I've been running for two weeks in the new Inov-8 Roclite 295. These shoes are excellent for longer races because of their roomy fit and light weight. Like all Inov-8 shoes, the 295's have minimal cushioning. The design of most Inov-8 shoes allows you to feel the trail with your feet, providing instant feedback on each landing. For myself and many other runners, minimal shoes encourage the most comfortable running form.

Selecting the right Inov-8 shoe can seem complicated because of the large number of models and the specificity of each model. Each model is designed for a type of running (fell, mountain, orienteering, trail, mixed road and trail, etc.) and for a Terrain (loose rock, dry grass, mud, dry rock, etc.)

I believe the three most important factors for selecting an Inov-8 shoe are: last, activity, and cushioning.

By Mark Long

October, 1994, I’m in Arkansas participating in the Arkansas Traveler 100-Mile Trail Run. I’m now at the 50-mile point of the race standing in a very large military type tent trying to get warm. All I can think of is a plate of hot food followed by a warm bed and hours of sleep. I have just dropped from my first attempt at covering 100 miles on foot.

Look at all of these NC 100-mile finishers from last weekend's Umstead 100:

4 19:18:37 Burns, William F 38 NC M
6 19:36:58 Hayward, R Scott 44 NC M
22 22:34:25 Hankins, Kean 42 NC M
26 22:55:24 Dummar, Fred 39 NC M
29 23:08:36 Serpa, Evan 26 NC M
30 23:09:17 Hunter, Dorothy 34 NC F
31 23:16:25 Savage, Jonathan 41 NC M
33 23:22:56 Maguire, Frank 61 NC M
34 23:24:47 Patch, Tom 48 NC M
36 23:30:00 Ennis, Jennifer 38 NC F
40 23:56:57 Mitchell, Rob 43 NC M
45 25:08:08 Murray, Donnie 46 NC M
46 25:40:31 Frahm, Jennifer 28 NC F
47 25:44:58 McNeill, Michael 36 NC M
48 25:59:25 Dillon, Ben 58 NC M
49 26:01:58 Chilcott, Charles 35 NC M
52 26:15:21 Herbst, Tom 45 NC M
55 26:19:44 Calabria, Robert D 67 NC M
56 26:19:46 Lewis, Marie 44 NC F
68 27:37:55 Kelly, Cameron 29 NC M
72 27:49:18 Maguire, Donna 56 NC F
81 28:26:43 Rizk, Sam 67 NC M
84 28:37:10 Long, Mark 49 NC M
94 29:06:51 Thompson, Douglas 40 NC M

I know for certain that Dorothy Hunter, Ben Dillon, and Mark Long just completed the century for the first time! I'm almost certain that Doug Thompson, and Cam Kelly finished their first century. I suspect several others also finished their first 100 miler. (Please comment if you see first-time 100 finishers in this list!) Ben Dillon has been volunteering at Umstead for many years and now he is a finisher. Dorothy Hunter has been at Umstead every Saturday for months preparing. And Mark Long, who has run scores of 50 mile races and perhaps more than 100 marathons, now has his Umstead buckle!

Denise Davis sent me a note about Norfolk, VA resident Tommy Neeson, who this fall will run across the USA from North to South along the East coast, including North Carolina. Neeson is raising funds for Ronald McDonald House Charities. Neeson's two-year-old daughter Randi died of brain cancer in 1998. Neeson will be in North Carolina for the entire month of September. The Four Million Steps web site provides opportunities to house Neeson, contribute funds, and to help in other ways.

Thanks to Doug Blackford for sharing a new race in Western NC, the Valle Crucis 25k. The course is "one of the most scenic in NC" and the profile includes plenty of climb and descent. (Hill training should include both up and down -hill running.) The date is Saturday, May 3rd. The 25k distance is a little more than a half marathon, and makes for a great training run.

By Jeff McGonnell

I’ve been toying with the idea of running the Laurel Valley course that we race every August as an out and back “fun run” for several years now – I’ve run the race 10 times, hiked it once and run the course as a training run with friends more times than I can remember.  Over the years I’ve discussed "The Double LV" and advantages of what time of year, when to start, if we would needed aid, etc..   The biggest thing I was lacking was picking a date – so finally we carved March 29-30 in stone.  I had several potential runners agreeing to join me – but in the end it was just myself and Dan Pieroni who were able to make the time work out.

Dan and I started early on Saturday from the Whitewater Falls side of the course (the logic was it was better to run the direction I new best at night when the potential of getting off course was higher).  The trail was in decent shape and we were making pretty good time.  After several miles we took the short spur trail to see Hilliard Falls and the wind began to pickup, lightning started to flash nearby and we got pelted with a cold mix of rain and hail for about 30 minutes.  After the rain and hail subsided – we were wet but still making good progress.  We made it healthy and happy to the Rocky Bottom parking lot in 10 hrs flat. 

We had intended to have a 15 min stop at Rocky Bottom to pick-up food, warmer clothes and headlamps for the night – but instead we were surprised by John Teague waiting for us in the parking lot with food – real food – we only had cold sandwiches waiting – John brought hot fried chicken, potatoes and rolls – we skipped the sandwiches and ate at the Teague buffet like ravenous dogs.   

Fueled up and happy we ended our 50 min stop and headed back up the trail with John joining us to keep us awake during the night.  We ran hard trying to get in as much distance as possible while it was still light – as it grew darker fog and a light mist set in and stayed with us the rest of the night.  Dan regaled us with stories of big bears, big fish and high seas of wild Alaska where he spends his summers as we trudged up the many, many ups and downs on our way back toward Whitewater Falls.  Visibility was limited – no moon or stars – but finding the white blazes at night was much easier than we expected – we never got off course. 

We made the trip back to Whitewater in 13 hrs – slowed by me – I twisted my knee about 10 miles from the finish making the downhill sections very slow.

I don’t know the actual distance of the Laurel Valley course – 35, 36, 38 take your pick – making our effort anywhere between 70 to 80 miles with possibly 19,000 + feet of climb – a good honest day’s work.  Thank you Claude for finding such a tremendous course!!

A big breakfast at a local buffet a short nap and a long ride home made for an excellent weekend..

Initial reports are coming on about the Terrapin Mountain Marathon, and they are all good. Neal Jamison and Keith Knipling both report that the course is over 29 miles. Call this one a 50k. Runners said the course was scenic, with lots of runnable sections despite around 6000 feet of climb and descent. Great finisher's awards and post-race meal.

I'm fully recovered from my July 2007 Achilles injury, and I'm two months into a serious training cycle and enjoying significant improvement in my fittness and conditioning. The injury has left me with scar tissue and figurative scars. The figurative scars remind me that I need to do some things differently this time around. Here's what they are.

1. I rest at least one day every week. I used to run seven days a week, sometimes even including the day after a race. Sunday is now my rest day, and I sometimes rest more than one day a week depending upon how I feel. After Holiday Lake and the Umstead Marathon I rested two or more days the following weeks.
2. I get more sleep. If I start to notice symptoms of overtraining (increased resting heart rate, fatigue, reduced performance in training) I turn off the alarm and go to bed early.
3. If I have a nagging problem I cut my training short. This morning I was planning on 15 miles, but I cut my run short at 10 miles because my right calf was cramping. I could feel that it was putting pressure on my right achilles. I traded the extra five miles to short-circuit this potential injury and keep training the rest of the week.
4. I'm running longer runs daily and I've stopped running twice daily. Before my injury I was in the habit of running two or three times a day for a total of 10 or 15 daily miles. Now I'm running once per day but going longer. I'm not ruling out twice daily workouts in the future if my milage goals increase but I am wary of them and I will be careful, by ensuring everything else is in place: sleep and rest, milage base, and timing (vis a vis races).
5. I'm paying more attention to nutrition. If I'm going to run long two days in a row, I make sure to eat a healthy meal right after my workout. This aids recovery for the next day's training. Staying healthy and keeping my body fueled to train intensively is my first priority, and if I am able to keep the intensiveness of my training high, I will lose the weight.
   

Time will tell if these changes are sufficient, but so far so good!

I love it when the VHTRC claims wins by NC runners. This happened again when Mike Mason smoked the field in the Bel Monte 50 miler on March 22nd. But that's not all, not by a long shot. Mark Lundblad smoked the field in the 50k and set a new course record. Anne Lundblad won the women's 50k. But there's more! Jason Bryant of Elkin and Lillian Brown of Chapel Hill are the Men's and Women's winners of the 25k. The only event not won by an NC runner was the women's 50 miler, and that was won by a Eva Rosvold of Maryland. Thanks to Adam Hill for reporting on these performances. Makes me think again of the NC state motto: to be, not to seem.

photo: Craig Heinselman
Congratulations to Mohammed Idlibi for completing his first 100 mile race: The Coyote Two Moon. Most folks in the know think that this is one of the three toughest 100 mile courses out there. All the finishers have a lot to be proud of. Enjoy the sense of accomplishment, Mohammed!