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Ridgecrest 50k race report
I did my first and only other 50k at Mt. Disappointment two years ago, and after a dehydration meltdown at that race wanted to tackle the distance again. This year has been one of distance running for me (LA Marathon in March, pacer at the AC100 in August), and I wanted to cap it off with the Ridgecrest 50k being my "A" race. The race prep started on Saturday night, where I sadly had to leave the Pasadena Tri Club party by 9:30pm in order to wake up at 3:00am the next morning. I did get to hear one Red 11's song though! The race started at 7:00am, and since Ridgecrest is located way north near the 14-395 interchange it meant leaving at 3:30am. Unfortunately I made a major navigation mistake, and we ended up taking the scenic route and going further towards Bishop! Major props to Sue who was very calm, her iPhone Google map app saved the day, and we arrived to the race start at 6:45am. Luckily ultra check-ins are very low key, and after dropping our goodie bags off in her car we made it to the start to hear the race talk. A couple minutes later the few hundred racers were off into the desert on their 50k or 30k journey.This race had perfect weather, beautiful desert vistas, and aid stations with plastic santas and tinsel-decorated cacti. Ridgecrest is known for being cold at the start, but I was fine with arm warmers and gloves (which I ended up removing later).The vibe at ultra races is very laid-back compared to triathlons, and since athletes are going at a more moderate pace people tend to chat (which can be good or bad depending on how talkative you are). I ran with a local running friend from miles 4-5, and after a brief time running solo then started talking with another runner. He was a 60-year old triathlete/runner from Oceanside, and since his even pace was exactly what I needed the next 10 miles flew by. After saying our farewells we parted ways halfway through the race, and I was then on the hunt to move up a bit in the standings; I tend to take awhile to warm up in running races, and usually negative split. I was feeling good, and maintained a solid but steady pace. The race was only halfway done, and I didn't want to push too hard and find myself without enough in the tank later on.It was hard to tell where I stood because of the two race distances, some of the 50k runners started at 6:00am, and unlike triathlons there were no Sharpie calf markings. I was gradually passing people, and since I had all my nutrition on me I saved time by not stopping at aid stations. By about mile 20 the field had s***** out quite a bit, and I had my eye on a woman less than 0.25 miles ahead of me. She was so steady though that she eluded me for miles, and it was only until about mile 27 that I noticed our gap was closing a bit. I figured that this would be the time to make my move, and over a mile later finally caught up to her. She did not respond, and I then held on for the last few miles of the race. I started cramping a bit with one mile to go, but made it to the finish with only a few minor twinges. The woman who I had passed and finished right behind me came up to me afterward, and it turns out that we met each other before two years ago at Mt. Disappointment - small world!My statsFinish time: 4:33:35 (my previous time at Mt. Disappointment was 7:25:02, although with such significant course differences it is hard to compare two different ultramarathon races)Overall: 25th/263 runnersWomen: 5th/100 runnersWomen 30-30 age group: 3rd/20 runnersLink with more race info, results, and pictures if you are interested: http://www.othtc.com/index.htmNutrition: I love my Nathan hydration vest for long-distance running, and carry all my own nutrition. I do this in long-distance tris too in my Bento box so that I have the products that I train with, and have them available when I need them (for me I have found that to be sports drink every 15 minutes, and a gel/chew every 30 minutes). I drank 1.75 liters of my PowerBar Ironman Perform lemon lime drink during the race by taking a few gulps every 15 minutes, and probably should have had that last 0.25 liters to prevent the slight cramping at the end of the race. Every 60 minutes I consumed a PowerBar gel, and at the halfway mark in-between gels I ate 2 Energy Blasts gel chews.Thanks for reading, and for those looking to dip their toes into the ultra world I highly recommend this race. It is challenging but not too hilly (which many ultras are), cooler weather which is great for running, and late in the year allowing you to have a full tri season. This race is rightfully titled "The Friendliest Race You'll Ever Run".Here's to recovery,Nicole
Success = Running my own race
I had crashed and burned at the LA Marathon in March after not modifying my pace for the early hills, and I was determined not to make the same mistake again. Sunday's Santa Clarita Half Marathon was one of my "A" races this year, and I was out for a half mary PR. I knew what pace I wanted to run to get sub-1:35 (7:10 or slightly faster), and was going to stick to it.I started the race with two friends who were trying to go 1:35 and 1:38, but it became apparent that they were going to run 6:45 pace. I looked down at my Garmin, stuck to my guns, and executed accordingly. People passed by me, and I let them. I was feeling comfortable but still working hard, and knew that I needed to maintain pace in order to not bonk later on. I took my PowerBar Gels as planned (at 40 and 70 minutes), and executed my race strategy.I passed my first friend at mile 4 with some encouraging words, and then saw my next friend around 7 or 8. I had a few slower miles around there, but started to pick things up around mile 10. I was feeling good, and at that point realized that getting to the finish was the equivalent of just running around the Rose Bowl once. After a few short hills towards the end I found myself on the homestretch, and reached the finish line in a new PR of 1:32:53. Yay!Both planning and training helped get me to my goal on Sunday. For the past month I have been doing weekly track workouts with the Los Feliz Flyers on Wednesday nights at Cal Tech, and my speed has definitely improved as a result. I took yesterday off, and due to scheduling constraints had to do my 20-mile long run today. Surprisingly it went very well, and hopefully was a good indicator of things to come at the Ridgecrest 50k next month. It has been interesting training for both a half marathon and 50k, and I am curious to see the results of my next adventure.
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Surviving the LA Marathon, and making it in under the wire!
Members of the Pasadena Tri Club that I belong to often submit race reports to the group, and a member Sue recently inspired a limerick format. This was my effort in recounting Sunday's LA Marathon: There once was a runner named NikiWho trained well but at times it was trickyBefore dawn she often ranThus the lack of any tanBut she felt ready to tackle the 26.2 hillyRace day dawned with perfect weatherShe was pumped and had it togetherUnfortunately she crashed and burnedAnd through cramps she would learnThat instead of a PR finishing is betterMy previous PR was 3:30, and based on my training I felt that 3:20 was possible. With my time of 3:40:30 that sure did not happen, but I was grateful to make it to the finish line after the cramping I experienced. I was still happy with my time, and managed to qualify for Boston by only 29 seconds - that was close! In speaking with others at the finish a lot of people went 10-30 minutes slower than they expected, so I was not the only one who underestimated this course. It was humbling to see that I had actually done my long training runs faster, but anything can happen on race day. I had taken my PowerBar gels like I normally do (6 total), but realized that one difference was that I was drinking the water from the course rather than the PowerBar endurance drink I normally take. Could that have been the difference?The course scenery was awesome, and the crowds were plentiful and super enthusiastic. The net-downhill aspect of this course was deceiving, as there were some very significant climbs in the first third of the race; that probably contributed to my downfalll, as I was still keeping pace through that portion - oh well, lesson learned. My complaints were the parking situation (only allowed in Santa Monica, not Dodger Stadium), there not being enough bathrooms at the start (did anyone else make a trip up into the bushes?), and the common practice of people seeding themselves up front when they should be further back (I had to weave around tons of walkers in the first mile, although on the flip side it kept me from going out too fast). I would probably do this race again someday in the future, but will attempt other new races first. I am going to try my luck by entering the lottery for the Nike Women's Marathon in April - crossing my fingers!
Congrats to Katherine Reutter, Speed Skating Medalist!
PowerBar congratulates athlete Katherine Reutter who won a bronze medal yesterday as a member of the 3000m relay in women's short-track speedskating. The US women were originally thought to be in 4th place and out of medal contention, but when South Korea was DQ'd for impeding a member of the China team the US women were bumped up to a podium spot. Katherine commented, "Was the race a bit fluky? Maybe, but we did everything to deserve it. We got the bronze."So far in the Games Katherine was leading the 500m going into the semi-finals (and even held the Olympic record for a few minutes!), but then did not advance to the final round. Katherine competes next in the 1000m quarter-final tomorrow night, and we wish her the Power to Push!
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Team Elite Triathlon, Athletes/Active Lifestyle
I competed in cross country and swimming in high school, and ran on the UCLA cross country…MORE
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