Blog

I didn’t write much about my training the last year, and I regret it. Now that I’m self coaching, I plan to capture it.

I’m in the middle of a 16-week block toward the Gorge Waterfalls 100K, one of the more iconic ultras in the Pacific Northwest. The course runs through the Columbia River Gorge and does exactly what the name suggests: big scenery, waterfalls everywhere, and long stretches of runnable trail that feel friendly right up until the climbing and descending catch up with you. It’s a legit 100K with around 11,000 feet of gain, and it rewards steady pacing and legs that can take repeated hits.

I ran it last year and had a great time. I finished in 14:25:19, 166th out of 310. For my first 100K and the longest run I’d ever done, I was happy with that. The day went about how you’d expect. I messed up hydration and electrolytes, rolled my ankle hard, and spent a lot of time dealing with small problems instead of racing clean. But I kept moving, ran whenever I could, and made it to the finish. It hurt, but it was the good kind of hurt.

This year, I want to do better.

Last year I came to a realization: I’m actually decently fast. Not just “fast for me,” but fast enough to be competitive in the right races. I finished top three in two races last year, one at 5K and one around 24 miles, and that changed how I think about training. I’m still an ultra runner, still focused on long efforts and durability, but I’m not showing up just to survive anymore. I want to race.

There are a few races on the calendar between now and Gorge that help anchor the build. First up is Fort Ebey Kettles Marathon on 2/14, which is exactly the kind of winter trail marathon I like. Honest running, nothing gimmicky, and a good way to check fitness and pacing without getting precious about the result. After that, I’ll probably run Badger Mountain again on 3/28, and I’m still deciding between the 50K and the 50-mile. I loved that race last year, and the course fits well into a 100K build. Long, steady work and enough time on feet to matter.

The rest of the season depends on how the 100-mile lotteries shake out. I already missed Western States, Hard Rock, and The Bear, so now I’m waiting on the one that matters most to me: Cascade Crest 100, with results coming out 1/21. I finished it last year and it was an incredible experience. At the same time, the last 20 miles absolutely wrecked me. I finished, but it wasn’t pretty. I’d like another shot at that course with better preparation and a chance to clean it up.

The main training goal this year is consistency. I’m aiming for a sustainable 60 miles per week, which should land me a bit over 3,000 miles for the year. That feels like the right balance for me. Enough volume to build real strength and durability without turning training into a constant recovery problem. Train hard, recover, repeat.

I plan to update this post each week as the build progresses.

• Week 5 — Jan 19
• Week 6 — Jan 26
• Week 7 — Feb 2

Week 5 — Jan 19

Here’s the plan for this week:

The work this week is designed to connect speed with durability. The Wednesday interval session keeps turnover and aerobic power in the mix without creating lingering fatigue, while the Saturday half marathon provides a long, uninterrupted effort that forces honest pacing and sustained load. Together, they bridge early-season speed work with the kind of continuous stress that shows up late in long races.

This week is also a checkpoint. Not a test of peak fitness, but a way to confirm that speed can coexist with volume, and that harder efforts don’t derail the rest of the week. If I come out of it feeling tired but stable, that’s a win. It means the foundation is holding and the build can keep pushing toward more specificity.

Overall, I feel good. I love Hans Troyer this week and this week I’m vibing to the “mid and fit” mindset. Time to show up, keep stacking the days and weeks, and build toward something that matters.

Week 6 — Jan 26

Week 5 went well. Really well, actually.

The big event was the Snoqualmie River Half Marathon, a small local race I wasn’t even sure I’d race hard until I was standing on the start line. But I felt good, the legs showed up, and I ended up running 1:38:22 for PRs across 10K, 10 mile, 20K, and the half marathon. Also walked away with my first overall win, which was a nice surprise.

That kind of effort takes something out of you, though. Not catastrophically, but enough that you need to respect it. Which brings me to week 6: an aerobic down week.

The idea here is simple. After a harder week with a race effort baked in, you dial back the intensity and let the body absorb the work. It’s not about being lazy; it’s about being smart. The fitness doesn’t come from the workouts themselves. It comes from recovering from them. If you keep hammering without rest, you just dig a hole.

So this week is about steady, relaxed running. No hard intervals. No race efforts. Just aerobic work, some easy hills, and a bit of vert to start building specificity for Gorge Waterfalls 100K and its 11,000 feet of climbing.

Here’s the plan:

The theme is clear: aerobic work, vertical exposure, and letting the body catch up.

One thing I’m trying to keep in mind is I will also travel this week, which brings it’s own kind of stress. And I’m a firm believer that stress is stress.

Fort Ebey Kettles Marathon is coming up on February 14, and I want to show up feeling fresh and ready to race. That means being patient now. Stacking easy days, staying consistent, and trusting that the recovery is just as important as the hard stuff.

I’m feeling good about where I’m at. The half marathon confirmed my fitness is tracking in the right direction, and now it’s time to let that settle in before pushing again. The build continues.

Week 7 — Feb 2

Week 6 is in the books.

Looking back at week 5 and week 6, the progression has been intentional. Week 5 had a race effort baked in with the Snoqualmie River Half Marathon, and week 6 was designed as an aerobic down week to absorb that stress. Travel, early mornings, and accumulated sleep debt made it a harder recovery week than it should have been. But I got through it, and the legs are coming around.

Now it’s time to push again.

Week 7 marks the start of a bigger training block. Two weeks out from Fort Ebey Kettles Marathon on February 14, this is the last real opportunity to stack meaningful work before tapering. I want to race hard at Fort Ebey, and that means this week needs to count.

One thing working in my favor: I’m not traveling. After last week’s San Jose trip and the 3-day offsite, it’s a relief to be home with a normal schedule. No red-eye wake-ups, no hotel treadmills, no juggling workouts around meetings. Just training. Stress is stress, and removing the travel stress means more capacity for training stress.

Sunday night and Monday are all about recovery. Sauna, good food, sleep. Let the body reset before the week’s work begins.

Here’s the plan, adapted from my coach’s prescription:

The week targets around 60 miles with two quality sessions: Wednesday’s 10K intervals and Saturday’s long threshold run. The rest is volume at easy effort, keeping the aerobic engine humming without accumulating unnecessary fatigue.

Wednesday’s workout is about turnover and controlled speed. The 600m repeats at 10K effort keep the legs honest, and progressing through the sets builds the ability to run fast when tired. The steady 2-mile finish at 50K effort bridges the gap between speed and ultra-specific pacing.

Saturday is the anchor. Nearly three hours on feet with threshold intervals woven in. This is the kind of session that builds race-day confidence: long enough to matter, hard enough to hurt, but not so hard that it takes days to recover. The goal is to finish feeling like I could do more, not wrecked.

Fort Ebey is a trail marathon with real terrain, and I want to show up ready to race it, not just finish it. That means this week needs to be consistent and controlled. Hit the workouts, don’t overdo the easy days, and trust the process.

The build continues. Let’s roll.