SUCCESS!!! 100 MILES!!!

JORGE DID IT!!! 100 MILES IN 28 HOURS, 53 MINUTES!!!

He is tired, his back hurts a little and he is getting cleaned up because he fell and got a cut on his nose, but he made it!! He is feeling pretty good and is happy to have made his goal. And earlier than expected!

On behalf of his family, we couldn't be any prouder! HOORAY!!

98 miles!!

Jorge just called Margaret to let her know that he is two miles away from the finish. He said he thought it would take him about 40 minutes to finish those last two miles. He is doing well and is totally focused.

80 miles and the point of no return...

At 4:15AM Jorge completed the 4th lap. He got separated from the trail at some point and had to spend about 15 minutes walking back to it. He says it is very difficult at night. He is cold and got another jacket from Margaret and a bunch more Goo (this hi-energy food). He is still going strong and is focused on his goal and determined. This was a critical point - he had to make the decision whether to finish or not. If you are unable to complete the race in 30 hours they pull you from the track and do not allow you to finish and we knew from the beginning that he would be close to this cutoff. He, of course, decided to go ahead and is on track to complete the race sometime a between 11AM and noon CST today.

72 miles!!

Jorge just passed the 72-mile mark at 1:20AM CST. He is doing well, but is realizing that he needs to not goof around so much at the pit stops. That means, for those of us watching his progress... no more posing for photos! Only a few more hours until he sees Margaret again, and her job is to get him in and out of the pit-stop in 2-3 minutes. Otherwise, he sounds good and is still going at it!

66 Miles...

... and keeping hydrated. He's feeling good.

60-mile mark

Jorge passed the 60-mile mark a bit before 9:00PM. He took about a 10-15 minute pit stop to change some clothes, eat some food and pose for pictures. Apparently no sock change was required this time. The next time Margaret will see him will be at 4AM. Yikes! However, we should still be able to post some updates through the night since he is carrying his cell phone.


Here's a shot of the pit-stop camp at night:


Less than 10 miles to go before he officially runs his longest distance ever! Go, Jorge, Go!!

55 miles...

... and listening to Celia Cruz, who is apparently a great running partner!

50 miles - half way!

Jorge passed the 50 mile mark at 6PM CST. He has 18 hours to finish the remaining 50 miles. He's got the headlamps on (it's dark already) and just finished eating what he called "the driest peanut butter sandwich he ever ate." They do, however, have good quesadillas apparently - and he is eating those too! So far, so good. Margaret is preparing for the next pit stop, and in addition to the Garmin, she will be preparing a bunch of new dry warm clothes, a bottle of Ensure, fleece vest, a bottle of Gu, and more clean socks!

40 miles

Jorge came through finishing the second lap (40 mile mark) at 3:30PM CST. He is still feeling good, wanted a change of socks, and Margaret is going back around 9PM to swap out his Garmin GPS watch with one that is fully charged. He was wearing a hat with a visor, but put on a Gator knit hat. He swapped out a leaky water bottle, but is eating well and everything seems to be on track.

2nd lap - update #2

Jorge just called to report that at 2:25PM CST, he is at the 4th aid station on the second lap. He said he feels good and is making good progress.

2nd lap update

Jorge is continuting to run loops around the park! As of 12:08PM CST, he was at the 2nd aid station - Dam Road, on the second lap. He sounds energized and good!

At 10:30AM Jorge completed his first 20 mile lap. He is feeling good and the weather is great. It's 40 degrees and sunny there.

At 7:30AM, Jorge was at the second aid station for the first lap.

A map of the course can be found here: http://www.tejastrails.com/maps/map_RR_course_2009.pdf

And here are the aid stations with their distances: http://www.tejastrails.com/docs/Rocky_Aid.html

2/5/10 Huntsville Evening

Thanks for all the emails. I did a couple of more walks on the course with Margaret and Vito. Went to pick up my race information. I will be wearing bib # 188. I turned in one of my drop bags with gear and food, that one is going to the Dam Road. I have the other drop bag almost done. That one will be at the start/finish. Margaret will have more stuff in the truck. Vito (the dog) cannot be near the aid stations so Margaret will have to give the the stuff not to close to the stations or leave Vito in the car. We had a pasta dinner that we defrosted in the microwave. It was great. I have been drinking gatorade all day. Thanks again for all the encouragement.

2/4/10 Huntsville

We got to Huntsville, TX yesterday. We have a nice room with fridge and microwave. We went yesterday to the state park and walked part of the course. They have already marked parts of it. It is a bit of clay and sand but a good trail. Will have to watch out for tree roots on the trail specially at night. Met the race director and a few of the workers yesterday. They are expecting close to 700 runner between the 100 milers and the 50 milers. Vito likes the trails. Today in the morning we went back for a one hour walk on a different part of the trail. We will try to locate the Storm Shelter in Huntsville where we will pick up the race packet tomorrow. I am trying to keep hydrated keep eating low fiber carbohydrates.

ROCKY RACCOON 100 COURSE

The Rocky Raccoon 100 takes place on a 20 miles loop. Runners repeat the loop 5 times. There are 5 aid stations. (1.0) Start(Dog Wood) 0.0 miles. (1.1) Nature Center 3.10 miles. (1.2)Dam Road (out) 6.19 miles. (1.3) Dam Road (in), 12.20 miles. (1.4) Park Road, 15.61 miles. (2.0) Nature Center, 20 miles. That is one loop. You run twice in each loop thru the Dam Road aid station. There is an out and back loop there that is approximately 6 miles. The cutoff times(you get stopped and can not keep on running) are: Loop 5: 5.0 Dogwood, 80.00 miles, 6 am Sunday. 5.1 Nature Center, 83.10 miles, 7 am Sunday. 5.2 Dam Road Out, 86.19 miles, 8 am Sunday. 5.3 Dam Road In, 92.20 Miles, 10 am Sunday. 5.4 Park Road, 95.61 miles, 11 am Sunday. 6.0 Dogwood 100 miles, 12 noon Sunday. I am hoping for the following splits: Lap 1: 4 hrs 30 minutes. Lap 2: 5 hours. Lap 3: 6 hours. Lap 4: 7 hours. Lap 5: 7 hours. That will give a total of 29 hrs 30 minutes and will get me in 30 minutes before cutoff. I will try to get somebody from my crew to post my progress(or lack of progress) on this blog.

One week to go. 1/30/10

This week I really took it easy. Did some running on trails that had ice. But mostly stuck to running on roads. Monday 1/25, on trails, 2.05 hrs, 9.75 miles. Wednesday 1/27, 1.45 hrs, 8.13 miles. Friday 1/29, 1.08 hrs, 6.25 miles. Totals for week: 4.58 hrs, 24.13 miles, 5.26 mph.

Two Weeks to go. Tapering 1/23/10

Sunday 1/17, 2hrs, 10.14 miles. Monday 1/18, 2.45 hrs, 12.22 miles. Tuesday 1/19, Colonoscopy prep. Wednesday 1/20, Colonoscopy. Took the day off because of anesthesia. Friday 1/22, 3.7 hrs., 20.12 miles. Week Totals: 8.15 hrs, 42.48 miles, 5.21 mph.

Math Saloon Ping-Pong Tournament(no correct answer yet 1/20)

Seven Boys: Brian, Noah, Jeff, Korto, Cayse, Cory and Joey And 5 Girls: Kelli, Janelle, Sarah, Angela and Keli Go to the Math Saloon for a night of Ping-Pong.

A) How Many mixed doubles teams (one boy and one girl) are possible?

B) In How many ways can a mixed doubles match be arranged?

Three Weeks to Rocky Raccoon Last Long Run

1/16/10

This week I concentrated on increasing the distance that I ran vs the walking part. Sunday 1/10, 2.1 hrs, 10.13. Monday 1/11, 3.4 hrs, 16.29 miles. Wednesday 1/13, back to trails. They were in terrible shape, very slow. 127'/mile, 3.36 hrs, 14.06 miles. Friday 1/15, prepared most food, drink and gear the night before. Woke up at 4:30 am started running at 6 am. Used night light for first hour or so. Light drizzle, 7.48 hrs, 35.26 miles. Was able to do about 30% running for the last 15 miles or so. Felt strong. Totals for week: 16.34 miles, 75.72 miles, 4.63 mph. 18.93 miles per session.

Last Night Run

1/9/10

Sunday 1/3, went back to run on the trails. They had padded down snow. Great change of pace. 127'/mile, 2.71 hrs, 11.06 miles. Monday 1/4, back to trails, 127'/mile, 3.58 hrs, 17.10 miles, felt great. Had to change long run to Wednesday/Thursday because of weather and visitors coming. Started Wed 1/6 at 7pm. Was able to do some night running. Cliff Bars, chocolate covered expresso beans, coffee, gatorade. At about 11:30 pm snow started to come in. It got heavier after 12:30 am or so. Had to just walk on snow covered roads. Stopped at 2:53 am. 6.83 hrs of run/walk, 30.11 miles. Friday 1/8, 2.3 hrs, 9.71 miles, mostly walked because was still tired from night run. Totals for week: 15.75 hrs, 67.98 miles, 4.31 mph. 17 miles per session.

ANCIENT MATH TEAM PROBLEM

A group of 17 math team members stole a sack of donuts. When they tried to divide the donuts into equal portions, 3 donuts remained. In the ensuing brawl over who should get the extra donuts, Mark sneaked out the back door to get to the lunchroom. He was intercepted by a dean which told him "Not so fast Round Boy." The dean took Mark to the office. Now there were 16 math team members left. They tried to redistribute the donuts again. This time equal division left 10 donuts. Again an argument developed. This time James stuck a paper clip into the electric socket. The lights went out, when they came back on, James had a headache and had to go to the nurse's office. Now there were 15 math team members left and the donuts were evenly distributed among the math team members. What was the least number of donuts that could have been in the sack?

5 Weeks until Rocky Raccoon 100

1/2/10

This was a long week. Started to do more running. Mostly 1/5 of a mile intervals. Up to two of them per mile so as to run approximately 40%. Sunday 12/27, 2.86 hrs, 11.14 miles. Monday 12/28, 4.01 hrs, 18.12 miles. Wednesday 12/30, 3.28 hrs, 15.25 miles. Thursday night prepared food and drink bottle for Friday's long run. Cliff bars, sandwiches, chocolate covered expresso coffee beans. Friday 1/1, woke up at 4:30 am. Started running at 6 am. Had to use headlights for first hour. Temperature 7F. Finished before 3 pm. Did 3.85 miles loop. Running time 8.01 hrs, distance 35.18 miles. Totals for week 18.16 hrs, 79.69 miles, 4.38 mph.

First night run

12/26/09

Sunday 12/20 went 2.73 hrs, 21.29 miles. Monday 12/21, 4.15 hrs, 18.40 miles. Wednesday 12/23, 3.51 hrs, 15.34 miles. First night run started 9pm Friday 12/25, finished at 4:38 am Saturday 12/26. I prepared food for night run and coffee with maltodextrin/ovaltine. Used a 3 miles loop and stopped by house every loop. It was snowy and windy. I-Pod was on shuffle so I did not have to adjust it during run. Used a headlight and ate cliff bars and chocolate covered expresso beans. Mostly walked and was careful with footing on snow and ice part. Actual running/walking time was 6.85 hrs, 28.03 miles. For the week 17.24 hrs, 74.06 miles, 4.29 mph.

First 70+ miles week

12/19/09

This week I stayed on roads because of weather and increased miles. I have been drinking 20 oz bottles every 1.25 hours or so. The mixture is about 3.5 tbs of gatorade and 1/8 cup of carbo gain (100% maltodextrin). I am also working on eating solid foods. I try to eat about a small part of a cliff bar or sandwich every mile or so. Sunday 12/13, 2.5 hrs, 11.11 miles. Monday 12/14, 4.1 hrs, 18.03 miles. Wednesday 12/16, 3.53 hrs, 15.10 miles. Friday 12/18, 7.11 hrs, 32.04 miles. Totals for week: 17.24 hrs, 76.28 miles, 4.42 mph, 19.07 miles/session.

Registered for Rocky Raccoon 100

12/12/09

Sunday 12/6, 2.26 hrs, 10.18 miles. Monday 12/7, ate 3 ham croquetas on the run. When I got to trail, parking gate closed. Parked outside and got a parking ticket. Trail 126'/mile, 4.1 hrs, 18.03 miles. Wednesday 12/9, almost blizzard conditions. Went to trail 60'/mile, 3.25 hrs, 14.31 miles. Friday 12/11, trail 126'/mile, 5.7 hours, 25.07 miles. Totals for the week: 14.84 hrs, 66.12 miles, 4.45 mph. Friday was cold, ankles hurting a bit from slight strain. Power walked mostly toward the end. On Saturday 12/12, registered for the Rocky Raccoon 100. Had a hard time finding a map of the trail for the race

9 weeks until Rocky Raccoon.

12/5/09

Another build up week. Sunday 11/29, 2 hrs, 9.11 miles. Monday 11/30, trails, 126'/mile, 3.18 hr, 13.67 miles. Wednesday 12/2, bike trail 70'/mile, 3.01 hrs, 13.71 miles. Friday 12/4, trails 126'/mile, 5.06 hrs, 21.74 miles. Totals for Week: 13.25 hrs, 58.23 miles, 4.39 mph, 14.55 miles/session.

Start of 4 days per week training.

11/28/09

I will try to continue to build up mileage on just 4 days a week. Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. This will give 3 days rest per week. Maybe it will help me keep training without major injuries. Sunday 11/22, 1.58 hrs, 7.16 miles. Monday 11/23 trails, 126'/ mile, 2.56 hrs, 11.07 miles. Wednesday 11/25, trails 126'/mile, 2.51 hrs, 12.32 miles. Friday 11/27, trails 126'/mile, 4.01 hrs, 18.18 miles. Totals for week: 10.66 hrs, 48.73 miles, 4.57 mph, 12.12 miles/day.

11/21/09

On Sunday 11/15 ran/walked 1.02 hrs, 4.67 miles. Monday 11/16 ran/walked 1.51 hrs for 7.37 miles. Tuesday 11/17 walked 1 hr 4.47 miles. Wednesday 11/18 went to trails 60'/mile, 1.51 hrs, 7.39 miles. Friday 11/20 went to trails, 167'/mile, 3.03 hrs, 13.71 miles. Totals for week: 8.07 hrs, 37.61 miles, 4.66 mph.

Training for Rocky Raccoon

11/14/09

After doing some preliminary training, I have decided to train for the Rocky Raccoon 100 miles race. I have completed this Year the McNaughton 50 miles race and the Kettle Moraine 100k. I have been on the slow side on both of those races. Hope to be able to keep a pace fast enough to make the cutoffs at Rocky Raccoon. I have 12 weeks until the race, I will break the training into 3 parts. 4 weeks building up slow mileage. 5 weeks of maintaining high mileage and doing extra long runs. 3 weeks of tapering.