Training Log - Monday, November 15, 2010

Wow, what a great feeling to be back running, again. After taking a week off to recover from my failed 100 mile attempt, everything felt great. My knee pain was gone and, more importantly, stayed gone. There was no muscle soreness to speak of and I felt pretty good. This run marks the beginning of training for my next 100 mile attempt at the Rocky Raccoon 100 in Huntsville, Texas in February. Three months to prepare should be plenty as I already have the base from my previous training. However, I will take EVERY ultra race between now and then as a training run. No more pushing late in a race only to risk reinjury or deflate myself before the big race. Today's run was a very slow 4.5 miler around my familiar neighborhood. Flat roads with no elevation to speak of, perfect for a recovery run coming back from the worst pain I have xperienced running to date. I am still not sure of the cause, but I will assume that is related to overuse, running a 50 mile trail race and pushing late into the race just three weeks prior to my first 100 miler. The temps were in the 40s and it was great to run with my fiance and two of my usual running buddies together for the first time. Richard looked pretty good, going for his first run since his successful first time 100 mile finish. No one to run with after I dropped out at mile 60, he managed to finish his first 100 mile race without a crew during the night, without a pacer and without a running mate, very impressive. BTW, Richard, thanks for signing up to crew/pace me during Rocky Racoon. Your help will be invaluable.