Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Born To Run Book Talk


Runner and author of the new book, Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen, Christopher McDougall will be hosting a trail run and book discussion at Dreamy Draw Park on Saturday morning, May 9th at 7am. There will be an hour trail run followed by Christopher sharing some of his book over breakfast snacks at the ramadas. This book will be released on May 5th and Christopher will be including Phoenix as one of the first stops on his book tour.

Everyone is invited to attend, so spread the word. May 9th, 7am @ Dreamy Draw!

Here is a synopsis of the book from Amazon.com:

Full of incredible characters, amazing athletic achievements, cutting-edge science, and, most of all, pure inspiration, Born to Run is an epic adventure that began with one simple question: Why does my foot hurt? In search of an answer, Christopher McDougall sets off to find a tribe of the world’s greatest distance runners and learn their secrets, and in the process shows us that everything we thought we knew about running is wrong.

Isolated by the most savage terrain in North America, the reclusive Tarahumara Indians of Mexico’s deadly Copper Canyons are custodians of a lost art. For centuries they have practiced techniques that allow them to run hundreds of miles without rest and chase down anything from a deer to an Olympic marathoner while enjoying every mile of it. Their superhuman talent is matched by uncanny health and serenity, leaving the Tarahumara immune to the diseases and strife that plague modern existence. With the help of Caballo Blanco, a mysterious loner who lives among the tribe, the author was able not only to uncover the secrets of the Tarahumara but also to find his own inner ultra-athlete, as he trained for the challenge of a lifetime: a fifty-mile race through the heart of Tarahumara country pitting the tribe against an odd band of Americans, including a star ultramarathoner, a beautiful young surfer, and a barefoot wonder.

With a sharp wit and wild exuberance, McDougall takes us from the high-tech science labs at Harvard to the sun-baked valleys and freezing peaks across North America, where ever-growing numbers of ultrarunners are pushing their bodies to the limit, and, finally, to the climactic race in the Copper Canyons. Born to Run is that rare book that will not only engage your mind but inspire your body when you realize that the secret to happiness is right at your feet, and that you, indeed all of us, were born to run.

More info: http://www.amazon.com/Born-Run-Hidden-Athletes-Greatest/dp/0307266303/

Christopher will also be speaking that evening at a bookstore in Tempe:
Saturday, May 9:
5:00 p.m. -- Changing Hands, 6428 S. McClintock Dr, Tempe, AZ 85283.

Monday, April 27, 2009

Zane Grey 50 Recovery Run 4/29/09

Reminder: We are on for a group trail run in the Phoenix Mountain Preserve Wednesday morning 5:16 AM. Plan on a little over one hour. We have a lot of tired and trashed runners so once again I can guarantee a slow pace.

A bunch of WMRC runners had a great day on Saturday at the Zane Grey Highline Trail 50 mile run. Great weather, great friends, one brutal course. Once again Cosmas has stated he will never run Zane again. A big thank you to Joe Galope for stepping up this year as the Race Director (Can we put you down for RD next year too?)

We had over 20 WMRC'rs either running, crewing, working an aid station or pacing. Thanks to all it was a great day!

Runner of the Week: This was an easy one. Jamil Coury won this years race in a time of 9:34:52. He took the lead around mile 31 and never looked back. He continued to pull away. He had a 3 minute lead leaving 33, a 14 minute lead at 44 and won by 24 minutes. Did you notice Jamil's special edition WMRC addidas tank top?

The runner up is a tie between Chip Gosewisch and Candice De Saint-Antoine:

Chip finished in 6th place overall with a time of 10:44:14. He ran a perfect race. At mile 8 he was 40th, at mile 17 he moved up to 24th, at mile 25 moved up again to 19th, at mile 33 he moved up to 12th, at mile 44 he was 7th, then he ran out of people to pass and finished 6th!! Candice also had a great day. She tackled the hardest 50 out there after having a baby not to long ago. At the finish we could hear Candice and Lisa O (her pacer) down the hill just talking away as they approached the end. At the finish It looked like Candice could have continued another 50.

Other finishers: Paul Bonnett 4th overall with a time of 10:29. Mark "I will never do this again" Cosmas finished 20th. He said he would have finished an hour faster but his pacer was taking photos all the time. Jon Roig 29th. Honey blew her pacer away at the finish for 37th. Jody Chase 40th. Nick Coury finished 43rd while he ran with a friend who had never ran over 15 miles before (note to self: ask Nick to run with me next race). Jeff Jones 52nd and Aaron Mascarella 62nd. Special note to Chris Harrisson who took a couple falls during the race. The 2nd one a few miles from mile 44, he banged his leg really good. According to JJ, Chris was laying on his back in the dirt as JJ approached. JJ said Chris looked so comfortable that he laid next to him and joined him. A few minutes later Candice and Lisa O ran up and looked at them real strange. Hopefully The gals had a camera and took some photos of the scene.

Check out more shots of the day:

For those that need a little extra group running, we are going to meet Tueday for a short 40 minute run with Bill Barthen before he goes back to Wisconsin. Meet at 5:30 AM Dreamy Draw Park (Northern ave and SR-51).

Last call on the supplemental WMRC shirt order. Going to send out Wednesday morning. Info below.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Zane Grey 50 Crew Checkpoint Directions

Start Line
Pine Trailhead
From Payson, take Hwy. 87 North for about 13 miles. Look for the sign for the Pine Trail head on your right just after the road curves right.

First Aid Station
Camp Geronimo (race: 8 mile mark)
Control Road (Forest Service Road #64). Head East on the Control Road to FS #440. Turn North on FS #440 and drive 2 miles to trailhead.

Second Aid Station
Washington Park (17 mile mark)
Take the Control Road East to FS #32. Turn North on #32, through the community of Washington Park and follow signs to Washington Park Trailhead.
Washington Park
(17 mile mark)

FROM PAYSON
Take Hwy 87 North towards Pine, turn right at Fire Control Rd #199 (N Houston Mesa Rd.) for 8.5 miles. Following the signs to Washington Park, turn left on the Control Road to FS #32. Turn North on #32, through the community of Washington Park and follow signs to Washington Park Trailhead.

Fourth Aid Station
Fish Hatchery (33 mile mark)
Head East on 260 to FS #289. Drive north 4 miles to the trail head, just before the entrance to the fish hatchery.

Fifth Aid Station
See Canyon (44 mile mark)
Take 260 East to the town of Christopher Creek. Turn north on FS #284, towards the town and drive 2 miles to trail head.

Finish Line
260 Trailhead (51 mile mark)
About 5 miles east of Christopher Creek on Highway 260, between mileposts 278 and 279. Roughly 27 miles east of Payson.

Runners: Check out Joe's current trail conditions in comments section of previous post.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Zane Grey 50 Mile Taper Run

Reminder: We are on for a group trail run in the Phoenix Mountain Preserve Wednesday morning 5:17 AM. Plan on a hour run at a slow taper pace (GUARANTEED) just right for those who are running the Zane Grey 50 mile run on Saturday.

WMRC's own Joe Galape is this years race director. I know Joe and others have been working hard to make the event enjoyable for everyone. Joe said that approximately 1 out of every 10 Zane Grey Runner has run in the Wednesday Morning Group. That doesn't include the trail clearing, trail marking, aid station help, pacers and crew.

Good luck to Honey, Paul Bonnett, Jody Chase, Cosmas, the Coury Brothers Nick & Jamil, Gary, Carol Cusack, Candice, Chip, Chris Harrison, Jeff Jones, Aaron Mascarella and Jon Roig. Let me know if I forgot anyone.
Runner of the Week: Congratulations to Liz Everly who ran a really fast 50 mile Sunday at the Mt Si 50 in Washington. Liz was the 3rd female 14th overall with a time of 8:07:29. Be sure to get her autograph at one of the Zane Grey 50 mile aid stations. Great job Liz!!
Don't forget Supplemental WMRC shirt order info below:

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Time for a Wednesday group run

Reminder: Group trail run tomorrow morning 5:17 AM in the Phoenix Mountains Preserve. Meet at the very top lot of Squaw Peak Drive north of Glendale Avenue. Plan on a little over one hour at a moderate pace. Headlamps are no longer needed if not this week next week for sure. Runner of the week: Did you run all day Saturday in the ran? Did you run over 4 hours at a blistering pace? Did you fall and splatter blood all over the trail? If you answered yes to all those questions you may have won the Runner of the Week. Who is that guy?

Runner up: Did you have a Birthday last week? You may have won ROW runner-up. Happy 2nd birthday Blue Dog!!!! For those that missed the last WMRC shirt order or want to add to their collection the supplemental order info is below. Thanks.

Monday, April 13, 2009

Supplemental 2009 WMRC shirt order

To accommodate those that missed the last shirt order or want to add to their WMRC collection, Race Ready has agreed to keep our same pricing for a small supplemental order.

Please submit your orders by Thursday April 23 to Kevin at: kevinphiggins@gmail.com

I have re-posted the information below!

NEW! You can also choose a RED logo in addition to the BLACK or GREY/SILVER.

By popular demand, we are about to order new WMRC running shirts. This WMRC shirt order will be through RaceReady (the same company as last time). RaceReady arguably makes some of the finest running / athletic shirts available. Very breathable, lightweight fabric. 100% made in USA. 100% USA Fabrics. Check out the website here: http://www.raceready.com/. We have even more options than our last order!

You can pick from 6 different styles:

1. Unisex Cool T's
2. Women's V-Neck
3. Men's Sleeveless Trail Shirts
4. Men's Singlet
5. Women's Singlet
6. ReadyTech Alta Long Sleeves

Colors

Specific colors for each style below.

Sizes

Some sizes not available in all styles, see below.


Logo

Last order, all shirts include a gray/silver WMRC logo. This time around, you have a choice between the gray/silver, all black, or all red logo. The all black may show up better on certain color shirts such as yellow, light green, gray, and white.

Pricing
$16 - Cool-T, V-Neck, Trail Shirt, Singlets
$18 - Long Sleeves

Amazing prices!! Pay upon delivery when shirts arrive.

Ordering
Email order to Kevin Higgins at: kevinphiggins@gmail.com including:

1. STYLE
2. SHIRT COLOR
3. SIZE
4. LOGO COLOR (BLACK or RED or GREY/SILVER)

Order as many shirts as you would like!

Deadline

Please have your order in by Thursday, April 23rd.

















Unisex Cool-T



Royal, Lemon, Purple, Lime, Black, White, Red
XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL (Unisex sizing)



Women's V-Neck



Black, White, Purple, Lemon, Royal, Red
XS, S, M, L, XL (Women's)


Men's Trail Shirt



Royal, White, Lemon
S, M, L, XL (Men's)


Men's Singlet



Red, Lemon, Orange, White, Lime, Black, Royal
S, M, L, XL, XXL (Men's)



Women's Singlet



Lime, Black, White, Royal, Red, Orange, Lemon
S, M, L, XL (Women's)


ReadyTech Alta Long Sleeve



Royal, Red, Silver, White, Orange, Twilight Blue Other colors (not shown): Black, Raspberry
XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL (Unisex sizing)



Close up of fabric:






Friday, April 10, 2009

Zane Grey Trail marking party


Reminder volunteers, next Sunday, April 19th is official Zane Grey Trail Marking Day. Anyone planning on participating, please let me know. I need a head count to start organizing groups. Like I said before, this is a low key, fun way to see parts of the trail. The more volunteers we get, the less work for Mark. :-)
Mucho Thanks!!!!!!!!!
Honey

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

WMRC run reminder for 4/8/09

Reminder we are on for a group trail run in the Phoenix Mountains Preserve Wednesday morning 5:17 AM. Very top parking lot squaw peak drive north of Glendale ave. Plan on a little over one hour at a slow to moderate pace. We had 21 to 26 runners last week (depending what method you use to count). Don't miss out. Great weather, great company, great training.

Congratulations to Joe Galope (Runner of the Week) for his completion of the Umstead 100 mile Endurance Run near Durham North Carolina. Joe is pictured above with his pacer Honey Mary Albercht. They aren't married. Joe's full report below. Nice work!!

Runner up goes to Robert Andurlis who ran the Barkley Marathons 100 mile run this weekend. The Barkley is considered one of the toughest 100 mile races in the world. It has 52,900 feet of climb (and 52,900 feet of descent), more than any other 100 mile race, more than the 33,000 ft. of climb at Hardrock, and more than the 45,000 ft. at Nolan's 14.

Since the race began in 1986, only 8 runners out of about 700 have finished within the 60 hour cutoff. 5 loops of 20 miles each. Robert finished 1 loop in 11:34:05. Hardrock is easy???

Joe's Umstead 100 race report:

The Umstead 100 Mile run is a great run that takes place entirely within the Umstead State Park. It's located between Raleigh and Durham in North Carolina. Logistically, it is a very convenient for both the runner, pacer and crew. It's geographic location is less than 15 minutes from the airport, a variety of hotels, restaurants, and stores, yet when you are actually in the park you get the feeling that you could be a hundred miles from civilization. The race course consists of four and a half miles of out-and-back with eight mile loop in the middle to total a 12.5-mile circuit that would be completed 8 times. The running surface is what we Arizonans might describe as a very well groomed forest service road. With the exception of the first and last 0.6-miles of each circuit, the course was rock-free and smooth. The "rocky section" was the turnoff to race headquarters where the start/finish and main aid station was located. Describing it as "rocky" is sorta silly for anyone that runs trails out west, but there were rocks (I saw them....and felt them on laps 7 & 8). The course is hilly. Very little of it was flat, mostly a gradual up or down, with the exception of the back side of the loop portion of the circuit. They call it a "saw blade". A two and a half mile section of short steep ups and downs.
One of the climbs I would estimate was at about a 17% grade for 800 meters. There are two main aid stations at mile 0/12.5 and mile-7.
There are also unmanned fluid aid stations at mile 3.5/10.5, mile 5.5 and 8.5. I ran this with a single bottle and never filled my bottle to 100%. Aid was good and plentiful. One unique thing about this race is that all twelve miles of the course was marked with mile markers, so you always knew exactly were you were and how much you did (or had to do).
The weather was near perfect. It was in the low 50's at the start and got to a high close to 70-degrees. Although it was a cloudless sky, the abundance of trees on the course provided for nice shade.

STARTED OFF WITH A BANG
After dropping Sonya off at my mom's, I picked up Honey (my pacer and
crew) at her house on the way to the airport. Backing out of their driveway, "Bang!" I backed the BMW right into a tree. "Frak!" Small dent in bumper with small removal of paint. Hopefully, we got all the drama of the weekend out of the way right there. The non-stop flight into RDU was 4-hours, and with the 3-hour time zone change our 9am departure got us arriving at 4pm local time. After picking up the rental car, we went straight to the race headquarters at the start/finish just in time for the pre-race briefing. Although I had read all the details of the race many times over on the website, I figured we'd stick around to see what they had to say. It went something like this, "Thank y'all for com'in. I'd like to thank all the volunteers for making this race happin'. I'd like to thank my brother Darryl....I'd like to thank my other brother Darryl....." After about a minute of that I figured I had heard enough and was in the mood to get something to eat. We checked into the hotel, went to dinner and counted how many time the waitress said, "Y'all" through the course of the evening. The answer was nine. Back at the hotel, it was lights out by 9pm to try and get a full night's rest. In the weeks leading up to race day, I made a point of trying to get to bed very early to try and semi-adjust to the time zone change. I slept decently I guess. The alarm went off a 4:30am (1:30 AZ time ...ugh!) As we were getting ready, we had the South Park episode on TV where Cartman was pretending his hand was J.Lo singing the song, "Taco Flavored Kisses". This song was going through my head for at least 40-miles.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k64w3354kE

"WHO IS JOANN?"
I had hoped to go through the first half in 9 hours, followed by the 2nd half in 11-hours with a goal of a 20-hour finish. The first 50-miles were pretty uneventful. Having Honey there was priceless. She would meet me a few hundred yards from the main aid station, take my pack and water bottle, ask me what I needed, give me updates on everyone who were sending text messages and commenting on Facebook. Because the park was so close to the city, we were able to get a 3G internet signal on my iPhone. She told me, "Jim says: 'Go Joe Go!', Carol says: 'Good luck', Joann says: 'Way to go!" Getting those messages really meant alot to me. Thank you everyone who sent them. Then I asked, "Who is Jo Ann?"
The name didn't sound familiar to me. Honey couldn't remember her last name. We passed the rental car on the way, she took my stuff, I ran up the aid station and ran back where Honey would give me a new bottle with my pack refilled with GU and necessities. I remembered who JoAnn is.
My mother! Ooops. ...and I had only run 12 miles at this point, geez.

The nature of this course is unique. Getting to see all the other runners is entertaining. I got to see that battle for the lead between some young dude who flew off the front right from the beginning, the multi-time winner, Serge Arbona and veteran ultra runner, Joe Kulack. I also got to see other runners when lapping them and on the out-n-back section. This is something you typically don't see in most 100's because they are generally point-to-point or a big loop, and you'll only see the people close to you.

I went through 50-miles in just under 9 hours, then through 100K in around 11:45 just before 6:00 p.m. Honey started pacing me at this point. It was still light out as it didn't get dark until 8:00 p.m. I slowed significantly on the 7th lap. A sub-20 hour finish was out the door, but my energy levels were still good, but my legs just weren't turning over like were earlier.

DON'T CALL ME "MARY"
On the eighth and final lap, things got interesting. It was starting to get cold out, my legs were tightening up alot. The hamstrings would just ache when I walked, and my quads were killing me when I ran. At 94-miles that was the last of anything that I would call "running". I was hiking it in from there. Then the temperature dropped and all I had on was my RaceReady long sleeve top, hat and gloves. I was getting cold, real cold. Honey gave me the lightweight jacket she had, which helped, but I was really cold. At the last aid station (94.5 miles) Honey donned a garbage bag to wear for warmth. Being cold for an extended period of time is really awful. It's hard to describe to someone that hasn't experienced it, but it is not fun. With about a mile to go, we lapped another runner who was in really bad shape. She was staggering side to side and her pacer may have actually been holding her up. A little while later, a race vehicle comes up to us from the other direction (sorta a golf cart 4x4 thingy) beaming their flashlights in our face. At the time, Honey had her arm around me to try and control some of the shivering. A voice calls out what I think is, "Hey, Are you married?" I immediately joke back, "No, not yet!" He drives off, says nothing. A few moment later Honey says, "I think that woman we passed is named 'Mary'". Ooohh...I guess that question makes more sense.

I finish a little after 4:00 a.m. with a time of 22:14, for 38th overall. 249 people started the race. 132 finished the whole 100-miles, 109 people finish at least 50-miles. Soooooo happy to be done. Sooooo happy to get in warm car, to the warm hotel, to sit in a warm bath.

AFTERMATH
By Tuesday, two days after finishing, my legs are still rather achy.
I'm walking normal, but my feet are a tad swollen. Three blisters: two huge blood blisters on the outside of each big toe, and a single nickel sized one on one of my pads. Not once, did I ever mess with my shoes or socks. I'd recommend this race, it was very well run and a very nice course.

Thank y'all for reading this and for y'all's support. Joe.

Monday, April 6, 2009

Obama chimes in on ASU vs. UofA

Thanks to Debbie for sending in. Not sure which school is the winner or loser in this one:

Saturday, April 4, 2009

Joe Galope at Umstead 100 Endurance Run

Joe Galope is in the Umstead 100 mile endurance run in North Carolina today. The course is 8 12.5 mile loops. Honey is there crewing, pacing the last 3 loops and feeding WMRC headquarters updates. We will post here as reports come in.


Lap 1 2:05 12.5 miles
Lap 2 2:09 25 miles 4:14 total
Lap 3 2:13 37.5 miles 6:27 total (honey said it is getting warm, not a cloud in the sky)
Lap 4 50 miles 9:58 total (22nd place but that included 50 milers who started same time. Still feeling dang good)

Honey will start to pace him after lap 5. No more updates until Joe finishes.

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Great Morning Run

Highly enjoyable run this morning. The weather and company doesn't get any better. We had 21. 23 if you count the Blue, Otiz and Kopal. Oh ya, Joe Galope also showed late with this Dog Sonya. That's 25!

Some people of note that were very much missed. Wardo, Jason, Chip, Andrew, Michael, Laura P., Robert H., Latvaaho, Debbie L, Sandra, Perry, All the Brads, Randy, Adam, Jon. I could go on and on. The "perfect storm" will have to wait.

Mark and I are compiling all the action photos and will post soon.

Have a great Day!!! Higg