UltraBirken, 18th of Sep-2010: Race report

At the start in Rena

UltraBirken is a trailrun that is runned between the towns Rena and Lillehammer. It has four aid- and check-points. First one is Skramstadsætra after some 12 km, next one is Åkersætra after 36 km, third is Sjusjøen after 52 km and finally the finish at Lillehammer after 73,4 km. It's almost entirly on trail with major parts of it even off-trail. The course navigates through large stretches of marshland. Weather was good most of the day, but it got a bit windy when crossing over Snørvillen and it rained a bit on a minor stretch after Sjusjøen. It had rained a lot before the starting and the ground was very wet. Most of the time between Skramstadsætra and Sjusjøen it was like running in a stream. Very time consuming and effortfull.

Romerike Ultraløperklub at the start in Rena

Start went off at 7 a.m and my aim was to reach the first check-point with an average pace of maximum 6 min/km. I didn't manage that. I felt right after the start that something wasn't functioning quite well. My feet felt a bit heavy and I had had some discomfort due to stretches in my butt-I thought they were gone last week, but hey they returned just in time to make this race an ordeal. I needed to slow down and even walk some of the most hilly ascends. I felt really surprised to learn this, but carried on with my running. After all this was still early in the race and my experiences could alter later on. Arriving at the first check-point at Skramstadsætra I changed shoes from Mizuno Ronin to Puma Trailfox. That pit-stop went fairly well-only used 5 minutes there. Average pace so far was 6.46-a bit more than planned-leaving me 9m behind schedule.

At Bjørnåsbjerget

Eager to get on and maybe gain some time I headed out for the next strech which was going to be the most demanding of them all. The trail was very wet. We ran in mud and water almost continually and there were large parts of marshland. On the marshland I was bound to walk and lost a great deal of time due to that. I experienced severe discomfort due to the stretch in my butt and had to force myself to run where I clearly needed to in order to maintain momentum. On two or three occasions I slipped and went down in the mud. Luckilly I didn't get injured. Arriving at Åkersetra after crossing a river just before-the water almost went up to my mid-I was seriously thinking to DNF. My butt was really hurting, my feet were nearly done and my spirit was low. Well, I didn't. Why didn't I? Tough question. I think when I'm going to DNF there has to be present a severe damage that prevents me from finishing or an injury that clearly will develop into something serious if I finish. I could't classify my experiences in those categories. I was just really hurting and having a bad time. Clearly these are not reasons to DNF! Average pace on the section was 9:10-leaving me 1h 2m behind schedule.

Crossing Åstaelva at Åkersetra

After some refuelling, some potato chips and a cup of coffee I carried on with the race. The trail went up for some time and levelled out when starting to cross a major marsh-land. Luckily timber was placed on most of the trail and because of that it was possible to keep momentum at a resonable level. Ascending towards the hilltop "Snørrvillen", the race' highest point, the view was simply fantastic! It was worth the run from Rena just to experience that view. The horizon was mostly clear, but I could see that some dark clouds were approaching from the north. It was time to descend down to the third check point. Arriving at Sjusjøen I was I was eager to refuel and get on with the remaining part of the race. My pain was still there, but I'd decided to not acknowledge it. I changed shoes(wonderful), refuelled and went out. Average pace on the section was 9:22-leaving me 1h 3m behind schedule.

Sjusjøen-refuelling

The course went up for some while, but before long it started to descend. The condition of the course was much better than on the previous sections, but I couldn't manage to gain enough momentum in order to obtain the pace I wanted. Maybe I'm wasn't pushing enough? Anyway, I kept a steady pace, passed several runners and arrived at the finish in Lillehammer having spent 10h 52m 27s on the course.
Average pace was 8:50-leaving me 1h 7m behind schedule.

Results, total:
-Finish time: 10h 52m 27s
-Placement: 4th overall

-Verticals: 1.782 m
-Shoes: Mizuno Ronin, Puma Trailfox and Montrail Masochist
-Weather: Partly cloudy, some sun, 10-12 degrees celsuis, little wind-severe some times


This was an interesting race in many ways. I feel that there is a lot to learn from it. First thing that springs to mind is my need for improvement when it comes to running technique and endurance in the terrain. I have had workouts in the terrain on average once a week, but that is clearly not enough. I'll correct that when preparing for competitions in the end of the second quarter next year. Secondly I need to establish another regime when it comes to nutrition. It worked out well to drink energy-drink, eat potato chips and drink cola, but I need more storage space than the one my present sack is providing. I'll also skip using the drinking belt on ultra-runs and use a camel-back or something similar. The mental part is more influential than I thought it would be. It made me finish the run at a point where I nearly thought I'd DNF. Further on I need to train to push myself more-endure more pain. That means to run when it hurts if that's needed to keep the pace as planned.
What's worth remembering from this race is all there was to learn from it and that I was able to finish when I thought I wouldn't.

The GARMIN-logfile can be found here:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/49541940

Results from the race can be found here:
http://resultatservice.birkebeiner.no/sok_resultater2.php

UltraBirken-2010: Preparations

Gjerdingen, Nordmarka

First upcoming event is an ultrarace on trail-UltraBirken. It's due next Saturday.
Distance is 73 km and most of it is on trail. Start from Rena(7 a.m.) and finish in Lillehammer.
My target with this race is to finish faster than 10h. In order to do that I need to have an average pace of 8 min/km. That's within my reach.
The course is divided in the following parts:

1. Rena-Skramstadsætra(D)         : 15 km, on gravel roads
2. Skramstadsætra-Åkersætra(D) : 17,5 km(32,5 km from start), trail and mountain running
3. Åkersætra-Sjusjøen(D)            : 17,5 km(50 km from start), very technical trail on marshland
4. Sjusjøen-Finnsveen                  : 14 km   (64 km from start), gravel roads and light trail
5. Finnsveen-Lillehammer             : 9 km     (73 km from start), gravel roads and light trail
D: Drop-point

Theoretical I have the opportunity to supply myself at three aid-stations(2, 3 and 4)
The first part of the race is easy to decide on when it comes to shoes. I'll use some light-weight shoes.
From point 4 to the finish line I'll use trail-shoes. That goes for the part between part 2 and 4 as well.
I'm bringing three pair of shoes.
1) Mizuno Wave Ronin for use from the start till Skramstadsætra(15 km).
2) Puma Trailfox for use between Skramstadsætra and Sjusjøen(35 km)
3) Montrail Masochist for use between Sjusjøen and the finish line.(23 km)

Strategy:
-Goal, overall: finish on 9h 45m (average pace of 8,0 min/km / 7,5 km/h)

.1 Rena-Skramstadsætra        : time spent is 1,5h
(average pace of 6 min/km), add 5 min for shoe-change

.2 Skramstadsætra-Åkersætra: time spent is 2,5h
(average pace of 8,5 min/km), add 10 min for refuelling

.3 Åkersætra-Sjusjøen            : time spent is 2,5h
(average pave is 8,5 min/km), add 15 min for shoe and  refuelling.

.4 Sjusjøen-Lillehammer         : time spent is 2,5h
(average pace is 6,5 min/km), add 15 min for refuelling along the course.

Total time spent                      : 9h + 45min = 9h 45m
( average pace overall is 8,0 min/km)

Time, passing(out):
1. Rena, start           : kl 0700
2. Skramstadsætra  : kl 0835
3. Åkersætra           : kl 1115
4. Sjusjøen              : kl 1400
5. Lillehammer        : kl  1645

Equipment:
1. Shoes:
.1 Mizuno Wave Ronin
.2 Montrail Masochist
.3 Puma Trailfox

2. Clothing:
.1 Thights: long(1), Gore Mythos/ medium length(GORE)
.2 Jersey: long sleeves-Merino Wool(1), t-shirt(1)
.3 Socks: 4 pairs-Gore
.4 Underwear: 2 changes
.5 Jacket: windproof(1)-Gore
.6 Gloves: 1 pair-Gore
.7 Headwear: 1-Gore

3. Food:
.1 Energy-drink: 150 g
.2 Coke: 0,5 l
.3 Potato-chips: 50g
.4 Chocolate: 95 g
.5 Electrolytes: 40 g

4. Supplementary:
.1 Vaseline
.2 Sports-tape
.3 Multi-tool
.4 Compass
.5 Map: Turkart-"Birkebeineren"
.6 Toilette paper
.7 Soap, small
.8 Digital camera
.9 GPS-watch
.10 Wrist-watch
.11 Running-sack(10l)
.12 Drinking-belt, Perfekta(8 bottles of 0,15l)

Romerike 6h-race, 21th of Aug: Race-report

Photo by Ole Arne Schlytter

Today I participated in my 4th ultrarace and my first 6h-race. It's pretty difficult to decide on the pace in advance as I haven't run it before. My goal was to finish with a distance covered in total of 65 km. I finished just over 60 km. As this being my first 6h-run I'm satisfied with that. Today I couldn't have covered more distance. The course consisted of one loop of 1.989 metres with about 1m of elevation gain pr round. 60 % gravel roads and the rest on asphalt pavement. I needed to attend the toilette on two occasions. The first after the 8th loop and the second time after the 18th loop. I lost about 15 minutes on those disruptions. I guess the pizza I ate Yesterday afternoon caused it. I could have covered another loop on those minutes, but that's what it was today. I'll learn from it. I managed to keep a steady, high pace for 14 loop's-except the toilette visit. After that I needed to make some pit-stops to refuell and spent some time on that. It is clearly a great advantage to have someone crewing for you. From there on I used around 12:30 on each loop compared to 10/11 minutes earlier on. I finished excatly on the finish line after completing 30 loops and 426 m-a total of 60,096 km. I'm satisfied with that. Initially I used my own energy drink, chocolate-milk and coke, but supplemented with potato-chips and water after the 15 loops. In addition it was pretty hot and made use of sponges after each loop. I walked very little-only just after completing each loop when eating and drinking water.
It was a pretty even race- the marathon was passed on 4h 4m 2s.

Technicals:

Finish distance(official): 60,096
(25,6 % shorter compared to the winner: 75,515 km)

Placement: 6th overall of 26 and third in age-group.

Split times(average pace):
1. First 10 loop's: 
-Split time                                : 1h 52m 4s
-Distance covered                    : 20,32 km
-Average pace, total                 : 5:31 min/km
-Average pace, in last 10 loops : 5:31 min/km
-Average loop time, total          : 10m 59s
-Average loop time, split          :  10m 59s     

2. Next 10 loop's:
-Total time                                : 3h 52m 40s
-Split time                                 : 2h 00m 36s
-Distance covered, total            : 40,21 km
-Distance covered, split             : 19,89 km
-Average pace, total                  : 5:47 min/km
-Average pace, in last 10 loops  : 6:04 min/km
-Average loop time, total          : 11m 38s
-Average loop time, split          :  12m 04s  

3. Last 10 loop's:
-Total time                                : 6h 0m 0s
-Split time                                 : 2h 7m 14s
-Distance covered, total            : 60,096 km
-Distance covered, split             : 19,89 km
-Average pace, total                  : 5:59 min/km
-Average pace, in last 10 loops  : 6:24 min/km
-Average loop time, total          : 12m 00s
-Average loop time, split          :  12m 43s

Verticals: 29 m, less than 1 metres a round

Calories: 4.224

The log-file from Garmin can be found at:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/45505552

Nutrition:
My enery intake consisted of energy-drink, Coke, chocolate milk and potato chips. I supplied with water at almost every supply station.
I didn't experience any problems due to lack of energy so I guess my intake was sufficient. I had 130 grams of energy-drink, 1,0 l of chocolate milk and 0,67 l of Coke.

Equipment:
-Shoes: I used Mizuno Wave Ronin as my running shoes. They served me well during the whole race.
-Logging: I used my GF 205. No additional device for heart rate-monitoring.
-Clothes: I wore a singlet, medium length thigths and running socks-all from GORE. Wonderful equipment.

Mental part:
I was a though race. My biggest challenge was to decide on my pace in advance. My choise was 5:30. I still think that was a right choise. I paid no attention to what others did at all. I carried out my own race entirly. I experienced difficulties with my stomach and needed to attend the toilette on two occasions-first one after the eigth loop and the second after the 18th loop.

Improvements:
-Nutrition:
I think this is the area that has greatest potensial. That includes both before and during the race. Energy-drink and coke works fine, but I need something more than that. I added chocolate milk this time. That worked fine. In addition I had some potato-chips. I will add that also as a regular. In future races I will also include loafes of bread. To have mixed the energy-drink in advance worked fine. I had two litres of energy drink and 0,35 litres of dehydration drink. My box in the pit-stop area was exposed to the sun. I need to supply with protection on future races. Having my own box with all my gear in was a very good idea. Next time I will make sure to have an inventory list and check it out in advance. A multi-tool was sorly needed and a pair of scissors as well.
-Equipment:
My clothing were good as always. I think the drinking belt needs to be replaced in due time. When wet it tends to get open at front. The shoes were good. I experienced some minor blisters, but I used some vaseline to sort that out. I need to bring compeed next time.
-Race strategy:
I used 7-8 minutes more between every 10th loop. Next time I need to establish better routines in advance when it comes to nutrition-intake. I'll set a loop time that includes running, intake of nutrition in the pit-area and pit-stops. I need to be clear about what to eat and when to eat it. In addition it needs to be prepared in advance. There's also work to be done when it comes to pre-race nutrition. I haven't got time to waste on toilette-visits. This time it was 15 minutes. That's nearly 1,5 loops(3 km).

Rallarvegløpet, 24-25th of July: Race-report

I've been spending two days up in  the central mountains of Norway at a place called Finse. It's situated at 1.222 m above sea-level(4.009 ft). The race is arranged over two days. The first lap is on Saturday, from Flåm, at sea-level to Finse. The second lap is on Sunday from Finse to Haugastøl, 888 m above sea-level(2.913). So, pretty much up the first day and just over 54 km(33,55 miles). On day two it's mostly down and  just under 27 km(16,66 miles).
Day one:

Start is at Flåm station-just above sea-level. From there the course moves forward through the beautiful valley-Flåmsdalen. I was in for a better performance than my last ultra-run. That means a lower moving pace. In Thuringen I had 8,05 min/km(12,95min/miles). I felt good when ascending the first part. I had very good pace the first 7,5-8 km, but had to slow down a bit when entering some heavy ascends. Later on I power-walked the most hilly parts. I went through one of Norways most beautiful scenery. It felt good just to be there. Truly an awesome experience to run trough it. I even met with some goats that had blocked the entire road-wonderful creatures to meet in a place like this. Well then, time to move on and shortly after the course enters a monstrous ascend towards Vatnahalsen-I walked that one. As a matter of fact it was demanding just to walk it. At Vatnahalsen we were able to leave a drop-bag(the only place actually-the race is self-supporting). I didn't think I needed to do so, but that was a mistake. I could have used a top with long sleves up on the mountain, and I could shorly need some more nutrition-more on that later. After Vatnahalsen there is just over 30km to the finish line. The course ascends from about 822 m above sea-level(2.696ft) to Finse-1.222 m(4.009 ft).

I felt fine running through Vatnahalsen an heading for my next target-Hallingskeid-1.074 m.a.s(3.535 ft), 33,5 km(20,86 miles). I could feel some fatigue, but my feet were good still. I was beginning to think about my rapidly diminishing supply of energy. After a steep ascend I was up on the high-mountains-no trees, but lots of solid rock and long views.

I still had walking-breaks when encountering ascends, but not as much as in the first part. Weather was good, but a bit windy. After passing Hallingskeid I was beginning to feel the effects of my to low intake of energy. I tried to push, but couldn't do that to the degree I wanted. Rumours about a possible refuelling with coke at Fagernut was promising. The terrain was getting more and more desolate and almost free of vegetation. I begain to feel some pain in my back, but I didn't slow me down. It was just a new feeling. My feet were still fine, but a bit worn. I had no problems with my knees. With Fagernut(44,5 km-27,66 miles at -1.310 m, 4.297ft) in sight I could lay my hands on a bottle of coke and that made the difference for a good finish for the race. Clearly I had operated on a too low energy intake. It was good to experience that and the importance of enough nutrition. The last part towards Finse leds me by the the highest point of the course-Fagervann, 1.323 m, 4.340ft. After that it's pretty much a long descend to Finse. I finished the first day on 6h 40m 34s-resulting in an average pace of 7,38min/km(11,88 min/miles). Down from 8,05 in Thuringen-Ultra.

Day two on Sunday(Today) consists of an uneventful strech of gravel roads encountering more and more civilisation as I move closer towards the finish line at Haugastøl-888 m, 2.913ft above sea level. My target today was to keep the pace under 6 min/km(9,66 min/miles). I finished 26,5 km(16,5 miles) at 2h 37m 21s, resulting in an average pace of 5,94 min/km(9,56 min/miles). I walked very little, didn't suffer from particularly stiffed feet, but I was a bit worned after Yesterdays race.


Day 1-24th of July: Flåm to Finse
Technicals:
-Distance: 54,3 km( 33,75 miles)
-Time:  6h 41m 32s
-Average speed: 7,4 min/km(11,91 min/mile)
-Elevation gained: 2.212 m(7.260 ft)-the log is corrected after an irregular drop in height.
-Calories:  3.472 kcal
-Average heart rate(max): Not monitored.

The GARMIN logfile can be found at:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/41775559


Day 2-25th of July: Finse to Haugastøl
Technicals:
-Distance: 26,5 km( 16,47 miles)
-Time:  2h 37m 30s-time is corrected as I didn't stop the watch before well after I crossed the finished line.
-Average speed: 5,94 min/km(9,56 min/mile)
-Elevation gained: 135 m(442 ft)
-Calories:  1.859 kcal
-Average heart rate(max): Not monitored.

The GARMIN logfile can be found at:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/41775512

Thuringen Ultra, 100 km, 3.7.10-Race report

Writing this race report a couple of days after I have nothing but good memories from the race. It's a very scenic race that encouters the terrain of Thuringen Wald(forrest) in the heart of Germany. The race consists of one loop starting in Frottstadt and finishing the same place after 100 km in the woods. Mostly on trails, but also on gravel roads and some minor part on asphalt pavement. We started out early-4 a.m-and that was a good move. The heat had been at levels of +30 degrees celsius and it was good to start in a bit chilly atmosphere in the morning. Up to about 10 a.m. the woods shielded the participants from the worst heat. After that, from the second checkpoint at Seligenthal(51 km) we were fully exposed to the heat. The race was very well organized. The markings, support during the race and the atmosphere was excellent. The first part of the course-some 15 km was even marked with read lights in order to help navigating in the early morning. I didn't experience one problem finding the way through the course. The race is apparently appreciated by the locals. When some 15 km was left of the race I saw that many had, on own intitiative, placed out water in order for the participants to refresh themselves. There were also a lot cheering and supportive coments all along the race-both from the participants and from the locals.
The race is divided into four parts. That's because it enables the arranger to facilitate for an additional relay-run. The first part is from the start in Frottstadt to Ruhlaer Skihutte(24km / 15,06 miles). The next place is Floh-Seligenthal(51km / 31,63 miles) . Further on we have Finsterbergen(74 km / 46,33 miles) and finally the finish at Frottstadt(100km / 62,1 miles). The course is pretty demanding-consisting of 2.150 metres of verticals(7.053ft). The race has a total of 17 aid stations with supplies of water and food.
My strategy was to run the flats and decends, and walk the uphills. It was kind of good to start running that early(4 a.m.)-allthough I was sceptical at first. It was about 4 km(2,5 miles) on small roads before we entered the deep of the woods in the morning mist. I felt good running. Having entered the forrest we soon startet to encounter a long ascend up to the first point(Ruhlaer Skihutte). I felt really fit and only had to walk at very steep ascends. I logged in at Ruhlaer Skihutte after 2h 41 56s-an average of 6,46m/km(10,4 min/miles), after gaining a total of 705 m(2.313ft) from the start in Frottstadt.

The second part-from Ruhlaer Skihutte to Floh Seligenthal went also pretty well-though not as well as the first part. The course descends a little right after the beginning, but then start to ascend to the highest point of the part after 35,8km(22,2miles) with an elevation of 778m(2.553ft). After that it's pretty levelled for 1,6km(1mile) and then it descends rapidly down to the second timing point-Floh Seligenthal to 375m(1.232ft). That descend was pretty long-almost 15km(10 miles). I thought it would never end, but knowing pretty well that we were ascending rapidly afterwards I kept the pace as high as I could in order to keep my pace-schedule of 8,0m/km(12,87m/miles). During the last part of the downhill I started to feel some pains in both my knees. This particular pain is familiar to me. It normally appears after I've had a long period of training and races. It normally disappears after a period with no training at all, but I had the remaining half of the run left. Clearly I had to establish a strategy to cope with this for the rest of the race. That was to cool down my feet at regular intervals with water for the rest of the race. The pain didn't disappear, but it only got a bit worse-it was berable. However, I logged in at Seligenthal after 5h 59m 16s. Elevation here is 375m(1.232ft) and the average pace in total now was 7,04m/km(11,3m/miles). Elevation gained from last checkpoint was 457m(1.499ft). I was still within my pace limit, but I had a monstrous ascend to encounter on the third part.

Well then, after some minutes due to natures call and some supplies, I was eager to get going again and not lose to much time on the checkpoint. Shortly after I was encountering the ascend. It kept going until 57,82km(35,93 miless) and peaked at an elevation of 741,3m(2.432ft)-an ascend of 366,3m(1.200ft). I thought it never would end and just managed to run minor parts of it. Right afterwards it was straight downhill to 442m(1.450ft) after 65,4km(40,65 miles). For the first time I experienced problems with running continually down the descends. I had to break it up with small walking parts. My quads were giving me some problems. The pain in my knees were pretty stable as it had been since the second part. I was still determined to finish within my goal of 14h. My strategy to do that was to move forwards with an average pace of no more than 8m/km(12,9m/miles). After some ups and downs I arrived at Finsterbergen-the third check point-situated 74km(46,33miles) out in the race at 9h 33m 59s. After leaving the second point I'd gained an elevation of 637,9m(2.093ft). Average pace so far in total was 7,76m/km(12,5 m/miles). I was a great comfort to realise that I was still ahead of my schedule.

I didn't stay long at Finsterbergen and soon went out for the last part of the race. After 1,6 km of ascend the part pikes at 585,5m(1.921ft). After that it's pretty much downhill. Right then I didn't think that was much of an advantage as both my legs and quads were hurting. However, I'd figured out that in worst case I could powerwalk this race in, but I wanted the time to be as good as possible. I clearly had a better pace than Kristins Runde two weeks ago(the same distance was passed on 10h 42m 38s-50m 55s shorter). The last part of the fourth part-some 16km(10 miles) is out in the fields with no cover for the sun. I managed to run and power walk about half each, but this was the part with my lowest pace, 9,37m/km(15,08m/miles).
It was with a feeling of true accomplishment that I broke the finish line after 13h 26m 44 s-over thirty minutes before my target time, with an average pace of 8,07m/km(12,99m/miles).
Why 14h? Well, it's the qualification time for Western States Endurance Run, and now I'm able to approach that event with an applicant for the lottery.

Some technicals:

Split data:

1. First check point-Ruhlaer Skihutte, after 24 km(15,06 miles):
Total time: 2h 41m 56s
Average pace in total: 6,77m/km(10,89m/miles)
Elevation gained in total: 705m (2.313ft)


2. Second check point-Floh Seligenthal, after 51km(31,63 miles):
Total time: 5h 59m 16s(3h 17m 20s)
Average pace in total: 7,04m/km(11,33m/miles) / (7,33m/km(11,8m/miles))
Elevation gained in total: 1.161,9m(3.812ft) ( 457m(1.499ft))

3. Third check point-Finsterbergen, after 74km(46,33 miles):
Total time: 9h 33m 59s(3h 34m 43s)
Average pace in total: 7,76m/km(12,49m/miles) / (8,9m/km(14,3m/miles))
Elevation gained in total: 1.799,8m(5.905ft) ( 637,9m(2.093ft))
 
4. Finish line-Frottstadt, after 100km(62,1 miles):
Total time: 13h 26m 44s(3h 52m 45s)
Average pace in total: 8,07m/km(12,99m/miles) / (9,37m/km(15,08m/miles))
Elevation gained in total: 2.186,3m(7.173ft) ( 386,5m(1.268ft))


Total result:
I came in 7th in the category(W40), some 30% after the winner. There were 12 finishers.
Overall I came in 12th of 23 finishers, some 30 % after the winner.
Full results here:
http://www.thueringenultra.de/ergebnisse/index_eng.php



Calories: 6.233kcal


The Garmin logfile can be found at:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/39228570

Video from the race:



Thueringenultra 2010 from Mayk Hirschfeld on Vimeo.

Average heart rate:  135(173).


Nutrition:
-Water: I had lots of water. I would estimate about 10l. I had three peing breaks and two other breaks due to natures call.
-Energy: I used the arranger's supplies with Iso-drink and Coca Cola. i had an intake of 2l of each. In addition I had two bananas and some salty biscuits.
-Total energy intake: ..later..


Clothes/shoes/equipment:
-Clothes: I ran in short tights and a singlet. They're both from GORE and were excellent as always.
-Shoes: Montrail Masochist. Just wonderful! Doesn't like to much asphalt pavement, but wonderful on the tracks and gravel roads.
-GPS-watch, GF 205: The watch let me know after 11h 45 m that battery was low, but I decided to let it run without bothering to follow instructions on the watch to "enter". The whole race was logged.
-Heart rate watch, Polar S725X: Values were pretty narrowed. I guess the battery capacity is low on the heart-rate monitor. Not representative at all.

Mental part:
It is vital to have a strategy in advance. It is also extremely important to break the race into bits. I consentrated on moving from one check point to the next, from one aid-station to the next and from 1 km to the next. All along I was trying to keep as relaxed as possible, consentraiting on maintaining a good technique. I'd experienced a tension in my elbows during Kristins Runde and this time I let my arms hang straight down in a relaxed manner during parts of the descends. It worked out well. I didnt' experience any similar problems. It was a pretty though race with all the ascends and descends, but I was never in doubt on wether I should finish or not. The question was before or after the targeted finish time. I was truly happy right after crossing the finish line. I haven't felt like that since Kristins Runde. It's worth running just to get that feeling again!
In addition I get a feeling of true pleasure when running through such beautiful terrain as this course was. I know I'm having a great time when time and space just disappears and I'm just being present right there, running. There is no better time in life than that!

Getting ready for Thuringen Ultra at the 3th of July

Well, I tend to forget the pain endured on Yesterdays race and find myself already planning for the next race-it has been scheduled for a while though. It's a 100km ultrarun on trails in Thuringen Wald(forrest) in Thuringen, Germany. The race starts in Frottstadt and consists of one 100 km loop with the finish the same place.
I need to work myself through three different phases in order to prepare properly for the race:


1. First phase: Recovery from Kristins Runde
.1 Individual stretching
.2 Cycling on stationary wheels in zone 1
.3 Massage
.4 Hot baths on daily basis

2. Second phase: Maintainance
.1 Running racelike sessions every three day
.2 Cycling on stationary wheels in zone 1 on the days between running sessions

3. Third phase: Race-preparation
.1 Plan execution
.2 Mental preparation

Kristins Runde, 19th of June-2010: -Race report

Yesterday I was participating in a 50,5 miles trailrun in Nordmarka-Norway. It was my first official ultrarun.In total it was a very good running experience. I had a great day in spite of some rain and occasionally heavy winds. One other thing I was a bit uncertin about was the amount of nutrition I needed to consume during the race. I addition, another factor is how my feet would react to such a demanding elevation and partly technical trails. After all my background is from marathons. At last I was a bit unsure about my average moving pace. In street-runs I aim at 5 min/km and use that as a target during the race. In trailruns it's different. That much I knew. Last weekend I had a chance to test it out as I was participating in Nordmarka skogsmaraton-further south in the same area as Kristins Runde. I had an average pace of just above 6 min/km. Being far more demanding than that race I established a goal of 8 min/km as an average pace. That would bring me to the finish just before 11h. In that case I would be qualified for Western States. That would be nice.
My finish time was 11h 33m 17s(unofficial time). The total distance is 81,3 km(50,5 miles). My measure was 50,51 miles. Total elevation was 1.724 m( 5656ft). Calories: 4.955kcal.I used both my GPS-watch(GF 205) and an another watch(Polar S725X) to measure my heart rate. I was uncertain if the watches had enough capasity to store that much information as the race would last for 11-12 hours. It turned out they had.
That gives an average pace of 8,53 min/km(13,72 min/miles). My body is worn as it never has been after a race. My feet are very stiff. During the race I was just waiting for a cramp to appear, but that never happened. My strategy laid in advance was carried out with one exception. I didn't walk regularly 5 minutes of every hour. I walked a bit more than that so it didn't made sense to carry out that part of the strategy. When it comes to nutrition I didn't eat as much as I had planned in advance. I was a bit anxious during the race if I was low on my intake of energy. It turned out I wasn't. I drank a lot of water and some energy drink, but not much of that either.
The course consists of 25 % of technical trails and the rest of gravel roads-with a minor part(few km) on asphalt pavement. The most demanding part was the ascend up to the five peaks of just above 700 m(2300ft). The legs get a heavy ride ascending while the thighs are subjected to the same when descending. I walked up to all five hills as planned in my strategy. It was a wice decision. When descending I made efforts to run, but with care as I have trained little on technical trails. The shoes-Montrail Masochist- were simply wonderful on these parts of the run. Further on I ran on the flats and downhills and walked must of the uphills. I sticked to that strategy almost all the race. Three of the five hills is situated before16,4 km of the race(10,2 miles), the next hill is after 29,8 km(18,5 miles) and the last after 48,3 km(30,05 miles). After that the course descends rapidly to the lowest point on the race-Kringla-situated at 338 m(1.110ft) after 57,6 km        (35,78 miles). After that it's pretty much uphill. The course consists of one loop meaning that we return to the same spot as we started-ascending to 502m(1647ft) after 81,3 km(50,5 miles).
My feet were getting really stiff at this time, but I ran the flats and tried to walk the ascends as fast as possible. I didn't have any breaks except for a refilling-stop after 69,5 km(43,2 miles).
I came in fifth in the ladies group and 38th of 52 overall. I'm satisfied with that, but I would have been more satisfied with finishing sub 11h. That would have made me qualified for Western States. I'll have another try with that in two weeks at an ultra-race in Thuringen-Germany. It's 100 km and my aim is sub 14h. Then I would be qualified for Western States.

Some technicals:

Split times:
1. On the first top-Helgehaugen, 705 m(2.312ft)
after 6,3 km(3,92 miles); 45m 54s
2. On the second top-Lamannshaugen, 701 m(2.301ft)
after 8,95km(5,56 miles);1h 11m 51s(26m 7s)
3. On the third top-Svarttjernshøgda, 717 m(2.352ft)
after 14,95 km(9,29 miles);2h  3m  39s(51m 47s)
4. On the fourth top-Ringkollen, 701m(2.300ft)
after 31,56 km(19,61 miles);4h 15m   9s(2h 11m 30 s)
5. Marathon-distance-Between the fourth and the fifh top at Storflåtan;
5h 48m 42s(1h 33m 32s)
6. On the fifth top-Oppkuven, 704 m(2.308ft)
after 49,3 km(30,64 miles); 7h   5m   3s(1h 16m 20s)
7. At Sandungen gård: 423,7 m(1.390ft)
after 62,4 km(38,8 miles); 8h 48m 32s(1h 42m 29s)
8. Before descending to Gjerdingen: 549,9 m(1.804ft)
after 69,5 km(43,2 miles); 9h 56m 5s(1h  7m 32s)
9. Finish-By the lake Mylla: 502m(1.647ft),
after 81,3 km (50,5 miles); 11h 33m 17s(1h 37m 12s)

Average speed:
1. Helgehaugen      : 7,3 min/km((11,7 min/miles)
2. Lamannshaugen : 8,0 min/km(12,9 min/miles)
3. Svarttjernshøgda: 8,3 min/km(13,4 min/miles)
4. Ringkollen         : 8,1 min/km(13,0 min/miles)
5. Marathon          : 8,3 min/km(13,4 min/miles)
6. Oppkuven         : 8,6 min/km(13,8 min/miles)
7. Sandungen        : 8,5 min/km(13,7 min/miles)
8. Bef. Gjerdingen : 8,6 min/km(13,8 min/miles)
9. Finish-Mylla      : 8,5 min/km(13,7 min/miles)

Calories: 4.955 kcal

Vertical: 1.724 m(5.656ft)

The Garmin logfile can be found at:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/37432458

Average heart rate:  147

Nutrition:

-Water: I had an intake of 7 l of water
-Energydrink: I had an intake of 150g. That gives 560 kcal
-Bread: I ate 6 loafes of bread. That gives 1.500 kcal
-Chocolate: I had 1,5 pieces. That gives me 500 kcal.
Total energy-inntake: 2.560 kcal. That's 51,7 % of my need. I must have been burning some fats as well That's good news.

Clothing/shoes/equipment:
-I need a nite cap, but that's allready ordered. My socks(GORE) were wonderful. That goes for the tights(GORE) and my windbreaker(GORE) as well.
-Shoes: Montrail Masochist-just magnificent on trails.
-GPS watch: I was able to store all my race on the watch. That indicates that there is good capacity.
-Heart rate watch: I was able to store all my race on the watch. That indicates that there is good capacity.
Mental part:
I consentrated on executing the strategy as planned in advance. In addition I established targets along the course, using the course map provided by the arranger. It had 53 points along the course with the distance indicated. I turned out to a great move to focus like that. To have a strategy in advance is vital. It works wonders when the going gets though.

Running-workout of today: Very long run-Ultrarun!

I guess I can call myself an Ultrarunner now, having runned 51,5 km in 6h 3m 42s. The course was on trails in Nordmarka. I experienced rain most of the time. It was also the first time I used my new trail-shoes. The brand is new to me-Montrail. The model is Masochist and today I almost felt that way-especially at the end of the workout. My intention with this monstrous session was to prepare the body-and the mind-for a 50 mile race due in the midle of June this year in the same area, only somewhat more north.

Technical data:
-Time: 6h 3m 42s
-Distance: 51,5 km(32,2 miles)
-Ascent: 2.160 m
-Average heart rate: 148
-Average pace: 7,06 min/km(11,3 min/miles)


Some impressions from the workout:
-I'm still a bit worn out. Yesterdays recovery day wasn't sufficient enough.

-Nutrition: I'm a bit low still, but it's better. I'm using energy drink and dehydration-tablets from Maxim.
Total intake was dehydration(3 tablets of 10 gram), energy drink(75 gram), bananas( 2) and water(2,0litres)
I'm to low on energy and water-especially energy. I need to increase! I was down 1 kg after the workout. Bananas doesn't work well in the rain. They dissolve. I need to find another solution. Bread with honey is an alternative-well wrapped!

-Shoes: A good experience so far. Cushion is adequate, but not more-better on pure trails. It's a steady shoe and good to run with. It suits me fine. It's not to heavy-310 grams. I didn't get any blisters. Anyhow I need to bring along some gear to mend them-they will occur!

-Clothing: When it rains all the time you get wet no matter what. I should use my Mythos thights. I got soar on the inside of the tighs, at the top. I need to find a means to prevent that. Talkum?
If I had known the amount of rain I would have used another jacket. I have a Gore Tex jacket that would have been more suited for the occasion. I need to refresh the impregnation though. I addition I need some gloves and something on the head.

-Backpack: Works allright. I have to cut off some lose ends here and there.

-Performance: Ultrarunning is not marathon-running. I need to remind my self of that. Being used to run a steady pace throughout all the run/race I'm sort of used to that approach. Covering much lengther distances it's vital to make use of another approach. The limiter is not lactic acid accumulating in my body, it is fatigue from worn ut muscles-particularly in my thighs. In order to prevent eccesive fatigue I have to fit in-on a regular basis-walking breaks. Walking breaks is due on steep ascends and a certain amount of time every hour.

-Overall: I'm very satisfied with the outcome of the session.