Clyde's Comeback!

EZ miles out around Silkwood then a Little Valley tour. Woke up earlier than planned and decided to go out. Good thing because I got a golf invite and had to be there at 7:30. I pulled into the parking lot at 7:30. Both the golf game and the run were a little sub par. But it was fun and free... and hot. Fly to SoCal this evening. 

EZ run up the beach trail here in Ventura. Basically did the last 4 miles of the marathon course. Temps felt pretty good and the humidity didn't bother too bad. But it was slow and short.

We woke to horrific news. Got a phone call that a close family friend to my wifes mom died a in tragic car wreak in NYC last night. My mother-in-law and nephew were in the city with them but waiting in the room. Her friend and her grandson were taxiing to the room from the airport when a garbage truck hit them killing the our friend, and the driver and injuring the grandson.

It's been an emotional day for my wife and her family as her mom is the only one out there with the grandson who was in a coma but seems to be on the road to recovery. Tragic for sure. I feel horrible even thinking about worring about running a marathon tomorrow. We just wish we were home and had our own little boy. Lifes so fragile, guess you just never know.

I have no goals tomorrow- just hope to feel good and get it over with so we can get home.

Never felt into it today. Just couldn't get going. Did't sleep at all last night- totally soaked my bed in sweat. Felt like I was sleeping in a garbage bag. Spits from the race weren't too bad but the effort was way too hard. Humidity was off the hook and I've never sweat that bad in my life. Was covered in salt.

Got caught at mile 25.5 and ended up second. Just kind of bummed all around. Can't wait to get home and see Myler. He's been at Gramps and Grammys house for 11 days. Too long. Anyways full report tomorrow when I'm home.

--------------------

Race Report*

The course starts in Ojai a smaller city about 12 miles from Ventura Ca. You make a 6 mile loop in Ojai then run down in to Ventura and then do about 5.5 miles up and down the beach front. So the course is semi aided starting at 700 ft and dropping to sea level. But you actually climb up to 800 ft or something. There's a good uphill from mile 2.5 to 5. Continual climbing throughout.

Mik'L drove us up to Ojai that morning. Our motel was on the beach a mile or so from the finish down in Ventura. Temps were just under 60 F. Humidity was like nothing I'd ever seen (while running). I did live in northern England for 2 years and this was very similar. Think, wet air. Almost like running through a membrane or something. In the car on the way up we had to keep using the windshield wipers but it wasn't raining. Just a ton of moister in the air.

Anyways got to the start with about 45 min's to spare. Hit the porta pod. Then sat in the car for a while. Then we did a warm up with another potty stop and it was basically time to start. Race started 10 mins late which was bothersome. Some guy liked the sound of his own voice on a megaphone and just kept rambling on and on about who know what. Finally I yelled out "lets go". He didn't seem too happy about being called out in front of the 1000+ other runners.

1. 5:35- Went out shoulder to shoulder with the eventual winner (Jay I think was his name) but by .7 I started to pull away.

2. 5:23- The first 2.5 miles kind of drop around the west side of Ojai before you start the climb up around the east side to make the loop. I just tried to relax and run smooth. But in hindsight this mile seems too fast now.

3. 5:28- Half mile downhill and half mile up as we start really the only ONE uphill section. As I round the turn I glance back and don't even really see Jay anywhere.

4. 5:43- My plan for the uphill miles was to stay relaxed and not force the pace at all. But I did want to keep all my splits under 6 min pace. By now I'm completely saturated in sweat and for some crazy reason my left quad is cramping really bad... just have to keep grinding.

5. 5:52- Steepest uphill mile. Goal was to keep it under 6 min pace and was happy to see a 5:52 when I felt like I was really taking it EZ. Mik'L met me at the end of this mile and top of the hill with my first GU.

6. 5:37- Start repeating the first part of the loop past the starting line and down out of Ojai. Just trying to kind of work into a smooth pace. The crazy thing is that this was the same leg as the 2nd mile and now that I was "warmed up" I was expecting to run it faster... but was 14 seconds slower.

7. 5:42- Same mile as the 3rd give or take. Not trying to force any pace just trying to conserve energy. But things just feel harder than they should.

8. 5:34- Take the paved trail out of Ojai and start the downhill miles to Ventura. Heart rate seems high and both quads are cramping.

9. 5:47- This mile seemed really hard. Didn't feel like I was going anywhere and was already having thoughts of the worst...

10. 5:39- Happy to see the pace come down a little on a section that wasn't as fast as mile 9. Tried to tell myself that things were ok and that we could do this.

11. 5:25- The best all out  downhill mile of the course. No rollers just straight drop. 

12. 5:33- Kind of flattens out for a few. Still a net drop but much less grand than the likes of mile 11. I'm hanging in there. Basically just grinding out every mile. Never felt good and just had to work for  everyone. But was happy to see that each mile would still come to me even feeling so blah.

13. 5:42- Fairly flat with a couple little drops. Hit the half at 1:13:30 on my gps (13.11). But when I got to the race clock half it was at (13.35 and 1:15:00). I'm pretty sure my watch was right and they were set up a little long. At this point Mik'L tells me I'm about 1:20 up on Jay who's in 2nd place and a long ways up on 3rd. So I kind of stop worrying about "racing" anyone and just try to focus on my own splits.

14. 5:42- Very similar mile to the last.

15. 5:37- I don't remember this mile at all.

16. 5:39- As I'm approaching the mile marker I'm thinking that I'm coming up to 15 and as I get close I see the "16" mile sign. Sweet! It was like a free mile. You think your at 15 and then hit 16 in a marathon... a plus for sure.

17. 5:42- Grinding it out. The course is just a 1% or so downhill through most of these miles. I'm super uncomfortable throughout. Just not mentally there plus physically really feel like I'm killing it every single mile... just cannot get into a groove. Heart rate had to be sky high. I did see a GIANT bullfrog right on the trail during this mile. The guy on the bike that was escorting me down the trial turned around and we discussed just how big that sucker really was. At least 2.5 softballs or bigger.

18. 5:34- This was a fast mile and I'm not sure why or how. Not any steep downhill just more of the same. I sure didn't feel like superman all the sudden. But I'll take it.

19. 5:45- Mentally just really trying to work hard til mile 20 or so. Wanted to get down to the beach and then see how I'd fare on the last 5.5 of the course

20. 5:52- I can tell that things are going to get UGLY. Hit 20 mile in 1:53:00. So with some quick math still think I can totally go sub 2:30 if I only hold 6 min pace....

21. 6:04- Mik'L was here with a drink and some chomps. But we missed the handoff and this really through me off. She had to sprint up and get them to me and between the handoff... trying to drink and chew... I just totally lost momentum.

22. 6:07- running on the road on the beach front. Passing half marathoners. I'm really, really not doing good.

23. 6:00- Past the Ventura pier. Think to myself "Clyde just dig deep here". "It's right there and you can go get it". But I just cannot go any harder.

24. 6:10- This was the longest, hardest mile in all my marathons. It was a turn around mile and as we just kept going farther and farther away from the finish line the mile seemed to drag on forever. I yelled at the bike guy "are we going the right way... shouldn't we have turned by now". I wasn't joking either- very concerned and desperate. Plus as the mile ends we did hit the turn around and all the sudden I see Jay (2nd) place guy only about 20 seconds back... OMH. I know I'm toast. 

25. 6:05- Tried so hard to dig here. Wanted to win. The day before the race I didn't care about winning. But now 25 miles into this death march of a race I wanted something....  I'd earned a win.... Jay catches me at 25.5 and hit's me like a brick wall. It was sad. I couldn't respond and that was the end of my glory. The bike escort that had become my buddy over the last 25 miles was so easily won over by the new guy. All we had gone through together and it meant nothing. I was the old cow and Jay was the new cow. New cows are better:)

26. 6:22- With the win gone and finish line in sight I just finished. Not grand not victorious. My heart hurt and so did my quads and calves.

.2  in 5:54 pace.

So that's that. A very emotional week. A long hard race. And a downer of a finish. Guess it's time to move on past this episode in my life. So glad to get home last night and see Myler. The last 11 days have been hard on Mik'L and I.

Looking forward to a little recovery phase and then I'll try to get ready to run a good half at Bryce and TOU... and that's that. 

Planned rest day. Wanted to relax after this race so I'll take a couple off. Legs are pretty sore though so running would be hard. I guess that's what happens when you cramp up at mile 4 and then keep pushing for 22 more miles. 

Did some comparison from Ojai marathon to the Modesto marathon. Keep in mind Modesto is basically pancake flat but had perfect cool conditions and Ojai has some downhill but had really humid, sticky conditions.  At Modesto I felt so in the groove for the first 17 miles then ok through 21 and really bad the last 4 for sure.

At Ojai I never felt smooth or in any groove. It was a total grind but even during the last mile when I was struggling I didn't feel as awful as I did the last 4 miles at Modesto when my stomach was cramping and I was dry heaving and needed to throw up.

Through the first 13 miles I was only 3 seconds faster at Ojai and after 14 miles my time was exactly the same at both races. And the bulk of the elevation loss is all in the first 12 miles.

Through mile 20 I was 43 seconds faster at Ojai

Through mile 26 I was 1:34

and the final difference was 1:54 faster at Ojai

So in review if I could run a race where I could feel good like at Modesto but not get sick and then grind out the finish like at Ojai... then maybe I'd run a race where I'd be totally happy with the results. Because things just never felt good at Ojai I never could use the downhill to really aid my time... otherwise I think through 20 miles I would have been 2-3 mins faster instead of 43 seconds.

I guess you can second guess things forever but this is kind of my review.

I didn't want to run today  but- After taking yesterday off and having no luck loosening up in the legs I decided to run today. It seems that time off is great but the only thing that helps loosen up my sore legs is running. So just took it EZ on the treadmill while watching PTI. 

Ran with Heath this morning over by his house. Did a loop through the fields. Ran just over 8 min mile pace with him but on the 3rd mile I told him to pick it up for a mini tempo. He hit that mile in 7:26. He's running great and getting in the miles everyday. Looking forward to seeing his progress thru Oct 6. Nice and cool out this morning at 57 F. 

Felt worse today than yesterday. On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the worst- I'd say I'm about a 9.5 at soreness and fatigue. Just dead in every part of my day. Crazy because after the Modesto marathon in March I was only at like a 4 out of 10. With this race not even being a full 2 min's faster I'm not sure it was worth the trade off. 

Oh well. Wanted to actually go shorter this morning but in the middle needed a potty stop and had to go on a little bigger loop to get to the closest stop at that point. No plans to run again the rest of the day. 

Same run as yesterday. Felt slightly better but still rolled a gutter ball. So so tired last night I couldn't sleep- I know that sounds crazy but it's a place you don't want to visit. 

Levins wins double titles at NCAA's!

In other uneventful news I ran an EZ half marathon this morning in a 7:06 avg. 

Looped around the DC then extended through LV. Quads weren't sore but they just didn't feel good. Kind of tight and useless. Cooler temps again this morning 60 F. But I think summer is gonna stop messing around and start using the brass knuckles. I'd take more of this great weather but it just won't last. 

Really a grind this morning. Started out doing one 2.4 mile loop around the park with our new big dog named "Ears". She was done at about mile 2 and so was I... brought her home and then went over to the river but the trail was blocked while they are repairing the burnt bridge so I looped back through the north end of B-hills and a little extension into LV. Just had to put one foot in front of the other this morning. Robotic, stiff and overall just felt kind of funky. The bright side is that we got another AMAZING morning for mid-June.  57 F when the sun came up!

Guys run here. Did one mile before the guys showed. Regular loop with the Circle of Trust. EZ and slow this morning. Good to get out one some normal runs after 3 weeks of craziness. Got home and took Ears out for another 5k. She was done after about 2 miles so the last one was slow. She had to stop for a potty in the street and then a drink in the gutter later on. 

Over to the river but the bridge was closed again. So back up the river and around Stone Cliff. This run felt like it was 19 miles and not 12.5 but that's how it goes. Did it all out in the sun and was pretty dehydrated when I got home with temp already at 80 F. 

Mik'L is out of town and I wasn't in the mood to push Myler out in the heat. Plus I tore out my driveway today and with the help of Shatch we got half of it poured. Big big day of back breaking work. I'm sure I burned more calories working than I would have out running 20 miles. 

Another day with Mik'L gone and I just didn't want to get up way early and get Myler up to push him in the jogger. So I guess this week is what I wanted originally after Ojai marathon.... a little rest and break from hard mileage. Spent basically the entire day moving the rubble from the old driveway and building a wall with it down in the ditch by my house. I feel like I need a body cast from my toes to my neck.... everything hurts and I'm only half way done!

DC loop. Out early. Mik'L and I had to switch running times. Now I'll go before her the rest of the summer. Which means I need to be home by 6:30-7. Not too bad of a run for a Monday. However after not running since Thursday it took most of the run to find any kind of stride and I had a lot of junk in the system. 

Poured the other side of the driveway today. Temps said it hit 106 F at the Little Valley weather station one mile from my house. But aside from the heat the job went great. Steve Hatch (Shatch) is a super craftsman and managed the project like a pro. I'm very thankful for all his help. 

4 miles on the treadmill this evening. 

DC then Stone Cliff back up to River Road and home. 7:15 avg. I wore the gps today to see just how slow the pace was. I don't care but needed a visual to clarify. Not as slow as if feels like I'm going right now. I think I'm still a couple weeks out from really feeling like rolling again. 

More work today on the driveway. Cut the lines in the second side. Lots of landscape projects around the whole area. And spent some time working on the rubble and ditch project. That one will take a while but a little work a day will start to show some progress. Felt dehydrated and kind of sick just after noon. Came in and showered off me and Myler then we both had a solid hour nap. 

4.9 out and around Silkwood this afternoon. It was sunny and very hot. I hated it.

Boys run at my house. Did .7 with Logan (who I found a sleep in his truck) before Dave and Hoopy showed up. Then the regular DC loop at so so pace. Not fast but not super slow either. Then when I got home I took Ears around the park loop for 2.4 more. 

It was hot this morning and started out at 77 F at 5:30 a.m and just got warmer. I was pretty dehydrated at then end and in need of some salt. 

4.9 out around Silkwood again. 103 F when I went out... you can visualize just how awesome that must have been.

DC loop then around Stonecliff back to River Road and home for 13.3. Then I picked up Ears and did the 2.4 mile park loop. Felt so so most of the run but started to get hot by the end as the sun came up. Once I got Ears the pace really slowed as neither one of us wanted to push it. 

2.7 miles on the treadmill. It was 107 F outside and on the street I'm sure it was much hotter. I couldn't go out anyways because Mik'L had a meeting. So while Myler played I logged some super EZ miles in the garage. 

DC loop early. Only needed 10 this morning and had sooo much to do in the yard. So I got up early and pushed through it. Temps were hot and dry. I normally don't get cotton mouth but today I had it pretty bad. Stopped for a drink at the DC and slugged the rest of it out. 

Driveway project is basically all done. New drive is all done- colored, cut, cleaned and just needs to be sealed. All the rubble and mess from the old drive is just about done in my ditch project. I built some big retaining walls out of them and then back filled to add about 10 extra feet to that side of the lot. Another couple hours and it'll be done. I just couldn't lift one more chunk today and got cooked up by the heat. It's been a long long week for Superfly. I can't remember when I've worked so hard physically before accompanied by a 100 mile week of running... when it's 100+ outside. I'm taking the boat to the lake everyday next week if the wind dies down...

20 mile run down the STG course from around 17 miles up the course down to the finish then back up the last 3. Hit a 6:07 avg for the run. Didn't feel like hammering anything today but hit some faster times. Got out fast as Steve and Aaron pushed the pace from the second we got out of the vehicles. So no real warm up just right into it. Only really happy that the week is over and I got my 100 mile week in for June. Now I just hope my quads handle this (the first real downhill training) good and that I can run regular next week. 

Sore. I didn't want to get too sore on Saturdays run down the course.... Backfire. The legs were super sore on Sunday. Even my calves which typically don't hurt running the STG course. Quads were sore to the touch too. So this mornings run was in question to start with. Took it super EZ but tried to keep the form straight and square. Was surprised to see that I ran the loop in a 7:05 avg. It felt at least a min per mile slower. Guessing the first couple runs or days this week will be semi recovery. 

DC loop then back around the park after coming up River Road. Legs were sore again. Saturdays run was one of the dumbest training moves for me in a while. I was barely only 70% recovered from Ojai marathon anyways... then went and did a semi hard 20 miler down the marathon course. Dumb dumb. 

So with the heavy soreish legs the run was a battle and pace was slow. 7:10 avg. 

4.9 mile Silkwood run. Hot and a pretty strong headwind made this a hard run. Plus the 3 chicken pot pies I cooked up and ate solo at lunch didn't sit well.

3 early miles

10.2 miles on the regular loop with Logan. Pretty EZ run and was pleased to see a 7:00 avg for the run. Quads are still very knotted up. I feel like Forest Gump when he has the metal braces on his legs and it just wont let him "go". I'm wishing I could break free from the soreness and tightness and break those braces so I could Run Forest run!

P.M 4.9 miles on the Slickwood run. Another hot one. 105 F and windy. Wind was coming from the west and this run is mostly north and south so the crosswind kind of helped cool or dry or dehydrate... not sure. Quads felt like it was the last mile of a horrible marathon. Guys- I need ya back soon!

Early morning run with Logan. It was hot out. At 6 a.m we were just about at mile 9 and passed the Summit Athletic Club. It was 6:03 a.m and 81 F. We both felt the need for a cool beverage and were happy the run was over in the end. 6:57 avg. 

Quads felt much better than last night but no where close to normal. It's just a day to day project keeping this ship afloat. 

3 more miles this afternoon around the park and back up into LV. Hot and hammered.

Logan came over early and we did the normal DC loop in reverse. No watch but pace was regular. A little cooler this morning made the run seem much easier than yesterday. Finished it off then got home and pack up to head out to the lake for  a few hours this morning. 

Got to Quail Creek and the water was almost glass. Just a couple other boats out. I went first on the wake board and hit a couple nice jumps as I was getting going.... then on my third attempt I got off balance in the air and landed funny. Either broke or majorly sprained my right ankle. For me it's the worst ankle injury ever. Swelling and pain. It's gut check time... hope and pray I'm not out. RICE- rest, ice, compression, elevation

Ankle was way too jacked up to mess with running. Swollen- black and blue. So long good time at Bryce...