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| Walking around Bainbridge Island |
After the Nueces 50 miler
I took my time building my mileage back up and focused the majority of my time
and energy on finishing up my fifth and most challenging semester of physical
therapy school. I spent three weeks after the race doing some hikes and trail
runs with Apryle in both the Olympic Peninsula of Washington and the rocky
terrain of central Texas. By week four, I began to up my mileage into the low
70s and added a long run and mile repeats. Once again, my training goals are
continuing to shift toward lower weekly mileage, higher intensity and longer
long runs. This is due in large part to the time commitment required by school
and the improvements I have seen as a result of my altered training habits.
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| Apryle |
I was unsure of whether or
not to sign up for the Capitol Peak 50 miler and finally decided to register
during my layover flight at the San Francisco airport. I had booked tickets to
fly into Seattle to visit Apryle during my break between the fifth and sixth
semester. I thought that even if I did not do the race it would not hurt to do
some speed work and long runs so I trained as if I had already registered and
tapered the week before the race.
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| Seattle |
When I arrived in Seattle,
Apryle gave me a tour around Ballard and the University of Washington campus.
Then two days before the race we went for a run to the locks and then around
Discovery Park. The day before the race we perused Pikes Market and took the
ferry to Bainbridge Island and spent the day walking around enjoying the
weather. After getting home late we awoke early in order to make it to the
Capitol Peak Forest for the start of the race.
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| The course |
It was a cloudy but
pleasant morning and an ideal temperature for a 50 mile race. I started out the
race in second place, I tried to stay within a few strides of the leader but
eventually I could not keep pace and lost sight of him on the winding trails.
Fortunately it did not appear that anyone was on my heels either though so I
settled into a good rhythm. I used a walk/jog routine up the mountain side to
conserve energy and it worked quite well. I reached the top of the mountain
after about 8 miles and was told that I was 2 minutes off the lead. After a
slow trudge up, I was able to let loose down the mountainside and greatly improved
my pace.
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| Running around mile 35 |
The course was quite
aesthetic, on the ascent it offered picturesque views of the various inlets to
the north, Mount Rainer to the northeast and the surrounding fir and spruce
blanketed mountainsides. Much of the course was on single track or dirt road
and was densely covered with vegetation, making it one of my favorite races in
terms of ecosystem thus far. The downhill section was short lived and gave way
to an undulating maze of single track. Although I enjoyed the race and terrain,
I was overwhelmed by the monotony that always catches up with me during a long
race. No matter how spectacular it is, at some point even the most beautiful
landscapes become dull and repetitive. Ultimately I felt a since of guilt and
regret for running a race instead of going for a hike with Apryle in the short
time we had together.
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| Apryle & I at Bainbridge Island |
Around mile 16 I was
passed up by a man named Oliver from British Columbia, I tried to hold on and
pace with him but I fell off after about a mile or two of trying. Between miles
16 to 29 I was feeling extremely down and defeated, I could not find a rhythm
and when we ran the out and back portion I saw several people who looked quite
energetic that I assumed would pass me up within the next few miles. To add
insult to injury, I did not see Apryle at the aid station around mile 27 like I
thought I would which was a major hit to my psyche. However, after finishing up
another steady 3 or 4 mile incline, I began to get my legs back under me and I
was feeling quite fit again. Around mile 35 I caught a glimpse of Oliver
running toward me and in another minute I saw Apryle at the aid station. This
meant that I was within two minutes of second place and to make matters even
better I my morale boosted even further seeing Apryle.
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| Apryle & I on the Docks |
Around mile 37 I began
another climb up the mountainside, the last challenge of the race. As I wound
up a set of switchbacks I passed Oliver and he appeared to be in bad shape as
he waved me on. I saw a sign that said 2.1 miles to the summit and I was
elated, it looked much further than that. I was able to walk/jog all the way to
the top despite the steep grade. Somehow my flatland running in Texas was
sufficient enough to catapult me to the top of the mountain in decent time. When
I arrived at the top with about 9 miles to go Apryle was waiting for me. I was
pleasantly surprised to see her and was also grateful to hear that it was all
down hill from that point! I refueled the tanks and started barreling down the
hillside.
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| Post Race |
I suppose my pace was
fairly pedestrian given my proximity to the finish, because I assumed I had a
lock on second and no chance of catching first. However, I was wrong with about
four kilometers to go, Oliver caught me. I looked over my shoulder and thought
that I was pretty much cooked, he was moving very efficiently and I was sure I
had just relinquished second place once again. However, I was able to keep up
with him and we clipped off a pretty fast 2.5 miler. The whole time I was debating
when to start my kick, however, Oliver turned to me and asked if I wanted to
bring it in together and make a lean at the finish to give a good show to which
I responded sure. The results might show me in second and Oliver in third but
it was definitely a tie; I suppose my track background and leaning capabilities
gave me the edge (Coach Behm always said lean for the line… never thought it
would apply in 50 mile race).
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| Walking to the Arboretum |
I was happy with the race
and my time of 7:23:46, especially given the 7200 feet of elevation gain
throughout the morning. It ended up being my second, second place and the
second race this season that included a sprint finish! I consider this race to
be one of my best overall performances given the difficulty of the course and
my lack of mental preparation. My nutrition was pretty simple, I had a about
seven or eight gel packs, some electrolyte/sugar water that the awesome
volunteers topped off at each aid station, a banana, a couple handfuls of candy
and a few sips of various sodas throughout the race.
Month Days Miles Time Pace Longest Run
February
|
22 to 28
|
80.2
|
11:45:29
|
8:47
|
50
|
|
March
|
1 to 7
|
29.8
|
7:36:43
|
16:17
|
15.4
|
|
March
|
8 to 14
|
41.75
|
6:56:30
|
10:21
|
12
|
|
March
|
15 to 21
|
64.63
|
8:59:03
|
8:20
|
10.8
|
|
April
|
22 to 28
|
72.4
|
8:53:37
|
7:23
|
13.27
|
|
April
|
29 to 4
|
74.15
|
9:10:38
|
7:26
|
18
|
|
April
|
5 to 11
|
61.67
|
7:37:59
|
7:26
|
16.16
|
|
April
|
12 to 18
|
78.72
|
10:55:20
|
8:19
|
25.04
|
|
April
|
19 to 25
|
41.6
|
5:36:22
|
8:05
|
10.01
|
|
April
|
26 to 2
|
64.65
|
9:46:45
|
9:04
|
50
|
 |
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The week following the
race was quite busy for Apryle and she had several exams, so it allowed me some
time to recover. Fortunately I was able to sit in on a couple of classes and
learn some ecology material as opposed to the constant barrage of orthopedic and
neurological disorders, which was refreshing.
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| Apryle repelling |
Apryle and I also made a couple of
trips to the arboretum via the Marsh Island trail. It was definitely a week of
botany which included several lectures on plant families, learning to properly
splice graft an apple tree, touring the greenhouse exhibits and creating our
own terrarium. We capped off my trip to the great northwest with a climbing
excursion at Mount Erie. I was extremely rusty, but Apryle still climbed well
and we had a relaxing afternoon with beautiful views of the sound and Lake
Erie; which is not quite the same as the lake I had pictured in my mind… I will
always have northwest Ohio in my heart.
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| Lake Erie & Puget Sound from Mount Erie |
As always after a race I
must dedicate the final paragraph to expressing my gratitude. I would like to
think my uniform sponsors: Mary & Walt Szablewski and Jeff and Cindy Craig;
re
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| Sun setting over the San Juans |
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