The way I read it, whether you do the TDS this year or ask for your depost back, you still get priority for next year.
The way I read it, whether you do the TDS this year or ask for your depost back, you still get priority for next year.
Looks like plenty of the top US ultra runners will be turning out.............
http://www.irunfar.com/2011/01/ameri...-for-utmb.html
The only one who can tell you "You can't" is you. And you don't have to listen.
A bit extra to my post #18
Aid stations. These can be quite a challenge to negotiate when there are 2,000 plus in the race. They can become very busy if like me you are in the middle of the field.
It took me 20 minutes to get through La Fouly and over 30 minutes to clear Champex.
This created a bit of tension and frustration at the time, as every fiber is yelling at you to get food and drink down and press on.
Now some time after the race, I have realised that these stops did me good. My recollection is that I left these 2 stops in particular feeling fresh and ready to go again.
I reckon 5 minutes off each stop would give the same result. So the key for me is to try not to get wound up by the queues and a bit of bumping and barging and to enjoy the rest and the food and drink.
Of course if you happen to have some support on the ground, life becomes a good bit easier if they are feeding you and you can avoid the hurly-burly.
The only one who can tell you "You can't" is you. And you don't have to listen.
Thanks for these little nuggets of advice. It's always great to pick up inside knowledge before you go. I'm also in the CCC but to be honest feel completely out of my depth. I live down south and whilst I can keep going all day I'm worried about the climbs and the altitude. Did you feel it last year? What about the poles? I've read the huge debate that 'raged' about them last year on the forums. Any more thoughts before I shell out for something I won't need? I'm also worried about cramp. I get calf cramp far too easily on the longer races although I seemed to have solved it with salt tablets when I did the Black Mountain ultra before Christmas but does anyone have any other tips? That said I'm so excited and check the website far more times than is healthy.
Does anyone have any good ideas for preparatory races in the UK in June and July?
andy
1. Altitude. I've climbed quite a lot over the years, both in and around Cham and elsewhere and never had bad altitude problems. I was in Cham for 2 weeks in late June, early July for the Marathon du Mont Blanc and a 2 and a bit day recce of the CCC course. That helped lay a base which I hope was still in the system come late August. In 2008 I raced the Trail des Aiguiiles Rouges and went straight from the UK and raced 2 days later. With a couple of high points over 2,700m in a 58km race, I felt it. I'll say a bit more about altitude when I post some comments about taper and pre-race prep.
2. Poles. I did quite a bit of training with them and decided early on that I would use them in the race. My plan was to use them later on, after Trient, on the last 2 climbs when I assumed I would be getting very tired. In the event, I used them from Champex onwards because of the shitty weather. The climb to Bovine is in the dark (for me) and it's steep and was running with water and very muddy. The poles helped with balance. I don't use them downhill normally, just carry them (when they are a useful break to stop me running too quickly) but I did use them on the descents from Bovine and Catogne to aid balance and keep a decent footing. Some swear by them, some hate them. I know where I stand and I've proven to my own satisfaction that they work for me on the climbs and are worth the extra effort of carrying them. same plan this year; get them out at Trient for the last 2 climbs. I use the Raid Lights.
3. Cramp. This is largely a thing of the past for me. Nuun tablets initially and now Zym tablets, which I find more palatable.
4. Prep races. I only raced twice in prep. Duddon and Marathon du Mont Blanc. I'm adopting a similar approach this year, though different races, probably using LDWA events primarily. Plenty to chose from, though I will focus on the Lakes events with longer climbs to try and replicate the alpine feel.
Hope that helps.
The only one who can tell you "You can't" is you. And you don't have to listen.
A few other rambling thoughts:
Taper. My last big run was scheduled for 2 weekends before the race, several legs of DT's BG attempt. As it happened Andrew stopped at Dunmail, so I salvaged a 20 mile round trip across towards Wasdale and back. Feeling that wasn't enough, I then did a 12 miler on the Sunday then started to taper, 12 days before the race. I then ran for 45 minutes every other day. I went out to Chamonix on the Tuesday before the race and ran for about 45 minutes on Wednesday morning at an altitude of 2,000 metres more or less from Plan de L'Aiguille across to the Gare de Montenvers. That afternoon I took the cable car to Le Brevent and sat around reading in the sun in a deck chair at 2,500 metres. I did the same for as much of Thursday as I could handle, then raced on Friday. I was well rested!
Quads. For me, management of these muscles is a key element in having a good race. If you "blow" your quads, what follows can be very painful. I built as many long descents as possible into training to prepare for the several close to 1,000 metre descents that the race delivers. On race day itself, I worked really hard to "manage" those descents. Essentially, I found a pace that I thought was about right, then backed off a bit more, and tried to descend like Joss Naylor, with bent knees to absorb some of the hammer into the glutes. Tis seemed to work a treat. The quads behaved well for the full 82 kms I raced. I had no quad stiffness or soreness afterwards. It's not necessarily a recipe for a fast finish though!
Heart rate. I spent some time discussing this with one of the best ultra runners this country has ever produced. I don't use a monitor, but after many miles of solo training, I've developed a good sense of where my HR is whilst running. The key, as many people know, is not to get out of line with the consistent BPM level used in training. Even 5 minutes of activity at say 20-30 BPM above your norm can screw you up for the next several hours. So a few minutes giddyness when you decide to chase someone up a climb or down a descent can result in hours of suffering. This was partly what led to the tactic of the backing off on descents mentioned in the previous post, because its easy to fall into the trap of speeding up too much when going downhill which has the potential to not only annoy the quads but the steady heart rate you've taken so long to develop in training.
The only one who can tell you "You can't" is you. And you don't have to listen.
Wow! Thanks Morgan- a lot of food for thought there. Poles it is then. My final question- how did you do the training and avoid a divorce?
Fortunately my wife is a fell runner too, and often targets long or very long events (we've done the Old Counties Tops together).Originally Posted by andyhartley
So not too many problems on that front, tho' tensions can rise from time to time!
The only one who can tell you "You can't" is you. And you don't have to listen.
Hi Andy
I'm down for the UTMB this year (and did the GRP last year) and am based in south-west London. Where are you in the south? I'll be training in a variety of ways, including heading up to north Wales and the Lakes and doing some of the Lakeland Classic races and my own made-up long days. However, I've become quite canny at stringing out some long days with some hill beasting within an hour of London (northerners don't laugh!) so happy to hook up for something or offer advice.
All the best
Henry
Are we there yet?
Henry,
Sounds good although if you've already done the GRP I'm not sure I'm in your league! I'm near M4 J12 just west of Reading and would love to do a long day down here. I also have plans for Wales later on etc. Was thinking of the Downland 40 on Easter Saturday as a good long day out although I'm doing the 3 peaks the weeks after. Also the Black Mountain Roundabout in early April is a good 6 hour + day with some stiff long climbs.
Andy
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