Laurel Highlands 50K

The Laurel Highlands ultra entered my list of "must-do" events after I saw this pic from Trail Porn. Despite the edgy name of the site, the pics are all beautiful scenery shots - they are NOT NSFW... which I supposed makes them "SFW". ;)

This was the year! I sent in my entry application and even convinced some friends to come along. I opted for the 50K since 70.5M is significantly farther than I've run. Also, I heard the course is very difficult in general.

Race report coming plus and a few pics.

For now, here are some videos I took in the various "labyrinth" sections I encountered on the 50K. I really enjoy the natural mossy rock formations, especially when the trail winds narrowly winds in between. So I was really happy to run through these sections, back up and go through again taking a video with my phone.

Laurel Highlands 1

Laurel Highlands 2

Laurel Highlands 3

Week 18

The plan for week 18 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	18	5/2/2016		4	4	6		10	6	30

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	18	5/2/2016		5.4						5.4

• Mon May 2
• Tue May 3
PTJ run from CCBC. Good to get back out again since it had been a while.
• Wed May 4
• Thu May 5
• Fri May 6
• Sat May 7
• Sun May 8

This week was bad for running. It drizzled most days and I wasn't motivated enough to get out and run in the rain. I also had some other activities lined up for Sat so no running then either.

OK, I'm nearing the midpoint of the Yeti training plan and it doesn't look so good. I find running 3 times a week is reasonably easy, meaning I can schedule that without too much trouble as long as I run both days on the weekend. 4 times a week become much tougher, requiring advanced planning from getting to work early enough to leave at certain times, etc. 5 times a week is really hard - basically locks all days into running which I've only done on the week I took vacation.

So I might need to scale back my goal. If Yeti had other distances, say a 100K, that would be realistic especially due to the nature of the course. But it doesn't.

Thus, I'm thinking of getting 50 miles at Montour and if that goes well, signing up for Stone Mill, a 50M too. I'll fill in Aug/Sep/Oct with a few tougher trail events which are the ones I find the most fun.

Week 17

The plan for week 17 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	17	4/25/2016		4	8	6		22	10	50

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	17	4/25/2016			3.0			4.3		7.3

• Mon Apr 25
• Tue Apr 26
• Wed Apr 27
Quick run along the BWI trail.
• Thu Apr 28
• Fri Apr 29
• Sat Apr 30
Lake Elkhorn Trail.
• Sun May 1

Well this week didn't turn out as expected. I planned on 20 mi pacing some friends at C&O, but both of them dropped out so it didn't happen. Granted, conditions were lousy - cold and rainy. I slept in Sun and Mon to get back on a normal schedule.

Week 16

The plan for week 16 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	16	4/18/2016		4	6	6		22	10	50

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	16	4/18/2016			5.1				30.6	35.7

• Mon Apr 18
• Tue Apr 19
• Wed Apr 20
Run on the BWI trail.
• Thu Apr 21
• Fri Apr 22
• Sat Apr 23
• Sun Apr 24
Trap Pond, a local-ish 13.1M/26M/50K involving loops around a pond. Ran the marathon with Annette, then did another loop for the 50K. Great event!

Week 15

The plan for week 15 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	15	4/11/2016		4	4	4		10	6	28

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	15	4/11/2016		2.1	4.5	4.6	7.3		11.5	30

• Mon
• Tue
Walk around Lake Elkhorn with my parents.
• Wed
Wincopin green and red trails.
• Thu
Lake Elkhorn trail.
• Fri
Wincopin white and green trails. In the afternoon, walk around Lake Elkhorn with my parents.
• Sat
• Sun
Lake Elkhorn Trail to the Lake and back. And later, walk around Centennial Lake with my parents.

This is the first week in a while I've been mostly on track! It helped that I was off (family visiting) and could do a short run every day. Going forward I'm going to focus on 4 good runs a week - T, Th, S, Su. I've learned 5 times a week is very difficult to schedule.

Week 14

The plan for week 14 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	14	4/4/2016		4	6	6		20	10	46

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	14	4/4/2016		4.1				5.7	12.3	22.1

• Mon
• Tue
PTJ group run from CCBC.
• Wed
• Thu
• Fri
• Sat
Lake Elkhorn Trail.
• Sun
C&O Canal with Kate.

Week 13

The plan for week 13 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	13	3/28/2016		4	6	4		20	8	42

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	13	3/28/2016		3.8				13.2	3.2	20.2

• Mon Mar 28
• Tue Mar 29
Run with Kyle from Patapsco CCBC.
• Wed Mar 30
• Thu Mar 31
• Fri Apr 1
• Sat Apr 2
Mile Run trail half marathon. Drove up with Michael and Amy, meet Addie and Matt there, and had a fun time at a great trail race.
• Sun Apr 3
Short run on the green and red trails at Wincopin.

Had lingering sickness from last week, but it finally started clearing up. However, I still didn't get out there as much as I need to. This is about the 33% mark through training and I'm thinking that I'm not going to be ready for a 100M. There are other things I want to do besides place training for a 100M as my top priority. But that's OK, there is plenty of challenge and fun to be had at the 50K and lower distances, and I'd be happy with a 50M as a "challenge" race.
It isn't too late to gear up for Yeti but it would also be more realistic aim for the Stone Mill 50M in Nov.

Week 12

The plan for week 12 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	12	3/21/2016		4	4	4		8	4	24

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	12	3/21/2016	2.4					12.8		15.2

• Mon Mar 21
Short recovery run in Wincopin.
• Tue Mar 22
• Wed Mar 23
• Thu Mar 24
• Fri Mar 25
• Sat Mar 26
C&O Canal with Kate.
• Sun Mar 27

It was a tough week - I picked up some chest congestion, probably due to running the last 3 hours of HAT in light freezing rain. So, I wound up taking it easy and resting hoping to get rid of my cough and cold.

Week 11

The plan for week 11 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	11	3/14/2016	4	3	2			31		40

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	11	3/14/2016	2.8					30.4		33.2

• Mon Mar 14
• Tue Mar 15
2.8 mi out-and-back along Vollmerhausen. I live near a decent gradual hill so I thought that would be good for a quick run after work.
• Wed Mar 16
• Thu Mar 17
• Fri Mar 18
• Sat Mar 19
HAT Run! One of my earliest ultras (2nd ultra) back in 2012. It's a good race, well run, the only issue is that it can be a little crowded for the small loop and first big loop. Garmin measured 30.4 mi, which is about a 2% error and probably all you can really expect out of a sports GPS.
• Sun Mar 20

Some thoughts so far... I really enjoyed HAT - the trails at Susquehanna are a nice mix of hills, flats, minor rocks, and generally runnable singletrack through the woods with some nice views of the river. I've done the event 3 times and if it weren't so crowded, I'd probably try to be there every year. It gives a lot of swag for a fairly inexpensive event: we got a hat (green this year), T-shirt, portable USB charger, and lawn chair (finisher's award). You can't beat that for the price!

I'm more sore than I should be for a 50K. Left hip/knee and right ankle.

 I'm averaging around 30 miles/week. Not bad but that's less than the level of a 50K plan. I'm also running 3-4 times a week, which again is decent for a 50K plan but for a 50M or more I gotta bump up to a solid 5 days a week and at least 40 miles/week. My 3 longest runs have been events (30.4 mi at HAT, 22 at Frozen Heart, 19.4 at Eternal Winter; all according to my GPS) and this is obviously not good as I need to get more miles in regularly.

 Anyway, this initial part was a buildup to an early season 50K, actual training for Yeti doesn't start for another month. I'll need to make some changes is Yeti is going to happen. I hate to sound defeatist, but I'm not sure I can, or want, to carve out the time to get to the next event distance level. The jump from 50M/100K to 100M seems way to big for me to make without making it my sole goal. I'll try to step up the training to do 50M at Montour, but I'm kinda thinking that Stone Mill in Nov might be a more realistic goal. Montour is a timed event with a very generous cutoff (up to 24 hours); meanwhile Stone Mill is a traditional trail race with a 13 hour cutoff. Doing Stone Mill in the time limit might be enough challenge for me.

Week 10

The plan for week 10 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	10	3/7/2016		4		6		10		20

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	10	3/7/2016		6.2	6.1			7.0	6.8	26.1

• Mon Mar 7
• Tue Mar 8
Showed up to the Crazies Slacker Six run. Felt good to motivate out the door in the evening - 6.2 mi.
• Wed Mar 9
Run with Kristin along the Baltimore Waterfront - 6.1 mi.
• Thu Mar 10
• Fri Mar 11
• Sat Mar 12
Nice hike with Michael, Amy, and Missy along a portion of the Catoctin 50K course - from Manor Rd in Gambrill State Park to the pond past Delauter Rd. 7 mi out and back.
• Sun Mar 13
6.8 mi through Wincopin, my go-to nearby trail system. :)

Week 9

The plan for week 9 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	9	2/29/2016		4	10	4		10	6	36

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	9	2/29/2016			6.2		17.7		6.7	30.6

• Mon Feb 29
• Tue Mar 1
• Wed Mar 2
Had plans to run more but Kristin and I were tired and it was cold. 6.2 mi along the Baltimore Waterfront.
• Thu Mar 3
• Fri Mar 4
Butch setup this night run along the C&O: loops from Anglers to Swain (~4.5 mi one way). I decided to attend at the very last minute. It turned out to be a great run! Relatively pleasant temperatures, big group of 9 people - got to chat with Guy and Katie as well as Kristin. I did 2 loops for ~18 mi and was really happy with it.
• Sat Mar 5
• Sun Mar 6
Stayed local and did some exploring of new trails off yellow and blue at Patapsco. Great as always.

Week 8

The plan for week 8 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	8	2/22/2016		4	12	4		26	10	56

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	8	2/22/2016					12	6.2	7.4	25.6

• Mon Feb 22
• Tue Feb 23
• Wed Feb 24
• Thu Feb 25
• Fri Feb 26
Run with Kristin along the Baltimore waterfront. No Garmin link because it didn't lock satellites and I didn't notice until 20+ mins into the run. It was a tough week, busy and rainy Tue/Wed. I was really looking forward to getting some mileage in tonight!
• Sat Feb 27
Run through Wincopin.
• Sun Feb 28
Run with Christine along the B&A trail. Great weather!

Week 7

The plan for week 7 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	7	2/15/2016		4	10	4		10	8	36

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	7	2/15/2016		4.4	2.6			22	10	39

• Mon Feb 15
• Tue Feb 16
Run along the Patuxent Branch Trail. Slushy snow conditions on the trail, clear on the sidewalks.
• Wed Feb 17
Squeezed in a short run after work and before volleyball.
• Thu Feb 18
• Fri Feb 19
• Sat Feb 20
Frozen Heart 17/34/50K. I ran 2 loop, 21 mi by my Garmin. Good weather, runnable trail that was about 1/3 muddy.
• Sun Feb 21
BRRC Superbowl Trail Race (delayed 2 weeks). Swept the course with Kristin. Muddy and fun! We had to park ~1.7 mi roundtrip away from the start, and that's far enough for me to log. So 8.3 mi of race, 1.7 walking to/from start.

Week 6

The plan for week 6 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	6	2/8/2016		4	12	4		26	10	56

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	6	2/8/2016			9.9		3.0	15.1	3.2	31.2

• Mon Feb 8
• Tue Feb 9
• Wed Feb 10
Nice run along the Baltimore Waterfront with Kristin.
• Thu Feb 11
• Fri Feb 12
Snuck in a quick loop through Savage after work.
• Sat Feb 13
Chilly, windy run with Kate and Kristin along the C&O Canal towpath.
• Sun Feb 14
Sunny but cold; ran the green and red trails through Wincopin.

Week 5

The plan for week 5 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	5	2/1/2016		4	10	4		10	8	36

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	5	2/1/2016		11.8		3.2		10.2	8.2	33.4

• Mon Feb 1
• Tue Feb 2
A nice run along the Baltimore waterfront with Kristin.
• Wed Feb 3
• Thu Feb 4
Quick run before work; trying to see how those logistics work.
• Fri Feb 5
• Sat Feb 6
Trail run at Susquehanna State Park, where the HAT 50K is held. Good turnout and everybody enjoyed the trails.
• Sun Feb 7
Run on the B&A trail with RG3.

Week 4

The plan for week 4 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	4	1/25/2016		4	10	4		24	10	52

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	4	1/25/2016		4.1		3.8		19.4		27.3

• Mon Jan 25
• Tue Jan 26
Had to do street running since a great trail I live near is covered in snow. It was a lot of dodging cars because the sidewalks were always clear.
• Wed Jan 27
• Thu Jan 28
Ran along streets in the area. Conditions are better with spotty patches of ice. The shoulders of roads are still covered in snow so not ideal but with low traffic it isn't too bad.
• Fri Jan 29
• Sat Jan 30
Ran Eternal Winter, the fatass winter version of the Eternal Summer 6 hr run, hosted by the Annapolis Striders. Ran with Kristin and Kate for all of it, and Steve for a bit. Wound up running mostly on the road inside the park since the usual path was covered in snow.
• Sat Jan 31

Week 3

The plan for week 3 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	3	1/18/2016		4	8	4		10	6	32

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	3	1/18/2016	5.7			10.3			3.0	19.0

• Mon Jan 18
Had MLK day off so I met up with some friends for a hike in Patapsco Valley State Park.
• Tue Jan 19
• Wed Jan 20
• Thu Jan 21
Had a surprise day off work so I ran at Wincopin.
• Sat Jan 23
• Sun Jan 24
Dug out of the snow and went scouting around my area. Went into Wincopin for 1 mile, which was a big workout through knee deep snow. Only did 3 mi but it took nearly 1:30 due to conditions.

Week 2

The plan for week 2 was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	2	1/11/2016		4	8	4		24	10	50

What I ended up running was:

	week #	week	M	T	W	Th	F	S	Su	Total
	2	1/11/2016		6.0				15.8	5.5	27.3

50 mi seems ridiculously high mileage this early! I'm cutting back some runs since I'm really just gearing up for a 50K right now (HAT on Mar 19).

• Tue Jan 12
• Wed Jan 13
I ran 6.0 mi with Kristen along the Baltimore Waterfront.
• Thu Jan 14
• Sat Jan 16
Ran PHUNT, a 25K/50K trail race. We had great conditions - sunny and cool, muddy trails but not too bad as my feet didn't get wet. Butch was at this event but I didn't see him. I did find two other friends, Michele and Liz, and ran with them.
• Sun Jan 17
Slept in and ran 5.5 mi on the Patuxent Branch Trail (I call it the Lake Elkhorn Trail since that's where it leads).