Running 25 Hours

Recently, while perusing the GUTS message boards, I came across this:

“Hey, my 25th birthday is on January 30th and for my birthday challenge I am going to run 25 hours!! I will do so at Roswell Area Park starting the morning of the 29th at 8am. My car will serve as my aid station & any fellow ultra runners who would like to stop by and run some miles, bring food, support etc.”

The ambitious man’s name was Jon Obst and I quickly send him a note saying I would be there to help him out. Having read many 100 mile race reports, I knew that the pre-dawn morning hours are usually the hardest. So it was that I set my alarm for 3.30 a.m. this Wednesday morning to drive up Roswell and help pace Jon. It was so early that the 24 gas station by my house wasn’t selling coffee yet (waaah?), so where else can you go get coffee at such an hour? That’s right, Waffle House! For those of you not aware, WaHO, as it is affectionately called by many, is a Southern institution. They have outstanding hash browns, grits and, well, waffles. Arriving at WaHo, I knew I was the only person in there already up. Everybody else was still up.

Grits, anybody? Ok, coffee will have to do this morning.

Driving up to Roswell, I was wondering what I had gotten myself into. After all, I had never met Jon. And here I was going to run in some park in the middle of the night wit a guy I had never met. (Smart!) Arriving at Roswell Area Park, I quickly found Jon’s car. The GUTS sticker and WS100 license plate frame sort of gave it away.

It was cold that morning. A massive storm front with high winds had passed through late the previous evening. How did they run through that? Incredible! Tuesday had been a warm day with highs in the 60s, but now the temperature had dropped to the low thirties with strong wind gusts. The wind chill must have been in the 20s or even teens. I was shivering and just waiting. All of the sudden I see a woman staggering towards her car completely exhausted. Was she running with Jon? It turns out she was. Heather had driven down from Louisville do to this challenge with her. But this was a low point. 80+ miles, a 35 degree temperature drop and driving rain will do that to you. I helped Heather change her gloves, which were soaking wet, to two pairs of wool socks to keep her hands warm.

Soon after Jon arrived. He gave me a bear hug, clearly stoked to see me (hey, why wouldn’t you be?). Jon seemed in much better shape than Heather. His dad had been running with him throughout the whole night. Other runners (friends, GUTS members, etc.) had joined in the fun the previous day as well. Ultrarunning is definitely a team sport. No doubt about it.

Jon competing at the Mountain Mist 50k 2008 last weekend.

After a quick bite to eat, we were off. I felt a little awkward at first. Never having paced anyone over such a distance or having attended 100 mile run, I didn’t know what to say. I wanted to encourage as best I could. But after few minutes the ice was broken. Jon was running at a surprisingly fast clip (Heather, too). With walk breaks, we were doing about 14 or 15 minute miles. Jon and I talked a little but quickly the conversation was mostly between me and his dad (he had a little bit more energy).

I learned that Jon was diagnosed a ype I diabetic (he was checking his blood sugar every hour) at age 19 right around his first marathon. Since then he has moved on to ultras and already conquered the 100 mile distance. Boy, oh, boy, what an inspiration. His determination, I could tell, was fierce and he had a wonderful attitude even at this late stage in the game. Only three days prior, Jon had competed at the Mountain Mist 50k and placed 28^th in a super-competitive field. The 4:16:53 he laid down on a hilly course at the Fat*ss 50k is further evidence of his incredible ability.

Jon finishing Mountain Mist

Overall, I spent a little over two and a half hours out there and left at the break of dawn. And I think I made a new friend. Congratulations, Jon, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

(I really wish my camera hadn’t died on me, I would have loved to have taken more pictures. I'll upload the two I did take later on.)

You Know You're a Trailrunner if...

1) you think dirty shoes (or clothes) are cool. The dirtier, the better!

2) you've ever seen an animal on a run, you had never seen in real life before.

3) you've ever gotten nervous when you saw an animal track you didn't recognize

4) you read TrailRunner Magazine cover to cover within 2 hours of receiving it in the mail

5) you think that in training time spent on the trail is more important than miles run

6) you think there is a HUGE difference between 'running' and 'trail running'

7) the more vertical feet the better

8) you've ever converted a runner into a trail runner

9) you've ever scanned Google Earth/Maps before an out-of-town trip to see where the closest trail is

10) you've ever wondered why more people aren't running on trails

11) you've gotten mad at yourself for not having discovered the joys of trails earlier in your running 'career'

12) 'single track', 'double track' and 'fire road' are part of your everyday vernacular

13) you've ever wondered what you'd do if you got injured while out on the trail miles away from your car (or, alternatively, have been in such a situation)

14) you think running uphill preferable

15) flat = boring

16) you've spent hours on the trail and not seen a single person....and thought that was incredible

17) nature is your haven

18) you've ever thought about some new trail at work, dinner or another inappropriate (?) time

19) you think running 50 or even 100 miles is completely sane and rational

20) you kept nodding reading this list

The above list was recently composed during a long run out on the trails. Comment away if you think of more!

Something New To Try Out

Now that it's cold here most of the time and that I'm not sweating as profusely, I have started to literally run errands. For example, yesterday I first ran to the post office to drop off a Netflix movie and then headed to the drugstore for some baby gift wrapping paper (my friends seem to be having lots and lots of babies these days).

The result: 3.6 miles, a nice little run and a couple of errands done.

You should give it a try some time! It's healthy, saves you money (gas) and is environmentally friendly (if you're into that sort of thing).

Trailrunning in the Snow

This past Saturday, it snowed again. Again! Twice in one week. And it came down hard in Atlanta, consistently snowing for about five hours. I took the opportunity to hit my favorite trails near the River. To quote another, it was simply "majestic". A couple of of inches of the white stuff had transformed the beautiful single track trails into a winter wonderland. One of the most memorable runs in recent memory.

Unfortunately, my camera did not work on that run (I need to make sure my camera is charged before going for a run). However, the next day my we went hiking in the North Georgia mountains. We made the five mile round trip to Raven Claw Falls in 20 degree weather. Below are a few pictures to give you a hint of how gorgeous it was.

The beautiful trail.

Yes, that's Georgia.

Raging rapids.

At Raven Claw Falls.

My first race of the year is coming up in a couple of weeks. Can't wait!

The Miracle of Active Recovery

After mildly spraining my right ankle last week, I decided to treat it with an active recovery program. I got the idea after reading all the runners' suggestions on Kevin Sayer's Ultrarunning site. While I did not run at all, I did a bit of walking, lots of core stability exercises (staying off my bad ankle) and some weights. In addition to that, I did lots and lots of icing (and R.I.C.E.-ing) and took a bunch of anti-inflammatories.

Six days into the program, I was able to go on my first run and I feel much butter. The ankle still a little sore, especially in the mornings, but things are looking up.

(Disclaimer: I do recommend that everyone see a doctor when hurt and not just treat it based on some internet recommendations. I have sprained both of my ankles countless times, especially during my basketball days, so I somewhat know what a mild sprain feels like versus a more severe injury. The most important thing, as always: Listen to your body!)

Snow!

It doesn't snow much in this city. In fact, in almost nine years of living here it has snowed maybe three or four times but without any accumulation worth mentioning. Well, that changed yesterday. Thick snow flakes started coming down right during rush hour. I decided to skip my run and instead go play in the snow. Here are some photos.

snow is so rare in Atlanta that we pull out our cameras immediately if we see any at all

Memorial Park was empty - the perfect playground

Snow Angel - I hear these are popular up north

It's the morning after now. Of course, most of the white goodness is gone. Even our hopes of a delayed opening of our office went down the drain as warmer air (mid 30s) and rain came this way late last night.

It was fun while it lasted!

Drought

So, I’m sure all of you have heard about the ongoing drought in Georgia. I recently ran along the trails of Lake Allatoona at Red Top Mountain State Park. Allatoona is the second largest lake near Atlanta and one of the most important water sources for the city. Below are some pictures I took of the effect the drought has had on the lake. Recent rain falls have increased the water levels by two feet. Note that these pictures were taken after these rainfalls.