124 Miles of Pavement?

Logan UT, where "The Bear 100" is raced

This week I finally signed up for the fourth of my five hundred mile races.  "The Bear 100" in Logan UT looks to be a very tough challenge, but then again when is running 100 miles not a challenge?  The Bear has 22,000 ft of elevation gain/loss and has a maximum elevation of 9000 ft.  It is almost exactly one month after Leadville.  I was being lazy about signing up until I noticed on the site that there were only about 60 spots left!!  I can't believe how fast these races are filling up.  It is kind of cool seeing a lot more people realize that the marathon is not the pinnacle of running achievement.  Doing a 100 mile race is an incredible experience.

I still haven't figured out what the fifth event is going to be yet.  I say event, not race, because for the last few days a thought has been running through my mind.  I can't seem to shake it either.  I am thinking about giving it another go at running across the state.  In 2008 and 2009 I attempted it with my friend, Sherpa John Lacroix.  Both times he did it and both times I failed to finish it.  The first time I ended up with a stress fracture the second time my tendinitis was bad enough that I decided that I would end up with another stress fracture if I continued.  The route goes across NH at its widest point, from West to East.  It starts at the bridge in Brattleboro and finishes at Ordiorne State Park in Rye NH.  For me, the biggest problem is that it is all pavement.  I really hate running on pavement and coach Jack is not going to be happy to hear I'm thinking about doing it.

But there is a powerful draw for me to try it.  I always talk about how your dreams and goals don't have time limits on them.  If you have a strong passion to achieve something then failed attempts are just learning experiences.  They don't mean that you give up on the dream.  I also have never run more than 100 miles and I have always wanted to.  It would be a lot easier than traveling to yet another race.  I have a while to decide if that is what I want to do, but I'm leaning that way.

Me and Sherpa John in 2008 Running across NH

Here is a link to SJ's reports from 2008 and 2009.

Here is this weeks recap.

3-14-2011
Monday AM - 7 Miles (1:01:52). 
For some reason I was slow to start this morning. First mile was 10m pace, second was 9m pace. Loosened up about 3 miles into it and felt ok. Ran on the roads with my Merrell's, no ankle pain at all. I think the ankle reacts more to the type of shoe and stride that I am using. It also could be speedwork vs. running easy. For now I know that running with a mid/fore foot strike doesn't seem to bother it. Heel striking does. 

3-15-2011
Tuesday AM - 8 Miles (1:08:13).  Also strength trained for 45 minutes.  Did full workout.
Nice run, easy.

3-16-2011
Wednesday AM - 14 Miles (1:59:02)
First snow, then rain.  Ran on the snowmobile trails. Still had a great run even though I was soaked at the end.

3-17-2011
Thursday - 7.25 Miles (58:23)
Hill intervals.  Did 1/2 mile repeats.  Broke through the permafrost on one of the downhills going at sub 6min pace and got slammed into the ground.  Lucky I didn't get hurt.

3-18-2011
Friday - 14 Miles (1:54:52)
Snowmobile trails.  Even though my calves are sore, I felt awesome on this mornings run.

3-19-2011
Saturday - 8 Miles (1:06:31)
Nice easy run on roads.

3-20-2011
Sunday - 22 Miles (3:08:23)
Awesome run today. I felt excellent! Ran more roads than usual and was pretty hilly. 22 miles felt extremely easy today.

Totals
80.2 Miles
11:17:16Hours running

45 min strength training