First Bite of the Sandwich

This past weekend I took my first bite. According to the ultra marathon blogs I've been obsessively perusing, the sandwich refers to arduous back-to-back long workouts with a rest day on either end. Apparently, they are necessary in order to train your body for the beating it will take at the actual event. The experts recommend the sandwich approach over one super long (40+ mile) run. Hey, why not feel terrible two days instead of one? Anyway, most runners who work typical weekday hours, rest Friday and Monday and spend hours of their weekend on the trail - the meat of the sandwich.

Saturday I ran 20.5 miles. I chose some hilly routes in an attempt to mirror the fifty mile run, Stormy 50. Basically, I ran three different local trails, close in proximity to each other and each stunning in its own way. First, I ran "the Flume", a mile long boarded walkway under the rain forest canopy (a favorite place to watch bears and mountain goats) and up Perseverance Trail, an old mining route a bit over 8miles in length with several hundred feet of elevation. After several miles of steady uphill running, the route ends in Silverbow Basin near cascading water from a large waterfall that has destroyed the most recent attempt at a footbridge. Generally I lose my GPS signal 2-3 times on this route because of the steep mountains on both sides (Mt. Roberts and Mt. Juneau). Saturday was a gorgeous morning and I took off around 8:15 with my dog, Lars. I'm also a bit nervous around a couple of the bends due to the steep drop-offs. There's a bench to rest on dedicated to a young local runner who plunged to his death about ten years back.

After Perseverance, I ran down to sea level and along the channel to another popular spot, Salmon Creek. The trail is approximately 4 miles, and like many runs in Juneau, this too begins with a steep incline of a couple hundred feet away from the water and into the mountains. Unlike Perseverance, the trail is wide enough for trucks although vehicles are generally prohibited. After the initial climb, the road meanders upwards through the forest and stops at the local electric company's old power station. Above me (and reachable by single track) is a large dam built in 1914 that holds the town's water supply.

After running back to Basin Road from Salmon Creek, I was pretty tired from the uphill on the pavement. I now had the most difficult part of the run: a gain of 1300feet in 1.5 miles on a fairly technical trail to the tram. The tram trail has a few gorgeous shaded views of the channel and mountains, but with the roots, rocks and consistent rise, you have to pay attention or you'll fall flat on your face. Only a few weeks ago, I ran into snow below the tram. On Saturday it was almost gone. I stopped at the top to admire the view with the tourists and drink a coke. The run down was a reward for the other 19 miles.

On Sunday I biked 50 miles instead of running. This may not be ideal, but I'm participating in a 70 mile bike event in the Canadian Yukon in a few weeks and need some time in the seat, so to speak. I met my riding partner for the event, Gail, and we rode from the local glacier and 'out the road' about 6 miles past Herbert Glacier and back. 'Out the road' is a phrase used by locals to refer to the only road that attempts to leave Juneau and it only gets about 45 miles where it dead-ends in a bay. Yep, you can't drive, bike or run from Juneau. You've got a love it or move! My riding companion, Gail, is in her early fifties and is recovering from a paragliding accident last summer from which she has several permanent pins near her pelvis, following at least three surgical procedures. Unfortunately, she is also facing some problems with her aortic valve because of the accident. But, undaunted, she's hiking, skiing, riding and tagging seals for work. Amazing.

Off to pop some Aleve and eat a real sandwich. Until next time...

Runners' Knee

I'm laying low this week with a sore knee, technically called chondromalacia but better known as the dreaded "runners' knee." The condition is brought about by over training, raising mileage too quickly, and hyper-extension of the knee. All of these apply to me. Naturally, we had a warm, sunny, all around gorgeous weekend here in the rainforest. I missed a popular spring 5k run staged during a minus tide across the channel behind our house, but this year's run had to be re-routed because an angry sow with two cubs was hissing and spitting at people. Our next door neighbor also discovered a less aggressive bear hiding under his deck. Yes, the long winter is definately over and we're cruising towards the midnight sun. Not being able to run, I popped some Ibuprofen, washed it down with an Alaskan IPA, and we flew kites by our house. I'm feeling better already...