50+ Masters Training and Racing Open Forum

In case you missed it, Will Steele's (CG, Cancer Guy) widow & IRS:

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/columnists/steve-blow/20130602-frisco-widow-vows-to-spare-others-her-irs-ordeal.ece

WOC wrote:In case you missed it, Will Steele's (CG, Cancer Guy) widow & IRS:

Heartless rules and regulations: it's sad that bureaucrats often hide behind those, so they don't have to acknowledge the cruelty being inflicted.

In other news:

Also, don't know if anybody looked at the 8k master's Championship Results. A lot of nice results!

Kevin Castille ran in the Music City Distance carnival; his time of 14:01.51 was only ~1s off the AR that he set last year at Stanford for the 5000m. Anthony Whiteman also competed, but his 4:03.80 mile was well off his sub-4 masters mile from last year. Complete results:

Finally, I'm registering for Rick Corman's free race this weekend down on his property. It's always a major celebration of life and running.

Cheers!

Well, week started off well, dipped in the middle and ended ok:

M: easy 40min (2hr long run yesterday so took it easy) felt good

T: 18min WU 26min 'Tempo' 17min WD felt great

W: no run Achilles stiff & sore

T: no run Blood Donor

F: easy 40min

S: easy 51min

S: long run 105min in afternoon hot & windy

Have to deal better with my sore Achilles: I realised at the weekend that I've been doing just enough to keep running, but I need to be more intentional about stretching after, eccentric heel drops and calf self-massage. After 8 months running I am fitter now than I have been for 10 years but I shuffle around like... well, like an old man (a state which is unavoidable unless you die young); but one of the aims of all the training is to keep a spring in my step which isn't happening. I must say I feel great and it's wonderful to breathe in and in and in and all that oxygen ends up in my blood instead of just getting dizzy and even though I have not lost as much weight as I thought I would (178lbs from a max of about 191) I'm much more agile: just need to sort out these Achilles.

Here's to a week of intentional rehab...

Andrew

Kevin, I hit Portland this summer, but in early August; I'll miss those masters meets, RATS. I'll be up there on biz, of various stripes, but hope to fit some running in.

Last hit Hayward field in a low key all-comers in '83, I ran an 8:58 3000 that day, getting lapped by the great Mike Boit with one to go. 40 runners on the track for that race. Boit used to use local low key races as work outs when he lived in Eugene! Then he'd summer in Europe, chasing Ovett, Coe and Scott to 3:49 miles. I was both honored to be on the same track with him, and really horrified to be in his way.

I'm vdry happy to dip a toe in this forum and see what folks are training like.

Kind of a nothing week here...We vacationed 5 days on Singer Island in South Florida. Managed a weak 31 miles. Didn't run much down there as I really don't do well in the heat and humidity. The 73 dew point kicked my butt good! Oh well...

Meanwhile, I know everyone is dying to hear about my daughters race :>)...Another PR of 23:41. While I was out of town, my training partner ran with her, pacing her perfectly with a 7:52-7:52-7:38. It's so exciting to see her improving so much each race out. Ran in a pretty big race placing 13th/300 in the 20-24 AG...

Thinking about ramping the miles up for a while. No race plans but think I'll try hit 60 miles this week for the first time this year.

Have a good week everyone,

Dave

Greetings to all. Thanks for all the postings and race reports. Fun to put some faces and names together, lucky2B. And a chance to view some of the beautiful Kentucky landscapes.

I completed my first ever 50K distance this Saturday. Whispering Pines Trail Run in Tyler State Park (Tyler Tx). Lots of large trees provided sufficient protection from the sun for the entire race, but the humidity and lack of wind made it difficult for many. I had done a full marathon training cycle this spring and tapered for 2 weeks preceding the race, so I was ready for the distance and had no problems with heat/humidity. But tripping over roots, rocks, etc and falling flat on my face multiple times - I wasn't quite prepared for that.

My goal was to complete the 10 mile loops in around 2 hours. First loop was 1:55 with 4 almost falls. Second loop was 2:20 with four falls (one which literally knocked the wind out of me). Third was 2:00 with only 2 almost falls. So final time was 6:15.

Legs and hips feel fine - just really sore where I hit the ground and scruffed myself up. It was a small field, so I won the 50+ female--- helps to be old and a girl!

My husband did not fare so well. He had such terrible leg cramps that he literally found himself forced to lay down on the trail. Fortunately he did not try to finish. This is the 3rd time now that he has had severe leg cramping in long distance events. He seems to be very attuned to his hydration and always prepares well for events, so I am not sure why this keeps happening to him. He is 52, 165 lbs, 5'9". He has participated in high levels of activity since junior high (tennis, cycling, running), and trains adequately for his events. Any poster(s) advice/guidance/experience here?

Needless to say, I think long distance trail runs are off my schedule for awhile. I'll take a week or two off to relax from running hard and then start training for my fall marathon and (hopefully) a new PR in the half.

Next marathon....NYC, November 2013! I'm in! Very excited!

@WOC - Thanks for the link. She sounds like a tough one, would make a good endurance athlete.

@lucKY2b - Heartless yes, cruel I dunno. As someone who came out on the right side of my own tussle with the IRS, I can say that I prefer them following the rules in every case. The alternative would be to rely on their judgment - a frightening prospect! One in ten there is a gem, the others are barely functioning.

@andrew63 - Sounds like you know what you need to do. What put the spring in my step was the weights, specifically squats and box jumps. I did have a setback when I sprained my ankle so I'm temporarily doing the old man shuffle once again. How about we "race" the recovery?

@Horst Girth - Good story. Not many sports where the same thing could happen.

@racerdb - I for one am thrilled to read about your daughter's races, but would she be equally thrilled to know she has become an honorary member of the 50+ club? ;) Anyway 3 for 3 PRs that's awesome, keep us (me) posted about her progress, I'm wondering how much more she can improve this summer.

@GreteHund - Nice trail race! I grew up running (not racing) on trails, for me the trick to staying upright is to know when my concentration is slipping and pull back the pace ever so slightly to compensate. As for your husband, some people race well in the heat and some people just do not. It may be as simple as that.

GreteHund wrote:

I completed my first ever 50K distance this Saturday.

My husband did not fare so well. He had such terrible leg cramps that he literally found himself forced to lay down on the trail.

Congrats on your race. Curious if your husband took salt/electrolyte or if he has, then has he experimented with various brands/amounts? I have some ultra friends and, unfortunately for me, crewed them through some 50 miler's. One takes salt, the other drinks V8 juice, and yet another drinks flat Dr. pepper. They've been at it for many years and have become adept at what there bodies need. It did take some painful experimentation, however.

I know he did Gatorade before and during the run, but I also think he did not use the electrolyte supplement tabs that they provided on the course. I will suggest that he practices this summer with salt and V8 on long training runs and see if that can eleviate some of this.

Thanks for the suggestions. A tad scary when you see your normally fit, athletic husband laying prostrate in the middle of a running event.

Just noticed this, and thought "Wow, this guy must have been really fast in his 20s!"

I plugged 2:01 for age 53 into the WAVA age grade tables, and it converts to 1:42.6, equal to the American record.

Did Ray compete as an open athlete?

Oops, sorry - this was about a post some months ago about Ray Knerr's fantastic 800 m race.

age grader wrote:

Just noticed this, and thought "Wow, this guy must have been really fast in his 20s!"

I plugged 2:01 for age 53 into the WAVA age grade tables, and it converts to 1:42.6, equal to the American record.

Did Ray compete as an open athlete?

Just read what woc put on his thread about will and the IRS

shit!!!

Still not running without pain, tested it out and my spine/hip area has two of three spots healed, but one is still sore. Ah well, getting 3 and 1/2 to 4 hours in on the Air Dyne weekly to keep fit.

Last night, my wife lost in a final kick to another gal in the 55-59 age group 1 mile, my wife running a 7:09 with a sore hamstring, tough to see, knowing that she could have run much faster without the injury.

Ordered our tickets for USATF Nationals this week, and will be signing up for USATF Masters next week, good things to look forward to. Sure hope I can run the 5000 at the Masters meet, who else is attending?

Just ranting here a bit completely off topic from anything that's been discussed but really, what is the deal with all of the new shoe colors & styles? Visited Dick's the other day looking for my usual old school basic Nike Pegasus trainers. The wall was just a huge psychedelic maze of florescent colors, Free this , Lunar that, Zoom everywhere... Same with some of my old Mizuno favorites. Many of today's shoes are just looking pretty darn silly.

Man, I wonder what they will be like in 5 years?

Ok, that's all...

Dave

Dave, don't worry, we still have so many shades of grey shoes that they cannot be counted, though we can sell you some very attractive neon shoe strings so the shoes can be found in one's closet :)

Actually, it's fun for me to see the new colors, they just add to the excitement of lacing them up and enjoying all that my runs offer me. A couple months ago a little girl, riding her bike with her dad, called out to me from across the street "I like your shoes" (I was in my neon green/yellow Nike Vomero's). Made my day and had me feeling much younger than my 62 years, though many of my runs give me that wonderful feeling of youthfullness.

FYI, any of you Masters that are coming to Olathe KS next month for USATF Masters, stop in the store, Garry Gribble's Running Sports, on 119th and Quivera, or at the Ward Parkway Mall location. Would love to meet you all. Mike

Regarding Ray Knerr:

http://www.vendurance.com/triberunclub/vendurance-elite/191-ray-knerr

Pretty decent lifetime PR's (certainly way better than mine!), but he's definitely stepped-up his game (relatively speaking, of course) as a master!

@gretehund: Nice trail race! I enjoyed reading your report. Sorry about your husband. I've not suffered severe cramps, but then again, I don't go *that* long. I keep reading that pickle juice provides fairly instant relief of cramps....I guess it's the vinegar and other electrolytes. Anybody know what's up with that?

@racerdb: I know what you mean, it's like they've pre-"color-run"-ned the shoes, ugh! Good thing I don't go to Dick's. Haha! I just got a pair of Saucony Mirage 2 on liquidation from Running Warehouse for $42.39 using the FB15D discount code (their standard 15% facebook discount). They're straight grey, but the bright yellow cushioning is a bit off-putting. My wife thinks they look sharp, though. These might be my go-to distance shoe for the next while; very similar to the Kinvara, but a little beefier.

Cheers!

Hey l2b....Thanks for the code! I'm not on FB anymore but it worked for me. Pegasus's for $67.90!

Dave

I'll definitely stop by Mike.

Kevin, sounds great! Mike