JoyRun

One of the recent series at New Hope Church was titled Joyride.  Pastor Benji is always phenomenal bringing the teachings in the Bible to life.  I won't go into the series because you can watch it on your own and I won't go into the biblical connotations because this is a blog about running.  But, it got me thinking about the joy that I get out of running.  I also believe that it's not just me.  With every run and at every race you will see runners struggle but in the end and at most times during the run you will see joy in their faces.

I haven't written for awhile mostly because of time constraints.  Ha, I say that but quite honestly, I have enough time to write.  I get joy out of writing here as well, maybe because I'm writing about running.  Although, I seem to get joy out of writing about anything, even proposals in my work.

So far, I have had a joyful year of running capped off by a wonderful weekend running in Vancouver, Washington.  As much as I enjoy running in solitude - my way of getting away from it all - I still enjoy running with others, especially family.

I have run 3 marathons and 2 ultras in the last 6 months.  I wrote a entry in January about the Frosty 50 where I was accompanied by my nephew Shawn and crewed by Cindy.  It was a wonderful event and you can read the details on the blog.  I love running with Shawn because we have some great conversation and help each other along the way - well until the end when he turns the heat up and finishes ahead of me!  Cindy is at every race and quite frankly, without her, I would not get through many races in the joyful spirit that I have.

Next up was The Instant Classic, a trail marathon in Pocahontas State Park in Virginia.  It is a relatively easy trail marathon, as far as trail races go.  My niece Shelli was our host for the weekend and she ran the half-marathon.  The half was on the more difficult portion of the course which also happened to be the second half of the marathon course.  Not only did we both run, but Doug, her husband, their dear friends Chris and Karen, and Cindy volunteered at an aid station on the course.  First, I must say, aid station volunteers and our supporters/crew/cheerers, whatever you want to call them, have it rough.  It takes a lot of stamina to do that hours on end or be waiting at the finish line. I'd rather be running.  Again, it was a joyful day and we capped it off with a St. Patrick's day party at Shelli's house.  Oh, I ran an unrespectable time of 5:04.

Next was the Mountains-to-Sea 50K at Falls Lake in Raleigh.  I am not sure what I was thinking running a 50K two weeks prior to a marathon.  If it was an easy 50K, OK, maybe.  This, at least for me, was no easy 50K.  It was all trail and moderately technical in spots with shorter, steeper hills, both up and down (it was an out and back course).  However, it was beautiful around Falls Lake on a perfect sun drenched day with beautiful blue sky yet covered by a canopy of trees.  If you can't find joy in being outside, whether you are running a hard 50K or boating on the lake, then you just might not have any joy in you at all.  It's the longest it ever took me to run a 50K, 7:25, but what better way is there to spend 7 hours and 25 minutes?  OK, now you are conjuring up 101 better ways in your mind to spend 7 hours and 25 minutes.  As hard as it was, it was pure joy especially crossing the finish line and seeing Cindy still waiting for me.  She was even able to drive home, do some work and come back for me!  For all of that, I got an empty pint glass.  I fill that pint glass every now and then with a good ale and remember that day, that exhaustion, yet pure joy! At the end I made the comment, "Why can't I be like normal men and be on a boat on a lake instead of running 31 miles around it?"  Right?

So now that I completed that 50K, it was time to recover to run a marathon in my 43rd state, Kansas.  Truly I didn't know what to expect but I felt like I recovered well.  I also believe and tweeted, "If you want to do something hard, do something harder and the hard thing will feel easy!".    Well, I just did something hard, so lets see if this marathon will feel easier.  My marathons haven't been great over the last two years anyway.  Life gets in the way sometimes and having run 70 marathons since 2001, you just can't always be on, not to mention the inevitable aging process.  The Garmin marathon in Olathe was well organized, starting and finishing at Garmin Headquarters (oh, and we learned that the name came from the two founders, Gary and Min).  The theme revolves around the Oz.  So, when Cindy and I arrived we went to see the movie Oz, the Great and Powerful.  How fun!  The next joyful event was a panel discussion with Scott Jurek, one of the best, if not the best ultra runners of all time, Josh Cox, the American 50K record holder and elite marathoner, and Dez Davila, an Olympian, who holds the American record at the Boston Marathon.  It's great to hear the elites' view on running as a profession.  I was most enamoured with Scott Jurek and his book Eat & Run opens his personal and running life up to the public.  Marathon morning was brisk and sunny, just perfection.  The Oz balloon was at the starting line and there were plenty of Dorothy's, witches and scarecrows - even a Toto.  I ran my best in two years pacing with the 4:10 ladies through 23 miles and finishing in 4:13.  The consistent pace through 23 miles was pure joy.

This brings us to this past weekend in Vancouver.  With a tough month of May with work travel and moving, I just couldn't get the quality of runs in that I would have liked prior to another marathon.  Washington was state 44 and I chose Vancouver because of its proximity to Portland which is where Cindy's son and fiance live.  We could get a visit in and I could get another state.  On Saturday, I got over my social-phobia and decided to do the shake-out run with Bart Yasso and another 10 runners.  I must say, it was one of the most joyful experiences I have had as a runner.  It was an easy 3 miles of good running conversation.  Bart and I spoke about World Vision, the Christian organization that does so much good in the world for the impoverished.  He supports two children in South Africa while my two girls are in Brazil.  He got to meet his boy and girl when he ran the Comrades marathon (56 miles) a year ago. 


 I chatted with a guy who ran Comrades two years in a row - the up course and the down course.  Another runner and his wife were from Houston and we spoke about some of our favorite marathons.  At 10 AM came the Freedom 5K.  This may have been another one of my most joyful moments in running - the four of us, Calvin, Jenn, Cindy and me all running the 5K together.  It was the together piece that created all of the joy, starting, running and finishing together.  Cindy did remarkable finishing 4th in her age group.  Now, Jenn and Cindy are engaged in a 5K program to get better.  Isn't that what all of us runners strive for?  To get better? 

It was such a fun time!  Calvin, Cindy's son has been training for his first marathon, Light at the End of the Tunnel, held in July.  I am a firm believer in running multiple marathons leading up to a a goal race, at least for us non-elites.  It grooves you, it gets you into a race mindset, they are supported, and again, its a joyful thing to do.  I think Cindy talked Calvin into doing this marathon as a training run more than Calvin wanted to do it.  However, running 3:21 is not a training run to me; it would be a dream come true.  Calvin ran a masterful time and I am sure that there was pure joy throughout that run and especially when crossing the finish line.  First, it truly was a training run and will give him supreme confidence in the next one.  Secondly, his Mom was there to see his first one.  My Mom was at my first distance race ever in 1993, a 5K but she never got to see me at the finish line of a marathon - more importantly, I never got to see her.  Thirdly, his fiance was there.  And finally, it was a freakin' 3:21!  As for me, I ran decently with a little hamstring tightness and cramping at mile 21.  But overall, I has pretty happy with 4:18.  And there was beer at the end - how joyful is that!?

So, you see, the joy comes with every step, whether it is during an early morning casual run, a hard training run, a marathon, a 5K, an ultra, seeing others run, running with others, writing about running - whatever - have yourself a JoyRun!

Trail Runner - Larger Prize Purses?

Through the Trail Runner Blog Symposium, this question is posed, "Is the Introduction of bigger prize purses at trail races a positive or negative thing overall?"

I will never see a purse in a trail or road event so these thoughts come from someone who runs for the pure love of it.  In The Moment Running was intentionally created after a trail run with the premise that trail running required you to be In The Moment while running and not drifting off half asleep like you can on a road.  Don't get me wrong, I run the roads too but trail running is something special and requires you to be one with the path you take, the trail less traveled if you will.  Trail running is born out of nature and the challenge called upon by the trail - rocks, roots, streams, hills, mud, logs - all that can and will make the best of runners stumble.  My last blog entry Lost Horizon and a referenced entry from one of my other blogs show the respect yet joy and love I have for trail running.

Now, to the question at hand.  There are probably less than 100 runners in the country that can compete for wins on trails, especially at the ultra level, which would be the trail races that could possibly acquire the sponsorships needed for bigger prize purses.  Although I will never win a prize purse, small or large, I am not opposed to seeing larger prize purses for the top runners.  Like I said, comparatively speaking, there are not that many guys and gals who would enter a trail race solely for the large prize purse.  More my fear is that trail races become what the JFK 50 has become, an event for elite runners that keeps the grassroots folks out of the event ( I know, not entirely true but is ultimately heading in that direction and I hate to knock it because it is in my hometown).  Most trail races allow only a certain number of runners on the trail so it is understood that these races will be capped.  Entry should be, come one, come all and if the purse just happens to be a big one, then the elite runners need to register early just like everyone else.  Or, maybe the race sets aside a certain number of elite entries of  qualified runners.  Of course, the 10K trail championships and the like are different.  These races are for champions and elite runners and the stage and purse is theirs for the taking.

Also, what I will hate to see is that these events grow into mega-events like the Competitor events on the roads.  Although I have run a few of them, I despise the commercialization of them and try to avoid them as much as possible.  There are certainly positives in these events to the local communities, charities, and promoting running in general.  But, there is no question about it; these guys are out to make money and appear to put that above all else.  I hope that if trail running prize purses do become larger, that the sponsors, race directors, and trail running community all make a concerted effort to keep the sport pure because, in essence, that is what trail running is all about - purity.

Lost Horizon

I always try to think of a catchy title for a post and I wanted to write about the trails that I had run on this past weekend.  I first thought of unchained melody and rationalized it while running. I thought of the Righteous Brothers song although I later learned that the original song was from some obscure prison movie.   The trails felt like a melody to me with perfect pitch and rhythm but unchained, meaning unrestrained.When I started writing I thought  that Lost Horizon might be a good title.  It was great being in the forest away for the world.  It was nice focusing on each step and seeing a lost horizon.  What I mean by this is that in a forest, there is no horizon, no point of reference except for the trail in front of you.  Yes, you can see the undulating hills, some steep, forming mini-canyons.  But, you are generally a lost soul among the trees.  The trail demands your attention but the peace and beauty captures your heart.  Ironically, when I looked up Lost Horizon (which I felt like I had heard of), it is a novel published by James Hilton in 1933.  Lost Horizon, the movie from 1937, was best known for the origin of Shangri-La, a fictional Utopian monastery high in the mountains of Tibet.  In the book, a veteran member of the British diplomatic service, finds inner peace, love, and a sense of purpose in Shangri-La, whose inhabitants enjoy unheard-of longevity.  When I read this line, I thought that this is the essence of trail running.  OK, maybe  it is a leap to get from trail running to a Utopian Tibetan society but finding peace, love and sense of purpose can be found on the trail. I will pass on unheard-of physical longevity but certainly entertain unheard-of spiritual enlightenment.  I wrote a post a few years ago relating to this while running 50 miles on trail in Texas.  Read it here.

The first trail run was in Mt. Airy Forest in Cincinnati.  It is the home of the Stone Steps 50K, A difficult ultra with a few ascents up the Stone Steps pictured here.  Notice the guy at the top.



It is a beautiful forest with technical and hilly trails and opportunities for getting lost on the myriad of trails.  That's half the fun!  I suspect the 50K is marked better than the general park markings.

The other trail that I ran over the weekend is near where I live in Umstead Park in Raleigh.  I have run the challenging bridle trails many times and even attempted a 100 miler there (completed 50) but never ventured onto the single path trails.  I ran the Loblolly Trail on Monday.  It is not terribly technical (mostly roots and some rocks) and sometimes cushioned with pine needles from the forest but it does have its climbs and a couple of small stream crossings.  However, it doesn't take away from the serenity of the experience especially as it weaves its way to one of the lakes in Umstead.  I stopped, prayed, and continued my journey.

On March 16 I will venture running a trail marathon in Pocahontas State Forest in VA.  It's the 4-5 hours that I will spend running in the forest that I will cherish.  If I ran too fast (which is unlikely these days) I would miss the extended calmness and joy of the experience.  I hope to find the lost horizon.

American Land

It's good to be back on "American Land".  It was appropriate for Bruce's song to be the last song of my run today.  Being in the UK last week with two long days of travel and full-day meetings the rest of the days, it was a good time to give the body a rest.  Rest is training, of course, unless you are constantly at rest and then that would be couch training.  After weeks of running and tearing down your body, rest allows it to heal and build back up.  Of course, I would not advocate 5 days of no running, but certainly, 5 days of restful running or cross-training.  Sometimes, most times, my mind seems to need running more than my body.

I enjoy seeing new places, including places abroad but I especially like returning home to this great American Land.  Maybe this is true of everyone.  Home is always home for all of us.  Although I didn't run in the UK, I did buy two running magazines - Runner's World (UK version) and Trail Running (UK).This is the first that I have looked at these magazines and I really enjoyed it, especially "Rave Run" pictures in Runner's World and "Running Inspiration" in Trail Running.  The Rave Run picture was taken in Lauterbrutten Valley, Switzerland.  This is not the exact photo but gives you a good idea of what the rave is all about.

The valley was also JRR Toiken's inspiration for  Lord of the Rings.  The Jungfrau Marathon is the valley's marathon and looks spectacluar.







In Trail Running, the photos are in a section called "Running Inspiration".  The three photos in the Feb/March issue are from Loch Lomond, Conic Hill; Glyders, Snowdonia; and Transvulcania, La Palma Island in the Canaries.

Again, these are not the exact photos but gives you a good idea of the beauty.

 

 Loch Lomond, Conic Hill in Scotland

Glyders, Snowdonia in Wales

La Palma Island is an island of the Canaries and has one of the most difficult ultra-marathons (83K), called the Transvulcania, due to the terrain of this volcanic ocean island,

We have our beauty here in the U.S. as well but it was nice seeing the beauty that other runners expereince in other countries.

I found both magazines full of great articles and and good advertisements.  In some ways, I think they might out do their American counterparts but maybe that is from seeing them the first time.  This may be due to being European, meaning, in Europe, you don't fly/drive to other states like we do here in the U.S.  When you leave England, you may be in Scotland, Ireland, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, etc. all different cultures.  In the U.S. we generally travel to another state but it is still America.  These magazines represent the diversity of Europe.  One thing is apparent, the running community is active around the world and as much as I love running in the U.S. and visiting states that I may not have visited otherwise, I hope to remain running long enough to visit other countries and experience other running cultures as well.  It's a big world, ya know, go live it!  But, it is always nice to come home

Insanely Sane

There are people, believe it or not, that say running 31 miles is insane.  Of course, there are people who say that running down to the corner is insane as well!  I am writing to dispel the myth that running 31 miles is insane.  On January 5, 2013, we arose at 4 AM (now that is insane!) to get to Winston-Salem by 6:30.  We are Shawn, my nephew, Cindy, our crew chief and me.  Cindy is probably the most insane one because she got our of bed at 4 AM just to go hand us "stuff" and take pictures!  Shawn is on the verge of insane because he drove 5 1/2 hours, paid $35, got up at 4 AM, ran 31 miles and then drove another 5 1/2 hours home the next day.  Me?  I have always said that running, no matter what distance, keeps me sane.  I don't know where I would be these days if running wouldn't have been part of my life over the years.  Here is why the Frosty 50 was insanely sane.

• The company of Shawn running and Cindy crewing (love them!)
• The other runners with their joy, determination and perseverence (even the guy who won in 3:00:10 (What?)
• The venue - 5 miles of lake front amid trees and brush resting in the winter
• The idylic Frosty 50 where the start was truly frosty at 29 degrees but warming to 50
• The blue sky and bright sunshine making sunglasses a must
• The winter wildlife in the lake
• The volunteers and race organizers who always provided (I was starving at mile 23 and the volunteer offered PB&J!)
• The burning of 3300 calories
• Burgers and Beers at Tribeca Grill to celebrate
• The soreness that said that the body did something truly diffuclt but rewarding
• Sandstone medals instead of the big marathon gaudy ones

Sitting is much more insane than this! There is more "sanity" to come this year and I look forward to every mile!

 ...The sun rising over Salem Lake...

 ...Shawn and me, halfway to 50K...

 ...Our Crew Chief and my girl...

Fresh Start 2013

It's January 3rd, 2013 and time to further my attempt at regular or, shall I say, renewed, blogging.  My other blog http://runnersthoughts.blogspot.com/ ended on January 1, 2010 for a variety of reasons and none which I wish to discuss.  However, there are some very good and personal posts on that blog.  2012 wasn't a great year for running events, travels, etc. but was great for other reasons.  I now want to turn my attention back to doing what I love with running and that is writing about running - being involved, knowing other runners, events, and experiences.  The two go hand-in-hand.  Running brings clarity to many things only to be offset by confusion when the heartbeat subsides and the steps slow.  At the very least, I hope to post every day that I run and capture the moments as I once did years ago.  Some of my favorite posts were observations, picking up the details on a run, seeing life as it is truly meant to be seen, in the details.  Some days, the details might be in your mind alone, but on others, the focus is on the world around you.  In some ways it is difficult to think and imagine outside of "the you" in life.  It must be practiced.  There is no better place to practice than on a run. 

Last night I registered at dailymile.com and finally synched my Garmin with the Garmin Connect, Training Center and dailymile.  My first issue of Marathon & Beyond arrived yesterday.  I run my first ultra of the year on Saturday.  So far, it is a good start to the year related to running.  I have also accepted that I no longer have the pace that I used to and have more aches and pains but I still hope to to have the courage to continue to run, engage, endure and persevere because more than anything else, running defines me and makes me a better and happier person.

I ran 3.1 miles today just trying to stay somewhat loose for the 50K Saturday.  Sitting is the root of all health evil.  It rusts the body and as I age, yet still sit behind a desk, I need to move more, especially to stretch these tense muscle fibers.

Also, although this blog relates primarily to running, I don't see life as one-dimensional. Just because I don't mention other aspects of my life here doesn't mean that there are no other aspects of my life.  I am sure some of those other aspects will creep into these posts.

The Final States

Its been a long journey but well worth the trip. The final 8 states are in my grasp and I will have completed a marathon in all 50 states. There have been some great experiences being part of a community of runners with a dedication to endurance and perseverance - a general love for running. I started my 50 states quest in 2001 at the inaugural Baltimore Marathon and hope to end it in Kauai in September of 2014. After that my quest will be 100 marathons as I pick 'n' choose the ones internationally where I can have the best experience. At my level and most marathoners' levels, the "best experience" is what it should all be about. We are not going to beat Ryan Hall or Meb and any of the Kenyan's and Ethiopians, we are out there for the experience of that marathon and that which the venue affords us. I have never won a long distance race, never won an age group, never qualified for Boston but I have continued to lace up my shoes for the love and essence of running and particularly running the marathon. We should all find that passion in something.