Pemberton 24 Recap

A Runner's Ramblings: Volume 13; 9th Edition 
74.55 miles run and 12.75 miles biked and 6409 meters swam in races in 2019 races
Race: Pemberton 24
Place: Salisbury, MD
Miles from home: 1625
Weather: 55-85 degrees; sunny

I found myself in Washington, D.C. area for the first time in 3 years and one month last weekend.  Giving a speech to bankers about ignoring the impossible, I also had to find time to et my last longish run in before I head to run a marathon that traverses Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. I hopped on the old interwebs and look at the options nearby. There was both a half-marathon in Virginia and 20 mile race in Maryland which caught my eye. Then I stumbled upon a first-year race called the Pemberton 24 - a Festival of 5Ks.

Held in a park in Salisbury, Maryland, this race was a series of 5K trail races which started promptly, on the hour ever hour for one full day beginning at 7 p.m. at night. Now, this sort of race wasn't exactly I should be doing just two weeks before a marathon but it wasn't NOT what I should be dong either. So I signed up for it.

I wrote an article on timed races for Runner's World magazine a few years ago. Those are races which, instead of a set distance, you have a set time to run as far as you can.  This race, however, was different than that. While race directors are constantly looking for ways to attract runners with new formats and new gimmicks, races akin to this are becoming more popular.  The race director of the infamous Barkley Marathons has a race wherein both runners run the same 4-ish mile loop every hour until no one can run any more This can take days sometimes. With this race, however, the twist was a point system.

Each runner received one point for each 5K completed (an additional point for the race from midnight to 5 a.m.). Then the top five finishers of both genders received an additional 4, 3, 2, 1 and 1 points respectively.  As such, if you wanted to win this race, you simply had to score the most points. This was going to be quite unique for sure.

I go to the race right when registration opened and began setting up my small tent. A little pink number I had bought for a friend for her usage in a 100 miler a few years back, I forgot it had little prancing foxes on it. That's me- striking fear in the heart of competitors everywhere. While I would not have the most minimal set up in the field (that would go to the fella who ended up setting up shop adjacent to me who had basically a reclining chair and a blanket) it was definitely dwarfed by some of the REI-salivations of other competitors. But Fort Awesome was enough for what I felt I would be doing this day. made a quick trip to the dollar store, bought a pillow and a camouflage cooler, a few provisions tin case the race didn't have them

and then was back to wait out the clock before the race started.

First 5K (7 p.m.): 23:51
My primary goal for this %K which would be run in rapidly fading light, was to simply see what the course was like and maybe figure out who a few of my top competitors would be for the race.  It appeared that many of the runners knew each other, were local, and maybe even had some sort of Survivor-esque alliances planned out for point-gaining strategies.

Midway through the first loop I heard two runners talking about how they planned to sti out a few of the early-morning races to get some rest. Puzzled, I inquired how they could do so.  This is here I learned, for the first time ,that runners did not have to complete every single 5k to continue. If you didn't run or finish a loop, you simply didn't get credit for it. This changed my entire strategy for running and racing completely!

I wore a headlamp for this first 5K and quickly realized one needs to replace these every quarter of a century or so. The elastic band had all but lost all elastic and made the headlight rather useless.  Upon finishing the loop I had to do some quick repair using athletic tape to even keep it together. I finished like 9th overall or something on this loop so I only got my one point for finishing.




Second 5K (8 p.m.): 21:20
Now that I had sussed out some of the competition, I wanted to see if I could win an early lap to jump to the lead.  I ended up running virtually this entire loop with my minimalist neighbor, Aaron who was a rather accomplished ultraunner.  He mentioned how his foot had been aching him and he would likely not come close to running all 24 loops. I long ago learned not to listen to the aches and pains of ultrarunners as hey often downplay their fitness and upplay(?) the tragedy which has befallen them lately.

This loop we would be running was not hard. But it was far from easy.  There were more than few roots, more than few twists and turns and more than a few branches those of us that are a bit taller would be taking to the face.  There was a section of dark black mud which would definitely not be improving as three hundred feet ran through it every hour. But there were also a few straight very runnable sections that I was always happy to hit. One was the last kilometer which was when runners burst out of the forest and onto a white rock road with the finish line in the distance.  Here Aaron and I popped out together and began running stride for stride. I ratcheted up the speed a touch and he stayed with me. We turned onto the last grass straightaway and I took off.  Aaron responded and stayed right with me. Having no desire to kill myself on Loop Two, I backed off a touch and Aaron went through with first place points.

So it was clear that on top of endurance, he had, at least right now, some kick!
 
Third 5K (9 p.m.): 22:16


By now my headlight was a bust. Aaron kindly offered me his spare which I thought was beyond nice.  This time I took off in the lead for the first 2 kilometers until a ever-smiling chap named Christopher (who wrote an ever-changing amount of Jesus-themed shirts) passed me.  I had heard that he had never run more than a marathon so I figured I would go right ahead and let him burn himself out on this loop and hold steady to my second place finish.


While the temperature was now squarely in the high-5, I was finishing each loop absolutely drenched in sweat. I could see the biggest challenge for this event was going to be staying warm and dry in between running. Once I stopped I quickly shed my shirt, toweled of and put on a long sleeved fleece. I knew eventually I was going to need more calories than the regular Mountain Dew I was drinking but right now, as it has so man times, it served me very well.


I was now second place overall in the standings. This early into the event I had no designs on how the rest of the race was going to go but I liked where I was right now.

Fourth 5K (10 p.m.): 22:15

This was the first race where it became clear to me that runners definitely have a varied amount of

different strategies. Right out of the gate a slew of runners took off at a great clip. I didn't feel like following them as I could see it was going to be a battle I wasn't interesting in participating in. When I finished fifth overall in virtually he exact same time as my second place finish from he previous loop, it was obvious each 5k was going to be it's own entity.



Fifth 5K (11 p.m.): 23:27

Beginning the fifth hour saw a slight drop in the number of participants. Or, perhaps more accurately, there were less people milling around ten minutes before the race started as there were on previous loops. I was doing my best to utilize every second of rest possible.  I had gone to also wearing a long sleeve shirt under my fleece when I was resting an climbing into Fort awesome to stay maybe a touch warmer doing my breaks. I found I was shiver a great deal and that would mean lots of wasted energy.

Even though I could have changed shirts every time I ran this was the first time I put on a new clean and dry shirt since we started. It felt wonderful.

I took third overall on this loop in a minute slower than the previous loop where I took fifth. Each loop was definitely a crapshot when it came to knowing who was going to run had and why.


 
Sixth 5K (12 a.m.): 25:26

The first loop to give us double points for the day also had me taking my first fall. I didn't feel like I hurt anything too badly and there was only a slight bit of scraping on my arm. But falling always takes a lot out of me mentally. When you trip one over roots you begin to wonder how much more often you will continue to do so as your feet aren't going to get any lighter as the hours march on. It begins to play with your mind and it is harder to use those resources for things you need.

Seventh 5K (1 a.m.): 26:43

My second double points loop had me making an executive decision.  I was hungry, tired and beginning to stumble. I obviously needed calories and a break.  I grabbed two doughnuts from the well-stocked aid station at the finish and headed to my tent. After lying down for a bit I realized I was wasting too much energy shivering and decided to go to my car. There I cranked the heat and tried to get comfortable. I am not sure how the hours passed so quickly because I was rarely sleeping. Something about not being able to fully recline and have my feet elevated kept me from enjoy sleep. But I was resting and warm which was good.

I could hear the beginning of each new loop. The announcer, Gabriel, was doing a bang up job of playing fun and invigorating music as well as entertaining all with facts and trivia. I am not sure he changed his hat every single hour but I never saw him wear the same one twice. From Captain's hats to astronaut helmets to everything in between, it was quite a hoot.



Eighth 5K (6 a.m.): 24:12

The last loop we would run with headlights was my first one back after my break. I told myself if I couldn't win this loop, I had no business being here any further. Fortunately, this was also the loop many of the fasties had decided to take it a little easy.

The loop provided one section where runners going one way could see the others going out on lollipop portion.  It was with about a kilometer to go when this happened and it always was a big energy lift for me.  

This win was a nice confidence booster. I saw I had given up a ton of ground/points by taking the rest I took but y goal was not to win as many points as possible. I was sitting in fourth place overall and it looked unlikely I would gain much on anyone in front of me. I was ok with that.



Ninth 5K (7 a.m.): 22:59

I started this loop as I did most of them: by leading the first quarter of a mile or so.  Then, like most of them, someone would pass me.  It was rarely the same people in the same order but always someone had a little bit more than me on that loop.  On this loop, I had one fella who had been wearing long sleeved button-up shirts most of the night. I am sure they were the wicking material and well-suited for his needs (as I have seen many ultra-marathoners wear them) but they always look so out of place.  Like someone left their lumberyard and decided to go for a 50k trot.

With the leader long gone, I was basically shadowing this second place runner after he passed me around the 2 kilometer.  He would invariably put more distance between us as we weaved through the darkness of the forest but when we entered one of the longer straight portions, I narrowed the gap.

When we excited the forest for the final half of a kilometer, I picked up the pace. I left him behind me and eased off the throttle just a bit. Turning onto the grass straightaway I saw the overall leader had been much closer than I expected. He was actually walking backward or something similarly to show how much of a lead he had or something to the race director (who was there to shake everyone's hands every loop - super cool.)  As I finished the last ten yards, I reached out to shake his hand and the guy behind me slipped right by, beating me by one second.

I begrudge him nothing as racing is racing and you have to go to the finish. I was just irked at myself for being distracted by what was going in in front of me and not making one last look over my shoulder when I slowed. I learned my lesson.

Sun was coming up now over tent city.



Tenth 5K (8 a.m.): 24:29

I would be lying if I wasn't still a little blood boiling about getting beat at the end of the last loop. 

What was most interesting now that the sun was out was how the course was far more technical than I thought it had been. There were way more roots, greater unevenness of terrain and lots of things which could have tripped me in the night  How I only fell once is a bit of a miracle.

With the sun fully ahead, the trail entirely visible, and me still feeling excellent, I vowed I would win this loop.  Like the other time I had said so, this was almost a breeze.  From the get go, I had virtually no competition and  led the loop wire to wire.

I knew the next loop would give me 34 miles and would be the longest I had ran since my buddy Mosi and I had split the 80 mile River to River Relay into a two-person team back in 2016.  in other words, this was the longest I hand run in over 2.5 years. That blew my mind for a moment.

Eleventh 5K (9 a.m.): 34:18

I decided to see if I could win two in a row and three out of four to put me in third place overall.  If so, and I continued to feel good, maybe I would run the remaining races at a conservative pace, busting out a victory here and there.

At the 3km portion of this loop, that decision was rendered unnecessary.  I came to a walk for the first time in the whole event and could not have cared less. I had gotten passed for fifth place a kilometer earlier and now I knew I was only getting one point no matter how slow I went.  I'd like to say that I made the decision to slow but my body made it for me. I was completely spent.

I walked the entire last 1.2 miles at what could only be classified as a saunter.  I knew I was not starting the next loop but I had to decide what I was going to do for the remainder of the day.  With it now being 11 a.m. I knew the McDonald's nearby would be serving lunch. 

So I hopped into my car and went and purchased a triple cheeseburger and large Dr. Pepper. The food was marvelous at the aid stations but sometimes you have to eat what your body wants.  I finished the entire food and drink before I event drove halfway back from the 2 mile excursion. With half an hour to go before hte next loop, I knew it would be my last.


Twelfth 5K (12 p.m.): 25:15
 I saw Aaron in his usual spot next to my tent and told him that this was my last lap. I said if he was still racing for the top spot and wanted a win, this might not be the lap to get it. It was said in half-hubris half-respect for him. In other words, I was done, there was 6 more hours to go for him and I was going to make anyone who challenged me on this loop hurt a WHOLE bunch.

As luck would have it, just like my other two victories, this loop was a breeze. I can't say I jogged but I definitely didn't have to push hard at all. I finished and immediately began packing up all my gear.

I knew I had a 2.5 hour drive back to the greater D.C area where I was staying with my friend Diana and her husband Charles. My original plan was to do all the loops and drive back, likely not getting back any earlier than 11 p.m. This was a much better idea.

I packed up Fort Awesome and said good luck or congrats to the variety of people whom I had gotten a chance to meet and talk with throughout the night. There was Claudia who had never run over a marathon who traversed over 50 miles.  There was a group of young kids who had done a relay and were just so polite and nice. There was another group of ladies, one of whom went gaga for Ed Sheeran. ("That ginger hobbit?" I said.) Big thanks to Aaron for he use of his headlight and Matt Bergren for his athletic tape. (Also, Matt you still have the Strava CR for the loop.  Mine is only second fastest.  plus I feel if I got it, since you lived down the street, I wouldn't have it for long.)


While this was a first year race, it was put together by an experienced  crew and that shows. From a logistical standpoint it was extremely well-run. Having a base of operations in one place and the runners right there helps. Thanks to Trent and Chuck and everyone else involved.

I very much liked the idea of the points system as well, even though it definitely skewed more towards a woman being able to win it outright.  But it also rewarded those with varying skill levels which was very fun.

My tent neighbor Aaron ended up winning the overall men's position rather handily. I slipped a notch by not running the last 6 races to fall to 5th place by basically just one 3rd place loop. But I was happy as this provided me with everything I needed for my training.

Of course, two days later, while out on a routine trail run I tripped, fell, scrapped up my knee, ribs, shoulder, elbow and hand with some really painful contusions from all of them. Not at all what I wanted with a marathon ten days later but I laugh how that didn't happen in the middle of the night 48 hour earlier.

I then went to a Chicago Bears game at the team who plays in Landover, Maryland and they won. My lifetime Bears record is 2-0. I think the team needs to fly me to important games. In case you don't know, the metro near the stadium closes at 11:01 p.m. when most Monday Night Football games go to at least midnight. Then, well, good luck finding a taxi or Uber. My college buddy Grant and I had to split a $100 fare and that was AFTER we walked two miles away from the stadium to even find one. 

But check out my mask!

Oh yea, my speech, the reason I was even there, went smashingly. Thank you for asking. Now book me for your next event.

My newest book will be out in October and you will love it.

Lifetime Splash and Dash Series Recap 6 of 6

A Runner's Ramblings: Volume 13; 8th Edition 
37.35 miles run and 12.75 miles biked and 6409 meters swam in races in 2019 races
Race: Lifetime Splash and Dash Series
Place: Austin, TX
Miles from home: 13
Weather: 85 degrees; cloudy; humid

After not writing a recap for my last aquathlon and the Deep Eddy Mile (just didn't feel like it) I thought I would have some good news to share for this race. We had a slight break in the Texas heat and I have been running well lately. Both of those made me feel like it would overcome the fact that I haven't swam a stroke since the last aquathlon a month ago. I won't bury the lede. They didn't.

I had my worst swim of the year which wasn't atrocious (it was faster than every other swim of the 18 but one that didn't happen this year) but it was also my worst. The 89 degree water didn't help and having to battle one fella who was more or less the same speed as me and gave me a couple of good kicks at one point didn't help either. I spent the first 50 meters trying to get some water out of my lungs and nose but all told I just didn't have it. I tried to surge here and there but then was met with lethargy. During the transition I had a slight stumble with cost me five seconds as I tried to put my shoe back on. When I headed out for the run and saw 12:26 on the clock, when I was hoping to finally get a good swim in and be a minute faster than that, I knew my day was cooked.

During the run I saw absolutely no one. I will have to check my recaps but I do not recall NEVER seeing a single person to try to track down. As I made turns around this trail loop which has been my nemesis ever since the first one of these I did 18 races ago, I saw no one was catching me from beind. Wanting loops as close to 4:10 as possible when I actually ran 4:31, 4:40, and 4:29 can more or less tell you how my day went.

With a finish time of 26:08, I had my first over 26 since last year, didn't improve nearly as much as I had hoped and found myself running basically the same time as I had in the very first one of these in early 2017. I know what I need to do to get faster.It requires me to get into the pool. The fact I can be like the 8th fastest out of the water based solely on athleticism and muscle memory with zero training should make me happy. But it doesn't. However, I know that running is my priority. (Although, I will say, in my defense, the fact that the regularly-scheduled-to-be-finished-in-May new pool just half a mile from my house never getting finished AT ALL played a small part in me not getting my laps in this summer.)  I have a marathon in Austria in two weeks that I have been fervently trying to prep for the best way I know how in this Austin heat.  I might eventually get all my laps down to 4:10 but where I am going to make the bulk of my time against he upper echelon of this aquathlon group is in one obvious place: the swim. 

One competitor who, by beating me here on this day now owns a 3-2 head-to-head matchup against me this year, routinely beats me out of the water by 30-45 seconds. But when I beat him, it is because I can make it up on the run. If I can just get my swim close to his, he wouldn't even be a problem. But life is about priorities. You can't be bothered you don't have a faster swim if you focus on running, DANE.

There is no October race this year which is a bummer. The weather actually has a chance to be palatable in mid-October.  But without that I can really just keep up my running.  Hopefully I can keep this year of the most miles I have ever run going and turn it into some fast late fall races. 

I am sure this aquathlon series will be back before I know it!

2000 Miles and my First Marathon of 2019

This has been a year of firsts. It will likely have many more.

Running has been difficult for me since I moved to Austin. The weather, which I knew would be warm, has been WAY warm. Last summer was the third hottest summer in recorded Austin history with something like 50 days over 100 degrees. This summer has been mildly cooler which has helped my running get to heights I haven't seen in years. However, before I even got to this summer, I was doing something I had never done before in my recorded running history.

I have never been much of one for running streaks. I also haven't been one much for piling up mileage for no reason whatsoever. Yet, this year, with a longer than normal "Spring" and a variety of other factors, I not only broke my previous running streak of a meager 48 days (with 143) but have been putting up more miles than I have ever run before.

Another factor in my mileage gain has been a significant lack of racing. When I race, I rest. That means my per run mileage is higher but my number of runs and amount of miles goes down. But when I hit 2000 miles for the year on August 27th, that was the fastest I had ever reached that milestone. The only year which comes close is 2008, the year I ran the most miles ever: 2894.25, I didn't hit 2000 miles until September 8th.

What makes this year stick out even more was the horrific running year I had last year. I was sick for almost six weeks. Had virtually no good races. Spent many days just slogging through the disgusting weather. It took a phenomenal December to even get to 2198.98 miles. Yest this year, I am on track to top 3,000 miles for the first time ever and that is definitely a neat side milestone.

But these are all just random numbers. What matters most to me is hopefully bringing it all to a head to run some good fall races. My goal race this year is a marathon in Europe in just under five weeks.  Starting in Austria, going into German, back into Austria, then into Switzerland before finishing in Austria, the Three Countries Marathon looks like it will be my best marathon in over four years.  I know I am not in personal best shape right now but I should be knocking at the sub-3 hour door, especially if the weather holds true to form. I learned a long time ago, the course matters not nearly as much to me as a cold day does.

I haven't had many races this year to build confidence. I normally like to race my way into shape.  But with the longest runs I have ever done by far on the treadmill this summer (my 20 miler is this Friday) I think this bodes well for me.

So now I am trying to pull it all together here in the last month. I have an triathlon race and then a very interesting 24 hour event just two weeks before the marathon. To be quiet honest, the marathon has lost a little appeal fr me the past few years. I am hoping that this race will bring some fire back into me and get the engine running again.

Iron Cowboy documentary review

I watched the documentary of the athlete James Lawrence who in 2015 attempted to do 50 Ironman triathlons in 50 days in 50 states. 

He did zero.

What Lawrence did accomplish was (and please read this statement before you get your underwear all knotted up) extraordinarily impressive. But he didn't do what he claims to have done, what his sponsors tout that he did, what the title of the documentary says, or anything else along those lines. What he accomplished was doing the equivalent of a 140.6 mile swim/bike/run workout in 50 different states in 50 days. This might seem like I am picking nits but bear with me here.

From a personal standpoint, I have a stake in this matter. I have partially made a career out of racing 52 marathons on 52 consecutive weekends in one calendar year. When I accomplished this in 2006 there were few, if any, who had undertaken and completed the same schedule - finding and racing 52 actual races on race day. Since then, I have been made aware of people doing similar things but there are always caveats in their races plans where they double (or triple) up on one weekend allowing them to take time off, or they run glorified training runs instead of races or a multitude of other things which take away from the spirit of the endeavor.

What do I mean by the spirit? Well, undoubtedly there are many people who could run 26.2 miles once a week for a year. But taking on the challenge to go to an actual race is one of the things that makes this challenge much more difficult. The other is something that, in 2006, I never thought would need to be mentioned. You see, when I raced these 52 marathons, I was actually racing them. (I averaged a 3:21 for all 52 even though the year included races in Estes Park, CO and Leadville, CO.) Week in and week out I was giving everything I had to not just check off a box and collect a medal. I was not there just to say I had finished a race. This is proven by the fact that I ran 6 marathons that year which broke my personal best. In other words, it is not the time the marathons were run in that deserves accolades but rather the commitment to bettering myself compared to my own best which is the measuring stick. My stake is that when I say I have done something and try to make a living off of that, it is impeded when others aren't forthright with what they also claim to have done. It affects my speaking engagements, my potential sponsors, and other things in that realm.

Last year, "fitness star" Ashley Horner declared she was going to do something akin to what Lawrence had attempted. Horner is undoubtedly aesthetically pleasing with smoky eye makeup, nice abs, and some big biceps. She also has on her resume, a supposed 230-mile 3-day run across Haiti. I say "supposed" because there is no GPS data of any sort to bolster her claim. So when she, who had never once completed single 140.6 mile triathlon, claimed she was going to do the 52 in 52 in 52 (she was adding Haiti and some other place for 52), there was tons of skepticism. It turns out it was well placed. Within three days, the entire fiasco went to pot and Horner called it quits. Anyone who dared to point out how b.s. the entire endeavor was was met with "but she's doing it for charity!" by her legion of Instagram followers. Never mind whether the money she raised actually made it to the charity (there are plenty of reasons to think it did not including this bizarre denial of impropriety that is as convoluted as her 52 in 52 plans).

All the talk of Horner brought up Lawrence's attempt. If nothing else, at least most of Lawrence's workouts were easy to find. This documentary then puts the statistics for each day up as well. But it was not without controversy.

First, Lawrence never competed in an actual race. While he does have records for most 70.3 triathlons and 140.6 triathlons in a year (although, no emphasis is put on how fast he finished them, which, like it or not, DOES matter) every one of the 50 in 50 was going to be simply a workout. That's not mean to denigrate the effort. Spending upwards of 17 hours exercising a day is extremely difficult. Couple that with then traveling to another state to do it all over again 49 times in a row is a logistical nightmare. But he never was in an actual race.

Second, the reported times given never say how much time was between each discipline. In the film you might see his swim time was 1:30 and his bike was 7 hours and his run was 5 hours but it is quite clear there was substantial time in between each event where he was getting ready for the next discipline. But we don't know what those times are and I am sure it is not easy to find them.

Third, on a few occasions, due to weather or other circumstances, portions of the bike and run were done indoors on stationary bikes or trainers or treadmills. In fact, one of the biggest controversies was when he did a run on an elliptical trainer. This drew particular ire from these who were even in his corner as that is most assuredly not the same as running outdoors.

Finally, the IVs. It is unsure exactly how many times Lawrence received IVs to help with his fluids and hydration and whatnot but it is very sure that this was not allowed by the World Anti-Doping Agency. (A post-script in the documentary says that WADA has since changed their "regulations to take into account situations like James's (sic)".

OK, all of that said, most of which I already knew, I really wanted to root for the guy. He's likeable and likability goes a lot in this world. But I just couldn't endorse what he was doing. Not because I cared whether he was destroying his body or not. Do whatever you want to do if it doesn't hurt anyone. Nor did I care that he was throwing his wife and five kids in an RV for the trip as well. Good for him for letting his family come along with him and see more in their young lives (his oldest was 12 years old and youngest 5 during this movie) than most adults will ever see in their life time. No, it was a couple of other things that really rubbed me the wrong way about how this all went down.

First and foremost is not owning up to the fact that they weren't Ironman races. In my latest book I am writing, I talk about stopping the embellishment. I know that calling them Ironmans is good for publicity and much more catchy than "140.6 miles of swimming, cycling and running workouts." But here's the thing: that's exactly what they f*cking were! As a person who has completed in many such races, you would think that he himself would be most attuned to what makes a race a race. I sure as heck am. What made my 52 so difficult was not just the covering the distance. But showing up, on race day, and racing in whatever the heck came down from the heavens that day. I had to compete with other people, I had to deal with the weather, and I had to go when the gun fired, not whenever I wanted to. This is paramount. That is why how many free throws you sink in the gym don’t matter when it comes to nailing them with the NBA championship on the line.

Second was an entitlement attitude that Lawrence showed. When the IV controversy popped up, and other things from the internet reared their head (note to anyone doing anything anymore like this in the age of Twitter, etc - you are going to have people who don’t like what you do. DO NOT READ THE COMMENTS!) he was almost astounded that anyone dare question his motives. “I don’t have any sympathy and don’t understand the rationale for someone who criticizes what we were trying to accomplish,” Lawrence said. This is where he lost me. Immediately all I could think about was Horner and those who use charity to hide behind what they are trying to accomplish. When they fail it is always “But think of the kids!” When the filmmakers pushed Lawrence and asked if he could at least see the viewpoint of the those offer criticism he paused and then said “no.”

Furthermore, when he said “How could you possibly have an opinion it?”, the utmost of arrogance really shown through. In fact, all I could think of was Lance Armstrong denying every allegation of impropriety with venom and vitriol. How can they have an opinion, James? Well, they are human. Chances are they are triathletes. Chances further are they are the people who you were lamenting weren’t contributing to the cause you were trying to raise money for. So, opinions are going to be what puts money in your coffers. And I can have an opinion because I did something very much on par with your efforts and I did exactly what I said I was going to do, what is on the cover of one of my books, and what is the crux of many of my speeches. (He does, at the end of the film, seem to admit to giving up sense of entitlement but that appears to be much more for the narrative than an actual truth.)

There was also a charity controversy involved with his effort as well which was seemingly resolved at the end. This really rubbed me the wrong way. When I ran my 52 marathons, I too raised money for an organization. While during the initial planning of my races, I found one which was organized by a group in Mobile ,Alabama that was part of a larger international organization called L’Arche. Dealing with mental and physically disabled individuals over the age of maturity, L’Arche also organized one of the races I was planning on running. Thinking that if I was going to be doing something difficult, I might have some extra gumption behind me if I had more people counting on me to finish, I asked L’Arche if they would mind me raising money for them. You see, I had worked with handicapped individuals in a variety of different ways for most of my life. As I had never heard of L’Arche, I guarantee you many others hadn’t either. So on top of money raised, I would also raise awareness.We hear that a lot for diseases and cause which we are all pretty darn aware of. At least here I would actually be making people aware of something they didn’t know.

All told I raised over $43,000 that went directly to L’Arche through a third party fund-handling group. Whatever L’Arche decided to do with that money was up to them. That way I never had to deal with the controversy that both Horner and Lawrence did. I also then understand the frustration when you want people to donate and they aren’t. The thing is though you have to remember that this is a goal YOU took on. People have no obligation to be as involved as you are regardless of how difficult what you are doing is.

Finally, the complaints about how difficult it is or how much you want to quit are lost on me. Lawrence had one hell of a crew. He had monetary sponsors. He had said sponsors sending paid and unpaid employees down to help him with his endeavor. He had people with advanced nutrition and electronics and massage and so much more to get his body in the best shape possible. Hell, one day he actually had two crew members more or less carry him through the final six miles of one his marathons with a crew member on each side pulling him along.

Lawrence falls back one point on how being there to run with his daughter every night is what kept him going from the 39^th day forward. That’s nice. I know that you can’t criticize family stories or you are seen as an ogre but ogre me up. I know I don’t have a daughter to use as a cool point in any of my stories. In fact, when a documentary was made of my solo running of the 202miler American Odyssey Relay, one complaint a friend had was that it wasn’t dramatic enough. So on top of running 202 miles straight, I was at fault for having what can only be described as a relatively drama-free run. I lucked out by not having a bear attack me or get into a fistfight with a crew member and somehow was punished for it. But I will never apologize for always putting the story out there exactly how it happened and simply letting people decide whether they want to support it or not.

That is basically my take away from this film and Lawrence’s effort. He is obviously very accomplished and very fit. He seems to want to do some good things for others while also experiencing awesome things for himself. I see no fault in that. There is nothing wrong with enjoying what you do when you are also helping others. But, like more than a few people commented, this seemed like not much more than a desire to do something cool which had a charitable component tacked on to help launder it a bit. Throw in the family aspect and you add another layer of criticism-proof protection.

What Lawrence accomplished was an incredible feat of endurance. It’s unfortunate he didn’t do what he is known for.

Lifetime Splash and Dash Series 4 of 6 Recap

A Runner's Ramblings: Volume 13; 7th Edition 
32.35 miles run and 12.75 miles biked and 3300 meters swam in races in 2019 races
Race: Lifetime Splash and Dash Series
Place: Austin, TX
Miles from home: 13
Weather: 95 degrees; sunny; humid; slight breeze

This is the 17th one of these races I have ran and written about in this particular race series. I am going to be upfront and say I am a touch disappointed that I haven't improved much more than I have to this point. When I ran the first of these I assumed soon I would be minutes faster and challenging for the overall win. However, there are a few caveats:
1. I don't swim nearly as much as I should in order to get as fast as I would like;
2. The vast majority of these have been in temperatures exceeding 90 degrees;
3. Overall win-wise probably won't ever happen as some of the top finishers here might just be kis but they have swim times even in my absolute prime I couldn't match.

As such, I can't be that bothered. Or I shouldn't be. But I still am. That's part of being a racer who wants to get faster. However, this is not a recap of complaints or excuses. This is one where I am more than pleased with my effort.

Swim:
I swam a few times in preparation for this race but not as much as I would like. A local pool that was supposed to be done in late May is STILL not completed. As soon as it is, I plan to be there a minimum of four times a week and really hope to take down my time on the weakest portion of this event for me. I know I can drop another 30 seconds in the run relatively easily, but this swim is where I could lose at least a minute, if not more, if I actually put the time in the water that it requires.

As I have described before the swim is a clockwise pentagonal shape around five major buoys that is usually rather pleasant. Today was warm as our summer is in full swing down here but as Austin hasn't had the repeated 105 degree days, it was at least mildly better than it could have been.  Sometimes it is just a pure soup of warm water. A nice breeze filtered in over the water as well which was unexpected and welcome.

After the horn sounded, I found myself right on the tail of a swimmer I didn't recognize. In fact, all the normal athletes who are around me weren't to be found. I didn't feel like I was doing too well but I also didn't think it was that bad. Open water swimming is difficult in my mind mostly because of the lack of ways in which to tell how hard you are working. Today was no different.

With the swimmer I was near, I found he wasn't doing that great of a job of swimming straight and as I was already on the outermost portion of the water I could be without going out of bounds, I was a bit boxed in.  I was trying to get around him but he was just fast enough to make this difficult.  However ,I knew in a little while I would have the inside as we made a hard right hand turn and from there I could make a move. I waited until we passed the third buoy and then picked up the pace. I soon had this swimmer behind me and was tracking down another. As we raced directly into the sun, making sighting pretty hard, I used the bubbles from his kicks to guide me. I felt relaxed and smooth but not like I was going too fast. I couldn't tell if today was going to be good or great. I knew it wasn't bad. Or at least I hoped so!

Heading for home, I got a nice straight line, must straighter than usual. I ran up the hill and towards the start of the three laps of running. I didn't have a watch on this time but I knew that wouldn't be a problem as they have a clock to read. Unfortunately, after putting on my shoes and heading for the run I could see the clock wasn't working. Now I had no idea how fast I had gone. Drats. Finding out later I had a swim and transition time of 12:06, my second fastest ever, was beyond surprising.

Run:

As I mentioned, none of the normal people I compete against were here and with no watch and no working clock, I had no clue as to how my time was going to be on each lap. So today was going to just be about position overall.

A bit ahead of me was a runner who had a touch of grey in his temples. I knew that chances were high he was a Masters runner and therefore in my division. I was not going to let him beat me if I could help it. Before half of a lap was over, I was in his back pocket. I passed him before the hill I hate and pushed hard on that small rise. I wanted to make sure to leave him behind and not give him a chance to use me to draft. Into the teeth of the hill and sun I accelerated, looking forward to respite given by the shade and ever so slight downhill which ends each lap. Getting there, I looked ahead and saw absolutely no one in front of me to chase down. I had nothing to help push me but fear of getting caught from behind. As I came to end the first loop, I saw the clock still wasn't working. Bollocks. It was clear I would have no indication of what my efforts were producing today. However, I ran a 4:23 which is actually faster than last month. Too bad I didn't know this.

The second lap now had me with more people on the course as a woman or two had entered the fray after their 3-minute delay in the water and some other guys were in front of me as well. The problem is, it is a little hard to tell if these are fast swimmers who can't run worth a damn or just decent swimmers who are decent runners. The best bet is to pass them all and worry about it at the end.

On the hill I fumbled with a glass of water which cost me a second. I didn't feel too hot which was a surprise. Just tired. And not knowing if the tired was because I was moving fast and could press more or tired and this was my limit was playing with my head. Damn watch and clock not working! I did run a 4:28 which was one second slower than last month. Again, that info would have been nice to know.

Onto the final lap I went and I didn't have much gas left. I was really just wanting to be done and with more athletes on the course (and others who are working out and really could wait just like 30 minutes for those us racing to have room on this narrow dirt and root path) it was hard to really get moving. But one man appeared in front of me and while I knew he was not in front of me in race position, I raced him like he was.

I had a sneaking feeling that maybe I had a great swim and that some of the swimmers I normally come out of the water with but then battle on the run might be sneaking up on me. But I looked behind me with about 90 seconds of running to go and saw no one of importance. Grabbed a quick glass of water and half-missed my mouth which wasn't bad thing.  Cold water on my body felt wonderful.

One final push had me running 4:24 for my final lap and more or less tying my time from last month in 25:22. Four races this year and these are my four fastest ever of the 17 I have done. Truly is a testament to the weight I have lost this year. This allowed me to win the masters division and place 6th overall male. Two girls beat me and I don't use that term impolitely. They are aged 14 and 20.  In fact, here are the ages of the top ten: 17, 16, 30, 24, 14, 15, 20, 43, 17, 29 and 47. There is a LOT of youth in there. And virtually everyone who beats me is doing 90% of that ass-kicking on the swim.

So if I get my butt in the pool, I might actually move up the ladder. And find an ab or two. There is no six pack there.

Oregon SummerFest 10 Mile Recap

A Runner's Ramblings: Volume 13; 6th Edition 
31.35 miles run and 12.75 miles biked and 2550 meters swam in races in 2019 races
Race: Oregon SummerFest 10 Mile
Place: Oregon, WI
Miles from home: 1179
Weather: 65 degrees; sunny; dry

I was in Madison Wisconsin for a speaking engagement at the Dream Bank, a community space dedicated to the pursuit of dreams, run by American Family Insurance. I had been at this Dream Bank six years ago when I was running from Dane Wisconsin to Davenport Iowa in an event that I created called, wait for it, Dane to Davenport. It was hard to believe that it has been six years since I was there but when you get old time flies by.

As is the case whenever I travel, if I have time, I try to find a local race to take part in. As luck would have it there was an event just south of Madison in Oregon, Wisconsin. Because I strive for accuracy you’ll be happy to know that the pronunciation of this city is different from the pronunciation of the state. The emphasis being on the last syllable and pronouncing it "gone" was difficult for this former resident of the tate to say this when he had to stop his mother from doing that very same pronunciation all the time. But I persevered.

This small local race had usually only had a 10 or a 5K race in it, neither of which fit my limited skill set in running. Fortunately, this year they added a 10-mile race. That sounded pretty darn good to me so I signed up.

The weather called for 50s and 60s most of the week leading up to the race with strong possibility of rain. But as the morning broke it was clear that it was going to be rather sunny. In fact by race time it was in the low 60s with a bright sun ahead. This is obviously not “ideal“ but for summer it is hardly bad whatsoever. Throw in the fact that on Tuesday just four days before this race I had done in an aquathlon in Austin Texas where at 6:30 PM it was in the mid 90s and let’s just say I was quite happy with the weather. One thing that I was not happy with, however, was a breathing problem that I had the morning of the race.

This spring has been a very good training spring for me and I thought that my racing was going to come together at a marathon in Canton, Ohio in April. But I had trouble breathing that day and ended up tanking it just about three miles in.  In Wisconsin, I was experiencing the same thing I don’t know if this was allergies or what but it is quite a bummer to feel that you are trained and not have the results on race day. So I got to this race well in advance hoping to maybe jog out some of the crap in my lungs. I ran over certain parts of the course and got in a good two miles before the race started. By then my lungs felt much better but far from perfect. I noticed it was sparsely populated race for us 10 milers, as we started before the other events.  But I noticed one fella who looked quite spritely.


RACE:

Within a quarter of a mile, after the start a very frustrating thing happened. I’m not particularly fast. I can win a race here and there but all it takes is someone with moderately good talent to show up and I don’t have a chance. In other words, the race has to be relatively small in order for me to maybe get a victory. Well this race was small but some ringer came down from the Movin Shoes store in Madison Wisconsin to show the locals and travelers like me who was boss. I could see that there was no way I was going to win this race and soon the leader was gone from sight. Also, another gentleman was between the two of us leaving me solidly in third place.

The race was well-organized for a small town race with wonderful markings on the ground for all four of the different races that were taking place. However, the one thing that was missing was mile markers. I found this out as we entered into what was the first of two loops of a park system. It was hard for me to tell if the gentlemen in front of me were running fast or if I was simply running slow. As my GPS watch was on the fritz, I was simply using a standard stopwatch which I thought would be enough if I had mile markers. That was not the case. As such I was now in no-mans land with no one really to chase in front of me and no idea of how fast I was going. Normally I have a good idea of my pace but as the past few years have been off, with me laboring in Texas heat, my inner sensors haven't been calibrated to what felt hard because it was hot or what was hard because I was running fast.

As i was hoping for a win on this day, it was difficult to keep myself motivated with that out the window and the thought that I wasn't running well at all. I run for a multitude of reasons.  But I race to run fast. When that isn't happening the fallback is to place high in the event, the thinking being that everyone is suffering. However, by the time we left the park and crossed a road into another smaller park I had a little bit of motivation.

There was a runner who I could simply not shake probably about 30 yards behind me. As we made little turns here and there, I was given glimpses o whomever was behind me and this young fella was doing a great job of hanging on. I figured I might not get first or second but I was going to be damned if I let him keep me from joining the podium. Especially since he was wearing baggy basketball shorts. I can't sleep at night if someone wearing basketball shorts of five finger shoes beats me. So as we ran down and started the second loop I began to pick up the pace. At least I think I did as a distance between me and my chaser grew.  My lungs finally opened up and even though I was drenched in sweat in spite of it only being around 65 degrees, I felt like I was running fast for the first time all day. However, I could see I was getting demolished by the first place runner. I wondered if he had not been there if I could have made a race out of it with the guy in second place. It didn't really matter now, as he too was also solidly in front of me.

By now runners from the other races were beginning to either exit the first park or enter it from another direction. So, while there was nary a spectator cheering out on the course other than the few that were manning the aid stations, it was still nice to see other participants.

I had a fair estimate of an idea of where the 8th mile was simply by extrapolating a course map I had seen for the 10K the night before the race. When I hit that spot it look like I was actually going to have a solid time for this race. As such, obviously not feeling that great about my effort, I figured that this might not be the right mile marker. As I headed down a stretch of road where I had run earlier in my warm-up I realized I was much closer to the finish than I thought. I knew the 10K and 10 mile course finished the same but doubting my own ability I figured the 10 mile course must branch off for an extra half mile or something somewhere.

However with about three minutes of running left I realize that I was on the right course and only had the finish line in front of me. I looked at my watch and was beyond surprised. If I had known a little bit sooner I might’ve been able to put a bigger push on to run a tad faster, But as it stands when I passed in third place and a time of 1:07:21 I had well over a one minute PR. I temper this excitement simply with the fact that I have run a faster pace for no less than five or six marathons and numerous halfmarathons as well. But the fact that I’ve only run a handful of 10 milers means I still set a PR. Can't argue with facts, people!

What was quite hilarious however is my desire to not be kept off the podium didn’t matter as the race only gave out awards for first and second place. I’m not complaining whatsoever as I have more than enough non-precious metals in my collection. It just tickled me that one thing that was spurring me on was one thing that I never ended up getting.



I thoroughly enjoyed my time in this small town eating some pasta from a place that after 40 years was closing its doors in just a week. While I always lament that I have not traveled internationally nearly as much as I would like, I do like how much I have seen of United States. Going to small towns like this and experiencing the local flavor has always made any travel woes well worth it. Seeing good friends and meeting new ones is also a plus. When you start a trip with a vocational opportunity that allows you to inspire some people and hear their own stories and finish it with a new race personal best all in about 48 hours then one must consider that a sincere success.

Now I just need to figure out this breathing problem and tackle some more races soon.

Lifetime Splash and Dash Series 3 of 6 Recap

A Runner's Ramblings: Volume 13; 5th Edition 
21.35 miles run and 12.75 miles biked and 2550 meters swam in races in 2019 races
Race: Lifetime Splash and Dash Series
Place: Austin, TX
Miles from home: 13
Weather: 95 degrees; sunny; dry

I had set three consecutive PRs at this distance going into this race at I doubted that would continue on this evening as we neared the 6:30 p.m. start time and we were still hovering around 95 degrees. With water temperature at a posted 83 degrees the only thing that was going for us weather-wise was a nice breeze and relatively low humidity.

Swim:

I had actually hit the pool a few times since the last swim race  so I expected to be a little faster than normal. I decided to push it a little harder this time because I figured I would wilt during the run anyway.

The swim is a clockwise pentagonal shape around five major buoys that is usually rather pleasant. Today wasn't too bad as it felt even a touch cooler than advertised. I found myself right on the tail of a young swimmer who almost has always beaten me out of the swim. In fact, by the time we hit the third buoy I had passed him. I figured I was having the swim of my life. Unfortunately, I brought a crappy pair of googles with me and as we turned and swam into the sun, I had an awful time seeing in front of me. My swim started to zigzag a little and I wasted precious seconds getting back on course. As we passed the final buoy and headed home, I saw I was in front of another swimmer that was normally in front of me. I must be swimming out of my mind.

Getting out of the water, I stumbled a bit putting on my shoes but figured I would be fine. Both the swimmer right in front and behind me transitioned quicker and were off to the races. I crossed the mat to start the run in 12:07. This was my second fastest swim and T1 ever but no where near what I thought it was going to be. These fellas must have been having an off night. All 14 and 16 years old of them. Damn yoots with their skillz.

Run:

So a little disheartened by a swim a tad slower than I expected I set off on my run. I saw the 14 year old had passed the 16 year old, whom is the one I am normally able to catch on the run. But I didn't seem to have much zip in the legs and as I was indeed catching him, it wasn't as quickly as I liked. The 14 year old began to pull away right when we hit the backside loop hill that I despise. But right then I felt a small slowing in the other runner and began to pass him. Right before the end of the first loop, he was behind me. I hit it in 4:25 which was not bad but wasn't great.

The second loop allowed me to get a glimpse of a new-found nemesis, a perfectly affable young man of 29 named Kyle. Now Kyle had beat me by 4 seconds in the first race of these this year, partly because I hadn't know he was on the same lap as I was and I hadn't kicked it in. Last month I bested Kyle by a time of 12 seconds. So this seemed to be the rubber match. However, throughout this loop I couldn't seem to make any ground on him. I crossed the second loop in 4:27 and figured I would have another slower loop to finish out. I just couldn't seem to find the will to run harder.

Suddenly, Kyle slowed just a touched on the downhill portion and I was just a few seconds behind him. He got mildly caught up in a narrow portion of the course passing runners behind us on their loops which allowed me to turn this into a tactical race. I love "racing" like this. Most of the time I am just pushing myself against the clock but sometimes it is fun to take down runners as well. The problem was I soon on his heels right as we began the backside hill.  I really can't tell you how much this tiny little hill slows me down but I knew I had to keep the momentum and pass him here.

Unfortunately, I made the cardinal sin of passing and I did not do it definitely. Energized by my passing him (Kyle's final loop was 21 seconds faster than his first) he saw me falter ever so much and suddenly had a five second lead on me. As we hit the final homestretch, which is shaded, and slightly downhill (and I always crush on each lap) I now saw he as fading a touch.  But I had given him too much real estate. I narrowed the margin with a 4:20 lap but ended up 2 seconds behind Kyle for 7th male overall. The PR streak ended with a 25:21 but this remains my third fastest time ever of all these races,  with those three all happening this year.

A new community pool is supposed to be opening soon in my neighborhood. When it does, I fully intended to try and re-find my gills and get my swim time down 30 seconds to a full minute. While I will never catch Kyle's brother Kasey, who routinely wins the entire race (with a swim and T1 2:30 faster than me) I should be a bit more respectable. AS it stands, I won the Master's Division for the second time this year and am looking forward to the July edition of this race when I am sure it will be 100 degrees and humid!