Running towards my goal

Well, training has officially started. I’ve spend the last couple of months just trying to maintain some base fitness. I’ve been doing one day on the spin bike, 2-3 days of cardio strength classes at CAC and mixing in a couple of runs on the weekends to keep the legs moving.

I met with a lady by the name of Junko Kazukawa. at Colorado Athletic Club to do some personal training and to look over my planned race and training calendar leading up to Leadville. A little tiny Asian lady, Junko is a legend in the local amateur ultrarunning community. Junko has completed the LT100 a handful of times, a grand slam (four 100-mile races) last year, and is training for UTMB this year (one of the toughest 100 mile races in the world). Here is a great article published on Junko in December: http://www.denverpost.com/lifestyles/ci_29311090/denver-woman-completes-grand-slam-ultrarunning-and-leadwoman

I feel like Daniel San training with Mr. Miyagi, and I am soaking up any ounce of wisdom Junko can throw my way. We have made a few tweaks to my calendar and she is giving me some advice on race pace and preparation. Through some personal training sessions, she is also giving me some good exercises to work on my core and leg strength and flexibility.

My confirmed race calendar for the year leading up to Leadville looks like this:
•    APRIL- Cheyenne Mountain Trail Run 50K
•    MAY- Quad Rock 25 Mile Trail Race in Fort Collins
•    JUNE- Dirty 30 50K in Golden Gate Canyon
•    JUNE- Leadville Marathon
•    JUNE- Leadville 3-day Run Training Camp
•    AUGUST- LT100

Time to start training…

I went on my first mid-week training run this morning. Only about 6 miles long, I ran slow in an effort to keep my heart rate in zone 2 or below. If I rose into zone 3, I walked until my heart rate came down. I feel like I’m starting at square one. 6 miles and my legs are sore, I had a hard time keeping my heart rate down, and I am tired. Let’s pray that turns around quickly! The good news is that my left hamstring and foot that has been giving me problems felt pretty good most of the run.

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Getting Lost in the Never Summer Mountains

Standing in the early twilight hours of the sunrise at the Gould Community Center I was thankful that I could join the other 285 runners at the starting line. My heart issues a few weeks prior cost me some valuable training time and had me wondering if I’d be able to race. Once I got the green light from the cardiologist to run, I had five solid weekends to get some vert in and a small taper before the Never Summer 100K . It would have to be enough. Never Summer 100K is a 65-mile race in State Forest State Park in Northern Colorado. The course takes you through the Never Summer Mountains and skirts the southern edge of the Medicine Bow Mountain Range. The race has over 13,000 feet of vertical gain and most of it takes place over 10,000 feet above sea level. Simply put, this was one of the hardest 100K races in the country. Elevation Profile of Never Summer 100K I was fortunate to be racing with several other athletes I knew well including my good friend and legendary ultrarun

Quad Rock 25

For some reason every time I know I have to wake up early the next day, I can’t sleep. I set my alarm the night before for 4:45 AM and went to bed around 10. I woke up just about every hour on the nose and looked at the clock. By the time 4:15AM rolled around, I just laid in bed and waited for my iPhone to tell me it was time to get up. Buzz….It was time to get up. My pre-race plan I rolled out of bed virtually exhausted and put on my battle armor for the day -- shorts, socks, compression, t-shirt, jacket, and my signature trucker hat. I had loaded up my car the night before with all my gear and nutrition so I was good to go. I kissed Julie on the forehead, she wished me luck as I left to go grab some coffee, pick up Chris and carpool to the race. We made it up to Horsetooth about an hour before the race start. Since we carpooled, we were able to park about 100 feet from the start line. This was clutch because outside it was 37 degrees, raining and windy. View close

Quad Rock 50 and the Highway to Hell

I was standing in the midday sun staring into my car. Sweat was dripping down my face and my eyes were heavy when a little devil popped up on my shoulder. “Just stop Tim. You are tired, beat up and it’s hotter than hell out here. Just get a 25 mile finisher time and take a nap in the shade. This was not an “A” race for you anyway” ------------- Rewinding the clock 5 hours, I was ironically shivering from the cold awaiting sunrise as I stood next to 200 other ultrarunners. The sun was just beginning to light up the sky as the race director made his final announcements about the race. Early morning view The Quad Rock 50 would consist of a clockwise, 25-mile loop followed by a reverse run of the same loop. Each lap has three major climbs and about 5,500 feet of vertical gain per lap for a grand total of 50ish miles and 11,000 feet of elevation gain. “Follow the pink flags,” the race director said. This piece of advice would come in handy later in the day as I slogge

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