Sunday, May 31, 2015

Meeting the Moose

Moosalamoo summit itself doesn't have views, but this sweet vista is nearby.

I drove down to Ripton to check out the Moosalamoo Ultra course for the first time this weekend! One hiking app described the Moosalamoo Mountain trail as little used, and that seems true. There was one other group on the trail that day, three naturalists, and otherwise just miles of forest empty of people.


I started out from the Moosalamoo campground and headed down to the North Branch stream, and then up to Moosalamoo Mtn. The refrain from my ultra mentors in my head was, 'walk every uphill, walk everything that feels like a hill.' But does that apply when the entire trail is uphill? I walked as fast as I could and ran some of it, despite the advice. Moving quickly was also my best defense again mosquitoes, which was by far the most prevalent wildlife I saw out there. (Also a small snake, and the lots of scuttling away sounds in the leaves.)


Moving on from the summit, I descended down toward Rattlesnake Cliffs, aiming to get to 4 miles, or to the cliffs, which ever. Alas, the cliffs are closed through July because Peregrine Falcons are nesting there, but I got close enough to be warned not to go farther.

Despite the places names in this forest, I saw no rattlesnakes, falcons or cliffs.

Reversing back, I met up with the naturalists again at the top of Moosalamoo, and they asked if I always run instead of hike. Not hardly! At this point, I was feeling tired, slow and in position of a fresh realization of how hard a trail marathon could be. Ultra-hard.


Leaving the naturalists, I headed down Moosalamoo and quickly got lost. Not terribly lost; I realized quickly enough that i wasn't in the right place but I added a 1/2 mile in retraced steps before I spotted the turn in the trail I should have taken the first time. It was reassuring to know I could always just go back up to the summit and hang out with the naturalists until they finished their lunch and walk down with their help, but I was super glad to finally notice the split in the trail that had eluded me earlier. Triumph!


Crossing the brook near the start of the run.
Take-aways from this run:

  • Approx. 2.5 hours, 8.5 miles
  • 200 ft descent, 1000 ft ascent, 500 ft descent; then reverse back to start
  • It gets a little lonely in the woods; I'll try a more a more popular trail next time
  • My water pack worked well, no chaffing and plenty room to carry water, rain layer, food

Thank you, Beth, for monitoring my whereabouts and return time!

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

VCM race report

8 years of running friendship!
Great day!!

Beth and I ran the two-person relay, Erika ran two legs of a five-person relay, and everyone had a great day:

Morning meetup at Erika's apartment, which is located at the starting line (how great is that?!), was so perfect. We couldn't get over the difference between our relaxed, coffee-sipping, chatty pre-race morning in 2015 and our hyper-active, "WHAT ARE WE DOING???!" morning of our first marathon in 2007.

I got the first leg, and casually walked out Erika's front door as the gun went off, and hung around till I saw pace groups passing that were more my speed. I love, love, love this race. The happy cacophony of church bells at the corner of Pearl and Battery, the cow bells from spectators on Church Street, the long view of all the runners going and out and back on the Beltline - I love all of it. Even the parts that kind of suck.

I had a good day pace-wise, faster than I expected I'd be - fast enough that Beth had to interrupt her race-viewing and scramble down from Erika's roof to get to the transition zone earlier than she planned! I slogged up the hill from South Cove and was soooo happy to hug Beth and grab that medal!

I ran with Beth for three miles from the transition up Battery Hill (damn) and then wished her good speed for the rest of her run. I got on my bike at Erika's and rode out to the New North End for a short stop at a house party, and to cheer on runners; then rode back to Erika's and hiked down to the finish line just in time to see Beth cruising to the finish. And then Erika came in right at the same time!

Excellent weather for celebrating in the sun, and then more celebrating and Corn Hole at Karen and Bill's fabulous annual marathon party, and then still more celebrating with Jess at El Gato that night.

My total on the day:

Ran 16 miles + biked 8 + 1 Bloody Mary = my first triathlon

Me and Jess. (Yes, I'm wearing my medal hours after the race.)

Saturday, May 23, 2015

Two Things I learned from Deena Kastor

Olympic medalist and multiple-recorder holder Deena Kastor.

As if Vermont City Marathon weren't already one of my favorite weekends of the year, this year's race weekend went over the top due in thanks to a plum gig I scored: escort-chauffeur-gopher-personal-umbrella-handler to the one and only Deena Kastor. THE Deena Kastor.

(Let the internets fill you in, if you aren't squealing/swooning.)

This was a very easy job because she is a very easy person: low maintenance, self-possessed, energetic and radiating happiness. She shared her gift bag of hand-made chocolates with me, refused to let me do much for her (except for one exciting moment when I reunited her with her misplaced phone - thrilling!), and was generally a joy to be around.

I got to see her in action greeting runners, signing autographs, giving talks, answering questions, and also chatting up people incognito. Here are two observations I'll remember from my day with Deena:

1. She believes in something called histo-chemistry
In everyday parlance, this is the power of positive thinking. In Deena's world, this is conveyed in a story with lots of expressive energy, rapid-fire exposition and total conviction that the physical act of smiling triggers a response in your body that truly transforms misery into joy, and turns around your physical performance on a run. This is especially useful, Deena says, when you're struggling, flailing, not performing - force yourself to smile, even if you don't believe it, and it will make you feel better. I've never felt more convinced by the advice to fake it till you make it.

2. She is genuinely intellectually curious
Lord, but I do love to be around smart people, and Deena is smart. She is authentically interested in learning, expanding her horizons, exposing herself to new places and people and ideas. Many times during the few hours I spent with her, I heard her say a variation of, 'I've got to remember to look that up,' 'I want to Google that,' 'I want to learn more about that.' It's a good way to live, being curious about the world around you.

I wrote after meeting Meb that he's the real deal, and in many ways, Deena Kastor is his twin: her age puts her among the Masters, her accomplishments put her among the best American distance runners ever, and personal integrity is a relief and inspiration to people who've admired her running talent.

Learn more about Deena Kastor here.