Michael: Rest Up, Ramp Up, Speed Up, Or Slow Down?

The jagged red rocks
Cut through the morning sunrise
Like an old man’s teeth.

Monday, October 29, 2018

Since I began racing again this year in April, I’ve run 11 races and am beginning to feel it. My last race was a 50k and, as a build up to a 100k in February next year, I had planned to run a 40 miler in December. But I’m beginning to feel a little worn out and feel it might be best to switch gears a bit and do a few shorter races that won’t be as mentally or physically challenging.

I’m still going to run a 30k I can walk to from home, but instead of the 40 miler, I’m going to run a 17k trail race in Orange County in December which will allow me to visit my family there since I’ll be working on Thanksgiving. I’ll also throw in a road half marathon in January. I hadn’t planned a race for that month, but I’m hoping the gear switch to the road and shorter distance will help keep my form up and will serve me well going into the 100k in February.

This is what my mind and body are telling me is the way to go right now. Whether I’d be better off building up to the long race with other, shorter ultras or not, time will tell. And that’s part of the fun of coaching myself and trying to go with my intuition at times instead of a strict training schedule.

Michael: Champion, Master or Grand Master?

Gooseberry moonlight
Tickles the dark forest pines
With beams of delight.

Tuesday, October 23, 2018

Through good genes, hard work, and the random kindness of the universe, I am now the RRCA 2018 50k Master’s Champion. I won’t get into the genes and work thing here, but the way the dice rolled last Saturday, seems interesting to me.

First off, let me explain the categories: The overall champion is pretty self explanatory. The Master is for 40 and over, and the Grand Master is 60+. Technically, it ought to be possible to be all three; for example, if someone over 60 would win. But either Nancy, the R.D., or the RRCA, or both, prefer to share the wealth, so you can’t hog all the prizes to yourself, and therefore, if you’re the Champion, that excludes you from collecting either of the other top prizes.

Saturday, at the Rocky Peak 50k, a 43 year old won the race. He’s the Champion. That left me, at 60, as the Master, since I was the next person over 40 to place. Personally, I feel the title of Grand Master sounds… well…more grand, but I’m very happy to accept Master.

Ultimately, I’d love to break into the top three again in some event, but all’s I can do is go out there, do my best, and wait and see what the randomness of the universe throws my way.

Michael: Misses and Modifications

The blackbirds flutter
Like leaves scattered in the wind
By a playful child.

Sunday, October 21, 2018

Yesterday, I approached the Rocky Peak 50k with a decent amount of trepidation; I hadn’t run a 5k in over a year, the conditions had changed, and despite what I thought was an updated and comprehensive checklist, I knew I was still bound to forget something. And I was right.

Fortunately, that something was minor - a towel. I like to have one on hand to wipe up after applying Tropical Edge before a race. I forgot because I was using a rental car. I keep a towel permanently in the back of my car, but this wasn’t my car. I instead used the give away race t-shirt.

As far as modifications go; because of the dry Santa Ana conditions and the high temperatures, and with some of the aid station being over 5 miles apart, I opted to go with a larger pack, from the Ultraspire Revolt to the Alpha 2.0. I’m not keen on using bladders for racing, and was considering the Revolt + a handheld, but I hate carrying things in my hand when running. The Alpha worked great, and because of it’s extra capacity I only had to stop twice to fill up, which may have been an overall time saver compared to a bottle system. Yet still, when it’s manageable, I’d prefer to stick to a single bottle pack.

Despite the expected high temps, it can still be a little chilly in the morning and I’m a pansy when it comes to the cold, so I originally planned on starting with a vest and arm sleeves, but as it was near 70 at the 7a.m. start, I ditched those.

I also broke one of the cardinal rules by using something new; a Columbia shirt that my wife modified for my skinny frame and cut off and reshaped the lower hem to give me easier access to a belt or short pockets. It worked to perfection and I’m happily planning to wear it for as long as it’ll hold up.

One item that only needed a slight modification was the one I was most pleased with, and in an ultra, what else could that be but shoes. I used the Hoka Torrents with Superfeet Green insoles, and my feet and body have never felt better after 5+ hours of activity. Normally, even after a half marathon, I can get terrible heel pain, but this combo has me very optimistic heading into 2019 believing that I’ll be able to manage long races pain free.

Michael: The RAD 10

Thunder shakes the dog
Whose fangs would bite the sky
If it had a neck.

Tuesday, October 16, 2018

You would think that having to drop your wife off at work before a race would put a stressful kink in your race morning preparation/rituals, but in the case of the RAD 10 miler held last Saturday, it all worked for the best.

For one, the race was 5 minutes away from her work. And not only that, but the hotel she works out of is pretty damned swanky with bathrooms that have very nice wood doors that extend all the way to the floor. That’s the best pre-race porta-potty I’ve ever used. Heck it even beats home base. And to boot, I could walk downstairs to the gym and grab a free cup of coffee on my way out.

However, that luxury time saver was a bit negated by the fact that the transition to the 101 freeway was closed so he had to do a little Waze navigating around that. Not that I do an extensive warm up anyway, but I do like to have at least a half hour to loosen up. That was pretty much negated with the detour.

So what to do? Apply Tropical Edge and hope the cream/placebo and massage would work better than a slight jog and some lunges - ala Trail Runner? I opted for Tropical Edge. And it seemed to work out just fine. I finished in 8th overall with a time of 1:12. Not bad given the rolling course.

Because I didn’t get a proper warm up I was looking for someone about my age who I could use as a pacer, and I got lucky in that department as well. A group of about 4 guys were paying homage to their buddy, another skinny grey hair, so I thought, that’s the dude. I’ll hang with him the first couple of miles or so and see if he’ll hold a comfortable pace I can use to work my way into the race. That strategy worked out perfectly. Turned out he was actually two years younger than me, but at this stage of the game we all kind of look alike.

Really also got a hand it to (pun intended) my New Balance Sonics.  I’d only used them before in a 5k at the end of a duathlon and wasn’t sure if they’d hold up for 10 miles, but I like them so much I’ll get it’s more upscale brother, the 1500 T2s, if the BOA lacing system holds up.

This Saturday is the Rocky Peaks 50k which would be a bit of a stretch driving wise to drop my wife off and use my favorite pre-race porta-potty. But I may just keep doing the RAD 10 miler so long as she works the early morning shifts at that hotel on Sundays.

Michael: The Freak Show (DMV Edition)

Luminous white spots
Emanate webs of color
Throughout the heavens.

Saturday, October 6, 2018

After work on Wednesday I returned to the DMV to see if I could amend my CDL application and apply for a Passenger Van Endorsement and take the test necessary for that. And within 10 minutes of walking through the doors, I was almost scared straight enough to believe that maybe, after getting a good look at some of my fellow drivers, I should stay away from the roads altogether.

Upon entering the DMV, there are three lines; the far left line is to make appointments, the center line - the red carpet - is for people who made on-line appointments, and the far right is where people go when they’re called to the counter to be helped by a clerk. Right off I was called out by an 80 year old in a track warm up suit for cutting in front of him on the red carpet. But he wasn’t on the red carpet. He was leaning on window 10 so I thought he was waiting for a clerk. I apologized and told him that’s what it looked like to me, and that seemed to satisfy him. I haven’t been in a fight and I didn’t want my first and last one to be with an 80 year old at the DMV. I’m not a tough guy to begin with, and telling my heavily tattooed homeys that I was in county for whooping an 80 year old’s ass, wouldn’t likely keep anyone scared away from me behind bars.

While still in line, I witnessed another middle age man complaining about the wait and that he wasn’t getting the proper attention given how much pain he was in. When the clerk tried to empathize, she was rebuked for not understanding, nor ever being capable of understanding. It was his pain. Inside him and him alone. It‘s not possible for her to understand. And he made that belligerently clear to her and most of us at the DMV. I wish I could’ve explained to him how much anxiety he was filling me with, but - by his own circular reasoning, I knew he wouldn’t understand.

Finally seated and with an appointment number, I watched an older woman in a long hound’s-tooth coat with her hand covering her face, pace back in forth and mumble nervously in front of the seated section of the DMV. How many trips to the DMV would it take before that was me?

But redemption and good luck at last! When called to the counter, I got the same clerk as I had yesterday. She recognized me and amended my application. I took the test, passed, received my permit and was out the door.

I’ll need to return again for an inspection and driving test, but that can wait for a bit. I have a 6 month window for that and I’m in no big rush to spend another day at the DMV until the nightmares from the past few visits have subsided.

Michael: Days and Dazed at the DMV

The taste of colors
Swirls in bubbles on the tongue
Like party balloons.

Tuesday, October 2, 2018

As a job requirement I need a CDL (Commercial Driver’s License); one with an endorsement for a passenger van. I wish this wouldn’t have entailed numerous trips to the DMV, but it has and it’s ongoing. Here’s how the process has worked for me, and in some instances, worked against me.

First off, you don’t get the license all at once. You start with a medical clearance,  then present all sorts of I.D., next takewritten tests, and finish with driving and vehicle inspection tests.

Initially, you get a permit and after two weeks and before 6 months are up, you make an appointment for the driving and vehicle inspection tests. This is where a careful reading of the newspaper print handbook becomes essential. And this is where the beginning of the bureaucracy and I parted company.

Since there was a small section listing the permit requirements, I thought I wouldn’t need all the documents for the full CDL up front. One of these documents is a S.S. card. Mine was in storage in Irvine. I needed it, along with a passport, and proof of residence. One visit down; how many more to go?

Yesterday, I returned with all the required documents, but for some reason, the clerk also asked me for my current vehicle registration, which they did not ask Kimme for, although we are both applying for the CDL. That was in the car, so no problem.

What was a problem was the DMV system going down just as it notified me that I had passed two of the required tests; the General Information CDL test and the Air Brake test. Are my results in the system or not? That’s the cliffhanger I’m in now. I was told I could wait but it could be between 2-4 hours before the system came back on-line. I decided to go home and come back tomorrow. Visit two to the DMV down.

And now again where I goofed. If I would’ve read carefully I would’ve realized I needed to take another test - the Passenger Endorsement test. I read where if you take the driving test with a van that holds less than 15 persons you’ll receive an exclusion on your license limiting you to 15 passengers or less, but I should’ve noted in a few paragraphs above, that a vehicle that seats 10 or more people requires a Passenger Endorsement qualifier on the CDL. Can I make note of this when I find out whether my tests are in the system?; will I need to start the whole process over?; may I amend now?; or is there a time frame I can do this in so I could possibly amend my application when I do the inspection and driving test?

All these and more confusing details are bound to ensue on my next, and sadly not, final visit to the DMV.