Okay, so I have been absent from this blog for quite a while. I don't really have an excuse... I have just been busy and each time I thought about writing something I decided that I had better things to do. However, I have been running quite a bit over the last year. After my DNF in 2010 I decided that there were a few things I needed to change.
1. If I was going to wear shoes then I needed to train in them.
2. I needed to find a different method to carry my water etc. The back pack was just too much
3. I needed to keep my running going and try to increase both distance and speed.
Shoes
Through all of last summer and the fall I continued to run in vibrams. I felt great and wasn't having any problems. However, each time I ran I knew that I wouldn't be able to use them on the Laurel Highland Trail. The solution to my problem came around December. We were visiting friends in Ohio and one of them suggested I try the New Balance MT101's. He showed me his pair and I was immediately draw to them. They are very light, the heal is very low, and they have a 'rock stop' sole to help on trails. After trying on a pair both my Dad and I bought them. After wearing out my first pair I have since bought a second pair. They are terrific shoes and I highly recommend them if you want something that is a step up from the vibrams. The only down side is that both my Dad and I wore a pair of shoes out in less than four months. When I say we wore them out, I mean there was zero rubber left on the bottom. They looked like racing slicks.
Gear
Right after the Laurel I started looking for a new way to haul my water. I looked at everything I could find and went to a number of stores and tried them on. I decided that I wanted to have something that carried two water bottles. One for water and one for a sports drink. After searching for a few months I finally ran across the Katoa by New Direction. It holds two 20 oz. bottles, has two side pockets for gels, and a nice pocket in the back big enough for my phone, wallet, trail bars, etc. The only down side to the pack was that it buckled in the front. I didn't mind it on short 6 - 12 mile runs but I found that as I increase mileage to 20 or more the constant pressure of the water bottles bouncing on my back would cause the buckle to hit my stomach. By the end of a 3 or 4 hour run my stomach would be a little sore. My Dad bought a Nathan's fuel belt with four 10 oz containers. Each time I spoke with him he told me how much he loved it. I ended up borrowing one from a friend and agreed with him. They are very nice... having the smaller bottles balanced in the front and back seem to really help. However, I still think it can be improved. I wore the Nathans on the Laurel run (more on that in the race recap) but may try to make my own fuel belt. I have a few ideas of what I want. Now I just need to get the sewing machine out and get to work.
Distance and Speed
This was the big one. I did have blister issues last year but that's easily solved by just changing socks on a regular basis and training in the same shoes that I wear on the run. I needed to increase my overall speed. After recovering from the Laurel I started mixing in some shorter, faster runs into my training schedule. A few weeks before the Laurel I was ran two 3 mile runs at a 7:30 min pace. This isn't really fast at all but it is a significant improvement for me. As I increased my pace on shorter runs I found that I was able to increase my pace on longer runs as well. My average pace on 15+ mile runs was about 9:30 min. Again, not blazing fast by any standard but a very respectable time for me.
After getting all these things in place I decided I was ready to do the Laurel again and registered with my Dad for the 77 mile run.
Drop the other shoe and let me know more about your perspective of the race. I have been working on my post and should have it up in couple of days.
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