MDLD, as it’s known, is a 100k(ish) fat ass-styled event held the Saturday closest to the longest day of the year. It follows the Mason-Dixon Trail (MDT) from the Rock Run Mill in Susquehanna state park north to the steps of Shank’s Mare Outfitters in Wrightsville, PA. The Trail Dawgs host this “dis-organized” run and…
10 Years a Runner
It was during the summer of 2012 that I became a runner. That’s not to say I had never run before. Back in the ’80s, I did 2 seasons of spring track (high hurdles). I had also done the random 5K and mud run with the (very) occasional training run leading up to them. I…
Capital Backyard Ultra Race Report
First off, thanks to Sarah (RD) and all the amazing volunteers who helped put on this event. All of your hard work is greatly appreciated! Capital Backyard is a Last Man Standing race put on over Memorial Day weekend in Lorton, VA. For those not in the know, backyard ultras consist of a 4.16 mile…
20,000 Lifetime Miles
Well, I hit another major running milestone this past week. After logging my 200th long run a couple weeks back, I crossed over the 20,000 lifetime miles threshold on a run last weekend. I’ve ramped up my weekly mileage over the past couple years so what took almost 6 years for the first 10k only…
Dead Legs
I’m not sure how I did it, but my legs are definitely pretty thrashed. I had just about zero oomph left at the end of my long run Saturday. Now I’ve done enough of these (# 201!) to know they’re supposed to be tired by the time I get to the end. They were a…
Locking Into A Training Groove
I’ve been writing a decent amount recently about training motivation. If you’re understandably tired of the topic, feel free to skip this post. If not, read on! My current belief structure is that motivation (or lack thereof) is our subconscious’ way of telling us when it’s time to ramp up/down our training volume. Wanna hit…
200 Long Runs
I reached a significant personal milestone last weekend when I finished my 200th long run. When I started out running, I built up quickly to the half and full marathon distances. During my first marathon training plan, I decided to define 20 miles as a long run. I had heard that you typically bonk at…
Tuesday: Hill Repeats
It’s been a little over 3 weeks since my last race. Time to get back into training. When I first started running ultras, it would take about this long for my legs to heal up enough for me to return to my base training mileage (40mpw +/-). The first week would see me hobbling around…
When your motivation to run wanes. . .
. . . run less. And when my motivation to write wanes. . .
Mindfulness as a Race Strategy
I should probably start out by saying I don’t meditate or practice mindfulness in my day to day life. I have no formal or even informal training. Frankly, this isn’t a topic that I’m really all that well versed in really. I’m much closer to someone who’s read a couple random internet articles than someone…