Camden Town and Regent Canal

AM – easy jogging on the Regent Canal (or the so called Jubilee Greenway), but heading east rather than west to the Park.  The tow path is a nice little cut through the city.  I am out in the Camden Town area, and the locks along the canal are impressive, with there being several drops of water of about 8 feet.  The canal boats are also impressive and are often also businesses or homes for people that live on the water.

I followed the canal for a few miles but then it disappeared into a tunnel for about a mile before I picked it back up on the other side.  I found myself wanting to be on one of these boats, floating the canal, navigating the tunnel and working through the locks.

Good article from HBR.

Evening jog thing … not so much a double to get training in, as much as I just want to get out and explore a bit after being cooped up in an office all day, and then before the dinner outing. Explored a bit more around Regents Park.

Travel to London

Easy trip on whole.  DEN to MSP, MSP to LHR.  Heathrow Express to Paddington and then the Underground to Camden.  Beat when I got here due to lack of sleep but I got out for an easy five along the Regent Canal and in Regent Park.  It was pouring pretty hard for most of the run.

Tuesday blah blog blabbery

Nice read from David R.

Good read on making your own fuel from Andy.

Reading a bit on grit and social IQ today.

AM – started with the AM jog with TZ, then added on my own.  These jogs end up being a little over an hour these days, with it averaging on whole around 10 minute pace and the stuff that I am doing sitting somewhere between 8:30 and 10:00.  There is still some fatigue in the legs.  I’d describe it as a lack of “pop” but I am not concerned about it.  I am running more for my head, almost prayer like reasons, and am certainly not training at this point. 

My stomach is back and I have been eating a lot.  And having a good amount of beer too.  Last night I went over to Four Noses and got a beer.  The food truck was shutting down and they just came in and gave me and the guy I was there with a couple of pounds of brisket each … not that much came home.

While I am not training much … this might be the next game.

Someone at work asked me if I’d be a coach and what my coaching philosophy would be.  The more I watch who I consider to be good coaches at work, the more I think it is about being some sort of therapist versus being some master of physiology.  I’d hazard a guess that you could probably throw almost any training scheme at most people and they probably improve.  Sure, you could absolutely pick better systems, and certainly be more likely to improve the athlete with a process that fits that particular athlete … but that sort of ties back to managing the muscle above the neck anyway. 

But if I were focused solely on just the training element versus the head, I’d generally keep it simple to a.) run more b.) have a long run, c.) have a run of sustained effort of 20 minutes or more d.) run reps of about 3 minutes e.) run strides and f.) everything else you do matters.   The specifics of how this is mixed up on flats or hills or how much volume or how fast or back to back or whatever is the process of the individual.  It depends on what they are preparing for, what their athletic history is, how much time a person has, how prone they are to injury, and what they are willing to commit to.  Preparing a HS kid to run a 5k for XC as a sophomore is different than preparing a middle age person to break an hour at the Bolder Boulder which is different than preparing someone for Pikes or whatever other event you want.  There are commonalities in aerobic development, threshold, muscular strength, endurance, speed but the mix is different.  And hence it is a process to consider what system is right for you.  And most important is the head.  If you only have 3 hours a week to train, what you do is very different than the person who has 15 (if they can manage that).

Off to London here for a bit. 

Did my first uber ride to the airport.  Pretty easy and that app is slick.

Monday 14SEP2015

Good master runner blog. 

Good interview with Herron. 

AM  - some jogging TZ, some jogging with the dogs and then some on my own.

Considering this Magness post and this post on MAF … so MAF is a system of training.  It is a framework.  Or a model.  Like George Box said, “all models are wrong.  But some are useful.”  So it is with MAF.  It has an application.  Particularly if you need a specific model and set of rules to focus on aerobic development, maintenance of health, and perhaps most importantly if are willing to dedicate yourself to it in terms of time and quantity.  So it is useful.   But for many applications, it is also wrong.  And really this comes down to the specific process for a specific athlete.  The process as to what is best in terms of development of a person as an athlete in endurance sports (and that goes down to 800 meters in terms of popular events for me) will call on broad systems like MAF and/or Lydiard and/or Canova and/or Hudson and/or Daniels and/or whoever including your spin on it or any coaches take.  As I think was once said by Lucho, “HR means everything. It also means nothing.”  Don’t make a sole system the sole path in the process, or don’t make everything into a nail because you have a hammer. 

September 11-13 weekend

Friday - Mid day – easy forty five minutes listening to the remainder of the Ian interview on ET.  Good listen. 

On Friday, we headed down to Heritage HS for the Liberty Bell XC race.  Seems like folks either love Liberty Bell or hate it.  It is not really a cross course and a lot of folks call it a road race.  But some kids love it because it gives them an opportunity to measure themselves year over year, and get a faster time.  And for some kids, that is a big deal because they often can stack up on times against kids at lower altitudes.  It is a zoo of an event though because there were 89 schools there … and so thousands of runners.  Both KZ and JZ PR’d and that made for happy kids.  JZ PR’d by over a minute and about by 50 seconds in the race before that.  At this rate he will be the WR holder in about a seven or so more races.

JZ and I bolted for Peaceful Valley early Saturday AM for a weekend with his OA chapter.  I got in an easy hour of running, exploring some of the old trails down there that seem to be growing over.  It was good to get away from it all and into the quiet that is PV. 

Ended up peeling a bunch of lodgepole pines down there for some teepees they are gonna build.  We soaked them in the lake for a bit to make the peeling easier, but it was still a good back breaker of work after a few hours.

Got wind that Justin won the Victor race.   Glad to hear that he secured another win for LVR.

This is entertaining, even though I am not a U of O guy.

Sunday afternoon I got out for about an hour with Bob.  We caught up on a variety of topics, including the Russian uniforms at the 100k Worlds. 

I ended up with about 40 on the week. 

The last of my lab results came back:

I exchanged some emails with the doc and basically it is that I am dealing with some decreased kidney and liver function but given that the issues seem to be improving, there is no action that will take place at this point.  I actually had urine that was yellow versus clear this weekend.  The overnight thing seems to have passed.

Imogene results.   Good to see Scott S back at it after not racing PPM.

Other weekend pix.

Thursday 091115

About an hour of easy jogging in the afternoon.  Listened to the Elevation Trail (or started to) interview with Ian S.  Good stuff.  Lots of conversation on what I might call “expectation failure.”  In part I have wondered if Aish dropped out of Leadville because once he saw he could not win, it was not worth it to him to run 20 hours for second or third.  Not for me to say if he did or didn’t but I wonder it in the context of myself if I ever were do that race again.  I’d have an expectation of sorts to perform better than I had.  I had a benefit this year of no prior splits, and to some extent, no expectations.  If I returned, how would I feel if I got to Winfield in 10 hours instead of 9:44 or better?  The expectation seed would already be planted and it would be a new challenge to deal with how to manage the hours of a race if I were not meeting those expectations.  They talk this well on the interview.  Good stuff.

This topic has been getting some play in the ultra space.  Thoughts?

I am still catching up on the results from Beijing.  I just caught the men’s 5k where Farrah got the win. 

I watch this stuff with a skeptical eye because I have become so jaded on if these guys are doping or not.  But it is a race, and it is interesting to watch the race and the tactics anyway.  Farrah sitting on the back through a 4:48 (that is the leader not him) mile where he actually jogs off to the side to get water in lane 8 … damn.  And then he decides to play the field at 2400 meters to break it up.  Fun watch (although the homer nature of the Brit announcers gets to be a bit much).  Good debate on the latest House of Run as to whether Farrah is one of the greatest given his victory list but his lack of fast times posted.

Still pretty grumpy.  Sent a note to the HS principal today grumping that the football field lights were on at 3PM.  Maybe I am grumpy not because of the hundred, but because I am not running so much these days.  I need to get my head on right.

… friends like these …

I once liked that guy.

Payback … is coming.

Pikes Peak Sports Article: How they won the Triple Crown of burro racing

Tim Bergsten (PikesPeakSports.Us) did a nice write up on Burro Racing.  Here is the article for historical keeping.

George Zack and Jack: How they won the Triple Crown of burro racing

• Posted by Tim Bergsten on September 9, 2015 at 9:08pm in Road & Trail Running
• Back to Road & Trail Running Discussions

The goal in Pack Burro Racing is to win the Triple Crown, races in Fairplay, Buena Vista and Leadville. George Zack and his racing companion, Jack, had come close in 2012 and 2014, winning two out of the three races. But this year, Jack wanted to run and he found his legs at key moments. George is a 46-year-old MUT runner from Broomfield, longtime Pikes Peak runner and friend of many in the Colorado Springs area. Jack, 18, or thereabouts, spends most of his days nibbling grass on the Laughing Valley Ranch near Idaho Springs.

We asked George about burro racing and his experience racing with Jack this summer. He responded with some great answers.

What attracted you to the Burro Racing scene? I first heard of Pack Burro Racing in the 1990s. I went to a Boulder Road Runner seminar where road racing star Jon Sinclair was going to speak. We all thought he'd discuss his training, racing, and principles of physiology. He instead gave an entertaining talk on burro racing. He had won the World Championships in Fairplay in 1977. I think half of the crowd was disappointed in his presentation but the other half was entertained. I was entertained and the seed was planted.

My wife's parents moved to Fairplay in the mid 2000s. As the town was at altitude with big hills around it, I would look to get in good training for Pikes Peak whenever we visited. One of my favorite runs was on the Mosquito Pass Road - which the Fairplay Pack Burro Race runs on. One day I actually ran into the race without even knowing it was going on. It was intriguing to see these folks running at 6-something pace with a burro at 10,000 feet.

Of course with my in laws in Fairplay, they knew all about it and were encouraging me to do the race as they thought it would be a hoot.

Finally in 2010, Justin Mock, a local road runner in the Front Range area said he was doing it and that really lit the fire for me to get going.  We had heard of Bill Lee and we made contact with him at Laughing Valley Ranch. He has several burros up there and so we made the trek to meet burros and Bill. That is what got us going in the sport. My first burro race was in Fairplay in 2010 with Jack and we placed fourth that year.

For some, they do it once and they never want to do it again, but I have always found it to be a unique challenge in that it requires some running skills but is different in that you are running with an animal - and one that you need to have a connection with to be successful.  And my family always smiles and laughs at this race more than any other.  All of it and the community keeps me coming back.

You've tried for some time to win the Triple Crown, what went right for you this year? Jack and I had been a possibility for the Triple Crown two times before this year. The Triple Crown is three races over three consecutive weeks in the towns of Fairplay, Leadville and Buena Vista. To win the Triple Crown a runner and his burro (the same burro and runner) have to win all three of the races. In 2012 and 2014, Jack and I had won Fairplay and Leadville but came up short in the Buena Vista race. The Buena Vista race is different than Leadville and Fairplay. Those races are long climbs starting at 10,000 feet up to Mosquito Pass (13K plus) and then long descents back into town.  Fairplay is 29 miles and Leadville is 22.  Buena Vista is low, with its highest point being around 9,000 feet at the most and it only runs about 12 miles.  In 2012 and 2014 Jack and I came up short (third and sixth). We just could not use the same tactics in the shorter faster race of Buena Vista.

Two things were different this year:  Buena Vista was the second of the three races instead of the last (Boom Days in Leadville was on a different schedule) and we were able to win that race. In Buena Vista, Jack and I held on with a pack of six teams. With about four miles to go, Justin Mock and his burro Yukon Jack, and my Jack and I got away from the larger pack. I was able to get a little bit of daylight between them and us on the Whipple Trail. It was enough of a gap for us to hold on for the win when we came into town.

Tell us about Jack, how did you come to race with him and how long have you been running together? Jack is the only burro I have ever raced. I have trained with him since Bill connected us in 2010.  I have trained with other burros, but I have only raced with Jack.  After we lost a couple of races in 2013, I was considered running with another burro, but when I went up to train with others at Bill's place, Jack would just come over and hang out next to me.  We clearly have a connection.  He may not be the fastest burro on the course and I am not the fastest runner, but we have been able to connect pretty well to get solid results.

Something about you and Jack seems to click on these long runs, can you tell us what it is ... are you the burro whisperer? I am no burro whisperer. There is an on-going joke that it is all about a relationship that the runner has with his ass. While it is a joke, there is some truth in it. The more you know what your burro will tolerate, what motivates them, what bugs them, what they like to avoid, and how to keep them moving, the better off you will perform as a team on race day.  It is not a guarantee but it helps.  

We think Jack is 18 years old.  He is not a young burro anymore and like all of us aging, we have both lost a step in our speed.  But he can still hang with the lead group on the climbs, and then gets moving well on the downs on the roads and single track. 
We've seen a lot of runners in these events trying to motivate their burros to move. Has there been a time when Jack motivated you to pick up the pace? Jack surprised me a couple times this year.  At Buena Vista, just before we came onto the Whipple Trail, he started clipping off at 6-minute pace and breaking away from Justin and Yukon. Justin and I have shared a lot of miles together and we were both pretty surprised that he did that. It seemed that he was going to be content to run in the herd for a bit but then he just made the break that set us up to win the race.

You ran in the Leadville Trail 100 and Jack made a surprise visit at the halfway point in Winfield. Tell us about that. That was pretty surprising and huge emotional boost for me. I came off the Sheep Gulch Trail and was feeling the effort that you feel after running 50 miles. And there Tim Johnson and Angela Romero had arranged with Bill to get Jack out there with a big sign saying "get your ass up the pass."  It was great. Jack seemed to be enjoying the attention from the crowd and the grass that was there for the eating. Nonetheless, when he saw me he was ready to do the work. I took the rope on the way back for a few strides and Jack decided to break into 7-minute pace - well, because that is what we do when we get together. Of course, I could not handle that and I had to let it go.

It was a really nice touch to the summer. It really reflected how this burro racing community is a family and the friends we have in it. Bill Lee met me just before the finish. It was pretty emotional for me to see all these people at Leadville, my family, my crew, the burro racing community cheering for me and supporting me. Seeing Jack there was just an incredible touch to an amazing summer.

Back to the Triple Crown. After winning in Fairplay and Buena Vista, Leadville must have been a little intense. Can you tell us how that race went down? I knew going into Leadville there were a handful of teams that were really able to win that race. I figured it would come down to Justin and Yukon (he was second in all the races) and Hal Walter and Full Tilt Boogie.  Hal has won Fairplay like seven times, and Leadville probably another handful.  He really knows how to run these courses, how to keep burros moving and he always comes to the line with his eye on a the win.

I knew that Jack and I would not get away from these teams on the climb up to Mosquito so I just wanted to keep contact with them.  I figured if we lost contact, the race would be over at that point.  I also knew that we'd probably not have a shot to get away until we got over to the last four miles, or the drop through California Gulch.

Sure enough, Hal and Boogie commanded the race and were first to the Pass. We kept in contact but it seemed that Jack and I, and Justin and Yukon were barely hanging onto Hal and Boogie most of the race.  At one point, on one of the last climbs before California Gulch, Hal and Boogie had built a gap of about 200 yards.  Jack and I were just standing going nowhere and I was convinced that we had probably lost the race right there.

But again, Jack surprised me and he started a steady trot and over the next five minutes we bridge the gap.  All three teams were together at the top of the Gulch and we just knew it was going to be a question of who could keep moving best over the last four miles.

And Jack did what he has done there ever year I have run with him - he just started running well and steady with no breaks or mistakes.  We got a 10-yard lead, then a bit more and then we got out of sight. It was amazing. It was exactly what I thought it would take for us to get the win, but it was pretty stressful in the race because we were trying to break each other for the first three hours of that event.

Of course, finishing with the win on our third try at the Triple Crown was awesome. I felt it showed what a great burro Jack was and how great his ranch, Laughing Valley Ranch was. LVR burros took first and second in each of the Triple Crown races.

Looking back on the Triple Crown, what moment will always stand out for you? Tough question because each race really gave me its own surprise. In the first race in Fairplay I didn't think we'd get away from the faster runner in Justin and the younger burro in Yukon. But when we got off the Mosquito Pass road and onto the single track trails, Jack started running the path like he knew it like his back yard.  And then to win the Buena Vista race after we had come up short there in the prior years was a huge surprise. I had in fact signed up to do the Pikes Peak Marathon and the LT100 because I was pretty certain I would not need to do all three Triple Crown races (because I'd lose one). But Jack showed me otherwise. The moment is really that realization over and over that Jack was a lot better than I gave him credit for. He is amazing.

Wednesday 09SEP2015

The littering consisted of Jurek’s spraying enough champagne over the rocks so that park rangers said “it smelled like a redemption center,” … plea bargain for Jerker. 

…this is another piece of evidence that one of the benefits of hard training is that you learn to tolerate more pain …

I have decided to not do the Victor Burro Race this weekend.  I am gonna hit some camping with the boy once he finishes up his XC meet on Friday.  And while I have recovered to some degree, I am really not up for an 11 mile race yet.  I am hopefully leaving Jack in the good hands of Brian M. 

In regards to recovery, the urination issue seems to be finally settling down.  I made it through the night without having to get up (9:30 to 5:30).  I will count that as a victory.  I am aware of that general fatigue under it all though.  I am generally a bit shorter fused than normal and I can see how things that I’d normally let slide are bugging me a bit more.  Sometimes seeing that helps.  Sometimes not.  I was pretty pissed at network performance today and that is usually more a ho-hum affair for me.

It felt hot this afternoon.  Hot enough that the boy came home from XC practice and was up for a milkshake.  So was Bart.

Easy 30 minutes later in the evening when things cooled off.

Tuesday 08SEP2015

Afternoon – 7.1 miles.  Legs felt almost normal.  Not sore, but a bit tired.  Legs actually thought it was okay to break 8 minutes for a few of those miles today.

I came across this photo at PikesPeakSports.Us.  I think Liza passed me about 5 seconds later, so this may have been the only time I was leading her.

Blood test results

Blood test results came back.
So on this portion it looks like my RBC (red blood cell count) is down.  Everything else falls into an acceptable range.

This series has me at normal on everything except ALT which is a liver test.  That might be because I had three IPAs the night before.  Oops.  CO2 is a little outside the range.  I  I have to look up what a gloumlar filtration rate is but that appears to be slightly out of limit as well.   Creatine is at the upper limit.  Again, all follow ups with the doc.  I pretty much figure they are going to shrug on most of it and say that I messed up my kidneys some and they are on the mend.  It appears to be generally true, as my need to urinate in the middle of the night has gone from four times to two to one now. 

Burros and #GOMs make for a great Labor Day

The AM we spent over in Louisville at the Labor Day Parade with member of the WPBA.  TZ was a saint and played the poop fairy.  Pix by Jeff Valliere.

Afterwards, we headed out to the Mayerhoff property and checked on the new recruit, Boog.

In the evening there was a chapter gathering of the #GOM club.  Discussions included asterisks to particular performances, and a traditional round of the game of “My problem with that is …”

Somewhere in there I got in an easy four miles.

Sunday 06SEP2015

AM – a couple miles with TZ, then a mile with Lucy tossing her the disc, and then a few more on my own.  7.3 miles.  27 miles on the week.

Nice write up on the BHS girls XC success from yesterday.  Greg knew at 2 miles.  He turned to me and said, “well if we hold it together I think we will beat Monarch today.” 

Centaur XC

The urinalysis results from yesterday

Kids has XC meet up at Waneka Lake / Centaurus today. 

The kids seemed generally happy with their races, but KZ was a bit irked over her performance in the last mile.  She simply described it as “I couldn’t keep it together.”  Both kids improved their times over last week – and this race was a quarter mile longer (although with a lot less vertical). 

The more I watch kids race at HS XC the more I see how their headspace impacts their physical performance.  Yes, there are great difference in physical abilities, but how a person performs within the tools they have varies dramatically based on their state of mind. 

Saw Shad over there.  His kid ran well. 

At the meet, I got questioned by a parent.  “Are you that guy who runs with mules?”  “No ma’am, I run with burros.  See the difference between a mule and a bur-“ “Sounds like animal abuse to me.”  “Well, no, they seem to like it actually.  Whenever I go to the paddock to get one out the others want to come too.”  “Yeah, I think 100 miles is too far for a donkey.”  “Oh, 100 miles?  Yeah.  We don’t go that far with a donkey.  The longest we go is 29.”   I am not sure she completely believed me because I still got a firm look.

Afternoon – I agreed to run with Bob with the understanding it would be slow, short, and that we would exchange some Leadville stories.  6.3 miles of mind blowing analysis.

Selling tours, not beer and a lot of pee

I hit a local brewery last night.  I learned that Georgia laws on how they manage these sort of establishments are significantly more restrictive than CO.  I went in to buy a beer.  I could not buy a beer.  I could buy a tour of their brewery and that got me complimentary beer, up to 36 ounces.  They also were clear that they could not sell their six packs they had bottled, but they would be happy to sell them for off site use as souvenirs.  Apparently the big distributors have a choke hold of the wallets of the legislators here so that the laws won’t be changed.  Hooray. Of course the guys tending the tour (bar) thought that the CO laws were nuts (given our legislation around marijuana). They did have a good IPA though.

AM – easy half an hour of jogging.  And I traveled back home from ATL.

I listened to the latest ATC during the jog this AM and I got a mention.  Lucho specifically calls me out for a being a bit too hard on myself in regards to my Leadville race.  Some of that is in my wiring and choices.  It is hard for me to look at a race and say, “that went perfect.”  And in a 100, as there are so many things that can be considered, and my lack of experience, it is very easy to pick at improvement opportunities.

My mind also is geared to this sort of improvement thinking because of my work.  It is what I do.  I go to various parts of my company and I work with people to consider opportunities, consider risk, and how we can get better.  I am sure some of that carries over to running.

But, yeah, I had a helluva day out there.  It was not perfect in how I performed but that is exactly what makes it so wonderful.  It gave me the opportunity to go right up to those limits, and get punched in the mouth by them.  There is the blessing in that I get to learn from that.  We learn nothing when everything is perfect.  We learn a lot more when things start to go wrong.  Or at least we have the opportunity to.

And of course, I was reminded of how wonderful my summer and my life is.  No mile went by without me considering how gifted I am to get to run in the Rocky Mountains for a 100 of those increments, and that people wanted to come and help me.  People ask how it felt and I think they want to hear how physically brutal it was.  And it was.  But it really felt lovely because that is what I got from people.

That said, I confess … I can see the addictive allure of that race.  “If I can just …” … fill in the blank with manage food or keep my legs together down the Powerline or not barf at Hopeless Pass or whatever you like … the quiet chant in the back of my head of the possibility of improvement is hard to ignore.

But … as I have said, it ain’t the race part that I am worried about.  It is the after impact of the race.  Since Leadville I have been urinating.  A lot.  Full bladder loads, so it not that I have just some urgency but there is actually a need to empty the bladder.  So essentially I am not holding on liquids appropriately.  The urine is dilute (clear, pale yellow).  And that probably reflects that my kidneys are not holding water.  It seems that this is more of an issue at night while I am sleeping, but it might be that I am just more aware of it then because I have to wake up to relieve myself.  For the first week of this, it was also combo’d with some pretty nasty head aches at night.  I imagine this might have been a dehydration thing but I really don’t know.  That part has seem to have subsided and the number of times I get up in the middle of the night has dropped from four to two. 

Obviously this is concerning because it is a symptom of many possible diseases, including some forms of diabetes.  I set up for a visit to the doc today as soon as I got back from ATL to start the process of evaluating this.  The visit went well – I had a good candid conversation with the doc and they got a urinalysis done on a quick turn around.  That gave them a pretty good set of data to conclude that it was not diabetes.  Blood work will take the weekend to process, but the general thought is I beat my kidneys up pretty well and they are on the mend.  More when the lab work comes back next week.

Catching up on a few shots over the last couple of weeks.  I may have already posted some of these.

Justin got a pair of balls.  There is some speculation he might be the only person who has been second in every Triple Crown Burro Race.

It is quite a crowd in the Park County HS gym for the pre-race pep rally.

Carner, a Leadman from years past and a burro racer himself, catches up with this year’s Leadman class members Shad and Ray.

Both these guys got Leadman done.  Whole new level of respect from me on that event because it is a just a consumer of the summer.  Shad had the season of his life and had me wondering if he’d roll me up on the Boulevard. 

Those buckles get big for those folks who do this race a lot of years.

At this point, I am pretty sure this is the only one of these I will get.