60 Minutes of Heaven and Hell: 2011 Titus Van Rijn (TVR) One Hour Distance Classic (Sun Valley Edition)

The numbers were whittled down a bit from last year's record-breaking turnout - as smarter souls found themselves "unexpectedly" tied down with other obligations - but the 2011 running of the Titus Van Rijn (TVR) One Hour Distance Classic - Sun Valley Edition was as grand an affair as always.  Eleven toed the line on what turned out to be a rare beautiful spring day.

The TVR is a festival of running that takes place across the country between May 1 and June 14.  All that's required is a standard length track, stopwatch, and the will to run for 60 minutes while keeping track of your laps.  Results are then sent in to national TVR headquarters, where they're compiled and posted, along with entertaining race reports from sea to shining sea. The official TVR site has more details, great history, and past results (TVR site).

Taking top honors at the Sun Vally running of the TVR was, yet again, Brad Mitchell, covering close to 10 miles (15,875 meters).  Tied for second were Alex Gonzales and Hank Dart, with 13,680 meters (8.5 miles).  Top woman was Julie Cord (12,260 meters; 7.6 miles), with EJ Harpham close on her heels (12,030 meters; 7.5 miles).

AJW and his fish shorts and Liv Jensen, regulars at past runnings, missed the May 19 event, but are likely to schedule a re-run later this month.  Look out for a supplemental report should they open the event up to the press.

Full Sun Valley TVR results from 2011 and 2010.

First minute.  First bend.

Rock n Roll

Brad making it look easy

Still smiling at 30 minutes

Line up on the finishing stretch

Down the back stretch in the 40th minute

In control and happy in the closing minutes

Done

Cool down

Running Through the "City of Rocks"

Idaho gets a bad rap, even if, admittedly, some of it is deserved: From the militias that muster in the northern pan handle to the "wide stance" of conservative GOP senator Larry Craig.  Yet, I'm a real booster for the state, especially when it comes to the grandeur of its wildlands, something I try to chronicle with a running bend on the pages here in Run Junkie.

This weekend, I was able to do a bit of running in another great pocket of the state - the rock climbing Mecca, City of Rocks National Reserve, which sits in southern Idaho right at the border with Utah.  It's an astounding valley filled with jutting granite formations, and some very nice singletrack from which you can see the sights.  It may not be the place for a run of epic length and vert but there's plenty to keep you occupied for a sub-epic outing.  And the climber-viewing is always entertaining.

A few photos:

Breadloaves and snow.

Nematode Rock.

Elephant Rock.

Right on to Private Idaho.

The "Inner City.

Climbing in the "Inner City."

The birds.

Looking for Some Mid-Week Inspiration? Check Out Bernard Lagat's 600m Repeats (Video)

Continuing the video trend, I felt a need to post this Wednesday Workout from Flotrack, featuring two-time World Champion Bernard Lagat banging out 600m repeats on some soft golf course grass.  Good reminder that you don't really need a 400m oval if you feel a need for speed.

I lost count, but they covered something like 10 x 600m at 1:40 (which he hopes to drop down to 1:30 by July).  It's hard not to be inspired by the effortless strides, but it's also great to note the largely measured pace, when you know he could go faster, and the pleading of his coach to not add one extra at the end, something I've finally come to learn is one of the main jobs of a coach.  Enjoy.


Watch more video of Flotrack's Workout Wednesday, Season 5 on flotrack.org

Geoff Roes Interview on Presidio Sports Following SBER 100 Win (Video)

Geoff Roes handily won the Santa Barbara Endurance Race 100 miler over the weekend, in a swift time of 16:32 (race site).  Because of the wet spring, the Forest Service pulled permits for the race in the weeks leading up to the start, causing race directors to reroute the original course, which was to have 36,000 feet of climbing, largely over singletrack.  The revised course took place largely on dirt roads and Jeep trail but still had hefty amounts of climbing and whipping winds.

Video of Roes interviewed by Presidio Sports, where he talks about the SBER course, UTMB, and the draw of ultramarathoning:

First Spin of Vorberg Gulch and the New Lumix FH27

It's a rite of spring for me - the photo-chronicle of the first passable trip around the Vorberg Gulch loop here in Hailey.  Being one of the first trails with a backcountry feel to shed the winter snow, it's always a bit of a hosannah moment for trail runners in the Valley, so I always feel compelled to take a handful of photos. 

This year, it also gave me the chance to test out my new Panasonic Lumix FH27, the replacement for my aging Coolpix, which drowned during the deluge that was Coyote Two Moon last month.  There are a few kinks to work out with the new machine, but I'm excited to be reunited with a Leica lens, and so far it gets a thumbs up. 

Beginning the ridge section, heading south toward Carbonate

Looking toward the corral at the mouth of Vorberg Gulch

Tree, sun, and snow on the ridge

The Run Junkie requisite shot

Tagged foundation near the bottom of the Carbonate switchbacks

200,000-Step Program: Ultra-Running on Discovery's "My Strange Addiction"

One of my brilliant wife's guilty pleasures is B-grade reality TV, the entertaining yet brainless vortex of which I sometimes get caught up in as well.  One of these shows she occasionally watches is a Discovery Channel offering called My Strange Addiction, which chronicles people's addiction to things like glass eating, chalk eating, detergent drinking, and, of course, ultra-running.  Yes, ultra-running.

That ultra-running may be viewed by some as a fringe pursuit is not a revelation to any of us, but to equate it with chalk eating and glass eating (glass eating!) seemed a bit unfair.  Yet, it was pretty fun to watch the show couch the sport we have such passion for in an abnormal light.

The episode that highlighted the runner lost to the ultra addiction (which actually ran last year sometime), focussed on his wild mileage - which was actually pretty modest for anyone serious about ultra - and used the fact that he'd run through the night and through fatigue, blisters, and nausea as a sure sign of disordered behavior.

It all culminates with his trip to the Javelina Jundred, where he makes it to the finish line, haggard but ready for more.  His girlfriend, however, isn't so sure she wants anymore of him.

Unfortunately, there isn't a clip highlighting just the ultra section of that episode.  I've been putting off posting this hoping (fruitlessly, it seems) for it to happen.  The "Expert" clip bellow, though, gives enough of a flavor of things.

Nordic Dayz in Sun Valley: SuperTour Finals - Sprints

OK, the SuperTour Nordic race series may not be directly related to running, but it's one inspiring spectacle, I have to say.  I spent the morning yesterday out at the Lake Creek Nordic area in Sun Valley watching the classic sprint finals (prelims, heats, and finals), and it was quite a show of grit, athleticism, and technical prowess.  I stationed myself and my camera atop the final climb (Coaches' Climb) of the 1.8 k course and snapped away.  

Check out the  HD Vimeo slideshow (below) to see some great athletes in action and get a taste of how we snow-bound runners spend a good part of our winter.  It's best viewed full screen.  There's also a lower res version.

SuperTour Finals - Sprints 2011 (High Res) from Run Junkie on Vimeo.

2011 Coyote Two Moon 100 Cancelled Mid-Race

AJW and Jared Campbell getting word
at Cozy Dell (mile 68( on cancellation.

For the second year in a row, the Coyote Two Moon 100 in Ojai, CA was dealt extreme weather.  Unlike last year, though, the weather won this time.

Heavy wind and rain on the valley floors and heavy wind and snow on the frequently travelled Nordhoff ridge caused the race director to stop the race for safety reasons shortly after midnight Saturday night (very early Sunday morning).  In the 100 mile race, Jeff Browning, Karl Meltzer and Justin Angle were in between miles 68 and 75 when word of cancellation came through. Ty Draney, Jared Campbell, and Andy Jones-Wilkins had just entered the Cozy Dell aid station at mile 68.

As conditions deteriorated and the night went on, the race director took stock, allowing fewer and fewer runners to continue the race unless they were well-prepared for the wet, cold, and snowy weather, eventually cancelling altogether.  Aid station captains and communication staff then began scrambling to account for all runners.

Rain is still falling heavily in the region and is expected to continue doing so through the rest of the weekend, which may affect to some degree Sunday's running of the LA Marathon.

Clark Zealand & Scott Wolfe beginning
Cozy Dell climb, before cancellation

2011 Coyote Two Moon 100m/100k - A Preview of Sorts

Through twist of kizmet and school break schedules, I get to do a little light crewing during the 2011 running of the Coyote Two Moon 100m/100k in Ojai, CA (March 18 - 20), and I'm pretty excited about it.  C2M holds a special place in my heart.  I did the 100k in 2009, and it was the first ultra I did that took me through the night, that took me well over 12 hours, and that had close to 20,000 feet of elevation gain.  Plus, it was my first exposure to the ultra-as-performance-art stylings of race director, Chris Scott, who puts on a premier event while also using the runners as actors who are there to amuse volunteers, race directors, and any standers by.  This is not Western States; this is not Wasatch (though it has as much climbing); this is its own beast.

RD Chris Scott briefing the troops

The first hint of that, apart from the amusing prose that makes up the C2M website, is the format.  Starts are staggered so that everyone finishes within a 2 - 4 hour window on Sunday morning.  Slower hundred milers will start Friday afternoon, and therefore, run through the night twice, seeing two full or nearly-full moons; faster hundred milers will start Saturday morning; faster 100k runners will start Saturday afternoon.  While being a late starter (as I was in the 100k) can make for some pretty lonely early miles, the convergence in the closing miles, and then right into the awards/breakfast afterward, is a unique touch that makes C2M stand apart from most other races.

Other hallmarks of C2M:
Bonus/Boner minutes.  Do something fun, interesting, or otherwise generally pleasing to the race director or volunteers and you can get bonus minutes that are deducted from you official C2M time.  Singing Sade's "Sweet as Cherry Pie" at the Gridley Top aid station could well be worth a minute per mile in total time.  Do something that irritates, and the boner minutes add to your time.

Leader beanies.  Yes.  Current leaders or whoever the director designates must wear a felt beanie with an honest to god propellor (see photo below).

Aid station pate'.  Or is it cat food?  Try it and earn bonus minutes.

Costumes.  Previous incarnations saw RD Scott on the Nordhoff Ridge in full Holstein and Eastern Bunny regalia (handing out Peeps).

Goody bag.  In addition to the best Patagonia race wear going, the goody bags are the most esoteric collection you will ever receive at a bib pickup.  In 2009, as I chronicled here, mine included among other things: golf tees, old iron curtain beer coaster, brochure from the Intercourse Canning Co, C2M labeled toothbrush, hotel soaps, and the romance novel, "And the winner gets...married."

Elevation gain.  Despite its good-natured ethos, C2M is a hard race.  The 100k boasts 19,000 feet of vert, and the 100m about 26,000 feet.

Bowling.  A near-must for all entrants is the bowling matchup the night before the race.  Meltzer's pretty good from what I hear, though, he didn't run the year I did it so I'm getting this second hand.  RD names teams and gives each bowler a special nickname - which may or may not (likely not) be too flattering.

Now on to some of the players at this year's event.  It seems a large chunk of the Patagonia Ultra team will be on hand.  Among the notables:

In the 100 Mile
Justin Angle, AJW, Jeff Browning, Jared Campbell, Ty Draney, Karl Meltzer, Brian Polley, Betsy Nye, and Wendy Wheeler-Jacobs.

In the 100k
Eric Clifton, Scott Wolfe, Clark Zealand, and Maggie Beach.

I'm excited to get out there and see some of the action in person.

Dan Waddle and Meredith Terranova on the line (with leaders' beanies) for the afternoon 100k starters (2009)

From the Annals of Unlikely Places: Comic Strip Insight on Endurance Sport

Ever since I was in junior high, when my love for endurance sport really started to express itself, my father's been an ardent, if at times bewildered, supporter of my various adventures -- something I believe most of us could say about at least one of our close family members.  Being a long time lover of comics, he will occasionally send me links to comics he thinks might speak to me.   Two days ago he forwarded one along from the strip Frazz, which really seemed to capture not only how we as ultra-endurance athletes define happiness but also how many, likely most, others view us and our crazy sports.  It seemed like it was worth sharing, so here it is. 

Scene: Two people talking - an old teacher and a young student - while watching Frazz bundled up and riding his bike under dim light and falling snow.

Old teacher: That lunatic Frazz.  He'd be a lot happier home in front of the television.

Student: I don't think he's ever confused comfort with happiness.

Old teacher: How is he with bewilderment vs. admiration?

Student: Don't think he gets those confused with his happiness either.

Click to visit larger version on comics.com