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| Heading towards the peak of Hamilton Mountain on May 30th, 2015 (w/ Bredan's head) |
Training
I know—5 weeks ago I did compete in a 50k and PRed, which was very surprising to me. As discussed in a previous post, Brendan and I recognized that we have gained a significant amount of strength in our trail running over the past 3 years so a decent foundation exists. That said, a nagging left shin ailment (I'm not sold that it is shin splints) has hindered a bit of the running, cross-training with mountain athlete, and yoga I had become accustomed to. So...rest. Stretching. And no, I'm not pain free, but 2 weeks ago Brendan and I went out to scout the course and my legs held up, which was promising.
While training prior to the Smith Rock Ascent 50k on May 10th consisted of a progression of longer time-based hilly trail runs on the weekends and 3-4 shorter 4-8 mile runs during the weeks on mostly flat, but some mild hills, the past 5 weeks has consisted of primarily an 8-12 mile trail hill run on weekends, and one or two 4-7 mile weekday runs. Stretching has happened daily in keeping my body loose, but due to the nagging pains the yoga and mountain athlete have been reduced.
On Saturday, May 30th, Brendan and I took to the course for the Beacon Rock 50k to scout the route and to set our expectations. Come Saturday I will be competing, and Brendan will be volunteering for Rainshadow Running as a volunteer, sweeping the 50k route.
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| Brendan looking out over the Columbia River Gorge from The Saddle |
Scouting the Course (May 30th, 2015)
Featuring two 25k loops in Beacon Rock State Park including the Hardy Creek, Hardy Ridge, and Hamilton Mountain trails, this course gains approximately 7400ft of gain on both runnable and power-hikable trails. When Brendan and I took the course to scout, we missed the first 0.8 miles of road and started out at the Equestrian Trailhead. The first 2.5-3 miles were a gradual, mostly runnable climb on both single track and dirt/rocky roads leading up to a mile of steep switchbacks which was then followed by about 3 miles of mostly downhill to the junction with the Hamilton Mountain Trail...then we went up. The next 2 miles seemed mostly power-hikable unless you're a pro to the top of Hamilton Mountain. From there, the remaining 5 miles or so to the Equestrian Trailhead were mostly runnable.
The 0.8 miles from the start to the Equestrian Trailhead seems to be mostly downhill from the start...meaning we'll finish the last 1+ kilometers gaining elevation to the finish.
Overall the course was in fairly good shape. Around mile 3 of the loop, for about a mile, was covered in knee-high grass and about .25 miles up from the Hamilton Mountain Trail junction there was a potential trail hazard with a downed tree leaning on another tree across the trail.
Having done about 13.9 miles of this trail in advance definitely brought a level of confidence to my preparation and ability to complete the whole 50k. Who knows, maybe I'll be fortunate and challenge my PR from the Smith Rock Ascent 50k...that would be a stretch...the 7400 ft of gain is about 3200ft greater than that from Smith Rock but Beacon is not at altitude and is really only exposed to the sun for long stretches at the peaks of the Hardy Ridge trail and Hamilton Mountain/The Saddle.
This training run was powered by:
- Nuun Energy/Active and Plus for Nuun
- Saucony Peregrine 4
- BodyGlide
- Clif Shots
- Clif Shot Bloks
- Sesame Seed Candy Bars
Alright! It's Friday, June 12th and the race is tomorrow! Time to hit the road!
Featuring two 25k loops in Beacon Rock State Park including the Hardy Creek, Hardy Ridge, and Hamilton Mountain trails, this course gains approximately 7400ft of gain on both runnable and power-hikable trails. When Brendan and I took the course to scout, we missed the first 0.8 miles of road and started out at the Equestrian Trailhead. The first 2.5-3 miles were a gradual, mostly runnable climb on both single track and dirt/rocky roads leading up to a mile of steep switchbacks which was then followed by about 3 miles of mostly downhill to the junction with the Hamilton Mountain Trail...then we went up. The next 2 miles seemed mostly power-hikable unless you're a pro to the top of Hamilton Mountain. From there, the remaining 5 miles or so to the Equestrian Trailhead were mostly runnable.
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| Reaching the first significant peak along the Hardy Ridge Trail |
Overall the course was in fairly good shape. Around mile 3 of the loop, for about a mile, was covered in knee-high grass and about .25 miles up from the Hamilton Mountain Trail junction there was a potential trail hazard with a downed tree leaning on another tree across the trail.
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| A downed tree leaning on another one precariously over the trail heading up the Hamilton Mountain |
Having done about 13.9 miles of this trail in advance definitely brought a level of confidence to my preparation and ability to complete the whole 50k. Who knows, maybe I'll be fortunate and challenge my PR from the Smith Rock Ascent 50k...that would be a stretch...the 7400 ft of gain is about 3200ft greater than that from Smith Rock but Beacon is not at altitude and is really only exposed to the sun for long stretches at the peaks of the Hardy Ridge trail and Hamilton Mountain/The Saddle.
Thanks to Brendan Soule for recording the video below. After watching this video for the first on something other than my phone and with the audio on I feel like it belongs in some weird, independent, thriller film.
This training run was powered by:
- Nuun Energy/Active and Plus for Nuun
- Saucony Peregrine 4
- BodyGlide
- Clif Shots
- Clif Shot Bloks
- Sesame Seed Candy Bars
Alright! It's Friday, June 12th and the race is tomorrow! Time to hit the road!
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| Race gear for tomorrow, June 13th 2015...how have I not learned how to pack efficiently for race weekends after years of doing this? |
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