June 2008 Training

June was a month of continued training focused on the Gary Bjorklund Half Marathon. I trained hard at the beginning of the month with a long ANT workout and long 10K pace workout and long run each week. I was primed and ready to go. My best workouts in the build up to the half were an ANT session of 2x5 miles at ANT in 27:50 and 27:55 and a session of 24x 400m reps at 10k RP. During that workout I averaged about 1:13 per 400 and picked it up to 1:11, 1:10, and 1:05 for the last three.

The half marathon itself was great until mile 10. At that point I was right on pace, but really started to feel the past two days of work in my legs. I had to work with at the Duluth Running Company booth at the marathon expo and standing on my feet for 12 hours really took it's toll on me. I ended up running a 1:16, which is a PR, but not as fast as I wanted or was capable of.

As a result of this race I changed my fall race schedule to get one more crack at the half marathon distance this season. I will now be doing the Chicago distance classic half marathon the second week in August as well as the Twin Cities marathon in October.

The remainder of the month of June was filled with base work to rebuild for my fall marathon and half and to prepare for my next race - the Voyager half marathon.

Month Totals:
294 Miles
44 Hours

Year to date:
1554 Miles
258:30 Hours

May 2008 Training

The month of May saw the end of track season and a start of my ANT zone work before the Gary Bjorklund half marathon. I began to add bigger miles into my training again this month, though you can't really tell because of the trip to Europe and its impact on my training log. Overall a good month of work with some good workouts including a session of 4x2 mile reps at ANT pace (5:40 Pace) and a session of 2x3 mile reps in 16:50 and 16:51.

Month Total:
272 Miles
30:00 hours

Year to date:
1260 Miles
214:30 Hours

April 2008 Training

As I am sure some of you have noticed, I have been less than quick on updating my blog in the last few...months...but I am here now to set the record straight. I will add three posts with my April, May, and June training.

In April, I continued slogging through outdoor track season dropping my 10000m PR to 32:50 and my 5000m PR to 15:58. (Though the 5000m PR would drop again in May) My training consisted of an average of 70 to 80 miles a week and about 10 to 13 hours a week of training. In this month most of my speed workouts were centered around 400m and 800m reps. at 5k race pace - a workout I have come to enjoy a lot and still use in my marathon training today. WE drifted away from anaerobic threshold centered workouts because of the quickly approaching end of the track season, and because my ANT zone seems to be very well developed at this point.

Totals for month:
315 Miles
40:00 Hours

Year to date:
988 Miles
184:30 Hours

March 31 through April 6 Training

March 31 – AM 3 Miles
PM 8 Miles with 2x1200, 1x1000, and 2x800 race pace intervals (5:15 – 5:20 pace)
PM2 1:15 bike with 125 BPM AVG HR

April 1 – AM 3 miles BE1
PM 9 miles, 1 Hour, BE 1-2

April 2 – AM 3 miles run BE1
PM 8 miles with 6x400 Race Pace intervals (between 1:12 and 1:16) workout max HR 173 BPM, average 168 BPM HR
PM2 45 minute bike on my wind trainer, 125 BPM HR AVG

April 3 – AM 3 miles BE1
PM 9 miles, 1 Hour, HR 151 BPM AVG

April 4 – AM 3 miles
PM 45 minutes, 6 miles, with 2x800m race pace intervals – pre meet

April 5 – PM 9 miles total with 5000m race at Washington university in St. Louis, 15:58 – school record and PR!

April 6 – AM 1 Hour, 8 miles, 132 BPM AVG HR

72 Miles Run
10:00 Hours Trained

My twice a week speed workouts continued this week with the addition of a race at Wash. U. on Saturday. I felt good this week, and considering my performance at the meet I think the plan and it’s one ANT workout and one interval session a week is working well. I still have a lot of fitness from cross and skiing, but my current training plan is only increasing my conditioning. During hard workouts I recover very quickly between intervals, and my morning resting heart rate is now 38 BPM while my day time resting heart rate is at 52 BPM. I think the addition of the biking on my wind trainer a few times a week is helping me to recover from my speed workouts and is helping my add additional base as well.

Year Totals:
673 Miles Run
144:30 Hours Trained

March 24 – March 30 Training

March 24 – AM 8 Miles with 4 miles at ANT pace (22:40, 5:40 pace) 178 BPM AVE HR It took a while for me to get loose for this workout, but after I did I felt good.

March 25 – AM 2 miles BE1
PM 8 miles, 53 minutes, 160 BPM HR

March 26 – AM 3 miles run BE1
PM 8 miles with 12x 400 Race Pace intervals (between 1:12 and 1:16) workout max HR 172 BPM, average 169 BPM HR, Great Workout!
PM2 55 minute bike on my wind trainer, 130 BPM HR AVG

March 27 – AM 3 miles BE1
PM 7 miles at 6:45 pace, HR 152 BPM AVG

March 28 – PM 8 Miles with 3 miles at ANT pace (16:16) HR 179 BPM AVG

March 29 – 25 Miles, 2:50:00, 135 BPM HR AVG – Great long run with Meg, good weather for this run in D.C.

March 30 – Day off

72 Miles Run
9:30 Hours Trained

This week I continued to keep my mileage up to prevent overtraining and peaking, but I also continued to do speed. In addition to my mileage and long run I did 2 longer ANT workouts and 1 shorter race pace run. This system of a long run, an ANT workout, and a short interval race pace or faster workout seems to be developing my racing speed/fitness very well. I am very fit and running well right now.

Year Totals:
601 Miles Run
134:30 Hours Trained

March 17 – March 23 Training

March 17 – AM 3 miles
PM 8 miles, 52 minutes, 155 BPM HR
PM2 Climb at CSS wall 30 minutes

March 18 – AM 3 miles BE1
PM 9 miles with 20 minutes in DE zone, 170 BPM HR
PM2 40 minutes climbing

March 19 – AM 3 miles run BE1
PM 8 miles with 10x 400 Race Pace intervals (between 1:12 and 1:14) workout max HR 172 BPM, average 169 BPM HR

March 20 – AM 2 miles BE1
PM 8 miles at 6:40 pace, HR 153 BPM AVG

March 21 – Day off

March 22 – 12 Miles, 1:14:00, 157 BPM HR AVG

March 23 – 15 Miles, 1:48:00 (about 6:00 minute pace), 158 BPM AVG HR
MHR – 38 BPM
Weight – 143

71 Miles Run
9:00 hours Trained

This week saw me do my first serious speed with a DE workout and race pace intervals. I felt good during both workouts, and my recovery rates were fast and my heart rate during both were very good. These are good signs of my fitness.

Year Totals:
529 Miles Run
125:00 Hours Trained

March 10 - 16 Training

March 10th - PM1 = 55 min run, 9 Miles, 162 BPM HR
PM2 = Climb 30 min at CSS rock wall

March 11th - PM1 = 9 Miles, 1 hour, 151 BPM HR

March 12th - AM = 2 Miles BE1
PM1 = 1:25 run, 12 miles, 152 BPM HR
PM2 = Climb for 30 min

March 13th - AM 3 miles BE1
PM1 = 1 hour, 9 miles
PM2 = Climb 45 min
PM3 = Bike 55 min, 132 BPM HR

March 14 - AM 3 miles BE1
PM = 57 min, 9 miles on skyline, felt really good

March 15th - AM 6 miles BE2

March 16th - AM 2 miles BE1
PM = 10 miles, 1:03, BE2, 158 BPM HR

72 Miles Run
10:00 Hours

This week was my last base building week in my current training cycle. I again got a good variety of base miles, strength work, and overall higher training volume. This week I also started to add stretching into my training at least one a day, mostly after my morning run. This helps not only keep my flexible, but also helps me recover from the previous day's workout and prep me for the coming day's training. Starting next week I will begin to add once a week longer ANT runs and once a week shorter repeat sessions. I am excited to get into the next phase of my current running cycle.

Year Totals:
458 Miles Run
116:00 Hours

Training Log March 3-9

March 3 – March 9: This week was spring break for me, so my big focus was base building mileage and strength – and my strength of course came through climbing. I won’t go through my day to day workout because there is really nothing of note here other than big miles – including a morning run every day and at least 9 miles most afternoons. Most of these miles were on trails and so the running was good for body and mind.

Week Total:
71 Miles Run
11:00 Hours Trained

Year Total:
386 Miles Run
106 Hours Trained

My February Training

Most of February was a transition month for me. The month saw the end of the ski racing season with the NCAA regional meet and the Birkie, and the beginning of the track season. My running mileage increased as the track season started, and most of my training – especially in the last hast half of the month – was base building. Here is what the month looked like:

February 4 – February 10: The main workouts this week came on Tuesday and Saturday with 4x3 minutes reps. at race pace on Tuesday and a 15k low key race on Saturday. The rest of the week was base building and strength (rock climbing)
46 Miles Run
10:30 Hours Trained

February 11- February 17: My only hard workout this week was the NCAA regional ski meet that took place on Saturday and Sunday. I had a good race on Saturday in the skate race. The other interesting thing this week was the fact that I tapered very little for this meet, and I think that maintaining my base rather than tapering helped me performance.
38 Miles Run
9:30 Hours Trained

February 18 – February 24: This week was a big transition from skiing to running. I did four runs of an hour or more this week. No speed this week as my fitness is very good, but I am trying to get my running muscles back into form. This Saturday was also the Birkie at which I did really well qualifying for the elite wave next year!
40 Miles Run
9:30 Hours Trained

February 25 – March 2: More base this week and my first track meet – the UMAC indoor conference meet. I decided to run the meet primarily on my skiing fitness because I am in great aerobic shape, and the base running mileage increase I did was just enough to get me ready. I did 5x800m at race pace on Tuesday of this week all in around 2:25 and felt good. I also did the mile and the 5000m at the UMCA meet this week and won the 5000m for the second year in a row. This performance is a good sign that I am strong coming into spring running.
56 Miles Run
8:00 Hours Trained

Year totals:
315 Miles Run
95:00 Hours Trained

Running and Rock Climbing in Kentucky

Over spring break, from March 1st through March 8th, I traveled with the CSS Rock Climbing Club to the Red River Gorge in Kentucky for a little running, climbing, and relaxation. I was a little apprehensive about going on this trip, as I have only been climbing seriously for about six months, but even with those few months of work I was able to keep up with most of the others on the trip.

For the eight of us on the trip, we started with a straight shot drive to Kentucky. We arrived after about 15 hours of driving and set up camp in the Daniel Boon National Forest just outside of Campton, KY. Sunday was just a ‘chill’ day for us to recover from the drive.

Monday morning was our first climbing day – and the weather was great for it too! It reached about 55 degrees and the sun was shining all day. We went to a great wall in the Muir Valley – a privately owned preserve that allows climbing and trail use for free. The wall we visited, Practice wall, was a good warm with many 5.7’s to 5.9’s.

The weather held for most of our trip with rain one afternoon, but the rain came just as we were finishing our day’s climbing. Wednesday was also a bit on the cold side, with highs in the mid 30’s, but other than that the weather was good. I got in a lot of strength training from all of the climbing and I did a morning and afternoon run every day racking in over 70 miles from Monday to Saturday.

The food was great, and the company was even better! This trip was a great opportunity for me to get some base miles in for running, but it also really got me hooked on climbing. Though running is still my favorite activity hobby, climbing is my new number two. It is quickly becoming my only strength training.

Bellow are some photos from the trip:

Belated Birkie Brief

I am fully aware that the 2008 Birkie has been history for a few weeks now, and still I have not posted my race report. With spring break coming up so quick after the Birkie I did fail to post before I left. But now, without further delay, here is my race report.
The morning of the Birkie came far too early as usual with me getting up at about 5:30 so I could be out the door at 6:00 AM. My breakfast – generously prepared once again this year by my mother – was one of the traditional pre-Birkie pancakes. My hunger satisfied, I was on the road to Telemark and the start of the 51K journey. After a 45 minute-ish drive I was at Como field where my family parked with the hundreds of other anxious skiers. A short bus ride later I was deposited at Telemark lodge for the start of the 35th annual American Birkie.
The temperature at the starting line was a little under 10 degrees, but still within the range of my wax, Fastwax Teal. I knew it would warm up quick, but I was planning to be done long before the temperature got to warm for my wax. As soon as the elite wave left the first wave skiers – my self among them – sprinted to the starting for a coveted front row spot. This year I was again lucky in getting a front row spot in the first wave. As the clock ticked down I handed my warm-ups over to my parents to deposit for me in the waiting drop bag trucks.
As the starting gun went off we shot off the line. In the first 300m double polling was mandatory, and as my head came up to begin looking for a good place to slide into the pack I realized that I was at the front of the lead group! In fact I was among the top 10 wave one skiers, and most of those ahead of me were Korte skiers too. If I could keep this up I would have a great race.
As the race progressed I fell into a pack with three Michigan Tec. Skiers and two Green Bay skiers. It was a big boost of confidence for me to be skiing with these guys as they are normally out ahead of me in shorter distance races. One of the big changes in my racing this year was the absence of me carrying and of my own liquid, so I slowed briefly at ‘OO’, and the two aid stations directly after for a cup of Accerlerade before continuing on.


Me just after leaving 'OO'

Coming through the halfway point at ‘OO’ I was at 1:05, and what’s even better was that I was still right with my pack and feeling really good. This should have come as no surprise as I do get better as the race distances get longer. Shortly after ‘OO’ our pack began to break as one Green Bay skier and the two Michigan Tec. Skiers fell off the pack. Crossing highway 77 with only a few hills and Hayward Lake standing between me and the finish line I knew that I was in the midst of having a break through race.


Just after Highway 77


Sprinting down Main Street in Hayward

I finished in 2:25:39 (a good 10 minutes faster than I was shooting for), was the 5th skier from wave one, and 97th overall. This excellent finish time and place secured my first elite wave starting spot for next year’s Birkie! This years’ Birkie was a great race. Thanks to all the volunteers and workers who have put in hundreds of hours to put on this great event. I am really looking forward to coming back next year and racing in the elite wave!

NCAA Nordic Skiing Regionals

The 2008 NCAA Nordic skiing Central region championships were held on February 16th and 17 at Giants Ridge in Biwabik, MN. The races were hosted by the two year old program at St. Scholastica this year.

For the men, the first day was a 10k skate race. The race was individual start based on season points standing, so the fastest in the field got the best seeds. I started in middle of the seed list. Just :30 seconds ahead of me was A. Tillman from Gustavus. He would be my target for the race as I had beaten him through out the season. For the first lap of the two lap course my plan was to race strong, but not all out and then to switch on the afterburners for the second lap.

The race plan went well. I was feeling strong on the first lap and came through faster then I thought I would. About half a kilometer from the end of the first lap I caught Tilman, and passed him earlier than I anticipated, but this unexpected turn gave me a big shot of adrenaline and strength for the second 5k lap.

My 10K skate race went well and I felt good about the performance. I met my goals and finished fifth on my team.

In the team standings for the 10k skate race, Alaska edged out Northern Michigan University, 79-78, while Saint Scholastica was third with 65 – A great performance for us as a second year D-III program!

The championships wrapped up with a 15k classic race on Sunday. The race was also the last of eight NCAA qualifiers, after which the 10 men and 11 women who earned a berth to the NCAA Skiing Championships next month were announced.

My classic race did not go as well as my skate race. I have always been a stronger skater, and in the week leading up to the regional races I neglected my classic skiing, running instead to help my transition to track season.

With the college Nordic ski season over, I am nothing but happy with my performances though out the season. I raced well all year remaining my team’s 5th or 6th skier and once again showing my skills as a skate skier. Next up: the Birkie, and then track season!

Also, a quick congrats to my teammate Bjorn who qualified for the NCAA national championships in Bozeman, Mt! Great work Bjorn!!!

Some photos of me from the two races:

My January Training

The month of January saw the Nordic ski season coming to a close and the track season just beginning. My training hours and miles decreased at the end of the month because of the peak for Nordic skiing, but those numbers will be back up at the start of February.

January 1st - January 6th: Other than the US National Championships skate race on the first, this week was mostly long workouts including several multi hour skis and of course the 12 hours of Telemark race at which I won the 12 Solo title.
18:20 Hours 12 Miles Ran

January 7th - January 13th: Several long workouts at the CSS Nordic skiing camp, and a hard workout on Wednesday consisting of 5x4 minute intervals at 10k race pace. I felt really good for this workout.
13:30 Hours 43 Miles Ran

January 14th – January 20th: Mileage and workout house reducing for taper. Tuesday featured 2x4 minute reps as race pace and then 3x1 minute VO2 max reps. My high end and racing feels really good. Saturday and Sunday were the second of the NCAA qualifiers in Houghton, MI, which included a 10k skate on Saturday and a 15k classic on Sunday.
9:10 Hours 21 Miles Ran

January 21st – January 27th: I am still cutting back on my mileage and training hours before regionals and the Birkie. I had two races, a Saturday and Sunday 10k skate and 15k classic split again. Wednesday of this week was my intensity day with 8x1 minute all out sprints to push the upper end a little.
9:00 Hours 20 Miles Ran

January 28th – February 3rd: I began running more this week in preparation for the upcoming UMAC indoor conference meet in which I will attempt to defend my 5000m title. My fitness is top notch, but I need to get my running legs back under me.
7:30 Hours 39 Miles Ran

Year Total:
57:30 Hours
135 Miles Ran

MN Nordic Skiing College Championships

Wicked cold and blowing wind. That is what greeted the CSS ski team as we disembarked the bus in St. Cloud for the Minnesota College Nordic skiing championships. The temperature at the time of the men’s start was just 4 degrees with winds of 20 miles an hour. But we are Nordic skiers, and we are tough.
The race was a relay format, with each team submitting 2 person teams. Each member of the team would skate and then classic with a rolling time format. That means that as soon as the first leg skier tagged off to their teammate they had better change into their classic equipment quick to be ready for their next leg of the relay.
I started off as my team’s first skier. It was a short start zone, with only some 600 to 700m before the trail narrowed to a single skier width. Never the less I managed to keep a good pace and move up through the field. The legs of the relay were only 5k long, so to me – a long distance racer – it seemed to be over way to fast, but I held my own against more short distance specialists in the field. I finished the leg within about 25 seconds of the peloton, which was lead by my fellow CSS skier Jason K. I felt really good about this performance.
After tagging off to my teammate Matt Nistler I hustled over to the bus to change into my classic boots. After grabbing my skis and poles I ran back to the exchange zone where I waited for the appearance of my teammate. Matt also had a good race and came into the stadium area with a strong sprint. After tagging off to me, I was off to ski my 5k classic leg. The leg was also a strong performance for me and I felt strong for the duration of the race.
My race, and especially the skate leg of the relay, gave me a lot of confidence going into the college regional race this coming weekend. It was fun for the entire CSS team to do a relay format race, and just have an admittedly low key race with a little less pressure.

Bellow are some race photos taken by my teammate Alex Wall (AKA: Awall)

A Look At My 2007 Training

Below is the month by month breakdown of my training for 2007.

January: I did mostly ski training this month with some scattered ANT work, but a lot of base building to rebuild after cross country and before the high point of ski racing. Most weeks included a long workout, and one ANT workout. Total hours: 57 1/2 Total miles ran: 219

February: I added morning runs and core workouts almost every morning to my training this month. I continued with ANT work with 5x5’s and other long duration reps, and also added some light race pace workouts as well. This month the ANT and race pace workouts shifted from skiing to running to prep for the UMAC indoor conference meet and the outdoor season as well. At the indoor conference meet I raced the 5000m to a commanding win. Total hours: 36 1/2 Total miles ran: 154

March: Continued with tempo workouts at the beginning of the month, and moved to base building in the third and fourth weeks to maintain my base and build endurance for the outdoor season. My weekly mileage averaged 75 this month. Total hours: 41 Total miles run: 298

April: The base building and endurance work continued the first week of April. In the following weeks I began to rebuild my speed by racing shorter races (1500m and 800m). These races would allow me to continue to build endurance during the week, and use races as primary speed workouts for the week. Average mileage remains at about 75 miles a week. Total hours: 42 1/2 Total miles ran: 271 1/2

May: In prep for the approaching UMAC conference meet I began to add more short speed workout to my plan including 400m and 200m strides. At the outdoor conference meet I placed second in the 5000m and helped my team clinch the team title. After the conference meet I immediately began training for fall cross country with recovery/base rebuilding. I did no workouts above DE zone (the developmental endurance zone, which for me was about 168 to 175 BPM) for the rest of the month. Total hours: 37 Total miles ran: 251

June: I continued base work with BE-1 and 2 runs. In the second week of June I added some long (2 mile) DE zone reps. In the last week of June I did one low end ANT zone workout. I also did one of my three major races of the summer in the middle of this month – the Gary Bjorklund half marathon. I PR’d with a 1:17. Good for doing no workouts above DE zone before the race. Total hours: 48 1/2 Total miles: 309

July: ANT work was added to my plan in July with ANT zone mile and half mile reps on the roads near my home training grounds. My half mile ANT rep workouts (I did three this month I think) were good. I did sessions of as many as 8 in a 2:12 to 2:18 range feeling strong the entire time. The third week of June was a rebuilding and recovery week with no speed workouts and long base mileage. This month also featured my second major race of the summer with the Park Point 5 miler where I placed 5th and ran a 27:27. Very good for this time of the summer. This seems to be suggestive of things to come. The end of the month had a return to long mid to high end ANT reps of a mile or two in length. Total hours: 40 Total miles: 241

August: The beginning of the month served as the bridge between summer training and the cross country season. I began the month with a recovery week after the long ANT rep filled month of July. In the second week I dove back into high end ANT mile reps which now felt like a breeze. The cross season was quickly approaching now! The best workout of the month came in the third week – at cross country camp - where I did 10x1 mile ANT zone reps in an average of 5:19. I felt great! Total hours: 54 Total miles run: 302

September: The theme of long ANT reps continued with several workouts of 4 to 6x10 minute ANT reps. But by the third week of September I had moved down to 4 minute ANT and race pace sessions Including workouts of 6x4 minutes at race pace. Total hours: 35 1/2 Total miles run: 266

October: With the end of cross country season approaching quickly my speed workout moved into VO2 max zone with the well known 400’s to build upper end speed and that ‘extra gear’. The third week saw me inject one more workout of mile ANT reps., partly because I like those workouts so much, and partly because I felt that I was peaking too soon. I worked, because this month I moved into second place on the CSS XC all time performance list with a 26:50 and became the first CSS runner to win the UMAC conference cross country individual title! Total hours: 28 1/2 Total miles run: 231.

November: After the cross country season I took the first three weeks of the month, the weeks before the trip to the Nordic skiing training camp at West Yellowstone, as recovery and rebuilding time. During these weeks I averaged only 50 miles a week run and 6 to 8 hours of training. Although I might not have liked taking this time to recover, it is vital to fully recovering from a peaking cycle. Without this time an athlete could never fully take advantage of the gains they make in a training season. Total hours: 50 Total miles run: 189.

December: Now being recovered from the cross country season and with the nordic ski season getting under way I began to once again do ANT zone work, by now almost all on skis. In the last week of December I added race pace zone work to prep for the US national championships for which I had qualified. I did not do nearly as much ANT zone work for ski season as I did for cross season because even though I had peaked, most of the gains I had made were still there. Essentially, I was able to start from a higher rung on the fitness ladder and go right into focusing on the higher end race pace zone that I was working on at the end of cross. Total hours: 37 Total miles ran: 113

Year total hours: 508 Hours
Year total miles run: 2844.5 Miles
PR’s: Half Marathon = 1:17 and 8K (5 Mile) 26:53

12 Hours of Telemark

The 24 Hours of Telemark is an endurance ski event that has been held at Telemark Wisconsin for the past 8 years. The event features a variety of team relay events spanning 6, 12, and 24 hours. But the main event and most prized titles have always been the solo freak titles in the 12 and 24 hour divisions. In these races, skiers race for 12 and 24 hours completing as many laps of the 5K course as possible. This year I decided to jump into the 12 hour solo title race.
For me, the race was about more than just skiing as far as I could, it was also an experiment for the future. With my long term goals of being a competitive ultra racer, this proved to be a great test run of many nutrition products and racing strategies.


Above: The Race Start

The race started at 10AM in the stadium at Telemark, WI. All the racers from all divisions were together for this mass start, which made identifying my actual competition difficult, but my crew came to my help with that one. At the race to crew for me was my girlfriend and partner in crime Meg, and my Dad and Mom.
The first few hours of the race flew by. I passed the 50K mark with ease and for the first 40K even kept up a strong Birkie pace. In the long run I may have been able to go further had I slowed down in the beginning, but this would be just one of the lessons I learned during the race.

For the first 3 hours I raced on just Gatorade and granola bars. At 3 hours I stopped for a quick lunch of PB and J and a Clif Bar Builder bar. The next three hours I had a little intermittent solid food including a bagel and bananas, but mostly Clif Shot Recovery drink. From hours 6 to 9 I had three bottles of Clif Shot Recovery drink only, and at the end of 9 hours I was tired. Meg brought me some hot soup which brought back my strength and my Mom had some ravioli for me as well, and between these pick-me-ups I felt much stronger for the final 3 hours - even pumping out a 16:00 minute 5k lap!

At the end of 12 hours I skied 165K (104 miles) and won the 12 Hours of Telemark Solo title, with the second place finisher was almost 30 kilometers back from me. It was a fun race, but I learned several important lessons for my future ultra career:

1)Eat solid food as long as you can. This is not a 10K, or even a marathon. Solid food would have helped me feel better much longer and I should have eaten some – any- from hours 6 to 9. I will not always be able to rely on aid stations pick-me-ups.
2)Clif Shot recovery works! The stuff has a good balance of carbohydrates and protein and was almost the only thing I used from hours 3 to 9. In addition it tastes good and dissolves better that Hammer Perpetuem drink.
3)Have a race plan. I had a race strategy and nutrition plan that worked out ok, but could have been better. I was planning on going out from the start with the lead 12 hour solo racers, but at the start I could not tell who they were! It took my crew some time to pass the information on to me – during which I was racing with a pack of people in the 3 hour division. Had I know my competition I may have been able to conserve at the start and go farther in the end.

USSA National Championships

Houghton, MI was the site of this years Nordic skiing national championships. The races were held at the MTU ski trails near Michigan Tec University. The trails were in great shape for the week of racing thanks in large part to the huge dump of snow that the UP got mid week.
I raced in the 10K skate race on Tuesday only, skipping the classic race - in part because the week before I was feeling a little flat and did not want to put myself under so early in the season and in part to rest for the 12 Hours of Telemark just a few days later.
The skate race went well for me. I felt strong and finished ahead of several people I was close to all last season and a few old high school rivals.
In the long term outlook for the season, my coach (Chad) and I decided that because I am racing well and am very fit right now I am going to cut out most of the intensity in my training plan for the rest of the season. We decided that racing two races a week itself should be enough to keep me on the ball. We are approaching the high point of the CCSA racing season now, and figured that we don’t need to do more intensity than absolutely necessary. This should ensure that I don’t burn out early for skiing, and that I still have something left for some good 5K and 10K’s in track.