Glenwood Canyon Run

Glenwood Canyon is one of the prettiest stretches of I70 in Colorado. If you've driven through it before, you know what I mean.

Well, in keeping with my tradition of going for a "fun" run on our trips, I ventured out of Glenwood Springs and followed the bike path that is nestled between I70 & the Colorado river. I didn't run the entire canyon, as that out & back run would have equaled a marathon. Managed about 20 miles instead.

My first attempt had me heading out for the run at 5:00am on Saturday. I was looking forward to an early morning run and catching the sunrise. As expected, it was dark out and as I got to the entrance of the canyon I felt like I was standing on the edge of a black hole. There were no lights and it kind of freaked me out. That combined with the fact that there was early morning lightning all around me...I decided to turn back after only a mile.

Take two occurred later that morning and it was a much better experience. The canyon was beautiful and a totally different perspective seeing it by foot versus flying through at 65. If you ever get the chance to bike it, raft it, or run it...do it.

Tanya climbs a 14er!

I've been trying for some time now to get Tanya to climb a 14er with me. Initially, I got the "not in a million years" response. Well, as you can see I finally got her to stand at 14K feet with me. Sure she drove up and hiked the last 130 feet...that doesn't matter. What matters is that she has caught the bug and felt that amazing feeling of standing on "top of the world".

I'm even more excited because she has tentatively agreed to hike a 14er with me this summer! Plans are still in the works, but it will be so cool to climb one together.

Spectators

Coming around this corner...I could easily look up and see the summit. More enjoyable than seeing the summit was the white furry spectators that were eyeing me down. The mountain goats are pretty famous on Mt. Evans and I had been hoping to see some.

Before the race started, I saw this guy that looked familiar. I couldn't really place him, but then it hit me...I had read about him in "Colorado Runner" magazine. His name was Matt Carpenter. He is considered to be the best high altitude mountain runner in the world. He has set all kinds of course records for races at altitude. What's his secret? Here's a quote taken from his website, "He has the highest recorded VO2 by a runner, 90.2 VO2 (average rate for non-athletes is 44-51; average for athletes is 60-84). This lung capacity test is a measurement of the body’s ability to deliver oxygen to the muscles."

Did I mention he's set all kinds of records? Here's a taste of what I'm talking about. He is the 5 time winner of the Everest SkyMarathon Tibet (4 at 14,350', 1 at 17,060') and current course record holder. Check out his full bio here: Matt Carpenter Bio

My first thought when I saw him was...what the heck am I doing running in a race with HIM!! But, after the shotgun start, I didn't see him the rest of the day. That was because he was too busy sprinting up the mountain. Yes, he broke the 31 year old course record for the Mt Evans Ascent. He ran it in 1:37:01. That would be a 6:42/mile pace!! Too bad he ran it so fast because I bet he didn't get to enjoy the scenery as much as I did!! :-)

Up, Up and Away...

I thought for sure the altitude was going to be the problem for me this race. It was definitely more difficult to breath, but that wasn't nearly as troublesome as the lead legs I developed from running uphill for so long. I slowed to a walk at several aid stations to get something to drink and couldn't believe how difficult it was to get back into a running pace again. My legs just didn't want to cooperate.

The scene above was one that frequently took place. I would come around a corner only to see a steep incline with a series of unforgiving switchbacks. That's me at the bottom and those little specks at the top were runners that were way, way ahead of me.

There were two small sections of downhill running. At mile 9 and mile 11. I got so giddy that I almost broke into a sprint because it felt so good to change it up. Those brief changes in elevation were just that...brief. They were always followed by more uphill trudging.

Lucky #14 goes 14 miles to 14K feet!

When I pulled my bib out of the envelope and looked at the number...I knew I was in for a great race! Don't worry, I'm not at all superstitious. It was just a fun number to get in light of the event.

The race was absolutely incredible. It was incredibly beautiful and incredibly difficult. Nothing could have prepared me for the challenge of 14.5 miles of uphill running at that altitude. Fortunately, I wouldn't change anything! The scenery was amazing and a great distraction from the discomfort.

I was very leery to set any goals for this race other than to finish. But I couldn't resist. My goals were to: 1. Never stop running. 2. Finish with a time of 2:30:00. 3. Finish in the top 10% of runners.

Well, I succeeded with #1. Although by the end you could hardly tell I was running. I missed #2 by just a bit. I finished at 2:34:22. I didn't really come close with #3. There were so many great runners there. I finished in 71st place out of the 374 finishers.

A BIG thanks goes out to Kristi & Shannon for watching our girls so Tanya could come to the race. She was an excellent photographer...catching some outstanding scenic shots. She took so many that I thought it warranted a slideshow. The show will also give you a good taste for what the race was like.

2008 Mt. Evans Ascent from CO Runner on Vimeo.

15 miles up...

I'm two weeks away from the Mt. Evans Ascent (14 miles to 14K feet). I had planned on just winging it come race day since it's a little difficult to train for fourteen miles of uphill running at altitude.

A couple days before our camping trip, I had a brilliant idea. Why not try a high altitude jog? Why not find one that is all uphill? The campground was at 8900' and Vail Pass (10600') was about 15 miles away. Both were connected by the bike path that ran right through our campground.

Let's just say my brilliant idea was more like a brutal idea. I ventured out on my run while Tanya took the girls to the outlets in Silverthorne (wait...weren't we supposed to be camping??). A few hours later she did find me totally spent at the top of Vail Pass.

This bike path is amazing. It was probably the most beautiful run I've been on to date and I'm happy to say that I'll never voluntarily choose to see it this way ever again. This shot was taken with my cell phone.

Here's my GPS log: http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/invitation/dashboard.mb?episodePk.pkValue=5926861

Sniff, Sniff...

I said yesterday, that it's cool when your loved ones are at the finish to cheer you across the line. Well, it's even cooler when they give you hugs and want to stand by you even though you are drenched with sweat and smell like a pig sty.

Zoe takes it even a step further. She finds it funny to come up to me and take an up close, big whiff of my B.O. before she announces, "Yuckers, you stink!"

You'd think she wouldn't need to perform the sniffing action after doing this 10+ times...but she still does.

CO Colfax 1/2 Marathon Recap

The race yesterday was very fun for me (minus the 6am start). The weather was perfect and the newly designed course was much flatter than the previous 1/2 marathon course. I usually train on hills, so even the gentle incline felt flat to me.

About 5 miles in, I started getting the feeling that I was going too fast. My fear was that I'd run out of gas too early. Fortunately, that didn't happen and I kept chugging along. I was shooting for a 1:35:00. As you can see, I was very pumped to come under that. My actual chip time was: 1:32:37 (I know...Tanya already gives me a lot of flack about having to be exact down to the second. It's a runner's thing.)

At the finish, I was greeted by Tanya & the girls...and Nana! She's been out visiting and I give them all big props for heading out the door at 6:30am to get downtown and make it to the finish. It's such a cool feeling to be finishing a race and see the faces of your loved ones right there!

2008 Race Season

It’s the start of race season this weekend. At least for me that is. This Sunday, I’m running in the Colorado Colfax ½ marathon. Last year I ran the full marathon and the ½ marathon the year before.

My best time for a ½ marathon is 1:43:38. That was the Denver ½ Marathon in 10/06. I’m going to shoot for a new personal record somewhere in the range of 1:35:00 - 1:38:00. That would equate to a 7:15-7:30/mile pace and is a big stretch for me. I’m not sure if I can maintain that pace for 13 miles, but I’ll give it a shot.

This race is actually a tune up for a very exciting one next month. Click on the link to check out my next race: America’s Highest Road Race

Denver Marathon Recap....Soaked.

The Denver Marathon was quite an experience. I'm not sure if you saw our weather, but let's just say it wasn't ideal. The temp at the start of race was 36 degrees and it had been raining all morning.

So there I began with a $2 Target poncho for raingear and an old pair of socks for gloves. My plan was to peel these things off and toss them once the rain stopped. Unfortunately, the rain and wind never stopped. My poncho did come off, but my sock gloves were needed to keep my hands from going totally numb. Sadly, the rain soaked them through, so they did have to come off around mile 15.

Overall, the race went great despite the weather. I had planned on hitting the wall early, so I tried to maintain a slower pace for the first 20 miles. Well, for some reason, the wall never came. I got a second wind at mile 21 and picked it up for the remaining 5.2. I crossed the finish line at 3:38:17 and promptly made my way to my car to change into the dry fleece shirt & pants plus slippers waiting for me. The dry, warm clothes were great, but my car's seat warmers were better and had never felt so good.

Thankfully Tanya & the girls did make it out to the race and caught me a few times. Although, the cold, wet weather finally won and Zoe began to meltdown forcing Tanya to take the girls home instead of to the finish line.

The Team Continued...

Continuing where I left of yesterday...

JIM: He was a whistle-blowing, cowbell ringing, bag of lymph node fluid carrying machine! Pretty cool that he had lymph node surgery one week and was out on the course cheering for me the next. I've thought a lot about his melanoma. It's very easy for me to think about "what if it was me". I don't believe there is a manual out there that explains how to process all the thoughts, feelings, emotions & ramifications that come with finding out your have cancer. If it was me, I think I would want to handle it the same way I have seen Jim take it on.

It reminds of the "David & Goliath" story from the Bible. David was an optimist. There is no human explanation why, as a young teenager, David was able to take down a giant who could have crushed him in an instant. Jim is an optimist. He knows the seriousness and difficulties that lie ahead, but also knows that his optimism flows from a Source of strength, resources & power that is far beyond human explanation. I like that about him. God is good.

Keep running the race with perseverance Jim!!

PS: I would be remiss not to thank Tanya & Anne for hanging at home and taking care of the kids so the rest of us could share in this experience. Thank you!

The Team...

I have to shout out some thanks to the team...

LAUREN & DANA: Both girls played a key role during the race. Whenever I came to one of their cheering locations, they ran up to me with some Gatorade and followed me until I finished my drink and took the bottle back. They were great and such an inspiration to have their cute little faces greet me all along the course.

MOM & DAD: Mom was a master photographer which was great until I found she had taken about 50 photos of me getting the post race complimentary massage! She was also the master worrier...what else could a mother do?? So when eight people gather all wearing the same t-shirt, people are bound to wonder what is going on. Dad mingled around with Java by his side and answered all those questions shedding light into what Team Ehrlich was all about.

CHRIS: She was by far the most vocal on the team! I don't think she stopped shouting and cheering for three and half hours. Even when she drove past me chartering the rest of the team in their mini-van, she was hootin' & hollerin' out the window. She also made a huge "Go Woody" banner with two tomatoes for the O's in my name. What's with the tomatoes? I hate tomatoes and her girls love calling me Uncle Tomato! I love it too!

WES: Around mile 19.5…Wes hopped on the course and ran with me for the last 6 miles. I felt chatty for about the first mile of our run together and then I fell silent for the remainder. Even so, it was a special time for me to have him run by my side…a wonderful parallel for what he has done for me my entire life. He was definitely the strong tugboat pulling me with a mental rope to the finish line.

JIM: Check back tomorrow...

NH Marathon Recap...

Well…marathon number two is in the books. It was a perfect day in so many ways. I’m typing this post on the plane as I head back to CO. So many thoughts and emotions swirl around my head. I’ll share of few of my thoughts & experiences this week.

Let's talk about the race first. I had heard the NH Marathon was the best “small town” marathon in the country. They certainly lived up to that designation as far as I could tell. The weather was perfect and the course was ideal for running.

Putting those things aside, the team you see above was by far the BEST support team a runner could ever desire! I talked a bit about my motivation for this race last Friday. It was amazing to see my family rally around supporting that cause. They all appeared at many places along the course and were by far the loudest & craziest fans around. You know that’s true when other runner’s start shouting….”I want to be Woody”. Imagine running through the shoot towards the finish line and having everyone in the picture above waiting & cheering for you steps away from the finish. It was simply amazing and I’m grateful. Something I will remember for a long time to come.

With Team Ehrlich behind me every step of the way, how could I not have my best run ever?!? My ambitious goal was to finish at 3 hours & 30 minutes. I’m please to say I came across the finish line at 3:29:11.

Motivation...

I wanted to talk a bit about my motivation for tomorrow's race.

My brother in law, Jim, was diagnosed with melanoma about two months ago. The journey with cancer has already been long and hard on their family. There are still hard days ahead with chemotherapy looming on the horizon.

Jim & Chris have been amazing to watch in how they've handled this challenge. There are no quick fixes or easy answers, yet they stay positive & strong. Despite bad news and discomfort from surgeries, they press on.

I think about this when I run. My training over the last two months has given me plenty of time to think & pray. I'm inspired by their perseverance and I intend to use their inspiration to push through the adversity of the race.

My marathon will be over in about three and a half hours (hopefully!)...while their marathon will continue much longer than that. I'm proud to be on their team and help cheer them on to the finish!

A big thanks to Tanya for designing t-shirts for me and my whole family to wear tomorrow.

Go Team Ehrlich!

NH Marathon

Flashback to Fall of 2003....Tanya & I did this hike while visiting my parents in New Hampshire. The lake below is Newfound Lake and the munchkin on my back is Megan.

Flash forward to this Saturday....I'll be running in the NH Marathon which actually encircles this lake and some. It should be a beautiful course with the Fall foliage approaching its peak. The current weather forecast for Saturday is perfect...partly cloudy with a high of 66.

I'm really excited for this marathon. I feel much more prepared and hopefully have learned a few things from the last one.

Fun Memory

While in SB, Tanya & I awoke early a few times and went running together along the waterfront. It was fun to run along the ocean, but even more enjoyable getting the chance to run together.

Our third outing on Thursday found Tanya on the bike with me chasing her from downtown SB all the way out to Camino Real Shopping Ctr in Goleta. For those SBers out there, you know about how far that is. For the non-SBers...it was just over 18 miles.

It was the one day of our vacation I was so thankful for the morning fog that lasted til noon. I was even more thankful for the fact that located in the shopping center was Anna's bakery. I don't think I've ever had donuts taste so good! Nana and the girls met us out there for a sugary breakfast to celebrate!

If you want to see the route we took, click here: http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/invitation/dashboard.mb?episodePk.pkValue=3240949

Not my ordinary jog...

This is Mt. Elbert. He lives just to the south of Mt. Massive.

On Saturday afternoon, I thought I'd go for a jog from our campsite. There was a trail that left our campground and went all the way around the lake. Seeing that would have been about 12+ mile run, I opted to run along the north shore of the lake to the next campground over...about an 8 mile round trip excursion.

It was one of the most enjoyable runs I've ever been on. The solitude and scenery were awesome. The challenge of running on a trail was a nice change from the pavement or treadmill running I've done previously. Although, I couldn't get the thought out of my head that I was one misstep away from a nice sprained ankle. The altitude was a killer. The campground was situated around 9900 feet. This is about 4000 feet higher than I'm used to running at and there were plenty of ups and downs that had me sucking wind.

I recently got a GPS watch to help me keep track of my running workouts. It's pretty cool to see what kind of data it collects. Check out the link below to see my run in more detail. Switch the map over to "satellite" view and zoom out a bit to see the mountains (Massive & Elbert) that we were right up against.

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/invitation/dashboard.mb?episodePk.pkValue=2988995

Error Extends Colfax

Not to keep bringing the marathon up for discussion, but there was an interesting piece of news that came out last Thursday. Seems the officials made a mistake in setting up the course on race day. A few misplaced cones routed the runners an extra half mile out of the way in City Park! No one noticed the mistake until runners with GPS watches crossed the finish line to find out they actually ran 26.7 miles!
Yet, another funny memory of my marathon experience. They promise to adjust everyone's times to reflect the additional distance, so it looks like my time may drop to 3:54! Here's the news story: http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=70760

A big thanks goes out to...

I would be remiss to not thank a couple people who were a big part of my marathon journey...

Tanya & the girls: They were amazing throughout my entire training and on race day. They were so supportive and encouraging to me...even lil' Zoe. At one point during the marathon, both girls were ready to hand me some Gatorade as I ran by, but I didn't see them in time and grabbed some from the water people instead. That was probably a good thing since every time I grabbed some at each station, at least half of it sloshed out of the cup and hit the person handing it to me.

The Dawson's: Keith, Clare & Heather have been in our home group this past year. They all came out to cheer me and Clare's brother-in-law on. Keith seemed to pop up about every 3 miles along the course cheering me along. He even ran next to me for about 50 feet! It was awesome.

Scott & James: They both tackled the half marathon and kicked butt. For James, it was his first and was amazing running on 3 hours of sleep after having to work the night before! My cousin Scott placed 82nd out of 1695 participants!! It was great knowing those guys were out on the course at the same time, albeit 13 miles ahead of me! All our families enjoyed a pre-race "carbfest" dinner the night before.

Wes: My brother is a huge reason I ever got into running. He paved the way by running in two marathons a couple years ago. He was my running expert as he patiently answered so many of my questions and sent me what I called my "Runners Bible". It was a guide to running that really helped me train and prepare. His encouragement was unending. Thanks Wes! Best wishes as you tackle #3 in a few short weeks!

CO Colfax Marathon Recap

The race is over and I finished! My original goal was to finish under four hours. Well, I like to cut things close, so you can see just how close I was. My chip time was actually 3:59:03.

The race began with me following the "3:30" pace leader. If you follow this guy (or gal), he'll guarantee to get you across the finish line within a minute or two of that time. It was perfect. The pace (8 min/mile) was very comfortable and it remained that way until mile 18. I felt a little fatigue and dropped my pace a bit, but then at mile 19.5 came the infamous "Wall". I went from an 8 min/mile pace to about a 12 min/mile pace in just one mile.

I had to walk at least a mile of the remaining six, which happened to be all uphill. I was very bummed about that, but at the time I didn't care. My body was in chaos and couldn't move the way that had come so effortlessly the previous two thirds of the race. My brain was in a complete fog and my legs were screaming at me...so I walked on.

At mile 25, I looked at my watch and saw I had 10 minutes to make it under 4 hours. So I started my jog and ever so slowly, made it across the finish line.

Hey...check out the Denver Post article! It was on the front page of our Sports section today. Scroll down a bit and look for a familiar face.

http://www.denverpost.com/sports/ci_5944186