I haven't blogged in over a month. I've been very busy putting in 100 or so mile weeks and preparing for the 100K. I raced a couple times in January more just for the glorified speedwork. The first one was the 2 mile xc run on very ooshy rainy freezing rainy snow on January 7th. I donned pink from head to toe for this one because it has been five years since I lost my mom to breast cancer on January 6th. I figured the least I could do would be to go out and win one for her which I did. Several guys and a few ladies wore regular track spikes for this thinking they would help as we all post holed along in the snow. HA! I just looked at them quietly before the start remembering how I too made this mistake ONCE in my first winter race in Alaska nearly 16 years ago. DOH- they don't help worth squat, you need spiked trail shoes. Lightweight icebugs saved the day and 1800m into the race I surged to win this one by over 20 seconds. I knew Mom was watching from upstairs so had to kick some ass for her sake if for no one else's. I miss her more than anyone in the world and get really bothered when people sometimes complain about their moms for one reason or another.
On the 22nd, I had another good mile at our indoor meet finishing a close second and hitting the All-American standard for a 3rd time this season this time by quite a bit. I was surprised my speed was still there. I was coming off a 167km week with long runs,long intervals, and tempo runs in there. I had done some killer workouts but recovery has been good so far, touch wood. The final mile in the winter series will be on the 26th.
On Feb 4th I raced the 2 mile again in the xc series at -25C mind you. The final is the first Saturday in March and so far I am now leading the series. I made a point to chick as many guys as possible because you get points based on how many people you finish ahead of-yes girls get points not only for beating other gals but for chicking guys too! I'm not sure how fair that is though because not all the ladies can chick the guys too. So the course is the usual 3 loops this time on packed snow. I donned my Skinny Raven singlet on top this time in true Alaskan style since it was butt cold. I chicked a couple few guys along the way and went after another in the final loop. With 450m to go and heading into the final uphill I surged after sitting on the guy's heels. I can't wait til the final 100 or so or I risk being outkicked. If I can open a gap early and hold on that's how I win things not by waiting til the final 100-200m. So up the hill the raven flew opening just enough to keep from getting caught at the finish. I felt kind of sorry for the guy because he sure was speeding up when I got on his heels trying not to get chicked:) I needed as many points as I could get though because the final will come down to me and the woman in close 2nd in the standings. I won and was 7 seconds faster than I was in January when it was near freezing not -25!
In fact, that's where the dilemma begins. I am in far better shape now than I was when I took 3rd in Riga in 2009. Looking at my workouts leading up to that and comparing them to where I am now is like comparing apples to oranges. Everything is much faster across the board from short to long. With that Coach told me I need to get out and run a marathon for time preferably mid March leading up to the 100K. He said I could very likely PR-ha these old bones?! I kind of feel I'm at least very close to being able to approach that.I have not run a marathon for time since my last good run in Riga in 2009. So, we shopped around to see what's on the calendar in Europe and came up with Barcelona. It's a month before the 100 so I'd hvae plenty of time to recover and be good to go. OK, sounds like a plan.
Well, as luck would have it my damn work visa is taking longer than expected and I have to do ANOTHER visa run to Vilnius in the interim in a few days to pick up another double entry 3 month visa while I wait for the work visa to process in a month or so. Translation- between now and May I get ONE OUT and I need to use it for the Worlds. I'm flippin' stuck in Russia now and if I go out in March, I'll have to file for ANOTHER damn visa to come back AND be able to leave again in April for the Worlds. Livid is an understatement. I'm disgusted. I went to work for myself to have more freedom, which I will, but it's taking flipping forever( damn Russian bureaucracy). I have all my Russian visas in my US passport because I travel on that one and my work visas are filed based on quotas for US citizens. Yes, and Latvians need Russian visas too and my US passport is the one with my Russian visas. Bloody hell. This is my only window to run a fast marathon this year. Post 100K it will be into May before I recover and hot weather time. I won't be able to do squat about a marathon til the fall. I wanted to try and requalify for Elite Development in Chicago by running Barcelona. Chicago is not worth the trip unless you have either Elite Development or corral A start because of the crowds.
Running a marathon for time in Russia is asking for nothing shy of a miracle because of all the reasons I have written about in earlier posts. There is one in Rostov that looks flat, but it's 3 weeks out from the 100. Weather at that time is decent usually not too hot/cold. Coach would travel with me to crew, but we need to contact the RD for more info on this marathon. I haven't been to Rostov since the 90s on my way back from Krasnodar. There is also one in Moscow on March 9th, but running that for time is not realistic. It's too early in the sense that everything is still very iced over at that time. All I have to say is that if the economy did not suck rocks everywhere, I'd have bailed from Moscow long ago. Being held up like this til springtime is for the damn birds. If there were decent jobs in Riga, I would have gone ages ago:-(
Scratch Kyrgystan off the agenda now too. I can still go to Kislovodsk for 3 weeks in March to train, but the altitude isn't what I feel I need to increase my hemoglobin levels before the 100. You have to be at 2000m + in order to do that and benefit from the effect. Kislovodsk to me is like training in the "mountains" of New England. They are glorified hills but not the altitude I am looking to train at. Time to look into that altitude tent methinks.
All dressed up and nowhere to go:-( Pic from the mile.
On the 22nd, I had another good mile at our indoor meet finishing a close second and hitting the All-American standard for a 3rd time this season this time by quite a bit. I was surprised my speed was still there. I was coming off a 167km week with long runs,long intervals, and tempo runs in there. I had done some killer workouts but recovery has been good so far, touch wood. The final mile in the winter series will be on the 26th.
On Feb 4th I raced the 2 mile again in the xc series at -25C mind you. The final is the first Saturday in March and so far I am now leading the series. I made a point to chick as many guys as possible because you get points based on how many people you finish ahead of-yes girls get points not only for beating other gals but for chicking guys too! I'm not sure how fair that is though because not all the ladies can chick the guys too. So the course is the usual 3 loops this time on packed snow. I donned my Skinny Raven singlet on top this time in true Alaskan style since it was butt cold. I chicked a couple few guys along the way and went after another in the final loop. With 450m to go and heading into the final uphill I surged after sitting on the guy's heels. I can't wait til the final 100 or so or I risk being outkicked. If I can open a gap early and hold on that's how I win things not by waiting til the final 100-200m. So up the hill the raven flew opening just enough to keep from getting caught at the finish. I felt kind of sorry for the guy because he sure was speeding up when I got on his heels trying not to get chicked:) I needed as many points as I could get though because the final will come down to me and the woman in close 2nd in the standings. I won and was 7 seconds faster than I was in January when it was near freezing not -25!
In fact, that's where the dilemma begins. I am in far better shape now than I was when I took 3rd in Riga in 2009. Looking at my workouts leading up to that and comparing them to where I am now is like comparing apples to oranges. Everything is much faster across the board from short to long. With that Coach told me I need to get out and run a marathon for time preferably mid March leading up to the 100K. He said I could very likely PR-ha these old bones?! I kind of feel I'm at least very close to being able to approach that.I have not run a marathon for time since my last good run in Riga in 2009. So, we shopped around to see what's on the calendar in Europe and came up with Barcelona. It's a month before the 100 so I'd hvae plenty of time to recover and be good to go. OK, sounds like a plan.
Well, as luck would have it my damn work visa is taking longer than expected and I have to do ANOTHER visa run to Vilnius in the interim in a few days to pick up another double entry 3 month visa while I wait for the work visa to process in a month or so. Translation- between now and May I get ONE OUT and I need to use it for the Worlds. I'm flippin' stuck in Russia now and if I go out in March, I'll have to file for ANOTHER damn visa to come back AND be able to leave again in April for the Worlds. Livid is an understatement. I'm disgusted. I went to work for myself to have more freedom, which I will, but it's taking flipping forever( damn Russian bureaucracy). I have all my Russian visas in my US passport because I travel on that one and my work visas are filed based on quotas for US citizens. Yes, and Latvians need Russian visas too and my US passport is the one with my Russian visas. Bloody hell. This is my only window to run a fast marathon this year. Post 100K it will be into May before I recover and hot weather time. I won't be able to do squat about a marathon til the fall. I wanted to try and requalify for Elite Development in Chicago by running Barcelona. Chicago is not worth the trip unless you have either Elite Development or corral A start because of the crowds.
Running a marathon for time in Russia is asking for nothing shy of a miracle because of all the reasons I have written about in earlier posts. There is one in Rostov that looks flat, but it's 3 weeks out from the 100. Weather at that time is decent usually not too hot/cold. Coach would travel with me to crew, but we need to contact the RD for more info on this marathon. I haven't been to Rostov since the 90s on my way back from Krasnodar. There is also one in Moscow on March 9th, but running that for time is not realistic. It's too early in the sense that everything is still very iced over at that time. All I have to say is that if the economy did not suck rocks everywhere, I'd have bailed from Moscow long ago. Being held up like this til springtime is for the damn birds. If there were decent jobs in Riga, I would have gone ages ago:-(
Scratch Kyrgystan off the agenda now too. I can still go to Kislovodsk for 3 weeks in March to train, but the altitude isn't what I feel I need to increase my hemoglobin levels before the 100. You have to be at 2000m + in order to do that and benefit from the effect. Kislovodsk to me is like training in the "mountains" of New England. They are glorified hills but not the altitude I am looking to train at. Time to look into that altitude tent methinks.
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