectator story was that there was a Clemson family hanging out at the first little crest of the hill around 6.5.  They had two boys (around 5/6) in Clemson gear.  I didn't have the breath to start a Cadence Count, but I pointed at them (since I was in my Clemson shirt), which confused them a little, but their dad cheered a bunch.  More on them later...

I did my best to let my pace fall a bit, but keep an even effort through the hills.  Atlanta training was clearly my savior, as I slowly passed people while still feeling like I was moving comfortably.  Miles 7/8 were, understandably, my slowest of the race, as those two miles featured 270 of the 690 feet of elevation gain on the whole course.  There was a single quarter split that had 80 feet (steep stuff for a road race).

One awesome part of this section of the race is that all this climbing eventually leads to a beautiful view over the whole city.  It was a clear, crisp day, the sun was out, and it was a stunning view of the city.  It's always great when tough parts of the course lead you to little rewards like that.

Still feeling good.  Arms at a good angle

I lost sight of the 3:05 group around some of the twisting and turning in the park, but saw they were a lot closer when we got to the final straightaway before the half and full courses split.  I didn't catch them before the split, but I was closing in.

At the split was where I made my biggest mistake.  I started eating GU #2 around 8.5, which there was nothing wrong with itself, but I managed to miss the water stop at mile 9, which meant I would have to wait until another mile to wash it down.  Not huge, but it was uncomfortable and completely avoidable with better preparation.

The half course takes you back to Cincinnati where it loops back on itself.  In my typical fashion, I picked up a lot of time flying downhill (clocked a 1:30 quarter split at one point).  Remember the Clemson family?  Well, they had moved to the other side of the road (so they were cheering on the "front of the pack" going downhill rather than those still going up it) and they started going crazy when I went by.  They moved over to cheer for MEEEEE (at least that's what I told myself and made me feel really good in a moment my body was starting to not feel so well).

It wasn't until the downhills that I actually had the spare mental time to start projecting out finish times.  I hit mile 10 at about 1:10;30 and was able to quickly eliminate finishing under 1:30 (one of my long-term goals I have, but had no plans on even coming close to it this race), bit my 10% goal (1:32:30) was certainly within reach.  I had done the first 5k faster than the 22:00 I needed to close, so I knew it was within reach, I just needed to keep my legs moving under me.  Plus, 11/12 are the most downhill miles on the course.

I had my first "bad" pain during mile 11.  I had some light shooting pains through my fascia (tendons connecting heel to your toes via bottom of your foot).  In retrospect, this might have been due to hitting the downhills as hard as I did.  The pain dissipated within a few minutes.

I managed to keep some semblance of the downhill speed into the final (flat) leg of the race.  Instead of seeing me at 12.5 as planned, I had family waiting to cheer me on right before the finish line.  I'd find out later I was far enough ahead of my pacing on the first half that they weren't sure they'd get to 12.5 in time.

The very end of the race was borderline agony.  I pushed myself to a pace close to what I was keeping on the downhills and managed to hold it for about half a mile before slowing a bit in the last quarter just to squeeze out the last seconds of the race.

My form was definitely compromised by the end and I was very glad to be able to finally stop.

Running into the finish.  Arms super tight, form starting to fade.  Clearly exhausted

Post Race
After grabbing a medal and Mylar, I sat on a curb just before the water stations for a few minutes coughing and generally catching my breath.  Even now, I'm still in a bit of disbelief at my result, besting my 10% goal by nearly an entire minute; a pace 0:30 per mile faster than my previous PR.

A nice volunteer walked a water to me, which I gladly took and a second checked in on me a minute later asking if I needed medical.  I guess I looked like I was struggling.  I politely declined, and started progressing through the water/banana lines to the (lightly used) port-a-potties.

After 30 minutes or so post-finish, I think I felt about as good as I'd ever felt at the end of a race.  I haven't run yet (it's on the schedule for tomorrow) but I'm also feeling a lot better than I have recovery-wise.


Conclusion
I think the biggest factors in my finish were:

• Familiarity with the course
• Solid race plan
• Solid gear choices (with a good amount of morning-of flexibility)
• Adequate training
• Minimal expectations

I've always felt I perform best when I put myself under a lot of pressure.  I wanted to perform, but I truly didn't care if I did or not.  Amusingly enough, these were the exact same time goals I had for Savannah.  I didn't even realize that until I sat down to write this blog.

I think the name of the game for me this weekend was options.  I knew where I wanted to start and generally wanted to do.  If things went south, I had plans.  If things went well, I had plans.  When presented with a day like we had for that race, though, you have to snatch it.  I would have loved to have trained up to run the full for this race, but I'll just have to hope for similar conditions somewhere this fall.