Important Update on the 50k for the Mona Foundation

Go directly to the bulletin on Facebook for the cause, "Ultramarathon for the Mona Foundation": http://tiny.cc/2Q5n3

Important Update - The Latest on the Ultramarathon

The outpouring of support for the "Ultramarathon for the Mona Foundation" cause has been truly inspiring. I want to wholeheartedly thank everyone who has joined, and considered this an endeavor worthy of supporting! Recently there was an unexpected incident and hence a change in the original plan to run the 50k on Orcas island.

While on a 12 mile trail run in Northern Virginia I fractured 2 bones in my right ankle. The first week following the injury was very disheartening to be sure, especially after putting so much into training and building momentum for the cause. At first, it felt like I had let some people down, including myself. However, after some thought, I got over myself and realized the goals of the Mona Foundation are too important, and that this turn of events is actually a huge blessing in disguise. To be sure, the doctor ruled out the February 50k on Orcas Island...it will probably be another 2 months before I make a full recovery, BUT this is just a minor road bump on the way to running an ultramarathon in support of the Mona Foundation. What the injury has done however, is provide more time to train and to consider how best to further the cause and involve more people. There are several other 50k events I am looking at as possible replacements. The new plan is to recruit other runners to take part and help raise awareness.

If you have a strong resonance with the kind of work the Mona Foundation is engaged in around the world, and have run long distance in the past, know someone who is a runner, or have considered running a long distance event, then this would be a great opportunity to help out the work of the Mona Foundation. Please email me at kajo.lehman@gmail.com if you are interested in supporting this cause as a runner, or by sponsoring someone to run in this event. Details will be forthcoming, but most likely the replacement event will take place in the great northwest sometime between June and November 2010. There will likely be a shorter counterpart to the 50k such as a 25k or a 10k as well. It would be great to involve as many people as possible.

I look forward to hearing from the runners out there... a few have already expressed interested.

Thanks again for everyone's support! Check in on the blog www.runningwiththeearth.blogspot.com from time to time to hear the full story.

love&respect,

-Kamran

Running for the Mona Foundation

Earlier this week we announced on Facebook the reason behind the madness of training for the Orcas Island 50k. The response to the Facebook cause, "Ultramarathon for the Mona Foundation" has been awesome. Just a few days later and more than 15 members have joined forces with this effort. Here are some excerpts of the bulletin sent out to all the Facebook members:

(children at the Badi School in Panama)

It's been less than a week and we've already formed a 15 member strong force. I'm taking tremendous encouragement from all of you who see the great importance in Mona Foundation's work, and are happily sending me to a cruel and punishing fate to demonstrate your commitment. It's truly inspiring! In all seriousness, you have no idea actually how encouraging it's been!

The training is picking up in intensity and the support is critical, I can't do this without you... Saturday and Sunday will be back to back long distance runs, which together, equal an entire marathon. First is a 16 mile trail run Saturday, then a 10 mile trail run Sunday. Despite a love of long distance running, it can be easy to lose sight of why I'm doing this. You can help with staying focused on the goal!

If you haven't done so already, I highly encourage going to the Mona Foundation website at monafoundation.org and getting to know their many projects around the world. They select projects on the criteria that they develop from grassroots educational initiatives and seek to raise the social and economic status of the community as a whole, including those of women and girls.

The Ruaha school in Tanzania is a great example of an effective Mona Foundation project and it's lasting impact:



As incentive, the top three contributors to the Ultramarathon for Mona Foundation will receive special gifts. These will be announced later.

Join the Facebook cause and donate at: http://apps.facebook.com/causes/414286

Interact and lend support! Get live tweets and updates on the weekend training with twitter at http://twitter.com/50kForMona

And get the lowdown on the training at http://www.dailymile.com/people/KamranL

14 Mile Trail Run in Shenandoah - uphill, in the snow...both ways?

I knew it was imperative to hit the trails Sunday for a dreaded 14 mile run; especially after being held prisoner by the snowstorm on Saturday.

I dutifully loaded up the camel pack Sunday morning with cliff bars, and 3 liters of water. It was not warm outside by any stretch, and before making the 70 mile drive to Shenandoah National Park, I had a work out scraping snow and ice from my windshield. Going into it I knew this day would make or break the training. This was going to be a litmus test to see if I had what it took for a 50k trail run. This was the first time trying anything this extreme during my training. This is a crazy distance to be running in inclement weather and on an unfamiliar trail.

During the drive to Shenandoah I was struggling with doubts mixed with excitement...I was unfamiliar with the trail I would be running, and because of the snow and ice I had no idea what condition it would be in. Not to mention an irrational fear of being devoured by bears looking for their last big meal before hibernation.


(Scraping ice)

I arrived at the park later than hoped. The ranger at the Front Royal entrance curtly told me the main road was closed due to ice and snow. The trailhead I was enroute to was many miles into the park, and I had to rethink my strategy quick... I wasn't deterred, I kept on the ranger with questions about alternate trails to reach the 14 mile goal. She was short with me and rather incredulous of my intentions to run that distance through snowy trails up into the mountains. I did my best to assure her of my sanity (though unassured myself), and then left to park my jeep with only scant info about Dickey Ridge trail (a 2000' + elevation climb into the mountains overlooking Shenandoah valley). Honestly, this was the first NP ranger I had ever met that didn't go out of their way to be helpful, especially with an annual pass holder... but I didn't let it bother me too much, I was on a mission.

After parking the Jeep, I chanced upon a more than helpful intrepid hiker and alpine skiier who went out of his way to get me situated with the trail. And he filled my head with ideas for other trail runs in the area, and gave me a rundown of Dickey Ridge trail, as well as much encouragement for the adventure ahead. I would have to run 7 miles deep and then double back. I texted some friends, letting them know what I was up to in case I happened to fall into danger along the way. With a crude trail map, I set off up into the hills. The first five miles were comprised of steep uphill climbs, with the snowy trails less and less compact and more and more powdery as they led to more remote and less trodden areas. The first few miles were fairly manageable, but the deeper snow required much more energy. The snow also concealed hidden rocks and fallen branches along the trail, posing a real risk of a sprained ankle or worse. I was lucky to avoid injury, but was also humbled by several near slips that could have done me in.

Huffing and puffing up the trail I saw a large doe at 5.5 miles up. My mind reached for my camera, but before the thought became an action, the deer quickly and gracefully bounded off into the leafless woods. Spotting the deer energized me somehow. It provided some spiritual upliftment to see one of nature's most graceful runners in its natural habitat. I picked up my pace considerably for the next mile just thinking about it. My thoughts moved briefly to something I had read recently on "persistence hunting" a method used in our early human ancestry to hunt which took advantage of superior endurance to run down prey to the point of exhaustion. It's always motivating to remember on these long distance runs that we're tapping into an evolutionary advantage that allowed us to survive a long time ago. Persistence hunting is still practiced among a few indigenous tribes today (see wiki link below). I thought in vain about reassuring the deer I prefered a vegetarian diet, and was happy with my cliff bars (to my knowledge there isn't a venison flavor cliff bar).

The vistas of the valley below were gorgeous, and combined with the runners high and mountain air I was feeling on top of the world, but at the same time cautioned by the cold as more and more sweat accumulated and didn't wick away fast enough. I worried whether I could keep warm long enough to stave off hypothermia, but figured as long as I kept my body working hard and supplied with carbs, I could maintain the energy to produce enough heat.

(After 5 miles of climbing, looking out to the valley below)

The last mile into the trail before doubling back was fast, moving gently and not so gently at times downhill. The views were amazing, and I didn't want to stop. It felt great to go fast down hill after the long slog through the snow uphill. Then the sudden realization kicked in that the sun wouldn't be up forever, and then temperatures were falling and would dip far below freezing. I was feeling a little delirious, and worried. I turned back and struggled up a mile of hills before reaching the long descent back down to the Jeep. The fear of contracting hypothermia was dogging me on the way down as the temperatures got colder, and water supplies were getting low. The thought of the short tempered park ranger sending a rescue team in after me kept me going strong. The last big scare was a severe muscle cramp in my right leg a quarter mile away from the trailhead. I hobbled on it a bit, drank some water and was good to go. I was high on life after finishing, and the only danger now would be staying awake for the drive home.

Links:

Shenandoah National Park:

http://www.nps.gov/shen/index.htm

More info on persistence hunting:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persistence_hunting

Arlington Memorial Bridge 8 Mile Run

It's been a busy week, and challenging to get all the training runs in, but somehow I've managed. This is one of my favorite runs in DC. I did it Monday following the 14 mile trail run in Shenandoah National Park.

It's an 8 mi route down Rock Creek express to the Arlington Memorial bridge. There is always a good stop off here between the Lincoln Memorial and the Potomac River for running stairs, which is the best agility training you can get in a city for simulating climbing and descending steep trails.

You might also recognize the Memorial Bridge from the movie Burn after Reading, when George Clooney's character runs across it. If you haven't caught this Coen bros. flick yet, I recommend it!

The Route:

View Larger Map

Run to the National Mall - The 6 Mile route

The training schedule called for a 6 mile run on Wednesday...and with a little help from google maps I figured out the perfect route from outside my front door down to the national mall and back.

The trek takes you around the Washington Monument, the reflecting pools, down to the Lincoln memorial and alongside the various war memorials. It's a beautiful and iconic run, and hopefully each week will include at least one down here.

View Larger Map

These are pics of some of the sites at night (I apologize for the blur... it's hard to be an expert photographer with a small cell phone while running):

Failure to Launch - blizzard in DC

It's Saturday, I've been following my training schedule for the 50k faithfully, and was supposed to rise up early for a 14 mile trail run in Shenandoah National Park. Unfortunately, the exhaustion from the week caught up with me, and just looking out the window and seeing a blizzard kept me in bed. I was willing to be hardcore today, but not that hardcore. Oh well, I'll have to push my training back a day and run it tomorrow when the sun is supposed to come up in Shenandoah. At least my legs get an extra day for recovery!

Multnomah Falls kick off run

On November 25th I decided to kick off training for a long distance trail run. What better place than Multnomah Falls... actually I can think of a lot of better places, but few more beautiful. The 6 mile loop I chose going up and around the falls, was a huge challenge.

The first half of the loop is 3 miles of steep climbing, with the first mile being the worst, as it's comprised of steep switchbacks all the way to the top of the falls. It's brutal, and one mile into it the muscles in my legs began starving for oxygen. It doesn't relent the next 2 miles either, however the cascading waterfalls, the streams, mossy rock formations and majestic woods provide constant sustenance for the spirit, keeping the beleaguered body going.

I miss Oregon... I miss the hikers who revel in being outdoors. There's an attitude and way of life that goes along with it. You can feel the positivity and kinship. I ran past an older gentleman on the way down who gave me an exuberant thumbs up, and shouted out, "The uphill is hard on the breathing, and the downhill on the knees!?" I wished I had more time to discuss the body mechanics of running with the guy, but managed to eke out an enthusiastic, "Exactly!" while wizzing by on a fast stretch of downhill.

After the first mile, the tourists fade away, and those who persevere are rewarded with more falls in an isolated and serene environment.

When the hard part is over, the top flattens out and offers gorgeous view of the Columbia River gorge 2000' below. It felt like running on the edge of the world at times.