A Crow Amongst the Loons

On May 11 (Friday) and 12 (Saturday), just over a week from the big Sugarloaf race, I will be participating in something I've never done since school:  a relay race.  Set around the hook known as Cape Cod, the Ragnar Cape Cod Relay looks like it could be a very fun experience.

Run ALL the Cape Cod towns!

I have joined a team called the Maine Loon Squad and have been placed on the first, 13th, and 25th legs of the 36-leg course (roughly 16.6 miles total).  This group intends to run this for fun and I'm perfectly okay with that knowing what I really need to be focusing on.  Nonetheless, I am excited to try something new in the running world that doesn't involve zombies or live electrical wires.  It's good old-fashioned team running though what is a very scenic region of Massachusetts.

What will prove to be a bit of a challenge is how I will fare running in very odd hours on a very odd sleep schedule.  Most know how I fared after trying to run the Vermont Marathon on the same weekend as outdoor camping.  At least I don't have to push hard and run for 3-4 hours straight but it will be interesting to see how my legs handle the 13th and 25th legs, especially if I run one of those at night.  And I'm likely sleeping in and driving a big van through these areas.  It's going to be very different.

Three weeks from now I'll already be heading down and getting ready to represent the loons on the first leg. I hope to have a lot of reporting to do before, during, and after my experience.

Running Hunger

I finished 15 today.  I feasted on mileage.

I am definitely catching the fever of running and dreaming the big goals of sub-5 miles and sub-3 marathons.  I really want to hammer down a good regimen and stick with it throughout the next 6-8 weeks.

50-70 miles
After my recovery week from ES20 (42+) I am determined to get 50 miles again and build upon it until Sugarloaf week.  If I plan it right I should be able to get around 70 miles on my 20-mile long run week.  It's going to take some extraordinary discipline so I need to fight procrastination more than ever.

Speed Workouts
I was amazed at my Hyannis and ES20 times knowing I haven't done a single speed workout since last fall.  I can't get away with that though.  My big goals are not going to happen by just building mileage so I somehow need to fit in a midweek speed workout.  I am thinking of using the Back Cove for this and on a Wednesday lunch hour but it's actually applying it that will be the trick.  If needed I may try the workout in the mornings, but I'm not confident of having good workout speed at 6AM.

Races to Sugarloaf
Unity Spring 5K - April 21 - Unity College, Unity, Maine - I love running this and it's very easy to PR if I run the initial downhill right.  My two finishes - 20:52 in 2008 and 18:52 in 2010 - were personal 5K bests at that point.  I'd love to smash the 18:30 barrier on this course.

Orrington 10K - May 5 - Center Drive School, Orrington, Maine - This one is a nice test to see how my fast twitch muscles are coming along.  I have generally posted sub-41 races here but I want to smash the 40-minute mark (I love smashing things) which would give me a nice PR to try and beat at B2B in August.

Ragnar Cape Cod Relay - May 11-12 - Not as much of a road race as it is a fun run relay.  Of course the real fun is that I am running almost 25 miles over 3 legs.  Why?  Because I can.  At least there will be plenty of time to rest (~8 hours) in between legs.  Two 9s and a 10K should get me primed for the next week.

Early Sugarloaf Goals
2:15/:45 - This would be ideal if I can pull these times off.  2:15 through the first 20 would get me a PR for that distance and 45 minutes in the final 10K would also be the fastest time for my final 10K of a Marathon.  If I stick to my workouts/mileage and stay healthy there's no reason why I can't meet these goals.