LOST ALL HOPE

Mill Hall, PA
Saturday, 5/9/2019

In an attempt to beat Mother Nature in regards to an impending rain storm, Gabriel opted out of the Greenwood Furnace on Sunday to race in Central PA on Saturday at the Mountain of Hope Trail Challenge.

Gabriel was hoping it would be a great substitute for a long run, as the course seemed super technical. Race day came, and Gabriel timed the start almost to perfection (too close for comfort or warm-up), but he took off comfortably on what he thought would be a 5-mile climb to the boulder field. However, they did descend a couple of times and when presented with a fork in the trail, he opted the wrong way because he saw an orange ribbon. The trail heading north did not have any ribbons. However, after half a mile, he knew he was heading back to the start, so instead of mailing it in, he turned around and rejoined the race right in front of the lead Amish pack.

The boulder field was a disaster. The rocks were slick. His Salomons offered no assistance. It was painfully slow and ugh. He was passed into 5th place on this climb, not being able to offer much resistance as he slid on each rock. Finally, he got some runnable trail and set-out to reel in the leaders. He absolutely bombed the downhills and pushed the uphills, finally catching Lantz on an uphill and the Amish on a downhill heading into some singletrack. He finally spotted the leader, who was absolutely crashing and bonking. He hit the last aid station thinking his battle was done and it'd be fun descent to the finish, but no, they were sent back onto treacherous technical singletrack and Gabriel shut down both mentally and physically.

This was not his cup of tea. Another few minutes spent lacing up his shoes, he finally made it to some jeep trail and hammered. He finished up at 5:40/mi pace, making sure to strengthen his legs to the finish and get some stimulus out of this effort. 2hrs+ later, Gabriel was defeated.

On a positive, it was a Masters Course Record and a decent time, and Gabriel had minimal soreness after and a wonderful lunch in Lewisburg at  Elizabeth's. Otherwise, it sucked.

NOT SO CHILLY

Jan. 27, 2019
Reading, PA

A fortunately timed polar vortex stormed into the region, postponing the infamous "Chilly Cheeks" 7M to a weekend in which Gabriel could participate.

With limited training, and with a minor confidence booster earlier in the week, Gabriel drove out to Mt. Penn alone with his imagination. He imagined a course dry of snow. He imagined a race in which he would be chasing the leaders, and he imagined a race in which he would have to hurt from mile 3 to mile 5, the uphill, rocky section.

The gun went off, and the pack set off, navigating the tricky start. By 400m, Gabriel had had enough and positioned himself into 2nd place, behind the committed champion. By 800m, his legs weren't really functional, but he held his position. By 2 miles, he knew he could have a good day. He was descending well and climbing well, his choice of weapon holding up well on the frozen ground. Every turn or so Gabriel would see the leader, and he'd be energized that perhaps he could repeat his form from 2015. So he kept at work. He kept working, step after step through the forest. Finally, he reached the 5 mile mark and started the descent to the finish line, knowing he had wrapped up a stunning personal victory.

Surprisingly, the data showed a race well above his fitness level - again. He had been able to tap into more motivation and inspiration than the field, and it left him quite satisfied... until the following week, where he would look to repeat his performance.