How many miles did you run today?

[Fueco]

15 gravel miles on my cyclocross bike.

 

[jbarwick]

6.7 miles in the neighborhood yesterday. Weather was perfect and I am enjoying temps not in the 90s

 

[jbarwick]

So I just got word I lottery'd into The Barkley Fall Classic next weekend so plans have changed. I forgot I signed up late last year. I am so woefully unprepared for the likely 10hrs it is going to take me.

 

[sugarbutch]

Two guys got flats, and the guy I waited for passed me on the last couple of bends coming up out of the valley! Very rude… ?

 

[Michigan Planner]

So I just got word I lottery'd into The Barkley Fall Classic next weekend so plans have changed. I forgot I signed up late last year. I am so woefully unprepared for the likely 10hrs it is going to take me.

Is this the 50k version? I've always been intrigued by the Barkley runs and wondered how close to the cutoff times in the various distances I could get if I just walked the entire course? I'm not saying I am some sort of ultra runner man but I have to imagine my military training would help me out.

What's the elevation gain like?

 

[jbarwick]

Is this the 50k version? I've always been intrigued by the Barkley runs and wondered how close to the cutoff times in the various distances I could get if I just walked the entire course? I'm not saying I am some sort of ultra runner man but I have to imagine my military training would help me out.

What's the elevation gain like?

It is the 50K version. No GPS allowed and the course changes a little year to year but estimates are 30-35miles and 11,000-12,000 ft gain. Record time is in the low 7s so my goal is like 11-12hrs. One spot is a mile long, has a bunch of briars, 2K ft gain, and usually takes 1-2hrs. Usually hard due to one lane up and down the hill as the path is only cleared by the front runners. Half the people usually drop but based on Ultra Signup, there are a lot of complete newbies, older, and slower people. I think if I can run a little and power hike a ton, I will be fine. Current worry is there is a 2-3 hr section without aid stations so I have 70oz bladder and two 20oz bottles. Should be enough unless it is 90+ and super humid.

Today to check myself I hopped on the treadmill at 15% incline @ 3.8mi/hr which equates to 3K ft gain in an hour. It was a power walk basically and I sweat like hell but it was manageable. Going to do this over the weekend and see how I feel. Being outside you may get better air than stagnant air in a gym.

 

[Michigan Planner]

^ I didn't realize that the "trails" are that unestablished. That would definitely slow things down for me considerably, especially during the dark hours. No matter how bright my headlamp is, I have to slow waaaayyyyy down on those pre-dawn runs, and I'm running on smooth streets or safety paths. I can't imagine how much that would slow me down on an unimproved and overgrown singletrack trail with a lot of climb, descent, or some switchbacks.

It actually sounds like a lot of horrible fun!

 

[jbarwick]

Well the park itself has trails and a lot of the race is on those trails. To keep the Barkley tradition, there are parts that are on the Barkley course so there is some off-trail sections. In the community there is adherence that you do not train on the off-trail sections and if you are caught by a ranger, you are banned from any of the races for life. The start is 7a and it could be a little dark and headlamps are mandatory. Cutoff is 13hrs 20min which is 8:20p and by that point you would need a headlamp. It is horrible fun.

 

[Fueco]

16 gravel miles on the cx bike. Good times, though it was 99 degrees out when I started. Tomorrow should be the last day with temps over 90 this summer.

 

[Michigan Planner]

About 11.5 miles this morning with the first half being relaxed and around 8:30/mile and then I turned it up for the second half and tried to keep it below 8:00/mile.

I didn’t run yesterday morning, instead I took myself to the park at lunchtime and did 10 pull-ups (x2), 25 crunches (x2), 15 back hypertensions, then 3x sprinting up the sledding hill, finished it with a relaxing lap around the park and then repeated all that 4 more times. I was pretty sore this morning but it was nice to be out there in the middle of the afternoon. The weather has been absolutely perfect lately now that the humidity is pretty much done for the year.

 

[sugarbutch]

Set out on a 67 mile group ride, but I had in the back of my mind that this might be a bit ambitious given my current fitness. And so it proved. I bailed at the Orinda BART station to get back to my car at just under 50 miles. I am giving myself credit for pulling the pin while I was still having fun instead of continuing until it was a slog. ?

 

[Fueco]

40.2 gravel and trail miles on the cyclocross bike. Many of my decisions on where to go were colored by just following the signs for a charity gravel ride that is happening today (the Dirty Buff). As it turns out, my ride was only two miles shorter, which is most due to the start of the ride being further south, at the University.

I got light rain for eight miles or so in the middle, so that was nice, especially after we’ve had temps in the upper 90s for the past few days.

 

[Michigan Planner]

13.8 miles this morning to give me 50.0 for the week.

I went out to the trail today and instead of doing an out and back like I normally do I decided to go out about 6 miles, cut through a residential neighborhood and loop back to the trailhead on a couple arterial roads. Well, I got into the neighborhood and then got totally lost. I had the route planned in my head but half the roads had the same damn name! I tried pulling up the GPS on my watch but my eyes aren’t good enough to see the tiny text. Oh well… I eventually found a main road, got my bearings, and made it back to the trail and ended the run with about the same distance I had planned so it didn’t really add anything on.

When I was back on the trail and on my final mile back to my Jeep, some guy running towards me stopped mid-stride to point at me and yell, “Hey! I saw you running at the park Friday!” My energy was waning at that point but somehow that gave me a nice little boost for a final push!

 

[Dusty Heaters]

10/06-10/12 Training Update: 60 miles. Decided to start taper 4 week out.

Monday: 7.7mi, 8:05/mi, 124BPM
Tuesday: 8.1mi, 8:00/mi, 125BPM
Wednesday: 10mi, 7:03/mi, 146BPM. 3mi threshold, 2mi threshold, 1mi V02 max. 1mi rec. jogs in-between sets.

• Working Sets: 6:21, 6:20, 6:27 (6:23/mi avg). 6:28, 6:23 (6:25/mi avg). 5:57

Thursday AM: 7.5mi, 8:13/mi, 130BPM
Thursday PM: 5.3mi, 8:32/mi, 125BPM
Friday: 6.3mi, 8:37/mi, 125BPM
Saturday: 15mi, 7:40/mi, 133BPM

 

[Joffrey]

1.3 miles this morning and a few times a week since starting from scratch a couple of weeks ago. I have never been a runner so gradually working my way up to running around 3-4 miles comfortably this Fall. I just mapped a 1.7 mile route I hope to graduate to next Monday.