Lunch with Jamie Dial, TRT100 and winter training

winter

Jamie Dial is one of the very top ultra runners in the mid south. His race resume although impressive only tells a portion of his story, as his personal journeys into the great outdoors are that of local lore. Jamie was willing to sit down over lunch on Tuesday with Mash and me at Ted's Montana Grill and give us a run down of the TRT100. He came in 4th overall in this epic.

J. Dial arrived and proceeded to hold class on the race pouring information out. We would need to learn to run on full stomachs, go run after dinner and run late into the night after a day of work. We discussed hydration ideas and pack vs handhelds. Jamie said, we'd be fit enough, that was the "easy" part, (?) he said the mental part was what we were going to have to really work on. Saying, "I can't tell you how bad your gonna feel at mile 70." Jamie knows how to endure, how to overcome and most of all how to train creatively. He shared with us some little known trail routes where we could get the mountain training we most certainly will need to be ready.

Yesterday I went out for a 6 mile run at lunch with a tempo sesh of about 1.5 miles over the pedestrian bridge and around the Titans' stadium. I keep running over the conversation in my head, each time coming to new conclusions about the future months.

One thing is for certain, for now, I am going to focus on the LBL50, it is nothing to overlook and will be an incredible challenge. There is some comfort in that, being able to look only 5 weeks ahead- one training week at a time- it is much like my effort in races-  I can only run one mile at a time - so I run the one I'm on.

PWP early am

This morning Mash and I got 9+ in on the PWP red trail x2. It was snowing a bit when we started at 5am and was a not quite 20 degrees.

life, training and the LBL 50 miler

Saturday 19m, (last loop at threshold pace) 

Roy, Mash and Stevie
Highland Rim Ultras, back to Deep Wells

Light from the rising sun flickered like an old projector through the damp black branches on my right. I breathed hard and worked to keep my pace above comfortable. The trail was difficult to make out with the golden rays flashing in my eyes. I was glad, it has been so gray for so long. Small black birds with yellow triangle beaks exploded from mud puddles formed in foot and hoof prints before me. I was startled by a large deer as I lighted a serpentine downhill- suddenly aware of her presence, we were no more than a foot a part. Glad I didn't get the hoof!


Looking Forward
I sent in my registration and booked our hotel for the Land Between the Lakes 50 Miler  on Saturday. February is going to be a high mileage and high intensity month in preparation for the LBL50. My wife, Julia will run the 23k, so we are going to be trading time to get trained up and care for our baby boy, who was sick with double ear infections Sat. night. I sat in our rocking chair holding him through in deep hours of the night. It is tough to watch someone so close, hurt, I wished I could take it from him, but all I could do was be there. All our plans and schedules can be made, but life is not by our design, but He that made us. Glad to report he's way better today!

some pics from Sat. run:

post thresh hold... need coffee

now to sit on a white couch