I returned to running in October. I started with low mileage because I felt the pain had been due to a quick increase in mileage in January. Things went good for two weeks, then I had some mild pain in the same spot. All the work on my hamstring during the year had greatly improved my flexibility and reduced the compression around the nerve in the upper part of my leg. I was able to pinpoint the pain better this time, and now it feels it is coming from lower down my leg, below my knee. After some poking and prodding in that area, I found lots of muscle spasm on the lateral side of my lower leg. Massage from Shannon and on the foam roll took the spasms away and I was able to keep training, thinking I had a hold on it this time. I am now thinking that I have some sort of posterior compartment syndrome. Compartment syndrome is where the fascia and muscles are too tight in an area. When you exercise and blood flow to the muscle increases, there is no room for expansion. The fascia, muscles and nerves are affected by the pressure of the increased blood present in the area. It makes sense that this could be my problem considering I have fought issues with tightness for as long as I can remember.
Things were good until the week after Rudolph's Red Nose Run. I had some pain and muscle spasm after the race, but again it went away with our treatment and was not a factor at the Red Kite/Halcyon Cyclocross. I did a very slow and short mid-week run with no pain. I also did my first strength workout of the season and was sore all over. Things were not looking good late in the week, but by Saturday everything felt good again so I embarked on my weekend double.
The double began on Saturday morning with a cold running race in Clarksville, the Claus for a Cause 5K/10K. The race was held at one of Clarksville's top CrossFit gyms, CrossFit Solafide, and raises money for a local charity that provides gifts to less fortunate children at Christmas. My attraction to the event was the flat and fast course. And the fact that I was still a little upset about not making the sub-20 minute 5K yet. This seemed like the best place for me to do it.
I felt great in warm-up. Today just felt like the day to tear it up. There were 147 runners on the start line. Both the 5K and 10K races started at the same time. It was a fast start, but not as fast as some of the other races I have done. I was 4th place overall early on and felt sluggish, which was quite the opposite of how I felt in warm-up. One young runner was out front by about 15 seconds after a mile and I was on the back of the first chase group of three. I passed 3rd place at one point, but he passed me back almost immediately so I dropped in line and got what little draft I could off him. We clicked off the first mile in 6:04, my fastest ever mile by one second!
The "flat" course was very challenging. It was gradually uphill on the way to the turnaround of the out-and-back course. I hit the turnaround in bad shape. I was fading quickly. My pace was now down to 6:24/mile. I needed to hold a 6:25/mile to go sub-20. Two of the runners ahead of me went on for the 10K at the turnaround, so I was now in 2nd overall. Only the young runner was ahead. He looked to be fading as well, so I held on to hope that I could catch him. Slowly, I started to eat into his 15 second lead. Shannon was out running on the course and gave me some motivation as I started the final mile. The course may have been gradually downhill now, but it was not even remotely close to being enough of a decline to allow for rest or help you gain speed. Running on a consistent grade was actually hard. I am used to going up and down hills, which changes the muscle groups used.
My leg began to ache slightly at 2.5 miles. It was not painful, but it was there. I was still slowly gaining on the leader and was now about 7 seconds back. My pace was down to 6:29/mile and holding. If I could pick it up just a little I could make sub-20! I pushed hard to catch the leader, but just could not get there before the last turn and start of the sprint. He still had 5 seconds on me as we started sprinting. My pace was still at 6:29/mile. I had stopped the bleeding, but was not gaining on my pace. I gave up on the sub-20 and just went after the win.The kid had a good sprint left and pulled away from me as we started our sprint, but then I started to gain. I was coming on too late though and he held me off by 4 seconds! I saw the clock as I was approaching the line and was astonished to see I was going to be close to the 20-minute mark. I crossed the line in 20:01. I couldn't believe it! So close to my goal! I am happy with doing my fastest 5K ever, but to be two seconds off my ultimate goal was a little disappointing. My average heart rate was lower today than at past races at 171, but I still hit 180 in the sprint so I know I had decent legs.
My leg felt ok right after the race. I had intended to ride home from the run, but the weather was still 34 degrees after awards with a stiff wind and a light mist falling. Not riding was a good decision as my leg began to hurt before we got home. I attempted to ride the trainer to spin the run out of my legs, but the pain quickly worsened. The afternoon turned into a massage and stretch session to get the leg good enough to race the Crossfire Cyclocross on Sunday.
We had a fun Christmas party Saturday night with the guys at Frank Miller Fundraising. They are the group that handles the cookie dough deliveries that I help out with when I'm not doing PT. I ate too much. The food was so good! I would say it was the best food I have ever had at a Christmas party. We had fun too, playing games that tested how well the employees knew each other. I was surprised that only two people knew I raced bikes. And I was surprised to learn things about others, like one races sports cars, one is a parole officer and another got banned from all high school sporting events in Tennessee for fighting in multiple games during high school.
I really do enjoy doing the cookie dough deliveries. I work with good people and the harder we work the faster we get done. My friend Austin and I usually notice funny things in the schools. Things like funny signs or things the kids have drawn. One school that was made up of all female teachers had a poster of Ray Rice on the wall in the cafeteria. After all the drama in the news about him hitting his fiance in the face, you would think a school full of women would have quickly taken that poster down. Yes, it is the little things that keep us entertained. One of the prizes available to the top seller in each school is a sno-cone machine. At the same school that has the Ray Rice poster, we had a 1st grader try to trade us a half-eaten chocolate chip cookie for the sno-cone machine. I'll have to give him credit. It was a bold trade and he sure was a smooth talker for a six-year-old.
Who taught these kids to write?
Ray Rice uses protein to keep him running...especially after he punches his fiance.
Shannon worked on my leg again on the drive home from the Christmas party and by the end of the night, I was feeling pretty good, but still a little scared that it would ruin my races. I had made it all year without having pain at a race and now it seemed that it would get the best of me in the last race of the season.
My leg felt good Sunday morning. Again this week, Singlespeed was the first race and Pro/1/2 was the last so I was going to be here all day. The Crossfire Cyclocross was held on a farm in Franklin. The course was short, but really fun. The layout featured some fast open sections, but also some challenging turns and obstacles. Most of the course was grass, with a few dirt sections thrown in. There was one pair of regulation-height barriers and also a pair of big logs to jump. And of course they found some mud to run us through. Overall, the course was dry except for the one mud puddle. And it got bigger and deeper as the day went on. The course also featured a section where we went through a barn which was a fun addition to the loop.
Crossfire course map
It was an easy warm-up for me before the Singlespeed race. I only did one pre-ride lap on the course to save my leg. Spinning on the road was much easier than churning my big gear around the course so I kept as much stress off the leg as possible. My strategy worked as I was able to race with no pain. I had a good start and was never farther back than 4th. Mike Edens got the hole shot, but then had a hard crash in one of the first tight turns. We shuffled a lot of positions the first lap. I was leading at one point, but then Justin Lowe passed me. I hooked onto his wheel, with Cayce Tiesler holding my wheel. The three of us had a small gap by the time we hit the barriers on the first lap.
SS and Juniors on the start line
I was the first to make a mistake out of our group of three. I hung my pedal on a steep dirt bank and it forced me to put a foot down and dab my way up the bank. Justin got a small gap here and then went all out to make sure we couldn't get back across it. I knew he was strong, so I upped my pace right away, gapping Cayce. I slowly pulled away from Cayce, but could not close down on Justin. He held 7-8 seconds on me the rest of the race. He had found a narrow line where he could bypass the first log in the pair of logs, while I was jumping both. I saw his line choice, but he was slowing down so much to squeeze around the log that I thought it was faster just to bunny-hop both. Halfway through the race, the ribbon was moved so he could not go around the log anymore. I was glad to see him have to jump both because he was slower going over two than one, but I don't know that I like them changing the course during a race. I have had it happen to me a few times and was not really happy about it.
I would gain a few seconds on the open sections where I could get my gear turning, then he would pull away in the tighter sections. As is usual with my gearing, I just couldn't accelerate fast enough out of the turns. The gap stayed basically the same despite all my trying. I pushed him all the way to the end, hoping he would make a mistake like I did, but he did not. Justin grabbed the win, while I took second. Edens wound up rebounding to take third ahead of Cayce. I held a 172 average heart rate and hit a max of 179, both of which are good numbers for me in a Singlespeed race.
SS podium minus Edens
I did a little cool down, then went to the car to get into some dry clothes. As I stepped off my bike I felt a twinge in the leg. I immediately went through my stretches and even pulled out my massage stick to try to loosen my muscles. I needed them to last one more hour!
In between races, I chatted with friends and watched some more racing. Justin went 2-for-2 when he won the CX 3 race as well. Eddy Taylor, Ben Howard and Pam Tanner were there again. I got to talk with them for a while and then watch them race. Tom Faerber also came out today. I have not seen him in about four years so it was great to catch up with him and watch him ride as well.
Me, Tom, Eddy and Ben
A rider goes through the barn during the CX 3 race
Cayce Tiesler on a SS mountain bike during the CX 3 race, his second of three races today
Justin Lowe hits the mud on his way to the CX 3 win.
Here's some pictures from the Masters race taken by Jeffrey Davis. The logs were a bit of a problem in most races.
photo by Jeffrey Davis
photo by Jeffrey Davis
Eddy rode them with a smile on his face.
photo by Jeffrey Davis
Eddy in the barn
photo by Jeffrey Davis
Jeremy was like a rocket while the rest of us battled to be first chaser. Nago, Josh Lewis, Peter and I all swapped positions the first lap, with me finally emerging into 2nd by the end of the first lap. Jeremy had 5 seconds on me. I pushed hard on lap 2 to get to him, but lost more time. I was now 8 seconds back. My leg was feeling good so I kept pushing hard. Still, Jeremy slowly pulled away. He put 5-6 seconds on me per lap for the majority of the race.
By halfway, I was 30 seconds ahead on third place and began to focus on just extending that gap. Then my leg started hurting after 36 minutes. It never got bad, but it was there. I went into survival mode to ensure I took 2nd. My rear tire had felt soft the whole race. At first, I thought it was just in my head, then later I could feel the tire rolling in the turns. With 2 laps to go I stopped in the pits for a bike change. I didn't want to ride my singlespeed, but I had a big gap now on Peter in 3rd. I had lapped Josh and Nago at this point. Nago had been way ahead of Josh, but Josh had hooked on my wheel and I drug him all the way up to Nago where they then had a good battle for 4th. When I made my bike change, Josh came back by. He thanked me for the earlier help by pulling me around the last two laps.
I finished 2nd yet again this weekend, about half a lap behind the winner Jeremy Chambers. Peter was a good minute behind me in 3rd, while Josh took 4th and Nago 5th. I had fun racing the course, but really it was a boring race to watch. It seems that all the Pro/1/2 races are boring these days. We never have more than 5-6 riders and it seems we get spread out all over the course after just a lap or two. It turns into a time trial more often than not. The spectators always start out excited, but you can see their interest waning after two laps. By the end of the race, half the crowd has already left and those still there have their back turned to the race as they chat with friends. I sure wish we could get some more attendance at these local and regional races to put on more of a show.
Pro/1/2 podium
photo by Joy Chambers
Below is a little video I shot during the CX 3 and Masters races.
Crossfire CX race video
I was glad to make it through the day with minimal pain. The leg was a problem, but it did not change my finish position or ruin my day. I am glad to be on the podium, but three 2nd places in one weekend is annoying. I want to be on that top step again instead of best-of-the-rest. I was caught in the crossfire all weekend: in the crossfire of trying to train hard for two different sports, and in the crossfire of Justin Lowe and Jeremy Chambers.
The season is now over for me. I am not tired of racing mentally, but it seems my body is ready for a break. I am going to take a few days off to let my leg heal, them slowly return to riding with some base miles. I have had another nagging injury as well. I crashed after our night short track at Tour de Turkey. I was cooling down and not paying attention in the dark. I went through a ditch outside of our marked off course and went over the bars, slamming my seat into my coccyx. It hasn't affected my riding or running, but it is sore. It's amazing how many little core muscles attach to your coccyx. Every time I move I feel the soreness.
I did 58 races this year, so I guess I deserve at least a little time off! Thanks for reading and look for a wrap-up of 2014 to be posted soon.
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