Fall Races

My favorite time to run is in the fall - hands down and this past fall was no exception.  My fall races started with UROC 100k.  This was a nice race, which I am sure will grow in popularity and continue to draw a competitive field.  Lots of climbing with about 1/2 road miles / 1/2 trail miles.  One of the highlights was the location of the race headquarters and accommodations at the Wintergreen Ski Resort.

Next up was the West Virginia Trilogy Stage Race which consisted of a 50k (Friday), 50 mile (Saturday), and 1/2 marathon (Sunday) - all trail miles.  This was truly a wonderful event.  Adam Casseday and Dan Lehmann are the race directors and they do such an incredible job.  Headquarters are located right below the highest peak in West Virginia - Spruce Knob at The Mountain Institute.  From the time we arrived until we left, my family and I had a great time.  The trails were challenging and scenic, volunteers were great, and the meals were wonderful (prepared by the people of the Mountain Institute).  I ran with David Frazier (overall champion) for a good bunch of the weekend.  David is a very talented runner and one hell of a nice guy.  It was great to run with him and share running stories.  We also did a good job making sure both of us didn't slack off!  On Friday night the Mountain Institute prepared Thai Food!  Attention all TRAIL RUNNERS:  It does not get much better than this - camping on top of a mountain (with excellent weather), eating Thai food, on the deck outside a giant wooden yurt, and enjoying beverages from West Virginia's best, Mountain State Brewing Company  I highly recommend this race for someone who wants to try a multi-day effort or just to run one of the individual races.  This race weekend is also very family friendly as you can probably tell from the pictures below.

Zia and Eshan playing cards in the 2nd floor of the main yurt

Hanging with Zia, Eshan, David, Adam (RD)

Enjoying Thai food outside the main yurt

Me and Overall Champion, David Frazier

Next was MMTR 50 miler.  This was my 6th consecutive MMTR.  Before the race, I studied Scott Jaime's (last year's winner) race report.  He made the comment that running most of the course was key to getting a good time.  This seemed like a good goal to shoot for, especially because I typically can not bomb down the descents to make up time on hiking climbs.  Leading up to the race, I practiced consistent, even-paced efforts on my long runs.  The plan paid off and I ran a 13 minute PR to finish in 7:26:17.

The last race of my season was Hellgate 100k.  This race is a favorite of mine.  Weather conditions were good, but the course was very wet.  I applied the same strategy that I used in MMTR and tried to run conservatively as a long as possible and minimize the amount of hiking.  I also focused on rest and good eating habits in between MMTR and Hellgate.  Again, the plan paid off and I ran a 33 minute PR to take the overall win in 11:15:55 (2nd fastest time on course).

Western States 100 Race Report

On Saturday, June 25th I ran the 38th edition of the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run, which started in Squaw Valley, CA and ended in Auburn, CA. I ran the entire race in a pair of Roclite 295’s, which worked very well for me. You can find my detailed race report below.

The Sierras

Some views about 2 miles from the start of the Western States 100.

Motivational Quotes

"In challenging ones self or others, to me it always distills down to these three words: Physical, Mental and Luck" - Scott Williamson, current fastest known time on the Pacific Crest Trail in the unsupported fashion

"Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional" - Dr. David Horton, Ultrarunning Kingpin

"Whenever we go into the mountains, or indeed any of God's wild fields, we find more than we seek." - John Muir, Naturalist

Additions to My Training

Towards the end of last year, my wife (Raj) and I started doing yoga again.  Friends and family have been encouraging me to do more stretching and I have really enjoyed yoga in the past, so Raj and I started up at the Emmaus Yoga Studio here in Pennsylvania.  We love it and think it is really going to help us with flexibility, balance, and strength.  Our teacher focuses on the style of yoga called Ashtanga yoga.  I don't know lots of details about it, but we move rather quickly through poses and really focus on breathing.  It has been great fun and a good workout.

Also, this past week Raj got me a session with a strength trainer.  He had me do a bunch of exercises and and observed me for weeknesses, then set me up with a series of low tech exercises to strengthen my core and legs.  More details to come about this later.

Hellgate 100k Race Report - Chris Reed

Click "Read More" below for Race Report.

Grindstone 100 2010

OK, in 3 days I will be heading down to Virginia to race the Grindstone 100 Mile Endurance Run.  This is my favorite of the 3 different 100's that I have done.  I am trying to get myself in the right frame of mind.  One of my goals of this race is to enjoy the experience as much as possible - the course is so beautiful!