La Sportiva Vertical K Review

 I received the Vertical K's on February 28th and when I pulled them out of the box, I just could not wait to get them on and hit the trail. They are feather light and very flexible right out of the box. I could tell that they would not require the break in time that other shoes, even minimalist, would require. Once I slipped them on, they felt almost slipper-like and I was slightly worried about the support in the upper for off camber trails. I was worried that my foot would slide around. The heal cup felt good and stable. The lacing was the easiest I have tried from Sportiva. It was very easy to get the right tension on the laces throughout their span. This, I could tell, would be beneficial in ultras with shoe adjustments.

Once on the trail, the traction and cushion were the first two items that impressed me the most. Most of my training runs start on a very steep half mile gravel road stretch. Unlike other minimalist shoes I have tried, I did not have the issue of rocks rolling under each step. The Morpho-Dynamic "waves" really help to grab the trail. They also allow the sole to flex, providing more cushion and eliminates the need for a rock plate. On the down hills, the cushion really was nice. Don't get me wrong, these are not some bulky, thick-soled shoe. These are a low to the ground trail racer. My next test was single track with some off camber sections to test out foot movement and roll. I was extremely impressed that my foot felt so secure. The reinforcement stitching on the upper really holds your foot in place.

I have put about 85 miles on these shoes so far and the wear is very minimal. The first trail race I did in these shoes was a great success. I also completed a very technical trail marathon this past weekend with rain for about half of it. The shoes held very well on the wet rocks.

All in all, these have become my go to trail shoe for both training and racing. Although I have not taken them on anything past 26 miles, I will not hesitate to do so. One suggestion I do have to anyone considering these is to go up a half size to a full size.

Thoughts for the coming year and races.

As I reflect on last year, I am fairly happy with what I have done. I had some good finishes, a couple of DNFs (did not finish), and some near DNFs. Overall, I did not "pick" the races I did. I merely looked at a race and if it sounded fun, I entered it. I didn't take the time to figure out if I could peak for the event. As I started putting my schedule together this year, I noticed that I was doing the same thing. So, now I am taking a step back and will make an effort to look at this year with purpose.
As of this week, I have some great support lined up for the year and do not want to disappoint. Each race I pick this year, I will figure in the time I need to rest and start training again. One thing I learned last year is that each race is different. The obvious is that if the race is hilly/mountainous, you train on similar terrain and include hill intervals. For flatter events, you work on your speed more. I did very little of the latter.
I am excited to start this year and my first event of the year will be the Rocky Road 100. Last year it was my very first ultra race ever. I was stoked with a 3rd place finish and under 20 hour time. This year, the event has attracted its share of fast runners. I will have my work cut out for me this year. I am figuring that this year I will need to run in the 16 hour range. That will be a full 3 hours faster than last year! The race if fairly mild with regards to hills and terrain, therefore, I have changed my training in the last few weeks to get used to running faster. I hope to see good results from that.
As of right now, I do not have a scheduled laid out. Once I do, I will get it posted up. I am looking forward to an exciting year with some growth as well.

Cucamonga Peak

 

This Saturday, I decided it was time to start knocking off running to the summit of each of what is known as the six-pack of peaks in Southern California. They are: Mt. Wilson at 5,712,  Cucamonga Peak at 8,859, Mt. Baldy at 10,068, San Bernardino Peak at 10,649, San Jacinto Peak at 10,834, and San Gorgonio at 11,503.

I met up with a group of fouor other runners at 6:30 am on Saturday to run Cucamonga Peak. The morning started crisp and clear and we had plans to actually try to do two peaks by including Ontario Peak, the smaller sister to Cucamonga Peak. With the warm weather in Southern California recently, we didn't see snow/ice until near Icehouse Saddle at close to 7,000 feet. Once past Icehouse Saddle, the snow cover was very icy. It took us longer than expected to reach the summit due to the slippery conditions. Even with Yaktrax and spikes, each foot step had to be carefully placed. Once at the summit, there was no snow at all due to the exposure of all day sun. The winds here can get very strong too, but for us, it was nice and calm. The views were awesome and we spent a little time taking it all in. We determined that trying to hit Ontario Peak would be too much for the day since the ice was making it very slow going, so we just decided to head back down. The decent was fairly safe, I only ended up on my rump once and slid a few feet like I was on a sled. Total run was 16 miles with 6,100 total vertical feet round trip. This was a great trip with great people and I'm looking forward to hitting the other peaks in the coming weeks. 

 

Chimera 100K

On Saturday, November 19th, at first light, the Chimera 100K began. The day started out overcast, and slightly chilly. It was perfect running weather. I had a goal for the day to break the top time on the course of 14 hours and 20 minutes. My plan was simple: start out easy and just keep a steady pace throughout the race. At the end of the first 10 miles I was sitting in about 19th place and felt good with that knowing that others may have started out fast. At around mile 13 we began a decent of nearly 5 miles and 2500 feet elevation loss. The trail was a single track, rocky, and technical in some spots. I was able to catch two runners through this section. The next section is where the climbing of the race really began. We ascending roughly 3,800 feet in 7 miles. Again, I was able to pick off a few more runners. By the next aid station at 30 miles, I was sitting in 7th place. So far my strategy was working and I was still feeling really strong. The next section of the course was another long downhill. While downhills may seem like a rest, they begin to take a toll on your quads. During this decent, I was able to pick up one more place and move into 6th. For the next 12 miles, he and I would trade positions which helped the miles pass a little quicker. Following the downhill section was a 3 mile single track climb that seemed straight up. I took it easy here, knowing that all the elevation I gave back on the downhill would have to come back. For the next 14 miles, we ascended the 3,700 feet back up to the 5,500 foot peak. At the aid station at mile 48, I was still sitting in 6th place. I knew that I had better pick up the pace or I will never catch the other runners. As night fell, the course took us down a very steep and technical single track. A few times, I nearly ran off the trail due to the slippery rocks and sand. Night also brought on the cold. All day we had been running in and out of the clouds and through intermittent light rain. Thankfully I picked up my vest at the 48 mile aid station. Once down the steep single track, it was back on to the fire road for the remainder of the race. Still sitting in 6th, I pushed up each hill and began to wonder if I made my move too late. The miles continued ticking away and there was no one in sight. No headlamps in the distance, no signs of leaders anywhere. As I headed up to the second to last aid station indicating 5 miles to go, I ran into 5th place. Once he saw me he took off. I quickly filled my water bottle and took off after him. I seemed to be gaining ground on him on the uphills, but once we hit the downhill, he pulled away. At night, I have a very difficult time with depth perception and the rocks made it tough even with a bright light. I plugged away as best I could, getting frustrated at myself, but chose to be cautious rather than end up with an injury that could take me out for a long time. To save time, I blew through the last aid station. I figured with only 2.5 miles to go, I wouldn't need anything. With a mile and a half to go, the trail became asphalt and I picked up the pace again. Unfortunately, I had lost too much time. The final section was single track, and I had a great time running through it to the finish. I finished in 5th place with a time of 13 hours and 22 minutes.
At the Start/Finish line, they were grilling up cheese burgers and I could not wait to get my hands on one. After eating energy gels, and PB&J's all day, I knew it would be a real treat. However, once I stopped running it got real cold, so I headed to the car to change and warm up. I got into my beanie, jacket, and warm Mountain Khakis and headed back out to get my burger. As I imagined, it was fantastic!

Kudos go out to all the volunteers at the aid stations. The food selection was incredible and they were willing to help in any way possible. They even had warm quesadillas!

Final Thought:
Leading up to the race, I thought a time in the 13 hour range would be what it took to win, however, the competition was tougher today. Overall, I was very happy with the race. I felt strong all the way to the end and accomplished what I set out to do. Success is not always winning, but setting a goal and accomplishing it.

6 Days and Counting

My next race is the Chimera 100K located in the hills between Riverside and Orange County on November 19th. Touted as one of the toughest 100K's in the nation, you are either running uphill or downhill, no real flat spots in between. Much of the course is also run on technical single-track, so mental awareness is key especially later in the race when you are tired and sloppy.
My training up to this point has not been where I have wanted it to be, however, with a short 13 miler yesterday, the legs felt really strong and fresh. I am hoping that my endurance is there though. Last weekend I ran a 23 miler with nearly 4800 feet of elevation gain and felt good as well. That was my longest such run since September. There is not much more I can do training wise from this point until the race. As they say, "the hay is already in the barn." Now is the time to get mentally prepared and get plenty of rest.

Currently the course record is 14hours and 20minutes. This shows you how tough this course can be. The weather forecast right now shows rain on the day of the race. While I enjoy running in the rain and the cooler weather, this will add yet another difficult element with the mud.
I have been looking forward to this race for the good part of the year and am excited to see what this race will throw at me.

Endure the Bear 50K

When I woke up the morning of the race in Big Bear, I could just feel the day was going to be perfect for a race. After my shower and bowl of oatmeal, I headed out the door. Dawn was just breaking and the air was nice and crisp. As I started my drive from Fawnskin and around the lake to the Village, it began to sprinkle. This confirmed my feeling of a great day to race. While the start of the race was dry, the great day feeling held true. From the start, the climbing began. I kept it easy and "cruised" up the first climb. Near the top was a King of the Mountain banner for the 30K runners. At this point I picked up the pace and continued on through the first aid station. From this point until about mile 26, I ran alone. To my surprise, everything felt great. That is until I hit a long single track climb that I thought was much shorter. Feeling strong, I pushed the climb, but it continued on, and on, and on. Realizing too late that I just made a grave error, I slowed down. At the top of the climb, my legs were burning. I decided to take the pace down a notch to try and recover. About three miles later, 2nd and 3rd place caught up to me. I had no choice, but to pick the pace back up a bit. Not feeling like I recovered much from my mistake, I pushed on and stayed ahead of 2nd. On the single track decent, I kicked a root, slid and rolled. This seemed to be the last wheel to fall off. From here I struggled to keep the pace up. We had to run the long single track climb that I made my mistake on earlier for a second time. This time I would take it easy. Well, really, I had no choice but to take it easy. By now, first place was out of sight and it was me and 3rd. I was able to put a small gap between me and 3rd on the climb, but not enough to gain back the 1st position. The remainder of the race was survival. I kept my pace as respectable as I could for the final decent. At the last turn, I looked across and saw that 3rd was not in sight. Believing I had 2nd lock up now, I was going to cruise in, however, something told me not to. I picked up the pace slightly. As I got closer to the finish, I picked it up again. When I heard cheering behind me, I thought,"should I be worried", but I didn't hear footsteps. I still picked up the pace a little more. As I was crossing the finish line, now I heard footsteps! 3rd place was right there! I still crossed the line ahead of him by a mere second!
When I crossed the line, both of my boys were right there. They came running up to me, excited as could be, yelling, "Dad! You Got Second!" They grabbed me and hugged me. This brought tears to my eyes, seeing my boys so excited.
My goal for this race was to place in the top three. I placed second and couldn't be happier with that.

New Challenge

What crossed my mind as an idea for a new challenge has lead way to a plan for that challenge. On my run in Big Bear this past weekend, I ran a trail that took me to Grays Peak. Upon my arrival, I took a picture of this sign and soon my mind began to churn.
Background on the Seven Summits of Big Bear:
Upon Jordon Romero's (youngest person to ever climb Everest) return from climbing Everest, he inspired the challenge in his home town of Big Bear for residents and visitors to climb the seven summits of Big Bear. These trails were organized and researched by Mountain Fitness Center and Big Bear Valley Trails Foundation. The website can be found by clicking here.

My challenge:
To run the Seven Summits of Big Bear in the shortest amount of time. Ideally, I would like to complete them in 24 hours, however, logistically it may not be able to be done since there would be a bit of drive time between some of the trail heads. Therefore, the goal is to set the speed record.

Summits        Elevation Gain      Miles        Peak       
Grays Peak           1170                   6.5          7920
Bertha Peak          1397                  7.0           8201
Gold Mt                1365                  8.5           8235
Delamar Mt           1538                  9.0          8398
Butler Peak           1435                  12.0         8535
Sugarloaf Mt          2552                  10.0         9952
San Gorgonio        4619                  24.0        11499
Totals                  14076                77.0     

When:
Since winter is not to far away, it will have to be within the next two months or summer of 2012. I am shooting for sooner than later.

I will update as plans begin to unfold/come together.