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North Face Endurance Challenge 50 miler - June 5, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 03:52:00 +0000

On Saturday June 5th, John drove me out to Algonkian Regional Park down in Virginia on the Potomac River for the 5:00 a.m. start of the North Face Endurance Challenge, Washington D.C. edition 50 mile trail race.

Finished the 50 mile run in 11 hrs 40 mins in 112th place out of 203 runners.

Bull Run 50 Miler - April 10, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Sun, 02 May 2010 03:20:00 +0000

On the morning of Saturday April 10th I drove down to Hemlock Regional Park along the Occoquan River in Clifton, Virginia to run my second Bull Run 50 Miler (see previous post from the 2009 race below). The Bull Run Run is a 50.4 mile trail run in the rolling hills of the Virginia countryside alongside the Occoquan River with two out and back loops (see the map of the course below) that includes ~6300 feet of climbing throughout. "The BRR is a beautiful, tough run on the Bull Run Trail in Northern Virginia sponsored by the Virginia Happy Trails Running Club. The run's unique character includes a Civil War theme that respects the battles that occurred here many years ago. The BRR is a difficult challenge, but many have finished it. It is not easy, but it is not brutal. The BRR is not for casual runners, but if you like to run trails, come enjoy a day in Virginia's spring beauty as we honor those who fought here many years ago."

50.4 mile trail race. Finished in 10 hrs 37 min.

Seneca Creek Trail Marathon - March 6, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 03:00:00 +0000

On Saturday March 6th, 2010 I drove the 20 or so miles out to Riley's Lock in Seneca, MD for the Seneca Creek Trail Marathon & 50k. Finished in 5 hrs 39 min.

Running through Snowpocalypse/Snowmageddon - Winter 2009/10

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 03:16:00 +0000

Since starting school at Georgetown in 2004, I had successfully run and biked through 5 winters in Washington D.C. without much consternation... until the winter of 2009/10 arrived. On the night of Friday December 18th, the weather forecast was calling for a massive snowstorm of 18 inches or more starting after midnight and continuing all day on Saturday. Sure enough, come midnight the snow starting falling. Excited to go out in some fresh powder before it all melted, I laced up my running shoes that night around 3:00 a.m. and set out on a quick 6 miler out-and-back on MacArthur Blvd. There were a good 4 to 5 inches on the ground already. It was so much fun slip-sliding through the fresh powder. Turned out to be one of the most fun runs I can ever remember. Got cheers and honks from the many snowplow drivers - I felt like I was Rocky Balboa training for a prize fight through the streets of Philadelphia. Little did I know when I went to bed that night that this was not to be the last run through the snow this winter.

When I awoke on Saturday December 19th, the snow was NOT melted. Rather, the previous night's snowstorm had turned into a raging blizzard and more than a foot and a half of snow had already fallen. And of course I went out for a run.

Yates 30 miles in 30 days swim challenge - Oct 19-Nov 17, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 04:43:00 +0000

"The spirit to win and the will to excel is always measured one stroke at a time."
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Yates Field House at Georgetown University, a 30 miles in 30 days swim challenge was offered in the natatorium. I decided to give it a shot. The Yates lap pool has 8 lanes 25 yards in length and is 3.5 - 5 feet deep. One mile in the pool equals 1650 yards or 33 laps in this 25 yard pool. I would thus have to average 33 laps per day in order to swim the required 49,500 yards (990 laps), and I would also have to factor in a couple rest days before the Marine Corps Marathon I was running during the first week of the challenge. Here's my daily swim log:
Mon Oct 19, Day 1 - 1900 yds
Tues Oct 20, Day 2 - 1700 yds
Wed Oct 21, Day 3 - 1700 yds
Thurs Oct 22, Day 4 - 1000 yds
Fri Oct 23, Day 5 - 0
Sat Oct 24, Day 6 - 0
Sun Oct 25, Day 7 - 0 (Marine Corps Marathon)
Mon Oct 26, Day 8 - 1700 yds
Tues Oct 27, Day 9 - 1500 yds
Wed Oct 28, Day 10 - 1450 yds
Thurs Oct 29, Day 11 - 2200 yds
Fri Oct 30, Day 12 - 1800 yds
Sat Oct 31, Day 13 - 1250 yds
Sun Nov 1, Day 14 - 2100 yds
Mon Nov 2, Day 15 - 900 yds
Tues Nov 3, Day 16 - 3000 yds
Wed Nov 4, Day 17 - 1600 yds
Thurs Nov 5, Day 18 - 2000 yds
Fri Nov 6, Day 19 - 1500 yds
Sat Nov 7, Day 20 - 2000 yds
Sun Nov 8, Day 21 - 1750 yds
Mon Nov 9, Day 22 - 2000 yds
Tues Nov 10, Day 23 - 1600 yds
Wed Nov 11, Day 24 - 1800 yds
Thurs Nov 12, Day 25 - 1600 yds
Fri Nov 13, Day 26 - 1650 yds
Sat Nov 14, Day 27 - 2300 yds
Sun Nov 15, Day 28 - 2700 yds
Mon Nov 16, Day 29 - 2800 yds
Tues Nov 17, Day 30 - 2000 yds

So I made it 30 miles in 30 days. And I got a t-shirt that says as much. Chlorine is the only cologne I need.

Marine Corps Marathon - October 25, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 02:49:00 +0000

I ran my 3rd Marine Corps Marathon and 4th big city marathon on October 25th, 2009. I got to the start line in plenty of time this year and was able to meet up with the 3:10 pace group, who if I could manage to keep up with through to the finish would qualify me for Boston. The gun went off at 8:00 a.m. on schedule and I crossed the start line just a few seconds later feeling pretty well trained and confident that I could actually do it this year.

"The route starts in Arlington, VA, and winds its way through Rosslyn along Lee Highway before turning on Spout Run and the George Washington Parkway. After crossing the Key Bridge into Georgetown, runners turn toward the Palisades when the course follows Canal Road, up to the reservoir and down MacArthur Boulevard. The course guides runners down popular M Street in Georgetown. Runners will turn on Wisconsin Avenue and then K Street. The course passes the Kennedy Center and takes runners into Hains Point at approximately the halfway point of the race. Outside Potomac Park, runners pass the Jefferson Memorial before entering the National Mall and running by the Lincoln memorial, Washington Monument, and the U.S. Capitol. Runners continue along Jefferson Drive and then cross the 14th Street Bridge back into Virginia at mile 20. For the last 10K runners venture through Crystal City, pass the Pentagon, and charge the hill to the finish at the Marine Corps War Memorial."

The 3:10 pace group turned out to be a large group of maybe 60-70 runners or so who for the large part had similar hopes for the day as me. It was rather uncomfortable running on the heels of such a large group and always maintaining their subtle shifts in pace so by mile 5 or 6 I broke away and got a few hundred yards ahead of them. John and the parents were out to cheer me on when I came over the Key Bridge into Georgetown around mile 4 and again when I came down MacArthur Blvd past my new apartment around mile 8. I was feeling strong running down such familiar stomping ground but still had some doubt about my ability to maintain the current pace over the length of the course. The 3:10:59 time to qualify for Boston translates into 7:17 min/mile pace and 22:37 per 5k. My splits from the race are below:
5k - 22:35
10k - 22:34 (45:09)
15k - 22:24 (1:07:33)
20k - 21:56 (1:29:29)
25k - 22:21 (1:51:50)
30k - 22:49 (2:14:39)
35k - 25:59 (2:40:38)
40k - 28:07 (3:08:45)
42.195k - finished 3:20:25

As you can see, I was right on track through the 30k mark with a half marathon split of 1:34:22. Somewhere around mile 16 or 17 I started to slow up a little bit and the 3:10 pace group caught up to me. I ran with them for a while but they started pushing past me. I was determined to keep them in sight and catch back up as soon as I got a surge of energy. But that surge never came. I really don't even remember at what point I lost sight of the pace group, and it was definitely not a conscious decision to let them go. Looking back now I can clearly see that I ran out of energy about mile 19 or 20 and should have been getting more calories throughout the race so as not to have bonked so hard so close to the finish. I wound up fighting my way through the last few miles, ran up the final hill to cheers from the family, and crossed the finish line at the Iwo Jima Memorial at 3 hrs 20 min 25 sec in 740th place out of 21,405 finishers. I know it is a great feat to have run the 26.2 miles on this beautiful day in 3:20 but I was overwhelmingly disappointed that I didn't keep it together for the last few miles and finish just 9 min 26 sec faster. But I know there will be many more chances, such as next year's race on October 31, 2010.

Shenandoah National Park Bicycle Adventure - July 4th weekend, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 01:20:00 +0000

At 7:00 a.m. on Friday July 3rd, Sarah and I packed up our touring bikes with sleeping bags, a tent, and some food, and then set out on a biking expedition that I will not soon forget. We crossed the Key Bridge into Virginia and then took the Custis Trail 4 miles to the start of the W&OD trail in Shirlington. The W&OD trail is a 45 mile paved trail once occupied by the Washington & Old Dominion Railroad from 1859 to 1968. We busted our way down this mostly flat trail with only a brief stop for some Twizzlers at "The Stretching Post". The first 10-15 miles of this trail were rather crowded and had several street crossings that really slowed us down, but the last 15-20 miles were much more rural with few interruptions that allowed us to make it into Purcellville at the trail's end by lunchtime. A nice gentle-bicyclist-man that we rode the last few miles of the trail with directed us to the grocery store in town where we got some sandwich material and fluids for the water bottles that were rapidly being emptied on such a hot and humid weekend.
We spent the better part of that afternoon biking about 40 miles of rural Virginia roads from Purcellville into Front Royal, the entrance to Shenandoah National Park. Highlights of the ride included an alpaca farm, buying ice cream sandwiches at a gas station we passed, and playing "I'm biking to Shenandoah and I'm bringing Apples, a Bandana, Cherry Chapstick, ... Fish of the swedish variety, Jokes to tell, a Kite to fly, Lovely Lipstick," and on and on." When we got to the entrance station of Shenandoah National Park at Skyline Drive, we were denied access to camping because we did not have a backcountry camping permit and did not have locks for our bikes. So we wound up biking a couple miles down the road to an RV campground where we were allowed to pitch our tent for the night. The campground turned out to be awesome as they had showers, miniature golf, trash cans for empty beer bottles, and black bears! We had to tie our food up in the tree at night so as not to attract bears but it turned out not to matter much as bears were trolling around the campground throughout the day regardless.

On day 2 of our adventure, we left all our gear at the campground and rode our bikes sans heavy gear back to the beginning of Skyline Drive at the entrance to Shenandoah Park. Skyline Drive runs 105 miles north-south along the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains and is the only public road in Shenandoah National Park. This road traverses up and down 3,500 feet tall mountains and has numerous white-tail deer and black bears that occasionally wander onto it. It turned out to be a great day of riding with incredible ups-and-downs and beautiful scenic views. Literally, the first 8 miles were straight uphill without rest, immediately followed by an amazing downhill journey with dangerously fast speeds. We took a rest at the Elkwallow campground, very popular among the cyclists in the park. We met an awesome old guy with jacked legs who was riding a single speed through the park - I don't know how he was making it up the mountains without gears - and Sarah got a picture with him that turned out to be a Facebook profile pic for quite a while. Sarah is quite the beast on the bike and I'm not quite sure how far she made it out Skyline Drive that day before turning around, but I made it to the 34 mile marker before I decided that I had better turn around for fear of not making it all the way back to the campground before dark/death. There were fireworks that raged late into the night that night for the 4th of July while we tried to sleep in the tent before the 90 mile journey home the next day.

Expedition day 3 found us packing up our bikes and getting on the road by about 8:30 a.m. I was pretty beat and having some pretty bad IT band pain in my left knee but Sarah was raging and ready to bike as always. The miles back to Purcellville flew by with a quick stop for pictures (that can't be shown on this blog) outside Naked Mountain Winery and a concrete sculpture garden in some rural Virginia town. The ride home on the W&OD was excruciating for me as I was just not in the bike shape required for doing hundred mile days while carrying tons of extra weight on my touring bike. Needless to say I was pretty happy to make it across the Key Bridge back into D.C. in one piece after 250+ miles over 3 days on the bike and some great memories to boot.

Kinetic half-iron and sprint triathlons - May 9 and 10, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 00:54:00 +0000

On Saturday May 9th I drove down to Lake Anna State Park in Spotsylvania, Virginia to participate in the Kinetic half-iron triathlon on Saturday 5/9/09 at 7:00 a.m. and the Kinetic sprint triathlon on Sunday 5/10/09 at 9:00 a.m. These were my first big triathlons of the season and outdoor swims in my wetsuit. I had been training hard running and swimming but had very little mileage on my bike so far this year coming into this weekend, so I was pretty unsure of how the races would go.

Kinetic half-iron triathlon on Saturday

swam 1.2 miles in 36:19
T1 of 4:01
biked 56 miles in 3:08:44
T2 of 2:12
ran 13.1 miles in 1:49:59
finished in 5:41:13
104th place out of 267 male finishers

Kinetic sprint triathlon on Sunday

750 meter swim in 13:20
T1 of 3:48
18 mile bike in 52:33
T2 of 1:35
5K run in 22:12
finished in 1:33:27
107th place out of 340 male finishers

I was pretty pleased with my performance over the weekend although I was rather disappointed at my biking splits. This weekend did get me motivated to get out on my bike more often. I had fun camping out on Lake Anna with some other kids from the triathlon team on Saturday night after the half roasting some hot dogs and marshmallows on our campfire. Waking up in a tent at 7 a.m. the morning after a half is not the ideal conditions for competing in a sprint but I survived. The end-of-the-year Georgetown Triathon Team party when we got back to D.C. that Sunday night was definitely a blast.

Race for Hope 5K - May 3, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 08:32:00 +0000

On Sunday May 3rd I rode my bike down to Freedom Plaza (located just on the east side of the White House) to run in the Race for Hope, a 5K run/walk around the streets of D.C. to benefit the National Brain Tumor Society and Accelerate Brain Cancer Cure. My last three years of PhD research in the Tumor Biology Training Program at Georgetown have been spent analyzing the cancer genome of the deadly brain tumor called glioblastoma multiforme that afflicts ~10,000 Americans each year. I have been identifying new genes that drive the pathogenesis of glioblastoma in the hopes of discovering new successful therapeutics for this uniformly lethal brain cancer. For more information on my research, please see one of my recent publications "Identification of p18INK4c as a tumor suppressor gene in glioblastoma multiforme" at http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/68/8/2564.

My previous personal best at the 5K distance was 19 min 6 sec run in October 2006. I had been putting in a lot of miles leading up to this race and had high hopes of running somewhere under 19 minutes. Unfortunately, all the running I had been doing was long slow mileage getting ready for the Bull Run 50, and the single interval session I did on a track two days before this race was not enough to get me in speed mode. It turned out to be a rainy morning on race day and the course was covered in puddles. After a ceremonial start by David Cook (last year's American Idol winner) and a crowd of brain tumor survivors carrying yellow balloons, the race went off at 9 a.m. I started up front and kept up with the leaders for a bit but just wasn't able to keep their pace all the way home. After dodging puddles rather unsuccessfully for 3.1 miles, I crossed the finish line in 19 min 23 sec (6:15 min/mile pace) good for 20th place out of 1,470 timed finishers. There were several high school track/cross country students out to run that morning, and I embarassingly was beaten by three 15 year olds, ouch! I have got to get faster.

Run Amuck 5K Mud Run - April 25, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 07:42:00 +0000

"This is the Run Amuck Mud Run! The Mud Run is a challenging 5K run in Rockville, Maryland with hills, tire obstacles, river crossings, walls, ropes, and MUD PITS. This is the most fun you can have running a 5K! View the course map at www.runamuckfestival.com. Race individually, as a couple, or as a member of a 4-person team. Choose the Open category with no restrictions on attire and footwear, or the Costumed category, which requires your own zany costume or matching costumes (for couples and teams)."

Our team "menage a quatre Georgetown style" crossed the 3.1 miles in approximately 1 hr 08 min coming in next to last place in the team costume division that went off at 1 p.m. However, we did win best dressed, most team spirit, most covered in mud at the finish line, and best dance moves at the afterparty. What could be better on a Saturday afternoon?!?

A more complete photo documentation of the event is available upon request.

IronMed Charity Triathlon - April 19, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Fri, 08 May 2009 08:03:00 +0000

So 12 hours after completing the Bull Run 50 miler, I stood at 6.am. on Sunday morning in the Yates natatorium in order to race in the 2009 IronMed Charity Triathlon put on by the students of Georgetown University School of Medicine. It was a sprint distance race again this year consisting of a 750 yard swim in the indoor pool at Yates, a 12.5 mile bike on the paved Capital Crescent Trail, and 5k run on the C&O Canal Towpath. The D.C. mayor Adrian Fenty came to compete in the race again this year (now his 3rd year in a row) and brought along his triathlon posse to participate as well. The event seems to be turning into a "real triathlon" now with a crew of seasoned triathletes, skinsuits, aero bikes, etc. compared to the days of old when the bike course used to be on the C&O Canal Towpath and everyone used to ride old beater mountain bikes. I went off in the second heat at 6:46 a.m. While I was surprisingly not that incredibly sore from the day before, I was pretty damn tired and just didn't have much energy stored up to be "racing" already again. So I managed to complete the swim without drowning in 15 min and was the last one out of the pool. My legs felt reasonable on the bike but there was just no strength to push the pedals around, and I wasn't going much faster than 15 mph on the false-flat climb out Capital Crescent. I wound up completing the bike in 42 min, and then managed the 5k run in high spirits in 27 min. My total finishing time was 1:30:05 compared to 12 min swim/38 min bike/19 min run and a finishing time of 1:11:29 in last year's event. Nonetheless, a successful completion of my fifth IronMed Charity Triathlon that was followed by the 5th annual post-IronMed BBQ and party at my house.

Bull Run 50 miler - April 18, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Fri, 01 May 2009 02:31:00 +0000

On the morning of Saturday April 18th I drove down to Hemlock Regional Park along the Occoquan River in Clifton, Virginia to "compete" (or possibly a more appropriate description is "participate") in the Bull Run 50 Miler. The Bull Run Run is a 50.4 mile trail run in the rolling hills of the Virginia countryside alongside the Occoquan River with two out and back loops (see the map of the course below) that included ~6300 feet of climbing throughout. "The BRR is a beautiful, tough run on the Bull Run Trail in Northern Virginia sponsored by the Virginia Happy Trails Running Club. The run's unique character includes a Civil War theme that respects the battles that occurred here many years ago. The BRR is a difficult challenge, but many have finished it. It is not easy, but it is not brutal. The BRR is not for casual runners, but if you like to run trails, come enjoy a day in Virginia's spring beauty as we honor those who fought here many years ago."

There were 314 of us lunatics that gathered together at the start line at 6:30 a.m. that morning to compete in the idiotic sport called ultramarathon running. It was to be one of the first warm days of the year - I think this was only the third run so far of the year in shorts and a t-shirt and no tights, longsleeves, gloves, hat, etc. It actually turned out to be quite a hot day for running an ultra (the high temperature reached 80 degrees) which greatly added to the difficulty of the run. It required constant consumption of fluid, salty foods, and electrolyte tablets to make sure that I didn't get dehydrated, hyponatremic, or other nasty medical term that would cause me not to make it to the finish line. I went off at a very slow and maintainable pace from the get-go, at least a min/mile slower pace than my typical weekend 20 miler out on the trails at Great Falls. I thought that I could pick up the pace later if I felt good but it was better not to blow up early. This turned out to be a wise decision as the heat was really draining, especially given that most of us had been training in cool weather all winter. The first loop took us out the bluebell trail and it was beautifully scenic with the bluebell flowers in full bloom (see the pictures) and was a lot less muddy than everyone had anticipated going into the race with all the rain we got earlier in the week. I completed the first of two out and back loops that came back to Hemlock Park (the start/finish) at mile 16.6 into the run at which time the race clock said 3 hrs 19 min. This is the time that I crossed the finish line of the Marine Corps Marathon last October (i.e. I ran almost 10 miles farther in October on the road in the same amount of time that I completed 16.6 on this day). I knew it was going to be a long day as I set off to complete another ~34 miles. It turned out to be a great day of running. The course was well marked and the aid stations were well stocked, both with goodies and wonderful volunteers. My new trail shoes were great and the only blisters I got were from the tops of my shoes digging into my ankles that I just shoved some gauze into my socks and pretty much calmed the problem. My toes, knees, everything was fine all day. It took me a little longer than I hoped in the end but I wound up crossing the finish line in 11 hrs 51 min 54 sec and 216th place out of 266 official finishers (5 hrs 20 min back from the unbelievable maniac that won the race - and people say that I have a running problem, what about this guy?!?). I was covered in salt, hungry, and tired when I got to the finish but it was time to get ready for Georgetown's IronMed Charity Triathlon the next morning. I was hoping my legs would be feeling up for another challenge only 12 hours after finishing this ridiculousness.

Training log March 2009 -- my first 100 mile running week

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 02:26:00 +0000

There were so many highlights to this month's running that I don't know where to begin. First, I completed my first ultra of the year on March 7th (my previous post includes some pictures and race recap). I suffered some pretty nasty toe injuries during this race that only got worse in the following days when I kept pounding away the miles despite the pain. Finally, after a brief three days of recovery with no running, I set out to accomplish something I had not previously attempted in my running career - 100 miles in one week. Why, you might ask, would anyone ever attempt to average 14.3 miles of running every day for 7 consecutive days? Well, for one, why not? I couldn't think of any good reason not to when I started (but I did manage to come up with a few as the week progressed). Second, I am heavily considering trying to run a 100 mile race sometime this year - possibly the Old Dominion 100 miler (http://www.olddominionrun.org/) on June 6th. So I figured if I am ever going to be able to cover 100 miles in the 28 hour time limit set for the OD100, then I at least better be able to run 100 miles in one week.

My first 100 mile week
Friday (3/20) - 17 miles total, out Glover-Archibold trail to Tenleytown and back to Georgetown along Wisconsin Ave, 15 min rest at house, then out to Dupont Circle, past White House, along Pennsylvania Ave around Capitol, back along Mall, Independence Ave, and Rock Creek Pkwy

Saturday (3/21) - 13 miles total, parked at Great Falls Visitors Center in VA, ran east out Ridge Trail, along Difficult Run and then Cross County Trail, and then looped back

Sunday (3/22) - 17 miles total, over Key Bridge and along Mt Vernon Trail to Alexandria, and then back crossing over 14th Street Bridge and coming home along Ohio Drive and Rock Creek Pkwy

Monday (3/23) - 14 miles total, met up with the Gtown Tri Team at the Front Gates, went over Key Bridge, along Mt Vernon Trail to Reagan National Airport, and then back crossing over 14th Street Bridge and coming home along Ohio Drive and Rock Creek Pkwy, then 2 miles of hill intervals on a treadmill and 2 miles on the track later that night at Yates

Tuesday (3/24) - 15 miles total, over Key Bridge, Mt Vernon Trail to 14th Street Bridge, loop around Hains Point/Potomac Park, up to Mall and around Capitol, back to Georgetown along Pennsylvania Ave

Wednesday (3/25) - 12 miles total, Glover-Archibold trail to Tenleytown, got lost running around up there, and finally came back along Wisconsin Ave, then 5 miles on the track at Yates later that night getting paced by a pretty fast undergrad

Thursday (3/26) - 12 miles total in the rain, to Dupont Cirlce, past White House, out Pennsylvania Ave, around Capitol, back along Mall, Independence Ave, Rock Creek Pkwy, up Wisconsin Ave, got ice cream at T Sweet's (with 2 miles to go), ran to track on 38th Street and completed miles 99 and 100 with ice cream in hand (and mouth).

Well, how did I feel at the end of 100 miles? Happy. Hungry. Tired. In that order. But while I was at times not feeling extremely motivated to keep going during the week, I never experienced any aches or pains or felt on the verge of injury. I thought this to be a good sign if I am to try a 100 miler later this year. Nor was I especially sore or feeling slowed down by the end of the week. I took a day off, and then went out the next day on Saturday and did an awesome 20 miler in the rain and mud along the Potomac Heritage Trail out of the Great Falls Visitors Center in VA.

Oh, and I got some new trail shoes this month too after those damn Salomon want-to-be-running-shoes-but-more-closely-resemble-ski-boots mangled my beautiful toes. I am now running in the Asics GT-2140 Trail shoes. Unfortunately, they are not GoreTex/waterproof like my old Salomon's but are only water resistant (i.e. step in a puddle or stream and your socks and feet are soaked). But I do really like them so far and anticipate they will be far more comfortable on my longer runs than the Salomon's ever were.

March training totals
Total mileage - 231 miles
Average miles per day - 7.5 miles

Seneca Creek 50+k trail race - March 7, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 17:09:00 +0000

50+k trail race, ~33 miles, finished in 6 hrs 32 min 05 sec, 56th place out of 108 male 50k finishers, first place finished in 4:17:12

I reached the 19 mile aid station in exactly 3 hrs and was feeling pretty good at that point - a little tired in the legs as this was the longest run of the season to date by this point in the race. Somewhere in the mid-20 miles into the race, I started experiencing some pretty bad pain in my right shoe. I wasn't sure if it was blisters, my toenails falling off, or what. When I finally checked at an aid station with about 3 miles to go, I realized that I should have cut my toenails before the race and that my pinky toenail was terribly tender from impacting my shoe every step I was taking. I pretty much hobbled into the finish it hurt so bad by the end of the run.
crossing a stream during the race

my toes a week after the race, my poor pinky toe is no longer sitting horizontal on my swollen toe but is at a horrible vertical angle causing significant pain with every step

Training log February 2009 -- gearing up for spring races

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 02:03:00 +0000

Home from a fun day out on the trails.

So I am starting to gear up for my spring races that are rapidly approaching.

From a voicemail I left for John one Sunday afternoon while out running: "In case I don't show up at home this evening just letting you know where I'm at. I parked at the Great Falls Visitors Center down in Virginia and am out at least 7 or 8 miles west along the Potomac River on some trail that I've never been on before. Haven't seen anyone or any houses or anything in at least 45 minutes."

Total running mileage this month - 182 miles
Avg miles per day (excluding 5 days I was sick) - 7.8 miles
Most mileage in 48 hrs - 36 miles (8 mi Feb 13th, 15 mi Feb 14th, 13 mi Feb 15th)
Longest training run - 16 miles on Sat Feb 21st in Great Falls Park Virginia (2 hrs 45 min)
Number of 10+ mile runs - 9

Training log January 2009 -- some ups and downs

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 06:57:00 +0000

Well, I started off 2009 on the coast of Oregon in the famed land of Bill Bowerman, Steve Prefontaine, and Nike. It rained the whole time I was there but I had some beautiful runs along the coast that I will not soon forget. As for the major downer, I crashed on my bicycle and broke the scaphoid bone in my left wrist on January 15th. It's going to be a long path to recovery, but I was able to start running again on January 23rd after I got a cast put on.

Total running mileage this month - 144 miles

Avg miles per day (excluding 8 days while in splint) - 6.3 miles

Longest training run - 13 miles in Great Falls park on Jan 11th

Favorite run - at sunset along Oceanside beach in Oregon Jan 2nd

Check out my muddy Salomon trail shoes!

Marine Corps Marathon - October 26, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 05:46:00 +0000

Blue Ridge Relay - Sept 5th-6th, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 05:29:00 +0000

Ironman Louisville - August 31st, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 05:50:00 +0000

On Friday August 29th I drove 8 hours west from D.C. to the mother's house in Cincinnati, Ohio. I got a good night's sleep there and then drove with my parents 110 miles southwest on Saturday afternoon to Louisville, Kentucky for my big triathlon of the summer. I got checked in for the race, dropped off my bike and bags for transition, and then tried to relax as best I could for the rest of the day. It was amazing seeing the 2,000+ bikes parked in the transition area and at an average of $5,000 each were worth at least $10 million all together. I got some pasta for dinner on 4th Street in downtown where they were setting up the finish line for the race the next day. Then went back to the hotel to get some sleep before the big day.

The alarm went off at 5:00 a.m. on Sunday morning and I immediately got up and started mentally preparing myself for the impending 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, and 26.2 mile run. I walked in the dark down to the transition area where my bike was parked and dropped off water bottles for later in the day and then made the mile walk down to the swim start. The water temperature was reported to be 84 degrees the morning of the race so wetsuits were not allowed. We would be jumping off a short dock into the Ohio River, then swimming upstream along the shore, doing a loop around Towhead Island, and then swimming downstream past the starting dock to the transition area at Waterfront Park (see the map). The pros went off together at 6:50 a.m. but the rest of us had a time trial start with a couple going over a timing mat and then jumping off the dock every few seconds. There was a huge line at the start and I got in somwehere in the middle and had to stand around for a while waiting for 7 a.m. to come and then for my turn. I was pretty nervous/anxious standing there, but if I knew the extent of what I would be in for that day, I might have been even more so.

Finally around 7:30 a.m. I found myself jumping off the dock into the Ohio River. I really enjoyed not having a mass start as I was able to put my face in the water and start swimming right away and did not get completely clobbered by a mass of overly zealous swimmers. The water was sickly warm and very funny tasting, but it felt good to finally be going again after several days of taking it easy leading up to the race. I made good time swimming the length of Towhead Island but the current got much stronger as I passed into the open river. I was still feeling alright as I reached the final buoy before turning downstream. Somewhere not too much longer on the swim down current I started feeling like I didn't want to be swimming anymore, and this feeling kept growing stronger the farther I swam. My stomach was churning, my goggles felt like they were digging into my face, and the feeling of nausea was overwhelming. I couldn't believe what was happening to me but I literally couldn't keep going and grabbed onto one of the kayaks lining the row of swimmers. As I took my face out of the water I became aware of how incredibly nauseous I was, but there was nothing to do but put my goggles back on and keep stroking my way down the river... so I put my face back in the water and kept going. Frontstroke was jostling my stomach around too much so I started practicing my breaststroke, backstroke, sidestroke, and every other stroke I could muster to get myself to the end of the miserable swim. I made it a little ways farther before I was holding onto another kayak and burping and throwing up nasty water from the Ohio River. I've got to learn how to not swallow so much water when swimming in open water. Oh well for all that mileage I had put in at the indoor pool at Georgetown. I kept paddling my way down the river and finally made it to the swim finish nearly 45 minutes after I had hoped.

I slapped on some sunscreen (although not too well), my helmet, gloves, shoes, and sunglasses and grabbed my bike and headed out. I had started the swim somewhere in the middle of the field but now must have been in the last hundred or so for there were not too many bikes left in the transition area. Whatever. There were still 112 miles on the bike and a marathon left to run, so I hopped on my bike and set out. While it had been a comfortable morning,

Pittsfield Peaks Ultra Challenge - June 14, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 04:38:00 +0000

On Friday June 13th, 2008 John drove me to Union Station in Washington, DC where I caught a train to Baltimore where I then caught a bus to the Baltimore airport. From there I caught a flight to Philadelphia and then another one to Albany, NY where I rented a car and drove north through the Adirondack Mountains up to the Green Mountains in Killington, Vermont.

I drove the 8 miles up to Amee Farm in Pittsfield, Vermont at 4:30 a.m. on Saturday morning where I had 30 minutes to prepare for the most extreme endurance event to date - the Pittsfield Peak Ultra Challenge, a 53.8 mile trail race in the Green Mountains with 14,005 feet of elevation gain. As was told to me, this race is reported to be the 50 mile trail race in the country with the most climbing, the equivalent of going up and down the Empire State Building 11 times. There was a campfire near the barn at the farm that would be the start and finish of the race. We all got to drop off a bag of supplies that would be available to us at an aid station we would pass 3 times during the race. There was a quick pre-race meeting where the race director told us about the how the course was marked and stuff. Then the group of us 69 lunatics lined up a line drawn in the dirt and at 5:10 a.m. we were off.
As an early indication of the terrain we were about to cover, the course started with a climb from Amee Farm up into the forrest above. Some of the group at the front took off running up the hill while I stayed with the more conservative group at the back while we marched up the hill into the woods.
I started out the day running in a pair of Thorlos dri-fit socks, Salomon XCR Gore-Tex lined shoes, Asics spandex shorts, a sleeveless tri-style shirt (equipped with rear pockets good for carrying PowerBars and gels), a Brooks dri-fit visor, and a pair of arm warmers. It was rather chilly in the morning before the race got started and during the first couple miles as we got warmed up so the arm warmers were nice to have then. I rolled them down not too long into the race and they functioned well as sweatbands during the hot humid day that it turned out to be. They were also nice to have on for protection later in the day as it turned to dusk and the bugs and mosquitos came out. I also carried a waterbottle that strapped to my hand so there was no effort involved in carrying and contained a small pouch that I kept a couple gels in. And I had a Fuel Belt pack strapped around my waist that carried a waterbottle and had a pouch carrying a small headlamp, flashlight, BodyGlide, salt tablets, and some more gels.

Aside from the elite sponsored ultrarunners (i.e. insane animals, not human beings), the only reasonable way to complete a 54 mile run in the
mountains like this is to start slow and aim to go at a maintainable pace throughout. This translates into power-walking the uphills and running the downhills and flats. But holy shit were some of the uphills steep! At times even a slow crawl up some of these climbs seemed unmaintainable, let alone a fast-paced hike.

... MORE TO COME SOON ...

"I was in 28th place at an aid station around 25 miles. My right knee started hurting ridiculously bad between the 32 and 38 mile aid stations to the point I could barely walk and was sitting on the trail. Thought I was going to quit when I got to the 38 mile aid station but I decided to sit down and rest for like 20 minutes and then see how it was feeling. Somehow, it was miraculously mildly better when I got up and then I just decided that I was going to hike the rest of the way in to the finish at 53.8 miles.

I finally arrived back at Amee Farm and crossed the finish line in 49th place out of 57 finishers around 8:30 p.m. for a total race time of 15 hrs 24 min.

It was thunderstorming off and on for the last 2-3 hours and starting absolutely downpouring for the last 15 minutes coming in to the finish right when it was getting dark. Not sure how many people after me were going to make it to the finish in that weather but there were still at least a few on the course (one of whom was supposedly "missing", whatever that means!)."

You can read a nice news article about the race at: http://www.rutlandherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080616/SPORTS/806160345/1007/SPORTS

Besides the downhills, the second thing I was most unprepared for was how much the race really wore me out. That night after finishing, I was so hungry I could barely eat and so tired I could barely sleep. The 10 minute ice bath was ridiculous to say the least. Then next morning I was surprisingly not too incredibly sore but sooooooo itchy from all the bug bites, chafing, and tromping through thorny bushes, the Vermont "stinging nettle" plants, poison ivy, etc. The nailbed under one of my toenails was a disgusting black color and hurt terrible. The next four or five days I found myself sleeping 9-10 hours a night and taking an afternoon nap when I got home from work. And the eating... instead of being out running every afternoon, my new sport was sitting on the couch seeing how many calories I could consume. One afternoon I finished off one pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream and then went to the freezer and opened another that I then nearly finished. It was a good 5 or 6 days after the race that I finally started feeling like getting back on my bike, getting back in the pool, etc.

I don't know what the next one is going to be but the whole experience was definitely a blast, and I am already looking forward to another crazy adventure of 50 miles or possibly more!

Bassman Triathlon - Sunday April 27

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Tue, 06 May 2008 05:47:00 +0000

0.5 mile open water lake swim, 29 mile bike, and 4.1 mile run

swam in 16:02
T1 of 2:48
biked in 1:24:24 (20.6 mph avg.)
T2 of 1:20
ran in 30:14 (7:12 mile pace)

finished in 2:14:46

61st place overall out of 264 finishers

10th place out of 40 finishers in the 25-29 male age group

This was my first open water swim of the year in my new Orca Sonar wetsuit. The water was cold but my wetsuit was awesome. There was a very shallow sandbar during the swim that we had to stop swimming and run over. It really disrupted my rhythm during such a short swim. I felt good on the bike for the most part but had terrible stomach cramping starting about a half mile into the run. I wound up walking for a least quarter mile or so before I got over it and settled in to a decent run (minus the terrible start). I am getting faster but gotta keep running, gotta keep running!

The 2008 IronMed Charity Triathlon - Saturday April 12

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Tue, 06 May 2008 05:44:00 +0000

On Saturday April 12th I arose before the crack of down to participate in the 8th annual IronMed Charity Triathlon put on by Georgetown University School of Medicine.

The 2008 ACCC Road Cycling Season with the Georgetown Cycling Team

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Tue, 06 May 2008 05:40:00 +0000

It was long, it was hard, I rode with the C's and did not do well.

Cape Henry Duathlon - November 17, 2007

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 07:17:00 +0000

I trekked down to Virginia Beach with the Georgetown Triathlon Team to compete in the 2007 Cape Henry Duathlon and Runfest on November 17th.

1st 5K run in 20:30

T1 of 1:15

32K bike in 1:00:15

T2 of 1:24

2nd 5K run in 22:12

Total finish time of 1:45:39

The 17th Street High Heel Race - October 30, 2007

noreply@blogger.com (David Solomon) — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 07:11:00 +0000

Wow, it was a blast this year! I didn't win because I was so wasted and missed the start, but I PROMISE to bring home the "golden high heel" next year. Hope to get pics and details about this year's race posted soon.

Check out the Washington Post video of this year's race featuring DC Mayor Adrian Fenty starting the race and yours truly front and center missing the start of the race because I was too busy boozing - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/video/2007/10/31/VI2007103101716.html?referrer=emaillink.