So, it's been three months since I've posted in here. The last attempt was at the end of May after a come from behind win in the 26k trail mudder in Dmitrov. 3 Weeks later that was followed by a solid 15k XC at Sokolniki 17 June. That was supposed to have been a tune up for the Moscow Trail July 4th. I was signed up for the 30k. The course had a 1000m cumulative elevation gain and was at Sarochany aka the snowboard /ski hill near Dmitrov. I was just too busy that weekend ...packing and shipping and ran on the trails by home then. Two days after the 15k, I was offered a full time job just outside Homer, Alaska teaching full time Russian in the Old Believer school at Voznesenka. I also do two distance delivery classes of HS and middle schoolRussian to Nikolaevsk during the day. So, I shipped what I needed for now and flew out on July 15th. The move cost an arm,leg and kidney, but things in Moscow were going to just keep getting worse before they were ever going to get better if at all in my lifetime, so the decision to take this job was about as no brainer as it gets. The ruble is still plummeting as I write this. Because the Old Believer schools have tons of holy days off during the school year, we actually started work on Aug 3. So, between moving country, work, and running, I've been a bit busy. Anyhow, the kids are great and folks are very friendly. When I'm having days where I can't recall the word for X in English-no problem, all the kids speak Russian in school and at home. This is a win win for me as well. One of my biggest concerns with moving back to the USA was that I might lose my Russian. After over ten years in Russia, I would hate to see that happen(yeh and 15 off and on before those 10). it's nice to be a "real" teacher again and have a classroom and not spend more time commuting than actually teaching. I decided to keep my flat in Moscow for the time being-sublet when I'm away. I'll be going back on winter and summer holidays like I used to years ago. I'm teaching at a prek-12 school too (grades 6-12 Russian for me) and will need to get fresh stuff for class every year anyway since I'll have the same kids year after year as they move up in grade levels.
Sooooo, how has all of this affected my racing? It's just all about time management at the end of the day. I'm back to running late afternoon right after school. It is hellaciously hilly where I live. I am up on a knob outside of Homer. From the house I can go UP,UP or UP! Yes, up a5-7%grade over 4km to get to the dirt road that rolls a bit up top for my "easy "days. After a lack of adequate hill training in Moscow, I'm making up for lost time. On speed days, if I need a flat, I have to drive almost all the way to town. Out of laziness (don't feel like hauling myself into town), I often relegate myself closer to home and yup, on the mountains, Weekly intervals do happen somewhere somewhat flat though and a week prior to the 49k in Anchorage, I took myself off the hills to rest up. I always wanted to get back to mountain and hill training. It made me damn strong back int he day but could never afford to take a month off to go to Kislovodsk or Kyrgystan to do so while I was in Moscow because my work was so unstable. Now, I just go out the door at no added cost :) Welcome to my world:
Soooo about that 49k,The first weekend in August I posted a season best and a win in a 5k in Soldotna done as a training run.The following weekend, I finished 3rd in a 10k (well I got beat by the Ossiander sisters who are low 9 min 3k runners). One is going to Worlds for jr mountain runing champs which is pretty cool.
After I got the job offer, I signed up for a race I have not done since 2003 back when it was still Humpy's Marathon. They have since added a 49k. Leonid told me to do the 49 instead of the marathon. He's tight, I am a better ultrarunner than marathoner. I have won 6 of the 6 times I have done this marathon 1997-2003. Every year, I'd peek online from Moscow and hope that just one day I 'd get to do it ONE MORE TIME before I got too old to do it well. This was always my favorite race I'd bust my tail in summers past to get back from my summers in Moscow in time for it. So, I dediced to go incognito. If I had a crap race, no one would know it was me. I'd rather be remembered as the fast lady who won 6 times not coming back as a slow old geezer:) I signed up under my middle name- Renee. If I had a good race, well then cat would be out of the bag.....I'm BAAAACK!
It was wet and rainy for the race. I loved this run because by this time of the summer, you are not going to get skunked with a hotass hell day in Anchorage. I started out conservatively as usual. After about 5k I was just doing my own thing. I knew the next lady was catchig up but wasn't going to get my underwear in a knot this early. About 8k in, she joined me and I decided to play tactical and just sit on her. I was prepared to so this til 35 or 40k or so if I had to. She was looking good on the flats and I needed to come up with a plan. Just before 18k, we hit Kincaid Hill. Ok, this is one of 5 -6 decent rollers. They even do awards to the top lady and guy to the top of the hill turnaround on Kincaid. I just sat on the leader to conserve energy. I continued my normal effort up the hill not pushing it. This is where I got a bit ahead of her and thought ...oops it's too soon to be doing this. I also figured out that she struggled a bit on climbs. Crap, this race is going to be won or lost on the hills. That meant I'd have to try and surge on each of the major hills along the way to open a gap and hopefully hold. That was not going to be easy, but after training on the hills around Homer for a month, Kincaid Hill seemed like nothing! So on the return, I worked the climbs each time pulling a little further away. She was gaining each time on the flats though. At 30k, I was only about a minute ahead. That grew to over 2 though by just before 40 because this is where there was a substantial sustained uphill going out to the other far turnaround near the University. With 10k to go she was just over 2 min behind. I knew I had to hold pace if not pick it up some more if I could. I was extremely blessed with crew this time- Carlos saved my ass out there as he biked from ait station to aid station with my bottles of Vitargo making sure I got calories to push through the tough stuff. He crewed me to my first win at this event back in 1997! This race was just too close for comfort, and I doubt i could have done what I did without crew to get me the Vitargo. So I just worked the final 10k the best i could not letting up on my pace. The final 3k is pretty evil with the last 2 going UP the steep hill back to downtown to the finish. I finally reached the final stretch on 6th Av for the win! The reporter recognized me....uh oh cat's out of the bag! After I finished, they told me I had broken the course record by TEN MINUTES! I wasn't even thinking much about time and to be honest, it was slow going today. The course was actually 49.8 but ah well. It's official....I'm baaaaack and now 7 for 7 at this race. Once again- big thanks to Vitargo for support to amke the win possible!
For those wondering- I opted out of 100k Worlds and Euros this year despite beinf more than fit for it. I simply can't afford thw 2500$price tag to get to the Netherlands in 4 weeks. I also didn't feel cool about asking for all my personal lv right away either. I will carry it over and have 2 weeks to play with next year and will go then. My coach said after a year of all this mountain training, I should do pretty well.
Sooooo, how has all of this affected my racing? It's just all about time management at the end of the day. I'm back to running late afternoon right after school. It is hellaciously hilly where I live. I am up on a knob outside of Homer. From the house I can go UP,UP or UP! Yes, up a5-7%grade over 4km to get to the dirt road that rolls a bit up top for my "easy "days. After a lack of adequate hill training in Moscow, I'm making up for lost time. On speed days, if I need a flat, I have to drive almost all the way to town. Out of laziness (don't feel like hauling myself into town), I often relegate myself closer to home and yup, on the mountains, Weekly intervals do happen somewhere somewhat flat though and a week prior to the 49k in Anchorage, I took myself off the hills to rest up. I always wanted to get back to mountain and hill training. It made me damn strong back int he day but could never afford to take a month off to go to Kislovodsk or Kyrgystan to do so while I was in Moscow because my work was so unstable. Now, I just go out the door at no added cost :) Welcome to my world:
the name says it all!
view from the yard
where I play
Soooo about that 49k,The first weekend in August I posted a season best and a win in a 5k in Soldotna done as a training run.The following weekend, I finished 3rd in a 10k (well I got beat by the Ossiander sisters who are low 9 min 3k runners). One is going to Worlds for jr mountain runing champs which is pretty cool.
After I got the job offer, I signed up for a race I have not done since 2003 back when it was still Humpy's Marathon. They have since added a 49k. Leonid told me to do the 49 instead of the marathon. He's tight, I am a better ultrarunner than marathoner. I have won 6 of the 6 times I have done this marathon 1997-2003. Every year, I'd peek online from Moscow and hope that just one day I 'd get to do it ONE MORE TIME before I got too old to do it well. This was always my favorite race I'd bust my tail in summers past to get back from my summers in Moscow in time for it. So, I dediced to go incognito. If I had a crap race, no one would know it was me. I'd rather be remembered as the fast lady who won 6 times not coming back as a slow old geezer:) I signed up under my middle name- Renee. If I had a good race, well then cat would be out of the bag.....I'm BAAAACK!
It was wet and rainy for the race. I loved this run because by this time of the summer, you are not going to get skunked with a hotass hell day in Anchorage. I started out conservatively as usual. After about 5k I was just doing my own thing. I knew the next lady was catchig up but wasn't going to get my underwear in a knot this early. About 8k in, she joined me and I decided to play tactical and just sit on her. I was prepared to so this til 35 or 40k or so if I had to. She was looking good on the flats and I needed to come up with a plan. Just before 18k, we hit Kincaid Hill. Ok, this is one of 5 -6 decent rollers. They even do awards to the top lady and guy to the top of the hill turnaround on Kincaid. I just sat on the leader to conserve energy. I continued my normal effort up the hill not pushing it. This is where I got a bit ahead of her and thought ...oops it's too soon to be doing this. I also figured out that she struggled a bit on climbs. Crap, this race is going to be won or lost on the hills. That meant I'd have to try and surge on each of the major hills along the way to open a gap and hopefully hold. That was not going to be easy, but after training on the hills around Homer for a month, Kincaid Hill seemed like nothing! So on the return, I worked the climbs each time pulling a little further away. She was gaining each time on the flats though. At 30k, I was only about a minute ahead. That grew to over 2 though by just before 40 because this is where there was a substantial sustained uphill going out to the other far turnaround near the University. With 10k to go she was just over 2 min behind. I knew I had to hold pace if not pick it up some more if I could. I was extremely blessed with crew this time- Carlos saved my ass out there as he biked from ait station to aid station with my bottles of Vitargo making sure I got calories to push through the tough stuff. He crewed me to my first win at this event back in 1997! This race was just too close for comfort, and I doubt i could have done what I did without crew to get me the Vitargo. So I just worked the final 10k the best i could not letting up on my pace. The final 3k is pretty evil with the last 2 going UP the steep hill back to downtown to the finish. I finally reached the final stretch on 6th Av for the win! The reporter recognized me....uh oh cat's out of the bag! After I finished, they told me I had broken the course record by TEN MINUTES! I wasn't even thinking much about time and to be honest, it was slow going today. The course was actually 49.8 but ah well. It's official....I'm baaaaack and now 7 for 7 at this race. Once again- big thanks to Vitargo for support to amke the win possible!
For those wondering- I opted out of 100k Worlds and Euros this year despite beinf more than fit for it. I simply can't afford thw 2500$price tag to get to the Netherlands in 4 weeks. I also didn't feel cool about asking for all my personal lv right away either. I will carry it over and have 2 weeks to play with next year and will go then. My coach said after a year of all this mountain training, I should do pretty well.
pit stop on the drive to Anchorage to pet the bear!
