Vermont 50 Recap

The Vermont 50 was hard and I moved slowly, but I finished.

Never running 50 miles before I didn't really know what to expect. A few weeks before the race I was worried about being able to finish, in the week before the race I stopped thinking about the distance and just accepted the fact that I would be moving for a long time.

Then race day came and I was up at 3AM to eat breakfast and get ready. I like to eat around three hours before the start of races to make sure that my stomach is settled and good to go once I'm running. For races with early start times that requires a very early breakfast. After breakfast and getting everything together it was off to the race with my parents and girlfriend Sonya who all did a great job crewing for me that day and were up and ready to go at 4AM without complaint which is amazing.

Then it was time to run. For the first twelve miles until the skunk hollow aid station I was running what I thought to be a very comfortable pace. The course was very enjoyable, lots of nice trails and dirt roads and all the hills felt very runnable. However looking back I realize it was way too fast. For most of the first 12 miles I was running with the eventual women's winner  and 4th overall Aliza Lapierre. I think I passed the 12 mile mark a little before 1.5 hours, too fast!! Just for some perspective on how much I actually slowed down after 12 miles, I ended up finishing 84th. Even though I went out way too fast those first miles were definitely fun.

Between Skunk Hollow and the next aid station I realized that if I didn't back off the pace I would blow up. I slowed and eventually made it to the top of Garvin Hill. The views were great from there and by this time the sun had come out and it was a gorgeous day. I continued on, then somewhere around mile 23 I hit one giant ass wall. Miles 23-32 were hell. Nothing felt right, every step hurt and I felt like I was making zero progress. I honestly do not remember all that much from this part of the race. Mostly I remember that I hated moving and I had the almost constant thought of just make it to mile 32 where you can see everyone, then figure it out from there.

I met Sonya and my parents at the Greenall's aid station around mile 32. There were definitely parts of me that wanted to rip off my number scream I quit and hop in the car to go watch football and drink beers on the couch. It sounds funny but something Sonya said really helped. I think she could tell I wasn't feeling it when she said "it's just a jog what else do you have to do today."

That's basically what I though about for the last 18 miles, it's just a jog keep going until you reach the end. Miles 32-42 weren't as bad as the last stretch had been. I just slowly made my way through the course, not worrying about getting passed and simply focusing on constantly moving forward. I didn't think about anything besides my next few steps and that definitely helped.

For some unknown reason around 42 miles in I felt great and ran the next five miles as fast as I could. It felt like I was flying at the time, but who knows how fast I was actually moving. Pulling into the last aid station around mile 47 there was a slight uphill and that was it for my great feeling and fast running. Leaving the last aid stop I shuffled along at an absurdly slow pace until I hit the 1 mile left sign. I managed to bring my legs back to a run for that last mile and cross the finish of my first 50.

The course and volunteers were amazing. All the aid stations were fully stocked with plenty of food and drink and every once in a while you would pass a homeowner outside cheering you on. I can't wait to come back next year and do this race again.

Brooks Pure Flow 2, My Thoughts

I love these shoes.

So far I have around 50 miles on my pair of Brooks Pure Flow 2s. Those miles are split pretty even between road and trails. While these shoes are not "trail" shoes I enjoy the way they feel both on the pavement and the dirt.

When I bought these shoes I didn't intend to use them too often on the trails however after a few runs I thought they felt great. I decided that I would try them on the Wapack Trail Race. They were fantastic! My feet felt great the entire race, I never had an issue with grip (although if the trail was muddy I may have), and they just feel fast. I have noticed on wet pavement they slip a bit.

For me, these shoes are very comfortable. They felt great right from the start, I never developed any blisters while breaking the shoes in. There are no spots where they feel tight, but they also never feel loose, they just fit. For some shoes when I really tie the laces tight I can feel them rubbing the top of my foot, not with the Pure Flows, I can crank the laces down and they still feel fine. There is a lot of room in the toe box which I like while the middle of the shoe seems to hold tight to your foot. On my first run with them they felt a little loose around the heel, however I haven't noticed that feeling since the first run. I may have just gotten used to the feeling of the heel.

They have a 4mm drop. I'm a midfoot striker so this feels good for me. The midfoot also has a good amount of padding. The shoes feel like they protect my feet, but also offer a really good feel for the ground. In short they are comfortable with just the right amount of bounce.

The soles have held up fine with very little wear over the first 50 miles. The entire shoe has held up very well so far, with no ripping or tearing, especially considering I took them over 18 miles of the Wapack Trail and snagged them on many rocks and roots.

I look for comfort in a shoe and for me these shoes have it.

2013 Wapack Trail Race Recap

This is a fantastic event that I very much enjoyed, but the course is absolutely brutal. It starts in New Ipswich New Hampshire and follows the Wapack Trail to Ashburnham Mass 9 miles away, then you turn around and head back.

When the race started off I dropped in just behind the lead group. I was enjoying running the downhill logging road and knew that this was going to be the only "easy running" for the day. Just when you start to feel good there's Barrett Mtn. I could still see the leaders until around halfway up the climb where there was a downed tree over the trail that you had to crawl under. After that I was by myself until the turnaround point at mile 9 in 5th place I think.

The climb up Barrett on fresh legs isn't too bad, I managed to at least keep a running motion the entire way up. Once at the top the trail turns into a series of smaller ups and downs as you make your way over New Ipswich and Pratt Mtns. These ups and downs feel a whole lot bigger on the way back though.  After Pratt you drop down to Binney Pond and eventually reach the first aid station. There was some flat running at this point, but for the most part your on a long slight uphill until you hit Mt Watatic.  I hit the top of Watatic and made my way down to the turnaround as fast as I could, the leaders passed me heading back up about halfway down the Mtn.

When I hit the turnaround point and aid station at the bottom of the mountain my first thought was, damn I really have to go back over those things. I felt pretty good up until this point, but I knew the way back was going to hurt.

As I left the aid station the next group of runners was heading in. I decided that I better save a little energy for the end of the race and hiked up the steep parts of Watatic instead of trying to run the whole thing. I was passed on the way up and fell back into 6th.  After Watatic on the way back was my favorite part of the course, besides one or two small climbs it's almost all a slight downhill on the way back to Binney Pond. I was tired and starting to hurt, so I knew I would not be fast going back up the final climbs. I gave it my all from here back to Binney Pond and it felt great to open up and run.

At one point on this stretch I caught a root and managed to fall face first into a mud puddle, which all in all wasn't too bad I suppose, at least I had a soft landing. I slowed down at the pond and saved some energy for the climb ahead. I was passed by another runner here and fell back to 7th.

To me the climb back up Pratt was the most brutal of all. I dragged myself up this thing praying for the top around every bend. I hit the top and my legs were spent. Those smaller ups and downs that were relatively easy on the way out became grueling now. I ended up hiking all of the uphills and running as fast as my exhausted legs would carry me on the flats and downs.

When I reached the top of Barrett Mountain and saw the trail head downhill in front of me I knew I was almost done. I happily ran down the mountain to the logging road which goes back to the finish. Once on the road you remember that it was downhill on the way in. At this point I began to curse and say a very many not nice things about hills inside of my own head as I shuffled uphill to the finish.

I managed to make it up this last stretch of the trail and finish right around 3:11, which was good for 7th place unofficially.

The post race was great with plenty of food and drink including pizza. I also received some beer for finishing second in my age group which was a nice little surprise! This race kicked my butt, but it also makes me want to do more mountain running. It's a different type of challenge than running on flat trails or roads. Hopefully I will be back next year.

Off the Couch!!

It's been five months since I've been dedicated to running. If I am being honest it has likely been nine months since I wanted to start seriously training, but it was winter time in New England and the couch was comfortable.  Those first few weeks of training are definitely the hardest.

When I started I was in the habit of coming home from work, turning on the TV and being a couch potato for hours on end. The habit of being stationary is hard to break. Those first few weeks thoughts like "I ran yesterday, it's fine if I take today off", or "a few pushups after work is good right, I don't need to run tonight", were constantly running through my head.

Then somewhere in that first month something happens, you start to look forward to your run all day. Days off feel strange and during down weeks when you know you really do need two or three days off in a row to rest or recover, you have to keep reminding yourself that you shouldn't run today, but the urge to get out there nags you all day long.

I'm not going to say running is some miracle drug that will solve all your problems. I know that many people simply do not enjoy running and no matter how much they forced themselves to run it may never become fun for them. For me however I know that I always feel better after a run then I did before.  Even the worst run makes me feel better once I am done with it. Since I have been running higher mileages I feel calmer and more comfortable throughout the rest of my day, it takes more to make me angry and less to make me laugh. For me running works and I'm glad I got off the couch.

About Me

This blog is being created as a place to talk about running, any and all kinds, training and anything else that may come up. I do not think all of my non-running friends would appreciate me constantly posting on Facebook or talking all night about a new trail I discovered, so I've decided to do so here where all those who are interested can see.

My name is Matt Smith and I started running in college. The introduction to trail races for me came when a few friends convinced me to run my first ever race, the Jay Mountain Marathon. It was brutal, but I loved it anyways.  For the next couple of years I did a handful of road and trail races and enjoyed getting out on the trails every day which always seemed to clear my head and wash away the stress of the day.

Then slowly running became less important. I struggled through a series of small injuries and all of a sudden I wasn't in college anymore and had a full time job to focus on.  I would still run, but almost only as an afterthought, maybe running ten miles a week in two or three mile jogs.

Then this spring, likely around four years since the last time I trained for a race, I decided I would do the Wachusett Mountain Race (Part of the New England Mountain Series).  I ran maybe 20-30 miles a week leading up to it and it kicked my butt, but I was hooked again and I've been training as hard as I can ever since. I'm signed up for the Vermont 50, which is now only around a month away. I feel nervous and excited all at once and can not wait to see if all my hard work will enable me to run the 50 somewhat respectably.