#52b: the life of a pinball, part II

And now, page 2:


When I wrapped up the first half of #52, I was standing in the lobby at an internet kiosk in downtown DC as my weary post-marathon passengers patiently looked on.  Being the weekend's chauffeur they extended me a few minutes of extra patience as I finished typing......but I could tell they were ready to hit the road.


So where were we?


Friday after cutting out of BaseCamp31 a little early we packed the truckster and piled 4 adults and 2 kids in for the 4-5 hour trip to DC.  


It likely should have been 3 kids, but we left #1 home with the "grands" to support her team's bid at taking over sole possession of first place on the soccer front.  This was a really hard decision for her:  go watch Mom's big race vs. help my team.  I was glad to see her struggle with it a little.  Not because I like to see the 10-year-old wrestle with a very mature decision, but because she genuinely cared about both and could only pick one......maybe a bit mature for 10, but she's no average 10 year old (OK, that might be a bit of proud-Dad sentiment sneaking in).  


Anyway, we hit the road and the trip was, thankfully, mostly uneventful except for the weather reports that said a major storm system was heading toward home, with significant wet-heavy-snow and plummeting temps.


By Saturday AM (with soccer game 1 of 2 cancelled), I started to feel guilty about her being up there and started to trade emails to find out what the likelihood of game 2 (the more important of the 2) happening......and if not, I was seriously contemplating the 9 hours of a trip through sleet & snow to/from NJ to/from DC so she could be there for the race.  This would have been tough....but that's what pinball-dad's do right?

easy enough right?

We headed out to the race expo, and not knowing the DC roadway setup, we took an unofficial tour of Downtown.  Amazing how much more you appreciate it when you're an adult.  I think schools should nix field trips for kids......get them a bouncy house or those therapeutic foam things to beat each other with......let teachers and some UN-motivated parents stay home and "chaperon" the kids while the other parents board a bus and go to places like DC. More learning would take place.


The bridge toward Arlington Cemetery gave me goosebumps with the gold statues; we debated the Washington monument's purpose & design; we looked for Lincoln in his big chair and discussed why the Capitol building was "the hill".  Pretty educational actually.  No doubt, a royal city by world standards, and despite my general lack of respect for the poor job that seems to get done down there lately, I was inspired. 

Or something.

By the time we got to the expo, the weather was crappy.....cold rain that chills you to the bone.....and I watched Lindsay starting to doubt herself and whether she "really" wanted to do this.  We got through it and made our way through the rain (and now snow) a mile down the road for pre-race dinner.  The dynamic made me think of the history of marathons.....was the purpose of the pre-race dinner only to fuel the physical? Seemed to me more like a modernized version of "sending off the warriors".  Sort of festive, sort of nervous....after all, there was going to be pain in the morning.  We parted ways with the George Cole and family who joined us and wished them luck.


The evening went, and the AM came.  The racers were off early and after the breakfast buffet we layered up (it was COLD) and got our troop out to mile 5/8.5-ish to spot the racers.  


I'd give us a C- for the loud-mouthing effort.  For whatever reason, we had a very tough time spotting our racers. Eric had already gone by the 5mi mark when we got there, but we'd catch him at 8-ish; We saw Stephanie next who was in good spirits.  A short bit after Lindsay saw us....she yelled "Mike" and I looked across the road as she passed, the kids waved ferociously; then we waited.  Eric came around mile 8 and I even managed to snap a few pictures.......and we waited......and waited.....no sign of them......and we waited......people threw their gloves at our feet as they started to get warm......and we waited.  What the?  


Then another "Mike"......it was George Cole......I yelled some encouragement and got a few pictures (from the back)......and we waited.  Hmm, they should've been past by now......but to be sure we waited just a bit longer and then a final "Mike"....this time it was Cassy Bush, who was running for team-in-training and was in good spirits.  Again, I yelled some encouragement and we got back to the car (and eventually the hotel).  It was time to sprint-pack up our room and move our stuff down the hall (Eric finagled a later check out time) and then back to the finish line......more navigating DC, this time with multiple road closures......but we got to Arlington, somehow found a parking spot and made our way to the finish.  


We wandered through the sea of finishers and families, me constantly reminding Lissie and Andrew to hold my hand or coat (fighting my own ever-present-worry of having them wander off) until we got to the letter "P" (as in Pro-Activity) meeting area and found a shivering Eric and Julie (coach/pace-runner for the day) who were sharing a finishers foil......if that doesn't speak to the bond of a couple of running friends......sweaty, stinky and huddling among thousands of the other sweaty/stinky and now getting stiff, trying to stay warm.  I took off layer #1 and handed it to Julie, who with a little reverse-chivalry handed it to Eric (it was the warmer of the 2 fleeces I was wearing).  I then took off layer #2 and handed it to Julie who zipped up and headed for the Metro.  Eric fought his emotions as he told me about the race....I'm sure he'll recap for the rest of you HERE so I'll just say this.....the guy has an inner strength that is enviable.....and although he may not have met his ultimate goal on this particular day (still smashed his last personal best).....I'm sure if he decides it's worth it, he will.


We connected with Amy & family, I handed them over the now warming Eric and we (Me, Lissie, Andrew) made our way upstream through the crowd to find Lindsay who would be finishing soon.

yup, that's the pee-pee dance

We got to a reasonable spot and polled a few runners to see where they finished.....yikes....a full 30 minutes from finish to the end of the chute......worked out OK though, b/c that was just about the time Andrew informed me that he needed to use the bathroom.  CRAP!  Well, not actually, but we were pretty exposed so finding a tree was not an option.  We asked a Marine and he must have felt my pain, he gave me access through the roped off area to the back of the medic tent to use the porta-potties there for the now "dancing" 4-year old.  10 minutes later we made it back to our perch looking at the runners coming through the chute......had we missed her?  Would we again?  I was starting to doubt.  Then I saw her.  "Linds"....she turned and saw us.  She just about got the words "I'm so tired" out of her mouth when she choked up a little and I gave her a big hug and told her how proud of her I was.  A HUGE accomplishment....absolutely SMASHING her last effort, more than a decade ago....again, I'm certain there'll be a good recap HERE.  Of course this was followed closely by the post-marathoners mantra "I'm NEVER doing that again".....but I've heard (and said) those words before.


We reconnected with Eric/Amy, sent our regrets to Chris that we wouldn't be able to meet Cassy at the finish b/c we were already late for our extended hotel checkout and made our way back to the hotel.


The racers showered, the kids stayed (relatively) patient and I blogged.....we left the hotel and made our way to Georgetown, pretty fun looking place, where we found some crappy-food with too much salt and then washed it down with patriotism (Sam Adams is an American Hero right?).....we hit the road North and shortly thereafter the passengers.....all of them.....crashed and were asleep.


It was quiet and traffic flowed steadily....and although I was pretty tired by this point, it felt pretty darn good to decompress.  We eventually pulled back into BaseCamp31, saw a few of the big tree limbs downed by the storm and realized that even though this wave has crested, an equally crazy one is without-doubt starting to swell right behind it.....


Speaking of swelling, the knee is still not 100% (but it's getting close) and I now have some snow on the ground to contend with (PLEASE PLEASE melt and get warm again) as I move into my last 4 weeks of training before Rehoboth Beach Marathon......but this is the "down-1" week.....and so while one part of life goes into recover mode, I can keep pinging on the other areas.


This deaf-dumb and blind-kid, sure is a good pinball,


Mike E.

My inspiration, for your listening pleasure

#52: the life of a pinball

Pinball....ping-pong......tennis ball....racquet ball.....these are the objects I most relate to this week.  No, not the pinball wizard.....although last week had me feeling like I was going down that road......I realized maybe I wasn't controlling the pinball, but perhaps riding on top of it.  Amazing ride for sure.....but the rebound leaves you a little sore.

Week started out as week 3 of the "3-up" portion of my training month.  I was feeling pretty solid and even a bit confident.  Was staring a 20-mile run in the face, and given my brick on the Sunday, I wasn't going to be able to do "long-run-Monday" which has been becomming tradition as Lindsay's Training & Kid soccer both have had the legitimate dibs on the weekends.  So after running the hard brick on Sunday, I decided I'd lay low on Tuesday as in really-low (in actuality I crashed and fell asleep at 730P) and "sneak" in my long run on Wed.

Ever the efficiency-disciple, I picked a very challenging hilly 20 mile route and for the first 15 miles, things went at least as well as planned.  At mile 15 my legs were really really tired and I stopped for a minute to refuel.  No big deal, until I started going again, up the final (and pretty long/steep) hill.  My L knee, the complainer of the two, started doing its thing.  I didn't think much of it, I've had this argument so many times before.......and about 3/4 to 1mi later it gave up and we were back on track.  By then I was more fatigued than I realized and by mile 17, I was doing the shuffle.  4 hours later the knee was swollen and I realized I should've really tried to communicate rather than just arguing with my knee.  Sound like a marital dispute more than knee pain?  Well, as I'm sure some others will attest, sometimes these injuries are a lot like that.....and for a couple of days we weren't on great terms.  The knee would complain, and I'd pacify with some aleve.....but by the end of the week, we both started to reconcile and it let me have 20 minutes of treadmill work last (Sat) night in the hotel as Lindsay sat in the room contemplating the Marine Corps Marathon only a few short hours later.  So that was the physical pinball.......how about the mental pinball?

Well, let's just say it has to do with leaving the oldest home so she could help her team win and stay in first place on the soccer field.  That mixed in with some crazy winter weather in fall....a brother that rocked a marathon and at the same time JUST missed an incredibly lofty goal, a wife that CRUSHED her previous best and is now coping with the physical aftermath of pushing to the limit, a trip to, from and around Washington DC and 5 people who are sitting in the lobby of the hotel watching me type.

Bottom line?  It'll have to wait.......but I will tell it.  Maybe in 5 or 6 hours when I'm back in NJ.

Until then,

Mike E.

#51: I've committed (no, not "been committed")

Last week I totally blew it.  I realized on Monday that the "thing I was forgetting to do" (don't you hate that feeling?) turned out to be my weekly blog.  Oops. So I'm going to condense 2 weeks into one here.  Soo much going on....so much to cover.....


3 down, 1 scheduled, 46 to go.....OK, this could take a while.

Will these guys be at the finish line?  I sure hope so.

I finally did it, I registered for my next race, the Rehoboth Beach Marathon in Delaware on 12-10-11.  I've been talking about doing it and been notching up the training a little to see how my body would respond and overall, I'm feeling pretty good.  So I decided enough talking about it....I've been loosely targeting a 50-in-50 (1 marathon in each state) and although not an aggressive target by any stretch, this gives me state number 4 (PA, FL, UT, DE).  Next year with Ironman US Championships (NYC) I'll pick up state 5 and be 10% of the way there.....clearly this is a slow-steady goal.


Training


The last couple of weeks have been about getting my running base up and stretching out my total weekly volume.  I'm using a up-3, down-1 plan, which is a bit more traditional to long-course triathlon (i.e. step up in volume or intensity each week for 3 weeks and then use week 4 as a recovery week) than marathon, but I find that I respond well to this type of training plan b/c I'm able to push a little harder in my build weeks....but the pushing has its price and I welcome the recovery week.  Two weeks ago I started to build and got 36 training miles in (including a 16 miler and a recovery swim); This past week I kept the overall miles about the same (37), but brought my long run up to +/- 19 and inched up the intensity with a hard 10 miler and 8 earlier today as part of a brick (i.e. immediately following an 19-ish mile bike ride).  The good news is, I felt really strong on most of the 19 miles; got tired and lost some pace near the end, but overall I felt solid.  I was pretty dead-legged on the 10 miler two days later, which is somewhat to be expected, but my pace didn't suffer too badly, a good sign; and my brick went surprisingly well......maintained a solid pace throughout the run and although I was working, I never felt like I was laboring.....this is great.


Fuel

I've continued to search for the right combination that's going to keep me strong and pushing without EVER running into the stomach debacle that occurred in St. George.  It is so important to have this right, it's literally the fourth discipline (Swim-Bike-Run-Fuel) b/c you can be great at all 3 and be completely derailed if the fueling is off.  So, not unlike the philosophy that got us to opening the Fuel Good Cafe' as part of BaseCamp31, I am actively searching and learning.  A few weeks back Eric turned me on to a product that he himself was turned onto by Julie who was turned onto it by another super-runner from the area (not sure he wants to be mentioned, so I'll leave him anonymous, but for now just know the guy is thoroughbred.....has placed top 10 American in the marathon)......it's a bit too early to mention the product quite yet, but I've now tested it x2 and I'm impressed.  The concept is slow release energy (as opposed to the fast-acting sugar based products) which means it can last longer before refueling and is liquid based which should help with stomach clearing.  So far I'm a fan.  I ran for 2 hours and 30 minutes last week without taking ANY supplemental calories or sugar.  If I tried this with my traditional fueling methods I'd be at minimum "bonking" and more likely a dazed and confused hypoglycemic mess......more to come as my n of 1 study results continue to come in.


Mindset
Been feeling pretty good lately.....my R-hip is still barking here and there, which is a bummer, but overall I'm not yet at the part in the training where I start questioning the value of this whole thing.  That's a good thing.  Workouts have been strong and the body is recovering well.  Would like to add more swimming and cycling when I can, but right now running is king.  Adding to my mental-fuel lately is without doubt the time of year and all the "amazing" that comes with it.  Whether it be Lindsay getting ready to do her first marathon in 10+ years, Eric making a serious claim for a sub-3 hour marathon, Nick completing his first "ultra" despite a few hiccups along the way, Michelle & Wandy doing the Koman 3-day 60 miler, the NJ-NYTC athletes training hard chasing their dreams, the great feedback we received on OhFar-2011 our corporate wellness screening team performing at a very high level, our clients & friends who are achieving or just the positive vibe that BaseCamp31 is starting to generate, it continues to be a wild, yet wildly-inspiring ride for me.  I know that I am lucky to be surrounded by so many passionate people and even when life is tough.....and it often is......there is so much energy to draw from.....mindset is frazzled now and again, but on the whole, good.


More inspiration on the menu

In addition to training ramping back up and committing to Rehoboth Beach, I'm really pumped about the event coming to BaseCamp31 on 11/7.  Marshall Ulrich, the ultra-endurance phenom is coming to run with a few of us, tell his story, sign (and hopefully sell a few)  books and put his mark on BaseCamp31.  In an effort to prepare I've started reading his book "Running on Empty".  I'm only 50 or so pages in so far, but this is a pretty amazing guy, literally fulfilling my personal mission: be a doer of extraordinary things and I can't wait to meet him and hear his story.


So until then......I leave you with a quote I was told by a guy who started as a client, but has become a friend......he is a passionate guy and someone who I think will do great things.....one day this quote just arrived as a text....he must have known I'd love it.  When I asked him about it, he simply said:  "This quote should be on the wall at BaseCamp".....and although he's never been in the place.....he was absolutely right.  Thanks Brian.


"Today I will do what others won't.......so that tomorrow I can accomplish what others can't" - Jerry Rice


Mike E.

#50: The day after....oooh faa

Ah....race weekend hangover; a little "Today is the first day of the rest of your life"......and "life goes on" all wrapped together with some "that was pretty awesome".  


After several weeks of a blitzing event organization to throw together OhFar, the (first) incredibly ambitious event that combined cross country racing with a gorgeous farm day on preserved land in a festival atmosphere.  It was also the day that on the other side of the earth the 33rd running of another event with incredibly ambitious roots was taking place in Kialua-Kona, Hawaii - Ironman World Championships.  At that inaugural race in 1978 there were 15 competitors that whittled its way down to 11 finishers.  At OhFar there were 15 elite entrants that whittled its way down to 8 (in addition to 56 "mortal" age groupers) who tested themselves on the course.  Humble beginnings.


But, as I imagine US Navy Commander John Collins (the dreamer that came up with the initial Ironman) felt the day after his race-vision came together, I'm super excited about what the OhFar event can become.  The feedback was really phenomenal....lots of excitement about the course (although tough), lots of great feedback about the setup and people buzzing about the fun they had.  I even had a few people tell me I have a good "announcer voice" (pretty funny)....and so even though my week of training was pretty much turned upside down putting final touches on the event, it was TOTALLY worth the effort.


Swim 2.4 miles! Bike 112 miles! Run 26.2 miles! Brag for the rest of your life! - John Collins, USN


But after getting home and tweeting a few "thanks" messages and posting some results from the race, I got on the live stream for the Ironman Kona race to check in on a friend who was running.  Sounds like the day was incredibly hot (135 deg on the roads they're reporting) and people were deep in the "pain cave"; but that the course record was broken by a famous Aussie (Craig "crowie" Alexander) in 8:03:56, Chrissie Wellington (Great Britain) won for the women and  Mirinda Carfrae (Aus) broke her own run record with a 2:52:09 marathon time.  WHAT!


It's pretty intense to think about times like that.....but at the same time so inspiring to know that a 38 year old body (Alexander) and a 34 year old body (Wellington) can perform at such incredible levels.  It just shows me how much more and better I can do.  No doubt I have some stressors they don't (namely a "real job"), but it says to me it can be done.


So whereas most hangovers are laced with lots of "I'll never do that again", mine is something more akin to "that was so cool.....let's jump on that ride again".


So even though this coming week will be a bit of a test in the workplace, it's definitely time to ramp up my training......dust off the computrainer for another productive winter......keep turning the dial upward on my running mileage (I've abandoned a marathon next weekend in favor for a 12-10 marathon)......and have an amazing fall before taking the second 1/2 of December and the first 1/2 of January off to recover before formal IM NYC training begins in February.


If you're reading this and you're NOT excited about what the close of 2011 and what 2012 will bring I have a simple message......there's way to much good to let the bad get you down.....get your self together b/c there's just too much "extraordinary" still left in the queue for 2011 to coast and if you need a little energy, feel free to let me pull you along....b/c despite being tired.....I'm ALL CHARGED UP.


Go ahead, be amazing this week.


Mike E.

#49: Did you say something? No, I did.

THE BASICS

This week was another step in the right direction......

• After a short-burst-brick (13 ride + 2 run) on Sunday 
• I was able to follow up with a tough/hilly 17.5 mile run on a muggy Monday, 
• Tuesday RECOVERY day
• a sloshy 8 mile "headlamp tempo" run on the trail on Wed evening, 
• a trip to the ER with #2 kid as we got through her 3rd (in 7 years of life) mishap resulting in sutures (this time 7 and busted tooth from a chin-led fall)
• a short 3 mi recovery run on Friday 
• and another sloshy AM 9-mile tempo on Saturday.  

Got my mileage above 40 for the week and the hip is a good 60-70% better than last week.....still stiff and cranky at the onset (as well as a few hours after workouts), but it seems to be holding in there on the runs and getting better by the day....which is refreshing.  If it were only a physical game.....no doubt it's a solid chunk physical, but there are definitely other areas that I've been trying to work on as well.....namely the mindset, which is about patience (it takes years for most folks to excel in ultra-distance), but also enough desire to keep pushing hard enough, long enough. 

After reading Lindsay's blog and the, uh, compliment (?) she paid to Eric and I for being a bit, well, unstable, I found myself wondering if maybe this was true.  Is this a crazy obsession? Nah......or......maybe......

In looking back at my relaxed Saturday (where even kid soccer was cancelled), I'm thinking the "normal" person might think this is a little questionable: 

WE'RE LATE FOR A VERY IMPORTANT DATE

After a typical work week, where most of my days start well before the sun (alarm +/- 440AM), I was pretty darn tired....yet, there I was Saturday AM with my alarm clock going off around 6-ish so I could be up in time to meet another runner on the trail for a 7A start of an 8-9 miler.  Truth is, I really really value sleep.  Why on earth would I sacrifice it to go and run?  I must be crazy.

As I rode up to the trailhead sipping some coffee and eating something that would bring my blood sugar up quickly (the breakfast of champions), I got caught behind a pick-up truck on the single lane road......and apparently he wasn't on quite the same schedule as I.  As we plodded along and I watched the minutes tick by, I arrived 5 minutes late......oh well, no worries, Marc (who I was meeting) didn't appear to be there yet.  I grabbed a few OhFar signs to post "out there" and waited.  By 7:10A, I found myself thinking I should just go.  I've only run with Marc a few times and I wasn't sure if he was going to be there.  I sent him a text and with no response, decided to head out.  As I got on the trail and started a jog, there it was on the opposite side of the lot all by itself.....Marc's car.  

Who's chasing who?

CRAP!  He was already out, probably pissed at having to wait for me. An emotional role reversal that I wasn't prepared for......surge of adrenaline at realizing I was now at least 10 minutes (+/- 1.25 miles) behind - [sidebar: I have a "thing" about being late when it's under my control......a personal demon that being over committed in general has me fighting often and losing to several times, which is probably the root], but I figured if I pushed it, I might be able to catch him......and so I pushed.  It was a definite change in plans (somewhere around a min faster per mile than I was planning) but as it turned out, it was great motivation; I had a reason to push hard, and it felt good.  About 1/4 mile before the 4 mile turn I saw Marc, apologized and said "keep going, I'll catch up with you".  It meant I had gained about 3/4 mile on him and had 3/4 left to go, so if I could continue my pace I'd catch him right at the end.  I pushed on.  About 2 more miles in I started wondering....."why DO I do this?  Maybe she's right.....I AM crazy?" It shouldn't really be fun.....but logic aside, it was......thrill of the hunt I guess....another mile in, I had to divert for a precious minute (don't ask) and then back on track.  

With about 1/2 mile to go I was feeling it......my legs were tired, my energy level was depleting (starting to run out of internal fuel and didn't bring any supplements) "this definitely IS crazy" I thought........I mean, I'm not crazy.....but THIS is.....you know "don't blame the player" and all that.  I could start to hear myself breathing heavier and then at the last 1/4 mile I saw Marc, but I just couldn't get him.....he had just finished up.  What a fun way to get a pretty serious session in.  I thanked him for providing such great motivation and for (without knowing it of course) getting me through a pretty solid 8 mile workout.  I saw him off and then did a cool down mile while popping a few more signs in.

As the day wore on, and as my legs got a little achy, my knees got that fatigued feeling and my back stiffened a bit from pushing harder, I started wondering.....If I'm crazy, what does constitute a "normal person's" weekend? Guess I'll never know firsthand.....after all, this time next year I'm hoping to be arriving on the "big island" and driving the Queen K highway and possibly checking out the "energy lab" to see how bad that's really going to be......and if I'm going to do that, well, the crazy might be just beginning.  

You want to get nuts? Let's get nuts,

Mike E.

Not sure which version I like better