Waldo Lake

Eugene, November 23, 2008

The intensity of my marathon training has reached a new level of understanding. I am starting to get shivers down my spine at the end of runs. I have not felt that satisfying sensation for 8 long years. For 8 long years I have been in the wilderness, numb to the joy of running. I just finished a 130 mile week! With a 24 mile long run! And Oh Lord does it feel good. Sometimes I just don't want to stop running, I feel immortal, like I could run for ever, one foot in front of the other. . .

This past weekend my friend Kelsey and I drove up toward Willamette Pass, past Oakridge to the Waldo Lake turn off. The difficulty became that at over 5,000 ft., the weather quickly turned to a blizzard, and the unplowed road had almost two feet of snow. I put chains on and we started up the 13 mile access road to Waldo Lake. (Waldo Lake is exactly 26 miles around, so in preparation for the trip in the warmth of my Eugene home I figured that with a 40 minute warmup Waldo would prove the perfect training ground for the CIM marathon in a little less than three weeks.) We made it about 5 miles up, when my little Toyota Tacoma pickup started spinning wheels in the ice up the steep grade, and it looked as if we were going to be stopped dead in our tracks. Luckily around the next bend we found a sort of flat turnaround. Utilizing all the muster of my little two wheel drive truck, and a few potently directed prayers, we were able to turn the rig around. I pulled the clutch into neutral, pulled the emergency brake and let motor run while the heater kept us warm; while Carl Orff's "Carmina Burana" was blaring from the stereo speakers and we debated our next move. Somehow I persuaded Kelsey to camp in the back of my truck with a soft topper shell for protection. So we unloaded the canoe, bike and gear and set up camp in back of the truck. Somehow I managed to get a pretty raging fire going, on top of two feet of snow in a blizzard, and we nuzzled as close as we could to the blaze keeping the immediately exposed portion of our body warm. With a thick foamy for padding, warm blankets and below zero sleeping bags we were able to keep surprisingly cosy through the night and the storm. The next morning I awoke at 4 am, put on my running clothes and sat in the cab with the heater on to get nice and toasty before my run. Luckily it had only snowed another couple inches in the night, and the sky was now crystal clear, as the stars sprang down to mother earth with that freezing clarity that burns a whole in one's soul!

My journey through the morning twilight was sublime! I made it to the virgin snow covered lake at dawn. I ran 24 miles, and snowshoed another 8 miles for a 5 hour expedition!

Thanksgiving day I am running a super elite 5K race in San Jose. . . CIM December 7. "The hay is in the barn" as Bill Bowerman liked to tell his athletes two weeks out from their peak championship race.

Godbless and Godspeed!

Gabe Jennings

Monson Half Marathon

Boston, November 9, 2008

Its all happening so quickly. . . I can hardly keep track.

Last weekend Sammy took second in the State Championships! Congratulations Sammy! Sammy made a balsy move with over a mile to go; then Sammy made another ballsy move with 1K to go; then Sammy battled Drew of North Medford all the way to the final lap on the track before his final concession of defeat . All in all, courageous effort! Sasha was a notable 12th and Paige was a heroic 20th. Nora, Amelia and Elia all came through with big high pressure performances. Everybody else was disappointing. The pressure of the State meet is so enormous that many succumb to mediocrity. And of course there is such a thing as an off day. Maybe the coaches are at fault. Maybe I am at fault. Probably, all and none of the above. Anyway, as a whole, I believe the South Axeman are considerably better. We are champions and we should be State Champions.

I now find myself in the penthouse suite overlooking the Charles on Harvard Square of my tremendous hosts and benefactors: Amory (with baby) and David Salem. Yes, our very own and beloved Amory Rowe! Now almost 5 months pregnant with a beautiful belly and radiant aura. I am so proud to be one of the first (the first?) ITA athletes to visit Amory as a soon-to-be-mama.

Earlier today I raced at the Monson 1/2 marathon just 60 some miles west of Boston. I am very encouraged at my performance and I am looking to up the intensity of my training leading into the CIM marathon December 7th in Sacramento.

Here is my initial assessment of the race to Mr. Scott Simmons, coach and Queens University:

"Dear Mr. Scott Simmos: The race today went pretty well. I ran 1:09.3+, which on the surface looks really slow; however, the course was really tough; there was a pretty continuous steep uphill grade until almost the 9th mile. The last 4 miles were screaming downhill, but so what. I took the lead from the gun and came through the first UPHILL mile in 5:20, two miles in 10:30 and I could here footsteps in back of me. At mile 3 the Kenyan behind me tried to surge a 5:10 minute mile up a steep hill, but I held on for dear life. I took mile 4 up another series of hills with the Kenyan on my heels. By mile 5 there was a gigantic hill with no end in sight, and I began to think maybe the course was a point to point uphill all the way. At mile 6 I let the Kenyan get a 20 meter lead, which he extended to 80 seconds by 8 miles. Miles 6, 7 and 8 I ran 5:45, 5:50 and probably close to 6 minutes. The hills were destroying me. Then, finally at 8.25 miles we crested the final hill, but just at that moment the Kenyan in third place closed on me. We hammered the next two down hill miles at 4:55 pace, and by mile 10 we were only 15 seconds back from the leader. At mile 11 we closed to 10 seconds but a blister under my right forefoot started burning so bad that I ran with a noticeable limp, and fell off to 5:20. The last mile I closed well despite the burning, and finished a few seconds in back of second for third and not too far off the leader. Overall I am pretty pleased, and am sure that the time translates to sub 66 on a flat course. See you soon. I am eager to get feedback on how to approach this next month of training before my marathon. Yours Truly Gabe"

And so I am Truly Yours, and Your most Humble and Obedient Servant! God Bless, Kick Ass and Godspeed!

Captain Gabe