Quicksilver 50K (05/15/16)

There comes a time when you say you can wake up and do a 1-mi run. Then you work on your fitness and endurance. And the 1-mi becomes 3-mi, 3-mi becomes 5-mi, and so on.. you keep pushing yourself.

This was definitely a time where I was like.. "I can wake up and do a 50K."

2016 training was going nowhere and it needed a kickstart. Spring run got me thinking about it. And then I was looking for local 50K races to sign up for. Boom. Quicksilver 50K pops up and there were never a second thought. Who can say no to a race pretty much in your backyard. The proximity of the race from home made it a no-brainer, and I signed up for it. This would be the start of my long running season ahead.

Soon I found out that Nattu (100K), Dennis (100K), Reshu & Bipul are also signed up for it! I never knew the race was so popular! Apparently one of the few 100Ks that are qualifiers for Western States 100!

A quick look at the trail elevation map at least got me mentally prepared for the task ahead. Uh-oh. What did I do? Good thing though - it had a 14-hr time limit. (While the cutoff for 100K was 17-hr!) Luckily for me, Reshu was going to run this with me. So, I just had to follow her lead. The goal for this race was to get some hours on my feet.

I grabbed a running camelbak from Vinod, who advised me to use up the entire 14-hr limit. I nodded. He asked Reshu to not let me run off. :-) In a conversation with Nikhila earlier, I set up an expectation that a 10-hr finish would be good. At the end of it all, just decided to listen to the body and see how it went.

The race was so pretty! It had wild flowers and some wild hills. And the support was terrific. And with constant support and guidance from Reshu, it was so enjoyable! Definitely recommended race. At the end of it, I crossed the finish line running in about 10.5hrs! Seemed like a pretty good finish!!

Things I learnt from the race:
- Watch out for signs of soreness/tightness early enough & keep stretching as required
- Keep moving forward, one step at a time, regardless how much you want to just stop
- Eat, drink, move!

And 2016 is underway!!

The World's Toughest Mudder - Preamble

While training for ironman in 2013, I was invited by Santhosh to join him and his friends. They were doing this 'tough mudder' in Tahoe and I totally jumped at the opportunity. We did a gladiator run for practice locally in San Jose. And then we went to Tahoe to do the tough mudder event.

What's a tough mudder?
Tough mudder is basically a mud run / obstacle course. There are different kind of challenges along the way: something like -- monkey bars, lifting logs, climbing a rope, running fast and crossing over a high obstacle, jumping over obstacles, walking through ice completely submerged for a bit, jumping INTO water from more than 10 ft above, walking through live electricity wires. It is a challenge. But the good thing is that there's a lot of camaraderie. And it's a good fun event for team building or to do it as a group. A loop is typically about 5-6mi.

The Tahoe tough mudder was on the slopes of Northstar Ski Resort. Of course during the off season. So it was a hilly course, nevertheless, quite a fun one.

WTM
Sometime down the line, in one of their promotional emails, Tough Mudder sends some information about "World's Toughest Mudder" - do as many 5-6mi loops as possible in 24hrs. I got excited. And registered for it. :-) I registered for 2015. But 2015 wasn't a good year. So I extended the registration forward to 2016. It's basically an obstacle ultra run. (Ultra = ultramarathon = any run greater than 26.2mi.)

WTM 2016 - Preparation
The first few months of 2016 were spent getting more serious about the race - research and mental preparation. I ran into some really inspiring websites. I tried contacting some folks on the blogs but no cigar. Since I don't know anyone who is doing the WTM this year, these blogs/notes I found will be my inspiration.

After reading through some of the blogs, I could understand the challenge ahead. Some of the training practices that caught my attention in them:
- not using heater until the temperature went below 40F (getting used to cold)
- trying different wetsuits for run (it could get pretty cold at night)
- figuring out the correct gear (shoes, wetsuit, sleeping bags, etc.)
- pull ups or just hanging on to a bar (to improve arm strength)
- incorporating obstacles during the run : running/burpees/running/pushups/running.. so on.. (course specific training)

All these aspects of training are new to me. In order to get there, I figured, I need to first get the running endurance part out of the way. The confidence from that will likely help me focus on the other aspects of the race.

As in 2013 (when I signed up for multiple races along the way towards my first ironman race), I am going to train for some races along the way towards my first WTM!

I have to be an ultramarathon runner first before doing an ultra with obstacles! One easy (if there's something like an easy 100mi) 100-miler to train for is the Run de Vous in August. It has a flat course option and one can set up tent at the start point. It will be a good training for setting up the base at WTM as well. Having a successful run here would give me 3 good months of WTM-specific training afterwards.

Rock. And. Roll.

Let's start.. 2016..

So.. what next? That is what I wondered after my iron-distance triathlon. Okay, that was way back in 2013! That sounds so lame, even to myself!!

As lame as it sounds though, yea, that was what it was.

The funny thing about goals is.. once you accomplish something you have striven for, there's this void you feel. Because you haven't really given a thought about what after. Time doesn't stop for anybody, and if you don't want to stop for anytime either, you better have something lined up next already. :-) And I don't mean something like "run-drive 2hrs-play scrabble-drive back-run at night-play scrabble in day-run" event.

Since 2013, I have kinda wondered what next. For 2014 I had registered for IMLT (for redemption) but I wasn't fully convinced I wanted to do it. The registration happened before The Great Floridian. Well, the lack of intent showed up in how well 2014 was. A bunch of DNF's (did not finish'es) resulted. For 2015, I registered for a race called 'World's Toughest Mudder.' But I promptly cashed in my 'Life Got In The Way' card! I did get in some nice hikes and backpacking and long bike ride experiences though! :)

So come 2016 - at least I was clear about one thing. I am done with road races. Too much money! And I can plan a route myself and do it. Why pay? With trail runs though, the support is totally worth it! And awesome support as well from my limited experience of going to a few of them.

So, it's settled. Trail runs is the way forward. About time for something new too. After the backpacking experience of 2015 that was totally inspirational, trails are the way to go. :) One of the good things about 2015 was I could postpone my WTM registration to 2016. And it was not a road race.

What is World's Toughest Mudder? It is something totally insane! I am fairly used to crazy, but this seems crazy even to me. It is a 24-hr race which involves doing as many tough mudder loops which involve stuff like lifting logs, walking through ice, jumping off a 20ft-high plank into water and swimming. And this, round the clock! I am scared. Of jumping into water at night! And I haven't found any company for what seems like totally off-the-charts adventure! :)

The good thing though, is that, I have time. Precisely 6 months.