Hell Hole Hundred (60k)

Product Review: Altra Torin 2.0

Altra Torin 2.0 Shoe Review

The Torin 2.0 is a well rounded shoe from Altra for any average runner. The shoe's high-cushioned profile offers greater comfort for the long runs while still letting me go fast on harder speed sessions. The cushion felt more plush while running, as if I were wearing memory foam inserts. 

Durability 

After almost 6 months, and ~500 miles on my Torins including one ultra(50k), the shoes have still held up. The durability in the 2.0 has much improved over the previous versions. The outsole has a few minor scuffs and some wear on the rubber outsole. The upper has minor lace eyelet wear but that's pretty much it when it comes to damages. IMO that's pretty good for the amount of mileage on them. 

Upper/Outer Material

The upper is made of a thin, lightweight net material. It isn't as flexible as the material on Altra's One 2.0, but over time it will stretch to accommodate your feet. This was my least favorite part about the shoe since I had a hard time getting my foot "secured." And the heel felt too wide, so I had to really tighten down my shoe laces with a heel lock. 

The outsole is well made and works great for the road and non-technical trails.

Altra's flex grove technology gives this shoe the right amount of flexibility for your feet. This allowed my feet to run and move the way they should as if I were running barefoot. 

Features 

The Torin 2.0, as well as every other shoe from Altra comes complete with a wide toe box and zero drop platform which is very helpful for runners (like me), who run more forefoot.

The wide toe box was a huge plus for me since my feet are wider than most people and wearing this shoe finally gave my feet the chance to breathe. Also, it's most likely not just me that complained before about finding shoes wide enough to wear, which could explain many of the foot problems like overlapping toes or "pointed feet". 

Pros:

-wide toe box

-low drop

-durable

-plush cushioning

Cons:

-too much heel material 

-less flexible upper

I was very pleased Altra's Torin 2.0 upgrades and would recommend this to anyone who likes to go outside and move or just wants a wider, more comfortable shoe. The Torin can be used for a multitude of activities other than running such as hiking, walking, everyday, etc. Click here to pick up a pair of Torin 2.0's, or here for a bigger selection of similar shoes.

2 Important Lessons I learned Running My First Ultra

As I progressed through the training for my first 50K, it seemed that I had planned everything out for a good race experience. Everything from what shoes to wear, to the amount of food to consume, what my goal pace was supposed to be, and so on...

However, I quickly realized the mistakes I made during my run as it started to get progressively harder. Since I got a little carried away with the planning and what to do/what not to do, I thought I had every lesson from the books that I read to the internet I surfed ingrained in my head come race day.
For some people that enter in their first race, the excitement of achieving something you thought you couldn't bring yourself to do and the fear of not being able to finish can flood the minds of many. This mentality can bring with it a flood of adrenaline so strong, you feel you could sprint your way to the finish line...

Sadly, if this is your first race, it could make the thought of finishing vanish from your mind as you slow down to a manageable pace. Starting a race too fast isn't a problem IMO for races under a marathon. Those races are too short for the long-term effects of your error to catch up.

I went through a big learning curve with my first 50k and I hope what I've learned can help others be more aware of these tips for their next race.

Tip #1

Don't Start the Race Too Fast

When I arrived at the starting line, I couldn't really think about much except the thought of how much pain it takes to run 50 kilometers. The adrenaline wasn't allowing me to think straight and I didn't think much throughout the first eight miles until it slowly wore off.

I kept thinking to myself, "I'm not going fast at all. If any, I'm going slow. Maybe everyone else was just slower than me?"

At mile ten, I finally started thinking straight and figured out that I started out way too fast. I was almost burnt out of energy at mile 22 if it wasn't for my constant snacking. The effects soon took their toll as my pace dropped dramatically and eventually runners started passing me. I couldn't believe that I'd wasted so much energy at the beginning of the race, and for WHAT? There wasn't prize money, nobody was competing with each other.

Everyone was there to have a good time, while my big ego got the best of me and screwed me over. The feeling of "dead-weight" in my legs caught up with me quicker than usual and my body wasn't going to give me a break so I went on to finish the race with the thought that I could have slowed my pace down in the beginning still lingering.

Tips #2

Never Try Anything New on Race Day

I'm sure many people have heard this one before since it applies to a race of any distance. You could've run the race in your new shoes, tried out a new electrolyte drink for the first time, or eating a new meal(a meal you rarely ever eat) before the race in hopes that the effort of preparing the meal will translate into a new PR.

While it is very unlikely that something won't happen, don't take that as a sign that you will get the same result of committing this crippling habit later. And here's why...
A few weeks before the race, I read something online about how beets carry an abundance of nitrites which can help a person's blood vessels dilate. This in turn increases the availability of oxygen, improving endurance, and son on. While I can say I didn't feel like I gained superhuman endurance, I will note that it is a bad idea to consume anything with fiber in it before a race since it takes longer to digest, making your stomach feel like a bowl of lead.

While I was glad it wasn't the beets that crippled me later on, it was something I never thought could.

When I signed up for my race, I thought I ought to buy something to help me carry water and food on my long runs and eventually my race. So I picked out a waist belt without too much thought and proceeded to use it in training. Luckily I did, and found out I didn't like it too much since it put pressure on my lower back(Where I put all the water) and decided not to use it.

Sadly this turned most of my long runs into bonk runs, with me having to carry nothing but a small eight ounce water bottle. I didn't carry any food which while helped in my mentality of dealing with "hitting the wall," it was very uncomfortable to go through.

Eventually I bought a 22 ounce water bottle which I absolutely love. The sad part is was that I didn't get more than TWO training runs with it which didn't allow my shoulders to strengthen. Since it weighed less than two pounds, I thought it would make my shoulders sore but not to the point where I had to go to the hospital...
After the race, my legs healed up withing two days and were able to run a week later. My shoulders were sore sore that I couldn't lift them without excruciating pain. After scrambling throught the internet, I tried to find out what I had because at the time, I didn't know it was just a bad case of muscle soreness.

I actually thought I had tendonitis, or some kind of impingement. I felt pain all around the back of my shoulder and some days it would feel better while others I couldn't think about anything but the pain. So two weeks later I decided to finally go to the doctor to what was wrong.

He said it wasn't tendonitis or shoulder impingement, but just soreness. Before I ever started running, I was still into exercising and did strength training using just calisthenics(Yes, it is possible). I was very familiar what sore muscles felt like, but I never had it so bad that I couldn't think about anything else.

These two tips are what I beleive to be the most important especially when applied to ultramarathons. I hope to apply these for the next race with better results. I hope you can apply these lessons within your training or if so, be more aware of just how crucial these two can be.

Running a 50K in 10th Grade?

 

 

 My First Ultra

After finishing my first half marathon, I think to myself "That wasn't too bad." Feeling so confident, I search online for any upcoming marathons until I attempt my first 50K. As I'm searching through the web, I was looking over at the bag I got from the half marathon that contained my race bib. It contained a flyer for an upcoming race called The Hellcat 50K & 10K. I thought it over and decided to sign up for the ultramarathon anyway since it's only five more miles than a marathon. I figured i could at least run the marathon part, and then walk the five extra miles. How hard could it be?

Morning of Jan. 9, Race Day

I've made a few dumb decisions here and there but when did I think it was okay to run 30+ miles? After 3 months of training from a schedule I pulled up from one of my ultrarunning books, I was feeling better about myself to complete the race. After a bowl of oatmeal and a 45 minute drive, my mom had brought me to a trail near a conservation area.I kept going over in my head that I was going to finish what I signed up for and that my goal was to finish in under 6 hours. After standing in place for about ten minutes, frozen by fear, a small little cannon broke the silence and had begun the race.

  Miles 1-10

First several miles felt good as the trail was made of very soft dirt mixed in with sand. My shoes were very comfortable since they allowed me to run more natural and offered plenty of space for my wide feet. But soon my mental attitude started to drift as I noticed I was going too fast too early. At this point, I'm not a very fast runner and rarely did any speed work during training so running 9:30min/mi for 30+ miles was not what I planned. Probably should have stayed with the more experienced crowd about a minute behind me. I finally got to the first aid station and just kept going since I didn't need to refill my water bottle or eat anything yet since I bought plenty of chewables and a few gels. After running the first lap(10K), I noticed the 10K runners finally starting an hour later after the 50K and I started to feel a little better after seeing so many people getting outside and running alongside me.

Miles 10-25

Felt better after eating those Cheetos

This part of the race I don't remember much of, almost like a forgotten dream. The pain in my legs was increasing and my pace even slowed to a shuffle of about 14min/mi. My left hamstring was tightening up really bad around my knee and was preventing me from bending it. After limping to the aid station and completing my fourth lap, I stopped for a moment and wanted to sit down so badly. I looked over at the aid station's food supply and noticed a bag of Cheetos. That bag of Cheetos had so much salt in it that I nearly wanted to sprint the whole way feeling like I just started the race. I got to the second aid station and grabbed a small PB&J sandwich along with a salt tablet. I couldn't handle the taste of sugar anymore and felt nauseous just thinking about anything containing it. With the help of some music, I finally ran at a reasonable pace when I caught up with a man named Patrick.

Miles 25-31

Patrick was another racer that entered the 50K but as a training run for a 155 mile race in Sri Lanka! He was carrying this very large backpack that must have had around 20-30 pounds of food, clothing, gear, and other essentials. We paced each other, motivated each other, and he even shared some advice. My favorite piece of info. he gave me was to "Always finish a race you start, and never be last." It may not be advice by some people's standards but hearing it from him at that moment during the race when I felt like I couldn't even hold 10 min/mi, it sounded pretty inspiring. As we neared the finish line two other guys from behind were catching up when Patrick reminded me "Member what I said about not finishing last? Well it's time to pick up the pace." With about a quarter mile to go, my pace picked up to about 8 minute miles when the two other racers were right behind us chatting about something I couldn't hear very well. The finish line was in sight and immediately I felt a sense of relief, but still I kept increasing my pace until I reached around 7:30min/mi. One of the two men bolted straight through the finish followed by me, then the second racer, and soon Patrick.

Finished

Finish Line

I completed this race in around 5:37:10(hrs:mins:secs) which landed me in 9th place out of 29 finishers..After receiving my medal and a few smiles from the remaining people that stayed, the first thing I did was sit on a nearby bench. Never has it felt so good to sit down. After running a 50K, I felt not only sore in my legs and tendons the next day but developed a better sense of running such a long distance. I felt more comfortable tackling the next distance of 50 miles. Which only get me closer to my goal of running a 100 miler before the end of high school. It's definitely doable with the right amount of training and support from others. As well as educating myself more and more in the ultra community. The Hellcat 50K was a good first ultra to help me achieve my bigger goals. I hope you enjoyed reading my experience with my first ultra and might be inspired to run one yourself? :)