In awe

Tag: life

  • [679] Life, misc, catching up (Catoctin 50k)

    I wanted this year Catoctin run to be like last year except I could not step into the same river twice.  I had a series of races right before it.

    Recent setbacks.  Old Dominion 100  did not go the way I wanted to go.  It was so close yet so far. 10 miles too far.  I don’t know if I can get over that. I can blame it on the training etc of what leading up to it.  In the end, it resulted in an injury.  So I was sidelined for following two weeks (on my third week without running). I am now 99% recovered but still haven’t got back out running like I used to.

    Then came the OSS/CIA 50.  I knew I would not be able to do well when I entered.  It was hard.  I love the hard run.  I was limited by what my injured leg could bear.  Luckily I did not make it worse. 

    When the Catoctin race came, I was smart enough to sit out on it.  It pained me that I could not run in it.  I chose the second best option to volunteer.  I was asked what if one day I could not run any more, what would I do. I got a good taste of that.  I was injured once, a few years back due to a lower back pain and had to sit out for a few weeks, so this was not the first time I had to take time off from running.  If one day I never run again, which is inevitable because I will get old, I will deal with it when the time comes. I would still love to cheer on others.

    This year has been great. I don’t know why.  I haven’t done anything significant but just feel great. Maybe having less stress of not racing so much.

    I wanted so much to make it like last year, mostly because of the race Western States 100.  It has been exactly a year when I toed the start line.  This weekend is the Western States 100.  I wished I were there.  Couple of the people I know are running in it.  I will be very happy for them regardless how they will do.  Some will be chasing for the grand slam, so some I will be seeing (again) in Vermont or at Wasatch.  I am not doing the slam myself, but I hope to be there. The perspective is a bit different now playing a supportive role compares to doing it myself. 

    Likewise, I originally wished to write about my experience at the Cat 50k this year.  But as a supporter, it is not the same as running in it (2024-report).  I was happy I volunteered last weekend and saw my friends going through the aid stations on a tough course and saw them survived the race and also some that did not. We earned praises from runners and the race director for managing our station well. 

    One thing I wanted to mention was the course was slightly changed before the race (there was a reroute) and because this was an old school kind of race, in that we don’t mark the course, so it was a fun day for people getting lost (for some people not all).  We did our part, in that unofficially, we kind of marked our small section of coming into the aid station with balloons.  And because of about a quarter mile section that deviated off the trail, we sent volunteers near the exit to tell runners where to go.  I was mostly the person there unless my friends came through then I either helped them or joked around and sent them out the wrong way (joking).  I felt I did an important job that day. (I was at the Delauter aid station — we were a newbie crew but we were praised for running the aid station like pros, which I was glad).

    So as expected, the last three weeks haven’t been too well for me.  I took 3 DNF/DNS’s.  Never before had I encountered such setbacks.  They were inevitable.  I have done only two smallish runs so far, about couple miles instead of the usual 25-30 miles. 

    I was asked when is my next big one.  It is coming up in couple weeks.  I don’t feel ready for it. I know I am not. The race name (in VT) must not be mentioned for fear of jinx-ing it.  Then another big one after that (Eastern States) and then Grindstone 100.  I have an axe to grind for that one. I am not afraid of you, Mr. Grindstone (for those who grew up watching Home Alone).  They all come one after another.  Ahhh.  One harder than before.  I have to start training hard.

    That’s a wrap for this week.  I will be watching the Western States even though I am not running in it and probably never will again (report). I love my buckle!  I still need to get a belt for it. 

    When I could not run any more, all I have left is memories from my former races.  Yes, and that actually what I did while volunteering, we were talking about our races when I was asked which one was my favorite.  I love all my races, thinking back those times I was out on the trail.  There’s another alternative, that is hiking/backpacking, more to come (exciting news to share in the next post).

    A small 5 mile training run with a friend at the Manassas National Battlefield last weekend (Juneteeth).

  • [661] Happy Lunar New Year

    Really nothing to post.  Not much runing is going on in my life.  I love to write race reports but on everything else is plain boring.  I am just going through the motion in life, doing the same thing every day. Putting this post out to say I’m okay. This is actually an old post from October that I did not publish, but still applicable.

    My legs are still kind of hurt.  I could not run at my full capacity.  But also mostly is a mental. If I want to run, my legs would heal faster.  Really? Usually. I guess it is good to let it slowly heal. It has been two weeks since my last race.

    News.  I got through the waitlist for Rim to River 100 but decided not to run it. As much as I was glad the wait is over, but also I knew the race was not for me.

    There’s not much a desire to do the race at this time. There’s always next year.

    The Grindstone’s post race funk is strong.  A General lack of motivation and will to run. I tried to tell myself I can’t rest on my accomplishments. I don’t. I never run for the praises of my peers but because I felt like it. Grand slam was just a title. I did it because I like the races and the challenge. I will consider another grand slam run if the opportunity presents itself. 

    Something that lifted me up.  A friend did a 50 miler this weekend on a similar course as the Wasatch Front, from East Mountain to Bountiful. It seems so long ago when I was there. I would definitely want to do it next year.  It is in Utah but I felt the race worth the trip.  Where can you spent 15-16 hours doing a 50 miler?  I think that is a fast time for the course.  It probably would take me like 17-18 to go the same distance there. Relatively for my age and condition. (The race is DC Peaks for future signup, and I signed up, probably will be my first out of state 50 miler)

    A few more races popped up this weekend.  I have not had the money or motivation to do them. Definitely I would like to do it again like last year. 

    One of the races was the Blue Ridge Roanoke Double.  I ran the marathon twice in one day. It was last year but seems like ages ago!

    The fun thing is how to avoid scheduling conflict.  There are so many races I want to do but can’t do all of them. In my mind, I kind of know which ones I want to do, but it is so tempting in signing up for all of them. (I took care of the race scheduling until summer.)

    Enough said.  Most important factor is money.  I have to be careful since my bank account is like only a third of last year. Currently can only affort about 2-3 races for the whole year. My budget is probably even lower. I kept thinking back to my former office manager who told me don’t go starving to do the things you like. True. It has not come to that point yet.

    What I have been doing the last few weeks:

    -Played in the snow

    -Went to Charleston (for the first time)  (possible will make a trip again there myself next year, either running a marathon or an ultra)

    -Did a training run for Holiday Lake and is the reason my legs are trashed for a few days

  • [638]

    I am in search of adventures.

    I finally have a bit of breathing room from all the races I have been doing.

      Since the end of last year, I have been on edge because of the race of Western States 100.  It was a big race. I did not know if I was up to the challenge to do it.  Days and nights, and every waking moment I was consumed with the race.  I watched countless videos, formulated many plans, listened to other people who had run it, and waited for more than six months to run it. It was finally over.

    No more training. No more worrying. No more thinking if I have done enough or having the dreaded feeling that I could do more or feeling regretful that I might have taken too many off days.

    It is like a balloon deflating.  Finally everything is over. Almost…  But we can call it done.

    Now I am thinking about next year.  What do I want to do?  I could do the same thing.  It is a question I asked myself each new year.  What are you planning to do!  The answer always have been “To take over the world” (reference to Pinky and the Brain in Animaniacs, one of my favorite cartoons).  To me it has always been to run more races!

    Somehow, I don’t want to run any more races.  Yes, I would run races, but they are no longer part of the must-do things for me.  It would still be nice to run some more races, but they are no longer my sole goal.

    Several years ago, I wanted to run in all 50 states, primarily marathons, and only marathons but now I wanted to do the same for 100 miles.  However, both of these goals now seem pretty boring once I realize there are no longer “risky”.  I could now run 100s, or at least I feel like, with my eyes close.  They are still hard and there are plenty hard 100s out there, but I felt I figured it out at least for the average 100 races. At least, I can have a completion rate of above 50%. The key to 100 miler, is as long as you run like the first half, you can walk the second half and finish.

    Something in me wanted to try new things.  It is not just because of seeking new riskier or dangerous things to do. Partly yes, I wanted more thrill but risk of physically harm is not part of the calculus.  I just want a new type of adventure, at least that what got me into running the first place. The Adventure and travel.

    Sorry, this feels a lot like ranting. 

    Maybe next year should be rim to rim to rim year I always wanted to do.  I don’t know.  I would like something like that, something off the beaten path, something more organic.  Rim to Rim is a run (self supported) to cross the grand canyon (big G), in a day and back. It is about 40 miles. It has some element of danger (people do die doing it, usually from the heat). It is something that involves a bit of planning. Somehow, it requires months of booking in advance.  Plus dealing with the uncertainty of the weather and such and to have a plan B in place.

    Anyway, I hope to do more of this kind of thing instead of signing up for races, I should make my own kind of races.

    I have been bored out of my mind the last week. I know, do something. (Yes, I did, a lot boring stuff: I totalled up the cost of this year race and it was a lot of $$.  I figured out next year race schedule, like 50% of it, there are a few races I haven’t committed to yet. The schedule will be released later in the year once I signed up.  I signed up to a marathon in the fall!  Which one?  The one I have been jinxed since the pandamic.  I’ll reveal once the date is closer. I believe this is only one marathon left I have not done in my area. It is quite famous. OK. I will leave it at that.  It is already added on my calendar for those who want to know 😉

    Yes, I love running marathon a lot still, more than any other distances.

  • [Day566]

    A general update, nothing much for me to write about. Last week Catoctin run was hard.

    slight injury: My left ankle improved a bit but still hurt whenever I run. It takes a lot of stretching for the pain to go away. It wasn’t just the ankle being weak, it was everything hurts. Flexing and unflexing the foot hurt. It hurts when it is extended and it hurts when it is curl up. Rotating it too hurts. My left shin hurts too.

    My 100 mile race is in two weeks. Yikes indeed. I don’t know how that will be. Of course I cannot run with an injured ankle, foot, or what-not.

    Next week is Catherine Furnace Run. It is a 50K. I think it will be challenging. It will heat training. It will be my first time running it. The course is similar to MMT, at a nearby trail (two hours drive for me), but near the MMT race. I should be familar with it. I hiked around there and got lost before.

    Martha Moats Baker Race signup was this week. Originally I wanted to run it because the course was similar to Grindstone, and in the same vicinity. Then the Grindstone Organization (RD) sent out a call for trailwork/ volunteer session for the same day. I still need to fulfill my trail work (8 hrs) for the race, which means I had to turn down the Martha Moats Baker run. I am not happy, but have to do the volunteering service. I might take the Friday’s off to go there early to run on Friday, then Volunteer on Saturday, and then run again on Sunday.

    August 12 will be a busy weekend. This year, Iron Mountain Training run falls on that weekend too. I will miss it. I will miss the July training run too since I will be in Ohio for my 100 miler. IMTR (Iron Mountain) is very important to me. Because I have other races lined up already, I cannot cancel them. The best part about IMTR is their training runs. I have been going to them the last 3-4 years. They are usually my summer defining runs.

    My cousin said there are cheap flight to Saratoga, Fl, for only $75 and asked if I want to go to Clear Water Beach. He has been there last summer. They had cheap hotel near the airport. My mantra is I only travel if there is a race. So he asked me to Google for it if a race would match up. And there are races there! Tampa 100 is taken place in November (I think the first weekend). We ended up Google for youtube videos of the Tampa 100, however, ended up watching the Keys 100 race without realizing. He and I said maybe we will be the first one to do a documentary/video on the Tampa 100. However, on a more practical thinking, I don’t think I can fir another 100 mile race in my schedule, but I am open to it for next year.

    There is also the Clear Water Marathon in January. However, flight sales are not yet available for January. I am thinking I will still go. This will help me finish Florida in my 50 states quest.

    Relating to crossing Florida off, my plan initially was to do the Space Coast Marathon. However, the schedule falls on the thanksgiving weekend. As you know flights are expensive for that particular time. Clear Water Marathon would present a better alternative.

    I signed up a couple races this week but I don’t remember what they were. One was on the spur pf the moment, while waiting for Catoctin 50k to start. I met with Caroline at the start of Catoctin and she said, she signed up. I was surprised the race registration has open, so I signed up on the spot. It is a winter race up in a remote town in Pennsylvania. You know, they get a lot of snow up there. I don’t know why I signed up. Last year after I ran it, I said, it was a once and done race for me. Now, I signed up.

    That is all. My bandwith is still pretty low. There are just too many things going on in my private life. I will have a new housemate, so things been busy rearranging my schedule around to meet up and everything. This weekend will mostly spend cleaning and getting rid of things.

  • Happy 4th [Day564]

    Not much is happening with me. I am just being lazy…with everything, my training, and life. There’s not much available bandwidth…

    Looking back, The MMT race took a helluva out of me.

    Not complaining. It has been my focus for the last two years and was finally over. Now what do I do?

    I do intend to run it again next year. Looking back, why was it so hard? It does not seem to be that hard.

    I know one person who ran it 5 times. I was wondering why so many times? And then my next question I had was if it is so good why stopped?

    I wish I’d never lost the passion.

    Lately, I have been doing a lot of evaluations. Do I still have the fire in me. I know it is always like this. Training up and hitting the low points once the race is done.

    For me, I believe I can run a 100 mile now. It is not that much tougher than a marathon. I have done it 5 times. Eight if counting the 3 that I did not finish.

    Last weekend (two/three weeks ago by the time this is posted), I watched the Western States 100. It was incredible. My eyes were glued to the youtube livestream and engaged what they called angry watching! I was not angry though. Yes, the live chat had some incidents. Many trolls were banned was what I read. Yes, I saw the course record being broken by two female runners. A record that hasn’t been touch for over a decade. They believed this record will stand for a long time. Courtney D. and Katie S. ran a record breaking time. The live coverage was so good. We don’t have anything like that at our races.

    Definitely Old Dominion was pale in comparison. It is a different culture. There were a lot of hypes and celebrations for Western States. My races here were less so. I saw so many famous runners at the Western States. Oh the golden hour or the final hour of the race was a tear jerking moment. A runner came so close of finishing, missing it just a minute or so! We were cheering for him to make it in on time at 29:59:59. He did not. He no less ran a 100 mile.

    I wish I can get into the Western States. I have a chance for the lotto ticket from having finishing the MMT this year. I just have to remember to enter the drawing in December. Yes, please pray to the lotto god for me. I entered once two years ago after the Laurel Highlands race, but didn’t get in.

    Anyway… It is a pipe dream.

    Relating to this, not sure if I wrote about it, last year or the year before when a few of the runners attempted to run through Shenandoah National Park on the Appalachian Trail from the south to the north. It is about 100 miles (104). I offerred to pace a runner, however, the runner turned me down because I was not fast enough. At the time I don’t think I had done a 100 mile yet and was kind of interested in this craziness. It has since been on my mind to do it.

    This past weekend, I got a chance to help a fellow runner attempting this feat. He did not finish (did only 30 miles), but had a good training run out there. I did not think he was serious in doing the whole length. Anyway, I got to learn more about the trail.

    July 4, I plan to run a 5k. I will report on it once done. (probably).

    Been laying low last week. I think I ran total maybe 4 miles. I haven’t run at all this week. For the whole month, I think I did about 50-60 miles. I am sad. I usually do many times this like in the 500-600 miles range.

    Anyway.

    I also spent more time working on my car. I love doing mechanical work as much as running. I wish I have my own garage for me to take everything apart.

    I am not that good with mechanical stuff, but I replaced my own oil for the first time on this car. I love it. Oil was flowing everywhere! Ah, but I love it. I did alright.

    This week I am attempt to replace the coolant and thermostat in my car. Wish me luck!

    Any since this is published on July 4th (US Independent Day celebration), Happy 4th everyone!

  • Spring Re 23:13 [Day550]

    Last season Re(view) of Day500, I ran a lot of races, such as MMT, Iron Mountain, Devil Dog. For my regular readers, this post is a repeat of what I have been posting, but for those who only tune in once every six months or a year, this post is for you. It also helps me placing mental separation like a season or so is done.

    Looking back, my perspective has shifted since then. Day 500 was written just before I did the Devil Dog 100 race. I had at the time seemed to be in an unsucessful year due to the emotional beatings received from not finishing two races earlier, e.g., the MMT 100 race and the Iron Mountain 50.

    The post ended of what would I do next, which is now and next year. I had at the time the Devil Dog 100 coming up and OBX 100 following.

    Since then I have completed both, the Devil Dog 100 in December and OBX in March. The fall races prepared me well for them. The Devil Dog was not an easy race, but couple friends came and helped crew me. I managed to finish. The full report is here.

    After running the Devil Dog, I took on the Outer Banks Blackbeard’s Revenge 100. It was an exciting race. I PR’d it, meaning beated my best time ever in a 100 mile distance, finished it a little over 26 hours. I was not even aiming for a PR. There is a lot to say. I went in not sure if 32 hours were enough for me to finish. The race for me was easier than expected and easier than any other previous races even though conditions were not as good due to the heat and strong winds and what seemingly the lack of food at aid stations. I love it a lot because I had a good time. Full report is here. This race was those once in a lifetime adventures. I was glad I ran it. It gave me the feeling I still got what it take to run a 100 mile race. This brings us to MMT 100 later of this year.

    Now for 2023, I have been training a lot for the BRR 50 and the MMT 100. I did the BRR just couple weeks ago. MMT is coming up soon in a couple weeks. This report comes in the midst of things. I felt better prepared this year than last year. We will see how I will do. Wait till the Next report to know. Day 600 will be near the end of the year or even early next year (depends 25-30 weeks from now).

    I ran several smaller races, e.g., Redeye 50K on New Year, Holiday Lake 50k, Cowtown 50K, Bull Run Run 50 Miler, Shamrock Marathon, Blue Ridge Double Marathon (report hasn’t written yet), Seneca Greenway 50K, Naked Nick 50k. Then there was the Reston 10 miler. I won’t link any reports here because there are just so many. Bear with me, I am throwing around a lot of names. Our virtual race  around world (CRAW) is done. We finished early January of this year. That was a three-year project. I am taking part in the extended version of adding 6 more regions, which added maybe 25,000 km. Likely will finish it at the end of this year or some time next year. We have a fast team.

    About races, each of them was a wonderful experience. Am I tired? Sometimes. I am used to now of running many races in a short span of time, I can’t remember them and I can’t even keep track of my up coming races. I can’t summarize them all here except each one was so good. I was living my best life to be able to experience them. They definitely helped prepare me for the next big race. I am grateful I got to run in them.

    Physically, I have been dealing with my weak left ankle. I believed I injured it sometimes after the Devil Dog, maybe at the Naked Nick 50k event. It is healing but the process has been slow and long. I started to suspect I teared a tendon or something (but some say that would be painful if I did). Now four months later, I still have a slight discomfort. It doesn’t hurt any more, but from time to time, I felt like I have that hit my funny bone sensation in my left ankle. It would bring me to my knees. All I know is it has not healed 100% and it is affecting my trail races. Road races are fine. I just have a problem standing tip toe, going down the stairs, putting on shoes etc. Not pain but a weak sensation that my ankle can’t be trusted. I have been praying for a stronger ankle.

    Now 2023, I will be going to Toronto, Canada. One of my dreams is to run outside of US and it is being come true. This race is in about a week. I just received my race bib the other day in the mail. News gets old fast. So by the time readers read this, it is likely be done or you might be reading the race report before this post.

    I signed up for MMT 100 again this year. I have high hope I will finish. This soon will take place. I am repeating myself. Yes MMT is very important to me.

    I signed for Grindstone 100 for the fall. It will be a hard race and hard training for next quarter. I might do Burnimg River 100 this summer. I think this pretty much it for 2023.

    I am in the process of planning for 2024. Not much can be said at this time, but will leave this in a future post, I hope my plan will be clearer by then. I am struggling in defining what I want beyond 2024. Things are moving in the right direction. Red Dirt Lousiana and Pinhoti Alabama are in play. It’s a secret right now.

    As for the Nepal trip, some new laws came in effect. One was we backpackers will be required having an approved mountain guide. No longer are we free to hike as we like by ourselves. I might not go there anytime soon because of this new law. It is a tiny setback. Having a guide is definitely what I like but I also like the free-ranch aspect and the sense of danger. I know the law is still evolving, so we will see. Too many people doing dumb things over there is the rumor. This trip was supposed to take place this year. Hence I set a relatively free running schedule. However, it is not on any of my immediate plan yet to do. It is one of my dream trip but I haven’t got off my butt to make it happen.

    What’s next after this (for 2024 or 2025). I have a bunch of marathons to run. My friend Caroline inspired me with her exact plan of running in all 50 states. Next year, I plan to run a lot of marathons, many of the same races she did this year. Imitation is the best form of flattery they say. I am not ashame to copy. Basically trying to get all 50 states done as soon as possible, meaning I will need to do around 10 to a dozen races per year. Maybe looking at a shorter time frame of 3-4 years. I have about 36-ish races left.

    Devil Dog 100 and Blackbeard’s 100 restored my confident in running longer races. 50 milers no longer seem that hard. 100 milers also seem a bit easier. I plan to do a lot more 100s. My goal might be also do a 100 in every state. My friend is tempting me to follow his footstep of doing 100 of 100 mile races. He is 62 year old I think. If he has such aspiration why can’t I? So instead of being a marathon maniac, I am now a hundred miler maniac.

    I have been looking at oversea races for 2025 and beyond. One is in Mexico. One is in the Philippines. That is a bit of a distance future. Mexico might be part of 2024 plan. So planning phase should start soon especially for the mexico trip. Mexico is a scary world. I hope to go in and get out as quick as possible.

    I need to constant push myself to do things outside of my comfort zone and leave things I am familiar with. 2021 and 2022 were like that when I reached beyond what I thought was possible. 2023 seems to have a safe schedule so far. How I know I am a bit over my limit is I when I started failing like in 2022. 2022 got me to admit I reached my limit and then I took remedial actions and redemptions this past winter and spring season.

    I made more running friends. They inspired me. In beginning 2022, I only met one person (Tek) who I thought was crazy running 100 mile races as if they were running a marathon. Then at the end of 2022 and last few months, I met several more (especially Fernando). Likely either this year or by this time next year, I will be like them. I don’t think I am that far away. The gap between what I thought was impossible to possible has narrowed quite a bit. One was my perception of things, I am no longer afraid of 100 mile races. I will start running 100 milers like I run marathons in a higher frequency.

    My Weaknesses: I have slacked off on my training a bit, last year. Miles wise is still pretty high but my effort has been lacking. Training is no longer “hard.” I could do better. I believe only we train against resistance do we improve. I still sleep through my morning training. It was one of my last year goals to wake up early and excercise. I only did it like once. I need to break that bad habit. That is my big weakness is I am easy to settle or compromise for less.

    I gained weight. Not a bad thing but I could lose some body fat. Not fat shaming. I haven’t gone to the gym at all. I could improve on my physical build. I run a lot but other areas needed to be worked on too.

    Fasting: My diet has not been that great last year. I need to eat less processed stuff and more fresh and natural food. I know so many people who eat cleaner than me. Fasting was not part of my training/life last year. I should occasionally fast to keep my body healthier. I plan to start fasting regularly, but staying away from food is hard for me.

    I am struggling with defining my future direction. Yes I am doing the 50 states completion. I am running ultras and 100 mile races. I am attempting harder races. But that is only a small part. I need to ask what do I want more in life. How do I get from here to there? from my small tiny dreams to my bigger dreams. A lot of times, I just need to push myself, get off my butt.

    If you ask what would be doped to do, I think hiking the triple crown would be it. PCT, CDT, and the AT. I consider hiking the Appalachian Trail a life dream. I need to actively reach for them. It is easy to dream, but action is hard.

    Also if I could travel oversea, I think that would be wonderful. I don’t strive to be the best gamer etc. I am just an average person. But if I could do something epic, that would be so good. This would tie into my retirement plan of living oversea.

    Lesson/observation/reminder. Life goes by so fast. I met couple friends who said 2017 was their best year in running and every since it has been downhill. Now I ran with them and they were far from the best forms. I don’t know if I have peaked yet, I hope this year is not my best year yet. I already ran for about 7 years and I felt I am just started. I fear in a blink of an eye I will be where some of my friends are now. I run with a lot of friends who are in their 60s. They are still going strong but no way were they compared to when they were in their 40s. It seems so fast. In a blink of an eye and they are “old.”

    I need to put in the effort to make the most out of life. Every year, I need to optimize my time. Choose the best things to do. Let not waste the opportunity I have.

    Another lesson, I thought I am in control of a lot of things, but these last few years, despite of my planning, there things like the covid interruption was beyong anyone could prepare for. I am just one of many floating in this sea of time. There will likely be major world events that will take place and that will turn everyone’s life up-side-down again. Yes, still got to make the best out of everything.

    Am I on track? Yes and no. I think I am on track of doing what I like. I completed 4 x 100 races. But I haven’t been aggresive enough in going after my goals. I met both Frenando and Caroline who inspire me to be like them. They are both much older than me yet they are doing like 10 times more than I am. I know I shouldn’t compare to them, but they do give a good reference point to me. I started thinking, I could do what they are doing. The question then became why not!

    Apart from running, I am or I hope to withdraw my time, energy, resource from the online twitch community. I supported several self-made artists/content creators last year and even past several years. They had kind of quit halfway. I am Not disappointed but also kind of am. It is hard to explain. I think it lacks closures. I will leave it to a future post to write more on this.

    Anyway, I just put it out there. I have been involved in this streaming thing since the covid started. Things are winding down. Many content creators are back to their regular work (real life/real job). The so called final fantasy has ended. I credit this to be why I was successful running the two 100 mile races the last 6 months, Because I had more time for training.

    I hope this has been a good read. That was about some of my current struggles and life updates. Until next time. Oh, here was a midterm review done not long ago for those who want to read more, Day532 (Feb 2023). It is pretty much similar to the present report. (I haven’t forgotten about Lake Tahoe). The next midterm maybe will be in July or August. Of course the next Re: will be 50 “days” from now and that is about maybe 25-35 weeks from today or 6-9 months.

  • Week in week out [Day544]

    I’ll try to get back to blogging more frequently.

    Indeed many things happened. I selectively chose what to write, with most of the time being race reports. There are a lot more going on than racing! Funny, the things I posted on Facebook that I thought no one would look at attracted a lot of attention this week! It was a picture from my first race this year (Holiday Lake). I only am posting on Facebook once a year. I sneaked in my finish line picture and for couple weeks the algorithm didn’t pick it up. Once it, there were an explosion of comments and likes. To my facebook audiene the event was fresh, but to me and what I wrote on here (WP), that was already old news. There were many things happened in the interim, like the OBX 100, that is many times more significant than the Holiday Lake race. However, that race does have good ‘optic’. It is like fake news, I choose what to spin.

    Things also slow down with my life now after the 100 mile is done. I am in a recovery mode. My skins are peeling from the sunburn. They are ugly. I feel like a reptile. Not that they are bad, I just don’t want to look like one.

    Blackbeard’s Revenge was an amazing race. I still from time to time think back on it. Like today while out running a severe storm blew in. I could have taken shelter, but as wind whipped up, it reminded me back at the race when we were crossing over the bridge that afternoon. It was exciting facing the headwinds and were only fifty mile in. I like the intensity of the storm. We told ourselves, we had to get the race done. I do miss the race. We did get it done.

    It was a relief to get the race out of the way. I was not stressed about it but I am always a bit anxious when there’s a race. OBX was a pretty big race.

    I don’t remember what I did the week afterward. It was just resting for the body to recover.

    Last weekend, I went to South Mountain (SOBO) in New Jersey, originally to run a marathon. Originally I wanted to find out what SOBO stands for, if it is like FOMO, fear of missing out. It was just a boring accronym. It was a 6 hour timed event. I had an interesting trip. I woke up at 2 am in the middle of the night and drove 4 and half hour almost to New York City. Arrived on a rainy day. The trail was as muddy as it could be. I was slipping and sliding and fell down once. Yes fun. Then drove back while a storm was brewing on I-95. I made some pitstops though. Stops were more fun than the race itself, but that for another story. I packed enough to spend several nights on the mountain.

    As for the run, We run on a 3k loop. After the first loop I knew getting the marathon distance would be tough. I would be lucky if I could get 12 loops (36k). A marathon is 42k. So I would need about 14 loops.

    I kept at it until halfway having done 7 loops. My hope was to get 8 loops by 3 hour mark so that I have some buffer for the 2nd half since usually my pace would slow down. This would guarantee that I finish with a marathon distance.

    However, even with 7 loops, if I kept my pace, 14 loops were possible. Then I saw my friend ahead, and decided to walk with her. It was mostly for her I came. She is an amazing runners. During her “youth” / younger days she broke some women records. The same friend who was suprised I took 12 hours on the Wild Oak Trail while she did it in 7.5 hours at my age. She would be running circles around me if we were the same age. Indeed that day, the lead runner (a female) was running circles around us.

    It was my recovery run so there was no need to push for a marathon distance / or do it at a marathon pace. My friend finished the 12th loop by 5.5 hours. We still have 30 minutes left on the clock. I believed going for one more shouldn’t be hard. The RD kind of doubting I could make it back within the time cutoff. I know I could do a loop within 20 minutes. So I went for it and got my 13th loop in. It took me about 16 minutes but not enough time left for the 14th loop.

    The race anyway would not have counted as one of the marathons for 50 states completion because there were less than 10 finishers. We only had 8 people started in our event. In order for a race to be counted, we need at least 10 finishers.

    It was one of the reasons, I did not push as hard as I could knowing, it did not really count for the record.

    I ran a marathon in New Jersey before so I did not need the run for my own 50 states. My friend though still needed New Jersey for hers. I felt bad we did not have enough runners. Originally there were 10 runners but two didn’t show up. I could have bring couple friends to make it a 10 person finishers. Anyway. It was a good run.

    This kind of things I get excited. I like the challenges.

    I like how things are working out. NJ Trails series, the organizer for the South Mountain Run has been on my watch list because I wanted to run their Watchung winter run. But the last two years, their races have been canceled for various reason.

    The past weekend somehow led me to run with them. I found out they also host 6 days at the fair, which is an amazing race/event I want to do in the future. Yes as it sounds, it is a 6 day race! I want to test my mettle to see if I can run all six days (with/without) sleep. I met a guy who did it, and put in a total of 450 miles over 6 days.

    Up next, I have a few races/events. This weekend is happy easter – I have a chocolate bunny night run. I will write about it later, if it is interesting. I hope to have some choco bunnies when I finish. I ran it last year. It is a MMT training run #4, The last training run for the MMT race, which I wrote a lot already.

    Following week would be the BRR 50. Ya another big race. I did couple training run on this. I assume I will write a full race report on it because I love doing a indepth detailed report.

    Then there will my international marathon debut! in Toronto Canada! I haven’t planned much on the race. Only thing is I know I will be driving there. I have not requested days off yet. Hopefully I get everything done. It is a point to point race, so gonna be fine.

    I am still on the fence with some races this fall as well as races for next year. Slipping this in, a friend just finished the Georgia Death Race (74 miles), the race registration for next year race is open with 4 spots left. I want to run it, yet not sure if I have the ability. I am getting cold feet.

    It is also a point to point course. I don’t want to sign up unless I am sure about it. It is so early to commit for next year! Grrr, I don’t know how many things I have been sleeping on it.

    The problem is, too little time, too little money to do everything! Freedom! Having choices is my bane.

    By the way, I did my first run in the heat today! Boy, I’m not used to running in the 85 F. It was so hot. However, MMT possibly will be hot during the day and cold during the night!

    Got to go for now. I still have many things to say especially about what races to run for the next few years. Ohio Burning River is on my target and the midstate ultras grand slam. I woke up in the middle night thinking why do I have to wait till next year to do it, why can’t I do it this year? Indeed. A lot to think about, even in my sleep I am thinking about races!

  • Xmas

    National Christmas Tree

    Our running group made a stop by the White House this past week to take photos of the National Christmas Tree. There were other smaller trees representing 50 states and territories. They are already posted on social media sites (not by me).

    Last couple weeks, I also visited other christmas trees in DC. My running friend Caroline joined me on the tree run and caroling night with the DC Tri, but caroling was just a click bait for Caroline because none of us sing Christmas songs.

    Those who found my other social media sites already saw some of the pictures. I’m doing better in “consolidating” or managing them. It tried anyway. I started twitter and IG. I restarted my tumbr. WP is still my main though because I like doing longer posts (journaling).

    Xmas trees at other places. Canadian Embassy, Capitol and Union Station

    It has been a quiet week. I did a recovery run (Naked Nick 50K) in Pennsylvania. Yes, I survived. I’m too tired to write a report. My friend Caroline drove me there. It was one of those first time trip going out of state with someone to run a race. Caroline loved it a lot. To me, somehow it was meh, a run. There were 500+ runners. The highlight of the trip was the ride there. We spent 7 hours in the car, and I ran for 7 hours. The run did what it did. It allowed me to “recover” my body and reset my mind.

    I did couple other runs and mostly on a treadmill. Nothing spectacular to write about. Maybe due to laziness, I used treadmill (we call it the dreadmill). After the 100 mile, I did not have much motivation to run. Hopping on the treadmill for 30-40 mins is the most I could do at the moment. It is also cold outside. Treadmill seems to be a better option.

    Winter Soltice has past. That means, each day should be longer. Apparently, it is a important festival for chinese. We had a family dinner. It is like Christmas – the focus is to spend time with family/friends.

    Some other news during the down cycle and I am excited about, I signed up three races! Two of them I mentioned in the last post. I signed up for Seneca Creek Greenway 50K (March), Shamrock Marathon at Virginia Beach (also in March), and Grindstone 100 (in September). I’ll give my reasons why I decided to run Grindstone in a later post. It is more than because they had a presale, so I jumped in. For now that is a good explanation, but I am excited all these.

    Peace on earth and good news to all. Merry Christmas!

  • Day465 and so it begins

    Nothing much happened for me last week. I might as well take the week off for a mental health break. And I did, from running that is.

    I blame the booster shot. It made me super tired and unmotivated. I was better though by the end of the week but I did not run.

    Running for me used to be effortless – well almost. This week, it was something more. I can’t find the joy in doing something I like so much in the past. I know it is ok to take a break from time to time. This time it was not a break I am looking for. It was a dread. It was a mental thing of unable to pull myself together. I can only describe it as a panic attack. It is weird to say it now but it felt like I was going to die if I even moved. So I stayed still, in my room, on my bed and time just flew away. The only thing I noticed was sunrise and sunset. I don’t think it was laziness.

    By the end of the week (day 10 actually), I got down on my knee and prayed. This can’t go on I know. I need to live my life. Whether you believe it or not, I said I don’t know where the anxiety is coming from but it is paralyzing me and I couldn’t do anything worthwhile in this state. I had Lyme disease before when my body couldn’t run. This time, I know my body is able to run but my mind is jacked. My source of greatest joy became my fear. When I ran, I felt if my heart would crush me and the sky would fall. God answered. My fear (heaviness or whatever that is) was lifted. I could think clearly again. I could plan and go about my things.

    I could write plenty about the Russian war that broke out this week. The only thing is if we really care about preventing it, we should have troops on the ground to fight alongside against the opponent force. Or if the Russians are right, join Russia’s side and bring it to a quick end. It is because our country lacks commitment that enboldens the invasion. That is my piece. If it’s sanctions, do it properly even if it hurts our economy, and be willing to accept that it hurts me more than it hurts you.

    Enough on war, this week, I found a 200 mile race. It is out in Nebraska, in November, brrr. They say it is a good race for first timers. I am keeping my eyes on it. I won’t be brave enough to run it this year but maybe next or two years from now. This might be the race for me. Then I can claim the 200 mile feat.

    Also I came across someone who tries to run from Florida to Canada. I learned there is another trail beyond the Appalachian Trail. From this I came across the trail race, Pinhoti 100. I am hooked. This might be my next 100 mile race.

    The next 100 race is still up in the air. I likely will do the Outer Banks one, called the Blackbeard 100, because it is on my list “for a long time” (like maybe since last year). Blackbeard is a road race. Yet Pinhoti is on trail and I like trail racing over road running.

    Next year’s schedule is a bit packed. I want to travel to see some mountains, specifically doing the Annapurna Trek in Nepal. I should not sign up for so many races. I feel a bit of cold feet on the trip at the moment. I’m not giving up on it yet but I am leaning of putting it off for another year. Don’t know why I’m feeling reluctant to commit, maybe the funding is not where I want it to be. In 2020 I saved a lot and was glad. 2021 I had a break even year. I made a lot of money but also spent a lot (20k+ went into investing, which I considered as spending). Otherwise if not for my spending/investing, I should have enough saved up for the trip by now. Ya, I am hoping to budget around 20k, I think 10k should be enough though. Sorry, first world problem. How much of that do I have? About a couple thousand I can spare at the moment, which is only enough for the airfare. But my car is about to be paid up and by summer, I should have money rolling in, if everything continues as now and by the time of next year, I should reach my funding goal.

    Along the line, I came across a streamer and he is planning to walk across the US while eating Subway sandwiches or whatever the store has. I don’t want to give a shoutout being a shy person I am, but you can probably find him (or them) on twitch under Subway Sean if you google for it. He will start out in May, likely May 1. This kind of thing blows my mind. I really wish I could do that. I don’t know when I can get my own Tran-Con rolling. I would be sad if I die and have not done a transcontinental crossing on foot.

    As for my life this week, I have nothing much to write about. The struggle is real. I have not run at all in the past week. I couldn’t focus much on anything. But guess what? Newport News Marathon is this Saturday. I will write about it in the next post or next next post (ya, usually now I wait two weeks to post something current).

  • Day450 R-21.11 review

    It’s day 450, by design I have to be introspective. Last review Day400, was at the beginning of the year. I already wrote all I did couple weeks (hello4) ago of all the cool races I ran this year, so I won’t repeat. Two 100 mile races, Rocky Raccoon and Rim to River, bookended the year. They were the reason I called this year a pop-off year for running. In between I also did some ultras I thought I did not have the ability to run.

    I felt thankful and fortunate and relieved to have done them. I was not fast. I saw some who did not finish. I ran with some of them at their pace. Most of the time I was at the cutoff and it could have been me being cut. I enjoyed all the races. If I did not run them, I would not have known I was capable to do them.

    Originally, I wanted to look back at them in a holistic way, maybe to draw some lessons or something profound from all these races. There are probably some lessons hidden or a common theme ran through them. There were friendship made along the way and moments I did not want to forget. They are now past. I am okay with not to focus on them and let them pass. All honor and glory burried in the sand of time.

    I want to say: Running was my life in 2021 and has been so for the past few years (more on this in a future blog; I wrote one up, but it was not ready to be published).

    Some asked me, how many marathons did I run this year? I don’t know. There is a page somewhere that tracks this, but off the top of my head, I don’t. A lot I think. Though I don’t really chasing after races now. I enjoy as much or even more just a long weekend run around my neighborhood. The distance no longer scares me. Long runs are cool and always what I look toward to at the end of each week — that pretty much what quarantine of 2020 taught me. 2021 was pretty much the same but in hyper drive.

    One word if I can sum up 2021, would be racing. I run races all the time but this year even though I ran so many races, the intensity of the schedule felt normal. I adapted to the intensity. Couple years ago, a schedule like now would be considered overloaded. Now, it seems there are not enough races to pack my weekends.

    I tried to run an ultra back to back for the first time, doing what I did when I ran marathons back to back (and earned myself a spot in the marathon maniacs club, back in 2018). So last weekend, a week following finishing the Rim to River 100, I signed up and ran the Stone Mill 50 (I hope to write a report on it). I thought I would die in Stone Mill but in the end, I ran a faster time than last year and I felt great afterward. No cramping no exhaustion. The body felt normal. I wanted to run another 50 mile this weekend (JFK), but common sense prevailed and also I wanted to show respect to my two friends who were running it by cheering them. I really believe I could have done three ultras in a row.

    The biggest struggle I had this year was trying to find balance between running and everything else. Work was nonnegotiable. Sleep/rest was also pretty much nonnegotiable – you could cheat one night or one week but it always comes back to bite you with unwanted down time. I rather stick to a regular schedule. You can’t cheat your body.

    The flashpoint came when my mom was sick and needed 24 hr care. I was in the midst of my final training for the 100 mile race. There is always another race to run but I had invested so much in it. Downtime came when you are least expected. In this instance, I was not the one who got sick but my family. It was a forced downtime nonetheless. In the end, I did run it at the expense of being hated/frowned upon by those who did not undestand why I chose racing over family. I did not understand fully myself. I took the plunge and hope for the best. But that what it is. By the way, she is doing much better and can now live independently again.

    I dodged a bullet that everything worked out in the end and I had a story to tell. But it could have been the other narative.

    What for next year? I will run more races. Maybe even more than this year (schedule). My goal is to run in an even longer distance race. I am seeking (to reach) the next level, whatever that is.

    Other than running, I spent lot of time on twitch (tv), and playing games. Yes this year, I got hook into gaming and twitch. Where did I find time for them right? or the money! I quit my gym membership (and dropped a phone plan) for twitch and gaming. Toward the end of the year, I also spent more time with investing in stocks and thinking/planning for retirement. I traded the money I set aside for a racing bike and a gaming computer to fund my retirement account! I think it was worth it but I had a bit of a regret too.

    For readers, what this post is about? who’s know. Maybe it is a preview for my next blog. We all have our own life to live and choose our action with the choices presented. That is pretty much 2021 for me, I chose certain actions and those were the results. There were surely other stuffs happened except they didn’t leave as strong an impression as racing, especially the 100 mile race, which was the central focus for me.

    Is that how I want 2022 to be? I will need to think more on this. Maybe it is a good post for the new year.

    A future post will dive in depth on this subject, maybe the struggle, the balance, and the rationale. I wrote a lot already, but I felt I only scratch the surface. Happy Thanksgiving!