Ghost Train Rail Trail 100 pre-race thoughts

I really should be writing a review of the new Merrell Bare Access shoes.  Merrell sent them to me two weeks ago and I've worn them almost exclusively as my every day shoe.  They are an awesome shoe and I have a lot to say about them.  Even so, I just can't concentrate.

All I can think about is whats going to happen in 2 days.  This weekend I'll be taking on what might be my biggest challenge, as far as Ultra-running goes.  At 9am Saturday morning I'll toe the line at the Ghost Train Rail Trail Ultramarathon.  The race is run on a 7.5 mile stretch of trail starting in Milford NH.  The idea is to do "out and backs" of 15 miles.  Anybody doing an "Ultra" distance of 30 miles or more starts Saturday.  On Sunday there is a 15 mile race, while the remaining Ultra folks are still on course.  The longest official Ultra distance is 100 miles, but the RD has decided that after that, if anybody is dumb enough, bonus miles can be run.

I'm dumb enough.

Running High Mileage with Plantar Fasciitis

It makes me so sad.  When I first started running I jumped up in the mileage pretty quickly.  What resulted, other than stronger legs, was a case of Plantar Fasciitis.  I struggled with it for months before going to a foot doctor.  He diagnosed me with PF and sent me to Granite State Physical Therapy.  This is when I met Brian Verville, the owner, for the first time.

Over the course of several weeks (maybe 6?) Brian got me back up and running using the techniques that I will describe in this post.  During this same time I also realized that my shoe choice might be another factor and began experimenting with more minimal, less cushioned and more flexible shoes.

The net result is that it went away.  I wasn't sure how much was due to the PT and how much the shoe change, but all that mattered was that it was gone.