RunLites GEAR REVIEW

New running gear is always fun for me to test, especially when it's something useful!

I received these running lights, called RunLites, a couple of months ago and now that the days are getting short, I have finally been able to put them to the test a few times!

They're designed like a glove, but with a light inside that fits into a pouch, secured with Velcro. The lights are rechargeable (with one cord that splits into two chargers) and have two different settings, one for high and one for low. All you have to do to turn them on is firmly press a button on top of your hand.

I chose the fingerless version because it doesn't actually get very cold here most of the time, and I figure that these would also fit over another pair of gloves if it was really cold and I needed my fingers covered.

As you can see, part of the glove is soft terry cloth. There's also a faux suede along the finger part, and some reflective material on the front and the back of the gloves. The wrist closes with Velcro, which is comfortable and snug, but the Velcro loops seem to attract themselves to the terry cloth on the other glove, and have caused a few snags in the fabric. That's not a big deal to me, but somebody else might not like it. 

In the front of each glove, there's a small pocket that also Velcros closed. This is just the right size for a key or a little bit of cash if you need some for an emergency. 

My two favorite things about these gloves are that I can recharge them from a USB port, so I never have to buy batteries; and, the light seems to broadcast well and last a pretty long time (at least a couple of runs), before I need to recharge them. 

Both gloves can be charged from the same cord. Very handy!

The light broadcasts just as well as any headlamp I've used. Sometimes when I'm running on the road at night, I can wave my hand toward a car to make it obvious that I'm human and catch the driver's attention.

Overall, I would say these are a pretty good investment for runners who get annoyed by wearing a headlamp. I hid them from my kids, and have my fingers crossed that I will not lose one of them! 

Other colors and styles are available at gorunlites.com .

****

Have you tried any new gear recently? Do you think you'd like lighted gloves? 

I was surprised I liked these better than my headlamp!

Sunset Bay Trail Run 4 miler win

The South Coast running club in Coos bay / North Bend, Oregon, puts on several top-notch races. In the past I have found that although they are not chip timed, they are accurate, well staffed, and fun to participate in. The Sunset Bay Trail run was no different.

I've seen this race on the calendar for a few years, and for some reason or another (probably because it is usually near my anniversary, this race was held 9/3/2016) , I never managed to make it to participate.
This year I wanted to race enough to come and check the trails out ahead of time.

 It turns out finding an online course map for this race is actually pretty difficult! I took a photo at the race of the map used by the RD, so that I could add it to the post in case anybody else is looking for a map of the actual race course.

On race day, the biggest challenge is usually finding someone to take care of the boys while I run. This year, I owe a thank you to my father-in-law for watching the younger two boys while my oldest came along to join me in the 4 miler.

The race starts at Sunset Bay, Oregon State Park, with a very scenic singletrack trail that has views of the Pacific ocean and twisting turns under coastal pines. It's stunning. If you have time to take in the view!

Before the race, I did about a 1 mile warm-up jog while the half marathoners got their head start. My son stayed near the race start, I think a little nervous, and perhaps pretty confident that he was ready to go. 

I was sad that the kids 1 mile run started 15 minutes earlier than advertised on Facebook, so my youngest was not at the park in time for it. 

 When the 4 mile race started, runners had to cross dry sand, then go around a cone and back for about a half a mile before heading uphill on the singletrack trail. 

Almost all of the younger runners took off in a dead sprint. I guess because of my old age, I know better. So, as soon as we were out of the sand I took a position ahead of several of them. One of these was my son. I love to race, but I look forward to the day when my son will get that lead and hold it. 

From that point on we traveled uphill and then along a beautiful coastal trail with dirt and pine needles. 

For 10 dollars, you get this view.

For the most part, the trail for the 4 mile race stays at the same elevation. There were a couple of significant drops and rises, but the main concern for anyone running this race would be roots and tripping. Luckily someone had sprayed many of the major roots with white spray paint. 

The turnaround point was just before Shore Acres park. There had been very little passing after the first half mile. And then there was no more passing for me (that I knew of) until the very end. With less than a half a mile to go, I almost took a wrong turn, then saw a marking which led me to realize I was taking the wrong path. I turned back about 5 yards and took a different fork in the trail.

From that point on it was a fast downhill run to the finish. When I crossed the line I discovered that I was the first overall finisher! 

About 40 seconds later a young man came through. Evidently, he had been ahead of me for most of the race, but had made a wrong turn in the same spot I had, and didn't discover it until I had gone past. 

He was very young, and had a great attitude about the whole situation, getting chicked by a 41-year-old woman, and all.

I stretched and waited for the rest of the runners to come in, anxiously looking for my son. I'm not sure what his placement was, but I was so happy to see him complete another trail race, even if it wasn't what he thought he was capable of. I hope he will continue racing so that we can have this time together. 

So much tougher than he expected. I am super proud of his distance PR.

Between all of the race distances, there were actually quite a few participants. During the race there had been games for kids to do where they could win prizes. My younger kids absolutely loved fishing over the top of some cardboard screen to see what kind of prize they could win.

The awards ceremony went quickly, and some really nice prizes were raffled off. Even though I won a plaque,  I was not disqualified from the raffle, and won a gift certificate to a Charleston seafood restaurant. That made my day! 

Overall, I was quite happy with this race from the organization to the course marking and marshaling, to the cost of entry. It's not really much further for me to drive to race on the coast than it is to race in Eugene, so I will try to do more races over there in the future. 

If you live in the area or just want to come see the Oregon coast at the best time of year, I highly recommend checking this race out. Camping accommodations can be found at Sunset Bay, but must be booked several months in advance.

Mildred's Trail Dash ~ Double win!

Life is full of surprises. The good ones are worth holding on to- which is why I still post in my blog from time to time!

Summer schedules have made getting in any long runs hard for me to do. Similarly, I haven't been able to get to the track often, or even maintain a base suitable for doing any significant speedwork. Despite all of those excuses, sometimes a girl needs some excitement, which is why I decided to enter a smaller local race that was held July 9th. 

Mildred's Trail Dash is a fundraiser for the Mildred Kanipe Memorial park in Douglas County (Oakland), Oregon. The park includes almost 1,100 acres of land, including pastures, creeks, rolling hills, orchards and forests. Historical structures include a turn-of-the-century schoolhouse, a farmhouse, and outbuildings.

The park has run into some financial difficulty since county officials recently determined that all county parks have to prove themselves financially self-sufficient or be shut down and sold or logged to cover the operating costs. The location is a little out of the way for me, but I always enjoy coming to the park and would be very sad to see it shut down. I was happy to help by running!

With my husband working the 4 pm to 4 am shift, I had to figure out what to do with my kiddos if I was to race. My oldest quickly decided he wanted to race too. We talked about whether he wanted me to run with him and whether he'd be OK with me running a 9k while he did a 5k. He was fine with different distances, so that was settled. 

My middle son (9) decided to stay home and watch documentaries while dad slept. The youngest (7) wasn't sure what to do! Five kilometers on the road is a long way for him still, and this was on a trail with mud!

I put in a last minute phone call at the park and asked if my youngest could be a "helper" at the race. The woman who answered was SO kind and offered to stay with him and find some jobs for him to do so that the oldest and I could each run at our best efforts.

Before we started the race, the race director, Mike McCarty, briefed all the runners about the courses (the 9k and 5k). As he spoke, it started to rain heavily. After a few days in a row of this, it was going to be a muddy adventure!

Finally we all lined up at the start line. For the first time, I had one of my sons next to me at "go" time! And we were off...

About 400 meters into it there were three men ahead of me and I saw my son just behind my right shoulder. I tried to huff some advice to him, "Don't try to stay with me! You have to pace yourself. There's a lot of race to run!"

"I think I can hold this pace, Mom," was his reply.

What can you say back to that in the middle of a race? I didn't want to demoralize him and figured he'd have to learn his own 5k lesson. 

I just said "OK."

Another 400 meters went by, and I saw the top 3 males missed the trail and took a wrong turn. I let them know, and they quickly scampered back down to the singletrack. 

We started the first big hill and things started to get really fun! There was enough mud that NObody was going fast. I passed the first mile marker and felt like I was working for it, but wasn't dying yet, which is good when you are racing 9k. I had lost sight of my son, but could still see the #2 and #3 runners when we weren't weaving through trees!

After clearing the top of the hill, there was a nice downhill stretch which was LOTS of fun in the rain. Slippery rocks, mud, wet grass and cows in the middle of the trail, all added to the excitement! I was grateful to have my Adidas Terrex Agravic shoes with the super-grippy lugs. My kiddo though.. he was wearing a pair of road Asics from track season.

At the bottom of the hill there was a turn followed by a sign for the 5k/9k split. I knew there was a woman not too far behind me, and I just tried to keep my effort level up. I am glad I have kept in decent hill shape and done the few track workouts I have done in the last month!

We all kept following the orange flagging and markers until reaching the next volunteer. She was standing in front of a flagged area and ushered us up the hill. I wondered why the markings were behind her, but having never done the 9k, just took her directions to go right. Up the next hill we went, through trees and ferns and mud, past signs with no words on them-- unless you looked backwards. I kept getting closer to the 3rd male, but couldn't quite catch him!

Finally, we were running downhill trough similar terrain, except muddier and straighter. Then I started to see a few runners running the opposite direction on the same loop. Apparently we had been asked to go the wrong way, but slower runners had done the course before and knew where to go. When we passed the volunteer again, she had moved out from her spot and everyone was running the loop clockwise, even though the first 5 ran it counter clockwise! I kept apologizing, telling people I was told to go that way as I passed them.

Little by little I could see the third male getting closer. We had a final uphill and I thought maybe I should not go full blast, so I could have a bit more for the downhill. When I reached the top we were shoulder to shoulder. 

It was a bit awkward running side by side.. I hoped to have a bit more leg speed, but he picked up his pace.  I kept with him..until the last 600 meters. When we reached the pond and the finish line was in sight, he dropped me like a hot rock! This proves one of my sayings to be true: Never get in a sprint with a teenage boy. (I lose every time!)

As I crossed the footbridge to the last few yards, I saw something that made me smile. This young man:

My son was waiting next to the finish line when I crossed at (42:43 on the Garmin- NOT a great 9k time for me, but a good one for the conditions and the course loop reversal!).  He also shared the news that he had placed first male in the 5k! I was so surprised, thinking he might have faded and walked the last mile, but I guess he used a combination of walking the uphills and running as hard as he could the rest of the time to earn a solid placement.

"One girl passed me on the hill, Mom. I think she was in high school," was his report of the race. 

I told him that was OK, and that he did GREAT. I couldn't have been more proud!

Sporting a bit of mud from the trail on the Adidas.. 

Super kid. I can't wait to see if he ends up racing too!

After catching my breath and giving my oldest son a BIG hug, the next task was to find my seven-year-old. He was casually walking around the pasture area taking 645 photos of the peacocks that roam the park entrance. 

Deb, the race organizer, told me he had been super helpful! This was the best news. I had been a little worried he might not have had a good time.

A few days later when he received a letter in the mail, he was so surprised (and my heart was touched). It was a note thanking him for his help, and rewarding him with some cards for free french fries at McDonald's. What a score!

We had to stay for the awards, and my oldest was thrilled at receiving a special water bottle as well as a gift card to Subway sandwiches.

I got a matching water bottle and gift card to Denny's, which I awarded to my youngest. (He has yet to redeem it, but we will have a special lunch together soon.)

***

Post race thoughts:

I've never wanted to push my kids into running. If they find other passions, I will support those fully!  I just don't believe you can force the love of something on someone, and I definitely want them to love what they do.. However, If I am being honest, I do hope they will each find the joy of running on their own. 

This day was a turning point.

It was such a moment of pride for both of us that I can see a future where one of my kids wants to run, enough to want to run with me. If that happens, I plan to make the most of that window of opportunity for as long as I am blessed with it. The moments go by so fast.

A Decent Running App for the Track!?

When I got to the track today, I realized I forgot my Garmin.
(Rookie mistake, I hope NEVER to do again!)

I wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to do my track workout (I live out of town and am 30 miles from the closest track!) , so I went to the nearest WiFi (starbucks) and looked for a running tracking app with the ability to do laps for a track workout. 

Something seems to be missing from this picture.

After I googled running tracking apps, I saw Runnersworld.com had a few suggestions. In a short time I found one that not only could be manually lapped, but could also export to Garmin connect and Strava (and a whole list of other sites!).

Wahoo fitness tracker was easy to use, simple, and only took me a few clicks to figure out how to operate using lap or auto lap. It also has an option for voice prompts or silent, and an optional countdown mode. 

It also operates with Bluetooth devices, which I did not bring with me. With a Bluetooth heart rate monitor or cycling equipment synced (yes, it does cycling too), this app would make it simple to keep track of all sorts of data. As it was, I was satisfied with just getting a split for each 400 and 800m lap!

I'll ALWAYS prefer running with my Garmin watch over using a phone app (Way too many reasons to list here); but, I was HAPPY to run my planned workout in a pinch and still send it to my log and favorite social sites.

Do you use a watch or an app to run? 
Have you ever ran a track workout with an app? Which is your favorite?

(Note: This is NOT an ad, or a sponsored post. I just stumbled on the app like anyone else would in my situation.)

Nut 50k. Half a nut, but twice the run!

When I signed up for the NUT 50k I knew that it was most likely going to be the hardest I've done.

It's strange to think that now I have done as many ultramarathons as I have road marathons. 

If you'd asked me five years ago if I would ever run a trail ultramarathon, I would've looked strangely at you. Similarly, if you had told me even a year ago I would ever run a 50K that was all uphill, I would have laughed. It never was something I saw myself doing.

My how things change, and I'm glad they do. 

The truth is, maybe because of my road background, I'm still trying to get over the mindset that races need to be faster in order to show running (racing) improvement.

So many elements can come into play in an ultramarathon, such as terrain, weather, fueling, and participants on the course. These variables can lead to a slower race even on the same course. I'm not a pro, but I'm starting to get this. It's taken me a while…

Pushing myself harder without getting faster at what I'm doing is most certainly "stepping out of the box" (so to speak) for me. taking on an uphill 50k was saying to myself, "It's OK to do your best even if it means you run a personal worst." 

In a way, I feel like it was the first time I ran a race for myself and with no real idea of how long it might take to finish.. Just a broad idea of 5 1/2 to 8 hours. 

***

Getting to the start line was a challenge in itself. I had camped at the Susan Creek Campground the night before. It's about an hour drive from there to Lemolo lake where the finish line is, and the shuttle to the start was waiting. 

In typical Raina fashion, I drove in as fast as I could to the parking lot, meeting the bus as it was idling, seconds before it was to leave. 

I had thought that I could take a different shuttle, but when I found out there was no way back to it, I had to drive like crazy to the finish line.

Grabbing my red gym bag (and OM pack that had almost all of my stuff in it), I sprinted to the bus. Before we had left the parking lot, I realized that I didn't have contact lenses with me.. Somehow I convinced the bus driver to stop at my car while I hopped out and got my contacts. I'm so glad I was able to get them! 

A few short miles later our bus was sitting in front of the highway where we were to unload and go to the start line. 

Immediately I saw a few people I knew and gave some hugs out and wandered around looking for Band-Aids. There was a little owie on the top of my foot due to flip-flop abuse that I wanted to protect from my sock. Not a major injury, just something I didn't want irritating me for 31 miles.

We seemed to have a long time before the race actually started so I had a cup of coffee, and thought about having left my oatmeal in the car. 

Luckily I had eaten a McDonald's breakfast burrito (no cheese) that I purchased the afternoon before and left somewhat dried and crunchy in my car.. It wasn't half bad, and I have a stomach of steel. These were my breakfasts before most of my long runs in training for this race. Coupled with coffee and a couple of packets of sugar, I was good to go!

I left my key to the car in my drop bag which was going to Tokatee Lake aid station. In my bag were extra shoes and clothes and food.. Just in case!

We were given the short race talk which had some very important information in it regarding what to expect on the course. Racers were told we would cross a damaged bridge, (carefully), so there was no need to reroute the race. 

And then we were running!

Miles 0-6

It felt as though most of the runners went ahead of me and I settled in a comfortable jog with a friend whom I have met only once before. We were all single file in a long line. There were a few jostling around, but I don't think I asked to pass anybody until after mile 2. 

Somewhere in this first segment I told my friend I wasn't sure if I was running too fast, or if it was just my imagination. He is assured me we were going too fast so we both slowed down. I was thrilled to be running a beautiful section of the North Umpqua trail that I had never ran before! 

We climbed up, and up and up. There was also a section of fire road in here where we went up and then down again. I had tried not to burn myself out on the uphill, and it felt good to let my legs fly on the downhill. 

Before long we were climbing again and then came out to the open road and the Medicine Creek station. (mile 5.9) . This station had my favorite goodies: Coke, Pringles chips, and watermelon slices. I took some of everything, even though I had been drinking from my water bottles a little and ate a half a package of Honeystinger grapefruit chews. 

Miles 6-13.3 or so

Then we were off, and I was climbing up Deer Leap, which is incredibly uphill for a few miles. 
At the top of this section, in the middle, there is a beautiful viewpoint if you step off the trail. A couple of us decided to make the run worth it and took a few pictures. It was a good choice. I had been looking forward to taking a break here even though there was no aid station. 

Just a bit more climbing and then we had a long rolling run to the Tokatee lake aid station (Mile13.5). Somewhere in here I passed a really nice guy who was obviously suffering with his knee. We chatted for a minute and he let on that maybe it was an  ITB issue. There's no doubt in my mind that if anyone was having ITB issues, this course would tear them up. I saw him later at the finish line though, and somehow he must've toughed it out. 

At Tokatee lake I got a refill on my bottles with glukos (energy drink) in one and water in the other. I also grabbed another handful of Pringles chips to eat as I ran down the trail.

 Here, I took one of my Salomon Speedcross Pros off and shook a small rock out of it. This little pebble had been in for maybe 2 miles. (It would've been completely preventable if I had worn gators, but I had forgotten to attach Velcro strips to my shoes, so the gators would not stay in place.) If the pebble hadn't been there I don't know if I could've gone a bit faster on the downhill, but I was cautiously guarding my foot trying not to grind the pebble in.

At this station I realized also that I was probably not going to make it in to the end of the race by six hours. I tried to do some math in my head and estimate how long it would take me to finish. We all know that running math is never good though.

Whether or not I could've ran faster is unclear, but in that moment I expected I would go slower for the second half. This was when it became a conscious decision that regardless of how long it took me, I was going to finish and I was going to have a good day.

 I took the time to stretch out a bit, as my glutes and hips on both sides had started to fatigue. I have a really odd yoga pose that I made up for this and I'm sure it was entertaining for anyone, especially since I had some music coming out of my phone. 

Even if this cost me time, stretching out was a good choice because afterwards I didn't have any issues with my glutes; maybe I should've done it back at medicine Creek.

Mile 13.3- mile 21

This was a long-a$$ section.

My friend had gotten ahead of me, but waited at the aid station, so we took off again together. Part of this was another new segment for me, and I enjoyed running some new terrain.

Thank goodness there was good flagging for the course in here. There was at least one possible place to get confused with a gravel road intersection, but luckily I knew the route and saw the orange flagging.. We saw another runner that was not so lucky. She had ran an extra 3 miles, and seemed to be trying to make up time for it. She passed us going uphill on gravel. And somehow we passed her again, then she passed us. 

We went through a cool waterfall where the water was actually going over the trail. It was shady in there, but it was also slippery! Shortly after that I lost touch with my friend again. I basically ran solo for the next 10+ miles, except for a brief moment at the next aid station.

At mile 21, I ran into the woman who had passed us and I asked her how she was doing. She remarked that she was not sweating at all anymore, even though she had drank two containers of water. I offered to tell the next aid station, and she thought was a good idea.

Less than a quarter-mile after passing her, we were there.. 

Mile 21-26.9

At the aid station I let them know that there was a woman behind me who said she thought she might drop. As I was filling up my bottle with water and glukos (half way) she came down the hill into the aid station. I got her a pickle from the jar there and then the volunteers told me to go ahead and go - they would take care of her :) 

Apparently, my friend had ran through and waited for a while, but continued on. This section of the race was extremely hard mentally.  It seemed to go on forever, but fortunately there was one enormous waterfall to admire, as well as native plants that were all in bloom.

I didn't remember the "dread and terror" segment being this long, and kept thinking that I was almost to the bridge station. Every time I went downhill I anticipated it, only to have to climb again! 

When this happens, you're faced with the choice. Unlike in the Swiftwater 50K, I decided that the time out there is just part of the race. I ran into a pile of brush that had not been cleared off the trail, or had been cleared as best it could be at last minute, busted out my phone and took a couple of pictures. I drank some more of my drink, ate some more honeystinger chews, and crossed over it smiling.

God bless the person who marked with orange flags!

 I wondered what Max King thought when he came across the same pile. Maybe he got mad… Maybe he just had a good laugh! I have no idea-- but, I would like to see that video! 
How does an elite cross a pile of brush? Just like the rest of us.

Finally, one of the downhills ended up at the North Umpqua river bottom, now a much narrower and colder version then when we started the race. 

Mile 26.9-finish

I still hadn't seen my friend since about mile 16, but, I was ready to cross the bridge, which was slanting heavily to the right and had a tree down across it. 

Although I am a pretty practiced person at running on strange terrain, I almost lost my balance on the bridge! I knew this was the last aid station, but this last section of climbing is a doozy. Having been here before, I knew there were two phases of climbing out to the next trailhead, and I did my best to get up quickly. 

There were several beautiful waterfalls in this shady section, and lots of water coming out of the sidewalls onto the trail, making mud or slippery rocky sections. 

A little bit later I found my friend again and I was overjoyed to have caught up. Apparently he had waited for me at an aid station and decided he couldn't keep waiting because he wasn't feeling well. We took turns running and hiking fast up and out of dread and terror.

At the end of the segment we crossed the road, and I didn't know exactly how much mileage we had left to go, but I knew it could not be a whole lot of climbing to get to Lemolo lake now. I tried to push myself, but the biggest incentive was probably the mosquitoes, which would've carried us to the finish line had we not been running! 

And then, there was this crazy tripod of sticks with the sign on top that pointed "Lemolo lake / finish line". With no trail, we had a very short scramble over some brush to get to a road which would take us across the dam. 

And I fairly sprinted! 

In the clear blue skies of the afternoon, Lemolo lake was quiet and stunning with Mount Thielsen in the backdrop. I regret not taking a photo of it, but it's in my minds eye. And I was too dang anxious to get to the end to stop at this point. The final mile was a tiny little single track trail with multiple options, but orange flagging going down the correct one. 

The finish line was quiet, with racers soaking in their victories and drinking their craft beers or sodas. The Go Beyond racing directors greeted each finisher with their name announced, and a special finishers glass. I got a hug from RD Renée, which made the day feel extra special. 

Shortly after that, I was nibbling on Skout bars and visiting with friends as they came in one or two at a time. I especially enjoyed talking with Laurie and Heather who are now doing 50ks as training runs for 100 milers, and Rachelle from Skout, as well as the team from Bibchat. 

***

Post race 

My legs always feel trashed right after and ultra, but spirits were high. After getting my drop bag and eating half a burger, I headed out to my favorite recovery spot.. right across the river from one of the photos above.

I don't know when I'll do another one of these. I keep saying this is the last one. I am definitely only HALF nutty, not 100k nutty...

To get really good at ultra running I think one needs to enjoy doing the long run enough to run long back to back once a week. Right now, that is not in my repertoire or in my family's calendar. So, I will savor this experience and be grateful for being able to run for six hours and 55 minutes, and climb somewhere over 6000 ft (garmin said 7300, strava said 8400.. who knows!), without injuring myself.

Finishing sixth woman isn't bad. I'm satisfied to finish 2 1/2 hours after the likes of Max King and an hour and 40 minutes behind the likes of Rachel Drake. It's humbling, and I could probably use more humility in my life! 

Now, if I ever get crazy enough to do another ultra, I probably will do this one again (probably not the 100k option though!)--Just to see if I can do a little better, (or a little worse), but have an even better story.