Western States 100 Mile Race Report

In the race manual it gives 'Trashed Quads' as one of the main reasons for not finishing Western States 100. I had never really had trashed quads before but let me tell you it hurts bad. I recommend doing some running before doing WS and particularly, doing long downhills to get your legs used to being battered by descending.... sadly I hadn't run downhill since early February. I guess this was really an experiment in whether I could finish a tough 100 on just cross training and some mental stones.

I spent the Friday morning before race day going through runner registration involving signing the usual liability waivers, picking up a medical card, having a photo and short video clip taken for the webcast and then picking up the free race swag (Mountain Hardwear Pack, calf and arm sleeves, 2 race t shirts, fleece etc - all in all $$$s of free stuff). Then followed the medical check where they took our blood pressure, pulse and weight. The weight thing is good but annoying, they check us regularly throughout the race and if our weight differed by more than 3% up or down of registration weight, we may be asked to wait at an aid station to drink/ eat/ pee until our weight normalised before we can go on. If our weights differ from that at registration by 7% or more we would be pulled from the course on medical grounds (either dehydration or hyponatraemia).

I was one of the few people there without designated crew or pacers but I didn't mind, given that there were 24 aid stations over the 100 miles plus 10 places you could leave drop bags. Unfortunately I realised I had forgotten the gels GU had sent me for the race, plus my headlamps and cap so I went outside and found the GU rep who I kind of begged to help me out by giving me replacement gels (thank you GU rep) and then bought the other stuff. I spent the rest of the day chilling out with Ian Sharman, discussing his race strategy for at the least, breaking the top 10 again and then later with David Snipes (Sniper) a friend of mine from VA going for the Last Great Race this year (Old Dominion, Western States, Vermont, Angeles Crest, Leadville and Wasatch Front all in one summer).

I got up the following morning at 3am, drove the car back up to Squaw Valley and climbed out into the freezing morning air. When I got back to the check in it was packed with runners and their crews mostly eating and forcing that second morning movement pre race. At  0455, I lined up with 400 other runners and watched the clock click down the last few minutes to 5am and race start.

Obviously I had no idea how things were going to go. My one goal was to cross the finish line in Auburn. To have presumed I was capable of achieving anything more than that on a stress fracture and a total of 11 running miles in the preceeding 6 weeks would have been naive to say the least. Whilst I am by no means an elite runner I do usually make the top 10% of the field at most races so I made sure I forced myself to wait back of the bulk of the field at the start and to try to stay there as much as possible to make sure i didn't get swept up in racing anybody.

The first 4.5 miles of WS climbs from the base of Squaw Valley and winds up gravel paths under the ski lifts all the way to the escarpment and over the top of the mountain. There is no downhill or flat in this section, just a slope which varies in pitch from runnable to a steep hike. When the gun went I could see the front runners streaming away up the path, I ran maybe 300 - 400 yards and then settled in to a power walk up the hill. The first 3 miles went by quickly as the sun started to come up and from there we turned left to go directly up the ski slope which was still covered in thick snow.

It was here that I first realised how bad my road shoes were going to be at gripping on snow with an icy crust on top. I slid around a lot but made it up and over the top of the climb in around an hour. The views across Lake Tahoe behind were incredible as everyone told me they would be.

(language warning in almost all videos....)

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Once over the summit, we hit a smooth downhill trail which led us straight into a forest where the snow was at its thickest. The going for the next 9 miles through that stuff varied between runnable snow and sliding on hands and arse down steep icy slopes ie. between 0.5 and 7 miles per hour. I went over hard over a dozen times and by the time we had descended far enough to get out of the snow, my arms were killing me from arresting so many falls.

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I went through Talbot aid at Mile 13 in 3 hours exactly, had a couple of gels and refilled my water before making quick work of the next 7 mile section down to Poppy at mile 20, hitting that in 4 hours dead. By this time my quads were already sore. Anybody who has run Western States before will know that if your quads are sore by mile 20 you are in serious trouble, because you have about 20000 feet of downhill to contend with after that point. I knew I was in pain because I had done no running, I was asking my legs to do work that they were just not used to. The fact that I knew this would happen coming in to the race made me better equipped just to block it out and get on with it.

The short section between here and Duncan Canyon at mile 23 was stunning, all single track winding through trees around the edge of a lake and crossing small streams. From Duncan Canyon followed a long downhill descent on trail and then road, before a steep climb in the now building heat back up to Mosquito Ridge at Mile 31. This was the first time in the day I felt like I'd gone too hard. People had started to pass me on the down hills where I was already in pain but on the ascents I made all that time back and more with pretty strong climbing legs. At Mosquito Ridge I caught up with Sniper and we ran the 4 mile loop at the top together, grabbing snow from the trail to dump under my hat which helped cool me back down from overheating temporarily. I let Sniper go once we went through Millers Defeat at 35 and the next 3 miles were on what should have been a lovely winding, easily runnable descent. Unfortunately I was getting overtaken again by everyone I'd just cruised past because my quads felt like they were being jarred out of my legs. If I'd know what was to come I would have started to panic, luckily I was blissfully unaware.

The next section of WS, the canyons, should be reasonably straight forward but cause many to come unstuck. Over the next 20ish miles (38 - 56) you descend deep down into a canyon and climb back up the other side, repeat 3 times. It is this section that most runners do in the heat of the day and there is no air down there. Luckily we only had 90 ish degree temps rather than the usual 110 to 120. The first canyon drops steeply from Last Chance at mile 43 all the way down to a creek at the bottom before climbing back up the fabled Devils Thumb at mile 47. If you had gone on a nice trail run and your legs weren't trashed already, the descent would be one of the most enjoyable running experiences imaginable with lots of sweeping switchbacks. My quads were so battered however that I was forced to walk most of the descent and every step was causing more and more pain. At the bottom, I spent some time stretching my legs out and had already lost a lot of the flex and bend. The climb up Devils Thumb is intense. 1500 feet in a mile or so with 36 switchbacks. It is the kind of climb where you look up above you and the runners ahead look like they are perched on a cliff directly above you. When I got to the top at mile 43 I felt totally spaced out and my weight was down 4 lbs which was right on the limit. I had again passed everyone that had cruised past me on the descent but I'd overdone it and let my HR climb too high for too long. I forced some food down at this point and just kept moving so as not to let my legs seize up. Into the next canyon was a repeat performance, although less steep the descent was again horrific and the climb back out to Michigan Bluff at mile 55.7 was long and hard too.

I realised I had a chance of making Forest Hill at Mile 62 before dark and wanted to do so to give myself a boost psycologically. Apart from my quads everything else was pretty ok, no chaffing, blisters bad but manageable and i'd been eating and drinking well. I head out of the aid there and went on my way with two of the medic sweepers that are out running sections of the course throughout the day. I got chatting to those guys and one of them really kindly offered to go ahead the last mile into Forest Hill and find me a pacer. I made good time on this section and got to Forest Hill at mile 62 before it got dark in 15:22. Slow by any normal standards but good going for me all things considered.

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Everyone tells you pre race to 'save some running in your legs for after Forest Hill - it gets much easier'. Well that's all well and good but if your quads are shot to pieces there is nothing you can do to recover them. I tried everything, snatching sticks out of the bushes to push down my legs and try and run the lactic acid out, stretching. Nothing worked.

At Forest Hill I picked up my pacer, Jeff which the medic had kindly sorted out for me (i offered him a free spot in the TP100 for helping me out). Jeff was amazing. He had been waiting for a friend to come through Forest Hill from where he would pace him to the finish. Unfortunately his friend had dropped earlier in the race and that was to my benefit. Jeff just got it straight away. I told him my expectations at that point were just to finish and not kill myself doing it given that Vermont was three weeks away. Was it possible to go sub 24 still? Probably, but to find out might put me so far into the red that it could take months to get back out again like Badwater last year. I said 25 - 26 hours seemed reasonable and that I just wanted my shin to hold up and he agreed. Jeff lives for these trails. God knows how many hours he has spent on the Western States trail over the years but he knew every nook and cranny. He had also paced somebody last year from the same point. To have someone in a race when it's getting dark and you've been on your feet for 16 hours already, telling you exactly how long the next climb is or how far to the next runnable section is invaluable. Not only that but his help at the aid stations was out of this world. As we approached I would let him know what i needed ie. how much powder to put in to the water bladder, what i needed from the bag, food etc etc and he just did it allowing me to either stretch, puke or just stand at the food table eating everything I could.

I say puke because over the next 10 - 15 miles I started to get pretty nauseous. We ran down the Cal Street trail until it got dark and made ok time through the aid station at 65, then on to Peachstone at mile 70. At this point though I tried to put a cup of coke, a quesadilla and 2 ibuprofen in my mouth at the same time, starting chewing and blew everything all over the side of the aid station. It came hard and fast and I missed Jeff by inches. What followed was a total evacuation of everything I had in my system. Retching really hard made me pull my stomach muscles but once it was all out I felt tons better. We proceeded on through the dark trails and got to the river crossing at mile 78 around 1am.

The American River is usually crossed on foot at this point but it was almost in flood this year with all the meltwater. At Rucky Chucky - Mile 78, Jeff and I donned life jackets and climbed into a raft for a quick journey across to the other side. It would have been spectacular had I not been freezing cold and in pain but despite that it was still an experience I'll never forget.

When we got to the other side I changed socks for the first time and found all the skin had come away from the bottom of my feet. There was a foot guy there but I just placed the socks over the flaps of skin and pressed down into my shoes to get it to all stay put. We began the 2 mile climb up to Green Gate at mile 80 and the going was slow but steady. The next 10 miles or so we tried to keep a pace of between 3 and 4 mph over all terrain, the trail just winding through the woods was great and again any other time would have been incredible running but with quads this sore it was hard to enjoy that much. The light started to come up just as we hit Browns Bar at Mile 90 which was an experience....

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Once through Browns Bar we had roughly 3 x 3.5 mile sections to go and plenty of time in the bag. I had gone a little quiet but Jeff knew it was just the pain in my legs causing that. He kept pushing me to eat salt and drink a little as my hands were pretty swollen and my weight still up 3 or 4 pounds at the previous weigh in. We got down to Highway 49 crossing and went straight on through the aid station. They don't tell you that this last 10 miles is almost all straight up or straight down but it is. Nothing severe but pretty rough going actually. It was getting to the point where I was having real trouble negotiating the descents now at any speed. I felt pretty sick with the pain and didn't want to puke again so just gutted it out as best I could but we were really crawling along. From mile 93.5 we made the climb up and then the steep descent down to No Hands Bridge at 96.5. This should have been really enjoyable again but it was a death march. This being the last downhill however, I started to lighten up a little. Across No Hands, we then made the climb up to Robie Pt at mile 98.9 out of the trail and the heat and on to the last mile to the track at Auburn. Tim Twietmeyer came past at this point the other way down the trail and said well done which was flattering considering he's run WS 25 times, all in under 24 hours.

The last mile to the track was a gentle stroll. I couldn't have cared less about the overall time at that point, I had 2 hours to do a mile so we just ambled in with Jeff trying to get me to 'loosen up my quads' to run round the track at the end. When we got there the reception was fantastic, people cheering all the way round the 300 yards. Sniper, who'd finished a couple of hours before, got up and jogged the last 200 with us across the finish line as John Medinger the announcer read out my name. It felt good to cross the line, total time 28:25.

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I was elated that I'd got it done. Mentally it was my strongest ever performance. Not once did I even come close to contemplating taking extended time at an aid station, let alone sleeping/ stopping or just dropping out. Ordinarily I would be disappointed with a crappy death march to the finish but to have expected anything else would have been insane. As a result I did what I could and I was lucky enough to be allowed to make a 100 mile journey last weekend. And what's more my shin lasted the distance. Western States lived up to everything it is pertained to be. Yes the organisation is fantastic albeit a little fanatical but mostly it is the trail itself that holds this race up there at the top. It is simply an awesome track.

As soon as I crossed the line a medic took my pulse and told me it was 121 so high. I had just covered 100 miles and run the last 300 yard section in to the finish. No shit my pulse was high. Then I made my way over and got a sports massage. Two people clamping me to the table basically pushed as much crap out of my quads as possible and it was excruciating. I lasted about 10 minutes under their care and it was deeply painful but ultimately beneficial. Sniper, John his pacer and I took a long drive back to Truckee after and grabbed some lunch but we were all falling asleep at the table having been up for 38+ hours so hit the sack shortly after.

I have to say thanks to Lisa Smith-batchen who coached me through the worst period in my running career. In short, Lisa got me through this race by training almost entirely on a stationary bike, stepper and strider. Not too many people could have got me to a place where i could even start on that basis, let alone finish with time to spare. Joe and Mike at the EIS who were able to finally diagnose my bone issues and set me on the straight and narrow deserve the reward of this finish also. Jeff Egolf, I am deeply indebted to you my friend you are one hell of a pacer.

So what's next? Well that was race 1 of the 4 in the Grand Slam. Vermont is next in just 3 weeks time (16th July) which is not a lot of time to recover. Of 32 who stared the slam at Western States, 8 DNF'd there so we are down to 24 already. On the way home my feet swelled up to horrendous proportions and my blisters and quads are going to take time to heal but with the right preparation and lots of rest I should yet be ok for Vermont. The only blocker will be if my shin shows any residual damage when the swelling in my legs goes down. I have made no secret of the fact that in order of priority, Western States and then Leadville came top for me so if Vermont will force me from Leadville I won't start there. It's one day and one race at a time this summer. Who knows what could happen, I got through that one ok!

Western States Done

Obviously a full and overblown race report will follow but I wanted to say thanks to all the people that sent messages and e mails wishing me luck and congratulations on finishing. I know I went on and on about my total lack of preparedness for this event but today was by far my strongest ever performance mentally. My body was not capable of giving an ounce more than I dragged out of it and consequently it was an extremely painful race at times but not once did I think I wouldn't finish.

The Western States course is everything and more that has been written of it. To think as we rounded the track at Placer High School in Auburn, that climbing up and over a mountain to kick off was part of the same race is incredible. It is worth the time and expense to make it out here for this one if you get the chance....

The day before the day before WS100

I arrived in Reno last night after a 22 hour journey yesterday and drove up to Truckee from there. Truckee is 8 miles down the hill from Squaw Valley resort which is the start point of Western States.

This morning I parked near the start line and hiked the first 4 miles of the course. I have to say I am in awe of the surroundings. It is 80 degrees here without a cloud in the sky and it almost feels like I'm on holiday. The lingering snow pack that everyone keeps talking about and that has forced the re-route away from the traditional course this year, is clearly an issue. The slope begins 5 yards in front of the start line as the course winds its way up the mountain following a gravel road. There are plenty of twists and turns under chair lifts not unlike UTMB but just before the 3 mile point the course turns into thick snow. Making progress is hard going in that stuff, it's slippery so powering uphill is pretty hard. Apparently we will be on the snow from 3 - 13 miles but I'm not that worried about it, if anything it might be slightly less impactful on my shin.

The views from the top are awesome back over Squaw Valley and Lake Tahoe in the distance. I walked back down the hill from the summit to the top of the escarpment where about 60 people had gathered for the flag raising and a couple of the WSER board members gave us some goo advice and history from the course.

View from just below the top of the first 4 mile climb

Back tonight for the Grand Slam meeting then again tomorrow for registration, medical check in and a bunch of other stuff. It is GREAT to finally be here.

Western States 100 2011

Well my training is done, taper well under way and I'm pretty sure I have my nutrition and hydration strategy really 'dialed in' for Saturdays race.

Here's what my run training schedule has looked like in the 6 week lead up to this years WS100:

May 14th: 4.6 miles - 42 minutes
June 3rd: 5 miles - 1 hour
June 21st: 2.12 miles - 19 minutes

So pretty consistent as you can see. This mornings run was the icing on the cake really where it all just came together in that first 2 miles and then a hard push the last 0.12 back to the car.

I may as well joke about it because there's pretty much nothing I can do about it now. I have done some basic cycling and swimming but not loads.

Last night I had one of those 'this is total stupidity' moments where after 2 weeks of talking myself into starting the race, I decided it was pointless. My 'coin flip' was the 2 miles this morning. If I was pain free through the night, during the 'run' and all day today with no residual effects and felt ok then I would start. It's 2pm and so far I am pain free so I am about to pack some stuff in a bag. I have to look at this as a very long training run for the other Grand Slam races. Job 1 is to finish, Job 2 is to finish and not cause further injury. If I can achieve those goals it will be a minor miracle but perhaps being forced to go slow will allow me to save more in the tank for Vermont? Anything could happen....

I fly tomorrow morning to Dallas and then on to Reno from where I drive up to Truckee where I am staying for the week (end). Finally it's on to Squaw Valley on Thursday morning. I am supposed to be meeting the other Grand Slammers there (the others doing all 4 x 100s this summer) but I don't really feel like I can legitimately turn up to that meet. I will go along however to catch up with my buddy David Snipes who has already run 3 x 100s in the past 2 months and is adding the Grand Slam plus Angeles Crest in the same 11 weeks.

The RD announced the course change due it being a 'snow year' and it turns out that between miles 3 and 15 and again between 31 and 35, we can expect 'thick snow'. They have re-routed and re-planned the first 3rd of the race and the distance between aid stations has been strung out. All of that is pretty much irrelevant to me, I've done no training so the best I can hope for is to slog it out at the back and scrape through the cut offs one by one in an attempt to make the 30 hour time limit. It will likely slow everyone else down however and therefore I will have more company at the back as a result I would guess....

Going in to a race with zero expectations is kind of refreshing. I am just excited to see the mechanics of the race and gain some further useful insights into race management/ logistics etc for our own Centurion Races. The only other remaining question is how much stuff I buy at the pre race expo because as everyone knows you can't wear race logo gear of races you haven't finished. I have some comrades stuff in a box which i got free even though i didn't start so I guess if the worst comes to the worst I can just fill it up with Western States stuff too and then get it out sometime in the next 2 decades when I might be able to turn in another chance to run and perhaps even a semi - decent finishing time....

'Don't the best of them bleed it out whilst the rest of them peter out'

Western States Odds

Plenty of guys out there offering odds on Western States right. Try irunfar's outstanding site with a prediction table to be launched here.

From a British perspective it is going to be the first time that arguably the three fastest Brits over the 100 mile distance are going to go head to head. Nick Clark has had another fantastic season and continues to go from strength to strength each year that passes. Ian Sharman ran top 10 in his first ever Western States last year and followed that with a 12:44 over 100 miles at Rocky Raccoon in February setting a North American Trail 100 record which I was lucky enough to witness. Finally Jez Bragg has just crushed the course at the Fellsman and is a previous podium finisher at the race in 2009. Nick and Ian went head to head at American River 50 just a couple of months ago and Nick won out by under a minute passing Ian on the final stretches of the course.

I think the battle for the win is going to be played out by 4 of the same 5 as last year, Geoff Roes, Killian Jornet, Hal Koerner and Nick Clark. Anton Krupicka the ultra running worlds favourite minimalist runner has broken his leg just this week so won't start. You can look for Ian to fill that 5th spot somewhere and Dave Mackey who has won everything he has entered pretty much this year, in front of very strong fields to be there too. Here is my prediction for Mens Top 10:

1. Jornet
2. Roes
3. Clark
4. Mackey
5. Wolfe
6. Sharman
7. Koerner
8. Bragg
9. Redpath
10. Braje

This is the most closely followed ultra race pretty much anywhere and each year that goes by the coverage improves. This year the webcast is already live and there is now a mobile phone app for following every step of the race. http://www.ultralive.net/ws100/webcast.php

Finally, the snow remains at the higher altitude and the pre race e mail this week stated that as runners we can expect snow to cover the first 20 - 30 miles of the course, that it will likely slow everyones anticipated times down by an additional hour. That is why I am pipping Roes and Jornet for the top spots. Both are the fastest proven guys but also train hundreds of hours a year in and out of snow.

It remains to be seen how far I'll get on the course but at this stage with the pain abating in my shin finally, it looks like I'll line up. No guarantees and feel free to follow me Bib No. 84 (type number into top right box on above webcast link to pull up results). If I make it to Red Star Ridge at Mile 16 it will be longest run since Rocky Raccoon on February 5th.

Results of the Poll

We set up a poll on the website to see which races the people coming across Centurion Running wanted to run the most. The objective was to find out which existing races people aspire towards doing. It is that kind of information that will best help us put on the right kind of events in the future. I can only hypothesise why people chose the race that they did and I have done so below. This is a bit of a rambling post but maybe there's a couple of snippets of information in there which might help aspiring runners. From a personal point of view, I like to see what races really excite other people.

Out of the 207 votes from a limited pool of answers over a period of a couple of months, the results were as follows (note this did not include information about whether the respondent had previously run any of the races on the list):

Question: Which of the following races is it your dream to run?

Answers fixed as below, number of votes on the right (click on any race to link to the webpage)

UTMB 41

Western States 40

Badwater 25

Comrades 19

Spartathlon 17

Marathon Des Sables 17

Grand Union Canal Run 13

Leadville 12

Jungle Marathon 12

North Pole Marathon 9

4Deserts Series 2

London Marathon 0

Obviously this is an extremely simplistic testing method but the answers are nevertheless very interesting.

Starting from the top, UTMB and Western States are now the two biggest 100 milers in the world and by a massive margin so it either makes sense that given we are focusing a good amount of our efforts on trail 100s that these would come out on top ie. we are attracting that kind of runner to our website or trail 100s in awesome places are a really desirable races to do right now. Probably a bit of both.


Western States as the original 100 miler has attracted large fields for a long time (over 400 starters since the early 1990s). It is the most prestigious trail race in the US as the grandfather of the other 90 existing 100 milers in the US and with a rich history. UTMB has only been in existence for 8 years but quickly grew in to the superbowl of trail running. Both races offer spectacular scenery, extremely tough courses and deep fields, drawing the top trail runners from across the globe. Whereas Western States has remained more US focused, UTMB has more of a multi-national field, appealing to the very strong trail and mountain running scene across Western Europe. The level of local support and spectator numbers for UTMB are overwhelming. The explosion in the last few years of running blogs and consumption of online information about ultra races has no doubt also helped swing these two to the top of runners' bucket lists. Whereas Western States has had its heroes for many years, recording streaks of back to back wins, shattering preconceptions about what can be achieved on the course, UTMB has only recently started to see the same kind of pattern emerge as each passing race allows it to forge out its own history.

UTMB now as an entry limit of 2300. In 2009 everyone who applied, got a spot. This year, 4500 people applied for the 2300 places. The reaction from UTMB has been to tighten the qualification criteria somewhat and in my opinion they have responded in the right way to the increase in demand. There has been a massive DNF rate at UTMB over the years, rarely do 50% of the field make the finish. It is an extremely difficult race, without doubt in the top 10 hardest non stop trail races in the world, therefore it would seem crazy to allow those unqualified, to start. Races are being given less qualifying points than before (our own North Downs 100 is worth only 3 points out of the 5 you need from a maximum of two races) whereas before you required only 4 points from an unlimited number of races. So I guess their hope is that more people will work harder and gain more experience in order to qualify for the lottery.  Of course the benefit for races like ours that don't yet have the prestige, history or big name attraction, grow, as people support more local events in order to have a crack at the most prestigious. Western States has only just begun to move with the demand. A few years ago Western still employed a two time loser strategy. That was if you had entered the lottery for a place and been unlucky twice, you were guaranteed a spot the following year. This year Western had 2500 applicants for around 300 open places (100 more going to previous top 10ers, benefactors, sponsors and Montrail Ultra Cup Winners), with half of those being 2 time applicants. Western States' problem is that they are restricted to 400 each year by the Granite Chief Wilderness Permit they require to stage the race. UTMB can allow 6 times that number and potentially even more. For the first time in 2012 Western States has a list of qualifying races, of which you must have completed one in order to enter the lottery. With the way this is set up, it will again attract majority US entrants as the included International races are extremely limited. Although I requested our events go on as qualifiers, the RD of Western has decreed first time races are not accepted, which is fair enough, although in the UK you are restricted to running one of only two events to earn a spot. 

So as these two grow in popularity, which they undoubtedly will, the entry criteria will no doubt continue to get harder in order to shrink down the number of people actually making the hat each year. There really is no other way around it in my opinion and it is entirely fair that if you want to try your hand at a race at the very top of the difficulty spectrum, you should have had to battle your way through other tough races to earn a spot. 

The next two races in the list, Badwater and Comrades, are road runs but are again two of the biggest names on the ultra calender. Badwater has the reputation of being the hardest ultra out there. Part of the reason for that is its entry policy, where would be runners are required to fill out an athletic CV alongside a bank of lengthy questions in order to be elegible for selection by the race committee. Letting only 90 people start the run each year is a restriction imposed on the race organisers adventurecorps, by Death Valley National Park but has caused a knock on effect in that demand has ballooned because so few people get to try their hand at the course. Each year they allow just 45 vets and 45 rookies to take the start line. In 2003 my good friend Frank entered the race with a CV which included some mountaineering experience and a couple of 50 milers. In 2006 when I first looked at it, the criteria was that you must have completed one 100km race within the time limits of the course. This year the time limit for reaching the finish has been reduced from 60 hours to 48 for the first time and as a bare minimum you must have completed 3 x 100 milers to enter. Not easy. I've never seen any figures published on how many entries they receive each year but it wouldn't suprise me to find out if was in the mid to high 100s. With that in mind and only 90 spots available, a race that captures the imagination of so many people will only get more and more popular and potentially also continue to raise it's entry criteria. 

Comrades I had the pleasure of seeing first hand a couple of weeks ago, albeit I wasn't able to run because of injury. It is a spectacular event with huge numbers of runners and an open door policy to anyone who can complete a marathon. As an experience, those that have run it put it right at the very top and as ultra running grows, so will the number of international entrants to an event already in its 87th year and rooted at the heart of the South African national psyche. 

The biggest surprises on the poll list for me are the next two, Spartathlon and the Marathon Des Sables. I didn't expect Sparta to feature so highly as it is so incredibly difficult and less publicised than many of the others. It perhaps is somewhat of a 'dream' for many to even think about being in a position to cross the finish line of a 153 mile race involving many different obstacles (heat/ a mountain climb) within a 36 hour time limit. There is no doubt that the handful of Brits that take part each year will grow in number as those before them return with stories of just how epic a race it is. Perhaps the growth in the number of Brits running the GUCR each year and thus qualifying for sparta in the process is helping to blossom that number. The Marathon Des Sables seems to have fallen from its position as 'the race at the top of everyones list' ever so slightly. The scenery is incredible and it remains one of the toughest challenges out there, but with so many other more sociably organised,  less military, more affordable multi day races out there (desert or otherwise), it isn't necessarily top of the pile any longer in anything other than name. Still at 1000 runners this year it is clearly the premier desert stage race on the ultra calender.

In 7th place was the GUCR. A classic British Ultramarathon and one, again, that is growing in size and reputation which is wonderful to see. It isn't suprising that it got a good few votes.

Leadville followed GUCR and is again, a race that has absolutely blown up in size in the US. This year the race will be staged by Lifetime Fitness who bought out the incumbent race directors. Potentially a sign of things to come, the 2011 race has gone on to sell out all 700 places. This again is a record. Books like Born To Run and Dean Karnazes' ultramarathonman have spread the word about Leadville to a much wider audience.

The Jungle Marathon came next and I confess to knowing very little about it. I know a few people who have had a crack at it and whom have also raced the MdS/ 4Deserts etc and who rate this as extremely difficult due to the humidity and heat as a combination.

The North Pole Marathon is astronomically expensive to get too but clearly is, as this poll asks, 'a dream race'.

Finally the 4 Deserts Series only got 2 votes, perhaps I sold it short by not naming one of the deserts out and bundling them together so hard to tell if that would have changed anything.

Last but not least 'the marathon' got 0 votes. I guess that's maybe as everyone has already done it. It's still on my list though, 6 years and counting....

How much anybody can take away from the above is marginal but it will be interesting to see if we repeat the process in a years time if we get similar results. All in all, the biggest races get bigger as our sport grows exponentially. Hopefully the races that rush to fill this rise in level of interest will continue to add to the incredible pedigree displayed in most of the above listed races. I hope one day in the not too distant future people will talk about Centurion Races in the same way but we must earn that right through hard work just as each of the others has had to.

Any other poll suggestions gladly accepted. The current one sucks. Scroll down to bottom right on here

North Downs Way 26.2, 50 & 100 mile

Just a message to anybody reading this who has signed up for the NDW races. Thank you. When we set up the Mara, 50 and 100 in November 2010, we were told we could expect around 50 runners to participate across all 3 distances in our first year. Registrations started trickling in slowly to begin with but have increased exponentially in the last two months in particular, so much so, that we have had to put limits on the entry numbers because I am acutely aware that we need to make sure we manage a lower number of runners exceptionally well rather than a higher number, averagely.

I made it clear at the beginning that I wanted to put on the kind of races that I personally wanted to run, taking learnings from some of the best organised ultras I have been able to run myself. We are getting there now and as each day passes another thing drops in to place. I think it helps that I can visualise exactly how I want the race to play out, but there is a massive amount of pressure now to deliver. The humbling thing is that so many people obviously think we can because so many have entered!! That and the fact that many have run on the North Downs Way and love the trail. Needless to say we continue to work harder than ever to make this first event as great as it can be.

I have mentioned the info packs a couple of times but they are now all finished and will be mailed out on Friday. The only thing missing is the detail on our nutritional sponsor which I am hoping we can announce at the same time.

There is a mammoth blog to follow this on the results of the poll on 'dream races' but I may cut it down a bit yet.....

On a personal level I have 11 days to go to Western States and still I haven't run barely a step (well since early May anyway). 2.5 miles up Lions head and 2.5 back down again isn't quite the level of training I'd hoped to have going in to a mountain 100. It seems prudent now to start to ease up on the cycling and swimming and give the shin every chance at repairing itself in time to make it through my 'dream race'....

17 days to Western States

Last night I got e mail confirmation from Greg Soderlund the RD of Western States that the race is definitely on. Rumours had been circulating for some time that the lingering snow pack in the Californian High Country would force the abandonment of the 2011 race. The only previous occasion WS as been cancelled was 2008 and as a result of fires. On that occasion, the 2008 field became the 2009 field and everyone else had to wait another 2 years to try their hand in the lottery (including me).

So with a persistent shin problem, that news is pretty mixed in my book. If they had postponed it I could have waited until next year and hopefully been in better shape to tackle it, but on the other hand the whole grand slam would have been out of the window. Now it's on, I intend to start it, see how I go and then take each of the following 3 races as they come.

I ran up and down Lions Head in Cape Town last Friday, which felt like a breeze. It is about a 1800 foot climb in the space of 2.5 miles from sea level which is a similar pitch to the 4 mile 2500 foot climb at the start of Western States. Going uphill my leg is fine. I ran every step and was breathing hard in places but not blowing up (there is no way I would dream of starting Western States that hard). Coming down felt a bit shaky but I'd been pain free in the days preceeding it so it was time to test it out.

Lions Head overlooking Cape Town. My run ended in the clouds

Profile of the first 3 miles of Western States

A couple of days later and both of the previous stress fracture areas on the outside of the bone feel solid and pain free. I still have some sensation in the central cortex of the tibia however which is where the stress reaction resides.

The small strand structure in the centre of my bone has tiny cracks in it

So it isn't quite ready yet, nearly but not quite. The docs view is that I shouldn't have trouble getting it pain free and the reaction cleared up in time for the race. The problem is that whilst it isn't 100% I can't run on it. It is therefore likely that I will start the race on zero running miles for over a month.

That sounds insane but actually the massive amount of biking and added swimming i have been doing has clearly helped me maintain good fitness. It has been achingly dull but the little sojourn up the side of Lions Head showed me exactly what coach Lisa has been saying, keep up the cross training and you will start as fit as you have for all of the other races I have done. The problem is purely that the running muscles are going to be stale as anything.

So between now and the race, it is head down, bike and swim each day as usual, work hard on Centurion and be patient as the pain continues to ease. If we get to race week and i'm in pain then Western States will go on ice....

Comrades

Just returned from a great trip to South Africa, sadly it didn't involve me doing pretty much any running but I'm starting to make my peace with my busted shin.

We flew out to Durban on Friday night, the day after I finally said goodbye to my job and the rat race altogether, landing Saturday morning to blazing sunshine and 25 degree temps.

View out over Durban Beach

We hooked up with the boys at the hotel, had a couple of beers and then hit the Comrades expo to get them registered. The expo is a behemoth of running paraphernalia. As with all of the big city marathons you can get pretty much any running equipment you want plus a whole lot more but this was different.

I am not going to harp on about the event now, I'd rather leave that to people who've actually run it but you hear people talking about the spirit of Comrades and what makes it an extra special event. Up until last year I'd never considered it due to the cost of travelling to and from South Africa. It was predominantly Ian Sharman who convinced me it was absolutely worth the effort of getting out there and that it truly is the greatest race going. From what I witnessed it is more than just a race but rather a whole experience. 19000 people signed up this year and 5000 others like myself didn't make the start-line yet of those 14000 starters, only 4000 were first time runners.

Comrades is a road run between the cities of Durban and Pietmaritzburg. Each year the direction of the race changes. The down run comes from Pietmaritzburg back to Durban, this year was an up year with the course headed in the opposite direction. The distance was approx 87km with 5 major climbs and a total elevation gain of around 2000m. Bearing all that in mind there were some tremendous performances as always. Most notable for me:

Seeing Stephen Muzhingi finish in 5:32 an change for a hat trick of victories

Mike Wardian the US ultra and marathon runner, winner of the DC marathon the year I ran it, finish in 11th place in 5:51

Ian Sharman picking up his 5th Silver Medal in 6:25 despite feeling badly overtrained the day before and during the race

Ellie Greenwood finishing in 4th on her Comrades debut. With Lizzy Hawker not far behind the UK really are blessed with some of the top ultra runners in the world right now.

Almost as notable was seeing the Comrades final cut off gun go in real time. I've posted something similar before but it is a cut off like no other I have seen. To the second, the mayor turns his back and at 12:00:00 hours into the race, there is an absolute line between those who finish and those who quite literally finish a yard or second too late.

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We flew to Cape Town the following morning and spent 5 days down at Cape Point and in the Winelands, getting up Table Mountain in the sunshine on the final day.

Above the clouds at table mountain

I can thoroughly recommend it to anyone. The landscape down at the cape is phenomenal and the wildlife is incredible. Particularly stand out was the baboon who ran into the restaurant we were in at the Cape, jumped on the table and snatched a bread roll before heading back out of the door. 

I'll be back to run Comrades and I hope to be lucky enough to finish both the up and the down courses. My frustration at not being able to take part this year was tempered greatly by the thought of Western States which is now just 3 weeks away. More to follow on that subject soon....

Diagnosis

I finally have some clarity on why I've been injured for so long and keep failing to get well enough to sustain running for more than just a few days. I had a CT scan on Monday which showed that rather than having a stress fracture of the hard bone on the outside of the tibia/ shinbone, I have a stress reaction in the centre of the bone. From the doctors diagram basically the central section of the bone is made up of a honeycomb/ scaffold - esque structure and is surrounded by the hard bone which forms a ring around it. The honeycomb in the centre of my tibia is cracked in multiple places. These tiny cracks are what cause the pain I'm getting from within the bone whether I'm stationary, lying down or on the move.

Red Section - hard outer bone, blue section - where mine is cracked

So the good news is that I now know what the problem is and the root cause of it which is basically deficiencies in my diet. I've had some blood tests to distinguish exactly what it is I'm lacking in but the doc is expecting it to be vitamin D and Calcium. My bone density is through the floor which means the hard ring of bone around the cracked centre is much thinner and weaker than normal. If I continue to run on it, the cracks will move through the honeycomb centre and straight through the hard outer bone causing a fracture which will take months to heal. So at least it hasn't reached that stage yet. 

The bad news is I'm out of Comrades. There is no way to turn the weak bone and stress reaction around in time to guarantee I won't suffer a fracture by running on it. I could try, but it would be naive to go against the doc's advice and hope that it'll be ok. I can't risk damaging my chances of starting Western States and The Grand Slam.

So from here I get to spend more time on the stationary bike and in the pool and make sure I start eating a lot better. I have a 6 day course of 50,000 (thousand) mg of Vitamin D per day which is apparently enormous and should redress any issues with deficiency and speed the healing of the bone. I am aware that I'm lacking protein in my diet and so I'm making a conscious effort to take in more. 

Travelling to South Africa to watch and not run Comrades is going to be extremely hard to bare but we'll try and enjoy a holiday out of it with 5 days in Cape Town after the race. When I come back it will be time to try the leg out. 

So Western States and the start of the Slam is just 5 weeks away. I'm already aware that race is going to be a mental battle rather than a physical one. With 4 months completely off running I'll be in no shape to take it on, but it's a race I've always wanted to run. On the plus side, being forced to slow down because of a lack of fitness may mean that I pace myself better and keep more in the tank for Vermont, Leadville and Wasatch Front which come so quickly afterwards. 

This last 4 months has been really difficult to get through, I've missed running and racing and there isn't really anything to replace that with. Staying motivated to keep going to the gym which happens to be right by the office, 7 days a week including the weekends has been pretty tough but it will be worth it when the strength in my leg returns to a level where I can run on it safely again. 

4 days of work left before I leave for good and then it's focus 100% on getting to the WS start line ready to go....

An Injury By the Numbers

I fractured my shin on 7th February. I resumed training after the fracture was diagnosed, in a cast. Since then 10 weeks have passed and I have had the cast on for just over 6 weeks of that time. There have been a couple of 2 day gaps where the will to continue dropped significantly because of worsening of the injury (too much too soon). No real reason for posting this other than for my own records if this ever happens again. Also, if god willing I start and finish Comrades with almost a total absence of running, just what an effect that has had on my fitness/ time/ pace/ subsequent muscle soreness/ ability to run:

Time frame: 10 weeks/ 70 Days
Cycling time: 52 hours 50 minutes / 973 miles
Running time: 8 hours 30 / 58 miles (43 miles in a 1 wk come back which caused the 2nd round of problems)
Cross training time: 16 hours (Spinning/ Stair Machine/ Swimming)

Total: 77:20 hours
Average Daily Training time: 1:06 hours


 

18 Days to Go

18 Days until I'm supposed to line up on the startline of Comrades. I don't want to say too much right now as I'm so disillusioned with this whole process of injury and recovery. Really not sure where I stand right now. I finally commenced walking again last week and ran for the first time a couple of days ago. I've clocked 5 miles each of the past 2 days in a very easy pace, my fitness feels ok, my legs are a little tight after each run because they're not used to that movement too. I don't have any specific pain in the left shin but it doesn't feel right. The calf is withered away and whilst much stronger than a month ago when I attempted comeback number 1, it still pales into insignifance against the strength of my right leg. 

There is an interesting feature on the new spinning bikes at the gym, allowing you to monitor over the course of a ride how much of the overall effort is being transmitted through either pedal. On average at the moment after about an hour the right leg is performing 53% of the work and the left 47%. That isn't intentional it's just a case of the left dragging as it is weaker. 

I have all my fingers and toes crossed that if I am sensible and stick to 5 miles a day or less I might be able to start in South Africa. The question then is whether I am going to injure myself further and put myself out of Western States and the Slam. I'll have to make that call as I go, but 55 miles of road running is probably the last thing my leg needs right now. Ian Sharman messaged me this week (4 time Comrades finisher). His note read 'even if you run 1 mile and get in the sweeper bus you'll still get a chance to experience the race'. I may just have to do that. I won't jeopardise Western States for Comrades. It was and is the Goal/ A race of this year. 

On the Centurion front, the entries are flying in. We are up to 125 for the NDW races and over 50 for the Thames Path. A phenomenal response for races in their first year. Logistically we are ironing out the final details of the aid station locations and I've been lucky enough to enlist the help of Henk Van Der Beek the RD of Caesar's Camp Endurance Runs in ensuring I've thought of everything going in to race day. Nothing substitutes experience and Henk has bucket loads of it having been through all of this before. For that I'd like to thank him.

Happy running out there. I'll blog once more before Comrades and then it's prayer time!!!!

Three Forts Marathon A Year On

Just a little gauge of how I'm currently faring vs this time 2010, today last year was the Three Forts Marathon which I ran in a time of 3 hours 13 minutes, not too bad for a 27 mile trail race with 3500ft of climbing. Today, I managed a 4.2 mile walk in just over an hour.

BUT the pain in my shin is improving. I still can't run and I'm not sure when I'll be able too but you know what as long as it keeps improving I might just yet be able to scrape in with a start at Comrades.

Training partners are extremely important and mine is in a filthy mood this weekend as his shingles came back at the end of last week. I am lucky enough to get to train with Webbo 3 or 4 times a week. A typical training session will be stair machine for 30 minutes where he gets annoyed because I'm a better climber than him and then 30 - 45 minutes on the bike where the competition is always to go as far as possible in that time. Sometimes I let him win so that he doesn't give up but I've got 10 years on him. On a serious note he does put up with an inordinate amount of moaning on my part, particularly during the last 3 months (3 MONTHS!!!!!) that I have been unable to run because of this stress fracture. If you don't have anyone to train with, find someone, find a club, find a team. It doesn't really matter who but at the end of the day you'll end up pushing each other far harder than if you go it alone. It helps if you're pretty evenly matched. Webbo is the most competitive person I've ever met when it comes to sport. Works out pretty well. When we race together 'as a team' it does not because it becomes a competition to see who can be in front whenever there is a camera. Below picture South Downs Way last year sprinting down a hill half way through our second 35 mile day. Children (I am in front though).

The Centurion Entries keep on rolling in. Places for the North Downs Way races are up over the 100 mark across all three distances. I don't think we'll reach our limit, imposed so as to keep logistics manageable in our first event but we're at a level now where all three distances have a good number of entries. I am delighted and we'll continue to work as hard as ever to make things as good as possible on the day.

Hardrock

Having a think again last night about next July. I am sorely tempted to have another crack at Badwater but that will depend on whether I get in to Hardrock through the lottery (they span the same weekend). I stumbled upon this video which shows just how incredible a course this is. Also how incredibly hard it is. And therein lies the twin appeal. I think everyone accepts that this is the hardest 'traditional' 100 out there with the possible exception of Barkley.

This dude is quite obviously a hero.

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Want to run vs Want to race

When I first started out in this game called running I didn't really have any specific goals other than to train for and complete the Marathon Des Sables. Jim and I entered the MdS back in early 2005 and before hand I had run a total of zero miles in the preceeding 3 or 4 years. Literally nothing. The sole aim was simply to get to the finish line. It was and is for many, enough to get to the finish line of one major league race like the MdS and then sit back and reflect on it for a long time.

For me the period of reflection lasted about 4 months, after which time I was beginning to suffer the same feeling of emptiness that many experience after committing such a huge part of your life to one event for 12 months or more. I didn't run a single race of any distance between the MdS in March 2006 and the Gobi March in late June 2007. The aim for the Gobi was once again, simply to get to the finish line.

I am a competitive person by nature, something that I'm not ashamed of as it has certainly driven me to succeed at things I otherwise wouldn't have bothered with. It isn't a streak which comes through very often in day to day life but during a race it does rear it's head. I find it very difficult to throttle back and watch others disappear into the distance, no matter how great a runner they are. Of course there are always runners who are better, stronger, faster on the day or in general and in those cases as long as I've gone as hard as I can that's fine.

During the MdS in 2006, I raced off ahead of Jim on both the first and second days, unneccesarily and actually I owe a huge amount to Jim's patience and incredible good naturedness not to have got annoyed with me in those circumstances. We hadn't always trained together but we had entered together and intended to finish together and I made the mistake of getting carried away in the 'race' and burying myself to the point where I was almost unable to start the third day due to all kinds of heat related problems from going too hard. We finished every other stage together. The Gobi was a little different, we were together for 2 days but Jim hadn't had the chance to train as much as he'd have liked, traveling around the world during the lead up and I once again felt good so pushed on ahead for the final 3 stages. I think I knew when I came back from China that things had changed for me and that actually I wanted to 1. go on and complete the 4Deserts Series but 2. to try and be competitive and actually race the others.

The injury I picked up at Rocky Raccoon back in the first week of February is as painful now as it was then. It is most probably a stress fracture which largely healed before I put too much pressure on it too soon and exacerbated the problem. I'm going to have other tests to prove or disprove this theory but as far as the cycle of events has played out, that is what it is.

I keep an eye out on the blogs of the top ultramarathon runners particularly in the States as that is where I have focused a lot of my time and effort in the past 2 years (Badwater, Rocky Raccoon, Old Dominion) and about the only time I can actually draw upon a parallel between myself and Anton Krupicka is right now. He seems to have picked up the exact same injury in the same race and been out of action for the same amount of time as I have. He had one or two bigger training weeks (small for him, big for me) as I did before the diagnosis was firmly presented. He is back to running 5 miles a day, I am not yet but I hope I'm not too far behind him.

He has made it clear that until he is fit and ready to race and compete at his highest level, that is to say winning and breaking course records, he won't toe any start line.

Aside from the 4Deserts series up to this point, I haven't been able to/ attempted to be competitive in ultras. I would call competitive top 10 only and in deep fields ie. 100 plus. I have had various issues during each one of the 100 milers I've run and Badwater was an all out slog to the finish. I look back on each of them with great satisfaction at finishing. That was my sole aim going to each one. Finish Rocky as my first 100, finish Old Dominion a much harder race so that I qualified for Badwater, finish Badwater because it is hard enough on it's own the first time and finish at Caesars Camp to avenge my 50 mile DNF there in 2007.

I am now faced with starting all of my A races this year with a major injury. The best I can hope for is that my shin heals that my cross training gets me to the startline of each, able to get through them and battle out for a finish one by one. It is highly likely that the only running I'll have done between February and Comrades is a week of stunted mileage in the middle when my leg briefly healed enough to let me do 4 x 1:30 runs.

If I was Anton right now I'd be cashing in my flights for vouchers and trying to roll my entires to 2012. The thing is I am still early enough in my running life that I can at least try to finish these events and particularly as it won't be easy for me to get in to some of them again. Anton can always qualify for Western States in the future or get a sponsors slot if that fails. I will have to go through that unbearable lottery again and maybe wait another 1/5/10 years to get a chance to race there.

So come what may I'll be at Comrades and I'll be at Western States. They will be ugly, difficult struggles but ultimately the basic goal whenever I get to the startline of an ultra is to finish. I consider them to be enough of a challenge to take satisfaction from simply finishing. I will look back on them, much as I do on Badwater and the other 100s and think, I could have done so much better.... Ultimately though who really knows or cares what the difference is between running a race like that in 29 hours, 39 hours or 59 hours? A handful of people can relate to what that means.

Hopefully in the future I will get the chance to go back and actually race these events and see just how well I can do. I am nowhere near my potential yet in ultras, I'm quite sure of that. For me, right now though, it is about having the chance to experience each of these incredible races once and chose which I go back and do again in the future. Would I go back and do Rocky Raccoon again? Maybe. Old Dominion? Maybe. Badwater? Definitely.

Buying Kit

Well my shin is still as sore as ever. It's fast approaching the point where I'm just not going to be able to get any training in for Comrades at all. The question then becomes should I not run a hilly 54 mile road race and save myself for Western States and the Grand Slam or just give it a crack and see what happens. I'm not making that decision yet but I'm preparing myself for having to do so. Man this year really has SUCKED so far for me. I am trying to stay positive after all what doesn't kill you just makes you stronger and in this case it has really just amped up my desire to go out there and run everything going.

On the Centurion front we've been extremely busy designing the buckle/ t shirt/ start & finish banners and this week finally purchasing all of the equipment we'll need for the NDW events in August. I can tell you that 19 full size (including 10 double steel framed) gazebos weigh a considerable amount and won't fit in one car. Buying that many awnings plus countless collapsable chairs led most of the staff at our local retailer asking the question of where our street party was being held as it's the Royal Wedding this Friday in the UK.

We're approaching 50% full in the marathon now and entries continue to trickle along for the NDW100 and 50, the 50 is lagging a little behind and it's hard to say why but I have a feeling we will see a few more entries coming through between now and race day in all distances. The TP100 entries continue to rise way ahead of my best estimates reaching 40 today. Considering we have a 200 runner limit if things carry on I can see us having to turn disappointed runners away. Nevertheless it's fantastic to receive such great support so early on in the life of these events so thanks again to everyone who has thrown their hat in the ring. Everything that it is possible to do to make the weekend as enjoyable as possible for you is being done.

Back to the stationary bike trainer for me. 2 and half hours on it last night was about all I could handle in one sitting.

Weekend of Successes

Congratulations to everyone who ran the London Marathon or Oner today. As usual my friend Martin Gaunt put in the best time of anyone I know, 2:43, at London a little off his PB of 2:35 a couple of years ago but he is so consistent with these incredible performances. First time marathoning friends all finished in times ranging from 3:50 to 6:02. Very proud of them all (particularly the ones I coached through it!!!!).

My own personal woes are back. The shin pain is worse than ever this evening after another 1:30 jog around the Thames Path and Battersea Park. As a result I am signing off for a while, there is very little point in continuing to hope that things will be ok, I need to get my head down plug away at it and take stock of the situation. I don't know yet whether I'm back to square one or just set back a couple of weeks. For now I'll keep things going on here with reference to ultra news and Centurion races and pray that I'm back in time to put some of my thoughts down before Comrades.

Big love to all of you reveling in post race pride tonight, thoroughly deserved from all quarters!!!!

Working Hard

It's been a long week and I'm coming out of it with mixed emotions. Running wise my shin is painful when I apply pressure to it, feels exactly the same way in that respect as the stress fracture did before the 6 weeks out. The crucial thing is, though, that it doesn't hurt when I run. Whilst that situation continues I will continue to train. On the home front we had a very stressful and scary time this week when Lisa, my fiance, was caught up in some riots in the Ugandan city of Gulu where she was doing a teaching exchange with a local school. Hearing gun shots going off (rubber bullets and tear gas canisters) in the background when you're on the phone to your loved one who is trapped in a hotel bathroom 1000s of miles away and being totally helpless is not the greatest feeling in the world. Thankfully she is on her way home in the morning in one piece and with some stories to tell.

April 14th riots in Kampala and Gulu, Uganda (c/o of www.theresolve.org)

As mentioned a few posts ago I decided in the wake of Rocky Raccoon 100, (or rather 76 for me) to enlist some professional help. The person I turned to was Lisa Smith-Batchen. She has been mentoring me through what has been undoubtedly the hardest time I've gone through in my years of running, keeping my fitness up through creative and varied non-impact training progams. Lisa diagnosed my injury from the other side of the atlantic where she is based, before my physio could with me on the table in front of him. It was Lisa who told me that I needed to get an MRI, what to do with regards getting a cast and just how much training I could continue to do despite being immobile in terms of time on my feet.

My best racing results have come from sticking religiously to a training program. The best example was my 5th place finish in the Atacama Desert where I felt great almost the entire time. Lisa sends me a daily regimen to follow for up to 14 days in advance. I like to think of it as putting up a whole raft of little challenges and then knocking them down one by one. My training before Lisa was all running. Literally nothing else. Running as obviously been off the agenda for our first 2 months together, but Lisa is now re-introducing it very gradually, first through walk/ run sessions and today for the first time in 10 days since the cast came off, a solid 1:30 run.

I am putting myself entirely in Lisa's hands and so far it's been the best decision I've made in a long time. The sessions pop up and I attack them all way way harder than I would have before. I've come to realise that I wasn't actually pushing myself that hard when training in the past. I mean that's relative, I pushed very hard occasionally but rarely right to my limit and there were way too many sessions that were just junk miles.

This past month I have really pushed myself regularly. Whether it's on the stair machine, a spinning class (which I'd never been too before Lisa), on the bike or the elliptical, I'm hitting them all hard. I'm not really doing sessions where I am going less than 80% and regularly I am getting my HR up into the mid 180s which is toward the upper end of my range.

When I got the all clear to try a run on Thursday night, I did so a bit too hard. I couldn't resist finding out where my fitness lay after all that time on the bike with no running. Lisa asked me to walk 1 minute in every 15, so a total of 4 minutes in the first hour. I hit the hour hard and tried to keep a tempo up at my marathon pace of last year, 6:45 miling, and managed it without really being in that much difficulty. I covered just under 9 miles in the hour and did so including those walking breaks. Could I have held it for 3 hours/ 26.2 miles? Probably not but at least I know I have some pace. The next day I was able to train just as hard on alternative machines in the gym so my endurance is ok too.

My running style is erratic and uncomfortable. It isn't coming back to me very quickly. I feel like I haven't found my stride yet and that if I push too hard like Thursday nights session, I could land myself back in trouble. So I'll stick to the advice and keep plugging away one day at a time.

I would be lying if I said I felt confident this summer and particularly Comrades which is first up, but I put my total faith in Lisa to get me there in one piece and in the best shape possible. Will it be the best shape of my life? Probably not but the fact that I think there is even a chance of that is testament only to Lisa's knowledge, expertise and management of my own expectations.

Comrades Marathon

Every week I e mail her another stupid question about when I can at least do a marathon just as training, or what time should I be trying to run at Western States or can I do this event or that. The answers come back quick and tell me what deep down I already know. Be patient and it will be ok.

So tentatively I take my first steps back to full recovery. If the pain in my shin when I touch it would just go away I would probably be about the happiest person in the world right now.

I've decided to put this one on the list for 2013 - the 350 mile version with a view to having a crack at the 1000 in 2014. Nothing like a bit of long term planning. These videos have totally inspired me. Mike Curiak has done an incredible job here. I love the idea of returning to life's basic elements out on the trail, on my own, on the way to Nome. I saw a few days ago that Geoff Roes signed up for the 350 mile in 2012 (he hails from Alaska) and that will no doubt cause the popularity of the event to soar. It is great to see our sport grow but it is somewhat frustrating not to necessarily be able to do the races you want. I would be happier if this one stayed away from lotteries and other potential reasons for exclusion.  The more choice there is in events out there, the more options people will get away from the one or two signature races. I like that our sport keeps growing outwards in range of events as well as upwards in terms of number of entrants. I guess Centurion Running is just another small part of that process.

Major Changes

This week I quit my day job to go and live the dream. I plan to invest the summer making the first Centurion Event on the North Downs Way all it can be and making sure I get proper rest between each race in the Grand Slam. 7 weeks from now all I'll have to worry about is running 456 miles over 5 races and 15 weeks. We're moving out of London and all I can say is thank GOD. I am sick of it and I always used to love this city so I hope a part of that comes back. 

Today I ran for the first time in 6 weeks. On Monday morning I went in to see my old friend Joe who works at the English Institute for Sport treating English Olympic Athletes. The guys ran some tests on my fracture, first with ultra sound and then with X Rays. The news came back positive, the break looks to have healed. From Thursday on I commenced walking without the aircast. This afternoon I was cleared to do an hour and a half on my feet alternating three minutes walking with two minutes running. 

I can start to look forward now, albeit the recovery process is not finished yet. My training at the moment is an equal rotation of cycling, spinning, elliptical, stair master, swimming and walking. As the weeks roll by the blend will stat to include more running but I won't be putting any distance back for at least another week. Having been through a few rounds already this year I won't be rushing back.

I feel pretty fit, though not dangerous. I've packed in as much training time with the cast on as I would have done with it off. Some of the sessions have been much harder than I would usually have made them and I think that's just vented frustration but I have enjoyed trying to MAX OUT on the HR.

Badwater Redux

The best thing about finishing races is being able to look back on them and wince. I hadn't ever seen these shots form Badwater before, they were on a camera in the car which my buddy Rich used to shoot some extra shots as and when the mood struck. Looking over them now it's obvious he managed to capture just how painful a journey that 39 hours was because I wasn't aware of the camera being there. I haven't forgotten it and I don't expect I ever will. WHAT a race this is, I will go back one day and make it right, albeit I am very proud of finishing that monster.

Early Pit Stop

On the road to Furnace Creek Mile 17

Stovepipe Mile 42: 8 hours 28 to this point, totally ruined my race
by starting too quick.

I spent most of the Darwin to Lone Pine section (mile 90 - 122)
going less than 2mph. The chaffing I suffered was horrific and

turned the race into an almight slog. When I stopped to meet the crew

was the only respite I could get from the burning blistered skin. I sat down

twice for less than 5 minutes for fear of not getting going again.

Lone Pine. 13 miles and 5000 feet to climb. Head down, one foot in front of
the other. 

The Grand Slam of Ultrarunning

Most of the comments regarding my attempt at the slam are along the lines of 'you're injured so how are you going to run.' It's ok I'm almost ready with the greatest comeback since Lazarus.

The Grand Slam of Ultrarunning Award is handed to any runner who finishes all 4 of the oldest 100 mile trail races in the USA in any one year. The races are spread out over an 11 week period from the last weekend in June to the second weekend in September. The 4 races that comprise the slam are Western States 100 mile Endurance Run, Vermont 100, Leadville Trail 100 and Wasatch Front 100. All 4 races are 100 miles in length and as those familiar with them will know are all 'mountain races' each involving varying significant degrees of climb and descent.

Keith Kniplings altitude comparison of the 4 Grand Slam 100s

25th June - Western States begins at Squaw Valley Ski Resort, previous host of the winter olympic games. The course goes immediately 4 miles directly up a mountain and over emigrant pass before spitting runners out on on to a roller coaster ride of snow covered ski slopes and hot canyons, arriving in Auburn and finishing on Placer High School athletics track there after 100 miles of running and 18000 feet of climbing. The race day temps regularly exceed 100 degrees in the canyons but start off below freezing in the resort early in the morning. 30 hour cut off.

16th July - Vermont is the 'easiest' boasting 'only' 14150 feet of gain over the course of the 100 miles. This race is unique in that it runs concurrently with a horse race. I will try not to get kicked or trampled. 30 hour cut off.

20th August - Leadville. 100 miles at serious altitude this one is on the extreme end of the spectrum. The entire race is conducted at altitudes of between 9200 and 12600 feet. This year they are welcoming 700 runners to the start line on and out and back course which takes in 15000 feet of climb and travels up and down Handies Peak in the Colorado Rockies twice. 30 hour cut off.

9th September - Wasatch Front. The best is saved till last. On the scale of 100s this is right up there at the very top with over 26900 feet of climb. The climbs are severe and regular. If I get to this point I will try not to use all of the 36 hours on offer to complete it but figure I may need them. This race place just outside of Salt Lake City Utah.

Afterwards I get to go to Las Vegas for a stag do. Stan Jensen manages a little page on the Grand Slam here and the list of those running all 4 in 2011 is here (19 so far!).

I really can't wait to get this journey started but obviously I have a LONG way to go before my fracture allows me to get back to running shape (my fitness is still good after 15 hours in the gym this week).

I have Comrades before the Slam plus a few smaller local marathons which will be used as training runs.

The biggest issue with the Slam is going to be recovery and handling the flying to and from the US repeatedly. It will be an incredible adventure and I look forward to every minute of it.

Which one am I most scared of? Not Western States. I am going in to that one with all the excitement and energy of Badwater last year. It is a race I have always wanted to run and means so much to the ultra running community especially in the States that it is without doubt tight at the top of my list of races to run. Vermont I am looking forward to but being the most moderate in terms of average altitude and climb I will try to simply get through this one within the cut offs and save as much as possible for the next two. Leadville scares me the most because of the altitude. The level of climb is pretty big at 15000+feet it is the equivalent of Caesars Camp 100 which I ran in October so I know what to expect but I have only 5 days to acclimatise which isn't enough. I've heard plenty of advice that says either get there 3 weeks early or get there the day before. We'll just see how it works out I guess. Lastly Wasatch Front comes only 19 days after Leadville so I will need to recover as quickly and as fully as possible. I have no doubt I will be feeling this one in the legs before I even start and with 27000 feet of gain will be the hardest 100 I'll have ever done. Nothing like saving the best till last.

There are other factors which could prevent this dream from becoming a reality. Obviously I could get injured or suffer from hydration/ stomach problems/ blisters whatever else that usually stop a runner in his or her tracks but I am also conscious of other things much further from my control. 4 years ago Grand Slammers were prevented from completing the set by forest fires in California (Western States was cancelled). With the fact that I am making 4 return journeys there could be any one of a number of international issues which could lead to problems, I'm thinking more specifically about the Icelandic Volcano incident of 2009. All things considered there is a very high chance I won't be able to complete all 4, I have to go in to each race as it comes, take the rough with the smooth, keep putting one foot in front of the other and just get it done. Simple.

I will have a rest afterwards. Hopefully I can look back on it all with a glowing appreciation of having seen first hand some of America's most incredible mountain scenery from fully west to east coast and having had the chance to experience 4 of the greatest running races currently on offer. I plan to take my time, take a lot of photos and treat it with the level of gratitude that being able to experience something like this, deserves.