Hampton 24 Hour Run for Cancer

A bit late on this, but here's my quick recap from the Hampton 24 Hour Run for Cancer. The 2020 event was postponed to November, but I opted to run a smaller race that day because vaccines hadn't rolled out and my parents are high risk. But, alas, April 2021 things were looking brighter and with a fully vaccinated family I decided to attend my 4th Hampton 24 hour.

Although certainly not back to our old normal, this race was the most normal feeling, thus far, in the pandemic. While we still had temperature checks, a staggered wave start, and masks were still worn, for the first time in a long time there were hugs and hand shakes. Having only run several times in the previous two months, there was absolutely no distance goals set for the day, other than to collect my 112th ultra distance. My starting wave began at 7:35am and I was content to run the first 15 miles as a long workout. It was my first run over 4 miles since running Holiday Lake ten weeks earlier. I then made it a point to catch up with a few old friends of mine and clicked off the hours and miles.

As the day carried on, the cool spring rain came, and also some very sore legs and feet. The lack of running is apparent to me every day, but after 41 miles and ten hours, my body wasn't having any more of it, and I was more than content with that. As in person running events gradually start coming back, for me it will be more about celebrating the people that makes the running community what it is, and the fact that we are finally together again doing what we love.

The Difference a Year Makes

Yesterday was Easter Sunday for my family. It's both easy and hard to believe it's been over a year now since the pandemic started. However, although we are still far from our "old normal" we are in a drastically better place, covid wise, than we were at this point last year. Easter of last year covid-19 had just started appearing in the state of Virginia and everything, for the most part, was in complete lockdown. I drove down from Charlottesville, brought my own food, and a lawn chair to socially distance from my entire family. Everything felt so fragile as I methodically sanitized every surface in my vehicle and made sure my parents had their appropriate stock pile of impossible to find hand sanitizer and cleaning wipes. We sat in my parent's front yard, six feet apart, and tried our best to make a typical annual family gathering feel as normal as possible. We did an easter egg hunt for my nephew as my very pregnant sister watched from a distance, but even such a benign activity carried some degree of constant stress. Were the plastic eggs clean? Was my nephew getting too close to my dad? Was the basket sanitized? Nothing could just be a moment of simple unencumbered joy. In our separate little pods, we talked, we ate, and then a few hours later said our goodbyes. No handshakes, no hugs, and certainly no kisses. Just an exchange of "I love you's"....from at least six feet away.

This year, Easter looked a lot different, and we had a new member of the family there as well, my 11 month old niece. It was a drastically different picture, all four grandparents, fully vaccinated, gathered indoors to enjoy an Easter brunch together. We spent the morning playing with the kids, catching up, spending time in the sun, and finding those magical Easter eggs. After such a crazy 2020, this was the first holiday that truly felt normal. I don't think any of us took it for granted, and I suspect we will be equally as grateful for the time spent together for future gatherings. I hope the rest of the world lives in the moment and is able to reflect back on the gift of in person interaction, though like many things, I suspect some will return to taking it for granted. For now, I am just happy that our family time together looks like this.

Covid-19 Antibody Test Results

Seven months ago I experienced what felt like 36 hours of mild flu like symptoms, for which I later tested positive for covid-19. Given all the chaotic information/misinformation out there, I wasn't 100% sure that I actually had covid, though most signs pointed to yes. So, I decided the best way to confirm all this was to take an antibody test. Of course, even then, I had heard antibodies may be gone within as little as three months, so testing negative would keep things fairly inconclusive. At my appointment my lab technician had asked me about my covid experience, and believe it or not, she claimed that most likely I just had the regular flu (due to the mild symptoms), and "they" created a false positive result. I had no idea why the lab tech was telling me this, but it added to the numerous doubts I have had about literally everything surrounding this pandemic, and I am by no means a conspiracy theorist. As such, the lab tech said she wouldn't be suprised if I didn't have antibodies and it wouldn't be the first time a patient that tested positive for covid, also tested negative for antibodies. Seriously? Anyway, we did a simple blood draw and I was told my results would be ready within 48 hours. And here they are....

Well, well, well. After seven months, look who still has covid antibodies....I guess that confirms I definitely had covid last year, and that I my circumstances and results were not a product of a rigged testing system. At least, not my results. Interestingly, recovered covid patients are widely being told their antibodies will be gone after 3 months, apparently, so they choose to get vaccinated. I will likely still get my vaccine, long after everyone else does, but I urge those recovered to get antibody tests so we can learn the true numbers. I really don't understand why antibody testing, which was free with my health coverage, is not something being suggested to people. Anyway, in five months I plan to get another test done to see if I still have antibodies one year post covid. Despite my immunity, for the greater peace of mind, I will still mask up, disinfect, socially distance, and choose safer social options. It's the least I can do for others. As always, be safe everyone. We're getting through this!

Holiday Lake 50k 2021 - Ice, Ice, Baby

Some of my fondest ultra memories aren't when the weather and running conditions are the best, but when they are the worst. While it can certainly be pleasant to breeze through a race on a sunny 60 degree day, something about grunting through challenging race conditions always made an ultra feel just a little more ultra. It felt old school. And surprisingly, I had fun. Maybe it's the same reason a good beer tastes so much better after a 50 miler, than a 5k is the fact that we did so much more to earn that quenched thirst. Holiday Lake 2021, covid edition, was no exception. There was freezing rain nearly the entire time, my body was glittered with chunks of ice from my head to my feet, the trails were muddy (understatement of the year), and some of the more exposed wind blown parts of the course were close to unrunnable as the entire surface had become a single sheet of ice. While that sounds terrible, there was a beauty in it. The trees, adorned in ice, glistened and bowed like acknowledging the royal family. The forests were a mix of the greys and brown of the trees, leaves, and mud, along with the white of winter. Every now and then you'd hear the crackle of a branch collapsing under the weight of the ice and crashing to the ground. It was a reminder of why I had spent so much of the past two decades out in nature, and out on trails like these on days like this. I woke up at 2:30am. It was the earliest I can recall for anything in a very long time. It took almost two hours to cautiously drive 78 miles to the race from Richmond, though the roads turned out to be mostly in good shape, aside from a few back roads closer to the race. The race itself was much smaller than anticipated, thanks to the forcast changing the minds of almost half the registered entrants. My 6:34am starting wave only had a dozen or so runners. The rest of the day was VERY socially distanced with moments when I couldn't see another human in front of me, or behind. I was slow, walked way too much, and plodded along as much as expected from someone who only runs 10 miles per week tops. But, I kept moving. The cold is a great motivator for relentless forward progress, especially during the moments when you can't feel your feet, hands, or face. My finish time was my slowest Holiday Lake ever, and nearly the same time as my 50 mile PR, but all things considered in these most unique times, I was just happy to be at an organized, non virtual running event. I do miss the jovial banter and miles of story telling and catching up with old friends, but hopefully, the time for that is on a not too far off horizon. Lastly, a special thank you for all the volunteers who spents hours in the freezing cold to support us. Last weekend I was on the flip side as the volunteer, and I can tell you, in inclimate weather, it's always tougher on the volunteers.

Holiday Lake 2021 - Ultra number 111. I have now surpassed over 10,000 km of exclusively ultra race mileage and have run at least one ultra for 18 straight years.

Marathon/Ultra Number 150 - Staunton 6 Hour

This past Saturday, November 7th, I reached another milestone number in my running career. I completed my 150th marathon, or longer, running event. It was also my 110th ultramarathon. I had reached marathon/ultra number 100 back in October 2014, which doesn't seem that long ago, but surprisingly now already six years ago. Since then, my participation in events, especially ultras, has certainly slowed down (probably to a healthy degree). As for ultra/marathon number 150, it was a welcome catharsis and just what myself and 56 other runners needed on a cool autumn morning. It was my first official running event since the pandemic started, and it provided a brief moment of our old "normal". It's been a long time, but it was exciting to get up before sunrise, do a chilly packet pickup in the dark and dart off into a day, or six hours, of running. Come to think of it, I hadn't run an ultra in the month of November since 2011, mostly because my Novembers were my Richmond Marathon pace leading months, but not this year. The photo below is the start of the Staunton 6 Hour with 56 others. I'm the blurry one on the far right (masks were worn just before the official start). Photo credit Staunton Road Runners.

So, let's be clear, I don't run much these days, so I knew several things right off the bat. I wasn't going to contend for a win and running for six hours was going to hurt. Nowadays, I run about 10 miles per week, consisiting of several runs of 3-5 miles, and an additional 10-15 miles of hiking. The rest of my time is focused on strength training, where the 7-8 lbs of muscle I've gained since June does nothing to help my running. Good, now I have all my petty excuses covered. That said, I expected far worse. The six hour course was repeats of a 1.34 mile loop that had one moderate hill section, some moderate downhill, and some flat around Gypsy Hill park in Staunton, VA. Despite living in the Shenandoah Valley for a decade, it was actually my first time visiting the park. The first 13.1 miles went by in 1:48, and then I hit the marathon mark in 3:52. My legs started feeling like bricks by mile 10, so it was my little ultra shuffle from there to the finish. 50k went by in 4:45, followed by an in-race announcement that Joe Biden had become President, and then I wrapped up my 37.5 miles in just under 5:54. For perspective on running fitness, when I ran my 100k personal best in 2015, I was at 42.5 miles at the six hour mark and still had 20 miles to go. All in all it was a good day with beautiful sunny weather rising into the low 70's. It was certainly nice to catch up with some old running friends and also reunite with some others I had not seen in years, including one that was running the 6 hour as her first marathon. 150 marathon/ultra stats: Age at the time of reaching 150 was 39 years and 139 days. Since my first ultra on November 20, 2004, at age 23, it took 15 years and 352 days to reach 150. About 50 of those were run between 2008 and 2010.

Recovering from Covid-19 and Looking Back

(Apologies, blogger won't let me space out paragrpahs) Yes, you read that correctly, I am now one of the 26+ million world wide that is officially recovered from covid-19. I would have documented my experience as it happened, but felt like I wanted it fully out of the way before sharing the story. In short, I was one of the lucky ones and experienced very mild symptoms, which were basically low level flu symptoms. This included a slight fever topping out at 101 degrees and some minor chills. All symptoms were gone within roughly 36 hours, and by the time my positive covid test came back four days after the onset of symptoms, I had already been symptom free for three days. I'm actually very glad to trust my gut and get tested, even when already feeling better, as I would have likely dismissed the short lived symptoms as a fluke cold and gone about my life as normal and visiting friends and family. I self isolated until getting my results and then quarentined until 10 days after my symptoms were gone, for a total quarentine of 12 days, just to be safe. I'm surprisingly thankful for a positive result, as I know there have been false negatives, and at least I had some closure on what I was experiencing. After, and during, my quarentine myself and the health department did a thorough contact tracing with people I had been in proximity to the past few weeks, including my one roomate. Thankfully, everyone eventually tested negative, and over two months later are still negative. I can attribute much of this to taking serious precautions during my quarentine, especially with a housemate I share a kitchen, fridge, sink, and laundry with. This included wearing a mask when leaving my bedroom, wearing latex gloves, and regularly sanitizing exposed surface areas for two weeks. The sanitation practices continue til this day. The toughest part of the whole journey wasn't the 24 hours of symptoms, but the fear that friends and family had about when it would truly be safe to be around me again. Thankfully, science has shown how safe I am to be around and I've now visited with family with nobody getting sick. The other thing was that during quarentine I watched a lot of videos of other people's experiences and none were very good. Many were healthier looking people my age, but who dealt with weeks, if not months of fatigue, low blood oxygen saturation and other long term symptoms. Because of that, there was always this little voice in my head that wondered if things were going to get worse any given day and that this couldn't possibly be it. And, yet, my only "long term" symptom was loss of smell and taste, both of which came back after two weeks. My running and strength training feel no different now, than before, with strength actually being slightly better post covid. That said, if anything is going to get people to engage in healthy lifestyles, knowing that it could drastically improve your covid expierence, should you get it, should be one of them. Anyway, below is some of what I journaled during my brief covid experience over two months ago, and I hope it provides a sense of ease and relief that while this virus can be fatal, for many, it's no different than my experience, or a complete non experience at all. Be safe, get tested, and take care! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Final week of July, 2020. About two weeks ago my family had a bout with what turned out to be a random viral cold. Within a 48 hour period several family members reported fevers, with the longest duration being about three days. Of course, in this day in age you can't be too careful, so of course covid-19 tests were taken and all thankfully came back negative.

Flash forward one week, and after a weekend of feeling great, I woke up on Monday morning with a fever of 101.3 (a newer thermometer read 101.0). And yes, those are Christmas themed pajamas #workingfromhome.

Well, that was a bit of a shock, and it's tough to say if this was the same cold that went around my family, as seven days had already passed before being exposed to it. It should also be noted, my immune system has always been pretty strong and I really can't recall ever getting sick or getting the flu. My immune system is what allowed me to NEVER miss a day of school from kindergarten to my high school graduation. Then again, I am now pushing 40, so let's not pretend I have that teen and college aged immunity anymore.

As Monday progressed, the fever stayed at 101, occasionally dropping every few hours. Other flu like symptoms were starting to pop up, including minor aches and pains combined with random chills, but again, not that unlike the flu.

But, alas, in this day in age, you can't be too careful, so I called Sentara Health Care and scheduled a virtual doctor's visit. After a five minute briefing, the nurse practitioner said I had enough symptoms to be approved for a drive up covid-19 test the next morning, something I was not eligible for when my family got sick, since I had no symptoms.

Recently, when a family member got their covid test, it was self administered and they only had to stick a swab an inch into their nose. I had seen and heard the "horror" stories of the long swabs being shoved all the way back into people's nasal cavities for testing, and was relieved that mine probably wouldn't be like that.

Wrong.

So, of course my covid-19 test turned out to be the dreaded nasopharyngeal swab. Admittedly, I had always been a little curious as to how this experience was, so part of me was really interested in getting to do this myself. I pulled up to a small Sentara parking lot, mask on, and called inside to check in. Within about five minutes a nurse comes out in full upper body covering with several 4-5 inch long swabs that look like mini pipe cleaners. In this particular test they have to swab both nostrils, so I get to have double the fun.

Some people suggest closing your eyes and holding your breath during the test. My curiosity got the best of me and I watched as this swab slowly disappeared into places in my face that I never knew existed. I wondered. Can they see my thoughts? Once fully inserted, the nurse spins the swab causing a burning sensation similar to when you accidentally breath water in through your nose. Some people's instincts can kick in and although this didn't happen to me, you might find yourself wanting to jerk your head away. Anyway, the second nostril was the same as the first. Immediately after the test I started sneezing, which is one of the reasons they hand you tissues before the test, and because in some cases it can cause a nose bleed. For those wondering about the long swab test, it certainly isn't pleasant, but rather uncomfortable. I also think getting a nurse with good experience probably makes a big difference. That said, a big thank you to all the medical staff for providing and performing these tests, and really putting themselves in harms way to make our community safer.

I will say, I was impressed with the ease of the process. It took only 15 hours between the virtual doctor's visit and the actual drive up test. It should take 3-5 days for results, and I am to quarantine completely until then. While, I hope that the result is negative, I do feel like a positive test could provide more educationally. As someone who is very diligent about wearing face coverings and sanitizing, it would make me wonder all that more where my best practices fell short. I really don't go out much, but the places I do are mainly grocery stores and the gym, again both places I take a lot of precautions.

The gym is the place that concerns me the most. You have a lot of people in a small condensed indoor space breathing hard, sweating, and not required to wear face coverings while actively working out. Despite a generally strong culture around sanitizing and wiping down equipment before and after use, I can't help but think of the things people still never wipe down. The biggest culprits are usually the free weights, but in retrospect, it's the actual weight plates that people use on the Smith machines that I can tell you NEVER get cleaned. I can't imagine the number of times I've touched those and incidentally touched my face, or wiped off sweat.

Well, I guess we'll know in a few days. And please stay safe, because quarantining is boring as crap and I'm tired of eating Hot Pockets.

Update: Wednesday morning, temp is already down to normal. All flu like symptoms are gone. I do, however, have a noticeable loss in my sense of smell and taste. I can smell about 10-20% of what I think things should smell like. This is a tell taled sign of covid, so my gut is thinking that I do have it, and my pharmacist sister strongly agrees. I'm not sure how much I would even trust a negative test result at this point. To be continued......

A Marathon on a Parking Deck

Sometimes it’s the little things that become big things just by igniting a spark.

You've probably read some of the stories and seen some of the videos. Someone running a marathon on their back deck, training on a 20 foot long balcony, running endless laps on a small rooftop or climbing the equivalent of Mt. Everest on a small flight of stairs. Despite the ways some of the world has shut down, runners and humans are finding ways to keep doing what they are doing and in the midst of a pandemic, discovering a new dimension of mental fortitude.

I consider myself lucky to still be able to run many places that I enjoy. My gym may be closed, but the trails and mountains are near.

However, as an act of solidarity, I felt the need to put myself in the shoes of those less fortunate that none the less are still pressing on. One. Step. At a time. I've had the idea of running a marathon on the upper level of my work's parking deck for several weeks now. It was important to incorporate UVA in some capacity into the run, so using our parking deck as a venue added a brief, but familiar place for those that came to watch. The parking deck was large enough for the laps to not be too cruel on my joints, but repetitive enough to still be a decent mental hurdle. Each lap was exactly 0.12 miles, just enough to be comfortable, and the abundance of space allowed for safe social distancing, should people come to watch. I actually bailed on the idea the previous weekend, but forced myself to inform my coworkers five days before this particular run to establish some accountability.

In reality, it was just an informal invitation that if the dozen or so members of my work team got bored enough, they could come watch me run circles, 219 of them to be exact, and leave whenever they got tired of the monotony. There wasn't much pomp and circumstance to it. I honestly figured there would be mild interest, but before I knew it the thought of getting out of the house, seeing coworkers for the first time in five weeks and doing something together, became the most exciting thing people had done in weeks.

(Just about to start. 52 degrees, rain tapering off)

“Race” morning finally arrived and I decided to have some fun and made a custom race bib. Afterall, you've got to make it official, right? I decided to go with the number 2420, which is the street address to our building. Coincidentally, it also represents the two classes at UVA most influenced by covid-19, the incoming class of ’24 and the graduating class of ’20. How about that unintentional symbolism for you?

So, I’ll keep the recap short. I started my run at 9:57am on April 18, 2020. It had just stopped raining and the parking deck was wet with several small puddles that I had to navigate around. 2 miles into the run my supervisor arrived and was the first one to cheer me on. Throughout the morning additional coworkers came with their children, spouses, with signs, snacks and goodies. The sun came out, the wind began gusting, but the energy was starting to grow. Familiar faces seeing familiar faces, and even with mouth coverings, you could still make out the huge smiles. People got to catching up, sharing their quarantine stories, and then that turned into singing, then dancing, then pure laughter.

(My coworker, Elizabeth, with sign her daughter made for me)

(passing by my aid station, aka car)

I had completed 5k, then 10k, then 10 miles, then halfway done. What I had planned to do as a casual 9:00 minute pace quickly derailed with the extra energy and enthusiasm brought on by my UVA family. The pace dropped to below 8:00 and then held steady in the 7:40’s for the next 20+ miles. It was suprisingly easy, it was conversational, and most importantly, it was fun. At mile 18.4, my coworker's husband, David, joined me, and despite hitting a few of those small “walls” and fighting a 25 mph gust around every turn, that last hour breezed by quicker than any final hour of a marathon. By now, I had memorized every slight change in camber of the parking deck, every drain, every little crack, that one pebble in the South West corner, that one puddle that still hadn't dried yet. With the end in sight, my pacer and I talked about doing a kick to end the run strong, so when my gps ticked over to 25.2, with one mile to go, I started to press a little harder. With music blasting from the car of our marathon “DJ”, I got a little boost of energy and knocked out a 6:50 final mile. My coworkers even put together a finish line, so despite the fact it was just a made up event, it’ll go down in my history books as a marathon finish. Believe it, or not, that last mile of 6:50 was the fastest final mile I have ever run during a marathon, despite being 14 minutes off my personal best. Still, who can’t stop and smile at running a spur the moment 3:21 marathon of the top of a parking deck.

(about to run through the finish line my coworkers, Diane and Erin, made)

When it was all said and done, the day had very little to do about marathons and running. It was about not allowing the challenges in the current world stop you from doing the things you enjoy and despite all the social distancing barriers, we can still come together as a community to rally behind a unified cause. I believe that cause was less about cheering on a guy running laps around a parking deck and more about being in all of this together. My supervisor and teammates all agreed that our three hours together on a random sunny Saturday was the most fun they have had since this all began five weeks ago. That, in itself, was worth more than any official marathon medal.

As the days went by, the story took off. That spark grew. I’m glad people felt inspired and that in a time of such uncertainty and fear, that I could do something small for the betterment of morale, to make people smile, and provide the momentary comfort of our old normal. I’m nobody special, and that’s proof that anyone can be a bright spot in seemingly dark times.

(the run was shared on UVA President James Ryan's Facebook page)

Lest we forget. I’m just a regular dude that sometimes runs and shamelessy eats Taco Bell and Digiorno pizza. UVA is the home of many heroes during these times. They include the University leadership, medical staff, doctors, surgeons, nurses, engineers designing 3-D PPE, our donors, our medical students, first responders, facilities management, fellow Virginia Medical Reserve Corps members, and countless others.

“Only in the darkness can you see the stars” – Martin Luther King Jr. (Mountaintop speech, 1968)