Happy Thanksgiving!

I am thankful that I can run...and that I did run this morning...even though it was 35 degrees, breezy, and drizzling. Many people can't run...and many more can run, but choose not to try. Do yourself a favor and go out for a run today...and give thanks that you have the legs, lungs, and heart that allow you to run.

Have a great Thanksgiving...I already smell the Tofurky cooking.

Illinois Wins Cross Country Championship

Angela Bizzarri, senior at the University of Illinois, won the women's NCAA cross country championship today! Here's a picture of her crossing the finish line. She ran a fantastic race and deserved the win. I usually go over to Terre Haute and watch the event in person (awesome experience!), but this year I watched it live on TV. The coverage was pretty good and it was great seeing a local runner hang tough and win the championship. Colorado's Jenny Barringer was the pre-race favorite and she was exchanging the lead with Florida State's Susan Kuijken for the first half of the race...until Barringer suddenly slowed down and wobbled before composing herself and getting back on track. When Barringer stuttered, Kuijken took the lead and looked strong. Bizzarri and Washington's Kendra Schaaf also passed Barringer and began closing in on Kuijken. In the last 800 meters, Bizzarri & Schaaf overtook Kuijken. The two women battled in the straightaway, but Bizzarri had the stronger sprint and finished about 5 seconds ahead of Schaaf for the overall win. Schaaf took second and Kuijken took third.

Barringer never caught the leaders, but she valiantly tried to continue while obviously suffering extreme discomfort...she even collapsed to the ground at one point later in the race...but pulled herself up and finished with a strong sprint at the end. She finished in 163rd place. Very bizarre. Hope she is OK.

On the men's side there wasn't much drama. Sammy Chelanga from Liberty University (home of ultra runner David Horton!) led from start to finish and set a new course record.

It figures that the year I don't go over to Terre Haute to see the championships an Illinois runner would win the whole thing! Damn. Oh well, GO ILLINI!!!

OVERALL RESULTS:

WOMEN 6K
1. Angela Bizzarri, Illinois (19:46)
2. Kendra Schaaf, Washington
3. Susan Kuijken, Florida State
TEAM champion = Villanova

MEN 10K
1. Sam Chelanga, Liberty (28:41)
2. David McNeill, Northern Arizona
3. Chris Derrick, Stanford
TEAM champion = Oklahoma State

Full individual and team results available on the NCAA web page.

Story on the University of Illinois sports web page.

Interesting side note...Bizzarri and the rest of the Illinois cross country team train on my "home" course at Lake of the Woods trails. As did Craig Virgin years ago. Virgin won the NCAA cross country championship for Illinois in 1975. There's good karma on those trails!

2 Good Fat Ass Runs

Brian Gaines has added a winter fat ass run to last year's summer run. Both are free, 6-hour fun runs in the suburbs of Chicago (Bartlett, IL). I hope to run one, or both, this year. I missed the first summer run, but people that ran the event had only great things to say about it. There are web sites for both runs:

January 9, 2010
Windburn Six in the Stix

July 17, 2010
Sunburn Six in the Stix

Brian moved the summer run to July so it won't conflict with Howl at the Moon 8-Hour in August. In fact, now it'll be perfect preparation for Howl! Not to mention a nice relaxed run before the Canadian Death Race.

I've heard there is a long-standing winter Fat Ass in Mahomet, IL at the end of January too. This 28-mile "Riddle Run" has happened for the last 10 years and I've run them all. Hope the tradition continues on January 30, 2010. The race director has been non-committal.

Never heard the term "Fat Ass Run"? Here is some good information about this phenomenal idea started by Joe Oakes back in the late 1970s.

Mizuno Wave Universe 3

I just tried out my new road racing flats, the Mizuno Wave Universe 3. They are super lightweight! I'm starting to get used to my "regular" running shoes (trail or road) being lightweight, but this shoe is insanely light...about 4 oz. It is one of the few racing flats I've found that has a wide toebox (like my old Mizuno Revolver). I ordered the same size I do for my other running shoes and it worked well for this one too. The fit is narrow around the heel, medium around the mid-section, and slightly wide in the forefoot. It has a grippy tread (for a road shoe) and almost no cushioning or support. It is the epitome of a minimalist racing shoe. The upper is lightweight mesh and airy. There is no built-up heel and the shoe sits really close to the ground. I think it's going to be a great shoe to supplement my Vibram FiveFingers and New Balance 790s. I've only run in the shoe once...on a treadmill...but they felt fast! Seriously fast. This could be my new all-time favorite shoe. Once I get a few more miles on them, I'll post a full review.

UPDATE on January 8, 2011: These shoes are still the only "racing flat" that actually seems flat!  They have a wide toebox, minimal cushioning, and little arch support.  Lightest shoe I've ever run in.  They have worked for roads, trails (not too technical or rocky), treadmill, and track runs. This is a FAST shoe.

Current Trail Conditions

Right now the Clinton Lake northfork trail (that's the race course!) is in very good shape. Lots of leaves covering the trail, but it's dry and most debris (fallen trees, branches, briars, etc) is off the trail. It takes a bit more focus to run when the trail is covered with leaves, but it is easy to see the white flashes on the trees that mark the course. In the spirit of keeping people up-to-date on trail conditions, I have added a new component to this blog..."Trail Condition" on the top left of the blog. I'll update current trail conditions when I run the course (or have trusted friends run it). It'll be a quick rating with color code and date. Green is good, red is bad, yellow/orange is okay. Current conditions are...very good. Be forewarned that conditions can change quickly. I'm stating the condition based on the date cited. Heavy rain or high winds can bring flooding and downed trees in just a few hours. Ice storms can topple tons of trees. It's not a foolproof rating...but it is better than nothing. Usually trail conditions change slowly over time and thus a rating like this can be a nice guide. Hope it helps.

Wait List for Clinton Race?

The Clinton Lake ultra filled this week. I have had a few inquires asking to be placed on a wait list. Here's what I tell them:

"We don't have an official wait list for the race, but I'll add you to my 'wait list request' e-mail folder. It's possible, but not likely, that I'll add a couple more people as I find out from others that they are injured or otherwise unable to attend the race. Once mid-February rolls around, I won't make any changes to the race registration list. Thanks for your interest in the race!"

Feel free to send me an e-mail requesting to be placed on the informal race "wait list"--but understand what that means. It is possible that I'll add registration slots as currently registered runners tell me they are injured or otherwise unable to make the race. I have not added many spots in the past 3 years. The one thing wait listers have going for them this year (that they didn't in the past), is that I'd like to have more than 100 finishers of the event in 2010. We get 125 registered runners, about 10-12 DNS, and about 10-15 DNFs each year. The total finisher list is always under 100. I'd love to exceed 100 actual finishers!

While I may consider a wait list, I DO NOT WANT ANY RACE BIB TRANSFERS. Please do not give your race bib to another runner. Please do not ask me to transfer your entry to another runner. Feel free to pick-up the race goodie bag of a fellow runner that couldn't make the event...but do not run the race in their place! Thank you.

2010 Clinton Lake Ultra is Full

It filled faster than I expected, but the race is now closed. We have reached our limit of 125 runners. (Maybe I should open up one more spot for the race and auction it off on e-Bay?) A big thank you to all the runners who registered so quickly. Second Wind Running Club and I appreciate your support of this event. We hope you enjoy the trail and have a good race. March 27, 2010 will be here before you know it...time to begin your training!

Whether it's official or not, I will have some special random prizes for those that run the race barefoot or in Vibram FiveFingers. I was inspired (and a bit humbled) by one of the Clinton Lake registered runners who ran the McNotAgain 30-Miler this past weekend in FiveFinger KSOs. That's a photo of Mr. Gibson's feet in his trusty KSOs. Yes, the course was rather wet and muddy. Mike passed me in the middle of the race and we chatted for a bit. Turns out he learned about the shoes from this blog...small world. If he can run 30 miles at McNaughton Park, then he and others can run 30 miles at Clinton Lake in them. The revolution has begun!

PS: Just to set the record straight, I passed him back and finished well ahead of Mike in the final race standings. I'm still amazed that he finished 30 tough trail miles in those suckers. I used my old Nike Air Zoom Trail shoes for the first 20 miles and then finished the last 10 miles in my New Balance 790s. I should have tried my FiveFinger KSOs for at least one loop. Next time.

Meb Keflezighi Wins NYC Marathon!

Meb won the New York City Marathon this weekend.
Meb is an awesome runner. Meb is an American.

United States marathoning is back on track! We grabbed 6 of the top 10 spots in the men's field and 13 of the top 20 finishers were Americans. That's pretty good and a welcome change. On the women's side we had 4 in the top 10 and 11 of the top 20 finishers.

Please, no comments about how Meb isn't really an American. He is...and I'm proud to call him a fellow citizen. Enough said. Here is a good piece in Sports illustrated about Meb and his win over the weekend.

Farmdale vs McNaughton Races

I used both the Farmdale 32-mile and McNaughton Park 30-mile races as good long training runs. My intention for both runs was to take it easy for the first 20+ miles and then kick it up a notch in the last 8-10 miles. For the first time in any race, I used my heart rate monitor to keep me under control and track both speed and effort. I plan to do this more often in training and racing through this fall and winter. Both races had about the same weather--cool and partly sunny--with courses that were slightly wet & muddy. Click here for a picture of me crossing the first small creek at McNaughton yesterday--even though it wasn't super muddy, you did have wet feet for the whole 30 miles! Here are my time splits and corresponding average heart rates for the two races:

Farmdale 32-Mile Trail Run (4 x 8-mile loops)
October 17, 2009
Loop 1: 1:45, HR=126
Loop 2: 1:51, HR=130
Loop 3: 1:40, HR=140
Loop 4: 1:32, HR=150
Full race: 6:48, HR=136

McNotAgain 30-Mile Trail Run (3 x 10-mile loops)
October 31, 2009
Loop 1: 2:08, HR=129
Loop 2: 2:12, HR=134
Loop 3: 2:02, HR=146
Full race: 6:22, Average HR=137

One anomaly is the second loop time for each race. I believe the second loops were actually run in about the same time as the first loops, but I spent extra time in the start/finish area aid station and swapping clothes that added minutes to the second loop slit. Otherwise, each race saw a fairly steady increase in heart rate with a slight increase in pace (negative split for each race). I felt good during and after each race. I was probably not well-rested for McNaughton Park (2 weeks after Farmdale), but still did OK. I'm curious how the HR monitor might be used to help me race a trail ultra. It was easy to hold back in these two events since I treated them as "just long runs." Not sure I could do the same if I was really racing and trying for a fast finish time. I'm pleased with my relatively low average heart rate for each race (136 & 137). With fatigue and dehydration your heart rate tends to climb. I still managed to keep mine under control while speeding up just a bit. Time to continue my base-level Lydiard training program. Lots of aerobic runs. Lots of long runs. Not much speed work...except for the 5K and 8K races I have in the next month!

More McNotAgain race pictures courtesy of Greg and Mike.

UPDATE: The Clinton Lake 30-Mile Trail Run now has 119 runners. It will close at 125. My guess is we'll reach that point this week.