Weekly Log 5-Jun to 11-Jun-2023: Weekend in the Whites

Monday:  5 walk

Hopkinton, RI.  Walk of the perimeter trails of Grills Wildlife Sanctuary and Tomaquag Trail out to the Polly Coon bridge, as part of an upcoming Providence Journal article.  With John K, Providence Journal author of "Walking Rhode Island", with whom I worked with on producing trail maps for an upcoming book of his.  Always enjoyable to catch up.

Following up on John's question as to how the bridges (Wine Bottle Brook bridge and Tomaquag Brook bridge) were constructed, I was lent some really neat photos on their construction ten years ago:

Wine Bottle Brook (first brook you cross on the main
dirt road):  reconstruction was needed in order to get
heavy vehicles out to Tomaquag Brok
---
Photos courtesy Hopkinton Land Trust

Tomaquag Bridge brook:
final phase of construction, intentionally constructed during
a dry spell in November 2013

Tuesday:  12

Groton, CT.

Two 5K runs of the new Groton City Brew Run, both with a measuring wheel to try to figure out start/finish.  This is my first year as Race Director, and with the approval of the race committee, I'm changing the race course to have water views for the final mile.

Followed that up with a 6-mile run at Bluff Point on single-track.

Wednesday:  9

AM:  Charlestown, RI.  Sammy C's and North Camp with Brady, and a post-run dip in Watchaug Pond.

PM:  Westerly, RI.  Fun Runs week #2.  More haze from the Canadian wildfires.  19:17

Thursday:  5 walk

Charlestown, RI.  Led a group of nine on WLT Thursday Hike series at Carter Preserve.  

When leading this June hike, I was asked if I could find a preserve
that had mountain laurel in bloom.  Jackpot!

White mountain laurel blooms are much more common here
than the pink ones that I was also happy to see.

Pointing out decimation of oak trees from the gypsy moth
infestation of 2017.  White pines and pitch pines are
slowly emerging in their place.

Friday:  7

West Greenwich, RI.  Run with Brady on perimeter trails at Tillinghast and Wickaboxet Preserves.  Most trails were fine, but some, especially along the southern part of the preserves, were just horribly overgrown.  The main blue trail at Wickaboxet was so overgrown that I couldn't see my feet or the trail while I was running in places, and twisted my ankle because I couldn't see a rock on the trail.  It's too bad this isn't better maintained, but this will be my last visit here until a fall frost because of it.

Drove up to NH for a fun weekend in the Whites.

Saturday:  12

Green's Grant, NH.   Black Fly in my Eye 10-Mile Trail Race.  See separate race report.

Sunday:  17

Waterville Valley, NH.  3 peaks (Tecumseh, Osceola, Osceola East) and 5,600' of elevation gain.  With Matthew.  I held up better on this than I imagined, and mostly got really worn down by steep technical descents off Osceola.

Technical trail en route to Tecumseh summit.

Partially obscured views from Tecumseh summit

Our next three destinations on the run

Awesome views from Osceola

The descent is very technical

Fortunately the last few miles, after Greeley Ponds,
is flat and easy

Weekly mileage:  57 run, 10 walk

Weekly synopsis:  Another good week, and another trail race and mountain run building up to my 50K.

Weekly highlight:  Black Fly in my Eye trail race.  That was a lot of fun!

Weekly lowlight:  Overgrown trails at Tillinghast and Wickaboxet.

Pineland Farms 25K 2023

 
New Gloucester, Maine

Saturday, May 27, 2023

Third year in a row making the Memorial Day weekend trip to New Gloucester, Maine.  Besides the Trail Festival, I'm not sure what would attract one to New Gloucester.  Pretty sure I'd never heard of it prior to running the race two years ago.

The four of us (Jana, Matthew, Brady, me) came up the night before and stayed in the Merry Manor in Portland.  Decent hotel, not great, but clean and not a bad value.  Got to Pineland Farms with plenty of time to check in and go for a warm-up.  Unfortunately, despite the irony of having a canicross race there the next day, dogs are not allowed at Pineland Farms.  Fortunately we found a shaded spot and Jana would be with him and also take him off-property for walks during the race.

Two years ago we had great running weather (43° at start), last year we had hot weather (66°, 90% humidity, and temps rising fast).  This year was still warm, but not as bad as last year, with 62° and 50% humidity.  After a mile and a half warm-up, we toed the line.

At the starting line, ready to go.  Nobody wanted to take
the front row.
---
(All pics courtesy of Jana)

A twisty course is in store

Having run this race before, I feel not a lot remarkable to write about.  Much like the last two years, I saw Matthew for almost a mile and then he was gone.  At times last year, it just happened that at switchbacks on the course or portions that doubled back on itself (see above course trace), I was able to see Matthew, but not this year.

And we're off ...

I'm on right, bib #149 (blue Block Island singlet and cap)

Once the dust settled, I was in 4th place and stayed there for a few miles before a much younger guy came up and easily passed me.  The same exact thing happened last year, when I was also in 4th place, and the very same guy passed me to put me in 5th!  

The rest of the race was pretty unremarkable for me.  Or is that just because I am writing this three weeks in arrears and can't remember much?  The only people I passed were those running either the 50K or 100K, and no one passed me.  At the aid station about Mile 9, I remember there were so many white pollen things falling that it looked like it was snowing.  Going into the farm fields I found the grass to be uneven and tough to run on.  I had many places to look back and see the competition behind me, but I seemed to have a pretty good lead.

Finishing strides

Unlike last year, I felt good the rest of the race.  Until I crossed the finish line and felt like death.  I found a shaded spot under a canopy to lie down on the grass.  I was very dehydrated, despite taking water at every stop and a gel every 45 minutes.

Collapsing in the shade

Final result:  1:52:16, 5th overall of 168, 1st in age group.  Full results here.

One minute faster than last year.  Two minutes slower than two years ago with the cooler weather, which was probably unusual.  The final line in last year's race report that I wrote was "This race is nice, but after two consecutive years, I'm ready to move on and try something different.".  Let's see what next year brings.

Post-race lunch along the water in Portland

Weekly Log 29-May to 4-Jun-2023: Return of the Fun Runs!

Monday:  14

Exeter, RI.  Actually, most of this run was in adjacent Voluntown, Connecticut, but started and ended on the RI side of Beach Pond.  With Brady.  Took a pack so we'd both have water, although he had plenty of stream and lake options.  Headed south on Tippecansett to Freeman Trail to Hidden Lake.  Also visited Green Fall Pond, where we saw a few hikers out, but not as many as I expected on a beautiful Memorial Day morning.

Hidden Lake

Green Fall Pond

Returned via Nehantic to Pachaug-Nehantic Crossover to Pachaug.  Hadn't run that section in a few years.  Good overall run.  It's nice to have options like this nearby.

Fun trails to run

Tuesday:  2 walk, 8 run

AM:  Westerly, RI.  CCC.  Today's assignment was raking rocks and removing them from the Wahaneeta field.  This was back-breaking work, at least for me.  The field used to have grass on it, but after fill from the pond was placed on the field during a dredging operation last summer, it's just been hard dirt, sand, and rocks.  My lower back hurt that evening, and my hands calloused and blistered.  I don't think this job is for me with my white-collar soft hands and weak upper body, but fortunately there are plenty of other assignments.

PM:  Charlestown, RI.  Solo run in the sun at Quonnie.  Sun screen and hat is the norm for me now as we head towards summer.  Surprisingly quiet at Quonnie today; I guess most of the tourists have yet to arrive.  Easy run in the low 7s.

Wednesday:  9

AM:  Charlestown, RI.  5 miles on campground trails with Brady and Matthew.  Easy effort with Fun Runs on tap.  Highlight was a dip into Watchaug Pond.

PM:  Westerly, RI.  4 miles at Fun Run Week #1 (including a mile warmup).  I generally get bored easily with running the same route week after week, which is one of the reasons I typically don't run many of the other Fun Run series on a regular basis.  But this is one is different somehow.  Sure, as President of WTAC, I feel some sense of obligation to attend.  But that's not it.

The vibe is just a lot of fun for me.  We had 80 runners total (or 60 if you exclude the kids' run) and I know many of them in person.  I enjoy catching up with so many of the folks.  I made it a point to talk to Jim Cotton, currently residing in NC but owns the house at the start line at the corner of Elmwood and Collins.  Besides wanting to have good relationships with the neighbors, he's just a genuinely nice guy.  He said he really misses running, but at 85 still walks 6 miles per day.  Impressive indeed!  We were also graced by our namesake, Tommy McCoy, and his wife Arlene, both in their 80s.  Had a good conversation with both.

Start of the kids' run.  Good to have Coach Tom McCoy return
for first time in two years! (to my right in all blue)

OK, as to my own run:  Nick (who would admirably be running with his own daughter) asked me what I was looking to run.  Not looking to race it, but still run moderately hard was my target.  A group of four (Matthew, Jake, Jonny E, and an unknown but fast looking runner from Indiana) took it out much too spicy for me.  Dave Goodrich went past me near the start, and I followed in his shadow for about 1.5 miles before catching and passing.  On the long straightaway on Crandall, I could see the four ahead of me, FAR ahead of me.  Ran my own race and finished in 18:34.

Start of the 5K.  Fun to be out here!

Thursday:  10

Westerly, RI.  Woody Hill run with Brady.  Not a soul out there.  Was enjoying the run when two miles, I rolled my bad ankle on a root I didn't see.  Instant pain.  Stopped and paused and assessed for a while.  Fortunately, the pain was very short lived, so I tried walking and it seemed fine.  Didn't bother me the rest of the run.  

Mosquitoes were out, but they're only a problem when you stop as they're easy to outrun.  It's the deerflies that are relentless, and we probably only have about two more weeks 'til they come out to play.

Friday:  5

Charlestown, RI.  Late afternoon run in the heat (mid-70s and full sun) from Burlingame Picnic Area.  Planned a post-run 1/2 mile swim, but I was having trouble with my breathing on the run, so dialed the pace way back and skipped the swim.  I guess I have a long ways to go to heat acclimation.

Saturday:  14

Stonington, CT:

I was here for the June WTAC group run.  Given that the group run was "only" five miles and I wanted something longer, I showed up an hour earlier and figured I would get about seven miles in to make twelve for the morning.  I figured I would go for a wandering loop run, but as soon as I got to Field Street (less than 1/2 mile in), the hill was calling to me, so I switched to hill repeats.  Planned on running five of them.  Usually on a tedious workout like this, I want to end sooner than the planned workout and will run either the planned amount of repeats or less.  Surprisingly, instead of 5, I ran 10!  Yes, the 105' incline felt hard (average 8% grade, maximum 13%), but it's also short enough that I kept going.  Seeing group run host Kevin M come out for a few repeats helped, as did the other walkers who shouted encouragement.  Ran the final one in 7:34 pace (5:47 GAP), but most were at low-8s pace.  Pretty happy with this!

The group run itself was a group of six, from Loveridge Place (coffee shop/bakery) to Stonington High School via quiet roads and trails on the SHS campus.  I ran the whole way with Nick, and it was great to catch up with him.  Was pleasantly surprised to see that the new trail dedicated just last year for Tom McCoy was well established now and even a few people and dogs out on it as we ran.  Caught up with the rest of the gang over coffee and a delicious blueberry tart.

North Stonington, CT:

In retrospect, I should've quit and gone home, but I was feeling good and at first thought of running a few repeats at Lantern Hill, and then driving there, decided to park at the intersection of Route 2 and the Narragansett Trail and just to Lantern Hill on the newly (last year) rerouted western section of the trail.  Bad idea!  The trail was well marked, but badly overgrown.  I went for a mile, and then was getting so scratched up and itchy, that I bailed, and returned back.  Missed a turn somewhere, but that actually was fortuitous, as I ended up on a dirt/grass road and followed that back.  Not sure what's going on with this section, and I know people have put in a lot of work on it, but unfortunately it's not really runnable.

Sunday:  9

Charlestown, RI.  Matthew was looking to run seven (to get to seventy), I was looking to run ten (to get to seventy), so we split the difference.  Ran VG plus North Camp loop.  Brady gleefully joined us.  I took a quick dip at North Camp beach, while Brady retrieved sticks thrown into the pond for him.

Post-run coffee at Jitters Café.  It's still not quite the same as The Bakery that preceded it, but it's growing on me.

Weekly mileage:  69 run, 5,300' elevation gain

Weekly synopsis:  Very good running week, with high mileage (for me at least), good elevation, and the start of the Fun Run season.  Unfortunately, I did not get in a swim or bike this week.  I did carry around my wetsuit in my car this week.  Does that count?  Actions speak louder than words.

Weekly highlight:  Memorial Day Tippecansett / Pachaug run.

Weekly lowlight:  Overgrowth at Narragansett Trail west of Route 2.  Hopefully someday it will be restored to its former glory.

Weekly Log 22-May to 28-May-2023: Finally a Swim

Monday:  4

Westerly, RI.  Late morning run with Matthew at Grills, after my now semi-annual skin cancer follow-up.  No new lesions or complications, and most of the rest of the medical visit was surprisingly running related, as I was happy to answer many questions about Blessing of the Fleet.

But I digress.  Grills will soon be overgrown but for now is very runnable.  After all the technical running and elevation gain last week, my quads and calves were very sore.  Took it short, easy, and slow.

Tuesday:  2 walk, 7 run, 0.5 swim

Westerly, RI.  CCC.  Today's self-appointed assignment was to clear the perennially overgrown white trail on the western edge of the clearing.  Led a group of five, and with loppers, weed-whackers (bladed and string), gas hedge-trimmer, and chainsaw, we got it cleaned up nicely.  For a little while anyway ...

Charlestown, RI.  4.5 mile run from Burlingame Picnic Area solo, mix of dirt roads and trails.  DOMS.

Charlestown, RI.  0.5 mile SWIM!  Ironman Maryland is less than four months away now, so it's really overdue.  As I walked down towards the picnic area beach, a gentlemen in an RI DEM shirt came out to greet me.  He asked me if I was checking in for the swim.  Huh?  They were about to run swim tests for RI State Lifeguard Non-Surf Certification.  I told him I was too old to be a lifeguard, but he said nonsense.  They had the buoys set up for their 1/4 mile course, and I asked if I could swim it if I stayed out of the way of the testers.  He said sure, and they wouldn't be starting for 30 minutes.  

Donned my wetsuit, bright green swim cap, and goggles.  I was ready for that cold feeling as the water entered my wetsuit, but really the water wasn't bad at all.  Got into my slow but steady rhythm, and didn't stop until I got to the buoy 1/4 mile out.  Adjusted my goggles a bit and off we go.  I can't swim a straight line to save my life, but looking later on Strava it wasn't as bad as I feared.  As I exited the water, an instructor came over and complimented my on my swim.  Undeserved, but I'll take it!  I asked what the standard was for passing what they called the "endurance swim", and she said 10 minutes or less for 1/4 mile.  Looks I just snuck under that by the skin of my teeth.

So how did it feel?  Tiring, actually.  My arms were sore for a few hours afterwards.  Will definitely need a few more of these swims before I'm ready to try to ratchet up the distance.

South Kingstown, RI.  On way back from Wakefield Running Company, I stopped at Browning Woods for a short run with Brady.  I think the last time I was here I ran with Chris, and that was back when he lived in Charlestown, so maybe five years ago?  Longer?  Short and easy on the 2.5 mile loop, which fortunately had SKLT markers at every intersecting trail.  

Wednesday:  10

Exeter, RI.  Arcadia trail run with Brady.  Parked and ran from the check station, where I ran into Ben Q and his dog just about to go out for their own run.  Just over 1,000' of gain, mostly on the Breakheart Trail.

Thursday:  8 run, 3 walk

Westerly, RI.  First 'Round the Pond run in quite a while.  Beautiful morning out there.  Roads very quiet, before the onset of summer tourist season.

Friday:  3

Hopkinton, RI.  Short and easy flat trails with Brady at Grills Wildlife Sanctuary.

Saturday:  16

New Gloucester, ME.  Pineland Farms 25K.  Separate write-up to follow.

Sunday:  8

Charlestown, RI.  Easy trail recovery run with Matthew and Brady on VG trail.  Legs are sore from yesterday's race, but not trashed.  Dip into Watchaug Pond post-run.

Weekly mileage:  56 run, 6 walk, 0.5 swim

Weekly synopsis:  Decent week.  Got in a good trail race, plus my first swim of the season.

Weekly highlight:  Pineland Farms 25K.

Weekly lowlight:  Tired legs.  It will be good to have next week off from racing.  My legs will thank me.

Weekly Log 15-May to 21-May-2023: Big Elevation Week

Monday:  5

Westerly, RI.  Easy run at Grills with Brady.

Tuesday:  1 walk, 7 run

AM:  Westerly, RI.  CCC.  Using a bladed weedwhacker, maintained the newest trail at Grills, just east of Big Hill.

PM:  Exeter, RI.  Late afternoon with Brady in Arcadia.  Parked at Frosty Hollow and ran a loop going NW on Shelter Trail, and back via Breakheart Trail.

Wednesday:  17

Milton, MA.  3,400' elevation gain.  Blue Hills Reservation with Matthew and Brady, with much on the famed Skyline Trail.   We started at the Trailside Museum parking lot on Route 138, in very comfortable 50°F weather.  En route to Blue Hills, sitting in traffic on I-95 North on a weekday morning reminded me of my once-weekly commutes to Wellesley, MA, and back in my Fidelity days, my once-weekly commutes to Merrimack, NH.  I enjoyed working in Wellesley and Merrimack, but most certainly did not enjoy the drives.

Anyway, back to the run, I'll just a hit a few highlights.  Put some ice cubes and one liter of water into my pack, along with three gels, two granola bars, and some trail mix, plus Brady's collapsible water bowl.  We started off right away with the steepest climb of the day:  300' up Blue Hill with a quarter-mile section at 29% grade.  I ran this entire section, which may not have been the smartest as it used a lot of energy.  We then had a couple of much easier miles as we ran past Houghton's Pond.

The most technical climb of the day was in Mile 6.  It wasn't the steepest and only 100' elevation gain, but it sure was rocky!  We had another climb in Mile 8, where we stopped at the summit to get some food and drink, and then had three easy miles and flat miles.  We saw more people and dogs at the eastern end of the park, where we turned around, and not surprisingly almost no one in the middle miles furthest away from parking lots.

Very technical climb, Mile 6.

Break for food and water,
mile 8.

 

Brady found one of the few streams along
the way, and smartly immersed himself.

It was on the way back that things started to fall apart for me.  We had a 400' climb at Mile 11, and that was the first of four remaining 200+' climbs.  At about Mile 15, I just totally bonked and laid down on rocks.  And we still had two more miles and two more climbs to go.  And I just ran out of water.  The last couple of miles were not enjoyable for me, but the rest of the run was interesting and mostly fun.  Back at the car, had plenty of water and Powerade.  Brady quickly downed 1/2 liter of water.  I didn't have any hydration issues (unlike Providence), but I mostly felt bad that I didn't bring enough water for Brady.  Time to get some food to fuel back up, as we headed towards home.

Thursday:  4

Richmond, RI.  After visiting my Mom, went to nearby Grass Pond Preserve just off Beaver River Road.  This is a joint DEM / Nature Conservancy 430 acre property.  These trails did not exist when I lived here in the 70s and 80s.  Easy run with Brady exploring the trails.  Place was near deserted; just saw one woman walking her dog as we were finishing up.

Friday:  5

Charlestown, RI.  Ninigret Park with Brady.  A little bit of soreness today, but not yesterday, from Wednesday's adventure.  I guess that's what they mean by "Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness".

Saturday:  5

Manchester, CT.  Spring Street Mile, including warm-up and cool-down.  Separate write-up has been posted.

Cool down on nearby Case Mountain Trails.

First sighting of mountain laurel
in bloom

At Case Mountain parking lot off Spring Street  

Sunday:  13  

Amherst, MA.  3,700' elevation gain.  Holyoke range run with Brady and Matthew.  We originally had planned out a 16-18 mile run, but the reality was that my legs hadn't fully recovered from Wednesday's run, and this would have been miserable for me.  Did OK until about 9 miles in, then started planning my exit strategy.  I was lagging way behind on the hill climbs.  

Nice views along the way on the western section

Yes, this is the trail!
Brady did need some help on this section
going up (behind him).

At the Summit House.  Unfortunately there was an
auto road here, and then with it, lots of people.

We got back to the car at about 10 miles, refueled, and Matthew pointed out a 5K shortened second loop option that included Mt Norwottuck and Horse Caves.  I figured I could make it another 5K without too much suffering.  I ended up walking much of Mt Norwottuck, saw Matthew briefly at the top, and then he went ahead and Brady stayed with me.  Fortunately, unlike Blue Hills, the last two miles were mostly flat and runnable and I didn't completely bonk.  Good run overall.  Slightly less technical than the Blue Hills run, but with longer climbs.  Overall more enjoyable, with the exception of the rutted out climb up Mt Hitchcock.

This is the Horse Caves, with the trail
going downhill between the two boulders.
Had to precariously carry Brady on two sections here.

Trail intersections were very well marked!

Weekly mileage:  57 run, 1 walk

Weekly synopsis:  Big hill / mountain training week, with just under 10,000 of vertical gain.   Also ran the Spring Street Mile, which will be my last road race for two months (until Blessing) as focus is now on trail running and build-up to my 50K.

Weekly highlight:  Holyoke Range run.  Just enough to push myself and be challenging, without bonking like I did at Blue Hills.

Weekly lowlight:  Grass Pond Preserve run.  Not a huge deal, and glad I explored it, but the place is a bit overgrown, and several trails seemingly go nowhere and suddenly end or disappear.