Conquering the East West Trail Line End-to-End

For three years I've wanted to run the East West Trail from end-to-end.  It is a trail line that is very close to my house and I've run every piece of it, excluding the last mile, just not all at once.  Last fall my friend, husband, and I all decided to pick a date and go for it, but illness and injury set us back.  While driving by a small stretch of it Saturday afternoon, I regretted missing that run.  It was going to be epic.  We planned stashes of food and water along the 16 mile course.  We promised to celebrate with beer and great food at the finish.  I still wanted to go.  My friend, Monica, and I needed to run 16 miles this Sunday anyway.  And truthfully, it is really hard to find a 16 mile loop in the middle of the suburbs that include interesting scenery and something new.  This fit the bill so I called Monica and asked if she were game.

Mapmyrun.com I made the map the morning before the run.

 Monica has never told me, "no."  She's a great friend like that.

So we quickly stashed a car at the finish line and rushed over to the Cabella's in Lone Tree, Colorado where the trail officially starts.  Our husbands and kids waved us goodbye.  I quickly told my husband I would send him a Glymse if something went wrong.  If we were radio silent, things were good.

The trail starts uphill.  We climbed 500 feet up a system of hills called the Bluffs.  We ran down this hill a month before and we lamented it is much more fun to run it in reverse.  Nothing like warming up on a 7% grade.  The 360 degree views from the top of the hill are absolutely stunning.  You can see all of Denver, the Tech Center, Foothills, and even as far south as Colorado Springs.  The trail is crushed gravel and considering the 20 mile per hour winds, we were making good time.

8 miles in.  The trail switched back to crushed gravel from rocky single track.

After heading down the other side of the Bluffs, we started ascending Wildcat Mountain.  It isn't a huge mountain, but I look at it everyday from my house.  The climb fluctuates between 7-14% grades for almost 2 full miles by the time we reached the back side of the mountain and finished at the top of the ridge near Castle Pines.

Monica standing in front of Wildcat Mountain in the distance and behind that are the Bluffs, where we started.

Going into the run, I already covered over 47 miles in the last 6 days.  (I logged 63 miles this week after completing this run.)  By the top of those hills, already almost 2,000 ft in elevation climbed, my legs felt weak and tired.

Exactly 10 miles in, there is a compass rose that points to major land marks.  As the crow flies, it is 1.7 miles, as my legs ran, much, much, much further.  I should have been a bird.

 But as the trail became more narrow and we bounded up and down the rolling hills, I felt refreshed.

The next 4 miles are rolling downhills followed by a final 2 mile short climb. 

Miles 8-14 felt amazing.  I was easily conquering the trail that I'd wanted to cover for so long in one stretch.  I love the Highlands Ranch Backcountry.  It is the number one reason I am grateful to live in this town.  Sure the schools are great, the rec centers are a definite bonus, but really, it is the trail system that allows me to escape the city and find some inner quiet that I truly appreciate.  All these thoughts were happily bouncing through my brain, until Monica almost got hit in the back by a mountain biker.

We were cruising along a nice stretch of open grass lands.  The trail is narrow single track with lots of rocks, sand, bends, and bumps.  We just turned down a slight hill and were nearing the bottom when we heard a loud screech and sand went flying in every direction.  Naturally, both of us vaulted off the trail before looking behind us to find a man laughing his ass off.  He thought it was hilarious that he came really close to creaming Monica in the back and was not shy about his demented sense of humor.  Neither of us had headphones.  We weren't talking.  We were peaceful and quiet.  He came out of no where and made no apology for his dangerous riding.

I have yet to see a sign like this on any of the trails.  I think it is time the city invested!

After he zipped by, we took a moment to collect ourselves.  We had 2 miles left, all uphill and that 20 mile per hour wind was relentless.  More and more bikers came out of no where and while I too mountain and road bike I pride myself in knowing the yield laws.  All but 2 of the 25 bikers we met needed a reminder.  It is really hard to start running up a steep hill and stop again 30 feet later to let someone pass, then to start up yet again.  It was killing my knees.  Even Monica grumpily breathed behind me, "If I have to stop one more time, I might not start again..."  Agreed.

Sixteen miles is not my longest run to date.  I run trails all summer long.  But when I saw the sign that marked the end of this journey I was elated.  It felt like a real finish line.  At a half or full marathon the crowd pulls me to the finish.  I love the cheering fans and the cow bells ringing.  When they place the medal around my neck I know I accomplished something big and honest.  This finish line didn't have any of that and yet it felt bigger and in many ways better.  It was a private euphoria. 

Not a thrilling sign, but it holds new meaning.

Together, Monica and I covered 16 miles and 2,300 feet of elevation gain, in two and a half hours.  We stopped at the inconspicuous sign that marked the end of the trail, threw our heads between our knees for a while, took a few pictures, and walked to my car.  It wasn't exactly the most thrilling celebration, but I felt infinitely proud.

Our kids and husbands were waiting there to surprise us for almost an hour.  They let the kids play at the playground and fly kites to pass the time, but when they saw us they came running up the sidewalk full blast, smiles huge!

My oldest son asked his dad while waiting for us to arrive, "Did mommy really run from one side of our city to the other?"  Yes I did! 

ER visit

I spent the entire weekend laid up in bed.  It sucks to stay still.  Friday night we were at a friend's house and out of no where I was doubled down on the floor in excruciating pain.  We went home abruptly and I jumped in the shower, hoping the hot water would somehow relieve the sharp pains in my abdomen.  It didn't.  My husband put the kids to bed and for the next few hours we debated the necessity of visiting the ER.

This happened twice before, so I had an idea what was going on.  I knew it wasn't a medical emergency, but it hurt like one.  A sharp constant pain radiated from my right side.  I shuddered in pain, nauseous from the sudden onset.  I made it until morning with little sleep but still wanting to make sure it was benign and not appendicitis, I checked in to the ER at 8:00 the next day. 

After a thorough ultrasound, we confirmed it was a ruptured cyst, one that continued to bleed and left my stomach so swollen, by 6:00 last night I looked 3-6 months pregnant.

I only have 8 weeks left until my next marathon.  I was supposed to log 18 miles this weekend, not be bedridden, unable to walk. Any pressure on my stomach is very painful, lifting heavy objects is unfathomable, and I have no idea how running will feel.  The Hansen's Method says taking more than a couple days off can reverse your training so dramatically that you may want to rethink your original goal time.  I've worked too hard to rethink my goals.  I took a lot of time off this week already for a stupid head cold.  I know I need to heal entirely so that I can race on May 18, but I also need to keep up my fitness levels so that I don't take a huge step backwards.

I've taken 2 full days off, including complete bed rest.  Last night I had the best night of sleep I've had in over 7 years.  Thank you Percocet.  While I laid in the ER hospital bed, I asked the doctor, "When exactly can I run again?"  He laughed and said, "I am sure you are one of those that will run no matter what, so how about this?  Run when you don't hurt anymore.  If you start hurting, stop running and try again tomorrow.  Deal?"

"DEAL!" Tomorrow, I will run 5 miles and I promise to take it easy.

The Snake Man

I took my boys to the Wildlife Experience this week.  It is a small museum perfect for elementary aged kids and younger.  This month they have an exhibit on reptiles and amphibians.  While admiring a 5 foot long alligator, a museum volunteer starts talking to me and the boys about the different animals in the exhibit.  The conversation started innocent enough, "How old is that alligator?"  "How big will it grow in captivity?"  "What idiot thought that made a good pet?"  The usual.

"Well, sh*t honey.  He was so stinkin' cute, I just thought I'd bring him home and he could live in the pool.  Look how much he loves a good scratch!"

Suddenly, my son walks over to this flat screen TV playing a documentary on venomous snakes.  The 80 year old volunteer lights up, full of excitement.  "Oh, boy do I know a whole lot about snakes!  What would you like to know, son?"  Ethan stares at him a little bit and says, "Which ones will kill you?"

Before I knew it this story teller dives into his career as a Bureau of Land Management employee who conducted surveys in Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and Arizona for over 20 years.  His fear of rattlesnakes has been long gone as he couldn't count the times he was struck on the boot from one of those "aggressive rat killers."  He explained to my 6-year-old that you kind of get used to being bitten and not dying, therefore they aren't scary anymore.  Thanks for that, sir.

I told him I run on the Backcountry trails and had a few rattlesnake encounters last summer.  I've read recently that they are supposed to be coming out of hibernation soon, therefore do I need to be more worried about running when they just awoke?  He looked at me blankly and said, "Well, they are hungry, but you know they aren't going to eat you, right?"  Yes I realize that, but are they going to be more territorial, more aggressive?  I don't want to startle one on the trail.

He told me you see more rattlers in the spring because they hibernate together in a giant clump in order to stay warm through the winter months.  While growing up on a farm in Montana he saw a picture of the snakes waking up from under his friend's barn.  They came out in a mass of over a thousand snakes at once and slowly spread out.  "You see them more in the spring until they find their own grounds again and thereafter you will only see them sunning themselves on the trails occasionally."

"Well, I run on the trails, sir.  That's my concern."

"Okay, here's is my advice to you young lady.  Don't do that."

12 Useful Things

I often see blog posts that ask, "What advice would you give to a novice runner?"  Well, to me that is always a simple answer.  "Love running and your feet will follow."

So instead, here are 12 useful things I've discovered along the way that make running much more fun:

1. Find the courage to pee while simultaneously wearing a running skirt or shorts and the ability to go anywhere. 
   
2. Learn how to properly clear mucous.  It is one thing to know how to clear out the mucous.  It is another to know how to aim it around hordes of people during a race or crowded trail.                

   

   Kid, you've got skills.
3. Be polite to other trail users.  Saying, "Hi," "Hey," "Good morning," whatever I can muster to fellow runners while sounding unaffected by the burning in my lungs is not only amiable but it looks cool.  This method is best utilized while waving to people that are heading down a huge hill you just ran up.   
   
4. Find pride in the runner's tan.  My legs are only tanned between my knee high compression sock line and below the shorts.  I call it my striping.  
   
5. Roll out exhausted muscles using a foam roller.  This intimate time with the floor really pays off.  

   

   The look on the teacher's face cracks me up! 

6. Know how many miles are in a marathon, half marathon, 15K, 10K, and 5K, and not just the numerical values, but what it truly means to cover those distances. 

   

   Or in Garfield's case, why you are running in the first place...

7. How to avoid chaffing.  I had my first bout of it at the Denver Half Marathon last fall right between my legs and I paid for that burn for over 2 weeks!  Now I bathe regularly in Body Glide.       
   
8. Making friends mid run.  I've met some of the coolest people on the trails and during races and I feel so grateful to be a part of this awesome community.                                                              
   
   
9. How to remove the nasty odor from running clothes.  Baking soda works great.  Add a couple tablespoons directly to your washer, you can also work it into a paste and let it soak into your pit stains.  Or if it is really nasty, soak the vile clothes in vinegar pre-wash.  I don't like this method as much because the next step includes removing the smell of sour coleslaw from my shirts.  
   
10. Learn how to walk.  It feels like defeat to stop running, but every runner has to come to terms with this at some point.  "I didn't give up! I was resting, eating, drinking, cursing, moaning, recovering, still moving..."   
    
11. Learn how to breathe properly.  I don't focus on the intake of breath, especially when I am desperate for air.  That only makes me gulp oxygen like a goldfish.  Instead, I focus on fully expelling the air OUT of my belly, then allowing the air to naturally return, which allows more oxygen to enter my system and calms my gait.   
    
12. Every race doesn't end in a PR.  Yeah, I thought this was a bummer too, but the sooner you come to terms with it the better.  Some races are about the experience, the people, the sense of community, and the courage or journey it took to approach the starting line. That being said, I will be upset if I don't rock my next marathon.  This speed work better have been worth something!   
    

What else have you learned along the way that makes it more fun?  
Is there something you are still working at to improve your experience? 
Anyone know how to cover up the runner's tan besides long pants? 

~Roadburner

Fitbit Review

My 30th birthday is one month away.  While my mom visited last week, she treated me to an early birthday present, a Fitbit Flex.  I have a couple friends who have them but I was apprehensive about how it could help manage my fitness levels as I don't need reminders about my exercise.  If anything, I need to back off a bit.

I've been pleasantly surprised by how much I like this simple arm band.  My mom and husband also have one and they compete all the way until bedtime on who gets the most steps for that day.  I have NEVER seen either of them walk or move so much in my life.  They were both active people to begin with but it has easily doubled their daily workout routines.   Randall, a software architect, stares at a computer all day or sits in and out of meetings, sapping his ability to get up and move.  This subtle competition with my mom, a teacher who walks all day, reminds him to get up earlier or run after work.

For someone who runs and walks all day long, here is what I like:

• My alarm goes off at 5:30 am.  Usually it is my phone playing an energizing song and I hear my husband groan as I leap out of bed.  (Yes, I am a morning person.)  The Flex vibrates softly on my wrist, and I even have it scheduled to not wake me on Wednesdays, my one day off.  Randall says he loves the silent alarm as I can now climb out of bed with stealth.

• I'm exhausted at night.  I thought that was par for the course with marathon training.  I didn't realize that I run 10 miles in the morning and then walk another 10 throughout my day with my boys.  I NEVER sit down.  This provides me a great tool to monitor my movement and at times helps me relax.

• I knew I burned 600-1,400 calories by running every day but I didn't realize there were days that I burned over 4,000 calories total.  There is no way I am eating enough to refill the tank.  Tracking how much I burn, reminds me to snack more often.

 

• The Flex tracks my sleep, letting me know how long it takes to fall asleep, how often I was restless, when I awoke, and exactly how long I slept.  This is insanely useful after a hard workout.  When I push too hard during speed work, that night I pay the price in my sleep and the Flex tells me just how badly.  

This was a great night of sleep.

Not such a great night.  Not sure how it calculates sleep efficiency because I was up a lot. 

• Finally, it vibrates when I accomplish my step or mile goal for the day.  I know I am healthy and active, but for some reason it is so satisfying when the thing buzzes!

Some of the things I don't care for:

• It is really comfortable, but it gets caught on long shirts or on the sheets at night and that's really annoying.  Running with it on the arm that holds my dogs' leash is also really uncomfortable.

• While it is water proof, I prefer to take it off before I shower because it leaks water on my wrist for 30 minutes afterwards.

 

• My Android phone is too old to sync directly to the Fitbit.  Therefore, I have to check my steps, calories, miles, etc... on the computer and I have to be within 20 feet of my computer for my stats to upload. 

• It doesn't work for biking or swimming, it is designed for walking, running, and cross training only. 

The Fitbit is useful for people wanting to move more and track their progress.  However, it is also very helpful to those who need to track their calories and movement for other reasons.  Some days, I do too much and don't eat enough.  I feel tired and defeated and now I know why.  It serves as a good reminder to look out for my health and training throughout my day and not just when my trainers are hitting the road.  Oh, and I can't wait to see what numbers I rack up during the Colfax Marathon in several weeks.  Beat that step count, Mom and Randall!  ;)

~Roadburner

Catching Up

I haven't posted in a while because things have been nuts!  I just realized I only have 8 weeks left until the Colfax Marathon and I am in the thick of the training.  To catch up, here's been what's been going on:

• A few weeks ago my son broke the 2 major bones in his wrist.  He was a trooper about it, but it was a hard day nonetheless.  He had to be put under anesthesia to reset the bones and some hardy pain meds for the first couple nights to help him sleep.  Honestly, I am surprised at 6 this was his first broken bone because my son is a monkey.  If he isn't climbing, jumping, kicking, or running, he is asleep.  

• Each week since he broke his arm, I've been in doctor's offices and hospitals getting him x-rays and casts.  Yes, that is plural, he needs 3 different casts and over 30 x-rays by the time this is over.  So the good news is, Ethan may become his own night light soon.

• My youngest son, Owen, graced us with the stomach flu.  I'll leave out the details.

• I crossed the 50 mile barrier.  I thought balloons would shoot out of the ground or something, which made it anticlimactic when I decided to take a nap instead.  

• A friend hired me as an assets photographer for a building company.  Normally, I do portrait photography so this was a whole new world for me, but I embraced the challenge.  For the first time in years, I got up way before dawn, drove downtown and waited for the sun to rise while I sat absolutely still.  I froze my butt off, but I loved every minute.

• I bought a new winter running jacket.  It is the Nike Element.  I LOVE this jacket.  It even has a built in face mask and mittens for crazy cold days that fold back into the jacket when you don't need them.  My husband thought those details were silly and unnecessary considering we own a treadmill but I like the idea of them.  It was on sale at the outlets from $275 to $50. 

• My husband and I saw Jim Gaffigan live this weekend at the Temple Buell Theater with some friends.  I laughed so hard, my abs were genuinely sore for three days after the show.  "Hot Pocket!"

• I've seen 4 different men running along my neighborhood streets wearing their Colfax Marathon shirts from last year.  I want to yell at them, "You rock!"  But I just smile and drive on.    

• Not feeling well throughout my Sunday 10 miler, I decided to take Monday off.  I am fighting a small head cold.  However, Tuesday was a great day for speed work as I decided I would sweat the little virus right out of my system.  Today, he fought back again as I froze my tail off in 11 degree wind chills.  Tomorrow is a tempo day, I'll kill him then.

Well, that's about as random as it gets.  The race still feels very far off, but I am 17 weeks into this training plan and into the thick of the mileage.  I am trying not to look to deeply into things right now as it makes me so much more exhausted to see where I am headed.  Balancing daily life and saving enough energy in the tank to get through the rest of the day is the trick.  Some days I feel really good and I think, "I could push a lot harder than this!" But I have to practice some restraint, following the plan closely leaves energy to play with my boys and get up again the next day.  Marathon training round 2 has taught me patience. 


How is your week going?  
How do you keep up with training and kill a virus?
What is your favorite cold weather gear?

~Roadburner

Diane van Deren

Last night I had the privilege of hearing Diane van Deren, the ultra-marathon champion, speak in person.  It was only an hour long conversation, but her story was truly heroic.

Diane suffered an hour long seizure at only 16 months old due to an awful virus that left her body in a dangerously fevered state.  However, the rest of her childhood was healthy and seizure free.  For the next 20 years she found athletics came easily to her.  She became a professional tennis player directly out of high school after dabbling in multiple sports and finding national success in each.

While on the professional tennis tour she started having weird neurological feelings in her brain that she couldn't explain and no one understood.  By the time she was pregnant with her third child, she had a grand mal seizure that was unexplainable.

After multiple tests and finally an MRI, the professional athlete and mother of 3, found she had epilepsy, caused by the scaring on her brain, left by her first seizure at 16 months old.

For the next 10 years, Diane juggled motherhood, speaking engagements, and of course her professional tour.  But it became dangerous.  She couldn't drive, ski, cook, swim, or take a bath without the fear of having a seizure.  No medication alleviated the 3-4 grand mal seizures a week.  She felt helpless asking her 6 year old child to look after her in the bathtub and even taught her kids how to drive in case she seizured behind the wheel.

After a decade of fighting, she decided a radical brain surgery was her only choice.  After having a kiwi sized chunk of her brain removed, she was free of epilepsy, but it wasn't without consequence.  She struggles with the ability to read and understand complex directions and maps.  Diane becomes severely overloaded and exhausted by too much stimulation.  Her short term memory is questionable at best.  Most of all, she can't keep track of time.

Running freed her from the stresses of over-stimulation.  She zones out completely and finds a comfortable rhythm in her breathing and pace.  Arctic races ranging between 100-430 miles long in -60 weather gave her ironic peace.  She listened to the wind as waves over the frozen tundra and while everyone dropped out suffering injury, exhaustion, and frostbite, she prevailed.

Diane ran 1,000 miles across the state of North Carolina in 22 days, 5 hours and 3 minutes, to bring attention to the Mountains to Sea Trail.  She ran through 5 foot deep water, a tornado, ticks, a tropical storm, and endless blisters under her feet.  During the expedition she averaged 50 miles a day, and rested only for a few hours a time.

Finishing her 1,000 mile run across North Carolina

She is strong, fearless, motivated, dedicated, and resolved.  Sitting in her presence left me awe struck.  Her ability to persevere during mental, physical, and excruciating circumstances would leave anyone questioning their own strength.  What do I take away from this amazing woman's life story? 

I hope someday to run an ultra.  Not the awesome distances that she covers, more like a 50K.  A marathon still seems like a large chunk of land to cross in one day.  I also don't plan to run in sub zero temperatures, or through torrential rains.  I am not fearless nor as strong.

While Diane's achievements left me insecure about my small goals, she runs a marathon everyday for training, I took a lot away from her indomitable spirit.

First of all, Diane found the fountain of youth.  She just turned 54 years old and I didn't think her face looked older than 40.  Her body is rock solid and appeared to be as fit as a 30 year old.  Honestly, I expected her to look wrecked.  After running thousands of miles, she should look gaunt, lacking fingers or toes, wind burned on the cheeks, something.  But she looks amazing and most of all, she radiated happiness.  Through her journey she found peace.

While she prepares for a race or expedition, she looks only at the start and finish lines.  Her brain can't handle all the information in between.  Even when she is very close to the finish line, she doesn't think about it being over until she crosses.  Anything can happen, even at the end of the race, so when she feels she is almost done, she buckles down even harder, tightens up her stride and finishes strong. 

Finally, where Diane finds satisfaction is not in winning.  Of course that accomplishment feels good, but all of her stories were about the journey and who she met along the way.  How countless teams of people planned her routes, laid stones along the paths so she wouldn't get lost, navigated for her, helped her laugh through the suffering, partied at her bedside when she couldn't stand upright.  Her eyes radiated her connection with the people.  She said that's what it is all about.  Running brings people together.  It unifies their spirits in a common goal.

Diane's strategical team in North Carolina.

I wasn't inspired to run long distances beyond maybe 30 miles.  That looks painful, cold, and lonely.  I wasn't inspired to leave my family for months at a time to run the world.  I would miss my kids and my husband and talking to my parents and friends.  I need my community and I know my body was not built like Diane van Deren's.  She was made of a thread much stronger than mine.  But I do hope to continue to strive for that peace she emitted.  I want to find a purity in the sport that leaves me feeling accomplished and balanced as a person.  I hope to meet people along the way and immerse myself deeper in the running community.  Finally, I want to run throughout my life.  The gains I make now, should provide the stem of future goals.


Have you met one of your heroes?

What did you take away from their story?

How has the running community changed you?

~Roadburner

Small celebrations

This Sunday, I will have run further in a week than I ever have before: 50 miles in 6 days.  I made this connection this morning after a brutal 11 mile workout, where 9 miles were at an 8:40 pace and the other 2 were tired and still too far from home to walk.  So to celebrate this new accomplishment, I wanted to make a list of the things that have changed for me since I've started increasing my weekly totals, and average paces.

• I take the long routes in my car just so that I can warm up my butt a little longer with my seat heater.  

• I wear a bathing suit in the bathtub during ice baths so that I can maintain some sense of pride when my boys barge in laughing sadistically at my shivering body.  

• Blow drying my hair takes 3 times longer.  This is partially because my body is tired and holding a hair dryer above my shoulders sucks.  It is also because I aim the air stream at my beat up legs for half the time.

• Ice baths work better when I roll my legs out with a foam roller first.  My post run ritual is now quite long.

• I run better the next day if I roll my legs out again before bed.  My night time ritual is now quite long.

• Chocolate milk tastes better than advertised.  To think I used to hate that delectable liquid...

• My body has a harder time processing foods the more I run.  So fresh foods, small meals, and lots of fruits, veggies, yogurt, and trail mix have become my daily norm.

• I naturally wake up before 5:30 every morning ready to run.  

• I've made friends with the baristas at the Starbucks near my house, not because I purchase coffee in the morning but because on those crazy cold mornings where I can't feel my fingers, they yell out the drive through window at me that I am crazy and they love my dedication, do I need to come and pee where it is warm?  

• I've stopped peeking at the weeks ahead on my training calendar.  It scares the hell out of me, so I am trying to take it one day at a time.

I am really surprised by how far I've come.  I never used to be able to run 2 consecutive days and now I run 6 days in a row!  I am running farther, faster, and more miles in a week than I ever thought my body could handle.  After each run, I am proud of myself.  It is like daily goals that I alone get to conquer, where my body shows me how strong it truly is and it feels unbelievably good.


How do you celebrate milestones, whether large or small?  

What things have changed for you during your training?

What foods to you enjoy more now than before you began running?

~Roadburner