OK, one step at a time. First, I am in. Having failed to make it via the lottery, or special consideration, the Stevens Creek Striders have given me their Western States Bye, a single bypass of the lottery that they get as a perk for running the strategic Last Chance aid station. I am eternally grateful. Now I just have to make sure I don't screw up the procedure with Greg.
This is a copy of the 2001 web page. I'll modify it as training takes shape. I'm definitely looking to train for this one and see what time I can get. 2003 will again be run with the new section replacing the burned Duncan Canyon trail. I suspect that the course is a little faster. I'm looking for a sub 21hr time.
Speaking of training, Pierre Tardif and Sophia Lewis will either beat me into the ground or I'll be in great shape by June 28. I'll add a picture sometime soon.
Once again, so that Dan cannot accuse me of keeping secrets, all my crew notes, food and drink plans, pacer stuff, etc. are on this website.
I've made reservations for Auburn early this year. We have three rooms - two with king sized beds, one with two doubles, all no smoking and in the Foothills Motel. Sean is coming to help crew, and I'm not sure about Evan or anyone else who may help. I'll cancel one room or try and make changes if needs change.
I'm hoping that Laura Vaughan will pace me again
this year but she hasn't
responded to my e-mail yet so I will have to wait and see. Crew for
2001 were
(top, from the left) Lori Fagundes, Cathy, and Pat Heck.
Well, Laura V. has already committed to pace a friend but will run with me from Foresthill to the River - she declined to pace me from Squaw valley. Chris Luberecki has agreed to take the River to Finish leg. He comes highly recommended by Laura! Well, another change, Chris has a logistics problem and I will be paced by Judy Anderson. In the picture on the left, Laura is on the left, Judy right.
There are several crewing issues this year which I will cover in more detail in the Crew Notes. In addition to possibly running faster this year, the distance to Robinson Flat is shorter with the course changes. We will have to do as much cleaning as possible the night before to allow for an early get-away on race morning. If you do miss me, there is a second chance at Little Bald Mountain. I have, in the past, beaten the crew down to the river after leaving Foresthill. This year it's possible I could run it a bit faster, maybe 15 minutes for a time of 2:45. If I am early at Forresthill, it might be better to just have a snack and plan on eating dinner later. The quarry at hwy 49 will again be inaccessible to crews. If you want to read my notes about this from the last two years, I've moved them to a separate page.
So far this year most of my longer distance training has been with Sophia
Lewis, Pierre Tardif (both are running the race this year), and
Brian
Robinson. With the exception of the MiWok 100k, I'll keep most training
races at 50k or below. I'll also attend the Memorial Day weekend training camp
in Foresthill and will get some altitude
acclimation the weekend before the race. I have a well seasoned Crew and a
Pacer that is second to none. So, if I can keep under control at the
beginning and run smart, I could get a respectable time. But then a lot can go
wrong in a 100 mile run, so we will see.
The picture on the right, of Brian, Sophia, and me, was taken after a training
run to the beach mid February.
This year things are going to be a bit different than usual. Training has gone
well and is beginning to have a very positive effect. I've run a couple of good
10ks, MiWok was a bit disapointing though still a good race (I did win both the
50 and 60 age group). A solo run to the beach a week later and back to back
50k's (Silver State at 34.5 miles, Ohlone at 31) seem to have gelled the training
giving me a very productive memorial day weekend training camp. So, I want to
give myself every possibility of getting a good time on race day.
Now the biggest problem is getting to the start line healthy and not screwing up
during the race. In principle I will run the early part of the race on heart
rate, keeping it below 138, and let the training set how I will do. I won't
try to keep to any particular schedule except to walk if I appear to be moving
too fast. But, and this is a big but, I may have a shot at the course record
(< 20:33) if the weather and snow are kind and the race goes well. To give
myself the best chance at this I don't intend to waste any time at aid stations.
I'll sit down and change shoes at Robinson Flat but that's it for chairs. My
best prior time at Foresthill is 6:18. If I can get there by 5:00 this year then
a shot at the record is possible. Here's how I've done the math: Three
hours to the river gets me there at 8:00 (I've done it in 3:01 on race day and
ran 2:15 in this years training run). Four hours to Hwy. 49 (I've done a 3:54
before), and 1:40 from there to the finish, gives me 20:40, within 7 minutes!
(In '99 I ran from the River to the Finish in 5:35. If I shave off another two
minutes, and leave the River at 8:00 I'm right on the money.)
I'll walk through most aid stations and not take a break at Michigan Bluff.
Basically I have to make up 1:18 in the first 62 miles and some of that will
come from shorter aid station stops.
Based on what I already knew about nutrition, Lara and Bill Vaughn's talk at the
Memorial Weekend Training Camp, and a subsequent conversation with Bill, I've
changed my food plans from previous years. A want to run as much of the race
as possible relying entirely on Maltodextrin from GU2O
for drinks supplemented
with GU for calories. GU2O will be available at aid
stations this year.
Because I haven't experimented with this yet we need to keep the alternative
plan as a back-up. So tea, milk, eggs, Ensure, Häagen-Dazs, still need
to be available. Essentially there is the new plan (Plan A) and a back-up - Plan
B.
Once again, I will attempt to lay on Häagen-Dazs ice cream for Michigan
Bluff. When doing my pre-race visualization exercises, I picture myself walking
out of the aid station knoshing on a dark chocholate and vanilla bar. On
the run to Waddel Beach this always seems to go down well and gives me a lift
after I've eaten it. It should help with the uphill section before I drop into
Volcano Canyon. I'll get Dry Ice and the ice cream before the Race and keep it
in a small cooler. If I have a problem, Wortons Market two miles before Foresthill
stocks the bars but not Dry Ice. I'll get a bunch - extra for the crew, Brian, if
he's around, and Sophia if she wants some and comes through while you are there.
Runners to watch out for:
Sophia Lewis, #99
Crew/Pacers from Saturday group:
Scott Carr
We all highly recommend GU, "The Energy Gel for
Quick Quality Energy", and
Bag Balm, "Like having another hand on the farm".
Crew motto (courtsey Lori): Not a cracked teat amongst us
We also have team tee-shirts for our crew.
For those of you who are following the
"live" action on the WS website, watch
for the lime green shirts at the various crewing aid stations. You
can get runner progress reports, checkpoint information, and pictures. The
race starts at 5:00am on June 28rd and coverage should begin soon after. This page last updated on June 26, 2003.
Training Update and Plans for this year
Food this year
Plan A
Essentially premixed GU2O and I'll need to stock up
on GU, salt, vitimins, etc
Plan B
OK, The sandwiches and MET-Rx bars are out - they really are
too dry to eat well into the run - but I may need to try and eat something solid. Food
with some
fat and protein help offset the huge amounts of carbohydrate I get from the
GU. I'll cook up some hard boiled eggs, put them in a cooler, and see
if I can get them down. Tea always seems to work as a fluid change and some
milk should be OK if I don't overdo it. Let's keep a couple of cans of Ensure
handy as well. Despite Laura V's admonition to eat nothing but GU for the first
80 miles, it does seem to help me to vary things when possible and I still think
that some fat and protein helps digestion.
Stuff
This year, we do not have the untiring efforts of team marketing director Pete
Klebofski, so no lucrative sponsorships from Bag Balm. The crew can still wear the
distinctive GU/Bag Balm shirts, though.
Craig Heinselman, #242
Roger Dellor, #139
Brian Robinson
Pierre Tardif
