Character Building

Like many middle aged former athletes and guys in general I am a huge football fan. And by virtue of birth and the grace of God I am a huge University of Iowa Hawkeye fan. Growing up in this part of the country I did not have the priviledge of having a major league sports team to root for. The Hawkeyes was my major league team,College football is our major sport. I grew up 20 miles from the University and have watched, cheered and fretted over the Hawkeyes and their seasons for 40 years.

One of my best memories is sitting in my room at the age of 14 listening to Iowa play Nebraska on the local am radio station. Iowa whooped their ass. What made it especially exciting was Iowa was a huge underdog and at the time Nebraska was one of the country's elites. Iowa was supposed to be the pre conference cream puff for the Huskers but it didn't quite turn out that way.

So fast forward to today..this game between Nebraska and Iowa should be character building for me. Iowa has had a very bad year, they will not be going to a bowl game and Nebraska is probably going to contend for the Big Ten championship. Iowa will probably lose but hope springs eternal. I will watch the game and complain and think about next year.

So GO HAWKS and F..k Nebraska!!!!!

Sidelined

So it has been about 10 days since my 100 mile attempt and I have only run once since the race was over. I took a week off directly after the race and was feeling pretty good. So last Sunday, seven days after the race I went for a 4 mile run at a moderate pace. I was running with my normal Sunday running group and talking to my friend Brian. No big deal. Brian said "How is the ankle feeling?" I said "Pretty good." Right after that my ankle started hurting and by the time we got back I was in enough pain that it was altering my stride.

I had originally injured my ankle during my ultra. Not sure when or how but bottom line by the end of the race it was pretty swollen and tender. I thought a week of rest would be enough. No way Jose, as my little jog showed me.

So I am sidelined for awhile. This is the longest period without running since some plantar faciatis sidelined me back in August of 2011. That time I went a whole month without running. I am really torn right now between the desire to run and the desire not to reinjure my ankle. I have been wearing a cheap brace and icing it regularly. All the things you are supposed to do. I feel like I am missing something. I imagine all my running friends out having a great time on the trails while I sit at home and wish I was there. I am afraid I will get back out on the trails and all my hard work and training will be totally gone and I will be struggling to keep up.

This ankle better heal fast..now a moment of zen

Veteran's Day 2012

We few we happy few.....
Thanks to my Father Jack, My Uncle Jerry and my son Michael.

Thanks to all my platoon mates from the 82nd Airborne and 10th Mountain Divisions. "I am the Infantry, Follow Me."

Thanks to all my teammates and friends in Special Forces, The 1st Special Warfare Training Group and the 10th Special Forces Group. "De Oppresso Liber"

Freedom is not free

Ozark Trail 100 Mile Endurance Run:DNF

First I want to thank everyone that helped and supported me during my train up and during the race itself. My family for letting me spend long hours training on my days off when they could have made a fuss about me being gone. All my friends and family for the support,messages,suggestions, equipment etc.. The support I received was overwhelming and I don't think I will ever forget.

That which does not kill you makes you stronger. I always have thought this was true and I definitely believe it now. I experienced a DNF or did not finish at my first attempt at the 100 mile distance this past weekend. I was pulled from the race at the 90 mile mark for failing to make the time cutoff at the aid station. While DNF's are not uncommon in ultra racing, even the elite athletes experience them, it is a hard pill to swallow after preparing for an event for the better part of a year. I have a whole t shirt of excuses to explain why I didn't make it, everything from wet blistered feet, a extremely rocky and hilly course to a twisted ankle. Bottom line it doesn't matter the goal was not accomplished.

Some things were learned however so actually I feel very good about this race.

1. I need to bring extra shoes so that I can switch to dry shoes. I did have extra shoes but they were backups and I defiantly need two pairs of the exact same shoes.

2. Real food is the shit.. I felt absolutely awesome after leaving every aid station. After 30 gels I was starting to get nauseous just thinking about them. Although the honey stinger waffles have now become my favorite.

3. Need to take better care of feet. This is a lesson I needed to relearn from my days in the military. I got some large blisters that really slowed me down. Taking a few minutes to doctor them up may have saved me time in the long run.

4. I also confirmed the fact that I love making myself suffer and being outdoors. I have been doing it my whole life and I just enjoy the whole scenario. Weird I know.

5. Number one thing I learned about the 100 mile distance, is that it is in my wheelhouse, With the exception of my feet I felt totally fine for the most part. I did experience some fatigue due to sleep deprivation during the latter stages but I think that was more because my tender feet were forcing me to move so slow. I was hydrated the whole time and had plenty of energy towards the end.

I usually post a blow by blow account after every race but there was so much that happened during the 30 hours I was on the course I will just give the highlights.

1. The course was hilly almost mountainous
2. Frickin rocks, I hate you!!!
3. It is cold and lonely in the deep dark night
4. Kid Rock is the best ultra music ever, and not the Sheryl Crow, country music Kid Rock but the Joe C, early morning stone pimp Kid Rock
5. Ultra people are cool
6. I am going to try again at the Kettle Moraine 100 in June

Enjoy some pictures

Muddy Monster 15K 2012

My second running of this race was to be my last longer run before my upcoming ultra.

I woke up early and hit the trails with a friend for about a 5 mile warmup prior to the race. I then drove back about 30 miles to the race location and packet pickup.

The Muddy Monster is a 5K/15K race held in a very large park. The course is mostly grass with some dirt road and gravel thrown in. After I picked up my packet and race number I met up with some more friends for a short 1 mile warmup.

My goal time for the 15K race was 1:15 to 1:20 but I also didn't want to wear my legs out too much. I ran the race last year in 1:30.

The start was very unorganized and I was actually talking to someone and we didn't notice the race had started until we saw runners taking off. The majority of the runners ran the 5K, a lot of them in costume. So for the first lap I had to dodge in and around a bunch of people.

The first lap didn't feel very good, I just couldn't get comfortable. I kept trying to mentally image running light and fast but it wasn't working out too well. I did finish the first 5K loop in about 23 minutes however which was decent

The second loop was better and I kept a steady pace. I took a lot of pictures on this loop as the runners had thinned out quite a bit since most of the 5K runners were finishing. I did lap some 5K runners though, I also yelled some encouragement at two of the leaders as they passed me coming back on the loop as I was heading out. They were about 2 miles ahead at this point and heading out on the 3rd lap. Both my friends named Ross did well. Ross S finished 2nd and Ross K finished 3rd.

I finished 2 laps in roughly 46 minutes. The third lap was more of the same. My old friend the footache showed up about mile 7 and it really altered my stride. It was especially painful when turning right. The reason it happens is the locking lace system on my Salomon shies does not allow my shoes to expand as my feet swell during a race. This causes pain in the ball of my foot. In a longer race I would have stopped and loosened my shoe but since I was almost done I just dealt with it.

I finished the race in 1:13:21 which is a huge improvement from last year. This is a fun race and I will do it again next year.