Owls Roost Rumble Half Marathon 2010

Good thing about this trail run is that I survived no sprains or strains yet I did receive minor scrapes and bruising via left elbow into tree.



I signed up in the elite wave along with 21 other runners. I had doubts about doing this since I thought I could possibly slow down other runners on the trail. But I felt that my training has been consistent and progressing for the last month and I wanted to push hard and run near my maximum effort capacity.



It had rained all night before the race and when I awoke race morning it was still raining and thundering. Glad I brought my Adidas adizeros to tackle the mud on the trail. They also proved to be effective going across the many wet wooden bridges that are along the trail. Luckily the rain did subside before the race. Guess I could of worn my white running shorts after all.



When we lined up for the start it looked like I was running against superheros. Many of the runners looked to be in great conditioning. Off we start on the road for about .5M we then transitioned onto Owls Roost Trail. I for the most part ran this portion of the trail at a comfortable pace. No hills just a few minor inclines and lots of ROOTS so if you don't keep your eyes on the trail you are at risk to fall.



I stopped briefly at the first aid stop for water and electrolyte drink. I was passed by a couple runners yet I manged to pass them and maintain my lead. 100 yards before entering Nat Greene trail I saw a runner ahead of me look back to check his lead and as he did he stumbled on a large rock. I was determined to pass him and I picked up my pace after about .5 miles and I was only about 10 yards behind him when he ran onto one of the many wet bridges and fell. I asked if he was ok and he just smiled and said yes. It could of happened to anyone on this trail.



Nat Greene trail consist of about 3M of single track trail and littered with roots and just a few rocks. I was able to pass two other guys on this trail before stopping at the second aid station to grab a cup of water and a gel. I keep walking as I consumed the items so as to not lose precious time and ground.



Next was Piedmont Trail and is also around 3M and has a few small hills. I looked at my Garmin and noticed that I only had about 2M to go and decided to increase my pace. From behind I could hear the sounds of feet slapping the ground and I had to increase my pace so I took advantage of the down hills letting gravity do most of the work and increasing my stride slightly to cover more ground until I could no longer hear the sound of feet from behind.



Finally I was near the finish and attempted to finish strong. I was surprised that I finished 10th overall with a time of 1:37:57. Overall I enjoyed the race and I plan to enter it again next year and break 1:30.

Walk/Run/Bike Umstead 2010 4 mile run

I had to run this event again not only is it a great fast run but they also have activities ( Crafts, tattoos, live owls..) for kids thus my daughter would have a fun time while I run



Great improvement over last year is that the runners didn't have to wait ~ 5mins in 80 degree temp at the race start for a biker who was suppose to lead the runners.

Ashleigh took this photo of the race start.

As we started off and ran up Reedy Creek Road I managed to take 6th position and held that position until I was passed by a runner at mile 1 and later managed to pass this runner at 1.5M as we ran up one of the inclines leading to the turn around point at mile 2.

I was pushing myself quite intensely as I passed the turn around. I wanted to keep this position and take another if I was able to.

Far as I could tell there was no one close behind me at 3M and I could see a runner ahead of me but was unable to pass him.

Pic of me coming in for the finish and the race winner who seems to have recovered and at ease while I'm still pushing hard for the finish.

I managed to finish 6th overall and from doing so got a cap and two gels. We stayed around for the drawing and to my amazement my ticket number was called and I won a really nice blue bird house.

Umstead Trail Marathon 2010

This is one of my favorite event events that I sign up for. The course is mainly ran on the bridle trials and only ~5 miles of single track trails. We got quite a nice bag of goodies; SmartWool socks, a extremely loud Brooks nightlife technical shirt, hand towel, Chicken Poop( Lip balm) which my daughter likes, and for those who finish a pint size glass cup.



My main objective was to take it easy, start out much slower, finish better than last year, push forward and keep moving and enjoy the run. Last year I finished in 4:46:29( My first marathon) had to stop several times to stretch my quads and I once stopped sat down against a pine tree someone even asked if I was OK and a guy on a bike came over a gave me a bottle of water. I felt something crawling on my neck and discovered it was a tick. Just shows you that it was rather warm during the 09 race.



Me and Chris arrived at the race too early what the hell were we thinking. We got there at 8:00am stood around by the fire for most of the time and at the last 20 min started to warm up for the race.



Race start: I decided I would get near the back of the pack and take it rather easy. At 9:03 the race was on I just took it easy. I didn't carry a water bottle so I briefly stopped at the most of the aid stations past mile 6 to keep hydrated and to replenish electrolytes. My average pace at 13.3 was 7:44 and this would gradually increase as the race progressed.



At around mile 14 Chris passed me and I said great job. As he continued forward I thought that he'd better reserve some energy on the upcoming hills. My plan was to walk the big hills and run hard down them letting gravity do most of the work.



By mile 15 I had consumed two gels and three electrolyte pills. My main concern was to replace Na+, K+,Ca++,Mg++ that would be lost through sweating.



At around 21M I caught up and ran with Chris for about 0.5M asked how he was doing and he said that his quads were locking up. I felt good at this point and decided that I could pick my pace up some .



I was extremely happy to see the 26M marker and at this point I had enough energy that I could at least finish strong and running toward the Finish I could hear Ashleigh and Calla cheer me on.



I finished in 4:14:55 and 32:14 faster than last year and Hey I'm OK with that. Could be much better with no injury and consistent training. And great job Chris for finishing 1 hr faster than last years race.



What an all around great race. Great bunch of runners and well organized race with appropriately placed aid stations that are well stocked and great food at the finish. Congratulations to all who finished this race.



Next event will be 12M Mountains to Sea Trail and Owls Roost Rumble so time to prepare for the push up contest at the end of this race.

Uwharrie Mountain Run 2010 20 Mile

Uwharrie Mountain Run consists of three runs: An 8M, 20M and 40M. I had ran in the 8M run in 2009 and really enjoyed the event and I was determined to run the 20M this year since it would be a good training run for the Umstead Marathon on March 6.


Preparation: On Nov,21 2009 I sprained and strained my left ankle damaging primarily the ATFL and secondarily the CFL ligament so my primary goal was to rehabiliate the ligaments and strenthen the muscles that support and protect my ankle.




I really didnt want to but I did join a gym in December since I was still unable to run on uneven surfaces I would bike,run on the treadmill,ramp up on core excerises ( pull ups,chin ups, dips...)consisting of isometric and plyometric training then climb stairs @ BSOM and climb more stairs.




By January I was now able to run on the treadmill(flat,soft and control surface). Jan. 16th I attempted my first outdoor run of two miles oh yeah baby!! Again on the 23rd another outdoor run of 4 miles hell yeah! Uwharrie look out. And then by the 25th I completed my longest training run a whole 7 miles.


My thoughts were oh shit what did I get myself into 20M in Uwharrie and all my three training runs have been on flat surfaces and my longest run consisted of only seven miles.


Evening before Race Day: I, Ashleigh and Calla arrived in Ashboro around 4:30pm and checked in at Fairfield Inn. I then went to pick up my package, while there I also grabbed a couple of hammer gels and some electrolytes pills.


Night before race preparation:

Check out the weather > rain, rain and rain. This was my major concern was what to wear in the cold and rain. I had a micro fleece vest but if it rains it will absorb rain like a sponge. Fortunately on race day it didn't rain and I decided on the vest, short sleeve and long sleeve technical shirt plus arm warmers and shorts.I'm Good to GO

Race morning preparation:

Shoes I brought with me Brooks Cascadia and my new shoes Adidas Adizero. I knew that the Brooks would perform well in mud or sand but in wet conditions theses shoes are slippery on rock and bridges and would be hazardous to wear them.The Adidas had great grip yet I haven't worn them running outdoors and only wore them when training indoors ( treadmill,stairs,plyometrics...) But for my safety I chose to wear my Adidas. I had a sample of glide that I had left over from Umstead Trail Marathon and decided to make use of this product by rubbing some on the sides of my feet and on my toes to help prevent blisters. I would also wear smart wool socks.


Once dressed I went to eat breakfast at the hotel and decided on oatmeal, banana and a cup of coffee.At 7:00am we leave the hotel and Ashleigh drops me off at the shuttle stop and leaves to go back to the warmth of the hotel. I grabbed a plastic water bottle and placed a few electrolyte pills, lip balm,gloves and a cap in the pockets of my vest. Good to GO!

I arrived 10 minutes before the start and immediately checked in, put my gloves and cap on and headed to the start. No time to warm up or stretch no worries because so my plan anyway was to take it easy.

At the start we were informed that the last 4-5 miles would be ran off the trail and on a gravel road and that for me sounded great since I knew it would be easier on my ankle injury.


Well I started off easy and this time I was going to do the opposite of what I normally do.. run the hills when I can and try not to run hard on the way down since I knew it would be hazardous for my ankle. Once on the hills I ran them slow and focused more of using my calves to help propel me uphill. The downhills were where I had to be careful. Normally I just let gravity pull me down and run them hard yet this time I couldn't risk doing this method. So I had to dig in with my shoes and slow at least 50% and at the stream crossings and water/mud puddles I had to slowly pick my way through careful not to invert my ankle on a hidden root or rock since I still don't have a full range of motion with it.

I arrived at the 8M mark at 1:30 (15 minutes slower than last year) and was feeling quite good and didn't stop to grab anything at the aid station.I did consume one of the electrolyte pills and water that I had brought with me.


While trying to navigate around a puddle I had one of the three Trisports guys from Wilmington to run by carefree in the center and splash me with mud.I would soon pass this guy, one was able to pass me in the end but I knew that I would crush this guy when I'm 100% again.

Finally, I transitioned onto the gravel road and it felt quite good. I didn't have to be as careful and was able to speed up some. It wasn't until the last mile that I had to stop running for about a minute I then started back running and couple of people walking the road towards me said " you only have 300 yards to go...just right up the hill and around the curve" I said "come on now, your kidding right" Well it was true I made it across at 3:34 and hey I good with that.

In the end, I thought this was a great run and well organized with a great group of volunteers.Aid stations were well stocked and located they had them every 3 or 4 miles once past the 8M mark.