They tried to make me go to rehab

but I said yes, Yes, YES! (and do you accept my insurance?)

                    

Cinderella Trail Run

6/9/2024

https://runsignup.com/Race/CA/Oakland/CinderellaTrailRun

The last trail ultra I ran (all due respect to Fear and Loathing) was the Sean OBrien 50K on 2/3/2018. Hey, I think there’s a link on the right hand side!

Unfortunately, after this race I was put through a series of hamstring and calf injuries that sidelined me for some time.

Early in the process, I took the nuclear option: stopping running entirely for a period of time. I figured I’d either decide this crazy sport just wasn’t for me, or I’d get inspired to put in the time and effort required to figure out how to run sustainably. 

Thankfully, it was the latter. Cue the training montage of two different PT houses for rehab, with long breaks for the pandemic, house renovations, getting a puppy, etc.

I also made some serious changes to my running routine. Now I’m foam rolling every day (ugh), doing dynamic warmups (also ugh) and regularly doing strength work (actually, I kind of appreciate this one) 

With these changes, I’ve been able to get all the way up to about 20-30 miles a week (with plenty of road cycling mixed in as cross training) Once I was able to put down 20 trail miles at a time, I knew that I had a shot at finishing a 50K. Yes, I realize that this would be a hilariously high percentage of my normal weekly mileage. But I figured I could always walk (even) more and would have a shot at finishing before the cutoff.

We are so “#blessed” in the Bay Area to have our choice of local awesome 50Ks! With the Cinderella Trail Run with Coastal Trail Running, I could have a 2.5 loop supported 50K in Joaquin Miller park for the ridiculously low price of $80. Take that, inflation! My lead up to the race was a little aggressive. I followed a long bike ride weekend with a 19 mile run up the Four Peaks, and then fell into a much needed taper. Going into this race, my calves were a bit sore but manageable with KT tape and calf sleeves.

I woke up the day of the race in my own bed (love you, Bay Area) and was able to drop my dog off at daycare on the way to the race. The prerace area was organized and had just the right amount of excitement. I was too busy sorting through my gear for much jitters and before long we were off. 

Loop 1:

The half marathon, marathon, and 50K all started at the same time. It wasn’t quite the Waldo “hey let’s go straight up a ski lift hill” but we immediately got jammed into a 100+ person conga line heading up switchbacks out of the start line. I decided to keep my usual bad quip to myself (“Am I still going to be able to BQ?”) and concentrated on enjoying being out in nature with some good company.

Dear reader, I tried not to chase the half marathoners. I really did. But it was so nice to be with happy folks moving down the trail. It was hard not to be excited at the smooth single track and the cool temperatures as we headed out along the first lap. After the first aid station, the trail had a few more technical descents as we bobbed and weaved our way down the French trail. It was here that we started seeing steeper sustained climbs. I deployed my trekking poles and started click-click-clicking my way up while trying to keep my heart rate down.

 

As I was heading into the second aid station at 8 or so miles, I passed an older gentleman with streaks of dirt on his shirt who was cradling his arm. It turns out he had taken a tumble and dislocated his shoulder. Still in high spirits, he assured everyone he was going to continue on and finish. More power to you, sir!

The climb up to the West Ridge trail felt like climbing out of Tennessee Valley towards Pirates Cove. Sustained, relatively steep, but not super technical climbs. In other words, perfect for trekking pole power hiking. I “gave em the stick” and immediately was passed by a runner with a full windbreaker, headphones, and big ole pack. About 30 seconds later, I could hear his consternation as he realized that the first hill was maybe 10% of the upcoming climbs. I metronomed my way past him and kept up a steady powerhiking pace.

It was smooth sailing back down to the start line. On the downhills, I kept trading positions with the half marathoners as we tried to navigate the more technical footing down the Cinderella/Sunset trails. I came into the start/finish at 2:50. I grabbed a couple coconut waters from my drop bag, refreshed my hot shots, and headed out in high spirits.

Loop 2:
I really enjoyed the first part of this loop. With clear trails and lighter traffic, I could slip into that elusive flow state. Finally, I could clear my mind and just appreciate the present moment. I took in the sunlight on the trails, enjoyed the birdsong, and relaxed into the breeze. It was great! And then I started to get fatigued and nearly rolled my ankle a couple times on the trail. That brought me right back to reality. My legs started to complain, but thankfully with nothing acute and the poles were a great way to spread the load. At this point, I was able to pass 5-10 folks who looked like they were entering the pain cave. 

About at mile 20, the heat (and the spicy Hot Shots) started to get to my stomach. I’d been doing well so far on standard trail fare (pb & j’s, pretzels, oreos, skratch, etc.), but I started to get what felt like acid reflux. Things started to slosh around in my stomach, but thankfully I was able to get back to the start/finish and pop a few Tums. Yay loop course!

Loop 3:

I thought the act of leaving on the same loop start for the third time would be challenging. Nope, leaving was easy. Slogging through the technical sections, however, was getting to be a drag. I was pretty fatigued and lifting my feet up for the rocks started to become a chore. Fortunately, with the small out and back sections I could see I was entering a cluster of folks. Pride (and smelling the barn) pushed me to run a blistering 13:01 final mile! 

I loved the usual fanfare at the end of the 50K! A little cowbell, maybe 2-3 people cheering, and my name over the loudspeaker. I celebrated in the usual way by hunching over my poles and trying not to throw up. 

To my delight, I was in a small enough race/age group to squeak by with a 3rd place AG. It was a nice bonus to the actual award: being healthy and trained enough to finally complete an ultra again. I felt so, so grateful to be out there and able to participate. And then I felt grateful a couple hours later for pizza and beer.

Kudos to Coastal for putting on a phenomenally marked trail race. I had 0 doubt about where I was or needed to be and there were so many potential wrong turns during that race.

Takeaways:

• At this point in my life, there’s never going to be a perfect time to race. There will always be stress, lingering injuries, bad weather, smoke, etc. 

• I always want to ask whether I get out from the sport more than I put in, and so far it’s been a resounding yes

• I’m not sure if it was the heat or the hot shots that soured my stomach. I definitely needed more training or more heat acclimation, but oh well. That’s part of the fun.

• I wonder if dislocated shoulder dude finished? He’s the hero that we need right now.

Shivering in a Pescadero gas station taqueria

May 25, 2024

(Thank you to Jeff for taking most of these pics)

https://www.strava.com/activities/11498136848

For years, Jeff has been dropping (not so subtle) hints that he wanted to ride from Stanford to Santa Cruz and back. Somehow in 2024, the plans went from “we should do this sometime (sure bro)” to “we’re doing this, right?” to “let’s pick a date.”

In the build up, we managed to get in a Pescadero ride that actually went pretty well, all things considered. Then we went up Tam, got melted and ran out of food, then shivered our way through the fog on the descent. But we survived! 

We settled on Memorial Day weekend for our trip. Our usual last ditch sag wagon driver Emily (thank you Emily) was out of town. But, we figured there were plenty of hotels in Santa Cruz if things went further south, right?

In the lead up to the ride, Jeff did some serious research on our route and found that one of the residential roads was blocked due to a landslide. We surveyed Strava and local newsfeeds and determined that we’d be able to traverse it if we dismounted. No biggie, right?

I coped with stress in the leadup to the ride by zip tying shot bloks to my bike. I was not going to run out of calories this time.

Jeff messaged me the night before with a news report of a 24% chance of rain in Santa Cruz. In late May?? No way. I checked my apple weather app (now with DarkSkies integration!) and it showed me 0% chance of precipitation in Pescadero and Santa Cruz, so I shrugged off my worries. 

The morning of the ride, I woke up to a wet deck and a light drizzle. I told myself this would clear up as I headed south, and indeed it was a beautiful morning at Stanford. OK, awesome. We did our last gear checks and started off, gawking at the changes to campus and telling the usual old stories about grad school.

Things were great climbing up Old La Honda. Not too hot, and I was intentionally keeping my heartrate below 155 to stay below my lactate threshold. Slowly, though, we noticed that the conditions were becoming incrementally wetter and colder. When we hit the top, it was low 50’s and legitimately drizzling. We did a quick gut check and decided to push on down Old La Honda and 84. It was probably just a quick cloudburst at these higher elevations, right?

 

The back of Old La Honda was slick, but doable. I was mainly worried about the descent down 84. Usually I’m pushing 40 mph on those beautiful wide turns along with the cars, but the conditions here were legitimately wet. I took the descent conservatively and even Jeff opted not to bomb down like he usually does. We were too cold at the bottom to talk much, but we opted to start climbing up Pescadero Ave right away. It would clear up near the coast, right? Right?

We pulled into the gas station in Pescadero in pretty rough shape. Jeff’s immediate comment to me was “Dude, this is f**ed up.” I was drenched, but I was sporting a nanoair vest, a Houdini as a windbreaker, and full fingered gloves. As long as I kept my legs moving, my core temp was workable. I don’t know how Jeff survived without gloves, but he’s crazy. We headed inside and proceeded to make puddles on the floor and on the booth. We decided to shiver our way through plates of tacos and reassess. 

At this point, it was still visibly raining outside and hovering in the 50’s. We didn’t want to pull the plug on the ride, but talked through the pros and cons of turning back and climbing up Tunitas. My argument was that a climb up a wet Tunitas would also be miserable, but Jeff countered that the next 35 miles along Highway 1 would be awful in the rain. 

As we chatted, two kids (maybe 6?) were sitting across from me and visibly staring at the weirdo in bright, soggy colors.

The outcome of our Santa Cruz ride was on a knife’s edge. We talked through the strategy and timing and must have convinced ourselves both ways several times. A few things saved our bacon. I found a hot tea/hot chocolate dispenser and was able to stop shivering long enough to warm my hands and bring up my core temperature. Critically, we also found an electric heater and camped out underneath like a couple of soggy birds (Huge shoutout to the kind folks at https://www.yelp.com/biz/mercado-and-taqueria-de-amigos-pescadero for welcoming us. We tipped very generously)

30ish minutes later, our mood had shifted dramatically. The rain eased up enough for us to lift our spirits and we had the core temperature and calories to go on. We agreed that we’d check out a new stretch of road down CloverDale that headed south from Pescadero. With less damp clothes and steadily rising spirits, we set off on a gloriously smooth trip towards the 1. As the wind and rain abated, we cautiously planned on continuing on with the day.

By the time we hit Highway 1, it was obvious that we could continue on and so we turned without hesitation. The next 35 miles flew by with glorious views and a hefty tailwind. We were so in the groove that we decided not to stop in Davenport at Swanton’s Berry Farm. Along the way, we traded spots with a bikepacker who was quite frankly CRUSHING it and groaned at the sight of a CyberTruck owner camping in his monstrosity.

It was a little jarring when we reached Santa Cruz. The past couple of hours had been just the hypnotic hum of our wheels and now we reached the din of the boardwalk, complete with tipsy folks who thought nothing of wandering backwards into the bike lane. At least by now it was legitimately sunny, with blue skies!

We stopped at Beach Hut Deli.Jeff opted for the small sandwich because he’s weird but I put down 1000 calories. Highly recommended.

We set off North with full bellies and high spirits. As we were grinding up towards the fabled Mt Charlie climb, we began to feel a novel sensation: too…warm? The climbs were top notch! Not too much traffic, reasonable coverage, only a few steep patches, and a fantastic road quality. We ground our way up the mountain, taking up the forests and views along the way.

Even the landslide wasn’t too bad. 5 minutes of bike portage and we were on the way. (I celebrated at the top by not paying attention and nearly fishtailing on a patch of sand.) We hopped into some lovely descents and made our way down towards the reservoir. 

When we finally reached the water, the bike lane dead ended and we took a hard right down to a bumpy dirt path. Over the next couple of miles, I rode half unclipped because I was certain I’d eat sh*t and fall over. Thankfully, I did not but we both were not fans of this section. “Kudos” to the bro who told Jeff “you need gravel tires.” Thanks, bro!

We proceeded off towards the Mt Eden climb with rising optimism that we’d finish! There was still plenty of light even after our rain delays, and we were moving steadily if not quickly. The only navigational mishap of the day occurred when Jeff’s GPS freaked out and admitted that we were about a mile off course. We quickly backtracked and got back on the unfortunately steep section that was the correct path. 

The climbing was done for the day by the time we hit Steven’s Creek reservoir. Shoutout to the “strong bro” who was riding in traffic with no helmet. Great life choices there, BRO. Once we hit Foothill Expressway, we knew we’d make it back. I kept shoving food into my face and we finally rolled back into the Rains parking lot. Time to celebrate with Five Guys and Baskin Robbins!

My takeaways:

• On rainy days, I’d consider taking something a little more waterproof than my Houdini. But it still did a fine job

• I took too many calories this time. I had maybe 2-3 unopened shot bloks strapped to my bike. But on these longer expeditions I didn’t want to take any chances!

• I didn’t bonk! I aggressively targeted hydration, electrolytes, and nutrition through the day. I must have taken in about 2x the calories that Jeff did, but I take a lot of fuel!

• I didn’t cramp! I was pounding 3-4 these over the course of the day https://teamhotshot.com/products/hotshot-6-pack and was very pleased that my quads held up. I also think that keeping below lactate threshold on early climbs is key to having a good ride

Monterey Bay Half Marathon: This one weird trick* lets you run races without training (runners hate this)

Surprise! Bet you weren't expecting a road half marathon race report. Well honestly, neither was I. My last road race was Kaiser 2017 (no, Fear and Loathing doesn't count) But I'm just as vulnerable to peer pressure as the next GGRC alum (Hof, I blame you) so I signed myself up in October to survive a road race again.

The lead up: I've been battling hamstring and calf issues for quite some time now. Thankfully I've been seeing a PT this fall and actually listening to what they have to say. I neglected to tell them about this race (sorry Olivia) but with the various aches and pains I wasn't 100% convinced I'd finish, or even start. Training? Well I rode a century in August and have been doing the occasional threshold rides (basically trying not to max my heart race up Tunitas) Otherwise it's been about 20 miles a week running with a max long run of 12 miles. I've also been riding with a corgi in my backpack; that counts right? I was mostly trying to stay healthy and relatively sane and not freak out about sharp pains in my calf and shin the week before the race. 

The results

Strava or it didn't happen: https://www.strava.com/activities/10207097629/overview

Hof, Pat, and I started at the front of a relatively slower corral than we would have in the past. It was a perfect morning with low fifties and sunny. We started at about 7:45 pace for the first few miles, then settled into our respective paces. I was happy to find that my injury was of the "warm up and you can ignore it" type so I settled into a "comfortably uncomfortable" pace right at my lactate threshold. Great course; it was an out and back along the coast so definitely some echoes of Ocean Beach during Kaiser. I was surprised to be feeling relatively good cardiovascularly (is that a word?) so I pushed the pace as much as I could without a hamstring pull (been there), a calf strain (also been there), or an achilles mishap (you guessed it, I've been there) 

I've never been able to write an interesting road race report so here goes: blah blah blah, slammed a gu at the turnaround, drank a bunch of water on course, made a 30 second pit stop at an open port a potty (the shame!), then popped a Hot Shot to stave off the cramps on the way back. 

The retrospective

It worked! I managed to finish with negative splits and no new injuries. Whew.

It was nice to approach a race with a beginner's mindset after so many years. I was burned out on road racing when I quit, but this was a great race. It was well supported with lots of energy from the crowd and it even touched my cynical road running attitude. Plus it was a great feeling to tap into that runner's high on the last few miles at tempo pace, picking off folks who had gone out too hard. I can see the appeal in the excitement, the competition, and the camaraderie! 

It was a challenge to try to decide on goal times beyond "finish without hurting myself too badly." It was humbling to see how much slower I was than my last half marathon (my PR :-/) but I was genuinely pleased to be able to push myself this year. I can't wait to use this as motivation to get back into running 5 days a week, introduce some structured workouts, get some speedwork in, and finally make a grand return to...hopefully running a trail 50K sometime. 

Those ultra distances are calling, but who knows whether I'll get back to them any time soon.

The more interesting lead up to the race

Not being super concerned about finishing time was a fantastic call and let us enjoy the whole weekend!

The Whiskey club makes a mean old fashioned! Here's Larceny infused with apricot. It was a great call; Larceny already has some of those dried fruit vibes. I just with they went a little heavier with the bitters to offset all that sweetness.

Alvarado st brewery had some great pale ales! I paired it with an in house loco moco which was fancy and surprisingly not as much a gut bomb as I had thought. Gravy was surprisingly good! It was definitely elevated by the homemade hot sauce.

Hot fudge sundae pop tart. Looks great, but how is this different from the s'more flavor? (Spoiler: it really isn't) Tasty though.

Wine tasting in Carmel Valley was a first for me! I'd never been in this growing region before, but they had some really fantastic red blends that stood out. Lunch was an egg salad sandwich with smoked salmon at Cafe Rustica that really hit the spot.

Carbo loading/ sugar high came from a little shop called "Candyland". A+, would stuff all into my pack for a long run (except for the pickle salt water taffy) Did the fudge actually taste like birthday cake? Perhaps not, but it definitely was flavored with childhood nostalgia and plenty of fake vanilla. 

Pre race dinner was a nice rainbow trout with cardamom syrup at Passionfish. While their wine list went way over my head, it was a great meal!

Obligatory post race donuts and beer!

And last but not least, the bank that looks like a church across from the church that looks like a bank. Will wonders never cease.

Thank you to Hof and Kate for organizing!

Thank you to Erica and Sarah for cheering!
Congrats to Hof and Patrick for achieving their goals at this race!
Matt Dina, it was great running into you first at the Waldo 100K and then here! Sorry I was too zonked out to get a pic.

A+, surprisingly I would race this again. Preferable better trained and not on the cusp of injury next time.

*The trick is cross training. Makes sense, right?