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 Bulldog 25k RR
Rustyboy

LA, CA
Joined: 14 Dec 2004
Posts: 225

Bulldog 25k RR Posted: Sat Aug 26, 2006 1:14 pm 

Today I ran my 1st, 2nd annual race: The Bulldog 25k mountain race. You might recall, it kicked my ass last year, but it also gave me the inspiration to train for my 1st 50k in January and now to go beyond next January to a 50 miler.

Last year, the temps topped off around 107 degrees. I'd finished strongly in 3:08, far ahead of my secret target time of 3:40, so this year, I was determined to break 3 hours and shot for 2:50.

I completely geeked out for this goal and broke down the split times I'd have to hit at each of the 3 aid stations: 44 minutes to #1, reach #2 in 1:22, and hit #3 in 2:24. These were 11 minutes miles, and given the terrain, I wondered if I wasn't being too industrious. But what the hell: I was gonna have a blast no matter my finish time, so I might as well go all out and leave every bit of me on the course.

We trotted down the paved fire road and wound up in the single track, rocky stuff that slows everyone down. I was itching to try and pass people, but the line of runners looked to be around 30 deep, so I patiently waited until the trail opened to jeep sized stuff and made my move.

Ahead, the trail splits, and you can either go straight and visit the old set of M*A*S*H, or you can begin the bulldog hill climb of 1780 feet over the course of just 3.4 miles.

I recommend visiting Hawkeye and Trapper's tent and skipping the ascent, but up we went.

I power walked most of this last year, but this go-round, I was running it until it got too ridiculous. Eventually, it did, but I'm a fairly strong walker, so I was passing several runners during my clim to aid station 1. My goal was 44 mns, and here I was at 39! Sweeeeet - I'd bought myself some time.

We continued up, more climbing, and I was alone for the most part, until I hit aid station 2. My goal: 1:22, and here I was at 1:17! Excellent - I'd barely lost any time, and I knew mega-downhills were around the corner.

The downhills are hard, fast, and rocky, but sailed down the switchbacks, and at one point, passed a woman running the 50k (2 loops). I wished her luck and headed down to aid station 3, knowing that more climbs were ahead for the next 2 miles to the finish. Crossing through a creek (heaven for my tootsies), I passed station 3 , forgetting to look at my watch and heading to the uphills, which seemed a lot harder this year, but I walked when needed and ran when I could, hitting the asphalt and heading towards the finish. I checked my watch and I was at 2:30! Holy crapola, was I gonna break 2:45?

I pushed hard, zipping up the drive to the cheers of the incredibly kind volunteers, rounded the bend and sprinted (well, in my mind, anyway) into the chutes at 2:38! Damn, I'd just run 10m 12s/mile, knocking off 2 mns/mile from last year.

Patting myself on the back was short-lived, however, as Jorge Pacheco, Southern California's Scott Jurek, completed the 50k 5 minutes after I'd crossed the line, smashing the course record of 3:59, finishing in 3:45-ish (the 50k race began 1 hour ahead of us)! The man - well, kid: He's 20 - is astounding, and the look on his face of sheer exhaustion and pain proved he'd drained everything to do it.

All in all, a fun race, and I'll be back next year to break 2:30. For now, there are beers to be sipped and burgers to be munched on.


Rickshaw
Runworks 2005 5M Racer
San Francisco, CA
Joined: 26 Nov 2004
Posts: 1157

Re: Bulldog 25k RR Posted: Sat Aug 26, 2006 2:25 pm 

Congratulations Rustyboy! Holy cow, that's a tremendous improvement in the space of a year. 2 minutes per mile faster??? Wow.

How was the weather today? Hopefully it was better than the 107 degree temps you had the year before.


Rustyboy

LA, CA
Joined: 14 Dec 2004
Posts: 225

Re: Bulldog 25k RR Posted: Sat Aug 26, 2006 3:20 pm 

Thanks, Rickshaw. A little of the improvement had to do with knowing the course, when the big hills were going to hit, where I had issues last time, etc., but all in all, I was utterly shocked when I realized I would lop off 30 minutes!

The temps were cooler too, and I'm certain everyone ran better this go 'round. I believe, when I pulled out of the parking lot, the high was 82 at 10:30 AM. In the canyons, on the run, it was much warmer, but everall, that's a massive improvement over 107.


Rickshaw
Runworks 2005 5M Racer
San Francisco, CA
Joined: 26 Nov 2004
Posts: 1157

Re: Bulldog 25k RR Posted: Sat Aug 26, 2006 8:05 pm 

Awesome! So is your January race the next big one on the horizon? Are you doing longer races exclusively?

I'm running a marathon on October 1, but my preparation has been so woefully inadequate. I did manage to get in two 20 milers, but I've done zero tempo or interval running, and my total mileage has only been around 20-ish miles per week. I've given up hoping for any particular time, and just want to cover the 26.2 miles without destroying myself.


Rustyboy

LA, CA
Joined: 14 Dec 2004
Posts: 225

Re: Bulldog 25k RR Posted: Sat Aug 26, 2006 8:59 pm 

My January race is my next "big race" (50 miler), but I'll probably do at least 1 marathon and 1 50k as training runs beforehand. Sept 17th is my first triathlon, so even though it's a mere sprint distance, it'll feel big!

Are you running the marathon with oldmanrunner? I imagine, even though your training is so "woefully inadequate", you'll still manage a great finishing time, plus have a blast along the way!


Rickshaw
Runworks 2005 5M Racer
San Francisco, CA
Joined: 26 Nov 2004
Posts: 1157

Re: Bulldog 25k RR Posted: Tue Aug 29, 2006 1:38 pm 

Ha, a marathon and a 50K as a training run. You've definitely gone hardcore!

Yup, OldManRunner and I are doing the Wineglass Marathon in Upstate New York on October 1. He's shooting for a 3:30 BQ time, which would be his first. He ran a 3:23 a few years ago (when his BQ cutoff was 3:20), so it should be doable. I'll probably try to help pace him to that 3:30, but given the minimal training I've been doing, 3:35 to 3:40 is probably more realistic.


Rustyboy

LA, CA
Joined: 14 Dec 2004
Posts: 225

Re: Bulldog 25k RR Posted: Tue Aug 29, 2006 10:04 pm 

Rickshaw wrote:
Ha, a marathon and a 50K as a training run. You've definitely gone hardcore!

Yup, OldManRunner and I are doing the Wineglass Marathon in Upstate New York on October 1. He's shooting for a 3:30 BQ time, which would be his first. He ran a 3:23 a few years ago (when his BQ cutoff was 3:20), so it should be doable. I'll probably try to help pace him to that 3:30, but given the minimal training I've been doing, 3:35 to 3:40 is probably more realistic.



Oh, I'm sure using a marathon and 50k as training runs sounds hardcore...until you get my finishing times. I just saw the finishing times from my 25k: 58 out of 313, at full force. Don't expect a BQ from my fall marathon.

Do you and oldmanrunner expect to run together for the marathon? I had such a great experience running LA with my friend, at least until the end - hopefully, you'll both have a great experience!


OldManRunner
Runworks 2005 5M Racer
Rochester, NY
Joined: 28 Nov 2004
Posts: 262

Re: Bulldog 25k RR Posted: Wed Aug 30, 2006 5:48 pm 

Rickshaw's sandbagging it, just like always, I'm sure of it! He's still gonna kick my butt, just like every time.

This is my first marathon cycle where I'm not self-employed, and can't go off running for 12 miles in the middle of the day. Really cramps your style. As a result, my mileage is topping out with 40 - 45ish weeks instead of 50-55ish, which I suspect is going to make quite a difference come 10/1. This past Sunday's 20-miler wasn't too bad, though, and I did manage to run the final mile at sub-marathon pace. I'll finish the race, but a sub-3:30 is looking much more difficult to achieve than I ever would have suspected. To tell the truth, if I don't BQ this time, I think this will be my last marathon. I was having much more fun training for shorter distance races this spring than I am now trying to figure out how to squeeze more miles into my week without having my wife divorce me!


Rustyboy

LA, CA
Joined: 14 Dec 2004
Posts: 225

Re: Bulldog 25k RR Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2006 9:37 am 

Sounds like a sandbagging to me. He'll wind up with a sub-3, on the heels of the elites, and be all, "I had NO idea!" :)

I hear ya on be able to train when you're self-employed. In preps for my 50k last year, I was between jobs (read: Unemployed) for a month leading up and could squeeze in the mega-hours without a problem. Training for this tri had been difficult while working 60 hour weeks...although I am now "in between jobs" again.


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