Tarheel 10 Miler and more

It's spring time which means more time to run in the evenings and lots of race options on the weekends. One of my favorite local events is the Tarheel 10 Miler held in Chapel Hill each April. I've actually only run it once prior - last year but found it to be a fun, well organized event that is highly attended and run my many competitive runners. This year, I registered to run with a group of friends and Michelle. Most of us did the 10 miler while a few chose the 4 miler - either way, you get to run the Laurel Hill Challenge towards the end. 

It was a nice day for a race, cooler and less humid then last year. The race went well for all of us. The TH10 course is a nice one that runs around parts of UNC-CH campus, down Franklin Street (a place I spent a lot of time in my early college years) and back to the start/finish in Kenan Stadium. Before arriving back, runners race (mostly) up the .82 mile Laurel Hill Drive which turns out isn't as bad as advertised (unless you never run hills). 
There are separate timing checkpoints at the base and top of LH.

As has been the case for the past year or so, my goals were to PR for 10 miles (after all there is plenty of downhill too), PR the race over last year's time and run a more competitive time on Laurel Hill. At the finish, that is what I accomplished. 

I had a good race overall finishing in 1:11:57, 7:12 pace, 200th overall by chip time and 27th/222 by male age group. Considering the competitiveness of the field, I'm happy with that. I also made it up Laurel Hill in 6:19. My previous 10 mile PR was the first 10 of the Austin Half last year where I ran an official 10 mile split of 1:14:58. Last year's TH10 was 1:17:07 and LH a 7:09 so I definitely made an improvement. 

Post-race, I organized a get together at a friend's local bottle shop in Chapel Hill. Beer Study was a fine place to enjoy a post-race pint and many of my Raleigh and Chapel Hill friends joined us. It was a great time and there is nothing wrong with a coffee stout at 10am after a hard fought race. 

 
The following day, many of us met up again in Raleigh for the Sunday afternoon Boston Memorial Run. Over 3,000 runners participated in a free 5k run organized by officials from all of the Triangle's major marathons and run clubs. Over $20,000 was raised for 2 charities that are supporting those injured in the Boston Marathon bomb attacks.  I had a great time running with all my local running friends and crossing the finish line with my friends who had run Boston just a week before. 

 

So what's next, well that's a question with an exciting answer. I've been targeting 2013 to run the New York City Marathon. I've was denied entry via the lottery for 2010,2011 and 2012 which made me eligible to acceptance in 2013. Due to the fallout from last year's NYCM cancellation, I was concerned I'd somehow be pushed out another year. 

For the heck of it, when the Chicago Marathon opened a lottery for their race, I entered my name and to my surprise, I was selected. After some consideration, discussion of it with Michelle and friends, I decided to plan on running both. I accepted the Chicago Marathon entry and last week, received and accepted my guaranteed entry to the New York City Marathon as well. These are the two largest marathons in the United States and 2 of the 5 major marathons in the world. By comparison, the Marine Corps Marathon that I have run twice is the 5th largest in the US. This year, there are 3 weeks between the 2 races for me to recover from Chicago and prepare for NYC. I think that is a large enough window considering I will treat Chicago as a PR attempt and NYC as a fun run. 

To add to the excitement for Chicago, I'll be starting towards the front of the 40,000+ field from Corral B which is right behind Elites and Corral A. So I will only have 4,000 or less runners starting ahead of me (all fast) and a better chance of starting the race at goal pace instead of in a deficit. My City of Oaks finish time qualified me for Corral B. If only my half PR was a little faster, I might have been able to use it to get in Corral A. No complaints. 

I am now definitely on track for my goals for 2013. The key to it all will be to remain healthy and injury free. A tough challenge in itself considering the mileage I will be running. 

Here is an update on my goals set 4 months ago:

• Set a new half marathon PR - Completed, 1:32:34 in Wrightsville Beach Half. Also ran new 8k and 10 mile PRs in Raleigh and Chapel Hill races.
• Set a new 5k PR, run sub 20 minutes 
• Run 40 miles the week of my birthday
• Run the New York City Marathon (Chicago as a backup) - Registered for NYC and Chicago
• "Investigate" running the 50k and 50 mile ultramarathon distances - volunteered at Umstead 100, looking at 50k race to run within next 12 months.
• Run 1200+ miles - over 400 miles logged entering May
• Have fun - every time I run, especially at Big Boss Run Club and The nOg Run Club
• Kick ass
• Stay healthy - hanging in there, I think the mostly plant-based, vegetarian diet is helping

Cheers, Carpe Viam.

Boston Marathon response

I did not run the Boston Marathon this year and never have. I will probably be in my 40's or 50's before I could even imagine qualifying for the oldest, most elite marathon in the United States. Still, I follow the event each year, cheer for the runners on television and the internet and dream of one day joining them. I love the city of Boston. I traveled there a handful of times back in 2004-2005 and often went on runs around the city to take in the scenery. I trained for my very first half marathon in Baltimore by doing my long runs around the Charles River in Boston. In a way, that is where I fell in love with distance running. 

This year however, the Boston Marathon was a little more special because several good friends of mine were in the race. Both Michelle and Kerry ran their first Boston Marathon in 2012, the year the race was held in a heat wave. Michelle finished but far slower then she wanted to while Kerry DNF'd due to hydration concerns. Considering 25% of those in the race DNS'd due to the heat, I was amazed they even took to the start. 

2013 was their second go and they trained their butts off. All winter, I followed their training in person, ran with them on occasion and followed their progress online via social media. They were ready and this past Monday - race day in Boston, they proved it. Both Michelle and Kerry ran fantastic races, Michelle PR'd the marathon distance, 3:33 - in the Boston Marathon (who does that?!) and Kerry ran damn near a perfect race - finishing in 3:09. I was happy for both of them and couldn't wait until they made it home to celebrate. 

Another local runner I know, Laura, who I mentioned in my Wrightsville Beach half marathon post, ran Boston as her second marathon. She also trained her butt off all winter and finished sub-3. A gifted and talented runner, I was just as excited to see her hard work payoff. 

Then a bomb went off near the finish line. The live video of the race had already ended online but the race was still underway. I was following along on twitter and I saw this tweet:

@alexmleo: Oh my god RT @antderosa Photo captures Boston Marathon explosion bit.ly/17eIN6N

April 15, 2013

My responses were immediately - WTF! MF'er! followed by overwhelming concern for everyone there. I have other friends who were also running the race as well as several who were cheering or working along the race route. The idea of someone bombing a public sporting event has always been concern since 9/11 but the idea of it actually happening still seemed distant. 

As the afternoon went on, I learned via social media that there were casualties but thankfully, my friends were okay. 

It's only been 3 days since this happened, no one seems to know what really happened, who did it and so on but after 2 bombs going off along the Boston Marathon Boylston Street finish Monday, we celebrated all of the Boston Marathoners and honored the victims memory Tuesday night at Big Boss Run Club. As most of my followers know, I organize a weekly running group in Raleigh that meets on Tuesday nights. This past Tuesday was a special night already as several of our runners would be taking photos for our group page. 

To my surprise, Michelle and Kerry, just off a plane home from Boston joined us for the run and a moment of silence to honor the victims. A local news channel also showed up to interview them. They had already been interviewed the evening before over the phone by our local paper and made Tuesday's front page. 

I was just happy to have them back and they even joined me for a 3 mile run. It was probably one of the few times I could keep up with Kerry. 

Everyone there that night felt a special bond as runners following Monday's event in Boston. 

This weekend, many of us in our group will be racing together in Chapel Hill in the Tarheel 10 Miler - Michelle and Kerry included. After all, No Pain, No Beer we always say. 

Also on Sunday, we will be participating in a Boston Memorial Run in downtown Raleigh. It will be a free, community event with participation by many of the local running groups, clubs and races. Charitable donations collected will go to the benefit of those affected by the bombing. Check out the invite here and join to be part of this special event. 

Ultra distance investigation at the Umstead 100

Back in January following my 2012 round-up, I shared my goals for 2013. One of those was "Investigate running the 50k and 50 mile ultramarathon distances". My investigation officially started soon after when I signed up as a volunteer for the Umstead 100 Mile Endurance Run at the suggestion of a friend who had finished the race several years ago. 

I've known about this race for years - it's held in William B. Umstead State Park just through the woods from my home. Until a year or so ago, I always assumed it was just a group of 20-25 runners who would go out and run loops of the park with no support, no spectators and maybe just a tent to rest under during the race. Then slowly, a couple things started to change my mind or maybe enlighten me about not only the race but the ultrarunning sport as a whole.  

Back in 2006, when I ran the Marine Corps Marathon for the first time, also my first marathon, I learned of Dean Karnazes who at the time, was running 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days, one of which was the MCM. I read more about him and discovered the sport of ultrarunning - the idea of running/racing beyond the 26.2 marathon distance with the 100 miler or 24 hour race being the marathon of ultrarunning.

Last year when I ran the Tuna Run 200, several of my teammates whom I met race weekend are experienced ultrarunners. Another friend I have run and raced short distances with, has finished several 100 milers and several 24 hour races. Talking with them sparked my curiosity. Now, I can compare the feeling to when I first considered running a half marathon after hitting the 6-8 mile mark on casual after work runs around Lake Lynn in Raleigh. The half distance suddenly seemed doable but the marathon seemed insane. After running my first half in 2005, the marathon distance became feasible and I raced it the following year. 

It's too early in my investigation to say if competing in ultrarunning is in my future. The idea of running a race of 50 miles or 100 kilometers, let alone 100 miles seems daunting (and slightly crazy), but after this past weekend - it seems less so. 

At the suggestion of my friend, I signed up as a volunteer pacer for the Umstead 100. This would potentially allow me to run alongside a runner participating in the 100 mile distance some time after they had completed at least 50 miles. I also signed up to work an aid station handing out food and beverage to runners. 

 Start/Finish line of the Umstead 100

The training provided by the experienced U100 volunteers to us pacers was fantastic. Considering nearly everyone involved is a volunteer, the sharing of information and answering of questions to us newbies was invaluable. It turns out, just going out and running 12.5 or 25 or 37 miles with a stranger in the middle of the night isn't all that easy and you really need to be prepared for what might happen. The training provided, the group runs ahead of the U100 that I participated in and the feedback from experienced racers quickly taught me that being a pacer was a lot more then just being a cheerleader or a coach. 

Ahead of the race, I went out and ran the 12.5 mile loop once. I was already familar with most of the course from hiking, biking and running Umstead over the years plus having run the NCRC May half marathon there twice. My pre-run was a way to see the full course in sequence and to compare my own single lap time to the lap times of the U100 runners who would be running it 8 times (gulp!). I ran it in roughly 1 hour 38 minutes. I was told that an average first timer lap that I could be pacing one of would be 3-6 hours. 

 Pre-race meeting for runners and volunteers

Skipping ahead to race day, last Saturday night, I worked the aid station that morning with friends (an unplanned bonus) and came back to the park that night, mentally prepared for a wait and perhaps a 4-5 hour hike around the 12.5 mile loop with a runner battling to finish their first 100 miler. I was excited regardless of what happened because this was all part of my investigation. 

 My volunteer colleagues and I working Aid Station 1 (AS1)

 Competitors completing their 2nd/3rd laps

 Midday, runners on course. Not an episode of "The Walking Dead"

After checking in with the volunteer coordinator, I went off to wait around and chat with fellow volunteers and friends. I'm not one for waiting nor am I one for walking so when I checked in, I jokingly but seriously asked for someone fast. About 8:45pm, I got the call that I was up to pace. As trained, I asked "who was I pacing" as my first question. The answer was "Serge". My reply - "who is that?"  After a quick exchange, I learned Serge was a regular of sorts in the U100, having won it 4 times and that everyone there knew who he was except me. Perfect. I also learned Serge was on his last lap, only had 12.5 miles to go to the finish and he had been a bit sick the past few laps. He also had cold symptoms he had been battling all day. So while my legs were fresh, Serge had just run 87 miles sick so hopefully I'd be able to get him through the last 12.5 miles without too much pain of my own. 

Serge at AS2 earlier in the day. Photo credit to Umstead100.org

I joined Serge at the aid station and we hit the trail for his last lap. Initially, I just wanted to see where he was at overall compared to the info just passed to me. I also wanted to see what his personality was like at the moment and whether I would need to just shut up or if a little chit chat would be good. Within our first mile, I knew everything was going to be just fine.

We chatted, I asked questions, he answered and often elaborated. We talked about his current health, how he felt, how much liquids and food he had consumed, his accomplishments in this race and others and so on. One of our first talking points was diet, specifically a diet without meat. Ironically, Serge doesn't eat meat and he is an ultrarunner. I decided recently to forgo meat and eat a plant based diet. Lack of protein seems to be the common question posed to me by other runners and non-runners. If this guy can run 100 miles and train for a 100 mile or 24 hour race without meat then it just reinforces what I'm doing. 

So we rocked the lap. Serge didn't win this year but he finished 11th, finished his 8th Umstead 100, fault off nausea and the cooling temperatures. Maintained a running pace for the entire lap, finishing it faster then his previous lap while inspiring me and countless other runners who cheered him on to the finish.

I got to run a lap of the Umstead 100 with a ultra champion, watch him plus many others cross the finish line with the satisfaction that I had played a very, very tiny part of their success. There was also the invaluable conversation for me that Serge and I had on our 2 hour 24 minute lap of Umstead Park - conversation that many other runners and pacers would probably kill to have been a part of.

After pacing Serge's lap, I chatted with fellow pacers and friends again before calling it a night and departing the park. Serge was already on his way home to Baltimore and already making plans for his next race. He was already on his way home to Baltimore and already making plans for his next race. I got home sometime after 1am and looked up the runner online I had just paced. Turns out, Serge Arbona has won more then a few races beyond the Umstead 100. He has also set a few world records and last year, was 1 of 6 men that represented the United States in the IAU 24-Hour World Championship. After his race, I told Serge it would be a pleasure to pace him again next year for a lap or two. Of course that is assuming I'm not also running in the Umstead 100. 

The investigation continues....stay tuned.