Stage One Recap - What Really Went Down

My friends know two things about me: 1) I have zero natural navigational skills, and 2) I am about as klutzy as they come. And while I didn't get us lost on yesterday's course, I did manage to catch a toe on some (real or imagined) obstacle, and eat some sand. I emerged from the tumble unscathed (plenty of practice) but Paul, who was directly behind me, leapt to the side to avoid stepping on me, and rolled an already weakened ankle. I was on the ground congratulating myself for not trashing my legs when I heard the painful groan (followed by #bleeeeep#) behind me. We were only eight miles into a 120 mile race, and I had managed to take out my partner.

Nice.

The stage one course was 20.8 miles of sun-exposed, sandy trail, feeling a bit more like northern Arizona than Colorado. The sand was almost beach-like through some long stretches, which reduced Paul to an agonizing walk. It was a tough day for Paul physically, and for both of us mentally. He was focused on 'mind over matter', just tying to make it through the remaining twelve miles, and I was feeling terrible about causing his injury.



Which brings me to the essence of the GORE-TEX TransRockies: regardless of how well-prepared you are for racing, any number of things can go wrong. Unless you are vying for podium, your goal is essentially to make it through healthy. In a 6-day race, the focus becomes conservation (not pushing so hard that you can't recover overnight) and self-preservation (doing everything in your power to avoid an accident). Unfortunately, it is not uncommon to pass people on the trail who have 'assumed the position', which is spread feet, hands on the knees, bent over barfing. The altitude can hit someone out of nowhere, one minute they are cruising along and the next they are so dizzy they pass out on the ground, partner waving for a medic. Sometimes it's a poor foot placement on a downhill that sends your ankle left and your body right. Or maybe it's a clumsy partner that takes a dive right in front of you.


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Lightfoot Leads Over Hope Pass

Team Salomon runners Ricky Lightfoot and Tom Owens won the second stage of the 2011 GoreTex TransRockies Run from Victorville to Twin Lakes today in 1h52m.

The 14 mile stage, which included a 3200ft ascent to the summit of the 13,000 ft Hope Pass, proved to be another great battle in the Men's Open division. Defending champ Max King and Ryan Bak finished second on the stage (1h53m) with Day 1 winners Mike Smith and Jason Wolfe third in 1h54m. Smith and Wolfe were close enough to Lightfoot and co, that they retained the GC lead.

Cynthia and Ashley Arnold retained their lead in the Women's open class by winning the day's stage in 2h20m. They were well ahead of Amy Lane and Sabrina Moran who finished in 2h34m.

Team EverymanTri athletes Paul Shippey and Lori Lyons, moved up to 5th in the Mixed 80+ division with a solid run in 3h20m. Shippey, struggling with a sprained ankle, sustained in avoiding his teammate's fall on stage one, hung in to finish despite some discomfort on the steep descents.





For more detailed race results go to:

www.transrockies.com/transrockiesrun/stage2-2011trr-preliminary.pdf

Location:Leadville, Day 2

Let the Games Begin! Pre-race Observations

If you are, know, or (god forbid) live with a runner, then you are aware of the off- kilter nature of the runner personality. And nowhere is it more evident than at the start of a stupid-long race, where the self-selecting, cream-of-the-crop of Crazy convenes.

The race kicked off last night with a huge plate of food (okay, two plates) in an elementary school gymnasium, alongside close to 400 other highly-metabolic nut balls. Basically, the moment you show your racer wristband and enter the hall, you have close to 400 new friends. Elite athletes are throwing back grilled chicken alongside mid-packers, and the nervous energy has people laughing, toasting with lemonade, and gregariously hand-shaking ('hey didn't I see you here last year?').
The RUN 3 event participants run solo, but the 6-day participants run in teams of two. And those teams have names. Sponsored racers typically carry their sponsor's name, but unsponsored racers are free to choose, and the whacked nature of the runner mind is on display here (e.g. Team Lard Going Hard, Team Humpme and Dumpme, Team Trail Trash).





Some of the partners are married, others best friends, some are club buddies, and some partners, no kidding, met for the first time at the pre-race dinner. The people who wanted to do TransRockies, but didn't have anyone else in their social circle mentally ill enough to join them, used the Partner Finder feature on the TransRockies website. Paul and I sat next to a South African woman named Janine and a Belgian man named Christoph, who had paired up this way, and were exchanging details of their life over a second plate of beans. "We just met and already we're sharing food", she said. A very good sign.






This morning was equally lively, with another massive serving of food, and a coffee to 'kick start the engine'. I scanned the room and saw Kelly, who i had met the previous night, with her hand in a cast, still planning to toe the line. Kelly had had a dirt bike vs. tree accident last week (tree won), and had hand surgery just last Wednesday to put in plates and screws. I asked how she was feeling and she said she had been forced to dip into her Percocet stash around 2am but was generally feeling okay this morning (fairly certain i'd be laying on my couch at home if that were me). Studs and studettes trickled out from the long breakfast, baring sunscreen-lathered (and damn good-looking) legs, and a virtual symphony of Garmins chimed as timers and paces were being programmed in. The pre-start routine of gear checking, picture taking, race number pinning, timing chip registering, pseudo-stretching, and good-luck-high-fiving was well underway.



All I could do was look around at the remarkable field of people, from Dean Karnazes, who just completed a run across the US (fifty miles a day for 75 days straight), to the father of 12 kids (9 of which were adopted and have special needs), to Tim, a race favorite, whose brother died suddenly just weeks earlier. All of these profound personal stories lining up against the vast and inspiring backdrop of the Colorado Rockies. I had heard that TransRockies is a unique and special event. That's why i'm here. Running is generally considered to be an individual sport, but I tend to disagree. It's moments like this, when the genuine support for your fellow man in a shared experience is felt, that this notion of Running Community is underscored. We might be the lunatic fringe, but we respect and take care of our own.

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Smith and Wolfe Lead the Pack in Buena Vista

Mike Smith and Jason Wolfe battled it out with reigning champs Max King and Ryan Bak for overall honors in the Men's Open division on the first stage of the 2011 GoreTex TransRockies Run held in Buena Vista, CO, today. Smith and King finished in a rapid 2h17m, with King and some 4 minutes behind at 2h21m.

An elated Jason Wolfe said at the finish that it was a great battle all day. "We swapped the lead with Max and Ryan several times during the first 10 miles, and then managed to pull out a bit of a gap over the final 6 or so miles. It feels great to be in the lead, but we still have five days of racing to go."

The 20.8 mile stage was held in warm conditions with the mercury hovering around 80F, however was not as warm as last year's 89F.

Winners of the Women's Open division were Cynthia and Ashley Arnold for Team TrailRunner Magazine in 2h58m, Brianna Torres and Jennifer McCarthy were second in 3h04m.

Mixed Open winners were Team Salomon runners Anna Frost and Rickey Frost in 2h41m.

Team EverymanTri, with Paul Shippey and Lori Lyons , finished the first stage in 4h09m and currently lie 6th in the 80+ Mixed Division. Jeff and Katie Caba lead this division with a time of 2h48m.





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Location:GoreTex TransRockies 2011 Colorado

Ready To Rumble In The Rockies

Amazing how fast a year goes by...This Sunday, the fifth annual GoreTex TransRockies run starts in Buena Vista and a record 370 runners will do battle to decide the fastest team in the country to race over 125 miles of mountain trails.

Over six gruelling days, competitors will do battle over several mountain passes in the Rockies as they wend their way to the finish on August 26 in the Beaver Creek resort for what promises to be another epic finish.

2011 will be the second year of competition for Team EverymanTri.com. In 2010 the team entered the male over 80 division and for 2011 we are mixing it up with a co-ed team. Team leader Paul Shippey will have Lori Lyons by his side this year's race and is super excited about the prospect of racing in the mixed division.

'It's going to be interesting to see how my new partner Lori Lyons copes with this race. Coming from sea level can be a challenge, but Lori is super-strong both physically and mentally, so I think we are going to have a great race, against some new competitors this year. "TransRockies is one of those incredible  events a competitor will never forget and for Lori to have the opportunity to experience this amazing race, is exciting."

A big thanks to our sponsors for making this happen again. Gore-Tex, GU Energy Products; Hydrapak, Road ID, Ryders Eyewear and EverymanTri.com.

The exploits of Team EverymanTri can be followed at EverymanTri.com and on this blog site for the duration of race week.

Elite Racer Interview: Mike Smith

As part of the GORE-TEX® TransRockies Preview, Team EverymanTri caught up with Flagstaff’s own Mike Smith for an exclusive chat.   Mike was the 2009 GORE-TEX® TransRockies Open Men’s Champion with partner Robert Krar, and he will be returning for the 2011 race with new partner, Jason Wolfe, who placed second in 2010. 

***

Team EveryManTri:   Why come back to the GORE-TEX® TransRockies Run event? 

Mike:  I’ve been running since middle school, and this has to be one of the best running experiences of my life.  From top to bottom, just a lot of enjoyment.  There are several elements of this race that are different from others – I’ve been to a lot of races in a lot of places – this is just a special event.  I love the trails, the stage race format, the team aspect, the big representation from Flagstaff where I live, and then the gratification of winning.  Yea, it’s just a hugely gratifying event.   

Team EveryManTri:  What is the hardest part of the race for you?

Mike:  You go through periods of thinking you might not be able to do what you have to do, and you have to overcome a lot of mental doubt.  For all of the analogies that running has for life, TransRockies sort of magnifies them all.  Going hard when you think you just can’t go anymore, digging deep, putting forth the extra effort when you’re empty.  Putting out maximum effort on day 4, and thinking ‘how am I going to get up tomorrow morning and do this again?’  But you do.  Then you have day 5 behind you, and you think ‘there’s no way I can do this again tomorrow’.  But somehow you do it.  And so it helps you know that you can actually do what you think is impossible.  The physical part is easier – I can put myself through more than a lot of people can.  I can put myself into deep, dark places, and stay there.  That doesn’t scare me nearly as much as the mind.  The mind is where things are won or lost.  For me the hardest part is just keeping my mind in the right place so that the body can do what it needs to do.  We train high up in the mountains here.  We put ourselves through really difficult things, so physically we should be fine for TransRockies.  It just always comes down to the mind. 

Team EveryManTri:   Tell me how you and your 2011 partner (Jason Wolfe) came together. 

Mike:  Flagstaff is an amazing running community.  People know each other.  You find people you can run with and are into the same things you’re into.  Jason has a reputation here for being a monster on the trails, in the mountains, and in the Grand Canyon, he is good on the steeps.  There are lots of different types of runners here, but as far as TransRockies partners go, he’s one of the best.  I ran with Rob Krar in 2009, but he got injured and hasn’t been able to train well for the last two years.  He’s started back again, and is going to do the RUN3 event which is exciting.  We were a great match.  But when he couldn’t do the 2010 event, I started to think about whom I could potentially run with, and Jason just seemed like a great match.  I basically look for three things in a partner:  1) Must be from Flagstaff, because I really want to represent this place I love so much.   2) Must be able to take a beating, to suffer really well.  And he can suffer well.   And lastly, it has to be someone you like to be around.  Because when you add in the travel, you’re constantly with that person for like nine days.  It has to be a real quality person, who knows when to be serious and when to let loose a bit.    

Team EveryManTri:  How would you summarize your training for TransRockies, and do you do any cross-training?

Mike:  I don’t do any cross-training – my body holds up well and I don’t really get injured.  I’m very fortunate that way.  I can just train, train, train.  Most people need to balance out the amount of running with some non-running activities, to give those running muscles a little bit of a break.  I’m fortunate in that I am able to just put in really high mileage.  I feel my best when I’m running high mileage, and by that I mean like 120 miles per week, which is my sweet spot, and that’s at 7,000 feet.  That’s a lot of volume, but I’ve worked up to that amount.  It’s not for everyone, but my body is accustomed to that amount of work.   We train specifically for the event.  So starting in the summer, we do hard efforts multiple days in a row, carrying over fatigue from one day into the next.   We work on specific grades, so steep climbs up, and steep runs down.  And, of course, time on feet.  You’re out there for a long time, so you have to get your body used to that. 

Team EveryManTri:  Sounds like you’re ready to rock ‘n roll. 

Mike:  The team we’re facing this year, that won it last year, is tough. They are accomplished runners.  Really good.  We are not going into this thinking it’s going to be easy.  It’s going to be a battle, no question about it.  It’s an extremely competitive Open Men’s field.  So we’re just going to have to be ready for battle.  To beat us, you’re going to have to be prepared to go to war six days in a row. 

Team EveryMan Tri:  Do you have any training tips for people doing TransRockies for the first time?

Mike:   Practice on the type of surface that you’re going to race on.  If you live in a city and have to train on pavement, that’s fine, but make sure to get to a trail at least once or twice a week.  A lot of the muscles that are required for TransRockies – these little, tiny stabilizers – they need to be strengthened.  It’s different than the muscles required to go flat, and fast, and straight.  Be prepared for a full-body running experience. 

Team EveryManTri:   The race-issued duffle bag has limited space in it.  What gets priority – what can’t you live without?

Mike:  I’m a super-low-maintenance person.  I don’t need much.  But for me, I need music and headphones.  That’s the way I can be around a lot of people and still have some privacy.  I use it to go to sleep at night – at TransRockies the tents are in close proximity, but rest is really important.  So I need to be able to close my eyes in the daytime, and take a little nap, and also be able to sleep well at night.  I put on low-key music and relax and go to sleep.  Every night in 2009 I fell asleep with my earphones in.  Other than that I need my Blackberry, because I feel like I’m running for Flagstaff, and I need a way to send updates to people at home.   So I guess for me it’s all about technology. 

Team EveryManTri:  Is there anyone you’re looking forward to visiting with at the campfire?

Mike:  I’m pretty focused when I’m there.  Even though there is a big social component to the race, I remind myself that first thing’s first, I’m there to race. 

Team EveryManTri:   As an endurance athlete, when things really start to hurt, where does your head go?  How do you mentally push past pain?

Mike:  I break down the amount of work into really small chunks.  I pick a place to get to that isn’t so far away, and think about getting just to there.  People who study pain will tell you there is a lot of psychology there, that it’s a mental exercise.  So if you can master the mind, then the body will follow.  You have to have the ability to keep your mind calm when your body is under stress.  Everyone has a different way to do it.  I think that people spend so little time in discomfort these days that when we actually experience it, we panic.   You have to expect a certain level of discomfort in this race and say to yourself ‘when it comes, it comes, and I’m ready for it’. 

Team EveryManTri:   How would your friends describe you?

Mike:  Dang.  Well, I talk fierce like this, but I really do like to let loose, have a little fun.  I’m serious when I race, but the rest of the time I’m a goofball.  The class clown.  My friends would say I’m a cheeseball.  If you walked into my room, I would be playing bad 80’s music and watching stupid movies.  I may seem like I’m all business but I promise, inside I’m probably singing Billy Idol’s White Wedding. 

Team EveryManTri:  Who inspires you in running and in life?

Mike:  I’ve had some amazing coaches in my life.  My high school coach, Brian Wallace, and my college coach, Pat Henner, I feel like hit the jackpot with them.  I landed in the hands of some really wise males who inspired me personally, professionally, athletically, all kinds of ways.   I arrived to them at exactly the right time.  For example the guy who was my high school coach, wouldn’t have been a good match for me in college, and my college coach wouldn’t have been good for me when I was sixteen.  It was just perfect.  Young men need strong male role models, and I got lucky.  I think it’s why I’m still running today.  They instilled in me the discipline and the right way to do it, and made it an important part of my life.    

Team EveryManTri:    What did you study in school?

Mike:   At Georgetown, my undergraduate degree was in English.  And I got my Master’s at American in Elementary Education.  I taught 5^th grade in D.C. for a couple years before getting back into my running.  Teaching 5^th grade in D.C. is WAY harder than TransRockies.   [laughs]  Even 120 miles of training a week feels like vacation compared to that.   I like to read, I like to learn, I just like school. 

Team EveryManTri:   I read about how you moved to Flagstaff to train for the Olympic Marathon Trials, but they didn’t go the way you had hoped.  And you switched to trail racing after that.  Do you think you would have ever found trail racing if you had been successful at the Trials? 

Mike:  It’s funny, I get that question a lot.  And I like to explain this to people.  In Flagstaff, we just call it running.  It’s not trail running, or road running, it’s all just running.  If you live in a place like this, surrounded by the mountains and trails, you’re not going to run on the dang sidewalk.  So when people talk about my ‘switch’ from road runner to trail runner, I tell them “I was already a trail runner!”  Before I had ever done a trail race, I had over 200 days of trail running under my belt, just getting ready for road marathons.  It’s just running – the surface doesn’t matter.  Each of the running disciplines - trail, mountain, road, track - can learn from the others. 

Team EveryManTri:   With a teaching background, I guess it’s no surprise that you are now coaching.

Mike:  Yea.  I work for The Run S.M.A.R.T. Project, which is an online coaching company.  We help people from all around the country with individualized training plans.  That’s a lot of fun.  I’ve been doing that since 2008.   I also coach Team Run Flagstaff, which is a community running club with people of all levels and abilities.  It’s really gotten bigger since I moved to Flagstaff.  We started in 2007.  It’s my favorite hour of the whole week. 

***

In March 2011, Mike finished second in his first ultramarathon at Chuckanut 50k, beating Andy Martin’s course record.  He followed that with a win and course record in Prescott at the Whiskey Row Marathon.  In November 2009, just shortly after his win at TransRockies, Mike took first at the high-altitude Soulstice Mountain Trail Run, and then won the Windstopper Trailrun Worldmasters in Dortmund, Germany.  Mike qualified for the Olympic Marathon Trials in 2008. 

Product Review: Road ID

In 2005 I was training for my first Ironman, and got hit by a car while out for a ride.  I was in aero position, going about 28 mph on a gradual downhill in the bike lane,  and a guy in an opposite left hand turn lane decided to gun it and try to beat me across.  He misjudged.  Before I could even come out of aero position to make a grab for my brakes, I  t-boned his passenger door and flew, bike still attached, over the top of his car.  It was a rather spectacular-looking crash (according to the horrified onlookers).   I was wearing a Road ID, and when the ambulance came, I didn’t have to scour my dazed brain for a phone number.  My husband was called and I got carted off for x-rays. 

Three months later, when my body had healed and my new bike had arrived, I went out again.  I was admittedly white-knuckled, but had to get back in the saddle, literally.  I told my husband I would stay close to home and do laps in a low-traffic area with a very wide bike lane.   It was mid-day on a Sunday, and I was wearing a yellow jersey with a ridiculous blinking light on the back…talk about paranoid.  But sure enough, I was hit again, this time from behind, by a drunk driver who fled the scene (thankfully witnesses got the license plate number).     The police officer said I was so visible I actually attracted the drunk driver, since they tend to drive toward what they are looking at.  Back in the ambulance, once again relying on my Road ID. 

Needless to say, my Road ID is as normal a part of getting dressed as my shoes are.  I never leave home without it.   If you think you don’t need one because you are always cautious in your activities, let my experiences be a lesson.  It has little to do with you and your level of personal safety – you simply cannot control the external factors. 

I got my first Road ID, a wrist Sport version, about nine years ago.   It had my name, emergency contact info, and allergies on it.   I wore it running, biking, swimming, camping – basically it went wherever I went.  It is a comfortable mesh fabric with a Velcro closure and a stainless steel info plate.  It is indestructible - you would think the fabric or Velcro would fail at some point, but it never wore out.  I replaced it only because Road ID kept coming up with great, new product. 

My current Road ID is the wrist Elite, which has a thinner, rubberized band, and a clasp much like a watch.  I tend to wear this sleeker one daily, regardless of whether I’m heading out for groceries or a 20 mile run. 

I happen to prefer the wrist ID, but they offer shoe, ankle, and military-dog-tag styles as well. 

For me, the most significant development for Road ID since I’ve owned it is the Interactive option.  This allows you to put your basic info on the plate, and manage an entire medical and contact profile on a website that can be accessed by emergency personnel.   When this option was introduced, I enrolled immediately (it costs a mere $10 per year).   By wearing this small wristband, I am actually carrying around multiple emergency contacts, my bloodtype, medical history, physicians, treatment preferences, even info about my son in case I’m in a car accident with him.   And I can update it anytime I want, as often as I need to. 

Everybody should own a Road ID because it’s just smart.  In fact, if I were a race director, I would make the Road ID mandatory for participants. 

Lastly, I love the personal aspect of the Company.  As a Road ID customer, you get communication straight from the owners, Ed and Mike Wimmer, a father and son team who founded the company because they genuinely care about the safety of other outdoor enthusiasts.   I try to spend my limited funds with companies that have heart, and this one certainly does. 

The Wrist ID Sport is $19.99, and the Wrist ID Elite is $29.99.    This is a no-brainer, folks.