Monday, March 3, 2008

PCTR Skyline Ridge 50K Race Report 2

A few days after a race I like to use 20/20 hindsight to capture the pearls of wisdom that racing provides. It is a little more proactive than my usual tactic of either wallowing in self-pity or celebrating a good race with a few too many calories.

By the way - in fifteen minutes I'm off to Pot Sticker King for some of those calories! But not before grabbing a pearl or two.

Summary
The target pace I chose was too aggressive considering the hip injury, sinus infection and the irregular training I experienced since the Woodside 50K. I was healthy and ready to race on Saturday but a more experienced competitor would have opted to start a little slower and finish faster. This is exactly what Jon Olsen did to great effect. I probably should have run 1:54 for the first 23K and in so doing I might have been able to give Jon a little more competition and finish closer to 4:09.

Splits

Out 00:55
Back 00:53
Loop 1 01:10
Loop 2 01:13
Total 04:11

What went well:
  • I hydrated well and used the first half of the race to fuel with gu every 30-40 minutes which helped.
  • I'm happy that I was able to run 4 hr pace for the first half of the race and while I fell off that pace I didn't blow up completely.
  • The hip injury (torn hip flexor and pulled glut muscle) was gone by race day.
What didn't go well:

  • Muscle soreness in the last half of the race was much worse than in previous races. This is most likely due to the pace of the first half and the lack of consistent mileage for the three weeks prior to the race
  • I need some injinji socks. Let's leave it at that. The rest of the race kit was great.
  • Sunscreen. I usually never forget it but did on Saturday.
Lessons Learned:

  • Consistency is critical to maintaining my race fitness. Even a few days off put me behind the competition.
  • More mileage will be crucial to compete with someone like Leor Pantilat or to be competitive in some of the bigger races like Ohlone 50K.
  • I love trail racing! Something new around every corner.

6 comments:

willgotthardt said...

You looked fast & smooth both times I saw you...congrats on yet another top-3, always impressive.

Well done, & nice recap (pictures are crystal clear, awesome).

You mentioned Ohlone, you in? Hope so, you'll fly that course.

Also, did you really go 1:00 on the first 14K loop??? Wow!

I struggled the first 8-10 minutes out of the gate, just wasn't ready for the intitial sprint, legs felt heavy...eventually settled in, pulled away and ran solo in a 6-7 minute gap the entire way...comfortable pace...came out of it healthy, no issues.

Looking forward to WTC.

Will G.

willgotthardt said...

[OK I see now it was 1:10 (14K loop #1), sorry about that].

Will G.

T Clarke said...

Thanks Will! Congrats on another great race. You must be pretty psyched to run so fast after such a big mileage week.

rdljon said...

Tom,

Jasper Halekas, Mark Lantz, Jeffrey Rogers, Rob Evans, Carrie Sisk, and others from my ultrarunning team are getting together for a run on the WS trail Saturday, March 15th. We plan on running from Foresthill to Last Chance and back(38 miles) but that may change depending on the weather. If you are interested let me know. It could be fun. I can give you details later.

Anonymous said...

Great race and nice report/thoughts!

rdljon said...

Tom,

Tentatively, We will be meeting at Foresthill at 8. The run itself takes 8 hours BUT we may meet in Michigan Bluff and Run to Last Chance and back which will cut off two plus hours. Runners will be doing varying distances so if you want to put in a four hour run, you could run from Michigan Bluff to the bottom of Devils Thumb and run back. I will update the going ons by the end of the weekend. It looks like it may stay dry until Saturday. I plan on running rain or shine. I hope you can make it out.